GRADIENT SENSORS
First Claim
1. A capacitive sensing device for sensing a user input, said device comprising:
- a resistive sheet;
a plurality of electrodes disposed on a plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for applying excitation voltages to said resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet;
at least one sensing node disposed on at least one of said plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for sensing a resulting charge on said resistive sheet after establishment of said steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of said excitation voltages; and
at least one charge integrator coupled to said at least one sensing node and configured for measuring said resulting charge to produce a measurement.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A capacitive sensing device for sensing a user input comprises a resistive sheet, a plurality of electrodes, at least one sensing node, and at least one charge integrator. The plurality of electrodes is disposed on a plurality of edge regions of the resistive sheet and configured for applying excitation voltages to the resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on the resistive sheet. At least one of the sensing nodes is disposed on at least one of the plurality of edge regions of the resistive sheet and configured for sensing a resulting charge on the resistive sheet after establishment of the substantially steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of the excitation voltages. At least one of the charge integrators is coupled to the at least one sensing node and configured for measuring the resulting charge to produce a measurement.
50 Citations
26 Claims
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1. A capacitive sensing device for sensing a user input, said device comprising:
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a resistive sheet; a plurality of electrodes disposed on a plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for applying excitation voltages to said resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet; at least one sensing node disposed on at least one of said plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for sensing a resulting charge on said resistive sheet after establishment of said steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of said excitation voltages; and at least one charge integrator coupled to said at least one sensing node and configured for measuring said resulting charge to produce a measurement. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method for capacitively determining position information about a user input relative to a resistive sheet, said method comprising:
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exciting voltages on a plurality of electrodes on said resistive sheet such that a voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet; ceasing excitation of said voltages on said plurality of electrodes substantially simultaneously after allowing said voltage gradient to achieve a substantially steady state; measuring a resulting charge on said resistive sheet after ceasing excitation of said plurality of electrodes, said measuring producing a measurement; iteratively performing said exciting, said ceasing, and said measuring such that a plurality of measurements is produced; and utilizing said measurements to determine said position information about said user input relative to said resistive sheet. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. An electronic apparatus configured with a sensing device which capacitively determines position information about a user input relative to a resistive sheet, said apparatus comprising:
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a resistive sheet; a plurality of electrodes disposed on a plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet; a voltage excitation controller configured for applying excitation voltages through a plurality of said electrodes to said resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet; at least one sensing node disposed on at least one of said edge regions of said resistive sheet; a charge integrator configured for measuring a resulting charge on said resistive sheet through said at least one sensing node such that a measurement of said resulting charge is produced, said measuring performed after establishment of said substantially steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of said excitation voltages; and a position information reconstructor configured for utilizing said measurement to reconstruct position information about said user input relative to said resistive sheet. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
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23. A method for creating a capacitive sensing device, said method comprising:
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providing a resistive sheet comprising a plurality of edge regions; providing a plurality of electrodes disposed on at least one of said plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for applying excitation voltages to said resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet; providing at least one sensing node disposed on said plurality of edge regions of said resistive sheet and configured for sensing a resulting charge on said resistive sheet after establishment of said steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of said excitation voltages; and providing at least one charge integrator coupled to said sensing node and configured for measuring said resulting charge to produce a measurement. - View Dependent Claims (24)
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25. A capacitive sensing device for sensing a user input, said device comprising:
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a resistive sheet; a means for applying excitation voltages to said resistive sheet such that a substantially steady state voltage gradient is established on said resistive sheet; a means for sensing a resulting charge on said resistive sheet after establishment of said substantially steady state voltage gradient and a cessation of application of said excitation voltages; and a means for measuring said resulting charge to produce a measurement. - View Dependent Claims (26)
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Specification