LOW-POWER AND LOW-FREQUENCY DATA TRANSMISSION FOR STYLUS AND ASSOCIATED SIGNAL PROCESSING

• US 20190324564A1
• Filed: 07/01/2019
• Published: 10/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Original Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Inventors: Brunet, Samuel, Collins, Richard, Hristov, Luben
• Granted Patent: US 11,079,862 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 27/2605 Measuring capacitance capacitive sensors G01D5/24
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3228 Monitoring task completion, e.g. by use of idle timers, stop commands or wait commands
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3259 Power saving in cursor control device, e.g. mouse, joystick, trackball
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• 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 3/03545 Pens or stylus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04162 for exchanging data with external devices, e.g. smart pens, via the digitiser sensing hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04182 Filtering of noise external to the device and not generated by digitiser components
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0442 using active external devices, e.g. active pens, for transmitting changes in electrical potential to be received by the digitiser
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A stylus includes a timer; a signal generator coupled to a stylus tip; a switch; and a controller comprising one or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying logic. The logic is operable when executed to: in response to the switch of the stylus being ON, initiate the signal generator to generate a signal having a pre-determined frequency and a pre-determined voltage from the stylus tip, and activate the timer, and stop the generating of the signal when a timing of the activated timer reaches a pre-determined threshold.

Claims

1. A stylus comprising:

a timer;

a signal generator coupled to a stylus tip;

a switch; and

a controller comprising one or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying logic that is operable when executed to;

in response to the switch being ON, initiate the signal generator to generate a signal having a pre-determined frequency and a pre-determined voltage from the stylus tip, and activate the timer, and

stop the generating of the signal when a timing of the activated timer reaches a pre-determined threshold.

2. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the switch comprises a mechanical element located on an exterior surface of the stylus.

3. The stylus of claim 2, wherein the switch comprises one or more of:

a mechanical button;

a mechanical switch; and

a mechanical slider.

4. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the logic is operable to:

determine that the switch is not ON; and

disable the signal generator from generating the signal based on the determination that the switch is not ON.

5. The stylus of claim 1, wherein:

the signal generator comprises an oscillator; and

the signal is 20V to 30V and 16 kHz.

6. The stylus of claim 1, comprising a power source.

7. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the switch comprises a touch sensitive surface located on an exterior surface of the stylus.

8. A stylus controller comprising:

one or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying logic that is operable when executed to;

in response to a switch of a stylus being ON, initiate generation of a signal having a pre-determined frequency and a pre-determined voltage from a tip of the stylus, and activate a timer of the stylus, and

stop the generation of the signal when a timing of the activated timer reaches a pre-determined threshold.

9. The stylus controller of claim 8, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises a mechanical element located on an exterior surface of the stylus.

10. The stylus controller of claim 9, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises one or more of:

a mechanical button;

a mechanical switch; and

a mechanical slider.

11. The stylus controller of claim 8, wherein the logic is operable to:

determine that the switch of the stylus is not ON; and

disable the generation of the signal based on the determination that the switch of the stylus is not ON.

12. The stylus controller of claim 8, wherein the stylus comprises a power source.

13. The stylus controller of claim 8, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises a touch sensitive surface located on an exterior surface of the stylus.

14. A method executed by a stylus, the method comprising:

in response to a switch of the stylus being ON, initiating generation of a signal having a pre-determined frequency and a pre-determined voltage from a tip of the stylus, and activating a timer of the stylus, and

stopping the generation of the signal when a timing of the activated timer reaches a pre-determined threshold.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises a mechanical element located on an exterior surface of the stylus.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises one or more of:

a mechanical button;

a mechanical switch; and

a mechanical slider.

17. The method of claim 14, comprising:

determining that the switch of the stylus is not ON; and

disabling the generation of the signal based on the determination that the switch of the stylus is not ON.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the stylus comprises a power source.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the signal is 20V to 30V and 16 kHz.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the switch of the stylus comprises a touch sensitive surface located on an exterior surface of the stylus.