Hybrid magnet for retarding haptic applications using active friction braking

• US 7,417,620 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2004
• Issued: 08/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Ryynänen, Matti Kullervo
• Primary Examiner(s): Awad; Amr
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pervan; Michael
• Application Number:
  US10/832,110
• Publication Number:
  US 20050237314A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,583 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-184
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1613 for portable computers cooling arrangements therefor G06F1/203; constructional details or arrangements for pocket calculators, electronic agendas or books G06F15/0216; constructional details of portable telephone sets: with several bodies H04M1/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user

Abstract

This invention describes a method for providing a haptic feedback to a user of a wireless portable device (e.g., a gaming device or a mobile terminal or phone) utilizing a hybrid magnet controlling a friction brake based haptic actuator. This novel hybrid magnet actuator uses a displacement of a permanent magnet assembly relative to a magnet yoke to actively control the friction between the magnetic yoke and an anchor plate made from a magnetic material. This permanent magnet assembly displacement is achieved by using a coil incorporated within said the magnet yoke by applying an electric current of a predetermined direction and/or a predetermined pulse width or repetition rate to the coil.

Claims

1. A hybrid magnet actuator, comprising:

a magnet yoke;

a coil, for providing a magnetic field inside of said magnet yoke in response to an electric current or in response to terminating said electric current;

a permanent magnet assembly, responsive to the magnetic field generated by said coil, for providing a further magnetic field outside of said magnet yoke; and

an anchor plate, responsive to said further magnetic field, wherein the anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is not provided, is not in a physical contact with said magnet yoke and moves freely relative to said magnet yoke, but said anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is provided, is placed in a physical contact with said magnet yoke in response to said further magnetic field and active friction braking restricting said movement of the anchor plate relative to said magnet yoke is provided by a friction between said anchor plate and said magnet yoke for facilitating retarding feedback haptic applications using said active friction braking,

wherein said hybrid magnet actuator is configured to be used with a wireless portable device.

2. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said electric current is a pulsed electric current.

3. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move relative to said magnet yoke in response to said electric current or in response to terminating said electric current.

4. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 3, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move relative to said magnet yoke linearly or rotationally.

5. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move relative to said magnet yoke between two stable positions, wherein in a first position of said two stable positions the permanent magnet assembly is configured not to provide the further magnetic field and in a second position of said two stable positions the permanent magnet assembly is configured to provide the further magnetic field.

6. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 5, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move to the first position of said two stable positions when said electric current has a predetermined direction and said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move to the second position of said two stable positions when said electric current has a direction opposite to said predetermined direction.

7. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 5, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move to the first position of said two stable positions when said electric current has a predetermined pulse width and said permanent magnet assembly is configured to move to the second position of said two stable positions when said electric current has a further predetermined pulse width which is different from the predetermined pulse width.

8. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to stay in one stable position relative to said magnet yoke when said electric current is not applied, and is configured to return to said one stable position when said electric current is applied in response to terminating said electric current.

9. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 8, wherein said permanent magnet assembly is configured to stay in one stable position relative to said magnet yoke and for providing a predetermined amount of said active friction braking, such that when said current is applied in a predetermined direction, said active friction braking is increased, and when said electric current is applied in a direction opposite to said predetermined direction, said active friction braking is decreased.

10. The permanent magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said anchor plate is configured to move freely relative to said magnet yoke in a rotational fashion, or said anchor plate is configured to move freely relative to said magnet yoke in a linear fashion.

11. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein the anchor plate is made from a magnetic material or from a ferromagnetic material.

12. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 1, wherein said hybrid magnet actuator is a part of a wireless portable device.

13. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 12, wherein said hybrid magnet actuator is configured to provide a retarding haptic signal indicative of said active friction braking.

14. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 13, wherein said wireless portable device, in response to said retarding haptic signal, is configured to provide a haptic feedback signal or a further haptic feedback signal or both the haptic feedback signal and the further haptic feedback signal and is responsive to at least one of:

a manipulation signal and a further manipulation signal.

15. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 14, wherein said manipulation signal or said further manipulation signal is determined using a video signal or an audio signal or both the video signal and the audio signal from the wireless portable device.

16. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 15, wherein the haptic feedback signal or the further haptic feedback signal or both the haptic feedback signal and the further haptic feedback signal provide a braking sensation.

17. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 12, wherein said wireless portable device is one of a communication device, a mobile phone, a multimedia terminal, a camera, a personal digital assistant device and a gaming device.

18. A wireless portable device, comprising a hybrid magnet actuator which comprises:

a magnet yoke;

a coil, for providing a magnetic field inside of said magnet yoke in response to said pulse activating signal or in response to terminating said pulse activating signal;

a permanent magnet assembly, responsive to the magnetic field generated by said coil, for providing a further magnetic field outside of said magnet yoke; and

an anchor plate, responsive to said further magnetic field, wherein the anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is not provided, is not in a physical contact with said magnet yoke and moves freely relative to said magnet yoke, but said anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is provided, is placed in a physical contact with said magnet yoke in response to said further magnetic field and active friction braking restricting said movement of the anchor plate relative to said magnet yoke is provided by a friction between said anchor plate and said magnet yoke for facilitating retarding feedback haptic applications using said active friction braking.

19. The wireless portable device of claim 18, further comprises:

a manipulation input block, responsive to a manipulation signal and to a retarding haptic signal, configured to provide a haptic feedback signal and configured to provide a sensor signal;

a sensor block, responsive to the sensor signal, configured to provide a processing input signal; and

a processing block, responsive to said processing input signal, configured to provide a pulse triggering signal;

a pulse forming and triggering block, responsive to said pulse triggering signal, configured to provide a pulse activating signal, wherein

said hybrid magnet actuator is responsive to said pulse activating signal, and configured to provide said active friction braking for providing said retarding haptic signal for providing said haptic feedback signal.

20. The wireless portable device of claim 19, further comprising:

a clock means, for providing a clock signal to the processing block.

21. The wireless portable device of claim 20, further comprising:

an additional input block, responsive to a further manipulation signal, for providing a further processing input signal.

22. The wireless portable device of claim 21, wherein the processing block is responsive to the further processing input signal and to the clock signal and for providing an audio input signal or a video input signal or both the audio input signal and the video input signal.

23. The wireless portable device of claim 22, further comprising:

an audio block, responsive to said audio input signal, for providing an audio signal; and

a display block, responsive to said video input signal, for providing a video signal.

24. The wireless portable device of claim 18, further comprising:

a haptic feedback means, responsive to the retarding haptic signal, for providing a further haptic feedback signal.

25. The wireless portable device of claim 18, further comprising:

a device power supply, for providing an electric power to the pulsed forming and triggering block.

26. A method for providing a haptic feedback signal or a further haptic feedback signal or both the haptic feedback signal and the further haptic feedback signal by a wireless portable device using active friction braking of a hybrid magnet actuator, said hybrid magnet actuator being a part of said wireless portable device, comprising:

applying at least one of;

a manipulation signal to a manipulation input block of a wireless portable device, and

a further manipulation signal to an additional input block of said wireless portable device;

providing to a processing block at least one of;

a processing input signal, in response to said manipulation signal, and

a further processing input signal in response to said further manipulation signal;

providing a pulse triggering signal to a pulse forming and triggering block by a processing block in response to said at least one of;

said processing input signal, and

said further processing input signal;

providing a pulse activating signal to a permanent magnet actuator of said wireless device in response to said pulse triggering signal; and

 

providing by a permanent magnet actuator an active friction braking for providing said haptic feedback signal or said further haptic feedback signal or both the haptic feedback signal and the further haptic feedback signal by the wireless portable device,

wherein the hybrid magnet actuator comprises;

a magnet yoke;

a coil, for providing a magnetic field inside of said magnet yoke in response to said pulse activating signal or in response to terminating said pulse activating signal;

a permanent magnet assembly, responsive to the magnetic field generated by said coil, for providing a further magnetic field outside of said magnet yoke; and

an anchor plate, responsive to said further magnetic field, wherein the anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is not provided, is not in a physical contact with said magnet yoke and moves freely relative to said magnet yoke, but said anchor plate, when said further magnetic field is provided, is placed in a physical contact with said magnet yoke in response to said further magnetic field and active friction braking restricting said movement of the anchor plate relative to said magnet yoke is provided by a friction between said anchor plate and said magnet yoke for facilitating retarding feedback haptic applications using said active friction braking.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the processing input signal is generated by a sensor block responding to a sensor signal which is generated in response to said manipulation signal by the manipulation input block, and wherein the further processing input signal is generated by an additional input block.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein after said providing the processing input signal, the method further comprises:

determining by the processing block for every clock pulse provided to the processing block by the clock means whether a retarding condition is met based on a predetermined criterion.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein said providing the pulse triggering signal to the pulse forming and triggering block is performed if said retarding condition is met based on the predetermined criterion.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein after said providing said active friction braking by said hybrid magnet actuator, the method further comprises:

providing a retarding haptic signal to the manipulation input block or to a haptic feedback block or to both the manipulation input block and the haptic feedback block; and

providing the haptic feedback signal by the manipulation input block or the further haptic feedback signal by the haptic feedback block or providing both the haptic feedback signal and the further haptic feedback signal.

31. The method of claim 26, wherein said wireless portable device is a communication device, a mobile phone, a multimedia terminal, a camera, a personal digital assistant device or a gaming device.

32. A hybrid magnet actuator, comprising:

magnetic field holding means;

a coil, for providing a magnetic field inside of said magnetic field holding means in response to an electric current or in response to terminating said electric current;

permanent magnetic field means, responsive to the magnetic field generated by said coil, for providing a further magnetic field outside of said magnetic field holding means; and

breaking means, responsive to said further magnetic field, wherein said breaking means, when said further magnetic field is not provided, is not in a physical contact with said magnetic field holding means and moves freely relative to said magnetic field holding means, but said breaking means, when said further magnetic field is provided, is placed in a physical contact with said magnetic field holding means in response to said further magnetic field and active friction braking restricting said movement of the breaking means relative to said magnetic field holding means is provided by a friction between said breaking means and said magnetic field holding means for facilitating retarding feedback haptic applications using said active friction braking,

wherein said hybrid magnet actuator is configured to be used with a wireless portable device.

33. The hybrid magnet actuator of claim 32, wherein said magnetic field holding means is a magnet yoke, said permanent magnetic field means is a permanent magnet and said breaking means is an anchor plate.