Sensor, sensing device, and sensing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12203783-B2
Application number	US-202217576351-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 14, 2022
Priority date	Jan 17, 2020
Publication date	Jan 21, 2025
Grant date	Jan 21, 2025

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a sensor, a sensing device, and a sensing method. The sensor may include an upper electrode layer, a dielectric layer, and a lower electrode layer. A first dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer may be attached to a first upper electrode surface of the upper electrode layer. A second dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer may be attached to a first lower electrode surface of the lower electrode layer. The second dielectric layer surface may be opposite to the first dielectric layer surface. The upper electrode layer may include at least two sub-upper electrodes arranged in an array. An electrode gap may exist between the at least two sub-upper electrodes.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sensor, comprising:
an upper electrode layer, a dielectric layer, and a lower electrode layer;
an encapsulation layer encapsulating a three-layer sensing structure formed by the upper electrode layer, the dielectric layer, and the lower electrode layer, the encapsulation layer comprising a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer;
a first dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer being attached to a first upper electrode surface of the upper electrode layer;
a second dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer being attached to a first lower electrode surface of the lower electrode layer, the second dielectric layer surface being opposite to the first dielectric layer surface;
the upper electrode layer comprising at least two sub-upper electrodes arranged in an array, an electrode gap existing between the at least two sub-upper electrodes; and
the sensor being configured to determine distance information from an approaching object according to first capacitance information at the electrode gap, and an acting force acting on a contact object according to second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer under action of the dielectric layer.

2. The sensor of claim 1 , wherein
the first encapsulation layer is encapsulated on a second upper electrode surface of the upper electrode layer, the second upper electrode surface is opposite to the first upper electrode surface;
the second encapsulation layer is encapsulated on a second lower electrode surface of the lower electrode layer, the second lower electrode surface is opposite to the first lower electrode surface.

3. The sensor of claim 2 , wherein the encapsulation layer is a flexible material thin film encapsulation layer.

4. The sensor of claim 1 , wherein each sub-upper electrode of the at least two sub-upper electrodes is an interdigital electrode or a circular electrode.

5. The sensor of claim 4 , wherein the sub-upper electrode is the interdigital electrode and the at least two sub-upper electrodes are coplanar and staggered.

6. The sensor of claim 4 , wherein the sub-upper electrode is the circular electrode and the at least two sub-upper electrodes are coplanar and concentric.

7. The sensor of claim 1 , wherein each sub-upper electrode of the at least two sub-upper electrodes is at least one of a conductive carbon cloth electrode, an evaporation metal electrode, a printed electrode, or a spraying metal mesh electrode.

8. The sensor of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is an ionic gel dielectric layer or an insulating material thin film dielectric layer.

9. The sensor of claim 8 , wherein the dielectric layer is the ionic gel dielectric layer, the ionic gel dielectric layer has a microstructure, and the sensor is configured to, under the action of the microstructure of the ionic gel dielectric layer, determine the second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer according to a contact area between the upper electrode layer and the ionic gel dielectric layer and a contact area between the lower electrode layer and the ionic gel dielectric layer.

10. The sensor of claim 8 , wherein the dielectric layer is the insulating material thin film dielectric layer, the insulating material thin film dielectric layer has a microstructure, and the sensor is configured to, under the action of the microstructure of the insulating material thin film dielectric layer, determine the second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer according to a distance between the upper electrode layer and the insulating material thin film dielectric layer and a distance between the lower electrode layer and the insulating material thin film dielectric layer.

11. The sensor of claim 1 , wherein the lower electrode layer is a conductive thin film electrode layer.

12. A device, comprising:
a controller; and
a sensor array connected to the controller, each sensor in the sensor array comprising:
an upper electrode layer, a dielectric layer, and a lower electrode layer;
an encapsulation layer encapsulating a three-layer sensing structure formed by the upper electrode layer, the dielectric layer, and the lower electrode layer, the encapsulation layer comprising a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer;
a first dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer being attached to a first upper electrode surface of the upper electrode layer;
a second dielectric layer surface of the dielectric layer being attached to a first lower electrode surface of the lower electrode layer, the second dielectric layer surface being opposite to the first dielectric layer surface; and
the upper electrode layer comprising at least two sub-upper electrodes arranged in an array, an electrode gap existing between the at least two sub-upper electrodes, wherein
distance information from an approaching object being determined according to first capacitance information at the electrode gap, and
an acting force acting on a contact object being determined according to second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer under action of the dielectric layer.

13. The device of claim 12 , wherein
the first encapsulation layer is encapsulated on a second upper electrode surface of the upper electrode layer, the second upper electrode surface is opposite to the first upper electrode surface;
the second encapsulation layer is encapsulated on a second lower electrode surface of the lower electrode layer, the second lower electrode surface is opposite to the first lower electrode surface.

14. The device of claim 12 , wherein each sub-upper electrode of the at least two sub-upper electrodes is an interdigital electrode and the at least two sub-upper electrodes are coplanar and staggered.

15. The device of claim 12 , wherein each sub-upper electrode of the at least two sub-upper electrodes is an circular electrode and the at least two sub-upper electrodes are coplanar and concentric.

16. The device of claim 12 , wherein the dielectric layer is an ionic gel dielectric layer, the ionic gel dielectric layer has a microstructure, and under the action of the microstructure of the ionic gel dielectric layer, the second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer is determined according to a contact area between the upper electrode layer and the ionic gel dielectric layer and a contact area between the lower electrode layer and the ionic gel dielectric layer.

17. The device of claim 12 , wherein the dielectric layer is an insulating material thin film dielectric layer, the insulating material thin film dielectric layer has a microstructure, and under the action of the microstructure of the insulating material thin film dielectric layer, the second capacitance information between the upper electrode layer and the lower electrode layer is determined according to a distance between the upper electrode layer and the insulating material thin film dielectric layer and a distance between the lower electrode layer and the insulating material thin film dielectric layer.

18. A sensing method, performed by the device of claim 12 , the method comprising:
in response to an approaching object approaching the device, obtaining a first capacitance information set by acquiring, with a controller of the device, first capacitance information at an electrode gap of each sensor in a sensor array

Assignees

• Tencent Tech Shenzhen Co Ltd

Inventors

• Dai Yuan
• Zhang Zhengyou
• Guo Chuanfei
• Lu Peng

Classifications

• G01L9/0072

  using variations in capacitance · CPC title

• H03K2017/9604

  characterised by the number of electrodes · CPC title

• H03K2017/9602

  characterised by the type or shape of the sensing electrodes · CPC title

• H03K17/9622

  using a plurality of detectors, e.g. keyboard · CPC title

• G01L9/12

  by making use of variations in capacitance {, i.e. electric circuits therefor} · CPC title