JP2007164695A - In-vehicle remote controller - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the existence of switches except a touch switch on a touch panel easily recognized by a user. <P>SOLUTION: In this in-vehicle remote controller in which an operation part 20 and a display part 40 are separately arranged at physically distant positions in the vehicle interior, the operation part has a first operation switch provided in an operation area of the touch panel and a second operation switch provided at the perimeter of the outside of the touch panel, the second operation switch is provided with a means for detecting the approach of a user's finger to the second operation switch and a means for detecting a user's switching operation to the second operation switch and the display part has a first guidance display area for displaying guidance corresponding to the first operation switch and a second guidance display area for displaying guidance corresponding to the second operation switch and when the approach of the user's finger to the second operation switch is detected, guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch in the display part is visually emphasized. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  According to the present invention, an operation unit in which operation switches including both a first operation switch and a hard switch are arranged, and a display unit having a display unit for supporting switch operation in the operation unit are physically provided in a vehicle interior. The present invention relates to an in-vehicle remote control device arranged separately at a distant position.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a touch operation input device in which an escutcheon switch is disposed on an outer peripheral portion near a touch panel is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

A plurality of operation switch means that are arranged at a position close to a hand of an operator who drives the vehicle, and that are operated with the fingertips of the operator to set operation of on-vehicle equipment mounted on the vehicle; A detecting means for detecting which of the operation switch means the fingertip is located, and a position closer to the line of sight during driving than the operation switch means as viewed from the operator, and each of the plurality of operation switch means A display unit having a plurality of corresponding display units, and displaying a detection display unit corresponding to the finger position detected by the detection unit among the plurality of display units more emphasized than the non-detection display unit. There is known an in-vehicle device operation system that can notify a finger position to the operator (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
JP 2001-356874 A JP 2003-72220 A

  By the way, in the touch operation input device as disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, a touch switch is arranged in the operation area of the touch panel in the operation unit, and a press operation type hard switch is provided around the outside of the touch panel. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently aggregate a large number of operation switches.

  However, the touch switch can easily invite the fingertip to the correct switch position in a manner as disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 2, whereas the hard switch invites the user's fingertip to the operation position. Needless to say, it is also difficult for the user to recognize its existence. Therefore, even if a hard switch is provided around the outside of the touch panel, the frequency of use of the hard switch by the user tends to be low, and there is a problem that the effect due to the aggregation of the operation switches is not fully exhibited. In particular, such a problem becomes conspicuous in a configuration in which an operation unit and a display unit as disclosed in Patent Document 2 are separately arranged at physically separated positions in a vehicle interior. This is because in such a configuration, the user can operate without looking at the touch switch of the operation unit while looking at the display unit, and therefore, a hard switch that requires visual recognition or prior recognition of the existence tends to be neglected. is there.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides an in-vehicle remote control device that makes it easy for a user to recognize the presence of a switch (hard switch, etc.) provided around the outside of a touch panel, thereby facilitating the use of the hard switch, etc. Objective.

To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an operation unit in which a plurality of operation switches are disposed and a display unit that visually supports a user's switch operation in the operation unit. In the in-vehicle remote control device arranged separately at a separate position,
The operation unit includes a first operation switch provided in an operation area of a touch or proximity-sensitive touch panel, and a second operation switch provided around the outside of the touch panel. Proximity detecting means for detecting the approach of the finger operated by the user to the second operation switch, and switch operation detecting means for detecting the user's switch operation to the second operation switch are provided,
The display section includes a first guidance display area for performing guidance display corresponding to the first operation switch, and a second guidance display area for performing guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch,
When the approach detection unit detects the approach of the finger operated by the user to the second operation switch, the guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch on the display unit is visually emphasized.

  A second invention is the in-vehicle remote control device according to the first invention, wherein the first guidance display area is set within a display area of a display panel in the display unit, and the second guidance display area is a display panel It is set around the outside.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the in-vehicle remote control device according to the first or second aspect of the present invention, an indicator that can be lit by an electrically controlled light emitting element is provided in the second guidance display area. The guidance display is emphasized by blinking.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the in-vehicle remote control device according to any one of the first to third aspects, in addition to the emphasis when an approach of a finger operated by the user to the second operation switch is detected by the sensor. Alternatively, instead of the emphasis, a second guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch appears in the first guidance display area.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the vehicle-mounted remote control apparatus which makes it easy for a user to recognize presence of the switches (hardware switch etc.) provided around the outer side of a touch panel, and can accelerate | stimulate utilization of a hard switch etc. is obtained.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a vehicle mounted state of an in-vehicle remote control device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows functional blocks of an in-vehicle system related to the in-vehicle remote control device. As shown in FIG. 1, an operation unit 20 and a display unit 40 are provided, and the operation unit 20 and the display unit 40 are separately disposed at physically separated positions in the vehicle interior. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation unit 20 and the display unit 40 are connected to a display control device 70 formed of, for example, a microcomputer.

  The operation unit 20 is disposed at a position where the user can easily operate, preferably at a position where the driver can operate by simply reaching out. For example, the operation unit 20 may be disposed in the center console unit as illustrated in FIG. 1 or may be disposed in the instrument panel. The display unit 40 is configured by a liquid crystal display or the like, and is disposed at a position where the user can easily see, preferably at a position where the driver can see without greatly changing the visual field during driving. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the display part 40 may be arrange | positioned in the center part of the instrument panel upper surface, and may be arrange | positioned in a meter.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing details of the appearance of the operation unit 20. 4 shows a main cross section of the operation unit 20, and is a cross section taken along line AA of FIG. The operation unit 20 includes a touch panel (touch pad) 22 and is disposed such that a substantially flat operation surface is substantially horizontal. The structure of the touch panel 22 may be general, for example, an acrylic substrate (or glass substrate or the like) provided with a thin film transparent electrode on the bottom, a film substrate provided with a thin film transparent electrode on the top, and the thin film transparent electrode It may have a laminated structure in which they are opposed to each other via a dot spacer. The operation area on the touch panel 22 is virtually divided into a plurality of small areas, and a plurality of pressure-sensitive operation switches are realized. An operation signal (operation position signal) corresponding to each operation switch on the touch panel 22 is sent to the display control device 70 (see FIG. 3) via an FPC (flexible printed circuit) (not shown) bonded to the side of the touch panel 22. Supplied. The display control device 70 performs various in-vehicle devices (for example, a navigation device) so as to realize a function (including switching of a guidance display image on the display unit 40 described later) according to an operation signal (operation position signal) on the touch panel 22. ) To control. Hereinafter, the pressure-sensitive operation switch set on the touch panel 22 is referred to as a “touch switch”.

  A hard switch 60 is disposed on a peripheral frame (escussion) outside the touch panel 22. In the illustrated example, the hard switch 60 includes an operation member 64 that rotates about a pin 62, and the back side of the operation member 64 is supported by a leg portion 65 made of an elastic member standing on a base 68. . A contact 66 is provided near the base of the leg 65, and when the operation member 64 is pressed by the user, the leg 65 is elastically deformed so that the contact 66 becomes an electrode (not shown) on the base 68. Contact. Thereby, the switch operation with respect to the hard switch 60 is electrically detected. Similarly, an operation signal for the hard switch 60 is supplied to the display control device 70 (see FIG. 3) via the FPC. The display control device 70 controls various in-vehicle devices so as to realize a function corresponding to an operation signal for the hard switch 60.

  In this way, in the present embodiment, in the operation unit 20, the touch switch is arranged in the operation area of the touch panel 22, and the hard switch 60 is arranged in the outer frame of the touch panel 22. The function assigned to the touch switch and the hard switch 60 is arbitrary, but the function assigned to the touch switch is basically variable in software and assigned to the hard switch 60. The function is basically fixed. For example, the hard switch 60 may function as an entrance switch for entering a deep region of various operations realized by a touch switch, or may realize a single special function.

  In this embodiment, the hard switch 60 is provided with a touch sensor 69 for detecting the approach of a finger operated by the user, as shown in FIG. In the illustrated example, the touch sensor 69 is embedded in the surface of the operation member 64 of the hard switch 60 formed of resin or the like. The touch sensor 69 may detect the approach of a finger operated by the user to the hard switch 60 by a method such as contact current, capacitance, or infrared distance measurement.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing details of the appearance of the display unit 40. The display unit 40 includes a display panel 42 such as a liquid crystal panel and a peripheral frame 44 provided around the outside of the display panel 42. The display panel 42 provides a display area where images and videos are output. Image output or video output displayed on the display unit 40 (display panel 42) is controlled by a display control device 70 (see FIG. 2). The display control device 70 may be, for example, a part of a navigation device (including a drawing processor). In this case, a map image or the like is supplied and displayed on the display unit 40 in addition to a guidance display image described later. .

In the peripheral frame 44 of the display unit 40, there is a guidance display 46 that supports the user's operation on the hard switch 60 in the operation unit 20. The guidance display 46 represents the position and function of the hard switch 60 in the operation unit 20. Therefore, the guidance display 46 for each hard switch 60 is preferably provided on the peripheral frame 44 of the display unit 40 in an arrangement / order corresponding to each hard switch 60 set on the peripheral frame of the touch panel 22. Unlike the display on the display panel 42, the guide display 46 may be a fixed display (that is, a drawing or a picture permanently attached to the peripheral frame 44). For example, for a hard switch 60 that is operated to change the display on the display panel 42 to a map display that represents the current location, the guidance display 46 is, for example, a character that surrounds “current location” surrounded by a square figure. It may be. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, when only the hard switch 60 is specifically referred to, the guidance display 46 “a hard switch for displaying the current location 60” preferably includes an indicator 46b. The indicator 46 b is provided for each guidance display 46, that is, for each hard switch 60. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the indicator 46 b is provided adjacent to characters representing the function of the hard switch 60 in the peripheral frame 44. The indicator 46b is composed of light emitting means such as an LED, for example, and its blinking state is controlled by the display control device 70 as shown in FIG. The indicator 46b is normally turned off and is turned on when the user's hand approaches the hard switch 60 as will be described later.

  On the display panel 42 of the display unit 40, as shown in FIG. 6, a guidance display image (operation menu image) for supporting the user's operation on the touch switch in the operation unit 20 is displayed under the control of the display control device 70. Is done. The guidance display image represents the position and function of the touch switch on the operation unit 20. That is, the guidance display image informs the user of various functions implemented by operating the touch switch in the operation unit 20 and informs the user of the position of each touch switch to be operated to implement the various functions. Play a role. In the example illustrated in FIG. 6, the guidance display image includes graphic images F <b> 1 to F <b> 9 simulating eight touch switches in the operation unit 20.

  FIG. 7A is a diagram illustrating a state when the user is operating the touch switch of the operation unit 20, and FIGS. 7B and 7C are diagrams of the display unit 40 at that time. It is a figure which shows a state.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, when the user is operating the operation unit 20, the display control unit 70 controls the display panel 42 of the display unit 40 as shown in FIG. 7B. Thus, an image of the hand indicating the position of the hand (finger) operated by the user is displayed. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the hand image may be generated using a camera 50 that captures an actual user's hand when the operation unit 20 is operated. In this case, in the hand image composition circuit 72 (see FIG. 2), only the hand image is extracted from the image of the operation unit 20 behind using, for example, a chroma key and superimposed (composited) on the above-described guide display image. At this time, the hand image may be displayed after being processed into an abstract image based on the contour data.

  Alternatively, when the user is operating the operation unit 20, as shown in FIG. 7C, a user's operation (under the control by the display control device 70) is displayed on the display panel 42 of the display unit 40. A cursor indicating the position of the (finger) is displayed. In this case, the cursor may be displayed in the same manner as an operation pad in a laptop (notebook) personal computer.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, the hand or cursor of the hand image is shown at the position where the graphic image F3 is operated. In this case, when the user performs the switch operation at the current hand position, the user can know that the function of the switch corresponding to the graphic image F3, that is, the mail function is realized. In this way, the user can operate a desired operation switch in the operation unit 20 while looking at the display unit 40 without directly viewing the operation unit 20. Therefore, when the user is a driver, a switch operation (so-called blind touch operation) can be performed with the operation unit 20 near the hand while looking at the display unit 40 in front of the field of view without greatly changing the driving posture or line of sight. Therefore, it is possible to realize a safe switch operation that does not interfere with driving.

  By the way, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, guidance display for the touch switch in the operation unit 20 is realized on the screen (display panel 42) of the display unit 40, and guidance display 46 for the hard switch in the operation unit 20. However, this is realized at the side of the display unit 40 outside the screen.

  The user who sees the display unit 40 sees the guidance display image on the display panel 42, knows that the touch switches are arranged in two rows on the touch panel 22 of the operation unit 20, and displays each graphic image F1 to F1. By looking at the characters in F9, it is possible to know the functions that can be realized by operating each touch switch. For example, when the user wants to mail, the user presses the touch switch at the position corresponding to the graphic image F3 including the characters “mail”, that is, the third touch switch from the left in the front row in the operation unit 20. You can understand what you need to do.

  Further, the user sees the guidance display 46 on the side of the display panel 42 and knows that there are three hard switches 60 on the left and right sides of the touch panel 22 of the operation unit 20, and includes each of the guidance displays 46. By looking at the characters, it is possible to know the functions that can be realized by operating the respective hard switches 60. For example, when the user wants to see a map of the current location, the user presses the hard switch 60 having the guidance display 46 including the characters “current location”, that is, the top hard switch 60 on the right side of the touch panel 22. You can understand what you need to do.

  However, in reality, the user tends to be interested only in the position of the hand image on the display panel 42 or the location corresponding to the movement of the cursor, that is, the guidance display image on the display panel 42. For this reason, the user is not interested in the guidance display 46 on the side of the display panel 42, and therefore the user may not even notice the presence of the hard switch 60. In this case, a part of various switch functions (hard switch 60) collected in the operation unit 20 may not be used by the user, and the function assigned to the hard switch 60 may not be sufficiently exhibited.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the display control device 70 displays the guidance display 46 corresponding to the hard switch 60 on the display unit 40 when the touch sensor 69 detects the approach of a finger operated by the user to a certain hard switch 60. It is characterized by emphasizing visually. Hereinafter, this characteristic configuration will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8A is a diagram illustrating a state when the user is operating the hard switch 60 of the operation unit 20, and FIGS. 8B and 8C illustrate the display unit 40 at that time. It is a figure which shows the state of.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, when a user moves his / her hand on the touch panel of the operation unit 20, when a finger of a hand approaches a certain hard switch 60 (in this example, the current position display hard switch 60), As shown in FIG. 8B, the indicator 46b in the guidance display 46 including the characters “current location” lights up. That is, the indicator 46b in the guidance display 46 corresponding to the current location display hard switch 60 is turned on. In this case, since the indicator 46b is lit near the region of interest near the fingertip of the image of his / her hand, the user is likely to notice the lighting of the indicator 46b, that is, the visual enhancement of the guidance display 46. As a result, the user can see the guidance display 46 with the indicator 46b lit, thereby allowing the user to notice the presence (and hence the function) of the hard switch 60 related to the guidance display 46. .

  At this time, if the user actually wants to realize the emphasized function of the hard switch 60 (in this example, the present location display function), the user moves the finger as it is or slightly moves the fingertip to the general By pressing the hard switch 60 to be touched, a function corresponding to the switch operation on the hard switch 60 (in this example, a current position display function) is actually realized. Thereby, a blind touch operation with respect to the so-called hard switch 60 becomes possible. In this case, since the user can learn the existence and function of the hard switch 60 through actual experience, the use of the hard switch 60 in the future is effectively promoted. However, even if the user does not want to realize the present location display function at that time, knowing the existence or function of the hard switch 60 will promote the use of the hard switch 60 in the future.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, when the hand operated by the user approaches the hard switch 60, the guidance display 46 related to the hard switch 60 is visually emphasized, so that the hard switch 60 The presence (and consequently the function) of the hard switch 60 can be noticed by the user, and the use frequency of the hard switch 60 can be increased to increase the significance of the existence of the hard switch 60.

  In the present embodiment, the visual enhancement mode of the guidance display 46 can be various. For example, the indicator 46b may be blinked, or in a configuration in which the indicator 46b is lit at normal time, the indicator 46b may be lit in a color different from that at normal time during emphasis.

  Further, for example, when a finger of a hand approaches a hard switch 60 (in this example, the current position display hard switch 60), the hard switch 60 is displayed on the display panel 42 as shown in FIG. It is also effective to make the second guidance display 47 corresponding to the above appear. Hereinafter, the above-described guidance display 46 is referred to as a “first guidance display 46” for the purpose of distinguishing from the second guidance display 47.

  The second guidance display 47 is not normally displayed on the display panel 42, and is superimposed on the guidance display image only when the user's operating hand approaches the hard switch 60. It is displayed on the panel 42. As shown in FIG. 8C, the second guidance display 47 is adjacent to the first guidance display 46 on the display panel 42 so that visual enhancement of the first guidance display 46 is promoted. It is desirable to appear and display at the position. As shown in FIG. 8C, the second guidance display 47 may be a display including characters indicating the function of the guidance target hard switch 60, similar to the first guidance display 46. Further, as shown in FIG. 8C, the second guidance display 47 may be a figure (arrow figure) indicating the position of the guidance target hard switch 60. Accordingly, the user can intuitively grasp the position or direction of the hard switch 60, and thereafter, the switch operation that can be performed on the hard switch 60 becomes easy.

  In the example shown in FIG. 8C, the first guidance display 46 does not include the indicator 46b because the above-described emphasis is realized by the appearance of the second guidance display 47. However, as a matter of course, it is possible and useful to induce more interest in the first guidance display 46 (and corresponding hard switch 60) by both the lighting of the indicator 46b and the appearance of the second guidance display 47. It is.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Can be added.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the lighting state of the indicator 46b may be canceled when the approach of the hand by the touch sensor 69 is no longer detected, and may be returned to the normal state (for example, the off state). Alternatively, the indicator 46b may be lit only for a predetermined time after the approach of the hand by the touch sensor 69 is detected. In addition to the above-described emphasis, the indicator 46b may be lit while the function of the hard switch 60 is being realized. In this case, the indicator 46b may be lit in a color different from that at the time of emphasis.

  In the embodiment described above, the hard switch 60 is not necessarily a mechanical switch. For example, the hard switch 60 detects a switch operation by blocking light or the like accompanying the movement of the operation member 64 during operation. Alternatively, a similar pressure-sensitive touch switch may be used. For example, in the case of the pressure-sensitive type, by setting sensors having different sensitivity in two or more stages, for example, the touch sensor 69 may detect the approach of a finger, and the switch operation may be detected by a sensor with less sensitivity. Alternatively, in the case of the pressure-sensitive type, the touch sensor 69 may be set in the peripheral area of the pressure-sensitive type touch switch.

  In the above-described embodiment, the touch sensor 69 is set to the operation member 64 of the corresponding hard switch 60. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the hard switch 60 and the touch panel 22 When a member (frame member) is present between the peripheral edge and the touch sensor 69, the touch sensor 69 may be provided on the frame member, or the touch sensor 69 may May be set in a region where no touch switch is set.

  In the above-described embodiment, the guidance display 46 is a fixed display drawn at the time of manufacture on the peripheral frame 44 of the display unit 40, unlike the guidance display image variably displayed on the display panel 42. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the guidance display 46 may be an image displayed on the display panel 42 as with the guidance display image. In this case, it is desirable that the display panel 42 has a horizontally long shape (wide screen). In this case, the emphasis of the guidance display 46 may be the emphasis display of the guidance display 46 that is an image, and the indicator 46b is unnecessary.

  Moreover, in the Example mentioned above, although the operation part 20 is arrange | positioned in the position which a user can visually recognize, this invention is not limited to this. According to the present embodiment, as described above, the blind operation can be performed not only on the touch switch in the operation unit 20 but also on the hard switch 60. For example, as illustrated in FIG. However, it is also possible to arrange in a closed space (a recessed portion where only the entrance side of the hand opens). In this case, the camera 50 for generating the hand image can be stored in the closed space as described above, and the sunlight is directly incident on the lens of the camera 50 and incident through the reflection on the operation unit 20. Is prevented, so that halation can be prevented. In this case, since it is difficult for the user to see the operation unit 20, it is not necessary to draw characters such as “Destination” as shown in FIG. 3 on the operation member 64 itself of the hard switch 60 to notify the function. In such a configuration, since the user does not substantially see the operation unit 20, the presence of the hard switch 60 is more difficult to be recognized by the user, and therefore the configuration according to the present invention described above is further effective. .

It is a perspective view which shows one Example of the vehicle mounting state of the vehicle-mounted remote control apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a functional block diagram of the vehicle-mounted system relevant to a vehicle-mounted remote control apparatus. 3 is a perspective view showing a main part of an operation unit 20. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a main cross section of an operation unit 20. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing details of a display unit 40. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a guidance display image. FIG. 7A shows a state where the user intends to operate the operation unit 20, and FIGS. 7B and 7C are diagrams showing the state of the display unit 40 at that time. FIG. 8A shows a state in which the user intends to operate the hard switch 60 of the operation unit 20, and FIGS. 8B and 8C are diagrams showing the state of the display unit 40 at that time. is there. It is a figure which shows the alternative Example of the arrangement | positioning aspect of the operation part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 Operation part 22 Touch panel 40 Display part 42 Display panel 44 Perimeter frame 46 Guidance display 46b Indicator 60 Hard switch 64 Operation member 69 Touch sensor 70 Display control apparatus

Claims (4)

In an in-vehicle remote control device in which an operation unit in which a plurality of operation switches are arranged and a display unit that visually supports a user's switch operation in the operation unit are separately arranged at physically separated positions in a vehicle interior ,
The operation unit includes a first operation switch provided in an operation area of a touch or proximity-sensitive touch panel, and a second operation switch provided around the outside of the touch panel. Proximity detecting means for detecting the approach of the finger operated by the user to the second operation switch, and switch operation detecting means for detecting the user's switch operation to the second operation switch are provided,
The display section includes a first guidance display area for performing guidance display corresponding to the first operation switch, and a second guidance display area for performing guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch,
When the approach detecting means detects the approach of the finger operated by the user to the second operation switch, the guidance display corresponding to the second operation switch in the display unit is visually emphasized. In-vehicle remote control device.   The first guide display area is set in a display area of a display panel in the display unit, and the second guide display area is set around the outside of the display panel. In-vehicle remote control device.   An indicator that can be lit by an electrically controlled light emitting element is provided in the second guidance display area, and the guidance display is emphasized by turning on or flashing the indicator. The in-vehicle remote control device according to 1 or 2.   When the sensor detects the approach of the finger operated by the user to the second operation switch, the sensor corresponds to the second operation switch in the first guidance display area in addition to or instead of the emphasis. The in-vehicle remote control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a second guidance display appears.

Images