Track pad with interior bezel

• US 10,073,546 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2015
• Issued: 09/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Miller, Ross C., Grebe, Cody D., Yun, Churu
• Primary Examiner(s): Reed, Stephen T
• Application Number:
  US14/983,669
• Publication Number:
  US 20160188064A1
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04809 Textured surface identifying touch areas, e.g. overlay structure for a virtual keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means

Abstract

A two-zone track pad and a system including a two-zone track pad and corresponding display are disclosed herein. An example two-zone track pad for controlling a two-zone display includes a first track pad section, a second track pad section, and a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section.

Claims

1. A two-zone track pad for controlling a two-zone display, comprising:

a first track pad section;

a second track pad section; and

a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section,

a two-zone display, including;

a first display section; and

a second display section,

wherein the first track pad section controls operations on the first display section and the second track pad section controls operations on the second display section,

wherein at least one of the first track pad section and the second track pad section forms part of a depression having a curved surface with a radius of curvature about a point centered over the at least one track pad section or about a line bisecting the at least one track pad section and running parallel to the bezel,

wherein the first and second track pad sections together form part of the depression and a center of the radius of curvature is located halfway between a leftmost edge of the first track pad section and a rightmost edge of the second track pad section; and

wherein the bezel is provided as part of the depression.

2. The two-zone track pad of claim 1, wherein at least one of an edge of the first track pad section adjacent the bezel, an edge of the second track pad section adjacent the bezel, a corner of the first track pad section adjacent the bezel, and a corner of the second track pad section adjacent the bezel corresponds to a similarly positioned function on a two-zone display.

3. The two-zone track pad of claim 1, wherein the bezel is defined by an intersection between the first track pad section and the second track pad section.

4. A two-zone track pad for controlling a two-zone display, comprising:

a first track pad section;

a second track pad section; and

a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section,

a two-zone display, including;

a first display section; and

a second display section,

wherein the first track pad section controls operations on the first display section and the second track pad section controls operations on the second display section,

wherein at least one of the first track pad section and the second track pad section forms part of a depression having a curved surface with a radius of curvature about a point centered over the at least one track pad section or about a line bisecting the at least one track pad section and running parallel to the bezel,

wherein the first track pad section is disposed at a different height than the second track pad section;

wherein the bezel forms an inclined surface between the first track pad section and the second track pad section; and

wherein the bezel is a tactilely responsive portion of one of the first track pad and the second track pad to control one or more functions displayed on the display.

5. A system comprising:

a two-zone track pad, including;

a first track pad section;

a second track pad section; and

a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section; and

a two-zone display, including;

a first display section; and

second display section,

wherein the first track pad section controls operations on the first display section and the second track pad section controls operations on the second display section,

wherein the first track pad section includes a raised lip along an edge adjacent the bezel, and in a non-depressed condition of the first track pad section the raised lip has a height above the bezel,

wherein the first track pad section further includes a notch spaced outward toward the bezel and downward from the raised lip; and

wherein the bezel includes an outwardly extending flange configured to interface with the notch.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the first track pad section includes another raised lip along an edge opposite the bezel.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein at least one of an edge of the first track pad section adjacent the bezel, an edge of the second track pad section adjacent the bezel, a corner of the first track pad section adjacent the bezel, and a corner of the second track pad section adjacent the bezel corresponds to a similarly positioned function on the two-zone display.

8. A two-zone track pad for controlling a two-zone display, the two-zone track pad comprising:

a first track pad section configured to control operations on a first display section of a two-zone display;

a second track pad section configured to control operations on a second display section of the two-zone display, the first track pad section larger than the second track pad section; and

a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section,

wherein the first track pad section forms part of a first depression having a first curved surface with a first radius of curvature about a first point centered over the first track pad section or about a first line bisecting the first track pad section and running parallel to the bezel;

wherein the second track pad section forms part of a second depression having a second curved surface with a second radius of curvature about a second point centered over the second track pad section or second line bisecting the second track pad section and running parallel to the bezel; and

wherein the first point or first line is different than the second point or second line, and

wherein the bezel forms a third curved surface that is raised in comparison to the first surface of the first display section and the second surface of the second display section, the third surface curved in an opposite direction of the first and second curved surfaces.

9. The two-zone track pad of claim 8, wherein the bezel is defined by an intersection between the first track pad section and the second track pad section.

10. A two-zone track pad for controlling a two-zone display, comprising:

a first track pad section;

a second track pad section; and

a bezel disposed between the first track pad section and the second track pad section,

a two-zone display, including;

a first display section; and

a second display section,

wherein the first track pad section controls operations on the first display section and the second track pad section controls operations on the second display section,

wherein at least one of the first track pad section and the second track pad section forms part of a depression having a curved surface with a radius of curvature about a point centered over the at least one track pad section, and

wherein at least one of the track pad sections is bowl-shaped with a singular depression point.

11. The two-zone track pad of claim 10, wherein the first and second track pad sections together form part of the depression and with a center of the radius of curvature about a common point located halfway between a leftmost edge of the first track pad section and a rightmost edge of the second track pad section.

12. The two-zone track pad of claim 10, wherein the depression is a first depression and the first track pad section forms part of the first depression having a first curved surface with a first radius of curvature about a first point centered over the first track pad section;

wherein the second track pad section forms part of a second depression having a second curved surface with a second radius of curvature about a second point centered over the second track pad section; and

wherein the first point is different than the second point.

13. The two-zone track pad of claim 10, wherein the first track pad section forms part of the depression having the curved surface, the second track pad section is substantially planar.