TOUCH SCREEN POWER GENERATION

• US 20110285660A1
• Filed: 05/18/2010
• Published: 11/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Inventors: PRABHU, KRISHNANAND, Singh, Jagadish Vasudeva
• Application Number:
  US12/782,494
• Publication Number:
  US 20110285660A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04144 using an array of force sensing means position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells G06F3/0447

Abstract

A method and apparatus converts a force applied to a touch screen of an electronic device into an electric charge capable of powering a logical circuit of the electronic device. In various embodiments, the touch screen comprises one or more piezoelectric transducer array layers that convert the force into electrical charges. The converted electrical charges may be collected in a capacitor array layer, which can be discharged in order to power logical circuits of the electronic device or to charge a battery of the electronic device.

Claims

1. A power-generating touch screen comprising:

a piezoelectric transducer array (PETA) layer comprising a plurality of piezoelectric transducer (PET) elements; and

a capacitor array layer coupled to the PETA layer, the capacitor array layer comprising a plurality of capacitors, the PETA layer configured to provide a charge to the capacitors of the capacitor array layer when a force is applied to the PETA layer.

2. The power-generating touch screen of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of PETA layers, each of the plurality of PETA layers electrically coupled to the capacitor array layer.

3. The power-generating touch screen of claim 1, further comprising:

a touch sensor layer coupled to the PETA layer; and

a display layer coupled to the touch sensor layer.

4. An electronic device, comprising:

a controller; and

a power-generating touch screen coupled to the controller, the power-generating touch screen comprising;

a piezoelectric transducer array (PETA) layer comprising a plurality of piezoelectric transducer (PET) elements, and

a capacitor array layer coupled to the PETA layer, the capacitor array layer comprising a plurality of capacitors, the PETA layer configured to provide a charge to the capacitors of the capacitor array layer when a force is applied to the PETA layer.

5. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the controller is configured to determine a charge level of the capacitor array layer and to control discharge of the capacitor array layer based on the determined charge level.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, further comprising:

a battery to power the electronic device; and

circuitry to discharge the capacitor array layer in order to charge the battery.

7. The electronic device of claim 5, further comprising:

circuitry to discharge the capacitor array layer in order to power a logical circuit associated with the electronic device.

8. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the logical circuit comprises one of the following:

a real-time clock, a liquid crystal display, and a backlighting device.

9. The electronic device of claim 5, further comprising:

a secondary power source coupled to the capacitor array layer; and

circuitry to discharge the capacitor array layer in order to charge the secondary power source.

10. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the secondary power source comprises an electrochemical capacitor.

11. The electronic device of claim 9, further comprising:

a battery to power the electronic device; and

circuitry to discharge the secondary power source in order to charge the battery.

12. The electronic device of claim 9, further comprising:

circuitry to discharge the secondary power source in order to power a logical circuit associated with the electronic device.

13. A method comprising:

converting a force applied to a piezoelectric transducer array (PETA) layer of a touch screen into an electric charge; and

charging a capacitor array layer of the touch screen with the converted electric charge.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

discharging the charged capacitor array layer to power a logical circuit of a device associated with the touch screen.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining a charge level of the capacitor array layer; and

based on the determined charge level of the capacitor array layer, selecting one of a plurality of logical circuits to be powered by discharging the charged capacitor array layer.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the selection of one of the plurality of logical circuits is also based on a priority level associated with the selected logical circuit.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the selection of one of the plurality of logical circuits is also based on whether the determined charge level of the capacitor array layer is sufficient to power the selected logical circuit for at least a predetermined minimum period of time.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

discharging the charged capacitor array layer to charge a battery of a device associated with the touch screen.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

discharging the charged capacitor array layer to charge a secondary power source.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

discharging the charged secondary power source to power a logical circuit of a device associated with the touch screen.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

discharging the charged secondary power source to charge a battery of the device associated with the touch screen.