METHOD AND APPARATUS PERTAINING TO THE TIMING OF STYLUS LOCATION TRANSMISSIONS

• US 20140038524A1
• Filed: 07/31/2012
• Published: 02/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: SINGH, Amit Pal, ROBINSON, James Alexander, PAREKH, Premal
• Application Number:
  US13/563,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20140038524A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/41.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03545 Pens or stylus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device

Abstract

A stylus includes a stylus housing that contains a location-beacon transmitter, a wireless receiver, and a control circuit that operably couples to the preceding. By one approach the control circuit is configured to use the location-beacon transmitter to transmit signals as a function of at least one signal received via the wireless receiver. The aforementioned wireless receiver can comprise a Bluetooth™-compatible wireless transceiver that pairs with the corresponding display-based device. The signal received via this wireless receiver can comprise transmission-synchronization information that represents a video-display event for the display-based device such as refreshing the display of the display-based device. In such a case, the signal can comprise a vertical synchronization pulse as sourced by the display-based device. So configured, the stylus can time the transmission of its location-beacon signals to arrive at the display-based device just prior to when the latter refreshes its display.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a stylus housing;

a location-beacon transmitter at least partially disposed within the stylus housing;

a wireless receiver at least partially disposed within the stylus housing;

a control circuit at least partially disposed within the stylus housing and operably coupled to the location-beacon transmitter and the wireless receiver, and configured to use the location-beacon transmitter to transmit signals as a function, at least in part, of at least one signal received via the wireless receiver.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the location-beacon transmitter is configured to transmit pulses.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the wireless receiver comprises a Bluetooth™

-compatible wireless receiver.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the signal received via the wireless receiver comprises transmission-synchronization information.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the wireless receiver comprises a wireless transceiver by which the control circuit pairs with a source of the signal that is received via the wireless receiver.

6. A method comprising:

by a control circuit that comprises a part of a stylus;

receiving a wireless transmission;

timing at least one transmission of a location-beacon transmitter as a function of the wireless transmission.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the wireless transmission represents a video-display event.

8. An apparatus comprising:

a display-based device having;

a wireless transmitter configured to transmit information regarding at least one video-display event;

a wireless receiver configured to receive signals transmitted by a stylus that contacts the display;

a stylus having;

a wireless receiver configured to receive the information regarding the at least one video-display event;

a control circuit configured to cause the transmission of the signals as a function, at least in part, of the information regarding the at least one video-display event.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the video-display event pertains to a refreshing of the display, such that the display-based device receives the signals from the stylus just prior to refreshing the display.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the video-display event comprises a vertical synchronization (VSYNC) pulse.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the wireless transmitter of the display-based device comprises a Bluetooth™

-compatible transmitter and the wireless receiver of the stylus comprises a Bluetooth™

-compatible receiver that is paired to the Bluetooth™

-compatible transmitter.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the control circuit is configured to cause the transmission of the signals as a function, at least in part, of the information regarding the at least one video-display event by reacting to the information as a present trigger to cause the transmission of at least one of the signals.