Patents Examined by Jennifer Nguyen
  • Patent number: 9904089
    Abstract: The present invention provides an array substrate, a display panel and a display method thereof, as well as a display device. The array substrate of the present invention comprises data lines and gate lines formed on a substrate, the data lines and the gate lines are provided intersecting with and insulating from each other and define a plurality of pixel units, each of which comprises: a storage capacitor and a first thin film transistor, a gate of the first thin film transistor is connected to the corresponding gate line, a source thereof is connected to the corresponding data line, and a drain thereof is connected to one end of the storage capacitor, wherein, touch-control units are provided in at least a part of the pixel units.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignees: BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD., HEFEI BOE OPTOELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Jianchao Lin, Guolei Wang, Ming Hu
  • Patent number: 9904396
    Abstract: A flexible display device having a touch and bending sensing function includes a plurality of pixels on a display area of a first substrate, and a pressure sensor portion between the first substrate and the plurality of pixels, the pressure sensor portion including a plurality of first electrodes arranged in a first direction and a plurality of second electrodes above the first electrodes and arranged in a second direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignee: SAMSUNG DISPLAY CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Hyoung-Wook Jang
  • Patent number: 9904427
    Abstract: The various implementations described herein include systems, methods and/or devices used to enable underwater non-conductive touch tracking. An exemplary method is performed at a touch sensitive device and includes: detecting submersion of a capacitive sense array (CSA), including detecting increased electrode responses from at least a subset of a plurality of sensor electrodes of the CSA that exceed a predetermined electrode response criterion. The method further includes: (1) identifying one or more normalization factors for the CSA based on the detected increased electrode responses from the subset of the plurality of sensor electrodes, and (2) normalizing, using the one or more normalization factors, the CSA to form a substantially uniform baseline response across the CSA. The method further includes during the submersion, and subsequent to the normalizing, identifying one or more subsequent electrode responses that differ from the substantially uniform baseline response by at least a threshold amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Assignee: PARADE TECHNOLOGIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Ryan Lester Tan Co, Naoki Hirakawa
  • Patent number: 9898086
    Abstract: Systems and methods for visual processing of spectrograms to generate haptic effects are disclosed. In one embodiment, a signal comprising at least an audio signal is received. One or more spectrograms may be generated based at least in part on the received signal. One or more haptic effects may be determined based at least in part on the spectrogram. For example, a generated spectrogram may be a two-dimensional image and this image can be analyzed to determine one or more haptic effects. Once a haptic effect has been determined, one or more haptic output signals can be generated. A generated haptic output signal may be output to one or more haptic output devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: Immersion Corporation
    Inventors: Juan Manuel Cruz-Hernandez, Jamal Saboune
  • Patent number: 9898191
    Abstract: A user input apparatus is provided with user input means for the user to input data or a command by using the user's human body, and use-form detection means for detecting a form in which the user uses the user input means by the user's human body. A computer connected to the user input apparatus changes the operation of the application being executed by application execution means, according to a detection result obtained by the use-form detection means. Therefore, input operations can be performed without inconvenience even if the user cannot use one hand due to another work.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Junichi Rekimoto
  • Patent number: 9898114
    Abstract: Techniques related to privacy at display devices are described herein. The techniques include an apparatus having an electroactive privacy layer of a display device. The electroactive privacy layer is configured to restrict a propagation direction of light emission associated with a display layer of the display device. The restriction of propagation is generated by an electric force applied to the electroactive privacy layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Dong Yeung Kwak, Ramon C. Cancel Olmo
  • Patent number: 9900589
    Abstract: The present invention provides a display device, relates to the field of display technology, and can solve the technical problems of large volume and high cost in existing spectral separation 3D display device. The display device comprises: a display light source comprising at least one monochromatic wavelength tunable laser, when displaying each piece of 3D images, the monochromatic laser is capable of at least emitting a first laser beam at a first time, and emitting a second laser beam at a second time, and the peak wavelength of the first laser beam is different from that of the second laser beam, wherein the first time and the second time are continuous, the first laser beam is used for displaying the first frame of image, the second laser beam is used for displaying the second frame of image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignees: BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd., Hefei BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Huan Wang, Mookeun Shin, Zhizhong Tu, Yongjun Yoon
  • Patent number: 9880685
    Abstract: An electronic device includes a plurality of keycaps, first magnets disposed on an underside of the keycaps, each first magnet of the plurality of first magnets being associated with a respective one of the keycaps and moveable therewith relative to the back of the device, and electromagnets disposed between the back of the keyboard and the first magnets, each electromagnet being associated with a respective one of the first magnets and a respective one of the keycaps. The electronic device also includes a controller coupled to the electromagnets to control each electromagnet to maintain a magnetic field to repel the first magnet and to reverse the polarity in response to detecting an external applied force on the keycap that meets a threshold value to facilitate movement of the respective keycap from a first position, toward the back of the keyboard, to a second position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: BlackBerry Limited
    Inventor: Timothy Herbert Kyowski
  • Patent number: 9880638
    Abstract: A method and apparatus of identifying and selecting characters from among a plurality of characters. In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, a computer processor electronically enables identification of each of a plurality of characters arranged in a one-dimensional array. Each character is identified by an integer value that corresponds to the number of positions the character is offset from a reference position of the one-dimensional array. The computer processor electronically enables selection of any of the characters by receiving input resulting from activation of selection keys that specify the integer value of a character desired for selection. In one further embodiment, each selection key has an assigned integer value, and the integer value that identifies the selected character is calculated by summing the assigned integer values of each selection key activated for each instance that each selection key is activated within a selectable-length time period.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Inventor: Michael William Murphy
  • Patent number: 9874968
    Abstract: This disclosure generally provides a processing system that includes a first controller coupled with a second controller via a first communication link. The first controller is configured to transmit display data to the second controller via the first communication link. The second controller is configured to drive, using the display data, one or more coupled display electrodes for performing display updating. The second controller is further configured to operate one or more coupled sensor electrodes to acquire capacitive sensing data, and to transmit the capacitive sensing data to the first controller via the first communication link.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2018
    Assignee: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Joseph Kurth Reynolds, Stephen L. Morein, Jeffrey Lukanc
  • Patent number: 9875691
    Abstract: The present invention provides a pixel circuit, a driving method thereof and a display device. The pixel circuit comprises a drive module, an energy storage module, an electroluminescent module, a data voltage writing module, a threshold compensation module and a reset module, and also comprises an operating voltage input terminal, a data voltage input terminal and a plurality of control signal input terminal. The threshold compensation module is capable of introducing the voltage on the compensation voltage input terminal so as to set the voltage on the control terminal of the drive module to be a sum of the threshold voltage of the drive module and the operating voltage, thus the driving current flowing through the electroluminescent units is not affected by the threshold voltage of corresponding drive modules, such that the problem of uneven display brightness caused by the threshold voltage drift of driving transistors can be solved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2018
    Assignees: BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD., ORDOS YUANSHENG OPTOELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Bo Wang, Minghua Xuan, Yi Zhang
  • Patent number: 9870736
    Abstract: A display device is disclosed. The display device includes: a pixel array unit and a driving unit which drives the pixel array unit. The pixel array unit includes rows of first scanning lines and second scanning lines, columns of signals, pixels in a matrix state arranged at portions where the scanning lines and the signal lines cross each other and power supply lines and ground lines supplying power to respective pixels. The driving unit includes a first scanner performing line-sequential scanning to pixels by each row by supplying a first control signal to each first scanning line sequentially, a second scanner supplying a second control signal to each second scanning line sequentially so as to correspond to the line-sequential scanning and a signal selector supplying a video signal to rows of signal lines so as to correspond to the line-sequential scanning.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2018
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Junichi Yamashita, Takao Tanikame, Katsuhide Uchino
  • Patent number: 9864464
    Abstract: A proximity sensor has a sensing node. A radio frequency signal is received at the sensing node. The radio frequency signal is coupled to an intermediate node through a first capacitor. The radio frequency signal is coupled from the intermediate node to a ground node through a second capacitor. An RF amplifier is coupled to the sensing node. The radio frequency signal is generated using the RF amplifier. A third capacitor is coupled between the RF amplifier and the sensing node. An antenna is coupled to the sensing node. The radio frequency signal is transmitted using the antenna. A capacitance of the antenna is measured using the proximity sensor. The capacitance of the antenna is compared to a threshold to determine proximity of a conductive object. An inductor is coupled between the sensing node and the antenna. A shielding area is coupled to the intermediate node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2018
    Assignee: Semtech Corporation
    Inventors: Chaouki Rouaissia, Eric Vandel
  • Patent number: 9857969
    Abstract: A display apparatus includes a display section configured to display, on a display surface, a screen of an application program running on an information processing apparatus, a detecting section configured to detect the position of a pointer, a receiving section configured to receive a determination result concerning whether the position is present within a predetermined range including an image object, a drawing section configured to draw, when an operation mode is a first mode, a line corresponding to a track of the position, a second transmitting section configured to transmit, when the operation mode is a second mode, the information indicating the position to the information processing apparatus, and a switching section configured to switch, when the operation mode is the first mode, the operation mode to the second mode when the receiving section receives the determination result indicating that the position is within the predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION
    Inventor: Toshiki Fujimori
  • Patent number: 9841831
    Abstract: An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes a touch interface configured to display a screen comprising an ultrasound image of an object, and receive a user touch on the ultrasound image; and a controller configured to acquire a seed point, at which the user touch is sensed, acquire shape information of the object, and perform a control to display, on the ultrasound image, a touch point corresponding to the user touch, the touch point being determined based on the seed point and the shape information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Myong-woo Lee, Jong-geun Park, Ki-won Sohn
  • Patent number: 9836124
    Abstract: In one embodiment of the present invention, a haptic engine dynamically configures a haptic controller to provide information regarding the state of an interactive system via sensations of texture. In operation, as the state of the interactive system changes, the haptic engine dynamically updates a haptic state that includes texture characteristics, such as texture patterns, that are designed to reflect the state of the interactive system in an intuitive fashion. The haptic engine then generates signals that configure touch surfaces included in the haptic controller to convey these texture characteristics. Advantageously, providing information regarding the correct state and/or operation of the interactive system based on sensations of texture reduces distractions attributable to many conventional audio and/or visual interactive systems.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: HARMAN INTERNATIONAL INDUSTRIES, INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Jaime Elliot Nahman, Stefan Marti, Davide Di Censo, Mirjana Spasojevic
  • Patent number: 9837050
    Abstract: An information processing method and an electrical device are described. The information processing method is applied to an electrical device having at least a processing unit, the electrical device has a plurality of usage modes and further includes a plurality of sensing units. The method includes acquiring, by the processing unit, data collected by the plurality of the sensing units; judging whether the electrical device is in a first usage mode according to the acquired data collected by the plurality of the sensing units; wherein the first usage mode is one of the plurality of the usage modes. With the present method, objects of integrating a plurality of usage modes into one electrical device and judging a usage mode corresponding to a current application scene efficiently are realized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignees: LENOVO (BEIJING) CO., LTD., BEIJING LENOVO SOFTWARE LTD.
    Inventors: Haidong Bao, Ningyu Wang, Xianshuan Zeng, Ying Gao
  • Patent number: 9836160
    Abstract: A multi-touch capacitive touch sensor panel can be created using a substrate with column and row traces formed on either side of the substrate. To shield the column (sense) traces from the effects of capacitive coupling from a modulated Vcom layer in an adjacent liquid crystal display (LCD) or any source of capacitive coupling, the row traces can be widened to shield the column traces, and the row traces can be placed closer to the LCD. In particular, the rows can be widened so that there is spacing of about 30 microns between adjacent row traces. In this manner, the row traces can serve the dual functions of driving the touch sensor panel, and also the function of shielding the more sensitive column (sense) traces from the effects of capacitive coupling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Steven P. Hotelling, Brian Richards Land
  • Patent number: 9830019
    Abstract: A touch-sensing display panel, comprising an LCD unit including a backlight and a plurality of image-forming pixel elements arranged in a central region. A planar light guide with a first refractive index has a front surface forming a touch-sensing region and an opposite rear surface facing the LCD unit. A plurality of light emitters are emulated by passing light from the backlight through pixel elements of first selected portions of a peripheral region of the LCD unit into the light guide for propagation therein through total internal reflection, and a plurality of light detectors are connected to receive light from the light guide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: FLATFROG LABORATORIES AB
    Inventor: Ola Wassvik
  • Patent number: 9830036
    Abstract: The use of one or more proximity sensors in combination with one or more touch sensors in a multi-touch panel to detect the presence of a finger, body part or other object and control or trigger one or more functions in accordance with an “image” of touch provided by the sensor outputs is disclosed. In some embodiments, one or more infrared (IR) proximity sensors can be driven with a specific stimulation frequency and emit IR light from one or more areas, which can in some embodiments correspond to one or more multi-touch sensor “pixel” locations. The reflected IR signal, if any, can be demodulated using synchronous demodulation. In some embodiments, both physical interfaces (touch and proximity sensors) can be connected to analog channels in the same electrical core.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Steven P. Hotelling, Christoph H. Krah