Master/slave mode for sensor processing devices

• US 7,848,825 B2
• Filed: 01/03/2007
• Issued: 12/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Wilson, Thomas James, Hori, Yutaka, Vu, Minh-Dieu Thi
• Primary Examiner(s): Rodriguez; Paul L
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAUGHLIN, NATHAN L
• Application Number:
  US11/650,042
• Publication Number:
  US 20080158177A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,434 Days
• Field of Search: 700/1, 700/2, 700/3, 345/173, 345/1.1, 345/1.2, 715/864, 340/407.1
• US Class Current: 700/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04164 Connections between sensors and controllers, e.g. routing lines between electrodes and connection pads
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04166 Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving Synchronisation with the driving of the display or the backlighting unit to avoid interferences generated internally G06F3/04184

Abstract

A computer system having two or more controllers operating in a Master/Slave configuration is disclosed. In one embodiment, the computer system includes: a sensor panel having a first portion for generating a first set of sense signals indicative of a touch or no-touch condition on the first portion, and a second portion for generating a second set of sense signals indicative of a touch or no-touch condition on the second portion; a first device for receiving and processing the first set of output signals from the first portion of the panel; and a second device for receiving and processing the second set of output signals from the second portion of the panel, wherein the first and second devices operate cooperatively in a Master/Slave configuration.

Claims

1. A computer system, comprising:

a sensor panel comprising a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion is configured to provide a first set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the first portion of the sensor panel and the second portion is configured to provide a second set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the second portion of the sensor panel;

a first device configured to receive and the first set of capacitive sense signals provided by the first portion of the sensor panel and to generate a first set of scan results data based on the received first set of capacitive sense signals; and

a second device configured to receive the second set of capacitive sense signals provided by the second portion of the sensor panel and to generate a second set of scan results data based on the received second set of capacitive sense signals,

wherein the first and second devices are configured to operate together in a Master/Slave configuration to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel, wherein the second device is configured to shift the generated second set of scan results data to the first device.

2. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the second device is configured to receive a timing signal from the first device and synchronize its operations to the timing signal.

3. The computer system of claim 2 wherein the first device includes a first clock generator and the second device includes a second clock generator that is disabled.

4. The computer system of claim 2 wherein the first device includes a first I/O pin and the second device includes a second I/O pin, and the first device and second device are configured to send the timing signal from the first I/O pin to the second I/O pin.

5. The computer system of claim 1 wherein a first microprocessor in the first device is configured to perform processing functions for both the first and second devices when a second microprocessor within the second device is disabled.

6. The computer system of claim 5 wherein the first device comprises a first communication interface and the second device comprises a second communication interface, wherein the first and second communication interfaces are configured to communicate in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol.

7. The computer system of claim 6 wherein the predetermined communication protocol comprises a packet-based communication protocol, enabling data to be transmitted between the first and second communication interfaces with no intervention by the first microprocessor.

8. The computer system of claim 6 wherein the first and second communication interfaces are serial peripheral interfaces.

9. The computer system of claim 1 comprising:

a level shifter configured to amplify a drive signal received from the first device to a desired amplitude; and

a decoder configured to apply the amplified drive signal to a selected drive electrode within the sensor panel.

10. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the sensor panel comprises a plurality of row electrodes separated by a dielectric from a plurality of column electrodes oriented substantially orthogonally from the row electrodes.

11. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the first device and second device are configured to perform operations in a pipeline fashion.

12. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the first and second devices are identical to one another and each is configurable to operate in a standalone, Master or Slave mode of operation.

13. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the system is embodied in a mobile telephone.

14. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the system is embodiment in a digital audio player.

15. The computer system of claim 1 wherein the first device is configured to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel.

16. A method of processing capacitive sense signals from a sensor panel, comprising:

providing a first set of capacitive sense signals by a first portion of the sensor panel to a first device, the first set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the first portion of the sensor panel;

providing a second set of capacitive sense signals by a second portion of the sensor panel to a second device, the second set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the second portion of the sensor panel;

generating by the first device a first set of scan results data based on the provided first set of capacitive sense signals;

generating by the second device a second set of scan results data based on the provided second set of capacitive sense signals; and

operating the first and second devices together in a Master/Slave configuration to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel, wherein the second device shifts the generated second set of scan results data to the first device.

17. The method of claim 16 comprising providing a timing signal from the first device to the second device, wherein the timing signal synchronizes operations of the first and second devices.

18. The method of claim 17 comprising disabling a clock generator in the second device, thereby reducing power consumption by the second device.

19. The method of claim 16 comprising:

providing the first and second sets of scan results data to a first microprocessor within the first device; and

disabling a second microprocessor within the second device, thereby reducing power consumption by the second device.

20. The method of claim 19 comprising communicating data between the first and second devices in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the predetermined communication protocol comprises a packet-based communication protocol, enabling data to be transmitted between the first and second devices with no intervention by the first microprocessor.

22. The method of claim 16 comprising:

amplifying a drive signal received from the first device to a desired amplitude; and

applying the amplified drive signal to a selected drive electrode within the sensor panel.

23. The method of claim 16 comprising:

applying first drive signals to drive electrodes of the sensor panel, causing the sensor panel to provide the first and second sets of capacitive sense signals;

storing the first set of scan results data in a first memory of the first device;

storing the second set of scan results data in a second memory of the second device;

shifting the second set of scan results data from the second memory to the first memory; and

applying second drive signals to the drive electrodes of the sensor panel, causing the sensor panel to provide third and fourth sets of capacitive sense signals from the sensor panel, wherein the applying, storing and shifting steps are performed in a pipeline fashion.

24. An apparatus for processing capacitive sense signals from a sensor panel, comprising:

means for providing a first set of capacitive sense signals by a first portion of the sensor panel to a first device, the first set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the first portion of the sensor panel;

means for providing a second set of capacitive sense signals by a second portion of the sensor panel to a second device, the second set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the second portion of the sensor panel;

means for generating by the first device a first set of scan results data based on the provided first set of capacitive sense signals;

means for generating by the second device a second set of scan results data based on the provided second set of capacitive sense signals; and

means for operating the first and second devices together in a Master/Slave configuration to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel, wherein the second device shifts the generated second set of scan results data to the first device.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 comprising means for providing a timing signal from the first device to the second device, wherein the timing signal synchronizes operations of the first and second device.

26. The apparatus of claim 25 comprising means for communicating data between the first and second devices in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol.

27. The apparatus of claim 26 wherein the predetermined communication protocol comprises a packet-based communication protocol, enabling data to be transmitted between the first and second devices with no intervention by first and second processors within the first and second devices, respectively.

28. The apparatus of claim 24 comprising:

means for amplifying a drive signal received from the first device to a desired amplitude; and

means for applying the amplified drive signal to a selected drive electrode within the sensor panel.

29. The apparatus of claim 24 comprising:

means for applying first drive signals to drive electrodes of the sensor panel, causing the sensor panel to provide the first and second sets of capacitive sense signals;

means storing the first set of scan results data in a first memory of the first device;

means for storing the second set of scan results data in a second memory of the second device;

means for shifting the second set of scan results data from the second memory to the first memory device; and

means for applying second drive signals to the drive electrodes of the sensor panel, causing the sensor panel to provide third and fourth sets of capacitive sense signals from the sensor panel, wherein the means for applying, storing and shifting are configured to cooperatively operate in a pipeline fashion.

30. A mobile telephone, comprising:

a sensor panel comprising a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion is configured to provide a first set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the first portion of the sensor panel and the second portion is configured to provide a second set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the second portion of the sensor panel;

a first device configured to receive the first set of capacitive sense signals provided by the first portion of the sensor panel and to generate a first set of scan results data based on the received first set of capacitive sense signals; and

a second device configured to receive the second set of capacitive sense signals provided by the second portion of the sensor panel and to generate a second set of scan results data based on the received second set of capacitive sense signals,

wherein the first and second devices are configured to operate together in a Master/Slave configuration to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel, wherein the second device is configured to shift the generated second set of scan results data to the first device.

31. A digital audio player, comprising:

a sensor panel comprising a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion is configured to provide a first set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the first portion of the sensor panel and the second portion is configured to provide a second set of capacitive sense signals resulting from a scan of the second portion of the sensor panel;

a first device configured to receive the first set capacitive sense signals provided by the first portion of the sensor panel and to generate a first set of scan results data based on the received first set of capacitive sense signals; and

a second device configured to receive the second set of capacitive sense signals provided by the second portion of the sensor panel and to generate a second set of scan results data based on the received second set of capacitive sense signals,

wherein the first and second devices are configured to operate together in a Master/Slave configuration to determine whether the generated first and second sets of scan results data indicate that a touch condition is present on the sensor panel, wherein the second device is configured to shift the generated second set of scan results data to the first device.