TWI584183B - Touch panel - Google Patents

Description

Touch panel [Cross-Reference to Related Applications]

This application claims to be filed on February 9, 2015 at the US Patent and Trademark Office and is granted the US Provisional Application No. 62/113,697, and claims to file an application with the Korea Intellectual Property Office on August 27, 2014. And was granted a Korean patent application with serial number 10-2014-0112467, a Korean patent application filed on June 5, 2015 at the Korea Intellectual Property Office and awarded the serial number 10-2015-0080201, and in 2015 The application of the Korean Patent Application No. 10-2015-0095482 is filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on July 3, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates to a touch panel and a coordinate measuring system having the same. More specifically, the present invention relates to a touch panel capable of measuring an input position of a stylus and a coordinate measuring system having the same.

Recently, the prevalence of smart phones or personal computers (PCs) has been actively carried out, and techniques for embedded touch position determining devices have been actively carried out. The development of the surgery has also been actively carried out. A smart phone or tablet PC includes a touch screen, and the user can use a finger or a stylus to specify the specific coordinates of the touch screen. The user can input a specific signal to the smart phone by specifying the specific coordinates of the touch screen.

The touch screen can be operated based on an electrical scheme, an infrared scheme, and an ultrasonic scheme, and examples of the electrical operation scheme may include a resistive (R) type touch screen or a capacitive (C) type touch screen.

According to the prior art, a resistive touch screen capable of simultaneously recognizing a user's finger and a stylus has been widely used. Then, the resistive touch screen has a problem caused by reflection of an air layer between the respective indium tin oxide (ITO) layers.

Therefore, capacitive touch screens have recently been widely used. Here, the capacitive touch screen refers to a touch screen operated by a method of sensing a difference in capacitance of a transparent electrode generated by an object touch. However, in the case of a capacitive touch screen, since it is difficult to physically distinguish the hand from the pen, the capacitive touch screen has a disadvantage in that an unintentional touch by the hand may occur when the pen is used. The resulting operational error.

According to the prior art for solving the above disadvantages, the following method is used to distinguish between a hand and a pen: a method of performing a process using only a software that distinguishes a hand from a pen according to a touch area; and a method including a separate position determining device, such as a capacitor removal The type touches the electromagnetic resonance (EMR) scheme other than the screen.

However, the software solution may not completely reduce the error caused by the unintentional touch of the hand, and the EMR solution has a separate position determining device, so it has The problem of increased installation space, weight and cost.

Therefore, there is a need to develop a technology that can distinguish between a hand and a pen without adding a separate position determining device.

At the same time, in the case of a stylus, it is also necessary to be able to increase the sensitivity of the stylus in order to ensure that the stylus can be sensed without using an internal power source, because the stylus is preferred due to the inconvenience, cost and weight of the battery replacement. It operates in a passive program.

The above information is provided as background information only to assist in understanding the present invention. As to whether any of the above can be suitably used as the prior art relating to the present invention, no judgment or assertion is made.

Aspects of the present invention are intended to address at least the above problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages set forth below. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention are directed to a touch panel capable of improving signal sensitivity for detecting a position of a stylus, and a coordinate measuring system having the same.

According to an aspect of the invention, a touch panel is provided. The touch panel includes: a channel electrode unit configured to include an electrode, the electrode including a plurality of first electrodes disposed along a first direction and a plurality of first portions disposed along a second direction crossing the first direction a second electrode; and a control unit configured to: apply a driving signal to the electrode in the channel electrode unit in units of a plurality of electrodes, and transmit the driving signal to the proximity of the touch panel by capacitive coupling a resonant circuit of the stylus, and receiving the resonant circuit from the stylus from each of the plurality of electrodes A raw response signal is determined to determine the position of the stylus including the resonant circuit.

The channel electrode unit may detect a capacitance between the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes during proximity of a touch object, and the control unit may calculate the plurality of first electrodes A change in capacitance between the electrodes at a plurality of electrode intersections formed between the plurality of second electrodes, and determining a position of the touch object based on the calculated change in capacitance.

The control unit may determine the tip including the resonant circuit based on a ratio between a response signal received from the plurality of first electrodes and a ratio between response signals received from the plurality of second electrodes The position of the pen.

The control unit may apply the same driving signal to all of the plurality of first electrodes.

The plurality of first electrodes may be divided into a plurality of subgroups in units of a plurality of electrodes that are continuously disposed, and the control unit may simultaneously apply the same driving signal to all of the first electrodes in one subgroup.

The control unit may simultaneously apply the driving signal to the electrode that receives the maximum response signal among the plurality of first electrodes and the electrode within a preset distance from the electrode that receives the maximum response signal.

The control unit may simultaneously apply the driving signal to at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and at least one of the plurality of second electrodes.

The touch panel may further include: a driving unit configured to apply the driving signal to at least two of the plurality of first electrodes; and a receiving unit Receiving the response signal of each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in a section in which the driving signal is not applied, wherein the control unit is based on the receiving unit The response signal received is determined to include the position of the stylus of the resonant circuit.

The receiving unit may sequentially receive the response signals of each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes.

The control unit may control the driving unit and the receiving unit to apply the same driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes and receive each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes The response signals of one are alternated.

The receiving unit may include: an amplifying unit configured to amplify the received response signal and output an amplified response signal; an analog-to-digital (ADC) unit configured to convert the amplified response signal into a digital signal; and a signal processing unit for extracting a preset frequency component from the response signal converted into the digital signal.

The receiving unit may receive the response signals of each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in parallel in units of a plurality of channels.

The receiving unit may simultaneously receive the response signal from at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and at least one of the plurality of second electrodes.

The receiving unit may include: a parallel amplification unit for amplifying each of the response signals received from the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes; an analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) unit For amplifying the plurality of responses Each of the numbers is converted into a digital signal; and a signal processing unit is configured to extract a preset frequency component from a difference between the plurality of response signals converted into the digital signal.

The receiving unit may include: a differential amplifying unit configured to differentially amplify a difference between the response signals of the plurality of first electrodes and the two electrodes of the plurality of second electrodes, and output differentially amplified Respond to the signal.

The receiving unit may include: a differential amplifying unit configured to differentially amplify a difference between the response signals of the plurality of first electrodes and the two electrodes of the plurality of second electrodes, and output differentially amplified a response signal; an analog-to-digital conversion unit for converting the differentially amplified response signal into a digital signal; and a signal processing unit for extracting a preset frequency component from the response signal converted into the digital signal .

The control unit may control the channel electrode unit to ground at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in a section receiving the response signal.

The control unit may control the channel electrode unit to ground at least one electrode other than the electrode to which the driving signal is applied in a section to which the driving signal is applied.

The control unit may apply the same first driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes that are continuously disposed, and the one of the plurality of first electrodes except the first electrode to which the first driving signal is applied At least one of the first electrodes applies a second drive signal having a phase difference of 180° from the first drive signal.

The control unit may sequentially divide the electrodes into a first subgroup, a second subgroup, and a third subgroup based on the electrodes that receive the maximum response signal, and apply the electrodes in the first subgroup. The same first driving signal causes the electrodes in the second subgroup to be grounded or floating, and applies a second driving signal having an opposite phase to the first driving signal to the electrodes in the third subgroup.

The control unit may determine a position of the stylus and a position of the touch object, apply the same first driving signal to the plurality of electrodes corresponding to the position of the stylus, and pair the touch The plurality of electrodes corresponding to the position of the object apply a second driving signal having a phase difference of 180° from the first driving signal.

The control unit may simultaneously apply driving signals having different phases to at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and at least one of the plurality of second electrodes.

The control unit may determine the first driving signal applied to the first electrode according to a position of the first electrode to which the first driving signal is applied and the second electrode to which the second driving signal is applied a phase difference between the second driving signal applied to the second electrode.

The touch panel may further include: a first driving unit configured to simultaneously apply the driving signal to at least two of the electrodes when the stylus is sensed; and the second driving unit is configured to Sensing the driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes when the object is touched; the first receiving unit is configured to: when the stylus is sensed, in a section where the driving signal is not applied Receiving the response signal from each of the electrodes; and a second receiving unit for sensing the touch object Receiving the response signal from the plurality of second electrodes in a section in which the driving signal is applied.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a coordinate measuring system is provided. The coordinate measuring system includes: a touch panel for collectively applying a driving signal in units of a plurality of electrodes; and a stylus for forming a capacitance with at least one of the plurality of electrodes and forming a capacitance Receiving energy for resonance, wherein the touch panel receives a response signal generated by the stylus near the touch panel from each of the plurality of electrodes to determine the stylus position.

Other aspects, advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the <RTIgt;

10‧‧‧Hand

100‧‧‧Touch panel

110, 110'‧‧‧ channel electrode unit

111-1~111-6, 111-45~111-47‧‧‧ first electrode

111-a‧‧‧First subgroup

111-b‧‧‧Second subgroup

112-1~112-6, 112-61~112-63‧‧‧second electrode

120‧‧‧Control unit

130‧‧‧ drive unit

130-1‧‧‧First drive unit

130-2‧‧‧Second drive unit

140‧‧‧ Receiving unit

140-1‧‧‧First receiving unit

140-2‧‧‧second receiving unit

141, 141-1, 141-2, 141-3‧‧‧ amplifying unit

142, 142-1, 142-2, 142-3‧‧‧ differential amplification unit

143, 143-1, 143-2, 143-3‧‧‧ analog digital conversion (ADC) units

144‧‧‧Signal Processing Unit (or Digital Signal Processor (DSP))

144'‧‧‧Signal Processing Unit (or Digital Signal Processor (DSP))

145-1, 145-2, 145-3‧‧‧Differential Amplifying Unit

146-1, 146-2, 146-3, 146-4‧‧‧ amplifying unit

147-1, 147-2, 147-3‧‧ ‧ subtractor

147-4‧‧‧Inverter

147-5, 147-6, 147-7‧‧ ‧ adder

148-1, 148-2, 148-3‧‧‧ second amplification unit

149-1, 149-2, 149-3‧‧‧Differential amplification unit

150‧‧‧Microcontroller Unit (MCU)

160‧‧‧ Connection unit

161‧‧‧First connection unit

162‧‧‧Second connection unit

200, 200’, 200” ‧ ‧ stylus

210‧‧‧Electrical tip

220, 220', 220" ‧ ‧ resonant circuit unit

221‧‧‧Inductors

222‧‧‧ capacitor

224‧‧‧Variable Capacitors

225‧‧‧second capacitor

226‧‧‧ switch

230‧‧‧ Grounding unit

300‧‧‧Coordinate Measuring System

311‧‧‧Control unit

312‧‧‧ drive unit

313‧‧‧ Capacitance

313-1, 313-2, 313-3‧‧‧ first capacitor

314‧‧‧second capacitor

315‧‧‧fourth capacitor

316‧‧‧ Third capacitor

317‧‧‧ fifth capacitor

801~812‧‧‧electrode

A‧‧‧Shell/point

B, C, D‧‧ points

Cb1, Cb2, Cb3‧‧‧ capacitor

C_bg, C_cb, C_pb, C_pg‧‧‧ capacitor

C_cp, C_cp1, C_cp2, C_cp3‧‧‧ capacitor

Ct1, Ct2‧‧‧ capacitor

S1~S12‧‧‧ applied drive signal

S4410, S4420, S4430‧‧‧ operations

VA, VB‧‧‧ drive signals

VB-VA‧‧‧Variance difference

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of certain embodiments of the present invention will become more apparent from A block diagram of the configuration of the system.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the touch panel shown in Fig. 1.

3 is a circuit diagram of the touch panel shown in FIG. 1.

4 is a diagram for explaining an operation of applying a driving signal of a channel electrode unit, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 5 is a diagram of an input according to a drive signal, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention The number of electrodes to the length of the signal generated by the stylus.

6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of determining a position of a touch object, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, 8L, 9A, 9B, 9C And Figure 9D is a diagram illustrating the operation of determining the position of an object having a resonant circuit, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

10 and 11 are diagrams illustrating a connection state between a touch panel and a stylus in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Figure 12 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a situation in which a stylus is disposed between a plurality of electrodes, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 13 is a simplified equivalent circuit diagram of a case where the capacitance value is sufficiently large in the equivalent circuit diagram shown in Fig. 12.

Figure 14 is a diagram illustrating the state of connection between a touch panel, a hand, and a stylus, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

15A and 15B are diagrams respectively illustrating a scheme of applying a plurality of driving signals in an ideal situation and a real situation, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

16 is a diagram illustrating the effect of a response signal transmitted to a hand, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 17 is a diagram illustrating an application operation of a drive signal in a situation in which a hand is touched, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

18A to 18C are diagrams illustrating the effect of the applying operation as illustrated in FIG. figure.

Figure 19 is a diagram illustrating an application operation from a driving signal having a channel electrode unit in the form illustrated in Figure 3.

Figure 20 is a diagram illustrating the effect of the delay of drive signal transmission from an electrode, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

21A and 21B are diagrams illustrating an effect of the applying operation as illustrated in Fig. 20.

Figure 22 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 23 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

24 and 25 are diagrams for explaining the operation of the differential amplifier shown in Fig. 23.

Figure 26 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 27 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 28 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 29 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 30 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 31 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 32 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 33 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 34 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 35 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 36 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a thirteenth embodiment of the present invention.

37A, 37B, and 37C are diagrams illustrating the operation of the receiving unit according to the fourth to thirteenth embodiments of the present invention.

Figure 38 is a diagram for explaining the operation of a receiving unit in accordance with a fourteenth embodiment of the present invention.

39A and 39B are diagrams illustrating the operation of a connection unit in the case of receiving a response signal, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Figure 40 is a diagram for explaining the detailed configuration of the stylus shown in Figure 1.

Figure 41 is a circuit diagram of the stylus shown in Figure 1.

Figure 42 is a circuit diagram of a stylus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 43 is a circuit diagram of a stylus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

44 is a flow chart illustrating a method of controlling a touch panel, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals will be understood to refer to the same parts, components and structures.

The following description is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the various embodiments of the invention as defined by the appended claims. The description includes various specific details to assist in the understanding of the invention. Therefore, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the various embodiments described herein without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions or constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The words and phrases used in the following description and claims are not intended to be Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited by the scope of the accompanying claims.

It is to be understood that the singular forms "a", "the" and "the" Thus, for example, reference to "a component surface" includes reference to one or more such surfaces.

The terms "first", "second", etc. can be used to describe different components, but Components are not limited by the terms. The terms are only used to distinguish between components.

In the present invention, the terms "comprising" and "consisting of" indicate the existence of features, numbers, operations, components, components or combinations thereof in the specification, but do not exclude one or more other features, numbers, The possibility of the presence or addition of an operation, component, component, or combination thereof.

In various embodiments of the invention, a "module" or "unit" performs at least one function or operation and may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. In addition to the "modules" or "units" that must be implemented in a specific hardware, a plurality of "modules" or a plurality of "units" can be integrated into at least one module and can have at least one processor (Fig. Not shown) implementation.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a coordinate measuring system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the coordinate measuring system 300 includes a touch panel 100 and a stylus 200.

The touch panel 100 can determine whether the touched object is a stylus 200 having a resonant circuit or a touch object such as a hand (or more specifically, a finger). In addition, the touch panel 100 can determine a driving scheme of the driving signal and a processing scheme of the response signal by a position determining scheme corresponding to the type of the determined object, thereby performing appropriate position determination corresponding to each object. Here, in the case where the touch object and the stylus are simultaneously touched, the touch panel 100 may ignore the touch of the touch object, and only the position of the stylus may be determined.

The touch panel 100 can determine the position of the object by a scheme corresponding to the determined object. Specifically, in the case of determining that the touched object is a stylus, the touch panel 100 can determine the position of the stylus 200 by a different scheme from that for identifying the touched object. Specifically, the touch panel 100 includes a plurality of electrodes and applies a driving signal to the electrodes, thereby making it possible to transmit the driving signals to the resonant circuit of the stylus near the touch panel 100 by capacitive coupling. . Here, the touch panel 100 can simultaneously apply a driving signal to the plurality of electrodes. In this case, the touch panel 100 may apply driving signals having the same phase to the plurality of electrodes, or may apply driving signals having different phases to the respective electrodes by considering the position of the stylus 200.

Further, the touch panel 100 can receive a response signal caused by the resonant circuit of the stylus 200 from each of the plurality of electrodes to determine the position of the stylus 200 including the resonant circuit. The detailed configuration and operation of the touch panel 100 will be explained below with reference to FIG. Here, the touch panel 100 can be a touch pad, a touch screen, or a notebook computer, a mobile phone, a smart phone, a portable media player (PMP), an animation expert group stage 1 or stage. 2 (MPEG-1 or MPEG-2) Audio Layer 3 (MP3) player and analogs including touch pads or touch screens.

In addition, when it is determined that the touched object is a touch object such as a hand, the touch panel 100 can determine the touch using a capacitance change between the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes caused by the approach of the touch object. The position of the object. The above-described operation of determining the position of the touch object will be explained below with reference to FIG.

In addition, in the case of determining that the stylus 200 and the hand are simultaneously touched, the touch The panel 100 can ground or float the electrode in the area where the hand is located so that the driving signal transmitted to the stylus 200 is not transmitted to the hand, or the driving in the region where the opponent is located can be driven with a different phase from the corresponding driving signal. Signal. The operation of the above-described touch panel 100 will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 10 to 19.

The stylus 200 can form a capacitance with at least one of the plurality of electrodes in the touch panel 100 and can receive energy for resonance via the formed capacitance.

In addition, the stylus 200 can transmit a response signal caused by the resonant circuit to at least one of the touch panel 100. The above-described stylus 200 can be used as a pen shape, but is not limited thereto. The detailed configuration and operation of the stylus 200 will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 40 to 43.

As described above, in the coordinate measuring system 300 according to the present embodiment of the present invention, since the touch panel 100 provides the driving signal to the stylus pen 200 by capacitive coupling, the stylus pen 200 can be used even when it is not self-powered. Operation.

Meanwhile, although FIG. 1 illustrates a case where the touch panel 100 determines only the position of the stylus 200 including the resonance circuit, the touch panel 100 may also sense the capacitance change of the electrode related to the position of the finger or by the capacitance The change in signal size caused by the change determines the position of the finger. The above-described operation of determining the position of the finger will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Meanwhile, although FIG. 1 illustrates a case where a stylus pen 200 is connected to the touch panel 100, one touch panel 100 may be connected to a plurality of stylus pens when the coordinate measuring system is implemented. In this case, the touch panel 100 can sense the position of each of the plurality of styluses.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the touch panel shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to FIG. 2, the touch panel 100 may be configured to include a channel electrode unit 110 and a control unit 120.

The channel electrode unit 110 may include a plurality of electrodes. Specifically, the channel electrode unit 110 may include the plurality of electrodes arranged in a matrix form. For example, the channel electrode unit 110 may include a plurality of first electrodes disposed along a first direction and a plurality of second electrodes disposed along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The form and operation of the plurality of electrodes included in the channel electrode unit 110 will be explained below with reference to FIG.

The control unit 120 can determine whether the touch object is a touch object (for example, a hand) or a stylus (for example, a pen) according to the received response signal in the channel electrode unit 110. Specifically, in the case where the response signal of the specific frequency is received in the section where the driving signal is not applied immediately after the application of the driving signal is completed, the control unit 120 may determine that the touched object is a stylus, such as a pen.

In contrast, in the case where the response signal of the specific frequency is not received immediately after the application of the driving signal is completed, the control unit 120 may determine that the touched object is a touching object, such as a hand. The above determination of the touch object can be performed periodically and when the initial response signal is received.

For example, the control unit 120 may determine whether there is a user's touch during the process of sensing the position of the stylus, and may utilize one for sensing, for example, in the case where the touch of the stylus is no longer sensed. A method of touching an object by hand to generate a driving signal. In contrast, the control unit can determine the process of sensing the position of the user's hand. Whether there is a touch (or hovering) of the stylus in the middle, and the driving signal for sensing the position of the stylus can also be generated in the case where the position of the hand is no longer sensed.

Further, the control unit 120 may perform position determination of the object according to the type of the determined object. Hereinafter, the operation of determining the position of the stylus will be first explained.

First, the control unit 120 applies a driving signal to the electrodes in the channel electrode unit 110, thereby making it possible to transmit the driving signal to the resonance circuit of the object close to the touch panel 100 by capacitive coupling. In this case, the control unit 120 may apply the same driving signal to the electrodes in the channel electrode unit 110 in units of a plurality of electrodes.

For example, the control unit 120 may apply the same driving signal to all the plurality of electrodes in the preset period unit, and may apply the same driving signal to all the plurality of electrodes disposed in the same direction. The same driving signal is commonly applied to several electrodes adjacent to each other among the plurality of electrodes disposed in the same direction, or the same driving signal may be commonly applied to the two electrodes crossing each other. The above application scheme is only an example, and the control unit 120 can also apply the driving signal by a scheme other than the above description as long as it can apply the driving signal to the two or more electrodes together and simultaneously.

In addition, in practice, the application scheme of the driving signal can also be determined based on the size of the received response signal. For example, in the case where it is determined that the stylus 200 touches the touch panel 100 because the size of the response signal is large, the control unit 120 may apply the driving signal only to the two electrodes; and the size of the response signal is small. Determining that the stylus 200 is in a hover state hovering over the touch panel 100, the control unit 120 can simultaneously apply a drive signal to the six electrodes. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D.

Meanwhile, in a case where the control unit 120 senses a touch object (for example, a hand) instead of the stylus 200, the control unit 120 may apply the first driving signal to the electrode on which the stylus 200 is expected to be present as described above, and A second driving signal having a phase difference of 180 from the first driving signal is applied to the electrode on which the touching object (for example, the hand) is expected to be present. Here, the first driving signal and the second driving signal are driving signals having the same frequency but having opposite phases (ie, a phase difference of 180°). The above operation will be explained below with reference to Figs. 11 to 19 .

In addition, the control unit 120 can cause the electrode on which the stylus 200 is not expected to be present at the receiving timing of the response signal (ie, in the section where the driving signal is not applied) to be grounded, and can only be received from the electrode that is not grounded. Respond to the signal. The above operation will be explained below with reference to Figs. 39A and 39B.

Further, control unit 120 may receive a response signal caused by the resonant circuit of stylus 200 from each of the plurality of electrodes to determine the position of the stylus. Specifically, the control unit 120 may receive a response signal from each of the plurality of electrodes in a section where no driving signal is applied, and may be based on a response signal received from each of the plurality of electrodes The ratio between them determines the position of the stylus 200.

For example, in a case where the plurality of electrodes are arranged in a matrix such that the plurality of first electrodes are disposed in a first direction and the plurality of second electrodes are disposed in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction Control unit 120 may be based on a ratio between response signals received from the first electrode and a response received from the second electrode The ratio between the signals determines the position of the stylus 200.

In this case, the control unit 120 can increase the sensitivity of the response signal by performing various signal processing on the received response signal. Specifically, the control unit 120 may perform an operation of amplifying each of the plurality of received response signals, performing differential amplification on a difference between the plurality of response signals, or extracting only specific frequency components. Improve the sensitivity of the response signal. A detailed signal processing scheme of the control unit 120 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 22 through 36.

In addition, the control unit 120 may sense the touch pressure of the stylus 200 based on the change of the resonant frequency of the received response signal, or may sense the operation mode of the stylus 200 based on the change of the resonant frequency of the received response signal. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 41 and 42.

Meanwhile, in a case where it is determined that the object is a touch object such as a hand, the control unit 120 may calculate between the electrodes at the intersection of the plurality of electrodes formed between the first electrode and the second electrode The capacitance and the position of the touching object can be determined based on the calculated capacitance. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Specifically, in order to sense the position of a touch object (eg, a hand) that does not include the resonant circuit, the control unit 120 may apply a driving signal to at least one of the plurality of first electrodes, and may be based on the self-described A response signal received by each of the plurality of second electrodes to calculate a capacitance between the electrodes at an intersection of the plurality of electrodes formed between the first electrode and the second electrode. Here, the driving signal can be a pulse signal having a binary value.

In addition, in order to sense a touch object (eg, a hand) that does not include a resonant circuit a position, the control unit 120 may apply a signal encoded by the different digit codes to the plurality of first electrodes, and perform a response signal for the response signal received from each of the plurality of second electrodes Decoding of the applied digital code, thereby calculating a capacitance between the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes.

Further, the control unit 120 may determine the intersection having the largest capacitance change as the position of the touch object based on the calculated capacitance of each intersection.

As described above, since the touch panel 100 according to the present embodiment supplies the driving signal to the stylus pen 200 by capacitive coupling, the stylus pen 200 can operate even when it is not self-powered. Furthermore, since the touch panel 100 according to the present embodiment of the present invention collectively supplies driving signals to the plurality of electrodes, the touch panel 100 can supply more energy to the stylus 200. Therefore, since the stylus 200 generates a large response signal, the receiving sensitivity can be improved. In addition, since the touch panel 100 according to the present embodiment performs various signal processing for the received response signal, the receiving sensitivity for the response signal can be improved.

Hereinabove, although only the basic configuration of the touch panel 100 has been illustrated and explained, the touch panel 100 may further include configurations other than the above configuration. For example, in the case where the touch panel 100 is a touch screen, the display configuration may be further included; and in the case where the touch panel 100 is a device such as a smart phone, a PMP, etc., the display may further include a display, a storage unit, Communication configuration, etc.

3 is a circuit diagram of the touch panel shown in FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 3, the touch panel 100 may be configured to include a channel electrode unit 110 and a control unit 120.

The channel electrode unit 110 may include a plurality of electrodes. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the channel electrode unit 110 may include a first electrode group 111 and a second electrode group 112 disposed in different directions.

The first electrode group 111 may include a plurality of first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 disposed in a first direction (eg, a horizontal direction). Here, the first electrode as the transparent electrode may be indium tin oxide (ITO). The plurality of first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in the first electrode group 111 may be used to sense a position of a finger The transmitting electrode of the predetermined transmission signal (Tx signal) is transmitted.

The second electrode group 112 may include a plurality of second electrodes 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6 disposed in a second direction (eg, a vertical direction). Here, the second electrode as the transparent electrode may be indium tin oxide (ITO). The plurality of second electrodes 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6 in the second electrode group 112 may be used to sense the position of the finger Receiving a receiving electrode of a received signal (Rx signal) caused by a Tx signal input from the first electrode.

Meanwhile, when the position of the stylus is sensed, the first electrode and the second electrode may be a transmitting electrode and a receiving electrode that transmit a signal in the Tx section according to the driving section and receive a signal in the receiving section.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where each electrode group includes only six electrodes, in practice, seven or more than seven, or five or fewer than five electrodes may be implemented to implement the electrode group. . Further, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where the shape of the electrode in the electrode group is a simple rectangle, the shape of each electrode at the time of implementation The shape can also be used as a more complicated shape.

The control unit 120 is configured to include a driving unit 130, a receiving unit 140, a microcontroller unit (MCU) 150, and a connecting unit 160.

The driving unit 130 applies a driving signal to the channel electrode unit 110 at a predetermined timing. The drive signal can be a sinusoidal signal having a predetermined resonant frequency.

The receiving unit 140 receives the response signal from each of the electrodes in the channel electrode unit 110 in the section where the driving signal is not applied. Specifically, the receiving unit 140 may sequentially receive the response signals of the plurality of electrodes in units of a single electrode. Alternatively, the receiving unit 140 may simultaneously receive the response signal in units of a plurality of electrodes. In this case, in order to receive a plurality of response signals simultaneously, the receiving unit 140 may include a plurality of amplifying units. The above examples will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 27 to 35.

In addition, the receiving unit 140 can perform various signal processing for the received response signal. For example, the receiving unit 140 can amplify each response signal by using an amplifier. The above example will be explained below with reference to FIG. In addition, the receiving unit 140 can perform signal processing for differentially amplifying the response signal in units of two response signals. The above example will be explained below with reference to FIG. In addition, the receiving unit 140 may perform signal processing for extracting only information in the preset frequency region from the received response signal. The above example will be explained below with reference to FIG.

The MCU 150 can control the driving unit 130, the receiving unit 140, and the connecting unit 160 such that the application of the driving signals to the electrodes alternates with the reception of the response signals. For example, the MCU 150 can control the driving unit 130 to be at the first time The same driving signal is simultaneously applied to the plurality of first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6, and the receiving unit 140 can be controlled to be applied. A response signal of at least one electrode (eg, electrode 111-1) is received in a second time period following the drive signal. Then, the MCU 150 can control the driving unit 130 to again pair the plurality of first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in the third time zone. The same driving signal is applied, and the receiving unit 140 can be controlled to receive a response signal of the other electrode (for example, the electrode 111-2) in the fourth time period after the driving signal is applied. Furthermore, the MCU 150 can repeat the above process as much as the number of times the response signal is received for the plurality of electrodes. In the illustrated example, since the channel electrode unit 110 includes twelve electrodes, the MCU 150 can alternately perform twelve application and reception operations. The above operation will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, and 8L.

In addition, when receiving a response signal for the plurality of electrodes, the MCU 150 may be based on responses received by the first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6. The ratio between the signals and the ratio between the response signals received by the second electrodes 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6 determine the position of the stylus.

For example, if the size of the response signal of the first electrode 111-3 is larger than the size of the response signals of the other first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6, and the second The size of the response signal of the electrode 112-2 is larger than the size of the response signals of the other second electrodes 112-1, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6, and the MCU The position at which the first electrode 111-3 and the second electrode 112-2 cross each other may be determined as the position of the stylus 200.

At the same time, in practice, the interpolation method can be used to more accurately determine the stylus 200 by using the ratio between the response signal of the electrode receiving the maximum response signal and the response signal received by the electrode adjacent to the corresponding electrode. s position. For example, in the case where the distance between the first electrodes is 4 mm, when the position of the stylus 200 is determined by the position at which the first electrode and the second electrode cross each other, the recognition resolution is 4 mm. On the other hand, when interpolation is used, a resolution of 0.1 mm can be realized.

The connection unit 160 may selectively connect the plurality of electrodes to the driving unit 130, or may selectively connect the plurality of electrodes to the receiving unit 140. Specifically, the connecting unit 160 can connect the electrode to which the driving signal is to be applied to the driving unit 130 according to the control of the MCU 150. In this case, the connection unit 160 can enable the electrode to which the drive signal is not applied to be grounded or floated.

In addition, the connecting unit 160 may enable at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and the second electrodes to be grounded in a section where no driving signal is applied (ie, in a time section in which the response signal is received). The above operation will be explained below with reference to Figs. 39A and 39B.

Meanwhile, although the above description explains the case where the MCU 150 controls the connection unit 160, in practice, the driving unit 130 can control the connection unit 160 when the driving signal is applied, and the receiving unit 140 can also control when receiving the response signal. Connection unit 160.

Above, although the above description sets forth the plurality of the first electrode groups The first electrodes collectively apply the same driving signal, but in practice, the same driving signal may be commonly applied to the plurality of second electrodes in the second electrode group, and may also be applied to the first electrode group. The plurality of first electrodes and the second electrodes in the group and the second electrode group collectively apply the same driving signal. In addition, a driving signal may be applied using a scheme other than the above. Hereinafter, various examples of applying a driving signal will be explained with reference to FIGS. 4 to 9.

Meanwhile, although the case where the plurality of electrodes are arranged in a matrix form has been explained in the description and explanation of FIG. 3, in practice, the plurality of electrodes may be provided in a form other than the matrix form.

Meanwhile, although FIG. 3 illustrates and illustrates the case where the control unit 120 includes only one driving unit and one receiving unit, in practice, the control unit 120 may also be configured to include a plurality of driving units and a plurality of receiving units. The above example will be explained below with reference to FIG.

4 is a diagram for explaining an operation of applying a driving signal of a channel electrode unit, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 4, the channel electrode unit 110' includes a plurality of electrodes 111 and 112. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the channel electrode unit 110' may include a first electrode group 111 and a second electrode group 112 disposed in different directions. In this case, the first electrode group 111 is divided into a plurality of sub-groups 111-a and 111-b in units of a plurality of electrodes that are continuously disposed. In the illustrated example, the first electrode group 111 can be divided into a first sub-group 111-a and a second sub-group 111-b.

The control unit 120 can be based on the stylus 200 sensed in the previous process The location determines the subgroup to which the drive signal is to be applied. Moreover, control unit 120 can collectively input the same drive signal for all of the electrodes in the determined subgroup.

For example, if the position of the stylus 200 sensed in the previous process is a position where the first electrode 111-3 and the second electrode 112-2 cross each other, the control unit 120 may change the first subgroup of the corresponding position. The group 111-a is determined to be a subgroup to which the drive signal is to be input, and the same drive signal can be simultaneously input to the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in the first subgroup 111-a.

In this case, the control unit 120 can cause the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, 111-6, 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, to which the driving signal is not applied, And 112-6 is grounded or floating.

Meanwhile, although the case where the subgroups are pre-divided has been explained above, the subgroups may be dynamically changed at the time of implementation. For example, the control unit 120 may select an electrode (eg, the electrode 111-3) that receives the maximum response signal during the previous sensing process and the electrodes 111-2 and 111- within a predetermined distance from the corresponding electrode 111-3. 4 is determined to be a subgroup to which the drive signal is to be input at the same time. The determination of the subgroups can be performed in units of a time period employed in detecting the position of the stylus.

Further, although the case where the subgroups are formed only in the electrode groups disposed in the same direction has been described above, at the time of implementation, at least one of the electrodes 111-3 and the second electrode group 111 may be At least one of the electrodes 112-2 in the electrode group 112 is determined to be a subgroup. That is, the driving signal may be simultaneously applied to at least one of the first electrode group 111 and at least one of the second electrode groups 112.

In this way, according to the embodiment, since the same driving signal is simultaneously applied to the plurality of electrodes, the energy transmitted to the stylus can be increased. This will be explained below with reference to FIG. 5.

Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the magnitude of the signal produced by the stylus based on the number of electrodes to which the drive signal is input, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 5, it can be understood that as the number of electrodes to which the driving signal is input increases, the intensity of the signal generated by the stylus increases.

Specifically, the energy transmitted from the touch panel 100 to the stylus 200 is determined by the driving voltage and capacitance between the electrode and the tip of the stylus, and when the number of electrodes to which the driving signal is applied is increased, the electrode and the stylus The capacitance between them increases such that the magnitude of the signal produced by the pen increases in proportion to the increased capacitance.

Further, when the size of the signal generated by the stylus pen 200 is increased, the response signal caused by the touch panel 100 is also increased, thereby making it possible to improve the sensitivity of the response signal.

Therefore, in the case where the touching object is a stylus, the control unit 120 according to the present embodiment of the present invention can apply the driving signal in units of a plurality of electrodes. In contrast, in the case where the object to be touched is an object such as a hand, the control unit 120 can apply a driving signal in units of one electrode. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIG.

6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of determining a position of a touch object, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, in the case where it is determined that the touched object is a touch object such as the hand 10, the control unit 120 may apply the drive signal in units of one electrode. specific In other words, the control unit 120 can input telecommunication only to the first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 of the plurality of electrodes according to a preset order. number.

For example, the control unit 120 may apply a driving signal to the first electrode 111-1 in a preset first time period, and may sequentially receive the plurality of second electrodes during a process in which the driving signal is applied. Response signals received by each of 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6.

In addition, in the case of receiving the response signal from the plurality of second electrodes, the control unit 120 applies a driving signal to the first electrode 111-2 in the second time period, and may be during the process in which the corresponding driving signal is applied. The response signals received from each of the plurality of second electrodes 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6 are sequentially received.

Further, the control unit 120 may repeat the above process for the subsequent first electrode. Since the illustrated example includes six first electrodes, the control unit 120 can perform six driving signal application operations, and can perform six receiving operation of the response signals during each process of applying the driving signals.

Meanwhile, although the above has described the case where the response signal is received in units of one channel (that is, in units of one electrode), in practice, the reception of the response signal can be performed in units of a plurality of channels. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 6, after the signal is applied to the first electrode 111-3, the measurement of the response signals to the three second electrodes 112-3, 112-4, and 112-5 can also be performed simultaneously. .

Meanwhile, at the time of implementation, the above process can be performed only for the first electrode around the measured position according to the position measured in the previous process (ie, by only The measurement task is performed more quickly for performing measurements on some of the first electrodes.

In addition, the control unit 120 may detect the intensity change of the response signal based on the response signal from the second electrode for each of the plurality of first electrodes in the previous process, and may determine the touch based on the detected intensity change. The position of the object.

For example, in the case where the intensity of the response signal received from the three second electrodes for the three first electrodes is as described in Table 1, it can be determined that the values in Table 1 correspond to the first electrode and the second electrode. The capacitance change at the intersection. Therefore, since the change in the signal intensity at the first electrode 111-3 and the second electrode 112-3 is the largest, it can be determined that the user's touch occurs at the corresponding point.

7A, 7B, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, 8L, 9A, 9B, 9C And Figure 9D is a diagram illustrating the operation of determining the position of an object having a resonant circuit, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 7A and 7B, the control unit 120 can be based on the previous process The sensed position of the stylus 200 determines the subgroup to which the drive signal is to be applied. For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, in the case where it has been determined that the stylus 200 is located above the first electrode 111-3 in the previous process, the control unit 120 may set the three first electrodes 111-2, 111-3 And 111-4 are determined as subgroups to which the drive signal is to be simultaneously applied. In addition, the control unit 120 can jointly input the same driving signal to the electrodes (eg, 111-2, 111-3, and 111-4) in the determined subgroup.

In the case where the same driving signal is input to the three first electrodes instead of the one first electrode as explained, the magnitude of the signal generated by the stylus 200 is increased as illustrated in FIG. Therefore, even in a state where the stylus 200 is slightly spaced apart from the touch panel 100 as shown in FIG. 7B and is not in contact with the touch panel 100 (ie, the hovering state), the response signal of the stylus 200 can be transmitted to Each electrode. Therefore, the touch panel 100 according to the present embodiment can receive an air command from a user.

In addition, the control unit 120 can receive the response signal from the electrode in units of a preset number of electrodes. Further, the control unit 120 may alternately perform the application of the driving signal and the reception of the response signal as described above. The above operation will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, and 8L.

8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, and 8L, in the illustrated figures, indicated by black The line is the electrode to which the drive signal is applied, and the hashed line is the line from which the response signal is measured. Based on this, referring to FIG. 8A, the control unit 120 can apply a drive to the electrodes 111-2, 111-3, and 111-4 in the predetermined first subgroup. Signal.

Further, after a preset time after the driving signal is applied, the control unit 120 may receive the response signal from the first electrode 111-2 as illustrated in FIG. 8B. Further, even after the preset time unit, as illustrated in FIG. 8C, the control unit 120 may apply a driving signal to the electrodes 111-2, 111-3, and 111-4 in the first subgroup again. Further, the control unit 120 can receive the response signal of the first electrode 111-3 as the next electrode as illustrated in FIG. 8D.

That is, the control unit 120 can apply a driving signal (FIG. 8A, FIG. 8C, FIG. 8E, FIG. 8G, FIG. 8I, and 8K) at a timing such as a preset period unit. In addition, the control unit 120 can sequentially receive the response signals of the plurality of electrodes between the segments to which each driving signal is applied (ie, the segment in which the driving signal is not applied), as shown in FIG. 8B, FIG. 8D, and FIG. 8F, 8H, 8J, and 8L are illustrated.

Further, the control unit 120 can determine the position of the stylus based on the response signal received from each electrode. Specifically, the control unit 120 may determine the position of the stylus 200 based on a ratio between a response signal received from the first electrode and a response signal received from the second electrode.

Meanwhile, although reference has been made to 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, and 8L, only from twelve electrodes The six electrodes receive the response signal, but this is only an implementation example, and in practice, the response signal can also be received from all twelve electrodes. In addition, in practice, it may be implemented in the form of receiving response signals from only five or fewer electrodes. In addition, the electrode receiving the response signal is not fixed, but can be based on the previous The number and position of the electrodes are selected by the coordinates of the object being measured during the process.

Further, although reference has been made to 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 8G, 8H, 8I, 8J, 8K, and 8L, the application is performed in units of one subgroup. The case of driving the signal, but the subgroup can be adaptively determined according to the size of the response signal. This will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D.

Referring to FIGS. 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D, in a state where the tip pen touches the touch panel 100 as illustrated in FIG. 9B, it is not necessary to use a plurality of channels to transmit the drive signal. Therefore, the control unit 120 can only allow the first electrode 111-3 corresponding to the previously sensed position to transmit the drive signal.

Meanwhile, in the hovering state in which the tip pen is not touched by the touch panel as illustrated in FIGS. 9A, 9C, and 9D, the control unit 120 may allow the first electrode corresponding to the previously sensed position and correspond to the previous feeling. The first electrode around the first electrode of the measurement position transmits the drive signal together. Here, hovering means a state in which the stylus does not touch the touch panel but is spaced apart from the touch panel by a predetermined distance. In addition, the hover can be divided into a general hover, a low hover, and a high hover according to the distance, and the above classification can be performed according to the magnitude of the sensed response signal.

For example, in the case where the size of the previously sensed response signal is weak, that is, in the case where the distance between the stylus and the touch panel is large (in the case of a high hover as illustrated in FIG. 9D) The control unit 120 can allow the plurality of vertical electrodes (the second electrode) and the plurality of horizontal electrodes (the first electrodes) to transmit the driving signals so that more resonant signals are compared to the low hovering as illustrated in FIG. 9C. Can be sent to the right Shoulder pen.

That is, the control unit 120 can determine the number of electrodes to which the driving signal is to be transmitted based on the maximum size of the response signal. For example, in the case where the maximum response signal is the preset first size or greater than the first size (ie, it is determined that the touch has been made), the control unit 120 may only use the first electrode from which the maximum response signal is received. 111-3 applies a drive signal. In addition, in a case where the maximum response signal is smaller than the first size and is smaller than the second size of the first size or larger than the second size (ie, in the case of low hovering), the control unit 120 may The driving signals are simultaneously applied to the first electrodes 111-2 and 111-4 in an electrode which are within the preset range with the first electrode 111-3 having the largest response signal. In addition, in a case where the maximum response signal is smaller than the second size (ie, in the case of a high hovering), the control unit 120 may be the first electrode 111-3 having the largest response signal among the plurality of first electrodes. The first electrodes 111-2 and 111-4 in a preset range, and the second electrodes 112-4 in the plurality of second electrodes and the second electrodes 112-5 having the largest response signals are within a preset range And 112-7 simultaneously apply the driving signal.

Meanwhile, although only the case where the number of electrodes to be simultaneously applied with the driving signal is changed based on the magnitude of the response signal is described above, as long as another scheme capable of measuring the distance between the stylus and the touch panel is provided, it can be utilized. Corresponding scheme to change the number of electrodes.

Meanwhile, in the above, in the case where only the touch object (for example, the user's hand) touches the touch panel, or only the tip pen touches the touch panel, it has been explained that the touch position or the tip pen of the user's hand is determined. The situation of the tip position. However, even in In the case of a stylus, the tip of the stylus and the user's hand can also be placed on the touch panel at the same time. The driving scheme in which the driving signal is changed according to the case where the hand is additionally provided, and the variation of the driving signal is considered will be described below with reference to FIGS. 10 to 19.

10 and 11 are diagrams illustrating a connection state between a touch panel and a stylus in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, in the case where the stylus 200 is disposed between the plurality of electrodes 112-2 and 112-3, the stylus 200 and each of the plurality of electrodes 112-2 and 112-3 One forms a separate capacitor 313, wherein the capacitor 313 is connected to the drive unit 312 of the control unit 311. Therefore, the two drive signals are transmitted to the stylus 200 such that more energy is transmitted to the stylus 200 as described in FIG. Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where the stylus 200 forms a capacitance only with two electrodes, it is representative for convenience of explanation that the capacitance formed between the stylus 200 and the electrode greatly affects the magnitude of the response signal. Ingredients.

Meanwhile, the stylus 200 may be configured to include the conductive tip 210, the resonant circuit unit 220, and the grounding unit 230 as illustrated in FIG. 11, wherein the grounding unit 230 is coupled to the housing of the stylus 200 and grasps the stylus at the user In the case of 200, it is grounded via the body of the user. An equivalent circuit diagram of the above connection state will be described in FIG. Meanwhile, the detailed configuration and operation of the stylus 200 will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 40 to 43.

FIG. 12 is an equivalent circuit diagram of a case where the stylus pen 200 is disposed between the plurality of electrodes 112-2 and 112-3, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 12, the touch panel 100 and the stylus 200 may be connected to each other via a plurality of capacitors. Specifically, the electrodes of the touch panel 100 are connected to the resonant circuit of the stylus 200 via the first capacitors 313-1, 313-2, and 313-3 formed between the electrodes and the conductive tips of the stylus.

Here, the first capacitors 313-1, 313-2, and 313-3 are formed by the capacitances C_cp1, C_cp2, and C_cp3 between the conductive tips 210 of the stylus 200 and the respective electrodes of the touch panel 100. As described above, since the stylus 200 is disposed between the electrode 112-2 and the electrode 112-3, a large capacitance is formed between the electrode near the stylus and the tip of the pen compared to the electrode which is far apart.

One end of the resonant circuit unit 220 is connected to the first capacitors 313-1, 313-2, and 313-3, and the other end of the resonant circuit unit 220 is commonly connected to the second capacitor 314 and the third capacitor 316. Here, the capacitor and inductor forming the resonant circuit in the stylus 200 have a capacitance value and an inductance value for generating a preset response signal.

The second capacitor 314 is a capacitance C_pg between the housing of the stylus 200 (ie, the ground unit) and the ground of the touch panel 100.

The third capacitor 316 is a capacitance C_pb between the housing of the stylus 200 (ie, the ground unit) and the user's hand. Further, the third capacitor 316 is connected to the ground of the touch panel 100 via the fourth capacitor 315. Here, the fourth capacitor 315 is a capacitance C_bg between the user's hand and the ground of the touch panel 100.

Figure 13 is a simplified equivalent circuit diagram of a case where the capacitance value is sufficiently large in the equivalent circuit diagram shown in Figure 12, and Figure 14 is a view showing the touch surface according to an embodiment of the present invention. A drawing of a connection state between a board, a hand, and a stylus, and FIGS. 15A and 15B are diagrams illustrating a scheme of applying a plurality of driving signals in an ideal situation and a real situation, respectively, according to various embodiments of the present invention. .

Here, in the case where the capacitance values of the second capacitor 314, the third capacitor 316, and the fourth capacitor 315 are sufficiently large, since the impedance at the resonance frequency of the pen becomes extremely small, the equivalent circuit shown in FIG. 12 is as The illustration in Figure 13 is simplified. That is, as illustrated in FIG. 15A, the driving signal is transmitted to the driving circuit unit only via the capacitance formed between the conductive tip of the stylus and the electrode.

However, if it is assumed that the user writes while holding the pen by hand as illustrated in FIG. 14, in addition to the capacitances Ct1 and Ct2 formed between the electrode and the conductive tip, there is also a gap formed between the user's hand and the electrode. Capacitors Cb1, Cb2, and Cb3.

In this connected state, when the same driving signal is applied to the plurality of electrodes 112-2, 112-3, and 112-4 similarly to the previous driving scheme, the driving signals are simultaneously transmitted to the hands and electrodes formed on the user. Capacitors Cb1, Cb2, and Cb3, and capacitances Ct1 and Ct2 formed between the electrodes and the conductive tips of the stylus are as illustrated in FIG. 15B. Since the user's hand is connected to the grounding unit of the stylus 200, the drive signal is transmitted to the ground of the resonant circuit unit.

At the same time, the resonant circuit unit uses the voltage difference transmitted between the signal transmitted through the conductive tip 210 and the grounding unit of the stylus (that is, the housing of the pen in this embodiment) to generate resonance, but when the same driving signal passes through the hand When applied to the grounding unit of the stylus, the voltage difference between the conductive tip of the stylus and the ground is reduced, causing resonance The size of the signal is reduced. The above operation will be explained in detail below with reference to FIG.

Figure 16 is a diagram illustrating the effect of a response signal being transmitted to a hand, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 16, the touch panel 100 and the stylus pen 200 are connected to each other via a plurality of capacitors. Specifically, the electrodes of the touch panel 100 are connected to one end of the resonant circuit unit 220 of the stylus 200 via the first capacitors 313-1 and 313-2, and are also connected to the fifth capacitor 317 and the third capacitor 316 via the fifth capacitor 317 and the third capacitor 316. The other end of the resonant circuit unit 220.

Here, the fifth capacitor 317 is a capacitance C cb between the electrode and the user's hand.

Therefore, the driving signal generated by the channel electrode is transmitted to the housing A of the pen via the capacitance C_cb between the electrode and the user's hand and the capacitance C_pb between the user's hand and the ground unit of the stylus.

As a result, as the driving signal is applied to the grounding unit, the ground of the stylus pen 200 does not have an ideal stable grounding state, and the voltage level changes according to the driving signal. At the same time, the driving circuit unit accumulates the necessary energy by the voltage difference between the point A and the point B, but if the potential of the point A (ie, the grounding unit) moves according to the driving signal, then between the point A and the point B The voltage difference is reduced, thereby reducing the size of the resonant signal.

In order to solve the above problem, according to the present embodiment, in the case where a touch object (for example, a user's hand) and the stylus simultaneously touch the touch panel 100, the drive signal is not applied to the hand that is expected to be provided with the user. Point, or apply to the point A drive signal having a phase difference of 180° does not reduce the magnitude of the resonant signal caused in the stylus. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Figure 17 is a diagram illustrating an application operation of a drive signal in a situation in which a hand is touched, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 17, the user's hand 10 grasps the stylus 200 and is positioned above the touch panel 100. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the conductive tip of the stylus 200 is located above the electrode 806 and the electrode 807, and the user's hand 10 is located above the electrode 806 to the electrode 811.

In this case, the control unit 120 can apply the same first driving signal to the electrode 806 and the electrode 807 on which the stylus 200 is present, and can provide the electrodes 803, 804 disposed adjacent to the electrode to which the first driving signal is applied. 809 and 810 apply a second driving signal having a phase difference of 180 from the first driving signal.

In this case, the control unit 120 can allow the electrodes 801, 802, 805, 808, 811, and 812 to which the first driving signal and the second driving signal are not applied to be grounded. Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that the grounded electrodes 805 and 808 are disposed between the electrode to which the first driving signal is applied and the electrode to which the second driving signal is applied, in practice, the first driving is applied. The electrodes of the signal and the electrode to which the second driving signal is applied can be continuously disposed. In addition, the control unit 120 can also allow the corresponding electrodes 801, 802, 805, 808, 811, and 812 to have a floating state instead of grounding the corresponding electrodes 801, 802, 805, 808, 811, and 812. Here, the floating state means that the corresponding specific electrode is open and not grounded or connected to other circuit configurations.

The following will be explained with reference to FIGS. 18A, 18B, and 18C. The effect of the program.

18A, 18B, and 18C are diagrams illustrating effects of the application operation as illustrated in Fig. 17. Specifically, FIG. 18A illustrates the voltage across the resonance circuit in the case where the drive signal is transmitted to the ground unit of the stylus 200 via the hand (specifically, the voltage between the point B and the point A shown in FIG. 16). Figure 18B illustrates the voltage across the resonant circuit (specifically, the voltage between point B and its point A shown in Figure 16) in the case where the grounding unit of the stylus is provided with an ideal ground, and Figure 18C illustrates the phase difference. The second driving signal of 180° is a voltage across the resonant circuit in the case where the electrode provided with the hand is driven and transmitted to the grounding unit of the stylus according to the present embodiment (specifically, the point shown in FIG. 16 The voltage between B and its point A).

Referring to Figures 18A, 18B, and 18C, in the case where all of the electrodes are driven by driving signals having the same phase as shown in Fig. 16 (i.e., in the case shown in Fig. 18A), they have the same phase as the pen tip. The driving signal is also transmitted to the grounding unit of the stylus via the capacitance C_cb between the electrode and the hand and the capacitance C_pb between the hand and the stylus. Therefore, the voltage difference (VB-VA) for driving the resonance circuit is remarkably lowered as compared with the case where the drive signal is not guided to the hand. That is, in the case where the driving signal is transmitted to the grounding unit of the stylus 200 via the hand, the voltage difference across the resonant circuit unit 220 is lowered, and thus the energy available for resonance is lowered.

Referring to Fig. 18B, since the grounding unit of the stylus has an ideal ground, the voltage VB applied to the pen tip can be used for resonance. Specifically, since the driving signal is transmitted only to one end of the resonant circuit of the stylus, the driving signal VB can be used to generate the response signal of the resonant circuit as it is.

Referring to Fig. 18C, since the driving signal having a phase difference of 180 is supplied to the ground of the stylus, the voltage difference across the resonant circuit is increased as compared with the case of ideal grounding. Therefore, the energy available for resonance can be increased, and thus the stylus can generate a larger-sized resonance signal. That is, according to the present invention, in order to produce the effect as described in FIG. 18C, the control unit 120 provides the area where the user's hand is present above (or the area where the user's hand is expected to be present) with the stylus pen above. The zone has drive signals of different phases.

Meanwhile, although the above has been described above in which only the operation of the second electrode is performed as described above, in practice, the driving signal can be similarly applied to the electrodes arranged in a matrix form as illustrated in FIG.

Figure 19 is a diagram illustrating an application operation from a driving signal having a channel electrode unit in the form illustrated in Figure 3.

Referring to FIG. 19, the channel electrode unit is continuously divided into first subgroups 111-3, 111-4, 112-3, and 112-4, and second subgroup 111-2 based on the electrode receiving the maximum response signal. 111-5, 112-2, and 112-5, and third subgroups 111-1, 111-6, 112-1, and 112-6. In addition, the control unit 120 can simultaneously apply a general first driving signal to the first subgroups 111-3, 111-4, 112-3, and 112-4. In this case, the control unit 120 may ground or float the second subgroups 111-2, 111-5, 112-2, and 112-5, and may be paired with the third subgroup 111-1, 111- 6. 112-1, and 112-6 apply a second driving signal having a phase difference of 180 from the first driving signal.

The driving signal can be simultaneously transmitted to the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein the driving signal transmitted from the first electrode and the driving signal transmitted from the second electrode are according to the tip The position of the pen has a phase difference. This will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 20 to 21B.

Figure 20 is a diagram illustrating the effect of the delay of drive signal transmission from an electrode, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 20, it is assumed that the stylus pen 200 is located near the first electrodes 111-5 and 111-6 and the second electrodes 112-5 and 112-6. In this case, the control unit 120 can simultaneously apply the same driving signal to the first electrodes 111-5 and 111-6 and the second electrodes 112-5 and 112-6.

Therefore, the driving signal generated by the driving unit 130 is transmitted to the stylus via the point A and the point B, and is also transmitted to the stylus via the point C and the point D.

Meanwhile, a transparent electrode can be used as the electrode for touching the screen, wherein the resistance value from the beginning portion to the end portion of the channel of the transparent electrode is several tens of kilohms (kΩ). In addition, since the channel electrode has a parasitic capacitance formed with the peripheral conductor, the signal passing through the channel electrode has a delay due to the high resistance of the channel electrode and the parasitic capacitance between the peripheral conductor and the channel electrode. That is, as the distance from the start point of the channel electrode to the point where the pen is located increases, the delay of the drive signal increases.

Therefore, if the same driving signal is applied to the first electrode 111-6 and the second electrode 112-6 as illustrated in FIG. 20, the driving signal is first transmitted to the stylus 200 via the second electrode 112-6, and the driving signal is The predetermined delay time is transmitted to the stylus 200 via the first electrode 111-6. Therefore, the two drive signals transmitted to the stylus 200 do not have the same phase but have a predetermined phase difference.

21A and 21B are diagrams illustrating an effect of the applying operation as illustrated in Fig. 20.

Specifically, in the case where signals having the same phase are applied to the points A and C as illustrated in FIG. 21A, since the driving signals transmitted to the point B via the point A and the driving signals transmitted to the point D via the point C have The different path lengths are such that the two drive signals are subjected to different resistances and parasitic capacitances, thereby having different phases rather than the same phase. As a result, in the case where the two driving signals transmitted to the stylus 200 have a phase difference, a relatively small signal is transmitted to the stylus as compared with the case of transmitting the driving signal having the same phase. In order to solve the resonance signal attenuation phenomenon caused by the phase difference between the signals of different paths as described above, as illustrated in FIG. 21B, the driving signal applied to the point A and the driving signal applied to the point C can be artificially applied. A phase difference is formed between them. In this case, when the pre-formed artificial phase difference is adjusted to cancel the natural phase difference formed while the signal passes through the electrodes having different lengths, the point B and the point closest to the actual point where the stylus is located At D, the phase difference between the signals transmitted to the tip of the stylus 200 can be minimized.

Therefore, the control unit 120 according to the present embodiment can perform control such that the first driving signal applied to the first electrode and the second driving signal applied to the second electrode have different phase differences depending on the position where the stylus is sensed. . For example, as illustrated in FIG. 21B, the driving signal applied to the point A is applied to be delayed for a predetermined time so that the phases of the driving signals transmitted from the point B and the point D to the pen tip may be the same.

Meanwhile, at the time of implementation, the delay time information for each position of the intersection of the first electrode and the second electrode where the pen tip exists above is stored in the lookup table, and the control unit 120 can be sensed according to the previous process. The position of the stylus delays the driving signal applied to the specific electrode to the time value of the lookup table value, and then applies the Drive signal.

Figure 22 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140 according to the first embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention in which the response signal is amplified to thereby increase the sensitivity.

Referring to FIG. 22, the receiving unit 140 may include an amplifying unit 141.

The amplifying unit 141 amplifies the response signal transmitted from each electrode and outputs the amplified signal. Specifically, the amplifying unit 141 can be implemented by an amplifier, one of the two input terminals of the amplifier is grounded and the other input terminal receives the response signal.

In this way, the receiving unit 140 uses the amplifying unit 141 to amplify the signal and use the amplified signal, thereby improving the receiving sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, in the illustrated example, since the receiving unit 140 includes only one amplifying unit 141, as many echo signals are processed as the number of the plurality of electrodes in order to process the response signals of the plurality of electrodes. Therefore, at the time of implementation, a plurality of amplification units can be utilized to reduce the processing time as illustrated in FIG.

Figure 23 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140' according to the second embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention in which the response signal is differentially amplified to remove noise to thereby increase sensitivity.

Referring to FIG. 23, the receiving unit 140' may include a differential amplifying unit 142.

The differential amplifying unit 142 differentially amplifies the plurality of response signals transmitted from the plurality of electrodes, and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, the differential amplifying unit 142 It can be implemented by an amplifier, one of the two input terminals of the amplifier receives a response signal and the other input terminal receives a response signal. This amplifier can be the same as the one shown in Figure 22, and can also be a differential amplifier. The operation principle of the differential amplifying unit 142 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 24 and 25.

24 and 25 are diagrams for explaining the operation of the differential amplifier shown in Fig. 23.

Referring to Figure 24, the signals typically received from the electrodes include noise and desired signals. This noise degrades the quality of the signal, thereby reducing the sensitivity of the system. In the case of displaying noise generated from the display, the noise is introduced into all channels while having similar levels.

Therefore, in the case where the difference between the two response signals is amplified as illustrated in Fig. 25, the noise components cancel each other and only the difference between the signals is amplified, thereby making it possible to obtain good signal quality.

Therefore, the receiving unit 140' according to the second embodiment of the present invention amplifies the two response signals received from the two electrodes, thereby making it possible to remove the noise contained in the two response signals.

At the same time, one of the two response signals received by the differential amplification unit 142 can be continuously changed, but the other can be fixed to either of the two response signals or can be changed. For example, the differential amplifying unit 142 may differentially amplify the response signals of the two electrodes that are consecutively adjacent to each other (first scheme) (for example, after differentially amplifying the first electrodes 111-1 and 111-2, Differential amplification of the first electrodes 111-2 and 111-3), differentially amplifying the response signals of the two electrodes So that they do not overlap each other (second scheme) (for example, differential amplification of the first electrodes 111-3 and 111-4 after differential amplification of the first electrodes 111-1 and 111-2), or may be one The response signal of the electrode and the response signal of the other electrodes are differentially amplified (third scheme) (for example, after differentially amplifying the first electrode 111-1 (preset) and 111-2, the first electrode 111-1 And 111-3 for differential amplification). In the case of the third aspect, the electrode used as a preset may be a separate electrode for removing noise, not a channel electrode unit 110 for measuring a position.

As a result, the receiving unit 140' according to the second embodiment of the present invention can utilize the differential amplifying unit 142 to remove noise, thereby making it possible to improve the receiving sensitivity.

Meanwhile, in the illustrated example, since the receiving unit 140' includes only one amplifying unit 141, as many echo signals as the number of the plurality of electrodes are required to process the response signals of the plurality of electrodes. Therefore, at the time of implementation, a plurality of differential amplification units can be utilized to reduce processing time as illustrated in FIG.

Figure 26 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140" according to the third embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention in which only the signal corresponding to the preset frequency band is extracted to thereby increase the sensitivity of the response signal.

Referring to FIG. 26, the receiving unit 140" may include an amplifying unit 141, an analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) unit 143, and a signal processing unit (or digital signal processor (DSP)) 144.

The amplifying unit 141 sequentially puts each response signal transmitted from each electrode Large, and output amplified signal.

The ADC unit 143 can convert the amplified response signal into a digital signal.

The signal processing unit 144 may extract a preset frequency component from a difference between the plurality of response signals converted into digital signals.

As mentioned above, the signals received from the electrodes include noise and desired signals. In order to effectively remove the noise, according to the present embodiment, the signal processing unit 144 can be utilized to extract only the frequency components corresponding to the frequency region of the response signal.

As a result, the receiving unit 140" according to the third embodiment of the present invention can remove the noise component by extracting only the preset frequency component, thereby making it possible to improve the receiving sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, in the illustrated example, since the receiving unit 140" includes only one amplifying unit 141, as many echo signals are processed as the number of the plurality of electrodes in order to process the response signals of the plurality of electrodes. Therefore, at the time of implementation, a plurality of amplification units can be utilized to reduce the processing time as illustrated in FIG.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where only the response signal of the second electrode in the second electrode group 112 is amplified, the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group may be amplified.

Figure 27 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140''' according to the fourth embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention in which the response signal is amplified to increase the sensitivity and utilize a plurality of amplifiers to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 27, the receiving unit 140"' may include a plurality of amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3.

Each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 can be implemented by an amplifier, and in the first receiving section, the respective amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 can simultaneously The response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 are amplified and the amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 can simultaneously amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6. Signal.

As a result, the receiving unit 140''' according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. For example, the processing speed may become three times faster than the situation shown in Figures 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 only amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each The amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrodes in the second electrode group.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where the amplifying unit is composed of only three amplifiers, in practice, the amplifying unit may be constituted by two amplifiers or four or more amplifiers (for example, six amplifiers).

Figure 28 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′ according to the fifth embodiment is the present invention in which the response signal is differentially amplified to remove noise to improve sensitivity, and An embodiment that utilizes multiple differential amplifiers to increase sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 28, the receiving unit 140"" may include a plurality of differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3.

Each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 differentially amplifies the two response signals transmitted from the two electrodes and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 can be implemented by a differential amplifier to respectively face the electrodes 111-1, 111-3, and 111-5, and the electrodes 111-2 and 111. The two response signals of -4 and 111-6 are differentially amplified and output the amplified signal.

As a result, the receiving unit 140'"' according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. For example, the processing speed can become three times faster than the situation shown in FIG.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 differentially amplifies only the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, Each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 may also differentially amplify the response signal of the second electrode in the second electrode group. In addition, in practice, each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 may differentially amplify the electrodes in the first electrode group and the electrodes in the second electrode group.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where the differential amplifying unit is composed of only three amplifying units, the differential amplifying unit may also be composed of two differential amplifying units or four or more differential amplifying units (for example, six differential amplifying units) ) constitutes.

29 is a diagram showing the configuration of a receiving unit according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. The pattern. Specifically, the receiving unit 140'"' according to the sixth embodiment is the method of the present invention for improving the sensitivity of the response signal by extracting only the signal corresponding to the frequency band of the response signal and using a plurality of amplifiers to improve the sensing. An example of speed.

Referring to FIG. 29, the receiving unit 140""" may include a plurality of amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3, a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and signals. Processing unit 144'.

Each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 can amplify the response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in parallel and The amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can convert each of the response signals amplified by the respective amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive a response signal converted into a digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and can be from each of the plurality of response signals The person extracts the preset frequency component.

As a result, the receiving unit 140'"' according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. For example, the processing speed can become three times faster than the situation shown in FIG.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that each of the amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 only amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each The amplifying units 141-1, 141-2, and 141-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrodes in the second electrode group.

Meanwhile, in explaining FIGS. 26 and 29, although the case of using a signal amplified by an amplifier has been described, a differential amplifier may be used instead of the amplifiers shown in FIGS. 26 and 29 in practice. This will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Figure 30 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. According to the seventh embodiment, the receiving unit 140"" is a differential amplification of the response signal to remove noise, and the sensitivity of the response signal is improved by extracting only the signal corresponding to the frequency band of the response signal. An embodiment in which a plurality of differential amplifiers are used to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 30, the receiving unit 140""" may include a plurality of differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3, a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, And a signal processing unit 144'.

Each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 differentially amplifies the two response signals transmitted from the two electrodes and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 may be opposite to the electrodes 111-1, 111-3, and 111-5, and the electrodes 111-2 and 111-4, respectively. The two response signals of 111-6 are differentially amplified and output the amplified signal.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can each of the response signals amplified by the respective differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3. Parallel conversion into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive a response signal converted into a digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and can be from each of the plurality of response signals The person extracts the preset frequency component.

As a result, the receiving unit 140'"'' according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. In addition, the receiving unit 140'"'' according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention removes noise in two operations of differential amplification and specific frequency component extraction, thereby making it possible to improve the sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 amplifies only the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, Each of the differential amplifying units 142-1, 142-2, and 142-3 may also amplify the response signal of the second electrode in the second electrode group.

Figure 31 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140'"" according to the eighth embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention in which the response signal is differentially amplified to remove noise and the plurality of differential amplifiers are used to increase the sensing speed. .

Referring to FIG. 31, the receiving unit 140'"" may include a plurality of differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3.

Each of the differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3 differentially amplifies the two received signals transmitted from the two electrodes and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, one end of each of the differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3 The response signal of any one of the preset two electrodes may be received via the first connection unit 161, and the other end thereof may collectively receive any one of the plurality of electrodes via the second connection unit 162 Receive signals.

For example, in the case of receiving the response signals of the first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3, the first connection unit 161 may be the first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111- Each of 3 is connected to one end of the differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3, and may be connected to the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 that are not connected to the differential amplifying unit Either of them is connected to the other end of the differential amplifying unit.

As a result, the receiving unit 140''"'' according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. In addition, since the differential amplification is performed by using the reception signals of other electrodes that do not use the response signal, the noise in the response signal can be efficiently removed, thereby making it possible to improve the sensitivity of the response signal. Specifically, in the case of amplifying the difference between the signal received from the receiving electrode and the signal received from the reference electrode, only the signal component other than the noise removing component that is commonly introduced to the receiving electrode and the reference electrode is amplified. This makes it possible to increase the dynamic range of the system.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates that each of the differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3 amplifies only the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, Each of the differential amplifying units 145-1, 145-2, and 145-3 may also amplify the response signal of the second electrode in the second electrode group. Moreover, although the illustrated example illustrates the use of only three examples of differential amplification units, in practice, two differential amplification units may be used, or four or more differences may be used. Sub-amplification unit.

Meanwhile, in explaining FIG. 31, although a differential amplifier is used to remove noise, a subtractor circuit different from the amplifier can be used in practice. This will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 32 to 36.

Figure 32 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140'"" according to the ninth embodiment is a dedicated amplifier and subtractor for removing noise in the present invention to improve the sensitivity of the response signal and utilize a plurality of amplifiers. An embodiment to increase the speed of sensing.

Referring to FIG. 32, the receiving unit 140"""" may include a plurality of amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, 146-3, and 146-4, and a plurality of subtractors 147-1, 147-2. And 147-3.

Each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify the response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in parallel. The amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

At the same time, the amplifying unit 146-4 pairs the any of the plurality of electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 via the second connecting unit 162. The received signal is amplified and the amplified signal is output. For example, the amplifying unit 146-4 may be not connected to each amplifying unit 146-1 in the first receiving section, The reception signals of any of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 of 146-2, and 146-3 are amplified, and may be connected to the respective amplification units 146 in the second reception section. The reception signals of any of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 of -1, 146-2, and 146-3 are amplified.

Here, the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, 146-3, and 146-4 may use a trans-impedance amplifier that converts a current input into a voltage output.

Further, each of the subtractors 147-1, 147-2, and 147-3 can output a response signal amplified by each of the amplification units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 and a reception signal amplified by the amplification unit 146-4. The difference between.

As a result, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′ according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. In addition, since the differential amplification is performed by using the reception signals of other electrodes that do not use the response signal, the noise in the response signal can be efficiently removed, thereby making it possible to improve the sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each amplification Units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrode in the second electrode group. Moreover, although the illustrated example illustrates the use of only four examples of amplifying units, three amplifying units may be used in practice, or four or more amplifying units may be used (eg, for each electrode) The response signal is amplified by seven amplification units and used to perform subtraction Calculated by an amplifier).

Figure 33 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140''"" according to the tenth embodiment is a frequency band of the present invention in which only a response signal is extracted by using a dedicated amplifier and a subtractor for removing noise. An embodiment in which the corresponding signal is used to increase the sensitivity of the response signal and utilize multiple amplifiers to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 33, the receiving unit 140""""" may include a plurality of amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, 146-3, and 146-4, and a plurality of subtractors 147-1, 147-2. And 147-3, a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and a signal processing unit 144'.

Each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify the response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in parallel. The amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

At the same time, the amplifying unit 146-4 pairs the any of the plurality of electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 via the second connecting unit 162. The received signal is amplified and the amplified signal is output. For example, the amplifying unit 146-4 may pair the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 that are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 in the first receiving section. Receiving of any of The signal is amplified, and any of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may be connected in the second receiving section. The received signal is amplified.

Further, each of the subtractors 147-1, 147-2, and 147-3 can output a response signal amplified by each of the amplification units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 and a reception signal amplified by the amplification unit 146-4. The difference between.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can convert each of the signals output from the respective subtractors 147-1, 147-2, and 147-3 into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive a response signal converted into a digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and can be from each of the plurality of response signals The person extracts the preset frequency component.

As a result, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′ according to the tenth embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. In addition, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′ according to the tenth embodiment of the present invention removes noise in the two operations of differential amplification and specific frequency component extraction by using the response signals of other electrodes that do not use the response signal. This makes it possible to increase the sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each amplification Units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrode in the second electrode group. Moreover, although the illustrated example illustrates the use of only four examples of amplifying units, in practice, three can be used Amplifying units, or four or more amplifying units (for example, seven amplifying units for amplifying the response signals of the electrodes and an amplifier for performing the subtraction calculation) may also be used.

Figure 34 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to an eleventh embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′′ according to the eleventh embodiment is the present invention by using a dedicated amplifier and subtractor for removing noise and extracting only the response signal. An embodiment in which the frequency band corresponds to a signal to increase the sensitivity of the response signal and utilize multiple amplifiers to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 34, the receiving unit 140""""" may include a plurality of differential amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, 146-3, and 146-4, and a plurality of subtractors 147-1, 147. -2, and 147-3, a plurality of second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3, a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and a signal processing unit 144' .

Each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify the response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in parallel. The amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

At the same time, the amplifying unit 146-4 pairs the any of the plurality of electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 via the second connecting unit 162. The received signal is amplified and the amplified signal is output. For example, zoom in The element 146-4 may pair any of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 that are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 in the first receiving section. The received signal is amplified, and may be in the second receiving section for the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 that are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3. The received signal of either one is amplified.

Further, each of the subtractors 147-1, 147-2, and 147-3 can output a response signal amplified by each of the amplification units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 and a reception signal amplified by the amplification unit 146-4. The difference between.

Each of the second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3 can amplify the signals output from the respective subtractors 147-1, 147-2, and 147-3 in parallel, and output the amplified signals.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can convert each of the signals output from the respective second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3 into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive a response signal converted into a digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and can be from each of the plurality of response signals The person extracts the preset frequency component.

As a result, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′′′ according to the eleventh embodiment of the present invention processes the response signals in parallel in units of three channels, thereby increasing the processing speed. In addition, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′′ according to the eleventh embodiment of the present invention removes the miscellaneous signals in the differential amplification and the specific frequency component extraction by using the response signals of other electrodes that do not use the response signal. In order to increase the sensitivity of the response signal may. In addition, the signal is amplified in two operations, thereby making it possible to further increase the sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each amplification Units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrode in the second electrode group.

Figure 35 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a twelfth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140'''"" according to the twelfth embodiment of the present invention is the present invention by utilizing a dedicated amplifier and subtractor for removing noise and extracting only An embodiment in which the signal corresponding to the frequency band of the response signal is used to increase the sensitivity of the response signal and utilize multiple amplifiers to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 35, the receiving unit 140""""" may include a plurality of amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, 146-3, and 146-4, an inverter 147-4, and a plurality of Adders 147-5, 147-6, and 147-7, a plurality of second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3, and a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 And a signal processing unit 144'.

Each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify the response signals of the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 in parallel. The amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

At the same time, the amplifying unit 146-4 pairs the any of the plurality of electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 via the second connecting unit 162. The received signal is amplified and the amplified signal is output. For example, the amplifying unit 146-4 may pair the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 that are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 in the first receiving section. The receiving signal of any one of the signals is amplified, and the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, which are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3, may be in the second receiving section. The reception signal of any of 111-3 is amplified.

Inverter 147-4 may invert the output of amplification unit 146-4.

Further, the adders 147-5, 147-6, and 147-7 may add the output of the inverter 147-4 to the received signals amplified by the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3, The added signals can be output.

Each of the second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3 can amplify each of the signals output from the adders 147-5, 147-6, and 147-7 in parallel, and output the amplified signals.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can convert each of the signals output from the respective second amplifying units 148-1, 148-2, and 148-3 into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive a response signal converted into a digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and can be from each of the plurality of response signals The person extracts the preset frequency component.

As such, the receiving unit according to the twelfth embodiment of the present invention 140''''''''''''''''''''''''' In addition, the receiving unit 140'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Noise, which makes it possible to increase the sensitivity of the response signal. In addition, the signal is amplified in two operations, thereby making it possible to further increase the sensitivity of the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the illustrated example illustrates the case where each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signal of the first electrode in the first electrode group, in practice, each amplification Units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may also amplify the response signals of the second electrode in the second electrode group.

Figure 36 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a thirteenth embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, the receiving unit 140 ′′′′′′′′′′′′ according to the thirteenth embodiment of the present invention is the present invention in which differential amplification is performed to amplify the response signal and remove the noise by An embodiment in which only the signal corresponding to the frequency band of the response signal is extracted to increase the sensitivity of the response signal and utilize multiple amplifiers to increase the sensing speed.

Referring to FIG. 36, the receiving unit 140'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' 149-2, and 149-3, a plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and a signal processing unit 144'.

Each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 amplifies the response signals transmitted from the respective electrodes in parallel and outputs the amplified signals. Specifically, in the first receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 may be in parallel with the electrodes The response signals of 111-1, 111-2, and 111-3 are amplified and the amplified signal is output. In addition, in the second receiving section, each of the amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 can amplify and output the response signals of the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 in parallel. Zoom in on the signal.

At the same time, the amplifying unit 146-4 pairs the any of the plurality of electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 via the second connecting unit 162. The received signal is amplified and the amplified signal is output. For example, the amplifying unit 146-4 may pair the electrodes 111-4, 111-5, and 111-6 that are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3 in the first receiving section. The receiving signal of any one of the signals is amplified, and the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, and the electrodes 111-1, 111-2, which are not connected to the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3, may be in the second receiving section. The reception signal of any of 111-3 is amplified.

Each of the differential amplifying units 149-1, 149-2, and 149-3 can differentially amplify the signals output from the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3, and output the amplified signals. Specifically, one end of each of the differential amplifying units 149-1, 149-2, and 149-3 may be connected to the output terminals of the respective amplifying units 146-1, 146-2, and 146-3, and the other end thereof may be connected. To the output terminal of the amplification unit 146-4.

Further, each of the ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3 can convert each of the signals output from the respective differential amplifying units 149-1, 149-2, and 149-3 into digital signals.

In addition, the signal processing unit 144' can receive the response signal converted into the digital signal from the plurality of ADC units 143-1, 143-2, and 143-3, and Predetermining frequency components are extracted from each of the plurality of response signals.

As a result, the receiving unit 140''''''''''''''''''''''''''' In addition, the receiving unit 140''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' In addition to noise, it makes it possible to increase the sensitivity of the response signal. In addition, the signal is amplified in two operations, thereby making it possible to further increase the sensitivity of the response signal.

37A, 37B, and 37C are diagrams illustrating the operation of the receiving unit according to the fourth to thirteenth embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 37A, the receiving unit 140 may receive the response signal of the first electrode in units of three channels as illustrated in FIG. 37A. Specifically, first, the same driving signal can be simultaneously applied to the three first electrodes, and the three first electrodes can be simultaneously received after the driving signal is applied (for example, 111-2, 111-3, and 111-4) Response signal. In addition, after receiving the response signal in units of three channels, the application of the same driving signal can be performed again, and the response signals of the three other electrodes can be simultaneously received.

Referring to FIG. 37B, the receiving unit 140 may receive the response signal of the second electrode in units of three channels as illustrated. Specifically, first, the same driving signal can be simultaneously applied to the three first electrodes, and three second electrodes (eg, 112-2, 112-3, and 112- can be simultaneously received after the driving signal is applied). 4) The response signal.

Referring to FIG. 37C, the receiving unit 140 may receive six response signals transmitted from the six electrodes in parallel. Specifically, first, the same driving signal can be simultaneously applied to the three first electrodes, and three first electrodes (eg, 111-2, 111-3, and 111- can be simultaneously received after the driving signal is applied). 4) and the response signals of the three second electrodes (for example, 112-2, 112-3, and 112-4).

As a result, the receiving unit 140 according to the present embodiment processes the response signal in units of a plurality of channels, thereby making it possible to increase the response processing speed. At the same time, the number of channels received can be changed once according to the distance between the stylus and the surface of the touch panel. For example, in the case where the stylus touches the surface, the number of channels simultaneously received can be reduced, and the number of electrodes to be measured can also be reduced. In contrast, in the case where the stylus is spaced apart from the surface, the number of channels simultaneously received can be increased, and the number of electrodes to be measured can also be increased. In practice, the number of channels to be simultaneously measured and the total number of electrodes to be measured may be determined to be in inverse proportion to each other.

Meanwhile, although the above has described a case where a receiving unit receives both the response signal from the stylus 200 and the response signal from the touch object (for example, a hand), in practice, it may be based on the type of the touch object. The response signal is received by different configurations. An example thereof will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Figure 38 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a receiving unit according to a fourteenth embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 38, the touch panel 100' may be configured to include a channel electrode unit 110', a first driving unit 130-1, a second driving unit 130-2, and a first receiving sheet. Element 140-1, second receiving unit 140-2, MCU 150, and connecting unit 160.

The channel electrode unit 110' may have a plurality of electrodes corresponding to the size of the touch panel. For example, in the case where the size of the touch panel is 12.1 inches, the channel electrode unit 110' may include 47 first electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, ... arranged in the horizontal direction. , 111-45, 111-46, and 111-47, and 63 second electrodes 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, ..., 112-61, 112-62 disposed in the vertical direction, and 112-63. Meanwhile, in the case where the size of the touch panel is 5.7 inches, the channel electrode unit may be configured to include 18 first electrodes and 32 second electrodes. Further, in the case where the size of the touch panel is 10.1 inches, the channel electrode unit may be configured to include 39 first electrodes and 52 second electrodes. Meanwhile, although only the dimensions of the three touch panels are mentioned above, the touch panel can be realized in a form having different sizes, and the channel electrode unit can also be constituted by the number of electrodes different from the number of electrodes described above.

The first driving unit 130-1, which is a driving unit that operates when the stylus is sensed, simultaneously applies driving signals to two or more of the plurality of electrodes. Since the operation of the above-described first driving unit 130-1 has been explained in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5, it will not be described again.

The second driving unit 130-2, which is a driving unit that operates when a touch object such as a hand is sensed, applies a driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes. Specifically, the second driving unit 130-2 may apply a driving signal in units of one electrode, or may apply a driving signal in units of a plurality of electrodes. Since the operation of the above-described second driving unit 130-2 has been explained in detail with reference to FIG. 6, the detailed description thereof will not be repeated. Here, touching an object may include, for example, a hand (or more specifically, a finger).

When the stylus is sensed, the first receiving unit 140-1 receives the response signal from each of the plurality of electrodes in the section in which the driving signal is not applied. The first receiving unit 140-1 may be configured in any form of a receiving unit according to various embodiments of the present invention illustrated in FIGS. 22 to 36. For example, the first receiving unit 140-1 may be composed of six amplifiers that can simultaneously amplify six response signals, and an additional amplifier designated to perform differential output on the outputs of the corresponding six amplifiers (also That is, seven amplifiers are constructed.

When the touch object is sensed, the second receiving unit 140-2 receives the response signal from the plurality of second electrodes in the section to which the driving signal is applied. Specifically, while the second driving unit 130-2 applies a driving signal to any one of the first electrodes, the second receiving unit 140-2 may sequentially receive the response signals of the plurality of second electrodes. In this case, the second receiving unit 140-2 may also receive the response signal in units of the plurality of channels. Meanwhile, although the above has explained the case where the driving signal is applied to the first electrode and the response signal is received from the second electrode, in practice, the driving signal may be applied to the second electrode, and the response may be received from the first electrode. Signal.

The MCU 150 may control the first driving unit 130-1, the second driving unit 130-2, the first receiving unit 140-1, the second receiving unit 140-2, and the connecting unit 160 to sense the touched object and according to The driving signal and the response signal are received corresponding to the driving scheme of the sensed object. For example, in the case where the touched object is a stylus, the MCU 150 can control the first driving unit 130-1 and the connecting unit 160 to cause the first driving unit 130-1 to generate a driving signal and provide the driving to the electrode. Signal, and can control the first receiving unit 140-1 and the connecting unit 160 so that the transmission is not transmitted A response signal is received in the section of the motion signal. In addition, in the case where the touched object is a hand, the MCU 150 may control the second driving unit 130-2 and the connecting unit 160 to cause the second driving unit 130-2 to generate a driving signal, and may control the second receiving unit 140- 2 and the connection unit 160 so that the response signal is simultaneously received in the section in which the drive signal is transmitted.

In addition, the MCU 150 can determine the position of the stylus or the position of the hand based on the received response signal.

The connecting unit 160 may selectively connect the plurality of electrodes to the first driving unit 130-1 or the second driving unit 130-2, or may selectively connect the plurality of electrodes to the first receiving unit 140- 1 or a second receiving unit 140-2. Since the detailed operation of the connecting unit 160 has been explained in detail with reference to FIG. 20, the detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

Meanwhile, although the above description only describes the form in which the touch panel is composed of two driving units and two receiving units, in practice, the touch panel can be implemented by one driving unit and two receiving units, and can also be composed of two The drive unit and a receiving unit are implemented. That is, the first driving unit 130-1 and the second driving unit 130-2 can be implemented as one configuration as illustrated in FIG. 3, and the first receiving unit 140-1 and the second receiving unit 140-2 can also be used. Really as a configuration.

At the same time, the signal received by the touch panel 100 is composed of a response signal received from the stylus 200 and a noise introduced via a display, a user's hand, or the like. In order to accurately measure the position of the stylus 200, the response signal of the stylus to be measured needs to have a signal to noise ratio that is larger than the noise introduced for other reasons (signal to noise) Ratio, SNR).

In order to have a high signal-to-noise ratio, there is a method for increasing the size of the response signal and a method for preventing the introduction of noise. Hereinafter, a method for increasing the signal noise ratio will be described in view of the above two methods.

First, the drive sequence according to the present invention includes a Tx section for resonating the stylus 200, and an Rx section for measuring the response signal received from the stylus 200. In the Tx section, the method for increasing the response signal of the stylus is more effective than the method for preventing the introduction of noise. Therefore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, at the timing of applying the driving signal, a driving signal is applied to the plurality of electrodes instead of one of the electrodes. Moreover, in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention, the drive signals are expected to be applied simultaneously to the electrodes on which the stylus will be present, while the other electrodes may be grounded or floated. Since the above operation has been explained, it will not be repeated.

In addition, in order to prevent the driving signal from being transmitted to the ground of the stylus via the user's hand, a driving signal having a phase difference of 180 degrees with respect to the driving signal applied to the electrode on which the stylus is expected to be present may be applied to some of the electrodes.

However, a method of applying a driving signal having a phase difference of 180° to electrodes other than the plurality of nib driving electrodes may be a good method for increasing the size of the response signal of the stylus, but it is necessary to drive the driving electrode other than the nib. A number of electrodes, so power consumption increases. Therefore, in order to reduce power consumption, it is necessary to limit the number of electrodes to which a signal having a phase difference of 180 is applied. As a method for implementing the above, a method in which the position of the user's hand is detected when the user's hand touches the panel and only the user is used, or the like Hand touched part A signal having an opposite phase to the signal applied to the portion touched by the pen tip is applied. In the case of using the above method, the number of electrodes to which a signal having a phase difference of 180 is applied can be minimized.

At the same time, since the size of the response signal of the nib 200 is mainly determined in the Tx section, the method for preventing the introduction of noise can be effective in the Rx section (different from the Tx section). In the case where the user's hand is in close contact with the electrode of the panel, a large amount of noise is introduced by hand. Therefore, the receiving unit 140 simultaneously receives the noise introduced by the hand and the response signal received from the stylus 200. Therefore, in the case where the user performs writing while touching the touch panel with the hand, the signal noise ratio is remarkably lowered as compared with the case where the user writes while leaving the touch panel with the hand. To solve this problem, an electrode other than the plurality of electrodes receiving the response signal of the stylus 200 may be connected to the ground of the receiving terminal. The above examples will be explained below with reference to Figs. 39A and 39B.

39A and 39B are diagrams illustrating the operation of a connection unit in the case of receiving a response signal, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 39A, in the case where the stylus 200 is disposed between the plurality of electrodes 112-2 and 112-3, in order to determine the position of the corresponding stylus 200, it is necessary to measure the second electrodes 112-2, 112-3, And the response signal of 112-4. Accordingly, the control unit 120 can control the connection unit 160 based on the previously sensed position of the stylus 200 such that the plurality of electrodes receiving the response signal and the receiving unit 140 are connected to each other. In this case, the control unit 120 can control the connection unit 160 such that the other electrodes 112-1, 112-5, and 112-6 are grounded.

As a result, since the other electrodes 112-1, 112-5, and 112-6 are grounded, a large part of the noise introduced by the hand is discharged through the ground of the receiving terminal, so that only a small amount of noise is introduced into the receiving. The plurality of electrodes 112-2, 112-3, and 112-4 of the stylus response signal are input to the receiving unit 140. Therefore, the noise component in the input signal input to the receiving unit 140 is reduced, thereby making it possible to increase the signal noise ratio.

Meanwhile, although the above has explained the case where the operation as described above is performed only for the second electrode, in practice, the electrode for not receiving the response signal can be similarly performed on the electrodes arranged in a matrix form as illustrated in FIG. 39B. Grounding process.

Referring to FIG. 39B, in the case where the stylus 200 is disposed between the plurality of electrodes 112-2 and 112-3, in order to determine the position of the corresponding stylus 200, it is necessary to measure the second electrodes 112-2, 112-3, And the response signal of 112-4. Meanwhile, in a case where the receiving unit 140 can receive the response signal in units of three channels, the control unit 120 can control the connection unit 160 based on the position of the previously sensed stylus 200, so that the plurality of the response signals are received. The electrodes 112-2, 112-3, and 112-4 and the receiving unit 140 are connected to each other. In this case, the control unit 120 can control the connection unit 160 such that the other electrodes 111-1, 111-2, 111-3, 111-4, 111-5, 111-6, 112-1, 112-5, And 112-6 is grounded.

Thereafter, the control unit 120 may control the connection unit 160 such that the plurality of electrodes 111-2, 111-3, and 111-4 and the receiving unit 140 are connected to each other, and may control the connection unit 160 such that the other electrodes 111-1, 111 -5, 111-6, 112-1, 112-2, 112-3, 112-4, 112-5, and 112-6 are grounded.

Meanwhile, although the case of receiving the response signal of the second electrode and the response signal of the first electrode respectively has been described above, in practice, the response of at least one of the plurality of first electrodes may be simultaneously received. And a response signal of the signal to at least one of the plurality of second electrodes, and in this case, the first electrode and the second electrode not connected to the receiving unit may be grounded.

Figure 40 is a diagram for explaining the detailed configuration of the stylus shown in Figure 1.

Referring to FIG. 40, the stylus 200 can be configured to include a conductive tip 210, a resonant circuit unit 220, and a ground unit 230. The stylus 200 can be implemented as, for example, a pen shape.

The conductive tip 210 forms a capacitance with at least one of the plurality of electrodes in the touch panel 100. The conductive tip 210 can be formed, for example, from a metal tip. Further, the conductive tip 210 may be present in the form of a non-conductive material or a portion of the conductive tip 210 may be exposed to the outside. Further, in order to have a soft writing feeling when the stylus pen 200 is used, the stylus pen 200 may further include an insulating unit for preventing the conductive tip 210 from directly contacting the outside.

The resonant circuit unit 220 includes a parallel connection circuit including an inductor and a capacitor connected to the conductive tip.

Furthermore, the resonant circuit unit 220 can receive energy for resonance by capacitively coupling between at least one of the electrodes in the touch panel 100 and the conductive tip. Specifically, the resonant circuit unit 220 can resonate by driving signals input from the touch panel 100. In addition, the resonant circuit unit 220 can output the resonant signal by resonance even when the input of the driving signal is interrupted. For example, the resonant circuit unit 220 can output a sine wave signal having a resonant frequency of the resonant circuit unit.

Further, the resonant circuit unit 220 can change the resonant frequency by changing the capacitance of the capacitor or the inductance of the inductor according to the contact pressure of the conductive tip. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Further, the resonant circuit unit 220 can change the resonant frequency by changing the capacitance of the capacitor or the inductance of the inductor according to the manipulation of the user. The above operation will be explained below with reference to FIG.

Figure 41 is a circuit diagram of the stylus shown in Figure 1.

Referring to FIG. 41, the resonant circuit unit 220 is configured to include an inductor 221 and a capacitor 222, and one end of the resonant circuit unit 220 can be connected to the conductive tip 210 / the other end of which can be grounded to the ground unit 230 of the stylus (eg, housing ).

The inductor 221 and the capacitor 222 are connected in parallel to each other to operate as a resonant circuit. The resonant circuit can have high impedance characteristics at a particular resonant frequency.

Figure 42 is a circuit diagram of a stylus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 42, the resonant circuit unit 220' may be configured to include an inductor 221, a capacitor 222, and a variable capacitor 224.

The inductor 221 and the capacitor 222 are connected in parallel to each other to operate as a resonant circuit.

The variable capacitor 224 is connected in parallel to the resonant circuit, wherein the capacitance can vary depending on the contact pressure of the conductive tip. Therefore, in the case where the contact pressure of the conductive tip changes, the capacitance of the variable capacitor changes, thereby making it possible to change the resonance frequency.

As a result, in the stylus pen 200' according to the second embodiment of the present invention as described above, since the resonance frequency is changed according to the contact pressure with the touch panel 100, Therefore, the touch panel 100 can sense the touch pressure of the stylus 200' according to the change of the resonance frequency and sense the position of the stylus 200' based on the response signal.

Meanwhile, although the case of using a variable capacitor to change the resonance frequency has been described above, in practice, a variable inductor can also be utilized to implement the resonant circuit unit 220' that performs the same function, the variable electric The inductance of the sensor can vary depending on the contact pressure of the conductive tip.

Figure 43 is a circuit diagram of a stylus in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 43, the resonant circuit unit 220" may be configured to include an inductor 221, a capacitor 222, a second capacitor 225, and a switch 226.

The inductor 221 and the capacitor 222 are connected in parallel to each other to operate as a resonant circuit.

The second capacitor 255 has a predetermined capacitance.

The switch 226 can receive an on/off command from the user and can selectively connect the second capacitor 225 to the capacitor 222 in accordance with the user's on/off command. Therefore, when the user turns on the switch, the second capacitor 225 is connected in parallel to the resonance circuit, thereby making it possible to change the resonance frequency.

As such, in the stylus pen 200" according to the third embodiment of the present invention, since the resonance frequency is changed according to the switching operation of the user, the operation mode of the stylus can also be sensed.

Meanwhile, although the case of using the second capacitor and the switch to change the resonance frequency has been described above, in practice, the second inductor and the switch or other circuit configuration may be used to implement the resonant circuit unit 220 performing the same function. ".

Meanwhile, preferably, the resonance frequency changed according to FIG. 43 is not a range of the resonance frequency changed according to FIG. Specifically, in practice, the variable capacitor shown in FIG. 42 and the switch and the second capacitor shown in FIG. 43 can be implemented together. In this case, the resonance frequency of the resonance circuit 220" changed by the operation of the switch 226 may be different from the range of the resonance frequency changed according to the capacitance variation of the variable capacitor shown in FIG. 42, so the touch panel 100 may It is judged whether the change in the resonance frequency is caused by a change in the touch pressure or by the operation of the switch.

44 is a flow chart illustrating a method of controlling a touch panel, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 44, in operation S4410, the same driving signal is applied to the plurality of electrodes in the channel electrode unit in units of a plurality of electrodes. Therefore, the driving signal can be transmitted to the resonant circuit of the stylus 200 near the touch panel 100 by capacitive coupling. In this case, the same driving signal may be simultaneously applied to the electrodes in units of the plurality of electrodes.

Further, in operation S4420, a response signal generated by the resonant circuit of the stylus is received from each of the plurality of electrodes. Specifically, a response signal can be received from each of the plurality of electrodes in a section where no drive signal is applied. In this case, various signal processing is performed for the received response signal, thereby making it possible to improve the receiving sensitivity. Further, this receiving operation and the above-described applying operation can be alternately performed.

Further, the position of the stylus is determined based on the plurality of received response signals in operation S4430. Specifically, based on each of the plurality of electrodes The position of the stylus 200 is determined by the ratio between the response signals received by the person. For example, in the case where the plurality of electrodes are arranged in a matrix form, the ratio between the response signals received from the first electrodes disposed along the first direction and the second electrode disposed from the second direction may be received. The position of the stylus 200 is determined by the ratio between the response signals.

As described above, since the method for controlling the touch panel according to the present embodiment provides the driving signal to the stylus pen 200 by capacitive coupling, the stylus pen 200 can operate even when it is not self-powered. Further, since the method for controlling the touch panel according to the present embodiment collectively supplies the driving signals to the plurality of electrodes, it is possible to provide more energy. Therefore, the receiving sensitivity and the measuring speed can be improved. Furthermore, since the method for controlling the touch panel according to the present embodiment performs various signal processing for the received response signal, the receiving sensitivity for the response signal can be improved. The method for controlling the touch panel as illustrated in FIG. 44 can be performed on the touch panel having the configuration as illustrated in FIG. 2, and the touch panel having other configurations can also be performed as illustrated in FIG. The method used to control the touch panel.

Furthermore, the control method as described above can be implemented in an executable program by the control unit 120 shown in FIG. 2, in which the program can be stored in the non-transitory computer readable medium to be provided. in.

Non-transitory computer readable media does not mean media that stores data in a short period of time (eg, scratchpad, cache memory, memory, etc.), but means that the machine that stores data semi-permanently is readable. media. Specifically, the above various applications or programs can be stored and set in, for example, the following non-transitory computer readable media: compact disc (CD), digital versatile (digital versatile) Disc, DVD), hard disk, Blu-ray disc, universal serial bus (USB), memory card, read-only memory (ROM), etc.

Although the present invention has been shown and described with respect to the embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art Various forms and details can be changed.

100‧‧‧Touch panel

110‧‧‧channel electrode unit

111-1~111-6‧‧‧first electrode

112-1~112-6‧‧‧second electrode

120‧‧‧Control unit

130‧‧‧ drive unit

140‧‧‧ Receiving unit

150‧‧‧Microcontroller Unit (MCU)

160‧‧‧ Connection unit

200‧‧‧ stylus

Claims (15)

A touch panel includes: a channel electrode unit including a plurality of electrodes; and a control unit configured to simultaneously apply a driving signal to at least two of the plurality of electrodes of the channel electrode unit, by using a capacitor Sexual coupling transmits energy corresponding to the driving signal to the stylus, and receives a response signal generated by the stylus through each of the plurality of electrodes to determine a position of the stylus The plurality of electrodes include a plurality of first electrodes disposed along the first direction and a plurality of second electrodes disposed along a second direction crossing the first direction. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the plurality of first electrodes are divided into a plurality of subgroups in units of a plurality of electrodes that are continuously disposed, and wherein the control unit is further used for one sub All of the first electrodes in the group simultaneously apply the same drive signal. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to: the electrode that receives the maximum response signal among the plurality of first electrodes and the one that receives the maximum response signal The electrodes are simultaneously applied with the driving signals from electrodes within a predetermined distance. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to: at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and the At least one of the plurality of second electrodes simultaneously applies the drive signal. The touch panel of claim 1, further comprising: a driving unit configured to apply the driving signal to at least two of the plurality of first electrodes; and a receiving unit configured to Receiving, in the section where the driving signal is not applied, the response signal of each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes, wherein the control unit is further configured to The response signal received by the receiving unit determines the position of the stylus. The touch panel of claim 5, wherein the receiving unit is further configured to sequentially receive the response signal of each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes . The touch panel of claim 5, wherein the receiving unit is further configured to receive each of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in parallel in units of a plurality of channels. The response signal of the person. The touch panel of claim 7, wherein the receiving unit comprises: a parallel amplification unit for amplifying the response signal received from the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes Each of the analog-to-digital conversion units for converting each of the plurality of amplified response signals into a digital signal; and a signal processing unit for converting from the digital signal to the digital signal The difference between the plurality of response signals extracts a preset frequency component. The touch panel of claim 7, wherein the receiving unit comprises: a differential amplifying unit configured to respond to the two electrodes of the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes Differentially amplifying the differential signal and outputting the differentially amplified response signal; an analog-to-digital conversion unit for converting the differentially amplified response signal into a digital signal; and a signal processing unit for self-converted into The response signal of the digital signal extracts a preset frequency component. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to control the channel electrode unit to enable the plurality of first electrodes in a section that receives the response signal At least one of the plurality of second electrodes is grounded. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to control the channel electrode unit to cause the driving signal to be applied in a section to which the driving signal is applied. At least one electrode other than the electrode is grounded. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to apply the same first driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes that are continuously disposed, and to the plurality of first electrodes. At least one of the first electrodes other than the first electrode to which the first driving signal is applied applies a second driving signal having a phase difference of 180° from the first driving signal. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to: determine a position of the stylus and a position of the touch object, and correspond to the position of the stylus The plurality of electrodes apply the same first driving signal, and apply a second driving signal with a phase difference of 180° from the first driving signal to the plurality of electrodes corresponding to the position of the touching object. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the control unit is further configured to simultaneously apply at least one of the plurality of first electrodes and at least one of the plurality of second electrodes Driving signals having different phases, and determining the first applied to the first electrode according to a position of the first electrode to which the first driving signal is applied and the second electrode to which the second driving signal is applied a phase difference between a driving signal and the second driving signal applied to the second electrode. The touch panel of claim 1, further comprising: a first driving unit, configured to simultaneously apply the driving signal to at least two of the electrodes when the stylus is sensed; a second driving unit, configured to apply the driving signal to the plurality of first electrodes when the touching object is sensed; and the first receiving unit is configured to not apply when the stylus is sensed Receiving the response signal from each of the electrodes in the section of the driving signal, and a second receiving unit for applying the driving signal to the section when the touching object is sensed Receiving the response signal from the plurality of second electrodes.