METHOD, APPARATUS, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM PRODUCT FOR ENTRY OF DATA OR COMMANDS BASED ON TAP DETECTION

摘要

An electronic device includes a housing that encloses a processor and a memory coupled to the processor. One or more tap sensors provide a tap signal in response to a user's tap on an outside surface of the housing. A position detecting mechanism determines the position of a user's tap on the outside surface of the housing based on the tap signal. In one embodiment, the position of the user's tap is determined through triangulation using the tap signal from each of plural accelerometers mounted at different locations. A matching mechanism compares the determined position of the user's tap and one or more virtual buttons configured on the outside surface of the housing. In accordance with the preferred embodiments, the size and location of one or more virtual buttons are dynamically configured by the user and/or by a software program loaded on the electronic device.