JP2005522749A - Electronic pen input device - Google Patents

Abstract

A hand-held cylindrical shape having a pen-shaped member (4) that slides and reciprocates between a position protruding obliquely outward and a position fully pressed into the cylindrical body while being pressed against the surface. Body (3); a motion tracking device (16) that tracks lateral movement across the surface of the pen member as the pen member is pressed against the surface to a partially depressed position between extreme positions And an electronic pen type device (1) including a sensor (28) for detecting that the pen type member has reached a fully depressed position.

Description

  The present invention relates to the field of electronic pen type input devices that allow a user interface with an electronic device.

Electronic devices for user interface with one or more user interactive applications include, in particular, PCs including desktop computers, laptop computers, notebook computers, etc .; combining the functionality of PDAs and mobile phones, Handheld PDAs including so-called smart phones; including interactive televisions. Typical electronic pen input devices for user interface with user interactive applications are described in detail in US Pat. No. 5,291,213 to Krauss and US Pat. No. 5,459,489 to Redford. U.S. Pat. No. 6,104,388 to Nagai et al., WO 98/10604 to Shapira.
US Pat. No. 5,291,213 US Pat. No. 5,459,489 US Pat. No. 6,104,388 International Publication Number WO98 / 10604

  According to the present invention, sliding is reciprocated between a position protruding obliquely outward with respect to the cylindrical body and a position completely pushed into the cylindrical body while being pushed from the surface. A hand-held cylindrical body having a pen-shaped member that moves; and a motion tracking device that tracks lateral movement across the surface of the pen-shaped member when pushed to a partially retracted position between extreme positions And an electronic pen type input device comprising a sensor for detecting that the pen member has reached the fully retracted position.

  The input device of the present invention provides a wide range of user interactive applications with normal hand movements, including line tracking movements between two points, handwriting movements, and so-called “clicks” associated with mouse buttons on conventional computer mice. Allows a user interface. The input device of the present invention can also detect these movements as the pen-type member of the device draws across surfaces of varying hardness. The surface stiffness can range from a relatively soft surface (eg, user pants when used in a user interface with an interactive television) to a relatively hard surface (eg, an interactive user application running on a desktop computer). Including the range up to the desktop when used in the user interface. Furthermore, the input device of the present invention can detect these movements when placed in a wide range of directions relative to the horizontal. Thus, the electronic pen type input device of the present invention is particularly useful for easily realizing use in various host electronic devices, including PCs, interactive televisions, PDAs and the like. In addition, the host electronic device may include handwriting recognition software, such as PenReader®, commercially available from Paragon Software.

  In order to understand the present invention and to clarify how the invention can be implemented in an embodiment, a preferred embodiment will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, using only non-limiting examples. State. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used for the same parts.

  FIG. 1 shows an electronic pen input device for enabling a user interface on an interactive user application on a desktop PC 2 such as, for example, a Windows desktop, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Outlook, and the like. The input device 1 includes a hand-held open-ended cylindrical body 3 that terminates in a pen-shaped member 4 having a ball 6 for rotation across the surface. The cylindrical main body 1 is formed with an IR transmission window 7 capable of IR communication with the PC 2. The input device 1 is provided with a push button 8 for selectively pushing with an index finger while holding the input device 1 just below the IR transmission window 7. Pushing the push button 8 is equivalent to clicking the right mouse button of a conventional computer mouse. The IR transparent window 7 and the push button 8 are the front surface of the input device 1, and this surface corresponds to the front surface of a conventional computer mouse. The power supply of the input device 1 is normally off, and is turned on when the ball 6 rotates across the surface.

  In FIG. 2, the cylindrical main body 3 has two batteries 9, an electronic circuit 11, a pair of IR transmitters 12 for wireless communication with the PC 2 through the IR transmission window 7, and a working pen that functions integrally with the pen-shaped member 4. It shows that the mold holder 13 is accommodated. The pen-shaped member 4 has a cylindrical body 14 that includes a motion tracking device 16 for tracking the rotational motion of the ball as the ball 6 rotates across the surface (see FIG. 3). In FIG. 3, the motion tracking device 16 includes a pair of optical encoders (not shown) having grooved encoder disks 17 and 18 respectively driven by rollers 19 and 21 in contact with the ball 6, and the balls 6 of the rollers 19 and 21. As long as the roller 22 that is equidistant between the contact points is used, the apparatus is similar to that used in a conventional computer mouse. Rollers 19 and 21 are also arranged orthogonal to each other in the top view of the ball (not shown) to provide x and y components of lateral motion across the surface of the input device, respectively.

  However, the motion tracking device 16 differs from a conventional computer mouse motion tracking device in two respects: one for the material of the component and one for the arrangement. These allow the input device 1 to be used in various arrangements relative to the horizontal, and also for use on various surfaces, at the same time, on the one hand, always require a free rotational movement of the ball and on the other hand input across the surface. According to the direction of the lateral movement of the device, the rollers 19 and 21 allow accurate tracking of the lateral movement of the input device across the surface, which requires an accurate proportional transmission of the rotational movement of the ball. This is because the rollers 19, 21 and 22 are made of stainless steel and are very smooth, and the ball 6 is made of nylon or Teflon, has a Shore-A hardness of at least 90, and the roller 19 , 21 and 22 are achieved in that the surface contacts the upper hemisphere of the ball 6 at an angle of about 35 degrees from the latitudinal plane of the ball. Further, a ball bearing having a play in the radial direction (for example, commercially available from Stering, USA), which is firmly fixedly attached to the lower half of the cylindrical body 14, rotatably supports the rollers 19, 21 and 22. To do.

  FIG. 4 shows that the pen holder 13 includes an annular member 23 that is firmly fixed to the cylindrical member 3. The annular member 23 is formed using a lower slide member 24 whose lower end terminates at a stopper 26, and a holding member 27 for holding a sensor 28 having a contact 29 disposed on the upper side. The pen-shaped member 4 is formed by using an upright flange 31 firmly fixed to the member, and a grooved slide member 32 is firmly fixed to the flange. The slide member 32 has a pen-shaped member 4 disposed between two extreme positions, that is, a position where the slide member 32 completely protrudes on the receiving surface of the slide member and collides with the stopper 26 (see FIG. 5A), and the surface. The slide member slides back and forth between the fully retracted position where the slide member collides with the sensor 28 (see FIG. 5B). The compression spring 33 is disposed between the front end surface 34 of the annular member 23 and the rear end surface 36 of the cylindrical main body 16, and the pen-shaped member 4 is tilted outwardly with respect to the cylindrical main body 3 and fully protruded. Extrude into. The contact of the slide member 32 with the sensor 28 corresponds to the click of the left button of the conventional computer mouse. The stroke h of the pen-shaped member 4 between the position protruding outward and fully retracted is about 4 mm, typically in the range of 4 ± 0.5 mm, while being compressed The force of the spring 33 is about 50 grams, so that the pen member 4 is usually partially between the two extreme positions with the input device 1 holding the ball 6 approximately vertically so that the ball 6 contacts the surface. It is pushed into the position where it was pulled into

  Next, the operation of the electronic pen type input device 1 will be described. The user places the index finger lightly on the depressed control button and grips the input device like a pen. The user uses the input device in the same manner as a conventional computer mouse having a ball, a left mouse button, and a right mouse button as follows. First, the user lightly presses the pen-shaped member against the surface and rotates the ball across the surface to control the cursor. Second, the user performs a left click operation, eg, drag and drop of an object, by pressing the input device completely against the surface and rotating the ball across the surface. Third, the user presses the input device against the surface twice in quick succession and performs a left double-click operation. Finally, the user clicks the push button and performs a right click operation.

  While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, it will be understood that many variations, modifications and other uses of the invention are possible within the scope of the appended claims. It will be. For example, the electronic pen-type input device of the present invention can directly track the movement on the surface using an optical mechanism in a manner similar to Microsoft's IntelliMouse®. In addition, the electronic pen type input device of the present invention can communicate with the host electronic device via wired communication, while the wireless communication is performed by other conventional wireless means such as radio frequency (RF), Bluetooth, etc. Can be achieved.

It is a figure of the electronic pen type input device for the user interface with a desktop PC. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view along line AA of the input device of FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of a motion tracking device for tracking lateral motion across the surface of an input device. FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a pen holder and a pen member of the input device. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional enlarged view of an input device, and shows that it exists in the position which the pen-type member inclines and protrudes outside. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional enlarged view of an input device, and shows that it exists in the position which the pen-type member was fully retracted.

Claims (12)

A pen-shaped member that slides and reciprocates between a position that protrudes outward with respect to the cylindrical body and a position that is pressed against the surface and is completely retracted with respect to the cylindrical body. A motion tracking device that tracks lateral movement across the surface of the pen member when the handheld cylindrical body and the pen member are pressed to a partially depressed position between the extreme positions;
A sensor for detecting that the pen-shaped member has reached the fully depressed position;
An electronic pen-type input device.   The electronic pen-type input device of claim 1, wherein the movement tracking device tracks lateral movement across the surface of the pen-shaped member when the pen-shaped member is pressed to a fully depressed position.   The movement of pressing the input device against the surface twice in quick succession to the fully depressed position of the pen-shaped member corresponds to a double click of the left mouse button of a conventional computer mouse. The electronic pen type input device according to any one of the above.   4. The electronic pen type according to claim 3, further comprising a button that can be pushed in with a finger, arranged outside and outside the cylindrical main body, and the pushing operation corresponds to a click of a right mouse button of a conventional computer mouse. Input device.   The pen-shaped member includes a ball that rotates on a surface, and the motion tracking device includes at least two encoders, each of the encoders being intermediate the upper hemisphere of the ball with respect to the point of the ball that contacts the surface. An electronic pen-type input as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, having a roller that contacts at a latitudinal plane, providing x-coordinate and y-coordinate resulting from rotation of the ball on the surface. device.   The electronic pen-type input device of claim 5, wherein the roller is formed of stainless steel, is very smooth, and the ball has a Shore-A hardness of at least about 90.   The electronic pen type input device according to claim 6, wherein a ball bearing having play in a radial direction rotatably supports the roller.   The electronic pen type input device according to claim 7, wherein the ball bearing having play in the radial direction is firmly supported on the pen type member.   The electronic pen input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the input device uses an optical mechanism to directly track lateral movement across the surface of the pen member.   The electronic pen type input device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the pen type member has a stroke of about 4 mm and slides between the extreme positions to reciprocate.   11. The electronic pen type input device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the device is normally powered off and is automatically turned on when the pen type member is drawn across a surface.   The electronic pen type input device according to claim 1, wherein the input device communicates wirelessly with a host electronic device.

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