Data processing in relation to a multi-touch sensing apparatus

• US 10,013,107 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2017
• Issued: 07/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FlatFrog Laboratories AB
• Original Assignee: FlatFrog Laboratories AB
• Inventors: Christiansson, Tomas, Wassvik, Ola, Fahraeus, Christer
• Primary Examiner(s): Pervan, Michael
• Application Number:
  US15/632,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20170293392A1
• Time in Patent Office: 372 Days
• Field of Search: 178 1801- 1907, 345173-178
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04166 Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving Synchronisation with the driving of the display or the backlighting unit to avoid interferences generated internally G06F3/04184
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A device obtains a signal representative of objects on a touch surface of a multi-touch sensing apparatus and executes a method for extracting touch data from the signal. The method operates in a sequence of detection frames. Each detection frame comprises the steps of: obtaining the signal; processing the signal for identifying touches; determining a set of identified touches and touch data for the set of identified touches; and outputting the touch data. At least one of the steps of processing and determining includes a prioritization that actively favors certain touches to be identified and included in the set of identified touches, respectively.

Claims

1. A method for extracting data from a multi-touch sensing apparatus, said method operating in a sequence of detection frames, wherein in one or more detection frames among the sequence of detection frames, the method comprises:

obtaining at least one signal representative of objects on a touch surface of the multi-touch sensing apparatus;

processing said at least one signal to identify touches;

determining a set of identified touches and touch data for the set of identified touches; and

outputting the touch data;

wherein the one or more detection frames include a spatial prioritization, the spatial prioritization based on a subarea of the touch surface, the subarea at least one of having a fixed location on the touch surface or being defined relative to one or more graphical objects displayed on the touch surface;

wherein the processing includes

comparing a spatial distribution of signal values of the at least one signal with corresponding threshold signal values to identify the touches

locally changing the corresponding threshold signal values based on an estimated location of an identified touch.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing promotes identification of the set of identified touches based on said at least one signal.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing further comprises:

identifying a signal feature in said at least one signal based on the estimated location of an identified touch.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein

the signal feature is a local change in values of a projection signal;

and

the values correspond to transmitted energy on a plurality of detection lines across the touch surface.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the signal feature corresponds to a local change in signal values in a distribution of an energy-related parameter within at least part of the touch surface.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein signal values in the spatial distribution of signal values are included in said at least one signal.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatial distribution of signal values includes a distribution of an energy-related parameter, said distribution of an energy-related parameter obtained based on said at least one signal.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the processing further comprises:

obtaining the distribution of an energy-related parameter based on said at least one signal;

identifying a set of local extrema in the distribution of an energy-related parameter;

sequentially processing the set of local extrema for determining the touch data; and

favoring one or more local extrema in the set of local extrema.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein

the processing further includes identifying a number of touches based on said at least one signal;

and wherein

the determining includes selecting a subset of said number of touches as the set of identified touches.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the set of identified touches is limited to a maximum number of touches.

11. The method claim 9, wherein the processing further comprises:

determining age data for each touch among the number of touches, the age data representing a number of preceding detection frames in which the touch is deemed to be identified; and

wherein

the selecting selects said set of identified touches from among the number of touches based on the age data.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining comprises:

sequentially applying different prioritization criteria to determine the set of identified touches.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing a history list including location data and age data of touch traces, wherein

each of the touch traces represents a corresponding previous touch on the touch surface,

the location data for a touch trace among the touch traces represents a most recent location of the corresponding previous touch on the touch surface, and

the age data for the touch trace among the touch traces represents a number of detection frames in which the corresponding previous touch on the touch surface has been identified; and

wherein

the determining determines the set of identified touches based on at least the location data in the history list.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

matching said set of identified touches for a current detection frame to the touch traces; and

updating the history list based on the matching.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising computer code which, when executed on a data-processing system, causes the data-processing system to carry out the method of claim 1.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the spatial prioritization for a detection frame, in the sequence of detection frames, provides spatial information regarding peaks having been identified as touches in one or more previous detection frames in the sequence of detection frames.

17. A device for generating touch data, said device configured to operate in a sequence of detection frames, the device comprising:

an input; and

one or more processors connected to said input, the one or more processors configured to execute computer-readable instructions to, in one or more detection frames among the sequence of detection frames,

obtain, via said input, at least one signal representative of objects on a touch surface of a multi-touch oensing apparatus;

process said at least one signal to identify touches;

determine a set of identified touches and touch data for the set of identified touches; and

output said touch data;

wherein the one or more detection frames include a spatial prioritization, the spatial prioritization based on a subarea of the touch surface, the subarea at least one of having a fixed location on the touch surface or being defined relative to one or more graphical objects displayed on the touch surface; and

wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to process said at least one signal to identify the touches by

comparing a spatial distribution of signal values of the at least one signal with corresponding threshold signal values to identify the touches, and

locally changing the corresponding threshold signal values based on an estimated location of an identified touch.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the spatial prioritization for a detection frame, in the sequence of detection frames, provides spatial information regarding peaks having been identified as touches in one or more previous detection frames in the sequence of detection frames.

19. The device of claim 17, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute computer-readable instructions to sequentially apply different prioritization criteria to determine the set of identified touches.

20. A multi-touch sensing apparatus, comprising:

a touch surface;

a plurality of sensors arranged at least one of within or around the touch surface, the plurality of sensors configured to generate at least one signal representative of objects on the touch surface; and

one or more processors configured to execute computer-readable instructions to, in one or more detection frames among a sequence of detection frames,

process said at least one signal to identify touches;

determine a set of identified touches and touch data for the set of identified touches; and

output said touch data;

wherein the one or more detection frames include a spatial prioritization, the spatial prioritization based on a subarea of the touch surface, the subarea at least one of having a fixed location on the touch surface or being defined relative to one or more graphical objects displayed on the touch surface; and

wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-readable instructions to process said at least one signal to identify the touches by

comparing a spatial distribution of signal values of the at least one signal with corresponding threshold signal values to identify the touches, and

locally changing the corresponding threshold signal values based on an estimated location of an identified touch.