Rotary pushbutton and touchpad device and system and method for detecting rotary movement, axial displacement and touchpad gestures

A system for detecting rotary movement, axial displacement and touchpad gestures, the system comprising:

• a knob having a knob top and a knob bottom wherein the knob top has an opening and further wherein the knob bottom is fixedly connected to the knob top;
• a touchpad located within the opening wherein a user manipulates the touchpad to perform the touchpad gestures;
• a touchpad PC board located within the knob wherein the touchpad PC board generates a signal indicative of the touchpad gestures applied to the touchpad;
• an encoder housing from which an outer shaft extends wherein the outer shaft has a top end, a bottom end, an interior and an exterior and further wherein the top end of the outer shaft is fixedly connected to the knob bottom;
• shutters located within the encoder housing wherein the shutters extend outward from the outer shaft into the exterior of the outer shaft at the bottom end of the outer shaft;
• an encoder PC board located within the encoder housing on one side of the shutters wherein the encoder PC board detects an intensity of light;
• a housing base from which a base shaft extends wherein the base shaft extends through the interior of the outer shaft to a position between the knob bottom and the knob top wherein the knob bottom slides on the base shaft in a direction toward the housing base in response to an applied downward force on the knob top and slides on the base shaft in a direction away from the housing base in response to a release of the applied downward force on the knob top;
• an actuator shaft which slides in the base shaft in a first direction toward the housing base and perpendicular to the housing base in response to an applied downward force on the knob top and slides in a second direction away from the housing base and perpendicular to the housing base in response to a release of the applied downward force on the knob top;
• and
• a base PC board located within the housing base wherein an elastically deformable dome is located on the base PC board and between the actuator shaft and the base PC board and further wherein the elastically deformable dome has a base and a center wherein the base of the elastically deformable dome is fixedly connected to the base PC board and further wherein the base PC board generates a signal indicative of the axial displacement of the knob in response to depression of the knob pushing the actuator shaft downward into the elastically deformable dome so that the center of the elastically deformable dome contacts the base PC board.

A method for detecting rotary movement, axial displacement and touchpad gestures, the method comprising the steps of:

• performing the rotary movement by a user rotating a knob wherein rotation of the knob rotates an outer shaft fixedly connected to the knob and further wherein shutters extending outward from the outer shaft are rotated by rotation of the knob;
• emitting light from at least one encoder PC board;
• measuring an intensity of the light wherein an encoder PC board generates a signal indicative of the rotary movement of the knob;
• performing axial displacement of the knob by pushing the knob downward wherein the user pushing the knob downward moves an actuator shaft fixedly connected to the knob downward;
• generating a signal indicative of the axial displacement of the knob wherein a base PC board generates the signal indicative of the axial displacement of the knob in response to downward movement of the actuator shaft moving a portion of the dome into contact with the base PC board;
• and
• applying the touchpad gestures to a touchpad located within the knob wherein the touchpad is responsive to the touchpad gestures wherein a touchpad PC board generates a signal indicative of the touchpad gestures.

A device comprising:

• a knob package having a knob, a touchpad and a touchpad PC board wherein the touchpad PC board is located within the knob and further wherein the knob has an opening in which the touchpad PC board is located wherein the touchpad PC board generates a signal indicative of user gestures applied to the touchpad and further wherein rotation of the knob package does not rotate the touchpad and does not rotate the touchpad PC board;
• an encoder package having an encoder housing, an outer shaft, and an encoder PC board wherein the encoder PC board is located within the encoder housing and further wherein the outer shaft is located at least partially within the encoder housing wherein the outer shaft is rotatably connected to the encoder housing and fixedly connected to the knob and further wherein the encoder PC board is fixedly connected to the encoder housing wherein the encoder PC board generates a signal indicative of a rotary position of the knob;
• and
• an electronics package having a housing base, a base shaft, a base PC board and an actuator shaft wherein the base shaft extends from the housing base and further wherein the base PC board is located within the housing base under the base shaft wherein the actuator shaft is located at least partially within the base shaft wherein the base PC board generates a signal indicative of an axial position of the knob wherein the base shaft extends through the outer shaft into the interior of the knob package to connect the knob package, the electronics package and the encoder package to each other;
• and
• springs having protrusions wherein the springs are fixedly connected to the encoder housing and further wherein the protrusions insert into teeth extending from the outer shaft.