Touch module, touch device and touch system

Abstract

This application provides a touch module, touch device, and touch system, relating to the field of touch technology, to improve the signal strength of touch detection, achieve high-sensitivity hover touch detection, and increase the detection height of hover touch. The touch device includes: a transmitting electrode layer and a receiving electrode layer, the receiving electrode layer being located above the transmitting electrode layer along a first direction, the first direction being a direction perpendicular to the surface and bottom surface of the touch module. The transmitting electrode layer includes at least one transmitting electrode, and the receiving electrode layer includes multiple receiving electrodes. At least a portion of the projection of the transmitting electrode onto a reference surface is covered by the orthographic projection of at least one receiving electrode onto the reference surface, and the area of ​​the covered projection portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the sum of the areas of the at least one receiving electrode.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of touch technology, and in particular to a touch module, touch device and touch system. Background Technology

[0002] Touch devices can detect and respond to touches from objects (such as fingers or styluses) using capacitive or pressure sensing technologies, thus enabling human-computer interaction. They also offer advantages such as being lightweight, thin, low-power, and easy to integrate, and are widely used in consumer electronics, home appliances, automotive electronics, industrial equipment, and other devices.

[0003] Capacitive touch detection technology includes self-inductance detection technology and mutual inductance detection technology. Self-inductance detection technology is easily affected by noise interference from non-detection directions. Currently, electronic devices such as mobile phones or tablets generally use mutual inductance detection technology, which has a lower effective detection range in some scenarios that require levitation detection. Utility Model Content

[0004] This application provides a touch module, touch device, and touch system to improve the sensitivity and signal strength of touch detection, enabling hover touch detection with higher sensitivity and higher touch height.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solutions adopted in this application are as follows:

[0006] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a touch module, including: a transmitting electrode layer and a receiving electrode layer, wherein the receiving electrode layer is located above the transmitting electrode layer along the thickness direction of the touch module. The transmitting electrode layer includes one or more transmitting electrodes, and the receiving electrode layer includes one or more receiving electrodes. At least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode onto a reference surface is covered by the orthographic projection of at least one receiving electrode onto the reference surface, and the area of ​​the covered projection portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the total area of ​​the at least one receiving electrode, wherein the reference surface is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0007] Typically, the direction above the receiving electrode is the direction for detecting touch. When a user's finger, stylus, or other touch object approaches the receiving electrode from above, the receiving electrode is susceptible to interference from non-detection directions, especially from below it, such as reference ground, metal power layer, or other metal layers. The touch module provided in this application embodiment has a transmitting electrode layer below the receiving electrode layer, and at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode is covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode above it. For example, at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode on the reference surface is covered by the orthographic projections of multiple receiving electrodes on the reference surface, and the area of ​​the covered projection is greater than or equal to 50% of the total area of ​​these receiving electrodes. The large facing area between the transmitting and receiving electrodes allows the receiving electrode to couple with the transmitting electrode to form a capacitor, thereby applying excitation to the receiving electrode through the transmitting electrode. Furthermore, the large facing area between the transmitting and receiving electrodes can block interference from non-detection directions, enabling the detection of smaller signals and improving the sensitivity of hover touch detection.

[0008] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the orthographic projection of each receiving electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of a transmitting electrode onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode. This ensures that each receiving electrode has a large facing area with the transmitting electrode below it, blocking interference and improving the sensitivity of hover touch detection.

[0009] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the transmitting electrode is used to transmit an excitation signal; the receiving electrode is used to receive the excitation signal and detect the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object based on the excitation signal.

[0010] The capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode or transmitting electrode and the touch object is typically called self-capacitance. The capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode is called mutual capacitance. When the touch object approaches, it couples with both the receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode, forming capacitances that cause a change in the mutual capacitance between them, thus allowing the touch object to be detected. In this embodiment, the facing area of ​​the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode is relatively large, allowing the receiving electrode to couple with the transmitting electrode to form a capacitance. The transmitting electrode can emit an excitation signal to charge the receiving electrode, and the receiving electrode detects the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed with the touch object based on the excitation signal. Compared to traditional mutual inductance capacitance detection technology, which uses the transmitting electrode to emit an excitation signal and detects the mutual capacitance between the transmitting and receiving electrodes, the capacitance formed by the transmitting and receiving electrodes in this embodiment is not changed by the proximity of the touch object. When the transmitting electrode emits an excitation signal, this capacitance can be equivalent to a wire, which is equivalent to directly applying an excitation to the receiving electrode. The self-capacitance formed by coupling with the touch object is detected using self-inductance capacitance detection. Since only the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed by coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object needs to be considered, a higher signal strength can be achieved than with mutual inductance capacitance detection.

[0011] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the touch module further includes a reference ground layer, with the transmitting electrode layer disposed between the reference ground layer and the receiving electrode layer. In conventional solutions, the receiving electrode is susceptible to interference from non-detection directions, such as interference from the reference ground layer, when detecting the capacitance formed by coupling between the receiving electrode and the touched object. In this embodiment, the reference ground layer can couple with the ground to generate capacitance, and the human body also couples with the ground to form capacitance. When a user uses a device equipped with a touch module, the human body can couple with the reference ground layer. The larger the area of ​​the reference ground layer, the stronger the coupling, which can improve the signal quantity for touch detection. However, if the reference ground layer couples with the receiving electrode to form capacitance, it will affect the self-capacitance detected by the receiving electrode between the receiving electrode and the touched object. In this embodiment, the transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the reference ground layer and the receiving electrode layer, which can prevent the reference ground layer from interfering with the receiving electrode.

[0012] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the orthographic projection of each transmitting electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the transmitting electrode, thereby avoiding capacitive interference between the reference ground layer and the receiving electrode that would otherwise be formed by coupling.

[0013] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the reference ground layer includes a first portion and a second portion electrically connected, with a transmitting electrode layer disposed between the first portion and the receiving electrode layer. When the touch module is not in a human-held state, the second portion of the reference ground layer can be used to increase the area of ​​the reference ground layer to improve the detected signal quantity. When the touch module is in a human-held state, the second portion can also be used to enhance the coupling between the reference ground layer and the human body, thereby improving the detected signal quantity.

[0014] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the distance D1 between the receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode in the thickness direction of the touch module satisfies: D1≤1mm. The receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode can form a capacitor, which can apply excitation to the receiving electrode through the transmitting electrode and isolate interference in non-detection directions.

[0015] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the distance between the reference ground layer and the emitter electrode in the thickness direction of the touch module is D2, where D2 satisfies: 0.01mm ≤ D2 ≤ 10mm. When applying excitation to the emitter electrode, it is necessary to overcome the influence of parasitic capacitance between the emitter electrode and the reference ground layer. The distance between the emitter electrode and the reference ground layer is greater than or equal to 0.01mm to prevent excessive parasitic capacitance between the reference ground layer and the emitter electrode, thus avoiding excessive power consumption. The distance between the emitter electrode and the reference ground layer is less than or equal to 10mm to avoid the coupling between the emitter electrode and the reference ground layer being too weak due to excessive distance, which would prevent the effect of improving the coupling signal quantity.

[0016] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the transmitting electrode layer includes a transmitting electrode, and the receiving electrode layer includes one or more receiving electrodes. For example, in applications such as touch buttons, the touch module only needs to identify whether a touch is present; in this case, the receiving electrode layer may include a single receiving electrode. In other cases, such as when it is necessary to identify not only whether a touch is present but also the touch location, multiple receiving electrodes can be provided. These multiple receiving electrodes can also be arranged in a certain shape, such as strips, rings, or arrays of multiple rows or columns, etc.

[0017] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the emitter electrode layer includes a plurality of emitter electrodes, and the receiver electrode layer includes a plurality of receiver electrodes.

[0018] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the multiple transmitting electrodes are positioned at the same or different locations in the thickness direction of the touch module, and / or the multiple receiving electrodes are positioned at different locations in the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0019] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a touch device, which includes a housing and a touch module as provided in the first aspect and any implementation thereof. The touch module is mounted on the housing, and the housing can support and protect the touch module.

[0020] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the touch device is used to detect the user's hovering touch operation, such as touch operation when the user is wearing gloves, or touch operation in the air, etc.

[0021] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the touch device includes any of the following: a floating touch button, a floating touch slider, and a floating touch panel.

[0022] In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the housing includes a touch portion and a grip portion. The reference ground layer of the touch module includes a first part and a second part that are electrically connected. The transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the first part and the receiving electrode layer. The second part is disposed in the grip portion. When the grip portion is held by the user, the coupling between the second part of the reference ground layer disposed in the grip portion and the human body is enhanced, which can enhance the signal quantity of the hover touch detection.

[0023] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a touch system, which includes a controlled device and a touch device as provided in the second aspect and any implementation thereof. The controlled device is used to perform corresponding services in response to a user's hovering touch operation detected by the touch device. The touch device and the controlled device can be independent devices, connected to each other by a cable or wireless communication, or the controlled device and the touch device can be integrated together. The touch device can be used as a control panel for the controlled device.

[0024] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the controlled device includes any of the following: smart home appliances, computers, and vehicles. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a device using a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of another device using a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of another device using a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0028] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of another device using a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0029] Figure 5This is a schematic diagram illustrating the principle of the self-inductive capacitance detection technology provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0030] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the principle of the mutual inductance capacitance detection technology provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0031] Figure 7 This application provides an embodiment of an electrode diagram for a touchscreen.

[0032] Figure 8 A schematic diagram illustrating the principle of a mutual capacitance screen provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0033] Figure 9 A schematic diagram illustrating the principle of a self-capacitive touchscreen provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0034] Figure 10 A schematic diagram illustrating the principle of another self-capacitive screen provided in this application embodiment;

[0035] Figure 11 A schematic diagram illustrating the principle of another mutual capacitance screen provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0036] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0037] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0038] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0039] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0040] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0041] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0042] Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0043] Figure 19 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0044] Figure 20 A schematic diagram showing the arrangement of the receiving electrodes of the touch module provided in this application embodiment;

[0045] Figure 21A schematic diagram of a touch device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0046] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments.

[0047] Hereinafter, the terms "first," "second," etc., are used for descriptive convenience only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Therefore, a feature defined with "first," "second," etc., may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "multiple" means two or more. For example, multiple processing units refer to two or more processing units.

[0048] Furthermore, in the embodiments of this application, "upper," "lower," "left," and "right" are not limited to the orientation of the components schematically placed in the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that these directional terms can be relative concepts, used for relative description and clarification, and can change accordingly depending on the orientation of the components in the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, for clarity, the thickness of layers and regions is exaggerated, and the dimensional proportions between the parts in the drawings do not reflect the actual dimensional proportions.

[0049] In the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the term "connection" should be interpreted broadly. For example, "connection" can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. In addition, the term "electrical connection" can be a direct electrical connection or an indirect electrical connection through an intermediate medium.

[0050] In this application, the term "module" typically refers to a logically divided functional structure. A "module" can be implemented purely in hardware, or a combination of hardware and software. In this application, "and / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, B existing alone, or both A and B existing simultaneously.

[0051] In this application, the terms "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate that something is an example, illustration, or description. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as being better or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of terms such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0052] Touch devices are among the most commonly used input / output devices currently available. The touch device provided in this application embodiment can be any device that can detect touch through a touch module. For example, it can be a consumer electronics product, a home electronics product, an in-vehicle electronics product, or a financial electronics product. Consumer electronics products include mobile phones, tablets, laptops, e-readers, personal computers (PCs), personal digital assistants (PDAs), desktop monitors, smart wearable products (e.g., smartwatches, smart bracelets), virtual reality (VR) electronic devices, augmented reality (AR) electronic devices, mixed reality (MR) electronic devices, artificial intelligence (AI) electronic devices, drones, etc. Home electronics products include smart door locks, televisions, refrigerators, and small rechargeable household appliances (e.g., soymilk makers, robot vacuum cleaners), etc. In-vehicle electronics products include central locking systems, in-vehicle navigation systems, and in-vehicle music players, etc. Financial electronics products include ATMs and self-service electronic devices, etc.

[0053] The touch module uses touch detection technology to detect and respond to touch objects, including styluses, user fingers, or other objects used for touch. For ease of description, the embodiments of this application all use user finger touch as an example.

[0054] The touch module provided in this application can be any type of touch module, such as a zero-dimensional touch module. A zero-dimensional touch module can output two states: touched or not touched. It has numerous applications in fields such as white goods and lighting control, such as buttons on appliances. Figure 1 As shown, Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a device using a touch module is shown, such as an induction cooker. The induction cooker includes a button 101 for controlling the power on or off. The button 101 can be a touch button for detecting touch, such as whether there is a touch or not, and adjusting the operating state of the appliance according to the detected touch.

[0055] When a large number of touch buttons are required, such as on a computer keyboard, multiple touch buttons can be arranged in a matrix.

[0056] The touch module provided in this application embodiment can be a one-dimensional or near-one-dimensional touch module, such as a strip touch module, also known as a slider sensor, used in control applications requiring progressive adjustment, such as lighting dimming, volume control, graphic equalizers, etc. Figure 1The induction cooker shown includes a slider 102. The slider 102 can be used for temperature or power adjustment. When the user slides their finger to the right on the slider 102, they can control the temperature or power to increase; when the user slides their finger to the left on the slider 102, they can control the temperature or power to decrease.

[0057] Figure 1 The slider 102 shown is a linear slider; a one-dimensional touch module can also have radial or annular sliders. (See reference...) Figure 2 As shown, Figure 2 A schematic diagram of another device using a touch module is shown, such as a remote control, like an air conditioner remote or a television remote. The device includes multiple buttons, such as button 104 and button 105, which can be touch buttons or mechanical buttons. Figure 2 The device also includes a slider 103, which is circular. For example, when the device is an air conditioner remote control, the user can adjust the temperature by sliding their finger clockwise on the slider 103; and adjust the temperature by sliding their finger counterclockwise on the slider 103. When the device is a television remote control, the slider 103 can be used to switch channels or adjust the volume. For example, the user can adjust the channel or volume by sliding their finger clockwise on the slider 103; and adjust the channel or volume by sliding their finger counterclockwise on the slider 103.

[0058] The touch module provided in this application embodiment can also be a two-dimensional touch module, such as a touch panel, which can be used to detect the touch of a user's finger at different positions on the touch panel. Figure 3 The diagram illustrates another device that utilizes a touch module, such as a laptop computer. The laptop includes a touch panel 106 that can recognize touch operations such as swiping and clicking (touching) of a user's finger on the touch panel 106. The touch panel 106 can also be combined with a display screen to form a touchscreen. Figure 4 A schematic diagram of another device using a touch module is shown, such as a mobile phone. The mobile phone has a touch screen 107 that can recognize touch operations such as sliding and clicking (touching) of the user's finger on the touch screen 107.

[0059] The touch module can also be other types of touch modules, and this application embodiment does not limit this.

[0060] Touch detection technologies include capacitive touch detection technology and resistive touch detection technology. The technical solutions provided in this application primarily introduce capacitive touch detection technology.

[0061] Capacitive touch detection technology includes self-inductive capacitance detection technology and mutual inductive capacitance detection technology. Self-inductive capacitance detection technology detects user touches using multiple electrodes, measuring the capacitance formed by the coupling between each electrode and the touched object; this capacitance is called self-capacitance. When the touched object approaches the electrodes, the capacitance increases, thus recognizing the user's touch.

[0062] See Figure 5 , Figure 5 A schematic diagram illustrating the principle of self-inductive capacitance detection technology is shown. This technology determines whether touch has occurred by detecting the capacitance formed by the coupling between the detection electrode and the user's finger. In the absence of finger touch, the electrode couples to ground, forming a capacitance Cs. By outputting an excitation to the electrode, capacitor Cs is charged, and the time required to charge to a preset voltage is recorded. The larger the capacitance, the longer the charging time; therefore, the value of capacitance Cs can be calculated based on the charging time. When a finger touches or approaches the electrode, the finger can be considered equivalent to ground, and capacitance Cs is formed between the electrode and the finger. H This is called self-capacitance or self-capacitance. The higher the touch height and the farther the finger is from the electrode, the smaller the capacitance formed by the coupling; conversely, the lower the touch height and the closer the finger is to the electrode, the larger the capacitance formed by the coupling. Applying excitation to the electrode at this time affects the capacitance Cs and the capacitance C. H The superimposed capacitor charging takes longer to charge to the preset voltage. The presence or absence of a finger touch is determined by detecting the time required to charge the electrode to the preset voltage after applying an excitation.

[0063] See Figure 6 , Figure 6 This diagram illustrates the principle of mutual capacitance detection technology. Mutual capacitance detection technology utilizes a transmitter (TX) and a receiver (RX) electrode to form the two poles of a capacitor. The transmitter electrode emits an electric field, and the receiver electrode receives the electric field, forming a capacitance Cm between the transmitter and receiver electrodes. This capacitance is called mutual capacitance, or simply mutual capacitive. When a finger is not in contact with the electrode, the capacitance Cm remains constant. When a finger approaches or touches the electrode, it couples with both the transmitter and receiver electrodes, creating capacitance and changing the capacitance between them. The detected capacitance increases, thus allowing the user's touch to be recognized.

[0064] Touch modules, when used in displays, form touchscreens. Touchscreens employing self-capacitance detection technology are typically called self-capacitance screens, while those employing mutual-capacitance detection technology are typically called mutual-capacitance screens. Mutual-capacitance screens, in particular, refer to arrays of horizontal and vertical electrodes created on a glass surface using transparent conductive materials such as indium tin oxide (ITO). Figure 7 As shown. The transverse electrode can be used to emit an excitation signal, acting as the transmitting electrode; the longitudinal electrode receives the excitation signal, acting as the receiving electrode. Alternatively, the transverse electrode can be used as the receiving electrode, and the longitudinal electrode as the transmitting electrode. A capacitance Cm is formed at the intersection of the transverse and longitudinal electrodes. Figure 7 The mutual capacitance screen shown includes 5 rows of horizontal electrodes and 7 columns of vertical electrodes, which can form 35 (=5×7) mutual capacitors.

[0065] Please refer to the following: Figure 7 and Figure 8 Electrodes at intersecting positions form the two poles of a single-point capacitor (e.g., ...). Figure 8 The left figure shows a capacitor (Cm). If a finger is not near the electrodes, one electrode sends an excitation signal to charge the capacitor, while the other electrode detects the charging time, allowing the initial capacitance value to be calculated. See also... Figure 8 As shown in the right figure, when a finger approaches the intersection of the electrodes, the human body is equivalent to the ground, which is equivalent to connecting a parallel capacitor Cp across the capacitor Cm. This affects the coupling between the two electrodes (the horizontal and vertical electrodes) that form the capacitor near the touch point, thus changing the capacitance between these two electrodes. When detecting the mutual capacitance, each transmitting electrode sequentially emits an excitation signal, and all receiving electrodes simultaneously receive the signal. This allows the capacitance value at the intersection of all transmitting and receiving electrodes to be obtained, i.e., the capacitance value on the two-dimensional plane of the mutual capacitance screen. This scanning method is called "mutual capacitance scanning," meaning that the coordinates of each touch point can be calculated based on the change in capacitance value on the two-dimensional plane of the mutual capacitance screen.

[0066] Self-capacitive touchscreens also utilize a transparent conductive material such as indium tin oxide (ITO) to create arrays of horizontal and vertical electrodes on a glass surface. These horizontal and vertical electrodes can be coupled to a finger to form a self-capacitance. When a user's finger touches or approaches, the self-capacitive touchscreen sequentially detects the capacitance to ground of each electrode in the array of horizontal and vertical electrodes. For example, a self-capacitive touchscreen with 5 rows of horizontal electrodes and 7 columns of vertical electrodes can form 12 (=5+7) capacitors. See also... Figure 9Self-capacitive touchscreens can determine the horizontal and vertical coordinates of a touch position based on the changes in capacitance values ​​of each capacitor before and after a user touches the screen. For each touch detection, the horizontal and vertical electrodes independently detect data. The maximum value of the finger in the vertical direction is found using the vertical electrode data. For example, if the finger forms capacitances Cp1 and CP2 with two rows of vertical electrodes, the equivalent maximum value area can be calculated based on the increasing trend of the data, which is the equivalent horizontal coordinate X. Similarly, if the finger forms capacitances Cp3 and Cp4 with two rows of horizontal electrodes, the equivalent horizontal coordinate Y can be calculated by finding the maximum value in the vertical direction using the horizontal electrode data, thus corresponding to the finger's position. This scanning method is called "self-capacitive scanning," which projects the touch point onto the X-axis and Y-axis of the self-capacitive touchscreen, and then calculates the coordinates of the touch point in either the X-axis or Y-axis direction to obtain the touch point's position on the self-capacitive touchscreen.

[0067] When multiple fingers are located above the same electrode, the acquired signals are superimposed. Furthermore, when multiple fingers appear simultaneously in a row or column, the superimposed signals make it impossible to distinguish the specific finger location. For example... Figure 10 As shown, if multiple fingers touch in the same row and column directions, for the self-capacitance detection electrode, what is detected on the same electrode is not a unique self-capacitance, but a superposition of multiple self-capacitances, such as... Figure 10 As shown, on the same vertical electrode, the superposition of capacitors Cp11 and Cp12, or the superposition of capacitors Cp21 and Cp22, is detected; on the horizontal electrode, the superposition of capacitors Cp31 and Cp32, or the superposition of capacitors Cp41 and Cp42, is detected. It is impossible to distinguish the sensing value of a specific capacitor, resulting in the inability to effectively distinguish the sensing detection of multiple fingers.

[0068] Combination Figure 11 In mutual capacitance mode, the finger couples with both the transmitting and receiving electrodes it contacts to form a capacitor. For example, the finger couples with the transmitting electrode to form a capacitor Cm1 and with the receiving electrode to form a capacitor Cm2. Thus, the transmitting and receiving electrodes are equivalent to forming a capacitor C through the human body, where C = (Cm1 * Cm2) / (Cm1 + Cm2). Assuming that the contact area or relative area between the human finger and each transmitting or receiving electrode is the same, then C can be approximated as Cm1 / 2.

[0069] In self-capacitance mode, all electrodes are transmitting electrodes (or receiving electrodes). Assuming that the contact area or relative area between the human finger and each transmitting electrode (or receiving electrode) is the same, then the human body will form a capacitance Cm1 with the transmitting electrode (or receiving electrode). Therefore, the signal that can be detected in self-capacitance mode is at least twice that of the signal detected in mutual capacitance mode. Due to other influencing factors, the intensity of the signal detected in self-capacitance mode can usually reach 2 to 7 times the intensity of the signal detected in mutual capacitance mode.

[0070] Mutual capacitance detection technology has a wider range of applications than self-capacitance detection technology. However, self-capacitance detection technology has a larger signal volume and can be used in hover detection scenarios. A hover detection scenario refers to a situation where there is a certain distance between the user's finger and the electrode. For example, a cover plate is usually placed on the electrode surface to protect it. The cover plate itself has a certain thickness, and in some applications (such as household appliances), the thickness of the cover plate is relatively large, resulting in a certain height between the user's finger and the electrode, thus forming hover touch. Alternatively, detecting touch operations when the user is wearing gloves will also result in a higher touch height; or in some cases, it is necessary to detect the user's operation without touching the screen. These touch scenarios can be collectively referred to as hover touch. Typically, when hover detection is required, mutual capacitance detection can be switched to self-capacitance detection. For example, the transmitting and receiving channels of the mutual capacitance screen can be switched to the receiving channel of the self-capacitance screen, using the self-capacitance screen's operating mode for hover detection to improve detection accuracy. Understandably, touch devices that provide hover detection capabilities can also simultaneously support contact touch capabilities.

[0071] exist Figure 9 or Figure 10 In the touch module shown, when the receiving electrode detects the self-capacitance formed by coupling with the touch object in self-inductive mode, the sensing area is large due to the large sensing area of ​​the self-inductive detection method, resulting in a large capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the reference ground layer. The reference ground layer is a conductive layer, which can be a common potential reference point artificially set inside the device. When detecting a touch object, the higher the touch height of the touch object, the smaller the self-capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object. The capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the reference ground layer will interfere with the detection of the self-capacitance formed between the receiving electrode and the touch object, resulting in a reduction in the resolvable touch height, for example, only supporting touch heights within 5mm.

[0072] For example, combining Figure 5 The capacitance Cs formed between the reference formation and the electrode, and the capacitance C formed between the finger and the electrode. H The capacitance C formed between the probe finger and the electrode HAt that time, since a capacitance Cs already exists, and the finger is at a relatively high height, the capacitance C formed between the finger and the electrode... H If the capacitance is small, for example 0.1pF, the capacitance value of capacitor Cs is usually greater than that of capacitor C. H The capacitance value, for example, capacitance C. H The capacitance value is 1pF, causing capacitor C to... H It is easily interfered with by the presence of capacitance Cs, making it difficult to detect the capacitance formed with the finger.

[0073] Self-inductive capacitance detection technology has a larger signal quantity, but because all its electrodes need to detect capacitance to ground, the sensing area is larger. The larger sensing area will form a larger parasitic capacitance between the sensing area and the device's reference ground layer, affecting the capacitance signal formed between the electrode and the human finger. Therefore, self-inductive capacitance detection technology is more susceptible to the influence of the reference ground, resulting in a lower effective detection range and a lower supported touch height.

[0074] To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides a novel touch module that achieves hover touch detection with high sensitivity and a high touch height.

[0075] See Figure 12 , Figure 12 A schematic diagram of a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application is shown. The touch module includes a reference ground layer 210, an emitter electrode layer 220, and a receiver electrode layer 230 disposed sequentially. The emitter electrode layer 220 is disposed above the reference ground layer 210 along the thickness direction of the touch module, and the receiver electrode layer 230 is disposed above the emitter electrode layer 220 along the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0076] The emitting electrode layer 220 includes one or more emitting electrodes 221, and the receiving electrode layer 230 includes one or more receiving electrodes 231. At least a portion of the orthographic projection of the emitting electrode onto the reference plane is covered by the orthographic projection of at least one receiving electrode onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​the covered projection portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the sum of the areas of the at least one receiving electrode.

[0077] In this embodiment, the reference surface is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the touch module. The reference surface is a complete plane, such as the surface of a certain layer structure inside the touch module, or it can be a virtual reference surface.

[0078] It should be noted that the accompanying drawings in this application embodiment are only used to illustrate the positional and size relationship between the reference ground layer 210, the transmitting electrode layer 220, and the receiving electrode layer 230, and are not intended to limit the touch module. For example, the touch module may also include other components for mounting or fixing the reference ground layer 210, the transmitting electrode layer 220, and the receiving electrode layer 230. For example, the touch module may also include a mounting bracket for mounting the reference ground layer 210, the transmitting electrode layer 220, and the receiving electrode layer 230 so that the reference ground layer 210, the transmitting electrode layer 220, and the receiving electrode layer 230 satisfy the relationship defined in this application embodiment, which is not described in detail in this application embodiment.

[0079] Typically, the direction above the receiving electrode is the direction for detecting touch. When a user's finger, stylus, or other touch object approaches the receiving electrode from above, the receiving electrode is susceptible to interference from non-detection directions, especially from below it, such as interference from the reference ground layer, metal power layer, or other metal layers. The touch module provided in this application embodiment has a transmitting electrode layer 220 below the receiving electrode layer 230. At least a portion of the orthographic projection of each transmitting electrode in the receiving electrode layer 230 onto the reference surface is covered by the orthographic projection of at least one receiving electrode onto the reference surface, and the area of ​​the covered projection portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the total area of ​​the at least one receiving electrode. That is, the area directly opposite the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode above it is large, allowing the transmitting electrode to couple with the receiving electrode above it to form a capacitor, thereby applying excitation to the receiving electrode through the transmitting electrode. Furthermore, the large area directly opposite the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode avoids the receiving electrode from coupling with other metal layers (such as the reference ground layer, metal power layer, or other planar metal layers) outside the detection direction to form a capacitor, reducing or blocking interference from outside the detection direction. The greater the touch height of the object being touched, the smaller the capacitance formed by the coupling between it and the receiving electrode. With reduced interference, the touch module can detect smaller signals, improving the sensitivity of hover touch detection and supporting higher hover touch heights.

[0080] In one possible implementation, the orthographic projection of each receiving electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of a transmitting electrode onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode. This ensures that each receiving electrode has a large facing area with the transmitting electrode below it, which can block interference in non-detection directions and improve the sensitivity of hover touch.

[0081] The transmitting electrode is used to transmit an excitation signal, which can be, for example, a square wave with adjustable amplitude and frequency. For instance, the touch module includes an excitation circuit connected to the transmitting electrode to transmit the excitation signal. The receiving electrode can receive the excitation signal emitted by the transmitting electrode and detect the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object (e.g., a finger) based on the excitation signal, to detect the proximity or touch of the touch object. For example, the touch module may also include a detection circuit connected to the receiving electrode. The detection circuit can acquire the signal detected by the receiving electrode to determine whether touch is present. In this embodiment, the touch object can be a user's finger or other parts of the human body, or it can be a stylus or other touch-sensitive object capable of triggering touch. This embodiment uses a finger as an example of the touch object.

[0082] In this embodiment, the facing area of ​​the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode is relatively large, allowing the receiving electrode to couple with the transmitting electrode to form a capacitor. The transmitting electrode can emit an excitation signal to charge the receiving electrode, and the receiving electrode detects the size of the self-capacitance formed with the touched object based on the excitation signal. Compared to the traditional mutual inductance capacitance detection technology where the transmitting electrode emits an excitation signal and detects the mutual capacitance between the transmitting and receiving electrodes, the capacitance formed by the transmitting and receiving electrodes in this embodiment does not change with the approach or distance of the touched object. When the transmitting electrode emits an excitation signal, this capacitance can be equivalent to a wire, which is equivalent to directly applying an excitation to the receiving electrode and detecting the self-capacitance formed by coupling with the touched object using self-inductance capacitance detection. Since only the size of the self-capacitance formed by coupling between the receiving electrode and the touched object needs to be considered, a higher signal strength can be achieved than mutual inductance capacitance detection. The receiving electrode layer 230 includes at least one receiving electrode, and the transmitting electrode layer 220 includes at least one transmitting electrode. The distance between each receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode in the thickness direction of the touch module is a first distance D1, which is greater than 0. If the first distance D1 is 0, the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode cannot be distinguished, and the technical effect of this solution cannot be achieved. The first distance D1 is less than or equal to 0.1 mm. Understandably, if the first distance D1 exceeds this threshold, the equivalent capacitance between the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode will decrease, and the corresponding capacitive reactance will increase. The excitation capability when applying excitation to the transmitting electrode will need to be increased accordingly, which will lead to an increase in power consumption.

[0083] In one possible implementation, the orthographic projection of each transmitting electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer 210 onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the transmitting electrode, thereby avoiding capacitive interference between the reference ground layer 210 and the receiving electrode that would otherwise be formed by coupling.

[0084] The distance between the transmitting electrode and the reference ground layer 210 in the thickness direction of the touch module is a second distance D2, which is greater than or equal to 0.01 mm. A smaller distance between the transmitting electrode and the reference ground layer 210 results in a larger parasitic capacitance between them. If the distance is less than 0.1 mm, this parasitic capacitance is too large, requiring overcoming its influence when applying excitation to the transmitting electrode 220, leading to excessive power consumption. The second distance D2 is less than or equal to 10 mm to ensure that the distance between the transmitting electrode 220 and the reference ground layer 210 is not too large, as an excessively large distance would result in weak coupling between them, failing to improve the coupling signal strength.

[0085] The reference ground layer 210 of the touch module can couple with the actual ground to form a capacitance, thus representing the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module as equivalent to the ground. Similarly, the human body can couple with the ground to form a capacitance, thus representing the human body as equivalent to the ground. When a user uses a device equipped with a touch module, a coupling capacitance is also generated between the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module and the human body. When a human finger approaches the receiving electrode of the touch module, a self-capacitance can be detected between the receiving electrode and the finger, thereby recognizing the touch. The larger the coupling capacitance generated between the reference ground layer 210 and the human body, the larger the detectable self-capacitance. Therefore, appropriately increasing the area of ​​the reference ground layer 210 can increase the size of the coupling capacitance between the reference ground layer 210 and the human body, resulting in a larger detectable self-capacitance when a human finger approaches or touches the receiving electrode, increasing the signal strength, and allowing for a higher detectable hover touch height.

[0086] During hover touch, the higher the user's finger touches, the smaller the capacitance formed between it and the receiving electrode. For example, if the receiving electrode of the original touch module could detect a capacitance of 0.1 pF, this corresponds to a touch height of 5 mm. In the touch module provided in this embodiment, after increasing the area of ​​the reference layer 210, the capacitance between the human finger and the receiving electrode increases at the same touch height, for example, to 0.7 pF. The 0.1 pF capacitance corresponds to the capacitance between the human finger and the receiving electrode when the touch height is increased to 30 mm, thus increasing the detectable hover touch height from 5 mm to 30 mm.

[0087] When a human body is electrically connected to the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module (e.g., the human body is in contact with the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module), the coupling capacitance between the human body and the reference ground layer 210 is infinitely large. To increase the detection height of hover touch, the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module can be exposed, or the reference ground layer 210 can be exposed through a conductor. This allows the user to directly contact the reference ground layer 210 of the touch module during use, or to make contact with the reference ground layer 210 through a conductor. This can further increase the magnitude of the detection signal and increase the touch height at which hover touch can be detected.

[0088] For example, see Figure 13 The reference ground layer 210 may include a first portion 211 and a second portion 212 electrically connected, with a transmitting electrode layer 220 disposed between the first portion 211 and the receiving electrode layer 230. In a non-human-held state, the second portion 212 of the reference ground layer 210 can be used to increase the area of ​​the reference ground layer to improve the detected signal quantity. In a human-held state, the second portion 212 can also be used to enhance coupling with the human body, thereby improving the detected signal quantity.

[0089] Furthermore, since the touch module provided in this application embodiment has higher sensitivity and can detect smaller signals, it requires a smaller electrode area, meaning that smaller electrodes can be set, which can also improve the resolution of touch detection.

[0090] The following describes several specific examples of the touch module provided in the embodiments of this application, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0091] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of a touch module provided in an embodiment of this application. The touch module can be a zero-dimensional touch module, such as a separate touch button on various devices, which can be used to detect whether a user's finger is close to or touches the touch button. Figure 14 The left figure shows a schematic diagram of the touch module. Figure 14 The figure on the right shows a cross-sectional view of the touch module along the AA' direction.

[0092] The touch module includes a reference ground layer 210, an emitting electrode layer 220, and a receiving electrode layer 230 arranged sequentially. The emitting electrode layer 220 is disposed above the reference ground layer 210 along the thickness direction of the touch module, and the receiving electrode layer 230 is disposed above the emitting electrode layer 220 along the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0093] The transmitting electrode layer 220 includes a transmitting electrode 221, and the receiving electrode layer 230 includes a receiving electrode 231. In other words, a single transmitting electrode 221 constitutes the transmitting electrode layer 220, and a single receiving electrode 231 constitutes the receiving electrode layer.

[0094] The distance between the emitting electrode 221 and the reference ground layer 210 in the first direction is a second distance D2, where D2 satisfies: 0.01mm ≤ D2 ≤ 10mm. The emitting electrode 221 can be positioned directly above the reference ground layer 210, or it can be offset by a certain angle. The orthographic projection of the emitting electrode 221 onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer 210 onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the emitting electrode 221. The threshold value of 50% is not a limitation of the embodiments of this application. In other implementations, the threshold value can be, for example, 70%, 80%, 90%, or 100% of the area of ​​the emitting electrode 221.

[0095] The distance between the receiving electrode 231 and the transmitting electrode 221 in the thickness direction of the touch module is a first distance D1, where D1 satisfies: 0mm < D1 ≤ 1mm. The receiving electrode 231 can be positioned directly above the transmitting electrode 221, or it can be offset by a certain angle. The orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference surface covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 on the reference surface, and the area of ​​the portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 on the reference surface covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference surface is greater than 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 231. In other implementations, for example, the area of ​​the portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 on the reference surface covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference surface can also be greater than or equal to 70%, 80%, 90%, or 100% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 231. This allows the transmitting electrode 221 to block the influence of the reference ground layer 210 on the receiving electrode 231, preventing the coupling between the receiving electrode 231 and the reference ground layer 210 from forming a capacitor that would affect the touch height that can detect hover touch.

[0096] The distance between the transmitting electrode 221 and the receiving electrode 231 is small, allowing them to couple and form a capacitor. The transmitting electrode 221 transmits an excitation signal, which can be, for example, a square wave with adjustable amplitude and frequency. The receiving electrode 231 receives the excitation signal emitted by the transmitting electrode 221 and detects the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode 231 and the touch object based on the excitation signal, thereby detecting the proximity or touch of the touch object. Since the transmitting electrode 221 blocks the influence of the reference ground layer 210 on the receiving electrode 231, the touch module provided in this embodiment can detect a smaller self-capacitance, thus improving sensitivity. A larger area of ​​the reference ground layer 210 can increase the coupling capacitance between the reference ground layer 210 and the human body. When a finger approaches the receiving electrode 231, the resulting coupling capacitance is larger, which also improves the touch height for hover touch detection.

[0097] In some possible implementations, the receiving electrode layer 230 may include a receiving electrode, and the transmitting electrode layer 220 may include multiple transmitting electrodes. The multiple transmitting electrodes transmit the same excitation signal, or the multiple transmitting electrodes can be connected by wires, which are essentially equivalent to a single transmitting electrode.

[0098] For example, see Figure 15 , Figure 15 The touch module shown includes a reference ground layer 210, an emitting electrode layer 220, and a receiving electrode layer 230 arranged sequentially. The emitting electrode layer 220 is disposed above the reference ground layer 210 along a first direction, and the receiving electrode layer 230 is disposed above the emitting electrode layer 220 along the first direction.

[0099] The receiving electrode layer 230 includes a receiving electrode 231, and the transmitting electrode layer 220 includes multiple transmitting electrodes, for example... Figure 15 As shown, the emission electrode layer 220 includes emission electrode 221 and emission electrode 222.

[0100] The second distance D2 between each emitter electrode and the reference ground layer 210 in the thickness direction of the touch module satisfies: 0.01mm ≤ D2 ≤ 10mm. The orthographic projection of each emitter electrode on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer 210 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the emitter electrode 221.

[0101] The first distance D1 between the receiving electrode 231 and each transmitting electrode in the thickness direction of the touch module satisfies: 0mm < D1 ≤ 1mm. The area covered by the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 and the transmitting electrode 222 as a whole on the reference plane is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 231.

[0102] In this embodiment, the touch module includes an emitting electrode 221 and an emitting electrode 222. The emitting electrodes 221 and 222 can be positioned at the same location along the thickness direction of the touch module. Alternatively, the emitting electrodes 221 and 222 can be located at different positions along the thickness direction of the touch module; that is, the distance between the emitting electrode 221 and the receiving electrode 231 is different from the distance between the emitting electrode 222 and the receiving electrode 231, or the distance between the emitting electrode 221 and the reference ground layer 210 is different from the distance between the emitting electrode 222 and the reference ground layer 210. In this case, the orthographic projections of the emitting electrode 221 and 222 on the reference plane may overlap, or they may not overlap. However, it is still required that the area covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 230 on the reference plane, where the orthographic projections of the emitting electrodes 221 and 222 as a whole are combined, is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 230.

[0103] The working principle of the touch module has been described in detail in the previous embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0104] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram of another touch module provided in an embodiment of this application. The touch module can be a one-dimensional or near-one-dimensional touch module or a two-dimensional touch module. For example, it can be a linear touch module, such as a slider for adjusting temperature or volume. Alternatively, it can be a radial or circular slider, such as a volume control slider on a music player.

[0105] The touch module provided in this application embodiment is largely the same in principle as the touch module provided in the aforementioned embodiments. The difference lies in that, in the touch module provided in this application embodiment, the emitting electrode layer 220 may include one emitting electrode 221, and the receiving electrode layer 230 includes multiple receiving electrodes. The multiple receiving electrodes can be arranged linearly to form a linear or strip-shaped touch module. Alternatively, the multiple receiving electrodes can be arranged in a ring or radial pattern to form a ring or radial slider, or the multiple receiving electrodes can be arranged in a multi-row, multi-column matrix or other forms.

[0106] The transmitting electrode layer is disposed above the reference ground layer 210 along the thickness direction of the touch module. The distance between the transmitting electrode 221 and the reference ground layer 210 in the thickness direction of the touch module is a second distance D2, which satisfies the condition: 0.01mm ≤ D2 ≤ 10mm. The transmitting electrode 221 can be disposed directly above the reference ground layer 210, or it can be offset at a certain angle. The orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer 210 onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the transmitting electrode 221.

[0107] The receiving electrode layer 230 of the touch module provided in this application embodiment includes multiple receiving electrodes, such as... Figure 16 As shown, the receiving electrode layer 230 includes receiving electrodes 231, 232, 233, and 234; in other words, multiple receiving electrodes together constitute the receiving electrode layer 230. The multiple receiving electrodes are disposed above the transmitting electrode 221 along the thickness direction of the touch module. The thickness direction of the touch module is denoted as the first direction. The multiple receiving electrodes can be arranged in a row along the second direction, or in a column along the third direction, or in a multi-row, multi-column matrix along the second and third directions. The second and third directions are perpendicular to the thickness direction.

[0108] The distance between each receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode 221 in the thickness direction of the touch module is D1, where D1 satisfies: 0mm ≤ D1 ≤ 1mm. It should be noted that the distances between each receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode 220 in the thickness direction of the touch module can be the same or slightly different.

[0109] The portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 onto the reference plane is covered by the orthographic projections of one or more receiving electrodes onto the reference plane, and the covered projection area is greater than or equal to 50% of the sum of the areas of the one or more receiving electrodes. This ensures that there is a large facing area between the transmitting electrode 221 and the receiving electrode located above it, which can block interference from non-detection directions.

[0110] In one possible implementation, the orthographic projection of each receiving electrode onto the reference plane partially covers the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​the covered portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode. This ensures that each receiving electrode has a large facing area with the transmitting electrode below it.

[0111] For example, the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 220 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion of the projection of the transmitting electrode 220 covered by the projection of the receiving electrode 231 is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 231.

[0112] The orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 232 on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 220 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion of the projection of the transmitting electrode 220 covered by the projection of the receiving electrode 232 is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 232.

[0113] The orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 233 on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 220 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion of the projection of the transmitting electrode 220 covered by the projection of the receiving electrode 233 is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 233.

[0114] The orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 234 on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 220 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion of the projection of the transmitting electrode 220 covered by the projection of the receiving electrode 234 is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 234.

[0115] The small distance between the transmitting and receiving electrodes allows them to couple and form a capacitance. The transmitting electrode emits an excitation signal, which can be, for example, a square wave with adjustable amplitude and frequency. The receiving electrode receives the excitation signal emitted by the transmitting electrode and detects the magnitude of the self-capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object based on this excitation signal. This allows for the detection of the object's proximity or touch. Because the transmitting electrode blocks the influence of the reference layer on the receiving electrode, the detectable self-capacitance is smaller, improving sensitivity. A larger reference layer area can increase the coupling capacitance between the reference layer and the human body. When a finger or other touch object approaches the receiving electrode, the resulting coupling capacitance is larger, which also improves the touch height for hover touch detection.

[0116] In another possible implementation, see [link / reference] Figure 17 The touch module may have a ground layer 210, an emitting electrode layer 220, and a receiving electrode layer 230. The emitting electrode layer 220 is disposed above the ground layer 210 along the thickness direction of the touch module, and the receiving electrode layer 230 is disposed above the emitting electrode layer 220 along the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0117] The emitting electrode layer 220 includes a plurality of emitting electrodes, such as emitting electrode 221, emitting electrode 222, emitting electrode 223 and emitting electrode 224 shown in the figure. The receiving electrode layer 230 includes a plurality of receiving electrodes, such as receiving electrode 231, receiving electrode 232, receiving electrode 233 and receiving electrode 234 shown in the figure.

[0118] The distance between each emitter electrode and the reference ground layer in the thickness direction of the touch module is a second distance D2, which satisfies: 0.01mm≤D2≤10mm. The orthographic projection of each emitter electrode on the reference surface covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground layer 210 on the reference surface, and the area of ​​that portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the emitter electrode.

[0119] The orthographic projection of each receiving electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of a transmitting electrode onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​this portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode.

[0120] The distance between each transmitting electrode and its corresponding receiving electrode in the thickness direction of the touch module is the first distance D1. Here, the receiving electrode corresponding to the transmitting electrode refers to the receiving electrode that covers the projection of the transmitting electrode. The first distance D1 satisfies: 0mm < D1 ≤ 1mm.

[0121] For example, the transmitting electrode 221 corresponds to the receiving electrode 231, and the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference plane covers the orthographic projection of its corresponding transmitting electrode 221 on the reference plane. The area of ​​the portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 221 on the reference plane covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 231 on the reference plane is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 231.

[0122] The transmitting electrode 222 corresponds to the receiving electrode 232. The orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 232 on the reference plane covers the orthographic projection of its corresponding transmitting electrode 222 on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode 222 on the reference plane covered by the orthographic projection of the receiving electrode 232 on the reference plane is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode 232.

[0123] Alternatively, the number of transmitting electrodes can be less than the number of receiving electrodes, but the aforementioned relationship between distance and area size must still be satisfied.

[0124] The aforementioned multiple transmitting electrodes can emit the same excitation signal, or the multiple transmitting electrodes can be electrically connected, so that the multiple transmitting electrodes can be equivalent to one transmitting electrode.

[0125] In some other embodiments, the multiple transmitting electrodes may also transmit different excitation signals, which is not limited in this application.

[0126] like Figure 17 As shown, the multiple emitting electrodes of the emitting electrode layer 220 can be located at the same position in the thickness direction of the touch module. For example, emitting electrodes 221, 222, 223, and 224 may be located at the same position or at the same height in the thickness direction of the touch module. Similarly, the multiple receiving electrodes of the receiving electrode layer 230 can be located at the same position in the thickness direction of the touch module. For example, receiving electrodes 231, 232, 233, and 234 may be located at the same position or at the same height in the thickness direction of the touch module. This "same" can mean completely identical or slightly different (e.g., ...). Figure 18 (As shown).

[0127] Or, see Figure 19The multiple emitting electrodes of the emitting electrode layer can be located at different positions along the thickness direction of the touch module. For example, emitting electrodes 221, 222, 223, and 224 may be located at different positions or heights along the thickness direction of the touch module. Similarly, the multiple receiving electrodes of the receiving electrode layer can be located at different positions along the thickness direction of the touch module. For example, receiving electrodes 231, 232, 233, and 234 may be located at different positions or heights along the thickness direction of the touch module.

[0128] Based on this, the transmitting electrode, receiving electrode, and reference formation still need to satisfy the relationship defined in the aforementioned embodiments.

[0129] As mentioned in the foregoing embodiments, multiple receiving electrodes can be arranged in a multi-row, multi-column matrix along a second direction and a third direction, wherein the second direction and the third direction are perpendicular to the first direction. For example, see [reference needed]. Figure 20 , Figure 20 This paper shows a schematic diagram of the arrangement of the receiving electrodes of the touch module provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 20 The diagram illustrates two different shapes and arrangements of the receiving electrodes. For example, the receiving electrodes can be rectangular, with multiple rectangular receiving electrodes arranged to form a rectangular array. Alternatively, the receiving electrodes can also be rhomboid or triangular, with multiple rhomboid or triangular receiving electrodes arranged to form a rectangular array. The arrangement of the receiving electrodes can also be tailored to the specific application scenario; for example, the receiving electrodes can be arranged to form circles, triangles, or other shapes.

[0130] The touch module provided in this application provides a higher detection signal strength, thus allowing for a smaller area for each receiving electrode. Each receiving electrode corresponds to one touch point, improving touch resolution. Detecting the self-capacitance between each receiving electrode and the finger enables multi-touch functionality.

[0131] As mentioned in the foregoing embodiments, expanding the area of ​​the reference ground layer helps to improve signal strength and increase the touch height that can be detected by hover touch. This application also provides another touch module. Based on the foregoing embodiments, the reference ground layer may include a first part and a second part electrically connected to the first part. The second part can, on the one hand, expand the area of ​​the reference ground layer, increasing the detection signal strength of the touch module. The second part can also be used to increase coupling with the human body when the user uses the touch module, or it can also come into contact with the human body, enhancing the signal strength of the coupling capacitance between the human body and the receiving electrode, thereby increasing the detection height of hover touch.

[0132] This application also provides a touch device, which includes a housing and a touch module as described in the foregoing embodiments of this application. The touch module is mounted on the housing, and the housing supports and protects the touch module. The touch device is used to detect the user's hovering touch operation, such as touch operation when the user is wearing gloves, or touch operation without contact with the air, etc. The touch device includes any of the following: a hovering touch button, a hovering touch slider, and a hovering touch panel, or the touch device provided in this application embodiment may be in other forms. For example, the touch device may be any device that applies the above-mentioned touch module, such as an independent touch panel, or a mobile phone, computer, home appliance, etc.

[0133] See Figure 21 , Figure 21 A schematic diagram of a touch device provided in an embodiment of this application is shown. For example, the touch device may be a touch panel, and the touch device includes a housing 310 and a touch module, which is mounted on the housing. For example, the touch module includes components such as a reference ground layer, a transmitting electrode layer, and a receiving electrode layer (not shown), which are disposed in the internal space formed by the housing 310.

[0134] The housing 310 includes a touch unit 311 and a grip unit 312. When a user's finger approaches or touches the touch unit 311, it can couple with the receiving electrode of the touch module to form a capacitor, so that the touch module can recognize the touch operation.

[0135] The reference ground layer of the touch module includes a first part and a second part electrically connected. A transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the first part and the receiving electrode layer, and the second part of the reference ground layer is disposed in the grip portion 312. For example, the second part can be disposed inside the grip portion 312 or on the surface of the grip portion 312. When the grip portion 312 is held by a user, the coupling between the second part of the reference ground layer disposed in the grip portion and the user's body is enhanced, which can enhance the signal quantity for hover touch detection.

[0136] This application also provides a touch system, which includes a controlled device and a touch control apparatus as provided in the foregoing embodiments of this application. The controlled device is used to perform corresponding services in response to a user's hovering touch operation detected by the touch control apparatus. For example, the controlled device may include: smart home appliances (such as smart screens), computers (such as laptops), and vehicles. The controlled device may also include other types of devices.

[0137] The touch device can be an independent device from the controlled device, connected via cable or wireless communication. Alternatively, the controlled device and the touch device can be integrated together, with the touch device serving as a control panel for the controlled device. For example, the touch device can be installed on the center console of a vehicle to enable vehicle-machine interaction.

[0138] The above are merely specific embodiments of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A touch module, characterized in that, include: An emission electrode layer, including at least one emission electrode; A receiving electrode layer, located above the transmitting electrode layer along the thickness direction of the touch module, includes multiple receiving electrodes; At least a portion of the orthographic projection of the transmitting electrode onto the reference surface is covered by the orthographic projection of at least one receiving electrode onto the reference surface, and the area of ​​the covered projection portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the sum of the areas of the at least one receiving electrode; the reference surface is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the touch module. 2.The touch module according to claim 1, characterized in that, The orthographic projection of each of the receiving electrodes on the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of one of the transmitting electrodes on the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the receiving electrode. 3.The touch module according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The transmitting electrode is used to transmit excitation signals; The receiving electrode is used to receive the excitation signal and detect the capacitance formed by the coupling between the receiving electrode and the touch object based on the excitation signal.

4. The touch module according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein, The touch module also includes a reference ground layer; The transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the reference ground layer and the receiving electrode layer.

5. The touch module according to claim 4, wherein, The orthographic projection of each emitter electrode onto the reference plane covers at least a portion of the orthographic projection of the reference ground plane onto the reference plane, and the area of ​​the portion is greater than or equal to 50% of the area of ​​the emitter electrode. 6.The touch module according to claim 4, characterized in that, The reference ground layer includes a first part and a second part that are electrically connected. The transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the first part and the receiving electrode layer. The second part is used to increase the coupling between the reference ground layer and the human body when the human body is holding the object.

7. The touch module according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein, The distance D1 between the receiving electrode and the transmitting electrode in the thickness direction satisfies: D1≤1mm. 8.The touch module according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The distance D2 between the transmitting electrode and the reference formation in the thickness direction satisfies: 0.01mm≤D2≤10mm. 9.The touch module according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The emission electrode layer includes an emission electrode. 10.The touch module according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The emission electrode layer includes multiple emission electrodes.

11. The touch module according to claim 9, wherein, The multiple transmitting electrodes may be in the same or different positions in the thickness direction, and / or the multiple receiving electrodes may be in different positions in the thickness direction.

12. A touch device, comprising: The touch device includes a housing and a touch module as described in any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the touch module is mounted on the housing.

13. The touch control device according to claim 12, wherein, The touch device is used to detect the user's hover touch operation.

14. The touch device according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that, The touch device includes any one of the following: a floating touch button, a floating touch slider, and a floating touch panel.

15. The touch control device according to any one of claims 12-14, wherein, The housing includes a touch portion and a grip portion. The reference ground layer of the touch module includes a first portion and a second portion that are electrically connected. The transmitting electrode layer is disposed between the first portion and the receiving electrode layer, and the second portion is disposed in the grip portion.

16. A touch system, comprising: The touch system includes a controlled device and a touch device as described in any one of claims 12 to 15. The controlled device is used to respond to the user's hovering touch operation detected by the touch device to perform the corresponding service.

17. The touch system of claim 16, wherein, The controlled device includes any of the following: smart home appliances, computers, and vehicles.

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