Hardware enabled interpolating sensor and display

• US 10,180,746 B1
• Filed: 07/29/2010
• Issued: 01/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rosenberg, Ilya D., Beguin, Julien G., Perlin, Kenneth H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Marinelli, Patrick F
• Application Number:
  US12/846,428
• Time in Patent Office: 3,092 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-184, 345104, 178 1801- 2004
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/042 by opto-electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/045 using resistive elements, e.g. a single continuous surface or two parallel surfaces put in contact
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/046 by electromagnetic means

Abstract

A hardware enabled interpolating sensor allows for anti-aliased acquisition of data. Electrodes coupled with resistive material are disposed on either side of a transducer material, such that an impinging signal varies the electrical characteristics of the transducer material. A controller scans the electrodes and analyzes the variation in the electrical characteristics to generate data. Based upon the known characteristics of the resistive material, an interpolated image is generated from the data which is inherently anti-aliased. Additionally, an interpolating display comprising electrodes disposed on either side of an emission material is described, which allows for emission regions of varying intensity, area, and so forth.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a first layer comprising a first plurality of electrically conductive elements arranged in a first pattern contained within an electrically resistive material;

a transducer layer coupled to the first layer to generate a signal based on a change in electrical resistivity in response to an impinging signal comprising electromagnetic radiation; and

a second layer coupled to the transducer layer and comprising a second plurality of electrically conductive elements arranged in a second pattern contained within an electrically resistive material, wherein the second layer is disposed relative to the first layer such that the first plurality of electrically conductive elements are generally perpendicular to the second plurality of electrically conductive elements.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the electrically resistive material is anisotropic.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the transducer layer comprises a photodiode material.

4. The device of claim 1, further comprising a controller configured to scan one or more intersections formed by the first plurality of electrically conductive elements and the second plurality of electrically conductive elements to determine a variation in the electrical resistivity in the transducer layer proximate to a junction.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein an amplitude of the signal based on the change in electrical resistivity is proportional to an amplitude of the electromagnetic radiation.

6. A device comprising:

a first layer comprising a first plurality of optical waveguides and coupled to one another within a resistive material;

a transducer layer coupled to the first layer to generate a signal in response to a change in electrical resistivity based at least in part on an impinging signal at the first layer, wherein the generated signal is proportional to the impinging signal; and

a second layer coupled to the transducer layer and comprising a second plurality of optical waveguides and coupled to one another within a resistive material, wherein the second layer is disposed relative to the first layer such that the first plurality of optical waveguides and the second plurality of optical waveguides form an addressable array.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the first plurality of optical waveguides are arranged in a regular pattern and second plurality of optical waveguides are arranged in a regular pattern layer.

8. The device of claim 7, further comprising a controller configured to scan the addressable array to determine a variation in the transducer layer proximate to a junction within the addressable array.

9. A device comprising:

a first layer comprising a first plurality of optical waveguides arranged in a regular pattern contained within an electrically resistive material;

a second layer comprising a second plurality of optical waveguides arranged in a regular pattern contained within an electrically resistive material, wherein the second layer is disposed relative to the first layer such that the first plurality of optical waveguides are generally perpendicular to the second plurality of optical waveguides; and

a transducer layer coupled to and disposed between the first layer and the second layer to emit a signal in response to an applied voltage, wherein an amplitude of the emitted signal is proportional to an amplitude of the applied voltage.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the emitted signal comprises electromagnetic radiation.

11. The device of claim 9, wherein the transducer layer comprises a piezoelectric material and the emitted signal comprises sound.

12. The device of claim 9, wherein the electrically resistive material is anisotropic.

13. The device of claim 9, further comprising a controller configured to:

connect one or more of the first plurality of optical waveguides and one or more of the second plurality of optical waveguides to a signal source configured to generate the applied voltage;

connect remaining optical waveguides of the first plurality of optical waveguides and the remaining optical waveguides of the second plurality of optical waveguides to ground; and

provide the applied voltage to the remaining optical waveguides of the first plurality of optical waveguides and remaining optical waveguides of the second plurality of optical waveguides.