Enlarging a Selection Region Associated with Selected Information in a Document Displayed on a Screen of a Computing Device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016092017-A1
Application number	US-201414497522-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 26, 2014
Priority date	Sep 26, 2014
Publication date	Mar 31, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A mechanism is provided for enhancing a selection region for select information associated within a document. A document is analyzed to determine one or more pieces of information in the document that are likely to be selected by the user, wherein the one or more pieces of information are less than all of the information in the document. Responsive to the document failing to have been analyzed before, a selection region associated with each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information is enlarged by a first predetermined size amount thereby forming a respective region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information. The region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information is then recorded.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method, in a data processing system, for enhancing a selection region for select information associated within a document, the method comprising:
analyzing, by a processing unit in the data processing system, a document to determine one or more pieces of information in the document that are likely to be selected by the user, wherein the one or more pieces of information are less than all of the information in the document; responsive to the document failing to have been analyzed before, enlarging, by the processing unit, the selection region associated with each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information by a first predetermined size amount thereby forming a respective region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information; and recording, by the processing unit, the region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
responsive to the document having been analyzed before, enlarging, by the processing unit, the selection region associated with each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information by a previous region enlargement value associated with that piece of information.

3 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
responsive to the document being paused by a program executing the document, further enlarging, by the processing unit, the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information during analysis of the document by a second predetermined size amount thereby forming a new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information identified during the analysis of the document; and recording, by the processing unit, the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information identified during the analysis of the document,

4 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
responsive to the user stopping a scrolling of the document for greater than a predetermined time period, further enlarging, by the processing unit, the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen by a third predetermined size amount thereby forming a new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen; and recording, by the processing unit, the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen.

5 . The method of claim 4 , further comprising:
further enlarging, by the processing unit, the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information not currently displayed on the screen and associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen by the third predetermined size amount thereby forming an new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information not currently displayed on the screen and associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen; and recording, by the processing unit, the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen.

6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
responsive to the document being closed, eroding, by the processing unit, the region enlargement value associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information by a predetermined eroding amount.

7 . The method of wherein the selection region is a touch region of a touch screen.

8 . A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having a computer readable program stored therein, wherein the computer readable program, when executed on a computing device, causes the computing device to:
analyze a document to determine one or more pieces of information in the document that are likely to be selected by the user, wherein the one or more pieces of information are less than all of the information in the document; responsive to the document failing to have been analyzed before, enlarge a selection region associated with each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information by a first predetermined size amount thereby forming a respective region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information; and record the region enlargement value for each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information.

9 . The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:
responsive to the document having been analyzed before, enlarge the selection region associated with each piece of information in the one or more pieces of information by a previous region enlargement value associated with that piece of information.

10 . The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:
responsive to the document being paused by a program executing the document, further enlarge the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information during analysis of the document by a second predetermined size amount thereby forming a new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information identified during the analysis of the document; and record the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information identified during the analysis of the document.

11 . The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:
responsive to the user stopping a scrolling of the document for greater than a predetermined time period, further enlarge the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen by a third predetermined size amount thereby forming a new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen; and record the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen.

12 . The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:
further enlarge the selection region associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information not currently displayed on the screen and associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen by the third predetermined size amount thereby forming an new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information not currently displayed on the screen and associated with each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen; and record the new region enlargement value for each piece of information of the one or more pieces of information currently displayed on the screen.

13 . The computer program product of claim 8 , wherein the computer readable program further causes the computing device to:
responsive to the document being clos

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Bates Cary L
• Kostick Megan D

Classifications

• G06F3/0488

  using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures · CPC title

• G06F3/0485

  Scrolling or panning · CPC title

• G06F2203/04806

  Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation · CPC title

• G06F3/04842 Primary

  Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements (G06F3/0482 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G06F2203/04808

  Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen · CPC title