Touch pad with force sensors and actuator feedback

• US 10,120,450 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2017
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Bernstein, Jeffrey Traer, Cieplinski, Avi, Degner, Brett W., Kerr, Duncan, Kessler, Patrick, Puskarich, Paul, Coelho, Marcelo H., Pance, Aleksandar
• Primary Examiner(s): Olson, Jason C
• Application Number:
  US15/808,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20180129287A1
• Time in Patent Office: 362 Days
• Field of Search: 345174
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2022/0092 for training agility or co-ordination of movements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1613 for portable computers cooling arrangements therefor G06F1/203; constructional details or arrangements for pocket calculators, electronic agendas or books G06F15/0216; constructional details of portable telephone sets: with several bodies H04M1/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1662 Details related to the integrated keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1692 the I/O peripheral being a secondary touch screen used as control interface, e.g. virtual buttons or sliders
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• 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 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0227 Cooperation and interconnection of the input arrangement with other functional units of a computer G06F3/023 - G06F3/037 take precedence
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0414 using force sensing means to determine a position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• 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: G09G 5/006 Details of the interface to the display terminal specific for a display terminal using a CRT G09G1/167; using a flat panel G09G3/2096; circuits for interfacing with colour displays G09G5/04

Abstract

Electronic devices may use touch pads that have touch sensor arrays, force sensors, and actuators for providing tactile feedback. A touch pad may be mounted in a computer housing. The touch pad may have a rectangular planar touch pad member that has a glass layer covered with ink and contains a capacitive touch sensor array. Force sensors may be mounted under each of the four corners of the rectangular planar touch pad member. The force sensors may be used to measure how much force is applied to the surface of the planar touch pad member by a user. Processed force sensor signals may indicate the presence of button activity such as press and release events. In response to detected button activity or other activity in the device, actuator drive signals may be generated for controlling the actuator. The user may supply settings to adjust signal processing and tactile feedback parameters.

Claims

1. A portable computer comprising:

an upper housing;

a display positioned within the upper housing;

a lower housing pivotally coupled with the upper housing;

a keyboard positioned within the lower housing; and

a touch pad disposed within the lower housing and comprising;

a cover layer forming a touch surface of the touch pad;

a printed circuit board having a capacitive sensor and coupled to the cover layer by a first adhesive layer;

a stiffener layer coupled to the printed circuit board by a second adhesive layer; and

a set of force sensors positioned below the printed circuit board and configured to produce a variable output that corresponds to an amount of force applied to the touch surface.

2. The portable computer of claim 1, wherein the first and second adhesive layers include a pressure-sensitive adhesive component.

3. The portable computer of claim 1, wherein the stiffener layer comprises a stainless steel sheet.

4. The portable computer of claim 1, wherein:

the cover layer is formed from a glass sheet; and

an ink layer is positioned between the glass sheet and the printed circuit board.

5. The portable computer of claim 1, further comprising a set of flexible pads, each flexible pad positioned between the stiffener layer and a respective force sensor of the set of force sensors.

6. The portable computer of claim 5, further comprising an I/O device operably coupled to the touch pad and configured to produce a haptic feedback in response to the applied force exceeding a threshold.

7. The portable computer of claim 6, wherein:

the haptic feedback of the I/O device includes a lateral displacement of the touch pad, and the lateral displacement is parallel with the touch surface.

8. The portable computer of claim 7, wherein the set of flexible pads includes a gel material and are configured to allow for the lateral displacement of the touch pad.

9. The portable computer of claim 1, wherein each of the force sensors of the set of force sensors includes a strain gauge configured to produce the variable output that corresponds to the applied force.

10. A portable computing device comprising:

an upper housing;

a display positioned within the upper housing;

a lower housing pivotally coupled with the upper housing and comprising;

a keyboard;

a glass sheet forming a touch-sensitive surface;

a circuit layer positioned below the glass sheet and coupled to the glass sheet by a first adhesive layer;

a capacitive sensor array formed on the circuit layer; and

a stiffener layer coupled to the circuit layer by a second adhesive layer;

a set of force sensors positioned below the circuit layer and configured to produce a variable output that corresponds to an amount of force applied to the touch-sensitive surface; and

an output device configured to produce a haptic output in response to the amount of force exceeding a threshold.

11. The portable computing device of claim 10, wherein the output device produces a lateral movement of the glass sheet that is in-plane with the touch-sensitive surface.

12. The portable computing device of claim 10, wherein a button press is detected when the amount of force exceeds the threshold.

13. The portable computing device of claim 12, wherein, when the keyboard is in use, an increased threshold is used to detect the button press.

14. A portable device comprising:

a display portion; and

a base portion coupled to the display portion and comprising;

a keyboard;

a touch pad positioned along the keyboard and comprising;

a cover sheet defining a touch surface of the touch pad;

a circuit layer having a capacitive sensor and coupled to the cover sheet by a first adhesive layer;

a stiffener layer coupled to the circuit layer by a second adhesive layer; and

a set of force sensors positioned below the circuit layer and configured to produce a variable output that corresponds to an amount of force applied to the touch surface.

15. The portable device of claim 14, further comprising a set of flexible pads, each flexible pad positioned between the stiffener layer and a respective force sensor of the set of force sensors.

16. The portable device of claim 15, further comprising an output device operably coupled to the touch pad and configured to produce a haptic feedback in response to the applied force exceeding a threshold.

17. The portable device of claim 14, wherein the touch pad is configured to interpret palm-check settings such that input from a palm of a hand when the keyboard is in use is rejected.

18. The portable device of claim 14, wherein the set of force sensors is configured to detect a button activation event if the applied force exceeds a threshold.

19. The portable device of claim 18, wherein:

the button activation event includes a press event having a corresponding press threshold; and

the button activation event includes a release event having a corresponding release threshold.

20. The portable device of claim 19, wherein the press threshold is the same as the release threshold.