Human-machine interface
First Claim
1. A human-machine interface comprising:
- a panel formed of energy transmissive material and having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface on which one or more object contacts is made and a second major surface generally parallel with said major contact surface;
an energy source directing energy to said panel, said panel transmitting energy received from said energy source to said major contact surface, at least one parameter of energy transmitted by said panel being altered at regions where object contacts are made with said major contact surface;
an image acquisition device acquiring, through said panel via said second major surface, an image generally over the area of the major contact surface including at least the alterations of the at least one parameter of the energy representative of said object; and
a processor in communication with said image acquisition device, said processor processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on said major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A human-machine interface includes a panel formed of energy transmissive material having a contact surface on which one or more contacts may simultaneously be made. An energy source directs energy to the panel. The panel transmits energy received from the energy source to the contact surface. At least one parameter of the energy transmitted by the panel is altered at regions where contacts are made with the contact surface. A detector is coupled to the panel and detects the at least one parameter of the energy generally over the area of the contact surface and outputs values corresponding thereto. A processor is in communication with the detector. The processor processes the output values to determine the locations of the contact regions on the contact surface and at least one other attributed associated with each of the contacts.
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Citations
72 Claims
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1. A human-machine interface comprising:
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a panel formed of energy transmissive material and having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface on which one or more object contacts is made and a second major surface generally parallel with said major contact surface; an energy source directing energy to said panel, said panel transmitting energy received from said energy source to said major contact surface, at least one parameter of energy transmitted by said panel being altered at regions where object contacts are made with said major contact surface; an image acquisition device acquiring, through said panel via said second major surface, an image generally over the area of the major contact surface including at least the alterations of the at least one parameter of the energy representative of said object; and a processor in communication with said image acquisition device, said processor processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on said major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56)
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57. A method of detecting contacts on a panel having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface and a second major surface generally parallel with said contact surface and being formed of energy transmissive material comprising steps of:
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directing energy to the panel, said panel transmitting energy to said major contact surface and at least one parameter of energy transmitted by the panel being altered at regions where contacts are made with the major contact surface; using an image acquisition device to acquire, through said panel via said second major surface, an image generally over the area of the major contact surface including at least the alterations of the at least one parameter of the energy representative of at least one object contact with said major contact surface; and processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on the major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact. - View Dependent Claims (58, 59, 60)
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61. An interface for use with a panel formed of energy transmissive material and having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface on which one or more contacts is simultaneously made and a second major surface generally parallel with said major contact surface, the panel transmitting energy received from an energy source to the major contact surface wherein at least one parameter of the energy transmitted by the panel is altered at regions where contacts are made with the major contact surface, said interface comprising:
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an image acquisition device acquiring, through said panel via said second major surface, an image generally over the area of the major contact surface including at least the alterations of the at least one parameter of the energy representative of said object; and a processor in communication with said image acquisition device, said processor processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on the major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
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69. A human-machine interface comprising:
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a panel formed of energy transmissive material and having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface on which one or more object contacts is made and a second major surface generally parallel with said major contact surface; an energy source directing energy into said panel, said energy propagating within said panel, energy escaping from said panel in response to each object contact with said major contact surface; an image acquisition device acquiring, through said panel via said second major surface, an image generally over the area of the major contact surface including at least alterations of at least one parameter of said escaping energy representative of said object; and a processor in communication with said image acquisition device, said processor processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on said major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact. - View Dependent Claims (70, 71)
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72. A human-machine interface comprising:
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a panel formed of energy transmissive material and having a substantially non-deformable major contact surface on which one or more object contacts is made and a second major surface generally parallel with said major contact surface; an energy source directing energy to said panel, said panel transmitting energy received from said energy source to said major contact surface, at least one parameter of energy transmitted by said panel being altered at regions where object contacts are made with said major contact surface; an image acquisition device having a field of view aimed at said second major surface, said image acquisition device acquiring, through said panel and from a region above said major contact surface, an image generally over the area of said major contact surface including at least the alterations of the at least one parameter of the transmitted energy representative of said object; and a processor in communication with said image acquisition device, said processor processing said image to determine the location of each contact region on said major contact surface and at least one other attribute of each contact.
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Specification