Disqus
RIM has filed for a particularly imaginative patent that merges the responsiveness of a capacitive screen and the precision resistive touchscreens. The hybrid system, dubbed appropriately (and cryptically) “electronic device and touch screen display” is described as:
A touch screen display includes a display device, a resistive touch-sensitive overlay disposed on the display device and including a pair of touch-sensor layers separated by a gap, a resistive touch screen controller connected to each of the pair of touch-sensor layers for determining a position of a touch event on the touch-sensitive overlay and a capacitive controller connected to an outer one of the pair of touch-sensor layers for receiving input for determining changes resulting from capacitive coupling with the outer one of the pair of touch-sensor layers.
It seems like BlackBerry already has its hands full trying to make SurePress work, let alone putting another layer of responsiveness, although it’s entirely possible something like this could replace SurePress in the long run; having to press down on a resistive screen would certainly take less work then pressing a single giant button, and potentially be more accurate. That’s mostly daydreaming, since the bulk fo patent filings never get fully implemented, but generally provide interesting food for thought. Take a look at the entire patent filing for more information.
[via Unwired View]
About The Author
Simon Sage
Simon Sage’s education largely surrounded writing, technology and online community, leading him to begin his blogging career at www.BlackBerryCool.com and to quickly discover a vibrant and active community surrounding BlackBerry and mobile technology. In exploring RIM’s platform, he has learned what enterprises are looking for in mobility as well as what makes the innocuous BlackBerry so appealing to them. Recently Simon’s been covering RIM’s gradual move into an already-crowded consumer market, and the impact of burgeoning challengers, such as the iPhone, as well as long-time leaders, like Nokia, on BlackBerry’s advancement. With plenty of content under his belt, Simon will be branching off a bit to see what other smartphone manufacturers are working on while still using BlackBerry as a barometer. At IntoMobile, you can count on his posts being even-handed, well-informed and thought-out.
