Selective Touch Sensor Region Scanning for Speed and Power
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current touch sensors face inefficiencies in determining the location of objects within a touch-sensitive area, particularly due to the time-consuming process of scanning entire arrays of electrodes, which limits system operation speed and increases power consumption.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method that selectively scans specific regions around previously determined object locations, rather than scanning the entire touch-sensitive area, to quickly and accurately track object movement, using a combination of self-capacitance and mutual-capacitance measurements to determine object positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the entire touch-sensitive area is scanned to determine object location, then measurement coverage is complete, but system speed decreases and power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The touch-sensitive area is divided into multiple regions, and only the region containing the object is scanned at each time instance. This segmentation allows the system to maintain complete measurement coverage of the entire touch surface while significantly reducing the scanning area at any given moment, thereby improving system operation speed without sacrificing detection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of scanning the entire touch-sensitive area uniformly, the system performs partial scanning by focusing only on the specific region where an object is detected. This partial action reduces unnecessary scanning operations in empty regions, enhancing system speed while maintaining sufficient measurement precision for object location determination.
2Measurement precision
If the entire touch-sensitive area is scanned to determine object location, then detection coverage is complete, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The scanning process is segmented into region-specific operations rather than uniform full-area scanning. By dividing the touch-sensitive area into multiple regions and scanning only the relevant region at each time instance, the system maintains complete detection coverage over time while reducing instantaneous power consumption associated with scanning large areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs partial scanning operations focused only on regions containing objects, avoiding unnecessary power expenditure on scanning empty regions. This partial action approach maintains sufficient detection accuracy for object location while significantly reducing overall power consumption of the touch sensor system.
3Productivity
If selective region scanning is implemented, then system speed increases and power consumption decreases, but measurement complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback from previous scanning results to dynamically determine which region to scan next. By analyzing object location data from prior time instances, the system intelligently selects the region most likely to contain the object, reducing scanning complexity while maintaining high operation speed and accurate object tracking.
4Use of energy by stationary object
If selective region scanning is implemented, then power consumption decreases, but detection coverage may be insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The touch-sensitive area is segmented into multiple regions that are scanned sequentially or selectively over time. This segmentation ensures that while power consumption is reduced by scanning only one region at a time, the cumulative detection coverage across multiple time instances remains complete, maintaining measurement precision for object location determination.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary identification of the region containing the object before conducting detailed scanning. By using preliminary data from previous time instances or coarse scanning to identify the relevant region, the system ensures that subsequent focused scanning covers the correct area, maintaining sufficient detection coverage while minimizing power consumption.
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 approach reduces power consumption and enhances system speed by focusing scans on smaller, dynamically selected regions, allowing for faster and more efficient tracking of object locations within the touch-sensitive area.
Implementation Method 1
When an object touches or comes within proximity of the surface of the capacitive touch screen, a change in capacitance may occur within the touch screen at the location of the touch or proximity.
Data Source
AI summary
In certain embodiments, an apparatus includes a touch sensor that includes a touch-sensitive area and a touch-sensor controller. The touch-sensor controller is operable to: scan two or more electrodes within the touch-sensitive area to determine a first location associated with an object within the touch-sensitive area, predict, based on the first location and one or more metrics, two or more next locations associated with the object, select, based on a first next location of the two or more next locations, a first region within the touch-sensitive area, select, based on a second next location of the two or more next locations, a second region within the touch-sensitive area, and scan two or more electrodes within the first region and two or more electrodes within the second region to determine a second location associated with the object. The second region is at least partially different from the first region.