Touchpad activation regions for dynamic touch sensor activation

1 . A method comprising:

in response to receiving a user interaction at a touchpad, defining a plurality of activation regions of the touchpad based on a location and direction of the user interaction at the touchpad;

assigning a corresponding activation weight to each activation region of the touchpad, wherein activation regions that extend farther in the direction of the user interaction are assigned progressively lower activation weights;

activating each touch sensor within each activation region based on the activation weight assigned to that activation region, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

generating at least one extended reality (XR) application control signal based on output from one or more activated touch sensors.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein

defining the plurality of activation regions comprises determining one or more paths of the user interaction based on the direction of the user interaction and spatially configuring the plurality of activation regions to at least partially overlap along at least one of the determined paths.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein activating the touch sensor within an activation region comprises:

generating a first outcome or a second outcome based on the activation weight assigned to the activation region;

in response to generating the first outcome for the touch sensor, activating the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is able to detect subsequent user interactions; and

in response to generating the second outcome, not activating the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is not able to detect subsequent user interactions.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein generating the at least one XR application control signal further comprises:

generating, by a trained neural network, data representing a control associated with an XR software application based on the user interaction; and

modifying the XR software application based on the control.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

activating at least a subset of touch sensors of the touchpad based on a default activation weight prior to receiving the user interaction, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

in response to receiving the user interaction, redefining the plurality of activation regions of the touchpad and assigning corresponding activation weights.

6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

defining a second activation region of the touchpad based at least on the location of the user interaction relative to a first activation region.

7 . The method of claim 6 , further comprising:

activating each touch sensor in the second activation region of the touchpad based on the activation weight assigned to the second activation region such that each touch sensor in the second activation region is able to detect user interactions.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the activation weights assigned to the plurality of activation regions define a hierarchy based on the direction of the user interaction, such that an activation region that is predicted to be contacted earlier in the direction of the user interaction is assigned a higher activation weight than an activation region that is predicted to be contacted later in the direction of the user interaction.

9 . A user device, comprising:

a touchpad including a plurality of touch sensors; and

an input detection circuitry configured to:

define a plurality of activation regions of the touchpad in response to the touchpad receiving a user interaction, wherein the regions are based on a location and a direction of the user interaction at the touchpad;

assign a corresponding activation weight to each of the plurality of activation regions, wherein activation regions that extend farther in the direction of the user interaction are assigned progressively lower activation weights;

activate the touch sensor within each of the plurality of activation regions based on the activation weight assigned to the that activation region, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

generate at least one extended reality (XR) application control signal based on output from one or more activated touch sensors.

10 . The user device of claim 9 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to

define the plurality of activation regions by:

determining one or more paths of the user interaction based on the direction of the user interaction; and

spatially configuring the plurality of activation regions to at least partially overlap at least one of the determined paths.

11 . The user device of claim 10 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to:

assign the corresponding activation weight to each activation region based on a hierarchy defined by the direction of the user interaction, such that an activation region that is predicted to be contacted earlier in the direction of the user interaction is assigned a higher activation weight than an activation region that is predicted to be contacted later in the direction of the user interaction.

12 . The user device of claim 9 , wherein:

the touchpad is configured to produce an output based on the user interaction; and

the input detection circuitry includes a trained neural network configured to generate a control associated with an XR software application based on the output from the touchpad.

13 . The user device of claim 9 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to:

for each touch sensor within the activation region:

generate a first outcome or a second outcome based on the activation weight assigned to the activation region;

in response to generating the first outcome, activate the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

in response to generating the second outcome, not activate the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is not able to detect user interactions.

14 . The user device of claim 9 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to:

before the user interaction is received, activate each sensor of the touchpad based on a default activation weight, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

in response to receiving the user interaction, define the region of the touchpad.

15 . The user device of claim 9 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to:

define a second activation region based at least on the location of the user interaction relative to a first activation region.

16 . The user device of claim 15 , wherein the input detection circuitry is configured to:

activate each touch sensor in the second activation region of the touchpad based on the activation weight assigned to the second activation region such that each touch sensor in the second activation region is able to detect user interactions.

17 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions that, when executed by at least one processor of a user device, cause the at least one processor to:

define a plurality of activation regions of a touchpad in response to receiving a user interaction at the touchpad, wherein the regions are defined based on a location and a direction of the user interaction at the touchpad;

assign a corresponding activation weight to each activation region of the touchpad, wherein activation regions that extend farther in the direction of the user interaction are assigned progressively lower activation weights;

activate each touch sensor within each activation region based on the activation weight assigned to that activation region, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

generate at least one extended reality (XR) application control signal based on output from one or more activated touch sensors.

18 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 further including instructions that cause the at least one processor to:

for the touch sensor within the activation region:

generate a first outcome or a second outcome based on the activation weight assigned to the activation region;

in response generating the first outcome, activate the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

in response to generating the second outcome, not activate the touch sensor such that the touch sensor is not able to detect user interactions.

19 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 further including instructions that cause the at least one processor to:

generate, by a trained neural network, data representing a control associated with an XR software application based on the user interaction; and

modify the XR software application based on the control.

20 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 further including instructions that cause the at least one processor to:

activate at least a subset of touch sensors of the touchpad based on a default activation weight prior to receiving the user interaction, wherein each activated touch sensor is able to detect user interactions; and

in response to receiving the user interaction, redefine the plurality of activation regions of the touchpad and assigning corresponding activation weights.

21 . The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 further including instructions that cause the at least one processor to:

define a second activation region of the touchpad based at least on the location of the user interaction relative to a first activation region; and

activate each touch sensor in the second activation region such that each touch sensor in the second activation region is able to detect user interactions.