An apparatus such as a set-top box, includes at least one capacitive touch button with a guard feature that provides, the ability to detect and reject false touches. According to an exemplary embodiment, the apparatus includes a first conductive element that is capacitively isolated from ground, and a second conductive element that is capacitively isolated from ground and located adjacent to the first conductive element. A first sensor is coupled to the first conductive element and measures a change in capacitance between the first conductive element and ground due to a change in physical environment. A second sensor is coupled to the second conductive element and measures a change in capacitance between the second conductive element and ground due to the change in physical environment. A controller is coupled to the first sensor and the second sensor and determines a difference between the measured changes in capacitance.

A hand-held machine tool (1) is provided including a housing (2), with a drive device for actuating a tool that can be brought into operative connection with the machine tool (1) and a control device (8) for actuating the drive device (4) being provided, and the control device (4) being designed with a control element (10), and at least one capacitive sensor element (32, 33) operatively connected to the control device (10) being provided. The at least one sensor element (32, 33) and/or the control element (10) is at least partially, in particular almost completely separated from a main channel (50) of the machine tool (1) in which the drive device (4) is arranged.

The invention relates to a device (10) for a vehicle (1) for detecting an activation action in at least two different detection areas (51, 52), and in particular for mounting on a vehicle part (5) to activate at least one function of the vehicle (1) as a function of the detection, comprising: a printed circuit board (20) having a plurality of layers (21, 22, 23, 24) arranged one above the other in an axial direction (z), a first electrically conductive sensing element (31) for capacitive sensing in a first (51) of the detection areas (51, 52), a second electrically conductive sensing element (32) for capacitive sensing in a second (52) of the detection areas (51, 52), wherein the sensor elements (31, 32) are arranged at different ones of the layers (21, 22, 23, 24) of the printed circuit board (20), characterized in that in that the sensor elements (31, 32) are configured to be at least partially congruent, the congruent areas (35) of the sensor elements (31, 32) being positioned offset with respect to one another in a lateral direction (x).

A capacitive detection device includes a capacitive sensor having a sense electrode and an auxiliary electrode that are arrangeable in the vicinity of an electric heater member for mutual capacitive coupling. The capacitive detection device has a signal voltage source providing an alternating measurement voltage, a complex impedance measurement circuit for measuring complex sense currents and for determining a complex impedance based on the measured complex sense current, and for electrically connecting the auxiliary electrode either with the reference voltage or with the guard signal. The method includes providing the measurement signal to the sense electrode and electrically connect the auxiliary electrode selectively either to the reference voltage or to the guard voltage; determining capacitance values in the two different connection states of the auxiliary electrode; and calculating a compensated capacitance value as a weighted sum of the two determined capacitance values, wherein the weighting factors are predefined constant values.

A capacitive sensor with a plurality of sense inputs connectable to capacitive sense electrodes and a common reference input, each sense input and the reference input can be put in a measure state, in a ground state, or in a shield state. The sensor can be equipped with external reference capacitors between each of the sense input and the common reference terminal. The reference capacitor can be read individually by selectively pulling one of the input terminals to ground and driving the other to be equipotential with the reference input.

A device for detecting an object with respect to a detection surface including: a measurement electrode; at least one guard electrode, at the same alternating potential as the measurement electrode; at least one module for measuring a first signal with respect to the capacitance (C.sub.eo), called electrode-object capacitance, formed between said measurement electrode and said object; and
at least one electrode, called polarization electrode, placed opposite the object, and polarized at the ground potential (G) so as to polarize the object by capacitive coupling.

Disclosed herein is an electrostatic capacitance detection circuit including a sense pin to which a sense electrode is to be connected, a ground pin to be grounded, a reference pin to be connected to a node where parasitic capacitance is to be formed between the node and the sense electrode, and a capacitance detection circuit connected to the sense pin, the ground pin, and the reference pin and configured to detect electrostatic capacitance formed by the sense electrode.

A detection device includes an upper detection electrode, a lower detection electrode disposed under the upper detection electrode in an overlapping manner, a proximity state detection unit configured to detect a proximity state of a detection target relative to a detection surface based on a change in at least one of electrostatic capacitances of the upper detection electrode and the lower detection electrode, and a switching unit configured to perform switching between a first state in which the upper detection electrode and the lower detection electrode are insulated from each other and a second state in which the upper detection electrode and the lower detection electrode are short-circuited to each other.

A sensor electrode and an insulating body are coupled together by a hot melt member in a sensor of a steering wheel. The sensor electrode makes contact with the insulating body at first protrusions so as to form through holes in the hot melt member. The hot melt member is accordingly able to stretch easily due to the through holes, enabling a high extensibility for the sensor to be achieved.

The invention relates to a sensor device (100), in particular for a vehicle, comprising: a capacitive sensor unit (10) and a coil unit (20) which surrounds the capacitive sensor unit (10) at least partially, preferably geometrically. For this purpose, it is provided according to the invention that the capacitive sensor unit (10) has at least one first, in particular linear, sensor element (11), which is aligned essentially along a first geodesic (G1) of the coil unit (20).