JP2016157180A - Handwriting input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a handwriting input device capable of correctly outputting information input by handwriting even when the position of a sheet is displaced or inclined.SOLUTION: A handwriting input device detects a change in capacitance at a contact position of a pen or the like by a sensor sheet for detecting a change in the capacitance to detect information input by handwriting. A plurality of marks are provided on a sheet arranged on the sensor sheet, and those marks are detected by the sensor sheet. The position and inclination of the sheet arranged on the sensor sheet relative to the sensor sheet are detected on the basis of the positions of the plurality of detected marks, and the input information is corrected on the basis of the position and inclination of the sheet.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a handwriting input device that uses an input pen and a sensor sheet.

  An example of a handwriting input device including a pressure-sensitive touch panel is described in Patent Document 1. In the handwriting input device, when a user performs handwriting input with a pen or the like on a sheet placed on a touch panel, the handwriting is acquired as an electronic handwriting and input to a PDA.

JP 2006-172230 A

  Normally, when paper is placed on the touch panel and handwritten input is performed, handwritten input information cannot be acquired correctly if the paper is displaced or tilted with respect to the touch panel. In this respect, Patent Document 1 does not assume that the sheet moves during the entry because the sheet bundle is attached to the notebook main body.

  The main object of the present invention is to provide a handwriting input device that can correctly output information input by handwriting even when the paper is displaced or tilted.

  In one aspect of the present invention, a handwriting input device including a sensor sheet that detects a change in capacitance detects input information by detecting a change in capacitance at a contact position of the sensor sheet. Detection means; mark detection means for detecting the positions of a plurality of marks provided on the paper arranged on the sensor sheet; and a sheet of paper arranged on the sensor sheet based on the positions of the plurality of marks. Arrangement state detection means for detecting the position and inclination relative to the sensor sheet; and correction means for correcting and outputting the input information based on the detected position and inclination.

  The handwriting input device detects input information by detecting a change in capacitance at a contact position of a pen or the like using a capacitive sensor sheet. A plurality of marks are provided on the sheet placed on the sensor sheet, and the sensor sheet detects these marks. Based on the detected positions of the plurality of marks, the position and inclination of the sheet placed on the sensor sheet with respect to the sensor sheet are detected, and the input information is corrected based on the positions and inclinations. As a result, even when the paper is arranged so as to be displaced or inclined with respect to the sensor sheet, input information for the paper can be correctly acquired.

  In one aspect of the handwriting input device, the arrangement state detection unit calculates a relationship between the origin coordinates of the sensor sheet and the origin coordinates of the paper based on the position coordinates of the plurality of marks on the sensor sheet. The position of the sheet with respect to the sensor sheet is detected. The arrangement state detection unit detects an inclination of the sheet with respect to the sensor sheet based on position coordinates of the plurality of marks on the sensor sheet.

  In another aspect of the handwriting input device, the input information detection unit, the mark detection unit, the arrangement state detection unit, and the correction unit operate repeatedly while the input with the pen continues, and after correction Continue to output the input information. Thereby, even if the paper position moves on the sensor sheet during the user's handwriting input, the input information can be continuously acquired correctly.

  Another aspect of the handwriting input device includes a transmission unit that transmits the corrected input information to an external terminal device. Thereby, input information can be displayed on an external terminal device or the like.

  In a preferred example, the mark is formed at a predetermined position on the paper by using conductive ink.

  In another preferred example, the plurality of marks are formed asymmetrically with respect to the center line of the rectangular paper. In this case, the handwriting input device includes means for determining the front and back sides of the paper based on the positions of a plurality of marks formed asymmetrically. As a result, the input information can be acquired by discriminating the front and back of the paper.

  In another preferred example, the handwriting input device determines a range in which the eraser including the conductive material has moved based on a change in capacitance as an erasing range, and erases the input information belonging to the erasing range. Is provided. This makes it possible to delete the entry information.

  In another preferable example, the plurality of marks are provided in different forms on the sheet, and the handwriting input device determines a sheet type based on the form of the plurality of marks. Is provided. Furthermore, it is possible to provide means for automatically starting an application corresponding to the discriminated paper type when the paper discriminating unit discriminates the paper type. As a result, the type of paper can be determined and the corresponding application can be automatically started.

  In another preferred example, both surfaces of the sensor sheet are covered with a transparent resin. This makes it possible to use the handwriting input device sandwiched between books.

1 shows a schematic configuration of a handwriting input system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of a handwriting input device. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of a terminal device. It is a figure explaining the method of position correction of handwritten input information. The example of the entry data memorize | stored in a data storage part is shown. It is a flowchart of position correction. A mark forming method will be described. An example of the arrangement of marks is shown. It is sectional drawing of the modification of a handwriting input device.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Constitution]
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a handwriting input system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The handwriting input system includes a handwriting input device (hereinafter simply referred to as “input device”) 10 and a terminal device 20. The input device 10 acquires information (hereinafter referred to as “handwritten input information”) entered on the paper 31 by the user with the pen 32 and transmits the information to the terminal device 20 by wireless communication. The terminal device 20 displays the handwritten input information received from the input device 10.

  The input device 10 includes a sensor sheet 11 and a circuit unit 18. The sensor sheet 11 is a capacitance type and has a rectangular shape. The circuit unit 18 is provided at a predetermined end of the input device 10 and forms a circuit constituting a communication unit, a storage unit, and the like, which will be described later.

  When inputting, the user places the paper 31 on the sensor sheet 11 and performs handwriting input (filling) on the paper with the pen 32. The paper may be plain or something may be printed in advance. The pen 32 is, for example, a pencil, a mechanical pencil, or the like, and it is only necessary that a conductive material is included in the core portion, that is, the portion that contacts the sensor sheet 11. The sensor sheet 11 detects a change in the capacitance of the internal electrode due to contact or proximity of the conductive material of the pen 32, and the position coordinates of the position where the pen 32 is in contact with the sensor sheet 11 via the paper 31 are obtained. Identify. By continuously detecting the coordinates of the contact position of the pen 32 with respect to the sensor sheet 11, characters, symbols, pictures, and the like handwritten by the user can be acquired.

  The terminal device 20 is a device for displaying handwritten input information acquired by the input device 10, and preferably has a certain display area corresponding to the paper 31. In FIG. 1, a tablet terminal device is illustrated as the terminal device 20, but the terminal device 20 may be a normal desktop PC or laptop PC.

  FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration of the input device 10. In addition to the sensor sheet 11, the input device 10 includes a communication unit 12, a timer 13, a memory 14, a data storage unit 15, and a control unit 16. The communication unit 12, the timer 13, the memory 14, the data storage unit 15, and the control unit 16 are provided in the circuit unit 18 illustrated in FIG.

  The communication unit 12 transmits the handwritten input information acquired by the input device 10 to the terminal device 20 by wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). The timer 13 measures the current time.

  The memory 14 stores a program for correcting the position of handwritten input information, which will be described later. The memory 14 also functions as a work memory when performing position correction.

  The data storage unit 15 stores entry data including the entry position detected by the sensor sheet 11 when the user performs handwriting input. Details of the entry data will be described later.

  The control unit 16 executes the program stored in advance in the memory 14, thereby controlling the entire input device 10 and correcting the position of the handwritten input information.

  In the above configuration, the sensor sheet 11 is an example of the handwritten input information detection unit and the mark detection unit of the present invention, the control unit 16 is an example of the arrangement state detection unit and the correction unit, and the communication unit 12 is an example of the transmission unit. It is.

  FIG. 3 shows a functional configuration of the terminal device 20. The terminal device 20 includes a display unit 21, a communication unit 22, and a control unit 23. The display unit 21 is a liquid crystal display, for example. The communication unit 22 communicates with the communication unit 12 of the input device 10 by wireless communication and receives handwritten input information from the input device 10. The control unit 23 controls the entire terminal device 20. Further, the control unit 23 performs processing for displaying the handwritten input information received from the input device 10 by the communication unit 22 on the display unit 21.

[Position correction]
As shown in FIG. 1, when the user places the paper 31 on the sensor sheet 11 of the input device 10 and performs handwriting input with the pen 32, the user usually places the paper 31 near the center of the sensor sheet 11. At that time, the user does not necessarily arrange the four sides of the paper 31 so as to be parallel to the four sides of the sensor sheet 11. In addition, unless the paper 31 is fixed to the sensor sheet 11 with a tape or the like, the paper 31 often shifts or rotates as the user continues to input by handwriting. Specifically, when a right-handed user continues handwriting input with the right hand, the paper 31 gradually shifts to the right, or the paper rotates in the vertical direction (clockwise or counterclockwise). Tend to. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the user starts handwriting input and while the handwriting input is continued, a shift of the paper 31 is detected, and the handwriting input information is corrected based on this. This is hereinafter referred to as “position correction”.

  Specifically, in this embodiment, a plurality of marks are formed on the paper 31 in advance, and by detecting these marks, the arrangement state of the paper 31, specifically the position of the paper 31 with respect to the sensor sheet 11 and the paper The inclination of 31 is detected. Then, based on the detected position and inclination of the sheet, the entry position detected by the sensor sheet 11 is corrected.

  First, correction regarding the position of the paper 31 with respect to the sensor sheet 11 will be described. FIG. 4A shows a state in which the paper 31 is arranged on the sensor sheet 11. As illustrated, the paper 31 is provided with marks M1 to M4 at four corners. In the following description, when the marks M1 to M4 are not distinguished, they are simply described as “mark M”, and when referring to a specific one, they are described as “mark M1”. For convenience of explanation, it is assumed that each mark M has a size corresponding to one coordinate point on the sensor sheet 11.

  The mark M is made of a conductive material, and is formed on the paper 31 with, for example, conductive ink. Therefore, when the paper 31 is placed on the sensor sheet 11, the input device 10 detects the position coordinates of the mark M on the sensor sheet 11. be able to.

  In FIG. 4A, a coordinate system (hereinafter, referred to as the lower left corner of the sensor sheet 11 as an origin (hereinafter referred to as “sensor origin”) Os and the lower side and the left side of the sensor sheet 11 as an X axis and a Y axis, respectively. (Also called “sensor coordinate system”). Further, the lower left corner of the paper 31 is the origin (hereinafter referred to as “paper origin”) Op, and the lower and left sides of the paper 31 are the x-axis and y-axis, respectively (hereinafter also referred to as “paper coordinate system”). .) Is defined.

  Now, assume that the paper 31 is placed at a certain position on the sensor sheet 11 as shown in FIG. In this example, it is assumed that the four sides of the paper 31 are substantially parallel to the corresponding four sides of the sensor sheet 11. The sensor sheet 11 detects the four marks M1 to M4 on the paper 31, and the control unit 16 acquires the position coordinates of the marks M1 to M4 in the sensor coordinate system. Here, as shown in FIG. 4A, assuming that the position coordinate of the paper origin Op is Op (a, b), the control unit 16 acquires the position coordinate of the mark M1 as the position coordinate of the paper origin Op. To do. In this case, if the position coordinate in the sensor coordinate system of the entry position by the pen 32 is P (X, Y), the position coordinate p (x, y) in the paper coordinate system of the entry position is given by the following expression.

p (x, y) = P (X−a, Y−b) (1)
In this way, by detecting the position of the mark M1 provided on the paper 31 and acquiring the position coordinate in the sensor coordinate system of the paper origin Op, the entry position in the sensor coordinate system is converted to the entry position in the paper coordinate system. be able to. Further, even if the paper 31 gradually shifts in the vertical and horizontal directions while the user continues to fill in, the input device can be obtained by continuously detecting the position of the mark M1 and performing conversion according to the equation (1). No. 10 can always acquire the entry position in the paper coordinate system correctly.

  When the sheet 31 is arranged on the sensor sheet 11, the sensor sheet 11 detects four position coordinates corresponding to the four marks M1 to M4, but the control unit 16 detects the four position coordinates detected. Of these, the position coordinate closest to the sensor origin Os may be determined as the position coordinate of the mark M1.

  Next, correction related to the inclination of the paper 31 will be described. FIG. 4B shows a state in which the paper 31 is arranged with an inclination θ counterclockwise with respect to the lower side of the sensor sheet 11. Note that the definitions of the sensor coordinate system, the paper coordinate system, and the like are the same as those in FIG.

  The sensor sheet 11 detects the four marks M1 to M4 on the paper 31, and the control unit 16 acquires the position coordinates of the marks M1 to M4 in the sensor coordinate system. Here, as shown in FIG. 4B, the position coordinate of the mark M1 in the sensor coordinate system, that is, the coordinate of the paper origin Op is Op (a, b), and the coordinate of the mark M2 in the sensor coordinate system is (c , D), the inclination θ is given by the following equation.

θ = tan ⁻¹ {(d−b) / (c−a)} (2)
Therefore, the control unit 16 can obtain a correct entry position in consideration of the inclination θ by rotating the entry position in the paper coordinate system obtained by Expression (1) by an angle θ clockwise.

  In this way, by detecting the positions of the marks M1 and M2 provided on the paper 31 and calculating the inclination θ of the paper 31, the correct entry position can be obtained even if the paper 31 is inclined. Even if the paper 31 gradually rotates while the user continues to fill in, the paper coordinates are always obtained by continuously detecting the positions of the marks M1 and M2, calculating the inclination θ, and performing correction. It is possible to correctly acquire the entry position in the system. In the above example, the inclination θ is obtained using the marks M1 and M2, but the inclination θ may be obtained using the marks M3 and M4.

  Next, data stored in the input device 10 will be described. FIG. 5 shows an example of entry data stored in the data storage unit 15 of the input device 10. The control unit 16 of the input device 10 acquires the current time from the timer 13 and stores entry data at predetermined time intervals (every second in the example of FIG. 5). The entry data includes “paper origin coordinates”, “tilt”, “entry coordinates in the sensor coordinate system”, and “entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system”. The “paper origin coordinates” are coordinates in the sensor coordinate system of the paper origin Op as described above. “Inclination” is the inclination θ of the lower side of the sheet 31 with respect to the lower side of the sensor sheet 11, that is, the X axis of the sensor coordinate system. As described above, the control unit 16 detects the position coordinates of the marks M1 to M4 in the sensor coordinate system using the sensor sheet 11, and calculates and stores the paper origin coordinate Op and the inclination θ based on these.

  “Entry coordinates in the sensor coordinate system” are position coordinates of the pen 32 on the sensor sheet 11. The “entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system” is the coordinates of the entry position by the pen 32 on the paper 31. As described above, the position correction using the paper origin coordinates and the inclination is performed on the entry coordinates in the sensor coordinate system. Required by doing. Then, the input device 10 transmits “entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system” to the terminal device 20 as handwritten input information. The terminal device 20 displays the received handwritten input information on the display unit 21.

  Although not shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 16 of the input device 10 may store the coordinates of the marks M1 to M4 detected at each time in the data storage unit 15 in addition to the entry data.

  Next, position correction processing will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of position correction. This process is mainly executed by the control unit 16 of the input device 10.

  First, the control part 16 determines whether the handwriting input by the pen 32 is performed based on the output of the sensor sheet 11 (step S10). When there is no input with the pen 32 (step S10; No), a process is complete | finished.

  On the other hand, when the input with the pen 32 is performed (step S10; Yes), the control part 16 detects the position coordinate of the pen 32 (step S11). The position coordinates correspond to the entry coordinates in the sensor coordinate system, and are stored in the data storage unit 15 as shown in FIG.

  Next, the control unit 16 detects the position coordinates of the mark M based on the output from the sensor sheet 11 (step S12). Next, the control unit 16 calculates the paper origin coordinate Op and the inclination θ based on the position coordinates serving as the reference of the mark M by the above-described method (step S13). The calculated paper origin coordinates Op and inclination θ are stored in the data storage unit 15 as shown in FIG.

  Next, the control unit 16 corrects the entry coordinates in the sensor coordinate system based on the paper origin coordinate Op and the inclination θ as described above, and calculates the entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system (step S14). The calculated entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system are stored in the data storage unit 15 as shown in FIG. And the control part 16 transmits the entry coordinate in a paper coordinate system to the terminal device 20 as handwritten input information via the communication part 12 (step S15), and returns to step S10.

  In this way, while the handwriting input by the pen 32 continues, the processes of steps S11 to S15 are repeatedly executed, and the input coordinates in the paper coordinate system are transmitted to the terminal device 20 as handwritten input information and displayed on the display unit 21. . Even if the position of the paper 31 on the sensor sheet 11 gradually shifts during this time, the control unit 16 always calculates the entry coordinates in the paper coordinate system while updating the paper origin coordinates Op and the inclination θ. The handwritten input information is always displayed on the display unit 20 at the correct position and orientation.

[Mark formation method]
FIG. 7 shows an example of a method for forming the mark M on the paper 31. In the example of FIG. 7A, the mark M is formed by applying conductive ink to the surface of the paper 31. In the example of FIG. 7B, the mark M is formed by soaking the paper 31 with conductive ink. In the example of FIG. 7C, two sheets are overlapped to form a sheet 31, and the mark M is formed by sandwiching conductive ink between the two sheets.

  In this embodiment, any of the above methods may be applied. In addition, as long as the sensor sheet 11 can be detected with conductivity, the mark M may be formed by a method other than the above, and a method of arranging a metal piece on paper or the like may be used. It is also possible to use the mark M by using a conductive pen or the like to fill in check boxes that are printed in advance at the four corners or the like when the user starts filling in the form. In that case, it is preferable to store the symbol written in the check box as a specific shape and print the shape in a light color so as to prompt the user to trace it. In this way, the shape can be recognized using OCR or the like, and the mark M can be formed and specified each time it is used. The mark M preferably has a different arrangement position so that the front and back sides can be discriminated, or the shape itself is asymmetric between the front and back sides.

[Example of mark arrangement]
In the above embodiment, four marks M are formed at the four corners of the paper 31 as shown in FIG. 4, but the positions of the marks are not limited to this. An example of the arrangement of other marks is shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8A shows an example in which four marks M are formed inside the four corners of the paper 31. In this case, the control unit 16 of the input device 10 calculates the paper coordinate origin Op and the inclination θ in consideration of the deviation of each mark M from the corner of the paper 31.

  8B and 8C are examples in which the vertical positions of the two marks M on the right side in the drawing are different from those on the left two marks M. On the other hand, the mark M is formed asymmetrically. FIG. 8D shows an example in which the right mark M is single, and similarly, the mark M is formed asymmetrically with respect to the left and right center lines of the paper 31. In this way, by forming the mark M asymmetrically with respect to the center line of the paper 31, it is possible to distinguish the front surface and the back surface of the paper 31. That is, the control unit 16 of the writing device 10 can determine whether the handwriting input is made on the front surface or the back surface of the paper 31 based on the relative positional relationship of the detected plurality of marks M. .

  Further, the type of the paper may be determined depending on the form in which the mark M is provided on the paper 31. That is, the form of the mark M formed on the paper 31 is changed according to the type of the paper 31. Specifically, in one method, the shape of each mark M is changed according to the type of the paper 31. For example, a triangular mark M is provided on the paper 31 of paper A (type A), and a square mark M is provided on the paper 31 of paper B (type B). In another method, the positional relationship of the plurality of marks M is changed according to the type of the paper 31. For example, four marks M are formed on the paper A so that they form a rectangle, and three marks M are formed on the paper B so that they form a triangle. Further, by combining the above two methods, the type of the paper 31 may be distinguished by a combination of the shape of each mark M and the shape formed by a plurality of marks. For example, four triangular marks M are formed on the paper A so that they form a quadrilateral, and four square marks are arranged on the paper B so that they form a quadrilateral. This makes it possible to determine the type of paper based on the form of the mark M. Note that the process of determining the type of the sheet 31 based on the form of the plurality of marks M may be performed by either the entry device 10 or the terminal device 20. That is, the control unit 16 of the entry device 10 may determine the type of paper based on the information of the plurality of marks M, and transmit the result to the terminal device 20. Instead, the control unit 23 of the terminal device 20 may receive information on the plurality of marks M from the entry device 10 to determine the type of paper.

  Furthermore, when the paper type can be determined as described above, the control unit 23 of the terminal device 20 may automatically start an application set in advance for each paper type. For example, when the paper 31 being used is determined to be the paper A, the control unit 23 of the terminal device 20 activates the application A, and when the paper 31 being used is determined to be the paper B, the terminal device The control unit 20 starts the application B. The correspondence relationship between the paper type and the application may be stored in a storage unit (not shown) of the terminal device 20.

[Modification of entry device]
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of an entry device 10x according to a modification. In this entry device 10x, the upper and lower sides of the sensor sheet 11 are covered with a transparent resin 17 such as acrylic. Thereby, the part of the sensor sheet 11 of the input device 10 has a certain degree of flexibility, and can be used by being sandwiched between books, for example, like an underlay.

[Modification]
In the above embodiment, the user can write on the paper 31 with the pen 32. However, if the user wants to correct the entered item, an eraser may be used. Specifically, a material having conductivity is included in a normal eraser material. If the eraser erases the portion of the paper to be deleted, the items entered on the paper with a pencil or the like are erased by a normal eraser function. On the other hand, the sensor sheet 11 detects the conductive material contained in the eraser and detects the range where the eraser has moved as an erase range, and the control unit 16 erases the entry data stored in the data storage unit 15. What belongs to the range may be deleted. If the entry data after the part belonging to the erasure range is erased is retransmitted to the terminal device 20, the erasure can be reflected in the image displayed on the terminal device 20.

  Alternatively, the control unit 16 may store data indicating the erasure range as erasure data in the data storage unit 15 separately from the entry data. In this case, the erasure data is transmitted to the terminal device 20, and the erasure is reflected in the image displayed on the terminal device 20 by the terminal device 20 changing the erasure range indicated by the erasure data to a blank state. it can.

10, 10x handwriting input device 11 sensor sheet 15 data storage unit 16 control unit 20 terminal device 31 paper 32 pen M mark

Claims (12)

A handwriting input device comprising a sensor sheet for detecting a change in capacitance,
Input information detecting means for detecting input information by detecting a change in capacitance at the contact position of the sensor sheet;
Mark detection means for detecting the positions of a plurality of marks provided on a sheet disposed on the sensor sheet;
An arrangement state detecting means for detecting a position and an inclination of a sheet arranged on the sensor sheet with respect to the sensor sheet based on the positions of the plurality of marks;
Correction means for correcting and outputting the input information based on the detected position and inclination;
A handwriting input device comprising:   The arrangement state detection means calculates a relationship between the origin coordinates of the sensor sheet and the origin coordinates of the paper based on the position coordinates of the plurality of marks on the sensor sheet, and determines the position of the paper with respect to the sensor sheet. The handwriting input device according to claim 1, wherein the handwriting input device is detected.   The handwriting input device according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement state detection unit detects an inclination of the sheet with respect to the sensor sheet based on position coordinates of the plurality of marks on the sensor sheet.   The input information detection unit, the mark detection unit, the arrangement state detection unit, and the correction unit operate repeatedly while the input by the pen is continued, and continue to output the corrected input information. The handwriting input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   5. The handwriting input device according to claim 1, further comprising a transmission unit configured to transmit the corrected input information to an external terminal device.   The handwriting input device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the mark is formed at a predetermined position of the paper by using conductive ink.   The handwriting input device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of marks are formed asymmetrically with respect to a center line of a rectangular sheet.   8. The handwriting input device according to claim 7, further comprising means for determining the front and back of the paper based on the positions of a plurality of marks formed asymmetrically.   9. An erasing unit that determines, based on a change in capacitance, a range in which an eraser including a conductive material has moved is an erasing range, and erases input information belonging to the erasing range. The handwriting input apparatus as described in any one of. On the paper, the plurality of marks are provided in different forms,
The handwriting input device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising a paper discriminating unit that discriminates a type of the paper based on a form of the plurality of marks.   11. The handwriting input device according to claim 10, further comprising means for automatically starting an application corresponding to the discriminated paper type when the paper discriminating unit discriminates the paper type.   The handwriting input device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein both surfaces of the sensor sheet are covered with a transparent resin.