TOUCH SENSOR PANEL USING REGIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTRODES TO INCREASE NUMBER OF SENSE LOCATIONS
First Claim
1. An input sensor for an electronic device, comprising:
- a touch sensor panel;
a plurality of electrodes distributed across said touch sensor panel, wherein said plurality of electrodes comprises a plurality of regional electrodes and a plurality of local electrodes;
wherein each of said plurality of regional electrodes covers a corresponding one of a plurality of regions of said touch sensor panel, and wherein a touch anywhere along said touch sensor panel is detected by at least one of said plurality of regional electrodes;
wherein each of said plurality of local electrodes comprises a plurality of pads distributed within said plurality of regional electrodes so that each regional electrode includes at least one pad of each of said plurality of local electrodes, wherein a touch anywhere across said touch sensor panel is detected by at least one of said plurality of local electrodes; and
a sensor circuit which determines a value for each of said plurality of electrodes indicating relative change, and which compares relative values of said plurality of electrodes to identify a location of a touch of said touch sensor panel.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An input sensor for an electronic device which includes a touch sensor panel, multiple electrodes and a sensor circuit. The electrodes include multiple regional electrodes and multiple local electrodes. Each regional electrode covers a corresponding region of the touch sensor panel and each local electrode includes multiple pads including one pad located within each of the regional electrodes. The electrodes are distributed so that a touch anywhere across the touch sensor panel is detected by at least one regional electrode and at least one local electrode. A sensor circuit determines a value for each of the electrodes indicating relative change, and compares relative values of the electrodes to identify a location of a touch of the touch sensor panel. The regional electrodes are used to determine a region of a touch and the local electrodes are used to determine a more specific touch location within the determined region.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An input sensor for an electronic device, comprising:
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a touch sensor panel; a plurality of electrodes distributed across said touch sensor panel, wherein said plurality of electrodes comprises a plurality of regional electrodes and a plurality of local electrodes; wherein each of said plurality of regional electrodes covers a corresponding one of a plurality of regions of said touch sensor panel, and wherein a touch anywhere along said touch sensor panel is detected by at least one of said plurality of regional electrodes; wherein each of said plurality of local electrodes comprises a plurality of pads distributed within said plurality of regional electrodes so that each regional electrode includes at least one pad of each of said plurality of local electrodes, wherein a touch anywhere across said touch sensor panel is detected by at least one of said plurality of local electrodes; and a sensor circuit which determines a value for each of said plurality of electrodes indicating relative change, and which compares relative values of said plurality of electrodes to identify a location of a touch of said touch sensor panel. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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11. An electronic device, comprising:
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a touch sensor panel, comprising; a plurality of regional electrodes distributed across said touch sensor panel for distinguishing a touch within or between each of a plurality of regions of said touch sensor panel; and a plurality of local electrodes distributed across said touch sensor panel, each comprising a plurality of pads distributed within said plurality of regional electrodes so that each said regional electrode includes at least one pad of each of said plurality of local electrodes, wherein a touch anywhere across said touch sensor panel is detected by at least one of said plurality of local electrodes; and a sensor circuit which senses changes of any of said plurality of electrodes, and which compares relative changes of said plurality of electrodes to identify a corresponding touch location of said touch sensor panel. - View Dependent Claims (12)
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17. A method of determining a touch location along a touch area of a touch sensor panel, comprising:
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providing a plurality of electrodes comprising a plurality of regional electrodes and a plurality of local electrodes; locating each of the plurality of regional electrodes within a corresponding one of a plurality of regions of the touch area wherein each region includes one regional electrode and wherein a touch anywhere along the touch area is detected by at least one of the plurality of regional electrodes; dividing each of the plurality of local electrodes into a plurality of electrically-coupled touch pads; distributing the plurality of touch pads of each of the plurality of local electrodes within the plurality of regional electrodes so that each regional electrode includes a touch pad of each local electrode, and so that a touch anywhere along the touch area is detected by at least one of the plurality of local electrodes; and determining the touch location by determining which of the regional electrodes are changed above a minimum activity threshold and by determining relative weight of changes of the plurality of electrodes. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification