FR3107607A1 - Method of displaying a media for a plurality of touch pads and touch pads implementing such a method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a touchscreen tablet (1; 1 ') comprising at least one touchscreen (3), characterized in that it comprises: - at least one detection means (5) of other touchscreen tablets which is configured to detecting whether another tablet is disposed near one of the transverse sides of said tablet; - at least one communication means (6) for communicating with at least one other touch pad detected by said detection means (5); - an electronic circuit (7) for managing said detection (5) and communication (6) means; said electronic circuit (7) being configured to transmit display commands to the touch pads detected as well as to receive them via said means of communication (6).

Description

Method for displaying a medium for a plurality of touch pads and touch pad implementing such a method

The present invention relates to a method for dynamic display of a medium for touch pads, as well as a touch pad configured to implement the method according to the invention.
"Dynamic" means the fact that said process is carried out in real time, and that the media displayed, such as an image or a video, by said tablets is updated and adjusted to follow the number and arrangement of the tablets. electronics used, more particularly when they are assembled together.

Indeed, with the appearance of touchscreen tablets, various software solutions have been developed to make it possible to display an image on a set of tablets placed side by side, each tablet displaying part of the image, so that the whole adjoining shelves restores the image in its entirety.
One of the existing solutions consists of carrying out a manual configuration of each of the tablets, but this is complicated and time-consuming to implement.
Another solution consists in using touch tablets equipped with cameras, cameras making it possible to analyze the relative position of each of the tablets with respect to each other, in order to adapt their displays accordingly.

However, when you want to use several tablets as an interactive board, for example for board games, role-playing games or even as a geographical map, this solution only works partially. Indeed, in these uses, the tablets are laid out flat on a table, screens and cameras oriented upwards, the cameras being oriented towards the ceiling, the latter have few discriminating elements in the images obtained via their respective camera to calculate the relative positions of the tablets with respect to each other.

It should be noted that by touch pad is meant an electronic device comprising a touch screen, said device being generally ultra-flat and performing substantially the same functions as a laptop computer.

It should also be noted that media means a video, a 3D scene, an image, a sound or any combination of these elements.

Thus, the present invention at least partly solves the problems mentioned above by proposing a new type of touch pad comprising at least one touch screen, characterized in that it comprises:
- At least one means for detecting other touch pads which is configured to detect whether at least one tablet is placed close to one of its transverse sides, said side being for example identified;
- At least one communication means for communicating with at least one other touch pad detected by said detection means;
- an electronic circuit for managing said detection and communication means;
said electronic circuit being configured to transmit display commands to the touch pads detected as well as to receive them via said means of communication.

According to another possible characteristic, said detection means are arranged on the four transverse sides of said touch pad.

• au moins un média à afficher ou une référence vers un média à afficher ;
• au moins un ajustement ou décalage spatial d’affichage à appliquer à un média (à afficher ou déjà affiché), par exemple selon les axes des ordonnées et/ou des abscisses des écrans de chacune des tablettes tactiles détectées et connectées ;
• au moins l’une des dimensions de l’écran de ladite tablette (par exemple en unité métrique ou en pixels), ceci notamment afin de permettre le calcul d’ajustements à appliquer sur une image (par exemple selon les axes des ordonnées et/ou des abscisses sur les axes des ordonnées et des abscisses).

According to another possible characteristic, said display commands include at least one of the following information:

• at least one media to display or a reference to a media to display;
• at least one spatial display adjustment or offset to be applied to a medium (to be displayed or already displayed), for example along the axes of the ordinates and/or the abscissas of the screens of each of the touch pads detected and connected;
• at least one of the dimensions of the screen of said tablet (for example in metric units or in pixels), this in particular in order to allow the calculation of adjustments to be applied to an image (for example along the axes of the ordinates and/or or abscissas on the ordinate and abscissa axes).

According to another possible characteristic, said detection means are one or more connectors, such as electrical or electromagnetic connectors, for example pogo type pins, NFC chips, RFID chips, USB connectors, etc.

According to another possible characteristic, the spatial adjustment or offset to be applied is different according to said connector by which the information is propagated to an adjacent tablet.
The propagated adjustment can for example be a function of one or more of the dimensions of one or more tablet touch screens.

According to another possible characteristic, said at least one detection and communication means are combined.
That is to say that the tablet comprises one or more means or elements configured to detect and communicate with one or more touch pads arranged close to one of the transverse sides of said touch pad. It will be noted that the words “communication” or “connection” will be used interchangeably to indicate that tablets are arranged adjacently and are able to exchange information with the aim of displaying a medium in a coherent manner on the screens of said tablets.

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet has two opposite main faces and four transverse sides connecting said main faces to one another.

According to another possible characteristic, said touch screen of said tablet is arranged on one of the main faces of the tablet.

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet comprises an electric battery, for example to power said touch screen autonomously.

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet comprises an accelerometer configured to influence the display command or commands sent.
Said accelerometer makes it possible in particular to detect the movement of a tablet while the latter is displaying an image in association with other touch tablets, and to dynamically modify the display of the moved tablet, and possibly of the other tablets.

According to another possible characteristic, said electronic circuit is configured to determine and/or draw up a list, for example periodically or on a triggering event, of said active communication and/or detection means, such as a list of active connectors (meaning by "active" a connector connected to another tablet and through which commands are able to pass).
This makes it possible in particular to create a list of the means by which display commands have been propagated and thus to calculate the adjustments to be applied to the media to be displayed (or displayed) by the screens of the various tablets. There is therefore creation of a history of the connectors used to propagate commands and management of said commands by the electronic circuit accordingly.

According to another possible characteristic, said touchpad comprises a memory configured to store one or more of the following information:
- the list of active means of communication and/or detection (such as a list of active connectors of the tablet);
- the presence of a media display command;
- the means of communication having propagated display commands;
- at least one media, such as an image, a video, etc.

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet comprises means for selecting one or more media to be displayed on the screen of at least one tablet.
Said selection means makes it possible to define the media to be displayed by the screen(s) of the tablets. Said selection means can thus be a menu allowing the user to choose a medium from a list, a medium automatically loaded when an application is launched or when a game level is loaded in the application. Said media selection means may also concern the modification of display of an existing media, such as, for example, an adjustment of the display (for example along one or two axes generated by a user command, such as sliding an image via the touch screen of the tablet).

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet comprises one or more loudspeakers.
The loudspeakers are generally arranged on one or more transverse sides (or edges) of the tablet. It will be noted that it is advantageous for the electronic circuit to be configured to deactivate the loudspeakers located on the sides close to or in contact with another tablet and therefore obstructed.

According to another possible characteristic, said shelf comprises mechanical and/or magnetic nesting means to allow other shelves to nest at the transverse sides thereof.
These nesting means allow optimal positioning between tablets so that the tablets are able to detect and communicate with each other, but also allow the creation of a display area that is as homogeneous as possible.

According to another possible characteristic, each of said connectors is connected to a pull-up resistor (or “pull-up” resistor in English) thus making it possible to detect whether or not there is a connection on the connector (and therefore to check that the connector is active).

According to another possible characteristic, each of said connectors is identified within said tablet thus making it possible to know on which of said connectors an active connection takes place and/or by which of said connectors a display command is received or sent (and therefore to know which side of the tablet is connected to another tablet).

According to another possible characteristic, said tablet comprises an additional means of communication, for example a means of wireless communication, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.
It will be noted that this additional means of communication and the connectors previously described can work together for the detection and transmission of display commands between different tablets.

The present invention also relates to a method for the dynamic display of a medium for a plurality of touch tablets, said method comprising at least the following steps, said steps being executed by the tablets:
- detection of at least one adjacent touch pad;
- communication with at least one adjacent touch pad;
- determination of at least one side to which a shelf is adjacent;
- Sending and/or receiving one or more display commands to and/or by said at least one adjacent tablet;
- adjustment and display of the media on at least two touch pads according to the various display commands sent and/or received.

According to another possible characteristic, the active connections are determined and stored in memory.
Said electronic circuit of said tablet can, for example, build the list of active connections, that is to say the list of connectors connected to another touch pad.

According to another possible characteristic, said method comprises a step of selecting a medium to display.

According to another possible feature, said display commands include one or more of the information described above.

The invention will be better understood, and other aims, details, characteristics and advantages thereof will appear more clearly during the following description of particular embodiments of the invention, given solely by way of illustration and not limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
- is a very schematic representation of a touch pad according to the invention;
- is a very schematic representation of an alternative embodiment of the tablet of FIG. 1;
- is a very schematic representation of two touch tablets connected to each other;
- is a flowchart of the dynamic display process of a media when at least two touch pads are connected to each other.

Figure 1 is a very schematic representation of a touch pad 1 according to a first embodiment of the invention.

Said 1-touch tablet includes:
- a touch screen 3;
- A detection means 5 of other touch pads configured to detect whether another tablet is placed close, in particular to one of the transverse sides of said tablet;
- A communication means 6 for communicating with at least one other touch pad detected by said detection means;
- an electronic circuit 7 for managing said detection and communication means;
- loudspeakers 9;
- A memory 11 configured to store data.

Said tablet 1 also has two opposite main faces and four transverse sides 13a to 13d connecting said main faces, said screen 3 being arranged on one of the main faces.

In the embodiment described herein, the means of detection 5 and communication 6 are combined, and are connectors 5 arranged respectively on each of the transverse sides of said touch pad 1. However, the means of communication 6 can be an additional means of communication, such as a wireless communication module (a Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth, etc.), configured to communicate with other electronic devices than a tablet according to the invention.

More particularly, said connectors 5 can be physical connectors of the POGO type supporting an I2C communication protocol, or else near-field communication chips of the NFC or RFID type. These connectors thus allow the detection and transfer of information between other touch tablets connected via these means of communication (and also of detection).

Said electronic circuit 7 is, for its part, configured to transmit display commands to the detected touch pads as well as to receive them via said connectors 5. Electronic circuit 7 is connected to the various elements mentioned above (screen touch 3, connectors 5…) and is able to control them.

Said electronic circuit 7 is also configured to deactivate the loudspeakers 9 located on a transverse side 13a-d at the level of which another touch pad is detected.

Said tablet 1 also includes an electric battery (not shown, for example a Lithium-Ion battery) to autonomously supply all the elements of the tablet requiring a power supply.

It will also be noted that said tablet comprises a selection means used to define the media to be displayed on the screen 3 of the tablet 1.

FIG. 1 also includes an enlarged schematic view of a connector 5, more particularly each of said connectors 5 is connected to a pull-up resistor R _T (or "pull-up" resistor), thus making it possible to detect a connection on the connector. Said pull-up resistor R _T is itself connected to ground.

Figure 2, for its part, is a very schematic representation of a touchpad 1' according to a variant embodiment of the invention. It will be noted that identical elements bear the same references and will therefore not be described again.

Tablet 1' thus comprises the same elements as tablet 1 previously described, but further comprises:
- Interlocking means 19 mechanical and / or magnetic to allow other tablets to nest at their transverse sides.
- An accelerometer 21 which is for example configured to influence the display command(s) sent and/or received.
- One or more means (or modules) of additional communication 6, 17 configured (s) to communicate wirelessly with another tablet and / or a computer.

In the variant embodiment of FIG. 2, the nesting means 19 comprise magnetic elements in positive polarity and in negative polarity making it possible to optimize the connection between the various connectors 5, to act as a keying device when assembling several tablets according to the invention between them and/or to favor the correct positioning of the screens 3 of the different tablets. It will also be noted that said interlocking means can be only magnetic or mechanical, or even be a combination of the two.

Said accelerometer 21, for its part, makes it possible in particular to detect the movement of a tablet while the latter communicates and displays an image in association with other touch tablets, and therefore dynamically modify the display of the moved tablet, but also other tablets. For example, as soon as the accelerometer of a tablet 1' detects a movement exceeding a predetermined threshold, said screen 3 of the tablet 1' is deactivated.

Figure 3 is a very schematic representation of two tablets 1 of Figure 1 connected to each other via one of their connectors 5. Identical elements bear the same references and will therefore not be again described.

Thus, when two shelves 1 are adequately and sufficiently close (it is also said that the shelves are assembled), connectors 5 of each of the respective shelves are then connected to each other.
Subsequently, there is execution by each of the tablets 1 of a method 100 of dynamic display of a media for touch tablets as illustrated in Figure 4:
- S1 detection of the adjacent tablet 1, in particular via their connectors 5 and their respective electronic circuit 7;
- S2 communication with the adjacent tablet 1, in particular via the connectors 5;
- determination S3 on the side of which the shelf 1 is adjacent, in particular by the fact that each of the connectors 5 is identified and located on each of the shelves 1;
- Sending a display command to the detected adjacent tablet 1 and/or receiving S4 one or more display commands from the adjacent tablet;
- S5 adjustment and display of the media on said two adjacent touch pads 1 according to the various display commands sent and received.

It will thus be noted that the method described above in relation to FIG. 4 can be generalized to a large number of tablets connected to each other (that is to say the tablets detected and communicating, for example step by step, with each other). This method can also be applied to tablets according to any variant of the invention or to tablets having the means necessary for the implementation of said method, but also to tablets without touch screens or screens (such as televisions or computer monitors).
The display commands propagate from tablet to tablet, in order to allow the desired media to be displayed, regardless of the number and arrangement of touch tablets.

Each of the tablets 1 also comprises a means of selection as described previously, however in order to avoid media display conflicts between the tablets, one of the tablets can be defined as the "referring" tablet, the media selected on the referring tablet then takes precedence over the media displayed or to be displayed coming from other tablets. The reference tablet status can for example be triggered by the selection of a medium on said tablet.
It may be noted that when a tablet comprises an accelerometer, the referent tablet status can be associated with said accelerometer, for example the tablet can be configured to lose its referent tablet status when the latter is moved.

Said method may also include one or more of the following steps:
- Determination of the active connectors and storage of these, this determination of the active connectors can for example be launched periodically, in order to update the active connections, this step is for example carried out via the electronic circuit and the memory of the tablet.
- Memorization of the connectors by which a display command was received, this specific memorization makes it possible to avoid propagating the display command received by the connector by which this command was received.
- Disabling at least one speaker of the tablet according to the active connectors, in fact each tablet having the information of a connection with another tablet on a connector located on the same side as the speaker allows the the tablet's electronic circuitry determines which speakers are obstructed and disables them. Thus, in this configuration, only the unobstructed loudspeakers provide an audio signal. It is also possible to propagate the reference of the sound medium to be played by the different tablets so that the sound coming out of the different active (that is to say unobstructed) loudspeakers is coherent.

It will also be noted that said display commands include at least one or more of the following information:
- The media(s) to display, or the reference(s) to media to display, said media being able to be stored in the memory of one of the tablets and/or stored online.
- The spatial display adjustments or shifts to be applied to a media to be displayed or already displayed. Additionally, when propagating display commands from tablet to tablet, display adjustments may stack to allow the selected media to be displayed correctly.

The dimensions of the screen of said tablet and/or adjacent tablets, optionally that each of the tablets indicates the longitudinal and/or transverse dimensions of its screen, in order to correctly apply said spatial adjustments to the desired media. It will also be noted that the spatial adjustment or offset to be applied transmitted in the display commands may be different depending on said connector by which the information is propagated. Indeed, it is sufficient to transmit the spatial adjustment in relation to the spatial position of the electrical connector (that is to say that a connector arranged on a longitudinal end can transmit only in its display commands, the adjustment relative to the length of the tablet screen). The propagated spatial adjustment can therefore only be a function of one of the dimensions of the touch screen of the tablet.

It is also advantageous for the list of active connectors (thus having propagated a command) to be reinitialized when a new medium is selected via said selection means.
In addition, periodically, the tablet is configured to check the status of the connectors (presence of a connection or not) and to delete each of the connectors from the list of active connectors if it is inactive. The tablet according to the invention can also delete an inactive connector from the list of connectors having propagated a command, this allows the tablet to subsequently propagate a command if the connector were to become active again (reconnection of the connector)

In another embodiment not shown, one or more shelves electrically supply the adjacent shelves connected to them, the electrical supply of said adjacent shelves being for example carried out via connectors 5 described above. Thus, this power supply can be propagated from tablet to tablet via said connectors (in order to recharge one or more tablet batteries).
A tablet is for example configured to be connected to the mains and to distribute the necessary electricity to the other tablets connected, directly or indirectly to it.

Claims (11)

Touchscreen tablet (1; 1') comprising at least one touchscreen (3), characterized in that it comprises:
- at least one detection means (5) of other touch pads which is configured to detect if another pad is placed close to one of its transverse sides;
- at least one communication means (6) for communicating with at least one other touch pad detected by said detection means (5);
- an electronic circuit (7) for managing said means of detection (5) and communication (6);
said electronic circuit (7) being configured to transmit display commands to the detected touch pads as well as to receive them via said communication means (6). Tablet according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the said detection means (5) are arranged on the four transverse sides (13a-d) of the said touchscreen tablet (1 ; 1'). Tablet according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said display commands include one or more of the following information:

• at least one medium to display or a reference to a medium to display;
• at least one display spatial adjustment or offset to be applied to media.

Tablet according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the said detection means are one or more connectors (5). Tablet according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the said at least one detection (5) and communication (6) means coincide. Tablet according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the said electronic circuit (7) is configured to determine and/or establish a list of the said active means of communication (6) and/or detection (5). Tablet according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a memory (11) configured to store one or more of the following information:

• the list of active means of communication (6) and/or detection (5);
• the presence of a media display command;
• the means of communication (6) having propagated display commands;
• at least one medium.

Tablet according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises means for selecting one or more media to be displayed on the screen (3) of at least one tablet (1; 1'). A method of dynamically displaying (100) a media for a plurality of touch tablets, said method comprising at least the following steps, said steps being executed by the tablets:
- detection (S1) of at least one adjacent touch pad;
- communication (S2) to at least one adjacent touch pad;
- determination (S3) of at least one side to which a shelf is adjacent;
- Sending and/or receiving (S4) one or more display commands to and/or by said at least one adjacent tablet;
- adjustment and display (S5) of the media on at least two touch pads according to the various display commands sent and/or received. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that a medium to be displayed is selected. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the active connections are determined and stored in memory.