TRANSMIT BEAMFORMING OF A TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCERS
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170330553
In a method for transmit beamforming of a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, a beamforming pattern to apply to a beamforming space of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers is defined. The beamforming space includes a plurality of elements, where each element of the beamforming space corresponds to an ultrasonic transducer of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, where the beamforming pattern identifies which ultrasonic transducers within the…
OPERATING A FINGERPRINT SENSOR COMPRISED OF ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCERS
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170330012
In a method for operating a fingerprint sensor comprising a plurality of ultrasonic transducers, a first subset of ultrasonic transducers of the fingerprint sensor are activated, the first subset of ultrasonic transducers for detecting interaction between an object and the fingerprint sensor. Subsequent to detecting interaction between an object and the fingerprint sensor, a second subset of ultrasonic transducers of the fingerprint sensor are activated, the second subset of ultrasonic…
OPERATION OF AN ULTRASONIC SENSOR
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170328870
In a method of using an ultrasonic sensor comprising a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, a plurality of ultrasonic signals are transmitted according to a beamforming pattern at a position of the two-dimensional array. The beamforming pattern focuses the plurality of ultrasonic signals to location above the two-dimensional array, wherein the beamforming pattern identifies ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array that are activated during transmission of the…
SENSING DEVICE WITH A TEMPERATURE SENSOR
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170328866
An electronic device including an array of ultrasonic transducers, a temperature sensor for determining a temperature of the array of ultrasonic transducers, and a control module communicatively coupled to the array of ultrasonic devices and the temperature sensor. The control module is for receiving the temperature and for controlling operation of the array of ultrasonic transducers based at least in part on the temperature.
ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER WITH A NON-UNIFORM MEMBRANE
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170326594
A Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducer (PMUT) device includes a substrate, an edge support structure connected to the substrate, and a membrane connected to the edge support structure such that a cavity is defined between the membrane and the substrate, the membrane configured to allow movement at ultrasonic frequencies, the membrane having non-uniform stiffness. The membrane includes a piezoelectric layer, a first electrode and a second electrode coupled to opposing sides…
RECEIVE OPERATION OF AN ULTRASONIC SENSOR
Granted: November 16, 2017
Application Number:
20170326593
An ultrasonic sensor includes a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers including a plurality of sub-arrays of ultrasonic transducers, wherein a sub-array of ultrasonic transducers of the plurality of sub-arrays of ultrasonic transducers is independently controllable, and wherein a sub-array of ultrasonic transducers has an associated receive channel. A plurality of shift registers is configured to select a receive pattern of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of…
TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF CMOS CONTROL ELEMENTS
Granted: November 9, 2017
Application Number:
20170322291
An electronic device includes a plurality of CMOS control elements arranged in a two-dimensional array, where each CMOS control element of the plurality of CMOS control elements includes two semiconductor devices. The plurality of CMOS control elements include a first subset of CMOS control elements, each CMOS control element of the first subset of CMOS control elements including a semiconductor device of a first class and a semiconductor device of a second class, and a second subset of…
DEVICE MOUNTABLE PACKAGING OF ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCERS
Granted: November 9, 2017
Application Number:
20170323133
An electronic device including an array of ultrasonic transducers for generating and receiving ultrasonic signals, and an acoustic coupling layer overlying the array of ultrasonic transducers, where the ultrasonic signals are propagated through the acoustic coupling layer.
OPERATING A TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCERS
Granted: November 9, 2017
Application Number:
20170322305
In a method of operating a two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers, a plurality of array positions comprising pluralities of ultrasonic transducers of the two-dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers is defined, the plurality of array positions each comprising a portion of ultrasonic transducers of the two dimensional array of ultrasonic transducers. For each array position of the plurality of array positions, a plurality of ultrasonic transducers associated with the…
TWO-DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF CMOS CONTROL ELEMENTS
Granted: November 9, 2017
Application Number:
20170322292
An electronic device includes a plurality of CMOS control elements arranged in a two-dimensional array, where each CMOS control element of the plurality of CMOS control elements includes semiconductor devices. The plurality of CMOS control elements each including a PMOS semiconductor device portion comprising a high voltage PMOS device and a low voltage PMOS device and an NMOS semiconductor device portion comprising a high voltage NMOS device and a low voltage NMOS device. The plurality…
PIEZOELECTRIC MICROMACHINED ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCER (PMUT)
Granted: November 9, 2017
Application Number:
20170322290
A Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducer (PMUT) device is provided. The PMUT includes a substrate and an edge support structure connected to the substrate. A membrane is connected to the edge support structure such that a cavity is defined between the membrane and the substrate, where the membrane is configured to allow movement at ultrasonic frequencies. The membrane includes a piezoelectric layer and first and second electrodes coupled to opposing sides of the piezoelectric…
COMPENSATING CIRCUIT FOR A MICROELECTROMECHANICAL (MEMS) RESONATOR
Granted: October 26, 2017
Application Number:
20170307374
A circuit comprising a microelectromechanical (MEMS) gyroscope and a gain circuit coupled with the MEMS gyroscope. The gain circuit is configured to receive a digitized drive signal based at least in part on a digitized drive voltage amplitude of the MEMS gyroscope. The gain circuit is also configured to determine a percentage change in quality factor of the MEMS gyroscope based at least in part on the digitized drive signal and a stored trim value of the MEMS gyroscope. The gain circuit…
DETERMINING FORCE APPLIED TO AN ULTRASONIC SENSOR
Granted: September 7, 2017
Application Number:
20170255338
In a method for determining force applied to an ultrasonic sensor, ultrasonic signals are emitted from an ultrasonic sensor. A plurality of reflected ultrasonic signals from a finger interacting with the ultrasonic sensor is captured. A first data based at least in part on a first reflected ultrasonic signal of the plurality of reflected ultrasonic signals is compared with a second data based at least in part on a second reflected ultrasonic signal of the plurality of reflected…
ADAPTIVE BUFFERING
Granted: August 24, 2017
Application Number:
20170242806
In a method of adaptive buffering in a mobile device having a host processor and a sensor processor coupled with the host processor, the sensor processor is used to buffer data received from a sensor that is operated by the sensor processor. The data is buffered by the sensor processor into a circular data buffer. Responsive to the sensor processor detecting triggering data within the received data: a first adaptive data buffering action is initiated with respect to the data received…
ADAPTIVE BUFFERING
Granted: August 24, 2017
Application Number:
20170242622
In a method of adaptive buffering in a mobile device having a host processor and a sensor processor coupled with the host processor, the sensor processor is used to buffer data received from a sensor that is operated by the sensor processor, wherein the data is buffered by the sensor processor into a circular data buffer. In response to the sensor processor detecting triggering data within the received data: the sensor processor sets a start-end marker in the circular data buffer; and a…
YAW RATE GYROSCOPE ROBUST TO LINEAR AND ANGULAR ACCELERATION
Granted: August 17, 2017
Application Number:
20170234684
A gyroscope includes four drive masses and four sense masses. Each drive mass is adjacent to two other drive masses and opposite the fourth drive mass, and each sense mass is adjacent to two other sense masses and opposite the fourth sense mass. Each drive mass may oscillate in a manner that is perpendicular to its adjacent drive mass and parallel and anti-phase to its opposite mass. The sense motion of the each sense mass may be coupled in a manner that prevents motion due to linear…
ASSOCIATING A SINGLE ENTITY WITH MULTIPLE ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Granted: July 20, 2017
Application Number:
20170206559
In a method of associating a single entity with multiple electronic devices, a server accesses user data collected via internet communications with a plurality of electronic devices. Each item of user data includes a location signature and a unique identifier. The server determines an intersection of location between two electronic devices of the plurality of electronic devices based on the user data accessed from the two electronic devices. The user data is accessed from a first of the…
MUSIC DETECTION AND IDENTIFICATION
Granted: June 22, 2017
Application Number:
20170178681
A sensor processing unit comprises a microphone and a sensor processor. The sensor processor is coupled with the microphone. The sensor processor is configured to operate the microphone to capture an audio sample from an environment in which the microphone is disposed. The sensor processor is configured to perform music activity detection on the audio sample to detect for music within the audio sample. Responsive to detection of music within the audio sample, the sensor processor is…
GYROSCOPE WITH AUXILIARY SELF-TEST
Granted: June 15, 2017
Application Number:
20170167876
A gyroscope includes drive electrodes that drive a drive mass at a drive frequency. A sense mass is responsive to a Coriolis force caused by rotation of the gyroscope and oscillates based on the drive frequency. Electrodes adjacent to the sense mass drive the sense mass at test frequencies. The response to the driving at the test frequencies is measured and a gyroscope failure is identified based on this response.
DUAL-SEALED MEMS PACKAGE WITH CAVITY PRESSURE MONITORING
Granted: June 15, 2017
Application Number:
20170167946
A microelectromechanical sensor (MEMS) package includes a gyroscope and an accelerometer. The gyroscope is located within a low-pressure cavity that is sealed from an external pressure. The accelerometer is located within a cavity, and the seal for the accelerometer cavity is entirely within the gyroscope cavity. Under normal operating conditions, the accelerometer seal holds the accelerometer cavity at a higher pressure than the pressure of the enclosing gyroscope cavity. In the event…
