JP2005099905A - Rotary operation device, and input device, and volume controller therewith - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a rotary operation device capable of not only controlling a control target by more sensuous operation but also improving the operability of equipment having the control target, and to provide an input device and a volume controller therewith. <P>SOLUTION: This rotary operation device 1 is rotatably held in a storage body 2 such that a part of the rotary operation device 1 is projected to the outside, and can control the control target 7 by being manually rotationally operated through a portion projected from the storage body 2. A projection amount from the storage body 2 can be adjusted according to control conditions of the control target 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a rotation operation device, an input device including the rotation operation device, and a volume control device, and more particularly to a rotation operation device suitable for controlling a control target by manual rotation operation, an input device including the rotation operation device, and volume control. Relates to the device.

  Conventionally, in an input device such as a personal computer, a wheel as a rotary operation device has been adopted as means for controlling movement of an indication point such as a mouse pointer or a cursor displayed on a display screen.

  The wheel is rotatably held in a container of an input device such as a mouse so that a part of the wheel protrudes to the outside.

  And the movement instruction | command with respect to an indication point is output as an electrical signal by rotating the said wheel manually through the site | part protruded from the said container.

  As a result, the indication point can be moved to a predetermined coordinate position on the display screen.

  By the way, in recent years, the relationship between the maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device that can be operated by one manual operation and the control amount of the control target linked to the rotary operation device is adapted to the control conditions of the control target. Since the adjustment is often performed by software, the maximum operation amount and the control amount to be controlled may not always be balanced.

  For example, in the case of a wheel mouse, if the control conditions are set so that the amount of movement of the mouse pointer on the display screen is small for one manual operation of the wheel, the mouse pointer The amount of movement was controlled to be small. On the other hand, when the control condition is set so that the movement amount of the mouse pointer is increased, the movement amount of the mouse pointer is controlled to be increased even if the maximum operation amount of the wheel is small.

JP 11-175250 A

  As described above, adjusting the relationship between the maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device and the control amount of the control object according to the control condition of the control object is effective for appropriately controlling the control object according to the control condition. However, if the maximum operation amount and the control amount are not balanced, the operator must grasp the behavior of the control target one by one, and the operation becomes complicated instead.

  In the example of the wheel mouse, the operator cannot grasp sensuously how much the mouse pointer will move on the display screen by rotating the wheel. He had to rotate the wheel while watching the position of the mouse pointer.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such problems, and can control a control target by a more sensuous operation, and thus can improve the operability of a device including the control target. An object of the present invention is to provide a rotary operation device, an input device including the rotation operation device, and a volume control device.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the rotary operation device according to the present invention is characterized in that a part of the rotary operation device is rotatably held in the container so that a part of the rotary operation device protrudes to the outside, and the portion protruding from the container is A rotational operation device that is capable of controlling a controlled object by being manually rotated through the control unit, and is capable of adjusting an amount of protrusion from the container according to a control condition of the controlled object. It is in.

  And according to such a structure, since the protrusion amount from a container can be adjusted according to the control conditions of a control object, it seems that the control amount of a control object and the maximum operation amount of a rotation operating device balance. Furthermore, it becomes possible to regulate the operation amount of the rotary operation device.

  In addition, a feature of the rotary operation device according to the present invention is that the controlled object is an instruction point on the display screen.

  And according to such a structure, it becomes possible to balance the control amount of the indication point on a display screen, and the maximum operation amount of a rotation operating device.

  Furthermore, the feature of the rotary operation device according to the present invention is that the controlled object is the volume of the acoustic device.

  According to such a configuration, it is possible to balance the volume control amount and the maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device.

  Furthermore, a feature of the input device provided with the rotary operation device according to the present invention is that the input device includes a rotary operation device that is rotatably held so that a part of the input device protrudes outside. In the input device in which the indication point on the display screen can be controlled by manually rotating through the part protruding from the container, the rotation operation device is responsive to the control condition of the indication point. Thus, the amount of protrusion from the container can be adjusted.

  And according to such a structure, since the protrusion amount from the container of a rotation operating device can be adjusted according to the control conditions of the indication point on a display screen, the control amount of the indication point on a display screen and The maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device can be regulated so that the maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device is balanced.

  The volume control device provided with the rotary operation device according to the present invention includes a rotary operation device that is rotatably held so that a part of the volume control device protrudes to the outside in the container. In the volume control device capable of controlling the volume of the acoustic device by manually rotating through the portion protruding from the container, the rotation operation device is configured to control the volume according to the volume control condition. The amount of protrusion from the container is adjustable.

  And according to such a structure, since the protrusion amount from the container of a rotation operation apparatus can be adjusted according to the control conditions of the volume of an audio equipment, the control amount of a volume and the maximum operation of a rotation operation apparatus can be adjusted. It is possible to regulate the maximum operation amount of the rotary operation device so that the amount is balanced.

  According to the rotary operation device according to the present invention, a rotary operation device that can smoothly control a control target by a sensory operation and can improve the operability of a device having such a control target is realized. can do.

  In addition, according to the rotary operation device of the present invention, the indication points on the display screen can be smoothly controlled by a sensory operation, and the operability of a device that displays such indication points can be improved. A rotary operation device can be realized.

  Furthermore, according to the rotary operation device according to the present invention, it is possible to smoothly control the volume of the acoustic device by a sensory operation, and to realize such a rotary operation device that can improve the operability of the acoustic device. can do.

  Furthermore, according to the input device of the present invention, it is possible to improve the operability of the input device that controls the indicated points on the display screen.

  Moreover, according to the volume control device of the present invention, the operability of the acoustic device can be improved.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a rotary operation device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the rotary operation device 1 according to the present embodiment has a substantially disc-shaped knob portion 3 as a rotary operation device main body rotatably held in a container 2. A part of the outer peripheral edge of the portion 3 protrudes to the outside of the housing 2 through a through hole 5 formed in the upper wall portion 2a of the housing 2.

  The knob 3 is rotated manually by bringing a finger into contact with a portion protruding outside the container 2.

  A rotation detection unit 4 is connected to the knob 3, and the rotation amount of the knob 3 is detected by the rotation detector 4. The rotation detection unit 4 may be a detection unit including optical detection means such as an optical encoder.

  A control unit 6 is connected to the rotation detection unit 4, and the control unit 6 obtains a control amount for the controlled object 7 based on the detection result of the rotation detection unit 4. That is, the control unit 6 calculates the control amount of the control object 7 proportional to the rotation amount of the knob 3 from the detection result of the rotation detection unit 4, or refers to the control amount data stored in advance in the table. The control object 7 is controlled based on this control amount.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the knob 3 can adjust the amount of protrusion from the container 2 according to the control conditions of the control object 7.

  That is, an adjustment means 9 for adjusting the protrusion amount is connected to the knob portion 3, and the adjustment means 9 holds the knob portion 3 at a position near the lower part of the knob portion 3 in FIG. Holding means 10 is provided.

  The holding means 10 has a substrate 11 parallel to the upper wall portion 2a, and a pair of bracket portions 12 are erected on the substrate 11 with the knob 3 interposed therebetween. Yes. The pair of bracket portions 12 hold the knob portion 3 rotatably through the rotation shaft 3a.

  The adjusting means 9 has moving means 13 for moving the knob 3 together with the holding means 10 in the forward and reverse directions of the protruding direction.

  The moving means 13 has a cam mechanism 16 connected to a prime mover 15 as a drive source at a position in the vicinity of the substrate 11, and the cam mechanism 16 can move the substrate 11 in the vertical direction in FIG. It is said that. Thereby, the said knob | pick part 3 can be moved to a protrusion direction now with the said board | substrate 11 moving up and down.

  Further, the adjusting means 9 has a drive control unit 17 that controls the drive of the prime mover 15, and the drive control unit 17 performs the prime mover according to the control condition of the controlled object 7 set by software or the like. 15 is determined, and the prime mover 15 is rotationally driven based on the rotation amount. The control condition may be changed by an operation by the operator.

  With the adjusting means 9 having such a configuration, the amount of protrusion of the knob 3 from the container 2 can be adjusted according to the control conditions of the control object 7.

  As a result, the maximum operation amount of the knob 3 can be regulated so that the control amount of the control object 7 and the maximum operation of the knob 3 are balanced. When the rotary operation device body is the knob 3, the maximum operation amount is synonymous with the maximum rotation angle θ of the knob 3 that can be rotated by one rotation operation.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  In the present embodiment, first, the drive control unit 17 of the adjusting means 9 determines the rotation amount of the prime mover 15 according to the control condition of the controlled object 7, and based on the determined rotation amount, the prime mover 15 Is driven to rotate.

  As a result, the prime mover 15 is rotationally driven in the forward or reverse direction of the rotational direction based on the determined rotation amount, and the rotational force of the prime mover 15 is applied to the cam mechanism 16 via the pinion gear 15a of the prime mover 15. Communicated.

  The cam mechanism 16 converts the rotational force of the prime mover 15 into a vertical force that moves the substrate 11 up and down, and transmits the force to the substrate 11 to cause the substrate 11 to move to the prime mover. The amount of movement is proportional to the amount of rotation 15 and is moved in the forward or reverse direction in the protruding direction.

  As a result, the knob 3 held on the substrate 11 moves in the forward or reverse direction of the protruding direction by the amount of movement proportional to the amount of rotation of the prime mover 15, and the container 2 of the knob 3 is moved. The amount of protrusion from is adjusted.

  And after adjusting the said protrusion amount, if the said knob | pick part 3 is manually rotated through the protrusion part from the container 2 in the said knob | pick part 3, the rotation amount of this knob | pick part 3 will be carried out by the said rotation detection part 4. Detected.

  Next, when the rotation detection unit 4 outputs the detected rotation amount to the control unit 6, the control unit 6 calculates a control amount of the control object 7 proportional to the rotation amount of the knob 3, and this The controlled object 7 is controlled based on the calculated control amount.

  At this time, since the rotation amount of the knob 3 is regulated to a value according to the control condition, the control amount of the control object 7 becomes a value balanced with the rotation amount.

  As a result, the operator who operates the knob 3 can smoothly control the control object 7 without a sense of incongruity by a sensory operation.

  Next, an embodiment of an input device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The input device in the present embodiment is an input device such as a wheel mouse or a keyboard provided with the rotary operation device 1 in FIG. 1. Specifically, the control object 7 in the rotary operation device 1 in FIG. This is an indication point on the display screen in the display device.

  The control condition of the indication point is mainly the amount of movement of the indication point on the display screen for one rotation operation of the knob 3.

  That is, for example, when the menu resolution of the display screen is fine, a fine operation of the indication point may be required. In such a case, the indication point on the display screen for a single rotation operation of the knob 3 may be required. A small moving amount is a control condition.

  On the other hand, when the menu resolution of the display screen is not fine, an operation with a fine indication point is not required. In such a case, the control condition is that the amount of movement of the indicated point on the display screen with respect to one rotation operation of the knob 3 is large.

  Of course, such control conditions may be changed by an operator's application operation or the like.

  And according to such an input device, since the protrusion amount from the container 2 of the knob | pick part 3 can be adjusted according to the control conditions of the indication point on a display screen, control of the indication point on a display screen is possible. The maximum amount of operation of the knob 3 can be regulated so that the amount and the maximum amount of operation of the knob 3 are balanced.

  Next, when driving the input device, first, the drive control unit 17 determines the rotation amount of the prime mover 15 according to the control condition of the indicated point, and based on the determined rotation amount, the prime mover 15. Is driven to rotate.

  As a result, the prime mover 15 is rotationally driven based on the determined rotation amount, and the rotational force of the prime mover 15 is transmitted to the cam mechanism 16 via the pinion gear 15a.

  The cam mechanism 16 converts the rotational force of the prime mover 15 into a force in a direction for moving the substrate 11 up and down, and transmits the force to the substrate 11, thereby causing the substrate 11 to move to the prime mover 15. Is moved in the forward direction or the reverse direction in the protruding direction by a movement amount proportional to the rotation amount.

  As a result, the knob 3 held on the substrate 11 moves in the protruding direction by a movement amount proportional to the rotation amount of the prime mover 15, and adjustment of the protrusion amount of the knob 3 from the container 2 is adjusted. Done.

  At this time, if the movement amount of the indicated point on the display screen with respect to one rotation operation of the knob 3 is a control condition, the protrusion amount is adjusted to be small as shown in FIG. In this case, the maximum rotation angle θ (maximum operation amount) of the knob 3 that can be rotated by one rotation operation is reduced.

  On the contrary, if the movement amount of the indicated point on the display screen with respect to one rotation operation of the knob 3 is a control condition, as shown in FIG. 3, the protrusion amount is adjusted to be large. In this case, the maximum rotation angle θ (maximum operation amount) of the knob 3 that can be rotated by one operation increases.

  Thus, after adjusting the protrusion amount, when the knob portion 3 is manually rotated through the protruding portion from the container 2 in the knob portion 3, the rotation amount of the knob portion 3 is determined as the rotation detecting portion. 4 is detected.

  Next, when the rotation detection unit 4 outputs the detected rotation amount to the control unit 6, the control unit 6 obtains the control amount of the indication point proportional to the rotation amount of the knob 3, and this control amount. The pointing point is controlled to move based on

  At this time, since the maximum rotation angle θ (maximum operation amount) of the knob 3 is regulated to a value according to the control condition, the control amount (movement amount on the display screen) of the indication point is the knob 3. The value is balanced with the maximum manipulated variable.

  As a result, the operator who operates the knob 3 can smoothly operate the indication point without a sense of incongruity by a sensory operation.

  Next, an embodiment of a volume control device according to the present invention will be described.

  The volume control device in the present embodiment is a volume control device including the rotation operation device 1 in FIG. 1, and specifically, the control target 7 in the rotation operation device 1 in FIG. It is.

  The volume control condition may be, for example, an increase / decrease amount of the volume with respect to one rotation operation of the knob 3.

  According to such a volume control device, the amount of protrusion of the knob 3 from the container 2 can be adjusted according to the volume control condition, so that the volume of the knob and the maximum amount of operation of the knob 3 can be reduced. The maximum operation amount of the knob 3 can be regulated so as to be balanced.

  Next, when driving the volume control device, first, the drive control unit 17 determines the rotation amount of the prime mover 15 according to the volume control condition, and the prime mover 15 based on the determined rotation amount. Is driven to rotate.

  As a result, the prime mover 15 is rotationally driven based on the determined rotation amount, and the rotational force of the prime mover 15 is transmitted to the cam mechanism 16 via the pinion gear 15a.

  The cam mechanism 16 converts the rotational force of the prime mover 15 into a force in a direction for moving the substrate 11 up and down, and transmits the force to the substrate 11, thereby causing the substrate 11 to move to the prime mover 15. Is moved in the forward or reverse direction of the protrusion direction by an amount of movement proportional to the amount of rotation.

  As a result, the knob 3 held on the substrate 11 moves in the protruding direction by a movement amount proportional to the rotation amount of the prime mover 15, and adjustment of the protrusion amount of the knob 3 from the container 2 is adjusted. Done.

  At this time, for example, if the increase / decrease amount of the volume with respect to one rotation operation of the knob 3 is a control condition, the protrusion amount is adjusted to be small as shown in FIG. If the amount of increase / decrease is a control condition, the amount of protrusion is adjusted to be large as shown in FIG.

  Thus, after adjusting the protrusion amount, when the knob portion 3 is manually rotated through the protruding portion from the container 2 in the knob portion 3, the rotation amount of the knob portion 3 is determined as the rotation detecting portion. 4 is detected.

  Next, when the rotation detection unit 4 outputs the detected rotation amount to the control unit 6, the control unit 6 obtains a volume control amount proportional to the rotation amount of the knob 3, and this control amount. Control the volume based on.

  At this time, since the rotation amount of the knob 3 is regulated to a value according to the control condition, the control amount of the sound volume becomes a value balanced with the rotation amount of the knob 3.

  As a result, the operator who operates the knob 3 can smoothly operate the sound volume without feeling uncomfortable.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, A various change is possible as needed.

  For example, the present invention can be effectively applied to a rotary operation device having a configuration other than a knob such as a trackball.

The block diagram which shows typically embodiment of the rotary operation apparatus which concerns on this invention Explanatory drawing which shows the adjustment state of the protrusion amount of the knob | pick part as a rotary operation apparatus main body in embodiment of the rotary operation apparatus which concerns on this invention. Explanatory drawing which shows the adjustment state different from FIG. 2 of the protrusion amount of the knob | pick part as a rotary operation apparatus main body in embodiment of the rotary operation apparatus which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Rotation operation apparatus 2 Container 3 Picking part 7 Control object 9 Adjustment means

Claims (5)

A part of the container is rotatably held so as to protrude to the outside, and the object to be controlled can be controlled by being manually rotated through a portion protruding from the container. A rotary operating device,
The rotation operation device, wherein the amount of protrusion from the container can be adjusted according to the control condition of the control target. The rotation operation device according to claim 1, wherein the control target is an instruction point on a display screen. The rotation operation device according to claim 1, wherein the control target is a volume of an audio device. A rotation operating device rotatably held so that a part of the container protrudes to the outside, and the rotation operating device is manually rotated through a portion protruding from the housing; In an input device capable of controlling the indicated points on the display screen,
The rotation device is capable of adjusting an amount of protrusion from the container according to a control condition of the indication point. A rotation operating device rotatably held so that a part of the container protrudes to the outside, and the rotation operating device is manually rotated through a portion protruding from the housing; In the volume control device capable of controlling the volume of the acoustic device,
The rotation control device is capable of adjusting an amount of protrusion from the container according to a control condition of the volume.