Abstract:
A system and method for haptic feedback includes: sensing touch input in at least one area of a touch surface; determining quantitative features of the touch input; determining temporal features of the touch input; and generating a command represented by the quantitative and temporal features of the touch input, said command producing at least one of: an alphanumeric character, a symbol, and an execution instruction.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     None. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention disclosed broadly relates to the field of user experience, and more particularly relates to the field of interacting with computers through touch screens as part of the user experience. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Currently touch screen user interfaces (UI) rely on virtual keyboards as the input device for the user. In order to operate this virtual keyboard the user must be familiar with the key positions on the keyboard, which in the United States generally follow the QWERTY layout. To use the virtual keyboard efficiently, one must be familiar with the key positions. For the visually impaired, Braille keyboards are an option, but they are expensive and somewhat difficult to operate. 
     There is a need for an input method that does not required a keyboard, providing easy accessibility to the visually impaired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Briefly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure a method for haptic feedback includes: sensing touch input in at least one area of a touch surface; determining quantitative features of the touch input; determining temporal features of the touch input; and generating a command represented by the quantitative and temporal features of the touch input, said command producing at least one of: an alphanumeric character, a symbol, and an execution instruction. 
     According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, an information processing system for haptic feedback includes: a touch surface, a haptic feedback subsystem coupled with the touch surface to sense touch input in at least one area of the touch surface; a memory; local storage; and a processor device operably coupled with the memory and the local storage, the processing device performing: determining quantitative features of the touch input; determining temporal features of the touch input; and generating a command represented by the quantitative and temporal features of the touch input, said command producing at least one of: an alphanumeric character, a symbol, and an execution instruction. 
     According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a computer readable storage medium with computer-executable instructions stored therein causes a computer to perform: sensing touch input in at least one area of the touch surface; determining quantitative features of the touch input; determining temporal features of the touch input; and generating a command represented by the quantitative and temporal features of the touch input, said command producing at least one of: an alphanumeric character, a symbol, and an execution instruction. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
       To describe the foregoing and other exemplary purposes, aspects, and advantages, we use the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment of the invention with reference to the drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a simplified illustration of a device in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented, showing the touch input to generate a command producing the letter “B;” 
         FIG. 2  is a simplified illustration of the device of  FIG. 1  showing the letter “A;” 
         FIG. 3  is a simplified illustration of the device of  FIG. 1  showing the letter “T;” 
         FIG. 4  is a simplified illustration of a touch panel divided into two areas for touch input, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 5A through 5D  show finger expression tables for the letters of the alphabet and the numerals zero through nine, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5A  shows the touch input commands for the letters A through J, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5B  shows the touch input commands for the letters K through T, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5C  shows the touch input commands for the letters U through Z, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5D  shows the touch input commands for the number 0 through 9, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 6  shows a touch input device with a divider, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 7  shows a touch input device with a divider, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 8  shows the touch input to generate the ENTER command, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 9  is a high-level flowchart of a method for fingertip expressions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 10  is a simplified depiction of the initial menu screen for fingertip expressions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 11  is a high level block diagram showing an information processing system configured to operate according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
     
    
    
     While the invention as claimed can be modified into alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the scope of the present invention. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Before describing in detail embodiments that are in accordance with the present disclosure, it should be observed that the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of method steps and system components related to systems and methods for placing computation inside a communication network. Accordingly, the system components and method steps have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein. Thus, it will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, common and well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment may not be depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments. 
     We describe an innovative method to broaden the user experience (UE) by allowing touch input to enter alphanumeric characters and commands, without relying on a virtual keyboard. Our method does not require knowledge of traditional keyboard positions. We allow the user to express commands in a simpler and more intuitive manner. We contemplate implementing embodiments of the disclosure on a tablet computer, laptop computer, as well as multiple smaller devices that are in operative communication with each other. 
     Referring now to the drawings in detail, and to  FIG. 1  in particular, we show an apparatus  100  on which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. In one embodiment, we accommodate touch input from two hands. To accommodate the placement of fingertips from both hands using the one-screen embodiment, we contemplate a tablet-size device as the minimum size for this embodiment. For the two-screen embodiment, smaller devices such as touch-screen enabled mobile phones can be used. 
     The screen  120  of  FIG. 1  shows an exemplary implementation of touch input  140  on a tablet device  100 . The ovals  140  represent a touch action on the touch panel  120 . The left-hand image on the screen  120  shows a “Press and Hold” symbol  142  (in darker color) for a fingertip action. The image on the right-hand side is a “Press and Release” symbol  145  for a fingertip action. These two touch inputs, when entered together, are interpreted by the processor as a command to produce the letter “B.” The user simply uses one finger from the left hand and presses it down for at least one second (Press and Hold), while simultaneously tapping (Press and Release) one finger of the right hand on the right-hand side of the touch screen  120 . The processor interprets this action as though the user had typed a letter “B.” Without a keyboard, one could easily enter alphanumeric characters, such as this letter “B.” To take a very simple example and spell out “BAT,”  FIGS. 2 and 3  show the finger expressions for the letters “A” and “T,” respectively. 
     Touch Screen. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , we show a basic illustration of a touch screen  120  which can be any touch screen  120  (touch panel, touch display, touch pad, and the like) that is large enough to accommodate multiple finger taps at the same time. The technology used in this touch screen  120  can be any touch screen technology that is known or contemplated, such as an x-y grid of a transparent electrode layer (shown). Or the touch screen  120  can use ultrasonic wave technology, acoustic wave technology. It can be analog capacitive, resistive, or infrared. Whatever underlying technology that allows the touch screen  120  to recognize a touch and its position on the screen  120  can be used and remain within the spirit and scope of the invention, such as the sensing technology described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,098,234 “Multi-touch Device Having Dynamic Haptic Effects,” incorporated in its entirety as if fully set forth herein. The sensing technology is beyond the scope of the invention, and will not be discussed here. 
     For a full range of alphanumeric capabilities in the one-screen embodiment as shown here in  FIG. 4 , the touch panel  120  is divided into at least two areas (physically or virtually), according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It is contemplated that the screen  120  can be further divided to accommodate more touch input, such as fingertip expressions representing executable instructions and images, but for clarity, we focus on the two-area embodiments. 
       FIG. 4  shows the screen  120  divided into two areas: Area L  410  is for the left-hand side of the touch screen  120 , and Area R  420  is for the right-hand side of the touch screen  120 . For numeric-only expressions, we don&#39;t need to divide the touch screen  120  because we only use up to five digits for representing numbers. Also shown in  FIG. 4  is an area division  450 . This division can be physical, as shown in  FIG. 7 , or a virtual division, as shown here. The virtual divider  450  can be represented by a line down the middle of the screen  120  when the application for touch input is initiated. With the virtual division, since there is no actual divider to bound the areas  410  and  420 , we use an add-on gesture detection. When the user slides one finger on the screen  120  from left-end to right-end (or vice versa) and hits the virtual area division  450 , the device  100  utters a voice/sound to alert the user, shown in  FIG. 6 . 
     Processing. 
     Referring now to the flowchart  900  of  FIG. 9 , we initialize the touch input application in step  910 . This can involve presenting a menu  1000  to the user with options. An example of a menu  1000  is shown in  FIG. 10 . For example, the user first makes a language selection  1010 , which can be spoken. Next, the user can select the type of touch input commands  140  to enter from among at least the following options: the numeric-only option  1020  for dialing telephone numbers or using a calculator function; the alpha-numeric option  1040  for inputting alphanumeric characters; and the enhanced option  1060  which adds special characters such as “@” and “#” for multiple uses, such as tweeting. The enhanced  1060  options allow for entry of commands. After the selections are made, a display area is presented to the user. The display area is touch sensitive. 
     Referring back to  FIG. 9 , we are ready to receive touch input in step  920 . This can involve either initializing a small buffer to a starting point if this is the beginning of a session; or, advancing to the next place in the buffer if not. In step  930  the device  100  receives the touch input command  140 , using touch technology. After the user has input the expressions  140 , we analyze the input, match it to a data store or look-up table  500  (see  FIGS. 5A-5D ) to derive the representative character or instruction in step  940 . At this point we can store the character generated by the touch input  140 . 
     If in step  950  it is determined that the touch input  140  does not match any characters (or commands), then we deliver an error response to the user in step  980 . If, however, the touch input  140  is correct, then in step  960  we produce the alphanumeric character, the symbol, or the instruction corresponding to the finger expression. For example, going back to the example of  FIG. 1 , the finger expression corresponds to the command function to write the letter “B” to memory. In  FIG. 8  we show the touch input for the ENTER command, which can be interpreted as end of input sequence, “end of line,” “end of word,” or “end of file.” 
     In optional step  970  we can output the command matching the touch input  140  by displaying it on the screen  120  or we can use an audio feature of the device  100  to speak the command. This last method would be used for the visually-impaired. In this manner, a visually-impaired person can enter the digits of a phone number and have each one read back to verify correctness before entering the next number. If the audio verification indicates a mistake, the user can then enter the “DELETE” command to try again. 
     Divider. 
     In  FIGS. 6 and 7  we show two examples of physical area dividers  450 . In  FIG. 6  the area divider  650  is a raised object (or conversely, an indented line). The raised object  650  could be in the form of a clip attachment that fits onto a pre-set groove or marking on the housing of the device  100 . An example of a marking is shown in  FIG. 8 . Here we do not show the divider  650  extending all the way across the panel  120 . Instead, the divider  650  is a small indicator that is positioned at the location where a user might rest the part of the hand between the thumb and the wrist. Additionally, small raised (or indented) lines  655  or dots  658  can be placed on both sides of the divider  650  to serve as a guide. In  FIG. 6  we see that the user&#39;s finger placement on the left hand is encroaching into the right area  420  R. When this occurs, an alert  680  is provided to the user. This alert  680  is preferably an audio alert, such as a spoken warning “Keep Left,” “Keep Right,” or a chime or bell, ding, or other sound. The alert  680  can be customized to make a different sound depending on which area is being encroached. 
       FIG. 7  shows the area divider  750  as part of a housing  720  in which the device  100  is placed. The divider  750  can be part of the housing  720  itself, for example, for a soft housing, the divider  750  can be stretchable strip across the front (similar to a rubber band). The divider  750  may also be separate, but coupled to, the housing  720 . In another embodiment the divider  750  attaches directly to the device  100  itself. An indicator on the device  100  such as the line  850  shown in  FIG. 8  marks the midway point for placement of a physical divider  750 , or just to assist a user with hand placement. 
     Look Up Table. 
       FIGS. 5A through 5D  show an illustration of an exemplary table  500  of alphanumeric finger expressions  140 , according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 5A  shows the finger key  145  with the light fingerprint representing a “Press and Release” or “tap” input; and the darker fingerprint  142  representing a “Press and Hold” input, as well as the fingertip expressions  140  for the letters “A” through “J.” 
     1. A=One finger of left hand press and release on area 1. 
     2. B=One finger of left hand press on area 1 &amp; one finger of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     3. C/D/E/F=One finger of left hand press on area 1 &amp; two/three/four/five fingers (respectively) of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     4. G=Two fingers of left hand press and release on area 1. 
     5. H=Two fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; one finger of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     6. I=Two fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; two fingers of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     7. J=Two fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; three fingers of right hand press and release on area 2. 
       FIG. 5B  shows the fingertip expressions  140  representing the letters “K” through “T.” 
     1. K/L=Two fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; four/five fingers (respectively) of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     7. M=Three fingers of left hand press and release on area 1. 
     8. N=Three fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; one finger of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     9. O/P/Q/R=Three fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; two/three/four/five fingers (respectively) of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     10. S=Four fingers of left hand press and release on area 1. 
     11. T=Four fingers of left hand press and hold on area 1 &amp; one finger of right hand press and release on area 2. 
       FIG. 5C  shows the fingertip expressions  140  representing the letters “U” through “Z.” 
     12. U/V/W/X=Four fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; two/three/four/five fingers of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     13. Y=Five fingers of left hand press and release on area 1. 
     14. Z=Five fingers of left hand press on area 1 &amp; one finger of right hand press and release on area 2. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5D , to enter numbers: 
     1=One finger press and release 
     2=Two fingers press and release simultaneously 
     3=Three fingers press and release simultaneously 
     4=Four fingers press and release simultaneously 
     5=Five fingers press and release simultaneously 
     6=One finger press &amp; (One finger press and release) 
     7=One finger press &amp; (Two fingers press and release) 
     8=One finger press &amp; (Three fingers press and release) 
     9=One finger press &amp; (Four fingers press and release) 
     0=One finger press &amp; (Five fingers press and release)/Two finger press &amp; (One finger press and release) 
     Time Limit. 
     The touch input includes a temporal variable; therefore we set an upper bound for a time limit. We select a reasonable time frame, such as 500 ms, to distinguish a successful input. In selecting the threshold time period, we take into consideration the sensitivity of the touch screen  120 . Once a touch is sensed, after 500 ms, we determine what fingertip expressions  140  were entered and convert them to a character. 
     Commands. 
     With this technology we can perform selecting, rating, dialing, and so forth by finger expression. Additionally, we can have up to 80 commands enabled using two touch screen areas  410  L and  420  R. More complex combinations are possible by allowing the left area  410  L (the Press and Hold area) to also accept Press and Release, and vice versa. In addition, we can add an option for more than two areas. As an example, we provide DELETE and ENTER commands. These two commands require that the screen  120  be divided (physically or virtually) into two areas  410  L and  420  R because more than five fingers are required to enter each command. The DELETE command functions by backspacing to the last character entered and deleting it. The ENTER command functions similar to a SUBMIT button and signals the end of a word or number sequence input. 
     Referring again to  FIG. 7  we illustrate how a user enters the DELETE command: 
     5 fingers press and hold on left area  410  L AND 4 fingers press and release on the right area  420  R. 
       FIG. 8  shows finger expressions for the ENTER command: 
     5 fingers press and hold on left area  410  L AND 5 fingers press and release on the right area  420  R. 
     Hardware Embodiment. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 11 , we show a high level block diagram of a computer system  1100  on which any of the described embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. For purposes of this disclosure, computer system  1100  may represent any type of computer, information processing system or other programmable electronic device, including a client computer, a server computer, a portable computer, a tablet computer, a laptop, a mobile device with telephony, a personal digital assistant, Internet TV, Cloud computing, and the like. The computer system  1100  may be a stand-alone device or networked into a larger system. Computer system  1100 , illustrated for exemplary purposes as a stand-alone system, can be in communication with other networked computing devices (not shown) via a network such as the Internet  1190 . As will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the network may be embodied using conventional networking technologies and may include one or more of the following: local area networks, wide area networks, intranets, public Internet and the like. 
     Computer system  1100  includes, inter alia, processing device  1102  which communicates with an input/output subsystem  1106 , memory  1104 , storage  1110 , and a link to a network  1190 . The processor device  1102  is operably coupled with a communication infrastructure  1122  (e.g., a communications bus, cross-over bar, or network). The processor device  1102  may be a general or special purpose microprocessor operating under control of computer program instructions executed from memory  1104  on program data. The processor  1102  may include a number of special purpose sub-processors such as a comparator engine, each sub-processor for executing particular portions of the computer program instructions. Each sub-processor may be a separate circuit able to operate substantially in parallel with the other sub-processors. 
     Some or all of the sub-processors may be implemented as computer program processes (software) tangibly stored in a memory that perform their respective functions when executed. These may share an instruction processor, such as a general purpose integrated circuit microprocessor, or each sub-processor may have its own processor for executing instructions. Alternatively, some or all of the sub-processors may be implemented in an ASIC. RAM may be embodied in one or more memory chips. 
     The memory  1104  may be partitioned or otherwise mapped to reflect the boundaries of the various memory subcomponents. Memory  1104  may include both volatile and persistent memory for the storage of: operational instructions for execution by CPU  1102 , data registers, application storage and the like. Memory  1104  preferably includes a combination of random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM) and persistent memory such as that provided by a hard disk drive. The computer instructions/applications that are stored in memory  1104  are executed by processor  1102 . The computer instructions/applications and program data can also be stored in a hard disk drive for execution by processor device  1102 . 
     The computer system  1100  may also include a communications interface  1112 . Communications interface  1112  allows software and data to be transferred between the computer system  1100  and external devices, such as another computer system  1100  or a remote data store  1145 . Examples of communications interface  1112  may include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, a PCMCIA slot and card, etc. Software and data transferred via communications interface  1112  are in the form of signals which may be, for example, electronic, electromagnetic, optical, or other signals capable of being received by communications interface  1112 . 
     A haptic subsystem  1116  is also in operative communication with the processor device  1102 , the I/O subsystem  1106 , and memory  1104 . The haptic subsystem  1116  includes those components necessary for enabling touch screen technology, such as sensors  1130 , an actuator  1132  and a touch panel  120 . 
     The computer system  1100  may also include, inter alia, a removable storage drive  1119 , representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, and the like. The removable storage drive  1119  reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit  1120  in a manner well known to those having ordinary skill in the art. Removable storage unit  1120 , represents a floppy disk, a compact disc, magnetic tape, optical disk, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, etc. which is read by and written to by removable storage drive  1110 . As will be appreciated, the removable storage unit  1120  includes a non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein computer software and/or data. 
     Therefore, while there has been described what is presently considered to be the preferred embodiment, it will understood by those skilled in the art that other modifications can be made within the spirit of the disclosure. The above description(s) of embodiment(s) is not intended to be exhaustive or limiting in scope. The embodiment(s), as described, were chosen in order to explain the principles of the disclosure, show its practical application, and enable those with ordinary skill in the art to understand how to make and use the disclosure. It should be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the embodiment(s) described above, but rather should be interpreted within the full meaning and scope of the appended claims.