# US 8,570,294 B2 · Techniques for recognizing temporal tapping patterns input to a touch panel interface > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,570,294 B2 - Document ID: US8570294B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 13/169,524 - Filed: 2011-06-27 - Published: 2011-10-20 - Granted: 2013-10-29 - Earliest claimed: 2009-12-18 - Assignees: Intel Corporation - Applicants: Peter S. Adamson; Mark D. Yarvis; David L. Graumann; Sangita Sharma - Inventors: Peter S. Adamson; Mark D. Yarvis; David L. Graumann; Sangita Sharma - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8570294B2 ## CPC - G06F 3/04883: for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract Briefly, a method and apparatus for recognizing temporal tapping patterns input to a touch panel interface is disclosed. The method may include receiving user input with a touch panel interface, recognizing a temporal tapping pattern in the user input, and performing an action associated with the temporal tapping pattern. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: recognizing a pattern initiation shape at a location on a touch panel interface; establishing a persistent region at the location of the pattern initiation shape when the pattern initiation shape is recognized, the persistent region comprising a surface area on the touch panel interface that is defined by contact made with the pattern initiation shape; tallying and timing touch up instances and touch down instances made in the persistent region; identifying a tapping pattern timeout during a touch up instance that lasts for a period of time that exceeds or is equal to a threshold time amount; generating a temporal tapping pattern based, at least in part, on the touch up instances and the touch down instances when the tapping pattern timeout is identified; determining if the temporal tapping pattern is similar to a known pattern; and performing an action associated the known pattern when the temporal tapping pattern is determined to be similar to the known pattern. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method as recited in claim 1, wherein performing an action comprises executing a complex action which otherwise would require one of multiple user steps, a short cut action, and a macro function to execute. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the temporal tapping pattern is used to access to applications and services. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the user input is made on dynamically-allocated region of the touch panel. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the touch panel interface is a screen associated with a handheld device, cell phone or consumer electronic device and the temporal tapping pattern is input anywhere on the screen to activate a desired response. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the persistent region is a bounding box under a touched region for monitoring subsequent tap patterns and wherein monitoring for the tapping pattern is focused on a region where the user placed the pattern initiation shape. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising removing the persistent region when the temporal tapping pattern is identified, the temporal tapping pattern is acted upon, or negative results are reported. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising prompting the user to associate the temporal tapping pattern with a computing event if the temporal tapping pattern is not recognized. ### Claim 9 An apparatus, comprising: a touch subsystem including a touch panel for receiving user input in the form of a temporal tapping pattern; and a processing unit to recognize the temporal tapping pattern and perform an action associated with the temporal tapping pattern, the recognizing the temporal tapping pattern in the user input comprises: recognizing a pattern initiation shape at a location on a touch panel interface; establishing a persistent region at the location of the pattern initiation shape when the pattern initiation shape is recognized; tallying and timing touch up and touch down instances made in the persistent region into the temporal tapping pattern; identifying a tapping pattern timeout during a touch up instance that lasts for a period of time that exceeds or is equal to a threshold time amount; generating a temporal tapping pattern based, at least in part, on the touch up instances and the touch down instances when the tapping pattern timeout is identified; determining if the temporal tapping pattern is similar to a known pattern; and performing an action associated with the known pattern when the temporal tapping pattern is determined to be similar to the known pattern. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein executing a system action comprises executing a complex action which otherwise would require one of multiple user steps, a short cut action, and a macro function to execute. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the temporal tapping pattern is used to access to applications and services. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the user input is made on dynamically-allocated region of the touch panel. ### Claim 13 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the apparatus is a handheld device, cell phone or consumer electronic device and the touch panel is a screen associated with the handheld device, cell phone or consumer electronic device and the temporal tapping pattern is input anywhere on the screen to activate a desired response. ### Claim 14 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the persistent region is a bounding box under a touched region for monitoring subsequent tap patterns and wherein monitoring for the tapping pattern is focused on a region where the user placed the pattern initiation shape. ### Claim 15 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising removing the persistent region when the temporal tapping pattern is identified, the temporal tapping pattern is acted upon, or negative results are reported. ### Claim 16 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising prompting the user to associate the temporal tapping pattern with a computing event if the temporal tapping pattern is not recognized. ### Claim 17 A non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions, which when accessed, cause a machine to perform operations comprising: recognizing a pattern initiation shape at a location on a touch panel interface; establishing a persistent region at the location of the pattern initiation shape when the pattern initiation shape is recognized; determining a number of frames accumulated during each touch up instance and touch down instance made in the persistent region, each of the frames comprising a duration of time; generating a histogram comprising a bin for each of the touch up instances and touch down instances; converting each of the bins to floating point values; normalizing the floating point values by dividing each of the floating point values by a total number of frames included in the histogram; generate a time series pattern based, at least in part, on the normalized floating point values; comparing the time series pattern to known patterns; and performing an action associated to a known pattern when the time series pattern is recognized as the known pattern. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, wherein performing an action comprises executing a complex action which otherwise would require one of multiple user steps, a short cut action, and a macro function to execute. ### Claim 19 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, wherein the time series tapping pattern is used access to applications and services. ### Claim 20 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, wherein a user input is made on a dynamically-allocated region of the touch panel. ### Claim 21 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, wherein the touch panel interface is a screen associated with a handheld device, cell phone or consumer electronic device and the time series pattern is input anywhere on the touch panel interface to activate a desired response. ### Claim 22 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, wherein the persistent region is a bounding box under a touched region for monitoring subsequent tap patterns and wherein monitoring for the tapping pattern is focused on a region where a user placed the pattern initiation shape. ### Claim 23 (depends on 17) The non-volatile computer readable medium encoded with computer executable instructions of claim 17, further comprising removing the persistent region when the time series pattern is identified, the time series pattern is acted upon, or negative results are reported. ### Claim 24 A handheld device, comprising: a screen; a touch subsystem including a touch panel incorporated into said screen for receiving user input in the form of a temporal tapping pattern; and a processing unit to recognize the temporal tapping pattern and perform an action associated with the temporal tapping pattern, the recognizing of the temporal tapping pattern in the user input comprises: recognizing a pattern initiation shape at a location on the touch panel; establishing a persistent region at the location of the pattern initiation shape when the pattern initiation shape is recognized; tallying and timing touch up and touch down instances into the temporal tapping pattern; comparing the temporal tapping pattern to known patterns; performing an action associated to a known pattern when the temporal tapping pattern is recognized as the known pattern; and disbanding the persistent region before or after the action is performed. ### Claim 25 (depends on 24) The handheld device of claim 24, wherein performing an action comprises executing a complex action by said handheld device which otherwise would require one of multiple user steps, a short cut action, and a macro function to execute. ### Claim 26 (depends on 24) The handheld device of claim 24, wherein the temporal tapping pattern is used to access to applications and services associated with the handheld device. ### Claim 27 (depends on 26) The handheld device of claim 26, wherein the temporal tapping pattern is input anywhere on the screen to activate a desired response.