Foldable Touchscreen Angle Detection Without Hall Sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Foldable displays require additional components like Hall sensors to detect the folding angle, leading to increased power consumption and manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
Determine the folding angle of a flexible touchscreen based on self-capacitances sensed by the touchscreen without the use of Hall sensors, using a self-sensing scan to analyze touch sensing data and convert it to the strength domain to calculate the folding angle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If Hall sensors are added to detect folding angle, then measurement precision of folding angle is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The touchscreen controller performs self-sensing scans to detect self-capacitances in the folding area, allowing the device to detect its own folding angle without external sensors. The touchscreen serves dual purposes: user interaction and folding detection
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical/Hall effect sensors with an electrical field-based self-capacitance sensing method. The touchscreen controller uses electrical signals to detect changes in self-capacitance that correspond to folding angle, substituting physical sensing components with signal processing
2Measurement precision
If Hall sensors are added to detect folding angle, then measurement precision of folding angle is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The touchscreen controller utilizes its existing self-sensing scan capability to detect folding angle, avoiding the need for separate powered sensors. The same electrical field used for touch detection is repurposed to detect folding state
Solution Approach 2:
The touchscreen controller performs multiple functions: user touch detection, display control, and folding angle detection. The self-capacitance sensing mechanism serves both touch interaction and folding detection purposes simultaneously
3Device complexity
If self-capacitance sensing is used to detect folding angle, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision may be affected by temperature variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements temperature compensation by measuring temperature and adjusting the reference strength accordingly. The system uses feedback from temperature sensing to correct the self-capacitance measurements and maintain accurate folding angle detection across temperature variations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adjusts the reference strength parameter based on temperature conditions. By changing the reference strength according to temperature, the system compensates for temperature-induced variations in self-capacitance measurements, maintaining detection accuracy
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Reduces the need for additional hardware components, lowers device cost and complexity, and decreases power consumption while enhancing the accuracy of folding detection.
Implementation Method 1
detecting, by a touchscreen controller, self-capacitances sensed in a folding area of a touchscreen using a self-sensing scan
Data Source
AI summary
A method of operating a foldable touchscreen device includes detecting self-capacitances sensed in a folding area of the touchscreen using a self-sensing scan by a touchscreen controller, determining a reference strength sensed by the touchscreen in the folding area based on the self-capacitances in the folding area when the device is in a partially folded position, determining temperature information of the touchscreen in the partially folded position, in response to determining that the temperature information of the touchscreen is outside a predetermined temperature window, determining a corrected reference strength from the reference strength based on the temperature information, determining an angle strength for the partially folded position based on the corrected reference strength, and determining whether the device is open or closed based on the angle strength.