Patent is for a gesture on devices. This patent doesn't cover all possible "slide to unlock" options such as this door lock. This patent is very specific. That means that you are clueless and/or troll. I'm guessing both.
Everyone gets lit up on the patent abstract, which is of course the intent of the media. Always read the claims. The abstract is irrelevant to the patent, it's only the claims that matter.
Here are the claims from the USPTO. Enjoy:
Code:
What is claimed is:
1. A method of unlocking a hand-held electronic device, the device including a touch-sensitive display, the method comprising: detecting a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and unlocking the hand-held electronic device if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the moving comprises movement along any desired path.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the moving comprises movement along a predefined channel from the first predefined location to the predefined unlock region.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying visual cues to communicate a direction of movement of the unlock image required to unlock the device.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the visual cues comprise text.
6. The method of claim 4, wherein said visual cues comprise an arrow indicating a general direction of movement.
7. A portable electronic device, comprising: a touch-sensitive display; memory; one or more processors; and one or more modules stored in the memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more modules including instructions: to detect a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; to continuously move the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the detected contact while continuous contact with the touch-sensitive display is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and to unlock the hand-held electronic device if the unlock image is moved from the first predefined location on the touch screen to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
8. The device of claim 7, further comprising instructions to display visual cues to communicate a direction of movement of the unlock image required to unlock the device.
9. The device of claim 8, wherein the visual cues comprise text.
10. The device of claim 8, wherein said visual cues comprise an arrow indicating a general direction of movement.
11. A portable electronic device, comprising: a touch-sensitive display; means for displaying an unlock image at a first predefined location on the touch-sensitive display while the device is in a user-interface lock state; means for detecting contact with the touch-sensitive display; and means for continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in response to detecting the contact in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and means for transitioning the device to a user-interface unlock state if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
12. A computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch-sensitive display, cause the portable electronic device to perform a method comprising: detecting a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and unlocking the hand-held electronic device if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
14. The device of claim 7, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
Will it be invalidated? Who knows. If Apple uses it, then we will have a chance to see.
This seems much more constrained than previous reports of this patent and if accurate, means that the android gesture unlock is definitely *not* covered by this patent. There are several lesser tablets that will be in trouble but Android ... not so much.
Certainly claim 1 is not demonstrated by the youtube video posted earlier. Therefore, it can't be used as prior art.
The Dutch judge had ruled that the addition of an image (which is lacking in the Neonode) was too obvious to deserve a patent, quite understandably so. Images of sliders were used to demonstrate that the idea of visual cues to the gesture wasn't anything new or patent-worthy.
In any case, I have doubt that anybody in the industry is going to be seriously bothered by this patent. Plenty of alternatives exist, including far more inventive ones.
I don't, especially when it's tied to a specifically designed piece of hardware and interface. This was designed specifically as a replacement to a login panel/screen saver unlock screen state paradigm that requires a predefined action in order to avoid an accidental unlocking; and all within a multi-touch, embedded interface.
A patent on how to implement a way to duplicate Newton Raphson's method without it being tied to some piece of hardware in some unique way, other than the standard mathematical algorithm of old is not a worthy patent candidate.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
But then Samsung uses their wireless patents against Apple, and suddenly things are 'unfair'.
I'm curious what your point is with your post. On the eve of the iPhone release the announcer is reviewing another phone. We're not talking about before the iPhone was announced, as that was 6 months earlier. It also makes no mention of Neonode having any patents on slide to unlock, if that is your point. In fact there is nothing in the video to suggest that Neonode didn't get the idea for slide to unlock until after seeing Apple's January 2007 demo.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
This is the first I've heard about patent offices being unfair and unethical. Care to elaborate?
It'll be interesting to see if it survives in the States.
Sorry, but that patent was not dismissed by the Dutch courts. One judge said that there were questions as to its validity. That is not even close to your claim that it was dismissed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sciwiz
Yep. The trolls can't even get their silly arguments right. Look at the direction of the piece on the left. The 'hole' cutout should be on the left, not on the right, if you want this device to work properly.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody
This seems much more constrained than previous reports of this patent and if accurate, means that the android gesture unlock is definitely *not* covered by this patent. There are several lesser tablets that will be in trouble but Android ... not so much.
I don't know about Android - there are too many different ones to be sure. But clearly, HP's TouchPad would be violating this patent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Neo42
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
Interesting how the mindless trolls here will allege that Apple's patent was not issued in a fair and ethical fashion - but fail to provide any evidence to support that claim.
And the patent wars continues. Samsung's gonna be ready if Apple decides to enter the TV market.
Not an issue if Apple merely licenses the whole ATV tech to be put inside existing TVs, rather than making the full box. Plus a lot of the patents may fall under FRAND
It'll be interesting to see if it survives in the States.
As I recall, the original patent was on the gesture of swiping in any way shape or placement. This one is a modification specifically on using a preset gesture in a preset way and place as guided by a UI element on the screen. So in fact even the Dutch may validate this more specific version
It's BS generic patients like this that kill competition and in long run increase prices. Patients have outlived their usefulness. Maybe Samsung should patient launching email by touching a button.
Not an issue if Apple merely licenses the whole ATV tech to be put inside existing TVs, rather than making the full box. Plus a lot of the patents may fall under FRAND
Well, I was assuming apple would have a TV themselves. I really can't see Apple not doing something that's not theirs. They're not in the licensing business on that scale. If so, then they might as well sent iOS to Samsung so I can play Infiinity Blade on a Super AMOLED HD display.
Comments
Patent is for a gesture on devices. This patent doesn't cover all possible "slide to unlock" options such as this door lock. This patent is very specific. That means that you are clueless and/or troll. I'm guessing both.
"to unlock gestures on a touchscreen device"
Having a tough time with reading comprehension?
Everyone gets lit up on the patent abstract, which is of course the intent of the media. Always read the claims. The abstract is irrelevant to the patent, it's only the claims that matter.
Here are the claims from the USPTO. Enjoy:
What is claimed is:
1. A method of unlocking a hand-held electronic device, the device including a touch-sensitive display, the method comprising: detecting a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and unlocking the hand-held electronic device if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the moving comprises movement along any desired path.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the moving comprises movement along a predefined channel from the first predefined location to the predefined unlock region.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying visual cues to communicate a direction of movement of the unlock image required to unlock the device.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the visual cues comprise text.
6. The method of claim 4, wherein said visual cues comprise an arrow indicating a general direction of movement.
7. A portable electronic device, comprising: a touch-sensitive display; memory; one or more processors; and one or more modules stored in the memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors, the one or more modules including instructions: to detect a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; to continuously move the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the detected contact while continuous contact with the touch-sensitive display is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and to unlock the hand-held electronic device if the unlock image is moved from the first predefined location on the touch screen to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
8. The device of claim 7, further comprising instructions to display visual cues to communicate a direction of movement of the unlock image required to unlock the device.
9. The device of claim 8, wherein the visual cues comprise text.
10. The device of claim 8, wherein said visual cues comprise an arrow indicating a general direction of movement.
11. A portable electronic device, comprising: a touch-sensitive display; means for displaying an unlock image at a first predefined location on the touch-sensitive display while the device is in a user-interface lock state; means for detecting contact with the touch-sensitive display; and means for continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in response to detecting the contact in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and means for transitioning the device to a user-interface unlock state if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
12. A computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by a portable electronic device with a touch-sensitive display, cause the portable electronic device to perform a method comprising: detecting a contact with the touch-sensitive display at a first predefined location corresponding to an unlock image; continuously moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display in accordance with movement of the contact while continuous contact with the touch screen is maintained, wherein the unlock image is a graphical, interactive user-interface object with which a user interacts in order to unlock the device; and unlocking the hand-held electronic device if the moving the unlock image on the touch-sensitive display results in movement of the unlock image from the first predefined location to a predefined unlock region on the touch-sensitive display.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
14. The device of claim 7, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the unlock image is a single image.
Will it be invalidated? Who knows. If Apple uses it, then we will have a chance to see.
This seems much more constrained than previous reports of this patent and if accurate, means that the android gesture unlock is definitely *not* covered by this patent. There are several lesser tablets that will be in trouble but Android ... not so much.
Certainly claim 1 is not demonstrated by the youtube video posted earlier. Therefore, it can't be used as prior art.
The Dutch judge had ruled that the addition of an image (which is lacking in the Neonode) was too obvious to deserve a patent, quite understandably so. Images of sliders were used to demonstrate that the idea of visual cues to the gesture wasn't anything new or patent-worthy.
In any case, I have doubt that anybody in the industry is going to be seriously bothered by this patent. Plenty of alternatives exist, including far more inventive ones.
In that configuration if someone opens the door the chain will slide over and unlock.
I hate software patents.
I don't, especially when it's tied to a specifically designed piece of hardware and interface. This was designed specifically as a replacement to a login panel/screen saver unlock screen state paradigm that requires a predefined action in order to avoid an accidental unlocking; and all within a multi-touch, embedded interface.
A patent on how to implement a way to duplicate Newton Raphson's method without it being tied to some piece of hardware in some unique way, other than the standard mathematical algorithm of old is not a worthy patent candidate.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
But then Samsung uses their wireless patents against Apple, and suddenly things are 'unfair'.
Old news, but sure to bring many clicks.
So, there you go:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj-KS...layer_embedded
I'm curious what your point is with your post. On the eve of the iPhone release the announcer is reviewing another phone. We're not talking about before the iPhone was announced, as that was 6 months earlier. It also makes no mention of Neonode having any patents on slide to unlock, if that is your point. In fact there is nothing in the video to suggest that Neonode didn't get the idea for slide to unlock until after seeing Apple's January 2007 demo.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
This is the first I've heard about patent offices being unfair and unethical. Care to elaborate?
I hate software patents.
Any rational person hates them. Unfortunately, they are currency.
The courts are filled by idiots.
Old indeed: it was dismissed in the Dutch courts months ago:
Aug 24, 2011
Dutch judge considers Apple's slide-to-unlock patent trivial and likely invalid
http://fosspatents.blogspot.com/2011...-slide-to.html
It'll be interesting to see if it survives in the States.
Sorry, but that patent was not dismissed by the Dutch courts. One judge said that there were questions as to its validity. That is not even close to your claim that it was dismissed.
Yep. The trolls can't even get their silly arguments right. Look at the direction of the piece on the left. The 'hole' cutout should be on the left, not on the right, if you want this device to work properly.
This seems much more constrained than previous reports of this patent and if accurate, means that the android gesture unlock is definitely *not* covered by this patent. There are several lesser tablets that will be in trouble but Android ... not so much.
I don't know about Android - there are too many different ones to be sure. But clearly, HP's TouchPad would be violating this patent.
It's interesting how the majority here will defend Apple's patent suits, regardless as to whether or not they were actually issued in a fair and ethical fashion.
Interesting how the mindless trolls here will allege that Apple's patent was not issued in a fair and ethical fashion - but fail to provide any evidence to support that claim.
And the patent wars continues. Samsung's gonna be ready if Apple decides to enter the TV market.
Not an issue if Apple merely licenses the whole ATV tech to be put inside existing TVs, rather than making the full box. Plus a lot of the patents may fall under FRAND
Old indeed: it was dismissed in the Dutch courts months ago:
Aug 24, 2011
Dutch judge considers Apple's slide-to-unlock patent trivial and likely invalid
http://fosspatents.blogspot.com/2011...-slide-to.html
It'll be interesting to see if it survives in the States.
As I recall, the original patent was on the gesture of swiping in any way shape or placement. This one is a modification specifically on using a preset gesture in a preset way and place as guided by a UI element on the screen. So in fact even the Dutch may validate this more specific version
Any rational person hates them.
Please elaborate. Why would a rational person invest time and resources to invent anything if a competitor can simply copy it for free?
But then Samsung uses their wireless patents against Apple, and suddenly things are 'unfair'.
Um, Samsung's patent in question most likely falls under FRAND whereas Apple's do not, hence the unfair part.
Not an issue if Apple merely licenses the whole ATV tech to be put inside existing TVs, rather than making the full box. Plus a lot of the patents may fall under FRAND
Well, I was assuming apple would have a TV themselves. I really can't see Apple not doing something that's not theirs. They're not in the licensing business on that scale. If so, then they might as well sent iOS to Samsung so I can play Infiinity Blade on a Super AMOLED HD display.
Um, Samsung's patent in question most likely falls under FRAND whereas Apple's do not, hence the unfair part.
Hm....Apple seems to have all their bases covered.