Electronic Device with a User Interface that has more than Two Degrees of Freedom, the User Interface Comprising a Touch-Sensitive Surface and Contact-Free Detection Means

• US 20130147833A1
• Filed: 12/09/2011
• Published: 06/13/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microchip Technology Germany GmbH (Microchip Technology Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: IDENT Technology AG (Microchip Technology Incorporated)
• Inventors: Aubauer, Roland, Gebhard, Roman
• Granted Patent: US 9,323,379 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/619
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04106 Multi-sensing digitiser, i.e. digitiser using at least two different sensing technologies simultaneously or alternatively, e.g. for detecting pen and finger, for saving power or for improving position detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04108 Touchless 2D- 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 without distance measurement in the Z direction
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041662 using alternate mutual and self-capacitive scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

The invention relates to an electronic device for determining a first positional information and a second positional information regarding a user input object, such as at least one user hand or at least one stylus, the electronic device comprising: a touch-sensitive surface; contact-free detection means; and controller means that are operatively connected to the touch-sensitive surface and to the contact-free detection means; wherein the first positional information depends on where the user input object contacts the touch-sensitive surface, and wherein the second positional information depends on the spatial configuration of the user input object with regard to the touch-sensitive surface, characterized in that the controller means are adapted for simultaneously and/or alternately determining the first positional information via the touch-sensitive surface and the second positional information via the contact free detection means.

Claims

1. An electronic device for determining a first positional information and a second positional information regarding a user input object, such as at least one user hand or at least one stylus, the electronic device comprising:

a touch-sensitive surface;

contact-free detection means; and

controller means that are operatively connected to the touch-sensitive surface and to the contact-free detection means;

wherein the first positional information depends on where the user input object contacts the touch-sensitive surface, and

wherein the second positional information depends on the spatial configuration of the user input object with regard to the touch-sensitive surface,

wherein

the controller means are adapted for simultaneously and/or alternately determining the first positional information via the touch-sensitive surface and the second positional information via the contact free detection means, the controller means preferably comprising at least one controller.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the controller means are adapted for simultaneously determining the first positional information and the second positional information using time-division-multiplexing and/or frequency-division-multiplexing.

3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the first positional information comprises a first position that depends on where the user input object contacts the touch-sensitive surface, and the second positional information comprises a second position that depends on the spatial configuration of the user input object.

4. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the second positional information depends on the spatial configuration of a portion of the user input object that is within a predefined distance of the touch-sensitive surface, wherein the predefined distance is preferably less than:

0.5 cm, 1 cm, 1.5 cm, 2 cm, 2.5 cm, 3 cm, 3.5 cm, 4 cm, 4.5 cm, 5 cm, 5.5 cm, 6 cm, 7 cm, 8 cm, 9 cm, 10 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 50 cm, 1 m, 2 m, 5 m, or 10 m.

5. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the first position is a mean position of where the user input object contacts the touch sensitive surface.

6. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the second position is a mean position of the user input object or of a portion of the user input object.

7. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the first positional information is determined and/or represented in two dimensions, and/or wherein the second positional information is determined and/or represented in three dimensions.

8. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein both the first positional information and the second positional information are determined and/or represented in the same coordinate system,

wherein both the first and the second position are preferably determined and/or represented in the same coordinate system,

wherein both the first positional information and the second positional information is preferably determined relative to a reference position on the touch-sensitive surface,

wherein both the first and the second position are preferably determined relative to a reference position on the touch-sensitive surface.

9. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the touch-sensitive surface is part of a touch-sensitive display.

10. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the contact-free detection means comprise a contact-free 3D scanner, which is of the active or the passive type.

11. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein the contact-free 3D scanner comprises at least one video camera for recording images of the user input object and an image analysis controller for determining the second positional information from the recorded images, wherein the image analysis module is a separate module or an integral part of the controller means.

12. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the contact-free detection means comprise capacitive sensing means, which in turn preferably comprise:

electric field generation means for generating an electric field that is static or quasi-static;

electric field detection means for detecting changes of the electric field caused by the user input object, wherein the electric field detection means are separate means or an integral part of the electric field generation means.

13. The electronic device according to claim 12, wherein the capacitive sensing means comprise:

electric field generation means for generating an electric field that is static or quasi-static;

electric field detection means for detecting changes of the electric field caused by the user input object, wherein the detection means are separate means or an integral part of the electric field generation means; and

an analysis module for determining the second positional information from the detected changes of the electric field, wherein the analysis module is a separate module or an integral part of the controller means.

14. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electric field generation means and/or the electric field detection means are integral part of the touch-sensitive surface and/or of the touch-sensitive display.

15. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic device further comprises a gesture recognition module that is a separate module or an integral part of the controller means,

wherein the gesture recognition module is adapted for identifying a gesture as belonging to a predefined gesture category from the first positional information, the second positional information, the first position, and/or the second position determined by the controller means, and

wherein the electronic device is adapted for transitioning from a first state into a second state when or after the gesture is identified as belonging to the predefined gesture category by the gesture recognition module.

16. The electronic device according to 15, wherein the gesture recognition module is adapted for:

preferably storing and/or obtaining a predefined gesture category,

recording a gesture from the first and the second positional information and/or from the first and the second position determined by the controller means, wherein, preferably, the gesture is recorded as long as the user input object touches the touch-sensitive surface, identifying the recorded gesture as belonging to the predefined gesture category,

preferably extracting a parameter from the identified gesture, such as a zoom factor, or a discrete rotation angle,

wherein a gesture preferably is a trajectory in a phase space, the phase space being defined by all possible states of the first and the second positional information and/or of the first and the second position, i.e., by those states that the first and the second positional information and/or the first and the second position may occupy.

17. The electronic device according to claim 15,

wherein a gesture belongs to the predefined category:

if the second position moves on a substantially circular trajectory around a rotational axis, the rotational axis being perpendicular to the touch-sensitive surface and intersecting the first position, the first position remaining substantially constant, or

if the second position moves on a trajectory, which is substantially a line, towards or away from the touch-sensitive surface, the first position remaining substantially constant, the line preferably being perpendicular to the touch-sensitive surface, or

if the second position moves on a substantially circular trajectory around a rotational axis, the rotational axis lying within the touch-sensitive surface and intersecting the first position, the first position remaining substantially constant, or

if the second position moves on a trajectory, which is substantially a line, in parallel to the touch-sensitive surface, the first position remaining substantially constant, or

if the first and the second position simultaneously move in substantially the same direction,

wherein said same direction is substantially parallel to the touch-sensitive surface.

18. The electronic device according to claim 15,

wherein the gesture recognition module is adapted for determining a vector (in particular the length of the vector, the initial point of the vector, the terminal point of the vector, the angle between the screen surface and the vector, the angle between the vector projected onto the touch-sensitive surface and a preferred axis lying within the touch sensitive surface),

wherein the initial point of the vector is the first position and the terminal point of the vector is the second position.

19. The electronic device according to claim 15,

wherein the gesture recognition module is adapted for determining the second position in a cylindrical coordinates system and/or transforming the second position into a cylindrical coordinates system,

wherein the origin of the cylindrical coordinates system is the first position, wherein the height axis is perpendicular to the touch-sensitive surface, and wherein the reference axis lies within the touch sensitive surface.

20. A method for controlling an electronic device according to claim 1, comprising the step of simultaneously and/or alternately determining the first positional information via the touch-sensitive display and the second positional information via the contact free detection means.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein the step of simultaneously and/or alternately determining the first position and the second position is based on a time-division-multiplexing method and/or a frequency-division-multiplexing method.

22. A method for controlling an electronic device according to one of the claim 1, comprising:

determining the first positional information and the second positional information while the electronic device is in a first state;

recording a gesture,

transitioning the electronic device to a second state if the detected gesture belongs to a predefined gesture category; and

maintaining the device in the first state if the detected phase space trajectory does not belong to a predefined gesture category.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the gesture is recorded as long as the user input object touches the touch-sensitive surface.

24. The method according to claim 22, further comprising the step of extracting a parameter from the identified gesture, such as a zoom factor, or a discrete rotation angle.