TOUCH SYSTEM, INPUT DEVICE FOR THE SAME AND SIGNAL TRANSMISSION METHOD FOR THE SAME

• US 20200133457A1
• Filed: 09/05/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2018
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: Elan Microelectronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Elan Microelectronics Corporation
• Inventors: Chen, Han-Wei, Tseng, Hsuan-Wen, Tao, Yi-Hsin, Lin, Chia-Hsing
• Granted Patent: US 10,845,918 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04114 Touch screens adapted for alternating or simultaneous interaction with active pens and passive pointing devices like fingers or passive pens
• 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 3/04164 Connections between sensors and controllers, e.g. routing lines between electrodes and connection pads
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A touch system includes a touch device and an input device. The uplink signal transmitted by the touch device includes a timestamp. The input device transmits a downlink signal through the electrode unit and transmits a side information through a wireless communication unit. The inclusion of the corresponding timestamp in the side information ensures that the side information is combined with the corresponding downlink signal to correctly present the user'"'"'s operation.

Claims

1. A touch system comprising:

a touch device having

a control unit;

a touch interface having multiple touch electrodes electrically connecting to the control unit; and

a wireless communication unit electrically connecting to the control unit; and

an input device having

a body having a contact end;

a controller mounted in the body;

at least one electrode unit mounted in the body and electrically connecting to the controller; and

a wireless communication unit mounted in the body and electrically connecting to the controller;

wherein when the input device receives an uplink signal sent by the touch device, the controller of the input device sends a downlink signal through the electrode unit and the touch electrode of the touch device receives the downlink signal;

wherein the wireless communication unit of the input device sends a side information and the wireless communication unit of the touch device receives the side information;

wherein the uplink signal includes a time stamp indicating a sent time, and the side information includes the time stamp corresponding to the received uplink signal.

2. The touch system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wireless communication unit of the touch device and the control unit of the touch device are integrated on a circuit board.

3. The touch system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the touch device comprises a host, and the wireless communication unit of the touch device is integrated into a processor of the host.

4. The touch system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wireless communication units are Bluetooth communication units or Zigbee communication units.

5. The touch system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the input device comprises a contact sensor mounted on the contact end of the body to sense whether the contact end of the input device contacts the touch device;

the downlink signal comprises a first message when the input device contacts the touch device;

the downlink signal comprises a second message when the input device does not contact the touch device; and

the first message is different to the second message.

6. The touch system as claimed in claim 5, wherein

the contact sensor is a pressure sensor to sense the pressure when the contact end of the input device contacts the touch device;

and

when the pressure value sensed by the contact sensor is greater than a threshold, the input device is determined that the contact end contacts the touch device.

7. A signal transmission method for a touch system, wherein the touch system comprises a touch device and an input device and the method comprises steps of:

transmitting an uplink signal by the touch device, wherein the uplink signal including a time stamp;

transmitting a downlink signal by the input device to the touch device when the input device receives the uplink signal, and a wireless communication unit of the input device transmits a side information to the touch device, wherein the side information includes the time stamp corresponding to the uplink signal received in the same frame.

8. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the time stamp represents as a relative time, an absolute time or a time sequence.

9. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the touch device transmits the uplink signal once in each frame, and the time stamp in the uplink signal indicates the frame that the uplink signal is transmitted.

10. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the wireless communication unit of the input device transmits the side information once in each frame, and the time stamp in the side information corresponding to the time stamp in the uplink signal received in the same frame.

11. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the wireless communication unit of the input device transmits the side information multiple times in each frame, and the time stamp in each side information corresponding to the time stamp in the uplink signal received in the same frame, and the time stamp in each side information includes a sequential stamp of each side information.

12. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

when the step of transmitting the downlink signal by the input device proceeds, the downlink signal comprises a first message when the input device contacts the touch device;

and

when the step of transmitting the downlink signal by the input device proceeds, the downlink signal comprises a second message when the input device does not contact the touch device, wherein the second message is different to the first message.

13. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 12, wherein

the downlink signal includes a beacon signal and the first message when the input device contacts the touch device;

and

the downlink signal includes the beacon signal and the second message when the input device does not contact the touch device.

14. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 12, wherein

the downlink signal includes a beacon signal at a first frequency to represent the first message when the input device contacts the touch device;

and

the downlink signal includes the beacon signal at a second frequency to represent the second message when the input device does not contact the touch device, wherein the second frequency is different to the first frequency.

15. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the side information includes a pressure information of the input device contacting the touch device.

16. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 15, wherein when the touch device does not receive the side information sent by the input device and receives the first message in the downlink signal transmitted by the input device in the same frame, the touch device obtains a simulated side information according to the side information received by at least one of the previous frame, and uses the simulated side information as the pressure information of the frame in which the side information from the input device is not received.

17. The signal transmission method for a touch system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the side information includes at least one of the information of a tilt angle information of the input device, a power information of the input device and a button information of the input device.