Foldable device having sensor

• US 10,146,257 B2
• Filed: 10/02/2015
• Issued: 12/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Alonso, Vicente Calvo, Lang, Jouko
• Primary Examiner(s): Edwards, Mark
• Application Number:
  US14/873,845
• Publication Number:
  US 20170097660A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,159 Days
• Field of Search: 345156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03 Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display

Abstract

In an embodiment, a foldable device having a sensor is described. In an embodiment, the device comprises: A folding area, wherein the folding area is configured to rotate according to an axis of rotation caused by folding the device, causing deformation of the folding area. The folding area comprises: a layer of strain sensitive material having particles, wherein conductivity of the strain sensitive material is configured to change when the layer experiences the deformation. The folding area comprises a layer of conductor lines configured to detect the change of the conductivity of the strain sensitive material, wherein the layer of the conductor lines includes a plurality of contacting points with the strain sensitive material.

Claims

1. A device comprising a top portion for viewing visual content, the device comprising:

a first part of the device having a first planar portion;

a second part of the device having a second planar portion;

a folding area coupled to and between the first part and the second part of the device, wherein the folding area is configured to rotate around an axis of rotation caused by folding the device, causing deformation of the folding area;

a layer of strain sensitive material positioned entirely within a portion of the folding area that bends around the axis of rotation;

conductor lines touching the layer of strain sensitive material, the conductor lines configured to detect a change in conductivity of the strain sensitive material during deformation of the folding area;

one or more collecting conductor lines extending through both;

(1) the portion of the folding area that bends around the axis of rotation, and (2) at least one of the first planar portion of the first part of the device or the second planar portion of the second part of the device, the one or more conductor lines configured to electrically communicate the change in conductivity of the strain sensitive material detected by the conductor lines; and

a sensor configured to determine a position of the device based on the detected change of the conductivity of the strain sensitive material in the folding area.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the conductor lines are substantially parallel to the axis of rotation caused by folding the device.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the conductor lines are connected from an end to a collecting conductor line which is configured to be transversal to the axis of rotation.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the conductor lines and the collecting conductor line are configured as a comb shape so as to substantially cover an area of the strain sensitive material.

5. The device of claim 1, further including a detector connected to the conductor lines and configured to detect a position of the device based on the conductivity.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the position comprises an angle between a first and a second part of the device with respect to the folding area.

7. The device of claim 5, wherein the detector is further configured to trigger an action of the device as a threshold position is reached.

8. The device of claim 1, further including a first and a second part of the device, wherein the folding area is provided between the parts, and wherein the layer of strain sensitive material and the layer of conductor lines are configured to cover a part of the folding area that starts from an end of the first part and extends to an end of the second part and that is subject to the deformation.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the sensor area comprises areas having different deformations, and the layer of strain sensitive material and the layer of conductor lines are configured to conform to the different deformations.

10. The device of claim 1, further including a display including a plurality of layers, wherein the folding area is configured as a part of the display.

11. The device of claim 1, wherein the conductivity of the strain sensitive material is configured to increase as the layer of the strain sensitive material experiences the deformation by compression or decrease as the layer of the strain sensitive material experiences the deformation by strain.

12. The device of claim 1, wherein the strain sensitive material comprises a functionalized nanoparticle material, wherein the particles comprise the nanoparticles and ligand molecules.

13. The device of claim 1, wherein the particles comprise metallic nanoparticles.

14. The device of claim 1, wherein the particles are embedded in a matrix, and the strain sensitive material comprises the matrix and embedded particles.

15. The device of claim 14, wherein, as the layer of the strain sensitive material experiences the deformation, thickness of the matrix, including the particles, is changed and an interparticle distance is changed so as to change the conductivity.

16. The device of claim 1, wherein the change of the conductivity is based on quantum mechanical tunneling of electrons from a particle to a neighboring particle via linked ligand molecules.

17. The device of claim 1, wherein the strain sensitive material comprises semiconductor nanoparticles.

18. A method detecting a position of a first part of a device relative to a second part of the device, wherein the device comprises a top portion for viewing visual content and a folding area between and coupled to the first part of the device and the second part of the device, the method comprising:

folding the device at the folding area comprising moving a first planar portion of the first part around an axis of rotation of the folding area in relation to a second planar portion of the second part of the device, wherein the folding area comprises;

a layer of strain sensitive material positioned entirely within a portion of the folding area that bends around the axis of rotation, wherein conductivity of the strain sensitive material is configured to change as the layer experiences the deformation, and

conductor lines touching the layer of strain sensitive material, the conductor lines configured to detect a change in the conductivity of the strain sensitive material during deformation of the folding area, and

one or more collecting conductor lines extending through both;

(1) the portion of the folding area that bends around the axis of rotation, and (2) at least one of the first planar portion of the first part of the device or the second planar portion of the second part of the device, the one or more conductor lines configured to electrically communicate the change in conductivity of the strain sensitive material detected by the conductor lines; and

detecting a position of the first part of the device relative to the second part of the device based on the detected change of the conductivity of the folding area.

19. A foldable display module comprising a top portion for viewing visual content, a first part having a first planar portion and a second part having a second planar portion, the foldable display module comprising:

a folding area coupled to and between the first part and the second part, wherein the folding area is configured to rotate around an axis of rotation caused by folding the module, causing deformation of the folding area, wherein the folding area comprises;

a layer of strain sensitive material having particles and positioned entirely within a portion of the folding area, wherein conductivity of the strain sensitive material is configured to change as the layer experiences the deformation,

conductor lines touching the layer of strain sensitive material, the conductor lines configured to detect a change of the conductivity of the strain sensitive material during deformation of the folding area, and

one or more collecting conductor lines extending through both;

(1) the portion of the folding area that bends around the axis of rotation, and (2) at least one of the first planar portion of the first part of the device or the second planar portion of the second part of the device, the one or more conductor lines configured to electrically communicate the change in conductivity of the strain sensitive material detected by the conductor lines; and

a position detector executable by a processor to determine a position of the device based on the detected change of the conductivity of the strain sensitive material in the folding area detected from the conductor lines.

20. The foldable display module of claim 19, wherein the layer of strain sensitive material and the layer of conductor lines are embedded inside of a mobile computing device.