3D touchpad

• US 20090184936A1
• Filed: 01/21/2009
• Published: 07/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mathematical Inventing - Slicon Valley
• Original Assignee: Mathematical Inventing - Slicon Valley
• Inventors: Algreatly, Cherif Atia
• Application Number:
  US12/321,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20090184936A1
• 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 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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 3D touchpad that is comprised of a first touchpad, a second touchpad, and a third touchpad that are positioned to be parallel to the xy, yz, and xz-plane, wherein moving the user'"'"'s finger on said 3D touchpad provides six degrees-of-freedom to the computer system. Said computer input device can be incorporated onto the top of a computer mouse, a computer keyboard, a game controller, or the like.

Claims

1. A computer input device that can be operated by the thumb finger, the middle finger, and the index finger to provide six degrees-of-freedom to the computer system wherein said computer input device is comprised of:

a) a chassis 100 that contains the components of said computer input device.

b) a first touchpad 110 that is positioned to be parallel to the xz-plane where moving the thumb finger on its surface horizontally 140 from “

left”

to “

right”

represents a movement along the positive x-axis, and horizontally 150 from “

right”

to “

left”

represents a movement along the negative x-axis, and moving the thumb finger on its surface in a clockwise rotation 180 represents a clockwise rotation about the y-axis, and in a counter-clockwise rotation 190 represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the y-axis.

c) a second touchpad 120 that is positioned to be parallel to the yz-plane where moving the middle finger on its surface vertically 220 from “

down”

to “

up”

represents a movement along the positive z-axis, and vertically 230 from “

up”

to “

down”

represents a movement along the negative z-axis, and moving the middle finger on its surface in a clockwise rotation 240 represents a clockwise rotation about the x-axis, and in a counter-clockwise rotation represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the x-axis.

d) a third touchpad 130 that is positioned to be parallel to the xy-plane where moving the index finger on its surface horizontally backward 280 represents a movement along the positive y-axis, and horizontally forward 290 represents a movement along the negative y-axis, and moving the index finger on its surface in a clockwise rotation 300 represents a clockwise rotation about the z-axis, and in a counter-clockwise rotation 310 represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the z-axis.

3. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein rotating the index finger on said third touchpad relative to the positive x-axis provides a first input to the computer system, and moving the middle finger on said second touchpad in a linear fashion relative to the xy-plane provides a second input to the computer system, whereas as said first input and said second input, respectively, represent the two components θ

and φ

of the spherical coordinate system that indicate the direction of moving an object in three-dimensions on the computer display.

4. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein the surface of said first touchpad, said second touchpad, and said third touchpad are curved in a manner that gives the user'"'"'s finger a feeling of touching a scroll wheel.

5. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein said first touchpad, said second touchpad, and said third touchpad are positioned relative to each other to enable the user to operate said computer input device by using one finger only.

6. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein the elapsed time when the user'"'"'s finger keeps touching said first touchpad, said second touchpad, or said third touchpad is the same time period of moving or rotating objects on the computer display.

7. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein said first touchpad, said second touchpad, and said third touchpad are capacitive touch-pads.

8. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein said first touchpad, said second touch pad, and said third touchpad are pressure-sensitive touch-pads that detect the applied pressure or force of the user'"'"'s finger on its surface during the finger touch or movement.

9. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein said computer input device provides two simultaneous inputs to the computer system by simultaneously moving two fingers on said first touchpad, said second touchpad, and said third touchpad.

10. The computer input device of claim 1 wherein said computer input device is incorporated onto the top of a computer mouse, a ring mouse, a computer keyboard, a trackball, a game controller, or the like.

11. The computer input device of claim 8 wherein said applied pressure or force of the user'"'"'s finger represents the speed of moving or rotating an object on the computer display.

12. The computer input device of claim 9 wherein said two simultaneous inputs represent moving two objects simultaneously on the computer display.

2. A computer input device that can be operated by a first finger and a second finger to provide six degrees-of-freedom to the computer system wherein said computer input device is comprised of a first touchpad that is positioned to be parallel to the xz-plane, and a second touchpad that is positioned to be parallel to the yz-plane whereas:

a) moving said first finger horizontally from “

left”

to “

right”

on said first touchpad represents a movement along the positive x-axis, and from “

right”

to “

left”

represents a movement along the negative x-axis.

b) moving said second finger horizontally backward on said second touchpad represents a movement along the positive y-axis, and forward represents a movement along the negative y-axis.

c) moving said first finger vertically from “

down”

to “

up”

on said first touchpad represents a movement along the positive z-axis, and from “

up”

to “

down”

represents a movement along the negative z-axis.

d) moving said first finger vertically from “

down”

to “

up”

on said first touchpad while touching said second touchpad with said second finger represents a clockwise rotation about the x-axis, and moving said first finger vertically from “

up”

to “

down’

on said first touchpad while touching said second touchpad with said second finger represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the x-axis.

e) moving said second finger vertically from “

up”

to “

down”

on said second touchpad while touching said first touchpad with said first finger represents a clockwise rotation about the y-axis, and moving said second finger vertically from “

down”

to “

up”

on said second touchpad while touching said first touchpad with said first finger represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the y-axis.

f) moving said second finger horizontally backward on said second touchpad while touching said first touchpad with said first finger represents a clockwise rotation about the z-axis, and moving said second finger horizontally forward on said second touchpad while touching said first touchpad with said first finger represents a counter-clockwise rotation about the z-axis.