Over-the-air touch sensing device and household appliance

Abstract

The utility model belongs to the technical field of touch sensing, and discloses a distance touch sensing device and a household appliance, which comprise a touch panel, a sensing probe and a sensing identification module, the touch panel is provided with a plurality of touch sensing areas, the touch sensing areas are used for receiving external touch input operation, at least one touch sensing area corresponds to a sensing probe, and the touch sensing areas correspond to at least one sensing probe; one end of each sensing probe is connected with the circuit board, the other end of each sensing probe extends in the direction far away from the circuit board and close to the touch panel and is connected with the touch panel in the corresponding touch sensing area by taking air as a conducting medium, and the sensing probes are used for sensing touch input operation and generating corresponding sensing signals; the induction recognition module is arranged on the circuit board, the induction probe is connected with the induction recognition module through the circuit board, and the induction recognition module is used for receiving the induction signal and determining touch input operation according to the induction signal. The utility model aims to improve the accuracy of touch sensing.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to touch response technical field, especially relate to a kind of over-the-air touch response device and household appliance. BACKGROUND

[0002] Touch response is widely used in various household appliances due to its clean and beautiful operation interface and other advantages, and the design of touch response generally includes a touch panel for user interaction, a circuit board, and a conductive medium between the touch panel and the circuit board.

[0003] Currently, some household appliances optimize the design of over-the-air touch response to save costs related to touch response, and remove the metal spring as a conductive medium. However, only the sensing signal of the touch input operation is sensed through the metal sensing disc. Although this design reduces the circuit cost, it also relies too much on the sensing ability of the metal sensing disc, resulting in a too small signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal, which affects the accuracy of over-the-air touch response. SUMMARY

[0004] The utility model aims to provide a touch response system and device to solve one or more technical problems existing in the prior art and at least provide a beneficial option or create conditions.

[0005] The utility model solves the technical problem by the following solution:

[0006] An over-the-air touch response device is provided, which includes a touch panel, a sensing probe, a circuit board, and an sensing recognition module.

[0007] The touch panel is provided with a plurality of touch response areas for receiving external touch input operations. At least one touch response area corresponds to a sensing probe. The touch response area corresponds to at least one sensing probe.

[0008] One end of the sensing probe is connected to the circuit board, and the other end extends away from the circuit board and approaches the touch panel. The sensing probe is connected to the touch panel in the touch response area with air as the conductive medium. The sensing probe is used to sense the touch input operation and generate a corresponding sensing signal.

[0009] The sensing recognition module is arranged on the circuit board. The sensing probe is connected to the sensing recognition module through the circuit board. The sensing recognition module is used to receive the sensing signal and determine the touch input operation according to the sensing signal.

[0010] In some embodiments, the sensing probe is a straight first metal wire, one end of which is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of which extends towards the touch panel.

[0011] In some embodiments, the sensing probe is a second metal wire which is bent at a first preset angle, both ends of which are connected to the circuit board, and the middle of which extends towards the touch panel and is bent to form the first preset angle.

[0012] In some embodiments, the sensing probe is a bare metal probe or a metal probe wrapped in a plastic layer.

[0013] In some embodiments, the hollow touch sensing device further comprises an LED lamp, which is arranged on the circuit board and corresponds to the position of the touch sensing area on the touch panel.

[0014] The number of pins of the LED lamp is 3, wherein a first target pin of the LED lamp is set as the sensing probe.

[0015] In some embodiments, the hollow touch sensing device further comprises a number tube, which is arranged on the circuit board and corresponds to the position of the touch sensing area on the touch panel.

[0016] A second target pin of the number tube is set as the sensing probe.

[0017] In some embodiments, the hollow touch sensing device further comprises a metal sensing disc, which is arranged on the circuit board and connected to the sensing recognition module, and is used for sensing the touch input operation and generating a corresponding sensing signal.

[0018] One end of the sensing probe is connected to the metal sensing disc, and the metal sensing disc is connected to the sensing recognition module of the circuit board.

[0019] In some embodiments, the sensing probe is made of one or more of copper, iron and aluminum.

[0020] In some embodiments, when the area of the touch sensing area is greater than a preset area, the touch sensing area is formed by a plurality of non-overlapping sub-sensing areas, each of which corresponds to at least one sensing probe, and a virtual straight line extending from the other end of the sensing probe passes through the center point of the corresponding sub-sensing area.

[0021] To achieve the above objectives, another aspect of the embodiments of this application proposes a home appliance that includes a touch-sensitive device as described in any of the preceding claims.

[0022] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: A touch-sensitive device is constructed using a touch panel, a sensing probe, and a sensing recognition module. The touch panel has a touch-sensing area for receiving external touch input. A sensing probe corresponding to the touch-sensing area is provided. One end of the probe is connected to the circuit board, and the other end extends away from the circuit board and closer to the touch panel, using air as the conductive medium to connect with the touch panel within the touch-sensing area. This enables touch input operations on the touch panel to be sensed airlessly, generating a sensing signal. A sensing recognition module connected to the sensing probe receives the sensing signal generated by the probe and determines the touch input operation based on the signal, thus achieving airless touch sensing. Compared to sensing via a metal sensing pad mounted on the circuit board, the sensing probe is closer to the touch panel than the metal sensing pad. Therefore, when a touch input operation is performed, the sensing signal generated on the probe has a higher signal-to-noise ratio, making it easier to recognize the touch input operation and improving the accuracy of airless touch sensing. Attached Figure Description

[0023] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this utility model, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly explained below. Obviously, the described drawings are only a part of the embodiments of this utility model, and not all of them. Those skilled in the art can obtain other design schemes and drawings based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0024] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a contactless touch sensing device according to the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the first metal wire of this utility model;

[0026] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the second metal wire of this utility model.

[0027] In the diagram: Touch panel-100, sensing probe-200, first metal wire-210, second metal wire-220, circuit board-300. Detailed Implementation

[0028] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the following detailed description is provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the scope of this application.

[0029] It should be noted that although functional modules are divided in the system diagram and the logical order is shown in the flowchart, in some cases, the steps shown or described may be performed in a different order than the module division in the system or the order in the flowchart. The terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and the aforementioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence.

[0030] In related technologies, touch sensing is widely used in various home appliances due to its advantages such as a clean and aesthetically pleasing user interface. A typical touch sensing design includes a touch panel for user interaction, a circuit board, and the conductive medium between the touch panel and the circuit board. Currently, some home appliances, in order to save on touch sensing costs, optimize their design to be air-sensitive, removing the metal springs or other conductive mediums and instead relying on structures like a metal sensor pad on the circuit board for touch sensing. However, while this design reduces circuit costs by optimizing the conductive medium, it also leads to over-reliance on the sensing capability of the metal sensor pad. The resulting signal-to-noise ratio is too low, making it difficult to distinguish whether a touch event has actually occurred, thus affecting the accuracy of air-sensitive touch sensing.

[0031] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a touch-sensitive device provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 The air-touch sensing device may include, but is not limited to: touch panel 100, sensing probe 200, circuit board 300 and sensing recognition module (not shown in the figure).

[0032] The touch panel 100 is provided with a plurality of touch sensing areas for receiving external touch input operations. At least one touch sensing area corresponds to a sensing probe 200, wherein the touch sensing area corresponds to at least one sensing probe 200.

[0033] One end of the sensing probe 200 is connected to the circuit board 300, and the other end extends away from the circuit board 300 and closer to the touch panel 100. It is connected to the touch panel 100 in the corresponding touch sensing area using air as the conductive medium. The sensing probe 200 is used to sense touch input operations and generate corresponding sensing signals.

[0034] The sensing and recognition module is located on the circuit board 300. The sensing probe 200 is connected to the sensing and recognition module through the circuit board 300. The sensing and recognition module is used to receive sensing signals and determine touch input operations based on the sensing signals.

[0035] In this embodiment, the air-touch sensing device includes at least the touch panel 100, the sensing probe 200, and the sensing recognition module, which are respectively responsible for receiving touch input operations, sensing touch input operations, and recognizing touch input operations. The touch panel 100 has several touch sensing areas, which are the areas where users can perform touch input. It should be noted that the touch areas on the touch panel 100 used to trigger different device functions can be divided into different touch sensing areas, such as a touch button on a home appliance to control device power-on and a touch button to start a workflow.

[0036] Furthermore, the touch panel 100 and the circuit board 300 are separated by a first preset distance, which is set to 1cm or 1.5cm, etc. The sensing and recognition module is disposed on the circuit board 300. One end of the sensing probe 200 is connected to the circuit board 300, and the other end extends away from the circuit board 300 and towards the touch panel 100. It should be noted that the shape of the sensing probe 200 is not limited in this embodiment. The sensing probe 200 may be straight or bent. The common feature is that one end is connected to the circuit board 300, and from this connection point, it extends away from the circuit board 300 and towards the touch panel 100. It is also possible that due to its bent shape, the sensing probe 200 may extend towards the circuit board 300 again after passing the bend. Figure 1 The sensor probe 200 shown is only for illustrative purposes in a straight shape. In this embodiment, the shape of the sensor probe 200 is not actually limited, and the dimensions of the sensor probe 200 in the figure are only for illustrative reference. If the distance between the point on the sensor probe 200 closest to the touch panel 100 and the touch panel 100 is defined as a second preset distance, then the second preset distance will ultimately be less than the first preset distance. Furthermore, the sensor probe 200 is made of metal. When a user's body touches the touch panel 100 and inputs a touch input, capacitive sensing occurs between the touch panel 100, the sensor probe 200, and the air between the touch panel 100 and the sensor probe 200, generating a corresponding sensing signal on the sensor probe 200.

[0037] For the touch sensing area on the touch panel 100, some touch sensing areas may still be designed to sense through a metal sensing pad. However, in this embodiment, the touch panel 100 has at least one touch sensing area corresponding to the sensing probe 200, that is, sensing through the sensing probe 200. For this type of touch sensing area, at least one sensing probe 200 is led out from the circuit board 300 at the corresponding position. The sensing probe 200 senses the touch input operation triggered on its corresponding touch sensing area.

[0038] In addition, several sensing probes 200 are connected to one end of the circuit board 300, which are actually connected to the wires set on the circuit board 300 and connected to the sensing recognition module through the wires. The sensing signals generated by the sensing probes 200 are also transmitted to the sensing recognition module through the wires. In this way, the sensing recognition module can analyze and determine the touch input operation triggered on the touch panel 100 based on the received sensing signals, realizing air touch sensing. The algorithm for determining the touch input operation based on the analysis of the sensing signals is an algorithm provided by the prior art.

[0039] Compared to the metal sensor pad currently mounted on the circuit board 300, since the other end of the sensing probe 200 extends away from the circuit board 300 and closer to the touch panel 100, the minimum distance between the sensing probe 200 and the touch panel 100 is necessarily smaller than the distance between the metal sensor pad on the circuit board 300 and the touch panel 100. Based on this, when a touch input operation is input, the sensing signal generated on the sensing probe 200 has a larger signal-to-noise ratio, making it easier to identify the touch input operation and improve the accuracy of air touch sensing.

[0040] In some embodiments, the sensing probe 200 is configured as a straight first metal wire 210, one end of which is connected to the circuit board 300, and the other end of which extends toward the touch panel 100.

[0041] refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2 To facilitate observation, the touch panel 100 is hidden, and only the first metal wire 210 and the circuit board 300 are retained.

[0042] Optionally, a straight metal wire can be used as the sensing probe 200 in the air-touch sensing device. This involves a straight wire extending from the circuit board 300 towards the touch panel 100, with the other end of the wire ending at the gap between the touch panel 100 and the circuit board 300. The portion of this wire that leaves the circuit board 300 is defined as the first metal wire 210. It should be noted that although the first metal wire 210 is defined as straight in this embodiment, due to the inherent flexibility of the metal material, there may be some bending error, but this does not affect the final sensing effect. Furthermore, the first metal wire 210 is not necessarily perpendicular to the circuit board 300; the first metal wire 210 and the circuit board 300 can form a second preset angle, which can be a right angle or an acute angle.

[0043] By setting the sensing probe 200 as a straight first metal wire 210, the other end of the first metal wire 210 can be as close as possible to the touch panel 100, thereby amplifying the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal generated thereon and improving the accuracy of air-touch sensing.

[0044] In some embodiments, the sensing probe 200 is configured as a second metal wire 220 bent at a first preset angle. Both ends of the second metal wire 220 are connected to the circuit board 300. The middle position of the second metal wire 220 extends toward the touch panel 100 and is bent to form the first preset angle.

[0045] refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 To facilitate observation, the touch panel 100 is hidden, and only the second metal wire 220 and the circuit board 300 are retained.

[0046] Optionally, a bent metal wire can be used as the sensing probe 200 in the air-touch sensing device. That is, a metal wire is led out from the circuit board 300 with both ends connected to the circuit board 300, but the position between the two ends or the middle position is away from the circuit board 300 and close to the touch panel 100. The part of it away from the circuit board 300 is defined as the second metal wire 220. It can be understood that, according to the above design, there must be a bending position in the second metal wire 220. Generally, the midpoint of the second metal wire 220 is the bending point. The bending angle is defined as the first preset angle, which is an acute angle.

[0047] By setting the sensing probe 200 as a bent second metal wire 220, it is equivalent to forming two wires that leave the circuit board 300, with the bending point as the dividing point. This can synergistically amplify the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal generated on it and improve the accuracy of air-touch sensing.

[0048] In some embodiments, the sensing probe is configured as an exposed metal probe or a metal probe wrapped in a plastic layer.

[0049] When the sensing probe is set as the first metal wire or the second metal wire, it can be set as an exposed metal probe, that is, a suspended exposed metal wire, which is beneficial to improving its sensing capability; on the other hand, it can also be set as a metal probe wrapped with a plastic layer, which can be referred to as the jumper wire wrapped with a plastic sheath on the circuit board. This form is beneficial to the arrangement and installation of the sensing probe.

[0050] In some embodiments, the air-touch sensing device further includes an LED light disposed on the circuit board 300 and corresponding to the position of the touch-sensing area on the touch panel 100.

[0051] The LED has 3 pins, and the first target pin of the LED is set as the sensing probe 200.

[0052] In the prior art, some LED lights have a 3-pin design, such as LED lights with control functions or dual-color LED lights. In this embodiment, the sensing probe 200 is set up in conjunction with the 3-pin LED light. Due to the design of the LED light, it can be understood that one end of its pin is connected to the circuit board 300, and the other end is away from the circuit board 300 and extends towards the touch panel 100. Therefore, it also meets the conditions of the sensing probe 200 required by the embodiment of this application.

[0053] Optionally, an LED light is provided on the circuit board 300. The LED light has 3 pins, and its position on the circuit board 300 corresponds to the position of a certain touch sensing area on the touch panel 100. In this case, one of the pins of the LED light is set as a sensing probe 200, and the pin used as the sensing probe 200 is defined as the first target pin. The first target pin is connected to the sensing and recognition module on the circuit board 300. It should be noted that the other two pins of the LED light can still be used normally, and the LED light can still realize the basic LED light emission function.

[0054] By using the LED pins as sensing probes 200, the air touch sensing device eliminates the need for a separate metal wire as sensing probe 200. Instead, it utilizes existing circuit components to achieve the function of sensing probe 200, thereby reducing the circuit cost of the air touch sensing device.

[0055] In some embodiments, the air-touch sensing device further includes a digital tube disposed on the circuit board 300 and corresponding to the position of the touch sensing area on the touch panel 100.

[0056] Set the second target pin of the digital tube to the sensing probe 200.

[0057] Optionally, in addition to LED lights, digital tubes are also devices on circuit board 300 that can utilize extra pins. In this embodiment, the digital tubes provided on circuit board 300 can be used to set the extra or special pins of the digital tubes as sensing probes 200. Similarly, the pins of the digital tubes also meet the requirement that one end of the sensing probe 200 is connected to circuit board 300, and the other end is away from circuit board 300 and extends towards touch panel 100. The pins in the digital tubes used as sensing probes 200 are defined as second target pins. The second target pins are connected to the sensing recognition module on circuit board 300. It should be noted that at this time, the other pins of the digital tubes other than the second target pins can still be used normally, and the digital tubes can still achieve the basic function of emitting light.

[0058] By using the pins of the digital tube as sensing probes 200, the air touch sensing device does not need to use a separate metal wire as sensing probe 200. Instead, it can use the existing circuit components to realize the function of sensing probe 200, thereby reducing the circuit cost of the air touch sensing device.

[0059] In some embodiments, the air-touch sensing device further includes a metal sensing disk, which is disposed on the circuit board 300 and connected to the sensing and recognition module. The metal sensing disk is used to sense touch input operations and generate corresponding sensing signals.

[0060] One end of the sensing probe 200 is connected to the metal sensing disk, and the metal sensing disk is connected to the sensing and recognition module of the circuit board 300.

[0061] Optionally, in this embodiment, a sensing probe 200 and a metal sensing disk can be used in combination to maximize the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal for air-touch sensing. A metal sensing disk corresponding to the touch sensing area is provided on the circuit board 300. The metal sensing disk is also connected to the sensing recognition module. Furthermore, a sensing probe 200 is provided at the position of the metal sensing disk. Since both are made of metal, one end of the sensing probe 200 is connected to the metal sensing disk, thereby combining the sensing probe 200 and the metal sensing disk for air-touch sensing. When the user's body touches the touch panel 100 and inputs a touch input operation, the metal sensing disk and the sensing probe 200 can work together to generate a sensing signal. Furthermore, by utilizing the closer distance between the sensing probe 200 and the touch panel 100, the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal is amplified, thereby improving the accuracy of air-touch sensing.

[0062] In some embodiments, the sensing probe 200 is made of one or more of copper, iron, and aluminum materials.

[0063] In order to realize the function of sensing touch input operation and generate sensing signal, the sensing probe 200 is made of one or more of copper, iron and aluminum materials, thereby supporting capacitive sensing for user touch input operation and realizing touch sensing function.

[0064] In some embodiments, when the area of ​​the touch sensing area is larger than a preset area, the touch sensing area is formed by combining multiple non-overlapping sub-sensing areas, each of the sub-sensing areas corresponds to at least one sensing probe 200, and a virtual straight line extending from the other end of the sensing probe 200 passes through the center point of the corresponding sub-sensing area.

[0065] According to the design of some home appliances, there may be touch sensing areas with large touch sensing areas on their touch panels 100. The average area of ​​other touch sensing areas on the touch panels 100 of the home appliance can be used as a comparison standard. For example, a preset area can be set to 2 or 3 times the average area. When the area of ​​a certain touch sensing area is larger than the preset area, it means that the touch sensing area is significantly larger than the other touch sensing areas on the home appliance.

[0066] It is understandable that if the sensing probe 200 is projected onto the touch panel 100, its projected area on the touch panel 100 is relatively small compared to the area of ​​the touch sensing area. When the area of ​​the touch sensing area is large, the distance between the midpoint of the touch sensing area and the sensing probe 200 is significantly different from the distance between the four corners of the touch sensing area and the sensing probe 200. This will cause the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing signal corresponding to the touch input operation triggered at different positions of the touch sensing area to also be significantly different, ultimately affecting the accuracy of touch sensing.

[0067] Based on this, in this embodiment, when the area of ​​the touch sensing area is larger than a preset area, the touch sensing area is divided into multiple non-overlapping sub-sensing areas, and the touch sensing area is formed by combining multiple sub-sensing areas. For each sub-sensing area, at least one sensing probe 200 is provided. On the circuit board 300, the multiple sensing probes 200 are also connected to the same wire and then connected to the sensing recognition module. By having multiple sensing probes 200 work together to sense touch input operations on the touch sensing area, the sensing range of the sensing probes 200 can cover a larger area of ​​the touch sensing area, ensuring the accuracy of the sensing signal and thus improving the accuracy of touch sensing.

[0068] Furthermore, to ensure the coverage capability of each sensing probe 200 for its corresponding sub-sensing area, for ease of explanation, it is assumed that the sensing probe 200 is a straight wire. A virtual straight line is defined extending from the other end of the line. The position setting of the sensing probe 200 should be such that the virtual straight line can pass through the center point of the corresponding sub-sensing area, thereby ensuring that the sensing probe 200 can cover all positions in the sub-sensing area, including the corners, and improving the accuracy of touch sensing.

[0069] In addition, this application also provides a home appliance that includes the air touch sensing device as described in any of the above embodiments, realizing the functions that the air touch sensing device can perform and achieving the same effect.

[0070] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described. Those skilled in the art can make various equivalent modifications or substitutions without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and these equivalent modifications or substitutions are all included within the scope defined by the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A touch-sensitive device for air contact, characterized in that, The air-touch sensing device includes: a touch panel, a sensing probe, a circuit board, and a sensing recognition module; The touch panel is provided with a plurality of touch sensing areas, which are used to receive external touch input operations. At least one of the touch sensing areas corresponds to the sensing probe, wherein the touch sensing area corresponds to at least one of the sensing probes. One end of the sensing probe is connected to the circuit board, and the other end extends away from the circuit board and close to the touch panel, and is connected to the touch panel in the corresponding touch sensing area using air as the conductive medium. The sensing probe is used to sense the touch input operation and generate a corresponding sensing signal. The sensing and recognition module is disposed on the circuit board, and the sensing probe is connected to the sensing and recognition module through the circuit board. The sensing and recognition module is used to receive the sensing signal and determine the touch input operation based on the sensing signal.

2. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sensing probe is configured as a straight first metal wire, one end of which is connected to the circuit board, and the other end of which extends toward the touch panel.

3. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sensing probe is configured as a second metal wire bent at a first preset angle. Both ends of the second metal wire are connected to the circuit board. The middle position of the second metal wire extends towards the touch panel and is bent to form the first preset angle.

4. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The sensing probe is configured as an exposed metal probe or a metal probe wrapped in a plastic layer.

5. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air-touch sensing device also includes an LED light, which is disposed on the circuit board and corresponds to the position of the touch sensing area on the touch panel; The LED has 3 pins, and the first target pin of the LED is set as the sensing probe.

6. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air-touch sensing device also includes a digital tube, which is disposed on the circuit board and corresponds to the position of the touch sensing area on the touch panel; Set the second target pin of the digital tube as the sensing probe.

7. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air-touch sensing device also includes a metal sensing disk, which is disposed on the circuit board and connected to the sensing and recognition module. The metal sensing disk is used to sense the touch input operation and generate a corresponding sensing signal. One end of the sensing probe is connected to the metal sensing disk, and the metal sensing disk is connected to the sensing and recognition module of the circuit board.

8. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sensing probe is made of one or more of the following materials: copper, iron, and aluminum.

9. The air-touch sensing device according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the area of ​​the touch sensing area is larger than a preset area, the touch sensing area is formed by combining multiple non-overlapping sub-sensing areas. Each sub-sensing area corresponds to at least one sensing probe, and a virtual straight line extending from the other end of the sensing probe passes through the center point of the corresponding sub-sensing area.

10. A household appliance, characterized in that, The home appliance includes a touch-sensitive device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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