JP2006113831A - Object selection device and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate selection of an object intended by an operator when the operator accompanied by involuntary movement such as short and quick trembling selects the objective object from a plurality of objects displayed on a display screen by a pointing device. <P>SOLUTION: It is distinguished whether pointer operation is caused by the involuntary movement or voluntary movement from a movement situation of a position or speed of a pointer. Movement of the selected object is approved according to a relative distance between the pointer and a specific point inside the object. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an object selection technique for selecting a target object from a plurality of objects displayed on a display device using a user interface.

  As a technique for selecting a target object from a plurality of objects displayed on a display device using a user interface in an apparatus such as a computer, a television, a control panel, etc., for example, Japanese Patent No. 3360347, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-9 There are techniques disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 16370 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-324839.

  The technique disclosed in the first document, Japanese Patent No. 3360347, aims to facilitate selection of an icon using a pointing device on a screen on which a large number of small icons are displayed. Specifically, an icon to which the cursor is to be moved is searched according to the operation of the pointing device. The following three methods are described as search methods. The first is a method of selecting an icon that is closest to the cursor. The second is a method in which the icons are divided and defined in advance to include the respective icons, and when the cursor position enters another area, the icons belonging to the movement destination area are selected. The third method is a method of selecting an icon to be moved according to the direction or speed in which the pointing device is operated.

  The technique disclosed in the second document, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-16370, moves a point onto a display object using a pointing means. Specifically, when a point is moved onto an adjacent display object in the direction indicated by the direction data supplied by the pointing means, the pointer has missed the pointer that has moved onto a display object different from the current position. The purpose is to prevent. As a configuration for that purpose, when the direction key on the pointing device is pressed, the pointer is moved closer to the object, and when the target object enters the target area for forced movement, the operator is notified that the object has been entered by changing the display color of the object. Inform. When the operator stops the pointer for a predetermined time by the notification, the pointer is automatically moved onto the object.

  The technique disclosed in the third document, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-324839, is a case where it is difficult to distinguish between a menu item functional area and other non-functional areas when selecting a menu item by the cursor moving means. The purpose is to quickly and easily select the functional area in. As a specific configuration, when the movement time or movement distance from the start of the cursor exceeds a predetermined value, if the cursor overlaps the function area (menu item), the cursor is forcibly stopped in the overlapped function area Let Further, when the cursor movement is continued, the function area in the designated direction is searched, and the cursor is moved to the found function area.

Japanese Patent No. 3360347 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-16370 JP-A-6-324839

  However, in any of the above-mentioned documents, no consideration is given to an improvement in operation for an operator with involuntary movement. Involuntary movement is a symptom in which the limbs shake against their will. For example, there are cases where the limbs move finely so as to tremble (type 1) and cases where a sudden large movement is caused (type 2). This involuntary movement may occur when a force is applied to the limb to move the limb for some purpose.

  In the technique disclosed in the first document, for example, when the cursor is selectively moved to the nearest icon or when an icon is assigned by dividing an area, there is a possibility that the involuntary movement may cause the icon to move to an unintended icon. is there. In addition, when selecting an icon to be moved according to the direction, speed, or acceleration, there is a high possibility that an icon far from the intended one will be selected due to the type 2 involuntary movement. Further, the larger the object, the longer the distance that the pointer moves to the automatic movement start position. Therefore, when a type 1 involuntary movement occurs, it is difficult to accurately move to the intended icon.

  Further, in the technique disclosed in the second document, the forced movement target area needs to be a wider area surrounding the icon. This is because application to operations on a screen in which a large number of small icons are arranged is not considered. On the other hand, if an unintentional icon enters a forced movement target area due to involuntary movement regardless of the size of the forced movement target area, it is necessary to continue moving the pointer and exit the forced movement target area. . Therefore, in the case of an operator who needs to perform a motion to move the input device while resting, the motion cannot be rested while the pointer enters the area for which the object other than the target is forcibly moved.

  Furthermore, in the technique disclosed in the third document, the movement distance or movement time of the cursor exceeds the set value is used as an opportunity for forced jumping between menu areas. Further, the direction of forced movement is the direction instructed to forcibly stop. Therefore, in the case of an operator who continuously causes involuntary movement, unintended movement between menu areas occurs. Furthermore, it becomes difficult to set the forced movement direction to the intended direction.

  An object of this invention is to implement | achieve the object selection which can respond to an operator's intention with involuntary movement.

  Alternatively, it is an object of the present invention to realize an object selection that can be handled by an operator with trembling at any time. It is another object of the present invention to realize object selection in accordance with the intention even for an operator with suddenly large movement.

  In order to distinguish involuntary movement from voluntary movement, the present invention is characterized by allowing movement of a selected object according to a relative distance from a specific point in the object.

  Alternatively, if the movement has a constant movement speed, movement distance, or acceleration, it is determined that the movement is an involuntary movement, and the movement of the selected object is limited.

  The object selection device and program according to the present invention have an advantage of ignoring the movement as an involuntary movement in the case of a small movement because the movement of the selection object is determined according to the relative distance to a specific point in the object.

  An embodiment of an object selection program and apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration of an information processing apparatus that performs object selection. An input device 101, a processing device 102, and a display device 103 are included. The input device 101 is a pointing device such as a mouse, a trackball, a track point, or a touch pad. The display device 103 is a device that displays data written in the display memory 106 in the memory 104 on a screen. It can be realized by a CRT device, a liquid crystal monitor device, a PDP display device or the like.

  The processing device 102 is realized by a personal computer, for example. Specifically, the processing apparatus includes a memory 104 and a CPU 105. The display control unit is a controller that controls the display of the display device in response to an instruction from a CPU or the like. The CPU 105 controls the entire processing apparatus 102 and executes an operation system program.

  The memory is roughly divided into a main memory 107 and a display memory 106. The main memory stores programs and data to be executed by the CPU 105. For example, a program for displaying a background, an object, and a pointer according to the present embodiment, a program for moving the pointer on the display screen, and various programs are stored. These programs are stored in a hard disk drive in the processing device 102 (not shown), and are read into the memory 104 when the system power is turned on or as necessary. Various application programs such as an object selection program are executed. The display memory stores display data displayed by the display device 103. The display memory may be configured separately from the main memory 107.

  When the operator operates the input device 101, movement data such as the amount and direction of movement of the pointer is transmitted to the main memory 107 in the processing device 102. Further, the CPU 105 executes the present embodiment using data and a program stored in the main memory 107.

  FIG. 2 shows a screen in which the object selection program according to the present embodiment is automatically started after the operating system is operated after the personal computer is turned on. This embodiment will be described as an example in which each key button of a soft keyboard for inputting characters to the document creation software is an object, and the pointer is moved to or selected from these key buttons. FIG. 2 shows only the document creation software and the soft keyboard according to the present embodiment, but other programs can be displayed as a multi-window.

  The screen in FIG. 2 is a state in which a soft keyboard screen 202 is displayed over the document creation software screen 201. The position of the pointer 203 is forcibly moved to a predetermined position of an arbitrary object after the soft keyboard 202 is displayed. The document creation software screen 201 has a menu bar 204, a text display area 205, a cursor 206, and a scroll bar 207. The menu bar 204 is used when executing various functions, and displays various functions such as document reading in a pull-down format and is selected by a pointer. The text display area 205 displays characters input from the soft keyboard 202. A cursor 206 indicates a character input position. The scroll bar 207 is used when scrolling the text display area 205. Scrolling is executed by selecting and dragging with the pointer 203.

  The soft keyboard 202 has a background 301 and a plurality of objects 302. In this embodiment, the object 302 is either a character key or a function key. By moving the input device 101, the operator moves the pointer 203 over the object 302, the menu bar 204, and the scroll bar 207 to perform an operation of selecting. When the character key 401 is selected, the character assigned to the key, for example, the character “A” is input before the cursor 206. When the function key 402 is selected, the cursor 206 is moved by one character. Further, when the function key 403 is selected, the operation mode described in claim 1 is switched. This operation mode is performed by changing the value of a variable provided in the main memory of the fold 104. Here, variables and constants provided in the main memory of the memory 104 are collectively shown in a list in FIG.

  In FIG. 12, section 1 indicates whether it is handled as a constant or a variable during processing. Section 2 shows the attributes in section 1. That is, in the constant, it is classified whether or not it is treated as a change by the operator. The variable indicates whether it is a variable related to a flow or a work variable by an operator. Furthermore, the code | symbol and description with respect to each variable and a constant are shown. What is particularly important in the present embodiment will be described in detail below.

  Here, the constant S1612 designates an object number to be a pointer movement destination when the soft keyboard is activated. Normally, if a key button near the center of the soft keyboard is set, the distance to the next object is not biased, and the work efficiency is increased. However, this value can also be specified by an operator or the like for his favorite object. The number S is a number assigned to the object. When specifying, the operator can determine which number is assigned to which key button as shown in FIG.

  α1613 is for designating the position of the pointer to be moved when the pointer is moved to each object. Although it is possible to set the center of the object specified in FIG. 4 (1), it is also possible to shift by the α set here when the character is displayed together on the key button and is difficult to see. is there.

  The constant k1615 defines the speed at which the pointer is moved and displayed when the pointer is within the set distance of the object. By determining this value, the movable area of the pointer on the object can be increased, and the influence of the pointer position due to the involuntary movement of the operator can be reduced on the display.

  The operation mode 1608 is a mode for selecting a process in a case where an appropriate destination cannot be found because there is no adjacent object during the movement operation by the pointer input device. One is to select the entire object area, or in the case of this embodiment, a process of moving out of the background area of the soft keyboard. The other is a mode in which when there is no adjacent object, the movement from the background area is suppressed without moving the pointer from the existing object. This mode selection can be assigned to one key button on the soft keyboard as described above, or can be changed by a pointer device, an operation on a keyboard (not shown), or a right click on the mouse pointer. . During soft keyboard processing, the latter mode is selected to prevent the pointer from leaving the object or the soft keyboard area even when large movement data is input due to unintentional involuntary movements. can do. In this case, the process of returning the pointer to the original state can be omitted.

  The set distance 1609 is the radius of the circle shown in FIG. The pointer moves once near the start point of the object, and the movement data input by the operation of the operator is accumulated. When the accumulation of this data is outside the circle whose radius is the set distance, the object movement process is performed. As described above, instead of a straight circle, other figures such as an ellipse, a polygon, and the distance may be changed and set.

  The set speed 1610 indicates, for example, the distance from the previously input position to the currently input position, that is, the displacement in one input. As will be described later, when the input exceeds the set speed, accumulation of the data in the accumulated data is suppressed. This is because, when the movement data of the pointer is suddenly changed by the type 2 involuntary movement, the input by the involuntary movement is ignored, so that the recovery process to the original state becomes unnecessary. Because. However, the setting speed may be set, for example, at a speed per second, and the distance per time may be calculated during processing.

  The set time 1611 is used to set the end time for which the movement process to the pointer is permitted after the pointer enters the object. This is in consideration of the case where the pointer continuously moves due to continuous involuntary movements, or that the pointer is greatly displaced due to the operator becoming tense because the pointer has entered a new object.

  In the work variable, the amount of movement of the pointer indicates the magnitude of the vector of the input movement data. Also, the movement direction of the pointer refers to the direction of the vector of movement data.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing how to specify an object to be automatically moved when the pointer 203 exceeds a set distance from the center of the object. In this embodiment, the starting point for determining whether or not it is necessary to move to the next object will be described as the center point of the object. However, the starting point can be a point other than the center. For example, when the object is not point symmetric. A circle 501 indicates a position away from the center of the object by a set distance. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, it is also possible to change the set distance in each direction instead of making the distances equal in all directions. This is because when the operator has an involuntary movement in a specific direction, the operator can have a width in the direction in which the involuntary movement occurs.

  In the case of FIG. 3, the method of specifying the next object is determined by where the pointer enters in the four areas partitioned by the two diagonal lines 502. That is, the objects on the top, bottom, left, and right adjacent to the four areas are assigned and one object to be moved is specified. For example, when the pointer 203 enters the area 503, the underlying object 504 is specified. Further, for example, when there is no adjacent object such as when the pointer 203 enters the area 601, the object cannot be specified. Processing in this case will be described later. In addition to the four areas, the object may be divided into eight areas in order to specify diagonally upper left, upper right, lower right, and lower left. In this configuration, when the object is large to some extent, the operability can be improved particularly.

  In this way, by dividing the object into a plurality of areas and moving to the object assigned to each area, even in the case of an operator with involuntary movement that does not have an input angle, the object in the intended direction It is easy to move to. That is, for example, when a menu item on the extension line of the input movement direction is selected as in the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-324839, movement data is input in an unintended direction due to involuntary movement. If this happens, the cursor will move in an unintended direction. However, in the case of the present embodiment, regardless of the direction of movement, if movement data to an area to which the intended object is assigned is input as a result, the movement to the intended object is possible.

  The number of each key button is assigned to each object for object management. In the case of FIG. 3, numbers are assigned in order from the upper left to the lower right object.

  FIG. 4 is an object management table provided on the assumption that assignment is performed as shown in FIG. TABLE 1 in FIG. 4A stores center coordinates for all objects on the background. Reference numeral 601 denotes an object number. The center coordinates of each object are specified in two dimensions by being divided into an X coordinate 602 and a Y coordinate 603. The center coordinate of TABLE1 is a value in a background coordinate system described later.

  TABLE2 in FIG. 4 (2) is for specifying a movement destination object for each object. That is, in each object, an object number as a movement destination is stored for each divided area. If there is no object to be moved, 0 is stored. In the present embodiment, since one object is divided into four, four destination objects are designated in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the screen coordinate system and the background coordinate system. The input pointer movement data is not displayed on the display device as it is. In this embodiment, a two-coordinate system is used to manage the input movement data and data to be displayed. That is, the movement data is managed in the background coordinate system, and the display data is managed in the seat coordinate system.

  The screen coordinate system is a coordinate system in which the lower left corner of the display device screen 901 is the origin 902. The background coordinate system is a coordinate system with the lower left 903 of the background 301 as the origin. The background coordinate system is provided so that the display position of the soft keyboard can be moved. In FIG. 9, p and q are position coordinates in the screen coordinate system of the lower left end 903, and w and h are the width and height of the background 301, respectively. The processing flow of the program that implements the present embodiment will be described below. Variables and constants as calculation targets are appended with numbers (described in FIG. 12) after their names.

  Next, the contents of the object selection process will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an initial process for moving the pointer to the specified position of the registered object as the initial position after starting the soft keyboard.

  In step 1001, the indication object_1617 and the flag_1616 are initialized. Here, the notation “instruction object ← s” means that s_1612 is substituted for the instruction object_1617. In step 1002, the next pointer position (NPX, NPY) _1620 is set to a position away from the center coordinate (OX, OY) _1623 of the Sth object by α_1613 in the X direction and −α_1613 in the Y direction. In step 1003, the next pointer position (NPx, NPy) _1621 is set to a value in the screen coordinate system. In step 1004, the pointer is moved to the next pointer position, that is, (NPx, NPy) _1621 is written into the display memory 106, and the current pointer position is updated, that is, (CPx, CPy) _1622 is changed to ( NPx, NPy) — 1621 is substituted. Step 1005 initializes the current time to a timer value (current time that is always measured by the processing device) and the residence time_1618 to 0. This time is _1624 to measure the elapsed time from when the mouse interrupt processing is started to the next time, and residence time _1618 is to add the elapsed time since the pointer automatically moved to the object These variables are used in the process of FIG.

  FIG. 7 shows a flow of input device 11 interrupt processing. In other words, when the operator operates the input device 11, an interrupt is generated in the CPU 105 and a priority operation is performed. In step 1101, the current time_1624 is stored in the previous time_1625, and the current time_1624 is set as the timer value. In step 1102, it is determined whether or not the pointer is inside the set distance _1609 from the center of the object by looking at the value of flag_1616. The contents of step 1103 and step 1104 are shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, respectively.

  FIG. 8 is a processing flow when it is inside the set distance. In step 1201, the residence time_1618 used in step 1203 and the elapsed time_1619 used in step 1204 are obtained. In step 1202, the next pointer position is obtained from the current pointer position, the pointer movement amount δl — 1627 sent from the mouse 101, and the angle θ — 1628 in the movement direction. Setting of the moving speed of the pointer is realized by changing the value of k_1615 on the operator side. In step 1205, the next pointer position in the background coordinates is obtained. In step 1206, the center coordinates of the object with the current pointer are substituted into (OX, OY) _1623. In step 1207, it is determined whether the next pointer position exceeds the set distance_1609. If not, in 1209, move to the next pointer position and update the current pointer position. If it exceeds, the process proceeds to step 1208, and an object to be automatically moved is specified based on the next pointer position.

  FIG. 9 shows a flow for specifying an object to be automatically moved. In 1301, a search is made as to which of the four areas in FIG. 3 is the next pointer position. FIG. 10 shows the processing flow. First, at 1401, the amount of movement from the object center to the next pointer position is obtained for the x-axis and the y-axis. In step 1402, it is determined whether the object is divided into four areas, that is, top and bottom or left and right. Further, in 1403, either the upper or lower side is determined, and in 1404, the left or right side is determined. In steps 1405, 1406, 1407, and 1408, up, down, left, and right are assigned to the direction_1626, respectively.

  Returning to FIG. 9, in step 1302, the value of the cell that intersects the row specified by the indication object — 1617 and the column specified by the direction, that is, the object number, is assigned to i — 1631 from TABLE 2 — 1602. In step 1303, it is determined whether the object exists. If it does not exist, the process proceeds to step 1304. If it exists, the process proceeds to step 1307. In step 1304, the next pointer position is set as the center coordinate of the i-th object of TABLE1_1601. In step 1305, the next pointer position is set to a value in the screen coordinate system and the center position is corrected. In step 1306, the i-th object is moved, so i_1631 is substituted for the indication object_1617 and 0 is substituted for the dwell time_1618. In step 1312, the position is moved to the next pointer position, and the current pointer position is updated. In step 1307, it is determined whether or not the pointer movement operation mode_1608 is limited. If there are restrictions, go to the end. If there is no limit, the process proceeds to 1308. In step 1308, it is determined whether the next pointer position is on the object. Here, H_1606 and W_1607 are the height and width of the object. Step 1309 is processing for indicating that the pointer is not on the object. The instruction object_1617 set here is used in step 1503 of FIG. In step 1310, the next pointer position is set to a value in the screen coordinate system. Step 1311 is a process for indicating that the pointer has exceeded the set distance_1609. The flag_1311 set here is used in step 1102 of FIG. Following step 1311, the process proceeds to step 1312 and ends.

  FIG. 11 is a processing flow when the pointer is positioned outside the set distance from the center of the object. In step 1501, the next pointer position is obtained from the current pointer position, the movement amount δl_1627 sent from the mouse 101, and the angle θ_1628 in the movement direction. In step 1502, it is determined whether the next pointer is on the background. If it is on the background, the process proceeds to step 1513 for moving the pointer on the screen. If it is not on the background, the process proceeds to step 1503. In step 1503, it is determined whether the current pointer is over the object. If it is on the object, the process proceeds to step 1513 for moving the pointer on the screen. If it is not on the object, the process advances to step 1504 to set the next pointer position to a value in the background coordinate system. In step 1505, an initial value of i_1631 is set to perform repetition processing. In step 1506, the center coordinates of the i-th object are substituted into (OX, OY) _1623. In step 1507, it is determined whether the next pointer position is on the i-th object. If the pointer is not over the object, go to step 1508 to increment i_1631 by one. If i_1631 is n_1603 or less in step 1509, the process returns to step 1506. If i_1631 is larger than n_1603, in step 1513, it moves to the next pointer position and updates the current pointer position. If it is determined in step 1507 that the next pointer position is on the i-th object, the process proceeds to step 1510. In step 1510, the next pointer position is set to (OX, OY) — 1623, and in 1511, the next pointer position is set to a value in the screen coordinate system and the center position is corrected. In step 1512, the indication object_1617 is set to i_1631 to indicate that the pointer is on the i-th object, the flag_1616 is set to 0 to indicate that the pointer has entered the set distance, and the dwell time is set. Set _1618 to 0. Next, after performing step 1513, the process proceeds to the end.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, since the determination is made based on the set distance from the start point, even when a large number of small objects are gathered, it is necessary to consider that the regions overlap as in the technique described in Japanese Patent No. 3360347. There is no. That is, the object containing the start point is known, and by measuring the position from the start point, it is determined whether to move from the object to which the pointer belongs to the next object. This is because it is possible to determine how to move. In the case of the technique described in Japanese Patent No. 3360347, since one icon or the like is assigned to one area and only the presence or absence of the area is used as a base, it cannot be determined when the areas overlap. As described above, even when the distance to the adjacent region is small, it is possible to set a distance according to the degree of the involuntary movement of the operator, and it is possible to select an accurate object.

  In this embodiment, two coordinate systems are used to manage the input movement data and the pointer position data on the actual screen, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, in one coordinate system, the input movement data itself can be accumulated in the main memory 107 or the like. In other words, it is possible to grasp the state where the coordinates should be displayed if actually, and to determine whether or not to move to the next object using the information.

  Next, another embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, a case will be described in which objects are scattered on the screen, unlike the first embodiment in which a large number of objects are arranged in a narrow area.

  FIG. 13 is a screen after the activation of the operating system is completed by turning on the personal computer, and objects 1701 and 1702 which are program activation icons and a pointer 203 are displayed.

  FIG. 14 shows a screen after the program is started by the operator moving the pointer over the object 1702 using the mouse and performing a selection operation. This program is a game program, and a game screen 1801 displays a background 1802 on which a map is drawn and six rectangular icons 1803. The numbers in the objects are assigned for object management. Numbers are assigned in order from the left object. TABLE1_3001 and n_3002 are the number of tables and objects that store the center coordinates of the objects in this numerical order. The center coordinates at this time are values in a background coordinate system having the origin at the lower left corner of the background 1802 as shown in FIG.

  FIG. 15 shows details of the object 1803 and shows that a region 1903 delimited by a dotted line 1901 and a pentagon 1902 is transparent. It should be noted that the non-transparent portion is not a pentagon 1902 but may take various shapes such as a castle depending on the content of the game. Also, the dotted line 1901 is not actually displayed on the screen. FIG. 16 shows that these objects are divided into three regions by a circle 1 and a circle 2 at the same position as the center of the object.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining how the pointer moves when the pointer approaches the object. When the pointer is moved and the next pointer position coordinate exceeds the boundary between the background 1802 and the region 1 (FIG. 17 (1)), the pointer is automatically moved to the specified position of the region 1 (FIG. 17 (2)). The specified position is the midpoint of the line connecting the intersection of the next pointer position and the straight line passing through the object center and the dotted line 1901 and the closest point on the outer circumference. Furthermore, when the pointer is moved and the next pointer position coordinate exceeds the outer circle (FIG. 17 (3)), the pointer is automatically moved to the specified position in the region 2. This specified position is an intersection of the position of the next pointer, the straight line passing through the center of the object, and the circumference (a chain line) between the two circles (FIG. 17 (4)). Furthermore, when the pointer is moved and the next pointer position coordinate exceeds the inner circle (FIG. 17 (5)), it automatically moves to the center of the circle in the region 3 (FIG. 17 (6)). The above is the operation when the pointer is moved from the outside to the center of the object. However, when the pointer is moved from the center of the object to the outside, the new position of the outside is also changed when the next pointer position crosses the boundary. Automatically move to the specified position in the area.

  The processing of the program that realizes the above operations will be described. The variables and constants used by the program are collectively shown in a list in FIG. The processing flow of the program that implements the present embodiment will be described below. Variables and constants to be calculated are appended with numbers (described in FIG. 25) after their names.

  FIG. 19 is a processing flow of a program that operates immediately after the game program is started. In step 2401, 0 is substituted into hopping_3009 used in the mouse interrupt process of FIG. In step 2402, it is determined whether or not the current pointer position is on the background 1802. If not, 0 is substituted for flag_3010 in step 2404, and 0 is substituted for instruction object_3011 in step 2412. If it is on the background 1802, the process proceeds to step 2403, and 1 is assigned to the flag — 3010. In step 2405, the current pointer position is set to a value in the background coordinate system. In step 2406, 1 is substituted into i_3024 for the iterative processing. In step 2407, the center coordinate of the i-th object is substituted into (OX, OY) — 3016, and the difference between the current pointer position and the center coordinate position is obtained for each X component and Y component. In step 2408, it is determined whether the current pointer position is on the i-th object. If there is, i_3024 is assigned to the instruction object in step 2411 and the process is terminated. If not on the object, i_3024 is incremented by 1 in step 2409, and it is determined in step 2410 that i_3024 is n or less. If n or less, the process returns to step 2407. If i_3024 is larger than n_3002, the process proceeds to step 2411 where 0 is assigned to the instruction object and the process ends.

  FIG. 20 is a flow of mouse interrupt processing. This interrupt process is a program that operates immediately after the operating system is started. In step 2501, the next pointer position is obtained from the current pointer position, the movement amount δl sent from the mouse 101, and the angle θ in the movement direction. Here, the initial value of the current pointer position (CPx, CPy) — 3014 is set when the operating system is started. In step 2502, it is determined whether hopping_3009 is 1. If it is 1, the process proceeds to step 2503 and moves to the next pointer position. If it is not 1, the process proceeds to step 2507. In step 2503, it is determined whether the flag_3010 is 0. If 0, that is, if the current pointer is not on the background, the process proceeds to step 2507. If the current pointer is on the background, the process moves to step 2504 to determine whether the pointing object is 0. If it is not 0, that is, if the current pointer position is on the object, the process proceeds to step 2506. If the current pointer position is not on the object, the process proceeds to step 2505. Following steps 2505 and 2506, in step 2507, the cursor moves to the next pointer position and updates the current pointer position.

  FIG. 21 is a processing flow when the current pointer position is not on the object. In step 2601, it is determined whether or not the next pointer position is on the background. If it is on the background, the process proceeds to Step 2602. In step 2602, the next pointer position is set to a value in the background coordinate system. In step 2603, an initial value is substituted for i_3024 for repeated processing. In step 2604, the center coordinates of the i-th object are substituted into (OX, OY) — 3016, and the difference between the next pointer position and the center coordinates of the i-th object is obtained for each X component and Y component. In step 2605, it is determined whether the next pointer position is on the i-th object. If it is not on the object, the process proceeds to step 2606 and i_3024 is incremented by one. In step 2607, it is determined that i_3024 is n_3002 or less. If n_3002 or less, the process returns to step 2604. If i_3024 is larger than n, the process proceeds to the end. If it is determined in step 2605 that the next pointer position is on the i-th object, the process proceeds to step 2608, and i_3024 is assigned to the instruction object. In step 2609, a distance L1_3017 from the object center to the next pointer position is obtained. In step 2610, it is determined whether L1_3017 is smaller than the radius r1_3007 of the circle 1 (FIG. 16). If it is smaller, the process proceeds to Step 2611 to determine whether L1_3017 is smaller than the radius r2_3008 of the circle 2 (FIG. 16). If it is smaller, the next pointer position has entered the area 3 (FIG. 216), so the next pointer position is set to (OX, OY) _3016. If NO in step 2610, the process proceeds to step 2612. If NO in step 2611, the process proceeds to step 2614.

  FIG. 22 is a processing flow when the current pointer is on an object. In step 2701, the next pointer position is set to the value of the background coordinate system. In step 2702, the center coordinate of the object with the current pointer is substituted into (OX, OY) _3016, and the difference between this center coordinate and the next pointer position coordinate is obtained. In step 2703, it is determined whether or not the next pointer position is on the object. If it is not on the object, the process proceeds to step 2704, in which 0 is assigned to the instruction object_3011 and the process ends. If the object is on the object, the process proceeds to step 2705 to obtain a distance L1_3017 from the object center to the next pointer position. In step 2706, it is determined whether L1_3017 is smaller than the radius r1_3007 of the circle 1 (FIG. 16). If it is smaller, the process proceeds to Step 2707, where it is determined whether L1 is smaller than the radius r2_3008 of the circle 2 (FIG. 16). If it is smaller, it is determined in step 2709 whether or not the current pointer position is in the region 3 (FIG. 16). If it is determined that the current pointer position is in the region 3, the process proceeds to step 2711. If NO in step 2707, it is determined in step 2710 whether the current pointer position is in region 2 (FIG. 16). If NO in step 2706, it is determined in step 2708 whether the current pointer position is in region 1 (FIG. 16).

  FIG. 23 shows a process when the next pointer position enters the area 1 (FIG. 16), and the next pointer position is obtained. FIG. 24 shows a process when the next pointer position enters the area 2 (FIG. 16), and the next pointer position is obtained. Thus, the embodiment of claim 6 is completed. In this embodiment, there is one screen on which the divided objects are arranged in the area displayed on the screen of the game program. In the case of having a plurality of screens, the game software program has the constant information of FIG. 25 for each screen, and when the screen is switched, these corresponding constants may be written into the main memory 107.

  Next, an embodiment in which objects are scattered in the middle of the first and second embodiments will be described.

  FIG. 26 shows a screen immediately after the computer operating simulation program is automatically executed after the operating system is operated after the personal computer is turned on. The simulation program screen 3101 and the pointer 203 are displayed on the display device screen 901. It is in the displayed state. The pointer 203 can be moved to an arbitrary position on the screen 901 by the operator operating the mouse 101. The simulation program screen 3101 displays a menu bar 3102 for making various designations such as a driving course, a guidance display area 3103, 16 equipment operation buttons 3104, 2 emergency buttons 3105, equipment operation speed, and the like. It consists of eight meters 3106 and indicators 3107 to indicate the status of the equipment. The operator operates the device by selecting the device operation button 3104 while viewing the operation guidance displayed in the guidance display area 3103, the meter 3106, and the indicator 3107. The emergency button 3105 is a button to be selected with a mouse when a certain condition is satisfied during driving. In the following, since the device operation button 3104 and the emergency button 3105 are to be selected by the mouse 101, their names are described as objects.

  FIG. 32 shows constants and variables used by the program that implements this embodiment. In the description of the program, when a variable or constant as a calculation target is cited, a number (described in FIG. 32) is added after the name.

  FIG. 28 shows a flow of mouse interrupt processing, which is a program that operates immediately after the operating system is activated. (CPx, CPy) — 3709 used here is initialized to the current pointer position when the operating system is started. In step 3301, the next pointer position is obtained from the current pointer position, the movement amount δl_3712 sent from the mouse 101, and the angle δθ_3713 in the movement direction. Here, as shown in FIG. 27, the current pointer position and the next pointer position are values in a screen coordinate system with the lower left end 902 of the display device screen 901 as the origin. In step 3302, the next pointer position is moved and the current pointer position is updated.

  FIG. 29 is a processing flow of the simulation program. In step 3401, it is determined whether a click event from the operating system has occurred due to the button operation of the mouse 101 by the operator. If no event has occurred, in step 3402, speed_3714, engine speed_3715, and the like are updated according to the current operating state. Further, if necessary, a message is displayed in the guidance display area 3103 and the indicator 3107 is turned on. If the speed_3714 is lower than the minimum speed_3705 in step 3403, 1 is substituted into automatic destination_3709 in step 3404. If the engine speed_3715 exceeds the limit_3706 in step 3405, 2 is substituted into automatic destination_3711 in step 3406. After step 3404 and step 3406, the process proceeds to step 3407, a process of automatically moving the pointer to the next object to be selected is performed, and the process returns to step 3401. If a click event occurs in step 3401, it is determined in step 3408 whether the menu is clicked.

  If it is not a menu, it is determined in step 3409 whether the object has been clicked. If the object is clicked, processing corresponding to the object selected in step 3410 is performed. If the object has not been clicked, the process returns to step 3401. If the menu is clicked in step 3408, it is determined in step 3411 whether the end of the menu item is clicked. When the end is clicked, the simulation program is ended. If the end is not clicked, in step 3412, processing corresponding to the selected menu item is performed. After step 3410 and step 3412, the processing returns to step 3401.

  FIG. 30 is a processing flow of automatic pointer movement (step 3407). In step 3501, the next pointer position is set as the center coordinate of the object designated by the automatic movement destination_3711. Here, TABLE1_3701 is a table that stores the center coordinates of the object to be automatically moved. This center coordinate is a value in the background coordinate system having the origin at the lower left end 3201 of the screen 3101 of the simulation program, as shown in FIG. In step 3502, the next pointer position is set to a value in the screen coordinate system and the center position is corrected. Step 3503 moves to the next pointer position and updates the current pointer position. In step 3504, message data is acquired and displayed in the guidance display area 3103 using the automatic destination_3711 as an index from MESSAGE_3704. FIG. 31 shows the contents of MESSAGE_3704.

  The present invention has the following aspects.

  First, when a plurality of objects are arranged on the display screen, the instruction operation for moving the input device and aligning the pointer with the target object is time-consuming when the distance between the objects is long or the objects are large. To solve the problem of cost. In addition, if an object cannot be specified and if the pointer is allowed to move outside the set distance, it is difficult for the operator with involuntary movement to perform the pointing operation because the pointer moves on the background. There is. If not allowed, there is a problem that an object outside the background cannot be indicated. Setting the operation mode solves these two problems.

  Accordingly, a screen coordinate system having the origin at the lower left corner of the screen of the display device is provided, and the next pointer position coordinate in this coordinate system is obtained from the current pointer position coordinate, the pointer movement amount from the input device, and information on the movement direction. The processor is provided with a step (program processing unit) for moving the pointer to the next pointer position coordinate. A background coordinate system having the origin at the lower left corner of the background displayed on the screen of the display device is provided, and the center position coordinates of each object in this coordinate system and the shape information of each object are stored in the memory of the processing device. To do. Therefore, referring to the center position coordinates of the object, if the next pointer position coordinates are determined to be inside or outside the set distance from the center of the object, and if determined to be outside, An object to be selected is specified, a specified position of the specified object is obtained, and a step of automatically moving the pointer to the specified position is provided in the processing device. If the object cannot be identified, the step of moving the pointer to the next pointer position coordinate and the step for changing this operation mode only when the operation mode is determined and movement outside the set distance is permitted. Provided in the processing apparatus.

  With the above configuration, when the pointer reaches a set distance from the object center, the object to be selected next is specified based on the position information of the pointer, and the input device is moved greatly to automatically move to the specified position of the specified object. You can align the pointer with the object without doing so. In addition, if a specific object is not found, the operation mode is set so that the pointer does not go out of the object. Since this is stopped, there is an effect that it becomes easy to select a target object. In order to indicate another object outside the background, the operation mode is changed.

  Second, it is necessary to solve the following two problems. The first is when a person with involuntary movements of the fingers operates, and the pointer may move quickly in a direction different from the target object, causing the pointer to automatically move to an unintended object. It is. The second problem is that it takes time until the pointer moves outside the set distance when a person with a narrow finger movement range operates.

  Therefore, constants that can be set according to the user's motion characteristics are stored in the memory of the processing device. While the pointer is inside the set distance from the center of the object, multiply the pointer movement amount from the input device by this constant to obtain the movement amount on the screen coordinate system, and move the pointer by this movement amount. Provided in the processing apparatus.

  With the above configuration, set a slower pointer speed for people who move the input device faster, move the input device slowly, or move the input device back to the initial position because it moves faster but the finger movement range is narrower. For a person who repeats the above operation, the pointer can be easily moved to a position exceeding the set distance by setting the pointer moving speed faster.

  Third, there is a problem that occurs when the first configuration is implemented. Some operators do not intend the pointer when the input device is moved in an unintended direction at a rapid speed due to factors such as increased tension. Solve the problem of automatically moving to an object. For this purpose, the processing device stores the time when the pointer movement amount is sent from the input device to the processing device, and the amount of movement that has been sent has elapsed since the last time the movement amount was sent. The processing device is provided with a step of calculating the moving speed of the input device divided by the time and not moving the pointer when the moving speed is higher than the set speed. With this configuration, even when the input device is moved at a rapid speed due to involuntary movement, the pointer remains stopped, so that it is possible to prevent the pointer from automatically moving to a non-target object.

  Fourth, a problem that occurs when the first configuration is implemented. The operator operates the input device to stop the pointer movement immediately after the pointer automatically moves to the specified position of the target object. This solves the problem that this operation is delayed due to the motion characteristics of and the pointer automatically moves to another object. Immediately after the pointer is automatically moved to the object, time measurement is started by a timer, and the pointer is not moved even if the pointer movement amount information is sent from the input device while the set time has not elapsed. Steps are provided in the processing equipment. With this configuration, the operator needs to confirm that the pointer has automatically moved to the target object and immediately stop the movement of the input device, but this movement may not be possible due to the movement characteristics of the operator. is there. In such a case, providing an invalid time has an effect of preventing moving to another object after automatically moving to the target object.

  Fifth, in an operation in which the operator moves the pointer from the background to the object, after the pointer moves to a position slightly beyond the boundary between the object and the background, the operator selects, for example, an input device as an operation for object selection. When the button attached to the button is pressed, the pointer moves in the direction outside the object due to the action of pressing the button, so that the object cannot be selected, and the pointer is positioned just before the boundary between the object and the background. When it comes, it solves the problem of misrecognizing that the boundary has been exceeded and performing an object selection operation. As a configuration for this, referring to the shape information and center position coordinates of the object, a step for determining whether or not the pointer moves from the background to the object, and if it is determined to move, the specified position in the object is obtained, A step of automatically moving the pointer to the specified position is provided in the processing device.

  Sixth, if the area of the object is divided into multiple parts and the event that occurs depending on the result of the selection (for example, displaying attribute information) is different, and the boundary line is not clearly displayed on the object, the pointer is the target The problem of determining whether or not the object is in the area is the first time after the object selection operation, and when the pointer is moved to a position that exceeds the boundary of the area, the input device is operated to select a specific area of the object. However, the problem that the pointer returns to the original area due to the operation and the specific area of the object cannot be selected is solved.

  Because of the above problem, the division information of the object area is stored in the memory of the processing device. When the next pointer position coordinate exceeds the boundary, the processing device is provided with a step for obtaining a prescribed position of the area by referring to the division information and a step for automatically moving the pointer to the obtained prescribed position.

  According to the fifth and sixth configurations, if the pointer crosses the boundary of the object, the pointer moves to the specified position of the object. Therefore, when the object is selected, the pointer is shifted and cannot be selected. There is no misrecognition of entering.

  In addition, many objects are displayed on the display screen. Normally, when an operator uses an input device and selects and operates several frequently used objects from the input device, In the case where an object to be selected next is determined by the program condition determination, the operator is required to move the pointer to the object.

  Due to the above-described problem, the center position coordinates of the object to be selected next are stored in the memory of the processing device by determining the condition of the program of the processing device. When the program condition determination is satisfied, the processing device is provided with a step of obtaining a specified position from the center position coordinates and automatically moving the pointer to the specified position. With this configuration, an operation for instructing an object is normally performed. However, when an object to be instructed is determined by condition determination of the processing device, the operator does not need to search for the object and instruct it, and can be selected immediately. Can be operated.

It is a figure which shows an example of schematic structure of the personal computer which implement | achieves an object selection system. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen immediately after document preparation software and a soft keyboard are performed automatically. It is a figure which shows an example of the identification method of an object. It is a figure which shows an example of an object management table. It is a figure which shows an example of a screen coordinate system and a background coordinate system. It is a figure which shows an example of the flow of the initial process at the time of soft keyboard starting. It is a figure which shows an example of a mouse | mouth interruption processing flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the processing flow within a setting distance. It is a figure which shows an example of an object specific process flow. It is a figure which shows an example of an object direction search process flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the processing flow outside a setting distance. It is a figure which shows an example of the constant and variable which are used with a program. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen after starting an operating system. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen of a game program. It is a figure which shows an example of the detail of an object. It is a figure which shows an example of the area | region of an object. It is a figure which shows an example of the pointer automatic movement to the area | region of an object. It is a figure which shows an example of allocation of an object number. It is a figure which shows an example of a screen coordinate system and a background coordinate system. It is a figure which shows an example of the flow of the initial process at the time of game program starting. It is a figure which shows an example of a mouse | mouth interruption processing flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the processing flow in case a pointer exists on an object. It is a figure which shows an example of the area | region 1 approach processing flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the area | region 2 approach processing flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the constant and variable which are used with a program. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen of a simulation program. It is a figure which shows an example of a screen coordinate system and a background coordinate system. It is a figure which shows an example of a mouse | mouth interruption processing flow. It is a figure which shows an example of the processing flow of a simulation program. It is a figure which shows an example of the processing flow of a pointer automatic movement. It is a figure which shows an example of the content of MESSAGE. It is a figure which shows an example of the constant and variable which are used with a program.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Input device, 102 ... Memory, 103 ... CPU, 104 ... Display part, 105 ... Display apparatus, 201 ... Document creation software screen, 202 ... Soft keyboard, 203 ... Pointer, 204 ... Menu, 205 ... Text display area, 206 ... character input cursor, 207 ... scroll bar, 301 ... background, 302 ... key, 401 ... character key, 402 ... function key (cursor movement), 403 ... function key (operation mode switching), 501 ... set distance, 502 ... diagonal line 503 ... Lower area, 504 ... Lower key, 601 ... Left area, 901 ... Display device screen, 902 ... Origin of screen coordinate system, 903 ... Origin of background coordinate system, 1701 ... Icon for starting program , 1702 ... Game program starting icon, 1801 ... Game screen, 1802 ... Background, 1803 ... Icon, 1901 ... Border between icon and background, 1902 ... Border between transparent part and opaque part, 1903 ... Transparent part, 3101 ... Simulation program screen, 3102 ... Menu bar, 3103 ... Guidance display area, 3104 ... For device operation Button, 3105 ... Emergency button, 3106 ... Meter, 3107 ... Indicator, 3201 ... Origin of background coordinate system

Claims (5)

A display device having a display screen for displaying a plurality of objects and a pointer for designating the objects;
An input device for inputting movement data of the pointer;
A memory for storing the movement data and position information of the pointer;
When the accumulation of movement data from the start of movement data input to the pointer starting from a predetermined position in the object exceeds the set range from the start point, the object to be moved is specified, and the start point of the object An object selection device comprising: a processing device for moving the display of the pointer on the display device. The object selection device according to claim 1, wherein
When the accumulated movement data is within a set range from the start point of the object where the pointer exists, and the distance of one movement data input from the input device exceeds a predetermined distance, the processing device An object selection device that suppresses accumulation of the one-time movement data in the memory. In the object selection device according to any one of claims 1 to 2,
The processing device displays the pointer at the start point even when movement data is input to the input device until a predetermined time elapses after the pointer moves from outside the object to the start point of the object. An object selection device characterized by causing the object to be selected. In an object selection program for selecting an object displayed on a display device by a pointer that moves according to movement data input from an input device,
Storing movement data from the input device in a memory every predetermined time;
Accumulating movement data in the memory since the pointer is moved to the starting point in the object or first displayed;
An object selection program comprising a step of moving and displaying the pointer to a starting point in another object when the accumulated movement data exceeds a set area for the object. The object selection program according to claim 4, wherein
If the movement data is accumulated within a set range with respect to the start point of the object where the pointer exists, and one movement data input from the input device exceeds a predetermined distance, the one distance data An object selection program comprising the step of inhibiting movement of a pointer in a display device to inhibit accumulation in the memory.

Images