Electro-mechanical transducer suitable for tactile display and article conveyance
OwnerJuan Manuel Cruz-Hernandez, Vincent Haywardinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A tactile transducer is able to provide a tactile display or serve as a tactile input sensor. Paired contactors having contactor tips separated by a gap are connected to transducer means (an actuator or sensor). Variations in the gap distance can create a tactile experience through skin stretch, or provide tactile input in sensor mode. The contactors are resiliently supported to bear against a sensing finger with relatively constant pressure.
Claims28
A tactile transducer comprising:
- at least one pair of adjacent contactors, each contactor having a contacting tip separated by a gap from the adjacent contacting tip;
- transducer means to effect or sense relative displacement of said contactors and associated variation of the lateral gap distance between said contacting tips;
- and
- spring means for supporting said transducer and causing the normal pressure applied between a contacting body and the contacting tips to be at least partially decoupled from tactile sensations provided by said displacement of said contactors on said contacting body.
A method of creating a tactile display across a plurality of contactors, each contactor having respective contactor tips separated by gaps that are actuable by an actuation mechanism, comprising:
- enabling the reception of a sensate object against said contactor tips;
- and
- causing the contactors to be laterally displaced in relation to one another using the actuation mechanism to create tactile sensations on said sensate object, said tactile sensations being caused by varying gap distance, the gap distances, or the gap areas between the contactor tips.
A tactile interface device comprising:
- at least one pair of adjacent contactors, each contactor having a contacting tip separated by a gap from the adjacent contacting tip;
- and
- at least one actuator coupled to said at least one pair of adjacent contactors, said at least one actuator operative to cause relative lateral displacement of said contactors and associated variation of the lateral gap distance between said contacting tips, said lateral displacement able to cause a tactile sensation to a user contacting said contacting tips.
A transducer device comprising:
- an array of adjacent contactors, each contactor having a contacting tip separated by a gap from adjacent contacting tips;
- and
- a plurality of transducers coupled to said array of adjacent contactors, said transducers operative to sense relative lateral displacement of associated contactors and variation of the lateral gap distance between said contacting tips of said associated contactors, said lateral displacement causing a sensing of a location of contact of a user on said contacting tips.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.