Multi-touch touch surface

• US 8,314,775 B2
• Filed: 07/03/2006
• Issued: 11/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/26/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Westerman, Wayne Carl, Elias, John G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lefkowitz, Sumati
• Assistant Examiner(s): Amadiz, Rodney
• Application Number:
  US11/428,503
• Publication Number:
  US 20060238518A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,332 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/158, 345/173, 345/174, 345/175, 178 1801- 1803, 178/18.06, 178/18.07
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/24137 Distances to cluster centroïds
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• 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 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0235 using chord techniques G06F3/0234 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• 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 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0447 Position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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: G06V 30/19173 Classification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1983 Syntactic or structural pattern recognition, e.g. symbolic string recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/107 : Static hand or arm
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/9622 : using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960725 : Charge-transfer

Abstract

Apparatus and methods are disclosed for simultaneously tracking multiple finger and palm contacts as hands approach, touch, and slide across a proximity-sensing, multi-touch surface. Identification and classification of intuitive hand configurations and motions enables unprecedented integration of typing, resting, pointing, scrolling, 3D manipulation, and handwriting into a versatile, ergonomic computer input device.

Claims

1. A multi touch sensing surface apparatus comprising:

an array of sensing devices, each sensing device including two switches and a sensing electrode electrically connected between the two switches, wherein the array includes a first sensing device with a first switch and a second switch, a second sensing device with a third switch and a fourth switch, and a third sensing device with a fifth switch and a sixth switch; and

control circuitry that generates control signals to control the sensing devices, the control circuitry including a first conductive line connected to the first switch and the third switch, a second conductive line connected to the fifth switch, a third conductive line connected to the second switch, and a fourth conductive line connected to the fourth switch and the sixth switch, wherein the control circuitry controls the first sensing device with the control signals on the first and third conductive lines, controls the second sensing device with the control signals on the first and fourth conductive lines, and controls the third sensing device with the control signals on the second and fourth conductive lines.

2. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a power supply, wherein the control signals on the first conductive line include control signals that control the first and third switches to electrically connect the power supply to the sensing electrodes of the first and second sensing devices, respectively, and the control signals on the second conductive line include control signals that control the fifth switch to electrically connect the power supply to the sensing electrode of the third sensing device.

3. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 2, further comprising:

a display device, wherein the array of sensing devices is one of fabricated on or integrated with the display device.

4. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 3, wherein the display device includes one of a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a light-emitting polymer display (LPD).

5. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the sensing devices are self-capacitance proximity sensors.

6. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

measurement circuitry, wherein the control signals on the third conductive line include control signals that control the second switch to electrically connect the measurement circuitry to the sensing electrode of the first sensing device, and the control signals on the fourth conductive line include control signals that control the fourth and sixth switches to electrically connect the measurement circuitry to the sensing electrodes of the second and third sensing devices, respectively.

7. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the power supply is a constant voltage power supply, which supplies an approximately constant voltage.

8. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control circuitry sequentially enables each of the sensor devices.

9. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a display device, wherein the array of sensing devices is one of fabricated on or integrated with the display device.

10. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 9, wherein the display device includes one of a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a light-emitting polymer display (LPD).

11. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 9, wherein the display device is configured to display visual indicators of hand configuration.

12. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a multi-layer cover, the multi-layer cover including a compliant dielectric layer disposed proximate the plurality of sensing electrodes, a deformable conductive layer disposed adjacent the compliant dielectric layer opposite the plurality of sensing electrodes, and a touch layer disposed adjacent the conductive layer opposite the compliant dielectric layer.

13. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensing devices are proximity sensors.

14. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

measurement circuitry, wherein the control signals on the third conductive line include control signals that control the second switch to electrically connect the measurement circuitry to the sensing electrode of the first sensing device, and the control signals on the fourth conductive line include control signals that control the fourth and sixth switches to electrically connect the measurement circuitry to the sensing electrodes of the second and third sensing devices, respectively.

15. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 14, wherein the measurement circuitry includes capacitance measurement circuitry.

16. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 14, wherein each sensing device is included in one of a plurality of groups of sensing devices, and the measurement circuitry includes a plurality of amplifiers, wherein the amplifiers are dedicated to different groups of the sensing devices.

17. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 16, wherein the control circuitry controls the sensing devices to electrically connect, at any give time, a single sensing device from each group to the corresponding amplifier for the group.

18. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 14, wherein the control circuitry controls the sensing devices to electrically connect, at any given time, a single sensing device from the array of sensing devices to the measurement circuitry.

19. The touch sensing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the switches are transistors, and the conductive lines are gate lines.