JP2019144891A - Electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an electronic device capable of appropriately setting operation detection sensitivity of a touch panel according to the thickness of a glove.SOLUTION: An electronic device 10 includes: a capacitance-type touch panel 13 for detecting an operation; a heat flow sensor 20 having a contacted part 21 to which an object is brought into contact and configured to detect heat flow from the contacted part 21; and a sensitivity setting part 30 configured to continuously set the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel 13 on the basis of the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device including a touch panel that detects an operation with a capacitance type.

  Conventionally, in this type of electronic device, while increasing the detection sensitivity of the touch sensor in stages, the operation on the displayed unlock button is detected, and the sensitivity of the touch sensor is determined based on the sensitivity at the time when the operation is detected. There are electronic devices to be set (see Patent Document 1). According to such a configuration, the detection sensitivity of the touch sensor can be switched in a gloved state without providing a special device.

JP 2014-142894 A

  However, when the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel is set stepwise, it is difficult to appropriately cope with the difference in capacitance due to the thickness of the glove. For this reason, if the detection sensitivity is too high, the operation may be erroneously detected, and if the detection sensitivity is too low, the responsiveness of the operation detection may be reduced when the glove is worn.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a main object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device that can appropriately set the operation detection sensitivity of the touch panel according to the thickness of the glove.

The first means for solving the above problem is an electronic device,
A touch panel that detects an operation with a capacitance type;
A heat flow sensor that has a contacted portion with which an object is brought into contact and detects a heat flow from the contacted portion;
Based on the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor, a sensitivity setting unit that continuously sets the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel;
Is provided.

  According to the said structure, operation is detected by an electrostatic capacitance type with a touch panel. When a user wears a bare hand or a glove on the contacted part and makes contact, the heat flow from the contacted part is detected by a heat flow sensor. The heat flow detected by the heat quantity sensor changes depending on the presence or absence of the glove and the thickness of the glove. The sensitivity setting unit continuously sets the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel based on the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor. Therefore, the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the glove.

  As the thickness of the glove is larger, the heat of the hand is less likely to be transmitted to the contacted portion, so the rate of increase in the heat flow detected by the heat quantity sensor is reduced, and the maximum value when the increase in heat flow stops is reduced.

  In this regard, in the second means, the sensitivity setting unit sets the detection sensitivity higher as the increase rate of the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is lower. For this reason, the detection sensitivity of a touch panel can be appropriately set according to the thickness of a glove. Furthermore, the increase rate of the heat flow can be measured in a short time compared to the maximum value of the heat flow. Therefore, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel can be set in a short time.

  For example, when a user brings a fingertip into contact with a contacted portion, if there is a portion where the fingertip is not in contact with the contacted portion, there is a possibility that the heat hits the portion and the heat flow changes. In that case, the thickness of the glove cannot be properly determined, and there is a possibility that the detection sensitivity of the touch panel cannot be set appropriately.

  In this regard, in the third means, the contacted part is formed smaller than a standard adult fingertip. For this reason, when a user makes a fingertip contact a to-be-contacted part, the whole non-contact part can be covered with a fingertip. Therefore, the thickness of the glove can be determined appropriately, and the detection sensitivity of the touch panel can be set appropriately.

  In a fourth means, the heat flow sensor is provided on a power button for turning on the electronic device.

  According to the above configuration, when the user presses the power button to turn on the electronic device, the heat flow from the contacted portion can be detected by the heat flow sensor. For this reason, when the power of the electronic device is turned on, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the glove. After the electronic device is turned on, the detection sensitivity may be reset without turning off the power by lightly touching the power button with a fingertip. Further, the power may be turned off by an operation other than the power button such as a touch panel.

  When the touch panel is operated with a touch pen, it is desirable to set the detection sensitivity of the touch panel to be lower than the detection sensitivity when wearing gloves. However, when the user brings the touch pen into contact with the contacted part, the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is smaller than the heat flow detected when the glove is worn. For this reason, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel is set higher than necessary, and there is a possibility that an operation is erroneously detected.

  In this regard, in the fifth means, the sensitivity setting unit is configured such that the increasing speed of the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is lower than a predetermined speed for determining that the touch pen is in contact with the contacted part. In this case, the detection sensitivity is preferentially set to the detection sensitivity when using the touch pen, which is set lower than the detection sensitivity when wearing gloves. For this reason, when the touch pen is used, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel can be set appropriately, and erroneous detection of operations can be suppressed.

The front view which shows an electronic device. The schematic diagram which shows a heat flow sensor. The graph which shows the relationship between the thickness of a glove, and detection sensitivity. The block diagram which shows the aspect which sets a detection sensitivity. Graph showing the relationship between time, glove thickness, and heat flow.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. The present embodiment is embodied as an electronic device that performs setting and status display of a production line in a factory.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic device 10 includes a main body 11, a touch panel 13, a power button 20, a control unit 30, and the like.

  The touch panel 13 includes a display unit and a detection unit. The display unit is configured with a liquid crystal display or the like, and displays the state of the production line, operation icons, and the like. The detection unit is configured by a capacitance type touch sensor or the like, and detects a user's touch position (operation) based on a change in capacitance.

  Information regarding the user operation detected by the touch panel 13 is sent to the control unit 30. As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 30 is composed mainly of a microcomputer 33, and includes an amplifier 31, an AD converter 32, and the like which will be described later. The control unit 30 controls the entire electronic device 10 including the touch panel 13 and generates and outputs an operation command for the production line based on a user operation. Furthermore, the control part 30 sets the detection sensitivity of the operation with respect to the touch panel 13 (detection part).

  In addition, the electronic device 10 includes a power button 20 that allows a user to turn on and off the power of the electronic device 10. The power button 20 (heat flow sensor) includes a cover 21, a sensor part 23, a contact part (not shown), and the like.

  The contact portion is conductive only while the power button 20 is pressed, and is non-conductive when the power button 20 is not pressed. When the user presses the power button 20 with the power supply of the electronic device 10 turned off, the contact portion becomes conductive and the power supply of the electronic device 10 is turned on. Then, when the user presses the power button 20 with the power supply of the electronic device 10 turned on, the contact portion becomes conductive and the power supply of the electronic device 10 is turned off. The contact portion may be switched between a conductive state and a non-conductive state when the power button 20 is pressed. In that case, when the user presses the power button 20 with the power supply of the electronic device 10 turned off, the contact portion is switched to the conductive state and the power supply of the electronic device 10 is turned on. Then, when the user presses the power button 20 while the power of the electronic device 10 is on, the contact portion is switched to the non-conductive state, and the power of the electronic device 10 is turned off.

  The cover 21 (contacted portion) is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape from resin, metal, or the like. A sensor unit 23 is attached to the back of the cover 21 as shown in FIG. The sensor unit 23 detects the heat flow from the cover 21. The heat flow is a parameter indicating the amount and direction of heat transfer, and is energy that passes through a unit area per unit time. The sensor unit 23 detects the amount and direction of heat movement (that is, heat flow) as a voltage and outputs it to the control unit 30. The cover 21 and the sensor unit 23 constitute a heat flow sensor. That is, the heat flow sensor is provided in the power button 20, and the power button 20 also serves as the heat flow sensor.

  When the user brings the fingertip (object) into contact with the cover 21, if there is a portion of the cover 21 where the fingertip is not in contact, wind (disturbance factor) may hit the portion and the heat flow may change. Therefore, the cover 21 is formed smaller than a standard adult fingertip, specifically, the index fingertip.

  Here, when the user operates the touch panel 13 while wearing gloves, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 needs to be higher than the detection sensitivity when operating with bare hands.

  However, as illustrated in FIG. 3, when the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel 13 is set stepwise according to the thickness of the glove, it is difficult to appropriately cope with the difference in capacitance due to the thickness of the glove. The ideal sensitivity straight line is a straight line indicating the ideal detection sensitivity with respect to the thickness of the glove. For example, when the thickness of the glove is the thickness tk, the detection sensitivity S2 of Mode 2 is set, but is higher than the ideal detection sensitivity Si for the thickness tk. For this reason, there is a possibility that the detection sensitivity is too high and the operation is erroneously detected. Moreover, when the detection sensitivity is too low, there is a possibility that the operation cannot be detected or the response of the operation detection is lowered.

  Therefore, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the control unit 30 (sensitivity setting unit) continuously sets the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel 13 based on the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 (heat flow sensor). Specifically, the amplifier 31 amplifies the voltage (corresponding to the heat flow) input from the sensor unit 23. The AD converter 32 converts the voltage amplified by the amplifier 31 into a digital value. The microcomputer 33 continuously sets the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 based on the digital value of the voltage converted by the AD converter 32.

  When the user wears a bare hand or a glove and makes contact with the cover 21 of the power button 20, the heat flow from the cover 21 is detected by the sensor unit 23. The heat flow (output voltage) detected by the sensor unit 23 changes according to the presence / absence of a glove, the thickness of the glove, and the like.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, as the thickness of the glove increases, the heat of the hand is less likely to be transmitted to the cover 21, so the increase rate of the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 decreases, and the increase in heat flow stops. The maximum value when it is reduced. The increase rate of the heat flow can be calculated by detecting the heat flow at at least two time points and dividing the increase amount of the heat flow by the interval between the two time points. Therefore, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the control unit 30 sets the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 higher as the increase rate of the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 is lower. Specifically, the control unit 30 sets the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 to be lower in proportion to the increasing rate of the heat flow.

  The increase rate of the heat flow can be measured in a short time compared to the maximum value of the heat flow. For this reason, the control unit 30 can appropriately set the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 according to the thickness of the glove until the user presses the power button 20 and turns on the power of the electronic device 10. it can. Further, after the power of the electronic device 10 is turned on, the detection sensitivity can be reset without turning off the power by touching the power button 20 lightly with a fingertip. The power may be turned off by an operation on the touch panel 13 or the like other than the power button 20.

  However, when the touch panel 13 is operated with a touch pen, it is desirable to set the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 lower than the detection sensitivity when wearing gloves. However, when the user brings the touch pen into contact with the cover 21, the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is smaller than the heat flow detected when the glove is worn, as shown in FIG. For this reason, when the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 is set higher as the increase rate of the heat flow is lower, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 is set higher than necessary, and there is a possibility that the operation is erroneously detected.

  Therefore, when the increasing speed of the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 is lower than the predetermined speed, the control unit 30 prioritizes the detection sensitivity when using the touch pen that is set lower than the detection sensitivity when wearing gloves. To set. The predetermined speed is set to a speed lower than a speed for determining that the touch pen is in contact with the cover 21, for example, a heat flow increasing speed when the thickest glove is assumed.

  The embodiment described in detail above has the following advantages.

  When the user puts a bare hand or a glove on the cover 21 and makes contact with the cover 21, the heat flow from the cover 21 is detected by the sensor unit 23. The heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 varies depending on the presence / absence of a glove and the thickness of the glove. And the detection sensitivity of operation with respect to the touch panel 13 is set continuously by the control part 30 based on the heat flow detected by the sensor part 23. FIG. Therefore, the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel 13 can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the glove.

  The control unit 30 sets the detection sensitivity higher as the increase rate of the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 is lower. For this reason, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the glove. Furthermore, the increase rate of the heat flow can be measured in a short time compared to the maximum value of the heat flow. Therefore, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be set in a short time.

  The cover 21 is formed smaller than a standard adult fingertip. For this reason, when a user makes a fingertip contact the cover 21, the cover 21 whole can be covered with a fingertip. Therefore, the thickness of the glove can be determined appropriately, and the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be set appropriately.

  The heat flow from the cover 21 can be detected by the sensor unit 23 when the user presses the power button 20 to turn on the electronic device 10. For this reason, when the power of the electronic device 10 is turned on, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be appropriately set according to the thickness of the glove.

  The control unit 30 sets the detection sensitivity to the detection sensitivity when the gloves are worn when the increasing speed of the heat flow detected by the sensor unit 23 is lower than a predetermined speed for determining that the touch pen is in contact with the cover 21. The detection sensitivity when using a touch pen that is set lower than that is set with priority. For this reason, when using the touch pen, the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be set appropriately, and erroneous detection of operations can be suppressed.

  In addition, the said embodiment can also be changed and implemented as follows. About the same part as the said embodiment, description is abbreviate | omitted by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

  -When it is not assumed that the touch panel 13 is operated with a touch pen, the process of preferentially setting the detection sensitivity when using the touch pen may be omitted.

  A convex part (contacted part) for heat flow measurement (for glove thickness measurement) may be provided on the main body 11 separately from the power button 20, and the sensor part 23 may be attached to the convex part. In this case, if the convex portion is formed smaller than a standard adult fingertip, the entire convex portion can be covered with the fingertip when the user makes the fingertip contact the convex portion. Therefore, the thickness of the glove can be determined appropriately, and the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 can be set appropriately. Moreover, not only a convex part but the area | region (contacted part) for heat flow measurement (for glove thickness measurement) may be provided in the plane part of the main body 11, and the sensor part 23 may be attached to the area | region.

  -The control part 30 (sensitivity setting part) may calculate the thickness of a glove based on the heat flow detected by the sensor part 23, and may set the detection sensitivity of the touch panel 13 according to the thickness of a glove.

  -The control part 30 (sensitivity setting part) can also set the detection sensitivity of operation with respect to the touch panel 13 based on the maximum value when the increase in heat flow stops. Specifically, the detection sensitivity can be set higher as the maximum value of the heat flow is smaller.

  The electronic device 10 may be an operation terminal or the like for inputting operations such as start and stop of operation of the air conditioner and temperature setting. In short, the electronic device 10 may be any device that includes the capacitive touch panel 13 and detects a user operation.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Electronic device, 13 ... Touch panel, 20 ... Power button, 21 ... Cover, 23 ... Sensor part, 30 ... Control part.

Claims (5)

A touch panel that detects an operation with a capacitance type;
A heat flow sensor that has a contacted portion with which an object is brought into contact and detects a heat flow from the contacted portion;
Based on the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor, a sensitivity setting unit that continuously sets the detection sensitivity of the operation on the touch panel;
Electronic equipment comprising.   The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the sensitivity setting unit sets the detection sensitivity to be higher as the increase rate of the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is lower.   The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the contacted part is formed smaller than a standard adult fingertip.   The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the heat flow sensor is provided on a power button that turns on the power of the electronic device.   The sensitivity setting unit attaches the detection sensitivity to the glove when the increasing speed of the heat flow detected by the heat flow sensor is lower than a predetermined speed for determining that the touch pen is in contact with the contacted part. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the electronic device is preferentially set to a detection sensitivity when the touch pen is set lower than a detection sensitivity at the time.

Images