HYBRID CAPACITIVE AND ULTRASONIC SENSING

• US 20180101711A1
• Filed: 06/26/2017
• Published: 04/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: D'Souza, Sandeep Louis, Winebrand, Vadim, Hinger, Ashish, Pan, Paul Penchin, Agassy, Meir, Abudi, Yizhaq, Lawrence, Micah Timothy, Kim, Jong Soo, Antao, Sherman Sebastian, Wang, Bo-Ren, Roham, Masoud, Mathe, Lennart Karl, Altman, Nathan Felix, Ganti, Suryaprakash, Burns, David William
• Granted Patent: US 10,235,552 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/142 using hand-held instruments; Constructional details of the instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1306 non-optical, e.g. ultrasonic or capacitive sensing

Abstract

Systems, methods and apparatus for configuring a fingerprint sensor to operate in a capacitive sensing mode and an ultrasonic sensing mode are disclosed. A fingerprint sensor may be configured to operate in a capacitive sensing mode by driving a sensing electrode using a controller. In some implementations, an object positioned on or near the sensing electrode may be detected using the fingerprint sensor in the capacitive sensing mode, and the controller can drive electrodes of the fingerprint sensor differently to configure the fingerprint sensor to operate in an ultrasonic sensing mode. In some implementations, an applications processor may be instructed to authenticate a fingerprint of the object from image data obtained when the fingerprint sensor is operating in the ultrasonic sensing mode. In some implementations, a display of a mobile device containing the fingerprint sensor may be unlocked, or the mobile device may be woken up when the fingerprint is authenticated.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a fingerprint sensor having one or more sensing electrodes; and

a controller configured to;

provide one or more first drive signals to the one or more sensing electrodes to configure the fingerprint sensor in a capacitive sensing mode, and

provide one or more second drive signals to the one or more sensing electrodes to configure the fingerprint sensor in an ultrasonic sensing mode, the one or more second drive signals different from the one or more first drive signals.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises an amplifier configured to:

provide the one or more second drive signals in the ultrasonic sensing mode, and be in a high-impedance state in the capacitive sensing mode.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to configure the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode based on the fingerprint sensor detecting a touch in the capacitive sensing mode.

4. The system of claim 3, further comprising a mobile device housing the fingerprint sensor, the mobile device configured to wake up from a sleep mode responsive to the fingerprint sensor detecting the touch in the capacitive sensing mode or in the ultrasonic sensing mode.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to provide, to an applications processor to perform fingerprint authentication, an interrupt signal representing that a finger corresponding to the touch is detected by the fingerprint sensor in the capacitive sensing mode.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to determine a touch detection threshold, the touch detection threshold based at least in part on a contact area of a finger in contact with the fingerprint sensor, the touch detection threshold capable of being adjusted during a fingerprint authentication process.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to report a finger lift event while operating in either the capacitive sensing mode or the ultrasonic sensing mode.

8. The system of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to determine a temperature corresponding to the fingerprint sensor, the detection of the touch in the capacitive sensing mode based at least in part on the temperature.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises circuitry to generate a buffered first drive signal provided to at least one sensing electrode of the fingerprint sensor when the fingerprint sensor is in the capacitive sensing mode.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the fingerprint sensor comprises one or more piezoelectric micromechanical ultrasonic transducers (PMUTs), one or more capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs), one or more layers of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), or one or more layers of polyvinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene (PVDF-TrFE).

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensing electrodes of the fingerprint sensor comprise a first electrode and a second electrode, the first electrode coupled to provide a first signal to operate the fingerprint sensor in the capacitive sensing mode, the second electrode coupled to provide a second signal to operate the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the first electrode and the second electrode are positioned under a cover glass of a mobile device or under a back cover of the mobile device.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the first electrode and the second electrode are positioned under a display of a display device, the display of the display device indicating a position of the fingerprint sensor when a finger touch is detected in either the capacitive sensing mode or the ultrasonic sensing mode.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the first electrode is a touchscreen electrode.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein at least one of the first electrode or the second electrode is configured to detect a finger gesture.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to perform one or more of:

configuring the one or more sensing electrodes in the ultrasonic sensing mode upon indication of a change in motion or a change in orientation from an in-device accelerometer or an in-device gyroscope,

adjusting a finger detection rate in the capacitive sensing mode or the ultrasonic sensing mode upon indication of a change in motion or a change in orientation from an in-device accelerometer or an in-device gyroscope, or

adjusting a touch detection threshold upon indication of a change in motion or a change in orientation from an in-device accelerometer or an in-device gyroscope.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to detect an acoustically generated piezoelectric signal in the capacitive sensing mode, the acoustically generated piezoelectric signal originating from a tap, a rub or an acoustic emission from a finger.

18. A method for operating a fingerprint sensor, the method comprising:

operating a fingerprint sensor in a capacitive sensing mode;

determining, by the fingerprint sensor operating in a capacitive sensing mode, that an object has touched a sensing electrode;

configuring, by the controller, the fingerprint sensor to function in an ultrasonic sensing mode;

determining, using the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode, that the object that has touched the sensing electrode is a finger; and

instructing an applications processor to authenticate a fingerprint of the finger.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein configuring the fingerprint sensor to function in the ultrasonic sensing mode comprises driving an amplifier to provide a drive signal to an electrode of the fingerprint sensor.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein operating the fingerprint sensor in the capacitive sensing mode comprises controlling an amplifier to operate in a high-impedance state.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein instructing the applications processor to authenticate the fingerprint comprises asserting an interrupt signal representing that the object is determined to be a finger using the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode.

22. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors of a controller to cause a method to be performed for configuring a fingerprint sensor, the method comprising:

configuring the fingerprint sensor to function in a capacitive sensing mode;

determining that an object has touched a sensing electrode using the fingerprint sensor in the capacitive sensing mode;

configuring the fingerprint sensor to function in an ultrasonic sensing mode;

determining that the object that has touched the sensing electrode is a finger using the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode; and

instructing an applications processor to authenticate a fingerprint of the finger.

23. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein configuring the fingerprint sensor to function in the ultrasonic sensing mode comprises driving an amplifier to provide a drive signal to an electrode of the fingerprint sensor, and configuring the amplifier to operate in a high-impedance state in the capacitive sensing mode.

24. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein instructing the applications processor to authenticate the fingerprint comprises asserting an interrupt signal representing that the object is determined to be a finger using the fingerprint sensor in the ultrasonic sensing mode.

25. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, the method further comprising returning to a home screen or waking up a mobile device when the fingerprint of the finger has been authenticated.