USER-DEFINED GESTURE ENABLEMENT PROTOCOLS FOR TOUCH INPUT DEVICE
A user interface method is disclosed. For a particular interface, such as a touch input device, the method involves defining an enablement protocol for a function and recording and retaining the enablement protocol of said function, such that a user enables the function by substantially reproducing the enablement protocol in the absence of spatial or temporal indication of at least a portion of the enablement protocol.
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/056,015 filed Feb. 29, 2016, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/473,961, filed May 17, 2012, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,280,279, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/118,047 filed on May 9, 2008, now abandoned, which claims priority under the Paris Convention to Australian Provisional Patent Application No. 2007902519 filed on May 11, 2007 and Australian Provisional Patent Application No 2007902517 filed on May 11, 2007, the contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSUREThe present disclosure relates to user-defined enablement protocols for electronic devices. The disclosure has been developed primarily for providing an enhanced security means for enabling or executing functions of electronic devices through an interface such as a touch-sensitive display, and will be described hereinafter with reference to this application. However it will be appreciated that the disclosure is not limited to this particular field of use.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSUREAny discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field.
Electronic devices often require some form of enablement protocol to activate them or to enable a particular function. For example to activate a mobile phone or to log on to a computer system a user may need to enter an alphanumeric code e.g. ‘123’. A known drawback here is that if an unauthorised person learns the alphanumeric code, it is simple for them to activate the mobile phone or log in to the computer system. If the device is equipped with a touch screen so that the alphanumeric keys can be shown on a display, an additional level of security is available in that the locations of the keys can be scrambled either before or during entry of the code, making it more difficult for another person to learn the code by observation. However once the code is known, it is once again simple for an unauthorised person to enter it. US Patent Publication No. 2008/00823015 discloses a non-alphanumeric method for unlocking an electronic device whereby direction keys are used to traverse a path through a displayed maze, and the device is unlocked if the path matches a path preset by the user. Once again, there is no security once the unlock code (i.e. the path) is known, and the restriction to using direction keys limits the range and complexity of possible enablement protocols.
Compared with a keyboard with hard keys, touch screens offer a much greater range of enablement protocols for an electronic device. Apart from the well-known ‘touch to select’ operation mode where a user selects or enables a function by touching a displayed icon, a user can also provide ‘gestural input’ in the form of one or more swipes or taps for example. US Patent Publication No. 2007/0150842 for instance discloses a method for unlocking an electronic device whereby a person touches a displayed image and moves it along an indicated path. Besides unlocking a device, many other functions can be enabled with gestures on a touch screen. US Patent Publication No. 2006/0026535 for instance discloses various mechanisms for interacting with one or more GUI (Graphical User Interface) elements based on a user interface mode and in response to one or more detected touches. The graphical elements that may be activated include a virtual scroll wheel, a virtual keyboard, a toolbar and a control panel. Functions applied include rotating, translating or re-sizing a displayed image, and scrolling through a list. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,825,352 and 5,943,043 disclose various two finger gestural inputs that emulate mouse functions, while US Patent Publication No. 2007/0177803 discloses the possibility of allowing a user to assign an arbitrary function to a predetermined gesture. However in all these cases the user is either guided by displayed material or the gesture is predetermined, so there is limited opportunity for altering the functionality provided by the device or the mechanisms by which those functions are enabled.
The present disclosure overcomes or ameliorates at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art, and provides a useful alternative.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE In a first broad aspect, the present disclosure provides a user interface method, comprising the steps of:
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- i. defining an enablement protocol for a function; and
- ii. recording and retaining said enablement protocol of said function, such that a user enables said function by substantially reproducing said enablement protocol in the absence of spatial or temporal indication of at least a portion of said enablement protocol.
In one embodiment, defining the enablement protocol for a function comprises user-engagement with an interface, which comprises rises one or more touches or near touches of a touch screen. However, it will be appreciated that a user may also define an enablement protocol by engaging other types or configurations of interfaces, for example a rectangular frame surrounding a space wherein adjacent borders of the frame include optical emitters and the opposing borders include photo-detectors, i.e. essentially a touch-sensitive screen apparatus minus the actual touch surface. Alternatively, or additionally, the enablement protocol may comprise voice recognition of pre-defined commands (audible instructions), or the tracking of eye movements, or some other type of gesture of one or more parts of the human body. Whatever form a user's enablement protocol takes, the user will preferably define or record that protocol in the same form. For example if the enablement protocol is a sequence of touches with a particular rhythm at the top left corner of a touch screen, the user will usually define or record that protocol by actually performing the sequence of touches. Alternatively the user could define or record the protocol by other means, such as a spoken or typed description.
In a second aspect, the present disclosure provides user interface method, comprising the steps of:
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- i. defining an enablement protocol for a function of an electronic device, said enablement protocol comprising at least one user-defined touch on a touch-sensitive area operatively associated with said electronic device; and
- ii. recording and retaining said enablement protocol of said function, such that a user enables said function by substantially reproducing said enablement protocol in the absence of spatial or temporal indication of at least a portion of said enablement protocol.
It will be appreciated that the enablement protocol which comprises a plurality of spatial and temporal data points (i.e. touches and/or gestures) may be selected from one or more of the following non-exhaustive list of spatial or temporal indications: a simple touch, movement of touch, direction of touch, timing or rhythm between touches, force of touch, number of sequential or simultaneous touches, position of touch or shape or change of shape of touch, etc.
According to a third aspect the disclosure provides a method for userdefined enablement of a function through an interface, said method comprising the steps of:
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- i. recording an enablement protocol comprising at least one user-defined touch of said interface;
- ii. assigning said function to said enablement protocol; and
- iii. executing or enabling said function when one or more touches received on or near said interface substantially coincide with the recorded enablement protocol, wherein said interface is without spatial or temporal indication of where at least a portion of said enablement protocol is to be received to execute or enable said function.
It will be appreciated that the function can be enabled by one or more touches, and that the user is required to provide the enablement protocol without spatial or temporal indication of where the enablement protocol should be received to execute or enable the function. In one aspect, the enablement protocol may comprise a plurality of user-defined touches of the interface, and at least one spatial or temporal indication of the plurality of the user-defined touches of the enablement protocol is not shown or displayed on the interface. In such embodiments, for example, the enablement protocol may comprise a swipe of a touch screen with a 1 second dwell time at the conclusion of the swipe. The screen may only show where the swipe should be received and not indicate that the user must hold their finger down at the end of the swipe for 1 second. In this case only one of the two spatial/temporal indications is shown to the user.
In another somewhat related aspect, the function may be enabled when the user input meets a predefined number of spatial or temporal indications. For example, the enablement protocol may comprise a partial swipe of a touch screen, and then a 1 second dwell time, and then a further partial swipe, i.e. swipe+dwell+swipe. The function may be enabled if only two out of these three inputs are received, e.g. swipe+dwell, or swipe+swipe, or dwell+swipe.
According to a fourth aspect the present disclosure provides a method for enablement of a function through an interface, said method comprising the steps of:
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- i. recording an enablement protocol substantially according to a pre-defined enablement protocol, wherein said enablement protocol includes at least one user-defined touch of said interface;
- ii. assigning said function to the recorded enablement protocol; and
- iii. executing or enabling said function when one or more touches received on or near said interface substantially coincide with said recorded enablement protocol, wherein said interface is without spatial or temporal indication of where at least a portion of said enablement protocol is to be received to execute or enable said function.
In this aspect, the user may be presented with a choice of suggested enablement protocols from which they can choose and substantially mimic, thereby recording their own specific and unique enablement protocol. The user can then assign a function to their unique recorded enablement protocol and execute or enable the function when they input an enablement protocol that substantially coincides with the recorded enablement protocol, wherein the interface is without spatial or temporal indication of where at least a portion of the enablement protocol is to be received to execute or enable the function.
According to a fifth aspect the present disclosure provides a method for user defined enablement of a function through an interface, said method comprising the steps of:
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- i. recording an enablement protocol comprising one or more user-defined touches of said interface; and
- ii. assigning said function to said enablement protocol, wherein in response to a user's request for execution or enablement of said function the user is prompted to perform said enablement protocol, wherein said function is executed or enabled when one or more touches received on or near said interface substantially coincide with the recorded enablement protocol, wherein said interface is without spatial or temporal indication of where at least a portion of said enablement protocol is to be received to execute or enable said function.
In this aspect the enablement protocol effectively acts as a ‘gatekeeper’ or security password control over a particular function. Essentially, the user records an enablement protocol, assigns a function to the enablement protocol and then when wishing to execute or enable the function is prompted to input their unique enablement protocol which, if coinciding with the recorded enablement protocol, allows the function to be executed or enabled.
Prior art devices typically require touches or near touches within one or more pre-existing or specified areas to enable a particular pre-defined function. For instance, a simple keypad on a touch display provides alphanumeric material at specific predefined locations, and touches or near touches at these locations must be accomplished in a specific sequence to enable the function, e.g. to activate a device containing the touch display. However, the user-defined interface method according to the present disclosure has no such spatial or temporal indication to a user of where touches or near touches should be received to enable the function, thereby allowing a user to have complete freedom in regard to defining how the functionality of an electronic device associated with the interface is enabled by touch.
To explain, a simple embodiment may involve the activation of a personal electronic device such as PDA or mobile phone. Normally a security code (optionally user-defined) is required to enable the device. This security code is normally a series of alphanumeric keystrokes either on a keypad separate from the display or on the display itself.
In one embodiment the present disclosure envisages no such spatial or temporal indication to a user. Rather a user can define a security code or ‘enablement protocol’ on the device or indeed on an apparatus separate from but operatively associated with the device by defining one or more touches to enable the aforementioned function. One such ‘touch’ may be for instance the touch of a thumb in the upper right hand corner of the screen or other touch sensitive area, or both. Alternatively, several touches at user-defined locations on the screen may enable the device. In another embodiment, a sequence of touches either at the user-defined locations or indeed anywhere on the screen can enable the functionality required. The timing or protocol (temporal sequence) of these touches must then be recreated to enable said function. In more complex arrangements both the spatial and temporal nature of the touches are examined to ensure that they meet the user-defined enablement protocol. In further arrangements, different types of touching bodies could enable different functions by performing otherwise identical enablement protocols. For example a swipe down one side of a touch screen with a stylus enables function A, while the same swipe with a finger enables function B. This embodiment expands the range of functions that can be performed with a limited range of gestures, or alternatively provides an additional security feature.
It can be seen then that any ‘touch screen’ input device can have a series of functions which may only be enabled by the user who defined the aforementioned ‘enablement protocol’, since there is no spatial or temporal indication to assist another party who may wish to enable the aforementioned functions.
In another embodiment, enablement protocols may be linked to the profiles of multiple users such that a single device may be enabled according to the profile of a user who defined a specific enablement protocol.
As an example, user A defines touches in the upper and lower left hand corners of a display to initiate a device. When touches are provided in those upper and lower corners the device is activated according to user A's profile. User B may have an entirely separate profile and may wish the device to be set up according to their specific needs. They therefore define an enablement protocol different from that of user A; not only will other parties not be able to access the device without knowing the enablement protocol of either party, but once user B initiates their particular enablement protocol the device will be activated according to their specific profile.
Indeed even if another person knew some aspects of an enablement protocol, such as the locations to be touched or the particular gesture, other aspects such as the rhythm, pattern or sequence of the touches or their touch signature e.g. finger shape, will be different and therefore they will not be able to replicate the enablement protocol.
The disclosure as described is particularly useful for users with some form of physical handicap that may prevent them from using conventional touch screen devices. By providing complete freedom to an individual user to define enablement protocols for the various functions of a device, they may define the touches in terms of spatial and temporal parameters that they can easily replicate.
Since there is no spatial or temporal indication of the enablement protocol to a user, even a simple single touch or near touch at a specific location may be sufficient as an enablement protocol with enhanced security. This is to be distinguished from known fingerprint readers, which require a direct touch within a specific area.
While enablement by a single touch or near touch is possible with the present disclosure it is generally preferred that two or more touches or near touches be used to define the enablement protocol. Touches and near touches may be detected in several ways, including a touch-down, movement of touch, direction of touch, timing or rhythm (protocol) between touches i.e. temporal sequence, force of touch, number of sequential or simultaneous touches, position of touch, and shape or change of shape of touch approaching, contacting or leaving the touch sensitive area.
One or more of these detection mechanisms may be used to complete the enablement protocol. For instance, if the touch location is correct but the shape of the touch is incorrect the protocol will not be satisfied (i.e. there is not substantial coincidence between the received and the recorded protocol) and the associated function will not be enabled. Similarly if the timing or rhythm between touches is correct but the force applied by those touches is incorrect, once again the protocol will not be satisfied. It will be appreciated that although only selected touch technologies can directly measure the force of an applied touch, certain other touch technologies, especially those with high spatial resolution, can indirectly measure touch force from deformation of the touch object.
Touches or near touches may be detected by any known touch sensing technology including analogue resistive, surface capacitive, surface acoustic wave, projected capacitive, optical and bending wave technologies, bearing in mind that some touch technologies are better suited than others for distinguishing multiple simultaneous touches, should these be part of an enablement protocol. Enablement protocols that include touch shape or change of shape will generally require high spatial resolution, such as may be offered by optical touch detection technologies disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,914,709 and 7,352,940. However any known touch technology, including those mentioned above, can be applied with the present disclosure, with enablement protocols defined within the limitations of that technology. Certain touch technologies, e.g. resistive and bending wave, require a direct touch for activation, whereas other touch technologies, such as optical touch where a sheet of light is established in front of a display, can also sense an object hovering close to the display. The principles of the present disclosure apply whether the touch sensitive device is activated by a touch or a near touch of an interface.
In a further aspect the present disclosure provides a user interface device comprising: a touch sensitive area adapted to detect touches; a display device to display one or more functions; and a storage medium including a user-defined enablement protocol for enabling functions operatively associated with said display device, said enablement protocol including one or more user-defined touches on or near said touchsensitive area, there being no spatial or temporal indication to said user of at least a portion of said enablement protocol.
While it is preferred that the enablement protocol be performed on the display device, this is not absolutely necessary. One could envisage the enablement protocol being applied to a touch-sensitive area or ‘protocol apparatus’ separate from the display device. The user would simply follow the defined enablement protocol and the ‘protocol apparatus’ then communicates with the display device e.g. PDA or computer to enable the function held by that device. Indeed the function itself may be held by a third device, such that instigation of the enablement protocol, the display device and the various functions to be applied to the display device are all held separately.
In another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a user-defined interface method, comprising the steps of:
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- i. defining for an electronic device an enablement protocol for a function of said device
whereby said enablement protocol comprises one or more user-defined touches, - ii. retaining said enablement protocol of said function, and
- iii. enabling said function by said one or more user-defined touches wherein, if a user is provided with spatial or temporal indication for a portion of said enablement protocol, said enablement protocol additionally requires detection of an additional touch parameter.
- i. defining for an electronic device an enablement protocol for a function of said device
Preferably the additional parameter required for the enablement protocol would include one or more of touch movement, direction of touch, timing or rhythm between touches i.e. temporal sequence, force of touch, number of sequential or simultaneous touches, shape and/or change of shape of touch including in different planes e.g. vertical and horizontal, on approach or withdrawal.
To explain, some devices may have a spatial or temporal indication for a portion of an enablement protocol. For instance, a mobile phone may have locations shown on the display that must be pressed in a certain sequence for partial enablement of the protocol. One mechanism to complete the enablement protocol could be temporal i.e. the locations must be pressed in the precise timing and sequence required. In one alternative, if spatial and temporal data are provided e.g. by flashing of the locations, the size and shape of the touch may be detected to confirm enablement by an authorised user. This detection of touch size and shape may be accomplished not only in the plane of the display or touch sensitive area but also in planes above the display e.g. the shape of the touch approaching or leaving the touch sensitive area, if the touch sensor can detect near touches. This touch signature is virtually impossible to replicate by another user and therefore provides a secure individual enablement protocol. It will be clear to a person skilled in the art that there are various other options available to confirm enablement.
Accordingly it can be seen that according to several aspects of the present disclosure there is significant flexibility and security as compared with prior art systems. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description and the claims, the words ‘comprise’, ‘comprising’, and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of ‘including, but not limited to’.
The skilled person will appreciate that the term ‘coincide’, when used herein and when referring to a touch input being compared with a recorded or retained touch input, is meant to define that the inputs should substantially correspond. In one embodiment, as discussed above, the coincidence is substantial overlap in overall touch area, and in another embodiment may also include one or more other parameters, such as dwell time.
In a further embodiment ‘coincide’ may refer to a predetermined number of matches between the spatial and/or temporal data points of the touch or near touch and those of the enablement protocol.
It will be appreciated that when referring to ‘touch’ herein the term is also intended to encompass within its scope the term ‘near touch’.
In one embodiment the touch-sensitive area is larger than the area of the display device and contains the display device within its borders. Generally, conventional touch-sensitive input devices include a display device that is at least as large as the touch-sensitive area. In one embodiment the touch-sensitive area is larger than the display itself and includes the display device within its borders. This is highly unusual but provides advantages over conventional systems, for example the opportunity of producing a smaller display with consequent power reduction. Also, by including the touch-sensitive area outside the display, the display itself is not obscured while input is applied via the touch-sensitive area. The touch portions/locations may be located on a first face of the touch-sensitive area, generally the display side, and/or a second opposite face of the touch-sensitive area. In one particular embodiment the touch portions/locations for enablement of the functions are arranged on the first and second opposite faces of the touch-sensitive area in such a way that they can be simultaneously operated by the thumb and fingers of a user.
Preferred embodiments of the disclosure will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
The present disclosure seeks to overcome some of the difficulties associated with the prior art and provides greater flexibility and security as compared the with prior art systems. In certain embodiments the enablement protocol of the present disclosure acts to restrict the performing of a user-instigated function. That is, a user attempts to perform (whether by touch or otherwise) a function on an electronic device, and the function is only carried out if the user performs their defined enablement protocol required for that function. Generally this enablement protocol will be performed in response to an instruction, an indication or a request for user input from the electronic device, similar to a conventional ‘password’ dialog box. Each user of the device may have defined a single enablement protocol that enables all functions of the device, or they may have defined different enablement protocols for different functions. It will be appreciated that the particular function can be virtually anything, such as activating a device from an ‘off’ state or a sleep mode, logging into a computer system, or accessing a file. For example a computer system may provide different levels of access to different classes of user, with one class of users having full access to a given file, a second class of users having read-only access, and other users barred or restricted access.
In other embodiments that are applicable to functions instigated by touch input, the enablement protocol is embedded in the particular touch input, such as a gesture, that instigates the function. This instigating touch input may be predetermined by the electronic device or by software running on it (e.g. a ‘double tap’ gesture that opens a file), or it may be user-defined (e.g. tracing a person's initials to instigate a phone call to that person). In one example a user may attempt to open a file by double tapping on an icon, but the file will only be opened if the ‘details’ of the double tap gesture, such as the touch object size, the duration of each tap and the delay between the taps, substantially coincide with the pre-recorded gesture (user-defined protocol). In another example a user may assign one particular function to a swipe gesture when the gesture is performed with a finger, and a different function when the swipe is performed with a stylus.
Some specific embodiments will now be described, involving certain enablement protocols that activate an electronic device. However it will be appreciated that these particular enablement protocols could be associated with other functions of the electronic device.
This is clearly a significant advantage over the prior art since it will be virtually impossible for an unauthorised user to determine the enablement protocol without any form of spatial or temporal indication.
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If the resolution and sensitivity of the touch detection apparatus is sufficient, this change of shape of a finger as it approaches, touches and withdraws from the surface 61 can be detected and may form part of an enablement protocol. This is particularly useful since even if the precise spatial and temporal location of an enablement protocol is known by an unauthorised user, the protocol may only be satisfied if the specific shape and change of shape of the touch matches that of the authorised user.
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A further embodiment can be seen in
In another embodiment, an unauthorised person attempting to access the electronic device could attempt to replicate the enablement protocol of an authorised person by carefully inspecting the touch surface for residual finger marks. In cases such as these the enablement protocol may be selected to avoid indicating, from an inspection of finger marks alone, the actual enablement protocol. For example, a circular enablement protocol would not indicate the direction which the user traced out the circle. Similarly, the direction of a swipe would be difficult to interpret from only residual finger marks, and enablement protocols with temporal features such as the rhythm of a touch sequence could not be ascertained from residual finger marks.
It will be clear to persons skilled in the art that the proposed method and device has significant flexibility and security as compared with the prior art. In addition, since all functions of a device may be linked to user-defined enablement protocols, operation of the device is completely user-dependent. This is also particularly helpful for users of such interface devices who cannot use conventional touch techniques, e.g. handicapped persons.
Although the disclosure has been described with reference to specific embodiments, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the disclosure may be embodied in many other forms.
Claims
1. A user interface method, comprising the steps of:
- i. defining an enablement protocol for a function of an electronic device, said enablement protocol comprising at least one user-defined touch on a touch-sensitive area operatively associated with said electronic device; and
- ii. recording and retaining said enablement protocol of said function, such that a user enables said function by substantially reproducing said enablement protocol in the absence of spatial or temporal indication of at least a portion of said enablement protocol.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 19, 2017
Publication Date: Oct 5, 2017
Inventors: Graham Roy ATKINS (Kaleen), Ian Andrew MAXWELL (New South Wales)
Application Number: 15/626,585