TACTILE ARRAY SENSOR
First Claim
1. A tactile array sensor comprising:
- an array of sensor pixels formed by capacitance between overlapped layers of conductor electrodes laid in substantially orthogonal directions to each other;
a means to achieve close spatial resolution between adjacent conductor electrodes by use of said conductor electrodes in pre-insulated condition;
a means to achieve the said capacitance by insulation of conductor electrodes by dielectric material or by use of a separate dielectric material layer;
a means to hold the said sensor pixels in the said configuration;
functioning of sensor pixels by change in capacitance effected by sensing;
a means to enable sensing data acquisition from the sensor pixel array, its processing, and display or control of external devices based on the sensed information.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A capacitance based tactile array sensor is disclosed that provides for close resolution of sensing pixels by using insulated conductors as electrodes, and allows for eliminating the need for a joint or connection interface near periphery of the sensor array. Optional aspects of the invention include provision for allowing use of stretchable conductors, reduction of the burden of number of connections at one layer of conductors in the sensor, providing for differential sensing resolutions at different areas of sensing, and modularity in configuration allowing replacement of a defective sensor pixel in the array. The tactile array sensor may be integrated with surface of a robotic hand'"'"'s finger, palm, or any other surface of a device that requires multi-point sensing of external contacts. The capacitance information is processed for useful display or control of systems based on the contact feedback.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A tactile array sensor comprising:
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an array of sensor pixels formed by capacitance between overlapped layers of conductor electrodes laid in substantially orthogonal directions to each other; a means to achieve close spatial resolution between adjacent conductor electrodes by use of said conductor electrodes in pre-insulated condition; a means to achieve the said capacitance by insulation of conductor electrodes by dielectric material or by use of a separate dielectric material layer; a means to hold the said sensor pixels in the said configuration; functioning of sensor pixels by change in capacitance effected by sensing; a means to enable sensing data acquisition from the sensor pixel array, its processing, and display or control of external devices based on the sensed information. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 17)
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5. A tactile array sensor comprising:
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an array of sensor pixels formed by capacitance between overlapped layers of conductor electrodes; one layer of conductor electrodes laid in substantially radial configuration connected to a common center; another layer of conductor electrodes laid in substantially circular and concentric configuration with the ends of the electrodes coming out radially in a common direction; a means to achieve the said capacitance by insulation of conductor electrodes by dielectric material or by use of a separate dielectric material layer between the layers of conductor electrodes; a means to hold the said sensor pixels in the said configuration; functioning of sensor pixels by change in capacitance effected by sensing; a means to enable data acquisition from the sensor pixel array, its processing, and display or control of external devices based on the sensed information. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 18)
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9. A tactile array sensor comprising:
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an array of sensor pixels formed by capacitance between overlapped layers of conductor electrodes; one layer of conductor electrodes provided by a common ground electrode laid in substantially spiral configuration with an end coming out radially after the spiral; another layer of conductor electrode pads arranged over the spiral ground electrode and connected to conductors laid in substantially spiral configuration with the ends of the conductors coming out radially in a common direction after the spiral; a means to achieve the said capacitance by use of a dielectric material layer between the said layers of conductor electrodes; a means to hold the said sensor pixels in the said configuration; functioning of sensor pixels by change in capacitance effected by sensing; a means to enable data acquisition from the sensor pixel array, its processing, and display or control of external devices based on the sensed information. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 19)
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13. A tactile array sensor comprising:
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an array of sensor pixels formed by capacitance between overlapped layers of conductor electrodes; one layer of conductor electrodes provided by a common ground electrode laid as a conductive surface with perforations; another layer of conductor electrode pads arranged over the common ground electrode and connected to insulated conductors passing through the said perforations in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the tactile array sensor pixels; a means to achieve the said capacitance by use of a dielectric material layer between the said layers of conductor electrodes; a means to hold the said sensor pixels in the said configuration; functioning of sensor pixels by change in capacitance effected by sensing; a means to enable data acquisition from the sensor pixel array, its processing, and display or control of external devices based on the sensed information. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 20)
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Specification