JP7211772B2 - Area setting method, information equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an area setting method for a touch panel and an information device having a touch panel.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known a touch panel in which various figures and characters are displayed on a screen, and an input operation can be performed by performing a touch operation on an arbitrary area. When such a touch panel is mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile and used, acceleration and vibration occur due to the running of the vehicle, making it difficult for the user to touch the correct area.

As for improving the touch operability of a touch panel, for example, a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 below is known. In Patent Document 1, a measurement unit that measures acceleration, a display control unit that displays an object for receiving a processing instruction on a display screen, a detection unit that detects an operation on the object, and the detection unit, a setting unit that sets a reaction area of the display screen that can be detected as an operation on an object, wherein the setting unit determines the range of the reaction area according to the magnitude and direction of the acceleration measured by the measurement unit. An information processing apparatus characterized by changing the is disclosed.

JP 2016-115107 A

With the technique of Patent Document 1, when a plurality of objects (icons) are displayed close to each other on the screen, the enlarged response areas (touch areas) may overlap each other. In such a case, when the user performs a touch operation on a portion where a plurality of touch areas overlap each other, it is impossible to identify which icon the user has specified, so the content of the touch operation cannot be correctly recognized. Therefore, when setting a plurality of touch areas corresponding to a plurality of icons that are close to each other, it is necessary to appropriately set the boundaries between the touch areas.

A region setting method according to the present invention is a method of setting a touch region on the touch panel for receiving a user's touch operation on an icon displayed on the touch panel, wherein the curved surface model is curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel. a silhouette projection model creation process for generating a curved silhouette image by projecting a silhouette image corresponding to the icon onto the curved surface model, and creating a silhouette projection model based on the curved silhouette image; A computer executes a placement process of placing at a predetermined position on a plane parallel to the display surface, and a region setting process of setting the touch area based on the silhouette projection model placed at the predetermined position. and in the area setting process, when the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model respectively included in the silhouette projection model overlap each other, the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model The first touch area with the line of intersection with the model as the boundary between the first touch area corresponding to the first silhouette projection model and the second touch area corresponding to the second silhouette projection model. and setting the second touch area.
An information device according to the present invention comprises a touch panel that displays an icon and on which a touch area for receiving a user's touch operation on the icon is set, and a curved surface model that is curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel. a silhouette projection model creation unit for generating a curved silhouette image by projecting a silhouette image corresponding to the icon onto the curved surface model, and creating a silhouette projection model based on the curved silhouette image; and a region setting unit that sets the touch region based on the silhouette projection model that is placed at the predetermined position, wherein the region setting unit is , when the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model respectively included in the silhouette projection model overlap each other, the line of intersection between the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model is defined as , the first touch area and the second touch as a boundary line between the first touch area corresponding to the first silhouette projection model and the second touch area corresponding to the second silhouette projection model Set area.

According to the present invention, when setting a plurality of touch areas corresponding to a plurality of icons that are close to each other, the boundaries between the touch areas can be appropriately set.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the information equipment which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a touch area set for a menu screen displayed on a touch panel; FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a silhouette projection model created when setting a touch area; FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a method of setting boundary lines when a plurality of touch areas overlap; 6 is a flow chart showing the flow of touch area setting processing in the information device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of information equipment according to one embodiment of the present invention. An information device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is, for example, installed in a vehicle and used to provide various information to a user in the vehicle. The information device 1 includes a control section 10 , a storage section 20 , a touch panel 30 , a speaker 40 , a ROM (Read Only Memory) 50 , a RAM (Random Access Memory) 60 , a color buffer 70 and an ID buffer 80 .

The control unit 10 is a part responsible for various processes and controls executed by the information device 1, and is configured using a computer such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The control unit 10 includes functional blocks of a touch panel control unit 11, a communication control unit 12, a navigation processing unit 13, a content processing unit 14, and a current position acquisition unit 15 as its functions. The control unit 10 implements these functional blocks by executing a predetermined program stored in the ROM 50, for example.

The storage unit 20 is a part that stores various information used in the control unit 10, and is configured using, for example, an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), a memory card, or the like. The storage unit 20 has a map database (map DB) 21 storing map information and a content database (content DB) 22 storing content information such as various videos and music. Information other than this may be stored in the storage unit 20 .

The touch panel 30 displays various images and videos on the screen under the control of the control unit 10, and detects touch operations performed on the screen by the user. The content of the touch operation detected by the touch panel 30 is recognized by the control unit 10 and reflected in the processing executed by the control unit 10 . The touch panel 30 is configured using, for example, a combination of a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display and a touch sensor.

The speaker 40 outputs various sounds under the control of the control section 10 .

The ROM 50 stores various programs executed by the control section 10 . A program stored in the ROM 50 is read by the control unit 10 and executed by the control unit 10 using the RAM 60 as a work area. Note that the ROM 50 and the RAM 60 may be implemented using part of the storage unit 20 .

The color buffer 70 is a buffer memory for storing color information of images and videos displayed on the touch panel 30 . By using the color buffer 70 , the control unit 10 can display various images and videos drawn by well-known drawing processing on the touch panel 30 .

The ID buffer 80 is a buffer memory for storing display object IDs. The display object IDs stored in the ID buffer 80 are information representing the shapes of various display objects drawn by the control unit 10 . The control unit 10 displays various images and videos on the touch panel 30 by using display object IDs stored in the ID buffer 80 instead of the color information stored in the color buffer 70 or in combination with the color information. It is possible to The control unit 10 can create display object IDs stored in the ID buffer 80 independently of the color information stored in the color buffer 70 by well-known drawing processing.

In the information device 1 of the present embodiment, the display object ID stored in the ID buffer 80 is not used for image display on the touch panel 30, but is used for setting the touch area when icons are displayed on the touch panel 30. . Thereby, even when a plurality of icons are displayed close to each other on the screen, an appropriate touch area can be set for each icon. The details of this point will be described later.

Next, each functional block of the control unit 10 will be described below.

The touch panel control unit 11 controls the touch panel 30 . The touch panel control unit 11 includes a display control unit 111 , a silhouette projection model creation unit 112 , an arrangement unit 113 , an area setting unit 114 and a touch operation detection unit 115 .

The display control unit 111 is a part that performs drawing processing of various images and videos, stores the generated color information in the color buffer 70 , and displays the information on the touch panel 30 . The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 and the placement unit 113 are parts that use the ID buffer 80 to perform processing for the region setting unit 114 to set the touch region. The details of the processing contents executed by these will be described later. The area setting unit 114 is a part that sets a touch area on the touch panel 30 using the processing results of the silhouette projection model creating unit 112 and the placement unit 113 . The touch operation detection unit 115 detects a touch operation input by the user to the touch panel 30 based on the touch area set by the area setting unit 114, and recognizes the content of the operation.

The communication control unit 12 controls communication between the information device 1 and other devices using a communication device (not shown). Through communication control performed by the communication control unit 12, the information device 1 can transmit and receive information to, for example, other devices in the vehicle in which the information device 1 is mounted, and can be used for driving control of the vehicle. . Also, new map information and content information can be acquired from a server or the like installed outside the vehicle and stored in the map DB 21 and the content DB 22 .

The navigation processing unit 13 acquires map information from the map DB 21 and performs navigation processing for guiding the vehicle to the destination. This navigation processing includes, for example, destination search processing and route search processing from the current position of the vehicle to the set destination. Further, by causing the display control unit 111 to draw a map based on the map information, it is also possible to display a map around the vehicle or an arbitrary point on the touch panel 30 .

The content processing unit 14 acquires content information from the content DB 22 and provides it to the user using the touch panel 30 and the speaker 40 . Note that the display control unit 111 is used when displaying an image or video based on content information on the touch panel 30 .

The current position acquisition unit 15 acquires the current position of the vehicle, for example, based on GPS signals received by a GPS sensor (not shown). The current position of the vehicle acquired by the current position acquisition unit 15 is used for navigation processing performed by the navigation processing unit 13 and the like.

Next, a method for setting a touch area on the touch panel 30 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a touch area set for a menu screen displayed on touch panel 30. As shown in FIG. Icons 31 to 37 are displayed on the menu screen shown in FIG. 2, and touch areas 41 to 47 are set for the icons 31 to 37, respectively. The touch areas 41 to 47 are set to include not only the portions of the icons 31 to 37 but also a predetermined range around the icons 31 to 37 so that the user can easily perform the touch operation even when the vehicle is running. Although the touch areas 41 to 47 are shown hatched around the icons 31 to 37 in FIG. 2 for easy understanding, only the icons 31 to 37 are actually displayed on the touch panel 30. The touch areas 41-47 are not displayed.

In the menu screen of FIG. 2, for example, in a portion indicated by reference numeral 51 surrounded by a dotted line, a touch area 42 corresponding to the icon 32 and a touch area 44 corresponding to the icon 34 overlap. In such a portion where a plurality of touch areas overlap each other, it is necessary to appropriately define a boundary line between the touch areas in order to avoid overlap of touch operations. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the display object ID stored in the ID buffer 80 is used to set the touch areas, so that the boundaries between the touch areas can be appropriately determined. A specific method thereof will be described below. Although only the overlapping portion 51 between the touch area 42 and the touch area 44 has been described above, the same applies to other overlapping portions.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a silhouette projection model created when setting a touch area. The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 of the touch panel control unit 11 creates a silhouette projection model by, for example, the method shown in FIG. 3 prior to setting the touch area. In FIG. 3, the vertical direction in the drawing represents the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, that is, the direction parallel to the display surface of the touch panel 30, and the horizontal direction in the drawing represents the Z-axis direction, that is, the display surface of the touch panel 30. It represents the vertical depth direction. Since the silhouette projection model has the same structure in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, they are shown in common in FIG.

The silhouette projection model creating unit 112 first prepares a curved surface model 61 as shown in FIG. The curved surface model 61 has a shape curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel 30, that is, in the Z-axis direction. The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 projects the silhouette image 62 onto the curved surface model 61 to generate a curved surface silhouette image 63 in which the silhouette image 62 is deformed along the curved surface model 61 . The silhouette image 62 is set for each of the icons 31 to 37 in FIG. 2 as an image representing only the shape (outline) of each icon. That is, the silhouette image 62 does not represent the colors of the icons. Also, in order to speed up processing, it is preferable to set the resolution of the silhouette image 62 lower than the resolution of the corresponding icon.

The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 creates a silhouette projection model 64 based on the curved silhouette image 63 by enlarging the curved silhouette image 63 generated as described above in a direction parallel to the display surface of the touch panel 30. The enlargement magnification at this time is set in advance according to the size ratio of the touch areas 41 to 47 with respect to the icons 31 to 37 in FIG. That is, the curved silhouette image 63 is enlarged so that the X-direction and Y-direction sizes of the created silhouette projection model 64 are the same as the X- and Y-direction sizes of the touch area to be set. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 2, touch areas 41 to 47 larger than the icons 31 to 37 are set.

The placement unit 113 places the silhouette projection model 64 created by the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 as described above at a predetermined position on the drawing plane 65 set in the ID buffer 80 . A drawing plane 65 represents a plane on which a display object expressed by storing the display object ID in the ID buffer 80 is drawn, and is set parallel to the display surface of the touch panel 30 . At this time, the placement unit 113 causes the display position (position of the center of gravity) of the icon corresponding to the silhouette image 62 on the menu screen to match the position (position of the vertex) on the drawing plane 65 of the silhouette projection model 64. A silhouette projection model 64 is placed on the drawing plane 65 so that As a result, the information of the silhouette projection model 64 having a length not only in the XY plane direction but also in the Z direction (depth direction) perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel 30 is stored in the ID buffer 80 .

Here, the ID buffer 80 has a depth buffer for storing depth information of displayed objects. The Z direction information of silhouette projection model 64 is stored in this depth buffer in ID buffer 80 .

The region setting unit 114 sets a touch region on the touch panel 30 based on the silhouette projection model 64 placed at a predetermined position on the drawing plane 65 by the placement unit 113 . Specifically, the area of the touch panel 30 corresponding to the area occupied by the silhouette projection model 64 on the drawing plane 65 is set as the touch area. By setting such touch areas for the icons 31 to 37 shown in FIG.

Next, a method for setting boundary lines when a plurality of touch areas overlap will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing how a plurality of silhouette projection models placed on the drawing plane 65 overlap each other. 4, as in FIG. 3, the vertical direction in the drawing represents the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, that is, the direction parallel to the display surface of the touch panel 30, and the horizontal direction in the drawing represents the Z-axis direction, that is, the touch panel. The depth direction perpendicular to the display surface of 30 is shown.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 71 denotes a display surface of the touch panel 30, and icons 72a to 72c are displayed on this display surface 71. As shown in FIG. The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 sets silhouette images 62a to 62c for these icons 72a to 72c, respectively, as described with reference to FIG. By enlarging 63a-63c, silhouette projection models 64a-64c are created. The arrangement unit 113 arranges the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c created by the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 on the drawing plane 65 in correspondence with the display positions of the icons 72a to 72c on the display surface 71, respectively. The icons 72a-72c correspond to any of the icons 31-37 shown in FIG. 2, respectively.

Here, the icons 72a to 72c are different in size in the direction along the display surface 71 from each other. Therefore, the sizes of the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c arranged on the drawing plane 65 also differ from each other in the direction along the drawing plane 65. FIG. On the other hand, the heights h from the drawing plane 65 to the vertices of the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c are the same as shown in FIG. That is, the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c arranged on the drawing plane 65 have the same height h and different curvatures, so that the sizes in the direction along the drawing plane 65 are changed.

As described above, the silhouette projection model creating unit 112 creates silhouette projection models 64a to 64c that have the same height from the bottom to the top and that are different in size for the icons 72a to 72c that are different in size. create. At this time, if the icons 72a to 72c are close to each other on the display surface 71 as shown in FIG. , the touch areas set based on the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c may overlap each other. In such a case, the region setting unit 114 uses the height information of the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c, that is, the Z-direction information stored in the depth buffer to set the boundaries between the overlapping touch regions.

Specifically, the area setting unit 114 sets the intersection line 66a shown in FIG. 4 as the boundary line of the touch areas, for example, for the overlapping portions of the touch areas corresponding to the silhouette projection models 64a and 64b. The line of intersection 66a is a line formed at a position where the silhouette projection model 64a and the silhouette projection model 64b each having a curved shape intersect each other. can be specified. That is, the region setting unit 114 sets the height information stored in the depth buffer of the ID buffer 80 for the silhouette projection model 64a drawn on the drawing plane 65 and the silhouette projection model 64b drawn on the drawing plane 65. , and the height information stored in the depth buffer of the ID buffer 80 to specify the position and shape of the line of intersection 66a. Since such height information comparison processing is implemented as part of the drawing processing of the control unit 10, the position and shape of the intersection line 66a can be specified easily and at high speed.

As described above, the region setting unit 114 identifies the line of intersection 66a of the silhouette projection models 64a and 64b based on the height information of the silhouette projection models 64a and 64b respectively stored in the depth buffers of the ID buffer 80. to set the border of the corresponding touch area. Similarly, for the silhouette projection models 64b and 64c, based on the height information of the silhouette projection models 64b and 64c stored in the depth buffer of the ID buffer 80, the line of intersection 66b of these silhouette projection models is identified. , to set the border of the corresponding touch area. As a result, it is possible to easily and quickly set an optimized boundary line as if it were a boundary wall formed by competing bubbles as a boundary line between overlapping touch areas.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of touch area setting processing in the information device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. The flowchart shown in FIG. 5 is executed by the touch panel control section 11 in the control section 10, which is a computer, when displaying a menu screen including a plurality of icons 31 to 37 on the touch panel 30 as shown in FIG.

In step S10, the touch panel control section 11 selects an icon to be processed thereafter. Here, for example, one of the icons 31 to 37 shown in FIG. 2 is selected as the object of subsequent processing.

In step S20, the touch panel control unit 11 causes the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 to generate a silhouette image corresponding to the icon selected in step S10.

In step S30, the touch panel control unit 11 causes the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 to perform silhouette projection model creation processing for creating a silhouette projection model from the silhouette image generated in step S20. Here, as described with reference to FIG. 3, a curved surface model 61 curved in the Z-axis direction is prepared, a curved silhouette image is generated by projecting the silhouette image generated in step S20 onto this curved surface model 61, and the curved surface silhouette image is generated. Create a silhouette projection model by enlarging the .

In step S<b>40 , the touch panel control unit 11 causes the placement unit 113 to perform placement processing for placing the silhouette projection model created in step S<b>30 at a predetermined position on the drawing plane 65 . Here, the position on the drawing plane 65 corresponding to the display position of the icon selected in step S10 is specified, and the information representing the silhouette projection model created in step S30 is stored in the memory area corresponding to the position in the ID buffer 80. Writing places the silhouette projection model on the drawing plane 65 .

In step S50, the touch panel control unit 11 determines whether or not all icons on the menu screen have been selected in step S10. If all icons have been selected, the creation of the silhouette projection model ends and the process proceeds to step S60. If there are unselected icons, the process returns to step S10. When returning to step S10, the touch panel control unit 11 selects one of the unselected icons in step S10, and then repeats the processing of steps S20 to S50. As a result, for each icon on the menu screen, as described with reference to FIG. Each is placed at a predetermined position.

In step S60, the touch panel control unit 11 determines whether there is a silhouette projection model overlapping each other among the silhouette projection models arranged on the drawing plane 65 in step S40. As a result, if there is an overlapping silhouette projection model, the process proceeds to step S70, and if not, the process proceeds to step S80 without executing step S70.

In step S70, the touch panel control unit 11 causes the area setting unit 114 to specify the line of intersection between the silhouette projection models determined to overlap in step S60. Here, like the intersection lines 66a and 66b described with reference to FIG. identify. When the line of intersection can be specified for all the overlapping silhouette projection models, the process of step S70 is terminated and the process proceeds to step S80.

In step S80, the touch panel control unit 11 causes the area setting unit 114 to perform area setting processing in which each silhouette projection model placed on the drawing plane 65 in step S40 is set as the touch area of each icon. At this time, if the line of intersection of the overlapping silhouette projection models has been specified in step S70, the area setting unit 114 sets the line of intersection as the boundary line of the touch area. That is, for the silhouette projection models 64a and 64b that overlap each other in FIG. Set these touch areas as borders. Similarly, for the silhouette projection models 64b and 64c that overlap each other in FIG. Set these touch areas as borders for the . After setting the touch areas for all the icons, the touch panel control unit 11 terminates the flowchart shown in FIG.

According to one embodiment of the present invention described above, the following effects are obtained.

(1) The information device 1 includes the touch panel 30, the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 that performs the silhouette projection model creation process (step S30), the placement unit 113 that performs the placement process (step S40), and the area setting process ( and an area setting unit 114 that performs step S80). The touch panel 30 displays icons 31 to 37 and has touch areas 41 to 47 for accepting user's touch operations on the icons 31 to 37 . The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 prepares a curved surface model 61 curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface 71 of the touch panel 30, and projects silhouette images 62a to 62c corresponding to the icons 72a to 72c onto the curved surface model 61. Silhouette images 63a-63c are generated, and silhouette projection models 64a-64c are created based on these curved silhouette images 63a-63c. The arrangement unit 113 arranges the silhouette projection models 64 a to 64 c created by the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 at predetermined positions on the drawing plane 65 parallel to the display surface 71 . The area setting unit 114 sets the touch areas 41 to 47 based on the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c arranged at predetermined positions by the arrangement unit 113. FIG. At this time, the region setting unit 114 sets the first silhouette projection model (silhouette projection model 64a or 64b) and the second silhouette projection model (silhouette projection model 64b or 64c) included in the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c to each other. When overlapping, the intersection lines 66a and 66b between the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model correspond to the first touch area corresponding to the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model. A first touch area and a second touch area are set as boundaries between the second touch area and the second touch area. Since it did in this way, when setting a plurality of touch areas respectively corresponding to a plurality of icons that are close to each other, it is possible to appropriately set the boundaries between the touch areas.

(2) The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 creates a plurality of silhouette projection models (silhouette projection models 64a to 64c) in the silhouette projection model creation process. In the placement process, the placement unit 113 places the plurality of silhouette projection models 64a to 64c on the drawing plane 65 by matching the heights of the respective vertices. With this configuration, it is possible to arrange a silhouette projection model suitable for each of the plurality of icons 31 to 37 displayed on the touch panel 30 for the area setting unit 114 to set touch areas in the area setting process. .

(3) The silhouette projection model creation unit 112 creates a plurality of silhouette projection models 64a to 64c having the same height from the bottom to the top and different sizes. By doing so, silhouette projection models suitable for each of the plurality of icons 31 to 37 having different sizes can be created.

(4) The silhouette projection model creating unit 112 creates a plurality of silhouette projection models 64a to 64c having different sizes by enlarging the curved silhouette images 63a to 63c in a direction parallel to the display surface 71. By doing so, it is possible to easily create a plurality of silhouette projection models having different sizes.

(5) The information device 1 includes an ID buffer 80 that stores information for drawing a display object corresponding to an image displayed on the touch panel 30. The ID buffer 80 is connected to the control unit 10, which is a computer. ing. In the placement process, the placement unit 113 writes information representing the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c into memory areas corresponding to predetermined positions on the drawing plane 65 in the ID buffer 80 . Since this is done, it is possible to easily create and arrange the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c by using the drawing processing function of the control unit 10. FIG.

(6) The ID buffer 80 has a depth buffer that stores depth information of displayed objects. In the region setting process, the region setting unit 114 identifies the intersection lines 66a and 66b based on the depth information of the first silhouette projection model and the depth information of the second silhouette projection model respectively stored in the ID buffer 80. do. Since this is done, it is possible to easily and quickly specify the intersection lines 66a and 66b as the boundary lines of the touch area.

In the embodiment of the present invention described above, the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 expands the curved silhouette images 63a to 63c in the direction parallel to the display surface 71, thereby creating a plurality of silhouette projections of different sizes. An example of creating models 64a-64c has been described. However, other methods may be used to create a plurality of silhouette projection models 64a-64c having different sizes. Specifically, for example, the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 prepares a plurality of curved surface models having different sizes in the silhouette projection model creation process of step S30. Then, by enlarging and projecting the silhouette images 62a to 62c of FIG. 4 according to the sizes of the plurality of curved surface models, a plurality of curved surface silhouette images 63a to 63c having different sizes are generated. Using the plurality of curved silhouette images 63a to 63c thus generated, it is also possible to create a plurality of silhouette projection models 64a to 64c having different sizes. In this way, the processing of generating a curved silhouette image by projecting a silhouette image onto a curved surface model and the processing of enlarging the curved silhouette image in accordance with a touch area to be set to create a silhouette projection model are integrated. Therefore, these can be performed in one process. Therefore, it is possible to speed up the processing.

In the embodiment of the present invention described above, the silhouette projection model creation unit 112 enlarges the curved silhouette images 63a to 63c in the direction parallel to the display surface 71, thereby creating a plurality of silhouette projections of different sizes. An example of creating models 64a-64c has been described. However, on the contrary, by reducing the curved silhouette images 63a to 63c in the direction parallel to the display surface 71, a plurality of silhouette projection models 64a to 64c having different sizes may be created. Furthermore, when the silhouette projection models 64a to 64c are created using a plurality of curved surface models of different sizes as described above, the silhouette images 62a to 62c in FIG. A plurality of curved silhouette images 63a to 63c having different sizes are generated by reducing and projecting according to the size of the image, and using the generated plurality of curved silhouette images 63a to 63c, a plurality of curved silhouette images having different sizes are generated. Silhouette projection models 64a-64c may be created. By doing so, a silhouette projection model can be created in any size regardless of the size of the icon.

In one embodiment of the present invention described above, the information equipment 1 mounted on a vehicle has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to other information equipment. The present invention can be applied to any information device as long as it has a touch panel capable of displaying icons and sets a touch area for accepting a user's touch operation on an icon on the touch panel.

The embodiments and various modifications described above are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to these contents as long as the features of the invention are not impaired. Moreover, although various embodiments and modifications have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these contents. Other aspects conceivable within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention are also included in the scope of the present invention.

1: information equipment, 10: control unit, 11: touch panel control unit, 12: communication control unit, 13: navigation processing unit, 14: content processing unit, 15: current position acquisition unit, 20: storage unit, 21: map DB , 22: content DB, 30: touch panel, 40: speaker, 50: ROM, 60: RAM, 70: color buffer, 80: ID buffer, 111: display control unit, 112: silhouette projection model creation unit, 113: placement unit , 114: area setting unit, 115: touch operation detection unit

Claims (14)

A method for setting a touch area on the touch panel for receiving a user's touch operation on an icon displayed on the touch panel,
A curved surface model curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel is prepared, a curved silhouette image is generated by projecting a silhouette image corresponding to the icon onto the curved surface model, and a silhouette projection model based on the curved silhouette image is generated. silhouette projection model creation processing to be created;
placement processing of placing the silhouette projection model at a predetermined position on a plane parallel to the display surface;
a region setting process for setting the touch region based on the silhouette projection model placed at the predetermined position, and executing by a computer;
In the area setting process, when the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model respectively included in the silhouette projection model overlap each other, the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model as a boundary line between the first touch area corresponding to the first silhouette projection model and the second touch area corresponding to the second silhouette projection model, the first touch area and setting the second touch area ;
The area setting method, wherein the curved surface model has the curvature for each of two orthogonal axes . In the area setting method according to claim 1,
In the silhouette projection model creation process, a plurality of silhouette projection models are created,
In the area setting method, in the arrangement processing, the plurality of silhouette projection models are arranged on the plane with the heights of the respective vertices aligned. In the area setting method according to claim 2,
The region setting method, wherein in the silhouette projection model creation processing, a plurality of silhouette projection models having a common height from a bottom surface to a vertex and having different sizes are created. In the area setting method according to claim 3,
The region setting method, wherein in the silhouette projection model creation processing, a plurality of silhouette projection models having different sizes are created by enlarging or reducing the curved silhouette image in a direction parallel to the display surface. In the area setting method according to claim 3,
In the silhouette projection model creation process, a plurality of curved surface models having different sizes are prepared, and the silhouette image is projected by enlarging or reducing it according to the sizes of the plurality of curved surface models. generating a plurality of curved silhouette images having different sizes, and using the generated plurality of curved silhouette images to create a plurality of silhouette projection models having different sizes. In the area setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The computer is connected to an ID buffer for storing information for drawing a display object corresponding to an image displayed on the touch panel,
In the arrangement processing, the area setting method writes information representing the silhouette projection model in a memory area corresponding to the predetermined position in the ID buffer. In the area setting method according to claim 6,
the ID buffer stores depth information of the displayed object;
In the area setting process, the area setting method identifies the line of intersection based on the depth information of the first silhouette projection model and the depth information of the second silhouette projection model respectively stored in the ID buffer. . a touch panel displaying an icon and having a touch area set for receiving a user's touch operation on the icon;
A curved surface model curved in a direction perpendicular to the display surface of the touch panel is prepared, a curved silhouette image is generated by projecting a silhouette image corresponding to the icon onto the curved surface model, and a silhouette projection model based on the curved silhouette image is generated. A silhouette projection model creation unit to create,
an arrangement unit for arranging the silhouette projection model at a predetermined position on a plane parallel to the display surface;
an area setting unit that sets the touch area based on the silhouette projection model placed at the predetermined position;
The region setting unit is configured to set the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model when the first silhouette projection model and the second silhouette projection model respectively included in the silhouette projection model overlap each other. as a boundary line between the first touch area corresponding to the first silhouette projection model and the second touch area corresponding to the second silhouette projection model, the first touch area and setting the second touch area ;
The information equipment, wherein the curved surface model has the curvature for each of two orthogonal axes . In the information equipment according to claim 8,
The silhouette projection model creation unit creates a plurality of the silhouette projection models,
The information equipment, wherein the arrangement unit arranges the plurality of silhouette projection models on the plane by aligning the heights of the respective vertexes. In the information equipment according to claim 9,
The information equipment, wherein the silhouette projection model creation unit creates a plurality of silhouette projection models having a common height from a bottom surface to a vertex and having different sizes. In the information equipment according to claim 10,
The information equipment, wherein the silhouette projection model creation unit creates a plurality of silhouette projection models of different sizes by enlarging or reducing the curved silhouette image in a direction parallel to the display surface. In the information equipment according to claim 10,
The silhouette projection model creation unit prepares a plurality of curved surface models having different sizes, and projects the silhouette image by enlarging or reducing it according to the sizes of the plurality of curved surface models. generating a plurality of curved silhouette images having different sizes, and using the generated plurality of curved silhouette images to create a plurality of silhouette projection models having different sizes. In the information equipment according to any one of claims 8 to 12,
comprising an ID buffer for storing information for drawing a display object corresponding to the image displayed on the touch panel;
The arrangement unit writes information representing the silhouette projection model into a memory area corresponding to the predetermined position in the ID buffer. In the information equipment according to claim 13,
the ID buffer stores depth information of the displayed object;
The information equipment, wherein the area setting unit specifies the line of intersection based on the depth information of the first silhouette projection model and the depth information of the second silhouette projection model respectively stored in the ID buffer.

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