JP2013080338A - Stylus pen - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stylus pen that is excellent in the visibility of a write destination even for a capacitive touch panel requiring surface contact, has a simple structure, and can be mass-produced.SOLUTION: A stylus pen comprises: a body that has a pen nib part composed of a surface in a convex curved surface shape at a tip part, and has a holding part behind the tip part, and at least the tip part of which is formed of a transparent material; a first conductor that is deposited on at least the pen nib part and is transparent; and a second conductor that is electrically connected to the first conductor, and is formed on the body while extending to the holding part.

Description

  The present invention relates to a stylus pen used in a capacitive touch panel.

  Capacitive touch panels are widely used in mobile phones such as iPhone (registered trademark) and smart phones, tablet terminals such as iPad (registered trademark) and Android terminals, and other touch panel personal computers (PCs). .

  In this type of capacitive touch panel, in many cases, information input is performed by detecting a change in capacitance (charge) caused by a user's finger touch. Further, when performing fine information input such as character input, a stylus pen is used instead of the user's finger.

  Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose an information input device that detects a contact position between a finger on a touch panel and a stylus pen by capacitive coupling.

JP 2010-055260 A JP 2010-061351 A

  However, as disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, for example, when information is input to the touch panel using a finger or a conventional stylus pen, the fingertip or the pen tip cannot be directly seen behind the finger or the pen. It was impossible to write while visually recognizing the contents. Therefore, it was very bad to use, such as it was difficult to input fine characters. In particular, the multi-touch-capable projected capacitive touch panel, which has been widely used recently, requires surface contact with a certain area, so that a stylus pen with a thin nib is used to improve visibility during writing. It was difficult to improve usability because it was not possible.

  Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a stylus pen with good writing destination visibility even for a capacitive touch panel that requires surface contact.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a stylus pen that can be mass-produced with a simple structure.

  According to the present invention, the tip portion has a pen tip portion formed of a convex curved surface, and has a handle portion behind the tip portion, and at least the tip portion is formed of a transparent material. Formed on the main body, and at least a transparent first conductor deposited on the pen tip, electrically connected to the first conductor and extending to the handle. A stylus pen is provided.

  Since the pen tip portion is composed of a convex curved surface, it can be brought into surface contact with the touch panel with a certain contact area, and therefore can be used in a projection capacitive touch panel. In addition, since the tip including the pen tip is formed of a transparent material, fine characters can be written while visually recognizing, so that the usability can be greatly improved. Furthermore, since the contact surface has a convex curved surface shape, the capacitance (charge) can be correctly changed even if the angle of the pen tip with respect to the touch panel surface changes somewhat, so that writing is possible. Moreover, since the structure is simple, it is hard to break and can be mass-produced at low cost.

  In the present specification, “transparent” means high light transmittance, and is not limited to colorless, but may be colored. The “tip” is the end of the pen tip that touches the touch panel, the “tip” is the surrounding area including the “tip”, and the “rear” is the opposite of the “tip”. Each means.

  It is preferable that the tip portion has a substantially disc shape having a pen tip portion formed of a convex curved surface on one surface and a substantially planar surface on the other surface. In this case, it is more preferable that the substantially planar surface of the tip portion is inclined or substantially perpendicular to the axial direction of the other part of the main body.

  It is also preferable that the first conductor is a conductive material layer laminated on at least the pen tip, or a conductive material film deposited on at least the pen tip.

  The latter conductive material film is more preferably a transparent film in which a conductive polymer is coated on the surface of the resin film.

  It is also preferable that the second conductor is a conductive metal material member that is fixed to the main body and at least a part of which is exposed to the outside.

  It is also preferable that the main body of the stylus pen is integrally formed of a transparent resin material.

  According to the present invention, it can be used in a projected capacitive touch panel, and fine characters can be written while being visually recognized, so that the usability can be greatly improved. Furthermore, writing is possible even if the angle of the pen tip with respect to the touch panel surface changes somewhat. Moreover, since the structure is simple, it is hard to break and can be mass-produced at low cost.

It is a perspective view showing roughly the whole shape of the stylus pen in one embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows roughly the structure of the front-end | tip part of the stylus pen in embodiment of FIG. 1, (A) is an axial sectional view, (B) is the BB sectional drawing of (A). It is an axial sectional view explaining the convex curved surface shape of the nib part of the stylus pen in the embodiment of FIG. It is an axial sectional view explaining the usage pattern of the stylus pen in the embodiment of FIG.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows the overall shape of a stylus pen in one embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2A and 2B schematically show the structure of the tip of the stylus pen in the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 3 shows the convex curved surface shape of the pen tip portion of the stylus pen in the embodiment of FIG.

  In these drawings, 10 is a stylus pen body, 11 is a pen tip portion, 12 is a transparent conductive material film adhered on at least the pen tip portion 11, and 13 is a conductive material member.

  The stylus pen main body 10 has a tip portion 10a where the pen tip portion 11 is present and a handle portion 10b located behind the tip portion 10a. The stylus pen main body 10 having the tip portion 10a and the handle portion 10b is integrally formed of a transparent material as a whole in this embodiment. In this case, the transparent material is, for example, a transparent resin such as an acrylic resin, a polycarbonate resin, an ABS resin, or an epoxy resin, transparent glass, or other transparent material, and may be either colorless or colored.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 2 (A) and 2 (B), the tip portion 10a has a substantially disc shape, and a nib whose one surface (tip side surface) is a convex curved surface. The part 11 is comprised and the other surface comprises the surface of a substantially planar shape. By making the tip portion 10a into a substantially disc shape in this way, the transparency is improved as compared with the case where the tip portion 10a is formed in a bar shape like the handle portion 10b, and the content written by the pen tip portion 11 is improved. Visibility is improved.

  The diameter d of the substantially disc-shaped tip portion 10a, and hence the diameter d of the pen tip portion 11 is preferably d = 5 to 10 mm, and it is confirmed that the most stable writing operation is performed when d = 8 mm. ing. However, this desirable diameter d varies somewhat depending on the material constituting the tip portion 10a.

  The convex curved surface shape of the pen tip portion 11 is substantially circular when viewed from a plane, and when viewed from the side, the one with the largest possible curvature can effectively write information to the touch panel 14. As shown in FIG. 3, the curvature limit is a curvature that recedes to a maximum of 1 mm at a position 2.5 mm away from the central axis 11a.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the substantially planar surface of the tip portion 10a of the stylus pen body 10 is inclined with respect to the direction of the axis 10c of the other part of the stylus pen body 10 including the handle portion 10b. doing. The inclination angle θ is desirably θ = 45 to 90 degrees, and it has been confirmed that it is easy to use when θ = about 60 degrees.

  In addition, the diameter and full length of the stylus pen main body 10 shall follow the diameter and full length which this kind of pen generally has. In the modified embodiment, the handle portion 10b is not rod-shaped but can be formed into an arbitrary shape that is easy to grip or excellent in design.

  As a method of manufacturing the stylus pen main body 10, it may be manufactured by cutting out a bar from a bar as shown in the handle portion 10b of FIG. 1 or by manufacturing by extrusion. May be.

  In the modified embodiment, only the distal end portion 10a of the stylus pen main body 10 and the vicinity thereof are formed of a transparent material, and the handle portion 10b located behind the stylus pen main body 10 is made of other opaque materials such as an opaque resin material or a metal material Or you may produce the stylus pen main body 10 by forming with woodworking material etc. and integrating with the front-end | tip part 10a.

  In the present embodiment, the conductive material film 12 is made of ST poly (Achilles Co., Ltd.) obtained by uniformly combining and covering a surface of a transparent resin film with a conductive polymer (polypyrrole) having an electron conjugated system. Used. As the conductive material film 12, various other transparent conductive films can be used. Of course, it may be colorless or colored. In the present embodiment, the conductive material film 12 is electrically connected to the surface of the pen tip portion 11 of the stylus pen body 10 as well as the surface of the other portion of the tip portion 10 a and the conductive material member 13. In order to perform the above, it is closely attached to the surface of the stylus pen body 10 other than the tip portion 10a. The conductive material film 12 needs to be applied at least within a range where a good electrical connection with the entire surface of the pen tip 11 and the conductive material member 13 can be achieved.

  This deposition can be performed by various post-processing processes such as laminating, printing, adhesive processing, and adhesive processing. If necessary in the bonding process, a transparent resin adhesive may be used. If the contact area between the conductive material film 12 and the conductive material member 13 is increased, the contact resistance is reduced. Therefore, it is desirable to increase the contact area between the two as much as possible.

  In the modified embodiment, instead of the conductive material film 12, a transparent conductive material layer is not only the surface of the pen tip portion 11 of the stylus pen body 10, but also the surface of the other portion of the tip portion 10 a, and the conductive material member. In order to make an electrical connection with 13, the surface of the stylus pen main body 10 other than the tip 10a may be laminated by deposition or the like.

  In this embodiment, the conductive material member 13 is configured by fixing the wire of the conductive material on the surface of the stylus pen body 10 or in a groove formed on the surface so that a part of the surface is exposed to the outside. Has been. The cross-sectional shape of the wire is rectangular in this embodiment as shown in the figure, but may be circular, elliptical, or any other arbitrary shape. Moreover, you may use members other than a wire. The conductive material member 13 is formed on the stylus pen main body 10 so as to extend from the position at which a good electrical connection with the conductive material film 12 can be made to the handle portion 10b so as to contact the hand of the stylus pen operator. .

  As the conductive material constituting the conductive material member 13, for example, a conductive metal material such as gold, silver, copper, aluminum, iron, or other metal or alloy having good conductivity can be used. If a magnetic material such as iron is used, it can be attracted to a permanent magnet often attached to the cover of the tablet terminal, and the stylus pen can be held on the cover.

  In the modification, both the conductive material film 12 and the conductive material member 13 may be formed of a continuous conductive material layer.

  FIG. 4 illustrates the usage of the stylus pen in the embodiment of FIG.

  When the operator grips the handle portion 10 b of the stylus pen body 10, the operator's hand is conducted to the conductive material member 13 and further conducted to the conductive material film 12 of the pen tip portion 11. In this state, writing is performed by bringing the pen tip 11 into contact with the surface of the touch panel 14. In the present embodiment, the pen tip portion 11 is composed of a convex curved surface, and can come into surface contact with the touch panel 14 with a certain contact area. Thereby, in the touch panel 14, a plurality of electrodes detect a change in capacitance (charge), and the center of gravity position is determined as the writing position. Thus, since the stylus pen of this embodiment is in surface contact, it can be used even when the touch panel 14 is a projection-type capacitive type.

  Further, in the stylus pen of the present embodiment, since the contact surface is a convex curved surface shape, the capacitance (charge) can be correctly changed even if the angle of the pen tip portion 11 with respect to the surface of the touch panel 14 is slightly changed. This increases the degree of freedom of writing.

  Furthermore, in the stylus pen of this embodiment, the tip portion 10a and the conductive material film 12 are formed of a transparent material, and the tip portion 10a is substantially disc-shaped and inclined, so that the pen tip can be visually recognized. You can write while. As a result, it becomes very easy to write even fine characters, and usability can be greatly improved.

  Moreover, since the stylus pen of this embodiment has a simple structure, it is hard to break and can be mass-produced at low cost.

  All the embodiments described above are illustrative of the present invention and are not intended to be limiting, and the present invention can be implemented in other various modifications and changes. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined only by the claims and their equivalents.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Stylus pen main body 10a Tip part 10b Handle part 10c Axis 11 Pen tip part 11a Central axis 12 Conductive material film 13 Conductive material member 14 Touch panel

Claims (8)

A main body having a pen tip portion formed of a convexly curved surface at the tip portion and a handle portion behind the tip portion, at least the tip portion being formed of a transparent material;
A transparent first conductor deposited on at least the nib portion;
A stylus pen comprising: a second conductor that is electrically connected to the first conductor and that extends to the handle and is formed on the main body.   The tip portion has a substantially disc shape provided with the pen tip portion formed of the convex curved surface on one surface and a substantially planar surface on the other surface, respectively. The stylus pen according to 1.   The stylus pen according to claim 2, wherein the substantially planar surface of the tip portion is inclined or substantially perpendicular to the axial direction of the other part of the main body.   The stylus pen according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first conductor is a conductive material layer laminated on at least the pen tip.   The stylus pen according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first conductor is a conductive material film deposited on at least the pen tip portion.   The stylus pen according to claim 5, wherein the conductive material film is a transparent film in which a conductive polymer is coated on a surface of a resin film.   The stylus pen according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the second conductor is a conductive metal material member that is fixed to the main body and at least a part of the second conductor is exposed to the outside. .   The stylus pen according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the main body is integrally formed of a transparent resin material.

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