TWI704474B - Glove-type input device - Google Patents

Abstract

A grove-type input device adapted to an electronic device includes a main body, a plurality of conductors, a switch circuit, a plurality of key structures and a signal-transmitting unit. The main body includes an upper portion and a lower portion, and the lower portion includes a plurality of pressing portion. The conductors are respectively disposed on each pressing portion. The switch circuit is disposed in the main body. The key structures respectively correspond to each conductor and are disposed in the interlayer of each pressing portion. Each key structure is configured to trigger a corresponding switch signal of the switch circuit when a finger presses thereon, and provide the finger a supporting force. The signal-transmitting unit is electrically connected to the switch circuit.

Description

Glove type input device

The invention relates to an input device, and more particularly to a glove type input device.

With the advancement of technology, portable electronic devices have become indispensable products in modern people's daily life. A portable electronic device is, for example, a notebook computer, which is usually equipped with input devices such as a keyboard or a mouse. However, in pursuit of the requirements of lightness, thinness and portability, this type of input device often increases the burden of carrying, and further limits the applicability of the product.

Therefore, how to provide an input device that is easy to carry and has more diversified applications has become a topic worthy of attention.

The invention relates to a glove type input device, which is convenient for users to carry and can increase the user's operating feeling.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a glove type input device is provided, suitable for an electronic device. The glove type input device includes a glove body, a plurality of guides Electrical components, a switch circuit, a plurality of button structures, and a signal transmission unit. The glove body includes an upper layer part and a lower layer part, and the lower layer part includes a plurality of finger pad pressing parts. The conductive elements are respectively arranged on the pressing parts of the finger pads. The switch circuit is arranged in the glove body. The button structures correspond to the conductive elements respectively arranged in the interlayers of the pressing parts of the finger pads. Each button structure is configured to trigger a switch signal corresponding to the switch circuit when pressed by a finger and provide a feedback force of the finger. The signal transmission unit is electrically connected to the switch circuit.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a glove-type input device is provided, which is suitable for an electronic device. The glove type input device includes a glove body, a distance sensor, a switch circuit, a plurality of button structures, a control unit and a signal transmission unit. The glove body includes an upper layer part and a lower layer part, and the lower layer part includes a plurality of finger pad pressing parts. The distance sensor is arranged on the lower part for sensing a distance detection signal. The switch circuit is arranged in the glove body. The button structures are respectively arranged in the interlayer of each finger pad pressing part, and each button structure is configured to trigger a switch signal corresponding to the switch circuit when pressed by a finger, and provide a finger-feedback force, wherein at least two switch signals are a sliding Mouse button signal. The control unit is electrically connected to the distance sensor and the switch circuit to receive the distance detection signal and the mouse button signal. The signal transmission unit is electrically connected to the control unit.

In order to have a better understanding of the above and other aspects of the present invention, the following specific examples are given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings to describe in detail as follows:

100: glove type input device

110: Glove body

111: Upper Department

112: Lower Department

113: Finger belly compression part

114: Fingertips

120: conductive parts

130: switch circuit

140: Button structure

141: A pair of supporting elements

142: Elastomer

143, 144: Electrodes

150: signal transmission unit

160: distance sensor

170: control unit

180: beam transmitter

200: electronic device

210: Touch display panel

220: Touch screen

230: Main touch screen

300: finger

F: feedback force

KB: virtual keyboard

SW: Switch signal

Figure 1 is a glove type input device and electronic device according to an embodiment of the invention Schematic diagram.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2' in Figure 1, showing the button structure of the glove-type input device in an unpressed state.

Fig. 3 shows the button structure of the glove type input device in Fig. 2 in a pressed state.

Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a schematic diagram of a glove-type input device 100 and an electronic device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the electronic device 200 is illustrated as a notebook computer, but the invention is not limited to this. In other examples, the electronic device 200 may also be a desktop computer, a tablet computer, a flat-panel display, or other devices. These electronic devices 200 all include a touch display panel 210 with a touch screen 220, and the glove-type input device 100 can be used as an input device of this type of electronic device 200.

The glove-type input device 100 has an appearance like a general glove and is suitable for being worn by a user's glove. The glove-type input device 100 includes a glove body, and the glove body 110 includes an upper portion 111 (the indicator in the figure indicates the back) and a lower portion 112. The upper portion 111 corresponds to one side of the back of the user's hand, and the lower portion 112 corresponds to one side of the palm of the user. In addition, the lower part 112 includes several finger pad pressing parts 113. These finger pad pressing parts 113 respectively correspond to the pads of the thumb, index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger.

As shown in FIG. 1, the glove-type input device 100 further includes a plurality of conductive elements 120, which are respectively disposed on a finger pad pressing part 113. The conductive member 120 may be metal or other conductive materials, so that the user can use the glove-type input device 100 to operate the touch screen 220. In an embodiment, the conductive member 120 may be exposed from the outer surface of the finger pad pressing portion 113, but this is not a limitation of the present invention. In addition, the rest of the lower layer 112 may be made of non-conductive material.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2' in Fig. 1, showing that the button structure 140 of the glove-type input device 100 is in an unpressed state. FIG. 3 shows the button structure 140 of the glove-type input device 100 in FIG. 2 in a pressed state.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the glove-type input device 100 further includes a switch circuit 130, a plurality of key structures 140, and a signal transmission unit 150. The switch circuit 130 is, for example, a flexible circuit board, which is disposed in the glove body 110. Several key structures 140 are respectively corresponding to each conductive member 120 and are disposed in the interlayer of each finger pad pressing part 113.

The button structure 140 can be operated by the user with the finger 300. When the user presses with the finger 300, a switch signal SW corresponding to the switch circuit 130 will be triggered. At the same time, the button structure 140 can also provide a feedback force F of the finger 300 to increase the operating feel.

The signal transmission unit 150 is electrically connected to the switch circuit 130 to receive the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300. The signal transmission unit 150 can further contact the The control display panel 210 is electrically connected, for example, connected to the touch display panel 210 via Bluetooth, WiFi, etc., or connected to the touch display panel 210 via a USB connector. When the glove-type input device 100 is electrically connected to the touch display panel 210 through the signal transmission unit 150, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 can be transmitted to the touch display panel 210.

The glove type input device 100 can be used with a virtual keyboard KB. The virtual keyboard KB can be displayed on the touch screen 220 of the touch display panel 210. When the user wants to operate the virtual keyboard KB, the conductive member 120 of the finger pad pressing portion 113 can be placed on a corresponding virtual key of the virtual keyboard KB. Then, by performing the pressing operation as shown in FIG. 3, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 can be transmitted to the touch display panel 210.

After the touch display panel 210 receives the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 from the glove-type input device 100, the touch display panel 210 then determines the corresponding virtual key pressed by the finger pad pressing portion 113 in the virtual keyboard KB. For example, the touch display panel 210 can sense the change of the capacitance value between the sensing electrodes of the touch screen 220 to identify the touch position and determine the corresponding virtual button at the touch position. Furthermore, when the user places the conductive member 120 of the finger pad pressing portion 113 on the virtual keyboard KB, if the touch display panel 210 does not receive a switch signal SW, the touch display panel 210 will not perform Identification of touch position. Until the touch display panel 210 receives a switch signal SW, the touch display panel 210 does not perform the step of identifying the touch position.

Through the above method, even if the user lays the wrist flat or spreads the whole hand on the touch screen 220, the touch display panel 210 will not recognize the touch position, which can specifically avoid accidental touch It happened. In this way, the user can operate the virtual keyboard KB in a more comfortable posture.

Furthermore, the above-mentioned virtual keyboard KB can also change the appearance of the keyboard according to user needs, or display different keyboard specifications according to different countries, so that it has diversified applications and reduces the cost of manufacturing a physical keyboard.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the button structure 140 may include a pair of supporting elements 141, an elastic body 142, and a pair of electrodes 143, 144 spaced up and down. The supporting element 141 can be used to assist the up and down movement of the finger 300 when pressing. The elastic body 142 can provide a feedback force F to the finger 300 to reset the button structure 140. When the finger 300 presses, the electrodes 143 and 144 touch each other, thereby triggering a switch signal SW. Of course, the configuration of the above-mentioned button structure 140 is only one of the implementation manners, and is only for illustration, and is not intended to limit the present invention.

In another embodiment, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 may also include several segment signals, and these segment signals are related to the pressure value pressed by the finger 300. In this way, the touch display panel 210 can perform different operations according to different segment signals.

For example, referring to FIG. 1, the touch display panel 210 may further include a main touch screen 230. The main touch screen 230 displays a game screen. The touch display panel 210 can execute different commands on the characters in the game screen according to different segment signals.

In addition, in other embodiments, the glove type input device 100 can perform the function of a mouse. As shown in FIG. 1, the glove-type input device 100 may further include a distance sensor 160 and a control unit 170. The distance sensor 160 is disposed on the lower part 160, and it can be an infrared sensor, a blue light sensor or a laser sensor for sensing a distance detection signal. The control unit 170 is electrically connected to the distance sensor 160, the switch circuit 130 and the signal transmission unit 150.

In this embodiment, the button structure 140 in the at least two finger pad pressing parts 113 can be used as a mouse button. Therefore, the switch signal SW corresponding to the two-button structure 140 can be a mouse button signal. The control unit 170 can be used to receive mouse button signals and the distance detection signals sensed by the distance sensor 160, and transmit these signals to the touch display panel 210 through the signal transmission unit 150 to execute the mouse cursor control.

In another embodiment in which the glove-type input device 100 performs the function of a mouse, the switch signal SW corresponding to the remaining key structures 140 can be a combination of multiple keys in a keyboard, so that these key structures 140 perform a The function of the hotkey.

In addition, the glove type input device 100 may further include a mouse wheel disposed on the glove body 110. In this example, the glove-type input device 100 includes a roller sensor unit for detecting the rotation data of the roller. The wheel sensing unit is electrically connected to the control unit 170 so as to output rotation data of the wheel to the control unit 170.

In a further embodiment, the glove type input device 100 can selectively execute the keyboard input mode or the mouse input mode through the control unit 170. In one embodiment, the user can actively change the glove type input device 100 to keyboard input The mode or mouse input mode is, for example, through the buttons provided on the glove-type input device 100 or the electronic device 200. In another embodiment, the control unit 170 can selectively switch the glove-type input device 100 to the keyboard input mode or the mouse input mode according to the distance between the glove-type input device 100 and the touch display panel 210.

For example, when the control unit 170 determines that the position of the glove body 110 is within the corresponding range of the virtual keyboard KB, the control unit 170 activates the keyboard input mode. At this time, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 is a keyboard input signal to execute the key input of the virtual keyboard KB. When the control unit 170 determines that the position of the glove body 110 is outside the corresponding range of the virtual keyboard KB, the control unit 170 activates the mouse input mode. At this time, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 is a mouse button input signal to execute the control of the mouse cursor.

In other embodiments, the glove type input device 100 can even perform the function of a laser pen. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the glove-type input device 100 may further include a beam emitter 180 disposed on the fingertip portion 114 of the glove body 110, and the fingertip portion 114 is connected to the upper portion 111 and the lower portion 112. between. The light beam emitter 180 is, for example, a laser light emitter, and the control unit 170 is electrically connected to the light beam emitter 180 to selectively switch the glove type input device 100 to a keyboard input mode or a light beam display mode. When the glove type input device 100 is in the keyboard input mode, the switch signal SW triggered by the finger 300 is a keyboard input signal to perform key input of the virtual keyboard KB. When the glove type input device 100 is in the beam display mode, the control unit 170 can receive the switch signal SW to control the beam emitter 180 to emit light.

The glove-type input device provided by the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention has an appearance like a normal glove, so it can be easily carried by the user. In addition, the button structure can also provide a feedback force of the user's fingers to increase the operating feel. Furthermore, the glove-type input device can also be an input device that can perform different functions, such as performing key input of a virtual keyboard, control of a mouse cursor, and/or functions of a laser pen, and has diversified applications. When performing key input on the virtual keyboard, accidental touches can be avoided.

In summary, although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Those who have ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention belongs can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to those defined by the attached patent application scope.

100: glove type input device

110: Glove body

111: Upper Department

112: Lower Department

113: Finger belly compression part

114: Fingertips

120: conductive parts

140: Button structure

141: A pair of supporting elements

142: Elastomer

143, 144: Electrodes

180: beam transmitter

300: finger

F: feedback force

SW: Switch signal

Claims (6)

A glove type input device suitable for an electronic device. The electronic device includes a touch display panel whose touch screen displays a virtual keyboard. The glove type input device includes: a glove body including an upper layer Part and lower part, the lower part includes a plurality of finger pad pressing parts; a plurality of conductive elements are respectively arranged in each of the finger pad pressing parts; a switch circuit is arranged in the glove body; a plurality of button structures correspond to Each of the conductive members is arranged in the interlayer of each of the finger pad pressing parts, and each of the button structures is configured to trigger a switch signal corresponding to the switch circuit when pressed by a finger and provide a feedback force of the finger; and a signal The transmission unit is electrically connected to the switch circuit, and the glove type input device is electrically connected to the touch display panel through the signal transmission unit; wherein when the touch display panel receives a trigger from the glove type input device According to the switch signal, the touch display panel recognizes the corresponding virtual keys pressed by the finger pads in the virtual keyboard according to the changes in capacitance between the sensing electrodes of the touch screen caused by the conductive elements. For the glove-type input device described in the first item of the patent application, the conductive elements are respectively exposed from the outer surface of the finger pad pressing part, and the rest of the lower layer part is made of non-conductive material. For example, the glove-type input device described in item 1 of the scope of patent application further includes: a distance sensor arranged on the lower part for sensing a distance detection signal; and a control unit electrically connected to the The distance sensor, the switch circuit and the signal transmission unit, and the control unit is used to selectively switch the glove type input device to a keyboard input mode or a mouse input mode; wherein, when the glove type input device is the In keyboard input mode, the switch signal is a keyboard input signal; when the glove-type input device is in the mouse input mode, the switch signal is a mouse button input signal, and the distance detection signal and the mouse button The signal is transmitted to the electronic device through the signal transmission unit, so that the glove type input device is used as a mouse. For the glove type input device described in item 3 of the scope of patent application, the control unit further selectively switches the glove type input device to the keyboard input mode or according to the distance between the glove type input device and the touch display panel The mouse input mode; wherein, when the control unit determines that the position of the glove body is within the corresponding range of the virtual keyboard, the keyboard input mode is activated; when the control unit determines that the position of the glove body is located on the virtual keyboard When outside the corresponding range, the mouse input mode is activated. For the glove type input device described in item 1 of the scope of patent application, the switch signal includes a plurality of section signals, and the section signals are related to the pressure value of the finger. According to the glove type input device described in claim 1, wherein the glove body further includes a fingertip portion connected between the upper layer portion and the lower layer portion, and the glove type input device further includes: a beam emitter , Arranged at the fingertip portion; and a control unit electrically connected to the beam emitter, the switch circuit and the signal transmission unit, the control unit is used to selectively switch the glove type input device to a keyboard input mode Or a beam display mode; wherein, when the glove type input device is in the keyboard input mode, the switch signal is a keyboard input signal; when the glove type input device is in the beam display mode, the control unit receives the switch signal To control the beam emitter to emit light.

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