FINGERPRINT RECOGNTION SENSOR AND TERMINAL DEVICE

• US 20160364595A1
• Filed: 08/25/2016
• Published: 12/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shenzhen Goodix Technology Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Shenzhen Huiding Technology Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Du, Canhong, Zhuo, Guangming
• Granted Patent: US 9,965,667 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1306 non-optical, e.g. ultrasonic or capacitive sensing

Abstract

Disclosed is a fingerprint identification sensor, which comprises: a sensor unit, comprising a capacitor array formed by a plurality of capacitor induction units and having an output, a power supply and a sensor ground output; a conversion circuit, connected to the device ground of the terminal device, and the output and the sensor ground of the sensor unit, and configured to, upon modulating the driving signal to the modulated signal, output the modulated signal to the sensor ground; an energy storage capacitor, connected between the power supply and the sensor ground, and configured to stabilize an operating voltage of the sensor unit; a high-speed transistor switch, connected to the power supply, and configured to perform synchronous switch-on and switch-off according to status of the conversion circuit power supply; and a power supply, connected to the conversion circuit and the power supply of the sensor unit via the high-speed transistor switch.

Claims

1. A fingerprint identification sensor, applicable to a terminal device, comprising:

a sensor unit, comprising a capacitor array formed by a plurality of capacitor induction units, and having an output, a power supply and a sensor ground, the output outputting a driving signal; and

a modulation circuit, connected to a device ground of the terminal device, and the output, the power supply and the sensor ground of the sensor unit, and configured to, upon modulating the driving signal to a modulated signal, output the modulated signal to the sensor ground, wherein a voltage of the power supply varies with the modulated signal.

2. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 1, wherein the modulation circuit comprises:

a conversion circuit, connected to the device ground of the terminal device, and the output and the sensor ground of the sensor unit, and configured to, upon modulating the driving signal to the modulated signal, output the modulated signal to the sensor ground;

an energy storage capacitor, connected between the power supply and the sensor ground, and configured to stabilize an operating voltage of the sensor unit;

a high-speed transistor switch, connected to the power supply, and configured to perform synchronous switch-on and switch-off according to status of the conversion circuit, such that a voltage of the power supply varies with the modulated signal; and

a power source, connected to the conversion circuit and the power supply of the sensor unit via the high-speed transistor switch to supply power for the conversion circuit and the sensor unit.

3. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 2, wherein the sensor unit is connected to a main control module of the terminal device via a communication port, and configured to output a driving signal having a low level between modulation idle intervals, such that a level of the device ground is approximately equal to a level of the sensor ground.

4. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 3, wherein:

the sensor unit is directly connected to the main control module via a conducting wire, and the communication port is maintained at a low level while the conversion circuit modulates the driving signal;

or

the fingerprint identification sensor further comprises a resistor array, the sensor unit being connected to the main control module via the resistor array;

or

the fingerprint identification sensor further comprises a relay module, the sensor unit being connected to the main control module of the terminal device via the relay module.

5. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 4, wherein when the sensor unit is connected to the main control module via the relay module, the relay module receives data sent by the sensor unit and caches the data, and the main control module acquires the data from the relay module.

6. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 5, wherein the sensor unit and the relay module are integrated in a sensor chip.

7. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 3, wherein the power source is connected to the sensor unit via a power switch, ON or OFF of the power switch being controlled by the main control module.

8. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 5, wherein the power source is connected to the sensor unit via a power switch, ON or OFF of the power switch being controlled by the main control module or the relay module.

9. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 8, wherein the conversion circuit, the high-speed transistor switch, the power switch, and the relay module are integrated in a chip.

10. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 2, wherein the conversion circuit is formed by any one or any combination of at least two of a transistor, an operational amplifier, a phase inverter, a level shifter and a digital buffer gate, in addition to a resistor or/and a capacitor.

11. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 10, wherein the conversion circuit is formed by two phase inverters and one resistor, the phase inverters comprising a first phase inverter and a second phase inverter;

wherein a positive input power supply of the first phase inverter is connected to the power supply of the sensor unit, a negative input power supply of the first phase inverter is connected to the device ground, an input of the first phase inverter is connected to the output of the sensor unit and connected to a negative input power supply of the second phase inverter and the device ground via the resistor, and an output of the first phase inverter is connected to an input of the second phase inverter; and

an positive input power supply of the second phase inverter is connected to the power source, a negative input power supply of the second phase inverter is connected to the device ground, and an output of the second phase inverter is connected to the sensor ground.

12. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 11, wherein the first inverter is formed by a first NMOS transistor, a first PMOS transistor and a first resistor;

wherein a gate of the first NMOS transistor is connected to a gate of the first PMOS transistor to form the input of the first phase inverter, a source of the first PMOS transistor is used as the positive input power supply of the first phase inverter, a source of the first NMOS transistor is used as the negative input power supply of the first inverter, a drain of the first NMOS transistor is connected to a drain of the first PMOS transistor via the first resistor, and either the drain of the first NMOS transistor or the drain of the first PMOS transistor is used as an output of the first phase inverter; and

the second phase inverter is formed by a second NMOS transistor, a second PMOS transistor and a second resistor, connections thereof being the same as those of the first phase inverter.

13. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 2, wherein the high-speed transistor switch is formed by any one or any combination of at least two of a Schottky diode, a fast recovery diode, a crystal triode, a field effect transistor and a silicon controlled rectifier.

14. The fingerprint identification sensor according to claim 2, further comprising a low dropout regulator, wherein the low dropout regulator is connected between the power supply and the energy storage capacitor.

15. A terminal device, comprising a fingerprint identification sensor;

wherein the fingerprint identification sensor comprises;

a sensor unit, comprising a capacitor array formed by a plurality of capacitor induction units, and having an output, a power supply and a sensor ground, the output outputting a driving signal; and

a modulation circuit, connected to a device ground of the terminal device, and the output, the power supply and the sensor ground of the sensor unit, and configured to, upon modulating the driving signal to a modulated signal, output the modulated signal to the sensor ground, wherein a voltage of the power supply varies with the modulated signal;

16. The terminal device according to claim 15, wherein the modulation circuit comprises:

a conversion circuit, connected to the device ground of the terminal device, and the output and the sensor ground of the sensor unit, and configured to, upon modulating the driving signal to the modulated signal, output the modulated signal to the sensor ground;

an energy storage capacitor, connected between the power supply and the sensor ground, and configured to stabilize an operating voltage of the sensor unit;

a high-speed transistor switch, connected to the power supply, and configured to perform synchronous switch-on and switch-off according to status of the conversion circuit, such that a voltage of the power supply varies with the modulated signal; and

a power source, connected to the conversion circuit and the power supply of the sensor unit via the high-speed transistor switch to supply power for the conversion circuit and the sensor unit.

17. The terminal device according to claim 16, wherein the sensor unit is connected to a main control module of the terminal device via a communication port, and configured to output a driving signal having a low level between modulation idle intervals, such that a level of the device ground is approximately equal to a level of the sensor ground.

18. The terminal device according to claim 17, wherein:

the sensor unit is directly connected to the main control module via a conducting wire, and the communication port is maintained at a low level while the conversion circuit modulating the driving signal;

or

the fingerprint identification sensor further comprises a resistor array, the sensor unit being connected to the main control module via the resistor array;

or

the fingerprint identification sensor further comprises a relay module, the sensor unit being connected to the main control module of the terminal device via the relay module.

19. The terminal device according to claim 18, wherein when the sensor unit is connected to the main control module via the relay module, the relay module receives data sent by the sensor unit and caches the data, and the main control module acquires the data from the relay module.

20. The terminal device according to claim 19, wherein the sensor unit and the relay module are integrated in a sensor chip.