PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-9400570-B2
Application Number: US-201414542483-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Stylus with inertial sensor

Abstract:
A stylus may have an elongated body with opposing first and second ends. Electronic equipment may have a touch sensor that receives electromagnetic signals from one or more electrodes at the first end. The stylus may have a six-axis inertial sensor at the second end. Force sensors may be located at the first and second ends. User input from the force sensors, the inertial sensor, and other input-output devices may be used to supply the stylus with mode change commands. In response to the mode change commands the stylus may transition between operating modes such as a touch sensor mode and one or more inertial sensor modes. Inertial sensor data may be used to allow the stylus to operate as a joystick, a rotational controller, an air mouse, or other input devices in addition to serving as a touch sensor input device.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A stylus that provides input to external equipment, comprising: an elongated body with first and second opposing ends; a tip at the first end; an inertial sensor in the elongated body that gathers inertial sensor data; an electrode at the first end; wireless circuitry including a radio-frequency transceiver and an antenna; and control circuitry that provides touch input to a touch sensor in the external equipment by transmitting near-field electromagnetic signals to the touch sensor with the electrode at the first end when operating in a touch sensor mode and that provides inertial sensor input to the external equipment by transmitting the inertial sensor data to the external equipment using the radio-frequency transceiver and the antenna when operating in an inertial sensor mode, wherein the control circuitry operates in the touch sensor mode when the tip of the stylus is moved across a surface of the external equipment, and wherein the control circuitry operates in the inertial sensor mode when the tip of the stylus is pressed against the surface of the external equipment in a stationary location. 
     
     
       2. The stylus defined in  claim 1  wherein the inertial sensor comprises an inertial sensor selected from the group consisting of: a six-axis inertial sensor and a nine-axis inertial sensor. 
     
     
       3. The stylus defined in  claim 2  wherein the control circuitry switches between the touch sensor mode and the inertial sensor mode in response to a mode change command. 
     
     
       4. The stylus defined in  claim 2  further comprising:
 an input-output device with which the control circuitry receives the mode change command. 
 
     
     
       5. The stylus defined in  claim 4  wherein the input-output device comprises a force sensor at the first end. 
     
     
       6. The stylus defined in  claim 5  wherein the inertial sensor mode comprises a joystick mode in which tilt data is gathered by the control circuitry using the inertial sensor. 
     
     
       7. The stylus defined in  claim 5  wherein the inertial sensor mode comprise a rotational controller mode in which rotational input is gathered by the control circuitry using the inertial sensor. 
     
     
       8. The stylus defined in  claim 2  wherein the control circuitry receives the mode change command using the inertial sensor. 
     
     
       9. The stylus defined in  claim 2  wherein the inertial sensor mode comprises a joystick mode in which tilt data is gathered by the control circuitry using the inertial sensor. 
     
     
       10. The stylus defined in  claim 9  wherein the inertial sensor is located at the second end. 
     
     
       11. The stylus defined in  claim 10  further comprising a force sensor at the second end. 
     
     
       12. A stylus, comprising: a body having opposing first and second ends; a tip at the first end; an electrode at the first end that emits near-field electromagnetic signals for a touch sensor of external equipment; an inertial sensor at the second end; wireless circuitry; and control circuitry that operates in a first mode in which the near-field electromagnetic signals are emitted and a second mode in which inertial sensor data from the inertial sensor is wirelessly transmitted using the wireless circuitry, wherein the control circuitry operates in the first mode when the tip of the stylus is moved across a surface of the external equipment, and wherein the control circuitry operates in the second mode when the tip of the stylus is pressed against the surface of the external equipment in a stationary location. 
     
     
       13. The stylus defined in  claim 12  wherein the inertial sensor comprises a sensor selected from the group consisting of: a six-axis inertial sensor and a nine-axis inertial sensor, the stylus further comprising a force sensor at the first end, wherein the control circuitry gathers signals from the force sensor. 
     
     
       14. The stylus defined in  claim 13  wherein the control circuitry switches between operation in the first mode and operation in the second mode in response to the signals gathered from the force sensor. 
     
     
       15. The stylus defined in  claim 14  wherein the tip comprises an elastomeric tip and wherein the inertial sensor data comprises tilt data corresponding to how much the body is tilted with respect to the touch sensor while the tip is in contact with the surface of the external equipment. 
     
     
       16. The stylus defined in  claim 15  wherein the control circuitry gathers rotation data from the inertial sensor while the tip contacts the surface of the external equipment and wirelessly transmits the rotation data using the wireless circuitry. 
     
     
       17. The stylus defined in  claim 12  further comprising an additional electrode located at the second end that emits near-field electromagnetic signals for the touch sensor.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to styluses, and, more particularly, to styluses that provide input to external equipment such as equipment with touch sensors. 
     Touch sensors are often used in electronic devices. For example, a tablet computer may have a touch screen display with a capacitive touch sensor. In many situations, a user may provide touch input by pressing a finger against the surface of a touch sensor. By moving the finger across the sensor, the user may manipulate displayed objects and may provide other input. 
     Touch input may also be provided using computer styluses. The stylus may have an elongated shape with a pointed tip to facilitate drawing and other activities. An electronic device can use a touch sensor to monitor the position of the tip of the stylus. The device can then draw a line on a display or take other suitable action in response to movement of the stylus tip across the sensor. 
     It can be challenging for a user to interact with electronic equipment using a computer stylus. A user may want to use an alternative input device such as a computer mouse or joystick when performing certain types of tasks. If care is not taken, a user&#39;s system may become cluttered with a number of potentially conflicting input devices. 
     It would therefore be desirable to provide improved computer styluses for providing input to electronic equipment. 
     SUMMARY 
     A stylus may have an elongated body with opposing first and second ends. The stylus may be used to provide input for controlling external electronic equipment. The electronic equipment may have a touch sensor that receives electromagnetic signals from electrodes at the first end of the stylus. The touch sensor may be part of a touch screen display in the electronic equipment may be used in controlling a separate display in the electronic equipment. Wireless circuitry in the stylus may be used to wirelessly transmit sensor data from the stylus to the electronic equipment. 
     The stylus may have a six-axis inertial sensor at the second end of the body. One or more force sensors may be located in the body. For example, a force sensor at the first end may be used to detect when a user presses the tip of the stylus against the touch sensor. 
     User input from the force sensors, the inertial sensor, and other input-output devices may be used to supply the stylus with mode change commands. The stylus and electronic equipment may transition between operating modes such as a touch sensor mode and one or more inertial sensor modes in response to the mode change commands. 
     In the touch sensor mode, the signals provided by the electrodes may be used to supply the touch sensor with touch input from the stylus. The touch input may be used, for example, to draw lines on the display in a drawing application. 
     In the inertial sensor mode, inertial sensor data may be gathered by the inertial sensor and wirelessly transmitted to the electronic equipment. The inertial sensor allows the stylus to operate as a joystick, a rotational controller, or other input devices in addition to serving as a touch sensor input device. For example, on-screen content may be rotated, tilted, or otherwise manipulated using rotational controller and joystick input from the inertial sensor. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an illustrative stylus and electronic equipment with a touch sensor in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an illustrative stylus being used to provide inertial sensor input to a device with a display in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram of an illustrative stylus and external equipment in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram of an illustrative stylus that is being used to draw a line on a display in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an illustrative stylus that is being rotated to rotate an on-screen object on a touch screen display in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an illustrative display on which an object is being rotated using rotational input from a stylus in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a stylus that is being used to provide joystick input to manipulate an on-screen object in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in gathering input to determine when to make changes in the operating mode of a stylus in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a diagram illustrating operations involved in gathering and using different types of input from a stylus in accordance with an embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A stylus may be used to provide touch input to a touch sensor. The touch sensor may be, for example, a capacitive touch sensor having an array of capacitive touch sensor electrodes. The stylus may be a passive stylus having a tip whose position is detected by the touch sensor using the capacitive touch sensor electrodes or may be an active stylus having one or more electrodes that emit electromagnetic signals that are detected using the capacitive touch sensor electrodes. The stylus may have input-output devices such as buttons, may have force sensors to detect tip and eraser press events, may have an inertial sensor to detect motion of the stylus, and may have other input-output devices. These devices allow the stylus to gather input from a user in multiple operating modes. For example, touch input can be gathered when operating the stylus fit a touch sensor mode (sometimes referred to as a drawing mode). Inertial sensor input may be gathered when operating the stylus in one or more inertial sensor input modes such as an air mouse mode, a rotational controller mode, a joystick mode, and/or other inertial sensor input modes. 
     The stylus may be used in interacting with one or more different electronic devices. For example, the stylus may be used to provide input to a device with a touch sensor, a device with a display, a device with a touch sensor and a display, or other equipment. 
     In the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 1 , stylus  10  is being used to provide input to device  40 . Device  40  may have a front surface such as surface  42 . Surface  42  may include a touch sensor (e.g., an array of capacitive touch screen electrodes or other touch sensor). If desired, surface  42  may also include a display. In some configurations, device  40  may not contain a display (i.e., device  40  may be a drawing tablet with a touch sensor but no visual output capabilities). In this type of configuration, device  40  may gather touch input, whereas corresponding visual output for the user may be provided using a separate display. 
     Stylus  10  may have an elongated shape. For example, stylus  10  may have a cylindrical body such as body  12  or other body that extends along longitudinal axis  24  between opposing ends  14  and  16 . End  14  can be used for supplying touch input to device  40  for performing drawing tasks in a drawing application and other touch sensor input tasks and may sometime be referred to as the drawing end of stylus  10 . End  16  of stylus  10  may be used for providing eraser input to a drawing application or other touch sensor tasks and may sometimes be referred to as the eraser end of stylus  10 . 
     The body at end  14  of stylus  10  may form stylus tip  18 . Stylus tip  18  may be used to provide touch sensor input to the touch sensor on surface  42 . For example, stylus tip  18  may be an active tip that provides electromagnetic signals to the touch sensor of device  40  using electrodes  20 . If desired, electrodes such as electrodes  20  may be located at both ends of stylus  10  (e.g., a writing electrode or other electrode may be provided at end  14  and an erasing electrode or other electrode may be provided at end  16 ). The electromagnetic signals supplied by electrodes  20  may be modulated using an amplitude modulation scheme or other suitable modulation scheme. The touch sensor of device  40  may receive the modulated electromagnetic signal using an array of capacitive electrodes and may process the received signals to identify the position of tip  18  on surface  42  in lateral dimensions X and Y. End  16  of stylus  10  may also have an active touch sensor electrode or may have a passive component such as a conductive element that is used in providing eraser touch input when end  16  is adjacent to the touch sensor on surface  42 . 
     Stylus  10  may have force sensors such as force sensors  22  and  30 . Sensors  22  and  30  may be used to detect stylus press events. To provide this type of force-based input, a user may press end  14  or end  16  of stylus  10  against surface  42 . For example, when tip  18  of stylus  10  is resting against surface  42 , the user may move stylus  10  in direction  26  along longitudinal axis  24 . This presses tip  18  against surface  42  and creates a detectable force input to force sensor  22 . Sensor  30  may be activated in the same way by pressing end  16  against surface  42 . 
     Force sensor input may be provided in the form of single press events (e.g., single clicks), may be provided in the form of multiple presses (e.g., double clicks, triple clicks, quadruple clicks, etc.), may be used to provide continuous analog input (e.g., a force signal that varies continuously as a function of applied user force to control audio volume, line width in a drawing application, of other adjustable parameters for device  40 ), or may be combined with other user input to generate commands or other input for stylus  10 . 
     Stylus  10  may include buttons such as button  36 . A user may press button  36  to supply stylus  10  with button press input. If desired, buttons such as button  36  may be omitted from stylus  10  to avoid cluttering the exterior surface of stylus  10 . The use of button  36  in the configuration for stylus  10  that is shown in  FIG. 1  is merely illustrative. 
     Stylus  10  may have one or more motion sensors such as inertial sensor  28 . Motion sensors may be located at end  14 , at end  16 , or elsewhere in the body of stylus  10 . In the example of  FIG. 1 , inertial sensor  28  is located at end  16  of stylus  10 . 
     Inertial sensor  28  may include an accelerometer such as a triaxial (three-axis) accelerometer. A triaxial accelerometer may use a microelectromechanical systems (MEMs) device or other sensor to detect acceleration for stylus  10  in three orthogonal directions (i.e., the three orthogonal Cartesian coordinates X, Y, and Z). Inertial sensor  28  may also include triaxial gyroscope. A triaxial gyroscope may use a MEMs device or other sensor to measure rotation around three orthogonal axis (i.e., rotation angles Θ X , Θ Y , and Θ Z , about the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis, respectively). In configurations in which inertial sensor  28  has the capability to measure motion in six axes (e.g., by measuring linear motion with respect to three axes using a triaxial accelerometer and by measuring rotational motion with respect to three axes using a triaxial gyroscope), inertial sensor  28  may be referred to as a six-axis inertial sensor or six axis inertial measurement unit. If desired, sensor  28  may include light-based motion sensing components, magnetic compass structures, and/or other components to gather information on motion with respect to some or all of the six axes. Configurations for sensor  28  in which sensor  28  incorporates a three-axis accelerometer for measuring motion in X, Y, and Z, a three-axis gyroscope for measuring rotational motion (angles Θ X , Θ Y , and Θ Z ), and a three-axis magnetometer for measuring the orientation of stylus  10  in space) may also be used. In these configurations, sensor  28  may sometimes be referred to as a nine-axis inertial sensor or nine-axis inertial measurement unit. 
     In addition to providing near-field electromagnetic signals from electrodes  20 , stylus  10  may be used to provide external equipment such as equipment.  40  with wireless signals  32 . Wireless signals  32  may include Bluetooth® signals, wireless local area, signals such as IEEE 802.11 signals, or other radio-frequency wireless signals. Wireless signals  32  may be used to convey information from sensors and other input-output devices in stylus  10  to external equipment such as equipment  40 . Wireless signals  32  may include signals with motion information from inertial sensor  28 , force information from source sensors  22  and  30 , button press information from buttons such as buttons  36 , and other input-output device data. This data may be processed internally by control circuitry in stylus  10  and may be used in adjusting the operation of stylus  10  in addition to controlling external equipment  40 . 
     As show in the example of  FIG. 2 , stylus  10  may be used to provide input to external electronic equipment  44  that is not being touched by tip  18  at drawing end  14  of stylus  10 . Stylus  10  may communicate with equipment  44  using wireless link  48  (e.g., a Bluetooth® link, a wireless local area network link such as an IEEE 802.11 link, etc.). Wireless signals that may be transmitted and received using link  48  include inertial sensor signals, force sensor signals, and other information gathered within stylus  10 . 
     A user may control the position of stylus  10  while holding stylus  10  in free space and/or while pressing tip  18  against a touch sensor, table top, or other surface, inertial sensor  28  may gather information on the movement of stylus  10  in real time. This information may be used to control the movement of objects on display  46  or to take other actions in equipment  44 . For example, a user may move end  16  of stylus  10  in direction  50 . Wireless signals may be transmitted from stylus  10  to equipment  44  over link  48  that inform equipment  44  of the movement of stylus  10 . In response to receiving information on the movement of stylus  10  in direction  50 , equipment  44  may move an on-screen object, such as pointer  96  in corresponding direction  52  (i.e., stylus  10  may be used as an air mouse). If desired, equipment  44  may take other actions in response to receiving the movement signals or other input from stylus  10 . For example, equipment  44  may make changes to visual output on display  46 , may make menu selections, may change audio output settings, may use a camera, sensor, or other device in equipment  44  to gather data, or may take other suitable actions. 
     The type of response that is made by equipment  44  to motion sensor data and other information from stylus  10  that is received wirelessly over link  48  may depend on context. If, for example, equipment  44  is running a game application, stylus  10  may be used as a sword, a wand, or a hammer (as examples). In situations in which equipment  44  is running a music application, the motion data that is received from stylus  10  may allow stylus  10  to be used as a drum stick, a xylophone mallet, a gong beater, a conductor&#39;s baton, or other musical instruments. In situations in which equipment  44  is running a painting application, stylus  10  may serve as a virtual paint brush or spray paint source. When running business presentation software, stylus  10  may be used as an air mouse to move cursors such as pointer  96  or motion gestures gathered with stylus  10  may be used to flick forwards and backwards through pages in a presentation document. Stylus  10  may also be used as a free-standing six-axis motion-based input device for other types of applications and for operating system functions, if desired. 
     A schematic diagram of an illustrative stylus with an inertial sensor is shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , stylus  10  may have control circuitry  60 . Control circuitry  60  may include storage and processing circuitry for supporting the operation of stylus  10 . The storage and processing circuitry may include storage such as nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory configured to form a solid state drive), volatile memory (e.g., static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. Processing circuitry in control circuitry  60  may be used to control the operation of stylus  10 . The processing circuitry may be based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, baseband processors, power management units, audio chips, application specific integrated circuits, etc. 
     Input-output circuitry  62  in stylus  10  may include input-output devices  64  and wireless circuitry  72 . 
     Input-output devices  64  may be used to allow data to be supplied to stylus  10  and to allow data to be provided from stylus  10  to external devices. Input-output devices  64  may include buttons such as buttons  36 . Buttons  36  may include mechanical buttons and non-mechanical buttons and may be used in gathering button press information from a user. Input-output devices  64  may also include status indicators  70  such as light-emitting diodes and other devices that provide status output to a user. Active stylus electrodes  20  may be located at end  14  and/or end  16  and may be used to provide near-field electromagnetic signals to a capacitive touch sensor in external equipment. 
     Input-output devices  64  may include sensors  66 . Sensors  66  may include force sensors  68 . Force sensors  68  may include a force sensor at end  14  of stylus  10  such as force sensor  22  and/or a force sensor at end  16  of stylus  10  such as force sensor  30 . Sensors  66  may also include inertial sensor  28 . Inertial sensor  28  may include triaxial accelerometer  28 - 2  and triaxial gyroscope  28 - 1  (e.g., sensor  28  may be a six-axis inertial sensor) and/or other components for measuring motion of stylus  10  (e.g., a tri-axial magnetometer may be included in sensor  28  in a nine-axis inertial sensor configuration). Sensors  66  may also include additional sensors such as a temperature sensor, an ambient light sensor, a light-based proximity sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetic sensor, pressure sensor, and/or other sensors. Input-output devices  64  may, if desired, include microphones, speakers, tone generators, vibrators, cameras, data ports, and other equipment. A user can control the operation of stylus  10  and the external equipment with which stylus  10  interacts by supplying commands through input-output devices  64  and may receive status information and other output from stylus  10  using the output resources of input-output devices  64 . 
     Control circuitry  60  may be used to run software on stylus  10  that controls the operation of stylus  10 . During operation of stylus  10 , the software running on control circuitry  60  may process sensor input, button input, and input from other devices  64  to monitor the movement of stylus  10  and other user input. The software running on control circuitry  60  may detect user commands and may communicate with external equipment. 
     To support wireless communications with external equipment  80  over wireless links such as link  82 , stylus  10  may include active stylus electrodes  20  and wireless circuitry  72 . Wireless circuitry  72  may include a radio-frequency transceiver such as transceiver  76 . Wireless circuitry  72  may also include one or more antennas such as antenna  74 . Transceiver  76  may transmit and/or receive wireless signals using antenna  74 . The wireless signals may be Bluetooth® signals, IEEE 802.11 wireless local area network signals, long range signals such as cellular telephone signals, near-field communications signals, or other wireless signals. 
     External equipment  80  may include one or more electronic devices having components such as touch sensor  84  and display  86 . Touch sensor  84  may be a capacitive touch sensor, a resistive touch sensor, an acoustic touch sensor, a force-based touch sensor, an optical touch sensor, a touch sensor that uses other touch technologies, or a touch sensor that uses two or more of these types of touch sensor structures. Display  86  may be a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode display, an electrophoretic display, an electrowetting display, or any other suitable type of display. Display  86  may be a touch screen display (e.g., a display that incorporates touch sensor  84 ) or may be insensitive to touch. 
     In some configurations, touch sensor  84  and display  86  may be implemented in separate devices. For example, touch sensor  84  may form part of a drawing tablet without a display and display  86  may form part of a computer monitor or other equipment without a touch sensor. Configurations in which equipment  80  includes other combinations of touch sensors and displays may also be used. For example, stylus  10  may be used to provide input to a tablet computer, cellular telephone, or computer through a touch screen display while also providing wireless input to control a computer or other device with a display with an optional touch sensor or while providing input to the tablet computer, cellular telephone, or computer with the touch screen display. 
     To avoid the need for a user to switch excessively between different input devices, stylus  10  may be provided with sufficient capabilities to gather multiple different types of input. For example, stylus  10  may be used as both a touch sensor input device in which a user draws lines with tip  18  on the surface of a touch sensor and as a six-axis or nine-axis inertial controller. A user of a drawing program may use stylus  10  to draw lines that form on-screen objects. When it is desired to rotate or tilt the object, the user can use inertial sensor  28  in stylus  10  to perform appropriate on-screen object rotation and/or tilt operations. As an example, a user may select an on-screen object by double tapping on the object with tip  18 , by touching the on-screen object and pressing button  36 , by encircling the object with a line drawn with tip  18 , etc. After selecting the object, the user may manipulate the object (rotate, tilt, etc.) using inertial sensor input gathered by moving stylus  10 . The object that is being manipulated in this way may or may not be shown on surface  42 . For example, the selected object may be manipulated on-screen or may be manipulated off-screen by moving stylus  10  while gathering inertial sensor input from inertial sensor  28 . In this way, stylus  10  may serve as a virtual representation of the object being manipulated. 
     As another example, consider a user who is interacting with a business presentation program. During touch sensor operations, tip  18  of stylus  10  may be used to annotate a page of a presentation. During inertial sensor operations with the same stylus, the user may move an on-screen pointer to point to particular portions of the presentation or may use stylus  10  to gather air mouse gestures (e.g., to flick between pages). As these examples demonstrate, the ability of stylus  10  to serve both as a touch sensor input device and as an inertial sensor input device allows the user to perform a variety of input operations without switching between different types of input device. 
       FIG. 4  shows how stylus  10  may be used to draw lines and other supply other touch sensor input. As shown in  FIG. 4 , equipment  80  may include a display such as display  86 . Touch sensor  84  may overlap display  86  (i.e., display  86  may be a touch screen display). During touch input operations, a user may move tip  18  of stylus  10  across the surface of equipment  80  in lateral dimensions X and Y. A user may, for example, draw lines such as line  96  of  FIG. 4  by moving tip  18  of stylus  10  in dimensions X and Y on the surface of equipment  80 . In addition to drawing lines such as line  96 , stylus  10  may be used to input handwritten text, to draw and move objects, to select from available on-screen options (e.g., by placing tip  18  within a clickable on-screen box), may be used to manipulate drop-down menus, may be used to control navigation sliders and other on-screen objects, or may otherwise be used in providing touch sensor input for equipment  80 . In response to the touch input provided to touch sensor  84 , equipment  80  may update visual content on display  86  and/or may update visual content on another external display. Equipment  80  may also take other actions in response to touch input from stylus  10  (e.g., audio adjustments may be made in equipment  80 , settings may be changed, images may be captured with a camera, sensor data may be gathered, and other activities may be performed). 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , stylus  10  may be rotated to control equipment  80 . Rotational motion of stylus  10  may be monitored using inertial sensor  28 . Stylus  10  may be rotated when stylus  10  is being held in free space by a user or may be rotated while tip  18  of stylus  10  is being pressed against a surface such as the surface of equipment  80  of  FIG. 5 . Equipment  80  of  FIG. 5  may be a touch screen display that includes touch sensor  84  and display  86  (i.e., touch sensor  84  may overlap display  86 ). 
     Equipment  80  may display content on display  86  such as object  97 . When tip  18  is pressed against the surface of equipment  80  at location  90 , location  90  (and tip  18 ) may form a point of rotation for stylus  10  and may help stabilize stylus  10  so that stylus  10  may be rotated smoothly and accurately. When operated in a rotational controller mode in this way, stylus  10  may be rotated in directions  98  about axis  24  while tip  18  remains in contact with point  90 . Rotational motion of stylus  10  about axis  24  may be detected by inertial sensor  28  and transmitted wirelessly to equipment  80  using wireless circuitry  72 . Equipment  80  may receive the wirelessly transmitted signals and may take appropriate action based on the rotational input gathered using stylus  30 . For example, in a drawing application that is displaying an on-screen object such as object  97  the input from inertial sensor  28  may be used to rotate object  97  about rotational axis  92  or other suitable rotational axis for object  97 . Rotational axis  92  may be aligned with axis  24 , so that tilting of stylus  10  relative to the X-Y plane (and Z-axis) of  FIG. 5  results in corresponding changes to the orientation, of axis  92  or rotational axis  92  may be in a fixed location relative to object  97  (e.g., axis  92  may lie in the X-Y plane of  FIG. 5 , which is the plane of display  86 , may be perpendicular to the X-Y plane of  FIG. 5 , etc.). 
     If desired, object  97  may be manipulated while being displayed on other external equipment such as equipment  80  of  FIG. 6 . In this example, equipment  80  is separate from the equipment that has the touch sensor to gather stylus touch input (i.e., equipment  80  of  FIG. 6  includes display  86  but need not contain a touch sensor such as optional touch sensor  84 ). A user may rest tip  18  of stylus  10  against touch sensor  84  or other surface while inertial sensor  28  gathers rotational input information related to how much stylus  10  is being rotated about axis  24  in directions  98 . Rotational input may be supplied to equipment  80  of  FIG. 6  wirelessly. Equipment  80  may then perform object rotation operations or other tasks in response to the rotational input. Equipment  80  may, for example, rotate an on-screen object such as object  97  of  FIG. 6  about axis  92  in directions  94  by an amount that is proportional to the amount by which the user rotated stylus  10  about axis  24  in directions  98 . Axis  92  may line within the plane of display  86  or may have other orientations. In configurations in which tilting of stylus  10  relative to touch sensor  84  is being monitored, the amount of tilting of stylus  10  can be used to tilt axis  92  by a corresponding amount. 
     If desired, stylus  10  may be operated in a joystick mode. As shown in  FIG. 7 , equipment  80  may include equipment  80 A and  80 B. Equipment  80 A (e.g., a tablet computer, writing pad, cellular telephone with a touch screen, etc.) may have a touch sensor such as touch sensor  84  for gathering touch input from stylus  10 . Equipment  80 A may have display  86  for displaying content for a user such as object  97  or other image data. Stylus  10  may be operated in joystick mode when tip  18  of stylus  10  is being pressed against touch sensor  84 , the surface of a table, or other flat surface (as an example). 
     In the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 7 , stylus  10  is being operated in joystick mode while tip  18  is pressed against touch sensor  84  at point  90 . Point  90  may serve as a pivot point (and, if desired, rotational point) for stylus  10 . Stylus tip  18  may be formed form an elastomeric material or other material that prevents tip  18  from slipping across the surface of equipment  80 B and that helps stylus  10  serve as a joystick. 
     During joystick mode, inertial sensor  28  gathers information on movement of stylus  10 . For example, sensor  28  may gather Information on the tilting of stylus  28  relative to the surface of equipment  80 B in directions such as directions  100 . Rotational motion can also be monitored. 
     Wireless signals  81  may be used to convey movement data from stylus  10  to equipment  80 A and/or equipment  80 B. For example, wireless signals may be conveyed from stylus  10  to equipment  80 A and/or  80 B that inform equipment  80 A and/or  80 B how much stylus  10  has been tilted in directions  100  and/or rotated about axis  24 . 
     A user may manipulate the position of end  16  of stylus  10  while treating stylus  10  as a joystick. Equipment such as equipment  80 A and/or  80 B may display on-screen content and take other actions based on joystick motion data received from stylus  10 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , for example, equipment  80 A (or equipment  80 B) may display an on-screen object such as object  97 . As the user tilts stylus  10  about pivot point  90  in directions  100 , equipment  80 A (or  80 B) may tilt object  97  in directions  104  about pivot point  108  by an amount that corresponds to the amount by which stylus  10  is tilted in directions  100  about pivot point  90 . Object  97  may also be rotated in response to rotation of stylus  10  about rotational axis  24 , as described in connection with  FIG. 6  (i.e., stylus  10  may simultaneously act in a joystick mode and rotational controller mode). 
     The manipulation of on-screen content such as tilting and rotation of object  97  is an example of an action that may be taken by equipment  80  in response to joystick mode input and rotational controller input from stylus  10 . Other suitable actions may be taken by equipment  80  if desired (e.g., rotation of an on-screen dial or other user interface icon, adjustment of a volume level, brightness setting, or other parameter in game, drawing application, or other program, navigation between on-screen objects, etc.). 
     It may be desirable to use stylus  10  to provide different types of input at different times. For example, it may be desirable to use stylus  10  in a touch sensor mode when drawing lines such as line  96  of  FIG. 4  or performing other drawing functions. When it is desired to rotate an object or provide other rotational controller input, it may be desirable to momentarily inactivate the touch sensor capabilities of stylus  10  (and, if desired, equipment  80 ) in favor of the rotational controller capabilities of stylus  10  and equipment  80  described in connection with  FIGS. 5 and 6 . Joystick mode inputs may be gathered from stylus  10  in situations in which rotation is not needed or when tilting inputs are needed (e.g., to control an airplane in a flight simulator). Some of these modes of operation may not be mutually exclusive. For example, it may be desirable to both be able to tilt an on-screen object and to rotate the on-screen object when a user is working in a computer-aided design application. Nevertheless, in many situations the ability to switch between different operating modes for stylus  10  will help a user from providing inappropriate input with stylus  10 . For example, if a user is using stylus  10  as a joystick, it may be desirable to inhibit touch sensor input capabilities (for stylus  10  and/or equipment  80 ) so that slippage in the position of tip  18  does not inadvertently result in a line being drawn on the display. 
     In general, any suitable criteria may be used to determine when it is appropriate to switch between different operating modes for stylus  10 . A user may, for example, provide user input by pressing a button, by pressing tip  18  (or eraser end  16 ) of stylus  10  against a surface to actuate force sensor  22  (or  30 ), or by shaking stylus  10  (to provide input to inertial sensor  28 ). Mode switching may also be performed when environmental criteria are satisfied (e.g., when a predetermined time and date are reached, when ambient light levels, temperature levels, pressure levels, or other environmental parameters fall within predetermined limits, or when other mode switching criteria are satisfied). Combinations of user input and environmental factors may also be used. 
     Illustrative steps involved in gathering user input and in analyzing the gathered input to determine whether or not to switch operating modes for stylus  10  are shown in  FIG. 8 . At step  200 , control circuitry  60  of stylus  10  is used to gather input to stylus  10  and to analyze the gathered input to determine whether or not to change the operating mode of stylus  10 . 
     During the operations of step  202 , stylus  10  may monitor force sensors such as sensors  22  and  30 . In some situations, a user will be holding stylus  10  between the user&#39;s fingers. In this type of situation, it may be convenient for the user to press tip  18  or end  16  of stylus  10  against equipment  80  or other object. When pressed in this way, the force sensor signal may exceed a predetermined amount, indicating that a mode change is desired. A single press on tip  18  (or end  16 ) may be used to invoke a mode change or other patterns of tip presses may be used (e.g. one pattern of presses may be used to invoke a first mode of operation and another pattern of presses may be used to invoke a distinct second mode of operation). 
     At step  204 , stylus  10  may monitor button activity. For example stylus  10  may use control circuitry  60  to determine whether button  36  of  FIG. 1  has been pressed and/or has been pressed in a particular pattern. 
     At step  206 , stylus  10  may monitor sensor  28  to determine whether stylus  10  has been moved by more than a particular amount or in a particular pattern. As an example, stylus  10  may use sensor  28  to determine whether a user has shaken stylus  10  by more than a predetermined amount and/or may use sensor  28  to monitor for a predetermined pattern of shakes (e.g., three rapid shakes in succession, a circular motion, a flick of end  16  in the air, or other movement pattern that is indicative of a mode change command). 
     At step  208 , stylus  10  may use circuitry  60  to monitor for other input from input-output devices  64  (e.g., sensor input based on user input and/or environmental factors). 
     At step  210 , information gathered from input-output devices  64  may be analyzed to determine whether the user of stylus  10  is directing stylus  10  to change its operating mode. Control circuitry  60  may be configured to recognize patterns in the inputs gathered during steps such as steps  202 ,  204 ,  206 , and  208 . For example, a pattern of force sensor signals arising from a particular pattern of presses against stylus tip  18  (or end  16 ) may be associated with a predetermined operating mode, a pattern of movements of end  16  (e.g. by waving stylus  10  in the air in with a particular motion) may be associated with a predetermined operating mode, button presses of particular patterns and information from other input-output devices or patterns of two or more of these inputs may be associated with a command to enter a particular operating mode. 
     At step  212 , control circuitry  60  may change the operating mode of stylus  10  as appropriate based on the inputs analyzed during the operations of step  210 . The mode of operation of equipment  80  may also be changed, if desired. Mode change commands may be mode specific. For example, a user may enter joystick mode by pressing down on tip  18  once, may enter rotational controller mode by pressing down on tip  18  twice, may enter an air mouse mode by pressing down on tip  18  three times, and may enter touch sensor mode by pressing down on tip  18  four times. Mode change commands may also be generic. For example, whenever a double press on tip  18  is detected, stylus  10  may switch to another operating mode. 
       FIG. 9  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in operating stylus  10  and equipment  80 . 
     At step  300 , stylus  10  may be operated in touch sensor mode. During touch sensor mode, control circuitry  60  may use active stylus electrodes  20  to provide a near-field electromagnetic signal to touch sensor  84  in equipment  80 . Equipment  80  may use touch sensor  84  to gather drawing input and other touch sensor input from tip  18  at drawing end  14  of stylus  10  and/or from end  16  of stylus  10 . Tip  18  may foe used to draw lines and other items, whereas end  14  may be used to erase items and/or other actions may be taken in response to detection of touch input from stylus  10  (e.g., menu selections, manipulation of on-screen content adjustment of operating parameters in equipment  80 , etc.). 
     During the touch sensor mode operations of step  300 , stylus  10  may use control circuitry  60  and input-output circuitry  62  to monitor for a mode change command or satisfaction of other criteria indicative of the desire to change operating modes in stylus  10  and equipment  80 . For example, circuitry  60  may perform input monitoring and analysis operations of the type shown in  FIG. 8 . 
     In response to a mode change command or satisfaction of other suitable mode change criteria, control circuitry  60  may change the operation mode of stylus  10 . For example, if input is received that indicates that stylus  10  should be changed to a first inertial mode (e.g., a joystick mode or other mode using input from inertial sensor  28 ), stylus  10  may enter the first inertial operating mode (step  302 ). During the operations of step  302 , stylus  10  may gather user input using sensor  28  (e.g., to provide equipment  80  with joystick input while tip  18  is pressed against sensor  84  or other surface in equipment  80  and while a user tilts stylus  10  with respect to equipment  80 ). The operations of step  302  also involve monitoring input-output circuitry  62  for additional mode change input. 
     In response to detection of a mode change command or satisfaction of other suitable mode change criteria, control circuitry  60  may change the operating mode of stylus  10 . For example, if input is received that indicates that stylus  10  should be changed to an Nth inertial mode (e.g., a rotational controller mode using rotational input from inertial sensor  28 , an air mouse mode, etc.), stylus  10  may enter the Nth inertial operating mode (step  304 ). During the operations of step  304 , stylus  10  may gather user input using sensor  28  (e.g., to provide equipment  80  with rotational controller input while tip  18  is pressed against sensor  84  or other surface in equipment  80 ). Sensor  28  may be used to gather input while a user rotates stylus  10  about rotational (longitudinal) axis  24  with respect to equipment  80 . The operations of step  304  also involve monitoring input-output circuitry  62  for additional mode change input. There may be any suitable number of inertial sensor modes of operation for stylus  10  (e.g.,  1  . . . N). Inertial sensor modes may involve use of inertial sensor data for operations such as tilting, spinning, rolling, zooming (e.g., controlling a zoom setting by rotation of stylus  10 ), joystick operations, air mouse operations, etc. 
     The mode changes of  FIG. 9  may take place whenever monitoring operations indicate that a user has input a mode change command. For example, if a command is received to transition to touch sensor mode, stylus  30  may transition from mode  304 , mode  302 , or other inertial sensing mode to touch sensor mode  300 . In general, there may be any suitable number of touch sensor modes, any suitable number of inertial sensor modes, and/or any suitable number of other operating modes for stylus  10 . The configuration of  FIG. 9  is merely illustrative. 
     If desired, multiple styluses may be used to control electronic equipment  80  simultaneously. For example, one stylus  10  may be used to gather first inertial sensor data while another stylus  10  may be used to gather second inertial sensor data. Both the first and second inertial sensor data may be provided to equipment  80  as input (e.g., to manipulate on-screen content, to control a game, etc.). 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The foregoing embodiments may be implemented individually or in any combination.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20141114
Publication Date: 20160726
Grant Date: 20160726
Priority Date: 20141114
Inventors: CHANG RAY L.
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G06F3/0383", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/046", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03545", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0338", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0346", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0338", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/046", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0346", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0442", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03545", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/03545", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0338", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0383", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 55432914