IP Library Granted Patent US 10,503,312
Granted Patent B2
US 10,503,312 · App. 15/874,510 · Granted Dec 10, 2019

Large PCAP screen with multiple touch controller ASICS with interleaved receiver connections

Inventor: Yansun Xu (Mountain View, CA)
Assignee: Elo Touch Solutions, Inc.
G06F3/0416G06F3/041G06F3/044
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,503,312
App. No.
15/874,510
Granted
Dec 10, 2019
Kind
B2
Abstract

System, method, and computer program product embodiments are provided for a projected capacitive (PCAP) touch system that includes a touchscreen and two or more touch controller application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) communicatively coupled to the touchscreen, where connections between receiver (and/or driver) circuits of the two or more touch controller ASICs and touchscreen electrodes are interleaved. The two or more touch controller ASICs do not exchange raw mutual capacitance or self capacitance data during a measurement frame. Further, a processor may be coupled to the two or more touch controller ASICs, and may determine final touch coordinates based on all subsets of coarse touch coordinate data from each of the two or more touch controller ASICs. Embodiments also include determining each subset of coarse touch coordinate data based on a shape of a touch rather than a two-dimensional square or rectangular region of the touchscreen.

Claims (33)

1. A projected capacitive (PCAP) touch system comprising:

a touchscreen; and

two or more touch controller application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) communicatively coupled to the touchscreen to detect capacitive touch data from touchscreen electrodes, wherein a first receiver circuit of a first touch controller ASIC of the two or more touch controller ASICs comprises first connections to a first subset of the touchscreen electrodes, wherein a second receiver circuit of a second touch controller ASIC of the two or more touch controller ASICs comprises second connections to a second subset of the touchscreen electrodes, wherein the first connections are interleaved with the second connections.

2. The PCAP touch system of claim 1 , wherein the two or more touch controller ASICs do not exchange raw mutual capacitance data during a measurement frame.

3. The PCAP touch system of claim 1 , further comprising one or more processors coupled to the two or more touch controller ASICs, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: determine a final touch coordinate based on coarse touch coordinate data from the two or more touch controller ASICs.

4. The PCAP touch system of claim 3 , wherein coarse touch coordinate data from one of the two or more touch controller ASICs is based at least on a number of horizontal and vertical electrode intersections whose mutual capacitance measurements satisfy a significant touch threshold.

5. The PCAP touch system of claim 3 , wherein the first subset of the touchscreen electrodes are odd numbered, the first touch controller ASIC is configured to calculate first coarse touch coordinate data comprising:

a partial sum of mutual capacitance measurements satisfying a significant touch threshold across the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; an X touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; and a Y touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes, wherein the partial sum, X touch coordinate, and Y touch coordinate are calculated by the first touch controller ASIC without communicating with an other touch controller ASIC of the two or more touch controller ASICs.

6. The PCAP touch system of claim 3 , wherein coarse touch coordinate data from one of the two or more touch controller ASICs is based on a pitch size of the touchscreen and a number (N) of the two or more touch controller ASICs.

7. The PCAP touch system of claim 1 wherein third connections between driver circuits of the first touch controller ASIC and a third portion of the touchscreen electrodes, are interleaved with fourth connections, wherein the fourth connections are between driver circuits of the second touch controller ASIC and a fourth portion of the touchscreen electrodes.

8. The PCAP touch system of claim 7 , wherein the two or more touch controller ASICs are configured to: determine self-capacitance measurements.

9. A method, for a first touch controller application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), comprising:

determining a first subset of coarse touch coordinate data based on first connections between receiver circuits and a first subset of touchscreen electrodes of a projected capacitive (PCAP) touchscreen, wherein the first connections are interleaved with second connections, wherein the second connections are between receiver circuits of a second touch controller ASIC and a second subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen; and

transmitting the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data to a processor, wherein the processor receives a second subset of coarse touch coordinate data from the second touch controller ASIC that determines the second subset of coarse touch coordinate data based on the second connections, and wherein the processor determines final touch coordinates based on the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data and the second subset of coarse touch coordinate data.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first and second touch controller ASICs do not exchange raw mutual capacitance or self capacitance data during a measurement frame.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first and second touch controller ASICs are touch controller ASICs of number (N) of touch controller ASICs of the PCAP touchscreen, the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data is based on a pitch size of the PCAP touchscreen and N.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the determining the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data is based at least on a number of horizontal and vertical touchscreen electrode intersections of the PCAP touchscreen whose mutual capacitance measurements satisfy a significant touch threshold.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen are odd numbered and wherein the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data comprises:

a partial sum of mutual capacitance measurements satisfying a significant touch threshold across the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; an X touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; and a Y touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes;

wherein the determining the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data is performed without communicating with the second touch controller ASIC.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein third connections between driver circuits of the first touch controller ASIC and a third subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen, are interleaved with fourth connections, wherein the fourth connections are between driver circuits of the second touch controller ASIC and a fourth subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprises:

determining self-capacitance measurements; and

determining touch coordinate information based on the self-capacitance measurements.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored therein one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors of a first touch controller application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) to perform operations, the operations comprising:

determining a first subset of coarse touch coordinate data based on first connections between receiver circuits of the first touch controller ASIC and a first subset of touchscreen electrodes of a projected capacitive (PCAP) touchscreen, wherein the first connections are interleaved with second connections, wherein the second connections are between receiver circuits of a second touch controller ASIC and a second subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen; and

transmitting the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data from the first touch controller ASIC to a processor, wherein the processor receives a second subset of coarse touch coordinate data from one or more processors of the second touch controller ASIC that perform operations to determine the second subset of coarse touch coordinate data based on the second connections, and wherein the processor determines final touch coordinates based on the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data and the second subset of coarse touch coordinate data.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the first and second touch controller ASICs do not exchange raw mutual capacitance or self capacitance data during a measurement frame.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the operation of determining the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data is based at least on a number of horizontal and vertical electrode intersections of the PCAP touchscreen whose mutual capacitance measurements satisfy a significant touch threshold.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the first subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen are odd numbered and wherein the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data comprises:

a partial sum of mutual capacitance measurements satisfying a significant touch threshold across the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; an X touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes; and a Y touch coordinate associated with the first subset of touchscreen electrodes;

wherein the determining the first subset of coarse touch coordinate data operation is performed without communicating with the second touch controller ASIC.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein third connections between driver circuits of the first touch controller ASIC and a third subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen, are interleaved with fourth connections, wherein the fourth connections are between driver circuits of the second touch controller ASIC and a fourth subset of touchscreen electrodes of the PCAP touchscreen.

Assignments (7)
PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Dec 17, 2025
From: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 074005/0708 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS RECORDED AT REEL 070666/FRAME 0540 Recorded Sep 30, 2025
From: CITIZENS BANK, N.A.
To: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 072982/0372 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Mar 27, 2025
From: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: CITIZENS BANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 070666/0540 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTERESTS (FIRST LIEN) IN PATENTS Recorded Mar 27, 2025
From: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA
To: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 070670/0714 →
ADDRESS CHANGE Recorded Aug 11, 2023
From: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 064571/0711 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Dec 19, 2018
From: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
To: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 047956/0114 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jan 29, 2018
From: XU, YANSUN
To: ELO TOUCH SOLUTIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 044752/0164 →