Detecting touch on a surface

• US 8,982,051 B2
• Filed: 06/19/2009
• Issued: 03/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Rosenfeld, Daniel, Westhues, Jonathan, Izadi, Shahram, Villar, Nicolas, Benko, Hrvoje, Helmes, John, Jenkins, Kurt Allen
• Primary Examiner(s): Sitta, Grant
• Assistant Examiner(s): HERMANN, KIRK W
• Application Number:
  US12/488,430
• Publication Number:
  US 20100245246A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,097 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0337 Status LEDs integrated in the mouse to provide visual feedback to the user about the status of the input device, the PC, or the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03543 Mice or pucks G06F3/03541 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes

Abstract

Embodiments are disclosed herein that are related to input devices with curved multi-touch surfaces. One disclosed embodiment comprises a touch-sensitive input device having a curved geometric feature comprising a touch sensor, the touch sensor comprising an array of sensor elements integrated into the curved geometric feature and being configured to detect a location of a touch made on a surface of the curved geometric feature.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a touch sensor comprising an array of sensor elements arranged in a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns; and

a controller configured to,

in response to a multi-touch input comprising a plurality of touches made on the touch sensor, detect touch locations of the multi-touch input based upon capacitance measurements from each row in the plurality of rows to each column in the plurality of columns;

while the multi-touch input remains unchanged, detect the touch locations based on capacitance measurements from each row to ground in the plurality of rows and from each column to ground in the plurality of columns; and

in response to a change in the multi-touch input, detect the touch locations of the multi-touch input based on capacitance measurements from each row in the plurality of rows to each column in the plurality of columns.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a developable surface, wherein the touch sensor comprises a substrate, and wherein the substrate is coupled to the developable surface.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the array of sensor elements comprises a first set of sensor elements disposed on an opposite face of the substrate as a second set of sensor elements.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the array of sensor elements comprises a first set of sensor elements and a second set of sensor elements disposed on a same side of the substrate and separated by a dielectric layer.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the array of sensor elements comprises a first set of sensor elements and a second set of sensor elements disposed on a same side of the substrate in a same layer, with an insulating material between connectors for the first set of sensor elements and connectors for the second set of sensor elements.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a non-developable surface and wherein the touch sensor comprises a vacuum formed substrate molded to fit the non-developable surface.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising one or more light sources configured to illuminate a region of a surface of the apparatus mapped to a specific function.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a pressure sensor.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the pressure sensor comprises a piezoresistive sheet in contact with the array of sensor elements.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the array of sensor elements is a first sensor array, and wherein the pressure sensor comprises a second sensor array and a piezoresistive sheet in contact with the second sensor array.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the touch sensor is a capacitive touch sensor, and wherein the controller is configured to distinguish a touch input from the touch sensor and a near-touch input from the touch sensor by a signal from the pressure sensor.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to detect an actuation of a virtual button via a pressure signal from the pressure sensor.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus comprises a curved body.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

a capacitive multi-touch sensor comprising a plurality of pixels each being configured to detect touch at a location over the pixel, wherein the capacitive multi-touch sensor comprises an array of sensor elements, where the array of sensor elements comprises m rows of row sensors and n columns of column sensors; and

a controller configured to detect a location of a touch via the touch sensor by,

upon detection of a multi-touch input comprising a plurality of touches, acquiring one or more m×

n capacitance measurements from the array of sensor elements, wherein the one or more m×

n capacitance measurements includes a capacitance measurement from each row in the m rows of row sensors to each column in the n columns of column sensors,

then acquiring a plurality of m+n capacitance measurements from the array of sensor elements in response to an unchanging touch state of the multi-touch input, where the plurality of m+n capacitance measurements includes a capacitance measurement to ground for each row in the m rows of row sensors and each column in the n columns of column sensors, and

in response to detecting a change in touch state of the multi-touch input, detect a location of a touch on the body by acquiring one or more m×

n capacitance measurements from the array of sensor elements.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein each row and/or each column of the array of sensor elements comprises a plurality of connections to ground.

16. In a multi-touch computer input device comprising a capacitive multi-touch sensor array comprising m rows of row sensors and n columns of column sensors, and a pressure sensitive, variable resistance material in contact with one or more row sensors and one or more column sensors of the sensor array, a method of measuring a touch location and touch pressure, the method comprising:

acquiring a first impedance measurement from the capacitive multi-touch sensor array at a first frequency, the first impedance measurement comprising an impedance value for each pixel of the sensor array;

acquiring a second impedance measurement from the capacitive multi-touch sensor array at a second frequency, the second impedance measurement comprising an impedance value for each pixel of the sensor array, wherein the second frequency is different than the first frequency, and the capacitive multi-touch sensor array used to acquire the first impedance measurement being the same capacitive multi-touch sensor array used to acquire the second impedance measurement;

from the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement, determining a resistance value and a capacitive reactance value;

from the capacitive reactance value, determining a location of a touch; and

from the resistance value, determining a touch pressure of the touch.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the resistance value and the capacitive reactance value are determined from one or more of a magnitude of the first impedance measurement and a magnitude of the second impedance measurement and a phase shift between the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the sensor array comprises m rows of sensors and n columns of sensors, wherein the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement each comprise m×

n impedance values, and further comprising acquiring one or more m+n impedance measurements, and then acquiring the first and second impedance measurements with m×

n impedance values if a change in a touch state is detected from the m+n impedance values.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein determining the resistance value and the capacitive reactance value from the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement comprises determining the resistance value and the capacitive reactance value based upon

20. The method of claim 16, wherein determining a resistance value and a capacitive reactance value from the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement comprises determining the resistance value and the capacitive reactance value from a phase angle difference between the first impedance measurement and the second impedance measurement.