GB2405710A

GB2405710A - Suspending motion signals of a mouse while repositioning on a mat

Info

Publication number: GB2405710A
Application number: GB0320596A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Adam Clive Messulam
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-09-03
Filing date: 2003-09-03
Publication date: 2005-03-09
Also published as: GB0320596D0

Abstract

A computer has a mouse input device <B>(16)</B> for positioning a pointer or cursor on a display screen <B>(12).</B> By operation of a switch or combination of switches, the computer can be made to disregard movements of the mouse, thereby allowing the mouse to be repositioned on its support surface (mouse mat) without moving the pointer. The switches may either be on the mouse or on the computer's keyboard, eg. the shift key. The control may be implemented within the mouse, or within the mouse driver software.

Description

Mouse Input Device The present invention relates to a mouse input device

for a computer and to a computer having a mouse input device.

As is weld known in the field of computers, in

particular personal computers, a mouse is a device that can be moved over a surface in order to control the position of lo a pointer or cursor on a display screen. In addition to having mechanical or optical means for sensing movement of the mouse over a stationary surface, a mouse normally has manually operable right and left switches and sometimes an additional wheel, itself fitted with a switch. Because all programs that operate in a graphics user interface (GUI) environment require the use of a pointing device such as a mouse, it is not deemed necessary to describe the construction and operation of a mouse, nor indeed of a personal computer, in greater detail.

A problem encountered when using a mouse on a small surface, such as a mouse pad, is that it may not be possible to achieve a sufficient range of movement of the pointer or cursor to reposition it from one end of the screen to the other. Thus one may find the pointer or cursor near the centre of the screen but the mouse at the edge of the mouse pad. In such an event, the mouse has to be physically lifted off the mouse pad and moved to a new position so that it can be relocated on the pad without at the same time moving the pointer or cursor. This users can find irritating.

With a view to mitigating the foregoing disadvantage, a first aspect of the invention provides a computer having a mouse input device for positioning a pointer or cursor on a display screen, wherein the computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse in response to operation of a switch or a combination of switches. - 2

It will be appreciated that the computer can be rendered insensitive to mouse movements either by disabling the mouse sensor or by allowing the mouse to continue sensing movement while sgnalling to the computer to disregard the output of the movement sensor.

To enable the mouse to be disabled by the one hand used to manipulate the mouse itself, the switch may be a dedicated single switch on the mouse. Such a switch may lo simply disconnect the movement sensor or in the case of an optical mouse switch off the light source in the mouse. If the mouse is modified in this manner, then the invention can be implemented without further modification to the computer or its software.

Thus, in accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a mouse input device for a computer, comprising movement sensing means responsive to displacement of the mouse relative to a surface on which the mouse is supported and a manually operable switch mounted on the mouse and connected to disable the movement sensing means.

Though the invention can be implemented by making a hardware modification to the mouse, it is preferred to modify the computer software to enable a conventional mouse to be used. To this end, one of the conventional right, left or scroll wheel switches may be programmed to perform a disabling function. For example, the right switch, unlike the left switch, is not used in selecting and dragging operations and is conventionally only deployed when the mouse is stationary to select additional functions. Thus the existing right switch can be used to signal to the computer to disregard movements of the mouse. - 3

Signailing to the computer to disregard movements of the mouse may require simultaneous operation of two switches, such as the left and right switches. Once again, it is never necessary to effect a right click and left click at the same time and the operation of these two switches simultaneously can be used to signal to the computer to disregard movements of the mouse without affecting the operation of the computer nor changing any of the functions served by the mouse.

As a further possibility, one of the numerous switches on a keyboard may be used to signal to the computer to disregard movements of the mouse. In this context, one may use any key that would not normally be used in conjunction with movement of the mouse. The shift key is particularly suitable as it can be used by both left and right handed people and of itself does nothing to alter the functioning of the computer, regardless of the application that is running at any time. This is important because the sensing of movement of the mouse is carried out by the operating system and it is important that it should not interfere with the operation of any application running under the operating system.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which the single figure shows a typical personal computer.

The drawing shows a typical personal computer comprising a base unit 10 that contains the processor, memory and storage devices such as a hard disk, floppy disk drive and CD/DVD read/write drives. The base unit receives input from a keyboard 14 and a mouse 16 and displays output on a monitor 12. The base unit 10 may be connected to 3s further input or output devices such as a printer or a scanner (not shown). - 4

The mouse aces to position a pointer On the screen of the monitor and is used in different ways, depending on the application. For example, the mouse can be used to select a file or a program by first positioning the pointer over an icon or the file name and then selecting an action to be performed by the use of swatches carried by the mouse 16.

The mouse, in addition to a sensor for detecting its movement over a surface, typically comprises right and left switches 18 and 20, a scroll wheel 22 and a switch activated lo by pressing the scroll wheel 22. The functions served by the various switches are dictated by the program. For example, a graphics program may draw a line if the mouse is moved while one of the switches is operated, while a word processing program may select a block of text.

A problem that is experienced when using a mouse in this manner is that it may reach the end of the surface on which it is resting before the pointer has reached its desired destination on the screen. In the examples given above, the mouse may not be able to move any further before a line of the desired length has been drawn or before the pointer has reached the end of the block to be selected. If the mouse is lifted off the surface to reposition it, it tends to move the position of the pointer on the screen.

In the invention, the user can operate a switch or a combination of switches to disable the sensing of the movement of the mouse. The switch may be one of those already provided on the mouse or a dedicated additional switch on the mouse. If a dedicated switch is provided on the mouse, it may either be used to send a signal to the computer or it may act within the mouse to disable movement sensing by disconnecting a sensor or a light source. As a further possibility, the movement sensing may be disabled by pressing a combination of switches such as the switches 18 and 20 at the same time. - 5

The above possibilities permit the mouse movement sensing to be disabled by using only the hand controlling the mouse but it is alternatively or additionally possible to program the computer to cause depression of one of the keys of the keyboard 14 to disable the mouse movement sensing. In this case, the Escape key or one of the keys not ordinarily used in conjunction with the mouse may be used, the shift keys 24 being preferred. Because there are two shift keys, right and left handed users can readily lo access one of the shift keys with their free hand.

Furthermore depression of a shift key does not normally affect the operation of a computer unless it is performed at the same time as another operation, such as depression of one of the character keys. The use of the shift keys to disable sensing of mouse movement will not therefore affect the computer in any other way, regardless of the program being executed by the computer.

It will be realised from the above that the invention can be implement either by minor modification to a mouse to add a dedicated switch for disabling movement sensing or by minor modification to the mouse driver software to cause movement sensing to be disabled when another operation is detected, such as the actuation of one or more of the mouse switches or depression of one of the keys of the keyboard.

Claims

1. A computer having a mouse input device for positioning a pointer or cursor on a display screen, wherein the computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse in response to operation of a switch o' a combination - of switches.

2. A computer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the - o computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse by actuation of a dedicated switch on the mouse.

3. A computer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the = computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse by actuation of two switches on the mouse.

4. A computer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse by depression of a key on a keyboard connected to the computer. -

5. A computer as claimed in claim 4, wherein the computer is rendered insensitive to movements of the mouse by depression of a shift key on a keyboard connected to the - computer.

6. A mouse input device for a computer, comprising movement sensing means responsive to displacement of the mouse relative to a surface on which the mouse is supported and a manually operable switch mounted on the mouse and connected to disable the movement sensing means.