JP2014052903A - Input device, input device controlling method, controlling program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve convenience of a user by allowing the user to easily select a desired icon by improving collective viewability of the icon.SOLUTION: An input device includes: an icon group moving part (11) which moves grouped icons capable of specifying an icon group (1) comprising at least one icon (2) in a group along a selective trajectory in accordance with user's operation(7a); and an icon display part (12) which, when the grouped icons are selected, displays the at least one icon (2) contained in the icon group specified by the grouped icons so as to be viewable in a collective manner.

Description

  The present invention relates to an input device capable of inputting information by selecting an icon based on a position touched by a user operation.

  In an electronic device having a display screen with a touch panel, such as information terminals such as smartphones and some home-use game consoles, the processing (application) to be executed by the electronic device and the target (data) of the processing are illustrated. User interfaces that allow a user to input information by touching an “icon” expressed by a symbol or a symbol have become widespread. This is because it is possible to allow the user to input intuitively and easily compared to the conventional input method of operating an input device such as a keyboard.

  Therefore, devising a user interface using the above icons has become increasingly important, and better user interfaces have been widely devised. For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a menu display device having an interface that allows searching and selecting menu items with a simple operation without using a plurality of icons.

  Patent Document 2 below discloses a user interface implementation device that can easily confirm the position of a selected menu. Patent Document 3 below discloses a multimedia playback device that realizes an intuitive and simple user interface in the multimedia playback device.

  Further, Patent Document 4 below discloses a display method for improving the operability by making it easier for a user to identify a menu being selected. Patent Document 5 listed below discloses an icon display system that does not reduce the visibility of icon patterns even when the number of icons that can be selected on the icon menu screen is increased.

JP 2010-055145 A (published on March 11, 2010) JP 2008-027428 A (published on Feb. 07, 2008) JP 2007-300565 A (published November 15, 2007) JP 2006-185273 A (released on July 13, 2006) JP 2004-295159 A (released on October 21, 2004)

  The user interface using the icon has a problem that the user cannot find the target icon immediately. This is because as the number of applications and data stored in the electronic device increases, the number of icons corresponding to the applications and the like also increases, and many icons are displayed at once on the display screen.

  In order to solve the above problem, a method of allowing the user to perform a two-stage operation is conceivable. That is, for example, when icons are classified in advance by the user for each category of application, (1) the user is allowed to specify a category (icon group) to which the target icon belongs, and (2) a list of icons belonging to the category is displayed. By doing so, it is conceivable to select a target icon from the icons.

  However, when the number of applications and the like further increase and the category of the application further increases, it is difficult to display a list so that the category can be easily identified. Although a method of increasing the classification hierarchy can be considered, it is not a preferable solution. This is because the number of operations required for the user to reach the target icon increases.

  The techniques disclosed in the above Patent Documents 1 to 5 cannot solve the above-described problem caused by an increase in icons. For example, the menu display device disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not focus on solving the above problem, but merely “displays a plurality of menu items side by side”. The same applies to the other patent documents 2 to 5.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and its purpose is to improve the convenience of the user by improving the listability of icons and allowing the user to easily select a desired icon. It is to provide an input device or the like for improvement.

  In order to solve the above problems, an input device according to an aspect of the present invention includes an input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and a display surface capable of displaying an icon for specifying information. The input device is capable of inputting the information by selecting the icon based on the designated position, and groups at least one icon in conjunction with the operation of the user. When one grouping icon is selected from a moving unit that moves a grouping icon that can specify an icon group along a first trajectory and a grouping icon that is moved by the moving unit, the group Display means for displaying at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the categorized icon so that it can be listed.

  In order to solve the above problem, an input device control method according to an aspect of the present invention can display an input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and an icon for specifying information. An input device control method capable of inputting the information by selecting the icon based on the designated position, in conjunction with the operation of the user, A moving step for moving a grouped icon that can identify an icon group obtained by grouping at least one icon along the first trajectory, and one grouped icon from the grouped icons moved in the moving step When is selected, at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon is displayed in a listable manner And a step.

  According to one aspect of the input device and the method for controlling the device according to the present invention, the device can improve the listability of icons and allow the user to easily select a desired icon. There is an effect that the convenience can be improved.

It is a block diagram which shows the principal part structure of the smart phone which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. (A) is the schematic diagram showing the external appearance example of the said smart phone, (b) is the schematic diagram showing the operation example of the said smart phone by a user. It is the schematic diagram which showed the basic operation | movement of the said smart phone, (a) shows a mode that the said smart phone moves an icon group along a selection track | orbit based on the slide operation by a user, (b) shows the said smart phone. Shows a state where the icon group is moved to the specific area, (c) shows a process in which the smartphone moves the icon group moved to the specific area with a predetermined animation, and (d) A state in which the icons are displayed as a list by moving the icons along the icon trajectory is shown. It is a schematic diagram which shows the process until a predetermined | prescribed application starts, (a) shows a mode that the icon is selected by the user's touch operation, (b) shows the command specified by the said icon above As a result of input to the smartphone, the application is started. It is a schematic diagram which shows the process in which the said smartphone stops displaying the list of icons and the selected track and the non-selected track are switched when a user selects a non-selected track, and (a) shows a list of icons. (B) shows a process of converging the icons displayed by the smartphone in a list with a predetermined animation into a group of icons. c) shows a state in which the smartphone places the icon group in which the icons are converged in a selected trajectory, and (d) shows that the icon group in which the smartphone has converged is moved from a specific area and is selected by the user. A state where the selected non-selected trajectory is switched to the selected trajectory and the selected trajectory is switched to the non-selected trajectory is shown. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the process which the said smart phone performs.

  Based on FIGS. 1-6, embodiment of this invention is described in detail.

  In order to clearly indicate that certain members are related to each other, members having different member names are given the same member numbers, and alphabets may be further added to indicate the members. For example, “selected track 4a”, “non-selected track 4b”, “icon track 4c”, and the like are shown. In addition, a part of the member name and the alphabet attached to the member number of the member may be omitted, and the member may be generically named. For example, the selected track 4a, the non-selected track 4b, and the icon track 4c may be collectively referred to as “track 4”.

  In the following description and the above-mentioned drawings, description will be made assuming that the user holds the smartphone 100 (see FIG. 1) with the right hand and brings the thumb of the right hand into contact with the input surface. However, the hand that holds the smartphone 100 may be the right hand or the left hand, and the finger that contacts the input surface may be a finger other than the thumb.

  Further, in the following description and the above drawings, the description will be given as “the user touches the input surface with a finger”. However, when the input surface 41 (see FIG. 1) is, for example, a touch panel that can detect the proximity of a finger, the smartphone 100 also detects the proximity of the user's finger to the input surface 41 and is similar to the case of contact. It is possible to operate.

  Furthermore, the user can use an indicator such as a stylus instead of a finger to operate the smartphone 100. That is, in the following description, “user's (parent) finger” includes “indicator such as stylus”. However, in order to ensure the conciseness of description, only “user's (parent) finger” is described below.

[Outline of smartphone 100]
An outline of the smartphone 100 will be described based on FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of the smartphone 100.

  The smartphone (input device) 100 includes an input surface 41 that can detect a position specified by a user operation (user operation) 7a, and a display surface 72 that can display an icon 2 that specifies the command 3, and is specified. Since the icon 2 can be selected based on the determined position, the input device can input the above command.

  The command (information) 3 refers to a command that instructs the smartphone 100 to execute a predetermined process. For example, it widely includes information given to general electronic devices such as an instruction to start a certain application and an instruction to open a certain file.

  An example of the appearance and operation of the smartphone 100 will be described based on FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram illustrating an appearance example of the smartphone 100, and FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation example of the smartphone 100 by the user.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the smartphone 100 includes an input surface 41, a display surface 72, and a power switch 43.

  In addition, in order to clarify the function which each structure has, FIG. 1 shows the input surface 41 and the display surface 72 separately. For example, when the input surface 41 is a touch panel and the display surface 72 is a liquid crystal display, As shown to (a) of FIG. 2, both may be comprised as integral. Thereby, since the contact position of the user's finger with respect to the input surface 41 and the display position of the figure or the like displayed on the display surface 72 according to the contact match, the user can obtain a natural input feeling.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the user touches the input surface 41 and designates a position on the input surface (giving coordinates on the input surface) to the smartphone 100, thereby selecting an icon, etc. Can be given to the smartphone 100.

  As described above, the smartphone 100 is a portable information terminal. Here, it should be noted that a function equivalent to the smartphone 100 can be realized by a mobile phone, a personal computer, a tablet terminal, or the like. That is, the terminal may not be a smartphone as long as it is an electronic device that can input and output necessary information.

  Based on FIG. 3, the basic operation of the smartphone 100 will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating the basic operation of the smartphone 100.

  For example, when a predetermined operation (for example, a double touch operation) by the user is detected on the standby screen of the smartphone, the smartphone 100 displays the screen illustrated in FIG. In addition, in order to display the said screen on the smart phone 100, operation and timing which a user performs to the said smart phone are not restricted to the said example. The smartphone 100 may be configured such that the operation is not necessary (for example, the smartphone 100 may use a standby screen as the screen illustrated in FIG. 3).

  3A shows a state in which the smartphone 100 moves the icon group 1 along the selection track 4a based on a slide operation by the user, and FIG. 3B shows a state in which the smartphone 100 selects the icon group. A mode that it moves to the specific area 5 is shown.

  The icon group 1 refers to a set of icons obtained by grouping at least one icon 2 and an icon (grouped icon) that can identify the icon group. In FIG. 3, character strings such as “basic application” and “DL application” displayed in proximity to each icon group indicate the category of the command 3 specified by each icon included in the icon group.

  FIG. 3C shows a process in which the smartphone 100 expands the icon group 1 moved to the specific area 5 with a predetermined animation, and FIG. 3D shows the smartphone 100 in the icon trajectory 4c. The state which displayed the said icon as a list by moving the said icon along is shown. 3A to 3D show a series of operations of the smartphone 100 in time series.

  As shown in (a) of FIG. 3, when the user performs an operation (sliding operation) to slide the finger on the input surface while keeping the finger in contact with the input surface 41, the smartphone 100 In conjunction with the slide operation, the icon group 1 displayed at the position on the display surface 72 corresponding to the position touched by the input surface is moved along the selected track 4a.

  The selected trajectory (first trajectory) 4a is a trajectory drawn by the icon group that can be moved by the user by a slide operation. On the other hand, the non-selected trajectory (second trajectory) 4b is a trajectory in which an icon group that cannot be moved by the user can be moved. In FIGS. 3A to 3D, the trajectory 4 is represented by an ellipse, but the trajectory is not limited to an ellipse, and an arbitrary shape may be drawn. Further, the number of tracks 4 is also arbitrary.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3B, when the icon group 1 is moved to the specific area 5 by the user's slide operation, the smartphone 100 determines that the icon group is selected by the user.

  The specific area (predetermined area) 5 is an area where the smartphone 100 determines that the icon group 1 is selected by the user when the icon group 1 is moved. In FIGS. 3A to 3D, the specific area 5 is represented by a spherical graphic so that the elliptical trajectory 4 can be intuitively grasped. However, the shape of the specific area 5 is not limited to a spherical shape. Any shape is acceptable.

  3A and 3B, the user performs the same operation as described above also by an operation of quickly playing the input surface 41 (hereinafter referred to as “flick operation”) instead of the slide operation. Can be done against. In order to ensure the simplicity of description, in the following description and drawings, only “slide operation” is described, but it should be noted that all “slide operations” can be replaced by “flick operation”.

  As illustrated in FIG. 3C, the smartphone 100 expands the icon group 1 moved to the specific area 5. That is, the smartphone 100 individually displays icons grouped as an icon group. At this time, the smartphone 100 may develop the icon group with an animation in which the plurality of icons 2 constituting the icon group 1 spread radially around the specific area 5 so that ripples spread on the water surface. .

  As shown in FIG. 3D, the smartphone 100 lists the icons 2 by arranging the icons 2 included in the icon group 1 selected by the user along the icon trajectory (third trajectory) 4c. indicate. As described above, the smartphone 100 can move the icon 2 along the icon trajectory 4c in conjunction with the slide operation.

In summary, the smartphone 100 operates in the following steps (1) and (2). That is, the smartphone 100
(1) In conjunction with a user operation 7a (for example, a slide operation), an icon group 1 (grouped icon) in which at least one icon 2 is grouped is moved along the selected trajectory 4a.
(2) When one icon group 1 is selected by the user (for example, when the icon group is moved to the specific area 5 by a slide operation, or moved to the specific area 5 by touching the icon group) When the icon group is expanded (the icons 2 are individually arranged in the icon trajectory 4c), the icons 2 included in the icon group are displayed in a listable manner.

  In the conventional method for allowing the user to perform the above-described two-step operation, when there are a large number of icon groups, the user can select an icon group including a desired icon only by “displaying the icons group side by side” on the display surface. It cannot be identified efficiently. This is because it is difficult for the user to narrow down the target to which attention is directed, and it is difficult to maintain the concentration of searching for the icon group, so that the icon group is frequently overlooked.

  On the other hand, the smartphone 100 moves the icon group 1 along the selection track 4a in conjunction with the user operation 7a. For example, the smartphone 100 changes the icon group along the selected trajectory 4a so that the icon group 1 displayed at the position of the display surface 72 corresponding to the position of the input surface 41 specified by the user operation is sequentially replaced. Move.

  Thereby, the smart phone 100 can make the user narrow down the object to which attention is directed to the periphery of the icon group 1 to be slid, and can make the user grasp the position where the desired icon is displayed. Moreover, since it is accompanied by an unprecedented operational feeling of “moving the icon (group)”, the smartphone 100 can arouse the user's interest.

  Therefore, since the smartphone 100 can improve the listability of the icons 2 and allow the user to easily select the desired icon 2, the convenience of the user can be improved.

[Configuration of Smartphone 100]
Based on FIG. 1, the structure of the smart phone 100 is demonstrated. Note that, from the viewpoint of ensuring the conciseness of the description, portions that are not directly related to the present embodiment (for example, a portion that implements a call using a telephone line) are omitted from the description of the configuration and the block diagram. However, the smartphone 100 may include the omitted configuration in accordance with the actual situation.

  Hereinafter, the input unit 40 (input surface 41, input control unit 42), control unit 10 (icon group moving unit 11, icon display unit 12, command input unit 13), display unit 70 (display control unit 71, display surface 72). The functions of each component will be described in the following order.

  The input unit 40 receives an operation (user operation 7a) from the user. The input unit 40 includes an input surface 41 and an input control unit 42.

  The input surface 41 outputs an input signal 7b indicating the position designated by the user operation 7a to the input control unit 42. In the present embodiment, the input surface 41 is preferably a touch panel that can detect multi-touch. However, the type of hardware is not limited to the touch panel as long as the input surface 41 is an input device that can detect the contact position by the user operation 7a.

  The input control unit 42 detects the contact position of the user operation 7a with respect to the input surface 41 as coordinate information 7c. Specifically, when the input signal 7 b is input from the input surface 41, the input control unit 42 converts the input signal into coordinate information 7 c on the input surface and outputs the coordinate information to the icon group moving unit 11. To do.

  The control unit (control unit) 10 comprehensively controls various functions of the smartphone 100. For example, the control unit 10 (1) initializes the smartphone 100 (acquires the icon group name, icon group, and number of trajectories, configures and draws the user interface, and selects the selected trajectory 4a in advance. (2) It is determined whether or not the user operation 7a is a slide operation. (3) Whether the user has performed the slide operation is the selected trajectory 4a or not selected. It is determined whether the track 4b is other than the track 4b, or (4) the track operated by the user is set as the selected track 4a.

  Each function of the control unit 10 may be realized by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program stored in a storage element such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a flash memory. The control unit 10 includes an icon group moving unit 11, an icon display unit 12, and a command input unit 13.

  The icon group moving unit (moving means) 11 moves the icon group 1 in which at least one icon 2 is grouped along the selection track 4a in conjunction with the user operation 7a. Specifically, when the coordinate information 7c by the user operation 7a is input from the input control unit 42 and the control unit 10 determines that the user operation is an operation of sliding on the selected track 4a, the icon group moving unit 11 Outputs the moved icon group 1 to the icon display unit 12.

  In addition, after the icon display unit 12 displays at least one icon 2 in a listable manner, the icon group moving unit 11 displays at least the non-selected track 4b different from the selected track 4a by the user operation 7a. One icon 2 is grouped again and moved along the selected trajectory.

  Specifically, when the control unit 10 determines that the slide operation by the user is the non-selected trajectory 4b, the icon group moving unit 11 sets the icons 2 displayed in a listable manner as the icon group 1. Group again and output the icon group after movement to the display control unit 71.

  The icon group moving unit 11 may move the icon group 1 with the trajectory in which an ellipse is drawn as the selected trajectory 4a. Further, the icon group moving unit 11 moves the icon group 1 that is frequently selected by the user to a position closer to the user, such as a curved portion on the front side (for example, a curved portion below the major axis of the ellipse in FIG. 3A). May be displayed at the position visually recognized).

  Further, the icon group moving unit 11 determines whether or not the icon group 1 is touched by the user. When it is determined that the icon group 1 has been touched, the icon group moving unit 11 moves the icon group 1 to the specific area 5 (that is, the smartphone 100 determines that the icon group has been selected by the user).

  When the icon group moving unit 11 moves the icon group 1 to the specific area 5, the icon display unit (display unit) 12 displays at least one icon 2 included in the icon group in a listable manner.

  Specifically, when the icon group 1 is input from the icon group moving unit 11, the icon display unit 12 determines whether or not the icon group is included in the specific area 5. When it is determined that the icon is included, the icon display unit 12 outputs the icon 2 whose display position is determined to the display control unit 71 so that the icons 2 included in the icon group 1 are individually arranged in the icon trajectory 4c. . If it is determined that the icon is not included, the icon display unit 12 outputs the icon group to the display control unit 71.

  Moreover, the icon display part 12 determines whether the icon 2 displayed as a list was touched by the user. When it is determined that the icon 2 is touched, the icon display unit 12 outputs the command 3 specified by the icon to the command input unit 13.

  In addition, it is preferable that the icon display part 12 displays the other icon group in the position symmetrical with the axis | shaft of an ellipse smaller than the said icon group with respect to the icon group 1 moved by the icon group moving part 11. FIG. . Thereby, when the perspective from the user's viewpoint appears, the icon group 1 or the icon 2 that goes around the elliptical trajectory (selected trajectory 4a, non-selected trajectory 4b, icon trajectory 4c) can be expressed.

  When the icon display unit 12 displays at least one icon 2 in a listable manner, the command input unit (input unit) 13 selects one icon from the at least one icon 2 by the user operation 7a. The command specified by the icon is accepted as an input.

  Specifically, when the command 3 is input from the icon display unit 12, the command input unit 13 gives the command to the smartphone 100 as an input. Thereby, the smartphone 100 can execute processing (for example, processing for starting a certain application or processing for opening a certain file) specified by the command.

  The display unit 70 displays information (icon group 1, icon 2) of the results processed inside the control unit 10 to the user. The display unit 70 includes a display control unit 71 and a display surface 72.

  The display control unit 71 outputs the display data 7 d to the display surface 72 so that the icon group 1 or the icon 2 can be displayed on the display surface 72. The display data 7d may be, for example, an image in a bitmap format, an image according to another format, or another data format suitable for display. Note that the display control unit 71 only needs to include content that can be converted into the display data 7d, such as a general display adapter.

  The display surface 72 is a device that displays the display data 7 d input from the display control unit 71. In the present embodiment, a liquid crystal display (LCD) is mainly assumed. However, a device having a display function (for example, a display element is driven based on display data 7d input from the display control unit 71). The type of hardware is not limited as long as it is a device provided with a driver circuit.

  Although not shown in FIG. 1, the smartphone 100 may include a storage unit for storing applications and the like. In the storage unit, for example, (1) which icon group 1 or icon 2 is arranged in which trajectory 4 and (2) which trajectory 4 is selected by the user (which trajectory 4 is selected) Data corresponding to the orbit 4a is stored. Note that the storage unit can be constituted by, for example, a hard disk, a semiconductor memory, a DVD, or the like. Further, the storage unit may be a device built in the smartphone 100 or an external storage device connected to the outside of the smartphone 100 so as to be communicable.

[Launching an application when icon 2 is selected]
Based on FIG. 4, when the icon 2 is selected by the user, it demonstrates that the smart phone 100 starts an application. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a process until a predetermined application (“phone book” in the figure) is started.

  4A shows a state in which icon 2 (“phone book” icon in FIG. 4) is selected by a user's touch operation, and FIG. 4B shows a command specified by the icon. As a result of the input to the smartphone 100, the application is activated.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the user can select an icon by touching the icon 2 displayed on the trajectory on the near side of the icon trajectory 4c (curved portion below the major axis of the ellipse). . However, the user can also select the icon by touching the icon 2 displayed on the trajectory on the back side (curved portion above the major axis of the ellipse).

[Replacement between selected orbit 4a and non-selected orbit 4b]
Based on FIG. 5, it demonstrates that the smart phone 100 interchanges the selection track | orbit 4a and the non-selection track | orbit 4b. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process in which the smartphone 100 stops displaying the list of icons and the selected track 4a and the non-selected track 4b are switched when the non-selected track 4b is selected by the user.

  FIG. 5A shows a state in which a non-selected trajectory 4b is selected by the user when icons are displayed in a list (see FIG. 3D). FIG. A process of focusing (grouping) the icons displayed in a list on the smartphone 100 into the icon group 1 with animation is shown.

  (C) of FIG. 5 shows a state in which the smartphone 100 arranges the icon group 1 in which the icons are focused on the selected trajectory, and FIG. 5 (d) shows the icon group 1 in which the smartphone 100 focuses the icons. A state is shown in which the non-selected orbit 4b selected by the user is moved from the specific area 5 and switched to the selected orbit 4a, and the selected orbit 4a is switched to the non-selected orbit 4b.

  As shown to (a)-(d) of FIG. 5, after displaying the icon 2 so that a list is possible for the smart phone 100, when the non-selection track | orbit 4b is selected by the user, the icon group which grouped the said icon again 1 is moved along the selected trajectory 4a. Next, the smartphone 100 interchanges the selected non-selected trajectory 4b with the currently selected selected trajectory 4a.

[Processes executed by the smartphone 100]
Based on FIG. 6, the flow of processing executed by the smartphone 100 will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing executed by the smartphone 100. In the following description, parenthesized “˜step” represents each step of the control method.

  First, the control part 10 performs the initialization process of the smart phone 100 (step 1: it abbreviates like S1). When the input surface 41 detects the user operation 7a (YES in S2), the control unit 10 determines whether or not the user operation is a slide operation (S3).

  When it is determined that the operation is not a slide operation (NO in S3), the icon display unit 12 determines whether or not the icon 2 is touched by the user (S4).

  When it is determined that the icon 2 is touched (YES in S4), the command input unit 13 inputs the command 3 specified by the touched icon 2. On the other hand, when the icon group moving unit 11 determines that the icon group 1 is touched instead of the icon 2 (NO in S4) (YES in S6), the icon group moving unit 11 moves the icon group 1 to the specific area 5. The icon display unit 12 displays the icons 2 as a list by expanding the icon group (S8, display step).

  If it is determined in step 3 that the operation is a slide operation (YES in S3), the control unit 10 determines whether or not the selected track 4a has been slid (S9).

  When it is determined that the selected track 4a has been slid (YES in S9), the icon group moving unit 11 moves the icon group 1 in the selected track (S10). When it is determined that the moved icon group 1 is included in the specific area 5 (YES in S11), the icon display unit 12 expands the icon group and displays the list (S12).

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the non-selected track 4b is slid instead of the selected track 4a (NO in S9) (YES in S13), the icon group moving unit 11 expands the icon group 1 in the selected track 4a, It is determined whether the icon 2 is displayed as a list (S14).

  When it is determined that the icons 2 are displayed as a list (YES in S14), the icon group moving unit 11 regroups the icons into the icon group 1 (S15), and moves the icon to a position outside the center area of the screen. The icon group is moved (S16). Then, the control unit 10 sets the trajectory operated by the user as the selected trajectory 4a (S17).

  Further, if it is not the selected track 4a (NO in S9), not the non-selected track 4b (NO in S13), and it is determined that the icon track 4c has been slid (YES in S18), the icon display unit 12 displays the icon The icon 2 developed on the track 4c is moved along the icon track (S19).

[Effects of smartphone 100]
The smartphone 100 can improve the user's convenience because the listability of icons can be improved and the user can easily select a desired icon.

  In addition, since the user has an unprecedented operational feeling of “moving the icon (group)”, the smartphone 100 has the effect of being able to evoke the user's interest.

[Summary]
An input device (smartphone 100) according to one embodiment of the present invention
(1) Provided with an input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and a display surface capable of displaying an icon for specifying information, the icon can be selected based on the designated position. An input device capable of inputting the information,
(2) A moving means for moving along a first trajectory a grouped icon capable of specifying an icon group obtained by grouping at least one icon in conjunction with the user's operation;
(3) When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons moved by the moving means, at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon is displayed in a listable manner. Display means.

A control method for an input device according to an aspect of the present invention includes:
(1) Provided with an input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and a display surface capable of displaying an icon for specifying information, the icon can be selected based on the designated position. A method for controlling the input device capable of inputting the information,
(2) A moving step of moving along a first trajectory a grouped icon capable of specifying an icon group in which at least one icon is grouped in conjunction with the user's operation;
(3) When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons moved in the moving step, at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon is displayed in a listable manner. Display step.

  In the conventional method for allowing the user to perform the above two-step operation, when there are a large number of icon groups, the user can efficiently select an icon group including a desired icon simply by “displaying the icons group side by side” on the display surface. I can't identify well. This is because it is difficult for the user to narrow down the target to which attention is directed, and it is difficult to maintain the concentration of searching for the icon group, so that the icon group is frequently overlooked.

  On the other hand, according to the configuration (2), the input device and the control method for the device according to one aspect of the present invention move the grouping icons along the first trajectory in conjunction with the user's operation. For example, the input device or the like follows the first trajectory so that the grouped icons displayed at the positions on the display surface corresponding to the positions on the input surface specified by the user's operation are sequentially replaced. To move the grouping icon.

  As a result, the input device or the like can narrow down the target to be paid attention to the user (for example, around the position on the display surface), and thus maintain the user's concentration to find the grouped icon. be able to. Therefore, even if there are a large number of grouping icons, the input device or the like can allow the user to efficiently specify a desired grouping icon.

  Further, according to the configuration (3), the input device according to one aspect of the present invention and the method for controlling the device, when the grouping icon is selected by the user, the icon group specified by the grouping icon is displayed. A list of at least one included icon is displayed. Thereby, the said input device etc. can make a user grasp | ascertain the position where the desired icon was displayed.

  As described above, the input device and the method for controlling the device according to one embodiment of the present invention can improve the listability of icons and allow a user to easily select a desired icon. Convenience can be improved.

In the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention,
(1) When the second trajectory different from the first trajectory is selected by the user's operation after the display means displays at least one icon in a listable manner by the display means, One icon may be grouped again and moved along the first trajectory.

  According to the above configuration (1), when the second trajectory different from the first trajectory is selected, the input device can stop displaying the list of icons and specify an icon group including the icon. Move various grouping icons. This is because there is no point in displaying the icons included in the icon group in a listable manner by expanding the icon group that does not include the icon desired by the user.

  Therefore, the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can avoid continuing useless list display, and can further improve user convenience.

An input device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes:
(1) After at least one icon is displayed in a listable manner by the display means, and further, when one icon is selected by the user's operation, an input means for receiving information specified by the icon as an input is further provided. May be.

  According to said structure (1), the said input device inputs the information (for example, command for starting a predetermined application, etc.) specified by the icon selected by user's operation into the said input device. be able to.

  Therefore, since the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can operate the input device only by causing the user to select an icon, the convenience of the user can be further improved.

In the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention,
(1) When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons moved by the moving unit, the display unit includes at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon. Are moved along a third trajectory different from the first trajectory, so that the at least one icon may be displayed as a list.

  When the number of icons included in the icon group specified by the grouped icon increases, a problem similar to the above occurs that the user cannot select a desired icon efficiently only by displaying the icons side by side. obtain.

  According to said structure (1), since the said input device moves the icon contained in the said icon group along a 3rd track | orbit, even if it is a case where many icons exist, a user desires Can be selected efficiently.

  Therefore, the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can further improve the convenience of the user because the listability of the icons can be further improved and the user can select a desired icon more easily. Can do.

In the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention,
(1) The moving means moves the grouping icon using the trajectory for drawing an ellipse as the first trajectory,
(2) The display unit may display another grouping icon that is symmetrical to the axis of the ellipse smaller than the grouping icon with respect to the grouping icon moved by the moving unit. Good.

  According to said structure (1) and (2), the said input device is with respect to the predetermined position (For example, the position in the said display surface corresponding to the position designated by the user's operation) on the said ellipse. The other grouped icons displayed at positions symmetrical to the axis of the ellipse are displayed smaller than the icon group.

  As a result, when the perspective from the user's viewpoint appears, it is possible to represent a grouped icon that moves the trajectory that draws the ellipse. Therefore, the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can strongly narrow down the target to be paid attention to the user, so that the user can maintain the concentration to search for the icon group.

  Accordingly, the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can further improve the convenience of the user because the listability of icons can be further improved and the user can select a desired icon more easily. be able to.

In the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention,
(1) When the grouping icon is moved to a predetermined area by the moving unit, the display unit is specified by the grouping icon as the grouping icon selected by the user's operation. A list of at least one icon included in the icon group may be displayed.

  According to the configuration (1), when the grouping icon is moved to a predetermined area, the input device can determine that the grouping icon has been selected by the user. That is, the input device allows the user to select the grouping icon only by a simple operation of moving the grouping icon to the predetermined area. Therefore, the input device according to one embodiment of the present invention can further improve user convenience.

  The input device may be realized by a computer. In this case, a control program for realizing the input device by the computer by operating the computer as each unit of the input device and a computer-readable recording medium recording the control program also fall within the scope of the present invention.

[Combination of configurations (technical means) included in each embodiment]
Note that the configurations included in the above-described embodiments can be combined as appropriate. In other words, all the configurations described in the above embodiments can be used in combination with all or a part of the configurations in the other embodiments as well as the embodiment according to the above description. Embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[Example of software implementation]
Finally, each block of the smartphone 100 may be realized in hardware by a logic circuit formed on an integrated circuit (IC chip), or may be realized in software using a CPU (Central Processing Unit). Also good.

  In the latter case, the smartphone 100 includes a CPU that executes instructions of a program that realizes each function, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores the program, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that expands the program, the program, and various data. A storage device (recording medium) such as a memory for storing. An object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium in which a program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of a control program of the smartphone 100 that is software that realizes the above-described functions is recorded in a computer-readable manner. This can also be achieved by supplying to the smartphone 100 and reading and executing the program code recorded on the recording medium by the computer (or CPU or MPU).

  Examples of the recording medium include non-transitory tangible medium, such as magnetic tape and cassette tape, magnetic disk such as floppy (registered trademark) disk / hard disk, and CD-ROM / MO. Discs including optical discs such as / MD / DVD / CD-R, cards such as IC cards (including memory cards) / optical cards, semiconductor memories such as mask ROM / EPROM / EEPROM (registered trademark) / flash ROM Alternatively, logic circuits such as PLD (Programmable Logic Device) and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) can be used.

  Further, the smartphone 100 may be configured to be connectable to a communication network, and the program code may be supplied via the communication network. The communication network is not particularly limited as long as it can transmit the program code. For example, the Internet, intranet, extranet, LAN, ISDN, VAN, CATV communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication network, and the like can be used. The transmission medium constituting the communication network may be any medium that can transmit the program code, and is not limited to a specific configuration or type. For example, even with wired lines such as IEEE 1394, USB, power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) line, infrared rays such as IrDA and remote control, Bluetooth (registered trademark), IEEE 802.11 wireless, HDR ( It can also be used by radio such as High Data Rate (NFC), Near Field Communication (NFC), Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA), mobile phone network, satellite line, and digital terrestrial network. The present invention can also be realized in the form of a computer data signal embedded in a carrier wave in which the program code is embodied by electronic transmission.

  As described above, in this specification, the means does not necessarily mean a physical means, and includes the case where the function of each means is realized by software. Further, the function of one means may be realized by two or more physical means, and the function of two or more means may be realized by one physical means.

  The present invention can be widely applied to an input device or the like capable of inputting information by selecting an icon based on a position touched by a user operation, such as a smartphone, a mobile phone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like.

1 Icon group (icon group, grouping icon)
2 Icon (icon)
3 Command (information)
4a Selected trajectory (first trajectory)
4b Non-selected trajectory (second trajectory)
4c Icon orbit (third orbit)
5 Specific area (predetermined area)
7a User operation (user operation)
11 Icon group moving part (moving means)
12 Icon display (display means)
13 Command input part (input means)
41 Input side (input side)
72 Display surface (Display surface)
100 Smartphone (input device)

Claims (9)

An input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and a display surface capable of displaying an icon for specifying information, and the icon can be selected based on the designated position; An input device capable of inputting the information,
A moving means for moving along a first trajectory a grouped icon capable of specifying an icon group obtained by grouping at least one icon in conjunction with the user's operation;
When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons moved by the moving unit, the display unit displays at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon in a listable manner. And an input device.   The moving means displays at least one icon when a second trajectory different from the first trajectory is selected by the user's operation after the display means displays at least one icon in a listable manner. The input device according to claim 1, wherein the input devices are grouped again and moved along the first trajectory.   When at least one icon is displayed in a listable manner by the display means, and when one icon is selected by the user's operation, there is further provided an input means for accepting information specified by the icon as an input. The input device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that   When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons moved by the moving unit, the display unit displays each of at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon. The at least one icon is displayed in a listable manner by moving along a third trajectory different from the first trajectory. Input device. The moving means moves the grouping icon with the trajectory that draws an ellipse as the first trajectory,
The display means displays, with respect to the grouping icons moved by the moving means, other grouping icons that are symmetric with respect to the axis of the ellipse, smaller than the grouping icons. The input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.   When the grouping icon is moved to a predetermined area by the moving unit, the display unit sets an icon group specified by the grouping icon as the grouping icon selected by the user's operation. The input device according to claim 1, wherein at least one icon included in the list is displayed in a listable manner. An input surface capable of detecting a position designated by a user operation and a display surface capable of displaying an icon for specifying information, and the icon can be selected based on the designated position; An input device control method capable of inputting the information,
A movement step of moving a grouped icon that can identify an icon group in which at least one icon is grouped in conjunction with the user's operation along a first trajectory;
When one grouping icon is selected from the grouping icons to be moved in the moving step, the display step displays a list of at least one icon included in the icon group specified by the grouping icon A method for controlling the input device.   A control program for operating the input device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the control program causes a computer to function as each of the means.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 8 is recorded.

Images