How Touchscreens Ignore Accidental Hovering or Palm Touches
This Qualcomm patent describes how a touchscreen controller can tell the difference between an intentional finger touch and accidental input from a hovering finger or a palm, then ignore the unwanted input.
Original patent title: “Identifying hover and/or palm input and rejecting spurious input for a touch panel”
This Qualcomm patent describes how a touchscreen controller can tell the difference between an intentional finger touch and accidental input from a hovering finger or a palm, then ignore the unwanted input. Granted to Qualcomm in 2018 with 21 claims and 1 forward citation, and it is expected to expire in 2035.
Coverage
What does this patent actually cover?
The patent describes a touch panel controller that receives "pixel values," which are measurements of electrical capacitance at each point on the screen (ClaimclaimA numbered sentence at the end of a patent that legally defines what the inventor owns. The most important section.Read more → 1). It identifies the strongest touch point ("peak pixel value") and then cleans up the data by discarding very weak signals (below a "first threshold") and isolated weak signals (not "adjacent to at least one other pixel value above the first threshold") (Claim 1). It then calculates the "aspect ratio" of the detected input, which is like its shape, using a "1/e thresholding operation" (Claim 1). Based on this shape, the controller decides if the input is a real "touch input" or an unwanted "hover input" and either accepts or rejects it (Claim 1). For example, if you are writing on a tablet and your palm rests on the screen, the system can detect the large, irregular shape of your palm and ignore it. The abstractabstractA short summary at the front of the patent describing the invention. Not legally binding.Read more → also mentions rejecting "palm input" based on pixel values.
The gap
What does this patent NOT cover?
- Does not cover touch panels that do not rely on capacitance to detect input.
- Does not cover input rejection methods that do not use an "aspect ratio" to distinguish between touch and hover inputs.
- Does not cover systems that accept isolated, non-adjacent pixel values as valid input.
- Does not cover rejecting inputs based solely on pressure, without considering capacitance or aspect ratio.
These exclusions are unique to PatentBrief — derived from the actual claim language, not patent-office boilerplate.
Key facts
What made this novel
The clever part is using the "aspect ratio" of the detected electrical signal, combined with filtering out isolated or weak signals, to reliably determine if an input is a deliberate touch, a hover, or a palm. This allows the system to intelligently ignore unwanted interactions.
The Patent Drawing
Schematic visualization of the patent's claim structure. Hand-drawn diagrams in progress for each landmark patent.
Where you've seen this
Real-world examples
Modern smartphone touchscreens
Tablet touchscreens
Laptop trackpads with multi-touch
Why it matters
The bigger picture
This technology is crucial for modern touchscreens, especially on devices like smartphones and tablets. By accurately distinguishing between intentional finger touches and accidental inputs from palms or hovering fingers, it significantly improves the user experience. This prevents frustrating errors, such as unintended app launches or text input while holding a device.
Filed
July 10, 2015
Granted
July 24, 2018
Market context
Who's building on this
Companies in this space
Qualcomm, the assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more →, continues to develop and integrate advanced touch controller technologies into its Snapdragon processors used in many smartphones and tablets. Other major semiconductor companies like Synaptics, Broadcom, and Cypress Semiconductor also develop similar touch controller solutions that build upon or incorporate such input rejection techniques.
Market impact
This type of input rejection technology significantly improved the usability and reliability of touch-enabled devices. It reduced user frustration caused by accidental touches, making smartphones and tablets more intuitive and efficient to operate. This enabled the widespread adoption of large, edge-to-edge touchscreens by mitigating common false input issues.
Claim 1 — Plain English
What this patent covers
The patent describes a touch panel controller that receives "pixel values," which are measurements of electrical capacitance at each point on the screen (Claim 1). It identifies the strongest touch point ("peak pixel value") and then cleans up the data by discarding very weak signals (below a "first threshold") and isolated weak signals (not "adjacent to at least one other pixel value above the first threshold") (Claim 1). It then calculates the "aspect ratio" of the detected input, which is like its shape, using a "1/e thresholding operation" (Claim 1). Based on this shape, the controller decides if the input is a real "touch input" or an unwanted "hover input" and either accepts or rejects it (Claim 1). For example, if you are writing on a tablet and your palm rests on the screen, the system can detect the large, irregular shape of your palm and ignore it. The abstract also mentions rejecting "palm input" based on pixel values.
The clever bit
The clever part is using the "aspect ratio" of the detected electrical signal, combined with filtering out isolated or weak signals, to reliably determine if an input is a deliberate touch, a hover, or a palm. This allows the system to intelligently ignore unwanted interactions.
What it does not cover
- Does not cover touch panels that do not rely on capacitance to detect input.
- Does not cover input rejection methods that do not use an "aspect ratio" to distinguish between touch and hover inputs.
- Does not cover systems that accept isolated, non-adjacent pixel values as valid input.
- Does not cover rejecting inputs based solely on pressure, without considering capacitance or aspect ratio.
Patent timeline
Application submitted to the patent office
Application published, typically 18 months after filing
Patent officially issued
Patent enters public domain
PatentBrief Score
Impact Score
Moderate
Citation count
6/40
Early citations
Claim breadth
14/20
Broad claimsclaimsThe numbered statements at the end of a patent that legally define what the inventor owns.Read more →
Recency
10/20
Granted 5–10 years ago
Assignee scale
20/20
Major company or institution
PatentBrief Impact Score — based on citation count, claim breadth, recency, and assignee scale. Not a legal assessment.
Heuristic Value Estimate
What this patent might be worth
$62K – $200K
Midpoint $125K · 8.9 yr remaining · industry ×1.6
Heuristic only — blends forward/backward citation counts, claim scope, time remaining, litigation history, and CPC-derived industry baseline. Real valuations need a professional appraisal.
Claim text not yet imported for this patent
The original legal language
Original claims
21 claims as filed with the patent office.
Concepts involved
Citations
Patent lineage
Cite this patent
Mohindra, R. (2018). How Touchscreens Ignore Accidental Hovering or Palm Touches (U.S. Patent No. 10,031,618). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/10031618/identifying-hover-andor-palm-input-and-rejecting-spurious-input-for-a-touch-pane
Auto-generated from the patent record. Double-check author order and the issue date against the official USPTO document before submitting.
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Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does How Touchscreens Ignore Accidental Hovering or Palm Touches cover?
This Qualcomm patent describes how a touchscreen controller can tell the difference between an intentional finger touch and accidental input from a hovering finger or a palm, then ignore the unwanted input.
Who owns patent US 10031618?
Qualcomm owns this patent, granted in 2018.
When does this patent expire?
This patent is expected to expire on July 10, 2035, when the invention enters the public domain.
What is patent US 10031618 cited by?
This patent has been cited by 1 later patents that build on its ideas.
What problem does this patent solve?
This technology is crucial for modern touchscreens, especially on devices like smartphones and tablets. By accurately distinguishing between intentional finger touches and accidental inputs from palms or hovering fingers, it significantly improves the user experience. This prevents frustrating errors, such as unintended app launches or text input while holding a device.
What does this patent NOT cover?
Does not cover touch panels that do not rely on capacitance to detect input.
Patent monitoring