Apparatus and method for obtaining coordinate through touch panel thereof

• US 10,241,617 B2
• Filed: 10/14/2016
• Issued: 03/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Sung Jun, Lee, Jun Ik, Kwon, Jung Hoon, Moon, Gyu Won, Moon, Bo Kyung, Lee, Jae Min
• Primary Examiner(s): Faragalla, Michael A
• Application Number:
  US15/293,887
• Publication Number:
  US 20170108992A1
• Time in Patent Office: 893 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 2203/04108 Touchless 2D- digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface without distance measurement in the Z direction
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0447 Position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells

Abstract

An electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a display, a first sensor, a second sensor, and a processor configured to obtain, using the first sensor, location information corresponding to an active area of the display, in response to contact between an external object and the display, obtain, using the second sensor, pressure information corresponding to a pressure applied to the display resulting from the contact between the external object and the display, and determine a validity of the location information based on whether the pressure information satisfies a designated condition.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

a display;

a first sensor;

a second sensor; and

a processor configured to;

obtain, using the first sensor, location information corresponding to an active area of the display contacted with an external object, in response to contact between the external object and the display;

obtain, using the second sensor, pressure information corresponding to a pressure applied to the display resulting from the contact between the external object and the display;

determine a validity of the location information based on whether the pressure information satisfies a designated condition; and

one of initialize and calibrate the first sensor if the contact between the external object and the display is invalid.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to determine if the contact between the external object and the display is valid based at least upon one of the location information and the pressure information.

3. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the pressure information is distinguishable from the location information.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to synchronize the location information with the pressure information by changing an interrupt period of the second sensor to be equal to an interrupt period of the first sensor.

5. An electronic device comprising:

a touch panel configured to sense a touch input;

a pressure sensor configured to sense a pressure applied by the touch input; and

a processor configured to

process data associated with the touch input received from a control circuit that is electrically connected to the touch panel and the pressure sensor,

obtain coordinates of the touch input and a pressure value corresponding to the touch input,

provide the coordinates to the processor if the pressure value is greater than or equal to a threshold value,

one of initialize and calibrate the touch panel if the pressure value is less than the threshold value, and

synchronizing the coordinates with the pressure value by changing an event processing period of the pressure sensor to be equal to an event processing period of a touch panel.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the control circuit is further configured to one of discard and remove the coordinates if the pressure value is less than the threshold value.

7. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the control circuit is further configured to provide the coordinates to the processor using firmware stored in the control circuit if the pressure value is greater than or equal to the threshold value.

8. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the control circuit is further configured to:

generate three-dimensional coordinates of the touch input using the coordinates and the pressure value; and

provide the three-dimensional coordinates to the processor if the pressure value is greater than or equal to the threshold value.

9. The electronic device of claim 5, further comprising:

a display electrically connected to the processor, which is further configured to output a warning screen on the display if a pressure is sensed by the pressure sensor while calibrating the touch panel.

10. The electronic device of claim 5, further comprising:

a display electrically connected to the processor, which is configured to output a warning screen on the display if a pressure is sensed by the pressure sensor before calibrating the touch panel.

11. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the control circuit is further configured to:

assign an identification value to the touch input until the touch input is released; and

provide the coordinates of the touch input to the processor if a difference between a first time when the coordinates of the touch input are obtained and a second time when the coordinates of the touch input are obtained is smaller than or equal to a designated time.

12. A user input recognizing method of an electronic device, the method comprising:

sensing a touch input on a touch panel of the electronic device;

obtaining coordinates of the touch input and a pressure value corresponding to the touch input;

if the pressure value is greater than or equal to a threshold value, determining that the coordinates of the touch input are valid, to allow a function corresponding to the touch input to be performed;

if the pressure value is less than the threshold value, one of initializing and calibrating the touch panel; and

synchronizing the coordinates with the pressure value by changing an event processing period of a pressure sensor to be equal to an event processing period of a touch panel.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

one of discarding and removing the coordinates if the pressure value is less than the threshold value.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

one of initializing and calibrating a touch panel if the pressure value is less than the threshold value.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

generating three-dimensional coordinates of the touch input using the coordinates and the pressure value,

wherein determining that the coordinates of the touch input are valid comprises;

performing a function corresponding to the touch input based on the three-dimensional coordinates if the pressure value is greater than or equal to the threshold value.