Touch-sensitive input screen having regional sensitivity and resolution properties

Abstract

A touch screen panel having varied region-specific combinations of resolution and touch sensitivity may also incorporate display functionality. For a first embodiment of the invention, the majority of the screen area exhibits low resolution, high touch force characteristics. A smaller area of the screen exhibits low touch force and high resolution properties. For a second embodiment of the invention, at least a portion of the peripheral regions (i.e., regions near the circumferential edge) of the screen are provided with regions of low touch force high resolution properties. These regions may be programmed to act as scroll bars, which would allow the user to change locations in a document of which only a portion is displayed on the screen. In the central regions of the screen, higher touch force and lower resolution provide palm rejection and coarse marking or movement capability with low bandwidth utilization. Either the varied screen properties may be incorporated into the screen during its manufacture, or the screen may be designed so that different resolution and touch sensitivity properties can be assigned to different regions of the screen to suit the user's needs.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.