Haptic feedback for touchpads and other touch controls

• US 7,592,999 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2006
• Issued: 09/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Immersion Corporation
• Original Assignee: Immersion Corporation
• Inventors: Rosenberg, Louis B., Riegel, James R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abdulselam, Abbas I
• Application Number:
  US11/405,811
• Publication Number:
  US 20060187215A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/173, 345/184, 715101-102, 715/702, 715/764, 463/38, 463/37, 178/18.01, 340/407.1, 340/825.25, 434/114
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/20 Input arrangements for video game devices
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/218 using pressure sensors, e.g. generating a signal proportional to the pressure applied by the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/245 specially adapted to a particular type of game, e.g. steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/285 Generating tactile feedback signals via the game input device, e.g. force feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/426 involving on-screen location information, e.g. screen coordinates of an area at which the player is aiming with a light gun
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/803 Driving vehicles or craft, e.g. cars, airplanes, ships, robots or tanks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/10 characterized by input arrangements for converting player-generated signals into game device control signals
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1006 having additional degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1037 being specially adapted for converting control signals received from the game device into a haptic signal, e.g. using force feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1056 involving pressure sensitive buttons
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1062 being specially adapted to a type of game, e.g. steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1075 using a touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8017 Driving on land or water; Flying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 : the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1692 : the I/O peripheral being a secondary touch screen used as control interface, e.g. virtual buttons or sliders
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/013 : Force feedback applied to a game
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/014 : Force feedback applied to GUI
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/015 : Force feedback applied to a joystick
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 : Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 : Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0338 : with detection of limited linear or angular displacement of an operating part of the device from a neutral position, e.g. isotonic or isometric joysticks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03543 : Mice or pucks G06F3/03541 takes precedence
• 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 3/0362 : with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 : Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 : Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 : Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 : Interaction with scrollbars
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 : using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2003/008 : with a haptic or a tactile feedback controlled by electrical means, e.g. a motor or magnetofriction
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2215/052 : piezoelectric
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 : in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A haptic feedback planar touch control used to provide input to a computer. A touch input device includes a planar touch surface that inputs a position signal to a processor of the computer based on a location of user contact on the touch surface. The computer can position a cursor in a displayed graphical environment based at least in part on the position signal, or perform a different function. At least one actuator is also coupled to the touch input device and outputs a force to provide a haptic sensation to the user contacting the touch surface. The touch input device can be a touchpad separate from the computer'"'"'s display screen, or can be a touch screen. Output haptic sensations on the touch input device can include pulses, vibrations, and spatial textures. The touch input device can include multiple different regions to control different computer functions.

Claims

1. A haptic feedback device, comprising:

a touch screen operative to display a graphical image and to output a position signal indicative of a selected location on the touch screen in two dimensions; and

at least a first actuator configured to impart a first force directly to the touch screen to thereby provide a haptic effect in response to the selection, the first force based on information output by a computer device,

wherein a menu is displayed in the touch screen and the haptic effect is a pulse delivered to the touch screen in response to a selection made between menu elements.

2. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the pulse is delivered perpendicular to the plane of the touch screen.

3. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the pulse is delivered parallel to the plane of the touch screen.

4. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the haptic effect is a pulse, delivered perpendicular to the plane of the touch screen in response to movement of the select in association with a location at which a hyperlink of a web page is displayed on the touch screen.

5. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the haptic effect is a pulse, delivered parallel to the plane of the touch screen in response to movement of the select in association with the location at which a hyperlink of the web page is displayed on the touch screen.

6. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the pulse delivered to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on which one of the plurality of menu elements is selected.

7. The haptic feedback device of claim 1, wherein the pulse delivered to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on an a frequency of use of the selected one of the plurality of menu elements.

8. A haptic feedback device, comprising:

a touch screen operative to display a graphical image received from a computer device and to output, to the computer device, a position signal indicative of a location, selected by a user, on the touch screen, the location having two dimensions; and

at least a first actuator operative to impart a first force directly to the touch screen to thereby provide a haptic effect in response to the user selecting the location on the touch screen, the first force based on information received from the computer device,

wherein the graphical image is a menu comprising a plurality of menu items, and wherein the first force is a pulse imparted to the touch screen in response to the user selecting one of the plurality of menu items from the menu on the touch screen.

9. The haptic feedback device of claim 8, wherein the pulse is delivered perpendicular to the plane of the touch screen.

10. The haptic feedback device of claim 8, wherein the pulse is delivered parallel to the plane of the touch screen.

11. The haptic feedback device of claim 8, wherein the pulse imparted to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on which one of the plurality of menu items is selected.

12. The haptic feedback device of claim 8, wherein the pulse imparted to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on a frequency of use of the selected one of the plurality of menu items.

13. A haptic feedback device, comprising:

a touch screen that receives a menu comprising a plurality of menu items from a computer device, that displays the menu, and that, in response to a touch on the touch screen by a user, outputs a position signal to the computer device, the position signal indicative of a location of the touch on the touch screen by the user, the location having two dimensions, the location corresponding to one of the plurality of menu items; and

at least a first actuator that imparts a pulse to the touch screen at the one of the plurality of menu items based on information returned by the computer device in response to the position signal, the pulse thereby providing a haptic effect to the user in response to the user touching the one of the plurality of menu items.

14. The haptic feedback device of claim 13, wherein the pulse is delivered perpendicular to the plane of the touch screen.

15. The haptic feedback device of claim 13, wherein the pulse is delivered parallel to the plane of the touch screen.

16. The haptic feedback device of claim 13, wherein the pulse imparted to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on which one of the plurality of menu items is touched.

17. The haptic feedback device of claim 13, wherein the pulse imparted to the touch screen varies in magnitude depending on a frequency of use of the one of the plurality of menu items.