APPARATUS, METHOD AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT FOR MOVING CONTROLS ON A TOUCHSCREEN

United States Patent Application	20090219252
Kind Code	A1
Jarventie; Heli Margit ; et al.	September 3, 2009

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APPARATUS, METHOD AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT FOR MOVING CONTROLS ON A TOUCHSCREEN

Abstract

An apparatus, method and computer program product are provided for facilitating blind usage of an electronic device having a touchscreen. The electronic device may sense the location of a user's finger on the touchscreen and generate, at that location, an output associated with an object capable of being selected. Generating the output may include displaying an icon and/or generating a sensation associated with the object. Alternatively, generating an output may include generating a sensation or tactile feedback that guides the user to the location of an icon associated with the object. In addition, or alternatively, each of a plurality of objects may have a different sensation associated therewith. The electronic device may output the sensation of the various objects upon receipt of a tactile input at different locations on the touchscreen, so that the user can move his or her finger around the touchscreen until he can feel the desired object.

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Inventors:	Jarventie; Heli Margit; (Tampere, FI) ; Jurvanen; Laura Katariina; (Espoo, FI) ; Hiltunen; Kirsi-Maria; (Paavola, FI) ; Nurmi; Mikko Antero; (Tampere, FI)
Correspondence Name and Address:	ALSTON & BIRD LLP BANK OF AMERICA PLAZA, 101 SOUTH TRYON STREET, SUITE 4000 CHARLOTTE NC 28280-4000 US
Assignee Name and Adress:	Nokia Corporation
Serial No.:	039331
Series Code:	12
Filed:	February 28, 2008

In response to detecting the tactile input and determining its location, the electronic device (e.g., processor or similar means operating on the electronic device) may cause an output associated with a first item in the sequence of items to be generated at the determined location. (Block 304). As discussed above, according to one embodiment, causing the output to be generated may involve displaying an icon associated with the item or object. Alternatively, or in addition, causing the output to be generated may involve generating a sensation or haptic/tactile feedback that is associated with the item or object underneath the user's finger. Sensations may include for example, a furry, rubbery, fluffy or slimy feeling, various vibrations including, for example, a vibration that mimics a machine gun, snoring, a heartbeat, or the like. For example, each of the control buttons of a music player may have a different sensation associated therewith. These sensations may include, for example, a jumping up or down feeling for the volume button, a sliding right feeling for the next track button, a sliding left feeling for the previous track button and the like. As one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize, sensations of the kind described herein may be generated using, for example, the techniques disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,429,846 assigned to Immersion Corporation ("the Immersion patent").