Dimmable keypad device suitable for multiple faceplate and legend colors
First Claim
1. A dimmable keypad device comprising:
- (a) a key capsule having a background of a first color and a foreground legend overlaying a portion of said background;
(b) a backlight adapted to illuminate the key capsule legend as seen by an observer;
(c) an ambient light sensor adapted to measure an ambient light level;
(d) control electronics including memory; and
(e) a plurality of dimming curves stored in the memory where each dimming curve corresponds to a predetermined combination of background and foreground colors;
(f) wherein one of the dimming curves is preselected in accordance with the first color and the foreground legend; and
(g) wherein the control electronics is configured to adjustably control the illumination of the backlight based on the ambient light level according to the preselected dimming curve.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A dimmable keypad device (20) includes a plurality of dimming curves stored in memory where each dimming curve corresponds to a combination of background and foreground colors. The dimmable keypad device includes a backlight (203), an ambient light sensor (201) to adjust the illumination of the backlight, key capsules (102) fabricated from substantially transparent plastic and having an opaque paint layer coating their outer surfaces. Key capsule lettering (103) is formed by the removal of a portion of the opaque paint layer and the lettering color, as seen by an observer (42), is formed by backlight illumination of the substantially transparent plastic. The backlight illumination is relatively high under a low ambient lighting condition and relatively low under a high ambient lighting condition when the opaque paint layer is white. The backlight illumination is relatively low under a low ambient lighting condition and relatively high under a high ambient lighting condition when the opaque paint layer is black.
69 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A dimmable keypad device comprising:
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(a) a key capsule having a background of a first color and a foreground legend overlaying a portion of said background; (b) a backlight adapted to illuminate the key capsule legend as seen by an observer; (c) an ambient light sensor adapted to measure an ambient light level; (d) control electronics including memory; and (e) a plurality of dimming curves stored in the memory where each dimming curve corresponds to a predetermined combination of background and foreground colors; (f) wherein one of the dimming curves is preselected in accordance with the first color and the foreground legend; and (g) wherein the control electronics is configured to adjustably control the illumination of the backlight based on the ambient light level according to the preselected dimming curve. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18)
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17. A method of converting a dimmable keypad device from a first color theme to a second color theme, said method comprising the steps of:
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(a) providing, within said dimmable keypad device, a plurality of dimming curves stored in a memory where each dimming curve corresponds to a predetermined combination of background and foreground colors; (b) removing a faceplate of a first background color from the dimmable keypad device; (c) removing a plurality of key capsules of the first background color from the dimmable keypad device; (d) installing a faceplate of a second background color to the dimmable keypad device; (e) installing a plurality of key capsules of the second background color to the dimmable keypad device; (f) identifying a foreground color for the plurality of key capsules; and (g) selecting a dimming curve from the plurality of dimming curves according to the second background color and the identified foreground color.
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Specification