PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-10324620-B2
Application Number: US-201615257713-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Processing capacitive touch gestures implemented on an electronic device

Abstract:
Content on a display user interface of an electronic device, such as a wearable electronic device, can be manipulated using capacitive touch sensors that may be seamlessly integrated into the housing or strap of the electronic device. The capacitive touch sensors can advantageously replace mechanical buttons and other mechanical user interface components, such as a crown, to provide industrial design opportunities not possible with the inclusion of mechanical buttons and mechanical interface components. Moreover, the capacitive touch sensors can enable ambidextrous user interface control of content displayed on a touchscreen without requiring the user to touch the touchscreen. In some examples, content displayed on the touchscreen can be accessed in response to a variety of touch gestures processed by the capacitive touch sensors. The touch gestures can include, for example, single tap, double tap, extended touch, x-y coordinate selection, scrolling, scaling, or the like for manipulating a touchscreen user interface.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A wearable electronic device, comprising:
 a housing; 
 a processor positioned within the housing; 
 a display exposed through an opening of the housing; and 
 a capacitive interface region provided by the housing, wherein:
 the capacitive interface region extends adjacent to at least a majority of a side of the display; 
 the processor is configured to process user inputs received along the capacitive interface region; 
 the capacitive interface region is a first capacitive interface region that extends adjacent to at least a majority of a first side of the display; 
 the wearable electronic device further comprises a second capacitive interface region provided by the housing; and 
 the second capacitive interface region extends adjacent to at least a majority of a second side of the display that is perpendicular to the first side of the display. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to alter a display of displayed content on the display based on the processed user inputs. 
     
     
       3. The wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the wearable electronic device further comprises a third capacitive interface region provided by the housing; 
 the third capacitive interface region extends adjacent to at least a majority of a third side of the display that is parallel to the first side of the display and that is perpendicular to the second side of the display; 
 the wearable electronic device further comprises a fourth capacitive interface region provided by the housing; and 
 the fourth capacitive interface region extends adjacent to at least a majority of a fourth side of the display that is parallel to the second side of the display and that is perpendicular to the first side of the display. 
 
     
     
       4. The wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein the housing is devoid of any mechanical buttons. 
     
     
       5. The wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the housing is constructed from a non-metallic material; 
 the wearable electronic device further comprises a capacitive touch sensor; and 
 the capacitive touch sensor is positioned directly against the capacitive interface region. 
 
     
     
       6. The wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the housing is constructed from a metallic material; and 
 the wearable electronic device further comprises:
 a capacitive touch sensor; and 
 a non-capacitive component placed in between the capacitive interface region and the capacitive touch sensor. 
 
 
     
     
       7. A wearable electronic device of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the housing comprises a band assembly suitable for being worn on a human arm; and 
 the first capacitive interface region is provided by the band assembly. 
 
     
     
       8. A method implemented in an electronic device comprising a processor, a display, and a housing providing a capacitive interface region along a path adjacent to a portion of a periphery of the display, wherein a shape of the path is the same as a shape of the portion of the periphery of the display, the method comprising:
 displaying content on the display; 
 receiving a user input via the capacitive interface region; and 
 altering a display of the content on the display in response to the received user input, wherein:
 the receiving the user input comprises processing a drag event along an axis from a first location on the capacitive interface region to a second location on the capacitive interface region; and 
 the altering the display of the content comprises scrolling the display of the content along the axis. 
 
 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 8 , wherein:
 the displayed content is displayed at a first scaling factor; 
 the capacitive interface region comprises a first capacitive interface region provided by the housing along a first path adjacent to a first portion of the periphery of the display; 
 the housing further provides a second capacitive interface region along a second path adjacent to a second portion of the periphery of the display; 
 the drag event is a first drag event; 
 the receiving the user input comprises processing a combination of the first drag event from the first location on the first capacitive interface region to the second location on the first capacitive interface region and a second drag event from a first location on the second capacitive interface region to a second location on the second capacitive interface region; 
 the combination of the first and second drag events corresponds to a second scaling factor that causes one of a zoom-in or a zoom-out of the displayed content; and 
 the altering the display of the content comprises adjusting the displayed content such that the content is displayed at the second scaling factor. 
 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 9 , wherein the shape is curved. 
     
     
       11. A watch apparatus, comprising:
 a processor; 
 a display operatively coupled to the processor; 
 a housing protecting the processor and exposing a portion of the display defined by a periphery; 
 a plurality of capacitive touch interface regions provided by the housing such that the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions collectively extend adjacent to a majority of the periphery of the display; and 
 a plurality of capacitive touch sensors contained within the housing, wherein:
 each capacitive touch sensor of the plurality of capacitive touch sensors is associated with a respective capacitive touch interface region of the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions and is communicatively coupled to the processor; 
 the processor is operative to:
 process user touch events on the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions via the plurality of capacitive touch sensors; and 
 alter display of content on the display in response to the processed user touch events; and 
 
 the watch apparatus further comprises:
 a strap assembly coupled to the housing and suitable for being worn on a human arm; 
 at least one strap integrated capacitive touch interface region provided by the strap assembly; and 
 at least one strap integrated capacitive touch sensor associated with the at least one strap integrated capacitive touch interface region, wherein the at least one strap integrated capacitive touch sensor is communicatively coupled to the processor. 
 
 
 
     
     
       12. The watch apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the periphery of the display is circular in shape. 
     
     
       13. The watch apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the periphery of the display is rectangular in shape. 
     
     
       14. The watch apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein the processor is further operative to:
 process a user touch event on the at least one strap integrated capacitive touch interface region via the at least one strap integrated capacitive touch sensor; and 
 alter the display of content on the display in response to the processed user touch events.

Description:
FIELD 
     This generally relates to electronic devices and, more particularly, to capacitive touch interfaces for electronic devices. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Advanced personal electronic devices can have small form factors. These personal electronic devices can include, but are not limited to, tablets and smart phones. Use of such personal electronic devices involves manipulation of user interface objects on display screens that also have small form factors to complement the design of the personal electronic devices. Existing methods for manipulating user interface objects on reduced-size touch-sensitive displays can be inefficient. Further, existing methods generally provide less precision than is preferable. 
     SUMMARY 
     The present disclosure relates to manipulating a user interface on a wearable electronic device using capacitive touch sensors that are seamlessly integrated into the housing or strap or band assembly of the wearable electronic device. The capacitive touch sensors can advantageously replace mechanical buttons and other mechanical user interface components, such as a crown, to provide industrial design opportunities not possible with the inclusion of mechanical buttons and mechanical interface components. Moreover, the capacitive touch sensors can enable ambidextrous user interface control of content displayed on a touchscreen user interface without requiring the user to touch the touchscreen. In some examples, content displayed on the touchscreen can be controlled in response to a variety of touch gestures processed by the capacitive touch sensors. The touch gestures can include, for example, single tap, double tap, extended touch, x-y coordinate selection, scrolling, scaling, or other suitable gestures for controlling the touchscreen user interface. 
     In one embodiment, a wearable electronic device is provided that can include a housing, a processor positioned within the housing, a display exposed through an opening of the housing, and a capacitive interface region provided by the housing, wherein the capacitive interface region extends adjacent to at least a majority of a side of the display and the processor is configured to process user inputs received along the capacitive interface region. 
     In another embodiment, a method may be implemented in an electronic device including a processor, a display, and a housing providing a capacitive interface region along a path adjacent to a portion of a periphery of the display, wherein a shape of the path is the same as a shape of the portion of the periphery of the display. The method may include displaying content on the display, receiving a user input via the capacitive interface region, and altering a display of the content on the display in response to the received user input. 
     In yet another embodiment, a watch apparatus is provided that can include a processor, a display operatively coupled to the processor, a housing protecting the processor and exposing a portion of the display defined by a periphery, a plurality of capacitive touch interface regions provided by the housing such that the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions collectively extend adjacent to a majority of the periphery of the display, and a plurality of capacitive touch sensors contained within the housing, wherein each capacitive touch sensor of the plurality of capacitive touch sensors is associated with a respective capacitive touch interface region of the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions and is communicatively coupled to the processor and the processor is operative to process user touch events on the plurality of capacitive touch interface regions via the plurality of capacitive touch sensors and alter display of content on the display in response to the processed user touch events. 
     This Summary is provided only to summarize some example embodiments, so as to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the subject matter described in this document. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the features described in this Summary are only examples and should not be construed to narrow the scope or spirit of the subject matter described herein in any way. Unless otherwise stated, features described in the context of one example may be combined or used with features described in the context of one or more other examples. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter described herein will become apparent from the following Detailed Description, Figures, and Claims. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The discussion below makes reference to the following drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a front view of an exemplary wearable electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a front view of another exemplary wearable electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a perspective view of yet another exemplary wearable electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 4A-4C  show illustrative cross-sectional views of the wearable electronic device of  FIG. 3 , according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a front view of yet another exemplary wearable electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 6  illustrates a front view of yet another exemplary wearable electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 7  illustrates a block diagram of some of components of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIG. 8  shows an illustrative process for controlling a user interface according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 9A-9C  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being scrolled in accordance with a scroll gesture being received on a y-axis oriented capacitive interface region of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 10A-10C  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being scrolled in accordance with a scroll gesture being received on an x-axis oriented capacitive interface region of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 11A and 11B  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being selected in response to user inputs on two capacitive interface regions of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 12A-12D  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being navigated in response to user input on one or two capacitive interface regions of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; 
         FIGS. 13A-13C  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being navigated in response to user input touch events on one or two capacitive interface regions of an exemplary electronic device according to various embodiments; and 
         FIG. 14  illustrates an exemplary computing system for modifying a user interface in response to a processed capacitive touch gesture according to various embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the various embodiments described herein. Those of ordinary skill in the art will realize that these various embodiments are illustrative only and are not intended to be limiting in any way. Other embodiments will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure. 
     In addition, for clarity purposes, not all of the routine features of the embodiments described herein are shown or described. One of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that in the development of any such actual embodiment, numerous embodiment-specific decisions may be required to achieve specific design objectives. These design objectives will vary from one embodiment to another and from one developer to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine engineering undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. 
     The present disclosure relates to manipulating a user interface on an electronic device using capacitive touch sensors that may be seamlessly integrated into the housing or other structures of the electronic device. In some embodiments, a capacitive touch sensor can be integrated in a strap or band assembly or cover associated with the device. The capacitive touch sensors can enable ambidextrous user interface control of content displayed on a touchscreen user interface without requiring the user to touch the touchscreen. This advantageously enables a user to interact with content on the screen without having to block or obscure his or her view of that content by physically touching the screen. In some examples, content displayed on the touchscreen can be accessed in response to a variety of touch gestures processed by the capacitive touch sensors. The touch gestures can include, for example, single tap, double tap, extended touch, x-y coordinate selection, scrolling, scaling, or other suitable gestures for controlling the touchscreen user interface. It will be appreciated that although many embodiments discussed herein are made in reference to a wearable device, such as a watch, such embodiments may also be used in connection with other electronic devices such as smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, and the like. Moreover, it will be appreciated that although many embodiments discussed herein are made in reference to a device with a touchscreen display, such embodiments may also be used in connection with devices that have displays that are not equipped to detect touch events on the displays. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates exemplary personal electronic device  100 . In the illustrated example, device  100  is a watch that generally includes housing  102  and band assembly or strap  104  for affixing device  100  to the body of a user. That is, device  100  is wearable. Housing  102  can be designed to couple with straps  104 . Device  100  can have touch-sensitive display screen (hereafter touchscreen)  106  and capacitive interface regions  108 - 110  provided by regions of housing  102 . Device  100  may be devoid of any buttons or other mechanical user interface component that extend outwardly from an outer surface of housing  102 . Eliminating buttons and/or mechanical user interface components can simplify construction of device  100 , as there is no need to accommodate such structures, which can result in integration of other components such as a larger battery, a bigger speaker, or a larger haptic mechanism. In addition, eliminating buttons and/or mechanical user interface components can enable industrial design choices that result in a relatively clean look that does not have members protruding from the outer surface of housing  102 . Housing  102  may take any suitable shape, including, for example, a rectangular cuboid shape or a cylindrical shape. 
     Capacitive interface regions  108 - 110  may be regions of housing  102  in which a user can perform touch gestures on housing  102  to interact with content displayed on touchscreen  106  without having to touch touchscreen  106 . Capacitive interface regions  108 - 110  can occupy different sized areas on housing  102 . In some embodiments, capacitive interface regions  108 - 110  can mimic a contour of housing  102  and/or a shape of at least a portion of a border or edge or side or periphery of touchscreen  106 . For example, capacitive interface region  108 , which may be provided by a portion of a front face or surface of housing  102  positioned to the right of touchscreen  106 , may span adjacent to the length of the right touchscreen border or edge or side or periphery  114  of touchscreen  106  along the y-axis from bottom touchscreen border or edge or side or periphery  111  to top touchscreen border or edge or side or periphery  112 . In some embodiments, the span length of capacitive region  108  may be exactly the same as the length of right touchscreen edge  114  of touchscreen  106 , larger than the length of right touchscreen edge  114  of touchscreen  106 , or smaller than the length of right touchscreen edge  114  of touchscreen  106 , but greater than at least fifty percent of the touchscreen length of right touchscreen edge  114 , or may otherwise extend adjacent to a majority of a side or edge of the touchscreen. The shape of the path along which capacitive region  108  is provided by the top surface of housing  102  may mimic or otherwise follow or share the shape of the portion or entirety of right touchscreen edge or side or periphery portion  114  of touchscreen  106  that extends adjacent to capacitive region  108  (e.g., a substantially linear shape). Capacitive interface region  109 , which may be provided by a portion of the front surface of housing  102  positioned below touchscreen  106 , may span adjacent to the width of the bottom touchscreen edge  111  of touchscreen  106  along the x-axis from left touchscreen edge portion  113  to right touchscreen edge portion  114 . In some embodiments, the span length of capacitive region  109  may be exactly the same as the width of bottom touchscreen edge  111  of touchscreen  106 , larger than the width of bottom touchscreen edge  111  of touchscreen  106 , or smaller than the width of bottom touchscreen edge  111  of touchscreen  106 , but greater than at least fifty percent of the touchscreen width of bottom touchscreen edge  111 , or may otherwise extend adjacent to a majority of a side or edge of the touchscreen. The shape of the path along which capacitive region  109  is provided by the top surface of housing  102  may mimic or otherwise follow or share the shape of the portion or entirety of bottom touchscreen edge or side or periphery portion  111  of touchscreen  106  that extends adjacent to capacitive region  109  (e.g., a substantially linear shape). Capacitive interface region  110 , which may be provided by a portion of the front surface of housing  102  positioned left of touchscreen  106 , may be sized in the approximate shape of a mechanical button (e.g., sized for receiving an interaction with a fingertip of a user). If desired, multiple “button-shaped” regions  110  may be aligned adjacent to the left side of touchscreen  106 . Further, housing  102 , which can include a bezel, may have indicia or tactile indicators (e.g., a detent or braille dot) on the bezel to illustrate the position of regions  108 - 110 . 
     Capacitive interface regions  108 - 110 , collectively, can extend along at least twenty-five percent of a periphery (e.g., collective edges) of touchscreen  106 . In some embodiments, capacitive interface regions  108 - 110 , collectively, can extend along at least thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, seventy, eighty, or ninety percent of a periphery of touchscreen  106 . In another embodiment, capacitive interface regions  108 - 110  may collectively surround a majority or the entirety of a periphery of touchscreen  106 . 
     Capacitive touch sensors (not shown) may be associated with each of capacitive interface regions  108 - 110 . For example, a capacitive touch sensor can be positioned on an inner surface of housing  102  or within housing  102  in close proximity to its respective capacitive interface region. When housing  102  is constructed from a non-metallic material, such as plastic, glass, ceramic, or zirconia, a capacitive sensor may be placed directly onto the inner surface of the housing portion providing an associated capacitive interface region. An example of the direct application is shown and discussed in more detail below in connection with  FIG. 4A . When housing  102  is constructed from a metal, such as steel or aluminum, a capacitive touch sensor may not be directly applied to the inner surface of the metal housing portion providing an associated capacitive interface region. A non-capacitive structure may be placed between the inner surface of the metal housing portion and the capacitive sensor to enable touch gestures according to various embodiments. An example of a non-capacitive structure is shown and discussed in more detail below in connection with  FIG. 4B . 
     Display  106  can include any suitable display device, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), light-emitting diode (LED) display, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, or the like, positioned partially or fully behind or in front of a touch sensor panel implemented using any desired touch sensing technology, such as mutual-capacitance touch sensing, self-capacitance touch sensing, resistive touch sensing, projection scan touch sensing, or the like. Display  106  can allow a user to perform various functions by touching over hovering near the touch sensor panel using one or more fingers or other objects. 
     In some examples, device  100  can further include one or more pressure sensors (not shown) for detecting an amount of force or pressure applied to the display. The amount of force or pressure applied to display  106  can be used as an input to device  100  to perform any desired operation, such as making a selection, entering or exiting a menu, causing the display of additional options/actions, or the like. In some examples, different operations can be performed based on the amount of force or pressure being applied to display  106 . The one or more pressure sensors can further be used to determine a position on which a force is being applied to display  106 . 
       FIG. 2  illustrates exemplary personal electronic device  200 . Device  200  is similar to device  100 , but includes different capacitive interface regions and mechanical buttons, and thus like reference features discussed above in connection with  FIG. 1  apply to  FIG. 2 . Device  200  can be a watch that can includes housing  202 , strap  204 , touchscreen  206 , and capacitive interface regions  208 - 211  of housing  202 , and mechanical buttons  220  and  221 . Capacitive interface regions  208  and  210  are provided along the front surface of housing  202  at portions to the right of right touchscreen edge  215  and to the left of left touchscreen edge  214  of touchscreen  206 , respectively, and can span from bottom touchscreen edge  212  to top touchscreen edge  213 . Capacitive interface regions  209  and  211  are provided along the front surface of housing  202  at portions below bottom touchscreen edge  212  and above top touchscreen edge  213  of touchscreen  206 , respectively, and can span from left touchscreen edge  214  to right touchscreen edge  215 . Including capacitive interface regions adjacent each one of on all four edges of touchscreen  206 , housing  202  may enable device  200  to be ambidextrous. That is, if the user wears device  200  on his left arm, he may be more inclined to input touch gestures via capacitive interface regions  208  and  209  than via regions  210  and  211 . However, if the user wears device  200  on his right wrist, he may prefer using capacitive interface regions  210  and  211  than regions  208  and  209  to input touch gestures. Regardless of which arm the device is worn, the additional capacitive interface regions may provide the user the option to use whichever regions he or she desires or all regions. 
     Buttons  220  and  221  may be provided, for example, to enable a user to access various content, adjust volume, reset the device, and/or the like. In one embodiment, button  221  may be placed on the other side of device  200 . In yet another embodiment, button  221  may be eliminated and button  220  may reside on a back surface of housing  202  and may require a pen or sharp point for button access. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an exemplary perspective view of a wearable electronic device  300  according to various embodiments. Device  300  can be a watch that can includes housing  310 , strap  320 , touchscreen  330 , and capacitive interface regions  340  and  342  of housing  310 . Housing  310  can be substantially a rectangular cuboid in shape, but it should be appreciated that any suitable shape may be used (e.g., cylindrical (see, e.g., housing  502  of  FIG. 5 )). Housing  310  can have outer surface  311  and an inner surface (not shown in  FIG. 3 ). Outer surface  311  may have several portions, depending on its shape. For example, the rectangular cuboid shape of housing  310  may have six faces, including a front face through which touchscreen  330  may be exposed, a back face opposite the front face, and four side faces, each one of which may extend between an edge of the front face and an edge of the back face, such as a top face extending between a top edge of the front face and a top edge of the back face, a bottom face extending between a bottom edge of the front face and a bottom edge of the back face, a right face extending between a right edge of the front face and a right edge of the back face, and a left face extending between a left edge of the front face and a left edge of the back face. Only the front, right, and bottom faces of such faces are shown in  FIG. 3 . Capacitive interface region  340  may be provided by the right face of outer surface  311  and capacitive interface region  342  may be provided by the bottom face of outer surface  311 . Additional capacitive interface regions may be provided by the other faces not shown in  FIG. 3 . The size of each one of capacitive interface regions  340  and  342  may be approximately the same as the dimensions of its associated face. For example, the size of capacitive interface region  340  may extend along the right face of outer surface  311 , along a majority of the length of the right edge of the front face that may be along the entirety of the right edge or side or periphery portion of touchscreen  330  that may define a length of touchscreen  330 , As another example, the size of capacitive interface region  342  may extend along the bottom face of outer surface  311 , along a majority of the length of the bottom edge or side or periphery portion of the front face that may be along the entirety of the bottom edge of touchscreen  330  that may define a width of touchscreen  330 . While the shape of the exposed surface of touchscreen  330  may be substantially rectangular and exposed through an opening in a substantially rectangular front face of housing  310 , it is to be understood that the shape of the exposed surface of touchscreen  330  may be circular or any other suitable shape that need not match the shape of the front face of housing  310 , while the shape of any capacitive interface region may mimic or extend along a path similar to the shape of an edge or side or periphery portion of the touchscreen and/or the shape of an edge or side or periphery portion of the front face of housing  310  or any other face of housing  310  that may provide that capacitive interface region. 
       FIGS. 4A-4C  show illustrative cross-sectional views of electronic device  300  of  FIG. 3 . In particular,  FIG. 4A  shows an illustrative cross-sectional view of device  300  taken along line A-A of  FIG. 3 . An assumption made in  FIG. 4A  is that housing  310  is constructed from a non-metallic material. Housing  310  has outer surface  311  and inner surface  412 . Region  413  can represent a thickness of a portion of housing  310  providing a capacitive touch interface region (e.g., region  340 ). Capacitive touch sensor  450  may be positioned adjacent to inner surface  412  and can be supported by substrate  452 . Note that a height of capacitive sensor  450  may approximate the height of the face of outer surface  311  to provide a capacitive touch interface region (e.g., capacitive touch interface region  340 ). 
       FIG. 4B  shows another illustrative cross-sectional view of device  300  taken along line A-A of  FIG. 3 . An assumption made in  FIG. 4B  is that housing  310  is constructed from a metal material. Housing  310  has outer surface  311  and inner surface  414 . Non-capacitive component  418  is shown disposed adjacent to inner surface  414 . Capacitive touch sensor  454  may be positioned adjacent to non-capacitive component  418  and can be supported by substrate  456 . Non-capacitive component  418  may be constructed from a material that enables capacitive touch sensor  454  to sense touch events on a metal housing portion providing an associated capacitive interface region. Note that a height of capacitive sensor  454  may approximate the height of the face of outer surface  311  to provide a capacitive interface region (e.g., capacitive touch interface region  340 ). 
       FIG. 4C  shows an illustrative cross-sectional view of device  300  taken along line B-B of  FIG. 3 . Capacitive touch sensor  460  is shown spanning from the left side of housing  310  to the right side of housing  310 . Capacitive touch sensor  460  may be divided into sensor sections  461 - 465 . Any number of sensor sections may be included in touch sensor  460 . The sensor sections may enable a processor to determine a user touch location along sensor  460 , a scrolling direction along sensor  460 , and/or a speed of the scrolling direction along sensor  460 . Any capacitive sensor may be provided using any suitable media, such as printed ink, copper, indium tin oxide (“ITO”), and/or the like, on printed circuit boards, flexible material, and/or the like, and may be provided as a self-or absolute-capacitance sensing system using surface capacitance and/or projected capacitance touch technology. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates exemplary wearable electronic device  500  according to some embodiments. Device  500  can include housing  502 , strap  504 , touchscreen  506 , and capacitive touch interface regions  507  and  508 . Housing  502  has a substantially cylindrical shape and a circular touchscreen  506 . Capacitive touch interface regions  507  and  508  may be provided by portions of a front face of housing  502  through which circular touchscreen  506  may be exposed. No matter the shape of the front face of housing  502 , when touchscreen  506  is circular, one single capacitive touch interface region may be provided along that front face to surround or substantially surround the periphery of the circular touchscreen  506  in a circular or substantially circular path, or two or more capacitive touch interface regions provided along that front face may collectively substantially surround the circular touchscreen  506  in different arc segments (e.g., as shown by two capacitive touch interface regions  507  and  508  of  FIG. 5  that may each be in a substantially semicircle arc path about half the periphery of the circular touchscreen  506 ), although the collective path of two or more capacitive touch interface regions may be about any suitable portion of the periphery of the circular touchscreen. The shape of the path along which capacitive region  507  is provided by the top face of housing  502  may mimic or otherwise follow or share the shape of the portion of the top circumference edge or side or periphery portion of circular touchscreen  506  that extends adjacent to capacitive region  507  (e.g., a curved or substantially semicircle arc path) and the shape of the path along which capacitive region  508  is provided by the top face of housing  502  may mimic or otherwise follow or share the shape of the portion of the bottom circumference edge or side or periphery portion of circular touchscreen  506  that extends adjacent to capacitive region  508  (e.g., a curved or substantially semicircle arc path). A curved side face or surface of a cylindrical housing  502  that may extend between circular front and back faces of a cylindrical housing may additionally or alternatively include one or more capacitive touch interface regions, each of which may be curved and provided along the curved side surface of the housing to follow the contours or shape of the curved side surface of housing  502 . While the shape of the exposed surface of touchscreen  506  may be substantially circular and exposed through an opening in a substantially circular front face of housing  502 , it is to be understood that the shape of the exposed surface of touchscreen  506  may be rectangular or any other suitable shape that need not match the shape of the circular front face of housing  502 , while the shape of any capacitive interface region may mimic or extend along a path similar to the shape of an edge or side or periphery portion of the touchscreen and/or the shape of an edge or side or periphery portion of the front face of housing  502  or any other face of housing  502  (e.g., curved side face) that may provide that capacitive interface region. Only two touch interface regions are shown, but additional interface regions may be added. In another embodiment, a single touch interface region may circumnavigate the entire periphery (e.g., circumference) of touchscreen  506  on the front housing surface or the curved side housing surface. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates exemplary wearable electronic device  600  according to some embodiments. Device  600  can include housing  602 , body assembly or strap  604 , touchscreen  606 , and capacitive touch interface regions  607  and  608  of strap  604 . Interface regions  607  and  608  are provided by strap  604 , as opposed to housing  602 . In some embodiments, other interface regions can also be provided by housing  602 . Interface region  607  may be arranged to extend along a y-axis (e.g., perpendicular to a top touchscreen edge of rectangular touchscreen  606 ) and interface region  608  may be arranged to extend along an x-axis (e.g., parallel to a bottom touchscreen edge of rectangular touchscreen  606 ). These arrangements are only illustrative and any suitable arrangement may be used and additional interface regions may be placed on strap  604  or on housing  602 , as desired. 
       FIG. 7  illustrates a block diagram of some of the components of a device  700 , which may be similar to one or more of devices  100 - 300 ,  500 , and  600 , according to some embodiments. As shown, one or more capacitive interface regions  710  can be coupled to encoder  720 , which can be configured to process touch events received on each interface region  710 , and to provide electrical signals representative of the touch events to processor  730 . Encoder  720  can be configured to process a variety of touch events on capacitive interface regions  710 . Encoder  720  can detect single touch events, double touch events, extended touch events, scroll direction events and associated speed of the scroll (along one or more axes), multi-touch events (e.g., zoom and coordinate-based selections), and any other suitable touch events. Encoder  720  can sense the absolute touch position anywhere within an interface region. Encoder  720  can be configured to sense a direction of a touch event. Encoder  720  can be configured to detect a speed of touch events on regions  710  in any desired manner (e.g., velocity, acceleration, or the like) and can provide the speed information to processor  730 . The speed can be expressed in numerous ways. For example, the speed can be expressed in a direction and a speed, such as hertz, as distance versus time, as a change in angle per unit of time, and the like. In alternative examples, instead of providing information to processor  730 , this information can be provided to other components of device  700 . While the examples described herein refer to the use of touch events on interface regions  710  to control user interaction with content on a screen, it should be appreciated that any other inputs derived from interface regions  710  can be used. 
     In some examples, the touch inputs received via interface regions  710  can control physical attributes of content displayed on display  740  of device  700 . For example, if a user scrolls his finger in a y-axis direction along interface region  710 , display  740  may show content being scrolled in the same y-axis direction of the user. In other words, the physical touch inputs received by interface regions  710  can represent physical modal functionality of display  740 . In some examples, a temporal attribute of a user touch input on interface region  710  can be used as an input to device  700 . For example, a fast change in touch inputs can be interpreted differently than a slow change in touch inputs. 
     Processor  730  can be further coupled to receive input signals from tactile or mechanical buttons  750  (e.g., button  220  of device  200 ), along with touch signals from touch-sensitive display  730 , and/or signals received from a remote device such as a user&#39;s phone or laptop. Processor  720  can be configured to interpret these input signals and output appropriate display signals to cause an image to be produced by touch-sensitive display  730 . While a single processor  730  is shown, it should be appreciated that any number of processors or other computational devices can be used to perform the general functions discussed above. 
       FIG. 8  shows an illustrative process  800  for controlling a user interface in accordance with some embodiments. In some examples, process  800  can be performed by a wearable electronic device similar to devices  100 ,  200 ,  300 ,  500 , and  600  or any other suitable device. In these examples, a visual representation (e.g., icons, graphical images, textual images, and the like) of content elements may be displayed on a display (e.g., touchscreen  106 ,  206 ,  330 ,  506 , or  606 ) and process  800  can be performed to alter the display of that content in response to user touch inputs received on capacitive interface regions. At step  810 , content can be displayed on a display of a device (e.g., on a touchscreen display or non-touch sensitive display of a wearable electronic device). Any suitable content can be displayed, however, in a relatively small form factor size of a watch, the quantity and size of the content may be appropriately sized to account for the form factor. 
     At step  820 , a user input can be received via at least one capacitive interface region. For example, the user input can be received via capacitive interface region  108  of device  100 . Note that the user input is not being received via a touchscreen such as touchscreen  106  but rather by a capacitive sensor detecting input from a capacitive interface region of a device housing (e.g., a housing that may have an opening through which a touchscreen may be exposed). Any one a variety of different inputs may be received, many of which are discussed in more detail below in connection with  FIGS. 9A-13C . At step  830 , a display of the content is altered in response to the received user input (e.g., in response to and/or based on a processor processing the received user input). For example, if the received user input was a scroll, the content on the display may be scrolled in response thereto. Any other functionality of a device may be adjusted in response to the received user input, such as increasing or decreasing the volume of an audio output (e.g., based on horizontal x-axis dragging) or increasing or decreasing the brightness of visual output (e.g., based on vertical y-axis dragging). 
     It should be appreciated that the steps shown in  FIG. 8  are only illustrative and that additional steps may be added, some steps may be omitted, and the order of the steps can be changed. For example, a step may be added to reject touch events that are determined to be aberrations or unintentional inputs. 
       FIGS. 9A-9C  show illustrative screen shots of content being scrolled in accordance with a scroll gesture being received on a y-axis oriented capacitive interface region of a device, according to various embodiments. Each of  FIGS. 9A-9C  shows housing  910 , touchscreen  920 , and capacitive touch regions  930  and  940  of housing  910 .  FIG. 9A  can represent a starting point for content displayed on touchscreen  920 . The content is illustrated as a list of content elements  922 - 925 .  FIG. 9B  illustrates an alteration to the content of  FIG. 9A  in response to up-scrolling touch gesture  950  being received on capacitive touch region  930  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a right edge of touchscreen  920 . Up-scrolling touch gesture  950  can include a series of relatively fluid touch inputs from the user including a touch down event, in which the user initially touches a portion of region  930 , and a drag event in which the user drags his finger along an axis (e.g., y-axis). Gesture  950  may also include a lift-off event if the user lifts his finger off region  930  anywhere during the drag event. The speed at which the drag event is processed may correlate to a speed in which content is scrolled on touchscreen  920 .  FIG. 9B  shows that the elements have moved up such that element  922  is not shown, but elements  923 - 927  are displayed as a result of the up-scrolling gesture. 
       FIG. 9C  illustrates an alteration to the content of  FIG. 9A  in response to down-scrolling touch gesture  960  being received on capacitive touch region  930 . Down-scrolling touch gesture  960  can include a series of relatively fluid touch inputs from the user including a touch down event, in which the user initially touches a portion of region  930 , a drag event, and optionally, a lift-off event if the user lifts his finger off region  930  anywhere during the drag event.  FIG. 9C  shows that the elements have moved down such that element  925  is no longer shown, but elements  921 - 924  are displayed as a result of the down-scrolling gesture. 
       FIGS. 10A-10C  show illustrative screen shots of content being scrolled in accordance with a scroll gesture being received on an x-axis oriented capacitive interface region of a device, according to various embodiments. Each of  FIGS. 10A-10C  shows housing  1010 , touchscreen  1020 , and capacitive touch regions  1030  and  1040  of housing  1010 .  FIG. 10A  can represent a starting point for content displayed on touchscreen  1020 . The content is illustrated as a single content element  1022 .  FIG. 10B  illustrates an alteration to the content of  FIG. 10A  in response to right-scrolling touch gesture  1050  being received on capacitive touch region  1040  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a bottom edge of touchscreen  1020 . Right-scrolling touch gesture  950  can include a touch down event, a drag event, and an optional lift-off event.  FIG. 9B  shows that element  1022  moved to the right within touchscreen  1020  and a portion of element  1021  is displayed as a result of the right-scrolling gesture. 
       FIG. 10C  illustrates an alteration to the content of  FIG. 10A  in response to left-scrolling touch gesture  1060  being received on capacitive touch region  1040 . Left-scrolling touch gesture  1060  can include a series of relatively fluid touch inputs from the user including a touch down event, a drag event, and, optionally, a lift-off event if the user lifts his finger off region  1040  anywhere during the drag event.  FIG. 10C  shows that the elements have moved to the left such that element  1022  is shifted to the left, and a portion of element  1023  is also shown as a result of the left-scrolling gesture. 
       FIGS. 11A and 11B  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being selected in response to user inputs on two capacitive interface regions of a device according to various embodiments. Both of  FIGS. 11A and 11B  show housing  1110 , touchscreen  1120 , x-axis capacitive interface region  1130  of housing  1110 , and y-axis capacitive interface region  1140  of housing  1110 . Content elements  1121 - 1124  can be arranged in an 2×2 array on touchscreen  1120 . The user can select any of elements  1121 - 1124  by interacting with the appropriate x-y position equivalent of regions  1130  and  1140 . For example, if the user wishes to select content element  1121 , he can simultaneously touch down at location  1132  on region  1130  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a bottom edge of touchscreen  1120  and at location  1142  on region  1140  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a right edge of touchscreen  1120 . The touch input at location  1132  corresponds to the X-axis position of content element  1121  and the touch input at location  1142  corresponds to the Y-axis position of content element  1121 . If the user wishes to select element  1123 , for example, he can touch region  1130  at position  1132  and can touch region  1140  at position  1144  (as illustrated in  FIG. 11B ). Thus, by simultaneously pressing at specific positions on both x and y axis capacitive interface regions  1130  and  1140 , the user can select an element or interface with an equivalent x-y position on touchscreen  1120  without actually touching touchscreen  1120 . 
       FIGS. 12A-12D  show illustrative screen shots in which a user may navigate displayed content in response to input received via one or two capacitive interface regions of a device.  FIGS. 12A-12D  show housing  1210 , touchscreen  1220 , x-axis capacitive interface region  1230  of housing  1210 , and y-axis capacitive region  1240  of housing  1210 . The content displayed on touchscreen  1220  may be a map, for example. Referring now to  FIG. 12B , a pinch or zoom-out gesture is being performed in which a user simultaneously touches down at position  1232  of region  1230  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a bottom edge of touchscreen  1220  and at position  1242  of region  1240  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a right edge of touchscreen  1220  and drags the touch points closer together, as shown. This gesture can cause the map to zoom out (e.g., from the display content of  FIG. 12A  to that of  FIG. 12B ). Referring now to  FIG. 12C , an expand or zoom-in gesture is being performed in which a user simultaneously touches down at positions  1234  and  1244  and drags the touch points away from each other, as shown. This gesture can cause the map to zoom in (e.g., from the display content of  FIG. 12A  to that of  FIG. 12C ). Referring now to  FIG. 12D , an x-axis scroll gesture can be performed in which a user performs a left-scrolling gesture by touching down at position  1234  and scrolling to the left. This gesture can cause the map to be shifted to the left (e.g., from the display content of  FIG. 12C  to that of  FIG. 12D ). 
       FIGS. 13A-13C  show illustrative screen shots of displayed content being navigated in response to user input touch events on one or more capacitive interface regions of device according to various embodiments. Each of  FIGS. 13A-13C  shows housing  1310 , touchscreen  1320 , and capacitive touch regions  1330  and  1340  of housing  1310 . Referring now to  FIG. 13A , a single touch event can be received via capacitive touch region  1340  that may extend adjacent to or parallel to a right edge of touchscreen  1320  at position  1342 . A single touch event can include a touch down event followed by a lift off event. In response to the single touch event, display element  1322  can be highlighted to show that the user selected that particular display element. A user may be required to single touch region  1340  at position  1342  again to further access the highlighted content. 
       FIG. 13B  shows a double touch event being received at location  1344  on capacitive interface region  1340 . A double touch event can include a first touch-down and lift off event followed by a second touch-down and lift off event. In response to the double touch event, display element  1324  can be highlighted first and then a further display action is presented (e.g., the selected program is opened).  FIG. 13C  shows an extended touch event being received at location  1346  on capacitive interface region  1340 . An extended touch event can include a touch down event, a hold down event for a fixed period time, and a lift off event. An extended touch event may cause any number of different user interface experiences to occur. The particular experience may depend on a modality the device is in. For example, if the device is in a home screen, such as that shown in  FIG. 13C , the extended press may cause all display elements  1322 ,  1324 , and  1326  to be highlighted or perform a particular animation. 
     One or more of the functions relating to scaling or scrolling or any other navigation of a user interface of one or more devices of this disclosure can be performed by a system similar or identical to system  1400  shown in  FIG. 14 . System  1400  can include instructions stored in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as memory  1404  or storage device  1402 , and executed by processor  1406 . The instructions can also be stored and/or transported within any non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device, such as a computer-based system, processor-containing system, or other system that can fetch the instructions from the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device and execute the instructions. In the context of this document, a “non-transitory computer-readable storage medium” can be any medium that can contain or store the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can include, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus or device, a portable computer diskette (magnetic), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) (magnetic), a portable optical disc, such a CD, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD, DVD-R, or DVD-RW, or flash memory, such as compact flash cards, secured digital cards, USB memory devices, memory sticks, and the like. 
     The instructions can also be propagated within any transport medium for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device, such as a computer-based system, processor-containing system, or other system that can fetch the instructions from the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device and execute the instructions. In the context of this document, a “transport medium” can be any medium that can communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The transport medium can include, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, or infrared wired or wireless propagation medium. 
     In some examples, system  1400  can be included within any one of devices  100 ,  200 ,  300 ,  500 , and  600 . In these examples, processor  1406  can be used as processor  730 . Processor  1406  can be configured to receive the output from encoder  720 , button(s)  750 , and from touch-sensitive display  740 . Processor  1406  can process these inputs as described above with respect to  FIGS. 8-13C , and any processes described herein. It is to be understood that the system is not limited to the components and configuration of  FIG. 14 , but can include other or additional components in multiple configurations according to various examples. 
     Many alterations and modifications of the preferred embodiments will no doubt become apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art after having read the foregoing description, it is to be understood that the particular embodiments shown and described by way of illustration are in no way intended to be considered limiting. Thus, references to the details of the described embodiments are not intended to limit their scope.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20160906
Publication Date: 20190618
Grant Date: 20190618
Priority Date: 20160906
Inventors: BALARAM, HARAN
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G06F3/04842", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/0339", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04806", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/163", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G04G21/08", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04886", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/041", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04806", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03547", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/0339", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03547", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/163", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04886", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G04G21/08", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04883", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04842", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04883", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04806", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04886", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G04G21/08", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/0339", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04842", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/163", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/041", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03547", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04855", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/04883", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0485", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0393", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 61280532