Multi-function slider in touchpad

• US 20070273660A1
• Filed: 05/26/2006
• Published: 11/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Monterey Research, LLC (Vector Capital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: XiaoPing, Jiang
• Granted Patent: US 8,537,121 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• 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
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0448 Details of the electrode shape, e.g. for enhancing the detection of touches, for generating specific electric field shapes, for enhancing display quality

Abstract

A method and apparatus is disclosed herein for providing a touch-sensor device. In one embodiment, the method includes receiving data indicative of movement of a conductive object on a first area of a touch-sensor device. The method further includes detecting data indicative of a presence of the conductive object in one of a plurality of one dimensional positions on a second area of the touch-sensor device, the second area being different than the first area, and determining in which one of the plurality of one dimensional positions is the presence detected.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving data indicative of movement of a conductive object on a first area of a touch-sensor device;

detecting data indicative of a presence of the conductive object in one of a plurality of one dimensional positions on a second area of the touch-sensor device, the second area being different than the first area; and

determining in which one of the plurality of one dimensional positions is the presence detected.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the detected movement on the first area is movement of an absolute position of the conductive object on the first area, and the detected presence is a relative position among one of the plurality of one dimensional positions of the second area.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the data indicative of the presence is data indicative of a tap.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data indicative of the presence is data indicative of a touch.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the touch-sensor device is a capacitive sensing array comprising a plurality of capacitive sensing elements.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of capacitive elements is formed by a plurality of conductive pads disposed below an insulating layer.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

processing a function mapped to an area of the one dimensional positions of the second area, based on which one of the plurality of one dimensional positions the presence is determined to be detected.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the processing a function further comprises:

triggering the function; and

receiving data indicative of movement of a conductive object across the second area of the touch-sensor device, the movement data being input data for the triggered function.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the function is selected from a group consisting of a program start, shortcut menu, minimize window, maximize window, close window, resize window, left button, middle button, right button, contrast adjustment, volume adjustment, scroll vertical, or scroll horizontal.

10. The method of claim 1, the determining further comprises:

receiving data from a pin operatively coupled with the second area of the touch-sensor device, the pin not being operatively coupled with the first area of the touch-sensor device.

11. An apparatus, comprising:

a first area of a touch-sensor device to produce data indicative of movement of a conductive object on the first area; and

a second area of the touch-sensor device, the second area being different from the first area, to produce data indicative of a presence of the conductive object in one of a plurality of one dimensional positions on the second area of the touch-sensor device.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the data indicative of movement of the conductive object on the first area is data indicative of movement of an absolute position of the conductive object on the first area, and the data indicative of the presence is data indicative of a relative position among one of the plurality of one dimensional positions.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the data indicative of the presence is data indicative of a tap.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the data indicative of the presence is data indicative of a touch.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the touch-sensor device is a capacitive sensing array comprising a plurality of capacitive sensing elements.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the plurality of capacitive sensing elements is formed by a plurality of conductive pads disposed below an insulating layer.

17. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising:

a processing logic to process a function mapped to an area of the plurality of one dimensional positions based upon which one of the one dimensional positions the data indicative of the presence is produced.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the function to be processed by processing logic is a function triggering, the function triggering to produce input data utilized by processing logic to process the function in response to data indicative of movement of a conductive object across the second area of the touch-sensor device.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the function to be processed by processing logic is selected from a group consisting of a program start, shortcut menu, minimize window, maximize window, close window, resize window, left button, middle button, right button, contrast adjustment, volume adjustment, scroll vertical, or scroll horizontal.

20. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising:

a pin operatively coupled with the second area of the touch-sensor device, the pin not being operatively coupled with the first area of the touch-sensor device, to communicate data indicative of the presence of the conductive object on the second area.