One embodiment provides a method, including: detecting, using at least one sensor of an information handling device, a gaze location of a user; activating, responsive to detecting that the gaze location is directed at a predetermined location, a gesture recognition module associated with the information handling device; identifying, using the gesture recognition module, at least one gesture provided by the user; and performing at least one action based on the at least one gesture. Other aspects are described and claimed.

BACKGROUND

Information handling devices (“devices”), for example smart phones, tablet devices, stand-alone digital assistant devices, laptop and personal computers, and the like, are capable of receiving and processing gesture inputs from one or more users. As an example, one or more sensors on a device may be active to detect user motions. Responsive to the detection of a user motion that matches a recognized gesture input command, the device may perform a corresponding function based on the gesture input command.

BRIEF SUMMARY

In summary, one aspect provides a method, comprising: detecting, using at least one sensor of an information handling device, a gaze location of a user; activating, responsive to detecting that the gaze location is directed at a predetermined location, a gesture recognition module associated with the information handling device; identifying, using the gesture recognition module, at least one gesture provided by the user; and performing at least one action based on the at least one gesture.

Another aspect provides an information handling device, comprising: at least one sensor; a gesture recognition module; a processor; a memory device that stores instructions executable by the processor to: detect a gaze location of a user; activate, responsive to detecting that the gaze location is directed at a predetermined location, the gesture recognition module; identify, using the gesture recognition module, at least one gesture provided by the user; and perform at least one action based on the at least one gesture.

A further aspect provides a product, comprising: a storage device that stores code, the code being executable by a processor and comprising: code that detects a gaze location of a user; code that activates, responsive to detecting that the gaze location is directed at a predetermined location, a gesture recognition module; code that identifies, using the gesture recognition module, at least one gesture provided by the user; and code that performs at least one action based on the at least one gesture.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Gesture inputs are often utilized when the provision of physical input (e.g., touch input, keyboard input, mouse input, etc.) or voice input is inconvenient and/or impractical. For example, a user positioned away from a device and in a loud environment (e.g., a crowded room, etc.) may want to skip to the next song on a musical playlist. The user may be too far away from the device to provide physical input and the provision of audible input would likely be ineffective due to the noise levels in the current space. To overcome these obstacles, a user may direct a gesture command toward the device (e.g., a swipe motion of their hand, etc.) that, once detected, may instruct the device to skip to the next song.

As illustrated in the foregoing example, gesture input commands may be convenient to use in certain situations. However, conventional methods of detecting and processing gesture input commands are flawed. For instance, using the foregoing example, a gesture recognition module may be unable to adequately identify the user's gesture input command due to the motion created by many others in the user's space. Additionally or alternatively, the gesture recognition module may mistake the inadvertent motion made by another individual as the gesture input command. Furthermore, in order to capture the gesture input command, conventional gesture recognition modules are always-on. That is, conventional gesture recognition modules are continuously scanning for gesture input commands, which consumes a great deal of power.

Accordingly, an embodiment provides a method for activating a gesture recognition module of a device that may thereafter detect and process gesture inputs provided by a user. In an embodiment, a gaze location of a user may be detected. An embodiment may thereafter determine whether the gaze location corresponds to a predetermined location (e.g., a specific object, a specific direction, etc.) and, responsive to determining that it does, an embodiment may activate a gesture recognition module associated with the device. For example, an embodiment may activate a gesture recognition module responsive to determining that the gaze of the user is directed at the device. An embodiment may thereafter identify a gesture provided by the user and perform a corresponding function based on the gesture. Such a method may prevent users from inadvertently providing gesture inputs to a device.

System100typically includes one or more of a WWAN transceiver150and a WLAN transceiver160for connecting to various networks, such as telecommunications networks and wireless Internet devices, e.g., access points. Additionally, devices120are commonly included, e.g., an image sensor such as a camera, audio capture device such as a microphone, motion sensor, external storage device, etc. System100often includes one or more touch screens170for data input and display/rendering. System100also typically includes various memory devices, for example flash memory180and SDRAM190.

Information handling device circuitry, as for example outlined inFIG. 1orFIG. 2, may be used in devices such as smart phones, tablets, independent digital assistant devices, personal computer devices generally, and/or electronic devices that comprise a gesture recognition module and are capable of detecting a direction of user gaze, identifying gesture input, and performing an action based on the gesture input. For example, the circuitry outlined inFIG. 1may be implemented in a tablet or smart phone embodiment, whereas the circuitry outlined inFIG. 2may be implemented in a laptop embodiment.

Referring now toFIG. 3, an embodiment may activate a gesture recognition module responsive to identifying that a user's gaze is focused on a predetermined location and thereafter perform an action correspondent to a recognized gesture provided by the user. At301, an embodiment may detect a gaze location of a user. In the context of this application, a gaze location of a user may refer to a direction in which a user's eyes, or head, are turned or focused. In an embodiment, the detection of the gaze location may be conducted by at least one sensor, e.g., an image capture device (e.g., a static image camera, etc.), a video capture device (e.g., a video camera, etc.), a range imaging device, a three-dimensional (“3D”) scanning device, a combination thereof, and the like integrally or operatively coupled to the device. As an example implementation of the detection method, an embodiment may capture an image of a user using one or more cameras and thereafter analyze the image (e.g., using one or more conventional image analyze techniques, using one or more conventional eye tracking techniques, etc.) to identify the direction the user is staring and/or to identify an object a user is staring at.

In an embodiment, the at least one sensor may be configured to always attempt to detect a gaze location of a user. Stated differently, the at least one sensor is always active and consuming power to perform detection functions. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the at least one sensor may only activate responsive to the satisfaction of a predetermined condition. For example, the at least one sensor may only activate responsive to receiving an explicit user activation input or when the device has received an indication that a user is within a predetermined proximity to the device.

At302, an embodiment may determine whether the gaze location of the user is directed at a predetermined location. In an embodiment, the predetermined location may be associated with a portion of the device (e.g., a display screen of the device, a camera lens of the device, etc.). Alternatively, the predetermined location may be associated with a general location (e.g., the general direction the device is located in, etc.) or another device. Responsive to determining, at302, that the gaze location is not directed at the predetermined location, an embodiment may, at303, do nothing. More particularly, an embodiment may ignore any type of user inputs provided to the device. Conversely, responsive to determining, at302, that the gaze location is directed at the predetermined location, an embodiment may, at304, activate a gesture recognition module associated with the device. In the context of this application, a gesture recognition module may be a hardware or software unit of the device that is capable of receiving and processing non-audible, gesture inputs provided by a user. In an embodiment, the gesture recognition module may remain active for a predetermined amount of time (e.g., 5 seconds, 10 seconds, etc.) or until a gesture input is identified.

As a non-limiting example implementation of the foregoing, responsive to determining that a user's gaze is directed at a display screen of the device, an embodiment may thereafter activate a gesture recognition module associated with the device that is capable of receiving and processing gesture inputs provided by the user. In an embodiment, the gesture recognition module may not be activated until an embodiment determines that a user's gaze is directed at the predetermined location for a predetermined amount of time (e.g., 5 seconds, 10 seconds, etc.). Such an embodiment may prevent unintentional activation of the gesture recognition module (e.g., in situations where a user only glances at the predetermined location without having the intention to provide gesture input, in situations where a disabled user cannot control the motion of all parts of their body, etc.).

In an embodiment, a notification may be provided to the user responsive to the activation of the gesture recognition module. The notification may serve as an explicit indication to the user that the gesture recognition module is active and ready to receive and process gesture inputs from the user. In an embodiment, the notification may be a visual notification in which a visual characteristic of the device is adjusted. For example, an embodiment may: provide a textual message on a display screen of the device or another device that the gesture recognition module is active, display an animation or video indicating that the gesture recognition module is active, emit one or more flashes, and the like. In another embodiment, the notification may be an audible notification in which an audible sound is emitted (e.g., from one or more audible output devices such as speakers, etc.). For example, an embodiment may: emit a predetermined sound, provide a phrase indicating that the gesture recognition module is now active, etc. The foregoing notification methods may be used alone or in combination.

Responsive to the activation of the gesture recognition module at304, an embodiment may attempt to identify, at305, whether any gesture input has been provided by the user. In the context of this application, gesture input may be any type of non-audible input that a user provides via movement of one or more body parts. As a non-limiting example, a gesture input may be a predetermined hand motion in which a user moves their hand in a specific pattern. In an embodiment, the gesture recognition module may attempt to identify recognizable gesture inputs by comparing detected motions (e.g., body motion, etc.) to a database comprising a listing of known or recognizable gestures. Responsive to determining that a detected motion shares a predetermined level of similarity (e.g., 50% similarity, 75% similarity, etc.) with a recognizable gesture in the database, an embodiment may conclude that the detected motion corresponds to a recognizable gesture.

Responsive to not identifying, at305, any recognizable gesture inputs, an embodiment may, at306, do nothing. Additionally or alternatively, an embodiment may notify a user that no gesture input has been received or was able to be identified. Additionally or alternatively, an embodiment may deactivate the gesture recognition module if no gesture inputs have been identified within a predetermined period of time and may notify the user of that fact. Conversely, responsive to identifying, at305, a recognizable gesture input, an embodiment may perform, at307, a corresponding action based on the gesture. In an embodiment, each gesture input may be tied to a specific function of the device. Accordingly, when the gesture input is identified, an embodiment may perform that function. For example, for a device playing a particular playlist, the identification of a swipe gesture from the user may indicate that the user wants to skip to the next song.

In an embodiment, the gesture recognition module may only be primed to process gestures provided by a user whose gaze location is associated with the predetermined location. For example, a situation may occur where more than one individual may be present in a space. In such a situation, an embodiment may attempt to detect a gaze location associated with each user and thereafter only accept gesture inputs from the one or more users whose gaze locations corresponds to the predetermined location. In this situation, all other motions made by the other individuals whose gaze location does not correspond to the predetermined location may be ignored by an embodiment.

The various embodiments described herein thus represent a technical improvement to conventional gesture input provision techniques. Using the techniques described herein, an embodiment may detect a location of a user's gaze and determine whether that location corresponds to a predetermined location. Responsive to arriving at a positive determination, an embodiment may activate a gesture recognition module that may be used to receive and process gesture inputs from the user. Responsive to receiving one or more gesture inputs, an embodiment may thereafter perform a corresponding function. Such a method may prevent the unintentional provision of user gesture inputs to a device.