Design Considerations
AN64846 - Getting Started with CapSense
®
Doc. No. 001-64846 Rev. *X
86
3.8.14.2 Shield Electrode Construction for Liquid Tolerance
As explained in the Liquid Tolerance section, by implementing a shield electrode and a guard sensor, a liquid tolerant
CapSense system can be implemented. This section shows how to implement a shield electrode and a guard sensor.
The shield electrode area depends on the size of the liquid droplet and the area available on the board for implementing
the shield electrode. The shield electrode should surround the sensor pads and traces, and spread no further than 1
cm from these features. Spreading the shield electrode beyond 1 cm has negligible effect on system performance.
Also, having a large shield electrode might increase the radiated emissions. If the board area is very large, the area
outside the 1-cm shield electrode should be left empty, as
shows. For improved liquid tolerance
performance there should not be any hatch fill or a trace connected to ground in the top and bottom layer of PCB. When
there is a grounded hatch fill or a trace then, when a liquid droplet falls on the touch interface, it might cause sensor
false triggers. Even if there is a shield electrode in between the sensor and ground, the effect of shield electrode will
be totally masked out and sensors might false trigger.
In some applications, there might not be sufficient area available on the PCB for shield electrode implementation. In
such cases, the shield electrode can spread less than 1 cm and the minimum area for shield electrode can be the area
remaining on the board after implementing the sensor.
Figure 3-74. Shield Electrode Placement when Sensor Trace is Routed in Top and Bottom Layer
PCB
– Top Layer
BTN1
BTN2
1 cm Shield
Electrode
1 cm Shield
Electrode
Follow the below guidelines implementing the shield electrode in a 2-Layer and 4-layer PCB:
2-Layer PCB:
Top layer: Hatch fill with 7-mil trace and 45-mil grid (25 percent fill). Hatch fill should be connected to driven shield
signal.
Bottom layer: Hatch fill with 7-mil trace and 70-mil grid (17 percent fill). Hatch fill should be connected to driven
shield signal.
4-Layer PCB:
Top layer: Hatch fill with 7-mil trace and 45-mil grid (25 percent fill). Hatch fill should be connected to driven shield
signal.
Layer-2: Hatch fill with 7-mil trace and 70-mil grid (17 percent fill). Hatch fill should be connected to driven shield
signal.
Layer-3: V
DD
Plane
Bottom layer: Hatch fill with 7-mil trace and 70-mil grid (17 percent fill). Hatch fill should be connected to ground.
The recommended air-gap between the sensor and the shield electrode is 1 mm.