Detecting and locating a touch or a tap on an input surface

• US 7,999,797 B2
• Filed: 12/26/2006
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications USA Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Edpalm, Hanna Mia Selma, Bornmyr, Mats
• Primary Examiner(s): Sherman; Stephen G
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bukowski; Kenneth
• Application Number:
  US11/616,095
• Publication Number:
  US 20080150902A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,694 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345173-179, 178/18.01, 178/18.04
• US Class Current: 345/177
• 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 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means

Abstract

A device may receive measurements from an accelerometer in relation to a tap on a surface. The device may process the measurements to obtain a signal that indicates an occurrence of the tap on the surface and may produce the location of the tap based on the processed measurements.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by at least one processor in a device, vibration measurements from an accelerometer in relation to a tap, on one of plurality of input regions of the device, by an object that includes one of a deformable object or a non-deformable object;

processing, by at least one processor in the device, the vibration measurements to obtain a vibration signal corresponding to the vibration measurements from the tap,

where processing the vibration measurements includes removing noise, where removing the noise includes removing portions of the noise that include low frequency components;

producing, by at least one processor in the device, a location of the tap, where producing the location of tap comprises;

comparing the vibration signal to a plurality of vibration reference signals, where pairs of the plurality of vibration reference signals are associated, respectively, with a prior tap at one of a plurality of input regions of the device, where one of a pair of the plurality of vibration reference signals is associated with contact, by the deformable object, in the associated one of the plurality of input regions and another one of the pair of the plurality of vibration reference signals is associated with contact, by the non-deformable object, in the associated one of the plurality of input regions,

selecting, based on comparing the vibration signal to the plurality of vibration reference signals, two or more of the plurality of input regions,

obtaining, by an electric field sensor in the device, a position of the object near the device, and

determining the location of the tap based on the obtained position of the object and the selected two or more of the plurality of input regions; and

storing, by at least one processor in the device, the location of the tap.

2. The method as in claim 1, where comparing the obtained vibration signal to the plurality of vibration reference signals comprises:

matching frequency components of at least one of the plurality of vibration reference signals to frequency components of the obtained vibration signal.

3. The method as in claim 1, further comprising:

displaying output images on a surface that includes the plurality of input regions.

4. The method as in claim 1, where obtaining the position of the object occurs in response to determining an occurrence of the tap based on receiving the vibration measurements.

5. A device comprising:

an input surface, where the input surface comprises a plurality of input regions, where a respective pair, of a plurality of reference signals, is associated with each of the plurality of input regions;

an electric field sensor that overlays the input surface, the electric field sensor to;

detect changes in an electric field near the input surface, and

output, based on the detected changes in the electric field, a position of an object that is near the input surface, where the object is one of a deformable object or an non-deformable object, where, for each of the plurality of input regions, one of the respective pair, of the plurality of reference signals, is associated with contact at one of the plurality of input regions by the deformable object and another of the respective pair is associated with contact at the one of the plurality of input regions by the non-deformable object;

an accelerometer to determine changes in inertia of the device; and

a processor to;

receive sample vibration values from the accelerometer, where the sample vibration values correspond to changes in inertia of the device relating to a tap on the input surface by the object,

process the sample vibration values to obtain a signal that indicates an occurrence of the tap on the input surface, where the sample values comprise values that indicate vibrations of the input surface from the tap, where the processor, when processing the vibration sample values, is to remove noise, and where the processor, when removing the noise, is to remove portions of the noise that include low frequency components, and

where the processor, when processing the sample values, is further to;

compare the obtained signal to the plurality of reference signals,

select based on comparing the obtained signal to the plurality of reference signals, two or more of the plurality of input regions, and

produce a location of the tap based on the selected two or more of the plurality of input regions and the outputted position of the object.

6. The device as in claim 5, where the plurality of input regions are non-contiguous.

7. The device as in claim 5, where the plurality of input regions are contiguous.

8. The device as in claim 5, where the input surface comprises:

a surface of a display screen.

9. The device as in claim 5, where the sample values comprise measurement values in at least one of one axis, two axes, or three axes.

10. A device comprising:

means for receiving an input tap by an object;

means for storing a plurality of references signals that correspond to previously received input taps in, respectively, portions of the means for receiving the input tap;

means for generating a position of the object relative to the means for receiving the input tap based on changes in an electric field near the means for receiving the input tap;

means for generating a signal, which indicates a vibration, based on variations in inertia, where the means for generating the signal includes;

means for removing noise, where the means for removing noise include means for removing portions of the noise that include low frequency components;

means for identifying two or more of the portions of the means for receiving the input tap, where the identified two or more portions of the means for receiving the input tap correspond, respectively, to two or more the plurality of reference signals that best match the generated signal;

means for processing the reference signal to obtain a value that denotes an occurrence of the input tap on the means for receiving the input tap; and

means for locating the input tap on the means for receiving the input tap based on the identified two or more of the plurality of means for receiving the input tap, the value that denotes the occurrence of the input tap, and the position of the object relative to the means for receiving the input tap.

11. The device as in claim 10, where the means for receiving the input tap includes means for displaying output images.