USER INTERFACES AND ASSOCIATED APPARATUS AND METHODS

• US 20100123677A1
• Filed: 11/19/2008
• Published: 05/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Cox, Simon, Clay, Graham, Brown, Murray
• Granted Patent: US 8,248,376 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0418 for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment

Abstract

Apparatus comprising one or more inputs configured to receive a configurable control signal from a configurable signal generator; and a non-calibrated touch input signal from a touch sensor. Said non-calibrated touch input signal generated by detecting both internal and external forces applied to the touch sensor. The apparatus also comprises a calibrator configured to process the non-calibrated touch input signal and the configurable control signal to remove the contribution of the internal forces from the non-calibrated signal to generate a calibrated signal, the calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to the touch sensor.

Claims

1. Apparatus comprising:

one or more inputs configured to receive;

a configurable control signal from a configurable signal generator; and

a non-calibrated touch input signal from a touch sensor, said non-calibrated touch input signal generated by detecting both internal and external forces applied to the touch sensor; and

a calibrator configured to process the non-calibrated touch input signal and the configurable control signal to remove the contribution of the internal forces from the non-calibrated signal to generate a calibrated signal, the calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to the touch sensor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the configurable control signal is an oscillating signal.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein characteristics of the configurable control signal are set such that the calibrated signal meets a threshold condition when no external force is applied to the touch sensor.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the characteristics can comprise one or more of:

mark-space ratio, frequency and amplitude.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the configurable control signal is a triangular waveform that has been generated by integrating a pulse width modulated signal over time.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the calibrated signal is integrated over time to generate an integrated output signal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the calibrator comprises an operational amplifier.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the negative input of the operational amplifier is controlled by negative feedback from the output of the operational amplifier.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the calibrator comprises a comparator.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein characteristics of the configurable control signal are set at times when it is assumed that no external force is being applied to the touch sensor such that the calibrated signal satisfies a threshold condition when no external force is applied, and wherein characteristics of the calibrated signal is representative of an external force applied to the touch sensor

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the characteristics of the configurable control signal are set periodically such that the calibrated signal tends towards a threshold condition, and wherein the characteristics of the configurable control signal are representative of an external force applied to the touch sensor.

12. A capacitive touch screen comprising the apparatus of claim 1.

13. A portable electronic device comprising the apparatus according to claim 1.

14. A module for a device, the module comprising the apparatus of claim 1.

15. A method of generating a calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to a touch sensor, comprising:

receiving a non-calibrated touch input signal representative of both internal and external forces applied to the touch sensor;

receiving a configurable control signal from a configurable signal generator; and

processing the non-calibrated touch input signal and the configurable control signal to remove the contribution of the internal forces from the non-calibrated signal to generate a calibrated signal, the calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to the touch sensor.

16. A method of calibrating an apparatus comprising the method of claim 15, and further comprising adjusting one or more characteristics of the configurable control signal until the calibrated signal satisfies a threshold condition.

17. A method of calibrating an apparatus comprising performing the method of claim 15 if the calibrated signal falls below a pre-determined threshold condition.

18. A computer program, recorded on a carrier, the computer program comprising computer code, which when run on a computer is configured to perform the method of:

receiving a non-calibrated touch input signal representative of both internal and external forces applied to a touch sensor;

receiving a configurable control signal from a configurable signal generator; and

processing the non-calibrated touch input signal and the configurable control signal to remove the contribution of the internal forces from the non-calibrated signal to generate a calibrated signal, the calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to the touch sensor.

19. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a data structure comprising the computer program of claim 18.

20. A signal comprising the computer program of claim 18 recorded thereon.

21. Apparatus comprising:

one or more input means configured to receive;

a configurable control signal from a means for generating a configurable signal; and

a non-calibrated touch input signal from a means for touch sensing, said non-calibrated touch input signal generated by detecting both internal and external forces applied to the means for touch sensing; and

a means for calibrating configured to process the non-calibrated touch input signal and the configurable control signal to remove the contribution of the internal forces from the non-calibrated signal to generate a calibrated signal, the calibrated signal for use in the detection of an external force applied to the means for touch sensing.