{
  "patent_number": "US 7663607",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Multi-Touch Screens Track Multiple Fingers at Once",
  "original_title": "Multipoint touchscreen",
  "summary": "Apple's 2010 patent describes a touch screen that uses two layers of transparent conductive lines to detect several fingers touching the screen simultaneously.",
  "what_it_does": "The patent describes a system using a grid of transparent conductive lines, typically made of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), arranged in two separate layers. These layers are stacked so the lines in the top layer run perpendicular to the lines in the bottom layer. By monitoring the charge coupling at the intersection points of these lines, the system can pinpoint exactly where multiple fingers touch the screen at the same time. This allows a device to distinguish between a single tap and complex gestures like pinching or zooming.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover single-touch screens that only detect one point of contact at a time.",
    "Does not cover resistive touch screens that rely on physical pressure to connect two flexible layers.",
    "Does not cover non-transparent touch sensors used in trackpads or other non-display surfaces.",
    "Does not cover the software algorithms used to interpret the touch data into specific gestures like pinch-to-zoom."
  ],
  "filed": "2004-05-06",
  "granted": "2010-02-16",
  "expires": "2024-05-06",
  "status": "expired",
  "holder": "Apple Inc",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/apple-inc",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Brian Q. Huppi",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/brian-q-huppi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Steve Hotelling",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/steve-hotelling"
    },
    {
      "name": "Joshua A. Strickon",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/joshua-a-strickon"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 1995,
  "tags": [
    "consumer_electronics",
    "semiconductors"
  ],
  "abstract": "A touch panel having a transparent capacitive sensing medium configured to detect multiple touches or near touches that occur at the same time and at distinct locations in the plane of the touch panel and to produce distinct signals representative of the location of the touches on the plane of the touch panel for each of the multiple touches is disclosed.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/7663607/multipoint-touchscreen",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/7663607/multipoint-touchscreen/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US7663607",
  "relatedPatents": [
    {
      "patentNumber": "8619056",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How Touchscreens Tell Real Touches From False Ghost Touches",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8619056/ghost-resolution-for-a-capacitive-touch-panel"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "7812826",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How Multi-Touch Gestures Like Pinch-to-Zoom Work on Smartphones",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/7812826/iphone-software-keyboard"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "6323846",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How a Multi-Touch Screen Detects Multiple Fingers and Palms",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/6323846/aqua-user-interface"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "8493330",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How Touchscreens Precisely Align Signals to Detect Your Touch",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8493330/individual-channel-phase-delay-scheme"
    },
    {
      "patentNumber": "7812828",
      "countryCode": "US",
      "title": "How Touchscreens Use Math to Recognize Your Fingers",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/7812828/ellipse-fitting-for-multi-touch-surfaces"
    }
  ]
}