Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
  • G06F3/01—Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer
  • G06F3/03—Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
  • G06F3/041—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
  • G06F3/042—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means by opto-electronic means
  • G06F3/0421—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means by opto-electronic means by interrupting or reflecting a light beam, e.g. optical touch-screen
  • G06F3/0423—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means by opto-electronic means by interrupting or reflecting a light beam, e.g. optical touch-screen using sweeping light beams, e.g. using rotating or vibrating mirror

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a touch surface, and more particularly, to a system and method of detecting touch input.
• touch-sensitive display screens or display panels such as mobile phones, electronic games, and other portable devices.
• the touch sensitive screens presently use one of a number of available technologies, including resistive panels that include a plurality of sensors in a matrix pattern to detect pressure and capacitive-type panels that include a plurality of electrically active layers to detect contact.
• These touch screens each have a number of limitations, including limited quality and high costs when large panels are desired. Accordingly, there is a need for a touch surface and a system and method of detecting touch input that addresses these and other shortcomings.
• a touch surface includes a planar surface; a first transmitter-sensor device at a first position proximate to the planar surface, wherein the first transmitter-sensor device includes a first light beam emitter configured to emit a first light beam, a first movable surface to reflect the first light beam across the planar surface, and a first light sensor configured to detect a reflection of the first light beam; a second transmitter-sensor device at a second position proximate to the planar surface, wherein the second transmitter-sensor device includes a second light beam emitter configured to emit a second light beam, a second movable surface to reflect the second light beam across the planar surface, and a second light sensor configured to detect a reflection of the second light beam; a processing unit in operable communication with the first transmitter-sensor device and the second transmitter-sensor device, wherein the processing unit is configured to calculate the position of a touch on the planar surface based on a time of the refection of the first
• a touch surface includes a planar surface; means for detecting a contact with the planar surface; means for determining a first angle of the contact with the planar surface; means for determining a second angle of the contact with the planar surface; processing means for calculating x and y position coordinates using the first angle of the contact and the second angle of the contact.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a touch surface illustrating the operation of a touch surface and touch detection system, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example control system of the touch detection system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view schematic diagram illustrating a first step of a position calculation, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 4 is a front view of a schematic diagram illustrating a second step of a position calculation, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
• embodiments of the present invention are directed to a touch surface and a method and system of detecting touch and movement on the touch surface. Detection is performed using optical transmitters and optical sensors.
• Embodiments of the present invention may be used on any generally flat surface that requires touch responsiveness to be incorporated such as, for example, electronic displays, touch screens, and mobile devices.
• the touch surface may be a real surface or a virtual surface created in space, such as in the case of a projection system.
• Embodiments of the present invention provide a "virtual" touch-sensitive surface in that a plurality of transmitter-sensor devices determines a "touch" on the surface by detecting position and movement, and therefore embodiments of the present invention do not directly detect pressure or physical contact on the surface.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a touch panel illustrating the operation of the touch surface and touch detection system, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• a touch surface 100 is shown as a generally rectangular area.
• the touch surface 100 may be a display panel or display screen or a part of a display panel or screen.
• a touch 108 is illustrated as a round dot, indicating a point in the touch surface that is touched with a user's figure or other device, such as a pen, stylus, or other object having a sufficiently succinct size to indicate a touch on a screen or display.
• a first transmitter-sensor device 102 is positioned at a first corner of the touch surface 100 and a second transmitter-sensor device 104 is positioned at a second corner of the touch surface 100.
• the first transmitter-sensor device 102 is positioned in the lower-left corner and the second transmitter-sensor device 104 is positioned in the lower-right corner of the touch surface.
• the two transmitter-sensor devices may be positioned in any two corners of the surface 100.
• the transmitter-sensors also need not be positioned in the corners of the touch surface 100. While two transmitter-sensor devices are sufficient for the operation of the system, two or more transmitter-sensor devices used along the edges of the surface, or in other locations, may be used with the appropriate calculations, in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.
• Each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 includes a light-beam emitter to emit a light beam, a movable, reflective surface to reflect the emitted light beam across the touch surface 100 generally parallel to the touch surface 100, and a light sensor to detect any reflection of the emitted light beam, which is cause by user touch of the surface.
• the light beam emitter in each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 is a laser emitting device
• the movable, reflective surface is a scanning micromirror
• the light sensor is a laser sensor for detecting reflection of the laser beam emitted from the laser emitting device.
• the laser emitting device may be a laser diode and the laser is directed to the scanning micromirror.
• the scanning micromirror reflects the laser across the touch surface 100 over a 90 degree range. While a 90 degree range allows the laser to be transmitted across the entire area of the touch surface 100, other ranges may be used as required by the particular implementation and 90 degrees is only one example of a suitable transmission range. This laser reflection is illustrated by a plurality of lines 106 shown emitted from the first transmitter-sensor device 102 and the second transmitter-sensor device 104.
• the scanning micromirror is, for example, made by MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) processing. However, other suitable devices may also be used.
• One advantage of detecting the reflection of the touch is a reduced processing load on the system. Embodiments of the present invention do not need to continuously process repeated reflection in the absence of a touch to the screen. Instead, additional processing is required only when a reflection is detected. Additionally, in one embodiment, no frame or border of a fixed size is required for the operation of the transmitter-sensor devices. This allows flexibility in the surface size since the system may be configured to operate with different surface sizes. However, a boundary or border may also be used for certain specific applications where a predetermined touch screen area is required.
• any suitable laser emitting device may be used.
• a small size laser emitting device is desired, for example, if the touch screen and the device incorporating the touch screen are small or when portability or mobility is required.
• One example suitable laser emitting device is a laser diode.
• the specification of one suitable laser diode includes a visible wavelength, such as approximately 380 ⁇ 800nm, a physical size of 5cc or less, an operating voltage of ⁇ 2.7 - 3V, and power ⁇ 10OmW.
• the laser emitted from the first transmitter-sensor device 102 has a wavelength/frequency that is different from the wavelength/frequency of the laser emitted from the second transmitter-sensor device 104.
• One example scanning micromirror may include the following specifications: single-axial (1-D scanning); scanning angle > 90 degrees; scanning frequency > 2kHz; and operating voltage ⁇ 30V.
• a two-axis (2-D) micromirror may be used to also scan for movement in a direction perpendicular to the touch surface. The use of a micromirror eliminates the need for mechanical devices and permits the construction of a small transmitter-sensor device.
• each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 rapidly emits a laser beam of a predetermined wavelength and uses the scanning micromirror to direct the laser across the surface 100 across 90 degrees of rotation.
• Each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 includes a sensor to detect a laser beam of particular wavelength. With two or more transmitter-sensor devices at two or more corners of the surface 100, the position of the touch 108 on the surface 100 can be calculated. The angle and time of the emitted laser beam are predetermined, thereby allowing touch detection by the laser to be converted into a position location.
• the first and second transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 operate simultaneously and/or synchronously in a plurality of different configurations. For example, in a first configuration, at each time t, both the first transmitter-sensor device 102 and the second transmitter-sensor device 104 emit a beam simultaneously. In a second configuration, the first transmitter-sensor device
• alternating beams for example, as follows:
• the first transmitter-sensor device 102 emits a beam
• the second transmitter-sensor device 104 emits a beam
• the first transmitter-sensor device 102 emits a beam
• the second transmitter-sensor device 104 emits a beam; ...
• each of the first and second transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 alternate emitting a predetermined number of beams, for example, as follows:
• the transmitter-sensor devices alternate in groups of ninety (90) beams.
• this number may vary depending on the implementation considering such variables as, for example, the size of the screen and the speed of the processing unit being used. Therefore, a fewer or greater number of predetermined beams may be alternately used to sweep across all or part of the touch surface 100.
• the system is configured such that each of the first transmitter-sensor device 102 and the second transmitter-sensor device can emit the predetermined number of beams at a sufficiently fast speed so that user touch can be detected.
• each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 scans across the surface at least once during the duration of time required for a typical user touch or action performed on the touch surface 100.
• each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 may emit a single, generally uninterrupted light beam that is reflected across the touch surface 100 by the micromirror or other reflective surface. According to another embodiment, each of the transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104 may rapidly emit a plurality of successive beams, each reflected a predetermined angle according to an associated time cycle.
• FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the control system of the touch detection system, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• the first transmitter-sensor device 102 and the second transmitter-sensor device 104 of the touch surface 100 are controlled by a plurality of electronic drivers and processors.
• One example system may include a processing unit 200, a laser controller 202, a micromirror controller 204, one or more memories 206, a display controller 208. Each of the various controllers, drivers, and components may be incorporated on a control circuit 210.
• the necessary executable instructions may be stored in the one or more memories 206 and executed by the processing unit 200 and other components. The components and functions performed by these components may be combined into one or more devices and the example illustration should not be taken to necessarily be different components.
• the processing unit 200 is configured to process the information required for detecting contact and movement on the touch surface 100.
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view schematic diagram illustrating a first step of a position calculation, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• each of the light or laser beams are reflected by the object making contact.
• Each of the sensors detects the reflection of the associate light or laser beam, and the angle of the emitted light or laser beams, fit) and git) , can then be determined.
• Functions fit) and git) yield the angles at which the lasers were reflected at any time t. These angles can both be determined since the movement of the scanning micromirror is configured such that the light or laser beam is directed at a specific angle at any given time t, with a cycle of scanning repeated. Accordingly, the angles fit) and git) can be determined as a function of time t. [0038] FIG.
• FIG. 4 is a front view of a schematic diagram illustrating a second step of a position calculation, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 1 shows two angles taken by each transmitter-sensor devices 102, 104
• the use of two times, and therefore two different angles from each of the transmitter-sensors devices 102, 104 allows a calculation to be made of the approximate size of the touch 108, thereby allowing a more precise calculation of the touch position.
• One advantage to embodiments of the present invention is the ability to have a re-sizeable touch-responsive surface or panel. Because the size information of the panel can be determined using the transmitter-senor devices, and then this size used in calculating touch positions, the transmitter-sensor devices and the touch detection system may be used on a wide variety of surfaces or panels. Embodiments of the present invention provide the additional advantage of simultaneously satisfying many requirements for touch-responsive surfaces, including working with large size panels, providing high clarity, and having relatively low cost.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
• Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Position Input By Displaying (AREA)

Priority Applications (2)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Families Citing this family (8)

Citations (5)

• 2008
  • 2008-12-24 WO PCT/CN2008/073700 patent/WO2010072028A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2008-12-24 CN CN200880000471A patent/CN101855609A/zh active Pending

Patent Citations (5)

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