U.S. patent application number 13/776533 was filed with the patent office on 2014-03-06 for mobile communications device user interface.
This patent application is currently assigned to MICROSOFT CORPORATION. The applicant listed for this patent is Microsoft Corporation. Invention is credited to Darren A. Apfel, Jonathan D. Friedman, Michael J. Kruzeniski, Michael A. Smuga, Nell H. Waliczek, Brian M. Wilson.
Application Number | 20140068446 13/776533 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 43357176 |
Filed Date | 2014-03-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140068446 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Friedman; Jonathan D. ; et
al. |
March 6, 2014 |
Mobile Communications Device User Interface
Abstract
A mobile communications device user interface is described. In
an implementation, a method is implemented by a mobile
communications device that includes outputting a user interface
having a portion that is configured to accept content. When an
option is selected in relation to the portion to initiate a
communication and the content includes one or more contacts, the
communication is formed that includes the content and is
automatically addressed to the one or more contacts.
Inventors: |
Friedman; Jonathan D.;
(Seattle, WA) ; Kruzeniski; Michael J.; (Seattle,
WA) ; Wilson; Brian M.; (Mercer Island, WA) ;
Smuga; Michael A.; (Seattle, WA) ; Apfel; Darren
A.; (Redmond, WA) ; Waliczek; Nell H.;
(Seattle, WA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Microsoft Corporation; |
|
|
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
MICROSOFT CORPORATION
Redmond
WA
|
Family ID: |
43357176 |
Appl. No.: |
13/776533 |
Filed: |
February 25, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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12484799 |
Jun 15, 2009 |
8385952 |
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13776533 |
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61107921 |
Oct 23, 2008 |
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61107945 |
Oct 23, 2008 |
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61107935 |
Oct 23, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
715/736 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 2203/04807
20130101; G06F 3/0484 20130101; G06F 3/0482 20130101; G06F 3/04883
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/736 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/0484 20060101
G06F003/0484 |
Claims
1. A computing device comprising: a display device; a processor;
and memory, communicatively coupled to the processor, storing
instructions executable on the processor to enable a plurality of
applications to utilize a portion output on the display device, the
portion configured to: accept content via a touch operation, the
touch operation selecting a representation of the content prior to
acceptance of the content by the portion; selectively hide accepted
content from view on the display device; change a display state to
indicate acceptance of the content by the portion; and responsive
to selection of the portion, present one or more actions that are
performable on content accepted in the portion.
2. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the one or
more actions include forming a communication.
3. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the portion
is further configured to retain accepted content in the portion
during navigation between applications of the plurality of
applications.
4. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the content
includes a video and a contact.
5. A computing device as described in claim 1, wherein the one or
more actions include creating a playlist or initiating a
slideshow.
6. A method implemented by a device, the method comprising:
presenting, on a display of the device, a portion acting as a
bucket that is configured to: accept content via a gesture; and
selectively conceal accepted content from view on the display;
receiving selection of, via the gesture, content for acceptance by
the portion; presenting an indication related to the selected
content prior to the content being accepted by the portion;
accepting, by the portion, the content; responsive to accepting the
content, changing a display state of the portion to indicate the
acceptance of the content; responsive to receiving selection of the
portion, displaying the content accepted by the portion; and
responsive to displaying the content accepted by the portion,
presenting one or more actions performable on the content accepted
by the portion.
7. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the one or more
actions include forming a communication.
8. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the communication is
an email and the content includes at least one email address that
is used to address the communication.
9. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the communication is
automatically addressed to one or more contacts based on the
content accepted by the portion.
10. A method as described in claim 7, wherein the communication is
an upload to a social network service and the content includes at
least one network address that is used to automatically address the
communication.
11. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the portion is
provided by an operating system and exposed to a plurality of
applications such that the content accepted by the portion persists
in the portion during navigation between applications of the
plurality of application.
12. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the gesture is a drag
and drop gesture and presenting the indication related to the
selected content persists during dragging.
13. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the indication
related to the selected content includes a visual representation of
the selected content.
14. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the selected content
for acceptance by the portion includes a plurality content selected
from more than application.
15. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the selected content
for acceptance by the portion includes media data and contact
data.
16. One or more computer-readable hardware storage media encoded
with computer-executable instructions that, responsive to
execution, configure a user interface to: provide a portion that is
configured to: accept content via a gesture; the gesture selecting
a representation of the content prior to acceptance of the content
by the portion; selectively hide accepted content from view; change
a display state to indicate acceptance of the content by the
portion; and responsive to selection of the portion: display
accepted content; and provide an option that is selectable to
initiate a communication to a network location specified by the
accepted content.
17. One or more computer-readable hardware storage media as
described in claim 16, wherein the communication is an email that
is addressed to a contact based on the accepted content.
18. One or more computer-readable hardware storage media as
described in claim 16, wherein the communication is a single
multimedia messaging service (MMS) communication.
19. One or more computer-readable hardware storage media as
described in claim 16, wherein the communication is an upload to a
network.
20. One or more computer-readable hardware storage media as
described in claim 16, wherein the option is selectable to output a
plurality of additional options, each of the plurality of
additional options indicating a different communication technique.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of and claims priority
under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.120 to U.S. patent application Ser. No.
12/484,799, filed on Jun. 15, 2009, which claims priority under 35
U.S.C. Section 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Applications Nos.
61/107,945, 61/107,935, and 61/107,921, each of which was filed on
Oct. 23, 2008, the entire disclosures of which are hereby
incorporated by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Mobile communication devices (e.g., wireless phones) have
become an integral part of everyday life. However, the form factor
employed by conventional mobile communications devices is typically
limited to promote mobility of the mobile communications
device.
[0003] For example, the mobile communications device may have a
relatively limited amount of display area when compared to a
conventional desktop computer, e.g., a PC. Therefore, conventional
techniques used to interact with a desktop computer may be
inefficient when employed by a mobile communications device. For
example, it may be difficult to select multiple items of content
using convention techniques on a mobile communications device that
has a limited amount of display area.
SUMMARY
[0004] A mobile communications device user interface is described.
In an implementation, a method is implemented by a mobile
communications device that includes outputting a user interface
having a portion that is configured to accept content. When an
option is selected in relation to the portion to initiate a
communication and the content includes one or more contacts, the
communication is formed that includes the content and is
automatically addressed to the one or more contacts.
[0005] In an implementation, one or more computer-readable storage
media includes instructions that are executable by a mobile
communications device to configure a user interface to include a
portion that is configured to accept a plurality of contacts via a
drag-and-drop operation. The instructions are further configured to
provide an option that is selectable to initiate a communication to
each of the plurality of contacts.
[0006] In an implementation, a mobile communications device
includes a display device, a processor, and memory configured to
maintain a plurality of applications and an operating system that
are executable on the processor. The operating system is configured
to expose a feature to the plurality of applications to output in a
user interface for display on the display device. The feature
involves a portion that is selectable in the user interface to
accept content via a drag-and-drop operation and output one or more
indications of actions that are performable on each of the content
accepted in the portion.
[0007] This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of
concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in
the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify
key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter,
nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of
the claimed subject matter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The detailed description is described with reference to the
accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a
reference number identifies the figure in which the reference
number first appears. The use of the same reference numbers in
different instances in the description and the figures may indicate
similar or identical items.
[0009] FIG. 1 is an illustration of an example implementation of a
mobile communications device in accordance with one or more
embodiments of devices, features, and systems for mobile
communications.
[0010] FIG. 2 is an illustration of a system in an example
implementation that shows a gesture that is used to collect content
in the portion of the user interface of FIG. 1.
[0011] FIG. 3 is an illustration of a system in an example
implementation in which content is shown that is accepted into a
portion of FIG. 2.
[0012] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example
implementation in which a portion is output in a user interface
that is configured to accept content and then perform an action
involving each of the content.
[0013] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram depicting a procedure in an example
implementation in which a user interface is output having a portion
that is configured to accept content and usable to automatically
form a communication without further user interaction.
[0014] FIG. 6 illustrates various components of an example device
that can be implemented in various embodiments as any type of a
mobile device to implement embodiments of devices, features, and
systems for mobile communications.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] Overview
[0016] Mobile communications devices typically have a small form
factor to aide mobility of the mobile communications device. For
example, the mobile communications device (e.g., a mobile phone)
may be configured with a relatively minimal amount of display area
and limited input devices (e.g., a keypad) so that the device may
be easily transported. Consequently, traditional techniques used to
interact with a conventional computer (e.g., a desktop PC) may be
frustrating when used in conjunction with a mobile communications
device.
[0017] For instance, selection and sharing of content (e.g.,
photos, video, and so on) on a mobile communications device may be
difficult using traditional techniques due to the limitations of
the small form factor described above. Consequently, traditional
mobile communications devices were configured to interact with a
single item of content at a time.
[0018] A mobile communications device user interface is described.
In an implementation, a portion of a user interface is configured
as a "bucket" to allow a user to drag-and-drop multiple items of
content into it. The portion may be persisted between applications
by an operating system such that a user may navigate between
applications and store items of content from the applications using
the portion. Actions may then be applied to the content that has
been accepted in the bucket as a whole, such as to form a
communication, a playlist, and so on, further discussion of which
may be found in relation to the following sections.
[0019] In the following discussion, a variety of example
implementations of a mobile communications device (e.g., a wireless
phone) are described. Additionally, a variety of different
functionality that may be employed by the mobile communications
device is described for each example, which may be implemented in
that example as well as in other described examples. Accordingly,
example implementations are illustrated of a few of a variety of
contemplated implementations. Further, although a mobile
communications device having one or more modules that are
configured to provide telephonic functionality are described, a
variety of other mobile devices are also contemplated, such as
personal digital assistants, mobile music players, dedicated
messaging devices, portable game devices, netbooks, and so on.
[0020] Example Implementations
[0021] FIG. 1 is an illustration of an example implementation 100
of a mobile communications device 102 in accordance with one or
more embodiments of devices, features, and systems for mobile
communications. The mobile communications device 102 is operable to
assume a plurality of configurations, examples of which include a
configuration as illustrated in FIG. 1 in which the mobile
communications device 102 is "open" and a configuration in which
the mobile communications device 102 is "closed" as illustrated in
FIGS. 2-3.
[0022] The mobile communications device 102 is further illustrated
as including a first housing 104 and a second housing 106 that are
connected via a slide 108 such that the first and second housings
104, 106 may move (e.g., slide) in relation to one another.
Although sliding is described, it should be readily apparent that a
variety of other movement techniques are also contemplated, e.g., a
pivot, a hinge and so on.
[0023] The first housing 104 includes a display device 110 that may
be used to output a variety of content, such as a caller
identification (ID), contacts, images (e.g., photos) as
illustrated, email, multimedia messages, Internet browsing, game
play, music, video and so on. In an implementation, the display
device 110 is configured to function as an input device by
incorporating touchscreen functionality, e.g., through capacitive,
surface acoustic wave, resistive, optical, strain gauge, dispersive
signals, acoustic pulse, and other touchscreen functionality. The
touchscreen functionality (as well as other functionality such as
track pads) may be used to detect gestures, further discussion of
which may be found in relation to FIGS. 2 and 3.
[0024] The second housing 106 is illustrated as including a
keyboard 112 that may also be used to provide inputs to the mobile
communications device 102. Although the keyboard 112 is illustrated
as a QWERTY keyboard, a variety of other examples are also
contemplated, such as a keyboard that follows a traditional
telephone keypad layout (e.g., a twelve key numeric pad found on
basic telephones), keyboards configured for other languages (e.g.,
Cyrillic), and so on.
[0025] In the "open" configuration as illustrated in the example
implementation 100 of FIG. 1, the first housing 104 is moved (e.g.,
slid) "away" from the second housing 106 using the slide 108. Other
implementations are also contemplated, such as a "clamshell"
configuration, "brick" configuration, and so on.
[0026] The form factor employed by the mobile communications device
102 may be suitable to support a wide variety of features. For
example, the keyboard 112 is illustrated as supporting a QWERTY
configuration. This form factor may be particularly convenient to a
user to utilize the previously described functionality of the
mobile communications device 102, such as to compose texts, play
games, check email, "surf" the Internet, provide status messages
for a social network, and so on.
[0027] The mobile communications device 102 is also illustrated as
including a communication module 114. The communication module 114
is representative of functionality of the mobile communications
device 102 to communicate via a network 116. For example, the
communication module 114 may include telephone functionality to
make and receive telephone calls. The communication module 114 may
also include a variety of other functionality, such as to capture
content, form short message service (SMS) text messages, multimedia
messaging service (MMS) messages, emails, status updates to be
communicated to a social network service, and so on. A user, for
instance, may input a status update for communication via the
network 116 to the social network service. The social network
service may then publish the status update to "friends" of the
user, e.g., for receipt by the friends via a computer, respective
mobile communications devices, and so on. A variety of other
examples are also contemplated, such as blogging, instant
messaging, and so on.
[0028] The mobile communications device 102 is also illustrated as
including a user interface module 118. The user interface module
118 is representative of functionality of the mobile communications
device 102 to generate, manage, and/or output a user interface 120
for display on the display device 110. A variety of different
techniques may be employed to generate the user interface.
[0029] For example, the user interface module 118 may configure the
user interface 120 to include a portion 122 to collect a plurality
of content, such as the images 124 in the user interface 120 of
FIG. 1. The user interface module 118 may then expose a plurality
of actions 126 that may be performed using each of the content
collected in the portion 122. A variety of different actions 126
may be performed, such as to form a communication 128, form a
playlist 130, form a slideshow 132, and so on. Thus, in this way
content may be first collected using the portion 122 (the "bucket")
and then an object (e.g., the communication, playlist, or
slideshow) may be formed. This differs from conventional techniques
in which the object was first formed (e.g., a playlist, a
communication, and so on) and then populated with content. A
variety of different techniques may be used to collect content
using the portion 122, an example of which is described in relation
to the following figure.
[0030] FIG. 2 illustrates a system 200 in an example implementation
in which a gesture that is used to collect content in the portion
122 of the user interface 120. The illustrated system 200 shows a
plurality of steps 202, 204, 206, 208 that are used to collect
content in the portion 122. The mobile communication device 102 is
illustrated in the first step 202 as outputting the user interface
120 having a plurality of content, which are images in this
example. A user's finger 210 selects the image 212 of the dog by
placing the finger 210 against the surface of the display device
110.
[0031] At the second step 204, touchscreen functionality of the
mobile communications device 102 is used to detect the selection.
In response, a thumbnail image 214 of the image 212 of the dog is
created which follows the dragging of the user's finger 210 across
the display device 210. For example, an animation may be displayed
to give the appearance that the thumbnail image 210 "pops off" the
image 212 of the dog. Additionally, the display of the image 212
may also be changed to indicate the selection, which is illustrated
through the use of grayscale in the second step 204.
[0032] At the third step 206, the thumbnail image 214 has been
dragged proximal to the portion 122 of the user interface 120 to
follow the user's finger 210. In response, an animation is
displayed that gives an appearance of the thumbnail image 214 being
"dropped in the bucket." For example, the animation may cause the
thumbnail image 214 to be rotated and scaled (e.g., shrunk). In
this way, the user is informed that the content (e.g., the image
212) is being input. A variety of other examples are also
contemplated.
[0033] At the fourth step 208, the display of the image 212 returns
back to the original state, e.g., to match the original state in
the first step 202. Additionally, a display of the portion 122 is
changed to indicate that the portion contains the image. Thus, the
user is informed in this instance that the portion 122 "contains"
the image 122. This process may be repeated to include a wide
variety of content in the portion 122 from a wide variety of
applications. For example, the content included in the portion 122
may be heterogeneous (e.g., "mixed") to include music, images,
movies, contacts, documents, and so on obtained from a variety of
different applications. Although a drag-and-drop operation has been
described for a single item of content, multiple items may also be
selected (e.g., sequentially or at one time) and then dragged
together. A variety of different actions may then be performed
based on what content is included in the portion 122, further
discussion of which may be found in relation to the following
figure.
[0034] FIG. 3 illustrates a system 300 in an example implementation
in which content is shown that is accepted into the portion 122. A
user's hand 210 is shown as selecting the portion 122, which causes
content that has been placed "in" the portion 122 to be displayed
in the user interface 120.
[0035] The user interface 120 may also include options that are
selectable to perform represented actions, examples of which are
illustrated as upload 302 and send 304. The upload 302 option is
selectable to cause content included in the portion 122 to be
uploaded to a network site, such as a social network service. For
example, the user interface module 118 may determine that a contact
(e.g., "Ellie" in the illustrated example) has been included in the
portion 122. Accordingly, the user interface module 118 may upload
content that is not the contact to a network location specified in
the contact "Ellie." A similar technique may also be employed to
form a communication to one or multiple contacts, further
discussion of which may be found in relation to the following
procedures.
[0036] Example Procedures
[0037] The following discussion describes user interface techniques
that may be implemented utilizing the previously described systems
and devices. Aspects of each of the procedures may be implemented
in hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof. The
procedures are shown as a set of blocks that specify operations
performed by one or more devices and are not necessarily limited to
the orders shown for performing the operations by the respective
blocks. In portions of the following discussion, reference will be
made to the environment 100 and systems 200-300 of FIGS. 1-3,
respectively.
[0038] FIG. 4 depicts a procedure 400 in an example implementation
in which a portion is output in a user interface that is configured
to accept content and then perform an action involving each of the
content. A feature is exposed to a plurality of application to
output, in a user interface for display on a display device, a
portion that is selectable in the user interface to accept content
(block 402). For example, functionality of the media module 108 may
be incorporated within an operating system that is executable on a
processor of the mobile media device 104 and is storable in memory
or other computer-readable storage media of the mobile
communications device 104. The operating system may expose this
functionality to applications that are also executed on the mobile
communications device 104 via an application programming interface
(API). Further discussion of an operating system may be found in
relation to FIG. 6.
[0039] One or more indications of actions are output that are
performable on each of the content accepted in the portion (block
404). Thus, in this example, the content is gathered and then a
variety of actions are performable on the content by selecting the
action (block 406). For example, a playlist may be created in
response to selection of a corresponding action (block 408) "create
playlist" when the portion includes content configured as media,
e.g., songs, videos, and so on. In another example, the content may
be uploaded to a social network site in response to selection of a
corresponding action (block 410) "upload." For instance, the media
module 108 may automatically (or in conjunction with manual
interaction of a user) provide credentials to a social network
website via the network 106 to upload content to a user's account
upon selection of an "upload" action. In a further example, a
communication is formed in response to selection of a corresponding
action (block 412), such as an email, text message, and so on.
Further discussion of communication formation may be found in
relation to the following figure.
[0040] FIG. 5 depicts a procedure 500 in an example implementation
in which a user interface is output having a portion that is
configured to accept content and usable to automatically form a
communication without further user interaction. A user interface is
output that has a portion that is configured to accept content
(block 502). For example, the portion 122 may accept content such
as images, music, and contacts.
[0041] When an option is selected in relation to the portion to
initiate a communication and the content includes one or more
contacts, the communication is formed to include the content and is
automatically addressed to the one or more contacts (block 504).
For example, the media module 108 may identify which of the content
accepted via the portion 122 includes relevant contact information,
e.g., a telephone number, email address, and so on. Therefore, when
an option is selected (e.g., a representation of an action "email")
the communication is formed and populated with the relevant contact
information of each of the contacts accepted by the portion 122
automatically and without further user interaction. A variety of
other examples are also contemplated, such as formation of a SMS,
MMS, and so on.
[0042] Example Device
[0043] FIG. 6 illustrates various components of an example device
600 that can be implemented in various embodiments as any type of a
mobile device to implement embodiments of devices, features, and
systems for mobile communications. For example, device 600 can be
implemented as any of the mobile communications devices 102
described with reference to respective FIGS. 1-3. Device 600 can
also be implemented to access a network-based service, such as a
social network service as previously described.
[0044] Device 600 includes input 602 that may include Internet
Protocol (IP) inputs as well as other input devices, such as the
keyboard 112 of FIG. 1. Device 600 further includes communication
interface 604 that can be implemented as any one or more of a
wireless interface, any type of network interface, and as any other
type of communication interface. A network interface provides a
connection between device 600 and a communication network by which
other electronic and computing devices can communicate data with
device 600. A wireless interface enables device 600 to operate as a
mobile device for wireless communications.
[0045] Device 600 also includes one or more processors 606 (e.g.,
any of microprocessors, controllers, and the like) which process
various computer-executable instructions to control the operation
of device 600 and to communicate with other electronic devices.
Device 600 can be implemented with computer-readable media 608,
such as one or more memory components, examples of which include
random access memory (RAM) and non-volatile memory (e.g., any one
or more of a read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, EPROM, EEPROM,
etc.).
[0046] Computer-readable media 608 provides data storage to store
content and data 610, as well as device applications and any other
types of information and/or data related to operational aspects of
device 600. For example, an operating system 612 can be maintained
as a computer application with the computer-readable media 608 and
executed on processor 606. Device applications can also include a
communication manager module 614 (which may be used to provide
telephonic functionality) and a media manager 616.
[0047] Device 600 also includes an audio and/or video output 618
that provides audio and/or video data to an audio rendering and/or
display system 620. The audio rendering and/or display system 620
can be implemented as integrated component(s) of the example device
600, and can include any components that process, display, and/or
otherwise render audio, video, and image data. Device 600 can also
be implemented to provide a user tactile feedback, such as vibrate
and haptics.
[0048] Generally, the blocks may be representative of modules that
are configured to provide represented functionality. Further, any
of the functions described herein can be implemented using
software, firmware (e.g., fixed logic circuitry), manual
processing, or a combination of these implementations. The terms
"module," "functionality," and "logic" as used herein generally
represent software, firmware, hardware or a combination thereof. In
the case of a software implementation, the module, functionality,
or logic represents program code that performs specified tasks when
executed on a processor (e.g., CPU or CPUs). The program code can
be stored in one or more computer readable memory devices. The
features of the techniques described above are
platform-independent, meaning that the techniques may be
implemented on a variety of commercial computing platforms having a
variety of processors.
CONCLUSION
[0049] Although the invention has been described in language
specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is
to be understood that the invention defined in the appended claims
is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts
described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as
example forms of implementing the claimed invention.
* * * * *