JP2008233131A - Movement history detecting device, electronic equipment, movement history detecting method and control program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect a movement on a plane, for example, a movement of a body to be detected drawing an annular figure such as a circle when the movement (movement history) of the body to be detected such as a finger of a user is detected using photosensors etc. <P>SOLUTION: A movement history detecting device 50 includes reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 which emit light to irradiate a virtual plane 70 virtually provided for a housing 100a and receive reflected light from the body 80 to be detected on the virtual plane 70, a position decision unit 53 which decides the position of the reflected light based upon the quantity of the reflected light, a position storage unit 54 which stores the position of the body 80 to be detected that the position decision unit 53 decides at predetermined time intervals, and a movement history decision unit 55 which decides a movement history of the body 80 to be detected based upon the position of the body 80 to be detected which is stored in the position storage unit 54. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a movement history detection device, a movement history detection method and a control program for detecting a movement history of a detection object in a non-contact manner, and a predetermined history based on the movement history of the detection object detected by the movement history detection device. The present invention relates to an electronic device that is operated.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an audio device or the like is provided with a volume adjustment rotary switch that can adjust a volume according to a rotation angle as a user performs a rotation operation as an operation means for volume adjustment. Such a volume adjusting rotary switch requires a larger space for installation than other operation switches. For this reason, in an apparatus with a limited area where an operation switch or the like can be provided in a housing such as an in-vehicle audio apparatus, space saving of an occupied area such as a volume adjusting rotary switch is required.

On the other hand, in recent years, electronic devices are known in which movement of a user's hand is detected in a non-contact manner using a photosensor or the like, and an operation corresponding to the detected movement of the user's hand is performed (for example, Patent Documents). 1). Instead of an operation switch such as a volume adjustment rotary switch, a volume adjustment operation can be performed using a photosensor or the like, so that the space occupied by the operation switch can be saved.
JP-A-9-281963

  By the way, in the above-described conventional electronic device, the movement of the user's hand can be detected only when the user's hand moves on a straight line connecting two photosensors provided in the housing. It was not possible to detect movement on a plane such as when the hand moves like drawing a circle. For this reason, the operability similar to that of the conventional volume adjusting rotary switch cannot be provided. That is, it is possible to provide an intuitive operability for the user, such as detecting a motion of drawing a circle with the user's finger or the like, and increasing or decreasing the volume according to the direction of drawing the circle or the amount of movement of the finger. could not.

In addition, when the area where the operation switch or the like is provided in the housing is limited, in addition to the space saving of the area occupied by the operation switch, it is important to make the operation switch multifunctional. However, when only a movement on a straight line can be detected as in the above-described conventional electronic device, the types of motion that can be detected are also limited. Therefore, the operation content that can be assigned to the detected movement Will also be limited.
An object of the present invention is to detect a movement (movement history) of a detected object such as a user's finger using a photosensor or the like on a plane such as a movement of drawing an annular figure such as a circle of the detected object. An object of the present invention is to provide a movement history detection device, an electronic device, a movement history detection method, and a control program for an object to be detected that can detect movement.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the movement history detection device of the present invention is arranged in a housing and emits light so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane virtually provided to the housing. And a plurality of reflective photosensors that receive reflected light from the object to be detected on the virtual plane, and a position determining unit that determines the position of the object to be detected on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light. A position storage unit that stores the position of the detection object determined by the position determination unit at a predetermined time interval, and the virtual plane based on the position of the detection object stored in the position storage unit A movement history determination unit for determining a movement history of the object to be detected above.
According to the said structure, light is emitted from a reflection type photosensor so that the said virtual plane may be irradiated along the virtual plane provided with respect to a housing | casing virtually. The reflective photosensor receives light reflected by an object to be detected on a virtual plane. The position determining unit determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light. The position storage unit stores the position of the detected object on the virtual plane at a predetermined time interval. The movement history determination unit determines the movement history of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the position of the detected object stored in the position storage unit. Thus, on the virtual plane, for example, when detecting the movement of the detected object such as the user's finger in a non-contact manner, the circle of the detected object is calculated based on the movement history of the detected object on the virtual plane. It is possible to detect a movement on a plane such as a drawing movement.

In the movement history detection device having the above-described configuration, the reflection type photosensor is configured so that areas on the virtual plane where the object to be detected can be detected are adjacent to each other and light irradiating the virtual plane does not interfere with each other. It is preferable to arrange them at intervals.
Further, instead of the configuration, the reflection type photosensor is arranged at a predetermined interval so that regions where the detection object can be detected on the virtual plane are adjacent to each other, and the virtual plane is The frequency of the irradiated light may be different from each other.
By setting it as such a structure, the position on the virtual plane of a to-be-detected object can be detected accurately based on the reflected light from a to-be-detected object.

Further, in the movement history detection device having the above-described configuration, the reflection type photosensor includes n (where n is a natural number of 2 or more), and the position determination unit is an area irradiated by each reflection type photosensor on the virtual plane. It is preferable to determine the position of the object to be detected in m steps (where m is a natural number of 2 or more) according to the distance from the casing.
According to this configuration, by detecting the position of the object to be detected on the virtual plane in which of the areas obtained by dividing the virtual plane into n × m areas, it is possible to roughly detect the object to be detected. Motion can be detected. When a user tries to draw a circle, it is difficult to draw a perfect circle, and it is often an elliptical shape or a distorted annular figure. Therefore, by roughly detecting the movement of the object to be detected on the virtual plane, the user's operation intention can be easily detected, and the operation content corresponding to the user's operation intention can be executed.

An electronic apparatus according to the present invention is an electronic apparatus having the movement history detection device having any one of the configurations described above, and stores a table in which predetermined operation contents are associated with a predetermined movement history of the detected object. A storage unit that performs a predetermined operation in accordance with the predetermined operation content, and causes the operation unit to perform the predetermined operation when the movement history of the detected object is the predetermined movement history. And a control unit for controlling.
According to this configuration, when the user moves a finger or the like so as to have a predetermined movement history on the virtual plane, a predetermined operation content associated with the predetermined movement history in the table stored in the storage unit is displayed. The operation unit can be executed under the control of the control unit.

In the above configuration, the electronic device has a plurality of operation modes that can be set, and in the table, a predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history for each operation mode. When the movement history of the object to be detected is the predetermined movement history, the unit may cause the operation unit to perform a predetermined operation content according to the currently set operation mode.
According to this configuration, even when the movement histories of the detected objects are the same, it is possible to cause the operation unit to perform different operation contents depending on the operation mode.

In the electronic apparatus having the above-described configuration, the sound output unit that performs sound output based on a predetermined sound signal, and the volume adjustment unit that performs sound volume adjustment during sound output by the sound output unit as the operation unit, In the table, a volume adjustment operation is associated with a movement history that moves so as to draw an annular figure, and the control unit moves so that the movement history of the detected object draws an annular figure. In the case of a movement history, it is preferable to cause the volume adjustment unit to perform the volume adjustment.
According to this configuration, in the table stored in the storage unit, the volume adjustment operation is associated with the movement history that moves so as to draw an annular figure, so that the user can use the conventional volume adjustment rotary switch. In the same way as the operation is performed, the volume at the time of sound output by the sound output unit can be adjusted by performing an operation of drawing an annular figure such as a circle with a finger or the like on the virtual plane.

Further, in the electronic device having the above-described configuration, when the movement history of the table moving so as to draw the annular figure moves so as to draw the annular figure in one direction, the volume is increased. If the volume adjustment operation for adjusting the volume is associated with and the movement history of moving so as to draw the annular figure moves to draw the annular figure in another direction, the volume is reduced. Volume control operations for adjusting the volume of the detected object are associated with each other, and the control unit controls the detected volume of the detected object in the volume adjusting unit according to a moving direction when the detected object moves so as to draw the annular figure. It is preferable to increase or decrease the volume by a volume corresponding to the amount of movement.
According to this configuration, an annular figure such as a clockwise or counterclockwise circle is generated according to the amount of movement of the finger or the like on the virtual plane (the amount of movement of the finger or the like) under the control of the control unit. The volume adjustment unit can adjust the volume so as to increase or decrease the volume according to the drawing direction.

  Further, the movement history detection method of the present invention emits light so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane that is virtually provided to the casing and the object on the virtual plane. A plurality of reflective photosensors that receive reflected light from the detected object, a position determining unit that determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light, and the position of the detected object And a movement history detection method for detecting a movement history of an object to be detected using a movement history detection device having a storage unit for storing the object on the virtual plane by the position determination unit. The position is determined, the position of the detected object on the virtual plane is stored in the storage unit at a predetermined time interval, and based on the position of the detected object stored in the storage unit at the predetermined time interval Transfer of the object to be detected on the virtual plane Determining a history, characterized by.

  In addition, the control program of the present invention emits light so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane that is virtually provided to the casing and the detected object on the virtual plane. A plurality of reflective photosensors that receive reflected light from the light source, a position determination unit that determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light, and a position of the detected object And a storage unit that controls the movement history detection device using a computer, wherein the position determination unit determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane, and the storage unit The position of the detected object on the virtual plane is stored at a predetermined time interval, and based on the position of the detected object stored at the predetermined time interval, the position of the detected object on the virtual plane is Ask for travel history , Characterized by.

  According to the present invention, when detecting the movement (movement history) of an object to be detected such as a user's finger using a photosensor or the like, a plane such as a movement of drawing an annular figure such as a circle of the object to be detected Motion can be detected.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a functional configuration of an in-vehicle audio apparatus as electronic apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic device 100 includes a display unit 10 that performs various displays, an acoustic signal supply unit 20 that includes a CD playback unit 21, a radio tuner 22, and the like, and an acoustic signal supplied from the acoustic signal supply unit 20. An audio processing unit 30 that performs audio processing, a sound output unit 40 that outputs sound based on the sound signal that has been subjected to audio processing in the audio processing unit 30, and an object to be detected on a virtual plane 70 described later in FIG. The movement history detecting device 50 that detects the movement of 80 in a non-contact manner and detects the movement history of the object 80 to be detected, and a table in which predetermined operation contents are associated with the predetermined movement history of the object 80 to be detected are stored. Storage unit 60 and the above-described movement history detection device 50. Based on the table stored in the storage unit 60, the operation content corresponding to the movement history (movement) of the detected object 80 is performed. And a control unit 50A which controls the respective units so. Here, the detected object 80 is a user's finger, an object operated by the user, or the like.

The display unit 10 is configured by using a liquid crystal display, an EL display, or the like, and performs various displays such as an operation menu, an operation state, a playback song name, and a reception radio channel under the control of the control unit 50A.
As described above, the acoustic signal supply unit 20 includes the CD playback unit 21 and the radio tuner 22. The CD reproduction unit 21 reproduces a CD (Compact Disc) and outputs a CD reproduction signal that is an analog sound signal to the audio processing unit 30. The radio tuner 22 includes a radio receiving antenna, receives radio waves, and outputs a radio reproduction signal that is an analog acoustic signal to the audio processing unit 30. The electronic device 100 has a plurality of operation modes such as a CD playback mode and a radio playback mode, and the control unit 50A operates the electronic device 100 in an operation mode set via an operation unit (not shown).

The audio processing unit 30 includes a volume adjustment unit 31 such as an electronic volume. In the audio processing unit 30, under the control of the control unit 50A, these analog acoustic signals subjected to sound quality adjustment are subjected to sound quality adjustment processing and the like on the CD reproduction signal and radio reproduction signal supplied from the acoustic signal supply unit 20. On the other hand, the sound volume adjustment unit 31 adjusts the sound volume to a predetermined level, and outputs the sound signal after the sound volume adjustment to the sound output unit 40.
The sound output unit 40 includes a speaker, and outputs the sound signal whose volume is adjusted by the audio processing unit 30 through the speaker. However, the sound output unit 40 may be configured to include a power amplifier, and the sound signal after the volume adjustment in the audio processing unit 30 may be amplified and sound output from the speaker.

  The movement history detection device 50 includes n (n = 2 in the illustrated example) reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 arranged in the casing 100a, and an object 80 detected by the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52. A position determination unit 53 that determines the position of the detection object 80 based on the amount of reflected light, a position storage unit 54 that stores the position of the detection object 80 determined by the position determination unit 53 at predetermined time intervals, and And a movement history determination unit 55 that determines a movement history of the detected object 80 based on the position of the detected object 80 stored in the position storage unit 54.

  Each of the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 includes a light emitting element (not shown) that emits infrared light in a predetermined direction, and a light receiving element (not shown) that receives reflected light from the detection object 80 that blocks the emitted infrared light. Each is equipped. As shown in FIG. 2, each of the reflective photosensors 51 and 52 is an object 80 to be detected by each of the reflective photosensors 51 and 52 below the display unit 10 provided at the approximate center of the front surface of the housing 100a. Are adjacent to each other and arranged in a line at a predetermined interval so that infrared rays do not interfere with each other. A virtual plane 70 is virtually provided substantially perpendicular to the front surface of the housing 100a so as to include infrared rays along the irradiation direction of infrared rays emitted from the respective reflective photosensors 51 and 52. The virtual plane 70 is provided in a range where the detection object 80 of the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 can be detected.

  The position discriminating unit 53 discriminates the position of the detection object 80 on the virtual plane 70 based on the amount of reflected light from the detection object 80. Each reflection type photosensor in the virtual plane 70 shown in FIG. The position of the object to be detected 80 is discriminated in m stages (m = 2 in the illustrated example) according to the distance from the housing 100a for each of the areas 51 and 52 irradiated. That is, in the illustrated example, the virtual plane 70 is divided into four 2 × 2 regions, and the region in which the detected object 80 is located is determined. Here, for convenience, one of the two reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 provided in the example shown in FIG. 3 is a first sensor 51 and the other is a second sensor 52.

Further, the areas irradiated with infrared rays by the first sensor 51, that is, the areas A and D shown in FIG. 3 are set as the detection areas of the first sensor 51 (the area 71 on the left side of the virtual plane 70). The areas to be irradiated, that is, the areas B and C, are the detection areas of the second sensor 52 (the area 72 on the right side of the virtual plane 70). Similarly, the regions D and C shown in FIG. 3, that is, the region close to the housing 100 a is the region 73 on the near side of the virtual plane 70, and the regions A and B, that is, the side away from the housing 100 a The region is a region 74 on the back side of the virtual plane 70. However, in the present embodiment, the boundary position between the region 71 on the left side of the virtual plane 70 and the region 72 on the right side of the virtual plane 70 is the approximate center position of the arrangement positions of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52. The boundary position between the region 73 on the near side of the virtual plane 70 and the region 74 on the far side of the virtual plane 70 is about ½ of the distance L ₁ from the detectable casing 100a of each of the reflective photosensors 51 and 52. and it is located a distance _{L 2 (L 2 = L 1} /2).

  The position determining unit 53 determines in which position of the four areas A to D the detected object 80 is located as shown in the position determination table shown in FIG. First, by determining which of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 has received the reflected light from the detected object 80 by the reflective photosensors 51, 52, the detected object 80 has a left region 71. It is determined whether it is located in (AorD) or in the right area 72 (BorC). Then, the amount of reflected light when the detection object 80 is located at the boundary position between the near-side region 73 and the far-side region 74 is set in advance as a reference value, and the amount of reflected light actually received is Compared with a reference value set in advance, if the amount of light received is larger than the reference value, it is determined that the detected object 80 is in the area 73 (DorC) on the near side, and the amount of light received from the reference value When is small, it can be determined that the detected object 80 is in the back region 74 (AorC). Thus, the position of the detection object 80 determined by the position determination unit 53 is acquired at predetermined time intervals and stored in the position storage unit 54. However, the position storage unit 54 stores the position of the object 80 acquired at predetermined time intervals within a predetermined determination time set in advance.

The movement history determination unit 55 determines the movement history of the detected object 80 based on the position of the detected object 80 stored in the position storage unit 54. At this time, the movement history determination unit 55 determines the movement history as in the movement history determination table shown in FIG. For example, if the current position of the object 80 is located in the area A and the position of the previous object 80 is located in the area A, the object 80 is It is determined that the vehicle is in a stagnation state (not moving). Further, if the detected object 80 is located in the region B immediately before, the detected object 80 is moved in a clockwise (left-handed) circle on the virtual plane 70 in FIG. In this case, the movement history of the detected object 80 is determined to be a counterclockwise movement. However, the left side is the left direction and the right side is the right direction with the housing 100a as the back. Also, if the detected object 80 is located in the area C immediately before and is currently located in the area A, it is determined that the object 80 has moved diagonally to the left, and the detected object 80 is immediately before the D. If it is located in the area, it is determined that the clockwise movement has been performed.
Information on the movement history of the object 80 obtained by the movement history determination unit 55 is output to the control unit 50A.

  The storage unit 60 is configured by using various storage devices such as a semiconductor memory and a hard disk device, and has a table storage area for storing a table in which a predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history of the object 80 to be detected. is doing. Tables in which predetermined operation contents are associated with predetermined movement histories of the detected object 80 are shown for each operation mode of the electronic device 100 such as a CD reproduction mode and a radio reproduction mode, as shown in FIG. A predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history. For example, when the movement history of the detected object 80 moves in a clockwise direction (in one direction) in the CD playback mode, the volume adjustment unit 31 is in response to the movement history. A volume increasing process for adjusting the volume so as to increase the volume is associated. When the detected object 80 moves from the area A to the area B under the control of the control unit 50A, a predetermined amount that is set in advance every time the amount of movement of the detected object 80 moves clockwise to the adjacent area. The volume is increased by the volume adjustment unit 31 by the volume of. Similarly, when the movement history of the detected object 80 moves counterclockwise (in the other direction) in a circle, the volume adjustment unit 31 is caused to decrease the volume with respect to the movement history. Is associated with a volume reduction process for adjusting the volume. When the detected object 80 moves from the A area to the D area under the control of the control unit 50A, the predetermined amount set in advance every time the amount of movement of the detected object 80 moves counterclockwise to the adjacent area. The volume is reduced by the volume adjustment unit 31 by the volume of.

  Not only when the detected object 80 draws a circular figure such as a circle, but also when the movement history of the detected object 80 moves upward to the left as shown in FIG. When the process is associated and the movement history of the detected object 80 moves to the lower left, a fast reverse process for performing fast reverse of CD playback is associated. In addition, although illustration is omitted, when the movement history of the detected object 80 moves to the upper right, moves to the lower right, or stays, predetermined operation contents (processing contents) are provided. Are associated.

  Similarly, in the radio playback mode, the volume increase process is associated when the movement history of the detected object 80 moves clockwise, and the volume decrease process corresponds when it moves counterclockwise. If it moves to the right, it is associated with a channel frequency increase process that selects the channel while increasing the frequency of the received radio wave. If it moves to the lower right, it is received. A tuning frequency reduction process for selecting a channel while reducing the frequency of the radio wave to be performed is associated. Although not shown in the same manner as described above, predetermined processing contents are also associated with other movement histories. Further, as the operation content associated with each movement history, for example, an operation mode switching operation or the like may be associated.

  The control unit 50A includes a CPU, RAM, ROM, and the like (not shown), and includes the movement history detection device 50 as a functional configuration. In the control unit 50A, the CPU performs various operations using a part of the RAM as a work area in accordance with various control programs stored in a ROM or the like, and controls the above-described units through computer control in cooperation with them. .

  FIG. 7 shows an operation procedure when executing processing according to the movement of the detected object 80 in the present embodiment. FIG. 7 mainly shows an operation procedure when the electronic device 100 is operating in the CD playback mode. First, the control unit 50A determines whether the electronic device 100 is operating in the CD playback mode or the radio playback mode (step S1). In the radio playback mode, a radio playback mode process described later is executed (step S2).

  When the electronic device 100 is operating in the CD playback mode (step S1: Y), the control unit 50A then selects the reflected light from the detected object 80 received by the reflective photosensors 51 and 52 based on the reflected light. It is determined whether or not the detection object 80 is detected on the virtual plane 70 (step S3). When it is determined that the detected object 80 is detected (step S3: Y), it is determined whether the detected object 80 is detected by the first sensor 51 or the second sensor 52 (step S4). Here, when it is determined that the detected object 80 is detected by the second sensor 52, the second sensor 52 detection process described later is executed (step S5).

  When it is determined that the detected object 80 is detected by the first sensor 51 (step S4: Y), the position determination shown in FIG. 4 is performed based on the amount of reflected light of the detected object 80 received by the first sensor 51. In accordance with the table, the position determination unit 53 determines whether the detection object 80 is located in the area A or the area D in the area 71 on the left side of the virtual plane 70 (step S6). When it is determined that the detection object 80 is located in the area A (step S6: area A), the movement history determination unit 55 then performs a position storage unit according to the movement history determination table shown in FIG. The movement history is determined based on which area of A to D the position immediately before stored in 54 is (step S7).

  If it is determined in step S7 that the movement history of the object 80 is in a stagnation state (step S7: stagnation), the control unit 50A causes the CD playback unit 21 to play a CD based on the table shown in FIG. If it is being performed, the playback of the CD is paused. If the playback of the CD is paused, the pause is canceled and the CD is played back (step S8).

  In step S7, when it is determined that the movement history of the detection object 80 moves in a counterclockwise manner so as to draw a circle (annular figure) (step S7: counterclockwise), the control unit 50A is set in advance. The volume control unit 31 performs control so that the volume is adjusted so as to decrease the volume by a predetermined volume (step S9).

  If it is determined in step S7 that the movement history of the detected object 80 moves to the left upward (step S7: left upward), the CD playback unit 21 performs a fast-forward process (step S10). If it is determined in step S7 that the movement history of the object 80 is clockwise (step S7: clockwise), the control unit 50A increases the volume so as to increase the volume by a predetermined volume set in advance. Control is performed so that the volume is adjusted by the adjustment unit 31 (step S11).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S6 that the position of the object 80 is located in the area D (step S6: area D), the control unit 50A follows the movement history determination table shown in FIG. The movement history determination unit 55 determines the movement history based on which of the areas A to D is the immediately preceding position stored in the position storage unit 54 (step S12).

  In step S12, when it is determined that the movement history of the detection object 80 moves in a counterclockwise circle (step S12: counterclockwise), it is determined that the object is in a stagnation state (step S12: Based on the table shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 50A controls the volume adjustment unit 31 to adjust the volume so as to decrease the volume by the predetermined volume (step S13).

  In step S12, when it is determined that the movement history of the detection object 80 moves to the lower left (step S12: lower left), the CD playback unit 21 performs a fast reverse process (step S14). If it is determined in step S12 that the movement history of the detection object 80 is clockwise (step S12: clockwise), the control unit 50A increases the volume so as to increase the volume by a predetermined volume set in advance. Control is performed so that the volume is adjusted by the adjustment unit 31 (step S15). If it is determined in step S12 that the movement history of the detected object 80 is in a stagnation state (step S12: stagnation), the control unit 50A causes the CD reproduction unit 21 to reproduce the CD as described above. If so, the playback of the CD is paused. If the playback of the CD is paused, the pause is canceled and the CD is played back (step S16).

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step S1 that the operation mode of the electronic device 100 is the radio playback mode (step S1: N), the control unit 50A follows the same procedure as in steps S3 to S7 and step S12 described above. The movement history of the detection object 80 on the virtual plane 70 is determined by the movement history detection device 50, and the table stored in the storage unit 60 based on the movement history of the detection object 80 determined by the movement history detection device 50. Accordingly, a predetermined operation unit such as the radio tuner 22 is caused to execute the operation contents associated with the movement history of the detected object 80 in the radio reproduction mode.

  If it is determined in step S4 that the object 80 is detected by the second sensor 52 (step S4: N), the controller 50A moves the position shown in FIG. Based on the determination table, the movement history determination table shown in FIG. 5 and the like, the movement history of the detected object 80 is determined, and the operation content associated with the determined movement history is stored in the CD playback unit 21 or the volume adjustment unit 31 or the like. The predetermined operation unit is executed.

  According to the present embodiment described above, light is emitted from the reflective photosensors 51 and 52 so as to irradiate the virtual plane 70 along the virtual plane 70 that is virtually provided to the housing 100a. . The reflective photosensors 51 and 52 receive the reflected light from the detection object 80 on the virtual plane 70. The position determination unit 53 determines the position of the detection object 80 on the virtual plane 70 based on the amount of the reflected light. The position storage unit 54 stores the position of the detected object 80 on the virtual plane 70 at predetermined time intervals. The movement history determination unit 55 determines the movement history of the detected object 80 on the virtual plane 70 based on the position of the detected object 80 stored in the position storage unit 54. Thus, on the virtual plane 70, for example, when the movement of the detection target 80 such as a user's finger is detected in a non-contact manner, the detection target is detected based on the movement history of the detection target 80 on the virtual plane 70. A movement on a plane such as a movement of drawing a circle of the object 80 can be detected.

  In the above-described embodiment, the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 are configured such that the areas 71 and 72 on the virtual plane 70 where the object 80 can be detected are adjacent to each other, and the light that irradiates the virtual plane 70. Are arranged at a predetermined interval so that they do not interfere with each other, it is possible to determine which of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 detects the detected object 80, Based on the reflected light from the object 80, the position of the detected object 80 on the virtual plane 70 can be detected with high accuracy. In addition, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of an area where the detected object 80 cannot be detected by either the first sensor 51 or the second sensor 52 inside the virtual plane 70.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, it is set as the structure which detects in which area | region of the area | region of AD which divided the position of the to-be-detected object 80 on the virtual plane 70 into four, and to detect 80 rough movements can be detected. When a user tries to draw a circle with a finger or the like, it is difficult to draw a perfect circle, and an elliptical shape or a distorted annular figure is often obtained. Therefore, the user's operation intention can be determined by roughly detecting the detected object 80 according to the position or movement of the detected object 80 on the virtual plane 70 depending on which position the virtual plane 70 is divided into four. Can be easily detected, and the operation content corresponding to the user's operation intention can be executed.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, in the table stored in the storage unit 60, a predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history of the object 80 to be detected. By moving a finger or the like on the virtual plane 70 so as to have a predetermined movement history, the control unit 50A controls a predetermined operation content associated with the predetermined movement history in the table stored in the storage unit 60. Can be executed by predetermined operation units such as the CD playback unit 21, the radio tuner 22, and the volume adjustment unit 31.

  In the above embodiment, the electronic device 100 has a plurality of operation modes that can be set, such as a CD playback mode and a radio playback mode. In the table shown in FIG. A predetermined operation content is associated with the history. Then, according to the currently set operation mode, the control unit 50A changes the operation content according to the movement history of the detected object 80 to a predetermined operation unit such as the CD reproduction unit 21, the radio tuner 22, the volume adjustment unit 31, and the like. To make it run. As described above, according to the present embodiment, even when the movement history of the detected object 80 is the same, it is possible to cause the predetermined operation unit to perform different operation contents depending on the operation mode.

  In the above embodiment, since the volume adjustment operation is associated with the movement history of the object 80 to move so as to draw an annular figure, the user operates the conventional volume adjustment rotary switch. In the same manner as described above, by performing an operation such as drawing a circular figure such as a circle with a finger or the like on the virtual plane 70, the sound volume at the time of sound output by the sound output unit 40 can be adjusted. And intuitive operability can be provided.

However, the above-described embodiment is one aspect of the present invention, and it is needless to say that the embodiment can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.
For example, in the present embodiment, the two reflective sensors are arranged in a line at the predetermined interval below the display unit 10 provided in the housing 100a. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It is not a thing. For example, the number of the reflective photosensors 51 and 52 is not limited to two, and any number may be arranged as long as it is two or more. Further, in the present embodiment, the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 each divide the position of the detected object 80 into two stages depending on the distance from the casing 100a, which is near or far from the casing 100a. Although it is configured to discriminate, it may be configured to discriminate the position of the detection object 80 in two or more stages. However, when detecting the movement of the user's finger, etc., the movement of the user's finger varies greatly from person to person. Even when drawing a figure that draws a circle, some users draw a figure that is close to a perfect circle. Some users draw a figure, and some users draw a figure that further distorts an ellipse. Therefore, as in this embodiment, the virtual plane 70 is set to the distance from the housing 100a by the number of the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52 (n = 2) and the reflection type photosensors 51 and 52. Accordingly, the virtual plane 70 is roughly divided into about four regions of n × m = 4 so as to detect the detection object 80 in m stages (m = 2), and any region A to D It is preferable to adopt a configuration for detecting whether the position is in the position.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, when determining the movement history of the to-be-detected object 80 based on the position of the to-be-detected object 80 memorize | stored at predetermined time intervals, it is determined whether it moved to another area | region. However, this determination time is longer than the time interval for storing the position of the detected object 80 in the storage unit 54. It may be set to determine the moving speed of the object 80 to be detected. For example, when the determination time for determining whether or not it has moved to another region is twice the time interval at which the detected object 80 is stored in the storage unit 54, as shown in FIG. When the position of the detected object 80 moves from region A → region D → region C, it is determined that the detected object 80 is in the counterclockwise state, and as shown in FIG. Can also be determined that the movement history of the detected object 80 is in a counterclockwise state. At this time, it can be determined that the moving speed is slower in the case shown in FIG. 8B than in the case shown in FIG. Thereby, for example, when it is determined that the movement history of the detected object 80 is counterclockwise, in the case shown in FIG. 8A, a process of reducing the volume by 2 points is performed, and FIG. In the case of showing, the operation content corresponding to the moving speed or moving amount of the detected object 80 may be further associated, such as a process of reducing the volume by 1 point. As shown in FIG. 8, the determination time for determining whether or not the detected object has moved to another region is set to twice the time interval for storing the detected object in the storage unit 54. In this case, when the detected object 80 is the region A → the region A → the region A, the detected object 80 is determined to be in a stagnation state.

  In the present embodiment, the virtual plane 70 is virtually provided substantially perpendicular to the front surface of the casing 100a. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the virtual plane 70a is replaced with the casing 100a. It is good also as a structure provided in parallel with respect to the front. In this case, as shown to Fig.9 (a), the 1st sensor 51a is arrange | positioned below one side part of the front of the housing | casing 100a, and the 2nd sensor 52a is arrange | positioned above the other side part. And the 1st sensor 51a is arrange | positioned in the front of the housing | casing 100a so that it may radiate | emit infrared rays so that it may be parallel to the front of the housing | casing 100a from the light emitting element toward the other side part of the front of the housing | casing 100a. The second sensor 52a is disposed in front of the casing 100a so as to irradiate infrared rays so as to be parallel to the front surface of the casing 100a from the light emitting element and toward one side of the front surface of the casing 100a. Thus, as shown in FIG. 9B, a virtual plane 70a can be provided parallel to the front surface of the housing 100a. In this case, you may make it arrange | position the 1st sensor 51a and the 2nd sensor 52a at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction in one side part or the other side part of the housing | casing 100a. When the first sensor 51a and the second sensor 52a are arranged in a line in the vertical direction with a predetermined interval, the infrared irradiation directions of the first sensor 51a and the second sensor 52a are set to be the same direction.

  In the present embodiment, the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 are described as being arranged in a row at a predetermined interval so that infrared rays do not interfere with each other. The frequencies of infrared rays emitted from the sensor 52 may be different from each other.

  In the above embodiment, the CD playback unit 21, the radio tuner 22, and the volume adjustment unit 31 are described as examples of the operation unit. However, the operation unit according to the present invention is not limited to these. Of course. Further, the table in which the movement history and the operation content shown in FIG. 6 are associated with each other is an example, and it is needless to say that the table is not limited to the aspect of FIG. Further, the electronic device 100 of the present invention is not limited to the in-vehicle audio device shown in FIG. 1, but may be a navigation device or the like, or an installation type audio device, a television, or the like. It can be applied to various electronic devices.

It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of the electronic device of embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the external appearance structural example of the electronic device of embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the virtual plane of embodiment of this invention. It is a position determination table | surface used in order to determine the position on the virtual plane of the to-be-detected object in embodiment of this invention. It is a movement history determination table used in order to determine the movement history of the to-be-detected object in embodiment of this invention. It is the table which matched the operation content in embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the determination method of the movement history of a to-be-detected object. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other example of the virtual plane provided with respect to the housing | casing of an electronic device, (a) is a front view which shows the external appearance structural example of an electronic device, (b) is the external appearance structural example of an electronic device. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Display part 20 Acoustic signal supply part 21 Playback part 22 Radio tuner 30 Audio processing part 31 Volume control part 40 Acoustic output part 50A Control part 50 Movement history detection apparatus 51 1st sensor (reflection type photosensor)
52 Second sensor (reflective photo sensor)
53 Position Determination Unit 54 Position Storage Unit 55 Movement History Determination Unit 60 Storage Unit 70 Virtual Plane 80 Detected Object 100 Electronic Device 100a Case

Claims (10)

A light is emitted so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane that is disposed on the casing and is virtually provided to the casing, and receives reflected light from the object to be detected on the virtual plane. A plurality of reflective photosensors;
A position determining unit that determines the position of the detection object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light;
A position storage unit that stores the positions of the detected objects determined by the position determination unit at predetermined time intervals;
A movement history determination unit that determines a movement history of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the position of the detected object stored in the position storage unit;
A movement history detection apparatus comprising: In the movement history detection device according to claim 1,
The reflective photosensors are arranged at predetermined intervals so that the areas on the virtual plane where the object to be detected can be detected are adjacent to each other and the lights irradiating the virtual plane do not interfere with each other. ,
A movement history detecting device characterized by the above. In the movement history detection device according to claim 1,
The reflective photosensors are arranged at predetermined intervals so that areas on the virtual plane where the object to be detected can be detected are adjacent to each other, and the frequencies of light irradiating the virtual plane are different from each other. Being frequency,
A movement history detecting device characterized by the above. In the movement history detection device according to claim 2 or 3,
N reflective photosensors (where n is a natural number of 2 or more),
The position discriminating unit is divided into m stages (where m is a natural number of 2 or more) according to the distance from the housing for each area irradiated by each reflective photosensor in the virtual plane. Determining the position,
A movement history detecting device characterized by the above. An electronic apparatus comprising the movement history detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A storage unit for storing a table in which a predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history of the detected object;
An operation unit for performing a predetermined operation in accordance with the predetermined operation content;
A control unit that controls the operation unit to perform the predetermined operation when the movement history of the detected object is the predetermined movement history;
An electronic device comprising: The electronic device according to claim 5, wherein
The electronic device has a plurality of operation modes that can be set,
In the table, a predetermined operation content is associated with a predetermined movement history for each operation mode,
When the movement history of the detected object is the predetermined movement history, the control unit causes the operation unit to perform a predetermined operation content according to a currently set operation mode.
Electronic equipment characterized by The electronic device according to claim 5 or 6,
A sound output unit for performing sound output based on a predetermined sound signal;
As the operation unit, a volume adjustment unit that performs volume adjustment at the time of sound output by the sound output unit, and
With
In the table, a volume adjustment operation is associated with a movement history that moves so as to draw an annular figure,
The control unit causes the volume adjustment unit to perform the volume adjustment when the movement history of the detected object is a movement history that moves so as to draw an annular figure;
Electronic equipment characterized by The electronic device according to claim 7, wherein
In the table,
When the movement history moving so as to draw the annular figure is one that moves so as to draw the annular figure in one direction, a volume adjustment operation for adjusting the volume so as to increase the volume is associated,
When the movement history that moves so as to draw the annular figure is one that moves so as to draw the annular figure in another direction, a volume adjustment operation that adjusts the volume so as to decrease the volume is associated,
The control unit causes the volume adjustment unit to increase or decrease the volume by a volume corresponding to the amount of movement of the detected object according to a moving direction when the detected object moves so as to draw the annular figure. thing,
Electronic equipment characterized by A plurality of reflections that emit light so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane that is virtually provided with respect to the housing and receive the reflected light from the object to be detected on the virtual plane. Movement history having a type photosensor, a position determining unit that determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light, and a storage unit that stores the position of the detected object A movement history detection method for detecting a movement history of an object to be detected using a detection device,
The position determining unit determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane,
In the storage unit, the position of the detected object on the virtual plane is stored at a predetermined time interval,
Determining a movement history of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the position of the detected object stored in the storage unit at predetermined time intervals;
The movement history detection method characterized by this. A plurality of reflections that emit light so as to irradiate the virtual plane along a virtual plane that is virtually provided with respect to the housing and receive the reflected light from the object to be detected on the virtual plane. Movement history having a type photosensor, a position determining unit that determines the position of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the amount of the reflected light, and a storage unit that stores the position of the detected object A control program for controlling a detection device using a computer,
Let the position determination unit determine the position of the detected object on the virtual plane,
In the storage unit, the position of the detected object on the virtual plane is stored at a predetermined time interval,
Obtaining a movement history of the detected object on the virtual plane based on the position of the detected object stored at a predetermined time interval;
A control program characterized by

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