Multi-touch input discrimination
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method to discriminate input sources to a touch-surface device, comprising:
- obtaining a proximity image;
segmenting the proximity image to identify a plurality of patches;
dampening the value of peripheral patch pixels to obtain damped peripheral patch pixel values;
reducing the value of each pixel, including the damped peripheral patch pixel values, in a non-linear fashion to obtain reduced patch pixel values;
determining an eccentricity value for each of the reduced patch pixel values of the plurality of patches;
determining a minor radius value for each of the reduced patch pixel values of the plurality of patches;
ignoring each patch having a minor radius value greater than a first threshold;
identifying a first patch as a thumb contact if the eccentricity value of the first patch is greater than a second threshold; and
using the identified patch to control an operation of a touch-surface device.
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Abstract
Techniques for identifying and discriminating between different types of contacts to a multi-touch touch-screen device are described. Illustrative contact types include fingertips, thumbs, palms and cheeks. By way of example, thumb contacts may be distinguished from fingertip contacts using a patch eccentricity parameter. In addition, by non-linearly deemphasizing pixels in a touch-surface image, a reliable means of distinguishing between large objects (e.g., palms) from smaller objects (e.g., fingertips, thumbs and a stylus) is described.
232 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method to discriminate input sources to a touch-surface device, comprising:
- obtaining a proximity image;
segmenting the proximity image to identify a plurality of patches; dampening the value of peripheral patch pixels to obtain damped peripheral patch pixel values; reducing the value of each pixel, including the damped peripheral patch pixel values, in a non-linear fashion to obtain reduced patch pixel values; determining an eccentricity value for each of the reduced patch pixel values of the plurality of patches; determining a minor radius value for each of the reduced patch pixel values of the plurality of patches; ignoring each patch having a minor radius value greater than a first threshold; identifying a first patch as a thumb contact if the eccentricity value of the first patch is greater than a second threshold; and using the identified patch to control an operation of a touch-surface device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
- obtaining a proximity image;
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11. A method of reducing noise in a multi-touch touch-surface device operations, comprising:
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obtaining a proximity image from a multi-touch touch-surface, the proximity image having a plurality of pixels, each pixel having a value; segmenting the proximity image to identify one or more patches, each patch comprising a plurality of patch pixels; reducing the value of peripheral patch pixels to obtain damped peripheral patch pixel values; further reducing the value of each pixel, including the damped peripheral patch pixel values, in a non-linear fashion; and using the further reduced pixel values to parameterize the patch. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of reducing noise in a multi-touch surface device operation comprising:
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obtaining a proximity image from a multi-touch touch-surface, the proximity image having a plurality of pixels, each pixel having a value; smoothing the values of the plurality of pixels to obtain smoothed pixel values; segmenting the proximity image using the smoothed pixel values to obtain one or more patches, each patch comprising a plurality of patch pixels; dampening the plurality of patch pixels of the one or more patches for pixels around a periphery of the one or more patches to provide damped periphery patch pixel values; reducing the value of each pixel, including the damped peripheral patch pixel values, in a non-linear fashion; using the reduced pixel values to parameterize the one or more patches. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification