Laminated structure touchpad

Abstract

The invention discloses a touchpad with a laminated structure, which comprises a touchpad surface layer, a circuit board layer and a touch control layer, and is positioned below the touchpad surface layer through the circuit board layer; the touch control layer is arranged below the circuit board layer, the touch control layer is internally provided with a touch panel with a laminated structure, the touch panel with the laminated structure comprises a detection control module, a touch controller and a vibration feedback device, the touch controller or the detection control module is further used for judging the pressing position according to the touch information or the pressure information, and when the pressing position is located on the left side of the touch area, it is judged that the pressing position is left key pressing; when the pressing position is located on the right side of the touch area, it is judged that the pressing position is right key pressing. Therefore, the structure mode of a common touch belt key is simplified through the laminated structure, the key mode is canceled, a touch support can be saved, and the circuit board layer does not need to adopt a multi-layer circuit board, so that the cost of the whole touchpad can be greatly reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of touch panels, and in particular to a touch panel with a laminated structure. Background Art

[0002] The touchpad is a common input device, widely used in laptops, smartphones, and other devices. Its principle is to sense the human body's touch movements and convert them into corresponding instructions. When pressed, there is a button under the touchpad. Because of this button, the structure needs to do a lot of travel processing to avoid the button feeling unpleasant. In addition, there is also space required for elasticity outside the touch bracket, so the whole device is relatively thicker and heavier. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The present invention aims to solve one of the technical problems in the related art at least to a certain extent. To this end, one object of the present invention is to provide a touch panel with a laminated structure.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned object, a touch panel with a laminated structure according to an embodiment of the present invention includes:

[0005] Touchpad surface;

[0006] a circuit board layer, the circuit board layer being located below the surface layer of the touch panel;

[0007] A touch control layer is provided below the circuit board layer. A laminated touch panel is provided in the touch control layer. The laminated touch panel includes a detection control module, a touch controller and a vibration feedback device.

[0008] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the detection and control module includes a pressure sensing module, a pressure processing module, and a vibration feedback processing module; wherein, the pressure sensing module includes: a pressure sensor and a pressure sensing controller, and the pressure sensors are provided in plurality, and the plurality of pressure sensors are respectively arranged around the bottom of the circuit board layer to obtain pressure information of multiple contact points in the touch area.

[0009] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the laminated touch panel further includes:

[0010] A touch panel bracket is located below the circuit board layer to support the circuit board layer.

[0011] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the surface layer of the touch panel is made of Mylar or glass;

[0012] The touch panel bracket is made of metal or plastic.

[0013] Further, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the detection control module is used to obtain pressure information of the touch area;

[0014] The touch controller is used to obtain touch information of the touch area to perform touch operations on the electronic device;

[0015] The vibration feedback device is connected to the detection control module, and the detection control module controls the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the magnitude of the pressure information;

[0016] Among them, the touch controller or detection control module is also used to judge the pressing position based on the touch information or pressure information. When the pressing position is located on the left side of the touch area, it is judged as a left key press; when the pressing position is located on the right side of the touch area, it is judged as a right key press.

[0017] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the pressure sensing controller is connected to the pressure sensor to obtain pressure information of the touch area through the pressure sensor, and the pressure sensing controller is also connected to the vibration feedback device to control the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the pressure information.

[0018] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of pressure sensors are evenly distributed in the touch area.

[0019] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the vibration feedback device includes:

[0020] vibrator;

[0021] A vibration drive controller is connected to the vibrator and the pressure sensing controller respectively, so as to drive the vibrator to vibrate under the control of the pressure sensing controller.

[0022] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the touch controller is also connected to the pressure sensing controller, and the pressure sensing controller also obtains touch information through the touch controller, and controls the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the touch information and pressure information.

[0023] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the laminated touch panel further includes:

[0024] A touchpad connection port, through which the pressure sensing controller is connected to the keyboard controller, so as to transmit the status information of the touch area to the controlled electronic device through the keyboard controller.

[0025] The laminated touch panel provided by the embodiment of the present invention has a circuit board layer located below the surface layer of the touch panel; the touch control layer is arranged below the circuit board layer, and the touch control layer is provided with a laminated touch panel. The laminated touch panel includes a detection control module, a touch controller and a vibration feedback device, wherein the touch controller or the detection control module is also used to judge the pressing position according to the touch information or pressure information. When the pressing position is located on the left side of the touch area, it is judged as a left key press; when the pressing position is located on the right side of the touch area, it is judged as a right key press. In this way, the structure of the commonly used touch strip buttons is simplified through the laminated structure, the button method is eliminated, the touch bracket can also be saved, and the circuit board layer does not need to use a multi-layer circuit board, thereby reducing the cost of the entire touch panel by a large part. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 A schematic side view of the structure of the laminated touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the main structure of the laminated structure touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0028] Figure 3 A schematic side view of another laminated touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0029] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the main structure of another laminated structure touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0030] Figure 5 A schematic side view of another laminated touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0031] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the main structure of another laminated structure touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0032] Figure 7 A schematic side view of another laminated touch panel provided by the present invention;

[0033] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the main structure of another laminated structure touch panel provided by the present invention.

[0034] Figure 9 A schematic structural diagram of a touch panel with a laminated structure provided by the present invention;

[0035] Figure 10 A schematic structural diagram of the touch controller circuit provided by the present invention;

[0036] Figure 11 A schematic structural diagram of a touch panel connection port circuit provided by the present invention;

[0037] Figure 12 A schematic diagram of the structure of the pressure sensing controller circuit provided by the present invention;

[0038] Figure 13 A schematic diagram of the structure of the pressure sensor group circuit provided by the present invention;

[0039] Figure 14 A schematic diagram of the structure of the vibration drive controller and vibrator circuit provided by the present invention;

[0040] Reference numerals

[0041] Touchpad surface layer 10;

[0042] Circuit board layer 20;

[0043] Touch controller 201;

[0044] vibrator 202;

[0045] Pressure sensing controller 203;

[0046] pressure detection unit 2031;

[0047] Vibration control unit 2032;

[0048] pressure sensor 204;

[0049] Detection control module 205;

[0050] Input and output cable interface 206;

[0051] Cable interface 207;

[0052] Touchpad bracket 30.

[0053] The purpose, features and advantages of the present invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings and in conjunction with the embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0054] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs. The terms used in the specification of the present invention herein are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0055] References herein to "embodiments" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments may be included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor does it constitute a separate or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is understood, both explicitly and implicitly, by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0056] See Figures 1 to 8 The embodiment of the present invention provides a laminated touch panel, comprising: a touch panel surface layer 10, a circuit board layer 20 and a touch control layer, wherein the circuit board layer 20 is located below the touch panel surface layer 10; the touch control layer is arranged below the circuit board layer 20, and a laminated touch panel is arranged in the touch control layer, wherein the laminated touch panel comprises a detection control module 205, a touch controller 201 and a vibration feedback device. Figures 1 to 8As shown in the , the modular design of the stacked structure simplifies the production process and reduces costs. The touchpad does not require additional wiring, which reduces the number of layers in the touchpad PCB. For example, a four-layer circuit board is not required, improving reliability and reducing costs. The touchpad structure can be configured with different numbers and distributions depending on the size of the touchpad. In this pressure touchpad structure, the stacked structure simplifies the structure of the conventional touch strip key, eliminating the key press method. The key press is implemented by the pressure sensor 204 component. This eliminates the need for key feel and eliminates the need for a touch bracket, significantly reducing costs. The touchpad does not require physical keys. When a user touches and slides the touchpad, the sensor controls the vibrator 202 to vibrate through the detected piezoresistive feedback, creating a touch sliding trajectory. When the finger pauses and presses hard on the touchpad, the vibration is amplified. When a certain piezoresistive value is reached, a keyboard function (left or right key) is pressed. No space is required at the bottom of the touchpad for the travel of physical keys, resulting in a simpler structure and no key feel issues. And it can realize that when the user's finger touches the touch area, vibration will be generated quickly. When the force reaches a certain level, it will simulate the feeling of a physical button being pressed, and can provide variable tactile feedback or force feedback according to the user's force. Among them, the detection control module 205 includes: a pressure sensor 204 and a pressure sensing controller 203. The pressure sensor 204 is provided in plurality, and the plurality of pressure sensors 204 are respectively arranged around the bottom of the circuit board layer 20 to obtain the pressure information of the plurality of contact points in the touch area. By distributing the plurality of pressure sensors 204 in the touch area, the pressure sensing is made more accurate. The data of the detection control module 205, the touch controller 201 and the vibration feedback device can be transmitted to the electronic device through the input and output cable interface 207206 or the cable interface 207, so that the electronic device can process or control the electronic device.

[0057] During implementation, a pressure sensor processing module can be provided below the touchpad. The pressure sensor processing module 204 can be a module or integrated with the touchpad, that is, the module or touch and pressure sensor can be integrated. When a user's finger touches the touchpad, the pressure resistance change it gives determines the finger's pressing force and determines whether it is a light touch or a press operation. When the pressure of the touching finger is light, it is a light tap, which is a normal touch, and there will also be a slight vibration. When it is determined to be a finger press, the vibration feedback device gives the user feedback that they are using the left or right touch key. The touch controller 201 or the detection control module 205 also determines the pressing position based on the touch information or pressure information. When the pressing position is to the left of the touch area, it is determined to be a left key press; when the pressing position is to the right of the touch area, it is determined to be a right key press. The left and right key determination methods can be based on the vertical center line of the touchpad, with the left side of the reference being the left key and the right side of the reference being the right key.

[0058] See Figures 1 to 8 The laminated touchpad also includes a touchpad support 30, located below the circuit board layer 20 to support the circuit board layer 20. The touchpad support 30 provides support for the touchpad surface layer 10 and the circuit board layer 20, thereby forming a complete touchpad structure. In one embodiment of the present invention, the touchpad surface layer 10 is made of Mylar or glass, and the touchpad support 30 is made of metal or plastic.

[0059] That is, in this pressure touch laminate structure, the first layer is the topmost mylar or glass layer on the touchpad surface. The second layer is the circuit board PCB, with mylar or glass in close contact with the sensing and driving surface. The third layer is the touch control chip with PCB, a pressure sensor control chip, a vibrator 202 sensing control chip, and a sensor. The pressure sensing control chip and the vibrator 202 sensing control chip can be a module, and except for the sensor and vibrator 202, the other circuits are not on the same PCB board as the touch control chip; or they can be integrated with the touchpad, that is, on the same PCB board. The fourth layer is the touchpad bracket (which can be hardware or other material brackets).

[0060] See Figures 9 to 14 The detection control module 205 is used to obtain pressure information of the touch area; the touch controller 201 is used to obtain touch information of the touch area to perform touch operations on the electronic device; the vibration feedback device is connected to the detection control module 205, and the detection control module 205 controls the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the size of the pressure information.

[0061] Specifically, if Figure 9 、 Figure 12 and Figure 13 The detection control module 205 includes a pressure sensing module, a pressure processing module, and a vibration feedback processing module; wherein the pressure sensing module may include a pressure sensor 204 and a pressure sensing controller 203, wherein the pressure sensing controller 203 is connected to the pressure sensor 204 to obtain pressure information of the touch area through the pressure sensor 204, and the pressure sensing controller 203 is also connected to the vibration feedback device to control the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the pressure information. Figure 9 and Figure 13 As shown in , the pressure sensor 204 may be provided with one or more. By providing multiple pressure sensors 204, the pressure information of multiple contact points in the touch area can be obtained. In one embodiment of the present invention, the multiple pressure sensors 204 are evenly distributed in the touch area. By evenly distributing multiple pressure sensors 204 in the touch area, the pressure sensing is made more accurate. The force feedback principle of the touchpad is mainly achieved through built-in pressure sensors and / or elastic materials. When the user applies different pressures on the touchpad, the pressure sensor will sense the changes during pressing and convert them into electrical signals. The electrical signals are then processed by the pressure sensor 204, reported to the host, and at the same time control the vibrator 202 to transmit corresponding force vibration feedback to the user.

[0062] See Figure 9 and Figure 14 The vibration feedback device includes: a vibrator 202 and a vibration drive controller, and the vibration drive controller is connected to the vibrator 202 and the pressure sensing controller 203 respectively, so as to drive the vibrator 202 to vibrate under the control of the pressure sensing controller 203. The application of force feedback technology enables the touchpad to simulate various real touch sensations. For example, in a sliding operation, lightly touching the touchpad will bring a gentle sliding feeling, while increasing the pressure will speed up the sliding speed, giving people a smooth feeling. In a clicking operation, lightly clicking the touchpad will bring a crisp sound and obvious vibration, while increasing the click force will result in stronger vibration feedback.

[0063] There are several sensors on the touchpad, which are pressure sensors used to detect changes in the force transmitted from the touchpad. After detecting the pressure transmitted by the touch, the pressure sensing controller 203 reports it to the host side. At the same time, after the pressure sensing controller 203 detects the change in the force transmitted from the touchpad, it notifies the vibrator 202 (motor) of the vibration drive controller of the vibration intensity. At the same time, the touch information detected by the touch control chip is reported to the host side through the pressure sensing controller 203. When the user's hand slides lightly on the touchpad, the amount of data detected by the pressure sensor 204 is small, and the vibration drive controller controls the motor to have a small vibration. When the pressing force on the touchpad is large, the force transmitted from the touchpad is large, and the vibration drive controller controls the motor to have a large vibration. When the user's finger touches the touch area, vibration will be generated quickly. When the force reaches a certain level, it will simulate the feeling of a physical button being pressed, and can provide variable tactile feedback or force feedback according to the user's force.

[0064] The laminated structure touch panel provided by the embodiment of the present invention adds a detection control module 205 of pressure touch communication logic and a vibration feedback device to the touch panel. In addition to the touch panel function, it also has the function of force feedback, so that the user can feel a more realistic touch experience when using it. In this way, there is no need to use physical buttons on the touch panel. The implementation method is that when the user presses the touch panel, the information checked by the touch combined with the pressure sensor 204 is fed back to the pressure sensing controller 203 for processing and then reported to the vibration drive controller, and an instruction is issued to drive the vibrator 202, and the vibrator 202 will quickly generate vibrations. Through the communication logic circuit of the above circuit, the user's finger can touch the touch panel to generate the experience of manipulating the touch panel, and the structure is simpler and there is no problem of button feel.

[0065] See Figure 9 、 Figure 10 and Figure 12, the touch controller 201 is also connected to the pressure sensing controller 203, and the pressure sensing controller 203 also obtains touch information through the touch controller 201, and controls the vibration feedback device according to the touch information and pressure information. Through the communication connection between the pressure sensing controller 203 and the touch controller 201, information can be transmitted to each other. When uploading touch information to the connected electronic device, the touch information and pressure information can be uniformly uploaded to the electronic device through the pressure sensing controller. In this way, the electronic device can obtain touch information and pressure information at the same time. From the above communication logic, the touch controller 201 (touch chip) acts as a slave, and the pressure sensing controller 203 (pressure sensing control chip) acts as the host end for the touch end; after the touch information and pressure information pass through the pressure sensor 204 control chip, they are transmitted to the controller MCU at the keyboard end for processing and then reported to the electronic device, such as a personal computer PC or tablet computer, smart phone and other electronic devices. This allows the user's finger to vibrate quickly when touching the touch area. When the force reaches a certain level, it simulates the feeling of a physical button being pressed, and can provide variable tactile feedback or force feedback based on the user's force.

[0066] See Figure 9 and Figure 11 The laminated touchpad also includes a touchpad connection port, through which the pressure sensing controller 203 connects to the keyboard controller to transmit touch area status information to the controlled electronic device via the keyboard controller. Connecting via the touchpad connection port facilitates installation and removal of the laminated touchpad from the keyboard motherboard. The laminated touchpad can be used on commercially available laptop touchpads, touchpads for leather keyboard cases, or other host devices with touchpads.

[0067] The above are only embodiments of the present invention, but do not limit the scope of the patent of the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the above embodiments, it is still possible for those skilled in the art to modify the technical solutions described in the above specific embodiments, or to replace some of the technical features therein with equivalents. Any equivalent structure made by using the contents of the present invention specification and drawings, directly or indirectly applied to other related technical fields, is also within the scope of protection of the patent of the present invention.

[0068] Throughout this specification, reference to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "examples," "specific examples," or "some examples" means that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in conjunction with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0069] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, it will be understood that the above embodiments are illustrative and are not to be construed as limitations on the present invention. A person skilled in the art may make changes, modifications, substitutions and variations to the above embodiments within the scope of the present invention without departing from the principles and purpose of the present invention, and all of these changes are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A touch panel with a laminated structure, characterized in that: include: Touchpad surface; a circuit board layer, the circuit board layer being located below the surface layer of the touch panel; A touch control layer is provided below the circuit board layer, wherein a laminated touch panel is provided in the touch control layer, and the laminated touch panel includes a detection control module, a touch controller and a vibration feedback device; wherein the touch controller or the detection control module is further configured to determine a pressed position based on the touch information or pressure information, and when the pressed position is to the left of the touch area, it is determined to be a left key press; and when the pressed position is to the right of the touch area, it is determined to be a right key press.

2. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 1, wherein: The detection and control module includes a pressure sensing module, a pressure processing module, and a vibration feedback processing module; wherein, the pressure sensing module includes: a pressure sensor and a pressure sensing controller, and the pressure sensors are provided in plurality, and the plurality of pressure sensors are respectively arranged around the bottom of the circuit board layer to obtain pressure information of multiple contact points in the touch area.

3. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: A touch panel bracket is located below the circuit board layer to support the circuit board layer.

4. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 3, wherein: The surface layer of the touch panel is made of Mylar or glass; The touch panel bracket is made of metal or plastic.

5. The laminated structure touch panel according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that: The detection control module is used to obtain pressure information of the touch area; The touch controller is used to obtain touch information of the touch area to perform touch operations on the electronic device; The vibration feedback device is connected to the detection control module, and the detection control module controls the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the magnitude of the pressure information; Among them, the touch controller or detection control module is also used to judge the pressing position based on the touch information or pressure information. When the pressing position is located on the left side of the touch area, it is judged as a left key press; when the pressing position is located on the right side of the touch area, it is judged as a right key press.

6. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 5, wherein: The pressure sensing controller is connected to the pressure sensor to obtain pressure information of the touch area through the pressure sensor. The pressure sensing controller is also connected to the vibration feedback device to control the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the pressure information.

7. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 6, wherein: The plurality of pressure sensors are evenly distributed in the touch area.

8. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 5, wherein: The vibration feedback device comprises: vibrator; A vibration drive controller is connected to the vibrator and the pressure sensing controller respectively, so as to drive the vibrator to vibrate under the control of the pressure sensing controller.

9. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 5, wherein: The touch controller is also connected to the pressure sensing controller. The pressure sensing controller also obtains touch information through the touch controller and controls the vibration of the vibration feedback device according to the touch information and pressure information.

10. The laminated structure touch panel according to claim 8, wherein: Also includes: A touchpad connection port, through which the pressure sensing controller is connected to the keyboard controller, so as to transmit the status information of the touch area to the controlled electronic device through the keyboard controller.

Images