U.S. patent application number 12/841123 was filed with the patent office on 2012-01-26 for systems for displaying images.
This patent application is currently assigned to CHIMEI INNOLUX CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Martin John Edwards.
Application Number | 20120019473 12/841123 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 45493193 |
Filed Date | 2012-01-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120019473 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Edwards; Martin John |
January 26, 2012 |
SYSTEMS FOR DISPLAYING IMAGES
Abstract
A system for displaying images is provided. The system includes
a capacitive touch sensor device includes a dielectric layer having
a sensing area and covered by a transparent substrate. A plurality
of series of first sense electrodes and a plurality of series of
second sense electrodes are embedded in a first level of the
dielectric layer and within the sensing area. Each series of first
sense electrodes extends along a first direction and each series of
second sense electrodes extends along a second direction
substantially different from the first direction. A plurality of
signal lines are embedded in a second level lower than the first
level of the dielectric layer and extends along the second
direction. Each signal line is correspondingly and electrically
connected to one of the plurality of series of first sense
electrodes.
Inventors: |
Edwards; Martin John;
(Crawley, GB) |
Assignee: |
CHIMEI INNOLUX CORPORATION
Chu-Nan
TW
|
Family ID: |
45493193 |
Appl. No.: |
12/841123 |
Filed: |
July 21, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
345/174 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G09G 5/00 20130101; G06F
3/0443 20190501; G06F 3/0445 20190501; G09G 2300/0426 20130101;
G06F 3/0446 20190501; G06F 3/047 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
345/174 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/045 20060101
G06F003/045 |
Claims
1. A system for displaying images, comprising: a capacitive touch
sensor device, comprising: a dielectric layer having a sensing area
and covered by a transparent substrate; a plurality of series of
first sense electrodes and a plurality of series of second sense
electrodes embedded in a first level of the dielectric layer and
within the sensing area, wherein each series of first sense
electrodes extends along a first direction and each series of
second sense electrodes extends along a second direction
substantially different from the first direction; and a plurality
of signal lines embedded in a second level lower than the first
level of the dielectric layer and extending along the second
direction, wherein each signal line is correspondingly and
electrically connected to one of the plurality of series of first
sense electrodes.
2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of first
connection lines corresponding to the plurality of signal lines and
a plurality of second connection lines corresponding to the
plurality of series of second sense electrodes, wherein each first
connection line extends from the corresponding signal line to the
outside of the sensing area, and each second connection line
extends from the corresponding series of second sense electrodes to
the outside of the sensing area.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the pluralities of first and
second connection lines are located at the same side of the sensing
area.
4. The system of claim 2, wherein the pluralities of first and
second connection lines are located at opposing sides of the
sensing area, respectively.
5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a common electrode
layer embedded in a third level lower than the second level of the
dielectric layer and corresponding to the sensing area.
6. The system of claim 5, wherein the common electrode layer is
formed of a conductive transparent layer.
7. The system of claim 5, wherein the common electrode layer is
electrically connected to a ground or a low impedance
electrode.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of series of first
sense electrodes and the plurality of series of second sense
electrodes are formed of the same conductive transparent layer.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of signal lines is
formed of a conductive transparent layer.
10. The system of claim 1, wherein each first sense electrode in
each series of first sense electrodes are electrically connected
together and each second sense electrode in each series of second
sense electrodes are electrically connected together.
11. The system of claim 1, wherein each signal line passes under
one first sense electrode in each series of first sense
electrodes.
12. The system of claim 1, wherein each series of first sense
electrodes are electrically connected to a ground or a low
impedance electrode.
13. The system of claim 1, wherein each signal line is
correspondingly and electrically connected to one of the plurality
of series of first sense electrodes by an interconnect, wherein the
interconnects for each signal line and the corresponding series of
first sense electrodes are not arranged in a line as viewed from a
top-view perspective.
14. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of signal lines
and the plurality of series of second sense electrodes are
alternately arranged.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein the number of the plurality of
series of first sense electrodes is one more than that of the
plurality of series of second sense electrodes.
16. The system of claim 14, wherein the number of the plurality of
series of first sense electrodes is one less than that of the
plurality of series of second sense electrodes.
17. The system of claim 14, wherein the number of the plurality of
series of first sense electrodes is equal to that of the plurality
of series of second sense electrodes.
18. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: a touch
panel display comprising the capacitive touch sensor device; and an
input unit coupled to the touch panel display and operative to
provide input signals to the touch panel display, such that the
touch panel display displays images.
19. The system of claim 18, wherein the system comprises an
electronic device comprising the touch panel display.
20. The system of claim 19, wherein the electronic device is a
projector, an electronic book, a laptop computer, a mobile phone, a
digital camera, a personal digital assistant, a desktop computer, a
television, a car display or a portable DVD player.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The invention relates to a touch panel display technology,
and in particular to a capacitive touch sensor device for a touch
panel display.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] A touch sensor device is typically integrated with a flat
panel display device (such as an LCD, AMOLED or the like) to form a
touch panel display. Touch panel displays are typically mounted on
electronic devices, such as portable personal computers, personal
digital assistants (PDAs), electronic books, projectors, mobile
phones, and the like. The touch panel display is capable of
conducting input functions by a finger, a stylus, a pen, or the
like. Generally, touch panel displays are divided into resistive
type, capacitive type, acoustic wave type, and optical type touch
panel displays according to the sensing method applied, in which
the capacitive touch panel display has gained an increasing amount
of attention and popularity because it has good touch sensitivity
and structural stability.
[0005] FIG. 1 illustrates a plan view of an arrangement of sense
electrodes for a conventional capacitive touch sensor device. The
capacitive touch sensor device 100 typically includes a plurality
of series of sense electrodes 101 and a plurality of series of
sense electrodes 103 underlying the plurality of series of sense
electrodes 101, in which each series of sense electrodes 101 is
perpendicular to each series of sense electrodes 103 as viewed from
a top-view perspective. Each series of sense electrodes 101 is
connected to a connection line 101a and each series of sense
electrodes 103 is connected to a connection line 103a. The
connections lines 101a and 103a are disposed on a border region
that is typically on two orthogonal sides of the sensor device 100,
such that the series of sense electrodes 101 can be electrically
connected to external circuits (not shown) by the connections lines
101a and 103a.
[0006] For some touch panel displays, particularly those applied in
mobile devices, such as mobile phones and PDAs, it is desirable to
minimize the width of the border region around the display to
reduce dimensions thereof. The connection lines in the border
region, however, are typically disposed on two orthogonal sides of
the touch panel display, which fixes the width of the border
region, making reduction of the dimensions of the border region
very difficult.
[0007] Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for development
of a touch sensor device, capable of reducing the width of the
border region.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] A detailed description is given in the following embodiments
with reference to the accompanying drawings. Systems for displaying
images are provided. An exemplary embodiment of a system for
displaying images comprises a capacitive touch sensor device
comprising a dielectric layer having a sensing area and covered by
a transparent substrate. A plurality of series of first sense
electrodes and a plurality of series of second sense electrodes are
embedded in a first level of the dielectric layer and within the
sensing area. Each series of first sense electrodes extends along a
first direction and each series of second sense electrodes extends
along a second direction substantially different from the first
direction. A plurality of signal lines are embedded in a second
level lower than the first level of the dielectric layer and
extends along the second direction. Each signal line is
correspondingly and electrically connected to one of the plurality
of series of first sense electrodes.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0009] The invention can be more fully understood by reading the
subsequent detailed description and examples with references made
to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a plan view of an arrangement of sense electrodes
for a conventional capacitive touch sensor device;
[0011] FIG. 2A is a plan view of an embodiment of a system for
displaying images including a capacitive touch sensor device
according to the invention;
[0012] FIG. 2B is a cross section along 2B-2B' line shown in FIG.
2A;
[0013] FIG. 3 is a plan view of another embodiment of a system for
displaying images including a capacitive touch sensor device
according to the invention;
[0014] FIG. 4 is a plan view of yet another embodiment of a system
for displaying images including a capacitive touch sensor device
according to the invention; and
[0015] FIG. 5 schematically shows another embodiment of a system
for displaying images.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
[0016] The following description is of the best-contemplated mode
of carrying out the invention. This description is provided for the
purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention and
should not be taken in a limiting sense. The scope of the invention
is best determined by reference to the appended claims.
[0017] Systems for displaying images are provided. Referring to
FIGS. 2A and 2B, in which FIG. 2A is a plan view of an embodiment
of a system for displaying images including a capacitive touch
sensor device 200 according to the invention and FIG. 2B is the
cross section along 2B-2B' line shown in FIG. 2A. In the
embodiment, the capacitive touch sensor device 200 comprises a
transparent substrate 201, a dielectric layer 203, a plurality of
series of first sense electrodes 204, a plurality of series of
second sense electrodes 202, and a plurality of signal lines 206.
The transparent substrate 201 is directly touched by an input
means, such as a finger, a stylus, a pen, or the like. The
transparent substrate 201 may be comprised of glass, quartz, or
other flexible or inflexible polymer transparent materials.
[0018] The dielectric layer 203 (shown in FIG. 2B) is covered by
the transparent substrate 201 and has a sense area 203a (shown in
FIG. 2A) for disposing sense electrodes. In the embodiment, the
dielectric layer 203 may comprise a single layer, such as a silicon
oxide layer, silicon nitride layer or other transparent insulating
polymer layer, or multiple layers, such as stacked silicon oxide
layers, silicon nitride layers, other transparent insulating
polymer layers, or combination thereof.
[0019] The plurality of series of first sense electrodes 204 and
the plurality of series of second sense electrodes 202 are embedded
in a first level of the dielectric layer 203 and within the sensing
area 203a. In the embodiment, each series of first sense electrodes
204 extends along a first direction and each series of second sense
electrodes 202 extends along a second direction different from the
first direction. For example, the first direction is parallel to a
horizontal direction with respect to FIG. 2A, and the second
direction is parallel to a vertical direction with respect to FIG.
2A, such that each series of first sense electrodes 204 is
substantially perpendicular to each series of second sense
electrodes 202. In some embodiments, the second direction may not
be perpendicular to the first direction. In the embodiment, each
series of first sense electrodes 204 and each series of second
sense electrodes 202 may be formed by patterning the same
transparent conductive layer, such as an indium tin oxide (ITO) or
indium zinc oxide (IZO) layer using lithography and etching
processes. Moreover, two adjacent second electrodes 202 in the same
series of second sense electrodes 202 are connected to each other
by a connection portion 202a that is embedded in the first level of
the dielectric layer 203 and is formed of the same transparent
conductive layer as the series of second sense electrodes 202. Two
adjacent first electrodes 204 in the same series of first sense
electrodes 204 are connected to each other by two interconnects
(e.g. conductive plugs/vias) 204a and one connection portion 204c,
wherein the connection portion 204c is embedded in a second level
lower than the first level of the dielectric layer 203 and the
interconnects 204a are disposed between the first and second level
of the dielectric layer 203 for electrically connecting the
corresponding connection portion 204c. Note that two interconnects
204a are disposed under each first sense electrode 204. In order to
simplify and clearly exhibit the diagram, only some interconnects
204a are depicted. In one embodiment, the connection portion 204c
is formed of a transparent conductive layer (such as an ITO or IZO
layer) which is different from the layer used for formation of the
series of first sense electrodes 204.
[0020] The plurality of signal lines 206 are embedded in the second
level of the dielectric layer 203 and extend along the second
direction. In one embodiment, the plurality of signal lines 206 and
the connection portions 204c may be formed by patterning the same
transparent conductive layer, such as an ITO or IZO layer using
lithography and etching processes. In the embodiment, the plurality
of signal lines 206 and the plurality of series of second sense
electrodes 202 are alternately arranged as viewed from a top-view
perspective, such that only one signal line 206 is disposed between
the adjacent series of second sense electrodes 202. As a result,
the signal lines 206 can be uniformly arranged over the sensing
area 203a; thereby minimizing the visibility of the signal lines
206. In the case where one signal line 206 is disposed between the
adjacent series of second sense electrodes 202, the number of the
plurality of series of first sense electrodes 204 may be one less
than that of the plurality of series of second sense electrodes
202. Alternatively, the number of the plurality of series of first
sense electrodes 204 may be one more than or equal to that of the
plurality of series of second sense electrodes 202.
[0021] Each signal line 206 is correspondingly and electrically
connected to one of the plurality of series of first sense
electrodes 204. For example, each signal line 206 passes under one
first sense electrode 204 in each series of first electrodes 204.
Moreover, each signal line 206 is electrically connected to the
corresponding series of first sense electrodes 204 by an
interconnect (e.g. a conductive plug/via) 204b. These interconnects
204b may be visible and make errors in the capacitance measurements
if they are clustered together or arranged in a line. In one
embodiment, the interconnects 204b for each signal line 206 and the
corresponding series of first sense electrodes 204 are not arranged
in a line and are distributed over the sensing area 203a as viewed
from a top-view perspective to minimize the visibility of the
interconnects 204b and prevent errors in capacitance
measurements.
[0022] A common electrode layer 208 is embedded in a third level
lower than the second level of the dielectric layer 203 and
corresponds to the sensing area 203a. Namely, the common electrode
layer 208 substantially overlaps the entire sensing area 203a. In
one embodiment, the common electrode layer 208 may be formed of a
transparent conductive layer (such as an ITO or IZO layer)
different from that for formation of the first and second sense
electrodes 204 and 202 and the signal lines 206. In the embodiment,
the common electrode layer 208 and/or the plurality of first sense
electrodes 204 may be electrically connected to a ground or a low
impedance electrode. As a result, the presence of the input means,
such as a finger, a stylus, a pen, or the like, above the signal
line(s) 206 has little effect on the capacitance associated with
the signal line(s) 206, and the capacitances between the plurality
of the signal lines 206 and the plurality of series of second sense
electrodes 202 can be reduced. Note that changes in these
capacitances may produce errors in the output of the touch sensor
device 200.
[0023] A plurality of first connection lines 206a corresponds to
the plurality of signal lines 206 and a plurality of second
connection lines 202b corresponds to the plurality of series of
second sense electrodes 202. In the embodiment, each first
connection line 206a extends from the corresponding signal line 206
to the outside of the sensing area 203a for electrically connecting
the corresponding series of first sense electrode 204 to external
circuits (not shown). Moreover, each second connection line 202b
extends from the corresponding series of second sense electrodes
202 to the outside of the sensing area 203a for electrically
connecting the corresponding series of second sense electrode 202
to external circuits (not shown). In one embodiment, the first
connection lines 206a may be formed of the same transparent
conductive layer as that for formation of the signal line 206.
Also, the second connection line 202b may be formed of the same
transparent conductive layer as that for formation of the second
sense electrode 202. In the embodiment, the plurality of first
connection lines 206a and the plurality of second connection lines
202b are located at the same side of the sensing area 203.
According to the foregoing embodiments, since the connection lines
for electrically connecting the sense electrodes to external
circuits can be arranged at the same side of the sense area of the
touch sensor device, the width of the border region around the
touch panel display can be reduced, and thus the dimensions of a
touch panel display can also be reduced.
[0024] Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, which illustrate various
embodiments of a system for displaying images including a
capacitive touch sensor device according to the invention. Elements
in FIGS. 3 and 4 that are the same as those in FIGS. 2A to 2B are
labeled with the same reference numbers as in FIGS. 2A to 2B and
are not described again for brevity. In the embodiment shown in
FIG. 2A, the touch sensor device 200 has an aspect ratio of 1:1,
and thus the pitch P1 of the adjacent series of first sense
electrodes 204 is equal to the pitch P2 of the adjacent series of
second sense electrodes 202. In the embodiments shown in FIG. 3 or
4, the touch sensor device 200 may not have an aspect ratio equal
to 1:1, and thus the pitch P1 of the adjacent series of first sense
electrodes 204 is different from the pitch P2 of the adjacent
series of second sense electrodes 202. For example, in the
embodiments shown in FIG. 3 or 4, the touch sensor device 200 may
have an aspect ratio of 4:3 or 16:9, and thus the pitch P1 may be
greater than the pitch P2. Additionally, although the plurality of
first connection lines 206a and the plurality of second connection
lines 202b are located at the same side of the sensing area 203 in
the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, the plurality of first connection
lines 206a and the plurality of second connection lines 202b may be
located at opposing sides of the sensing area 203, respectively, as
shown in FIG. 4. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, since the
connection lines for electrically connecting the sense electrodes
to external circuits can be arranged at opposing sides, rather than
orthogonal sides of the sense area of the touch sensor device, the
width of the border region around a touch panel display used in
portrait mode can be reduced, and thus the dimension of a touch
panel display application is also reduced.
[0025] FIG. 5 schematically shows another embodiment of a system
for displaying images which, in this case, is implemented as a
touch panel display 300 or an electronic device 500 such as a
projector, an electronic book, a laptop computer, a mobile phone, a
digital camera, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a desktop
computer, a television, a car display or a portable DVD player. The
described touch sensor device 200 can be incorporated into the
touch panel display 300. In some embodiments, the touch sensor
device 200 can be incorporated into the electronic device 500. As
shown in FIG. 5, the electronic device 500 comprises the touch
panel display 300 and an input unit 400. Moreover, the input unit
400 is coupled to the touch panel display 300 and is operative to
provide input signals (e.g. image signals) to the touch panel
display 300 to generate images.
[0026] While the invention has been described by way of example and
in terms of preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the
invention is not limited thereto. To the contrary, it is intended
to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would
be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of
the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation
so as to encompass all such modifications and similar
arrangements.
* * * * *