Touchscreen with a light modulator

• US 7,876,288 B1
• Filed: 08/11/2010
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BBY Solutions Incorporated (Best Buy Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Chumby Industries, Inc.
• Inventors: Huang, Andrew Shane
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Kevin M
• Application Number:
  US12/854,174
• Time in Patent Office: 167 Days
• Field of Search: 345/1.1, 345/2.1, 345173-183, 345/211, 361/679.3, 361/679.55, 349/9, 349/87, 349/96, 349/99, 349/102, 349/103, 349/194
• US Class Current: 345/4
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13338 Input devices, e.g. touch panels
• 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 1/1624 with sliding enclosures, e.g. sliding keyboard or display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/023 Display panel composed of stacked panels

Abstract

A device with a touchscreen with a light modulator is disclosed herein. The device transitions from a netbook mode to a touchscreen mode. The device comprises a main unit and a touchscreen unit with a transparent display. The touchscreen unit is preferably separated from the main unit when in a netbook mode, and the touchscreen unit communicates wirelessly with the main unit. The touchscreen unit preferably has an outer screen display surface and an inner screen display surface on each side of a light modulating unit. The main unit preferably has a main unit display.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a touchscreen unit comprising

a housing having a first magnetic mating surface,

a first touchscreen component on an exterior surface of the touchscreen unit, the first touchscreen component composed of a transparent material and utilizing interactive touch technology,

a second touchscreen component on an interior surface of the touchscreen unit,

a light modulator component, the light modulator comprising a transparent twisted nematic liquid crystal cell lacking a backlight or reflective layer thereby functioning as a transparent dynamic light modulator, wherein the light modulator is positioned between and in light communication with the first touchscreen component and the second touchscreen component,

a first wireless communication component selected from one of a BLUETOOTH wireless component, a radiofrequency component utilizing an IEEE 802.11 communication format, or a 2.5 gigahertz radiofrequency component;

and

a main unit removably connected to the touchscreen unit, the main unit comprising

a housing having a second magnetic mating surface for mating with the first magnetic mating surface and providing power to the first unit,

a liquid crystal display having a backlight and reflector layer,

a microSD FLASH memory,

a CPU unit,

a Lithium ion battery,

a second wireless communication component selected from one of a BLUETOOTH wireless component, a radiofrequency component utilizing an IEEE 802.11 communication format, or a 2.5 gigahertz radiofrequency component, the second wireless communication component communicating with the first wireless communication component;

wherein the device operates in a tablet mode when the touchscreen unit is in a closed position with the main unit, and the device operates in a netbook mode when the touchscreen unit is in an open position with the main unit, wherein the netbook mode the light modulator of the touchscreen unit is electrically activated and displaying a dynamically changing pattern comprising at least a keyboard and a mouse overlay allowing the touchscreen unit to function as a keyboard and mouse to provide visible keypress or touch state feedback, while the liquid crystal display of the main unit operates as an information output display;

wherein the touchscreen component has auditory interactive feedback and haptic interactive feedback;

wherein a polarization orientation of the transparent twisted nematic liquid crystal cell functions as a light modulator in between the first touchscreen component and the second touchscreen component and is constructed such that in an off state the transmission is maximized with respect to a polarized light emitting from the liquid crystal display of the main unit.