Receiving Input at a Computing Device

Abstract

This document describes technologies for interpreting physical contact with a non-touchscreen portion of a computing device's housing (e.g., the computing device's case) as input. For example, a user tapping his/her index finger against the back of a computing device, such as a smartphone or a tablet computing device, can be interpreted as input and can cause an operation to be performed by the computing device, such as turning the page of an electronic book that is being displayed by the computing device.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A computer-implemented method comprising:
 receiving, at a mobile computing device, first input on a touchscreen of the computing device;   in response to receiving the first input, causing a first operation to be performed by the mobile computing device;   receiving, at a mobile computing device, second input that indicates that a user contacted a non-touchscreen portion of a housing of the mobile computing device;   selecting, by the mobile computing device, a second operation from among a plurality of possible operations based at least in part on the first operation having been previously performed by the mobile computing device within a threshold amount of time or number of operations of receipt of the second input; and   causing the second operation to be performed.   
     
     
         2 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising determining whether the portion of the housing that the user contacted is a back portion of the mobile computing device that is opposite the touchscreen of the mobile computing device; and
 wherein the second operation is selected in response to the determination of whether the back of the mobile computing device was contacted.   
     
     
         3 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 2 , further comprising identifying a location on the back portion of the mobile computing device where the user contacted the housing based on the received input; and
 wherein the second operation is additionally selected based on the identified location at which the user contacted the back of the mobile computing device.   
     
     
         4 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 3 , wherein the location where the user contacted the housing indicates user intent to navigate forward or backward through a document comprising a plurality of pages; and
 wherein the second operation comprises moving a display of the document on the mobile computing device forward or backward through the plurality of pages.   
     
     
         5 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 3 , wherein the location where the user contacted the housing is identified using one or more motion sensors positioned in the mobile computing device. 
     
     
         6 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more motion sensors comprise one or more accelerometers; and
 wherein the location is identified based on an amount of torque measured in association with the received input by the one or more accelerometers relative to locations of the one or more accelerometers in the mobile computing device.   
     
     
         7 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 5 , wherein the one or more motion sensors comprise one or more gyroscopes; and
 wherein the location is identified based on an amount of rotation and a direction of rotation in association with the received input that is measured by the one or more gyroscopes relative to locations of the one or more gyroscopes in the mobile computing device.   
     
     
         8 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 3 , wherein the location where the user contacted the housing is identified using a plurality of microphones positioned in the housing of the mobile computing device; and
 wherein the location is identified based on a correlation of audio signals received by the plurality of microphones relative to locations of the plurality of microphones in the housing of the mobile computing device.   
     
     
         9 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 3 , wherein the location where the user contacted the housing is identified using one or more touch sensors that are part of or affixed to the housing on the back of the computing device. 
     
     
         10 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the user contacted the non-touchscreen portion of the housing of the mobile computing device with one or more of the user's fingers or thumbs. 
     
     
         11 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the second operation is the same as the first operation. 
     
     
         12 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the second operation is different from the first operation. 
     
     
         13 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the mobile computing device comprises a smartphone or a tablet computing device. 
     
     
         14 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising providing, by the mobile computing device, output that indicates that the second input was received by the mobile computing device. 
     
     
         15 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 14 , wherein the output includes one or more of: changing a display of the mobile computing device for at least a threshold period of time and providing an audio signal through one or more speakers of the mobile computing device. 
     
     
         16 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 detecting a level of force with which the second input was provided to the housing of the mobile computing device; and   identifying a type of contact for the second input based on a comparison of the level of force with one or more of a plurality of threshold levels of force;   wherein the second operation is selected further based on the identified type of contact for the second input.   
     
     
         17 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 16 , wherein when the identified type of contact for the second input is identified as being an ambiguous type of contact the second operation comprises a preview operation that provides a preview of another operation on the mobile computing device;
 wherein the ambiguous type of contact is identified based on the level of force being i) equal to or greater than a first threshold level of force and ii) less than a second threshold level of force from the plurality of threshold levels of force.   
     
     
         18 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 17 , wherein the second operation is a preview of the first operation that was previously performed on the mobile computing device. 
     
     
         19 . A mobile computing device comprising:
 an input subsystem that is programmed to receive i) first input on a touchscreen of the computing device and ii) second input that indicates that a user contacted a non-touchscreen portion of a housing of the mobile computing device;   an operation selection module that is programmed to select i) a first operation to perform in response to the first input and ii) a second operation from among a plurality of possible operations based at least in part on the first operation having been previously performed by the mobile computing device within a threshold amount of time or number of operations of receipt of the second input; and   a contact interpreter to cause the selected second operation to be performed.   
     
     
         20 . A computer program product embodied in a computer-readable storage device storing instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors of a computer system to perform operations comprising:
 receiving first input on a touchscreen of the computer system;   in response to receiving the first input, causing a first operation to be performed by the computer system;   receiving second input that indicates that a user contacted a non-touchscreen portion of a housing of the computer system;   selecting a second operation from among a plurality of possible operations based at least in part on the first operation having been previously performed within a threshold amount of time or number of operations of receipt of the second input; and   causing the second operation to be performed.