Modulated back plate for capacitive sensing

• US 9,436,307 B2
• Filed: 12/31/2013
• Issued: 09/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
• Inventors: Small, Jeffrey A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mummalaneni, Nalini
• Application Number:
  US14/145,724
• Publication Number:
  US 20150091846A1
• Time in Patent Office: 980 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13338 Input devices, e.g. touch panels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04107 Shielding in digitiser, i.e. guard or shielding arrangements, mostly for capacitive touchscreens, e.g. driven shields, driven grounds
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04166 Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving Synchronisation with the driving of the display or the backlighting unit to avoid interferences generated internally G06F3/04184
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04182 Filtering of noise external to the device and not generated by digitiser components
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes

Abstract

Embodiments described herein include an input device comprising a display device having an integrated capacitive sensing device, a processing system, and a method for detecting presence of an input object. In each of these embodiments, a modulation source provides modulation signals between a back plate and a system ground of the input device. Other embodiments include a display device having a capacitive sensing device, a processing system and a method for detecting presence of an input object using a capacitive sensing device, wherein the capacitive sensing device includes a matrix of discrete sensor electrodes.

Claims

1. An input device comprising a display device having an integrated capacitive sensing device, the input device comprising;

a system ground;

a conductive back plate configured to be coupled to an input object;

a plurality of display elements;

a plurality of sensor electrodes; and

a processing system coupled to the conductive back plate, to the plurality of display elements, and the plurality of sensor electrodes, the processing system configured to;

drive modulation signals onto the conductive back plate; and

receive resulting current signals with at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes, the resulting current signals comprising effects corresponding to the modulation signals and induced in the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes from the conductive back plate;

wherein the modulation signals cause the conductive back plate and the input object to be modulated with respect to system ground;

wherein the resulting current signals are received while holding the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes with which resulting current signals are received at a constant voltage with respect to the system ground, while simultaneously driving a display element of the plurality of display elements for providing display image update information to the display element;

wherein the display element comprises a capacitor having as one plate, a portion of the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes held at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground;

wherein the resulting current signals are required to hold the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground when the input object is modulated with respect to the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes by the modulation signals; and

wherein the constant voltage is different from the system ground and an earth ground.

2. The input device of claim 1, wherein the input device further comprises:

a plurality of source driver electrodes; and

a plurality of gate electrodes;

wherein each sensor electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes comprises one or more of the pluralities of gate electrodes and source electrodes.

3. The input device of claim 1, wherein each sensor electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes comprises one or more display electrodes of the display device.

4. The input device of claim 1, wherein the input device further comprises:

a segmented electrode that is common to multiple pixels of the display device,

wherein each sensor electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes comprises one or more segments of the segmented electrode.

5. The input device of claim 1, wherein the input device further comprises:

a plurality of source driver electrodes; and

a plurality of gate driver electrodes;

wherein the processing system is further coupled to the plurality of source driver electrodes and the system ground; and

wherein the processing system is further configured to;

drive the modulation signals onto the conductive backplate and receive the resulting signals during a first period to determine changes in capacitive coupling between at least one of the sensor electrode and an input object,

drive a first gate electrode of the plurality of gate electrodes with a second signal during a second period; and

drive a first source driver electrode of the plurality of source driver electrodes with a third signal during a third period.

6. The input device of claim 5, wherein the processing system further comprises:

a source driver configured to drive the first source driver electrode; and

a capacitive sensing integrated circuit configured to drive the backplate with the modulation signal.

7. The input device of claim 5, wherein the first period, the second period, and the third period at least partially overlap.

8. The input device of claim 5, wherein the first period does not overlap with the second period and the third period.

9. The input device of claim 5, wherein the first gate electrode is driven with the second signal during the second period to select a pixel row of the display device for updating and wherein the first source driver electrode is driven with the third signal during the third period to update a pixel value of a pixel of the selected pixel row.

10. The input device of claim 1, wherein the processing system is further configured to determine positional information of the input object in a sensing region of the input device based on the resulting signals.

11. The input device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensor electrodes are disposed as a matrix.

12. The input device of claim 1 further comprising:

a device connection port coupled to the display device; and

a blocking filter coupled to the device connection port and to the system ground, and configured to reduce coupling of the system ground to earth ground when the input device is ohmically coupled or AC-coupled (alternating-current-coupled) to earth ground through the device connection port.

13. A method for capacitive sensing, the method comprising:

driving modulation signals onto a conductive back plate that is proximate to a display device, the display device having a plurality of display elements and an integrated capacitive sensing device; and

receiving resulting current signals from at least one of a plurality of sensor electrodes that are included in the display device having the integrated capacitive sensing device, the resulting current signals comprising effects corresponding to the modulation signals and induced in the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes from the conductive back plate;

wherein the resulting current signals are received while holding the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes with which resulting current signals are received at a constant voltage with respect to the system ground, while simultaneously driving a display element of the plurality of display elements for providing display image update information to the display element;

wherein the display element comprises a capacitor having as one plate, a portion of the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes held at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground;

wherein the resulting current signals are required to hold the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground when the input object is modulated with respect to the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes by the modulation signals; and

wherein the constant voltage is different from the system ground and an earth ground.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

driving the modulation signals onto the conductive backplate and receiving the resulting signals during a first period to determine changes in capacitive coupling between at least one of the sensor electrode and the input object,

driving a first gate electrode of a plurality of gate electrodes in the display device with a second signal during a second period; and

driving a first source driver electrode of a plurality of source driver electrodes in the display device with a third signal during a third period.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first period, the second period, and the third period at least partially overlap.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the first period does not overlap with the second period and the third period.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising filtering, from an electrical path between the system ground and a device connection port coupled to the display device, signals having a frequency that is similar to a frequency of the modulation signals.

18. A processing system for an input device, the processing system comprising:

a modulation source configured to drive modulation signals onto a conductive back plate that is proximate to a display device, the display device having a plurality of display elements and an integrated capacitive sensing device; and

a sensor module having sensing circuitry configured to receive resulting current signals from at least one of a plurality of sensor electrodes that are included in the display device having the integrated capacitive sensing device, the resulting current signals comprising effects corresponding to the modulation signals and induced in the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes from the conductive back plate, wherein the resulting current signals are received while holding the at least one of the plurality of sensor electrodes with which resulting current signals are received at a constant voltage with respect to the system ground, while simultaneously driving a display element of the plurality of display elements for providing display image update information to the display element;

wherein the modulation signals cause the conductive back plate and an input object proximate to the at least one sensor electrode to be modulated with respect to system ground;

wherein the display element comprises a capacitor having as one plate, a portion of the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes is held at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground;

wherein the resulting current signals when received hold the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes at the constant voltage with respect to the system ground when the input object is modulated with respect to the at least one electrode of the plurality of sensor electrodes by the modulation signals; and

wherein the constant voltage is different from the system ground and an earth ground.

19. The processing system of claim 18, further comprising:

a display driver module;

wherein the modulation source is configured to drive the modulation signals onto the conductive back plate during a first period;

wherein the sensor module is configured to receive the resulting signals to determine changes in capacitive coupling between at least one of the sensor electrode and the input object during the first time period; and

wherein the display driver module is configured to;

drive a first gate electrode of a plurality of gate electrodes in the display device with a second signal during a second period, and

drive a first source driver electrode of a plurality of source driver electrodes in the display device with a third signal during a third period.

20. The processing system of claim 19, wherein the first period, the second period, and the third period at least partially overlap.

21. The processing system of claim 19, wherein the first period does not overlap with the second period and the third period.