JP2009129152A - Display device, input device, and detector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display device capable of detecting contact of an object to be detected by using light. <P>SOLUTION: An electronic apparatus 1 capable of receiving operation on a screen 5a serves as a display device, an input device and a detector. The electronic apparatus 1 is provided with a display panel 9 having a display face 9a for displaying an image, a light source 53 for detection, a protective plate 13, which is a translucent member covering the display face 9a to constitute the screen 5a and guides light from the light source 53 for detection so that the light crosses the front side of the display face 9a while being repeatedly reflected by a front side boundary face 13a and a rear side boundary face 13b, and a plurality of sensors 48, which are photoelectric sensors arranged to be distributed on the rear side of the protective plate 13 so as to be overlapped to the display face 9a in a view from the front side. When the object to be detected is brought into contact with the front side boundary face 13, a reflection condition in the front side boundary face 13a of the protective plate 13 is changed, and the photoelectric sensors detect light emitted from the rear side boundary face 13b of the protective plate 13 based on the change of the reflection condition in the front side boundary face 13a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a display device, an input device, and a detection device. The display device is a touch panel type.

As a touch panel type display device, and an input device or a detection device that can constitute the display device, a device that detects the proximity or contact of an object to be detected such as a user's finger or a touch pen to the screen using light. Are known. For example, the display devices of Patent Documents 1 and 4 detect the proximity and contact of an object to be detected by imaging the front of the screen with a plurality of photoelectric sensors provided for each of a plurality of pixels. The display devices of Patent Documents 2 and 3 detect visible light or invisible light emitted from a backlight and reflected by a detection object close to the screen by a plurality of photoelectric sensors provided for each pixel. Detect the proximity and contact of the detected object to the screen.
JP 2004-318819 A JP 2005-275644 A JP 2006-127212 A JP 2007-128497 A

  However, with the above-described technique, it is difficult to distinguish between a state in which the detection object is close to the screen and a state in which the detection object is in contact with the screen. For example, light emitted from the backlight is reflected by the detected object and detected by the photoelectric sensor regardless of whether the detected object is close to or in contact with the screen. Since the detected object is detected by the photoelectric sensor even when the detected object is close to the screen, for example, an operation not intended by the user is erroneously recognized by the display device, resulting in an erroneous operation.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a display device, an input device, and a detection device that can detect contact of an object to be detected using light.

  The display device of the present invention is a display device that can accept an operation on a screen, and includes a display panel having a display surface on which an image is displayed, a light source, and a translucent member that covers the display surface and constitutes the screen. A light guide plate for guiding the light from the light source so as to cross the front of the display surface while repeatedly reflecting the light on the front side or the back side interface formed on the surface or inside, and A photoelectric sensor distributed and arranged on the rear side of the light guide plate so as to overlap the display surface when viewed from the front, wherein the detected object comes into contact with the front surface of the light guide plate and And a plurality of sensors for detecting light from the light source emitted from the rear surface of the light guide plate by changing a reflection condition at the front interface.

  Preferably, the front-side interface is a front-side surface of the light guide plate, and the plurality of sensors increase the critical angle of total reflection when the detected object contacts the front-side interface. Thus, the light from the light source emitted from the interface on the front side, reflected by the object to be detected, and emitted from the interface on the rear side of the light guide plate is detected.

  Suitably, the said light-guide plate is comprised so that the interface of the said front side may elastically deform according to external pressure.

  Suitably, the said light-guide plate has a rigid board | substrate and the elastic layer laminated | stacked on the front side of the said board | substrate.

  Preferably, the light source emits invisible light, and the plurality of sensors detect the invisible light.

  Preferably, in a plan view, the light from the light source is guided along the side surface of the light guide plate, and the guided light is incident on the light guide plate from each part of the side surface of the light guide plate. It has a member.

  Preferably, an operation member capable of being in close contact with the front-side interface of the light guide plate is provided.

  The input device of the present invention is arranged in front of the visual target object that is visually recognized from the front, the light source, and the visual object, and has translucency so that the visual object is visually recognized from the front. A light guide member that guides light from the light source so as to cross the front of the object to be viewed while being reflected by a front-side interface formed on the surface or inside thereof, and overlaps the object to be viewed when viewed from the front. A photoelectric sensor disposed on the rear side of the light guide member, wherein the object to be detected abuts on the front surface of the light guide member and the reflection condition at the front interface of the light guide member changes. And a sensor that detects light from the light source emitted from the rear surface of the light guide member.

  The detection device of the present invention is disposed in front of a sensor capable of detecting light from the front, a light source, and the sensor, and reflects light from the light source at a front-side interface formed on the surface or inside. A light guide member that guides light across the front of the sensor, and the sensor has an object in contact with the front surface of the light guide member and the front side of the light guide member. The light from the light source emitted from the rear surface of the light guide member is detected by changing the reflection condition at the interface.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to detect contact of an object to be detected using light.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of an electronic apparatus 1 as a display device, an input device, and a detection device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The electronic device 1 is, for example, a mobile phone.

  The electronic device 1 has a housing 3 in which various electronic components are built. The housing 3 is provided with, for example, a display unit 5 that displays an image on a screen 5a and an operation unit 7 that receives a user operation.

  The display unit 5 is configured by a so-called touch sensor type display device. That is, the electronic device 1 is configured to be able to accept a user operation on the screen 5a. Hereinafter, the direction in which the screen 5a faces may be referred to as the front, and the opposite direction may be referred to as the rear.

  First, a configuration related to image display of the display unit 5 will be described.

  FIG. 2A is an exploded perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the display unit 5.

  The display unit 5 is configured by, for example, a transmissive or transflective liquid crystal display device, and includes a display panel 9 that displays an image displayed on the screen 5a, and a backlight 11 that illuminates the display panel 9 from the back side. And a protective plate 13 for protecting the display panel 9 from a load, dust and the like. Note that the screen 5 a is configured by a front surface of the protection plate 13.

  The display panel 9 is stacked, for example, on the array substrate 17 and the CF substrate 19 that are arranged to face each other and in which the liquid crystal 15 (see FIG. 2C) is sealed, and behind the array substrate 17 and in front of the CF substrate 19. The incident side polarizing plate 21 and the outgoing side polarizing plate 23 are provided. Further, the display panel 9 has a plurality of pixels 25, and an image is displayed on the display surface 9 a facing the protection plate 13 by controlling the amount of light transmitted from the backlight 11 for each of the plurality of pixels 25. indicate. The display surface 9 a is a surface on the protective plate 13 side of the display panel 9, and is constituted by, for example, an output side polarizing plate 23 or a light-transmitting layer (not shown) laminated on the output side polarizing plate 23.

The display panel 9 is electrically connected to the circuit board 33 via, for example, the TAB 31. On the circuit board 33, for example, an electric signal for displaying an image on the display panel 9 is output to the display panel 9, or an electric signal for detecting a user operation on the display surface 9a (screen 5a) is displayed on the display panel 9. 9, a control unit (CPU) 34 constituted by an IC or the like is provided.

  The backlight 11 is constituted by, for example, a sidelight-type backlight, and guides the display light source 27 composed of a cold cathode tube and the like and the light emitted from the display light source 27 to the back of the display panel 9. And a display light guide plate 29 that emits light. The backlight 11 may be a so-called direct type.

  The protection plate 13 is made of, for example, a material having translucency such as hard resin or glass so that the display panel 9 can be visually recognized from the outside of the housing 3. The protective plate 13 may be formed in an appropriate shape, but for example, is formed in a flat or curved plate shape with a substantially constant thickness. The protection plate 13 is fixed to the housing 3 by a fixing member such as an adhesive or a screw.

  FIG. 2B is a plan view schematically showing the pixel 25.

  The pixel 25 includes a plurality of sub-pixels 35R, 35G, and 35B (hereinafter, R, G, and B may be omitted) corresponding to a plurality of types (for example, three types) of colors (light wavelengths). Yes. The sub-pixels 35R, 35G, and 35B correspond to, for example, red (R), green (G), and blue (B). By adjusting the amount of light of each color emitted from the three types of sub-pixels 35, an arbitrary color is visually recognized in the pixel 25 and an image is displayed on the display surface 9a.

  FIG.2 (c) is a figure which shows typically the cross section in the IIc-IIc line | wire of FIG.2 (b).

  In the sub-pixel 35, for example, an incident-side flattening layer 41 for flattening unevenness due to the pixel electrode 39, the pixel electrode 39, and the like provided for each sub-pixel 35 on the surface of the array substrate 17 on the liquid crystal 15 side, An incident side alignment film 43 for aligning the liquid crystal 15 is laminated. Further, in the sub-pixel 35, the surface of the CF substrate 19 on the liquid crystal 15 side is flattened by unevenness due to the color filter 45, the color filter 45, and the like that transmits only light of the color (wavelength) corresponding to each sub-pixel 35. For this purpose, an output side planarization layer 47, a common electrode 49 provided in common to the plurality of sub-pixels 35, and an output side alignment film 51 for aligning the liquid crystal 15 are laminated.

  In the sub-pixel 35, by applying a voltage to the pixel electrode 39 and the common electrode 49, the liquid crystal 15 is applied in a direction different from the direction defined by the incident-side alignment film 43 and the emission-side alignment film 51. Oriented at an angle according to the applied voltage. As a result, the angle at which the polarized light traveling from the incident-side polarizing plate 21 to the outgoing-side polarizing plate 23 is rotated is adjusted, and consequently, the amount of light in the sub-pixel 35 is adjusted.

  Next, a configuration for detecting a user operation on the display unit 5 will be described.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2B, the pixel 25 includes a detection unit 37 that detects light incident from the front of the display surface 9a. Note that the arrangement of the sub-pixel 35 and the detection unit 37 in plan view may be set as appropriate. FIG. 2B illustrates a case where the sub-pixel 35 and the detection unit 37 are arranged in a rectangular shape.

  As shown in FIG. 2C, in the detection unit 37, for example, a photoelectric sensor 48 that converts received light into an electric signal is provided instead of the pixel electrode 39 in the sub-pixel 35. The photoelectric sensor 48 includes, for example, a PIN diode. In the detection unit 37, the color filter 45 may or may not be provided. As will be described later, in the configuration in which the photoelectric sensor 48 detects a user operation using infrared light, an IR filter that allows only infrared light to pass is used instead of the color filter 45 in order to improve the SN ratio. It may be provided.

  FIG. 3A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the display unit 5 for explaining the incidence of light on the photoelectric sensor 48. FIG. 3B is a schematic plan view of the display unit 5 as viewed from the upper side in the drawing of FIG.

  The electronic device 1 includes a detection light source 53 (FIG. 3B) that emits light for detecting a user operation, and a light pipe 55 that guides the light from the detection light source 53 to the protection plate 13. Have.

  The light source 53 for detection is comprised by point light sources, such as LED which inject | emits infrared light, for example, and is arrange | positioned on the outer side of the protection plate 13 in planar view. More specifically, it is arranged at the corner of the protective plate 13 formed in a rectangular shape in plan view.

  The light pipe 55 is made of, for example, a translucent resin or glass, and is formed in a long shape along the side surface (edge) of the protection plate 13. More specifically, it is formed so as to extend substantially linearly along one side of the protection plate 13 formed in a rectangular shape in plan view.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, a light source 53 for detection is disposed on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the light pipe 55, and a plurality of light pipes 55 are provided on the surface opposite to the protective plate 13 side. The protrusion 55a is formed. The protrusion 55a is formed of, for example, a triangular prism that is a triangle in plan view.

  The front side of the light pipe 55 (upper side of the paper surface in FIG. 3A), the rear side (lower side of the paper surface in FIG. 3A), and the side opposite to the protection plate 13 are reflective members 57 (see FIG. a)), the light in the light pipe 55 can be efficiently emitted to the protective plate 13.

  The effect | action which concerns on operation with respect to the screen 5a (display surface 9a) in the electronic device 1 which has the above structure is demonstrated.

  The infrared light OL emitted from the detection light source 53 is guided in the longitudinal direction of the light pipe 55 by the light pipe 55 and enters each part of the side surface of the protection plate 13. In other words, the light pipe 55 converts the point light source into a linear light source and makes the light incident on the protection plate 13.

  The infrared light incident from the side surface of the protection plate 13 is guided along the surface of the protection plate 13 while being repeatedly reflected between the front side interface 13a and the rear side interface 13b of the protection plate 13. Thereby, the infrared light OL is guided so as to cross the front of the display surface 9a.

The infrared light OL guided so as to cross the front of the display surface 9a by the protective plate 13 is mainly light totally reflected at the front side interface 13a and the rear side interface 13b. That is, the refractive index of the protective plate 13 is n ₂ , the refractive index of a substance (here, air) outside the protective plate 13 is n ₁ , and the incident angle to the front side interface 13a or the rear side interface 13b (normal line of the incident surface). Is the light that satisfies θ ₁ > sin ⁻¹ (n ₁ / n ₂ ) = θ ₀ , where θ ₁ (angle of incident light) is θ ₁ (FIG. 3A). Here, θ ₀ is a critical angle. For example, if the protective plate 13 is made of polycarbonate (refractive index of about 1.583), the critical angle θ ₀ is about 39 °, and light having an incident angle θ ₁ larger than 39 ° is guided. The

Here, as shown in FIG. 3A, when the user's finger is in close contact with the front interface 13a, the substance outside the protective plate 13 changes from air to the user's finger, and reflection conditions (total reflection conditions) Will change. That is, in the above formula, the refractive index n ₁ increases and the critical angle θ ₀ increases.

As a result, the infrared light OL in which the incident angle θ _{1 at} the front interface 13a is larger than the critical angle θ ₀ before the change and smaller than the critical angle θ ₀ after the change is totally reflected at the front interface 13a. From the front side interface 13a. Then, the infrared light OL is reflected and scattered on the surface and inside of the user's finger and is incident again on the protection plate 13, emitted from the rear interface 13 b, and received by the photoelectric sensor 48.

  Therefore, the amount of received light increases in the photoelectric sensor 48 located directly under the user's finger. For example, the control unit 34 provided on the circuit board 33 determines whether or not the detection value of the photoelectric sensor 48 has exceeded a predetermined threshold value, thereby determining whether or not the user's finger touches the screen 5a. Detected. Further, for example, the position of the user's finger is specified by specifying which of the plurality of photoelectric sensors 48 the detected value of the photoelectric sensor 48 exceeds the threshold value.

  According to the above embodiment, the electronic device 1 that can accept an operation on the screen 5a includes the display panel 9 having the display surface 9a, the light source 53 for detection, and the translucent light that forms the screen 5a covering the display surface 9a. A protective plate 13 that is a member and guides the infrared light OL from the detection light source 53 so as to cross the front of the display surface 9a while being repeatedly reflected by the front-side interface 13a and the rear-side interface 13b; It is distributed and arranged on the rear side of the protective plate 13 so as to overlap the screen 5a when viewed from the front, the user's finger contacts the front side interface 13a of the protective plate 13, and the reflection condition on the front side interface 13a changes. Thus, since the plurality of photoelectric sensors 48 that detect the infrared light OL emitted from the rear side interface 13b are included, the contact of the user's finger can be reliably detected.

Specifically, when a user's finger into contact with the protective plate 13, as compared to when only the user's finger is close to the protective plate 13, increases the critical angle theta ₀ in the front side surface 13a, the photoelectric Since the infrared light OL incident on the sensor 48 increases dramatically, based on the electrical signal from the photoelectric sensor 48, the user's finger is in proximity to the protective plate 13, and the user's finger is the protective plate. 13 can be distinguished from the state in contact with 13.

  Since the detection light source 53 emits infrared light OL as invisible light, and the plurality of photoelectric sensors 48 detect the infrared light OL, the user's operation is performed regardless of the display state of the display panel 9. Can be detected. For example, when the user's operation is detected by reflecting visible light emitted from the display panel 9 with the user's finger, it is difficult to detect the operation when the display panel 9 is displayed in black. However, such a problem does not occur. Further, since it is invisible light, the detection light is not superimposed on the light of the display panel 9 and does not affect the display. Since the infrared light having high transmittance in the polarizing plate and the liquid crystal is used as the invisible light, the SN ratio can be improved with a small amount of light.

  The electronic device 1 guides the infrared light OL from the detection light source 53 along the side surface of the protection plate 13 in a plan view, and guides the guided light from each part of the side surface of the protection plate 13 to the protection plate 13. Since the light pipe 55 to be incident is provided, the light can be spread over the entire surface of the protective plate 13 by a relatively small light source. As a result, for example, the structure can be simplified and the power consumption can be reduced.

  In the above embodiment, the electronic device 1 or the display unit 5 is an example of a display device, an input device, and a detection device, the display panel 9 is an example of a display panel and an object to be viewed of the present invention, and a protective plate 13 is an example of the light guide plate and the light guide member of the present invention, infrared light OL is an example of the invisible light of the present invention, and the light pipe 55 is an example of the auxiliary light guide member of the present invention.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an electronic apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  The electronic device of the second embodiment is different from the electronic device 1 of the first embodiment only in the configuration of the protection plate 113. That is, the protective plate 13 of the first embodiment is entirely configured by a rigid body, whereas the protective plate 113 of the second embodiment is formed such that the front side interface 113a is elastically deformed by an external pressure. ing. Specifically, it is as follows.

  The protective plate 113 includes a transparent substrate 161 made of a rigid body from the rear side interface 113b side to the front side interface 113a side, an adhesive layer 163 laminated on the transparent substrate 161, and a film 165 laminated on the adhesive layer 163. have. All of these have translucency.

  The transparent substrate 161 is made of, for example, hard resin or glass, and constitutes the rear side interface 113b. The adhesive layer 163 is made of, for example, an elastic resin, and bonds the transparent substrate 161 and the film 165 to each other. The film 165 is made of, for example, a flexible resin and forms the front side interface 113a. As the film 165, for example, a film generally used for protecting a screen by a hard coat can be used.

  In a state where the touch pen 167 is not in contact with the front side interface 113a, the front side interface 113a and the rear side interface 113b are substantially parallel to each other, and the infrared light OL1 is the front side as in the first embodiment. While being repeatedly reflected by the interface 113a and the rear interface 113b, the light is guided so as to cross the front of the display surface 9a of the display panel 9 (FIG. 2).

When the touch pen 167 contacts the front interface 113a, the front interface 113a bends backward. As a result, the infrared light OL1 reflected in the vicinity of the touch pen 167 and on the light source side (right hand side in FIG. 4) from the load point by the touch pen 167 is compared with that when the touch pen 167 is not in contact. Then, proceeding to a position just below the touch pen 167, the incident angle θ _{1 with} respect to the rear side interface 113b (in FIG. 4, the definition of θ ₁ is shown in the incident angle to the front side interface 113a). The infrared light OL1 is emitted from the rear interface 113b and received by the photoelectric sensor 48 (FIG. 3).

  That is, in the photoelectric sensor 48 located directly below the touch pen 167, the amount of received light increases. As in the first embodiment, for example, the control unit 34 provided on the circuit board 33 determines whether or not the detection value of the photoelectric sensor 48 exceeds a predetermined threshold value. The presence or absence of contact with the screen 105a is detected. Further, for example, the position of the user's finger is specified by specifying which of the plurality of photoelectric sensors 48 the detected value of the photoelectric sensor 48 exceeds the threshold value.

  Note that a phenomenon similar to that of the front side interface 113a may occur at the internal interface 113c of the adhesive layer 163 on the film 165 side. That is, due to the elastic deformation of the internal interface 113c due to the external pressure, the direction of the infrared light OL2 reflected by the internal interface 113c changes to a position immediately below the touch pen 167, and the amount of light received by the photoelectric sensor 48 directly below the touch pen 167 increases. .

Similarly to the first embodiment, when the front interface 113a is pressed by the user's finger, the critical angle increases due to the change in the refractive index outside the protective plate 113 in the first embodiment. Both the effect of increasing the amount of received light based on the above and the effect of increasing the amount of received light due to the change in the reflected direction described above can be obtained. Further, by deformation of the front side surface 113a and an internal surface 113c, since the incident angle theta ₁ is reduced in the light source side than the load point by the finger of the user or the like, the incident angle theta ₁ is less than the critical angle theta _0, Infrared light OL1 and OL2 are easily emitted from the front side interface 113a and the internal interface 113c, and an effect of increasing the amount of light by reflected light from the user's finger or the like is also expected.

  In the above embodiment, the transparent substrate 161 is an example of a rigid substrate of the present invention, and the adhesive layer 163 is an example of an elastic layer of the present invention.

(Third embodiment)
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an electronic apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

  The electronic device of the third embodiment is different from the electronic device of the first and second embodiments only in the configuration of the protection plate 213. Similar to the protection plate 113 of the second embodiment, the protection plate 213 of the third embodiment is formed such that the front interface 213a is elastically deformed by an external pressure. However, the specific configuration is different from the protection plate 113 of the second embodiment. Specifically, it is as follows.

  The protective plate 213 includes a transparent substrate 261 made of a rigid body and a self-healing film 263 stacked on the transparent substrate 261 from the rear side interface 213b side to the front side interface 213a side. All of these have translucency.

  The transparent substrate 261 is made of, for example, hard resin or glass, and forms the rear side interface 213b. The self-healing film 263 is made of, for example, a resinous paint having elasticity, and can be made of, for example, a self-healing paint made by NATCO Corporation. The self-healing film 263 constitutes the front side interface 213a.

According to the third embodiment, the same effect as in the second embodiment can be obtained. That is, the amount of light received by the photoelectric sensor 48 located at the pressed location is increased by the deflection of the front interface 213a, or the critical angle of total reflection due to the change in the refractive index outside the protective plate 213 is increased. position or to increase the amount of light received by the photoelectric sensor 48, a decrease of the incident angle theta ₁ of infrared light OL caused to deflect by the front end surface 213a, increasing the amount of light received by the photoelectric sensor 48 located in the pressing position You can make it. Furthermore, the screen is prevented from being damaged by the touch of the touch pen 167 or the like.

  In the above embodiment, the transparent substrate 261 is an example of a rigid substrate of the present invention, and the self-healing film 263 is an example of an elastic layer of the present invention.

(Fourth embodiment)
FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are cross-sectional views showing the main parts of the fourth embodiment.

  The electronic device of the fourth embodiment is different from the electronic device 1 of the first embodiment in that it includes a touch pen 267 as an operation member. The touch pen 267 has a tip 267a made of an elastic body such as rubber. Then, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the tip end portion 267a is pressed against the front side interface 13a, the tip end portion 267a is elastically deformed and closely contacts the front side interface 13a with a predetermined area. As a result, the same effect as when the front interface 13a is operated with the finger in the first embodiment, that is, the effect of increasing the critical angle of total reflection is obtained.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be implemented in various aspects.

  The display device, input device, and detection device of the present invention are not limited to mobile phones. For example, a digital camera, a PDA, a notebook computer, a game machine, a television, a car navigation, or an ATM may be used. Further, the input device and the detection device of the present invention are not limited to those having a display panel. In other words, the visual recognition object visually recognized by the user is not limited to the display panel. For example, on the rear side of the light guide plate, a paper on which a plurality of keys, maps, and other figures are drawn may be disposed as a visual recognition object, or a segment display device composed of a plurality of LEDs is disposed. May be. In the detection device of the present invention, the visual recognition object may not be disposed behind the light guide plate, and may not be intended to accept a user operation. For example, the detection device may be a touch sensor provided in a key-side housing (a housing in which no display is provided) of a notebook computer, or a detection device for examining the adhesion state of floating substances such as dust. There may be.

  The display panel is not limited to a display panel that displays an image using a plurality of pixels. For example, segment display may be performed. Further, the display panel is not limited to the one constituting the liquid crystal display device, and may be one constituting an organic EL display device, for example. When the display panel constitutes a liquid crystal display device, the liquid crystal display device is not limited to a transmissive type or a semi-transmissive type, and may be a reflective type.

  A plurality of sensors may not be provided, and only one sensor may be provided. Further, when a plurality of sensors are distributed and arranged behind the light guide member, they may be arranged two-dimensionally as in the embodiment or may be arranged one-dimensionally. Further, the arrangement and density of the plurality of sensors may be set as appropriate, and further, the arrangement and density may be locally changed. The plurality of sensors that are distributed and arranged so as to overlap the display panel when viewed from the front may not be provided for each pixel, for example, one common to a plurality of and a small number of pixels such as 2 to 5 The sensors may be distributed and arranged so as to be provided. Further, when the plurality of sensors are provided for each pixel, the plurality of sensors may be provided for each sub-pixel (which is also a kind of pixel). The sensor may be provided in front of the display panel or the visual recognition object, or may be provided in the rear.

  The light used for detection is not limited to invisible light, and may be visible light. Invisible light is not limited to infrared light, and may be, for example, ultraviolet light. In the International Commission on Illumination (CIE), the boundary between ultraviolet light and visible light is 360 nm to 400 nm, and the boundary between visible light and infrared light is 760 nm to 830 nm.

  The light guide member (including the light guide plate) is not limited to a plate-like member as long as it can guide the detection light so as to cross the front of the sensor. For example, for a plurality of sensors arranged one-dimensionally, a light guide member formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape extending along the arrangement may be provided, or for only one sensor provided. A cubic light guide member may be provided. When there is only one sensor, the light guide member only needs to be able to reflect the detection light at the front side interface at least once, and is repeatedly reflected at the front side interface and the rear side interface. There is no need to shine. Further, the light guide member is not limited to a member that is fixed to the housing and protects the display panel or the like. The front-side interface and the rear-side interface of the light guide member may be configured by the surface of the light guide member as in the first embodiment, or the light guide as in the internal interface 113c of the second embodiment. It may be provided inside the member.

  FIG. 7 is a plan view (viewed from the front side of the sensor) showing a modification of the light guide member.

  The light guide plate 313 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and part of the corners are chamfered. A detection light source 353 is disposed opposite to the chamfered surface. The infrared light OL emitted from the detection light source 353 is guided so as to spread over the entire surface of the light guide plate 313. According to this modification, it is possible to spread detection light over a wide range with a relatively small light source while reducing the number of members.

  FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing another modification of the light guide member.

  The protection plate 413 includes a first plate 413e and a second plate 413f that is wider than the first plate 413e and stacked in front of the first plate 413e (upward in the drawing in FIG. 8). The light pipe 455 extending in the depth direction in FIG. 8 is disposed on the side of the first plate 413e and at a position covered by the second plate 413f. Decorative printing is performed on the rear surface 413g of the portion of the second plate 413f extending from the first plate 413e.

  According to this modification, as in the first embodiment, the infrared light OL emitted from the light pipe 455 is incident from the side surface of the first plate 413e and is transmitted from the first plate 413e and the second plate 413f. The same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained by being guided to the protection plate 413. Furthermore, since the light pipe 455 and a light source (not shown) can be arranged on the inner side of the housing with respect to the second plate 413f, the surface of the protective plate 413 and the surface of the housing 3 (FIG. 1) are flush with each other. In addition, the light pipe 455 and the like can be hidden by decorative printing, and the design is high. 8 illustrates the case where the protective plate 413 is configured by laminating two plates, the protective plate 413 may be integrally formed as a whole.

  The light guide member (including the light guide plate) and the visual recognition object (including the display panel) may be in contact with each other. Further, a layer of another substance such as a resin layer may be provided between the light guide member and the visual recognition object (including the display panel) instead of the air layer. However, the air around the light guide member has a larger critical angle and can guide light having a large incident angle. Therefore, light can be guided efficiently, and the output of the light source can be reduced.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the appearance of the electronic apparatus according to the first embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a display unit of the electronic apparatus in FIG. 1. The figure explaining the structure which concerns on the detection of the display part of FIG. The figure which shows the principal part of the electronic device which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the principal part of the electronic device which concerns on the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the principal part of the electronic device which concerns on the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The top view which shows the modification of the light guide member which concerns on this invention. Sectional drawing which shows the other modification of the light guide member which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electronic device (Display apparatus, input device, detection apparatus), 5a ... Screen, 9 ... Display panel, 9a ... Display surface, 53 ... Light source for detection (light source), 13 ... Light guide plate (light guide member), 13a ... Front side interface (surface), 13b ... Back side interface (surface), 48 ... Photoelectric sensor (sensor).

Claims (9)

A display device capable of accepting operations on a screen,
A display panel having a display surface on which an image is displayed;
A light source;
A light-transmitting member that covers the display surface and constitutes the screen, and the light from the light source is repeatedly reflected at a front interface and a rear interface formed on the surface or inside the display surface. A light guide plate that guides light so as to cross the front of
A photoelectric sensor distributed and arranged on the rear side of the light guide plate so as to overlap the display surface when viewed from the front, wherein the detected object comes into contact with the front surface of the light guide plate and A plurality of sensors for detecting light from the light source emitted from the rear surface of the light guide plate by changing a reflection condition at the front interface;
A display device. The front side interface is a front side surface of the light guide plate,
The plurality of sensors emit light from the front interface and reflect by the detection object when the detected object abuts on the front interface and the critical angle of total reflection increases, and the guide The display device according to claim 1, wherein light from the light source emitted from the interface on the rear side of the light plate is detected. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the light guide plate is configured such that the front-side interface is elastically deformed according to an external pressure. The light guide plate is
A rigid substrate;
An elastic layer laminated on the front side of the substrate;
The display device according to claim 3. The light source emits invisible light;
The display device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensors detect the invisible light. An auxiliary light guide member that guides light from the light source along a side surface of the light guide plate in a plan view and causes the guided light to enter the light guide plate from each part of the side surface of the light guide plate. Item 4. The display device according to Item 1. The display device according to claim 1, further comprising an operation member capable of locally contacting the front-side interface of the light guide plate. An object to be viewed from the front,
A light source;
It is arranged in front of the visual recognition object, has translucency so that the visual recognition object is visually recognized from the front, and reflects light from the light source at a front side interface formed on the surface or inside. While guiding the light so as to cross the front of the visual recognition object,
A photoelectric sensor disposed on the rear side of the light guide member so as to overlap the visual recognition object when viewed from the front, wherein the detected object contacts the front surface of the light guide member and the light guide member A sensor that detects light from the light source emitted from the rear surface of the light guide member by changing a reflection condition at the front interface of
An input device. A sensor capable of detecting light from the front;
A light source;
A light guide member that is disposed in front of the sensor and guides light from the light source so as to cross the front of the sensor while being reflected by a front-side interface formed on the surface or inside;
Have
The sensor emits light from a rear surface of the light guide member when an object to be detected abuts on the front surface of the light guide member and a reflection condition at the front interface of the light guide member changes. A detection device that detects light from the light source.

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