Touch devices can be generally characterized as devices that are capable of receiving touch input on the surface of the device. The input may include the location of one or more touches on the device, which may be interpreted as a command, gesture, or other type of user input. In one example, touch input on a touch device may be relayed to an a computing system and used to interpret user interaction with a graphical user interface (GUI), including, for example, selecting elements on a display, reorienting or repositioning elements on a display, entering text, and user input. In another example, touch input on a touch device may be relayed to a computer system and used to interpret a user's interaction with an application program. The user's interaction may include, for example, the manipulation of audio, video, photographs, presentations, text, and the like.
Typically, touch input on a touch device is limited to the location of a touch on the device. However, in some cases, it may be advantageous to also detect and measure the force of a touch that is applied to the device. For example, it might be advantageous for a user to be able to manipulate a computer-generated object on a display in a first way using a relatively light touch and, alternatively, interact with the object a second way using a relatively heavy or sharper touch. By way of example, it might be advantageous for a user to move a computer-generated object on the display using a relatively light touch and then, alternatively, select or invoke a command with respect to the same computer using a relatively heavy or sharper touch. More generally, it might be advantageous for the user to be able to provide input in multiple ways depending on the force of the touch. For example, a user may provide input that is interpreted a first way for a light touch, a second way for a medium touch, and a third way for a heavy touch, and so on. Additionally, it might be advantageous for the user to be able to provide an analog input using a varying amount of force. This type of input may be useful for controlling, for example, a gas pedal on a simulated car or a control surface of an airplane in a flight simulator, or similar applications. It may be further advantageous for the user to be able to provide input, such as simulated body movements or otherwise, in a virtual reality (VR) simulation (possibly with haptic feedback), or in an augmented reality program. It might be further advantageous to use the force of a touch to interpret the relative degree (e.g., force) and locations of multiple touches that are provided to multiple user interface objects or elements that are in use on a touch device at the same time. For example, the force of a touch could be used to interpret multiple touches due to a user pressing more than one element in an application for playing a musical instrument. In particular, the force of multiple touches may be used for interpreting multiple touches by a user on the keys of a piano. Similarly, the force of multiple touches can be used to interpret a user's multiple touches in an application for controlling a motor vehicle (having separate controls for accelerating, braking, signaling, and turning).
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