KR20010060277A - Method, system and program for processing data from input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method, system, and computer program for managing an input event are provided to perform an other input action by selecting other segment regions of a display. CONSTITUTION: A window manager judges whether a window displayed on a display zone having an X-Y coordinate exists(52). The window manager judges a window overlapped on an X-Y position having the highest Z sequence and judges whether the window is an active window(60). If the window is not the active window, the window manager generates the window as the active window(62). If the window is the active window, the window manager judges segment regions in the active window(64). The window manager judges a segment including the X-Y position in which a graphic indicator is located when a button of an input device is clicked(66). The window manager judges an input operation mapped by the judged segment(68), and transmits a message to an application having the active window(70).

Description

How to manage input events, system and computer program products {METHOD, SYSTEM AND PROGRAM FOR PROCESSING DATA FROM INPUT DEVICE}

The present invention relates to a method, a system and a computer program product for determining an input action associated with an input event from an input device.

In a conventional window type operating system, a user selects a displayed window using a mouse input device. Currently available input devices, such as a mouse and pen stylus, that allow a user to manipulate graphical indicators in the display area, have one or more input buttons selectable by the user. The user selects one of the buttons while a pointer controlled by the input device is displayed on the displayed graphics window of the application program. By selecting one of the input device buttons, a message instructing the user's action is sent to the application program displaying the active window. The application program may be associated with buttons of input devices having different input commands, ie different control options. For example, in a word processing application program, the cursor displayed at the indicated position may be positioned by selecting the left mouse button, and the word processing operation menu may be displayed by the selection of the right mouse button. In this way, different buttons of the mouse and pen stylus input device can be selected to generate different actions in the application program. In such a conventional system, when an input event occurs, the same operation is executed regardless of the position of the indicator in the application window.

Some conventional input devices do not have input buttons that can generate different levels of control directly from the input device. For example, a one-button mouse can only trigger a single action from an application program. In addition, a user manual selection on a pen stylus or touch screen display without a button may indicate a single action that occurs in relation to the application program, that is, a word, field or other location within the displayed window of the application program. Generate the action of choice.

There is a need in the art for improved methods, systems, and programs to provide multiple levels of control using input devices, beyond selectable options available on input devices.

To overcome the limitations of the prior art, the present disclosure discloses systems, methods, and programs for managing input events of a computer. A selection of a display object position displayed on a computer monitor and an indication of an input event are received, and a segment of the display object having the selected position is determined. The display object has at least two segments so that each segment can be mapped to a different input operation. Then, one input operation for the determined segment is determined. Herein, the application program command corresponds to the determined input operation.

Also in a preferred embodiment, the selected position is in the display area of the application window which is controlled by executing the application program.

Furthermore, determining the segment of the display object may include determining a segment of the application window and determining a segment of the application window having the selected position.

In addition, the preferred embodiment simulates an input device such as a mouse indicator or touch sensitive display screen that simulates other input operations on an input device having multiple buttons, such as a multi button input device. Provide a mechanism for doing this. This is done in a preferred embodiment by segmenting the display area of the display object and assigning an input action to each segment. Performing the same input event on different segments of the display object results in different input operations depending on the segment in which the input event occurs. In this way, another input operation is performed by selecting another segment area of the display.

1 illustrates a computing environment implementing a preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention.

2 shows an example of a method of displaying an application on a display screen in a manner known in the art.

3 illustrates the segmentation of an application window according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 illustrates logic to determine an input operation corresponding to an input in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 illustrates segmentation of a display object in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

2: computer

4: input driver

6: window manager

8a, b, c: application program

10: input device

12: monitor

14a, b, c: application window

20: Application GUI window

22: Control Menu

24: Application area

DETAILED DESCRIPTION In the following detailed description, reference is made to the drawings that form various aspects of the invention and illustrate various embodiments. It may be used in other embodiments and modified structurally and operationally without departing from the scope of the invention.

1 illustrates a computing environment implementing a preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention. The computer 2 has an input driver 4, a window manager 6 and an executable application program 8a, b, c. Input devices such as a mouse, pen stylus, touch sensitive display screen, and the like interpret the movement of a user as an input command. The input command is interpreted by the input device into computer readable data indicative of moving coordinates with respect to the display. The operating system 6 receives this input information and determines the applications 8a, b and c which are the purpose of the user input. The display monitor 12 displays information generated from the computer 2.

The computer 2 is any computing device operated with microprocessor control known in the art, including personal computers, workstations, clients, servers, laptop tops, hand-held devices, and the like. Is done. The window manager 6 is a component of the operating system that manages, creates, and displays graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for other running application programs 8a, b, and c. The window manager is Microsoft Windows 95, 98, NT (above, registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation) and CE, OS / 2 (IBM registered trademark) Red Hat (registered trademark of Red Hat Corporation) Linux and MAC OS (registered trademark of Apple Computer Corporation) It may be implemented in operating systems known in the art, such as. The display monitor 12 may be any computer display device known in the art, such as LCD screens, CRTs, touch sensitive screens, and the like. The application program 8a, b, c may be comprised of any application program known in the art that can create a separate GUI window on the display monitor 12.

2 illustrates a state in which the display 12 displays the applications 8a, b, c on a screen in a manner known in the art. The window manager 6 creates three GUI windows 14a, b and c on the display monitor 12 to provide a user interface to each of the applications 8a, b and c, respectively. In the arrangement of the GUI windows 14a, b, c, the window 14a is the active window that the user is currently accessing. In this case, window 14b is an inactive window and is generally displayed behind the active window 14a. The user may manipulate a graphical pointer 16 using an input device on the display 12. In Figure 2, the graphical indicator is currently performing an operation within the window controlling the application.

In a preferred embodiment, the window manager 6 has the function of defining each displayed GUI window 14a, b, c as a multi selection segment. 3 illustrates an application GUI window 20 having a control menu 22 with menu items and icons that the user selects to execute a particular command in the application. The window has an application area 24 defined by the window manager 6 as four conceptual segments (A, B, C, D). The user directly manipulates the application program in the application area 24 using graphic indicators 16 and the like, converts text in documents, and values in spreadsheets or databases. Can be used to manipulate the displayed elements to instruct.

The window manager 6 defines an area for each segment each having Cartesian (X, Y) coordinates in the segment area. The action to be performed in response to an input event generated by the user's input device operation is when the graphical indicator 16 is located when the user selects an input option (e.g., when a mouse or pen stylus is pressed a button). Depends on segments A, B, C, and D.

For example, when the user places the graphic indicator 16 on the segment A by operating the input device 10 and selects it by pressing a button of the input device 10 or applying a constant pressure, the first operation is performed. Can be performed. Similarly, the graphic indicator 16 is placed and selected in different segments B, C and D to perform different operations. As such, each segment A, B, C, D may be associated with a different operation when the user performs the same operation in that segment. Other operations that are performed include displaying other menu options in a pop-up menu, performing other application operations, and performing window management operations (eg, adjusting the window size). do. In this way, the application area 24 can be divided into segments into areas that yield different operational results for the input event associated with the input device.

In a preferred embodiment, the window manager 6 maintains the mapping of segments (eg A, B, C, D) with other control buttons of a multibutton input device such as a multibutton mouse or pen stylus. For example, if the input device 10 has only one button, the mapping may map a segment to multiple input device buttons. In this case, segment A clicks the right mouse button, segment B clicks the left mouse button, segment C clicks the right mouse button twice, and segment D clicks the left mouse button. You can map by clicking twice. As such, when a button of an input device is clicked on a segment, an input device having multiple buttons to select can simulate a specific operation. A user control panel (not shown) may be provided to allow the user to specify the number of segments in the window and input control operations that map the segments.

4 illustrates logic implemented within window manager 6 to process input information received from input device 10 when application area 24 is segmented into multiple display regions associated with different input operations. Control begins in block 50 where the window manager 6 receives the X-Y coordinates of the displayed position of the graphic indicator 16 from the input device 10 when the user selects the button in a manner known in the art. Otherwise known as a "hot spot." The window manager 6 determines whether there is a window displayed on the display area with X-Y coordinates (block 52). If not, the window manager processes the selection according to control options for the selection of the computer desktop (block 54). If there is one window covering the display area with X-Y coordinates, the window manager determines if there are multiple windows displayed on the X-Y coordinates (block 56). If there are multiple windows, the window manager 6 determines the window with the highest Z order in a manner known in the art (block 58). The Z order indicates a state in which the windows are displayed overlapping each other, that is, how the windows are displayed over each other.

In the case of multiple windows, after determining the windows overlapping the X-Y positions having the highest Z order, the window manager 6 determines whether the windows are the active windows (block 60). If not, the window manager 6 makes the window the active window (block 62). Alternatively, if the window is an active window, the window manager 6 determines the segment area within the active window (block 64). If the segment comprises a display section that is a quarter section or some other ratio, the window manager 6 applies the segment ratio to the entire active window to bring the active application windows 14a, b, c into the window. Divide into segments according to the ratio and segment alignment maintained by the manager (6). Subsequently, the window manager 6 determines a segment including the X-Y position where the graphic indicator 16 is located when the button of the input device is clicked (block 66). The window manager 6 also determines the input operation in which the determined segment is mapped (block 68). The message is then sent to the application with the active window (block 70). The message includes the X-Y position and the determined input operation.

In response to the message, the application 8a, b, c performs an operation corresponding to the input operation indicated in the message. Each application may include a unique mapping to an application command of an input operation such as, for example, right button selection, left button double click. As such, the application is believed to receive input from an input device comprising multiple buttons and selection options when the actual input device 10 has only one button or no button in the case of a touch sensitive screen.

In a touchscreen embodiment, when the user presses the touch sensitive screen on a segment of the application window 24, the window results in the execution of an operation that maps to the selected segment. If the touch screen is sensitive to the degree of contact, light contact may select a component within the application window 24, and relatively strong contact may trigger the operation associated with the segment that made the contact. For touch screen embodiments, step 50 includes receiving an X-Y coordinate of a location on the touch screen pressed by the user, and step 64 includes determining a segment of the screen pressed by the user.

The preferred embodiment allows a single input event generated by the input device to be mapped to another input operation generated by another type of input device based on the location selected when the input event occurs. As such, the segment is used to map the operation of a buttonless input device, such as a touch screen, to the operation of an input device with multiple buttons, such as a multi-button mouse. A preferred embodiment divides the display area of a display object, such as a window, into segments so that a user can generate other commands with a single selection of the input device, for example by pressing a touch sensitive screen or pressing a button on the input device.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the description of preferable embodiment of this invention is put together. The following describes alternative embodiments for achieving the present invention.

The above preferred embodiments may be implemented in articles of manufacture using standard programming and / or engineering techniques that are manufactured by methods, apparatus or software, firmware, hardware or a combination thereof. The term "article of manufacture" (also called "computer program product") as used herein refers to one or more computer programs, and / or magnetic recording media, "floppy disks", CDs. Embed a data file accessible from a medium, one or more computer readable devices, or a carrier, such as a ROM, a holographic unit, a volatile or nonvolatile memory. Further, the article of manufacture can achieve the preferred embodiment of a transmission medium such as a network transmission line, a wireless transmission medium, a signal space radio wave, a radio wave, a low frequency signal, or the like. Of course, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications can be made to the construction without departing from the scope of the invention.

The preferred embodiment can be applied to mapping to the input operation of the input event generated from the input device. For example, one or more buttons of an input device are mapped to other input actions that can be interpreted by an application.

Further, in alternative application level embodiments, each application program may maintain mapping of segments to input operations. In such an embodiment, the window manager sends a message to the application program indicating the button selected by the input device having only the X-Y coordinates of the indicator and one button or, in the case of a touch sensitive screen, no button. The application program then determines a segment having an XY position (i.e., a hot spot), and the other input operation, which may be an input operation on an input device having an alignment of an input mechanism other than that on the actual input device. Think on.

Preferred embodiments have been described in terms of segmenting the window into other parts corresponding to other input operations. In another embodiment, when other segments of the display object are selected, display objects other than the window may be segmented to yield different input operations. It may be segmented into graphical icons, window desktops, HTML, web pages, application GUIs or other corresponding input operations including other known displayed images, objects or GUIs.

5 illustrates a display of a window 200 that includes display objects 202 such as menus, icons, and the like. The display object is divided into two parts 202a and 202b. By selecting one segment 202a, an operation and display of options different from the operation and display of options according to the selection of the segment 202b are generated. As such, any display object may be segmented to provide other control features according to the segment of the selected customer. For example, different segments or regions of the displayed menu can be selected to drive different menu operations.

In summary, the preferred embodiment provides a system, method, and program for managing an input event of a computer. Receive a selection of a display object position displayed on a computer monitor and an indication of an input event, and determine a segment of the display object including the selected position. In this case, the display object may have two segments, and each segment may be mapped to a different input operation. The input operation for the determined segment is determined. The application program command corresponds to the determined input operation.

As noted above, the present invention provides an improved method, system, and program for providing multiple levels of control using an input device beyond selectable options available on the input device. That is, the present invention performs the same input event on different segments of the display object, and consequently obtains different input operations according to the segment in which the input event occurs. In this way, different input operations are performed by selecting another segment area of the display.

In the foregoing, the detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many improvements and modifications are possible in light of the above. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims. The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the invention. As there may be many embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, the invention is based on the appended claims.

Claims (21)

In the method of managing the input event of the computer, (1) receiving an indication of a location selection and an input event on a display object displayed on a computer monitor; (2) determining a segment having the selected position in the display object, wherein the display object has at least two segments, each of which may map to a different input operation; and , (3) determining an input action for the determined segment, wherein an application program command corresponds to the determined input action. The method of claim 1, And the display object is a component that is a set of display objects including a window, an icon, and a displayed desktop. The method of claim 1, And the display object is an application window controlled by executing an application program. The method of claim 3, The determining of the segment of the display object may include: Determining a segment of the application window; And determining a segment having the selected position in the application window. The method of claim 4, wherein Each segment is defined by a specific ratio of the application window, And determining the segment of the application window comprises applying a ratio of each segment to the application window to determine an area having the segment in the application window. The method of claim 3, Sending a message indicating the selected position and the determined input operation to the application program; And the application program maps the determined input operation into a command to execute. The method of claim 3, The selected location is within the display area of the plurality of application windows controlled by another application program, Determining the segment with the selected location in the display object further comprises determining an application window that is the highest Z-order in the application window with the display area having the selected location, And the determined application executes a command corresponding to the determined input operation. The method of claim 1, The input event includes a user pressing a touch sensitive display screen, and wherein the selected position is a position where the user pressed the touch sensitive display screen. The method of claim 8, And the input operation for each of the segments corresponds to one input operation performed by a multi button input device. The method of claim 1, The input event includes the user pressing a button of the input device, And the input device controls the movement of the indicator used to determine the selected location. In the system for managing input events, ① with a computer, ② input device to communicate with the computer A display monitor in communication with the computer; Means for receiving a selection of a location on a display object displayed on the computer monitor and an indication of an input event generated by the input device; Means for determining a segment having the selected position in the display object, wherein the display object has at least two segments, each of which may map to a different input operation; (6) means for determining one input operation for said determined segment, wherein an application program command corresponds to said determined input operation. The method of claim 11, And wherein the display object is a component that is a set of display objects comprising windows, icons, and displayed desktops. The method of claim 11, And the display object is an application window controlled by executing an application program. The method of claim 13, Means for determining the segment of the display object, Means for determining a segment of the application window; Means for determining a segment having the selected location in the application window. The method of claim 14, Each segment is defined by a specific ratio of the application window, Means for determining the segment of the application window comprises means for applying a ratio of each segment to the application window to determine an area having the segment in the application window. The method of claim 13, Sending a message indicating the selected position and the determined input operation to the application program; And the application program maps the determined input operation into a command to execute. The method of claim 13, The selected location is within the display area of the plurality of application windows controlled by another application program, Means for determining a segment having the selected location on the display object further comprises means for determining an application window in the highest Z order among the application windows with a display area having the selected location, And the determined application executes a command corresponding to the determined input operation. The method of claim 11, The input event includes a user pressing a touch sensitive display screen, wherein the selected position is a position where the user pressed the touch sensitive display screen. The method of claim 18, And the input operation for each segment corresponds to one input operation performed by a multi-button input device. The method of claim 11, The input event includes the user pressing a button of the input device, And the input device controls movement of an indicator used to determine the selected location. Claims [1] An article of manufacture comprising a medium usable and computer accessible to a computer and used to manage input events of a computer. (1) receiving an indication of a location selection and an input event on a display object displayed on a computer monitor; (2) determining a segment having the selected position in the display object, wherein the display object has at least two segments, each of which may map to a different input operation; (3) determining at least one input operation for the determined segment, wherein an application program instruction corresponds to the determined input operation; Preparation comprising a.