JP2001282412A - Equipment controller and control information input method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a controller, its method, etc., with high operability. SOLUTION: A perspective view of a triangular prism to take three operating surfaces on which menu items are arranged as sides is displayed on a display screen of a remote controller, etc., so that at least a part of each of the three operating surfaces is visible. And the displayed triangular prism is rotated, its optional operating surface is displayed in front and selection of the menu item on the operating surface arranged in front is accepted. And a control signal corresponding to the menu item selected by the user is outputted to equipment to be controlled.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an input device for operating home appliances and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art GUI remote controllers (remote controllers) for remotely controlling appliances such as home appliances have become widespread. The structure of the operation screen of the GUI remote controller is hierarchically configured as illustrated in FIG. For example, when the user selects “Setup” from the main screen of the first hierarchy, operates on a lower operation screen, and then wants to select a menu on an operation screen of another branch (for example, “C
D)), return to the main screen once and click “Device”
And then select the desired operation menu "CD" on the lower operation screen.

[0003]

As described above, when the operation screen having the hierarchical structure is shifted to the target operation screen, the operation menu must be sequentially selected in accordance with the hierarchical structure. The number of actions to make the transition is large, which is complicated for the user. In addition, since it is difficult to understand the entire structure of the operation screen, it is often difficult to accurately switch to the desired operation screen. In addition, it was difficult to confirm the current position of the operation screen in the entire hierarchical structure.

[0004] In particular, the remote control cannot be made very large due to its nature, and has a small display screen, a small amount of information that can be displayed at one time, and it is particularly difficult to recognize the position of the operation screen.

[0005] A similar problem exists not only in remote controllers but also in input devices having relatively small screens.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a control device and method with high operability. Another object of the present invention is to provide an easy-to-use input device and method.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a device control apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a columnar body or four operation units having three operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged as side surfaces. Display means for displaying a triangular pyramid-shaped cone having a surface as a surface, rotation means for rotating the columnar body or the cone displayed on the display means in response to an external operation, and display on the display means Selecting means for selecting a menu item on the operation surface, and means for transmitting a control signal corresponding to the menu item selected by the selecting means to the control target device. According to such a configuration, since the respective operation surfaces are adjacent to each other, it is easy for the user to grasp the structure of the operation menu, and it is possible to easily shift to a desired operation menu.

[0008] The selection means may receive only a selection of a menu item arranged on an operation surface arranged in front of operation surfaces constituting the side surface of the columnar body or the surface of the cone.

[0009] The display means displays such that at least a part of each of the three operation surfaces constituting the three side surfaces of the columnar body or the four operation surfaces constituting the surface of the cone appears simultaneously on the same screen. It is desirable.

[0010] The rotation means may include means for rotating the column or the cone in response to selection of an operation surface other than the front surface such that the selected operation surface is the front surface.

A specific function is assigned to each operation surface, and only menu items belonging to the function assigned to the operation surface may be arranged on each operation surface.

It is preferable that the selection means be capable of continuously selecting a menu item arranged on an adjacent operation surface without returning to the main screen each time.

In order to achieve the above object, a control information input method according to a second aspect of the present invention is directed to a perspective view of a column having three operation surfaces on which a menu item is arranged on a screen. Is displayed so that at least a part of each of the three operation surfaces can be seen, and the displayed pillar is rotated to display an arbitrary operation surface in the front, and a menu on the operation surface arranged at least in the front Receiving a selection of an item and outputting a control signal corresponding to the selected menu item.

[0014] In order to achieve the above object, a control information input method according to a third aspect of the present invention provides a control information input method comprising: a triangular pyramid-shaped pyramid having four operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged; One surface is displayed so that at least a part of each of the four operation surfaces can be seen, and the displayed cone is rotated to display any operation surface in front, and at least on the operation surface arranged in front. Accepts menu item selection,
Outputting a control signal corresponding to the selected menu item.

Further, a recording medium according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is a computer-readable recording medium storing a computer in a columnar shape having three operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged or a triangular pyramid having four operation surfaces as surfaces. A display unit for displaying a cone, a rotation unit for rotating the column or the cone displayed on the display unit in response to an external operation, and selecting a menu item on an operation surface displayed on the display unit A computer program for functioning as a selecting means for performing the control, and a means for transmitting a control signal corresponding to the menu item selected by the selecting means to the device to be controlled.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A device control device (so-called remote control device) for operating an AV (Audio Visual) device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the device control apparatus according to the present embodiment. As illustrated, the device control device includes a display unit 1, a touch panel operation unit 3, a control unit 5, a memory 7, and a transmission / reception unit 9.

The display section 1 is configured using a display element capable of performing a graphical display such as a liquid crystal display panel. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the display unit 1 displays a triangular prism-shaped column (menu selection body, three-dimensional icon) in which a selectable operation menu is arranged and three operation input surfaces form side surfaces. ing. The menu selection body shown in FIG. 2 is not a triangular prism in a strict sense, but will be hereinafter referred to as a triangular prism for easy understanding.

Each of the operation input surfaces includes a "setup operation input surface", an "edit operation input surface", and a "music / video control operation input surface". The “operation input surface for setup” includes, for example, an operation menu for setting various functions of the AV device as shown in FIG.
Further, the “editing operation input surface” is, for example, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), an operation menu for editing is included. The “music / video control operation input surface” includes, for example, an operation menu related to music or video, as shown in FIG. Of these three operation input surfaces, the surface displayed as the front of the triangular prism is the operation input surface to be processed at the present time.

The touch panel operation unit 3 is composed of, for example, a touch sensor (tablet) using a transparent electrode.
Operation position information corresponding to a coordinate position on the display screen is input so as to be superimposed on the display screen of the display unit 1.
Notify.

The control unit 5 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), D
A display control of a screen to be displayed on the display unit 1 based on information on an operation position obtained by the touch panel operation unit 3, comprising an SP (Digital Signal Processor), etc.
The control information is transmitted to the V equipment. Specifically, when the control unit 5 determines that the operation position notified from the touch panel operation unit 3 is the area of the operation button on the operation input surface in front of the triangular prism, the control information corresponding to the operation button Is given to the transmitting / receiving unit 9. For example, when it is determined that the operation position is the area of the music playback button in the “music / video control operation input surface”, the control unit 5 gives the transmission / reception unit 9 control information for instructing music playback.

When the control unit 5 determines that the operation position is an area of another operation input surface located on both sides of the operation input surface, the control unit 5 depresses the operation input surface on both sides. Display control is performed to move the other operation input surface to the front of the triangular prism. For example, three operation input surfaces D1, D
2 and D3, when the position pressed by the user in the state where the screen D1 is in front of the triangular prism is determined to be the area of the screen D2 on the right of the screen D1, for example, FIG. ), The triangular prism is rotated clockwise to display the screen D2 so as to be in front. Also, the position pressed by the user is the screen D3 on the left of the screen D1.
If it is determined that the area is a part of the area shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the triangular prism is rotated counterclockwise, and the screen D3 is displayed so as to be in front.

The memory 7 has a RAM and a ROM. R
AM (Random Access Memory)
Image data of a triangular prism and corresponding position information, image data of each operation input surface, position information of each operation button provided on each operation input surface, control information corresponding to each operation button, and display on a display screen The data of the background image and the like are stored. In addition, ROM (Read Only Memory)
y) stores an operation program of the control unit 5, a basic image of a triangular prism, and the like.

The transmission / reception section 9 transmits control information from the control section 5 to infrared rays (for example, IrDA) or radio waves (for example, Blue).
transmission) to the AV device using a wireless communication system such as "tooth".

Next, the processing operation of the present input device when the touch panel is pressed will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The control unit 5 displays the triangular prism-shaped menu selection image (menu selection body) having three operation input surfaces as side surfaces as shown in FIG. The coordinates of the vertices of the front surface, the vertex coordinates of the menu items (selection items) on the front operation surface, etc.
Is stored in When the operator touches the display screen, the touch panel operation unit 3 detects pressing of the touch panel, and notifies the control unit 5 of the detected position (operation position). Control unit 5
Responds to this notification and starts the processing shown in FIG.

First, the control unit 5 controls the touch panel operation unit 3
It is determined from the coordinate information stored in the memory 7 whether or not the operation position from is in any operation button area on the operation input surface in front of the triangular prism (menu selection body) displayed on the display unit 1. (Step S1).

In the case of any operation button area,
The control unit 5 reads the control information corresponding to the corresponding operation button from the memory 7 and transmits the control information to the AV device via the transmission / reception unit 9 (step S2). If the operation position is not in the region of the operation button, the control unit 5 determines whether the operation position is in the region of the operation input surface next to the front operation input surface (step S3). When the operation position is the area of the operation input surface next to the front operation input surface, the control unit 5 performs control to rotate and display the triangular prism so that the selected operation input surface is in front of the triangular prism. (Step S4).

If it is determined in step S3 that the operation position is not in the area of the adjacent operation input surface, the processing is terminated.

In this way, it is possible to switch to another operation system by one action from the operation input surface.
In addition, since the operation input surfaces are always adjacent to each other, it is easy for the user to grasp the structure of the operation menu. Thus, the user can accurately shift to the desired operation menu.

In the above description, an example is described in which a triangular prism having three operation input surfaces as side surfaces is displayed, but the shape is arbitrary. For example, it is also possible to arrange three operation surfaces in a curved shape to display a cylindrical menu selection body. Furthermore, in the above description, an example is shown in which a column having three operation input surfaces as side surfaces is displayed, but the present invention is not limited to an example in which the column is displayed for menu selection. For example, a triangular pyramid composed of four operation input surfaces may be displayed as shown in FIG. FIG. 6A is a front view showing one of four surfaces (operation input surfaces) of the triangular pyramid. The other three planes (triangles) P2 to P4 are arranged in contact with the side of the plane P1. When the operator selects a menu item (selection item) on the operation input surface P1 arranged on the front, a control signal corresponding to the selected menu item is output.

Next, the operator operates the side H2 of the operation input surface P1.
When is selected, the control unit 5 rotates and displays the triangular pyramid, and displays the operation input surface P2 in contact with the operation input surface P1 at the side H2 in front. When the operator selects the side H3, the operation input surface P3 in contact with the operation input surface P1 at the side H3 is displayed in front, and when the operator selects the side H4, the operation in contact with the operation input surface P1 at the side H4. The input surface P4 is displayed on the front. Even with this configuration, the operator can always recognize all four surfaces. Therefore, as in the case of the triangular prism, the structure of the menu is easy to understand, and the target item (selection item) can be easily selected.

As shown in FIG. 6B, a display for guiding functions and the like assigned to adjacent operation input surfaces may be added. Further, a triangular pyramid (tetrahedron) may be displayed three-dimensionally.

The size or shape of each operation input surface constituting the triangular prism and the triangular pyramid, the arrangement of the triangular prism and the triangular pyramid, and the like are arbitrary. In addition to accepting a selection operation on the operation input surface displayed on the front, it also accepts selection of a menu item on another operation input surface and rotates the menu selection body so that the operation input surface is in front. Display control may be performed as follows.

Further, in the above embodiment, the remote control device for controlling the AV equipment has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is applicable to a device for controlling various electric appliances. For example, if the configuration shown in FIG. 1 is installed in an AV device, it can be used as it is as an input device of the AV device. In this case, the control unit 5 can be shared with the control unit of the AV device.

The device control device of the present invention can be realized by using a general computer system without using a dedicated system. For example, an apparatus that executes the above-described processing is configured by installing the program from a medium (floppy (registered trademark) disk, CD-ROM, or the like) storing a program for causing the computer to execute the above-described operation. be able to. In the case where the above-described functions are realized by the OS sharing or the OS and the application being jointly used, only the part other than the OS may be stored in the medium.

It is also possible to superimpose a program on a carrier wave and distribute the program via a communication network. For example, the program may be posted on a bulletin board (BBS) of a communication network and distributed via the network. Then, by starting this program and executing it in the same manner as other application programs under the control of the OS, the above-described processing can be executed.

[0037]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the operation screens are adjacent to each other, it is easy for the user to understand the structure of the operation menu, and it is possible to accurately shift to a desired operation menu.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a device control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen displayed on a display unit of the device control device of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining each operation input surface.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining display control of an operation input surface by a control unit in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining a processing operation of the device control device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining another example of the display screen.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining an operation of a conventional remote control device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 display unit 3 touch panel operation unit 5 control unit 7 memory 9 transmission / reception

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04Q 9/00 361 H04Q 9/00 361 F term (Reference) 5C025 BA18 BA21 BA28 BA30 CA09 CB01 CB10 5C056 AA09 BA00 DA08 EA05 EA09 5E501 AA19 AA20 AB06 AB12 AB13 BA05 CA04 CB05 EB05 FA04 FA05 FB24 FB43 5K048 AA04 BA03 DA07 DC01 EB02 FB15 HA04 HA11 HA23

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A display means for displaying a columnar body having three operation surfaces as side surfaces on which menu items are arranged or a triangular pyramid having four operation surfaces as surfaces, and responding to an external operation, Rotating means for rotating the column or cone displayed on the display means, selecting means for selecting a menu item on the operation surface displayed on the display means, corresponding to the menu item selected by the selecting means And a means for transmitting a control signal to the device to be controlled. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said selection means receives only a selection of a menu item arranged on a front operation surface among operation surfaces constituting a side surface of said columnar body or a surface of said cone. The device control device according to claim 1. 3. The display means such that at least a part of each of three operation surfaces constituting three side surfaces of the columnar body or four operation surfaces constituting a surface of the cone is simultaneously displayed on the same screen. The device control device according to claim 1, wherein the device control device displays the information. 4. The rotating means includes means for rotating the column or the cone in response to selection of an operation surface other than the front surface so that the selected operation surface is the front surface. The device control device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein 5. A method according to claim 1, wherein a specific function is assigned to each operation surface, and a menu item belonging to the function assigned to the operation surface is arranged on each operation surface. The device control device according to any one of claims 4 to 4. 6. The apparatus control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said selection means enables continuous selection of menu items arranged on adjacent operation surfaces. . 7. A perspective view of a pillar having side faces of three operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged on a screen so that at least a part of each of the three operation surfaces is visible, and is displayed. By rotating the column, an arbitrary operation surface is displayed at the front, at least selection of a menu item on the operation surface arranged at the front is received, and a control signal corresponding to the selected menu item is output. Characteristic control information input method. 8. On a screen, one surface of a triangular pyramid having four operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged is displayed so that at least a part of each of the four operation surfaces can be seen. Rotating the cone to display an arbitrary operation surface in front, accepting selection of a menu item on at least the operation surface arranged in front, and outputting a control signal corresponding to the selected menu item. The control information input method characterized by the above-mentioned. 9. A computer, comprising: display means for displaying a columnar body having three operation surfaces on which menu items are arranged or a triangular pyramid having four operation surfaces as surfaces; and responding to an external operation. A rotation unit configured to rotate the column or the cone displayed on the display unit; a selection unit configured to select a menu item on an operation surface displayed on the display unit; and a menu selected by the selection unit. Means for transmitting a control signal corresponding to the item to the control target device; and a computer-readable recording medium on which a computer program for causing the computer to function as a computer is recorded.