Integrated button activation sensing and proximity sensing
First Claim
1. A method, comprising:
- detecting a presence of a conductive object on a device by individually measuring a capacitance for each of a plurality of sensor elements of the device;
coupling a group of sensor elements of the plurality of sensor elements together;
conductively coupling a ground conductor to the group of coupled sensor elements; and
measuring a single collective capacitance for the group of coupled sensor elements to detect a presence of the conductive object in proximity to the device by applying a signal to the group of coupled sensor elements while the group of coupled sensor elements is conductively coupled with the ground conductor.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Apparatuses and methods for coupling a group of sensor elements together in one mode to collectively measure a capacitance on the group of sensor elements, in addition to individually measuring a capacitance on each of the sensor elements in another mode. The touch-sensor buttons may be used individually for button-activation sensing, and the touch-sensor buttons may be used collectively for proximity detection. The touch-sensor buttons and a ground conductor that surrounds the touch-sensor buttons may also be collectively used for proximity detection. The apparatus may include a processing device, and a plurality of sensor elements that are individually coupled in a first mode for button-activation sensing and collectively coupled in a second mode for proximity sensing.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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detecting a presence of a conductive object on a device by individually measuring a capacitance for each of a plurality of sensor elements of the device; coupling a group of sensor elements of the plurality of sensor elements together; conductively coupling a ground conductor to the group of coupled sensor elements; and measuring a single collective capacitance for the group of coupled sensor elements to detect a presence of the conductive object in proximity to the device by applying a signal to the group of coupled sensor elements while the group of coupled sensor elements is conductively coupled with the ground conductor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of sensor elements; a processing device, wherein the plurality of sensor elements are individually coupled to the processing device to detect a presence of a conductive object on the apparatus, and wherein a group of sensor elements of the plurality of sensor elements are collectively coupled to the processing device while the processing device is configured to apply a signal to the collectively coupled group of sensor elements to measure a single collective capacitance for the group of sensor elements and to detect a presence of a conductive object in proximity to the apparatus; and a ground conductor, wherein the ground conductor is conductively coupled to the group of coupled sensor elements when the processing device is configured to detect the presence of the conductive object in proximity to the apparatus. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. An apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of sensor elements of a device; means for detecting a presence of a conductive object both on the device and in proximity to the device based on applying a signal to the group of coupled sensor elements to measure a single collective capacitance for the plurality of sensor elements and without using an additional proximity sensor; and means for conductively coupling a ground conductor to the group of coupled sensor elements to detect the presence of the conductive object in proximity to the device. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
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Specification