Patent ID: 8125459

Claim:
A multi-user multi-touch input system for use by a plurality of users as an input device, said multi-user multi-touch input system comprising: an input portion capable of being touched by said plurality of users; a user-identifier component configured and operable to: detect that a particular one of said plurality of users has touched said input portion of said multi-user input device, and provide a user-identification and an identification-time, wherein said user-identification identifies said particular user and said identification-time includes a first touch time indicating the time when a touch has been detected by said user-identifier component, the combination of said user-identification and identification-time indicating that a touch by said particular user at said first touch-time has been detected by said user-identifier component; a touch-locator component configured and operable to: detect a touch at a particular location of said input portion of said multi-user input device, and provide a touch-location and a location-time, wherein said touch-location identifies said particular location of a touch detected by said touch-locator on said input portion of said multi-user multi-touch device and said location-time includes a second touch time indicating the time when a touch has been detected by said touch-location component,the combination of said touch-location and location-time indicating that a touch at said location has been detected by said touch-locator component; and a synchronizing/controller component configured and operable to: receive from said user-identifier component said user-identification and identification-time, receive from said touch-locator component said touch-location and a location-time, determine, based on said identification-time and location-time, whether said particular user has touched said input portion at said particular location of said input portion of said multi-user multi-touch input system, and generate as output an indication that indicates that said particular user identified by said user-identifier component has touched said input portion of said multi-user multi-touch input system at said particular location identified by said touch-location when said determining determines that said particular user has touched said input portion at said location of said input portion of said multi-user multi-touch device.