JP2009025881A - Touch sensor and remote controller - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of improving precision in the designation operation of coordinate positions of a pointer, or the like with a simple structure and capable of allowing a user to perform operation more intuitively. <P>SOLUTION: A touch sensor 20 is in a three-dimensional shape and is nearly circular in a top view. A convex section 25 is formed by a curved surface at the center. In the convex section 25, an inner curved surface section 31 that is a convex curved surface is formed at a center 30 in the center, the height becomes lower concentrically toward the outside once, and a bottom section 32 is formed at the deepest section. Then, from the bottom section 32, the height gradually becomes higher concentrically, and an outer curved surface section 33 that is a curved surface is formed up to an edge section 34. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a touch sensor and a remote control device, and more particularly to a touch sensor having a three-dimensional shape and a remote control device including such a touch sensor.

  Currently, there are trackballs and flat pads as means for inputting so-called coordinate information in notebook personal computers and remote controllers. The user operates a predetermined device by operating a pointer displayed on the display screen using such input means.

  The trackball is known to have good operability, but generally has a problem that the mechanism structure is complicated and it is difficult to reduce the size. In addition, regular maintenance is required to prevent slipping of the ball being operated.

  In addition, the flat pad performs coordinate position designation by further sliding the finger in contact with a predetermined area. In general, there is a problem that it is difficult to perform a delicate operation with a flat pad, and the operability of the flat pad does not reach the operability of the trackball.

In order to improve these problems, for example, there is a coordinate input device using a touch sensor formed in a hemispherical shape (dome shape) by imitating a trackball.
JP 2004-94450 A

  By the way, the technique described in Patent Document 1 is an operation method in which a coordinate position is specified by touching and sliding a finger, and no measures are taken against making the pointer move delicately. Still remains, and there is a need for a device that can operate the pointer more intuitively.

  In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for improving the accuracy of a coordinate position designation operation using a pointer or the like with a simple structure. Another aspect is to provide a technique that allows a user to operate a pointer and the like more intuitively.

The touch sensor according to the present invention has a concave portion formed in a substantially circular shape and a convex portion formed in the center of the concave portion.
The height of the convex portion may change concentrically.
The convex portion may be formed with a curved outer shape.
The top of the convex part may be lower than the outer edge of the concave part.
Further, the moving speed and moving direction of the pointer operated by the touch sensor may be determined based on the relative position of the contact position of the user with respect to the center of the concave portion.
A remote control device according to the present invention includes the touch sensor described above, and has a selection button near the outside of the touch sensor.

  According to the present invention, since the sensor portion has a concave three-dimensional shape having a convex portion inside, it is possible to provide a technique for improving the accuracy of the coordinate position designation operation with a simple structure. From another viewpoint, it is possible to provide a technique that allows a user to operate a pointer or the like more intuitively.

  Next, the best mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter simply referred to as “embodiment”) will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an external appearance of the remote controller 10 according to the present embodiment as viewed from above. FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the remote controller 10. A user operates a television (not shown) using the remote controller 10. The remote controller 10 has a pointing device 15 as an operation interface 11 for operating various buttons such as a numeric keypad 16, a power button 17, a function button 18, a pointer displayed on the television, and changing a selection of displayed buttons. With.

  The pointing device 15 includes a touch sensor 20 that is a capacitive contact sensor, and a left first operation button 21 and a right second operation button 22 at the left and right positions near the upper side of the touch sensor 20. Prepare. Note that the sensor type of the touch sensor 20 is not limited to the capacitive type, and may be any sensor as long as the user's contact position with the touch sensor 20 can be detected appropriately. For example, an electromagnetic induction type sensor may be used.

  The control unit 12 determines a user operation on the operation interface 11 and instructs the transmission unit 13 to transmit a predetermined signal associated with the operation. In response to the instruction, the transmission unit 13 outputs an instruction signal using infrared rays to an operation target such as a television (not shown).

  3 is a diagram showing the shape of the touch sensor 20, FIG. 3 (a) is a plan view seen from above (Z-axis direction), and FIG. 3 (b) is a diagram in FIG. 3 (a). It is AA sectional drawing. In the figure, for the sake of convenience, the horizontal direction of the drawing is indicated by the X axis, the vertical direction is indicated by the Y axis, and the height direction is indicated by the Z axis.

  As illustrated, the touch sensor 20 has a three-dimensional shape, and has a circular shape when viewed from above. A convex portion 25 is formed in a curved surface at the central portion. The convex portion 25 has a central convex portion 30 that is a smooth convex curved surface, and an inner curved surface portion 31 that continuously and smoothly descends from the curved surface is formed. Therefore, the height of the convex portion 25 is decreased concentrically once outward. And the bottom part 32 is formed in the deepest part. From the bottom portion 32, an outer curved surface portion 33 that is a curved surface is formed from the central portion 30 to the outer edge portion 34 with the height gradually increasing concentrically. Note that the outer shape of the touch sensor 20 is not limited to a perfect circle when viewed from above, and may be an ellipse. It should be noted that the highest central portion 30 of the convex portion 25 is lower than the outer edge portion 34 as shown on the Z-axis minus side in the drawing.

  Here, the inner curved surface portion 31 and the outer curved surface portion 33 are smoothly continuous at the bottom portion 32. Moreover, the outer edge part 34 which is an outer side edge part of the outer side curved surface part 33 is a shape which can recognize clearly that it is an edge part when a user touches. In other words, the boundary between the outer curved surface portion 33 and the cover surface 36 is not smooth, but has a shape having an edge. In the case of a semicircular (dome-shaped) shape with respect to the cover surface 36 as shown in the prior art (Patent Document 1), the boundary between the cover surface and the semicircular shape cannot be substantially contacted, which is wasteful. However, in this embodiment, all three-dimensional shapes can be used effectively.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a case where the pointer displayed on a display device such as a television is moved using the touch sensor 20.

  The movement of the pointer is determined by the distance L in the radial direction of the contact point P0 with respect to the center point O and the angle θ with respect to the X-axis direction. Specifically, as described above, the touch sensor 20 has a circular shape with a radius R when viewed from above (Z-axis direction), and the central portion 30 that is the top of the convex portion 25 is defined as the center point O. ing. The moving direction of the pointer is determined by the direction of the angle θ when the contact point P0 is viewed from the center point O (center portion 30). The pointer moves when the user's finger is in contact with the touch sensor 20, and stops moving when the user's finger is separated from the touch sensor 20. The moving speed of the pointer is determined according to the distance L between the center point 0 (center portion 30) and the contact point P0. The maximum moving speed is a speed corresponding to the distance from the central portion 30 to the outer edge portion 34, that is, the maximum distance Lmax that is the radius R.

The pointer velocity V is calculated by the following equation (1) according to the calculation by the linear linear velocity change method, by the following equation (2) by the calculation by the nonlinear velocity change method, and also by the equations (1) and (2). And is continuously changed according to the change of the distance L. Hereinafter, the following formulas (1) and (2) for calculating the pointer velocity V are collectively referred to as “speed calculation formula”.
V = k × L (1) equation V = k × Lα (2) equation (where α and k are constants)

  FIG. 5 is a diagram shown for explaining what speed is to be determined when which part of the touch sensor 20 is operated with respect to the speed V of the pointer corresponding to the touch sensor 20. The contact target area of the touch sensor 20 is divided into three areas, ie, first to third areas A1 to A3 according to the distance from the center, and different speed calculation formulas are applied to the respective areas.

First, the first region A1 is a region having a distance R1 from the center point O (central portion 30). This region corresponds to a part of the inner region of the inner curved surface portion 31 of the convex portion 25. The first area A1 is an operation target mainly when the user performs a fine adjustment such as slightly moving the position of the pointer. Therefore, the speed change amount is reduced with respect to the distance change. For example, the speed V1 of the contact position P1 at the distance L1 is expressed by the following formula (3) based on the above formula (2) with k1 and n as constants. Applied.
V1 = (1 / k1) × L1n (3)

The second region A2 is a region outside the first region A1, and is an annular region from the distance R1 to the distance R2 (where R2> R1) from the A1 center point O (center portion 30). This region includes an outer region in the inner curved surface portion 31 and an inner region in the outer curved surface portion 33, and includes a bottom portion 32 that is a boundary between the inner curved surface portion 31 and the outer curved surface portion 33. The second area A2 is an area that assumes a relatively rough operation that does not require fine adjustment. For the velocity V2 of the contact position P2 at the distance L2, the following equation (4) based on the above equation (1) with k2 as a constant is applied.
V2 = k2 × L2 (4)
As shown in the equation (4), since the speed V2 changes linearly with respect to the distance L, the user can intuitively control the moving speed of the pointer. In order to make the speed V1-2 set at the boundary between the first area A1 and the second area A2 continuous, the constants k1, k2, and n are determined so as to satisfy the following expression (5). .
V1-2 = (1 / k1) × Ln = k2 × L (5)

The third area A3 is an area outside the second area A2, and is an annular area from the distance R2 to the distance R3 (where R3> R2) from the center point O (central portion 30). This third area A3 is an area for roughly moving the pointer in the same manner as the second area A2. Here, the third area A3 is an operation target when it is desired to move the pointer at a higher speed than the second area A2. The following equation (6) based on the above equation (2) is applied to the velocity V3 of the contact position P3 at the distance L3, where k3 and m are constants.
V3 = k3 × L3m (6) Formula Even if the contact position is slightly changed, the speed of the pointer is set to change greatly. In order to make the speed V2-3 set at the boundary between the second region A2 and the third region A3 continuous, the constants k2, k3, and m are determined so as to satisfy the relationship of the following expression (5). The
V2-3 = k2 × L = k3 × Lm (6)

The general usage method of the user with respect to the touch sensor 20, that is, how to move the pointer, has the following flows (1) to (3).
(1) The pointer is roughly moved by an operation on the second area A2 or the third area A3.
(2) The pointer is finely moved by operating the first area A1.
(3) When the position of the pointer is fixed at a desired position, a determination operation or the like is performed using the first operation button 21 or the second operation button 22. In addition, it is good also as a structure which performs a determination operation | movement by the tap operation | movement with respect to the center part 30 of the convex-shaped part 25. FIG.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the touch sensor 20 has a three-dimensional shape, it is easy for the user to sensuously grasp the distance from the center, and the speed and direction of the pointer displayed on a display device such as a television are adjusted intuitively. can do. In addition, when the touch sensor 20 is operated, the outer edge 34 of the touch sensor 20 swells, so that the user sensuously understands how far the sensor range is without visually recognizing it. It becomes possible to do. Further, when the user moves the pointer, it is not necessary to slide the finger while keeping the finger in contact with the user. In addition, since the ball is not configured to rotate, it is relatively easy to control the movement position of the pointer.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, in the cross-sectional shape of the touch sensor 20, the curved surface of the inner curved surface portion 31 of the convex portion 25 may have a shape in which the slope of the inclined surface increases as it approaches the central portion 30. In the case of this shape, the user can recognize the position of the central portion 30 more accurately.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the bottom portion 32 of the touch sensor 20 may be formed in an annular shape so as to have a predetermined width. At this time, the first region A1 is set on the entire surface of the inner curved surface portion 31 of the convex portion 25, the second region A2 is set on the entire surface of the bottom portion 32, and the third region A3 is set on the entire surface of the outer curved surface portion 33. May be. In the case of this shape, the user can easily grasp the first to third regions A1 to A3.

  In the present embodiment, the touch sensor 20 is provided in the remote controller 10, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be mounted on, for example, a notebook personal computer. Since the touch sensor 20 is concave, the notebook personal computer can be folded without any problem. In addition, a single pointing device may be configured instead of a mouse or a trackball.

It is a top view which shows the upper surface external appearance of the remote control based on Embodiment. It is a functional block diagram of a remote control according to the embodiment. It is the figure which showed the shape of the touch sensor based on embodiment. It is a figure explaining the relationship between the movement of the pointer displayed on display apparatuses, such as a television, and the touch position of a touch sensor using the touch sensor which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure shown in order to demonstrate the relationship between the operation position with respect to a touch sensor and the speed of a pointer based on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the cross-sectional shape of the touch sensor based on the modification of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the cross-sectional shape of the touch sensor based on the modification of embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10 remote control 11 operation interface 12 control unit 13 transmission unit 15 pointing device 16 numeric keypad 17 power button 18 function button 20 touch sensor 21 first operation button 22 second operation button 25 convex portion 30 central portion 31 inner curved surface portion 32 Bottom 33 Outer curved surface 34 Outer edge A1 First touch area A2 Second touch area A3 Third touch area

Claims (6)

A concave portion formed in a substantially circular shape;
A touch sensor comprising: a convex portion formed in the center of the concave portion.   The touch sensor according to claim 1, wherein the convex portion has a concentrically changing height.   The touch sensor according to claim 1, wherein an outer shape of the convex portion is a curved surface.   The touch sensor according to claim 1, wherein a top portion of the convex portion is lower than an outer edge of the concave portion.   5. The moving speed and moving direction of a pointer operated by the touch sensor are determined based on a relative position of a user contact position with respect to the center of the concave portion. Touch sensor as described in. The touch sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A remote control device comprising a selection button near the outside of the touch sensor.

Images