Touch Controller Electrode Switching for Power Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable electronic devices with touch-sensitive displays face challenges in power management, particularly in reducing power consumption while maintaining the ability to detect touches and gestures during reduced power conditions without integrating the touch panel into the display.
Innovation Solution
The electronic device incorporates a touch controller, sense electrodes, and drive electrodes that are operably coupled to switch between the display controller and touch controller, allowing for touch detection in both normal and reduced power conditions by switching the electrodes' driver based on the device's power state, enabling power conservation without compromising touch sensitivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the display controller is suspended during standby to reduce power consumption, then power usage is reduced, but the ability to detect touches is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the control functions by separating the display controller from the touch sensing function. During standby mode, the display controller is suspended while the touch controller remains active, allowing touch detection to be handled by a dedicated separate component rather than requiring the entire display controller to remain operational.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a switch as an intermediary component that routes the drive electrodes between the display controller and the touch controller based on power mode. This mediator enables seamless transition between normal and reduced power conditions, ensuring touch detection capability is maintained during standby without requiring the display controller to remain active.
2Ease of manufacture
If the touch panel is not integrated into the display, then manufacturing flexibility is improved, but power management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the drive electrodes universal by enabling them to be controlled by either the display controller or the touch controller depending on the operational mode. This multi-functionality allows the same hardware infrastructure to serve both display driving and touch sensing purposes, reducing the need for separate dedicated components and simplifying the overall system architecture despite the non-integrated touch panel.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic reconfiguration of the drive electrode control through a switch that adapts the system architecture based on power mode. During normal operation, the display controller drives the electrodes; during standby, the touch controller takes over. This dynamic adjustment optimizes power consumption while maintaining functionality without requiring permanent architectural changes.
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 allows for efficient power management by reducing power consumption during standby modes while maintaining the capability to detect touches and gestures, facilitating seamless transitions between normal and reduced power conditions without the need for continuous display operation.
Implementation Method 1
a touch controller, the sense electrodes being operably coupled to the touch controller
Data Source
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AI summary
An electronic device includes a touch controller, sense electrodes operably coupled to the touch controller, a display controller operably coupled to the touch controller to communicate with the touch controller to detect touches, and drive electrodes operably coupled to the touch controller when the electronic device is operating in a reduced power condition and operably coupled to the display controller when the electronic device is operating in a normal power condition.