Offset sensor pattern

• US 9,829,523 B1
• Filed: 12/20/2013
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Original Assignee: Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (Infineon Technologies AG)
• Inventors: Peterson, Jonathan R, Wilson, Cole D, Prendergast, Patrick N
• Primary Examiner(s): Soto Lopez, Jose
• Application Number:
  US14/137,426
• Time in Patent Office: 1,439 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-178
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 1/02 General constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 27/2605 Measuring capacitance capacitive sensors G01D5/24
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/16 Constructional details or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/047 using sets of wires, e.g. crossed wires

Abstract

A capacitive sensor array may comprise a plurality of column sensor electrodes and a plurality of row sensor electrodes. The column sensor electrodes may be capacitively coupled with the row sensor electrodes to form a plurality of unit cells each including an intensity center identifying a location of greatest capacitance sensitivity between a row electrode and a column electrode. An axis of a set of row sensor electrodes may cross at least a portion of each row electrode in the set, and the intensity centers associated with the row electrodes in the set may be staggered on alternating sides of the axis. For each of the plurality of unit cells, a distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a nearest intensity center of another unit cell at a perimeter of the unit cell may be at least 0.7 times the height of the unit cell.

Claims

1. A capacitive sensor array, comprising:

a first plurality of column sensor electrodes, wherein for each column sensor electrode of the plurality of column sensor electrodes, the column sensor electrode comprises a main trace extending a length of the column sensor electrode; and

a second plurality of row sensor electrodes, wherein each of the first plurality of column sensor electrodes is capacitively coupled with at least two of the second plurality of row sensor electrodes to form a plurality of unit cells, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, the unit cell is associated with a unique pairing of one of the row sensor electrodes and one of the column sensor electrodes, and the unit cell includes an intensity center located at a point of greatest capacitance sensitivity between the row electrode and the column electrode of the unique pairing, wherein for each row sensor electrode of the plurality of row sensor electrodes, the row sensor electrode comprises a plurality of electrically connected portions each within a different one of the plurality of unit cells, wherein a first portion of the plurality of portions has a different shape than a second portion of the plurality of portions, wherein an axis of the row sensor electrode crosses each of the electrically connected portions of the row sensor electrode, wherein the intensity centers associated with the electrically connected portions of the row sensor electrode are staggered on alternating sides of the axis, and wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, a distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a nearest intensity center of another unit cell that is located at a perimeter of the unit cell is at least 0.7 times a height of the unit cell, wherein the height of the unit cell is measured in a direction of the axis of the column sensor electrode associated with the unit cell.

2. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, a first distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a first intensity center of a first other unit cell at the perimeter of the unit cell is substantially equal to a second distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a second intensity center of a second other unit cell that is at the perimeter of the unit cell and that is adjacent to the first other unit cell.

3. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, a ratio of the height of the unit cell to a width of the unit cell is substantially equal to 1:

√

{square root over (3)}/2.

4. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells that is not located at an edge of the capacitive sensor array, any point located within the unit cell is no more than √

{square root over (3)}/3 times a height of the unit cell away from a nearest intensity center.

5. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein for each unit cell, the intensity center of the unit cell is offset relative to a nearest intensity center of a unit cell of an adjacent column sensor electrode, wherein a component of the offset in a direction along an axis of the column sensor electrode of the unit cell is substantially equal to half the height of the unit cell.

6. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of unit cells located at an edge of the capacitive sensor array is smaller than any of the plurality of unit cells not located at the edge of the capacitive sensor array.

7. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein the axis of each of the row sensor electrodes is substantially perpendicular to an axis of at least one of the plurality of column sensor electrodes.

8. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, each point within the unit cell is nearer to a boundary between the row sensor electrode and the column sensor electrode of the unique pairing associated with the unit cell than to a boundary between any other pairing of a row sensor electrode and a column sensor electrode, and the intensity center of the unit cell is located substantially at a centroid location of the unit cell.

9. The capacitive sensor array of claim 1, wherein the first plurality of column sensor electrodes and the second plurality of row sensor electrodes are formed from a single layer of conductive material, and wherein each of the column sensor electrodes comprises a plurality of subtraces interleaved with subtraces of one or more of the plurality of row sensor electrodes.

10. A capacitance sensing system, comprising:

a capacitance sensor;

a first plurality of column sensor electrodes of a capacitive sensor array coupled with the capacitance sensor, wherein for each column sensor electrode of the plurality of column sensor electrodes, the column sensor electrode comprises a main trace extending a length of the column sensor electrode;

a second plurality of row sensor electrodes of the capacitive sensor array, wherein each of the first plurality of column sensor electrodes is capacitively coupled with at least two of the second plurality of row sensor electrodes to form a plurality of unit cells, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, the unit cell is associated with a unique pairing of one of the row sensor electrodes and one of the column sensor electrodes, and the unit cell includes an intensity center located at a point of greatest capacitance sensitivity between the row electrode and the column electrode of the unique pairing, wherein for each row sensor electrode of the plurality of row sensor electrodes, the row sensor electrode comprises a plurality of electrically connected portions each within a different one of the plurality of unit cells, wherein a first portion of the plurality of portions has a different shape than a second portion of the plurality of portions, wherein an axis of the row sensor electrode crosses at each of the electrically connected portions of the row sensor electrode, wherein the intensity centers associated with the electrically connected portions of the row sensor electrode are staggered on alternating sides of the axis, and wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, a distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a nearest intensity center of another unit cell that is located at a perimeter of the unit cell is at least 0.7 times the height of the unit cell, wherein the height of the unit cell is measured in the direction of the axis of the column sensor electrode associated with the unit cell.

11. The capacitance sensing system of claim 10, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, a first distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a first intensity center of a first other unit cell at the perimeter of the unit cell is substantially equal to a second distance between the intensity center of the unit cell and a second intensity center of a second other unit cell that is at the perimeter of the unit cell and that is adjacent to the first other unit cell, and the ratio of a height of the unit cell to the width of the unit cell is substantially equal to 1:

√

{square root over (3)}/2.

12. The capacitance sensing system of claim 10, wherein for each unit cell of the plurality of unit cells, the capacitance sensor is configured to measure a mutual capacitance between the row sensor electrode and the column sensor electrode associated with the unit cell.