Unitized ergonomic two-dimensional fingerprint motion tracking device and method

• US 8,315,444 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2012
• Issued: 11/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Validity Sensors Incorporated (Synaptics Incorporated)
• Inventors: Gardner, Lawrence C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Seth, Manav
• Application Number:
  US13/460,330
• Publication Number:
  US 20120206586A1
• Time in Patent Office: 204 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 382/124
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1335 Combining adjacent partial images (e.g. slices) to create a composite input or reference pattern; Tracking a sweeping finger movement

Abstract

A sensor which uses a plurality of partial fingerprint readers (imagers), and various computational algorithms, to detect changes in fingerprint images as a function of finger movement. The sensor can provide both finger motion information and fingerprint images. The sensor uses multiple partial fingerprint readers, arranged in different directions on a surface, to detect finger motion in two dimensions. The sensor can also detect the relative speed and direction of finger movement. Some sensor embodiments use deep finger penetrating radio frequency (RF) based circuits, which can be inexpensively printed or formed on the surface of robust and flexible dielectric materials such as Kapton tape. The sensor also has textured surfaces to help guide the user. The sensor both small and robust, and is well suited for control applications for low-cost mass market microprocessor controlled devices such as cell phones, MP3 players, laptop computers, and other devices.

Claims

1. A fingerprint imaging device comprising:

a plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors comprising a first partial fingerprint imager sensor having a sensing area smaller than a fingerprint area to be imaged and at least one additional fingerprint image sensor capable of detecting finger motion in at least one direction;

the at least one additional fingerprint image sensor being disposed along an axis of finger motion in at least one of a first direction and a second direction that is different from the first direction;

the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors being present on a substrate; and

at least one integrated circuit configured to drive at least one of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors being also present on the same substrate separated from each of the plurality of fingerprint image sensors and electrically connected to at least one fingerprint image sensor of the plurality of fingerprint image sensors.

2. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which the fingerprint imaging device is configured to control a cursor on a display of a computing device.

3. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which information obtained using at least one of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors is used to construct an image of an entire fingerprint.

4. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, wherein a first integrated circuit is configured to drive the first partial fingerprint image sensor, the first partial fingerprint image sensor configured to construct a fingerprint image comprising an area of the entire fingerprint larger than the sensing area of the first partial fingerprint image sensor, and a second integrated circuit is configured to drive the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor configured to derive finger motion information, and wherein the first integrated circuit has a first input/output port and is separated from and electrically connected to the first partial fingerprint image sensor, and the second integrated circuit has a separate second input/output port and is separated from and electrically connected to the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor.

5. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1 in which the same integrated circuit is configured to drive the first partial fingerprint image sensor and the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor and is separated from and electrically connected to each of the first partial fingerprint image sensor and the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor.

6. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which the substrate comprises a flexible thin film substrate.

7. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 6, in which the thin film substrate comprises a dielectric material.

8. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 7, in which the substrate comprises a polyimide film tape.

9. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors are mounted on a surface, and in which the surface has a texture feature configured to allow a user to determine the position of at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors by producing a tactile sensation on the underside of the finger of the user.

10. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 9, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump on the surface of the fingerprint imaging device, and wherein the at least one bump is disposed to coincide with the position of at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors on the surface.

11. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 9, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump on the surface of the fingerprint imaging device, and wherein the at least one bump is disposed to coincide with a center of an area defined by a perimeter that encompasses the at least one partial fingerprint image sensor.

12. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which the at least one partial fingerprint image sensor comprises a deep finger penetrating radio frequency (RF) based imager.

13. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 1, in which at least one of the first partial fingerprint image sensor and the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor each comprise a linear one dimensional sensor array configured to sense features of a fingerprint along an axis, utilizing a plurality of sensing elements configured to capture temporally separated segments of fingerprint image data;

a memory buffer configured to receive and store the segments of fingerprint image data; and

a computing device configured to generate from the segments of fingerprint image data a fingerprint image of the entire fingerprint and fingerprint motion data for use in navigation.

14. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 13, wherein the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor comprises a linear one dimensional sensor array configured to sense at least two temporally separated overlapping line segments of fingerprint image data, and wherein the computing device is configured to generate motion data based on at least two sensed temporally separated overlapping line segments of fingerprint image data, to determine motion of the finger.

15. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 13, wherein the at least one additional fingerprint image sensor comprises a linear one dimensional sensor array configured to sense a first set of features of a fingerprint along an axis of finger motion, and to generate a first set of fingerprint image data from the one dimensional linear array of sensors, and is also configured to subsequently sense a second set of features of the fingerprint along the axis of finger motion, and to generate a second set of fingerprint image data from the one dimensional linear array of sensors;

and wherein the computing device is configured to compare the first set of fingerprint image data and the second set of fingerprint image data to determine the distance traveled by the finger over a time interval, and to determine from the distance and time interval navigational data for navigating a cursor on a graphical user interface.

16. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 13, in which at least one of the one dimensional linear array of sensors comprises a deep finger penetrating radio frequency (RF) based imager.

17. A fingerprint imaging device comprising:

a plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors each comprising a deep finger penetrating radio frequency (RF) based one dimensional linear array of sensors;

in which respective ones of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors are each disposed to detect finger motion in a direction from at least a first direction and a second direction that is different from the first direction; and

in which the respective ones of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors are each mounted on a surface that has a texture feature configured to allow a user to determine the position of at least one of the respective ones of the partial fingerprint image sensors by producing a tactile sensation on the underside of a finger of the user.

18. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 17, in which the fingerprint imaging device is configured to control a cursor on a display of a computing device.

19. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 17, in which the computing device is configured to use information obtained from at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors to construct an image of an entire fingerprint.

20. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 17, in which the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors comprise individual sensing areas on the same substrate.

21. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 20, in which at least one integrated circuit used to drive at least one of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors is present on the same substrate, separated from the respective individual sensing area, and electrically connected to the respective at least one of the plurality of partial fingerprint image sensors.

22. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 21, in which a first integrated circuit is configured to drive a first partial fingerprint image sensor configured to construct an entire fingerprint image, and a second integrated circuit is configured to drive at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor configured to derive finger motion information, and in which the first integrated circuit has a first input/output port, and the second integrated circuit has a separate second input/output port.

23. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 21 in which the same integrated circuit is configured to drive the first partial fingerprint image sensor and the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor, and in which the integrated circuit has a single input/output port for the first partial fingerprint image sensor and the at least one additional partial fingerprint image sensor.

24. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 21, in which the substrate comprises a flexible thin film substrate.

25. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 24, in which the thin film substrate comprises a dielectric material.

26. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 25, in which the thin film substrate comprises a polyimide film tape.

27. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 19, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump on a surface of the fingerprint imaging device, and wherein the at least one bump is disposed to coincide with the position of at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors on the surface.

28. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 19, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump on a surface of the fingerprint imaging device, and wherein the at least one bump is disposed to coincide with a center of an area defined by a perimeter that encompasses at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors.

29. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 19, wherein the additional linear fingerprint image sensor arrays are each configured to sense at least two temporally separated overlapping line segments of fingerprint image data, and wherein the fingerprint imaging device additionally comprises a computing device configured to generate motion data based on the at least two sensed overlapped line segments of fingerprint data and navigation data based on relative motion of a finger relative to the fingerprint imaging device.

30. The fingerprint imaging device of claim 29, wherein the each of the additional linear fingerprint image sensor arrays is configured to sense a first set of features of a fingerprint along an axis of finger motion and to generate a first set of image data from the linear one dimensional sensor array and is also configured to subsequently sense a second set of features of the fingerprint along the axis of finger motion and to generate a second set of image data from the linear one dimensional sensor array;

and

wherein the computing device is configured to compare the first set of image data and the second set of image data to determine a distance traveled by the finger over a time interval, and to calculate finger motion from the distance traveled.

31. A method comprising:

determining a first motion of a finger by comparing digital data from a first partial fingerprint image sensor comprising a first series of fingerprint image features with a subsequently sensed second series of fingerprint image features and determining an amount of shift between the first series of fingerprint image features and the second series of fingerprint image features to determine a distance traveled by a finger along an axis of a first linear one dimensional fingerprint image sensor;

determining a second motion of the finger by comparing digital data from a third partial fingerprint image sensor comprising a third series of fingerprint image features with a subsequently sensed fourth series of fingerprint image features and determining an amount of shift between the third series of fingerprint image features and the fourth series of fingerprint image features to determine a distance traveled by the finger along an axis of a second linear one dimensional fingerprint image sensor; and

using the first motion of the finger and the second motion of the finger to calculate the movement of the finger in two dimensions, in which the finger moves over a surface, and in which the surface has a texture feature configured to allow a user to determine the position of at least one of the first image sensor and the second image sensor by producing a tactile sensation on the underside of the finger of a user.

32. The method of claim 31, further comprising controlling a cursor on a display of a computing device utilizing the first motion and the second motion.

33. The method of claim 31, further comprising using information from a third partial fingerprint image sensor to construct an image of an entire fingerprint.

34. The method of claim 31, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump disposed on a surface coinciding with a position of at least one partial fingerprint image sensor.

35. The method of claim 34, in which the texture feature comprises at least one bump disposed on the surface coinciding with a center of an area defined by a perimeter encompassing at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors.

36. The method of claim 31, in which at least one of the partial fingerprint image sensors comprises a deep finger penetrating radio frequency (RF) based imager.