Electronic device and method of processing user actuation of a touch-sensitive input surface

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016239126-A1
Application number	US-201615137515-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 25, 2016
Priority date	Dec 28, 2012
Publication date	Aug 18, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An electronic device includes a proximity-sensitive touch sensor array which extends along an input surface of the electronic device and a processing device coupled to the touch sensor array. The processing device is configured to process data captured by the touch sensor array to determine a finger angle at which a finger is directed towards the input surface and an actuation position on the input surface. The processing device is configured to establish an offset-corrected actuation position as a function of the actuation position and the finger angle.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An electronic device, comprising:
a proximity-sensitive touch sensor array which extends along an input surface of the electronic device, and a processing device coupled to the touch sensor array, the processing device being configured to:
process the data captured by the touch sensor array to determine a finger angle at which a finger is directed towards the input surface and an actuation position on the input surface, and
establish an offset-corrected actuation position as a function of the actuation position and the finger angle by adding an offset to the actuation position on the input surface or subtracting an offset from the actuation position on the input surface, wherein the processing device is configured to establish a magnitude of the offset as a function of the finger angle.

2 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to determine a variation in distance of the finger from the input surface in a spatially resolved manner and to derive the finger angle from the variation in distance.

3 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the touch sensor array comprises a conductive pattern for capacitive touch and proximity sensing, and the processing device is configured to determine the finger angle from sensed capacitance values.

4 . The electronic device of claim 3 ,
wherein the conductive pattern comprises a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns, and wherein the processing device is configured to determine the finger angle based on self-capacitance measurements of the plurality of rows and self-capacitance measurements of the plurality of columns.

5 . The electronic device of claim 4 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to determine the actuation position based on mutual capacitance measurements between rows and columns of the conductive pattern.

6 . The electronic device of claim 4 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to derive the finger angle from a gradient of self-capacitances of rows and a gradient of self-capacitances of columns.

7 . The electronic device of claim 4 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to carry out a row scan to perform the self-capacitance measurements for the plurality of rows and a column scan to perform the self-capacitance measurements for the plurality of columns, and to derive the finger angle from data obtained in the row scan and data obtained in the column scan.

8 . The electronic device of claim 4 ,
wherein the processing device is a controller coupled to the conductive pattern and configured to provide the offset-corrected actuation position to an application processor of the electronic device.

9 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
further comprising a force sensor configured to determine a force with which the finger is pressed against the input surface or multiple fingers are pressed against the input surface, wherein the processing device is configured to determine a force offset as a function of the finger angle and to derive an offset-corrected force value from an output of the force sensor and the force offset.

10 . The electronic device of claim 9 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to derive a direction of the force sensed by the force sensor based on the finger angle.

11 . The electronic device of claim 9 ,
wherein the electronic device is configured to perform an operation in response to the offset-corrected force value.

12 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to establish the magnitude of the offset such that it approximately corresponds to a discrepancy between a position where a user thinks that the finger has touched the input surface and the actuation position determined based on the data captured by the touch sensor array.

13 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the processing device is configured to predict an expected fingerprint of the finger using the finger angle.

14 . The electronic device of claim 4 ,
wherein the processing device is further configured to derive a finger orientation from the data captured by the touch sensor array, the finger orientation defining a direction of a projection of the finger onto the input surface, and to establish a direction of the offset as a function of the finger orientation.

15 . The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the actuation position comprises a z-coordinate which depends on a force applied by the finger onto the input surface, wherein the processing device is configured to establish an offset-corrected z-coordinate as a function of the z-coordinate of the actuation position and the finger angle.

16 . The electronic device of claim 1 , further comprising:
an application processor coupled to the processing device to receive the offset-corrected actuation position, the application processor being configured to perform an operation which is selected in dependence on the offset-corrected actuation position.

17 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the processing device is configured
to detect a multi-touch input operation in which at least one further finger touches the input surface at at least one further actuation position, to determine at least one further finger angle at which the at least one further finger is directed towards the input surface, and to establish at least one further offset-corrected actuation position as a function of the at least one further actuation position and the at least one further finger angle.

18 . A method of processing a user actuation of an input surface of an electronic device, the method comprising:
capturing data using a proximity-sensitive touch sensor array which extends along the input surface of the electronic device, processing the data captured by the touch sensor array to determine a finger angle at which a finger is directed towards the input surface and an actuation position on the input surface, and establishing an offset-corrected actuation position as a function of the actuation position and the finger angle by adding an offset to the actuation position on the input surface or subtracting an offset from the actuation position on the input surface, wherein a magnitude of the offset is established as a function of the finger angle.

Assignees

• Sony Mobile Communications Inc

Inventors

• Midholt Magnus
• Thörn Ola
• De Léon David
• Mårtensson Linus
• Rasmusson Jim

Classifications

• G06F2203/04104

  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 title

• G06F3/03547

  Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface · CPC title

• G06F3/0488 Primary

  using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures · CPC title

• G06F3/041

  Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means · CPC title

• G06F2203/04108

  Touchless 2D- 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 without distance measurement in the Z direction · CPC title