Pen Up Positioning Assist for Sensor Surface
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Solution Overview
Problem
Digital artists using pens on sensor surfaces face frustration and reduced productivity due to unintended 'last moment' movement of the pen tip when lifting, leading to incorrect placement of cursors or objects, especially with increasing display resolution and multiple monitors.
Innovation Solution
An algorithmic approach is implemented in the sensor surface circuitry to determine if the pen tip movement at lift-off is intentional or accidental, compensating by predicting and reporting the intended 'end-of-stroke' position instead of the actual detected position, using analysis of distance and pressure data from preceding samples.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the sensor surface uses flexible hardware and natural hand movement, then ease of operation is improved, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to unintended last moment movement
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of pen movement patterns and pressure data before the pen is lifted from the surface. By examining the trajectory and pressure changes in the moments before lift-off, the system predicts the intended target position and pre-calculates the compensation needed, allowing it to correct the final position accurately even when the pen slips during natural hand movement
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors pen position and pressure data, providing real-time feedback about the pen's movement pattern. When the pen is lifted, the system uses this feedback to detect unintended movement and automatically compensates by adjusting the reported position to match the predicted intended position, thereby maintaining precision while preserving natural operation
2Manufacturing precision
If the system compensates for all pen movement, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The compensation mechanism is not applied uniformly to all pen movements. Instead, the system analyzes the specific characteristics of each pen stroke and applies compensation only when unintended movement is detected during lift-off. This selective application of compensation maintains precision where needed while avoiding unnecessary processing for normal drawing operations, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity
3Manufacturing precision
If the system analyzes pressure and distance data to detect intended position, then manufacturing precision is improved, but use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs full pressure and distance data analysis only when a pen lift event is detected, rather than continuously analyzing all pen movements. By triggering the intensive analysis selectively at critical moments (when the pen is lifted), the system achieves high precision in detecting intended positions while minimizing overall energy consumption during normal drawing operations
Data Source
AI summary
A method of generating pen data includes periodically sampling an interaction of a pen on a sensor surface in which a detected pen tip pressure is greater than zero. Pen data including detected pen positions are reported. In response to a pen up event in which the detected pen tip pressure is zero, an intended end-of-stroke position of the pen tip is predicted based on a detected pen tip position occurring at least two, three, or more samples earlier than the sample at the pen up event. The predicted intended end-of-stroke position is reported in (1) the pen data for the sample at the pen up event, in place of the actual pen tip position detected at the pen up event, or in (2) the pen data for one or more samples preceding the pen up event, in place of the actual pen tip position in the one or more samples preceding the pen up event.