SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETERMINING THE LOCATION AND PRESSURE OF A TOUCHLOAD APPLIED TO A TOUCHPAD

• US 20110260994A1
• Filed: 03/21/2011
• Published: 10/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Smart Skin Technologies Inc.
• Original Assignee: Smart Skin Technologies Inc.
• Inventors: Kormendy, Arpad, MacDonald, Adam Joseph, Thillainadarajah, Kumaran, Saynac, Xavier Pierre-Emmanuel
• Granted Patent: US 8,884,913 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/36 by graphic or iconic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/83 input devices, e.g. keyboards, mice or controllers thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04146 using pressure sensitive conductive elements delivering a boolean signal and located between crossing sensing lines, e.g. located between X and Y sensing line layers

Abstract

A computing device with a multi-touch touch interface having a plurality of rows of contact points and a plurality of columns of contact points. For each other row of contact points, every contact point in the row is connected to form a row sensor. For each other column of contact points, every contact point in the column that is not part of a row sensor is connected to form a column sensor. The contact points that are not part of a row sensor and not part of a column sensor are connected together to form at least one shape sensor. A computing device with a multi-touch touch interface having a plurality of contact points has at least one layer of piezoresistive material, an insulating structure disposed between the plurality of contact points and the piezoresistive material, and a gap between the plurality of contact points and piezoresistive material. A method of providing multi-layered password recognition for a computing device having a touch interface first provides a passcode associated with an alphanumeric symbol to the computing device. The alphanumeric symbol is associated with a passcode pressure level. A touch load is applied to the touch interface and a measured pressure level associated with the applied touch load is determined. Then it is determined whether the measured pressure level corresponds to the passcode pressure level associated with the alphanumeric symbol of the passcode.

Claims

1. A computing device having a multi-touch touch interface, the computing device comprising:

a plurality of rows of contact points;

a plurality of columns of contact points;

wherein for each other row of contact points, every contact point in the row is connected to form a row sensor;

wherein for each other column of contact points, every contact point in the column that is not part of a row sensor is connected to form a column sensor; and

wherein the contact points that are not part of a row sensor and not part of a column sensor are connected together to form at least one shape sensor.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the at least one shape sensor is generally a square.

3. A method of constructing a layout of contact points for a computing device having a multi-touch touch interface, the method comprising:

providing a plurality of rows of contact points;

providing a plurality of columns of contact points;

for each other row of contact points, connecting every contact point in the row to form a row sensor;

for each other column of contact points, connecting every contact point in the column that is not part of a row sensor to form a column sensor;

connecting the remaining contact points that are not part of a row sensor and not part of a column sensor to form at least one shape sensor.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the at least one shape sensor is generally a square.

9. A method of determining the location of a touch load applied to a touch interface of a computing device constructed according to the method of claim 3, wherein the touch load is associated with a contact point, the method comprising:

activating at least one row sensor, at least one column sensor and at least one shape sensor in response to the touch load;

associating a row sensor location index value with each row sensor activated;

associating a column sensor location index value with each column sensor activated;

associating a square sensor location index value with each shape sensor activated; and

determining a location index for the contact point associated with the touch load, wherein the location index comprises at least one row location value, at least one column location value and at least one shape location value.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is part of a row sensor, the row location value is the row sensor location index value of that row.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is not part of a row sensor, the row sensor location index value is the values of the two row sensors adjacent to the contact point.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is part of a column sensor, the column location value is the column sensor index value of that column.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is not part of a column sensor, the column location value is the column sensor location index values of the two column sensors adjacent to the contact point.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is part of a shape sensor or is located within a shape sensor, the square location value is the shape sensor location index value of that shape sensor.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is located between the edges of two shape sensors, the shape location value is the shape sensor location index values of the two adjacent shapes.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein if the contact point is located between four shapes, the shape location index value is the shape sensor location index values of the four shape sensors.

5. A computing device having a multi-touch touch interface, the computing device comprising:

a plurality of contact points;

at least one layer of piezoresistive material;

an insulating structure disposed between the plurality of contact points and the piezoresistive material; and

a gap between the plurality of contact points and piezoresistive material.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the gap comprises an air gap.

7. A method of determining a pressure load in response to a touch load on a touch interface of a computing device:

providing a plurality of contact points;

providing at least one layer of piezoresistive material;

providing an insulating structure between the plurality of contact points and the piezoresistive material;

providing a gap between the plurality of contact points and the piezoresistive material;

deforming the piezoresistive material and placing at least one contact point in contact with the piezoresistive material in response to the touch load; and

determining the pressure of the touch load.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the gap comprises an air gap.

17. A method of providing multi-layered password recognition for a computing device having a touch interface, the method comprising:

providing a passcode to the computing device, wherein the passcode is associated with at least one alphanumeric symbol and the at least one alphanumeric symbol is associated with at least one passcode pressure level;

applying at least one touch load to the touch interface; and

for each touch load applied to the touch interface,

determining a measured pressure level associated with the applied touch load, and;

determining whether the measured pressure level corresponds to the passcode pressure level associated with the at least one alphanumeric symbol of the passcode.