TW201417499A - Touch switch and operation method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A touch switch and an operation method thereof are provided. The touch switch includes an infrared detection unit, a power supply unit, and a control unit. The infrared detection unit generates a detection signal according to a detection result. The power supply unit provides an operation voltage. The control unit is respectively coupled to the infrared detection unit and the power supply unit. The control unit provides the operation voltage to the infrared detection unit in a first predetermined duration, and stops providing the operation voltage to the infrared detection unit in a second predetermined duration. The control unit determines whether a touch action occurs according to the detection signal. The first predetermined duration and the second predetermined duration are formed a detection period.

Description

Touch switch and its operation method

The present invention relates to a switch and a method of operating the same, and more particularly to a touch switch and method of operation thereof.

In an electronic device, a mechanical switch or a capacitive touch is usually used as a switch. In the case of a mechanical push button switch, the mechanical push button switch has the advantage of not consuming power, but long-term pressing of the mechanical push button switch causes user fatigue and loss of the mechanical push button switch. In the case of a capacitive touch switch, although the user is less labor-intensive, when the capacitive touch is used to detect the touch behavior, since the capacitive touch system requires time to stabilize the electric field, detect and judge, Higher power is required for detection, thus increasing the power consumption of the electronic device. In addition, since the capacitive touch switch requires higher sensitivity to accurately detect the touch position, the electronic device can be precisely controlled.

The Republic of China Announcement Patent No. TW 484746 discloses a power-saving switch control structure for a hand-held electrical appliance. When an electronic product is used, a hand approaches a sensor on the grip portion thereof to transmit a start signal to the switch, so that the battery can be The power required to control the circuit is supplied, so that the electronic product can be activated until the hand leaves the electronic product.

The Republic of China Announcement Patent No. TW M416011 discloses a recessed light fixture comprising a main body, a light-emitting element and an electrical circuit portion, the electrical circuit portion including a selection component, a power supply portion and a control component, controlled and driven through the electrical circuit portion The light-emitting element is turned on or off.

Chinese Laid-Open Patent No. CN101425416 discloses an elevator button with a non-contact optical switch, which is provided with a light-emitting diode and a light-receiving diode on the inner wall surface of the button, and according to whether the infrared light between the two electrodes is detected according to the detection Interrupt to switch buttons.

The Republic of China Announcement Patent No. TW M374108 discloses a bar code reader having a switch unit that automatically switches the bar code reader to an automatic scan by distinguishing the different states of the switch unit to distinguish whether the bar code reader is in contact with the base. Manual scan status.

The invention provides a touch switch and a method for operating the same, which can detect the occurrence of a touch behavior through an optical infrared detection method, so that the power consumption for detecting the touch behavior is low, thereby reducing the cost. Moreover, by adjusting the supply time of the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit, the touch switch can achieve a more power saving effect.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the technical features disclosed herein.

In order to achieve one or a part or all of the above or other purposes, an embodiment of the present invention provides a touch switch including an infrared detecting unit, a power supply unit, and a control unit. The infrared detecting unit generates a detection signal according to the detection result. The power supply unit is used to provide an operating voltage. The control unit is coupled to the infrared detecting unit and the power supply unit to provide an operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the first predetermined period, and to stop providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the second predetermined period. And according to The detection signal determines whether the touch behavior occurs, wherein the first preset period and the second preset period constitute a detection period.

One embodiment of the present invention also provides a method for operating a touch switch, which is applicable to a touch switch including an infrared detecting unit, a power supply unit, and a control unit. . The method includes the following steps: during the first preset period, the control unit provides the operating voltage provided by the power supply unit to the infrared detecting unit, and the infrared detecting unit generates the detecting signal according to the detection result, and the control unit determines according to the detecting signal. Whether the touch behavior occurred. During the second preset period, the control unit stops providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit, wherein the first preset period and the second preset period constitute a detecting period.

Based on the above, the touch switch and the method for operating the same according to the embodiments of the present invention have at least the following advantages: determining whether a touch behavior occurs by using an infrared detecting unit for receiving or not an infrared signal. And providing an operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the first preset period, and stopping providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the second predetermined period, and the first preset period is shorter than the second preset period, Make the touch switch more power efficient. In addition, the power saving amplitude of the touch switch is proportional to the time when the operating voltage is stopped to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the second preset period) and the time when the operating voltage is supplied to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the first preset period) )proportion. In addition, the sleep mode or standby mode can be entered through the control unit to further reduce the power consumption of detecting touch behavior.

The above described features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the Detailed Description The directional terms mentioned in the following embodiments, such as "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "left", "right", etc., are only directions referring to the additional schema. Therefore, the directional terminology used is for the purpose of illustration and not limitation.

1 is a schematic diagram of a touch switch in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 , in the embodiment, the touch switch 100 includes an infrared detecting unit 110 , a power supply unit 120 , and a control unit 130 . The infrared detecting unit 110 is configured to generate the detecting signal SDT according to the infrared detecting result, and know whether the infrared detecting unit 110 detects the infrared signal, thereby providing the control unit 130 to determine whether the user controls the touch switch 100. The device makes a touch. The power supply unit 120 is configured to provide an operating voltage VP required for the operation of the infrared detecting unit 110 and the control unit 130, and may include a battery or a component required for converting an alternating current power source (for example, a commercial power source) (for example, a transformer, a capacitor, and a diode). . The control unit 130 is coupled to the infrared detecting unit 110 and the power supply unit 120. The control unit 130 can be a Micro Control Unit (MCU), a Central Processing Unit (CPU), or other programmable microprocessor (Microprocessor).

In this embodiment, the control unit 130 determines whether to provide the operating voltage VP provided by the power supply unit 120 to the infrared detection according to the detection signal SDT generated by the infrared detection result of the infrared detecting unit 110. The unit 110, in turn, controls the operation of the infrared detecting unit 110. Further, the control unit 130 first supplies the operating voltage VP to the infrared detecting unit 110 during the first preset period, and stops providing the operating voltage VP to the infrared detecting unit 110 during the second predetermined period. The first preset period is during the operation of the infrared detecting unit 110, and the first preset period includes the emission and detection of infrared rays, and the second preset period is a period during which the infrared detecting unit 110 stops operating. The second preset period is adjacent to the first preset period, and the rest is deduced by analogy. Therefore, the first preset period and the second preset period constitute one detection period of the infrared detecting unit 110.

Since the infrared detecting unit 110 has the characteristics of fast startup and detection speed, the infrared detecting unit 110 has a shorter time required to detect the touch behavior, and requires a longer time than the conventional capacitive touch switch. For electric field stabilization and detection, the infrared touch switch 100 can achieve the effect of quickly controlling the controlled device. Moreover, during a detection period, the period during which the infrared detecting unit 110 operates (ie, the first preset period) may be shorter than the period during which the infrared detecting unit 110 stops operating (ie, the second preset period). Since the control unit 130 provides the operating voltage VP to the infrared detecting unit 110 only during the first preset period, the control unit 130 stops supplying the operating voltage VP to the infrared detecting unit 110 during the second preset period, through the first preset. The design of the period (power consumption time) is shorter than the second preset period (no power consumption), and the power consumption of the infrared touch switch 100 is reduced.

For example, it is assumed that the time required for the start and detection of the infrared detecting unit 110 is 1 millisecond (ms), and it is assumed that the infrared detecting unit 110 detects at least once every 100 milliseconds (ms). Infrared detection One detection period of unit 110 is 100 milliseconds. When the infrared detecting unit 110 stops operating after one detection, it can save 99 milliseconds of power consumption (that is, save 99% of power consumption). Alternatively, it is assumed that when the infrared detecting unit 110 stops detecting for 5 milliseconds, the unoperated 95 milliseconds of power consumption (i.e., 95% of power consumption) can be saved. The first preset period and the second preset period are only used for illustration, which may be set by the user or according to the design requirements of those skilled in the art. Further, when the first preset period is much smaller than the second preset period, power consumption can be reduced. In other words, the power saving amplitude of the touch switch is proportional to the time when the operating voltage is stopped to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the second preset period) and the time when the operating voltage is supplied to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the first pre-predation) Set the ratio of the period).

However, the conventional capacitive touch switch requires a long time for the electric field to stabilize, detect and judge. If the operation is stopped once it is detected, it takes a long time to stabilize the electric field, detect and judge again, so the capacitive type The touch switch generally does not stop operating and saves power consumption. If it is assumed that the time required for the capacitive touch switch to start and detect once is 30 milliseconds (ms), then during the same 100 millisecond detection period, when the capacitive touch switch performs a detection and then stops operating, It can only save 70 milliseconds of power consumption that is not operating (that is, it can only save 70% of power consumption), but in the next detection, it takes a long time to re-establish the electric field stability and start, so that it cannot achieve fast control. The effect of the control device.

In addition, in other embodiments, the control unit 130 may stop operating during the second preset period to achieve a more power saving effect. In other words, in the first During the second preset period, the control unit 130 may enter the sleep mode or the standby mode to automatically stop providing the operating voltage VP to the infrared detecting unit 110, thereby further saving the power consumption of the touch switch 100.

Since the infrared detecting unit 110 generates the detecting signal SDT according to the detection result of the touch behavior, the control unit 130 can determine whether the touch behavior of the corresponding touch switch 100 occurs according to the detecting signal SDT. After determining that the touch action of the corresponding touch switch 100 occurs, the control unit 130 can perform manipulation or operation corresponding to the function corresponding to the touch switch 100, thereby realizing the operation function of the switch or the button. In embodiments of the present invention, the touch switch 100 can be applied to an automatic door, an audio, a light fixture, a video player, a television, a mobile phone, a personal computer, a notebook computer, a tablet computer, or a wireless controller.

For example, in an embodiment, when the touch switch 100 is applied to a portable device, such as a flashlight, since the flashlight is in a standby sleep state for a long time, only in some cases, the user presses and touches the touch. The switch 100 is used to turn on the illumination of the flashlight. Therefore, the flashlight of the touch switch 100 of the embodiment is in a standby sleep state during the second preset period, and the infrared detecting unit 110 is received by the control unit 130 during the first preset period. The operating voltage VP starts and detects whether there is a touch behavior. If there is no touch behavior, the infrared detecting unit 110 and the control unit 130 enter the standby sleep state of the second preset period without power consumption again. Until the next detection cycle begins, the infrared detection unit 110 will quickly start and detect whether there is a touch behavior during the first preset period. Thereby, using the touch switch 100 can achieve fast start and detection, and save power The effect of consumption.

2A is a schematic diagram of touch detection of a touch switch according to an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2A, in the present embodiment, the infrared detecting unit 110' of the touch switch 100' includes an infrared emitting unit 112 and an infrared receiving unit 114. The control unit 130 is coupled to the infrared ray emitting unit 112 and the infrared ray receiving unit 114, respectively. The infrared ray emitting unit 112 receives the operating voltage VP provided by the control unit 130 and continuously emits the infrared signal IR during the first predetermined period. The infrared receiving unit 114 receives the operating voltage VP provided by the control unit 130 according to whether the infrared signal IR emitted by the infrared emitting unit 112 is received during the first preset period to generate the detecting signal SDT, and the control unit 130 generates the detecting signal SDT. Then, it is determined whether the touch behavior occurs according to the detection signal SDT to determine whether to continue to provide the operating voltage VP from the power supply unit 120 to the infrared detecting unit 110'.

In the present embodiment, the infrared ray emitting unit 112 directly emits the infrared ray signal IR toward the infrared ray receiving unit 114. When the touch switch 100' is pressed (or touched), the finger 210 blocks (or blocks) the transmission path of the infrared signal IR, so that the infrared receiving unit 114 cannot receive the infrared signal IR, and the control unit 130 can detect The measurement signal SDT determines that the touch behavior of the finger 210 with respect to the touch switch 100' has occurred. When the touch switch 100' is not pressed (or touched), the emission path of the infrared signal IR is not blocked (or blocked), and the infrared receiving unit 114 can receive the infrared signal IR, and the control unit 130 can The detection signal SDT determines that the touch behavior has not occurred.

2B is a touch detection of a touch switch according to another embodiment of the present invention. Measure the diagram. Referring to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B, the embodiment of FIG. 2B is substantially the same as the embodiment of FIG. 2A, and therefore is denoted by the same reference numeral, except that the infrared signal IR emitted by the infrared emitting unit 112 is in the infrared emitting unit 112 and the infrared ray. The direct path D of the receiving unit 114 is different from the emission path of the angle θ, wherein the setting concept of the angle θ is that the infrared emitting unit 112 emits the infrared signal IR in the direction of the angle θ with the direct path D, when the finger 210 is pressed (or touched) When the switch 100' is touched, the infrared signal IR is reflected by the finger 210 and transmitted to the infrared ray receiving unit 114.

When the touch switch 100' is pressed (or touched), the infrared signal IR emitted by the infrared emitting unit 112 is reflected by the finger 210, and the infrared receiving unit 114 receives the infrared signal IR, and the control unit 130 can determine according to the detecting signal SDT. The touch behavior of the finger 210 to the touch switch 100' has occurred. When the touch switch 100' is not pressed (or touched), the infrared signal IR emitted by the infrared emitting unit 112 is not reflected by the finger 210, and the infrared receiving unit 114 cannot receive the infrared signal IR. At this time, the control unit 130 According to the detection signal SDT, it can be judged that the touch behavior does not occur.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the infrared receiving unit 114 can determine whether the infrared signal IR is received according to the energy level of the received infrared signal IR to eliminate noise or reduce the occurrence of false touch behavior, when the infrared receiving unit When the energy of the received infrared signal IR is higher than or equal to a critical value, it is determined that the infrared signal IR is received. Conversely, when the energy of the infrared signal IR received by the infrared receiving unit 114 is less than the critical value, the determination is not Receiving infrared signal IR, which can be based on the field The embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto.

3 is a flow chart of a method of operating a touch switch in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3, in the embodiment, the touch switch includes an infrared detecting unit, a power supply unit, and a control unit. The control unit supplies the operating voltage provided by the power supply unit to the infrared detecting unit during the first preset period (step S310), so that the infrared detecting unit operates according to the operating voltage. Then, the infrared detecting unit generates a detection signal according to the detection result (step S320), and the control unit determines whether the touch behavior occurs according to the detection signal (step S330). If the touch behavior does not occur, in the second preset period, the control unit stops providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit to stop the infrared detecting unit from operating (step S340), and after executing in step 340, returning In step S310, the touch behavior detection of the touch switch is repeatedly performed. If the touch behavior has occurred, the control unit continues to provide the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit until the touch behavior ends (step 350), and returns to step S310 to repeatedly perform the touch behavior detection of the touch switch.

4 is a flow chart of a method of operating a touch switch in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, which is different in step S440, that is, steps S410, S420, S430 and S450 are the same as steps S310, S320, S330 and S350 in FIG. 3, respectively. In step S440, during the second preset period, the control unit stops operating to stop providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit, thereby stopping the infrared detecting unit from operating. After the execution of step S440, the process returns to step S410 to repeatedly perform the touch behavior detection of the touch switch. For details of the above steps S310, S320, S330, S340, S350, S410, S420, S430, S440, and S450, refer to FIG. The description of the embodiment of FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B will not be repeated here.

In summary, the touch switch and the method for operating the same according to the embodiments of the present invention have at least the following advantages: using an infrared detecting unit to detect whether a touch behavior occurs, that is, detecting whether a touch occurs through an infrared detecting method. behavior. Since the start and detection speed of the infrared light is fast, the time required for detection can be reduced to reduce the power consumption for detecting the touch behavior. And providing an operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the first preset period, and stopping providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during the second predetermined period, and the first preset period is shorter than the second preset period, Make the touch switch more power efficient. In addition, the power saving amplitude of the touch switch is proportional to the time when the operating voltage is stopped to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the second preset period) and the time when the operating voltage is supplied to the infrared detecting unit (ie, the first preset period) )proportion. In addition, the sleep mode or standby mode can be entered through the control unit to further reduce the power consumption of detecting touch behavior.

The above is only the preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the scope of the invention is not limited thereto, that is, the simple equivalent changes and modifications made by the scope of the invention and the description of the invention are All remain within the scope of the invention patent. In addition, any of the objects or advantages or features of the present invention are not required to be achieved by any embodiment or application of the invention. In addition, the abstract sections and headings are only used to assist in the search of patent documents and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second" and the like mentioned in the specification or the scope of the claims are only used to name the elements or distinguish different embodiments or ranges, and are not intended to limit the number of elements. Upper or lower limit.

100, 100’‧‧‧ touch switch

110, 110'‧‧‧ Infrared detection unit

112‧‧‧Infrared emitting unit

114‧‧‧Infrared receiving unit

120‧‧‧Power supply unit

130‧‧‧Control unit

210‧‧‧ fingers

Θ‧‧‧ angle

D‧‧‧Direct path

IR‧‧‧Infrared signal

VP‧‧‧ operating voltage

SDT‧‧‧Detection signal

S310, S320, S330, S340, S350, S410, S420, S430, S440, S450‧‧ steps

1 is a schematic diagram of a touch switch in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

2A is a schematic diagram of touch detection of a touch switch according to an embodiment of the invention.

2B is a schematic diagram of touch detection of the touch switch according to another embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flow chart of a method of operating a touch switch in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flow chart of a method of operating a touch switch in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

100‧‧‧Touch switch

110‧‧‧Infrared detection unit

120‧‧‧Power supply unit

130‧‧‧Control unit

VP‧‧‧ operating voltage

SDT‧‧‧Detection signal

Claims (17)

A touch switch includes: an infrared detecting unit that generates a detection signal according to a detection result; a power supply unit for providing an operating voltage; and a control unit, and the infrared detecting unit and the The power supply unit is coupled to provide the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during a first predetermined period of time, and stop providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit during a second predetermined period, and according to the The detection signal determines whether a touch behavior occurs, wherein the first preset period and the second preset period constitute a detection period. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the detection period is a certain value. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the first preset period is during operation of the infrared detecting unit. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the second preset period is during the operation of the infrared detecting unit. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the control unit stops operating during the second predetermined period. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the first preset period is shorter than the second preset period. The touch switch of claim 1, wherein the infrared detecting unit comprises: an infrared emitting unit coupled to the control unit, and receiving the operation And transmitting an infrared signal continuously during the first predetermined period of time; and an infrared receiving unit coupled to the control unit, when receiving the operating voltage, according to whether the first preset period is received An infrared signal is generated to generate the detection signal. The touch switch of claim 7, wherein when the infrared receiving unit does not receive the infrared signal, the control unit determines that the touch behavior has occurred according to the detection signal, when the infrared receiving unit receives When the infrared signal is received, the control unit determines that the touch behavior does not occur according to the detection signal. The touch switch of claim 7, wherein when the infrared receiving unit receives the infrared signal, the control unit determines that the touch behavior has occurred according to the detection signal, when the infrared receiving unit does not receive When the infrared signal is received, the control unit determines that the touch behavior does not occur according to the detection signal. A method for operating a touch switch, the touch switch having an infrared detecting unit, a power supply unit, and a control unit, the method comprising: the control unit providing the power supply unit during a first preset period An operating voltage is provided to the infrared detecting unit, the infrared detecting unit generates a detecting signal according to a detection result, and the control unit determines whether a touch behavior occurs according to the detecting signal; and a second preset During the period, the control unit stops providing the operating voltage to the infrared detecting unit; The first preset period and the second preset period constitute a detection period. The method for operating the touch switch according to the method of claim 10, wherein the step of generating the detection signal by the infrared detecting unit according to the detection result comprises: when the infrared detecting unit receives the operating voltage, And continuously transmitting an infrared signal during the first predetermined period; and when the infrared detecting unit receives the operating voltage, generating the detection signal according to whether the infrared signal is received. The method for operating a touch switch according to claim 10, wherein the step of determining, by the control unit, whether the touch behavior occurs according to the detection signal comprises: when the infrared detecting unit does not receive the infrared signal The control unit determines that the touch behavior has occurred according to the detection signal; and when the infrared detection unit receives the infrared signal, the control unit determines that the touch behavior does not occur according to the detection signal. The method for operating a touch switch according to claim 10, wherein the step of determining, by the control unit, whether the touch behavior occurs according to the detection signal comprises: when the infrared detecting unit receives the infrared signal, The control unit determines that the touch behavior has occurred according to the detection signal; and when the infrared detection unit does not receive the infrared signal, the control unit determines that the touch behavior does not occur according to the detection signal. The touch switch described in claim 10, wherein the The first preset period is during the operation of the infrared detecting unit. The touch switch of claim 10, wherein the second preset period is during the operation of the infrared detecting unit. The method of operating a touch switch according to claim 10, wherein the first preset period is shorter than the second preset period. The method of operating a touch switch according to claim 10, wherein the control unit stops operating during the second predetermined period.