Predictive touch detection

• US 10,564,770 B1
• Filed: 06/09/2016
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Keeler, Kevin M., Menzel, Brian C., Hilario, Alvin J., Marsden, Randal
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhou, Hong
• Application Number:
  US15/178,382
• Time in Patent Office: 1,349 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-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 and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0418 for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A touch controller is disclosed. The touch controller can comprise sense circuitry configured to sense an object at a touch sensor panel, and a touch processor. The touch processor can be capable of, when the object is a first distance from the touch sensor panel, determining a predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least a trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel, and when the object is a second distance from the touch sensor panel, less than the first distance, determining an identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least the predicted touch location.

Claims

1. A touch controller comprising:

sense circuitry configured to sense an object at a touch sensor panel; and

a touch processor capable of;

when the object is a first distance from the touch sensor panel, determining a predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least a trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel; and

when the object is a second distance from the touch sensor panel, less than the first distance, determining an identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least the predicted touch location, wherein the identified touch location is different than the predicted touch location and a centroid of the object detected when the object is at the second distance from the touch sensor panel.

2. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein the object is the second distance from the touch sensor panel when the object is touching a surface of the touch sensor panel.

3. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein the predicted touch location of the object is different from the centroid of the object.

4. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein the touch processor is further capable of:

when the object is a third distance from the touch sensor panel, between the first distance and the second distance, updating the predicted touch location based on at least an updated trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel.

5. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein:

the touch processor is further capable of determining that the object is a first threshold distance from the touch sensor panel, wherein the first distance is less than or equal to the first threshold distance, and

determining the predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel is in response to determining that the object is the first threshold distance from the touch sensor panel.

6. The touch controller of claim 5, wherein:

the touch processor is further capable of determining that the object is a second threshold distance, less than the first threshold distance, from the touch sensor panel, wherein the second distance is less than or equal to the second threshold distance, and

determining the identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel is in response to determining that the object is the second threshold distance from the touch sensor panel.

7. The touch controller of claim 6, wherein the touch processor is further capable of:

after determining the identified touch location associated with the object, determining that the object is touching a surface of the touch sensor panel; and

in response to determining that the object is touching the surface of the touch sensor panel, identifying an input associated with the object based on the identified touch location.

8. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein:

the touch controller is coupled to a display, and

determining the identified touch location comprises;

in accordance with a determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is a first trajectory, selecting a first user interface element displayed by the display in response to determining that the object is the second distance from the touch sensor panel; and

in accordance with a determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is a second trajectory, different from the first trajectory, selecting a second user interface element, different from the first user interface element, displayed by the display in response to determining that the object is the second distance from the touch sensor panel.

9. The touch controller of claim 8, wherein determining the identified touch location further comprises:

in accordance with the determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is the first trajectory, identifying the object as a first finger based on at least the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel; and

in accordance with the determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is the second trajectory, identifying the object as a second finger, different from the first finger, based on at least the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel.

10. The touch controller of claim 1, wherein:

the touch controller is coupled to a display, and

determining the identified touch location further comprises determining the identified touch location based on at least one or more user interface elements displayed by the display.

11. The touch controller of claim 10, wherein determining the identified touch location further comprises adjusting the predicted touch location based on respective likelihoods of selection of the one or more user interface elements.

12. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions, which when executed by a processor cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

sensing an object at a touch sensor panel;

when the object is a first distance from the touch sensor panel, determining a predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least a trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel; and

when the object is a second distance from the touch sensor panel, less than the first distance, determining an identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least the predicted touch location, wherein the identified touch location is different than the predicted touch location and a centroid of the object detected when the object is at the second distance from the touch sensor panel.

13. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the predicted touch location of the object is different from the centroid of the object.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, the method further comprising:

when the object is a third distance from the touch sensor panel, between the first distance and the second distance, updating the predicted touch location based on at least an updated trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, the method further comprising:

determining that the object is a first threshold distance from the touch sensor panel, wherein the first distance is less than or equal to the first threshold distance,

wherein determining the predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel is in response to determining that the object is the first threshold distance from the touch sensor panel.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 15, the method further comprising:

determining that the object is a second threshold distance, less than the first threshold distance, from the touch sensor panel, wherein the second distance is less than or equal to the second threshold distance,

wherein determining the identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel is in response to determining that the object is the second threshold distance from the touch sensor panel.

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein:

determining the identified touch location comprises;

in accordance with a determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is a first trajectory, selecting a first user interface element displayed by a display in response to determining that the object is the second distance from the touch sensor panel; and

in accordance with a determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is a second trajectory, different from the first trajectory, selecting a second user interface element, different from the first user interface element, displayed by the display in response to determining that the object is the second distance from the touch sensor panel.

18. The computer readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein determining the identified touch location further comprises:

in accordance with the determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is the first trajectory, identifying the object as a first finger based on at least the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel; and

in accordance with the determination that the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel is the second trajectory, identifying the object as a second finger, different from the first finger, based on at least the trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel.

19. The computer readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein determining the identified touch location further comprises determining the identified touch location based on at least one or more user interface elements displayed by the display.

20. The computer readable storage medium of claim 19, wherein determining the identified touch location further comprises adjusting the predicted touch location based on respective likelihoods of selection of the one or more user interface elements.

21. A method comprising:

sensing an object at a touch sensor panel;

when the object is a first distance from the touch sensor panel, determining a predicted touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least a trajectory of the object towards the touch sensor panel; and

when the object is a second distance from the touch sensor panel, less than the first distance, determining an identified touch location associated with the object on the touch sensor panel based on at least the predicted touch location, wherein the identified touch location is different than the predicted touch location and a centroid of the object detected when the object is at the second distance from the touch sensor panel.