STYLUS TO HOST SYNCHRONIZATION

• US 20160224136A1
• Filed: 04/12/2016
• Published: 08/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Original Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Inventors: Boschee, Jeff M., Kremin, Viktor, Ryshtun, Andriy, Wright, David
• Granted Patent: US 10,031,597 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3215 Monitoring of peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3259 Power saving in cursor control device, e.g. mouse, joystick, trackball
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04106 Multi-sensing digitiser, i.e. digitiser using at least two different sensing technologies simultaneously or alternatively, e.g. for detecting pen and finger, for saving power or for improving position detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03545 Pens or stylus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04162 for exchanging data with external devices, e.g. smart pens, via the digitiser sensing hardware
• 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 3/0441 using active external devices, e.g. active pens, for receiving changes in electrical potential transmitted by the digitiser, e.g. tablet driving signals
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0442 using active external devices, e.g. active pens, for transmitting changes in electrical potential to be received by the digitiser
• 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

Abstract

A system and method for synchronizing a stylus to a capacitive sense array. The system including a capacitive sense array which includes a plurality of electrodes. A synchronization signal is transmitted to the stylus using the plurality of electrodes. The synchronization signal is transmitted to the stylus by capacitively coupling the stylus to the capacitive sense array.

Claims

1. An active stylus configured to provide input to a sensor array including first electrodes extending in a first direction and second electrodes extending in a second direction different from the first direction, the active stylus comprising:

signal reception circuitry configured to receive first signal from the sensor array based on capacitive coupling between the active stylus and the sensor array;

signal transmission circuitry configured to transmit, in response to the first signal, second signal to the sensor array based on capacitive coupling between the active stylus and the sensor array; and

control circuitry configured to control operation of the signal reception circuitry and the signal transmission circuitry to synchronize transmission timing of the second signal to the sensor array with reception timing of the first signal from the sensor array.

2. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal includes a signal edge, and the control circuitry synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on the signal edge of the first signal.

3. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the signal reception circuitry receives the first signal in bursts, and the control circuitry synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on the bursts.

4. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the signal reception circuitry receives the first signal in bursts, respectively in time intervals, and the control circuitry synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on a gap between the time intervals.

5. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal is code-modulated with a first code, which is different from a second code used to code-modulate the second signal.

6. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal includes configuration data, and the control circuitry configures the active stylus based on the configuration data.

7. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal includes a power management command, and the control circuitry manages power based on the power management command.

8. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal includes a user feedback command, and the control circuitry controls the active stylus based on the user feedback command.

9. The active stylus of claim 8, wherein the user feedback command is a command that controls an LED provided on the active stylus.

10. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the first signal includes data that defines one or more of a frequency, timing, and phase of the second signal to be transmitted from the active stylus, and the control circuitry controls the signal transmission circuitry based on said data included in the first signal.

11. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the signal reception circuitry receives the first signal in bursts, respectively in time intervals, and the signal transmission circuitry transmits the second signal in a gap between the time intervals.

12. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the control circuitry controls the signal transmission circuitry to transmit the second signal after reception of the first signal by the reception circuitry ends.

13. The active stylus of claim 1, wherein the control circuitry controls the signal transmission circuitry to transmit the second signal at different reporting rates under different conditions.

14. A method of controlling operation of an active stylus configured to provide input to a sensor array including a matrix of electrodes, the method comprising:

receiving first signal from the sensor array based on capacitive coupling between the active stylus and the sensor array;

transmitting, in response to the first signal, second signal to the sensor array based on capacitive coupling between the active stylus and the sensor array; and

synchronizing transmission timing of the second signal to the sensor array with reception timing of the first signal from the sensor array.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal includes a signal edge, and the synchronizing step synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on the signal edge of the first signal.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the receiving step receives the first signal in bursts, and the synchronizing step synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on the bursts.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the receiving step receives the first signal in bursts, respectively in time intervals, and the synchronizing step synchronizes the transmission timing of the second signal based on a gap between the time intervals.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal is code-modulated with a first code, which is different from a second code used to code-modulate the second signal.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal includes configuration data, and the method further comprises:

configuring the active stylus based on the configuration data.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal includes a power management command, and the method further comprises:

managing power based on the power management command.

21. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal includes a user feedback command, and the method further comprises:

controlling the active stylus based on the user feedback command.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the user feedback command is a command that controls an LED provided on the active stylus.

23. The method of claim 14, wherein the first signal includes data that defines one or more of a frequency, timing, and phase of the second signal, and the method further comprises:

controlling one or more of the frequency, timing, and phase of the second signal based on said data included in the first signal.

24. The method of claim 14, wherein the receiving step receives the first signal in bursts, respectively in time intervals, and the transmitting step transmits the second signal in a gap between the time intervals.

25. The method of claim 14, wherein the transmitting step transmits the second signal after the receiving step of the first signal ends.

26. The method of claim 14, wherein the transmitting step transmits the second signal at different reporting rates under different conditions.