Abstract: An electronic device comprising a touch-sensitive surface and a touchless detecting system for detecting movement of a finger towards the surface. The device is configured to associate said movement with a predicted touch on said surface and to issue a report of said predicted touch.

Abstract: An electronic apparatus has a transmitter arranged to transmit an acoustic signal. It also has a receiver, for receiving acoustic energy comprising a reflection of the acoustic signal from an input object. It generates an electronic received signal from the received acoustic energy. The apparatus has processing means arranged to: (i) analyse at least a portion of the received signal to determine a linear combination of basis functions which represents an interference component in the received signal; (ii) use the determined linear combination to attenuate interference within the received signal, to give a post-attenuation signal; and (iii) use the post-attenuation signal to determine a user input to the electronic apparatus.

Abstract: An electronic device includes a touchless user interface comprising: transmitting means 7 for transmitting signals, receiving means 9a-9f for receiving reflected signals after reflection of said signals from an input object, processing means for determining information regarding the position and/or movement of the input object from the reflected signals to provide a user input to the device; and a screen 2 for displaying a graphical object 4, 6 having one or more associated interactions with which a user can interact with said graphical object 4, 6 through a said user input. The device is arranged so that the signals transmitted by the transmitting means 7 and/or the reflected signals processed by the processing means are determined by the location of the graphical object 4, 6 on the screen 2 and/or by the interaction(s).

Abstract: Motions, positions or configurations off, for example a human hand can be recognised by transmitting a plurality of transmit signals in respective time frames; receiving a plurality of receive signals; determining a plurality of channel impulse responses using the transmit and receive signals; defining a matrix of impulse responses, with impulse responses for adjacent time frames adjacent each other; and analysing the matrix for patterns (22) corresponding to the motion position or configuration.

Abstract: An electronic device comprises a front surface comprising a display screen; a rear surface; at least one ultrasonic transmitter; and at least one ultrasonic receiver. The device may be configured to transmit signals from the transmitter and to receive the signals at the receiver after reflection from an input object and to use the reflected signals to characterise the motion of said input object for controlling a function of the device. At least one of the ultrasonic transmitter and the ultrasonic receiver is disposed on the rear surface of the device. The device may be configured to transmit signals from the transmitter and to receive the signals at the receiver after reflection from a user's hand and to use the reflected signals to detect one of a predetermined set of gestures carried out adjacent to the device when the device is placed on its rear surface on a flat supporting surface.

Abstract: A portable electronic device comprises means 4 for transmitting ultrasonic signals 8, means 6 for receiving ultrasonic signals 12 reflected from an input object 10, and means for processing received ultrasonic signals to determine an input to the device. The device is configured to reduce the transmission power of the ultrasonic signals transmitted by the transmitting means in the event that: the device determines that a reflection 16 from an object 14 other than the input object meets a predetermined criterion; or if an event is detected which indicates that the user is or will be using a function of the device which does not support touchless interaction.

Abstract: An electronic device comprises a transmitter 6 for transmitting ultrasonic signals, a receiver 8 for receiving reflections 20 of said ultrasonic signals, wherein the device is adapted to control a function thereof in dependence on said received reflections, the device further comprising means for providing to a user an indication 14 of the presence of signals or noise which could interfere with said reflections.

Abstract: A human-machine interface system adapted to track movement of an object in air is disclosed. In one aspect, the human-machine interface includes an acoustic transmitter, an acoustic receiver, and logic configured to apply a calculated inverse matrix of an impulse signal transmitted by the acoustic transmitter to a signal received by the acoustic receiver, wherein movement of the object is used to control the machine.

Abstract: An input apparatus has an interaction surface, an acoustic transmitter located adjacent the surface, an acoustic receiver located adjacent the surface and across the surface from the transmitter, and a processing environment. It is configured to transmit an acoustic signal(s) from the transmitter and to receive the signal or signals at the receiver. It detects the presence of an input object adjacent or touching the interaction surface by detecting an increase in the minimum time of flight, through air, of at least a part of the signal(s).