Overlay type touch keyboard device and its touch sensing module

Abstract

A superimposed touch keyboard device and its touch sensing module are disclosed. The superimposed touch keyboard device includes the touch sensing module and a plurality of keycaps. The touch sensing module includes a touch sensing unit, at least one pressure sensor, and a processing unit. The touch sensing unit has a first surface and a second surface opposite to each other and includes a touch sensing layer and a substrate stacked thereon. The at least one pressure sensor is disposed on the second surface, and the plurality of keycaps are disposed on the first surface. The processing unit is electrically connected to the touch sensing layer and the at least one pressure sensor. The superimposed touch keyboard device allows users to directly press the plurality of keycaps to perform general keyboard input operations, and also allows users to touch and slide on the keycaps to control the device using the touch function of the touch sensing layer.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to a keyboard device, and more particularly to a superimposed touch keyboard device and its touch sensing module. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Existing keyboard devices typically include multiple keycaps, which are connected to multiple pressing mechanisms (such as membranes, key switches, etc.). These pressing mechanisms are then electrically connected to a control circuit board. When a user presses a keycap, the pressing mechanism will respectively turn on the circuit on the control circuit board to generate a control signal. The control circuit board then transmits the control signal to an electronic device (such as a computer) so that the electronic device can recognize the characters entered by the user.

[0003] If a user wants to control a cursor displayed on the screen of the electronic device, a mouse or a touchpad is required to perform the operation. Taking the electronic device as a desktop computer, connecting the mouse will reduce the space available on the user's desktop. Taking the electronic device as a notebook computer, setting up the touchpad will prevent its overall size from being further reduced, making the notebook computer inconvenient to carry when going out due to its large size. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] Existing keyboard devices can only provide keyboard functions when connected to electronic devices, which requires the electronic device to be connected to a mouse or touchpad in order to operate the cursor on the electronic device. This causes the electronic device to have the problems described in the prior art. In view of this, the present invention provides a superimposed touch keyboard device and its touch sensing module to overcome the aforementioned problems.

[0005] The touch electrode module of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention includes: a touch sensing unit having a first surface and a second surface opposite to each other, the touch sensing unit including a touch sensing layer and a substrate stacked thereon; at least one pressure sensor disposed on the second surface; and a processing unit electrically connected to the touch sensing layer and the at least one pressure sensor; wherein the at least one pressure sensor is a plurality of pressure sensors and is disposed at the edge of the second surface; the processing unit receives a touch sensing signal from the touch sensing layer and a plurality of pressure sensing signals output by the plurality of pressure sensors, and the processing unit calculates a pressure value based on the plurality of pressure sensing signals; when the processing unit determines that the pressure value is greater than or equal to a first threshold, the processing unit executes a keyboard mode to generate keyboard key information based on the touch sensing signal.

[0006] The present invention provides a superimposed touch keyboard device, comprising: the touch electrode module as described above; and a plurality of keycaps disposed on the first surface of the touch sensing unit.

[0007] The touch sensing module of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention has a touch sensing layer that provides touch function, so that in addition to the user directly pressing the multiple keycaps to perform general keyboard input operations, the user can also slide on the keycaps of the superimposed touch keyboard device to directly use the touch function of the touch sensing layer for control. Thus, when the superimposed touch keyboard device is connected to an electronic device, the electronic device does not need to be connected to a mouse or a touch panel to control a cursor. The present invention can effectively reduce the overall size of the electronic device, making the electronic device more portable.

Implementation Method

[0008] In order to understand the technical features and practical effects of the present invention in detail, and to implement it according to the invention, the following detailed description is provided with reference to the embodiments shown in the figures:

[0009] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3. The superimposed touch keyboard device 1 of the present invention includes a touch sensing module 10 and a plurality of keycaps 20. The touch sensing module 10 includes a touch sensing unit 11, at least one pressure sensor 12 and a processing unit 13. The touch sensing unit 11 has a first surface 11A and a second surface 11B opposite to each other. The touch sensing unit 11 includes a touch sensing layer 110 and a substrate 111 stacked together. Specifically, the touch sensing layer 110 has a sensing layer upper surface 110A and a sensing layer lower surface 110B opposite to each other. The substrate 111 has a substrate upper surface 111A and a substrate lower surface 111B opposite to each other.

[0010] In one embodiment of the present invention, referring to FIG2A, the upper surface 110A of the touch sensing layer 110 is disposed on the lower surface 111B of the substrate 111, the upper surface 111A of the substrate 111 is the first surface 11A of the touch sensing unit 11, and the lower surface 110B of the touch sensing layer 110 is the second surface 11B of the touch sensing unit 11; In another embodiment of the present invention, referring to FIG2B, the upper surface 111A of the substrate 111 is disposed on the lower surface 110B of the touch sensing layer 110, the upper surface 110A of the touch sensing layer 110 is the first surface 11A of the touch sensing unit 11, and the lower surface 111B of the substrate 111 is the second surface 11B of the touch sensing unit 11.

[0011] The touch sensing layer 110 is used to sense the user's touch action. The substrate 111 is a rigid substrate and is used to transmit a pressure to the at least one pressure sensor 12. For example, the touch sensing layer 110 can be a projected capacitive touch sensor, a surface capacitive touch sensor, etc. The substrate 111 can be a printed circuit board (PCB), a polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) board, a glass plate, a metal plate, etc. The present invention is not limited thereto.

[0012] Please refer to Figure 2A or Figure 2B. The at least one pressure sensor 12 is disposed on the second surface 11B of the touch sensing unit 11. The plurality of keycaps 20 are respectively connected to the first surface 11A of the touch sensing unit 11 through a pressing mechanism 21. Please refer to Figure 3. The processing unit 13 is electrically connected to the touch sensing layer 110 and the at least one pressure sensor 12. For example, the at least one pressure sensor 12 may be a piezoelectric element, a strain gauge, etc. The pressing mechanism 21 may be a scissor switch, a shaft, etc. The processing unit 13 may be a microcontroller (MCU), a processor, etc. The present invention is not limited thereto.

[0013] Please refer to Figures 1 and 3. In one embodiment of the present invention, the at least one pressure sensor 12 is a pressure sensor 12 and is disposed at the center of the second surface 11B. The processing unit 13 receives a touch sensing signal S1 from the touch sensing layer 110 and a pressure sensing signal S2 output by the pressure sensor 12. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value of the pressure sensing signal S2 is greater than or equal to a first threshold, the processing unit 13 executes a keyboard mode to generate keyboard key information according to the touch sensing signal S1. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value is less than or equal to a second threshold, the processing unit 13 executes a touch mode to generate touch position information according to the touch sensing signal S1.

[0014] Specifically, the superimposed touch keyboard device 1 of the present invention can provide a user with a keyboard function and a touch function, as described below.

[0015] Keyboard function: When a user presses the first surface 11A of the touch sensing unit 11 (presses the multiple keycaps 20), the force of the user pressing the multiple keycaps (the pressing force) will be transmitted to the pressure sensor 12 through the substrate 111. The pressure sensor 12 senses the pressing force to generate the pressure sensing signal S2. The processing unit 13 determines the relationship between the pressure value in the pressure sensing signal S2 and the first threshold preset in the processing unit 13. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value of the pressure sensing signal S2 is greater than or equal to the first threshold, the processing unit 13 executes the keyboard mode.

[0016] Meanwhile, since the user's finger is operating on the first surface 11A, the touch sensing layer 110 can sense the pressing position of the user's finger to generate the touch sensing signal S1. The pressing position of the user's finger corresponds to at least one of the plurality of keycaps 20. Therefore, the processing unit 13 can determine that the user has pressed at least one of the plurality of keycaps 20, and then generate the keyboard key information. For example, when the user presses the keycap corresponding to the letter "A", the processing unit 13 will generate the keyboard key information corresponding to the letter "A".

[0017] The touch function: When a user touches the first surface 11A of the touch sensing unit 11, for example, when the user's finger slides on the multiple keycaps 20, the force of the user's touch on the multiple keycaps (the pressing force) will be transmitted to the pressure sensor 12 through the substrate 111. The pressure sensor 12 senses the pressing force to generate the pressure sensing signal S2. The processing unit 13 determines the relationship between the pressure value in the pressure sensing signal S2 and the second threshold preset in the processing unit 13. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value of the pressure sensing signal S2 is less than or equal to the second threshold, the processing unit 13 executes the touch mode. At the same time, since the user's finger is operating on the first surface 11A, the touch sensing layer 110 can sense the touch position of the user's finger to generate the touch sensing signal S1. The processing unit 13 can thus determine the touch position of the user and generate the touch position data.

[0018] In another embodiment of the present invention, please refer to FIG4. The at least one pressure sensor 12 is a plurality of pressure sensors 12 and is disposed at the edge position of the second surface 11B. The processing unit 13 receives the touch sensing signal S1 from the touch sensing layer 110 and the plurality of pressure sensing signals S2 output by the plurality of pressure sensors 12. The processing unit 13 calculates the pressure value based on the plurality of pressure sensing signals S2. For example, the processing unit 13 can calculate an average value, a maximum value, a minimum value, etc. based on the plurality of pressure sensing signals S2 as the pressure value. The present invention is not limited thereto. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the plurality of pressure sensors 12 are respectively located at the diagonal positions of the second surface 11B. For example, the second surface 11B is a rectangular surface, and the plurality of pressure sensors 12 are respectively located at the four diagonal positions of the second surface 11B.

[0019] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the processing unit 13 also executes the keyboard mode and the touch mode according to the relationship between the pressure value and the first threshold and the second threshold. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value is greater than or equal to the first threshold, the processing unit 13 executes the keyboard mode to generate the keyboard press information according to the touch sensing signal S1. When the processing unit 13 determines that the pressure value is less than or equal to the second threshold, the processing unit 13 executes the touch mode to generate the touch position information according to the touch sensing signal S1.

[0020] The present invention uses two thresholds as the basis for the processing unit 13 to execute the keyboard mode or the touch mode, which can reduce the number of times the processing unit 13 switches between the keyboard mode and the touch mode when the user operates the superimposed touch keyboard device 1 of the present invention, thereby avoiding the occurrence of poor control and improving the user's operating experience. Preferably, the first threshold preset by the processing unit 13 is greater than the second threshold.

[0021] The touch sensing module 10 of the superimposed touch keyboard device 1 of the present invention has a touch sensing layer 110 that provides touch function, so that in addition to the user directly pressing the plurality of keycaps 20 to perform general keyboard input operations, the user can also slide on the keycaps 20 of the superimposed touch keyboard device 1 to directly use the touch function of the touch sensing layer 110 for control. In this way, when the superimposed touch keyboard device 1 is connected to an electronic device, the electronic device does not need to be connected to a mouse or a touch panel to control a cursor. The present invention can effectively reduce the overall size of the electronic device, making the electronic device more portable.

[0022] In summary, the foregoing description is merely a description of the implementation methods or embodiments of the technical means adopted by the present invention to present the solution to the problem, and is not intended to limit the scope of the implementation of the present invention patent. That is, all changes and modifications that conform to the meaning of the text of the present invention patent application or are made in accordance with the scope of the present invention patent are covered by the scope of the present invention patent. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0023] Figure 1: A top plan view of a first embodiment of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention. Figure 2A: A side plan view of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention, wherein the substrate is disposed on the touch sensing layer. Figure 2B: A side plan view of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention, wherein the touch sensing layer is disposed on the substrate. Figure 3: A circuit block diagram of the touch sensing module of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention. Figure 4: A schematic diagram of a first embodiment of the superimposed touch keyboard device of the present invention.

Claims

1. A touch sensing module for a stacked touch keyboard device, comprising: a touch sensing unit having a first surface and a second surface opposite to each other, the touch sensing unit including a touch sensing layer and a substrate stacked thereon; at least one pressure sensor disposed on the second surface; and a processing unit electrically connected to the touch sensing layer and the at least one pressure sensor; wherein... The at least one pressure sensor is a plurality of pressure sensors and is disposed at the edge of the second surface; the processing unit receives a touch sensing signal from the touch sensing layer and a plurality of pressure sensing signals output by the plurality of pressure sensors, and the processing unit calculates a pressure value based on the plurality of pressure sensing signals. When the processing unit determines that the pressure value is greater than or equal to a first threshold, the processing unit executes a keyboard mode to generate keyboard key information based on the touch sensing signal.

2. The touch sensing module of the overlay type touch keyboard device as described in claim 1, wherein: The substrate has an upper substrate surface and a lower substrate surface opposite to each other; the touch sensing layer has an upper sensing layer surface and a lower sensing layer surface opposite to each other; the upper sensing layer surface of the touch sensing layer is disposed on the lower substrate surface of the substrate, the upper substrate surface of the substrate is the first surface of the touch sensing unit, and the lower sensing layer surface of the touch sensing layer is the second surface of the touch sensing unit.

3. The touch sensing module of the superimposed touch keyboard device as described in claim 1, wherein: The substrate has an upper substrate surface and a lower substrate surface opposite to each other; the touch sensing layer has an upper sensing layer surface and a lower sensing layer surface opposite to each other; the upper substrate surface of the substrate is disposed on the lower sensing layer surface of the touch sensing layer, the upper sensing layer surface of the touch sensing layer is the first surface of the touch sensing unit, and the lower substrate surface of the substrate is the second surface of the touch sensing unit.

4. The touch sensing module of the overlay type touch keyboard device as described in claim 1, wherein: The substrate is a rigid substrate used to transmit a pressure intensity to the at least one pressure sensor.

5. The touch sensing module of the overlay type touch keyboard device as described in claim 1, wherein: When the processing unit determines that the pressure value of the pressure sensing signal is less than or equal to a second threshold, the processing unit executes a touch mode to generate touch position information based on the touch sensing signal.

6. The touch sensing module of the overlay type touch keyboard device as described in claim 5, wherein: The first threshold is greater than the second threshold.

7. The touch sensing module of the overlay type touch keyboard device as described in claim 1, wherein: The complex pressure sensors are located at opposite corners of the second surface.

8. A superimposed touch keyboard device, comprising: a touch sensing module as described in any one of claims 1 to 7; and a plurality of keycaps disposed on the first surface of the touch sensing unit.

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