Ultrasound-Based Force Sensing of Inputs

A method for determining and responding to an input force, comprising:

• ultrasonically sensing a force exerted on a surface of an electronic device, by:
• transmitting an energy pulse toward the surface of the electronic device;
• and
• receiving a reflected energy pulse from the surface of the electronic device;
• determining a magnitude of the force using the reflected energy pulse;
• correlating the force to an input command, the correlated input command chosen from three or more input commands using the magnitude of the force;
• and
• executing the correlated input command.

An electronic device, comprising:

• a touch-sensitive display;
• an ultrasound-based force-sensing element positioned below the display and configured to detect force data indicating an amount of force applied to the display, the force-sensing element comprising:
• an emitter operative to transmit an ultrasonic pulse toward a surface of the display;
• a receiver configured to receive a reflected ultrasonic pulse indicative of the force data;
• and
• a processor operative to:
• receive the force data and estimate the amount of force;
• execute a first command in response to the amount of force equaling or exceeding a first threshold;
• and
• execute a second command in response to the amount of force equaling or exceeding a second threshold greater than the first threshold.