Substrate with electrically conductive pads that are readable by touchscreen device

An object, comprising:

• a non-conductive substrate that comprises an external surface;
• a plurality of conductive pads that are disposed on the external surface of the non-conductive substrate;
• and
• a plurality of conductive lines that are disposed at the opposite side of the external surface,
• wherein each conductive line comprises two ends, and one end of the conductive line is connected with one conductive pad and the other end of the conductive line is open-ended such that the other end makes no electrical contact with any object,
• wherein each conductive pad is capable of triggering a touch event when the external surface of the non-conductive substrate is placed in proximity to a touch surface such that a geometric pattern formed by the geometric arrangement of all conductive pads can be identified based on the coordinates of the conductive pads on the touch surface,
• wherein a dimension of the conductive lines is large enough such that positive charges are sufficiently separated from induced negative charges to trigger the touch event without the need for a user to touch the conductive pads or the conductive lines, and
• wherein a length of the conductive lines on the non-conductive substrate is at least 1 cm, and a width of the conductive line is at least 0.1 mm.

A method executed by a reader to identify an object wherein the object comprises a non-conductive substrate that has an external surface, the method comprising:

• determining, by the reader, coordinates of a plurality of conductive pads disposed on the external surface of the non-conductive substrate without the need for a user to touch the conductive pads when the external surface is placed in proximity to the surface of the touch screen display of the reader;
• extracting, by the reader, a geometric pattern formed by the geometric arrangement of the plurality of conductive pads on the external surface of the non-conductive substrate;
• and
• determining, by the reader, information stored in the object based on the geometric pattern,
• wherein each conductive pad in the object is connected to one or more conductive lines disposed on a top surface through a conductive via that extends from the external surface to the top surface,
• wherein a dimension of the conductive lines is large enough such that positive charges are sufficiently separated from induced negative charges to trigger a touch event without the need for a user to touch the conductive pads or the conductive lines,
• wherein a length of the conductive lines on the non-conductive substrate is at least 1 cm, and a width of the conductive line is at least 0.1 mm, and
• wherein one end of the conductive line is connected with one conductive pad and the other end of the conductive line is open-ended such that the other end makes no electrical contact with any object.