GLOVE TOUCH DETECTION

• US 20150338983A1
• Filed: 05/21/2014
• Published: 11/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: BENBASAT, Ari Y., Westerman, Wayne Carl
• Granted Patent: US 9,690,417 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• 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

Abstract

The dynamic adjusting of the conditions for identifying inputs as touching a touch-sensitive device is discloses. In some examples, in addition to using a signal density make threshold to identify an input patch as touching the surface, a signal density stability threshold can be used to identify the input patch as touching the surface. In some examples, a weighted average of peak signal density contributions from recent identified touches can be computed to dynamically adjust the make threshold for new input patches. In other examples, a new input patch identified as associated with the same path as an earlier touch can have its “make” threshold dynamically adjusted based on the earlier touch without computing a weighted average.

Claims

1. A touch detection method comprising:

identifying at least one patch from a touch image of one or more objects proximate to a touch sensitive surface;

determining a signal density of the at least one patch;

determining whether the signal density of the at least one patch reaches or exceeds a first threshold, the first threshold dynamically adjusted based on one or more recent contacts; and

in response to determining that the signal density of the at least one patch reaches or exceeds the first threshold, determining that the object is contacting the touch sensitive surface.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically adjusting the first threshold comprises:

identifying the at least one patch as corresponding to at least one of the one or more recent contacts; and

adjusting the first threshold based on a peak signal density of the at least one corresponding recent contact.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically adjusting the first threshold further comprises:

weighting the one or more recent contacts;

determining an average peak signal density of the one or more weighted recent contacts; and

adjusting the first threshold based on the average peak signal density of the one or more weighted recent contacts.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

weighting the one or more recent contacts based on their proximity to the at least one patch.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

capping the peak signal density for each of the plurality of recent touches.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically adjusting the first threshold comprises:

weighting the one or more recent contacts;

determining a total weight of the one or more recent contacts with a peak signal density above a second threshold;

determining that the total weight exceeds a third threshold; and

adjusting the first threshold to the second threshold based on the determination that the total weight exceeds the third threshold.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the first threshold is less than or equal to a second threshold.

8. A touch detection method comprising:

identifying at least one patch from a touch image of one or more objects proximate to a touch sensitive surface;

determining a signal density of the at least one patch;

determining that each of one or more conditions are satisfied, the one or more conditions including a condition that the signal density of the at least one patch is stable for a threshold period of time within a window of interest; and

in response to determining that each of the one or more conditions are satisfied, determining that the object is contacting the touch sensitive surface.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the at least one input patch exceeds a movement threshold.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the at least one input patch corresponds to a repeated gesture.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the shape of the at least one patch exceeds a flatness threshold.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein determining whether the at least one patch exceeds the flatness threshold comprises:

generating a dispersion image;

determining a region of the dispersion image corresponding to the at least one input patch contains no peaks above a threshold value.

13. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium containing instructions that, when executed, perform a touch detection method, the method comprising:

identifying at least one patch from a touch image of one or more objects proximate to a touch sensitive surface;

determining a signal density of the at least one patch;

determining that each of one or more conditions are satisfied, the one or more conditions including a condition that the signal density of the at least one patch is stable for a threshold period of time within a window of interest; and

in response to determining that each of the one or more conditions are satisfied, determining that the object is contacting the touch sensitive surface.

14. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the at least one input patch exceeds a movement threshold.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the at least one input patch corresponds to a repeated gesture.

16. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the one or more conditions further includes a condition that the shape of the at least one patch exceeds a flatness threshold.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein determining whether the at least one patch exceeds the flatness threshold comprises:

generating a dispersion image;

determining a region of the dispersion image corresponding to the at least one input patch contains no peaks above a threshold value.

18. An electronic device, comprising:

a touch sensitive surface; and

a processor capable of;

identifying at least one patch from a touch image of one or more objects proximate to a touch sensitive surface;

determining a signal density of the at least one patch;

determining whether the signal density of the at least one patch reaches or exceeds a signal density threshold, the signal density threshold dynamically adjusted based on one or more recent contacts; and

in response to determining that the signal density of the at least one patch reaches or exceeds the signal density threshold, determining that the object is contacting the touch sensitive surface.

19. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein dynamically adjusting the signal density threshold comprises:

identifying the at least one patch as corresponding to at least one of the one or more recent contacts; and

adjusting the signal density threshold based on a peak signal density of the at least one corresponding recent contact.

20. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein dynamically adjusting the signal density threshold further comprises:

weighting the one or more recent contacts;

determining an average peak signal density of the one or more weighted recent contacts; and

adjusting the signal density threshold based on the average peak signal density of the one or more weighted recent contacts.

21. The electronic device of claim 20, wherein dynamically adjusting the signal density threshold further comprises:

weighting the one or more recent contacts based on their proximity to the at least one patch.

22. The electronic device of claim 20, wherein dynamically adjusting the signal density threshold further comprises:

capping the peak signal density for each of the plurality of recent touches.

23. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein dynamically adjusting the signal density threshold comprises:

weighting the one or more recent contacts;

determining a total weight of the one or more recent contacts with a peak signal density above a default signal density threshold;

determining that the total weight exceeds a total weight threshold; and

adjusting the signal density threshold to the default signal density threshold based on the determination that the total weight exceeds the total weight threshold.

24. The electronic device of claim 20, wherein the signal density threshold is less than or equal to a default signal density threshold.