Touch Sensor Contact Area Determination for Erroneous Tap Prevention

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Solution Overview

Problem

When a touch sensor is arranged in a position difficult for the user to see, it becomes challenging to accurately recognize the outer circumference of the sensor, leading to unstable sensor values and erroneous detection of tap manipulations, particularly near the boundary, causing malfunctions and reduced operability.

Innovation Solution

An information processing device with a detection area determination unit that sets a smaller contact determination area within the detection area, preventing events from being issued when contact occurs outside this area, thereby reducing erroneous tap detection.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If a touch sensor is arranged in a position difficult for the user to see, then the device can detect intuitive manipulation inputs such as gestures, but it becomes challenging to accurately recognize the outer circumference of the sensor, leading to unstable sensor values and erroneous detection of tap manipulations

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvegesture detection capabilityVSAvoidsensor value stability
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by differentiating the treatment of different regions within the detection area. The contact determination area is defined as a specific region (excluding peripheral regions) where contact detection is performed with different criteria than the peripheral regions. This allows the system to maintain reliable tap detection in the central area while accommodating gesture inputs, resolving the contradiction between versatility and reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Adaptability or versatility

If a touch sensor is arranged in a position difficult for the user to see, then the device can detect intuitive manipulation inputs such as gestures, but erroneous detection of tap manipulations occurs near the boundary, causing malfunctions and reduced operability

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvegesture detection capabilityVSAvoidoperability
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent differentiates between central and peripheral regions of the detection area, applying different detection logic to each. The contact determination area excludes peripheral regions where erroneous detections occur, thereby improving ease of operation by preventing malfunctions while preserving gesture detection capabilities in the central area.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Reliability

If the detection area is reduced to a contact determination area, then erroneous tap detection is prevented, but the area available for valid input is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedetection accuracyVSAvoidinput area
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSArea of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a contact determination area that is a specific region within the overall detection area, optimized for reliable tap detection. By excluding only the peripheral regions where erroneous detections occur, the system maintains the maximum possible input area while ensuring detection accuracy in the central region.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentEP2765489B1Information processing device, information processing method and computer program
Publication Date: 2019.04.10 SONY GROUP CORP
  • EP2765489B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2765489B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP2765489B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

Provided is an information processing device including a detection area determination unit configured to determine whether a contact position of an input object is in a contact determination area which is a part of a detection area of a detection unit based on a detection signal from the detection unit that detects contact of the input object with a contact detection surface, a manipulation determination unit configured to determine manipulation content from movement of the input object when the detection area determination unit determines that the input object is in contact with an inside of the contact determination area, and an event issuing unit configured to issue an event according to the manipulation content determined by the manipulation determination unit.