JP2000353050A - Small-sized mouse - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a small-sized mouse which is convenient for carrying by providing an optical shift detection means constituted as a semiconductor chip that a light receiving face is supported downward. SOLUTION: An optical shift detection means 12, an LED 13 and switches 16 and 17 are mounted on a substrate 19 provided in a case 11. The LED 13 irradiates a lower direction with light through a lens 18. The shift detection means 12 is constituted as a semiconductor chip. It discriminates the change of a surface state on a reflection face based on reflected light which is made incident from the light receiving face 12a and detects a relative shift direction and shift quantity in two horizontal directions to the reflection face. The switches 16 and 17 are turned on/off with the depression of the two operation keys installed on the case 11. A detection signal detected by the shift detection means 12 and the turn on/off of the switches 16 and 17 are converted into prescribed signals by a USB control circuit 20 and are transmitted to a personal computer and the like.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coordinate input device, and more particularly to a small mouse.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a coordinate input device, for example,
A so-called mouse that performs an input operation while moving on a plane is widely used. Such a mouse includes, for example, a ball rotatably supported in a case, rotation detection means for detecting the rotation of the ball in the X and Y directions, and two operation buttons provided side by side at one end of the case, for example. And the ball is configured to protrude downward from the lower surface of the case.

According to the mouse constructed as described above, when the case is moved horizontally, the ball is rotated in accordance with the amount of the movement, and the XY is detected by the rotation detecting means.
The amount of movement in the direction is detected, and a detection signal is output to a connected personal computer or the like. Thus, coordinate input is performed, and various input operations can be performed by appropriately operating the two operation buttons.

[0004]

However, in such a mouse, in order to detect the amount of movement in the X and Y directions, the ball which rotates with the movement of the case and the direction and amount of rotation of the ball are detected. Rotation detecting means for mechanically detecting the movement of the case. For this reason, it is necessary to provide rotation detecting means in two directions outside the ball and a space for accommodating the ball, and the whole mouse becomes large. Therefore, for example, when a mouse is carried together with a notebook-type personal computer or a so-called mobile computer, there is a problem that the mouse is large and is inconvenient to carry.

In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a portable coordinate input device, particularly a small mouse.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided an optical movement detecting means configured as a semiconductor chip having a light receiving surface supported downward in a case;
A small mouse, characterized in that the optical moving means includes a light emitting means for irradiating illumination light via a facing lens, and at least two operation buttons arranged on a side surface or an upper surface of the case. Is achieved by

[0007] The small mouse according to the present invention is preferably
An optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means, and light emitted from the light emitting means is irradiated downward through the optical lens, and reflected light is emitted.
The light enters the optical movement detecting means through the optical lens.

[0008] The small mouse according to the present invention preferably comprises
A first optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means, and light emitted from the light emitting means passes downward through a second optical lens provided on the side of the light emitting means. The reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting means is incident on the optical movement detecting means through the first optical lens.

[0009] The small mouse according to the present invention preferably comprises
The side surface of the case provided with the optical movement detecting means is formed in a curved half-egg shape that is inclined forward toward the front in the operation direction, and is curved from the upper surface side to the lower surface side of the case. It is formed narrower.

[0010] The small mouse according to the present invention is preferably
The optical movement detecting means is connected to various devices via a cable.

[0011] The small mouse according to the present invention is preferably
The optical movement detecting means is wirelessly connected to various devices.

According to the above configuration, the user moves the case in the X and Y directions, for example, on a desk or at the back of the hand when carrying the device, so that the light emitted from the light emitting means can be placed on the desk or at the time of carrying the hand. And is incident on the light receiving surface of the optical movement detecting means. Thereby, the optical movement detection means, based on the change of the incident reflected light,
The moving direction and the moving amount are detected and output to, for example, a personal computer or the like. Thus, coordinate input is performed. In addition, a predetermined input operation can be performed by the user operating at least two operation buttons provided on the side surface or the upper surface of the case.

In this case, the detection of the movement amount and the movement direction of the case is performed optically by the optical movement detection means. Therefore, the conventional mechanical detection means, that is, the ball which rotates as the case moves, is used. This eliminates the need for a pair of rotation detecting means for detecting the direction and amount of rotation of the ball. Accordingly, since there are no mechanical movable parts, it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of detection failure caused by wear of component parts or dust adhering to the ball or the rotation detecting means, and the handling becomes easy.

Further, since the optical movement detecting means is constituted as a semiconductor chip, it is not necessary to use a conventional large ball or rotation detecting means, and the whole can be made much smaller. This means that portability is improved. For example, the case can be formed into a size of about 60 mm in length and about 25 mm in width, so that a small mouse excellent in portability can be obtained.

An optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means. Light emitted from the light emitting means is irradiated downward through the optical lens and reflected light is emitted from the light emitting means. When entering the optical movement detection means through the optical lens, the light emitted from the light emitting means,
Through the optical lens, the light receiving surface of the optical movement detecting means is irradiated on the area facing the light receiving means, which increases the degree of freedom in the arrangement of the light emitting means and improves the efficiency of incidence on the optical movement detecting means. And the detection accuracy is increased.

A first optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means, and light emitted from the light emitting means passes through a second optical lens provided on a side of the light emitting means. When the reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting means passes through the first optical lens and enters the optical movement detecting means, the light is emitted from the light emitting means in the same manner as described above. Light is passed through the optical lens to the area where the light receiving surface of the optical movement detecting means is opposed, so that the degree of freedom of the arrangement position of the light emitting means is increased and the optical movement detecting means The incident efficiency is improved, the detection accuracy is improved, and a small mouse with a short height and excellent portability can be obtained.

The side surface of the case provided with the optical movement detecting means is formed in a curved half-egg shape which is inclined forward toward the front in the operation direction, and is curved from the top side to the bottom side of the case. If it is formed narrower than the upper surface, it fits in the hand, adapts to the curvature of the hand, and the side of the case is stably gripped by the thumb and ring finger (little finger),
The two operation buttons of the index finger and the middle finger are operated extremely smoothly, and a small mouse excellent in operability and excellent in portability can be obtained.

When the optical movement detecting means is connected to various devices via a cable, it can be used in the same manner as a conventional cable-connected mouse.

When the optical movement detecting means is wirelessly connected to various devices, it can be used as a wireless mouse and does not require a connection cable. The portability is improved, and the portability is further improved.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings. 1 to 6 show a first embodiment of a small mouse according to the present invention.
1 to 3, a small mouse 10 is a case 11
And an optical movement detecting means 12 provided in the case 11.
An LED 13 as a light emitting means, two operation buttons 14 and 15 provided on an upper surface of the case 11,
The optical lens 18 includes switches 16 and 17 which are provided in the unit 1 and are operated by these two operation buttons. The small mouse 10 in FIG. 2 does not have an upper case portion of a case 11, and the optical movement detecting means 12, the LED 13, and the switches 16 and 17 are mounted on a substrate 19 provided in the case 11. ing.

As shown in FIG. 4, the optical movement detecting means 12 is configured as a semiconductor chip, and has a light receiving surface 12a on the lower surface. The optical movement detecting means 1
Reference numeral 2 denotes a commercially available optical sensor, which determines a change in the surface state of the reflecting surface based on the reflected light incident from the light receiving surface 12a, and moves relative to the reflecting surface in two horizontal directions. And the amount of movement.

The LED 13 is mounted upside down on a substrate 19 and emits light downward through a lens 18.

The switches 16 and 17 are turned on and off by pressing two operation buttons 14 and 15 provided on the upper surface of the case 11.

The detection signal detected by the optical movement detecting means 12 and the on / off of the switches 16 and 17 are processed after being processed through an appropriate processing circuit (not shown) formed on the substrate 19. And the USB control circuit 20
Is converted into a signal corresponding to the USB interface, and transmitted to a personal computer or the like via the cable 21 or by a wireless method such as infrared transmission. In the case of the wireless system, a power supply battery can be built in the case 11.

The optical lens 18 is disposed between the substrate 19 and the bottom of the case 11 and below the optical movement detecting means 12, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the optical lens 18 acts as a convex lens, and thereby reflects light reflected from a reflection surface A such as the back of a hand or a flat surface when carrying a desk or a portable device. The light is condensed against the light. Further, as shown in FIG.
An ED 13 is provided, and below the LED 13, a so-called Fresnel lens plate 22 is provided. Thereby, the light emitted from the LED 13 is reflected and condensed by the Fresnel lens plate 22, so that the optical lens 1
8, the light receiving surface 12a of the optical moving means 12
Illuminates the area A that faces.

The small mouse 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention
With the configuration described above, the small mouse 10 is placed on the back of the hand or on the surface of the hand when carrying it,
used. At this time, the LED 13 emits light, and the emitted light is reflected by the Fresnel lens plate 22 and further passes through the optical lens 18 so that the light receiving surface 12a of the optical movement detecting means 12 faces the desk or the back of the hand or the like when carrying. The surface area A is illuminated. As a result, the reflected light reflected on the surface area A enters the light receiving surface 12a of the optical movement detecting means 12 via the optical lens 18.

From this state, the user operates the small mouse 10
When the case 11 is moved horizontally on the back of the hand or the surface of the hand when carrying it at the desk or when carrying, the reflected light incident on the light receiving surface 12a of the optical movement detecting means 12 changes with the relative movement of the surface area A. That is, the optical movement detecting means 1
2 detects a relative moving direction and a moving amount with respect to the surface area A based on the change of the reflected light. When the user operates the operation buttons 14 and 15, the switches 16 and 17 are operated by the operation buttons 14 and 15.

Thus, the detection signal of the optical movement detecting means 12 and the on / off of the switches 16 and 17 are processed by an appropriate processing circuit, and further transmitted to a personal computer or the like via the USB control circuit 20 and the cable 21. You. Thus, the cursor or the like is moved on the screen of the display device (not shown) of the personal computer in accordance with the moving direction and the moving amount of the case 11, and appropriate processing is performed by operating the operation buttons 14 and 15. It is supposed to be.

As described above, according to the mouse 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, in order to detect the moving direction and the moving amount of the case 11, the optical movement detecting means 12 configured as a semiconductor chip is used. This eliminates the need for a large-scale mechanical movement detecting means as in the related art, and the whole mouse can be configured to be much smaller. As a result of the trial production, a case having a case length of 60 mm and a width of 25 mm was obtained, which was much smaller than the conventional case. Therefore, for example, when a mouse is carried together with a notebook-type personal computer or a so-called mobile computer, the mouse can be configured to be very small, so that portability is greatly improved.

FIGS. 7 to 9 show a second embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention. 7 to 9, the small mouse 25 includes a lower case 11a and an upper case 11.
b, an optical movement detecting means 12 disposed in the case 11, and L as light emitting means.
ED 13, two operation buttons 14, 15 provided on the upper surface of case 11, and switches 16, 1 arranged in case 11 and operated by these two operation buttons
7 and an optical lens 18, which is substantially the same as the small mouse 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. The first lens 1 is located below the optical movement detecting means 12.
8a (condensing lens for optical movement detecting means), and an LED 13 as a light emitting means is mounted on the substrate 19 horizontally with the substrate 19, and the second lens 18b
Window 1 of lower case 11a via (condenser lens for LED)
The configuration is different in that light is emitted downward from 1c.

Further, as viewed from the side, the case 11 is formed into a curved semi-egg shape in which the side is inclined forward toward the front in the operation direction (right side in the figure), and the upper side of the case 11 (the upper case). 11b) to the bottom side (lower case 11a)
And is formed narrower than the upper surface side.
The upper case 11b is provided with one operation button 14 and 15 respectively on the upper surface thereof, fits in the hand, adapts to the curvature of the hand, and the side of the case is stably gripped by the thumb and ring finger (the little finger). The two operation buttons with the middle finger are configured to be operated very smoothly, and a small mouse excellent in operability and excellent in portability can be obtained.

According to the small mouse 25 configured as described above, the first optical lens 18 a is provided below the optical movement detecting means 12, and the first optical lens 18 a is disposed on the substrate 19.
The light emitted from the LED 13 as the light emitting means mounted horizontally passes through the second optical lens 18b provided on the side of the light emitting means, and the window 11c of the lower case 11a.
As in the first embodiment, the reflected light of the light emitted from the light emitting means is incident on the optical movement detecting means 12 through the first optical lens 18a. The light emitted from the light emitting means passes through the optical lens and irradiates the area where the light receiving surface of the optical movement detecting means is opposed, so that the degree of freedom of arrangement of the light emitting means is increased, and The efficiency of incidence on the movement detection means is improved, the detection accuracy is improved, and a small mouse with a small height and excellent portability can be obtained.

FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention. In FIG. 10, a small mouse 30 has substantially the same configuration as the small mice 10 and 25 shown in FIGS. 1 to 9, and one operation button 31, 32, 33 ( The operation button 33 on the opposite side of the case 11 has a different configuration only in that the operation button 33 is provided with a dotted line). According to the small mouse 30 having such a configuration, the three operation buttons 31, 3
2 and 33 are provided, so that it is configured as a so-called three-button mouse. By appropriately setting the functions of the operation buttons, even a left-handed person can use it easily, improving operability. I do.

FIG. 11 shows a fourth embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention. In FIG. 11, a small mouse 40 has substantially the same configuration as the small mice 10 and 25 shown in FIGS. 1 to 9, and is different in that a case 41 is formed in a horizontally long and semi-cylindrical shape. ing. According to the small mouse 40 having such a configuration, by pressing both ends of the main body 41 with the thumb and the ring finger so as to sandwich the same, and operating the operation buttons 14 and 15 with the forefinger and the middle finger, even the small case 41 can be used. , The operation buttons 14 and 15 can be easily operated, and the operability is improved.

FIG. 12 shows an application example of the small mice 10 and 25 shown in FIGS. In this case, the small mice 10 and 25 are, for example, recessed portions 5 provided on the right side of the main body 51 of the notebook personal computer 50.
2 so that it can be accommodated in
As shown in FIG. 5, the small mouse 10 and 2 can be taken out from the recess 52 and used.
5 is accommodated in the recess 52. Accordingly, when the portable mouse is carried, the small mice 10 and 25 themselves are housed in the personal computer 50, so that the portability is further improved.

In the above-described embodiment, the operation buttons 14, 1 of the small mice 10, 25, 30, 40 are used.
5, 31, 32, and 33 correspond to cases 11 and 41,
The operation button is disposed on the upper surface or the side surface, but is not limited to this, and the operation button may be disposed at an arbitrary position of the case for improving operability.

In the above embodiment, the optical movement detecting means 12, the LED 13, the USB control circuit 20, and the like are mounted on the board 19, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the board 19 may be omitted. . In this case, each component, that is, the optical movement detecting means 12, the LED 13, the USB control circuit 20, and the like are attached to a predetermined position on the inner surface of the case 11.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the small mice 10 and 25 are configured as so-called USB interface mice, but are not limited thereto, and may be configured as PS / 2 standard mice. It may be configured as a so-called wireless mouse using infrared rays or the like.

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, the user can move the case in the X and Y directions, for example, on the back of a hand or on a flat surface at the time of carrying on a desk or carrying, so that light emitted from the light emitting means can be obtained. The light is reflected on the back of the back of the hand or the palm of the hand when it is carried at the desk or when it is carried, and enters the light receiving surface of the optical movement detecting means. Thereby, the optical movement detecting means detects the moving direction and the moving amount based on the change of the incident reflected light, and outputs it to, for example, a personal computer or the like. Thus, coordinate input is performed. In addition, a predetermined input operation can be performed by the user operating at least two operation buttons provided on the side surface or the upper surface of the case.

In this case, since the detection of the movement amount and the movement direction of the case is performed optically by the optical movement detection means, the conventional mechanical detection means, that is, the ball rotating with the movement of the case. This eliminates the need for a pair of rotation detecting means for detecting the direction and amount of rotation of the ball. Accordingly, since there are no mechanical movable parts, it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of detection failure caused by wear of component parts or dust adhering to the ball or the rotation detecting means, and the handling becomes easy.

Further, since the optical movement detecting means is configured as a semiconductor chip, it is not necessary to use a conventional large ball or rotation detecting means, so that the whole can be made much smaller. This means that portability is improved.

Thus, according to the present invention, a small mouse which is convenient to carry can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a first embodiment of a small mouse according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view showing an internal configuration of the small mouse of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view omitting a case showing an internal configuration of the small mouse of FIG. 1;

4A and 4B show a configuration of an optical movement detecting means in the small mouse of FIG. 1, wherein FIG. 4A is a side view and FIG. 4B is a bottom view.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an optical configuration of the small mouse of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an optical path from an LED to an optical movement detecting means in the small mouse of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a schematic side view showing a second embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the internal configuration of the small mouse of FIG. 7, excluding the upper case.

FIG. 9 is a bottom view of the small mouse of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view showing a third embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view showing a fourth embodiment of the small mouse according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view showing an application example of a small mouse according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 25, 30, 40 Small mouse 11, 41 Case 11a Lower case 11b Upper case 11c Window 12 Optical movement detecting means (semiconductor chip) 12a Light receiving surface 13 LED (light emitting means) 14, 15, 31, 32, 33 Operation Button 16, 17 Switch 18 Optical lens 18a First optical lens 18b Second optical lens 19 Substrate 20 USB control circuit 21 Cable 50 Notebook type personal computer 51 Main body 52 Recess

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An optical movement detecting means configured as a semiconductor chip having a light receiving surface supported downward in a case, and the optical moving means irradiating illumination light through an opposed lens. A small mouse comprising: means; and at least two operation buttons disposed on a side surface or a top surface of a case. 2. An optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means. Light emitted from the light emitting means is irradiated downward through the optical lens and reflected light is emitted. 2. The small mouse according to claim 1, wherein the light enters the optical movement detecting means through the optical lens. 3. A first optical lens is provided below the optical movement detecting means, and a light emitted from the light emitting means is a second optical lens provided on a side of the light emitting means. And a reflected light of light emitted from the light emitting means passes through the first optical lens and is incident on the optical movement detecting means. A small mouse as described. 4. A side surface of the case provided with the optical movement detecting means is formed in a curved half-egg shape which is inclined forward toward the front in the operation direction, and extends from a top side to a bottom side of the case. 2. A curved shape, formed narrower than the upper surface side.
4. The small mouse according to any one of claims 1 to 3. 5. The coordinate input device according to claim 1, wherein said optical movement detecting means is connected to various devices via a cable. 6. The optical movement detecting means is connected to various devices wirelessly.
The coordinate input device according to claim 1.