Patent ID: 7999797

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, by at least one processor in a device, vibration measurements from an accelerometer in relation to a tap, on one of plurality of input regions of the device, by an object that includes one of a deformable object or a non-deformable object; processing, by at least one processor in the device, the vibration measurements to obtain a vibration signal corresponding to the vibration measurements from the tap, where processing the vibration measurements includes removing noise, where removing the noise includes removing portions of the noise that include low frequency components; producing, by at least one processor in the device, a location of the tap, where producing the location of tap comprises: comparing the vibration signal to a plurality of vibration reference signals, where pairs of the plurality of vibration reference signals are associated, respectively, with a prior tap at one of a plurality of input regions of the device, where one of a pair of the plurality of vibration reference signals is associated with contact, by the deformable object, in the associated one of the plurality of input regions and another one of the pair of the plurality of vibration reference signals is associated with contact, by the non-deformable object, in the associated one of the plurality of input regions, selecting, based on comparing the vibration signal to the plurality of vibration reference signals, two or more of the plurality of input regions, obtaining, by an electric field sensor in the device, a position of the object near the device, and determining the location of the tap based on the obtained position of the object and the selected two or more of the plurality of input regions; and storing, by at least one processor in the device, the location of the tap.