JP2005092341A - Radio type input device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio type input device capable of being at low costs and at low power consumption. <P>SOLUTION: In an intermittent motion, when a first switching means S1 is turned on, charging and discharging of a capacitor C is carried out and a clock signal is turned on when a driving voltage Vs reaches a designated threshold value. When an operating object is left for a designated period, a displacement amount detecting means 4 is intermittently driven based on the clock signal. When the operating object is further left, a second switching means S2 is set to turn on while the first switching means S1 keeps an off state. When the operating object 2 is operated, a vibration sensor 11 is turned on, and the driving voltage Vs is fluctuated. When the driving voltage Vs reaches a designated threshold value, the displacement amount detecting means 4 is continuously driven based on the clock signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a wireless input device such as a wireless mouse, and more particularly to a wireless input device that can achieve reduction of power consumption at a low cost.

  In the following Patent Document 1, a mouse using an infrared communication medium is wirelessly connected to a personal computer, and the mouse is a detection sensor formed by a piezoelectric or semiconductor acceleration sensor that detects the start of an operator's operation. Is provided. This mouse is provided with X-axis and Y-axis encoders for detecting the amount of movement, and when the output from both encoders is stopped, the power supply to other than the detection sensor is stopped after a predetermined time. When the operator operates the mouse, the detection sensor detects it and the mouse returns to normal operation.

  In the following Patent Document 2, a mouse is connected via a cable to a wireless keyboard that communicates wirelessly with a computer main body. This device is provided with an on / off type operation switch that cuts off and starts the supply of power to the mouse. When no output is obtained for a predetermined time from the encoder provided on the mouse, the operation switch is turned off. The power supply from the keyboard to the mouse is cut off to reduce power consumption.

In Patent Document 3 below, a ball-type mouse is connected to a host system, and the mouse is provided with a switch for turning on and off the power supply from the host system. A power generator is provided in the mouse, and electric power is generated from the power generator by the rotational force of the ball when the mouse is operated to rotate the ball. With this power, the switch is turned on and power is supplied from the host system.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-11867 JP 2002-132396 A JP 11-219257 A

  However, since the sensor shown in Patent Document 1 is formed of an acceleration sensor, the sensor needs to be energized at all times, and low power saving cannot be sufficiently achieved. Further, the device disclosed in Patent Document 2 has a problem in terms of versatility because a predetermined switch must be provided on the keyboard side, resulting in high cost. In addition, the above-mentioned Patent Document 3 has to be equipped with a generator that is activated by the rotational force of the sphere of the mouse, which increases the cost and is difficult to apply to an optical mouse that is not a ball type.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide a wireless input device that can be manufactured at low cost with low power consumption.

The present invention relates to an operating body that is wirelessly communicated with a device main body, a displacement amount detecting means that detects movement of the operating body, and a control unit that performs predetermined processing based on a detection signal from the displacement amount detecting means. In a wireless input device having
The control unit is provided with power control means for completely stopping driving of the displacement amount detection means when no output is obtained from the displacement amount detection means after a predetermined time has elapsed, and the power control means is driven. It is operated based on a predetermined time constant of voltage or driving current.

  For example, a first switching means is provided that intermittently outputs a clock signal from the control unit based on the time constant of the driving voltage or driving current and operates based on the clock signal.

  In the present invention described above, the power supply to the displacement amount detecting means can be completely cut off, so that the power can be saved, and the clock signal is driven intermittently, so that the power consumption of a circuit such as a microcomputer can be reduced. As a result, the battery life can be extended and the number of battery replacements can be reduced. In addition, the displacement amount detection means may not only detect a translational motion but also may detect an angle.

  Further, it is preferable that the displacement amount detecting means is driven intermittently according to the output of the clock signal. In this case, the drive interval of the displacement detection means may be set to be increased stepwise.

  Preferably, the power control means is provided with second switching means, and a contact-type vibration sensor is connected to the second switching means. Thus, when a contact type sensor is used, it is not necessary to always energize the sensor, and power consumption can be reduced.

  The displacement amount detection means can be applied to a light source and an image processing means that detects the change in reflected light by causing the light source to emit light. It should be noted that a mouse type in which the entire operating body moves or a trackball type in which the operating body is formed of a sphere may be used.

  Further, an operation status signal may be transmitted to the device main body immediately before operating the power supply control means. As a result, the receiving apparatus can be shifted to intermittent driving at the same time, which is effective for power saving.

  According to the present invention, it is not necessary to always energize the displacement amount detecting means, and it is not necessary to intermittently output the clock signal and always drive the circuit. The number of exchanges can be reduced.

  Moreover, since it is not necessary to mount a plurality of vibrators for intermittent operation, the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  1 is a block diagram showing an example of a wireless input device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing power supply control means and its peripheral portion, FIG. 3 is a timing chart, and FIG. 4 is stopped from the normal operation of the wireless input device. It is a flowchart which shows the process until. In the following embodiments, a mouse-type pointing device will be described as an example of a computer pointing device.

  This wireless input device 1 has an operating body 2 that can be moved by holding it with a hand, and can move an arrow-like cursor displayed on the screen based on the moving operation. The operation body 2 is transmitted to a device main body 30 such as a personal computer via a radio communication medium such as radio waves of a predetermined frequency or infrared rays. The device body 30 is provided with an input port of a predetermined standard such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus), and a receiving unit 31 is connected to this input port. On the other hand, the operation body 2 is provided with a transmission unit 3, and a signal generated on the operation body 2 side is transmitted to the reception unit 31 via the transmission unit 3.

  Displacement amount detection means 4 is provided in the operating body 2, and this displacement amount detection means 4 is composed of a light source formed of an LED (light emitting diode) or the like and an image processing means. The image processing means includes an image sensor such as a CMOS or CCD, a storage unit, a processing unit, and the like. By causing the light source to emit light and inputting the reflected light, that is, an image pattern of the operation surface of the operation body 2 to the image sensor, inputting the image pattern every predetermined time, and comparing changes before and after The moving direction and moving amount of the operating body 2 can be detected.

  The operation body 2 is provided with an operation unit 5 formed of a push button type switch, a rotary type switch or the like. Further, the operating body 2 is provided with a power source 6 for supplying power to each circuit and a power source control unit (power source control means) 7. These transmission unit 3, displacement amount detection means 4, operation unit 5, power source 6 and power source control unit 7 are each connected to a control unit 10. The power source 6 is a single-use primary battery that cannot be charged or a secondary battery that can be repeatedly charged. In FIG. 1, the power supply control unit 7 is formed separately from the control unit 10, but the power supply control unit 7 and the control unit 10 are configured as a control unit as a whole. Also good.

  In the wireless input device 1, when the operation body 2 is moved, the displacement amount detection means 4 detects the movement direction and the movement amount. In the displacement amount detection unit 4, power of a predetermined voltage is supplied from the power source 6, the light source is caused to emit light every predetermined time, and the image processing unit is driven by the power from the power source 6. In addition, the operation signal generated by the displacement amount detection means 4 is sent to the control unit 10, and the control unit 10 generates coordinate data based on the movement direction and the movement amount. The data is transmitted to the receiving unit 31 connected to 30. In the device main body 30, the mouse cursor displayed on the screen of the display connected to the device main body 30 is moved based on the coordinate data received by the receiving unit 31. Further, when the operation unit 5 is pressed, the operation signal is sent to the control unit 10, and if the operation unit 5 is a press type in the control unit 10, an operation signal indicating on or off is generated, If it is a rotary type, an operation signal indicating the rotation direction and the rotation amount is generated, and each operation signal is sent to the device main body 30 via the transmission unit 3 and the reception unit 31. In the device main body 30, for example, a mouse cursor displayed on the screen is clicked based on the operation signal, or the screen scrolls up and down.

  The wireless input device 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a power supply control unit 7, and the power supply control unit 7 saves power in the device. That is, in the power supply control unit 7, when the operation body 2 is not operated for a predetermined time, the displacement amount detecting means 4 is controlled to be driven intermittently, and is not operated for a longer time. In this case, the displacement amount detecting means 4 is controlled so as to be completely stopped. The control will be described below.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a first switching means S1 and a second switching means S2 are connected to the reference line L1 in the power supply controller 7. One end of each of the first switching means S1 and the second switching means S2 is connected to the ground. A contact type vibration sensor 11 is connected in series to one end of the second switching means S2, and an end of the vibration sensor 11 is connected to the reference line L1. The vibration sensor 11 is a switch whose switch output is turned on when the operation body 2 is operated and vibration is applied to the operation body 2. The first switching means S1 and the second switching means S2 are both switches whose output can be switched on and off. The switching of the output is performed by the control line L2 in the first switching means S1. Accordingly, the second switching means S2 is controlled by receiving a detection control signal from the control unit 10 via the control line L3.

  Further, an edge detection unit 12 is provided at one end of the reference line L1, and a detection control signal is input from the control unit 10 to the edge detection unit 12, and the drive voltage or drive current has reached a predetermined threshold value. Can be detected. The other end of the reference line L1 is connected to one end of a resistor R1 and a capacitor C, and the resistor R1 and the capacitor C are connected in series. The other end of the resistor R1 is connected to a power supply voltage (Vcc), and the other end of the capacitor C is grounded. A resistor R2 having a resistance value sufficiently smaller than the resistance value of the resistor R1 is connected to the reference line L1. For example, in the present embodiment, the resistor R1 can be set to 1 MΩ, R2 to 3 kΩ, and the capacitor C to 0.047 μF.

  A vibrator 8 is connected to the edge detector 12, and a clock signal having a predetermined frequency is output from the vibrator 8 and input to the edge detector 12. The control unit 10 and the displacement amount detection 4 are driven in synchronization with this clock signal.

  In the input device 1 according to the present embodiment, a portion surrounded by a broken line in FIG. 2, that is, a portion excluding a part of the power supply control unit 7, the transmission unit 3, the displacement detection means 4, the operation unit 5, and the power supply 6. Is composed of a single microcomputer. However, the portion composed of this single microcomputer can be changed as appropriate.

  Next, each operation from the normal operation to the intermittent operation and the stop operation in the wireless input device 1 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in normal operation, the motor is always driven at a constant drive voltage Vs shown in Chart A. At this time, the clock signal shown in chart D is in an ON state and is continuously output, and the microcomputer is also continuously operated. At this time, as shown in the chart E, the displacement detection means 4 is also continuously driven in the ON state, the light source is continuously emitted, and the reflected light is processed by the image processing means. However, at this time, as shown in charts B and C, both the first switching means S1 and the second switching means S2 are set to OFF.

  After the normal operation, when the operating body 2 is not operated for a predetermined time continuously and no displacement amount is output from the displacement amount detection means 4, the clock signal is switched from on to off, and the displacement amount detection means 4 Can also be switched from on to off. At this time, the first switching means S1 is switched from off to on. When the first switching means S1 is switched ON, the electric charge held in the capacitor C shown in FIG. 2 is discharged, and the drive voltage Vs is lowered to 0 (zero). At this time, the first switching means S1 is set to ON for a predetermined time Ta and then switched to OFF, so that the capacitor C is switched from discharging to charging, and the driving voltage Vs is gradually increased.

  When the edge detection unit 12 detects that the drive voltage Vs has reached a predetermined threshold value Lv, the clock signal is set ON for a predetermined time Tb. When the clock signal is switched from on to off, the first switching means S1 is set to on for a predetermined time Ta at that time. In the same manner as described above, the edge detection unit 12 monitors the drive voltage Vs from zero to a predetermined threshold value Lv, and when the drive voltage Vs reaches the threshold value Lv, the clock signal is switched from OFF to ON. Can be switched.

  When the clock signal is oscillated for the second time from the normal operation, the time Tc for setting the clock signal to ON is set longer than the time Tb, and the displacement amount detecting means 4 is driven once during that time. At this time, when the operating body 2 is operated and an output is obtained from the displacement amount detection means 4, the clock signal is always set to ON to drive the displacement amount detection means 4 continuously. If the output cannot be obtained, the first switching means S1 is switched from OFF to ON until a predetermined time Ta elapses while the clock signal is being output.

  Further, if no output is obtained from the displacement amount detection means 4 even after a predetermined time TL has elapsed from the normal operation, the second switching means S2 is switched from OFF to ON as shown in Chart C. The first switching means S1 remains off.

  When the operation body 2 is operated and the operation body 2 itself is vibrated in a state where the second switching means S2 is set to ON and the first switching means S1 is set to OFF, the vibration sensor 11 is set to ON. At this time, since the second switching means S2 is set to ON, when the vibration sensor 11 is turned ON, the electric charge accumulated in the capacitor C is discharged and the drive voltage Vs is indicated by a symbol Q in the chart A. As shown, it fluctuates so that a rectangular waveform is generated. When the driving voltage Vs reaches the threshold value Lv from zero, the clock signal is switched to the ON state, and at the same time, the displacement amount detecting means 4 is driven. Thereafter, the clock signal is continuously output, and the displacement amount detecting means 4 is continuously driven.

  As described above, in the wireless input device 1 according to the present embodiment, the clock signal can be appropriately switched between on and off based on the time constant T of the driving voltage, so that the clock signal is always kept on. There is no need, that is, there is no need to always drive the microcomputer continuously, so the microcomputer can be driven intermittently and the power consumption of the apparatus can be reduced.

  Further, in the conventional device, when intermittent driving is performed as described above, it is necessary to switch to a device having a low oscillation frequency, and it is necessary to mount two types of resonators. The wireless input device according to the present embodiment At 1, it is possible to use only one type of oscillator.

  As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 4, in the wireless input device 1 of the present embodiment, normal operation (step 1; ST1, hereinafter, step is abbreviated as ST), that is, a clock signal is continuously output and the amount of displacement. When the detection means 4 is continuously driven and a non-operation state in which no displacement is detected from the displacement amount detection means 4 even after a predetermined time T1 has elapsed as shown in ST2, ( Yes), the process proceeds to the intermittent operation 1 of ST3. In this intermittent operation 1, for example, as shown by a cycle Ts in FIG. 3, it is determined whether or not the displacement detection means 4 has been moved intermittently so that it is driven once when the clock signal is oscillated twice. To detect.

  When the non-operation state continues in ST4 even after a predetermined time T2 longer than the predetermined time T1 has elapsed (Yes), the process proceeds to the intermittent operation 2 in ST5. In this intermittent operation 2, for example, the period Ts is set to double (2.multidot.Ts), and the displacement detection means 4 is driven once when the clock signal is oscillated four times.

  In ST6, if no operation continues even after a predetermined time T3 longer than the predetermined time T2 has elapsed (Yes), the process proceeds to the intermittent operation 3 in ST7. In the intermittent operation 3, for example, the displacement amount detecting means 4 is driven once when the clock signal is oscillated 8 times by setting 4 times Ts (4 · Ts).

  If no operation continues for a predetermined time T4 (> T3) in ST8 (Yes), the driving of the displacement detection means 4 is completely stopped.

  In ST2, ST4, ST6, and ST8, if movement is detected before each predetermined time T1, T2, T3, T4 has elapsed (No), the displacement amount detection means 4 is continuously driven. Move to normal operation.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the average power consumption can be reduced by setting the intermittent operation to be extended stepwise. In addition, since the input device 1 uses a contact-type vibration sensor, power is not consumed until the movement is detected from the complete stop state, which is very effective in reducing power consumption.

  The wireless input device of the present invention is not limited to the mouse type, and the operating body may be any object that moves the device itself including the input operation. For example, various remote controllers used in game pads (game controllers), mobile phones, household appliances, and the like used for operating game devices may be used. Even if it is applied to these devices, it is possible to extend the usable time by controlling to shift to intermittent operation when left for a predetermined time and to turn off the power when left for a longer time. become.

  Further, in this embodiment, if the operating state signal is transmitted from the transmitting unit 3 immediately before the power supply control unit 7 is operated, the receiving unit 31 and the apparatus on the computer main body 30 side are also intermittently driven simultaneously. It becomes possible to set the power saving mode and the like, which is effective for power saving.

Block diagram showing an example of a wireless input device of the present invention, A circuit diagram showing the power control means and its surroundings, Timing chart, A flowchart showing the operation of the wireless input device;

Explanation of symbols

C Capacitor L1 Reference line R1, R2 Resistor Vs Drive voltage 1 Wireless input device 2 Operating body 3 Transmitter 4 Displacement detecting means 5 Operating unit 6 Power supply 7 Power supply controller 10 Controller 11 Vibration sensor 12 Edge detector

Claims (7)

A wireless system having an operating body that is wirelessly communicated with the apparatus body, a displacement amount detecting means that detects movement of the operating body, and a control unit that performs predetermined processing based on a detection signal from the displacement amount detecting means. In the input device,
The control unit is provided with power control means for completely stopping driving of the displacement amount detection means when no output is obtained from the displacement amount detection means after a predetermined time has elapsed, and the power control means is driven. A wireless input device which is operated based on a predetermined time constant of voltage or driving current.   The clock signal from the said control part is intermittently output based on the time constant of the said drive voltage or drive current, and the 1st switching means operated according to this clock signal is provided. Wireless input device.   The wireless input device according to claim 2, wherein the displacement amount detecting means is intermittently driven in accordance with the output of the clock signal.   The wireless input device according to claim 3, wherein a driving interval of the displacement detection means is set to be increased stepwise.   The wireless input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the power supply control means is provided with a second switching means, and a contact-type vibration sensor is connected to the second switching means.   The wireless input device according to claim 1, wherein the displacement amount detection unit includes a light source and an image processing unit that emits light from the light source and detects a change in reflected light.   The wireless input device according to claim 2, wherein an operation status signal is transmitted to the device main body immediately before the power supply control unit is operated.

Images