Reducing touch sensor panel power consumption

• US 9,830,034 B2
• Filed: 03/11/2016
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Lee, SungChang, Lee, Chia-Yeh
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, DUC Q
• Application Number:
  US15/068,426
• Publication Number:
  US 20160195959A1
• Time in Patent Office: 627 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-181
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3218 of display devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3262 Power saving in digitizer or tablet
• 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 3/04166 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 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

Reducing power consumption in a touch screen. In some examples, a first level of touch accuracy can be determined, and a first portion of the touch screen can be operated in a first mode corresponding to the first level of touch accuracy. In some examples, a second level of touch accuracy can be determined, and a second portion of the touch screen can be operated in a second mode corresponding to the second level of touch accuracy. The first and/or second levels of touch accuracy can be determined based on an application running on a device including the touch screen and/or a user interface displayed on the touch screen. In some examples, in the first and/or second modes, the respective portions of the touch screen can transition between a touch sensing phase and a display phase at different transition frequencies and/or can sense touch at different ratios of touch sensors.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

operating a touch screen in at least one of a plurality of modes, the plurality of modes including;

a first mode includes a first level of touch accuracy, a first touch sensing phase, and a first display phase, the first display phase having a first duration of time, and

a second mode includes a second level of touch accuracy, a second touch sensing phase, and a second display phase, the second display phase having a second duration of time, different than the first duration of time,

wherein a duration of the first mode is different from a duration of the second mode;

and

dynamically changing the mode based on one or more applications running on a device, the device including the touch screen,

wherein the one or more applications include a first application associated with the first mode and a second application associated with the second mode.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transitioning between the first touch sensing phase and the first display phase when the first application is running on the device at a first transition frequency.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

transitioning between the second touch sensing phase and the second display phase when the second application is running on the device at a second transition frequency, wherein the second transition frequency is different than the first transition frequency.

4. The method of claim 2, the method further comprising:

reducing at least one of a number of active drive lines and a number of active sense lines of the touch screen when the first application is running.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first mode includes a lower power consumption by the device than the second mode.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first level of touch accuracy is less than the second level of touch accuracy.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting an absence of a touch on the touch screen for a predetermined amount of time, wherein dynamically changing the mode includes transitioning to the first mode, the first mode being an inactive mode in response to the detected absence.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a touch in the first mode, the first mode being an inactive mode, wherein dynamically changing the mode includes transitioning to the second mode in response to the detected touch.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a user-interface on a display of the device, wherein the user-interface is associated with at least one of the one or more applications; and

determining whether a touch accuracy associated with the user-interface is associated with the first level or second level of touch accuracy each time the user-interface is displayed,

wherein dynamically changing the mode includes transitioning to at least one of the plurality of modes based on the determined touch accuracy.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a user-interface on a display of the device, wherein the user-interface is associated with at least one of the one or more applications; and

determining whether a touch accuracy associated with the user-interface is associated with the first level or second level of touch accuracy at predetermined time intervals.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of modes further includes a third mode, the third mode including a third level of touch accuracy, a third touch sensing phase, and a third display phase, the first, second, and third levels of touch accuracy being different.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein operating the touch screen includes concurrently operating a first portion and a second portion of the touch screen, the first mode associated with the first portion and the second mode associated with the second portion.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a targeted level of touch accuracy, wherein dynamically changing the mode is based on the targeted level of touch accuracy.

14. An electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen;

a processor to execute instructions; and

a memory coupled with the processor to store instructions, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

operate the touch screen in at least one of a plurality of modes, the plurality of modes including;

a first mode includes a first level of touch accuracy, a first touch sensing phase, and a first display phase, the first display phase having a first duration of time, and

a second mode includes a second level of touch accuracy, a second touch sensing phase, and a second display phase, the second display phase having a second duration of time, different than the first duration of time, wherein a duration of the first mode is different from a duration of the second mode, and

dynamically change the mode of operation based on one or more applications running on the device, wherein the one or more applications include a first application associated with the first mode and a second application associated with the second mode.

15. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the touch screen includes a plurality of portions, the plurality of portions including a first portion associated with the first mode and a second portion associated with the second mode.

16. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the memory causes the processor to further:

dynamically change at least one of the plurality of portions, a number of the plurality of portions, and operating modes of each of the plurality of portions when a user-interface changes.

17. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the touch screen is configured to concurrently operate two or more of the plurality of portions.

18. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the touch screen includes a display, the display configured to:

display a plurality of user-interface selectable elements,

wherein each user-interface selectable element is spatially separated by other user-interface selectable elements, and

further wherein dynamically changing the mode includes transitioning to the first mode, the first mode being an inactive mode.

19. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the memory causes the processor to further:

transition between the first touch sensing phase and the first display phase at a first transition frequency, the first transition frequency based on the first level of touch accuracy, and

transition between the second touch sensing phase and the second display phase at a second transition frequency, the second transition frequency based on the second level of touch accuracy.

20. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein the touch screen includes a plurality of drive lines and a plurality of sense lines configured to sense a touch, and

further wherein the memory causes the processor to further:

reduce a number of the plurality of drive lines that are driven, and reduce a number of the plurality of sense lines that are sensed, when the first

application is running.