Touch panel deactivation systems and methods

• US 8,723,836 B1
• Filed: 06/07/2012
• Issued: 05/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Rockwell Collins, Inc. (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Shapiro, Geoffrey A., Gribble, David A., Leedom, David L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US13/491,139
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0418 for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means

Abstract

A system for disabling touch panel input capabilities may include, but is not limited to: a touch panel device including a touch panel controller; a touch panel input processing device; an isolation switching means coupling at least one of a touch panel device and the touch panel controller to the touch panel input processing device; and an electromagnetic interference (EMI) detection system configured to provide control signals to the isolation switching means.

Claims

1. A system for disabling touch panel input capabilities comprising:

a touch panel device including a touch panel controller;

a touch panel input processing device;

an isolation switching means coupling at least one of a touch panel device and the touch panel controller to the touch panel input processing device; and

an electromagnetic interference (EMI) detection system configured to provide control signals to the isolation switching means.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the touch panel device is a capacitive touch panel device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the EMI detection system comprises:

an EMI sensor; and

a comparator.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the comparator is configured to compare one or more EMI signal characteristics received by the EMI sensor to one or more threshold EMI values.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the threshold EMI values are stored in memory.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a video driver unit, wherein the video driver unit is configured to cause a display device to display a notification of a deactivation of touch input capabilities of the touch panel in response to EMI.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

a video driver unit, wherein the video driver unit is configured to cause a display device to display at least one of a notification of an EMI level associated with a received EMR signal and the EMI threshold value.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the touch panel input processing device is configured for:

receiving one or more touch-based user inputs from a touch panel device; and

controlling one or more controllable devices according to the one or more touch-based user input devices.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more controllable devices comprise:

one or more avionics devices.

10. A method for disabling input capabilities comprising:

receiving an electromagnetic radiation (EMR) signal;

comparing the EMR signal to a threshold electromagnetic interference (EMI) threshold value; and

controlling an isolation switching means coupling a touch panel device and a touch panel input processing device according to a comparison of the EMR signal to the EMI threshold value.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

setting the EMI threshold value.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the setting the EMI threshold value further comprising:

setting the EMI threshold value according to a user input.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying at least one notification of an enablement status of the touch panel device in response to the comparing the ERM signal to the threshold EMI value.

14. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

displaying at least one of a notification of an EMI level associated with a received EMR signal and the EMI threshold value.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving one or more touch-based user inputs from the touch panel device; and

controlling one or more controllable devices according to the one or more touch-based user input devices.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the one or more controllable devices comprise:

one or more avionics devices.

17. A system for disabling touch panel input capabilities comprising:

means for receiving an electromagnetic radiation (EMR) signal;

means for comparing the EMR signal to a threshold electromagnetic interference (EMI) threshold value; and

means for controlling an isolation switching means coupling a touch panel device and a touch panel input processing device according to a comparison between the EMR signal to the EMI threshold value.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

means for setting the EMI threshold value.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the setting the EMI threshold value further comprising:

means for setting the EMI threshold value according to a user input.

20. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

means for displaying at least one notification of an enablement status of the touch panel device in response to the comparing the ERM signal to the threshold EMI value.

21. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

means for receiving one or more touch-based user inputs from the touch panel device; and

means for controlling one or more controllable devices according to the one or more touch-based user input devices.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the one or more controllable devices comprise:

one or more avionics devices.