Self-cleaning substrate

Abstract

Provided is a self-cleaning substrate system. The system includes a substrate and a cleaner coupled to the substrate, wherein the cleaner includes at least one of an electrode, an ultrasound emitter, or a coronal wind generator. The system includes a circuit configured to determine a characteristic of the substrate. The system further includes a power source. The system includes a controller operatively coupled to the cleaner, the sensor, and the power source. The circuit provides a feedback signal indicative of the detected characteristic to the controller, and wherein the controller is coupled to the cleaner such that the cleaner can be controlled by the controller.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of cleaning a substrate with a substrate cleaning system, the substrate cleaning system including a controller, a determination circuit coupled to the controller, and a cleaning mechanism coupled to the controller, the method comprising:
 receiving operating instructions at the controller, wherein the operating instructions include an indication of a trigger event relating to a characteristic of the substrate;   determining the trigger event via the determination circuit;   activating the cleaning mechanism with the controller; and   cleaning a localized area of the substrate with the cleaning mechanism.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the substrate is part of a touchscreen. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the trigger event comprises a number of user touches of the touchscreen. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the trigger event comprises a threshold level of the characteristic. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the trigger event comprises a threshold level of dirtiness of the substrate. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining the trigger event through the determination circuit includes detecting an optical transmissiveness of the substrate. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising detecting a characteristic of the substrate during the cleaning step. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising deactivating the cleaning mechanism when the detected characteristic falls below a threshold level. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the characteristic comprises a cleanliness of the localized area. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the characteristic comprises information concerning a previous cleaning of the localized area. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of electrodes electrically coupled to a power source, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by emitting an electric field by the electrodes. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of electrodes form an array across a surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of electrodes are positioned around a perimeter of the substrate. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of ultrasound emitters, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by causing localized vibrations at the localized area by emitting ultrasonic waves from at least one of the ultrasound emitters into the substrate at the area. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of coronal wind generators, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by causing a stream of air from at least one of the coronal wind generators to be blown across a surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the plurality of coronal wind generators are mounted to a frame surrounding a periphery of the substrate. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising rotating the plurality of coronal wind generators about the frame through a plurality of rotary actuators. 
     
     
         18 . A method of cleaning a substrate with a substrate cleaning system, the substrate cleaning system including a controller and a cleaning mechanism coupled to the controller, the method comprising:
 receiving a command to clean the substrate at the controller, wherein the command includes a location of a localized area of the substrate;   activating, by the controller, the cleaning mechanism;   cleaning the localized area of the substrate through the cleaning mechanism;   determining a characteristic of the substrate during the cleaning step; and   deactivating the cleaning mechanism when the detected characteristic falls below a threshold level.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the substrate is part of a touchscreen. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein the command includes an instruction to clean the area after a designated number of user touches of the touchscreen. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the characteristic comprises a cleanliness of the localized area. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of electrodes electrically coupled to a power source, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by emitting an electric field by the electrodes. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the plurality of electrodes form an array across a surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 22 , wherein the plurality of electrodes are positioned around a perimeter of the substrate. 
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of ultrasound emitters, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by causing localized vibrations at the localized area by emitting ultrasonic waves from at least one of the ultrasound emitters into the substrate at the area. 
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 25 , wherein the plurality of ultrasound emitters are mounted to a frame surrounding a periphery of the substrate. 
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of coronal wind generators, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by causing a stream of air from at least one of the coronal wind generators to be blown across a surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         28 . A method of cleaning an electronic display having a display cleaning system, the display cleaning system including a controller and a cleaning mechanism coupled to the controller, the method comprising:
 receiving operating instructions at the controller, wherein the operating instructions include a cleaning command;   analyzing the cleaning command to determine a trigger event;   determining the trigger event at the controller;   activating, by the controller, the cleaning mechanism; and   cleaning a localized area of the display through the cleaning mechanism.   
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the trigger event comprises a number of user touches of the touchscreen. 
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the trigger event comprises at least one of a time and a date. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the trigger event comprises a threshold level of a characteristic of the substrate. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 31 , further comprising detecting the characteristic through a sensor, including detecting an optical transmissiveness of the substrate. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 28 , wherein the cleaning mechanism includes a plurality of electrodes electrically coupled to a power source, and wherein the cleaning step is performed by emitting an electric field by the electrodes. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the plurality of electrodes form an array across a surface of the display. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 33 , wherein the plurality of electrodes are positioned around a perimeter of the display.