Capacitive sensing with low-frequency noise reduction

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9569037-B2
Application number	US-46619209-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 14, 2009
Priority date	May 19, 2008
Publication date	Feb 14, 2017
Grant date	Feb 14, 2017

Abstract

A method of sensing the presence of a body from a change in an amount of charge present on a capacitively charged key. The method comprises inducing charge onto the key during a drive part of a measurement cycle, coupling a signal measurement capacitor to the key during a signal measurement part of the measurement cycle to the effect that the charge induced on the key during the drive part of the measurement cycle is transferred to the signal measurement capacitor, determining from a noise measurement part of the measurement cycle an amount of charge induced on the key by noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, and controlling the drive part, the signal measurement part and the noise measurement parts of the cycle to provide the charge sensing circuit with a measurement of the signal from which the noise induced on the key has been or can be substantially cancelled.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
inducing charge onto a capacitively charged key using a drive signal during a drive part of a measurement cycle;
transferring, during a signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key during the drive part of the measurement cycle to a signal measurement capacitor;
transferring, during a first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key due to noise to a noise measurement capacitor; and
determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, resulting in a determined noise value.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle is substantially equal in duration to the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the drive part of the measurement cycle, begins before the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, such that the key is pre-charged before the charge induced on the key is transferred to the signal measurement capacitor.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle occurs prior to the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle occurs prior to the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle and the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle both occur during the drive part of the measurement cycle.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor comprises measuring an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor comprises:
discharging the noise measurement capacitor; and
determining an amount of time required to discharge the noise measurement capacitor.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising transferring, during a second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key due to noise to the noise measurement capacitor, the second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle not occurring at the same time as the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle and not occurring at the same time as the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, a combined duration of the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle and the second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle is substantially equal to a duration of the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein:
within the measurement cycle, the second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle occurs prior to the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle; and
within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle occurs prior to the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein:
within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle and the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle both occur during the drive part of the measurement cycle; and
within the measurement cycle, the second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle does not occur during the drive part of the measurement cycle.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor comprises:
measuring a first amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle; and
measuring a second amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the second noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle occurs during the drive part of the measurement cycle; and
within the measurement cycle, the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle does not occur during the drive part of the measurement cycle.

15. An apparatus, comprising:
a driving circuit operable to induce charge onto a capacitively charged key,
a charge sensing circuit comprising:
a signal measurement capacitor; and
a noise measurement capacitor; and

a controller, the controller being operable to perform operations comprising:
controlling the driving circuit to induce charge onto the key during a drive part of a measurement cycle;
controlling the charge sensing circuit to transfer, during a signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key during the drive part of the measurement cycle to the signal measurement capacitor;
controlling the charge sensing circuit to transfer, during a first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key due to noise to the noise measurement capacitor; and
determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, resulting in a determined noise value.

16. A controller operable to perform operations comprising:
controlling a driving circuit to induce charge onto a capacitively charged key during a drive part of a measurement cycle;
controlling a charge sensing circuit, the charge sensing circuit comprising a signal measurement capacitor and a noise measurement capacitor, to transfer, during a signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key during the drive part of the measurement cycle to the signal measurement capacitor;
controlling the charge sensing circuit to transfer, during a first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle, charge induced on the key due to noise to the noise measurement capacitor; and
determining an amount of charge induced on the key due to noise during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle based on an amount of charge transferred to the noise measurement capacitor during the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle, resulting in a determined noise value.

17. The controller of claim 16 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the signal measurement part of the measurement cycle is substantially equal in duration to the first noise measurement part of the measurement cycle.

18. The controller of claim 16 , wherein, within the measurement cycle, the drive part of the measurement cycle begins before th

Assignees

• Yilmaz Esat
• Philipp Harald
• Atmel Corp

Inventors

• Yilmaz Esat
• Philipp Harald

Classifications

• G06F3/0418 Primary

  for error correction or compensation, e.g. based on parallax, calibration or alignment · CPC title

• G06F3/044 Primary

  by capacitive means · CPC title

• H03K17/955

  using a capacitive detector · CPC title

• H03K2217/960705

  Safety of capacitive touch and proximity switches, e.g. increasing reliability, fail-safe · CPC title

• G06F3/0443

  using a single layer of sensing electrodes · CPC title