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Amazon patents antenna fix for touchless gesture detection

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Amazon describes a method that uses a device's wireless antenna to detect when a hand or object gets close, effectively turning the antenna into a proximity sensor. The system monitors the antenna's electrical resistance and adjusts for changes in the radio's signal strength to ensure accurate readings. This allows the device to recognize gestures without a dedicated touch screen or button.

Why it mattersThis improves the reliability of gesture controls in devices like tablets or laptops by correcting for internal signal fluctuations, potentially making touchless interactions more consistent.

In the filing’s own words

Technologies directed to an energy efficient technique for Antennas as Sensors (A2S) systems used for detecting user input events are described. One electronic device includes a wireless communication component coupled to an antenna via a radio frequency (RF) path and an A2S system. The electronic device sends RF signals to the antenna via the RF path in a first time window, and receives an analog voltage signal representing impedance changes of the antenna in the first time window. The electronic device determines a variation in a transmit power level of the wireless communication component from a specified power level, and adjusts digital samples by an adjustment amount. The electronic device determines, using the adjusted digital samples, a user input event caused by a presence of an object in proximity to the antenna. The processing device performs an action in response to the user input event.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A wireless device comprising: an antenna; a radio coupled to the antenna, the radio to send radio frequency (RF) signals to the antenna to radiate electromagnetic energy in a first time window; a processing device coupled to the radio, the processing device comprising an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and detection logic; a detection circuit coupled between the radio and the antenna, the detection circuit to output an analog voltage signal to the ADC of the processing device to generate an Antenna as Sensor (A2S) signal in the first time window, the A2S signal representing impedance changes of the antenna, wherein: the detection logic is to receive the A2S signal from the ADC; the detection logic is to determine that a first power level of a transmit power of the radio is different than a second power level of the transmit power, the second power level being a default power level; the detection logic is to adjust the A2S signal by a first adjustment amount corresponding to the first power level to obtain an adjusted A2S signal; the detection logic is to determine, using the adjusted A2S signal, a user input event caused by a presence of an object in proximity to the antenna; and the processing device is to perform an action in response to the user input event.

Facts

Company
Amazon (Amazon Technologies, Inc.)
Official title
POWER VARIABILITY COMPENSATION METHOD IN GESTURE DETECTION SCHEMES
Publication number
US20260298992A1
Application number
19089635
Filed
Mar 25, 2025
Published
Oct 1, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

G01R 29/0878 Physics & computingH03M 1/12 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.