Cirque Corporation Receives Broad Patent Coverage for Touchpad Applications in Mobile Phones

Cirque Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps Electric Co., Ltd. and a leader in the capacitance input technology industry, today announced it has been issued U.S. patent number 7,151,528 B2, which grants broad coverage for the use of capacitive touchpad technology in mobile phones.

This new patent relates specifically to a proximity-based, mutually capacitance-sensitive touchpad that is located directly beneath mobile phone key mats. Cirque’s proprietary GlideSensor(R) technology not only enhances the end-user experience for mobile phone menu navigation and application controls, but also adds an exciting new dimension for easily writing characters and text messages directly into the phone. Adding GlideSensor technology to a mobile phone does not add to the size or complexity of the cell phone interface due to its ability to be placed directly beneath the key mat’s normal buttons.

“Cirque has long been a technology leader in input controls, and the
GlideSensor technology is currently being deployed by Alps Electric in many Asian mobile phones,” said Chris Oshima, president of Cirque. “This patent validates the originality and effectiveness of our technology and its application to improve the end-user experience in using mobile devices.”

“Cirque’s technology is ideal for mobile phone applications,” said Tadamitsu Sato, engineering manager of Alps Electric, Peripheral Products Division of Japan. “It provides a much more usable solution for text entry and menu navigation. We have now deployed the GlideSensor technology in five mobile phones with excellent results. We expect to see the use of this technology increase as new cell phone designs are introduced.”

Cirque’s GlideSensor solutions are configured to allow the rapid design of non-conventional touch input products. GlideSensor touch arrays may be designed to take the form of thin films, flexible surfaces and irregular shapes, making them a natural and elegant fit for application in mobile phones and other handheld consumer electronic devices.

For more information about GlideSensor and its application to the mobile phone and consumer electronics markets, please visit www.cirque.com.

About Cirque
Founded in 1991, Cirque is the original developer of capacitive touchpad technology. From the beginning, its original GlidePoint technology has provided the core of each new development of its touch-input solutions. In early 2003, Cirque was acquired by Alps Electric Co., Ltd., a $5.9 billion world leader in manufacturing electronics. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps, Cirque is considered the center of technology development for capacitive touch solutions. Cirque maintains independent development, production, sales and distribution facilities in Salt Lake City. For more information, please visit www.cirque.com