Resolution and sensitivity balance metric

• US 7,865,038 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2006
• Issued: 01/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Synaptics Incorporated
• Inventors: Bolender, Robert J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bali; Vikkram
• Assistant Examiner(s): ENTEZARI, MICHELLE M
• Application Number:
  US11/495,071
• Publication Number:
  US 20070230822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,621 Days
• Field of Search: 382/286
• US Class Current: 382/286
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means

Abstract

One embodiment in accordance with the invention is a method for determining a resolution metric that can include accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of sensor channels. Additionally, the method can include determining a required resolution associated with at least one of the plurality of sensor channels. A channel resolution can be determined that is associated with at least one of the plurality of sensor channels. Furthermore, the resolution metric can be determined based on the channel resolution and the required resolution, wherein the resolution metric can be provided to a user.

Claims

1. A method for determining a resolution metric comprising:

accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in capacitive touch sensors;

determining a required resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors;

determining a channel resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors; and

determining said resolution metric based on a ratio of said channel resolution and said required resolution wherein said resolution metric can be provided to a user, wherein for a plurality of channels said resolution metric is set to a minimum of determined individual resolution metrics for each of said plurality of channels.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said resolution metric is determined at a design time for a capacitive sensing system comprising said at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors substantially concurrently.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors in a sequential manner.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said determining said resolution metric comprises dividing said required resolution by said channel resolution.

6. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable instructions stored thereon, wherein the computer-readable instructions, when executed, cause a computer system to perform a method for determining a resolution metric, the method comprising:

accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in capacitive touch sensors;

determining a required resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors;

determining a channel resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors; and

determining said resolution metric based on a ratio of said channel resolution and said required resolution, wherein for a plurality of channels said resolution metric is set to a minimum of determined individual resolution metrics for each of said plurality of channels, and wherein said resolution metric can be provided to a user.

7. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein said computer-readable instructions further cause said computer system to perform said method for determining said resolution metric at a design time for a capacitive sensing system comprising said at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.

8. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein said computer-readable instructions further cause said computer system to perform said method for determining said resolution metric during manufacture of a capacitive sensing system comprising said at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein said determining said resolution metric comprises dividing said required resolution by said channel resolution.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors substantially concurrently.

11. A system for determining a resolution metric comprising:

a sampled data accessor for accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in capacitive touch sensors;

a required resolution determiner coupled to said sampled data accessor, said required resolution determiner for determining a required resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors;

a channel resolution determiner coupled to said required resolution determiner, said channel resolution determiner for determining a channel resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors; and

a resolution metric determiner coupled to said channel resolution determiner, said resolution metric determiner for determining said resolution metric based on a ratio of said channel resolution and said required resolution, wherein for a plurality of channels said resolution metric determiner sets said resolution metric to a minimum of determined individual resolution metrics for each of said plurality of channels, and wherein said resolution metric can be provided to a user.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein said resolution metric determiner for determining said resolution metric by dividing said required resolution by said channel resolution.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors substantially concurrently.

14. The system of claim 11 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors in a sequential manner.

15. The system of claim 11 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors utilizing only a single reference capacitor.

16. A computer-implemented method for determining a resolution metric for a capacitive sensing system being designed, said computer-implemented method comprising:

accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in capacitive touch sensors associated with said capacitive sensing system being designed;

determining a required resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors associated with said capacitive sensing system being designed;

determining a channel resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors associated with said capacitive sensing system being designed; and

determining said resolution metric, for said capacitive sensing system being designed, based on a ratio of said channel resolution and said required resolution, wherein for a plurality of channels said resolution metric is set to a minimum of determined individual resolution metrics for each of said plurality of channels, and wherein said resolution metric can be provided to a user.

17. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 16 wherein said accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors associated with said capacitive sensing system being designed comprises accessing simulated sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels associated with said capacitive sensing system being designed.

18. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 16 wherein said determining said resolution metric during manufacture of a capacitive sensing system comprising said at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.

19. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 16 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors substantially concurrently.

20. The computer-implemented method as recited in claim 16 wherein said sampled data is associated with sampling at least two of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors in a sequential manner.

21. A method for obtaining a resolution metric without requiring complex user operations, said method comprising:

accessing sampled data for at least one of a plurality of capacitive sensor channels in capacitive touch sensors, wherein said sampled data was generated by prompting a user to perform a task which does not require said user to perform said complex user operations;

determining a required resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors; and

determining said resolution metric by utilizing said sampled data and a required capacitive sensor channel resolution of at least one of said capacitive sensor channels to form a ratio of said required resolution to a resolution of a capacitive channel for which said sampled data has been accessed, wherein for a plurality of channels said resolution metric is set to a minimum of determined individual resolution metrics for each of said plurality of channels, and wherein said resolution metric can be provided to a user.

22. The method as recited in claim 21 wherein said task comprises touching at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.

23. The method as recited in claim 21 further comprising:

determining a channel resolution associated with at least one of said plurality of capacitive sensor channels in said capacitive touch sensors.