Display comprising and integrated loudspeaker and method for recognizing the touching of the display

• US 20050226455A1
• Filed: 04/30/2003
• Published: 10/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Bock, Gerhard, Niemeyer, Ulf, Aubauer, Roland, Lorenz, Frank, Klinke, Stefano Ambrosius, Hulskemper, Michael, Porschmann, Christoph
• Application Number:
  US10/514,280
• Publication Number:
  US 20050226455A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/388
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0436 in which generating transducers and detecting transducers are attached to a single acoustic waves transmission substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 7/045 using the distributed mode principle, i.e. whereby the acoustic radiation is emanated from uniformly distributed free bending wave vibration induced in a stiff panel and not from pistonic motion

Abstract

A combination is provided which consists of a loudspeaker and a display in which at least a portion of a sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker forms the display that is touch-sensitive, and at least one recognition part is provided for recognizing the touching of the display.

Claims

1-16. -16. (canceled)

17. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus, comprising:

a touch-sensitive display; and

a loudspeaker, wherein at least one part of a sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker forms the display, and wherein the loudspeaker includes at least one recognition part for tactile contacts made with the display.

18. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least one part of the at least one part of the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker which forms the display forms the at least one recognition part for tactile contacts made with the display.

19. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein the at least one recognition part for tactile contacts made with the display includes at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor, the at least one sensor being one of an acoustic sensor and an optical sensor.

20. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor is located at an edge of the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker.

21. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor is located proximate to an edge of the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker.

22. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor is located beneath the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker.

23. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor is located on the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker.

24. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein at least one of a plurality of actuators and a plurality of sensors are located in distributive fashion over an area covered by the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker.

25. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one actuator includes at least one of at least one piezo-electric element and one electromagnetic converter.

26. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the at least one sensor includes at least one of at least one piezo-electric element and one electromagnetic converter.

27. A combination display/loudspeaker apparatus as claimed in claim 19, further comprising evaluation parts for evaluating signals delivered by the at least one of at least one actuator and at least one sensor.

28. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker, the method comprising:

providing that at least one part of a sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker form the display; and

recognizing tactile contacts made with the display via at least one recognition part.

29. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 28, wherein the at least one recognition part recognizes a tactile contact with the display at least one of through a changed decoupling of sound via the sound-emitting surface of the loudspeaker and through at least one of at least one standing wave and reflections which are picked up using at least one sensor, the at least one sensor being one of an acoustic sensor and an optical sensor.

30. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 28, the method further comprising:

emitting an audio signal, via the loudspeaker, having a frequency outside an audible frequency range of sound waves; and

detecting changes in the audio signal emitted to recognize a tactile contact with the display via the at least one recognition part.

31. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 30, wherein the audio signal is emitted together with audio signals having frequencies in the audible frequency range of sound waves.

32. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 28, wherein a tactile contact is recognized by a reaction to at least one actuator in the loudspeaker via the at least one recognition part.

33. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 32, wherein the at least one actuator converts a force acting as a result of the tactile contact with the display into an electrical signal.

34. A method for recognizing tactile contacts with a touch-sensitive display combined with a loudspeaker as claimed in claim 33, wherein a position of a tactile contact on the display is recognized, via the at least one recognition part, by at least one of:

evaluating the electrical signal from at least two actuators which detect the tactile contact and compare them with one another;

an impedance measurement;

a differential level measurement using a level of at least two signals from at least one of different sensors and different actuators;

an attenuation measurement of sound waves emitted by the sound-emitting surface; and

evaluating at least one of multiple-path propagations and reflections of waves propagating on the sound-emitting surface.