Pressure-sensitive layering of displayed objects

A pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device configured to provide a pressure-sensitive control for dragging a displayed object with respect to another displayed object on the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device, the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device comprising:

• a display for displaying output images;
• an input surface for receiving user interaction with the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device;
• a processor;
• and
• a memory storage device storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
• display two or more objects on the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device;
• detect contact with the input surface by one or more input mechanisms in a region of the input surface that corresponds to a first displayed object;
• sense a pressure applied to the input surface by the one or more input mechanisms;
• quantify the sensed pressure applied to the input surface by the one or more input mechanisms detected to be contacting the input surface in the region of the input surface that corresponds to the first displayed object;
• interpret user interaction received by the input surface based on the quantified pressure;
• perform a transformation by adjusting one or more of a shape and a location based on the sensed pressure of the first displayed object of the two or more displayed objects relative to a second displayed object of the two or more displayed objects as a function of the interpreted user interaction with the input surface;
• tracking movement of the interpreted user interaction while the one or more input mechanisms remain in contact with the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device;
• based on tracking movement of the one or more input mechanisms during the transformation, detecting an intersection between the first displayed object and a second displayed object;
• determine a depth of the first displayed object at its detected intersection with the second displayed object;
• determine a depth of the second displayed object at its detected intersection with the first displayed object;
• compare the determined depths of the first and second displayed objects at their detected intersection;
• based on a result of comparing the determined depths of the first and second displayed objects at their detected intersection, store data indicating that one of the first and second displayed objects is overlapping the other of the first and second displayed objects;
• and
• cause the first and second displayed objects to be displayed on the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device in accordance with the stored data such that the overlapping displayed object is displayed closer to a foreground of the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device than the other displayed object.

A non-volatile computer-readable storage memory having stored thereon instructions that, when executed, cause a computer to:

• display two or more objects on a pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device;
• receive user input through one or more input mechanisms with the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device;
• sense a pressure applied to the pressure-sensitive touch-screen display device in a display region that corresponds to a first object of the two or more objects;
• adjust one or more of a shape and a location of the first object based on the sensed pressure via a motion of dragging, wherein the motion of dragging is applied to the first object and includes tracking movement of the one or more input mechanisms during the motion of dragging;
• based on tracking movement of the one or more input mechanisms during the motion of dragging applied to the first object, detect an intersection between the first object and a second object of the two or more objects;
• determine a depth of the first object at the intersection as a function of the sensed pressure;
• determine a depth of the second object at its detected intersection with the first object;
• compare the depth of the first object with a depth of the second object at their detected intersection;
• store data based on the comparison that indicates that one of the first object and the second object is overlapping the other of the first object and the second object;
• and
• display based on the stored data the first object and the second object such that the overlapping object is displayed closer to a foreground of the display than the other object.