Force sensor patterns
AssigneeSTMicroelectronics Asia Pacific Pte Ltd
InventorsDylan Park, Jerry Kim
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present disclosure provides a capacitive sensing structure for detecting a force touch in a touchscreen application. Performance uniformity of the force touch sensor is improved by providing a capacitive force touch structure having sensing electrodes of varying thickness, wherein the variation in electrode thickness corresponds to a relative displacement potential of portions of the sensing electrode. This variation in thickness improves performance uniformity of the force sensor by compensating for the displacement potential (i.e., flexibility) of the sensing electrodes so that a force touch applied to the touch surface is measured consistently regardless of the location of the force touch on the touch surface.
Claims41
A capacitive sensing structure, comprising:
- a touch surface having a center region and a peripheral edge region;
- one or more sensing electrodes disposed between the touch surface and a ground plane, the one or more sensing electrodes having a varying thickness that is greater at locations nearer the peripheral edge region of the touch surface and is lesser at locations nearer the center region of the touch surface;
- and
- control circuitry configured to sense a capacitance at the one or more sensing electrodes, wherein a change in the capacitance at the one or more sensing electrodes is indicative of a force touch.
A capacitive sensing structure, comprising:
- one or more sensing electrodes disposed between a ground plane and a touch surface, the one or more sensing electrodes having a varying thickness, wherein the variation in thickness corresponds to a displacement potential of the one or more sensing electrodes and defines a varying distance between the one or more sensing electrodes and the ground plane;
- and
- control circuitry configured to sense a capacitance at the one or more sensing electrodes, wherein a change in the capacitance at the one or more sensing electrodes is indicative of a force touch.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.