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Backpat: improving one-handed touchscreen operation by patting the back of the device

Authors:

Karsten Seipp,

Kate DevlinAuthors Info & Claims

CHI EA '14: CHI '14 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems

Pages 555 - 558

https://doi.org/10.1145/2559206.2574811

Published: 26 April 2014 Publication History

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Abstract

We present BackPat: A technique for supporting one-handed smartphone operation. Using pats of either the index finger or middle finger or thumb on the back or side of the device, the user can extend one-handed use in a variety of difficult tasks. We explain the principle behind the technique and make a first attempt at examining its usability and versatility by implementing it into four applications, covering text selection, reaching distant targets, multiple file selection, and map and image zoom. An initial user study has shown a high grade of acceptance, verified the interaction logic and highlighted improvements in task-completion time over non-enhanced interaction. This way we hope to encourage discussion about its usefulness and potential.

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Cited By

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Sei YShizuki B(2021)Expanding One-Handed Input Vocabulary for Smartphone Using In-Air Gesture of Index Finger Captured by Rear CameraProceedings of the Asian CHI Symposium 202110.1145/3429360.3468181(61-63)Online publication date: 8-May-2021
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3429360.3468181
Wang RYu CYang XHe WShi YBrewster SFitzpatrick GCox AKostakos V(2019)EarTouchProceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3290605.3300254(1-13)Online publication date: 2-May-2019
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3290605.3300254
Eardley RRoudaut AGill SThompson SMandryk RHancock MPerry MCox A(2018)Investigating How Smartphone Movement is Affected by Body PostureProceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3173574.3173776(1-8)Online publication date: 21-Apr-2018
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3173574.3173776
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Index Terms

Backpat: improving one-handed touchscreen operation by patting the back of the device
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Human computer interaction (HCI)

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BackPat: one-handed off-screen patting gestures
MobileHCI '14: Proceedings of the 16th international conference on Human-computer interaction with mobile devices & services

We present BackPat - a technique for supporting one-handed smartphone operation by using pats of the index finger, middle finger or thumb on the back or side of the device. We devise a novel method using the device's microphone and gyroscope that ...
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With increasingly large smartphones, it becomes more difficult to use these devices one-handed. Due to a large touchscreen, users can not reach across the whole screen using their thumb. In this paper, we investigate approaches to move the screen ...
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One-handed mobile use, which is predominantly thumb-driven, presents interaction challenges like screen occlusion, reachability of far and inside corners, and an increased chance of dropping the device. We adopt a Research through Design approach around ...

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Information

Published In

CHI EA '14: CHI '14 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems

April 2014

2620 pages

ISBN:9781450324748

DOI:10.1145/2559206

General Chairs:
Matt Jones
Swansea University, Wales, UK
,
Philippe Palanque
Université Paul Sabatier, France
,
Program Chairs:
Albrecht Schmidt
University of Stuttgart, Germany
,
Tovi Grossman
Autodesk Research, Canada

Permission to make digital or hard copies of part or all of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for third-party components of this work must be honored. For all other uses, contact the Owner/Author.

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Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 26 April 2014

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SIGCHI

CHI '14: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

April 26 - May 1, 2014

Ontario, Toronto, Canada

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CHI EA '14 Paper Acceptance Rate 1,000 of 3,200 submissions, 31%;

Overall Acceptance Rate 6,164 of 23,696 submissions, 26%

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Cited By

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Sei YShizuki B(2021)Expanding One-Handed Input Vocabulary for Smartphone Using In-Air Gesture of Index Finger Captured by Rear CameraProceedings of the Asian CHI Symposium 202110.1145/3429360.3468181(61-63)Online publication date: 8-May-2021
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3429360.3468181
Wang RYu CYang XHe WShi YBrewster SFitzpatrick GCox AKostakos V(2019)EarTouchProceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3290605.3300254(1-13)Online publication date: 2-May-2019
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3290605.3300254
Eardley RRoudaut AGill SThompson SMandryk RHancock MPerry MCox A(2018)Investigating How Smartphone Movement is Affected by Body PostureProceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3173574.3173776(1-8)Online publication date: 21-Apr-2018
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3173574.3173776
Eardley RRoudaut AGill SThompson SMark GFussell SLampe Cschraefel mHourcade JAppert CWigdor D(2017)Understanding Grip ShiftsProceedings of the 2017 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3025453.3025835(4680-4691)Online publication date: 2-May-2017
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3025453.3025835
Yoo HYoon JJi HBoring SRukzio EGellersen HHinckley K(2015)Index Finger ZoneProceedings of the 17th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services Adjunct10.1145/2786567.2793704(803-810)Online publication date: 24-Aug-2015
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2786567.2793704
Seipp KDevlin KQuigley ADiamond SIrani PSubramanian S(2014)BackPatProceedings of the 16th international conference on Human-computer interaction with mobile devices & services10.1145/2628363.2628396(77-80)Online publication date: 23-Sep-2014
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/2628363.2628396

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Recommendations

BackPat: one-handed off-screen patting gestures

Investigating Screen Shifting Techniques to Improve One-Handed Smartphone Usage

JoyHolder: Tangible Back-of-Device Mobile Interactions

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