Electronic device control in response to finger rotation upon fingerprint sensor and corresponding methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11150794-B2
Application number	US-201916692883-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 22, 2019
Priority date	Aug 23, 2018
Publication date	Oct 19, 2021
Grant date	Oct 19, 2021

Abstract

An electronic device includes a fingerprint sensor and one or more processors operable with the fingerprint sensor. One or more motion detectors are also operable with the one or more processors. The one or more processors determine with the fingerprint sensor, a direction of rotation of an object rotating, and in contact with, the fingerprint sensor. The one or more motion detectors detect whether the electronic device is rotating in three-dimensional space. The one or more processors then select and perform a first control operation when the object is rotating in a first axial direction and the electronic device is substantially stationary. Alternatively, the one or more processors select and perform a second control operation when the electronic device is rotating and the object is rotating in the first axial direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method in an electronic device, the method comprising:
detecting, with a fingerprint sensor, rotation of an object contacting the fingerprint sensor and, where the object is rotating, an object rotation direction;
selecting, with one or more processors operable with the fingerprint sensor:
a first control operation for the electronic device when the electronic device is stationary and the object rotation direction is clockwise; or
a second control operation, different from the first control operation, when the electronic device is rotating and the object rotation direction is clockwise; and

performing, with the one or more processors, the first control operation when the first control operation is selected by the one or more processors; and
performing the second control operation when the second control operation is selected by the one or more processors.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining, with one or more motion detectors, whether the electronic device is rotating about an axis passing through the electronic device, and when the electronic device is rotating about the axis, an electronic device rotation direction, wherein the selecting comprises selecting the second control operation only when the object rotation direction is opposite the electronic device rotation direction.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising also selecting, with the one or more processors:
the first control operation when the electronic device is rotating and the object rotation direction is counterclockwise; or
the second control operation when the electronic device is stationary and the object rotation direction is counterclockwise.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining, with one or more motion detectors, whether the electronic device is rotating, and when the electronic device is rotating, an electronic device rotation direction, wherein the selecting comprises selecting the second control operation occurs only when the object rotation direction is opposite the electronic device rotation direction.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first control operation comprises increasing a volume of an audio output of the electronic device.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first control operation comprises increasing an illumination level of a visual output of the electronic device.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first control operation comprises a directional scrolling operation advancing objects presented on a visual output of the electronic device.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining an angular velocity for the object rotating on the fingerprint sensor.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the angular velocity defines an extent to which one or both of the first control operation or the second control operation will be performed.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining an angular displacement of the object rotating on the fingerprint sensor.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the angular displacement of the object rotating on the fingerprint sensor determined an extent to which one or both of the first control operation or the second control operation will be performed.

12. An electronic device, comprising:
a fingerprint sensor;
one or more motion detectors; and
one or more processors operable with the fingerprint sensor and the one or more motion detectors;
the one or more processors determining, with the fingerprint sensor, a direction of rotation of an object rotating, and in contact with, the fingerprint sensor, and further determining, with the one or more motion detectors, whether the electronic device is rotating in three-dimensional space, and where the electronic device is rotating, another direction of rotation of the electronic device;
the one or more processors selecting and performing:
a first control operation when the object is rotating in a first axial direction and the electronic device is substantially stationary; or
a second control operation when the object is rotating in the first axial direction while the electronic device is rotating in a second axial direction, the second axial direction opposite the first axial direction.

13. The electronic device of claim 12 , the one or more processors also selecting and performing:
the first control operation when the object is rotating in the second axial direction and while the electronic device is rotating in the first axial direction; or
the second control operation when the object is rotating in the second axial direction while the electronic device is substantially stationary.

14. The electronic device of claim 13 , further comprising an audio output device, the first axial direction comprising a clockwise direction, the first control operation comprising increasing a volume of the audio output device, the second control operation comprising decreasing the volume of the audio output device.

15. The electronic device of claim 14 , the one or more processors further determining, with the fingerprint sensor, a velocity of rotation for the object.

16. The electronic device of claim 14 , the one or more processors further determining, with the fingerprint sensor, an axial amount of rotation for the object.

17. The electronic device of claim 13 , further comprising a visual output, the first axial direction comprising a clockwise direction, the first control operation comprising increasing an illumination level of a visual output of the electronic device, the second control operation comprising decreasing the illumination level of the visual output of the electronic device.

18. A method in an electronic device, the method comprising:
detecting, with a fingerprint sensor, rotation of an object contacting the fingerprint sensor and, where the object is rotating, an object rotation direction;
determining, with one or more motion detectors, whether the electronic device is rotating in three-dimensional space and, where the electronic device is rotating, an electronic device rotation direction;
selecting, with one or more processors operable with the fingerprint sensor and the one or more motion detectors a first control operation for the electronic device when one of:
the object rotation direction is clockwise and the electronic device is substantially stationary; or
the object rotation direction is counterclockwise and the electronic device rotation direction is clockwise.

19. The method if claim 18 , further comprising selecting, with the one or more processors, a second control operation that is different from the first control operation when one of:
the object rotation direction is counterclockwise and the electronic device is substantially stationary; or
the object rotation direction is clockwise and the electronic device rotation direction is counterclockwise.

20. The method of claim 18 , wherein the first control operation comprises one of a volume control operation, an illumination control operation, or a directional scrolling operation.

Assignees

• Motorola Mobility Llc

Inventors

• Gorsica John
• Merrell Thomas

Classifications

• G06F3/0487 Primary

  using specific features provided by the input device, e.g. functions controlled by the rotation of a mouse with dual sensing arrangements, or of the nature of the input device, e.g. tap gestures based on pressure sensed by a digitiser · CPC title

• G06V40/1365

  Matching; Classification · CPC title

• G06V40/13

  Sensors therefor · CPC title

• G06F3/04847 Primary

  Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials · CPC title

• G06V40/1306

  non-optical, e.g. ultrasonic or capacitive sensing · CPC title