Morphable pad for tactile control

• US 8,954,848 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2010
• Issued: 02/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Scheufler, Nick, Feit, Steven, Miller, Ross, Choi, Dave
• Primary Examiner(s): TITCOMB, WILLIAM D
• Application Number:
  US13/515,433
• Publication Number:
  US 20120260164A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,524 Days
• Field of Search: 715/702, 715/771, 345/173, 345/168
• US Class Current: 715/702
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1442 Emulation of input devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/213 Virtual instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04809 Textured surface identifying touch areas, e.g. overlay structure for a virtual keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A system and method are disclosed for a morphable pad and display configured for tactile control. The system comprises a display for displaying a user interface comprising a layout of vehicle control features. The display is configured to highlight a portion of the layout associated with a received highlight input, and to update the layout based on a received selection input. A morphable pad is connected to the display and comprises an array of switches. Each switch is configured to receive highlight input and selection input. The switches are also configured to adjust in tactile feel to match the layout, and to reconfigure in tactile feel responsive to a change in the layout.

Claims

1. A method of controlling a vehicle feature control device comprising a morphable pad having an array of switches and a display displaying a user interface, the method comprising:

configuring a first tactile feel of a first subset of the array of switches of the morphable pad based on a first layout of vehicle feature controls on the user interface;

receiving a selection input using the first subset of the array of switches of the morphable pad;

updating the first layout of the user interface to a second layout of vehicle feature controls on the user interface based on the selection input; and

reconfiguring the first tactile feel of the first subset of the array of switches of the morphable pad to a second tactile feel of a second subset of the array of switches of the morphable pad responsive to the updating of the first layout of the user interface to the second layout, the second tactile feel of the second subset of the array of switches based on the second layout of vehicle feature controls.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein configuring the first tactile feel of the first subset of the array of switches further comprises:

adjusting upward in height the switches in the first subset of the array switches associated with vehicle features controls in the first layout of the user interface.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein configuring the first tactile feel of the first subset of the array of switches further comprises:

adjusting a surface texture of the switches in the first subset of the array of switches associated with vehicle features controls in the first layout of the user interface.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein updating the first layout of the user interface to the second layout of the user interface based on the selection input further comprises:

correlating the selection input with a selected vehicle feature control displayed as part of the first layout of vehicle feature controls on the user interface;

retrieving, from a non-transitory storage medium, the second layout of vehicle control features for the user interface based on the selected vehicle feature control; and

displaying the second layout of the user interface on the display.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein reconfiguring the first tactile feel of the first subset of the array of switches further comprises:

determining whether a portion of the second layout of the user interface corresponds to a vehicle feature control; and

responsive to determining that the portion corresponds to a vehicle feature control, modifying a tactile feel of a first switch in the array of switches that matches the vehicle feature control.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising modifying a vehicle feature setting based on the selection input.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein each switch in the array of switches is less than or equal to one millimeter in length or width.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein each switch of the array of switches is capable of sufficient adjustment in tactile feel such that the change in tactile feel may be detected by sense of human touch relative to an adjacent unadjusted switch.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the morphable pad is located on a steering wheel of a vehicle.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a highlight input at a switch of the array of switches; and

adjusting the user interface to highlight the portion of the layout of vehicle feature controls associated with the switch that received the highlight input.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the morphable pad is located on the center console of a vehicle.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein each switch in the array of switches comprises a micro motor.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein each switch in the array of switches comprises a piezoelectric material.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein each switch in the array of switches comprises an electro-active polymer.

15. A system for controlling vehicle feature settings comprising:

a display displaying a user interface comprising a first layout of vehicle control features, the display configured to update the first layout to a second layout based on a received selection input; and

a morphable pad connected to the display and comprising an array of switches, the switches configured to adjust in tactile feel to a first subset of switches matching the first layout, each switch of the first subset configured to receive the selection input, the array of switches reconfigurable in tactile feel to match the second layout responsive to the selection input received at the first layout.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein a switch is further configured to adjust upward in height responsive to being associated with a vehicle feature control displayed in either of the first layout or the second layout.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein a switch is further configured to adjust in surface texture responsive to being associated with a vehicle feature control displayed in at least one of the first layout and the second layout.

18. The system of claim 15 further comprising:

an electronic control unit (ECU) connected to the display and the morphable pad, the ECU configured to correlate the received selection input with a selected vehicle feature control displayed in at least one of the first layout and the second layout;

a non-transitory storage medium connected to the ECU, the non-transitory storage medium configured to store a new layout of vehicle control features for the user interface related to the selected vehicle feature control; and

the display further configured to display the new layout of the user interface.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the ECU is further configured to reconfigure the tactile feel of at least some of the array of switches responsive to the display displaying the new layout.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein the ECU is further configured to:

determine whether a portion of new layout corresponds to a vehicle feature control; and

responsive to determining that the portion corresponds to a vehicle feature control, modify a tactile feel of a first switch in the array of switches that matches the vehicle feature control.