JP6040420B2 - Operation device and washing machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a home appliance operating device and a washing machine.

  A washing machine shown as an example of conventional home appliances is equipped with an operation device including display means such as LED and segment liquid crystal and operation means consisting of operation buttons, such as washing, rinsing, dehydration, etc. Setting items related to laundry are displayed on the display means, and operation buttons corresponding to the items are pressed, and settings relating to washing such as function selection and condition setting are performed according to the user's preference.

  However, with the increase in laundry courses and functions, setting items and display items increase, and information displayed on the display means becomes complicated, and operability is impaired due to an increase in operation buttons. It had a problem such as.

  Therefore, a technique has been proposed in which a large number of display items can be displayed using a touch panel and a liquid crystal screen, each display is easy to see and easy to operate (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Here, the operating device of the washing machine described in patent document 1 is shown in FIG. In FIG. 13, the operating device is composed of a display means 102 made up of a matrix type liquid crystal display and a touch operation means 103 made up of a touch panel, and the screen displayed on the display means 102 has a standard button 701 for selecting a washing course and , Hand washing button 702, futon button 703, washing process display unit 704 for displaying the setting state of each washing process, rinsing process display unit 705, dehydration process display unit 706, and remaining time display unit for displaying remaining time 707, a water amount display unit 708 for displaying the amount of water, a detailed setting for each stroke, and a setting button 711 for changing the amount of water.

  The operation device configured as described above can arbitrarily change the layout of the screen, can display a list of necessary setting items at the time of setting, and can be easily operated by the user on the screen. Can be arranged.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-08989

  However, with the conventional means, necessary setting items can be displayed arbitrarily. However, when there are many setting items, a character size that is easy for the user to recognize and a button size that is easy to press are secured on the screen. It is difficult to secure the necessary area on the screen even if the setting items such as the time setting and the slider operation are desirable, such as the problem that it is necessary to reduce the character size and button size. , It is necessary to switch to another setting screen to display, or to open and display the details window. As a result, there is a problem that the listability of setting items is impaired and the number of times the user presses the button increases. It was.

Therefore, the present invention provides an operation device for a washing machine that does not feel stress on the number of button presses while ensuring the listability even in a setting screen where there is an area where it is difficult to ensure the necessary character size and button size. The purpose is to do.

  In order to solve the above-described conventional problems, the present invention includes a proximity detection unit that detects that a part of the human body is close to the display unit in the operating device of the washing machine, and a part of the human body is close to the display unit. When this is detected, the operation device displays a detailed setting screen corresponding to the detected setting item of the proximity detection position on the display means.

  In the present invention, it is possible to determine the proximity state of the finger when the user operates the screen and display a necessary detailed setting screen without pressing a button. Even on a screen in which the size and button size are small, the user operability can be improved.

Schematic of the washing machine in Embodiment 1 to Embodiment 3 of the present invention The block diagram of the operation display part of the washing machine in Embodiment 1 of this invention The figure which shows the basic setting screen of the washing machine in Embodiment 1-3 of this invention Flowchart in Embodiment 1 of the present invention The figure which shows the detailed setting screen of the washing machine in Embodiment 1 of this invention The figure which shows the display position of the detailed setting screen of the washing machine in Embodiment 1 of this invention The block diagram of the operation display part of the washing machine in Embodiment 2 of this invention Flowchart in Embodiment 2 of the present invention The figure which shows the detailed setting screen of the washing machine in Embodiment 2 of this invention The block diagram of the operation display part of the washing machine in Embodiment 3 of this invention Flowchart in Embodiment 3 of the present invention The figure which shows the detailed setting screen of the washing machine in Embodiment 3 of this invention The figure which shows the setting screen of the conventional washing machine

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an operating device comprising: a display unit that displays at least one setting item; and a touch operation unit that detects a position where a part of the human body contacts the display unit. Is an operating device provided with a proximity detection unit that detects that the display is close to the display means.

  As a result, a detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit can be displayed on the display means, and the user can display a necessary detailed setting screen without pressing a button. can do.

  In a second aspect of the present invention, in particular, in the operating device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the display position of the detailed setting screen displayed on the display means is a relative coordinate position set in advance with respect to the input position from the proximity detector. It is what.

  As a result, it becomes possible to display the detailed setting screen displayed on the display means in the vicinity of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit, and whether or not the detailed setting screen is a detailed setting screen intended by the user. Can be determined intuitively and can be operated without greatly changing the viewpoint.

  In a third aspect of the invention, in particular, in the proximity detection unit of the operating device according to the first or second aspect of the invention, a slide detection unit that detects a movement of a part of the detected human body in the vertical and horizontal directions is provided. .

  Accordingly, after the detailed setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit is displayed, when there is an up / down / left / right operation of the finger at the proximity detection position, the finger detection detected by the slide detection unit is performed. It is possible to switch to and display the detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the moving direction, and even if the detailed setting screen that the user does not need to set is displayed, the detailed setting screen can be changed without pressing the button. can do.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in particular, in the operating device according to any one of the first to third aspects of the present invention, after the detailed setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit is displayed, one of the detected human bodies is displayed. When the unit is within a preset distance from the display means, the detailed setting screen can be touch-operated.

  Thus, it is possible to directly set the setting on the detailed setting screen displayed on the display means, and it is possible to perform necessary detailed setting without increasing the number of times the user presses the button.

  In the fifth aspect of the invention, in particular, in the display means of the operating device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects of the invention, the detailed setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit is displayed and then detected. When a part of the human body is separated from the display means by a predetermined distance or more, the detailed setting screen is deleted.

  Thus, even when a detailed setting screen for setting items that need not be set by the user is displayed, the setting screen can be deleted without pressing a button.

  In a sixth aspect of the invention, in particular, in the operating device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects of the invention, the proximity detection unit is preset after detecting that a part of the human body has approached the display means. The detailed setting screen is displayed after a lapse of time.

  As a result, even if a part of the human body is detected by the proximity detection unit, it is possible to prevent the detailed setting screen from being displayed immediately and prevent the detailed setting screen from being displayed more than necessary. be able to.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
First, FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of the appearance of a washing machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a washing machine body 101 includes a display unit 102 including a matrix type liquid crystal display, an operation display unit 111 including a touch operation unit 103 including a touch panel, a power source of the washing machine body 101, and a washing operation. It comprises an operation key 104 for operating start / stop and a door 105.

  Here, the touch operation means 103 is a capacitive touch panel configured by electrode patterns arranged in a grid pattern, and the touch position on the display means 102 is determined by sticking on the display means 102. It is possible to detect.

Next, in FIG. 2, the block diagram of the operation display part 111 of the washing machine in this Embodiment is shown. In FIG. 2, the operation display unit 111 of the washing machine main body 101 includes an operation detection unit 201 that detects the content of the touch operation based on the change in capacitance detected by the touch operation unit 103, and the operation detection. The display control unit 211 is configured to control a screen displayed on the display unit 102 based on the touch operation information detected by the unit 201, and the operation detection unit 201 includes the display unit 1.
The contact detection unit 202 detects that a part of the human body has come into contact with 02, and the display unit 102 receives a part of the human body based on a change in the capacitance in the distance direction detected by the touch operation unit 103. It is comprised from the proximity detection part 203 which detects having approached.

  Here, a capacitance level for determining that a part of the human body has approached in advance is set in the proximity detection unit 203, and the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is set in advance. When the level falls below the level, it is determined that a part of the human body is close to the display unit 102.

  The display control unit 211 includes a display position determination unit 212 that determines a coordinate position of a detailed setting screen to be displayed based on the proximity detection information detected by the proximity detection unit 203. In the determination unit 212, coordinates for displaying the detailed setting screen are set in advance as relative coordinates of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit 203.

  Here, the coordinate system in the present embodiment is the coordinate system composed of the X direction and the Y direction shown in the display screen example of FIG.

  Next, FIG. 3 shows an example of a display screen in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is an example of a basic setting screen displayed on the display means 102 when the power is turned on, a washing process button 301 for selecting a washing process, a washing / drying process button 302 for selecting a washing to drying process, and a drying process. A drying process button 303 for selecting the remaining time, a remaining time display unit 311 for displaying the remaining time of the entire process, a washing setting button 321 for setting the washing time, a rinsing setting button 322 for setting the number of times of rinsing, and a dehydrating time are set. And a drying setting button 324 for setting a drying time.

  Here, the size of each button image of the washing setting button 321, the rinse setting button 322, the dehydration setting button 323, and the drying setting button 324 represents the time level of each detailed process, and the user intuitively describes each detail. A screen configuration that can grasp the time required for the process.

  The operation of the washing machine configured as described above will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the user turns on the power of the washing machine main body 101 via the operation key 104 of the washing machine main body 101, and the display control unit 211 displays the basic setting screen shown in FIG. While displaying the basic setting screen, the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached due to a change in the capacitance of the touch operation unit 103 in the distance direction (step 1). Is determined as the proximity detection coordinate, and the proximity detection coordinate is notified to the display control unit 211 (step 2). The display control unit 211 determines whether or not there is a detailed setting screen corresponding to the proximity detection coordinates (step 3), and determines that the detailed setting screen needs to be displayed (YES in step 4). The position determination unit 212 determines the display coordinates of the detailed setting screen by adding a preset relative coordinate to the proximity detection coordinates (step 5), and displays the detailed setting screen to the display coordinates of the display unit 102. Display (step 6).

  For example, when the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the user's finger has approached the area of the rinse setting button 322, a detailed setting screen corresponding to the rinse setting button 322 is displayed as shown in FIG. A certain rinsing setting screen 401 is displayed.

Here, the rinsing setting screen 401 is a screen obtained by reducing the detailed setting screen displayed when the rinsing setting button 322 is directly pressed, and displays the currently set number of rinses and changes the number of rinses. By displaying the rinsing setting screen 401, the rinsing detailed setting button 402 is displayed, and the current rinsing setting content can be confirmed without pressing the rinsing setting button 322.

  In addition, the rinse setting screen 401 may be a separate detailed setting screen instead of a reduced detail setting screen displayed when the rinse setting button 322 is directly pressed.

  An enlarged view of the display coordinates of the rinse setting screen 401 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, when the proximity detection coordinate 501 detects that a part of the user's finger is approaching, a detailed setting screen in which relative coordinates preset in the display position determination unit 212 are added to the proximity detection coordinate 501. The rinse setting screen 401 is displayed at the coordinates 502.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, it is possible to display the detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit 203 on the display unit 102, and to ensure listability. Even in a screen where it is necessary to reduce the character size or the button size, the user can display a necessary detail setting screen without pressing a button.

  In the present embodiment, the detailed setting screen can be displayed near the proximity detection position, and it is intuitively determined whether the detailed setting screen is a detailed setting screen intended by the user. Can be operated without significantly changing the viewpoint.

  Further, in the present embodiment, after the detailed setting screen is displayed, when the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined capacitance level, a part of the human body is A configuration may be adopted in which it is determined that the display unit 102 is away from the display unit 102 and the detailed setting screen is deleted.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the display control unit 211 determines the time from when the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached the display unit until the detailed setting screen is displayed. The time setting means for measuring is provided, and even if the proximity detection unit detects that a part of the human body is approaching in 203, the detailed setting screen is not displayed immediately, so that the detailed setting screen is displayed more than necessary. It is good also as a structure which prevents displaying.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the operation display unit 111 of the washing machine in FIG. 2. The proximity detection unit 203 displays the display unit 102 based on the change in the coordinate direction of the capacitance detected by the touch operation unit 103. The slide detection unit 204 that detects that a part of the human body has been slid in the vertical and horizontal directions, and the display control unit 211 determine the detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the direction detected by the slide detection unit 204. It is set as the structure provided with the slide determination part 213 to perform.

  Here, a capacitance level for determining that a part of the human body has approached in advance is set in the proximity detection unit 203, and the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is set in advance. When the level falls below the level, it is determined that a part of the human body has approached the display unit 102, and the slide detection unit 204 detects in advance that a part of the human body has been slid in the vertical and horizontal directions. When a coordinate level is set, and when the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is equal to or lower than a preset capacitance level and a coordinate change is equal to or higher than the coordinate level, a part of the human body is displayed. The configuration is such that it is determined that the slide operation has been performed on the means 102.

  The operation of the washing machine configured as described above will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the user turns on the power of the washing machine main body 101 via the operation key 104 of the washing machine main body 101, and the display control unit 211 displays the basic setting screen shown in FIG. While displaying the basic setting screen, the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached due to a change in the capacitance of the touch operation unit 103 in the distance direction (step 1), and the display control unit When it is determined that there is a detailed setting screen corresponding to the proximity detection position 211, the detailed setting screen is displayed on the display unit 102 (step 2). After displaying the detailed setting screen, the slide detection unit 204 detects the change in the coordinate direction of the capacitance detected by the touch operation means 103 (step 3). When the slide detection unit 204 detects that a part of the human body has been slid in the up / down / left / right direction on the display means 102 (YES in step 4), the slide detection coordinate is notified to the display control unit 211 (step). 5). The slide determination unit 213 determines whether or not there is a detailed setting screen close to the slide detection coordinate direction (step 6), and determines that the detailed setting screen needs to be displayed (step 7). The determination unit 212 determines the display coordinates of the detailed setting screen by adding a preset relative coordinate to the slide detection coordinates, and displays the detailed setting screen at the display coordinates of the display unit 102 (step 8). ).

  For example, when the slide detection unit 204 detects that a part of the user's finger has slid in the direction of the dehydration setting button 323 from the area of the rinse setting button 322, the rinse setting button 322 is moved to the rinse setting button 322 as shown in FIG. A dehydration setting screen 601 that is a detailed setting screen corresponding to the adjacent dehydration setting button 323 is displayed.

  Here, the dehydration setting screen 601 is a screen obtained by reducing the detailed setting screen displayed when the dehydration setting button 323 is directly pressed, and a dehydration time display unit 602 that displays the currently set dehydration time. The dehydration detail setting button 603 for changing the dehydration time is displayed. By displaying the dehydration setting screen 601, the current dehydration setting content can be confirmed without pressing the dehydration setting button 323.

  In addition, the dehydration setting screen 601 may be a different detailed setting screen instead of a reduced size setting screen that is displayed when the dehydration setting button 323 is directly pressed.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, after the detailed setting screen corresponding to the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is displayed, the up / down / left / right operation of a part of the human body with respect to the proximity detection position is performed. If there is an error, it is possible to switch to the detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the finger movement direction detected by the slide detection unit 204 and display the detailed setting screen that the user does not need to set. Even in such a case, the detailed setting screen can be changed without pressing a button.

  Further, in this embodiment, the detailed setting screen can be displayed near the user's finger even after the slide operation, and it is intuitive whether the detailed setting screen is the detailed setting screen intended by the user. Therefore, it is possible to operate without greatly changing the viewpoint.

Further, in the present embodiment, after the detailed setting screen is displayed, when the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined capacitance level, a part of the human body is A configuration may be adopted in which it is determined that the display unit 102 has been removed and the detailed setting screen is deleted.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the display control unit 211 determines the time from when the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached the display unit until the detailed setting screen is displayed. The time setting means for measuring is provided, and even if the proximity detection unit detects that a part of the human body is approaching in 203, the detailed setting screen is not displayed immediately, so that the detailed setting screen is displayed more than necessary. It is good also as a structure which prevents displaying.

(Embodiment 3)
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 10 shows a configuration diagram of the operation display unit 111 of the washing machine in FIG. 7, in which a detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is displayed on the display control unit 211. It is configured to include an operation availability determination unit 214 that determines whether the user can directly operate in the displayed state.

  Here, a capacitance level for determining that a part of the human body has approached in advance is set in the proximity detection unit 203, and the capacitance detected by the proximity detection unit 203 is set in advance. When it becomes below the level, it is configured to determine that a part of the human body is close to the display unit 102, and the operation determining unit 214 is capable of operating directly in a state where the user is displayed when proximity is detected. It is assumed that the setting screen number is set in advance.

  The operation of the washing machine configured as described above will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the user turns on the power of the washing machine main body 101 via the operation key 104 of the washing machine main body 101, and the display control unit 211 displays the basic setting screen shown in FIG. While displaying the basic setting screen, the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached due to a change in the capacitance of the touch operation unit 103 in the distance direction (step 1), and the display control unit 211, when it is determined that there is a detailed setting screen corresponding to the proximity detection position, the operation enable determination unit 214 registers the detailed setting screen as a user operation target (step 2) and sends the detailed setting screen to the display unit 102. A detailed setting screen is displayed (step 3). Here, after the detailed setting screen is displayed, when the detailed setting screen that is the operation target is displayed in the operation availability determination unit 214, the detailed setting screen can be directly operated by the user, and the contact detection unit 202 When it is detected that the operation button arranged on the detailed setting screen is pressed, the setting is changed to the setting corresponding to the operation button.

  When the proximity detection unit 203 detects that the user's finger has moved away from the display unit 102 (YES in step 4), it notifies the display control unit 211 of a proximity release notification (step 5). When the operable determination unit 214 obtains the proximity release notification from the proximity detection unit 203, the detailed setting screen is deleted from the operation target of the user (step 6), and the display control unit 211 displays the display unit 102. The detailed setting screen displayed on the screen is not displayed (step 7).

For example, when the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the user's finger has approached the area of the rinse setting button 322, the display unit 102 corresponds to the rinse setting button 322 as shown in FIG. Although the rinse setting screen 401 is displayed, if a part of the user's finger is in close proximity, the detailed rinse button 402 on the rinse setting screen 401 can be directly operated as shown in FIG. It becomes. Further, after the rinsing setting screen 401 is displayed on the display unit 102, the rinsing setting screen 401 can be erased when a part of the user's finger is separated from the display unit 102.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, after displaying the detailed setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit 203, a part of the detected human body is preset from the display unit 102. When the distance is within the distance, the detailed setting screen can be touched, and the necessary detailed setting can be performed without increasing the number of times the user presses the button.

  In the present embodiment, the display control unit 211 determines the time from when the proximity detection unit 203 detects that a part of the human body has approached the display unit to when the detailed setting screen is displayed. The time setting means for measuring is provided, and even if the proximity detection unit detects that a part of the human body is approaching in 203, the detailed setting screen is not displayed immediately, so that the detailed setting screen is displayed more than necessary. It is good also as a structure which prevents displaying.

  As described above, the method of determining the proximity state of the user's finger according to the present invention and displaying the detailed setting screen without directly pressing the operation unit can be performed by the user's operation even in the operation device of the home appliance other than the washing machine. Can be improved.

102 display means 103 touch operation means 203 proximity detection unit 204 slide detection unit

Claims (7)

Display means for displaying at least one or more setting items, touch operation means for detecting a position where a part of the human body is in contact with the display means, and proximity for detecting that a part of the human body is close to the display means With a detector,
When the proximity detection unit detects that a part of a human body has approached the display unit, an operation device that displays on the display unit a detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit Because
The detailed setting screen is a reduced operation of the detailed setting screen displayed when it is detected in the touch operation means that a part of a human body has touched the display means . The display position of the detail setting screen displayed on the display unit, the operation device according to claim 1, for the input position from the proximity detector portion, a preset relative coordinate position. A display unit that displays a plurality of setting items; and a proximity detection unit that detects that a part of the human body is close to the display unit.
The proximity detection unit includes a slide detection unit that detects movement of a part of the detected human body in the vertical and horizontal directions,
When the proximity detection unit detects that a part of the human body has approached the display unit, the proximity detection position is displayed after displaying a detailed setting screen corresponding to the setting item of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit. If there is a part of the vertical and horizontal operations of the body with respect to, the detail setting screen that displays by switching on the corresponding detailed setting screen in the setting items displayed on the sensed direction by the slide detection unit operation apparatus. The display unit displays the detail setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit, and then when the part of the detected human body is within a preset distance from the display unit, the details The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the setting screen can be touch-operated. The display unit displays the detailed setting screen of the proximity detection position detected by the proximity detection unit, and then when the detected part of the human body is separated from the display unit by a predetermined distance or more, the detailed setting is performed. The operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the operation screen is erased. The said display means displays the detailed setting screen after the preset time progress, after detecting that a part of human body approached the said display means in the said proximity detection part. The operating device according to 1. In an operating device comprising: display means for displaying setting items relating to washing such as washing, rinsing, dehydration, etc .; and touch operation means for detecting a position where a part of the human body is in contact with the display means. A proximity detection unit that detects proximity to the display unit, and when the proximity detection unit detects that a part of a human body is close to the display unit, the proximity detection position setting item detected by the proximity detection unit A washing machine that displays a detailed setting screen corresponding to the display means ,
The detail setting screen is a washing machine that is a reduced version of the detail setting screen that is displayed when it is detected in the touch operation means that a part of the human body has touched the display means .