APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DETECTING TOUCH INFORMATION AND PROXIMITY INFORMATION IN DISPLAY APPARATUS

• US 20120139855A1
• Filed: 11/09/2011
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Choi, Chang Kyu, Yi, Kwon Ju, Park, Du Sik, SUH, Sung Joo
• Application Number:
  US13/292,855
• Publication Number:
  US 20120139855A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04109 FTIR in optical digitiser, i.e. touch detection by frustrating the total internal reflection within an optical waveguide due to changes of optical properties or deformation at the touch location
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/042 by opto-electronic means

Abstract

Provided are an apparatus and method for detecting touch information and proximity information in a display apparatus. The apparatus for detecting the touch information and the proximity information in the display apparatus may detect the touch information and the proximity information by obtaining an image area associated with touch sensing and an image area associated with proximity sensing with respect to an obtained image in the display apparatus.

Claims

1. An apparatus for detecting touch information and proximity information in a display apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

a processor to control one or more processor-executable units;

an image extracting unit to extract a first image area associated with touch sensing using a first threshold and to extract a second image area using a second threshold, with respect to an obtained image; and

an image filtering unit to obtain a proximity image area associated with proximity sensing by removing an area associated with the first image area from the second image area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the image extracting unit extracts the second image area using the second threshold, which is relatively small compared to the first threshold.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the image filtering unit removes, from the second image area, an area including the first image area as a part of the second image area.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the image is obtained by a sensor panel in the display apparatus, wherein a touch infrared (IR) light source or a Hover IR light source is provided with respect to an image panel in the display apparatus.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the image extracting unit extracts the first image area from a first image obtained in association with the touch IR light source, and extracts the second image area from a second image obtained in association with the Hover IR light source.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the image filtering unit removes, from the second image area, an area corresponding to the first image area that is included as a part of the second image area, using a position of the first image area and a position of the second image area.

7. An apparatus for detecting touch information and proximity information in a display apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

a processor to control one or more processor-executable units;

an image extracting unit to extract an image unit by sequentially applying different thresholds with respect to an obtained image; and

an image filtering unit to configure the extracted image unit based on a position in the image and to classify the image unit as a first image area including a plurality of overlapped image units and a second image area including a single image unit.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein:

the image extracting unit extracts a touch image unit associated with touch sensing by applying a first threshold and a proximity image unit by applying a second threshold, which is relatively small compared to the first threshold; and

the image filtering unit configures the touch image unit and the proximity image unit to overlap and classifies the overlapped touch image unit and the overlapped proximity image unit into the first image area as a touch area.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein:

the image extracting unit extracts a touch image unit associated with touch sensing by applying a first threshold and a proximity image unit by applying a second threshold, which is relatively small compared to the first threshold; and

the image filtering unit classifies the second image area as the proximity area to be configured without overlapping the touch image unit with the proximity image unit.

10. A method of detecting touch information and proximity information in a display apparatus, the method comprising:

extracting a first image area associated with touch sensing using a first threshold, with respect to an obtained image;

extracting a second image area using a second threshold, with respect to the obtained image; and

obtaining, by way of a processor, a proximity image area associated with proximity sensing by removing an area associated with the first image area from the second image area.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the extracting of the second image area extracts the second image area using the second threshold, which is relatively small compared to the first threshold.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the obtaining of the proximity image area includes obtaining the proximity image area associated with the proximity sensing by removing, from the second image area, an area including the first image area as a part of the second image area.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising obtaining the image by a sensor panel in the display apparatus, wherein a touch infrared (IR) light source or a Hover IR light source is provided with respect to an image panel in the display apparatus.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein:

the extracting of the first image area comprises extracting the first image area from the first image obtained in association with the touch IR light source; and

the extracting of the second image area comprises extracting the second image area from the second image obtained in association with the Hover IR light source.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the obtaining of the proximity image area comprises obtaining the proximity image area associated with the proximity sensing by removing, from the second image area, an area corresponding to the first image area that is included as a part of the second image area, using a position of the first image area and a position of the second image area.

16. A method for detecting touch information and proximity information in a display apparatus, the method comprising:

extracting an image unit by sequentially applying different thresholds with respect to an obtained image;

configuring the extracted image unit based on a position in the image and classifying the image unit as a first image area including a plurality of overlapped image units and a second image area including a single image unit; and

performing, by way of a processor, at least one of a touch sensing operation and a proximity sensing operation based on the first image area and the second image area.