Dynamic Tactile Interface
AssigneeEmpire Technology Development LLC
InventorCharles A. Eldering
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and system for exciting a dynamic tactile interface having a plurality of electrodes includes identifying an area within an image that is capable of tactile feedback and identifying a first subset of the plurality of electrodes in the dynamic tactile interface that correspond to the plurality of areas. A voltage is applied to each of the electrodes of to the plurality of electrodes to create a desired state for each electrode corresponding to the areas capable of tactile feedback. The dynamic tactile interface can be implemented as part of a viewable display type of device, or as a device without any viewable display.
Claims20
A method of using a dynamic tactile interface having a plurality of feedback elements, the method comprising:
- identifying an area within an image that is capable of tactile feedback;
- identifying, by a controller, a set of the feedback elements in the dynamic tactile interface corresponding to the area;
- and
- activating each of the feedback elements in the set to create a desired state for each feedback element corresponding to the area.
A dynamic tactile interface comprising:
- an electrostatic film capable of having at least an indent state and a protrusion state;
- a plurality of feedback elements arranged in a matrix configuration and positioned below the electrostatic film;
- and
- a controller configured to determine at least one area within an image that is configured for tactile feedback, determine a set of the feedback elements that correspond to the at least one area, and send signals to activate the set of feedback elements.
An apparatus for interfacing with a dynamic tactile interface, the tactile interface comprising a film capable of having an indent state and a protrusion state, a plurality of feedback elements positioned below the film and arranged in a cell matrix pattern, the apparatus comprising:
- a controller coupled to the plurality of feedback elements, the controller configured to determine one or more areas within an image on the dynamic tactile interface that are configured for tactile feedback, determine a set of the feedback elements that correspond to the one or more areas, and send activation signals to activate the set of feedback elements.
An article of manufacture for using a dynamic tactile interface having a plurality of feedback elements, the article of manufacture comprising non-transitory machine-readable medium holding machine executable instructions for performing a method comprising:
- indentifying an area of a screen configured for tactile feedback by analyzing an image displayed on the screen;
- identifying a set of the feedback elements in the dynamic tactile interface corresponding to the area of the screen;
- and
- sending a signal to a controller to activate each of the feedback elements in the set to create a desired state for each feedback element corresponding to the area of the screen.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.