Peripheral Electrode Touch Sensor for Lower-Cost Touch Detection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The high cost of full 2D glass or plastic touch panels for LCD devices and the lack of touch sensing capability in non-LCD devices due to the expense of capacitive touch sensing technologies, making it economically unfeasible for applications beyond limited touch interactions.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating printed resistive ink electrodes positioned on the periphery of a touch sensing region, allowing for cost-effective touch sensor systems where sense electrodes are located outside the touch sensing area, enabling touch detection without the need for expensive capacitive touch sensing technologies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If full 2D glass or plastic touch panels are used for LCD devices, then touch sensing capability is achieved, but manufacturing cost increases significantly (doubles or triples the cost)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the touch sensing function from the entire 2D glass/plastic panel and relocates it to peripheral regions only. By placing sense electrodes outside the active display area and using transmit electrodes along the edges, the invention provides touch sensing capability while avoiding the need for expensive full-coverage capacitive touch panels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent moves touch sensing from a 2D full-panel approach to a 1D peripheral approach. Instead of distributing electrodes across the entire touch surface area, the sense electrodes are positioned along the perimeter edges, effectively reducing the dimensional footprint of the sensing elements while maintaining touch detection functionality.
2Reliability
If capacitive touch sensing technologies are added to non-LCD devices, then touch sensing capability is enabled, but manufacturing cost becomes prohibitive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs simple printed resistive ink electrodes instead of complex capacitive touch panel materials. This substitution uses inexpensive, easily manufacturable materials that can be applied to various non-LCD devices without requiring the costly glass or plastic substrates needed for traditional capacitive touch sensing.
3Ease of manufacture
If sense electrodes are positioned outside the touch sensing region, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but touch detection accuracy may be affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses transmit electrodes positioned between the peripheral sense electrodes and the touch contact point as intermediaries. These transmit electrodes conduct electrical signals across the display area, allowing the sense electrodes located outside the active region to detect touch events through the mediated electrical field created by the transmit electrodes.
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
This solution reduces the overall cost of touch-enabled devices by using less expensive electrodes, enabling touch sensing capabilities in a wider range of applications, including non-LCD devices, while maintaining effective touch detection and selection accuracy.
Implementation Method 1
The electrodes may comprise printed resistive ink electrodes that are relatively inexpensive to manufacture
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus may include a touch sensor, a touch region of the touch sensor that is free of sense electrodes, a first peripheral region of the touch sensor and a second peripheral region of the touch senor and the touch region is located between the first peripheral region and the second peripheral region, a first sense electrode is located in the first peripheral region, a second sense electrode is located in the second peripheral region.