Surface position location system and method
US5877458A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 21, 1996 |
| Grant date | Mar 2, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 21, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F3/0441
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An electrographic sensor unit and method for determining the position of a user selected position thereon. The electrographic sensor unit includes a layer of a conductive material having an electrical resistivity and a surface, at least three spaced apart contact points electrically interconnected with a layer of conductive material, a processor connected to the spaced apart contacts and disposed to selectively apply a signal to each of the contact points, and a probe assembly, that includes either a stylus of a flexible conductive layer spaced apart from the layer, coupled to the processor with the stylus disposed to be positioned by a user in vicinity of a user selected position on the surface of the layer, or that position being selected with a user's finger on the flexible layer and to receive signals from the layer when the contact points have signals selectively applied thereto. The user selected position is determined by the processor from signals received from the stylus, or flexible layer, each in relation to a similar excitation of different pairs of the contact points under control of the processor. The conductive layer may be either two or three dimensional and may be a…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.