Hand-held device with touchscreen and digital tactile pixels

• US 8,004,501 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2008
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Harrison, Phil
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar; Vijay
• Application Number:
  US12/017,298
• Publication Number:
  US 20080150911A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,310 Days
• Field of Search: 345/169, 345173-183, 178 1801- 1809, 178 1901- 1906
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04809 Textured surface identifying touch areas, e.g. overlay structure for a virtual keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041

Abstract

A hand-held electronic device is disclosed. The device may comprise a case case having one or more major surfaces; a touch screen disposed on one of the major surfaces, the touch screen; a processor operably coupled to the touch screen; and one or more tactile pixels disposed proximate the touch screen. Each of the tactile pixels includes an actuatable portion coupled to an actuator and a sensor. The actuator and sensor are coupled to the processor. The actuator is configured to actuate in response to instructions from the processor and the sensor is configured to generate signals as inputs to one or more programs executed by the processor when pressure is applied to the actuatable portion. The actuatable portion is actuatable by the actuator between first and second positions. A tactile feel of the actuatable portion is different in the first and second positions.

Claims

1. A hand-held electronic device, comprising:

a case having one or more major surfaces;

a touch screen display disposed on at least one of the major surfaces;

a processor operably coupled to the touch screen display; and

one or more tactile pixels disposed proximate the touch screen display, wherein the one or more tactile pixels at least partially surround the touch screen display, wherein each of the one or more tactile pixels includes an actuatable portion coupled to an actuator and a sensor, wherein the actuator is coupled to the processor, wherein the actuator is configured to actuate in response to instructions from the processor and wherein the sensor is configured to generate signals as inputs to one or more programs executed by the processor when pressure is applied to the actuatable portion, wherein the actuatable portion is actuatable by the actuator between first and second positions in response to execution of one or more instructions by the processor, wherein a tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the first position is different from the tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the second position.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the one or more tactile pixels are located on the same major surface of the case as the touch screen display.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the one or more tactile pixels are located on a side edge of the case proximate the major surface on which the touch screen display is disposed.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the case includes a beveled edge between a side edge and the major surface on which the touch screen display is disposed, wherein the one or more tactile pixels are located on the beveled edge.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured such that the one or more of the tactile pixels are positioned to provide tactile feedback to a user and/or receive input from a user in response to a predetermined state of the touch screen display.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein the device is configured such that a particular one or more of the one or more of the tactile pixels selectively actuate to mark an endpoint of scrolling of an image displayed on the touch screen display.

7. The device of claim 5 wherein the device is configured such that a particular one or more of the one or more tactile pixels vibrate in response to the change in state of the touch screen display.

8. The device of claim 7 wherein a frequency of vibration of the particular one or more of the one or more tactile pixels is related to a state of a gesture made with the touch screen display.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured such that the one or more of the tactile pixels are positioned to provide tactile feedback to a user and/or receive input from a user in response to a gesture entered with the touch screen display.

10. The device of claim 1 wherein the device is configured such that a particular one or more of the one or more of the tactile pixels are positioned to act as buttons associated with specific command inputs to the device.

11. The device of claim 10 wherein the touch screen is configured to display information identifying the specific command inputs proximate the particular one or more tactile pixels.

12. The device of claim 1, further comprising a sensor configured to register a change in orientation of the device.

13. The device of claim 12 wherein the device is configured such that a particular one or more of the one or more of the tactile pixels actuate between the first and second positions in response to a change in orientation of the device.

14. The device of claim 10 wherein the device is configured to be used as game device, phone, portable media player, email device, web browser device or navigation device.

15. The device of claim 10 wherein the device is configured to be used as a game device and wherein the devices is configured to change a state of the one or more tactile pixels in response to a change in a game state or game event.

16. The device of claim 1, further comprising a communication interface adapted to facilitate communication between the device and one or more other devices.

17. The device of claim 1, wherein the device is configured such that a state of the one or more tactile pixels changes in response to a change in state of one or more other devices in communication with the hand-held electronic device.

18. An electronic device, comprising:

a touch screen display disposed on a major surface of the electronic device;

a processor operably coupled to the touch screen display; and

wherein the touch screen comprises an array of tactile pixels, wherein each of the tactile pixels in the array includes an actuatable portion coupled to an actuator and a sensor, wherein the transducer is coupled to the processor, wherein the actuator is configured to actuate in response to instructions from the processor and wherein the sensor is configured to generate signals as inputs to one or more programs executed by the processor when pressure is applied to the actuatable portion, wherein the actuatable portion is actuatable by the actuator between first and second positions in response to execution of one or more instructions by the processor, wherein a tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the first position is different from the tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the second position.

19. A method for operating a hand-held device having a touch screen display and one or more tactile pixels disposed proximate the touch screen display, wherein the one or more tactile pixels at least partially surround the touch screen display, wherein each of the one or more tactile pixels includes an actuatable portion coupled to an actuator and a sensor, wherein the actuatable portion is actuatable by the actuator between first and second positions, wherein a tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the first position is different from the tactile feel of the actuatable portion in the second position, the method comprising:

tracking user input with the touch screen;

determining a state of the touch screen;

changing a state of the one or more tactile pixels in response to detection of a predetermined state of the display.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein tracking the user input includes tracking motion of a user'"'"'s finger with the touch screen display.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein determining the state of the touch screen display includes determining whether the user has entered a particular gesture on the touch screen display.

22. The method of claim 19 wherein the user input to the touch screen display corresponds to user input to a video game.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the predetermined state reflects a change in state of the video game or one or more particular game events.

24. The method of claim 19 wherein the predetermined state corresponds to a change in state of one or more other devices in communication with the hand-held device.

25. The method of claim 19 wherein the hand-held device includes a tilt sensor and the predetermined state corresponds to a change in state of the tilt sensor.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein changing the state of the tactile pixels includes selectively actuating one or more particular pixels in response to a tilting of the hand-held device sensed by the tilt sensor in a way that simulates a bubble level.

27. The method of claim 19 wherein changing the state of the tactile pixels includes selectively actuating one or more particular pixels such that they can be felt by a user and configuring the particular pixels to act as a scroll wheel for the hand-held device.

28. The method of claim 19 wherein changing the state of the tactile pixels includes selectively actuating one or more particular pixels proximate a command shown on the touch screen such that the one or more particular pixels can be felt by a user and configuring the particular pixels to act as a button to execute the command with the hand-held device.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising vibrating the one or more particular tactile pixels.

30. The method of claim 19 wherein changing the state of the tactile pixels includes selectively actuating one or more particular pixels such that the one or more particular pixels can be felt by a user when the user reaches a scroll limit with the touch screen display.