Segmented capacitive sensor, and related systems, methods and devices
View Patent ↗Disclosed are segmented sensors and related systems, methods, and devices. In one embodiment, a capacitive sensor includes a first gird of sensor lines, a second grid of sensor lines, and an isolating region defined between the first grid of sensor lines and the second grid of sensor lines. Also disclosed are touch controllers configured for operable coupling to, and detecting touches at, a segmented sensor, and related systems, methods, and devices. In one embodiment, connectors of a touch controllers are configured for operable coupling to sensing lines from different segments of a segmented sensor and touch controllers are configured to detect touches at the different segments.
1. A capacitive sensing system, comprising:
a segmented sensor comprising rows of sensing lines and columns of sensing lines; and
one or more touch controllers operatively coupled to the segmented sensor, a touch controller of the one or more touch controllers comprising:
a first group of connectors and a second group of connectors, and wherein:
at least some drive lines of the columns or rows of sensing lines are operatively coupled independently to the first group of connectors; and
at least some sense lines of the rows or columns of sensing lines are operatively coupled in parallel to the second group of connectors.
2. The system of claim 1 , where the rows of sensing lines and columns of sensing lines are coupled to a touch sensor non-consecutively.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system is configured for mutual capacitance sensing.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system is configured for self-capacitance sensing.
5. A capacitive sensing system, comprising:
a segmented sensor comprising rows of sensing lines and columns of sensing lines; and
one or more touch controllers operatively coupled to the segmented sensor, a touch controller of the one or more touch controllers comprising:
a first group of connectors and a second group of connectors, and wherein:
the columns or rows of sensing lines are operatively coupled independently to the first group of connectors; and
at least some of the other rows or columns of sensing lines are operatively coupled in parallel to the second group of connectors,
wherein some connectors of the first group of connectors are associated with a first segment of the segmented sensor and other connectors of the first group of connectors are associated with a second segment of the segmented sensor,
wherein some connectors of the second group of connectors are associated with the first segment of the segmented sensor and associated with the second segment of the segmented sensor.
6. The system of claim 5 , wherein:
the first segment comprises first rows of sensing lines of the rows of sensing lines of the segmented sensor; and
the second segment comprises second rows of sensing lines of the rows of sensing lines of the segmented sensor, and
wherein the first rows of sensing lines are electrically isolated from the second rows of sensing lines.
7. A capacitive sensor, comprising:
a first grid of sensor lines comprising first rows of sensor lines and first columns of sensor lines;
a second grid of sensor lines comprising second rows of sensor lines and second columns of sensor lines;
an isolating region defined between the first grid of sensor lines and the second grid of sensor lines; and
one or more touch controllers operatively coupled to the first grid of sensor lines and the second grid of sensor lines, a touch controller of the one or more touch controllers comprising:
a first group of connectors and a second group of connectors, and wherein:
one of columns or rows of sensor lines of the first grid and the second grid are operatively coupled independently to the first group of connectors; and
at least some of the other of rows or columns of sensor lines of the first grid and the second grid are operatively coupled in parallel to the second group of connectors.
8. The capacitive sensor of claim 7 , wherein at least part of the isolating region defines an air gap.
9. The capacitive sensor of claim 7 , wherein at least part of the isolating region comprises an electrically insulating material.
10. The capacitive sensor of claim 7 , further comprising:
first connectors operatively coupled to one or more sensor lines of the first grid; and
second connectors operatively coupled to one or more sensor lines of the second grid.
11. The capacitive sensor of claim 7 , wherein at least the first rows of sensor lines are electrically isolated from the second rows of sensor lines.
12. A touch controller, comprising:
a first group of connectors and a second group of connectors;
a processor; and
a non-transitory storage medium, the non-transitory storage medium having stored thereon machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, are adapted to enable the processor to:
determine touch location information responsive to one or more sensed signals, wherein the touch location information corresponds to a location at a segmented sensor when:
columns or rows of sensor lines of the segmented sensor are operatively coupled independently to the first group of connectors; and
at least some of rows or columns of sensor lines of the segmented sensor that are associated with at least some of the one or more sensed signals are operatively coupled in parallel to the second group of connectors.
13. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to discriminate between first sensed signals associated with a first segment of the segmented sensor and second sensed signals associated with a second segment of the segmented sensor.
14. The touch controller of claim 12 , further comprising connectors, wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to associate a first portion of the first group of the connectors with a first segment of the segmented sensor and associate a second portion of the first group of the connectors with a second segment of the segmented sensor.
15. The touch controller of claim 14 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to associate some connectors of the second group of connectors with both the first segment and the second segment of the segmented sensor.
16. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to associate a sensed signal of the one or more sensed signals with a first segment of the segmented sensor or a second segment of the segmented sensor responsive to a connector assignment, wherein the connector assignment is for a connector configured to be operatively coupled individually to a sensing line of the first segment or the second segment.
17. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to associate a sensed signal of the one or more sensed signals with a first segment of the segmented sensor or a second segment of the segmented sensor responsive to a connector assignment, wherein the connector assignment is for a connector configured to be operatively coupled in parallel to a sensing line of the first segment and a sensing line of the second segment.
18. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to change the touch location information responsive to a segment of the segmented sensor associated with the one or more sensed signals.
19. The touch controller of claim 18 , wherein changing the touch location information comprises:
determining a segment of the segmented sensor associated with the touch location information;
determining an offset responsive to the segment; and
determining an adjusted touch location responsive to the determined offset.
20. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein:
the first group of connectors are configured to be operatively coupled to columns of sensing lines; and
the second group of connectors are configured to be operatively coupled in parallel to at least some rows of sensing lines.
21. The touch controller of claim 12 , wherein the machine-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, are further adapted to enable the processor to:
identify a first segment of the segmented sensor associated with a first sensed signal responsive to a first connector assignment associated with a first connector; and
identify a second segment of the segmented sensor associated with a second sensed signal responsive to a second connector assignment associated with a second connector,
wherein the first connector and the second connector are arranged consecutively and the first segment and the second segment are different segments of the segmented sensor.