JP2003177861A - Key input device and electronic equipment equipped with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a key input device capable of changing characters such as characters and symbols displayed on keys as necessary and to provide electronic equipment with the key input device. <P>SOLUTION: Only one kind of characters such as characters and symbols to be displayed on keys are displayed in magnification according to a key input mode or the like. In addition, projection/recession makes it possible to easily discriminate those characters with a sense of touch. Also, the characters such as the characters or symbols to be displayed on those keys are changed as necessary according to a key input mode so that the performance of electronic equipment can be sufficiently improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a display technology of keys provided in electronic equipment such as portable information terminal equipment, portable telephones, electric appliances, and more specifically, such as characters and symbols displayed on the keys. The present invention relates to a key input device capable of appropriately changing a character and the electronic device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in electronic devices represented by portable information terminal devices and portable telephones, there are a plurality of input modes such as Japanese Hiragana input mode, Japanese Katakana input mode, alphanumeric input mode, and numeric input mode. Input modes are prepared, and characters representing each mode are written on the input keys.

[0003]

By the way, in the above electronic device, the number of input keys must be reduced and the size of the keys must be reduced in order to reduce the weight and size.

Therefore, as shown in the portable telephone 8 of FIG. 1, there is a problem in that it is difficult for a user with so-called presbyopia or amblyopia to see the character representing each mode.

Further, since the number of keys is small, the C of electronic equipment is
The PU itself may have a variety of functions, but has a problem that it cannot fully exhibit its capabilities.

In addition, although there is an input device in which a touch panel is combined with a display element at present, a click feeling cannot be obtained, and it is necessary to visually check the key area to burden the user. There is.

An object of the present invention is to display characters displayed on keys,
Characters such as symbols can be displayed in one large size (for example, only hiragana or English letters) according to the key input mode, etc., and by providing unevenness,
An object of the present invention is to provide a key input device which can be easily discriminated by touch and an electronic device such as a portable information terminal device and a mobile phone equipped with the key input device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a key input device capable of fully utilizing the capabilities of an electronic device by appropriately changing characters such as characters and symbols displayed on a key according to a key input mode and the like. An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device such as a mobile information terminal device and a mobile phone equipped with the key input device.

[0009]

A key input device of the present invention is a key input device having irregularities depending on the installation position of the key, and the display of each key is changed. Here, as described in the embodiment, the plurality of keys may be configured by individually providing independent display devices, or a plurality of display devices may be provided on a single liquid crystal panel or other display device. The area may be set. Further, a combination of them may be used.

As the former configuration, for example, in a key input device in which two or more operation keys have a single display area, the single display area can be a display surface of an independent display device. Usually, when the keys (display devices) are independent of each other, there is a gap between the keys or the keys can be displaced independently of each other, so that some irregularities are generated depending on the key position.

When a plurality of display areas corresponding to the respective keys are set on one display device, unevenness is provided on the display surface or the like (for example, from a visible material such as transparent or translucent). It is possible to make unevenness corresponding to the key position (each display area) by attaching a pad to be formed. Of course, the present invention is not limited to the two types described above, and various types of configurations can be applied. In addition, of course, one key is also included.

Further, the key input device of the present invention is the above key input device having a plurality of key input modes, wherein a character displayed in each display area is different depending on each key input mode. Or that the sizes of the displayed characters are different.

According to the present invention, the characters such as characters and symbols displayed on the keys can be displayed in large size, for example, only in hiragana or in English, depending on the key input mode. Key operation becomes easy. Furthermore, since the display surface is made uneven, the key position can be easily discriminated by touch.

In the present invention, the key input mode is typically Japanese Hiragana input mode, Japanese Katakana input mode, Alphanumeric input mode, or Numeric input mode, but is not limited to this. , For example, “√”, “cos”, “sin”, “log”, “EX” of so-called scientific calculators
A character such as "P" can be displayed. Therefore,
For example, when the key input device of the present invention is applied to a mobile phone, the functions (for example, various functions such as a scientific calculator function) that cannot be mounted because the above-mentioned character cannot be assigned to a numeric keypad, etc. It becomes easy to mount on the mobile phone.

The key input device of the present invention is preferably applied to a key input device in which the operation keys include at least 10 keys to which the numbers "1" to "9" and "0" are assigned. Usually, 10 operation keys have the above-mentioned independent display areas, and in addition, "*" and "〓" are used for mobile phones.
It is preferable that the key has the independent display area.

In the key input device of the present invention, the display device may be a liquid crystal display device, a light emitting element array display device, a field emission display device, an electroluminescence display device, or an FL tube display device. As a light emitting element used in a light emitting element array display device, LE
D, LED (especially surface emitting LD), etc. can be adopted. The LEDs and LEDs used here are usually formed in an array by a semiconductor process. The electroluminescence display uses a substance that emits fluorescence when a voltage is applied. Due to its features such as high contrast, wide viewing angle, and low power consumption, it is preferably applied to mobile information terminals and mobile phones.

The electronic equipment of the present invention is not only a portable information terminal equipment and a portable telephone equipped with the above key input device, but also various electronic equipment equipped with an operation panel (key input device) for audio products, home appliances and the like. Equipment applies.

[0018]

2 to 5 show a first embodiment in which the key input device of the present invention is applied to a portable telephone. First, FIGS. 2A to 2C are views showing the key in a disassembled state. As shown in the figure, the key 10 is a frame 11
And an upper member 12 and a display chip (display device in the present invention) 13. The frame 11 is made of hard plastic, has a rectangular opening in the center, and a flange 11a around the lower part.

The upper member 12 is attached to the frame 11 from the front side and is made of transparent hard plastic. The upper surface of the upper member 12 has a convex contour. Then, it is fitted into the opening of the frame 11 and mounted. The display chip 13 may be exposed without providing the upper member 12.

The display chip 13 is attached to the frame 11 from the back side, and as shown in FIG. 3, the transparent electrode 13a.
And a liquid crystal layer 13b, a pattern layer 13c, and an insulating layer 13d. Further, a light emitting diode (LED) is connected on the insulating layer 13d (center portion). This light emitting diode functions as a backlight.

By adopting such a configuration, the display chip 1
By outputting and displaying arbitrary characters etc. on 3, each key 1
Any character can be displayed on the surface of 0. Therefore, by switching the display contents, the same key 10
However, different characters can be displayed,
Can have different meanings. The details will be described later.

FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of essential parts in a state where the above-mentioned key 10 is mounted on an actual device (portable telephone 20). That is, it is a partial view of the mobile phone 20 in which the key 10 is assembled in the key hole H. Key 10
Is attached to the key hole H from the back side (inside) of the casing 21 of the mobile phone 20. The key hole H is formed with a contour smaller than the contour of the flange portion 11 a of the frame body 11. As a result, the key 10 is prevented from coming off the housing portion 21. In addition, by the key 10 concerned,
A key input device according to the present invention is configured.

Further, inside the housing portion 21, key operation boards 30 are arranged at predetermined intervals. And
A micro switch 31 is mounted on the key operation board 30 facing the lower center part of the key 10, and when the key 10 is pressed, the lower center part of the key 10 urges the micro switch 31, It is designed to close the switch. The other end of the flat cable FC is connected to the flat cable socket FCS on the key operation board 30.

On the other hand, a spring coil S is provided between the lower surface of the display chip 13 and the key operation board 30, and
Are attached so as to urge the upper side. The spring coil S has a diameter that can accommodate the LED and the micro switch 31, and the LED is located inside the upper part and the micro switch 31 is located inside the lower part.

On the back side of the key operation board 30,
The driving IC 32 is provided, and the wiring from the flat cable socket FCS and the micro switch 31 is connected to the driving IC 32. As a result, the drive I
The C32 is electrically connected to the display chip 13 via the wiring provided on the back surface of the key operation board 30, the flat cable socket FCS, and the flat cable FC. Therefore, the display content on the display chip 13 can be controlled by the drive IC 32. Further, ON / OFF of the micro switch 31 is also given to the drive IC 32.

FIGS. 5A to 5D show an overall configuration diagram and an application example (use example) of the portable telephone 20 shown in FIG. In FIGS. 5A to 5C, 12 constituting the numeric keypad is used.
The individual keys 10 are configured as described above. Then, under the control of the driving IC 32, each key 10 can appropriately switch and display a plurality of different characters. The display switching is basically performed in the character input mode.

For example, when the auxiliary key is pressed in the character input mode, the drive IC detects it and converts it into "kana mode", "alphabet mode", "numerical mode" or the like. That is, when the "numeric mode" is selected,
As shown in FIG. 5A, the display chip 13 of each key 10
, The numbers "1" to "0", "*", and "〓" are displayed.

Further, when the "kana mode" is selected, as shown in FIG.
On the display chip 13 of the key 10 corresponding to “0”, the uppermost characters of the “kana table” are “a”, “ka”, “sa”, ...
., "Wa" is displayed, and ".DELTA." And ".gradient." Are displayed on the display chip 13 of the key 10 corresponding to "*" and "〓".

Furthermore, when the "alphabet mode" is selected, as shown in FIG.
On the display chip 13 of the key 10 corresponding to “9”, English letters “ABC”, “DEF”, “GJI”, ...
"Sign" is displayed and the key 1 corresponding to "*" and "〓"
“Δ” and “∇” are displayed on the display chip 13 of 0.

In this way, the display chip 13 of each key 10 is
In, it is possible to output and display only the character or the like for specifying and expressing the mode. That is, conventionally, as shown in FIG. 1, there is a limit to the character type notation that can be assigned to one key, and the display chip 1 of each key 10 is limited.
Since 3 is used to indicate characters for all modes, 1
A plurality of types of characters and the like are written on one key, and the notation of each character and the like has to be displayed small. However, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. It is not limited to the above, and large characters can always be displayed on the numeric keypad.

By the way, in recent years, the reason why the function of a so-called scientific calculator cannot be mounted is that the microprocessor for a high-performance mobile phone is provided at a low price.
This is probably because there is a shortage of "keys". First
In the embodiment, as described above, each pixel of the display chip 13 can be driven independently. Therefore, it is used in a so-called scientific calculator as shown in FIG.
“√”, “cos”, “sin”, “log”, “EX
P "or the like can be displayed. Therefore, according to the present invention, the function of the portable telephone can be equipped with the function of the scientific calculator.

Further, in recent years, due to the development of satellite communication lines, the communication specifications of portable telephones tend to be standardized in each country. For example, when creating a mobile phone for multiple countries, if you try to convert a mobile phone for a country in one language into a mobile phone for a country in another language, the ROM
It is necessary to change the software such as the display character data and the conversion program, but at the same time, the change of the numeric keypad is indispensable. According to the present embodiment, it is possible to adapt a certain type of mobile phone for a plurality of languages without changing the numeric keypad and only by changing the software. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the display chip 13 of each key can be used instead of the display to display an appropriate message or the like.

Display chip 1 in the above-described embodiment
3 is configured to display characters and the like using LEDs and liquid crystals and emit light to make it easy to see. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a light emitting element array, field emission, electroluminescence display device,
It can be an FL tube display device. Examples of the light emitting element used in the light emitting element array display device include an LED,
An LED (particularly a surface emitting LD) or the like can be adopted. The LEDs and LEDs used here are usually formed in an array by a semiconductor process.

FIGS. 6 and 7 describe a second embodiment in which the keys with the display changing function of the present invention are applied to the keys of the portable telephone 20. In the present embodiment, the configuration for displaying characters and the like on the display chip 13 is different.

That is, in the first embodiment, the display chip 13 for liquid crystal display is constructed such that 8 × 12 electrodes are independently driven. Therefore, the number of wires and the strip line formed on the back surface of the display chip 13 are 8 ×.
Twelve were needed. On the other hand, in the present embodiment,
The number of strip lines formed on the back surface of the display chip 13 can be reduced.

FIG. 6 shows an electrode pattern on the back surface of the display chip 13 when the number mode "1", the half-tone mode "A" and the alphabet mode "A" are assigned to one key. . In FIG. 6, the electrode pattern is composed of 11 pattern blocks, and each pattern block is connected to the micro terminal MT (terminal numbers 1 to 11).

For example, by applying a signal (voltage) to the terminals of the numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 11 on the surface of the display chip 13 in the number mode, as shown in FIG. Is displayed. In addition, in the one-sided mode, by giving a signal to the terminals of numbers 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, and 11, “A” is displayed as shown in FIG. 7B.
Further, in the alphabet mode, by giving a signal to the terminals of numbers 1, 4, 5, 6, and 8, "A" is displayed as shown in FIG. 7 (c).

In the examples of FIGS. 6 and 7A to 7C, the hiragana is not displayed, but the same method as above is used when the hiragana mode is further added. Can be displayed. In the second embodiment, even if the kana mode, the numeral mode, and the alphabet mode are included, if there are about 20 terminals per key, kana, numerals, and alphabet characters can be displayed.

In the above embodiment, each key is configured to include an independent display device, but the present invention is not limited to this, and corresponds to each key on one liquid crystal panel, for example. A plurality of display areas may be set, and a transparent pad may be attached on each of the display areas. Further, in the above-described embodiment,
For example, as shown in FIG. 5, an example applied to a mobile phone is shown, but an electronic device to which the key input device of the present invention is applied is
It can be applied to portable information terminals, audio devices and other home appliances. In addition, the contents to be switched and displayed can be switched according to the function, for example, by switching and displaying in various languages, the same device can be replaced by replacing the software without preparing buttons printed for each country. We can deal with each country.

[0040]

According to the present invention, the characters such as characters and symbols displayed on the keys can be enlarged by one type according to the key input mode and the like, so that the key can be easily operated by anyone. It is possible to provide an input device and an electronic device such as a portable information terminal device, a mobile phone, and a home electric appliance.

Further, according to the present invention, by appropriately changing the characters such as characters and symbols displayed on the keys in accordance with the key input mode and the like, the ability of the electronic device can be fully utilized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an entire conventional mobile phone.

FIG. 2 is an exploded explanatory view showing the first embodiment of the key input device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the first embodiment of the present invention, which is a sectional explanatory diagram of the display chip of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a partial view of a mobile phone in which the key shown in FIG. 2 is assembled in a key hole.

5A and 5B are diagrams showing an overall configuration diagram and an application example of the mobile phone shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an electrode pattern on the back surface of the display chip in the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which different character types are displayed by the display chip of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 keys 11 frame 11a Flange part 12 Upper member 13 display chips 13a transparent electrode 13b liquid crystal layer 13c pattern layer 13d insulating layer 20 mobile phones 21 housing 30-key operation board 31 micro switch 32 drive IC FC flat cable FCS flat cable socket H key hole LED light emitting diode MT micro terminal

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) H04M 1/02 G06F 3/023 320C 1/22 F term (reference) 5B019 DA01 DA10 5B020 DD26 GG02 5K023 AA07 BB11 GG10 HH07 HH08 5K027 AA11 BB02 FF01 FF22 GG00 HH00 MM15 MM16 MM17

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A key input device having irregularities according to the installation position of the key, wherein the display of each key changes. 2. A plurality of key input modes are provided, and a character displayed in each display area is different or a size of a displayed character is different according to each key input mode. The key input device according to claim 1. 3. The key input mode is Japanese hiragana input mode, Japanese kana kana input mode, alphanumeric input mode,
The key input device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising at least two input modes selected from a numeral input mode. 4. The operation key is at least "1"-
The key according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising ten keys to which numbers "9" and "0" are assigned, and each operation key has the independent display area. Input device. 5. The display device includes a liquid crystal display device, a light emitting element array display device, a field emission display device,
The key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the key input device is an electroluminescence display device or an FL tube display device. 6. An electronic device comprising the key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 5. 7. The electronic device according to claim 6, wherein the electronic device is a portable information terminal device. 8. The electronic device according to claim 6, wherein the electronic device is a mobile phone.