Multi-touch auto scanning

• US 8,125,456 B2
• Filed: 01/03/2007
• Issued: 02/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Krah, Christoph Horst, Vu, Minh-Dieu Thi, Wilson, Thomas James
• Primary Examiner(s): Wang, Quan-Zhen
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, JENNIFER T
• Application Number:
  US11/650,040
• Publication Number:
  US 20080162996A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,882 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-179, 178 1801- 1809
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3262 Power saving in digitizer or tablet
• 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 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• 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 3/0418 for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer
• 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 autonomously scanning a sensor panel device, such as a multi-touch panel, is disclosed. In one embodiment, the system and method disables a sensor panel processor after a first predetermined amount of time has elapsed without the sensor panel device sensing any events. One or more system clocks can also be disabled to conserve power. While the processor and one or more system clocks are disabled, the sensor panel device can periodically autonomously scan the sensor panel for touch activity. Accordingly, if one or more results from the autonomous scans exceed a threshold, the sensor panel device re-enables the processor and one or more clocks to actively scan the sensor panel. If the threshold is not exceeded, then the sensor panel device continues to periodically autonomously scan the sensor panel without intervention from the processor. Furthermore, the sensor panel device can periodically perform calibration functions to account for any drift that may be present in the system.

Claims

1. A touch subsystem for detecting events on or about a sensor panel and generating an image of the events, comprising:

driver logic configured for generating one or more input stimuli;

channel scan logic configured for controlling the driver logic to scan one or more rows of sensors in the sensor panel by driving at least one row with the one or more input stimuli;

auto-scan logic configured to disable touch detection after a first predetermined amount of time elapses without any events being detected on the sensor panel, enable touch detection and scan the one or more rows in the sensor panel upon expiration of a second predetermined amount of time, and determine if any events are detected on the sensor panel; and

one or more analog channels, each analog channel couplable to a column of sensors in the sensor panel, each analog channel configured for receiving a signal representative of an event occurring at one of the sensors in the column of sensors, and generating a value representative of the event.

2. The touch sub-system of claim 1, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a sniff timer configured initiate an automatic scan when the second predetermined amount of time is exceeded.

3. The touch sub-system of claim 1, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a calibration timer configured to initiate a calibration scan when a third predetermined amount of time is exceeded, wherein the calibration scan comprises scanning one or more rows and calibrating for drift present in the one or more rows.

4. The touch subsystem of claim 1, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a clock manager configured to control a system clock that clocks a sensor panel processor.

5. The touch subsystem of claim 4, wherein the clock manager disables the system clock after the first predetermined amount of time is exceeded without any events being detected on the sensor panel.

6. The touch subsystem of claim 1, wherein the auto-scan logic further comprises a power management timer configured to activate one or more drivers operatively connected to the sensor panel prior to the expiration of the second predetermined amount of time.

7. The touch subsystem of claim 1, wherein the auto-scan logic is configured to activate a sensor panel processor when an event is detected on the sensor panel.

8. A method for detecting events on or about a sensor panel, comprising:

disabling touch detection after a first predetermined amount of time elapses without any events being detected on the sensor panel;

after expiration of a second predetermined amount of time, enabling touch detection and scanning the sensor panel organized in rows and columns by applying a stimulus to at least some of the rows;

during each sensor panel row scan, coupling the columns of the sensor panel to one or more analog channels for generating one or more values representative of one or more events occurring at distinct locations along the row at about the same time; and

activating a sensor panel processor when any event is detected on the sensor panel.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein each event comprises a touching of an object against the sensor panel.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising generating the one or more values representative of the one or more events within a single touch subsystem.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising performing a calibration scan upon expiration of a calibration timer.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising resetting a sniff timer after the expiration of the second predetermined amount of time.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising disabling the sensor panel processor after the first predetermined amount of time has expired without any events being detected on the sensor panel.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising initiating an auto-scan mode while the sensor panel processor is disabled.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of initiating the auto-scan mode further comprises turning off a system clock.

16. The method of claim 8, further comprising initiating an active scan mode when any event is detected on the sensor panel.

17. A digital audio player comprising:

a sensor panel having at least one sense line that provides an output signal indicative of an occurrence or absence of an event occurring at the sensor panel;

a processor operatively connected to the sensor panel, the processor capable of processing the output signal of the sensor panel; and

auto-scan logic circuitry operatively connected to the sensor panel and the processor, the auto-scan logic circuitry configured for disabling touch detection after a first redetermined amount of time elapses without any events being detected on the sensor panel, enabling touch detection and stimulating one or more drive lines of the sensor panel with one or more stimulation frequencies upon expiration of a second predetermined amount of time, and determining the occurrence or absence of an event occurring at the panel without intervention from the processor.

18. The digital audio player of claim 17, wherein the auto-scan logic circuitry enters an auto-scan mode when no event is sensed on the panel for the first predetermined amount of time.

19. The digital audio player of claim 17, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a sniff timer, the sniff timer initiating a scan of the sensor panel for determining an occurrence or absence of an event occurring at the panel, when the sniff timer reaches a second predetermined amount of time.

20. The digital audio player of claim 19, wherein the auto-scan logic further comprises a calibration timer, the calibration timer initiating a scan automatically when the calibration timer reaches a third predetermined amount of time which is longer than second predetermined amount of time.

21. The digital audio player of claim 20, wherein the calibration timer initiates a calibration sequence that accounts for drift present in the sensor panel.

22. The digital audio player of claim 17, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a power management timer, the power management timer sending a start-up signal to one or more voltage drivers prior to the sniff timer reaching the second predetermined amount of time.

23. The digital audio player of claim 17, wherein the auto-scan logic comprises a clock manager capable of disabling and enabling one or more clocks incorporated in the mobile telephone.