JP6840623B2 - Tactile transmitter - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a tactile transmission device.

Electronic devices equipped with a touch input unit such as a touch panel or a touch pad are generally widespread. The touch input unit is an interface that detects that the operator touches the operation input surface and generates an input signal. With a touch panel that has an operation input surface that overlaps the display screen, the generation of input signals can be visually recognized by changing the display on the screen, but the touch input unit has a reliable operation feeling like keyboard button operation. One of the drawbacks is that it is not possible to obtain.

On the other hand, skin sensation feedback technology (haptic technology) that feeds back the input confirmation of the interface to the operator by vibration etc. has been studied in recent years, and the operator who touches the operation input surface also in the touch input part. Proposed ones that feed back vibrations to the fingers and the like. For example, in the prior art described in Patent Document 1 below, it is shown that a diaphragm (touch input portion) having a vibrating actuator is elastically fixed to a frame of an electronic device via an elastic damper.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-59756

According to the above-mentioned prior art, the provision of the elastic damper prevents the vibration of the diaphragm (touch input portion) from being suppressed. However, in this conventional technique, the direction in which the elastic damper is displaced by pushing the diaphragm with a finger or the like coincides with the direction in which the diaphragm vibrates, so that the operator cannot effectively detect the vibration of the tactile feedback. is there.

On the other hand, by increasing the elastic strength of the elastic damper, the vibration of the tactile feedback is easily transmitted to the operator's finger, but at that time, the vibration is also transmitted to the frame side of the electronic device, and the electronic device is used. There is a concern that it may adversely affect the operation of the device. Further, in the case of a portable electronic device, since the entire electronic device is held by the hand opposite to the operating finger, the vibration transmitted to the electronic device is transferred to the hand opposite to the operator's operating finger. This causes a problem that the operator's brain nerve cannot concentrate on the vibrational feel of the tactile feedback transmitted to the finger, and the tactile feedback cannot be effectively sensed.

The present invention has been proposed to address such problems. That is, in a tactile transmission device that provides tactile feedback by vibration to a touch input, the operator should be able to effectively detect the vibration of the tactile feedback, and the transmission of vibration to an electronic device should be effectively suppressed. , Etc. are the subjects of the present invention.

In order to solve such a problem, the present invention has the following configurations.
A touch input module having a touch operation surface on the surface, a vibration actuator fixed to the touch input module, driven by touch input to the touch operation surface, and laterally vibrating along the touch operation surface, and the touch operation. The elastic rubber material has an elastic thickness that intersects the surfaces and supports the back side of the touch input module to the housing of the electronic device. The elastic rubber material is laminated with high-resilience rubber and low-resilience rubber. A tactile transmission device characterized by being

It is explanatory drawing which showed the electronic device provided with the tactile transmission device of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the operation state of the tactile transmission device. It is explanatory drawing which showed the other embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the structural example of the vibration actuator. It is explanatory drawing which showed the electronic device (portable information terminal) provided with the tactile transmission device which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals in different figures indicate parts having the same function, and duplicate description in each figure will be omitted as appropriate.

In FIG. 1, the tactile transmission device 1 includes a touch input module 2, a vibration actuator 10 fixed to the touch input module 2, and an elastic rubber material 3, and is externally attached to a housing 20 of an electronic device. There is.

The touch input module 2 has a touch operation surface 2A on its surface. The vibration actuator 10 is driven by a touch input to the touch operation surface 2A and performs lateral vibration along the touch operation surface. That is, in the illustrated example, the touch operation surface 2A is a flat surface in the XY directions, and the vibration direction of the vibration actuator 10 is set to reciprocate vibration (linear vibration) in the X direction or the Y direction. ..

The elastic rubber material 3 has an elastic thickness that intersects the touch operation surface 2A, and supports the back surface side of the touch input module 2 with the housing 20. In the illustrated example, the elastic rubber material 3 has an elastic thickness along the z direction, and the back surface side of the touch input module 2 is supported by the bottom surface 21A of the recess 21 provided in the housing 20.

The elastic rubber material 3 is formed by laminating a high-resilience rubber 3A and a low-resilience rubber 3B. The touch input module 2 side is a high-resilience rubber 3A, and the housing 20 side is a low-resilience rubber 3B. In the illustrated example, the elastic rubber material 3 is composed of two layers of the high-resilience rubber 3A and the low-resilience rubber 3B, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the repulsion is intermediate between the high-resilience rubber 3A and the low-resilience rubber 3B. Other layers with force may be provided. As the high-resilience rubber 3A, a high-density natural rubber or the like can be used, and as the low-resilience rubber 3B, a low-density sponge material or the like can be used.

According to such a tactile transmission device 1, as shown in FIG. 2, when the touch operation surface 2A is operated by a finger M or the like, the vibration actuator 10 is driven by the touch input to generate a lateral vibration f as shown in the drawing. To do. At this time, since the finger M receives the high repulsive force P of the high repulsive rubber 3A, the lateral vibration f is easily transmitted to the finger M pressed against the touch operation surface 2A, and the high repulsive force of the high repulsive rubber 3A is easily transmitted. Lateral vibration f is amplified and transmitted by P.

At this time, by operating the touch operation surface 2A with the finger M, the repulsive force P is applied to the finger M, and at the same time, the lateral vibration f in the direction intersecting the repulsive force P is applied to the touch operation surface 2A. As a result, the tactile sensation receptors called Meissner corpuscles existing near the skin surface of the finger M receive a sensation similar to the displacement of the skin surface, and the tactile sensation called the Pacinian corpuscle existing in the subcutaneous tissue of the finger M. The sensory receptors will experience a sensation similar to the sinking of a finger. When such a sensation is transmitted to the brain, the illusion that the touch operation surface 2A is partially subducted is caused in the brain, and a comfortable operation feeling such as a click feeling can be obtained. In particular, when the direction of the repulsive force P and the direction of the lateral vibration f intersect, the above-mentioned tactile sensory receptor of the finger M can sense the lateral vibration f with high sensitivity.

In order to surely cause such a feeling, when holding the housing 20 of the electronic device by hand, it is necessary to prevent the lateral vibration f of the vibration actuator 10 from being transmitted to the hand holding the housing 20. is necessary. For this reason, the low-resilience rubber 3B is arranged on the housing 20 side of the elastic rubber material 3. By arranging the low-resilience rubber 3B on the housing 20 side in this way, the lateral vibration f that is about to be transmitted to the housing 20 can be attenuated. As a result, the lateral vibration f is less likely to be transmitted to the hand holding the housing 20, and by reducing the vibration transmitted to the housing 20 itself, it is possible to eliminate the problem that the electronic device receives due to the vibration.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, the cushion material 4 is arranged between the side wall surface 21B of the recess 21 and the outer surface of the touch input module 2 with respect to the touch input module 2 housed in the recess 21 of the housing 20. ing. By providing such a cushion material 4, when lateral vibration f is applied to the touch input module 2, the outer surface of the touch input module 2 directly hits the side wall surface 21B of the recess 21 to generate an abnormal noise. It is possible to prevent the trouble of the above from occurring.

FIG. 4 shows a configuration example of the vibration actuator. In the vibration actuator 10, the mover 50 is oscillatedly supported in a frame body 40 serving as a stator along a uniaxial direction (x direction in the drawing). The mover 50 includes a pair of weight portions 51 and a magnet portion 52 arranged between them, and a guide shaft 53 extending in the vibration direction is fixed to the weight portions 51. The magnet portion 52 includes magnet pieces 52A, 52B, 52C magnetized along the vibration direction and arranged so that the same poles face each other, and spacers 52D, 52E are provided between the magnet pieces 52A, 52B, 52C. Have been placed. The weight portion 51 and the magnet portion 52 are integrally connected by a connecting member 54 and a reinforcing member 55.

A coil 41 is fixed to the frame body 40 that serves as a stator. The coil 41 is wound around the vibration direction (x direction in the drawing), and the mover 50 is slidably arranged in the coil 41. In the illustrated example, a pair of coils 41 connected in series are arranged in opposite winding directions, and each coil 41 is arranged around the spacers 52D and 52E, respectively. Further, a bearing 42 that pivotally supports the guide shaft 53 of the mover 50 is attached to the frame body 40, and a plurality of elastic members 43 are provided between the mover 50 (weight portion 51) and the frame body 40. ing.

Such a vibration actuator 10 inputs a vibration generation signal (for example, an alternating current having a resonance frequency determined by the mass of the mover 50 and the elastic coefficient of the elastic member 43) to the coil 41 from the input terminal 40A provided on the frame body 40. As a result, a Lorentz force (driving force) along the uniaxial direction (x direction in the drawing) acts on the magnet portion 52 to generate linear vibration (lateral vibration) along the uniaxial direction.

FIG. 5 shows a mobile information terminal (for example, a smart phone) 100 as an electronic device including the tactile transmission device 1. The personal digital assistant 100 usually holds the housing 20 with one hand and operates the touch operation surface 2A of the touch input module 2 such as a touch panel with the fingers M of the other hand. At this time, the lateral vibration of the tactile feedback is effectively transmitted to the finger M, and the vibration is less likely to be transmitted to the hand holding the housing 20. This makes it possible to obtain a portable information terminal 100 that can effectively sense the vibration of the tactile feedback.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and the design changes, etc. within the range not deviating from the gist of the present invention, etc. Even if there is, it is included in the present invention. Further, each of the above-described embodiments can be combined by diverting the technologies of each other as long as there is no particular contradiction or problem in the purpose and configuration thereof.

1: Tactile transmission device, 2: Touch input module, 2A: Touch operation surface,
3: Elastic rubber material, 3A: High resilience rubber, 3B: Low resilience rubber, 4: Cushion material,
10: Vibration actuator, 20: Housing, 21: Recess, 100: Mobile information terminal

Claims (4)

A touch input module with a touch operation surface on the surface,
A vibration actuator fixed to the touch input module, driven by touch input to the touch operation surface, and laterally vibrating along the touch operation surface.
It is provided with an elastic rubber material having an elastic thickness intersecting the touch operation surface and supporting the back side of the touch input module to a housing of an electronic device.
The elastic rubber material is a tactile transmission device characterized in that a high-resilience rubber and a low-resilience rubber are laminated. The tactile transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the elastic rubber material has a high-resilience rubber on the touch input module side and a low-resilience rubber on the housing side. The housing of the electronic device is provided with a recess for accommodating the touch input module, and a cushioning material is provided between the side wall surface of the recess and the outer surface of the touch input module. 2. The tactile transmission device according to 2. An electronic device including the tactile transmission device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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