Patent ID: 7742042

Claim:
A touch-sensitive device for scrolling a document on a display screen, said device comprising: a vertically elongated central scrolling area, wherein a longitudinal axis extends through the central scrolling area in the vertical direction, and a latitudinal axis extends through the central scrolling area in the horizontal direction; and first and second end scrolling areas positioned on opposed sides of the central scrolling area, wherein either the longitudinal axis or the latitudinal axis of the central scrolling area intersects the first and second end scrolling areas, wherein the central scrolling region is an uninterrupted and continuous exposed surface configured to sense movement of the user's finger along the vertical direction and generate signals causing a processor scroll the document in tandem with the sensed movement in either an up or down direction depending on whether the sensed movement on the exposed surface is in an upward or downward direction, respectively, wherein the first end scrolling area is configured to sense the touch of the user's finger, and generate a signal to scroll the document exclusively in a first direction while sensing the touch, wherein the second end scrolling area is configured to sense the touch of the user's finger, and generate a signal causing the processor to scroll the document exclusively in a second direction opposite to the first direction while sensing the touch, wherein the first and second end scrolling areas are coplanar with the central scrolling area, wherein the first and second end scrolling areas positioned immediately adjacent to the central scrolling area and spaced from the central scrolling areas such that the latitudinal axis intersects the first and second end scrolling areas, and the first end scrolling area generates a signal causing the processor to scroll the document to the left while sensing the touch, and the second end scrolling area generates a signal causing the processor to scroll the document to the right while sensing the touch.