Fault pressure sensor determination for portable communication device touch display

Abstract

Faulty pressure sensor determination for portable communication device touch displays. A portable electronic communication device includes a display, a pressure sensor array including a plurality of pressure sensors, and an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the pressure sensor array. The electronic processor is configured to receive, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a user interaction with the display, perform an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements, and determine a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors based on the interpolation.

Description

BACKGROUND

[0001] Some electronic communication devices, such as mobile phones and smart watches, include one or more buttons for user interaction. Buttons and similar components have several drawbacks, including, for example, design limitations due to mechanical presets of the buttons, milling and / or drilling of the frame of the communication device to accommodate such buttons, and the like. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0002] The accompanying drawings are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification for the present disclosure and, together with the detailed description, explain various implementations, including the concepts of the claimed invention, and explain various principles and advantages of the implementations. In the drawings:

[0003] Figure 1 is an electronic communication device according to some embodiments.

[0004] Figure 2 is a pressure sensor array of an electronic communication device according to some embodiments. Figure 1

[0005] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a method for determining a faulty sensor of a sensor array according to some embodiments. Figure 2

[0006] Figure 4 is an actuator array of an electronic communication device according to some embodiments. Figure 1

[0007] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures can have been exaggerated relative to other elements for improving the

[0008] In the drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like elements are referred to by like numbers throughout the several views. Elements of the drawings can not have been drawn necessarily to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures can have been exaggerated relative to other elements for improving the DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0009] Instead of buttons, it can be more desirable to provide a graphical user interface on a touchscreen display in an electronic communication device. The embodiments presented herein, among other things, provide improved input detection on a touchscreen display of an electronic communication device.

[0010] ​​​One example embodiment provides a portable electronic communication device. The portable electronic communication device includes a display, a pressure sensor array including a plurality of pressure sensors, and an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the pressure sensor array. The electronic processor is configured to receive, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a user's interaction with the display, perform an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements, and determine a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors based on the interpolation.

[0011] Another example embodiment provides a method for determining a faulty sensor of a plurality of pressure sensors of a pressure sensor array. The method includes receiving, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a pressure interaction with a display, performing an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements, and determining a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors based on the interpolation.

[0012] Another example embodiment provides a portable electronic communication system. The portable electronic communication system includes a display, a pressure sensor array including a plurality of pressure sensors, and an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the pressure sensor array. The electronic processor is configured to receive, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a user's interaction with the display, perform an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements, and determine a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors based on the interpolation.

[0013] For ease of description, some or all of the example systems presented herein are illustrated with a single example of each component part. Some examples can not describe or illustrate all of the components of a system. Other example embodiments can include more or fewer of each illustrated component, can combine some components, or can include additional or alternative components.

[0014] Figure 1 is an illustration of an example of a portable electronic communication device 100. In the illustrated embodiment, the electronic communication device 100 includes an electronic processor 105, a memory 110, an input / output interface 115, a transceiver 120, a touchscreen display 125, and a pressure sensor array 130. In some embodiments, the electronic communication device 100 also includes an actuator 135 and / or an accelerometer 140. In some embodiments, more than one actuator and / or accelerometer is used. The illustrated components, along with other various modules and components, are coupled to one another by or via one or more control or data buses, which enable communications therebetween. The use of control and data buses for interconnection between and exchange of information among various modules and components will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the descriptions provided herein.

[0015] The electronic processor 105 obtains and provides information (e.g., from the memory 110 and / or the input / output interface 115) and processes information by executing one or more software instructions or modules that can be stored in, for example, a random access memory ("RAM") area of the memory 110 or a read only memory ("ROM") of the memory 110 or another non-transitory computer readable medium (not shown). The software can include firmware, one or more applications, program data, filters, rules, one or more program modules, and other executable instructions. The electronic processor 105 is configured to retrieve and execute software from the memory 110, among other things, related to the control processes and methods described herein.

[0016] The memory 110 can include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media and include program storage and data storage. As described herein, the program storage and data storage can include a combination of different types of memory. In the illustrated embodiment, the memory 110 stores, among other things, data and instructions for generating a graphical user interface (GUI) 112 (described in detail below).

[0017] The input / output interface 115 is configured to receive input and provide output to peripheral devices. The input / output interface 115 obtains and provides information and signals to and from devices both internal and external to the electronic communication device 100 (e.g., through one or more wired and / or wireless connections).

[0018] The electronic processor 105 is configured to control the transceiver 120 to transmit and receive voice and other data to and from the electronic communication device 100. The electronic processor 105 encodes and decodes digital data, including audio communications, that the transceiver 120 sends and receives. The transceiver 120 transmits and receives radio signals to and from various wireless communication networks. The electronic processor 105 and the transceiver 120 can include various digital and analog components that are not described herein for the sake of brevity and can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of both. Some embodiments include separate transmit and receive components, e.g., a transmitter and a receiver, rather than a combined transceiver 120.

[0019] The electronic communication device 100 implements a graphical user interface 112 generated by the electronic processor 105 from instructions and data stored in the memory 110 and presented on the touchscreen display 125. The touchscreen display 125 is a suitable touch-sensitive interface display such as, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) touchscreen or an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) touchscreen. The touchscreen display 125 displays output and receives user input via a pressure sensor array 130 using detected physical contact (e.g., via detected capacitance or resistance). The pressure sensor array 130 (described in detail below) includes a plurality of pressure sensors (each configured to measure a stress tensor and directional components and magnitude of pressure / stress (e.g., corresponding to user input on the display 125). The pressure sensor array 130 can include, for example, a stress-sensitive coating applied and patterned on the back of the display 125 or inside the housing (not shown) of the device 100. Figure 2

[0020] In some embodiments, the electronic communication device 100 is a smartphone. In other embodiments, the electronic communication device 100 can be a tablet computer, a smartwatch, or another portable or mobile electronic device containing software and hardware enabling it to operate as described herein.

[0021] Figure 2 A diagram of the pressure sensor array 130 is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments. The pressure sensor array 130 includes a plurality of sensors 202A-202P arranged in a grid across a horizontal plane parallel to the display 125. Each of the pressure sensors 202A-202P can be any kind of suitable pressure sensor configured to measure strain, deflection, and / or stress, or some combination of the sensors.

[0022] Each of the plurality of sensors 202A-202P is read by the electronic processor 105. In some embodiments, the electronic processor 105 combines the measurements to determine a pressure / stress gradient map corresponding to an estimated amount of pressure applied across the display 125. Based on the gradient map, the processor 105 determines the origin / area of direct pressure and the amount of pressure applied at the origin. The size, number, and / or density of the sensors are selected such that the spatial resolution is sufficient to pinpoint the origin of a pressure contact on the display 125, as well as to detect events where more than one source of pressure contact is present. Thus, the spatial resolution is such that the pressure contact need only be estimated based on readings from any sensors 202A-202P near the point of contact, rather than directly beneath the point of contact. This allows for fewer sensors 202A-202P to be utilized in the pressure sensor array 130, and thus can reduce overall manufacturing costs and / or wiring complexity. ​

[0023] Additionally, as described in greater detail below, the coarse grid configuration of the pressure sensor array 130 allows for detection (and compensation) in the event of a faulty pressure sensor. With a sufficiently fine distribution of sensors 202A-202P, readings from a faulty sensor can be ignored, while the remaining sensors 202A-202P can approximate the location of the event.

[0024] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method 300 of determining a faulty sensor of a pressure sensor array 130, according to some embodiments. The method 300 is described as being performed by the electronic communication device 100, and in particular by the electronic processor 105 and in accordance with the sensors 202A-202P. However, the methods described herein are applicable to any number of pressure sensors of the pressure sensor array 130, and can be implemented on or with multiple electronic processors.

[0025] At block 305, the electronic processor 105 receives, from the pressure sensor array 130, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a pressure interaction with the display 125 (e.g., a user touch input), and at block 310, performs an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements. Based on the results of the interpolation, the processor 105 determines a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors 202A-202P.

[0026] For example, the processor 105 can interpolate an estimated pressure value from one of the pressure sensors 202A-202P based on at least two pressure measurements from pressure sensors 202A-202P in the vicinity of the pressure sensor being tested. The estimated pressure value can be compared to an actual pressure measurement measured by the pressure sensor being tested. When the difference between the estimated pressure value and the actual pressure measurement exceeds a predetermined error threshold, the pressure sensor being tested is determined to be faulty. When a faulty pressure sensor is determined in the pressure sensor array 130, the processor 105 can ignore measurements from the faulty sensor in determining the origin of a pressure interaction on the display 125 (e.g., in determining a pressure gradient map).

[0027] Returning to Figure 1 As mentioned above, in some embodiments, one or more actuators 135 are included that are configured to provide vibration / haptic feedback. The actuators 135 can be any kind of suitable actuator, including but not limited to electroactive polymer layers, piezoelectric actuators, etc. As shown in Figure 4 In some embodiments, the actuators 135 can be an actuator array comprising a grid of multiple actuators 404A-404P (similar to the pressure sensor array 130), as shown in Figure 2(Configuration of the pressure sensor array 130). Such actuators can be, for example, individual electroactive polymer segments, wherein the processor 105 is configured to activate each individually by applying an electrical signal to the respective segment. Actuators 135 can be disposed directly above, below, and / or integrated into the pressure sensor array 130 within the device 100.

[0028] In some embodiments, the processor 105 is configured to provide tactile force via actuator 135, the magnitude of which is based on the pressure amount, after determining the amount of pressure applied to the display 130 based on a plurality of stress tensor measurements, while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements. For example, the tactile force may counteract and / or eliminate the amount of pressure read by sensors 202A-202P of the pressure sensor array 130. Since actuators 402A-402P are individually controllable, in some embodiments, the processor 105 activates actuators 402A-402P to generate more tactile feedback in one area of ​​the display 125 and / or less feedback in another separate area of ​​the display 125.

[0029] In some embodiments, the communication device 100 further includes an accelerometer 140 ( Figure 1 Accelerometer 140 is configured to measure movement and / or vibration experienced by device 100. In such an embodiment, electronic processor 105 may be further configured to determine the tactile noise level (background noise vibration experienced by device 100) based on measurements from accelerometer 140, and to provide tactile force via actuator 135 while processor 105 receives multiple stress tensor measurements. Tactile noise level is any kind of background noise vibration experienced by device 100. Tactile noise level may affect measurements from pressure sensor array 130. For example, when a user uses device 100 in a moving vehicle, any kind of movement experienced by the vehicle due to road conditions (e.g., when driving on rough terrain) will also be experienced by the device. This may affect pressure readings from pressure sensor array 130. Therefore, by providing tactile force to counteract the effects of vehicle motion, pressure sensor array 130 is able to detect and measure pressure contact on display 125 more accurately. The magnitude of the tactile force provided by actuator 135 may be based on the tactile noise level. In some embodiments, the magnitude of tactile force is such that the level of tactile noise experienced by device 100 is reduced or eliminated.

[0030] Specific embodiments have been described in the foregoing specification. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. Therefore, the specification and figures are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this teaching.

[0031] No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed as an essential element or a limitation unless explicitly described as such. The present application is defined solely by the appended claims including any equivalent of the claims made during the pendency of this application in the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), including the claims as they are amended during the prosecution of the application and any supplemental claims submitted after allowance.

[0032] Furthermore, in this document, relational terms such as first and second, top and bottom, and the like can be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms "comprises," "comprising," "has," "having," "includes," "including," "contains," "containing" or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises, has, includes, contains a list of elements does not include only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by "comprises... a," "has... a," "includes... a," or "contains... a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises, has, includes, contains the element. The terms "a" and "an" are defined as one or more unless explicitly stated otherwise herein. The terms "substantially," "essentially," "approximately," "about" or any other version thereof, are defined as being close to as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, and in one non-limiting embodiment the term is defined to be within 10%, in another embodiment within 5%, in another embodiment within 1% and in another embodiment within 0.5%. The term "coupled" as used herein is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and not necessarily mechanically. A device or structure that is "configured" in a certain way is configured in at least that way, but can also be configured in ways that are not listed.

[0033] It will be appreciated that, some embodiments can include one or more general- purpose or special purpose processors (or "processing devices") such as microprocessors, digital signal processors, customized processors and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and unique stored program instructions (including both software and firmware) that control the one or more processors to implement, in conjunction with certain non-processor circuits, some, most, or all of the functions described herein. Alternatively, some or all functions could be implemented by a state machine that has no stored program instructions, e.g., in response to external or internal stimuli, or in one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) in which each function or some combinations of certain

[0034] Further, embodiments can be implemented as a computer-readable storage medium having computer readable code stored therein for programming a computer (e.g., comprising a processor) to perform methods as described and claimed herein when the computer readable code is executed by the computer. Examples of such computer-readable storage mediums include, but are not limited to, a hard disk, a CD-ROM, an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, a ROM (Read Only Memory), a PROM (Programmable Read Only Memory), an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) and a FLASH memory. Further, it is expected that one of ordinary skill, notwithstanding

[0035] The abstract of the disclosure is provided to allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or the meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in various embodiments for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are explicitly recited in each claim. Rather, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Following, the claims are in such form as to enforce the principles of assigning claimable matter to the inventors when the features of the claims are inherently characteristic of the patented embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby expressly incorporated into this Detailed Description, with each claim acting as a separate disclosure of the subject matter of the embodiments associated with that claim.

Claims

1. A portable electronic communication device comprising: a display; a pressure sensor array comprising a plurality of pressure sensors arranged in a grid across a horizontal plane parallel to the display; and an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the pressure sensor array, the electronic processor configured to receive, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a user's interaction with the display; combine the stress tensor measurements to determine a pressure gradient map corresponding to an estimated amount of pressure applied across the display; determine, based on the gradient map, an origin of direct pressure and an amount of pressure applied at the origin; select a size, number, and / or density of sensors such that a spatial resolution is sufficient to pinpoint an origin of a pressure contact on the display and to detect an event in which more than one source of pressure contact is present, such that a pressure contact need only be estimated based on readings from sensors near a contact point, rather than directly beneath the contact point; perform an interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements; determine, based on the interpolation, a faulty sensor of the plurality of sensors, wherein determining a faulty sensor comprises interpolating an estimated pressure value for a first pressure sensor based on at least two pressure measurements from at least two pressure sensors near the first pressure sensor under test, comparing the estimated pressure value to an actual pressure measurement measured by the first pressure sensor, and determining the first pressure sensor to be faulty when a difference between the estimated pressure value and the actual pressure measurement exceeds a predetermined error threshold; and ignore the measurements from the faulty sensor in determining the origin of a pressure interaction on the display and the pressure gradient map, wherein the generation of the pressure gradient map is based on a spatial resolution of the selected sensors, wherein the spatial resolution is selected to enable the gradient map to distinguish events in which multiple sources of pressure contact are present.

2. The communication device of claim 1, further comprising an accelerometer and an actuator, and wherein, the electronic processor is further configured to determine a haptic noise level from measurements from an accelerometer, and to provide a haptic force via an actuator while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements, the magnitude of the haptic force being based on the haptic noise level.

3. The communication device of claim 1, further comprising an actuator, and wherein, the electronic processor is further configured to determine an amount of pressure applied to the display based on the plurality of stress tensor measurements, and to provide a haptic force via an actuator while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements, the magnitude of the haptic force being based on the amount of pressure.

4. The communication device of claim 3, wherein, the actuator is an electroactive polymer layer.

5. The communication device of claim 4, wherein, the electroactive polymer layer comprises an array of electroactive polymer segments, and wherein the processor is further configured to individually actuate each electroactive polymer segment.

6. A method of determining a faulty sensor of a plurality of pressure sensors of a pressure sensor array, wherein the sensors are arranged in a grid across a horizontal plane parallel to a display, the method comprising: receiving, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a pressure interaction with the display; combining the stress tensor measurements to determine a pressure gradient map corresponding to an estimated amount of pressure applied across the display; determining, based on the gradient map, an origin of direct pressure and an amount of pressure applied at the origin; the size, number, and / or density of the sensors are selected such that the spatial resolution is sufficient to accurately pinpoint the origin of a pressure contact on the display, as well as to detect events where more than one source of pressure contact is present, such that a pressure contact only needs to be estimated based on readings from sensors near the point of contact, rather than directly beneath the point of contact; interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements is performed; a faulty sensor among the plurality of sensors is determined based on the interpolation, wherein determining a faulty sensor includes interpolating an estimated pressure value for a first pressure sensor based on at least two pressure measurements from at least two pressure sensors near the first pressure sensor being tested, comparing the estimated pressure value to an actual pressure measurement measured by the first pressure sensor, and determining the first pressure sensor to be faulty when a difference between the estimated pressure value and the actual pressure measurement exceeds a predetermined error threshold, and ignoring the measurements from the faulty sensor in determining the origin of a pressure interaction on the display and in the pressure gradient map, wherein the generation of the pressure gradient map is based on a spatial resolution of the selected sensors, wherein the spatial resolution is selected such that the gradient map is able to distinguish events where multiple sources of pressure contact are present.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising determining a haptic noise level from measurements from an accelerometer, and providing a haptic force via an actuator during receipt of the plurality of stress tensor measurements, a magnitude of the haptic force being based on the haptic noise level.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising determining an amount of pressure applied to a display based on the plurality of stress tensor measurements, and providing a haptic force via an actuator while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements, a magnitude of the haptic force being based on the amount of pressure.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, The actuator is an electroactive polymer layer.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, The electroactive polymer layer includes an array of electroactive polymer segments, each electroactive polymer segment being independently actuated.

11. A portable electronic communication system, comprising: a display; a pressure sensor array including a plurality of pressure sensors arranged in a grid across a horizontal plane parallel to the display; and an electronic processor communicatively coupled to the pressure sensor array, the electronic processor configured to receive, from the pressure sensor array, a plurality of stress tensor measurements corresponding to a user’s interaction with the display; combine the stress tensor measurements to determine a pressure gradient map corresponding to an estimated amount of pressure applied across the display; determine, based on the gradient map, an origin of direct pressure and an amount of pressure applied at the origin; the size, number, and / or density of the sensors are selected such that the spatial resolution is sufficient to accurately pinpoint the origin of a pressure contact on the display, as well as to detect events where more than one source of pressure contact is present, such that a pressure contact only needs to be estimated based on readings from sensors near the point of contact, rather than directly beneath the point of contact; interpolation of the plurality of pressure measurements is performed; a faulty sensor among the plurality of sensors is determined based on the interpolation, wherein determining a faulty sensor includes interpolating an estimated pressure value for a first pressure sensor based on at least two pressure measurements from at least two pressure sensors near the first pressure sensor being tested, comparing the estimated pressure value to an actual pressure measurement measured by the first pressure sensor, and determining the first pressure sensor to be faulty when a difference between the estimated pressure value and the actual pressure measurement exceeds a predetermined error threshold, and ignoring the measurements from the faulty sensor in determining the origin of a pressure interaction on the display and in the pressure gradient map, wherein the generation of the pressure gradient map is based on a spatial resolution of the selected sensors, wherein the spatial resolution is selected such that the gradient map is able to distinguish events where multiple sources of pressure contact are present. wherein determining the faulty sensor comprises interpolating an estimated pressure value for the first pressure sensor based on at least two pressure measurements from at least two pressure sensors in the vicinity of the first pressure sensor being tested, comparing the estimated pressure value to an actual pressure measurement measured by the first pressure sensor, and determining the first pressure sensor to be faulty when a difference between the estimated pressure value and the actual pressure measurement exceeds a predetermined error threshold; and ignoring the measurements from the faulty sensor in determining the origin of a pressure interaction on the display and in the pressure gradient map, wherein the generation of the pressure gradient map is based on a spatial resolution of the selected sensors, wherein the spatial resolution is selected such that the gradient map is able to distinguish between events of multiple pressure contact sources.

12. The communication system of claim 11, further comprising an accelerometer and an actuator, and wherein, The electronic processor is further configured to determine a haptic noise level from measurements from an accelerometer, and to provide a haptic force via the actuator while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements, a magnitude of the haptic force being based on the haptic noise level.

13. The communication system of claim 11, further comprising an actuator, and wherein, The electronic processor is further configured to determine an amount of pressure applied to the display based on the plurality of stress tensor measurements, and to provide a haptic force via the actuator while the processor receives the plurality of stress tensor measurements, a magnitude of the haptic force being based on the amount of pressure.

14. The communication system of claim 13, wherein, The actuator is an electroactive polymer layer.

15. The communication system of claim 14, wherein, The electroactive polymer layer comprises an array of electroactive polymer segments, and wherein the processor is further configured to individually actuate each electroactive polymer segment. The electroactive polymer layer comprises an array of electroactive polymer segments, and wherein the processor is further configured to individually actuate each electroactive polymer segment.

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