Electrode sheet and touch input device

• US 10,234,987 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2018
• Issued: 03/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HiDeep Inc.
• Original Assignee: HiDeep Inc.
• Inventors: Moon, Hojun, Kim, Bonkee, Kim, Seyeob, Yoon, Sangsic, Kwon, Sunyoung, Kim, Taehoon
• Primary Examiner(s): Bolotin, Dmitriy
• Application Number:
  US15/864,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20180150179A1
• Time in Patent Office: 435 Days
• 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 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• 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 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer
• 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 3/0447 Position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0448 Details of the electrode shape, e.g. for enhancing the detection of touches, for generating specific electric field shapes, for enhancing display quality
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/9622 using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2017/9602 characterised by the type or shape of the sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960705 Safety of capacitive touch and proximity switches, e.g. increasing reliability, fail-safe

Abstract

In one embodiment, a touch input device capable of detecting a pressure and a position of a touch on a touch surface is disclosed. The touch input device includes a cover layer of glass, a display panel, and a touch sensor panel fully laminated on the display panel. The device further includes a substrate spaced apart from the display panel and separating the display panel from a circuit board and a battery for operation of the touch input device, and a pressure electrode disposed between the display panel and the substrate. Drive electrodes are formed on one side of an insulation layer, and receiving electrodes are formed on the other side of the insulation layer. Further, a distance between the substrate and the display panel is maintained by a double adhesive tape formed on edge portions of the substrate and the display panel when no pressure is applied.

Claims

1. A touch input device capable of detecting a pressure and a position of a touch on a touch surface, the touch input device comprising:

a cover layer of glass;

a display panel;

a touch sensor panel fully laminated on the display panel and comprising a plurality of drive electrodes and a plurality of receiving electrodes for detecting the position of the touch;

a substrate spaced apart from the display panel and separating the display panel from a circuit board and a battery for operation of the touch input device; and

a pressure electrode disposed between the display panel and the substrate,

wherein the plurality of drive electrodes are formed on one side of an insulation layer and the plurality of receiving electrodes are formed on the other side of the insulation layer,

wherein a distance between the substrate and the display panel is maintained by a double adhesive tape formed on edge portions of the substrate and the display panel when no pressure is applied,

wherein the display panel is bent when the pressure is applied to the touch surface,

wherein a magnitude of the pressure applied to the touch surface is detected based on a change amount of a capacitance outputted from the pressure electrode and changing according to a change of the distance, and

wherein the distance changes as the display panel bends.

2. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, wherein a change amount of the distance in the second area when the pressure is applied to the second area is less than a change amount of the distance in the first area when the same amount of the pressure is applied to the first area.

3. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the pressure electrode comprises a first electrode and a second electrode and the capacitance is a mutual capacitance between the first electrode and the second electrode.

4. The touch input device of claim 3, wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and wherein a distance between the first electrode disposed under the first area and an electrode adjacent to the first electrode disposed under the first area is greater than a distance between the first electrode disposed under the second area and an electrode adjacent to the second electrode disposed under the second area.

5. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the capacitance is a self-capacitance of the pressure electrode in view of a reference potential layer, wherein the reference potential layer is one of the substrate and the display panel or within the display panel.

6. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and wherein a width of the pressure electrode disposed under the first area is less than a width of the pressure electrode disposed under the second area.

7. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and wherein the pressure electrode comprises a plurality of electrodes, and wherein a distance between two adjacent electrodes of the plurality of electrodes under the first area is greater than a distance between two adjacent electrodes of the plurality of electrodes under the second area.

8. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and wherein material composition constituting the pressure electrode disposed under the first area is different from material composition constituting the pressure electrode disposed under the second area.

9. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the pressure electrode is formed in the form of an electrode sheet, wherein the electrode sheet comprises a first insulation layer and a second insulation layer, and wherein at least one of the first insulation layer and the second insulation layer is made of any one of polyimide and Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET).

10. The touch input device of claim 1, wherein the pressure electrode is made of at least one of copper, aluminum (Al), and silver (Ag).

11. A touch input device capable of detecting a pressure and a position of a touch on a touch surface, the touch input device comprising:

a cover layer of glass;

a display panel disposed under the cover layer of glass;

a substrate spaced apart from the display panel; and

a plurality of pressure electrodes disposed between the display panel and the substrate,

wherein the plurality of pressure electrodes comprises a first pressure electrode and a second pressure electrode spaced apart from the first pressure electrode, and

wherein an area of a top surface of the first pressure electrode is different from an area of a top surface of the second pressure electrode.

12. The touch input device of claim 11, wherein a width of the top surface of the first pressure electrode is different from a width of the top surface of the second pressure electrode.

13. The touch input device of claim 11, wherein a height of the first pressure electrode is different from a height of the top surface of the second pressure electrode.

14. The touch input device of claim 11, wherein a material composition constituting the first pressure electrode is different from a material composition constituting the second pressure electrode.

15. The touch input device of claim 11,

wherein a distance between the substrate and the display panel is maintained by a support member formed on edge portions of the substrate and the display panel when no pressure is applied,

wherein the display panel is bent when the pressure is applied to the touch surface,

wherein a magnitude of the pressure applied to the touch surface is detected based on a change amount of an electrical characteristic outputted from the pressure electrode and changing according to a change of the distance, and

wherein the distance changes as the display panel bends.

16. The touch input device of claim 15,

wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and

wherein a change amount of the distance in the second area when the pressure is applied to the second area is less than a change amount of the distance in the first area when the same amount of the pressure is applied to the first area.

17. A touch input device capable of detecting a pressure and a position of a touch on a touch surface, the touch input device comprising:

a cover layer of glass;

a display panel disposed under the cover layer of glass;

a substrate spaced apart from the display panel; and

a pressure electrode disposed between the display panel and the substrate,

wherein the pressure electrode comprises a first pressure electrode portion and a second pressure electrode portion, and

wherein an area of a top surface of the first pressure electrode portion is different from an area of a top surface of the second pressure electrode portion.

18. The touch input device of claim 17, wherein a material composition constituting the first pressure electrode portion is different from a material composition constituting the second pressure electrode portion.

19. The touch input device of claim 17,

wherein a distance between the substrate and the display panel is maintained by a support member formed on edge portions of the substrate and the display panel when no pressure is applied,

wherein the display panel is bent when the pressure is applied to the touch surface,

wherein a magnitude of the pressure applied to the touch surface is detected based on a change amount of an electrical characteristic outputted from the pressure electrode and changing according to a change of the distance, and

wherein the distance changes as the display panel bends.

20. The touch input device of claim 19,

wherein the display panel comprises a first area and a second area, and

wherein a change amount of the distance in the second area when the pressure is applied to the second area is less than a change amount of the distance in the first area when the same amount of the pressure is applied to the first area.