Position, tilt, and twist detection for stylus

• US 10,572,063 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2017
• Issued: 02/25/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Case, Jr., Charles Whipple, Westhues, Jonathan, Qiao, Tianzhu
• Primary Examiner(s): Lamb, Christopher R
• Application Number:
  US15/402,062
• Publication Number:
  US 20180196574A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,142 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03545 Pens or stylus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• 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

Abstract

A touch-sensitive display device includes a touch sensor having a plurality of display electrodes and control logic coupled to the plurality of display electrodes. The control logic is configured to receive, for each of a plurality of stylus electrodes of an active stylus interacting with the touch-sensitive display device, a spatial capacitance measurement over the touch sensor for that stylus electrode. Relative to the touch sensor, and based on spatial capacitance measurements of the stylus electrodes, the control logic is configured to determine (i) a tip position of the active stylus, (ii) a tilt parameter of the active stylus, and (iii) a twist parameter of the active stylus.

Claims

1. A touch-sensitive display device, comprising:

a touch sensor having a plurality of display electrodes; and

control logic coupled to the plurality of display electrodes, the control logic being configured to;

receive, for each of a plurality of stylus electrodes of an active stylus interacting with the touch-sensitive display device, a spatial capacitance measurement over the touch sensor for that stylus electrode, the plurality of stylus electrodes including at least a ring electrode that is slanted relative to an elongate axis of the active stylus and forms a continuous ring that encircles a body of the active stylus, such that a portion of the ring electrode is angled toward a tip of the active stylus and a portion of the ring electrode is angled away from the tip of the active stylus; and

determine, relative to the touch sensor, and based on spatial capacitance measurements of the stylus electrodes, (i) a tip position of the active stylus, (ii) a tilt parameter of the active stylus, and (iii) a twist parameter of the active stylus.

2. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where the control logic receives two spatial capacitance measurements corresponding to two stylus electrodes of the active stylus, including a tip electrode and the ring electrode.

3. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 2, where a spatial capacitance measurement received for the tip electrode is used by the control logic to calculate the tip position of the stylus.

4. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 2, where the tilt parameter is calculated by the control logic based on a distance between a spatial capacitance measurement received for the ring electrode and a spatial capacitance measurement received for the tip electrode.

5. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where during a single touch-sensing frame, spatial capacitance measurements for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes of the active stylus are made separately during different touch-sensing subframes.

6. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 5, where the spatial capacitance measurements made during each of the different touch-sensing subframes are collectively used by the control logic to determine one or more of the tip position, tilt parameter and twist parameter, and where the control logic is further configured to correct one or more of such determinations based on an estimated velocity of the active stylus.

7. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where the control logic is further configured to apply a drive signal to each of the plurality of display electrodes, thereby influencing electrical conditions at one or more stylus electrodes of the active stylus to enable one or more of the spatial capacitance measurements.

8. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 7, where spatial capacitance measurements received for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes are calculated by the active stylus based on the electrical conditions influenced by the drive signal applied to each of the plurality of display electrodes, and the control logic receives the spatial capacitance measurements calculated by the active stylus via a communications interface of the touch-sensitive display device.

9. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where the control logic is configured to calculate spatial capacitance measurements for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes based on electrical conditions detected at one or more display electrodes, the electrical conditions being influenced by a drive signal applied to one or more of the plurality of stylus electrodes of the active stylus.

10. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where spatial capacitance measurements received for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes are collectively transformed into the tip position, the tilt parameter, and the twist parameter by an iteratively developed interpolation function.

11. The touch-sensitive display device of claim 1, where the twist parameter is calculated by the control logic based on a spatial capacitance measurement received for the ring electrode, and the spatial capacitance measurement received for the ring electrode varies in strength over a surface of the touch sensor.

12. A method for a touch-sensitive display device having a touch sensor including a plurality of display electrodes, the method comprising:

receiving, for each of a plurality of stylus electrodes of an active stylus interacting with the touch-sensitive display device, a spatial capacitance measurement over the touch sensor for that stylus electrode, the plurality of stylus electrodes including at least a ring electrode that is slanted relative to an elongate axis of the active stylus and forms a continuous ring that encircles a body of the active stylus, such that a portion of the ring electrode is angled toward a tip of the active stylus and a portion of the ring electrode is angled away from the tip of the active stylus; and

determining, relative to the touch sensor, and based on the spatial capacitance measurements of the stylus electrodes, (i) a tip position of the active stylus, (ii) a tilt parameter of the active stylus, and (iii) a twist parameter of the active stylus.

13. The method of claim 12, where the touch-sensitive display device receives two spatial capacitance measurements corresponding to two stylus electrodes of the active stylus, including a tip electrode and the ring electrode.

14. The method of claim 12, where receiving spatial capacitance measurements for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes includes applying a drive signal to each of the plurality of display electrodes, thereby influencing electrical conditions at one or more stylus electrodes of the active stylus to enable one or more of the spatial capacitance measurements.

15. The method of claim 14, where one or more of the spatial capacitance measurements are calculated by the active stylus based on the electrical conditions influenced by the drive signal applied to each of the plurality of display electrodes, and the touch-sensitive display device receives the one or more spatial capacitance measurements calculated by the active stylus via a communications interface of the touch-sensitive display device.

16. The method of claim 12, where receiving spatial capacitance measurements for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes includes calculating spatial capacitance measurements based on electrical conditions detected at one or more display electrodes, the electrical conditions being influenced by a drive signal applied to one or more of the plurality of stylus electrodes of the active stylus.

17. The method of claim 12, where spatial capacitance measurements received for each of the plurality of stylus electrodes are collectively compared to a library defining different tip positions, tilt parameters, and twist parameters of the active stylus for each of a plurality of potential spatial capacitance measurements, and where the library is held by a storage machine operatively coupled with the touch-sensitive display device.

18. An active stylus, comprising:

a stylus tip including a tip electrode;

a ring electrode slanted relative to an elongate axis of the active stylus and forming a continuous ring that encircles a body of the active stylus, such that a portion of the ring electrode is angled toward the stylus tip and a portion of the ring electrode is angled away from the stylus tip; and

control logic coupled to the tip electrode and ring electrode, the control logic being configured to do one or both of;

(a) drive one or more of the tip electrode and ring electrode to enable a stylus-initiated spatial capacitance measurement over a touch sensor of a touch-sensitive display device;

(b) detect conditions on one or more of the tip electrode and ring electrode caused by a drive signal applied from the touch sensor, to enable a display-initiated spatial capacitance measurement over the touch sensor; and

wherein either or both of the stylus-initiated spatial capacitance measurement and display-initiated spatial capacitance measurement are usable to calculate (i) a tip position of the active stylus, (ii) a tilt parameter of the active stylus, and (iii) a twist parameter of the active stylus, wherein the tilt parameter of the active stylus and the twist parameter of the active stylus are both derived from a spatial capacitance measurement associated with the ring electrode.