Touch Sensitive Device
An apparatus including a touch sensitive screen having a face adapted to receive a user's hand-writing via a hand-held stylus. The screen includes means exciting the screen to vibrate so as to transmit the vibration to the stylus to simulate the sensation of a writing implement writing on paper as the stylus is moved over the face of the screen. The apparatus may include means for period modulating the electrical signal applied to the exciting means and means for amplitude modulating the electrical signal. The apparatus may include means for sensing the velocity of movement of the stylus over the screen face and means for modulating the vibration according to the sensed velocity.
1 .- 15 . (canceled)
16 . A method of simulating the sensation of a writing implement writing on paper when using a hand-held stylus to write on a touch-sensitive screen, comprising arranging the screen to vibrate when contacted by the stylus to provide user feed-back.
17 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising sensing the velocity of movement of the stylus over the screen face and modulating the vibration according to the sensed velocity.
18 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising applying a bending wave to the screen to provide the vibration.
19 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate the drag of a writing implement moving over paper by period modulating the vibration.
20 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate the axial reciprocating movement of a writing implement moving over paper by amplitude modulating the vibration.
21 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate resonance of a writing implement moving over paper by configuring the stylus so that it is excited into beam resonance in response to vibration of the screen.
22 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising exciting the screen to produce a sound effect simulating that of a writing implement writing on paper.
23 . An apparatus comprising a touch sensitive screen having a face adapted to receive a user's hand-writing via a hand-held stylus, wherein the screen comprises means exciting the screen to vibrate so as to transmit the vibration to the stylus to simulate the sensation of a writing implement writing on paper as the stylus is moved over the face of the screen.
24 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein the vibration exciter comprises means for applying a bending wave vibration to the screen face.
25 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein the vibration exciter is electromechanical and comprising signal generating means for applying an electrical signal to the vibration exciter.
26 . The apparatus of claim 25 , further comprising means for period modulating the electrical signal.
27 . The apparatus of claim 25 , further comprising means for amplitude modulating the electrical signal.
28 . The apparatus of claim 25 , further comprising means for sensing the velocity of movement of the stylus over the screen face and means for modulating the vibration according to the sensed velocity.
29 . The apparatus of claim 25 , further comprising means for sensing the velocity of movement of the stylus over the screen face and wherein the signal generating means generates a signal to cause the screen to radiate an acoustic component simulating that of a writing implement writing on paper, the acoustic signal being modulated by the velocity sensing means.
30 . A carrier carrying computer program code to, when running, implementing the method of claim 16 .
31 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate the drag of a writing implement moving over paper by period modulating the vibration.
32 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate the axial reciprocating movement of a writing implement moving over paper by amplitude modulating the vibration.
33 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising arranging for the vibration to simulate resonance of a writing implement moving over paper by configuring the stylus so that it is excited into beam resonance in response to vibration of the screen.
34 . The apparatus of claim 26 , further comprising means for amplitude modulating the electrical signal.
35 . The apparatus of claim 34 , further comprising means for sensing the velocity of movement of the stylus over the screen face and wherein the signal generating means generates a signal to cause the screen to radiate an acoustic component simulating that of a writing implement writing on paper, the acoustic signal being modulated by the velocity sensing means.