Touchpad to interpret palm contact as intentional input

• US 20170102867A1
• Filed: 10/13/2015
• Published: 04/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Drew Bernard
• Original Assignee: Drew Bernard
• Inventors: Bernard, Drew
• Application Number:
  US14/882,376
• Publication Number:
  US 20170102867A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0213 Arrangements providing an integrated pointing device in a keyboard, e.g. trackball, mini-joystick for pointing devices integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/169; joysticks G05G9/047; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0233 Character input methods
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0235 using chord techniques G06F3/0234 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

The present invention is a touchpad that interprets not only non-palm contact, but also palm contact, as intentional input, enabling an efficient functional integration, not previously possible, of a touchpad and a keyboard by interpreting palm contact as the pressing of a virtual key.

Claims

. :

An apparatus for detecting touch, that distinguishes palm and non-palm contact, interprets both palm and non-palm contact as intentional input, and interprets palm contact as intentional input distinct from input as which non-palm contact is interpreted.

1. :

The apparatus of claim 0 that'"'"'s part of (or on, or in front of, or functionally integrated with) a keyboard and located in the traditional position of a palm rest, and interprets palm contact as the pressing of a virtual key, i.e. the functional equivalent of pressing a key (such as a shift key) on the keyboard.

2. :

The apparatus of claim 1 that interprets the virtual key as a function-plane-switch key, which while pressed, causes physical keys of the keyboard to be interpreted as various function keys rather than as the regular keys (such as for letters and other symbols) as which they'"'"'re interpreted while the function-plane-switch key is not pressed.

3. :

The apparatus of claim 0 that distinguishes the quantity and locations of palm contacts and interprets the contacts as input states or events distinguished according to quantity or location.

4. :

The apparatus of claim 3 that'"'"'s part of (or on, or in front of, or functionally integrated with) a keyboard and spans the width of the keyboard including the traditional positions of both palm rests, and interprets palm contact as the pressing of a virtual key, such that the particular virtual key pressed depends on the location of the palm contact.

5. :

The apparatus of claim 4 that interprets one of the virtual keys as a shift key, and another of the virtual keys as a function-plane-switch key.