Navigation tool

• US 20030169228A1
• Filed: 04/28/2003
• Published: 09/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IDEX Biometrics ASA
• Original Assignee: Idex ASA
• Inventors: Mathiassen, Svein, Mathiassen, Stig
• Granted Patent: US 7,129,926 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0338 Fingerprint track pad, i.e. fingerprint sensor used as pointing device tracking the fingertip image
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0339 Touch strips, e.g. orthogonal touch strips to control cursor movement or scrolling; single touch strip to adjust parameter or to implement a row of soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts

Abstract

This invention relates to a navigation tool for connecting to a display device, comprising at least two sensor elements having known positions relative to each other, each sensor element being coupled to detector means for recording a change in a predetermined parametre and timing means for determining the time of change at each sensor element and calculating means for calculating the direction and speed of the recorded changes based on the relative positions of the sensor elements and the duration between the recorded changes.

Claims

1. Navigation tool for connecting to a display device, characterized in that it comprises at least two sensor elements having known positions relative to each other, each sensor element being coupled to detector means for recording a change in a predetermined parametre and timing means for determining the time of change at each sensor element and calculating means for calulating the direction and speed of the recorded changes based on the relative positions of the sensor elements and the duration between the recorded changes.

2. Navigation tool according to claim 1, wherein the recorded time is related to the exceeding of a predetermined threshold at a sensor element.

3. Navigation tool according to claim 1, also comprising a display device coupled to the calculating means for indicating the measured movements on the display.

4. Navigation tool according to claim 1, wherein the parametres measured by the sensor elements are sampled at chosen intervals, the measured values being compared to chosen thresholds, and the recorded times being equivalent with the sample number at the recording.

5. Navigation tool according to claim 1, wherein duration of the exceeding of the threshold is recorded.

6. Navigation tool according to claim 1, wherein the sensors are related to a finger scanner, being adapted to measure chosen parametres of a finger surface in the vicinity of the sensor.

7. Navigation tool according to claim 6, wherein the measure parametre is the capacitance of the finger close to the sensor.

8. Navigation tool according to claim 1, wherein the calculated direction and velocity is compared to a range of acceptable values.