JP2020187444A - Touch panel sheet and touch panel - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a touch panel sheet allowing the arrangement of input regions to be easily recognized without looking at the hand, and a touch panel provided with the sheet.SOLUTION: A touch panel sheet of the present invention is a transparent sheet 3 to be attached to a front surface of a touch panel 20. A back surface of the sheet 3 has a sticky adhesive layer 30 for attaching the sheet 3 to the front surface of the touch panel 20. The front surface of the sheet 3 has a plurality of tactile regions provided corresponding to a plurality of input regions displayed on the touch panel 20. The sheet 3 has different shapes between adjacent tactile regions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to a touch panel sheet capable of input operation by touch typing, and a touch panel having the sheet attached to the surface.

A mixing console used in various broadcasting and recording studios, etc., for processing and adjusting a plurality of audio signals and video signals to produce a broadcast program or the like has been conventionally known. By using the mixing console, it is possible to add sound effects for directing to the sound of the broadcast program and the movement of the performer. For example, a sound effect generator such as a MIDI controller is connected to the input side of the mixing console. This sound effect generator is usually provided with a mechanical push button. The user can add a desired sound effect to the voice or the movement of the performer by operating the push button according to the voice or the movement of the performer.

This type of push button has a drawback that it cannot be changed in a predetermined arrangement and is not customizable. This point can be solved by using a touch panel instead of a push button. That is, the arrangement of the input area to be displayed on the touch panel can be easily customized by any program or application. However, since the touch panel is flat, it is difficult to obtain the feeling of pressing like a push button, and the feeling of operation remains uneasy. As a technique for solving this problem, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a technique in which a panel provided with a push button is arranged on the surface of a touch panel is known.

JP-A-2007-73398

Since the panel of Patent Document 1 is provided with a push button on the surface, it seems that it is easier to grasp the arrangement of the input area with the feeling of a fingertip as compared with a touch panel having a flat surface. However, since the shapes of the push buttons provided on the surface of the panel are all the same, it is not possible to distinguish each push button by the shape, so that it is particularly difficult to input by touch typing. That is, in the sound effect generator, it is necessary to operate the touch panel while concentrating on the progress of the program and the movement of the performer, and under such a situation, it is necessary to grasp the arrangement of the input area without looking at the hand. .. At this time, in the panel of Patent Document 1 in which push buttons having the same shape are arranged, it is difficult to grasp the arrangement of the input area only by the feeling of a fingertip, and there is a possibility that a mistake in pressing may occur during operation.

An object of the present invention is to provide a touch panel sheet capable of easily recognizing the arrangement of an input area without looking at the hand, and a touch panel provided with the sheet.

In order to achieve the above object, the touch panel sheet of the present invention has the following configuration.
(1) A transparent sheet to be attached to the surface of a touch panel.
(2) The back surface of the sheet has an adhesive layer for attaching the sheet to the front surface of the touch panel.
(3) The surface of the sheet has a plurality of tactile regions provided corresponding to the plurality of input regions displayed on the touch panel.
(4) The sheets have different shapes between adjacent tactile regions.

The touch panel sheet of the present invention may further have the following configuration.
(1) One of the adjacent tactile regions is a concave region recessed in the thickness direction of the sheet from the other of the adjacent tactile regions, and the other of the adjacent tactile regions is a convex region. ..
(2) The concave region and the convex region are alternately arranged on the surface of the sheet.
(3) One of the adjacent tactile regions and the other of the adjacent tactile regions are different from each other in surface shape.
(4) The plurality of tactile regions are each composed of a quadrangle and are arranged in a grid pattern on the surface of the sheet.

A touch panel provided with a touch panel sheet having the above configuration is also an aspect of the present invention. This touch panel has the following configuration.
(1) A touch panel sheet having the above configuration is attached to the surface at a position where the tactile region and the input region correspond to each other.

According to the present invention, by providing a plurality of tactile regions having different shapes on the surface of the touch panel sheet, the arrangement of the input regions displayed on the touch panel can be grasped by tactile sensation. As a result, even when touch typing is performed without looking at the hand, it is possible to easily grasp the arrangement of the desired input area, so that mistaken pressing is eliminated.

The block diagram which shows the sound effect generator provided with the touch panel of 1st Embodiment. The plan view which shows the touch panel of 1st Embodiment. The plan view and the perspective view which show the touch panel sheet of 1st Embodiment. A plan view and a perspective view showing a touch panel sheet of the second embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. In the embodiment of the present invention, the touch panel sheet of the present invention is applied to the touch panel of the sound effect generator connected to the input side of the mixing console.

[1. First Embodiment]
[1-1. Constitution]
[Mixing Console]
Various sound sources such as a microphone, a CD, and a sound effect sound source data file are connected to the mixing console 1, and processing of audio signals input from various sound sources and other sound effects such as sound effects are processed for the input audio signals. The process of superimposing the audio data is performed. Further, a sound effect generator 2 is connected to the mixing console 1. The sound effect generator 2 includes a touch panel 20 as an input unit for selecting a large number of sound effects prepared in the device. On the side of the touch panel 20 of the sound effect generator 2, an operation switch 21 for controlling the level at which the sound effect is applied, an information display window 22, and the like are provided.

[Touch panel]
As shown in FIG. 1, the touch panel 20 of the present embodiment has a pressure-sensitive touch pad 201 and a display unit 202 of a liquid crystal, an organic EL, or the like. On the touch panel 20, a plurality of input areas arbitrarily arranged are displayed by a program mounted on the sound effect generator 2. That is, the display unit 202 is provided with a plurality of input areas for realizing various functions of the sound effect generator 2, such as selection of a plurality of sound effects generated by the sound effect generator 2 and a sound source to which the sound effect is applied. Has been done. For example, as shown in FIG. 2A, 28 input areas for selecting sound effects to be generated are arranged in a grid pattern on the display unit 202 of the touch panel 20. The function of each input area can be visually identified by the text displayed inside or near the input area.

[Sheet]
The sheet 3 attached to the touch panel 20 is made of an elastomer. However, the present invention is not limited to any elastic member that can operate the touch pad 201 under the sheet 3 by pressing the sheet 3. Further, the material of the sheet 3 needs to be a transparent material so that the information displayed on the display unit 202 can be visually recognized through the sheet 3 when looking at the hand. Transparency means that the information displayed on the display unit 202 can be visually recognized, and thus includes translucency.

As shown in the plan view (a) and the perspective view (b) of FIG. 3, a plurality of tactile regions are provided on the surface of the sheet 3 of the present embodiment. The tactile region is an region corresponding to the input region for sound effect selection displayed on the touch panel 20, and 28 tactile regions, which is the same number as the input region, are arranged in a grid pattern on the surface of the sheet 3. .. Each of the plurality of tactile regions arranged in a grid pattern has a shape different from that of other adjacent tactile regions. That is, the tactile region of the present embodiment is composed of a concave region 31 that is recessed from the adjacent tactile region and a convex region 32 that is not recessed, and the concave region 31 and the convex region 32 are in the vertical and horizontal directions of the sheet 3. They are arranged alternately. The concave region 31 and the convex region 32 are formed by making the wall thickness of each region different during molding of the sheet 3.

An adhesive layer 30 is provided on the back surface of the sheet 3. The adhesive layer 30 is provided on the entire back surface of the sheet 3, and the sheet 3 is attached to the front surface of the touch pad 201 of the touch panel 20 via the adhesive layer 30. In order to make the sheet 3 replaceable according to the arrangement and shape of the input area displayed on the touch panel 20, the adhesive layer 30 on the back surface of the sheet 3 is made of a material that can be repeatedly attached and detached. It is desirable to have. For example, a silicone adhesive layer or a urethane adhesive layer is suitable.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the sheet 3 is attached to the touch panel 20 of the sound effect generator 2. When the sheet 3 is attached to the touch panel 20, the concave area 31 and the convex area 32 of the sheet 3 correspond to each input area displayed on the touch panel 20. That is, each of the concave region 31 or the convex region 32 of the sheet 3 corresponds to each input region displayed on the touch panel 20. Since the sheet 3 is transparent, each input area can be visually recognized through the sheet 3. Therefore, the arrangement of the sound effect generation area can be confirmed in advance.

[1-2. Action]
The sheet 3 attached to the sound effect generator 2 of the present embodiment has a tactile region including a concave region 31 and a convex region 32 on its surface. When selecting the sound effect to be supplied to the mixing console 1, the user traces the unevenness of the surface of the sheet 3 with a fingertip and presses the desired concave region 31 or convex region 32. In this case, since the tactile regions provided on the sheet 3 are provided with concave regions 31 and convex regions 32 alternately, upper and lower or left and right ends of a plurality of tactile regions arranged in a grid pattern. By counting the number of irregularities on the surface of the sheet 3 with the fingertips, it is possible to determine which position of the lattice arrangement the tactile region touched by the fingertips is. After finding the desired tactile region in this way, by pressing the tactile region with a fingertip, the sheet 3 composed of the elastic member is deformed and the pressure is applied to the touch pad 201. Allows you to select the desired sound effect.

[1-3. effect]
Since the touch panel sheet of the present embodiment is composed of a plurality of tactile regions having different shapes between adjacent tactile regions, the user can touch the surface of the plurality of tactile regions by tracing the surface of the plurality of tactile regions with a fingertip. The position of the tactile area can be determined. As a result, the user can select a necessary sound effect from a large number of sound effects without visually observing the touch panel 20. Since the sheet 3 is transparent, it is possible to visually check the text and the image displayed on the touch panel 20. As a result, when touch typing is not required, visual input work can be performed smoothly.

Since the sheet 3 is attached to the surface of the touch panel 20 by the adhesive layer 30, the sheet 3 can be easily attached to the existing touch panel 20 or the sound effect generator 2 equipped with the sheet 3 at hand. Touch typing that you do not see is possible. In particular, since the adhesive layer 30 of the sheet 3 can be peeled off many times, it is easy to replace the adhesive layer 30 with a sheet 3 that matches the input region having a desired arrangement or shape. In this way, it is possible to customize the input area.

In the sheet 3 of the present embodiment, since the uneven shape of the sheet 3 is different between the adjacent tactile regions, the position of the tactile region can be easily determined even if the surface of the sheet 3 is quickly traced with a fingertip.

In the sheet 3 of the present embodiment, the concave region 31 and the convex region 32 are alternately formed. Therefore, unlike the case where the buttons having the same shape are lined up, the two sound effect generation regions can be grasped by the pair of irregularities. Can be done. Therefore, even when there are a large number of sound effect generation areas, the arrangement can be easily grasped.

In the present embodiment, the shapes of the tactile regions are made different as irregularities, and the quadrangles are substantially the same in a plan view, so that there is no wasted space between the tactile regions on the surface of the sheet 3. That is, since the entire surface of the sheet 3 can be effectively used, even when the touch panel 20 is small, a large number of sound effect generation regions can be supported.

[2. Second Embodiment]
[2-1. Constitution]
In the first embodiment, adjacent regions are distinguished by the unevenness of the sheet, but may be distinguished by the surface shape caused by the surface treatment applied to the sheet. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, by setting only one of the adjacent regions as the matte finish region 41 and not finishing the other region, the adjacent regions can be distinguished by tactile sensation.

[2-2. effect]
According to the second embodiment, the thickness of the sheet can be made uniform, so that the sheet does not become bulky in the thickness direction. This is effective in that the storage location of the sheets is not a problem on the premise that a large number of sheets are exchanged according to the arrangement and shape of the input area displayed on the touch panel 20. Further, since the surface of the sheet is not uneven, stress in a specific direction is less likely to be applied when the sheet is pressed, which leads to improvement in the durability of the sheet. In particular, when the surface treatment is a matte finish, there is an advantage that the sheet is less likely to crack from the surface as compared with the case where a groove is dug in each region of the sheet, for example.

[3. Other embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and at the implementation stage, the components can be modified and embodied without departing from the gist thereof. In addition, various inventions can be formed by an appropriate combination of the plurality of components disclosed in the above-described embodiment. For example, some components may be removed from all the components shown in the embodiments. In addition, components across different embodiments may be combined as appropriate. Specifically, it also includes other embodiments such as:

(1) The shape of each tactile region is not limited to a substantially square shape as shown in FIG. 3, and any shape may be used as long as the adjacent concave region 31 and convex region 32 can be distinguished by tactile sensation. For example, it may be rectangular, triangular, hexagonal or circular.

(2) It is possible to arbitrarily provide a step between a plurality of adjacent tactile regions. For example, although the sheet 3 shown in FIG. 4A shows 4 rows × 7 columns = 28 tactile regions, a step may be provided for each row of the sheet 3. In such a configuration, for example, by making one step correspond to the sound effect used in one scene, the arrangement of the sound effect generation region can be more easily distinguished. A large step may be provided for each column instead of each row.

(3) In the description of the first embodiment, the operation switch 21 and the information display window 22 are provided on the side of the touch panel 20, but the entire surface of the sound effect generator 2 may be the touch panel 20. In this case, the operation switch 21 and the information display window 22 are displayed on the touch panel 20 in the same manner as the input area for selecting the sound effect. If it is desired to perform touch typing on the operation switch 21 without visual inspection, a tactile region corresponding to the operation switch 21 can be provided on the surface of the sheet 3. As in the case of the tactile region, by making the plurality of adjacent tactile regions different in shape, the arrangement of each operation switch 21 corresponding to the plurality of tactile regions can be known with the sensation of a fingertip. Further, for example, by making the shape of the operation switch 21 for controlling the level of the sound effect a rectangle like a slide switch instead of a circle like a volume switch, the long side direction of the tactile region of the corresponding rectangle By tracing your finger along the line, you may be able to adjust the level of the sound effect to be generated.

(4) The adjacent concave region 31 and the convex region 32 do not necessarily have to be continuously provided. For example, a narrow concave region 31 may be provided between the two convex regions 32, and the sound effect generation region displayed on the touch panel 20 may correspond only to the convex region 32. However, in this case, it is assumed that the two convex regions 32 have different shapes from each other. The user can distinguish between the two convex regions 32 by grasping the different shapes by tactile sensation.

(5) Durability may be enhanced by increasing the thickness of only the tactile region of the frequently used sheet 3. In that case, even if the sheet 3 is the thickest region, the thickness must be such that the touch pad 201 under the sheet 3 can be operated by pressing. That is, as described in the first embodiment, the sheet 3 needs to be thin enough that the deformation of the sheet 3 due to pressing is detected by the touch pad 201 under the sheet 3.

(6) Although the touch pad 201 is a pressure-sensitive type in the first embodiment, it may be an electrostatic type. In the case of the electrostatic type, the sheet 3 does not have to be an elastic member as long as the touch pad 201 can be operated via the sheet 3. Further, in the case of the electrostatic type, in order to prevent the touch panel from reacting while tracing the unevenness with the fingertip, it is desirable to appropriately adjust the touch panel settings such as adjusting the reaction time and inputting by double tapping.

(7) As the surface shape of the tactile region described in the second embodiment, in addition to the matte finish treatment, a large number of shallow grooves and uneven patterns of various shapes that can be distinguished from adjacent tactile regions are formed. It can also be adopted.

1 ... Mixing console 2 ... Sound effect generator 20 ... Touch panel 201 ... Touch pad 202 ... Display 21 ... Operation switch 22 ... Information display window 3 ... Sheet 30 ... Adhesive layer 31 ... Concave area 32 ... Convex area 41 ... Matte finish area

Claims (6)

A transparent sheet that can be attached to the surface of a touch panel.
The back surface of the sheet has an adhesive layer for sticking the sheet to the front surface of the touch panel.
The surface of the sheet has a plurality of tactile regions provided corresponding to the plurality of input regions displayed on the touch panel.
The sheets have different shapes between adjacent tactile regions.
Touch panel sheet. One of the adjacent tactile regions is a concave region recessed in the thickness direction of the sheet from the other of the adjacent tactile regions, and the other of the adjacent tactile regions is a convex region.
The touch panel sheet according to claim 1. The concave region and the convex region are alternately arranged on the surface of the sheet.
The touch panel sheet according to claim 2. One of the adjacent tactile regions and the other of the adjacent tactile regions are different from each other in surface shape.
The touch panel sheet according to claim 1. The plurality of tactile regions are each composed of a quadrangle and are arranged in a grid pattern on the surface of the sheet.
The touch panel sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The touch panel sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is attached to the surface at a position where the tactile region and the input region correspond to each other.
Touch panel.

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