Multi-phase touch-sensing electronic device

Abstract

A touch-sensing electronic device includes a housing having a first touch-sensing surface, a second touch-sensing surface and a third touch-sensing surface; a touch-sensing unit accommodated by the housing for generating at least one control signal in response to touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface, the second touch-sensing surface and the third touch-sensing surface; and at least one functional circuit disposed in the housing and being in communication with the touch-sensing unit for performing specific functions in response to the control signal. The touch-sensitive electronic device supports multi-phase touch-sensing.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A touch-sensing electronic device, comprising:
 a housing having a first touch-sensing surface, a second touch-sensing surface and a third touch-sensing surface;   a touch-sensing unit accommodated by the housing for generating at least one control signal in response to touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface, the second touch-sensing surface and the third touch-sensing surface; and   at least one functional circuit disposed in the housing and being in communication with the touch-sensing unit for performing specific functions in response to the control signal.   
     
     
         2 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the first touch-sensing surface is a top surface of the housing, the second touch-sensing surface is a side surface of the housing, and the third touch-sensing surface is a bottom surface of the housing. 
     
     
         3 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the touch-sensing unit comprises:
 a substrate disposed in said housing or partially or entirely packed by the housing material, and extensively disposed under the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces;   a first conductive structure for receiving power, formed on a surface of the substrate and being in communication with the functional circuit;   a second conductive structure including a plurality of sensing electrodes distributed to the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces, and having capacitance changes in response to the touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface, the second touch-sensing surface and the third touch-sensing surface; and   a controller in communication with the first conductive structure and the second conductive structure for generating and outputting the at least one control signal to the at least one functional circuit in response to the capacitance changes.   
     
     
         4 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 3 , wherein the sensing electrodes are formed on the same surface of the substrate where the first conductive structure is disposed, and grouped into at least three sensing electrode arrays corresponding to the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces, respectively. 
     
     
         5 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 4 , wherein there is an air gap between a surface of the substrate and at least one of the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces of the housing. 
     
     
         6 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 4 , wherein the substrate is made of a flexible material and bent to have the three sensing electrode arrays facing the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces, respectively. 
     
     
         7 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the touch-sensing unit comprises a plurality of sensing electrodes distributed to three regions corresponding to the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces, respectively, and having capacitance changes in response to the touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface, the second touch-sensing surface and the third touch-sensing surface, wherein the sensing electrodes distributed to at least one of the three regions are disposed on a surface of a battery casing. 
     
     
         8 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the touch-sensing unit comprises a plurality of sensing electrodes distributed to three regions corresponding to the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces, respectively, and having capacitance changes in response to the touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface, the second touch-sensing surface and the third touch-sensing surface, wherein the sensing electrodes distributed to at least one of the three regions are attached onto a patch antenna which is embedded into the housing. 
     
     
         9 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , comprising a display on the first touch-sensing surface, and the touch-sensing unit comprises a sensing electrode array within the display area for touch-sensing on or over the first touch-sensing surface. 
     
     
         10 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the control signal includes a three-dimensional data for controlling three parameters of the functional circuit. 
     
     
         11 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the housing includes two recesses or bumps disposed on the third touch-sensing surface and used as reference points for the touch-sensing operations. 
     
     
         12 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 11 , further comprising optical sensing modules disposed in the recesses or installed in the bumps for image pickup of fingerprints prior to or accompanying the touch-sensing operation. 
     
     
         13 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein at least two of the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces are portions of the same surface of the housing, which are incontiguous with each other. 
     
     
         14 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , further comprising an operational state sensor in communication with the touch-sensing unit for detecting an operational state of the electronic device so as to add a parameter indicative of the operational state into the control signal. 
     
     
         15 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 14 , wherein the operational state sensor is an attitude sensor, and a resistance or capacitance change of the attitude sensor resulting from an attitude change of the electronic device is combined with a capacitance change resulting from the touch-sensing operations performed on or over the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces into the control signal. 
     
     
         16 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 14 , wherein the operational state sensor is a thermo-sensor, and a resistance or capacitance change of the thermo-sensor resulting from an environmental temperature change surrounding the electronic device is combined with a capacitance change resulting from the touch-sensing operations performed on or over the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces into the control signal. 
     
     
         17 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 1 , wherein the touch-sensing operations on or over at least two of the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces are detected to determine a gripping pattern, and information of the gripping pattern is combined with a capacitance change resulting from the touch-sensing operations performed on or over the first, second and third touch-sensing surfaces into the control signal. 
     
     
         18 . A portable touch-sensing electronic device, comprising:
 a housing having a first touch-sensing surface and a second touch-sensing surface;   a touch-sensing unit accommodated by the housing for generating control signals in response to touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first touch-sensing surface and the second touch-sensing surface, and including a substrate extensively disposed under the first touch-sensing surface and the second touch-sensing surface; and   at least one functional circuit disposed in the housing and being in communication with the touch-sensing unit for performing specific functions in response to the control signals.   
     
     
         19 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 18 , wherein the substrate is made of a flexible material and disposed thereon the at least one functional circuit. 
     
     
         20 . The touch-sensing electronic device according to  claim 18 , wherein the substrate is disposed thereon a plurality of sensing electrodes distributed to the first and second touch-sensing surfaces, and having capacitance changes in response to the touch-sensing operations respectively performed on or over the first and second touch-sensing surfaces.