Vehicle accessory control interface having capactive touch switches
First Claim
1. A system for enabling an operator to control an accessory of a vehicle, the system comprising:
- a control interface including a display panel and a processor associated with the display panel;
the display panel includinga touch surface,an electrically non-conductive support adjacent the touch surface,a plurality of touch areas, each of the touch areas being defined by a single electrically conductive pad situated between the support and a portion of the touch surface, wherein the conductive pads individually capacitively couple to an electrically conductive object upon the conductive object moving into close proximity to the touch area while the conductive pad is driven with an electrical charge;
the processor being operative in a first mode in which the processor detects the capacitive coupling of the conductive pad to the electrically conductive object,generates a signal indicative of the capacitive coupling, andprovides the signal to an accessory of a vehicle for controlling the accessory based on the capacitive coupling;
the processor being operative in a second mode in which the processordetects capacitive coupling of a plurality of the conductive pads to an electrically conductive object,recognizes a pattern or sequence of the coupling of the plurality of the conductive pads, andgenerates a first control signal indicating a first adjustment to a feature of at least one of the vehicle accessories when the pattern or sequence has a first direction, or generates a second control signal indicating a second adjustment to the feature of the at least one vehicle accessory when the pattern or sequence has a second direction, wherein the first direction is opposite the second direction and the first adjustment is opposite the second adjustment;
the processor being operative in a third mode in which the processorremotely communicates with a wireless electronic device, using a transceiver, associated with the processor, andcontrols at least one of the vehicle accessories in accordance with an output command received from the wireless electronic device.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A system for enabling an operator to control a vehicle accessory includes a control interface and a processor. The control interface has a display surface and a touch area defined by an electrically conductive layer adjacent the display surface. The conductive layer capacitively couples to an electrically conductive object upon the object touching or being in proximity with the touch area while the conductive layer is driven with an electrical charge. The processor drives the conductive layer with the electrical charge, detects the capacitive coupling of the conductive layer to the object upon the object touching or being in proximity with the touch area while the conductive layer is driven, generates a signal indicative of the object touching or being in proximity with the touch area upon detecting the capacitive coupling of the conductive layer to the object, and provides the signal to the accessory for controlling the accessory accordingly.
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Citations
31 Claims
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1. A system for enabling an operator to control an accessory of a vehicle, the system comprising:
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a control interface including a display panel and a processor associated with the display panel; the display panel including a touch surface, an electrically non-conductive support adjacent the touch surface, a plurality of touch areas, each of the touch areas being defined by a single electrically conductive pad situated between the support and a portion of the touch surface, wherein the conductive pads individually capacitively couple to an electrically conductive object upon the conductive object moving into close proximity to the touch area while the conductive pad is driven with an electrical charge; the processor being operative in a first mode in which the processor detects the capacitive coupling of the conductive pad to the electrically conductive object, generates a signal indicative of the capacitive coupling, and provides the signal to an accessory of a vehicle for controlling the accessory based on the capacitive coupling; the processor being operative in a second mode in which the processor detects capacitive coupling of a plurality of the conductive pads to an electrically conductive object, recognizes a pattern or sequence of the coupling of the plurality of the conductive pads, and generates a first control signal indicating a first adjustment to a feature of at least one of the vehicle accessories when the pattern or sequence has a first direction, or generates a second control signal indicating a second adjustment to the feature of the at least one vehicle accessory when the pattern or sequence has a second direction, wherein the first direction is opposite the second direction and the first adjustment is opposite the second adjustment; the processor being operative in a third mode in which the processor remotely communicates with a wireless electronic device, using a transceiver, associated with the processor, and controls at least one of the vehicle accessories in accordance with an output command received from the wireless electronic device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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Specification