User interface for white goods and associated multi-channel proximity sensors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8976158-B2
Application number	US-201414229913-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 29, 2014
Priority date	Feb 15, 2009
Publication date	Mar 10, 2015
Grant date	Mar 10, 2015

Abstract

A touch sensor including a housing, a light guide mounted in the housing the light guide featuring an aperture through which light exits and enters the light guide, and an inner surface facing the interior of the housing, the sensor further includes two light emitters mounted in the housing for emitting light beams into the light guide that exit the aperture at diverging angles and a light receiver mounted in the housing for receiving reflected light beams entering the aperture at an angle of incidence different than the diverging angles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A touch sensor comprising:
a housing;
a light guide mounted in said housing comprising:
an outer surface through which light exits and enters said housing; and
three reflective or refractive inner surfaces;

two light emitters mounted in said housing in such a way that light beams emitted by the two light emitters into said light guide are re-directed by two of said inner surfaces and exit said outer surface; and
a light receiver mounted in said ho…

Assignees

• Neonode Inc

Inventors

• Eriksson Thomas
• Holmgren Stefan
• Henriksson Carl Richard
• Östergårde Stefan

Classifications

• G06F1/169

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06F3/0421 Primary

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06F3/04883

  Physics · mapped topic

• F24C7/086 Primary

  Mechanical Engineering · mapped topic

• G06F3/0428

  Physics · mapped topic