JP7489308B2 - Operating device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an operating device.

As a conventional technique, a vehicle operation device is known that has a touch sensor that detects the touch of an operator's finger and is equipped with a touch operation switch that can input operations to an in-vehicle device in response to the detection of the touch of the finger by the touch sensor (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2012-53801 A

In such conventional vehicle operating devices, the switches and the panels on which the switches are arranged are made of resin or metal materials, which may give the user the impression that the device feels and looks hard.

The object of the present invention is therefore to provide an operating device that reduces the impression of rigidity and makes it easier to create a comfortable space for the user.

One aspect of the present invention provides an operating device that includes a housing, a covering member formed of cloth and covering the housing, a first electrode portion provided on the covering member and flexible enough to follow the deformation of the covering member, a second electrode portion provided on the housing to face the first electrode portion and perform electrostatic coupling, an illumination portion provided on the housing that provides illumination through the covering member for feedback of contact detection of a detection target with the first electrode portion, and a control portion electrically connected to the second electrode portion and the illumination portion, determining contact of a detection target based on a change in capacitance due to contact of a detection target with the first electrode portion, and controlling the illumination portion to provide illumination.

The present invention makes it easier to create a comfortable space for users by reducing the impression of stiffness.

FIG. 1A is a diagram showing an example of an operating device according to an embodiment, and FIG. 1B is an example of a block diagram of the operating device. FIG. 2(a) is a diagram showing an example of a housing of an operating device according to an embodiment with a covering member removed, and FIG. 2(b) shows an example of a cross section taken along line A-A in FIG. 2(a) as viewed from the direction of the arrow. Figure 3(a) is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation when operating an embroidered electrode having a plus sign design provided on a covering member of an operating device in an embodiment, and Figure 3(b) is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation when operating an embroidered electrode having an upward triangular design. 4A and 4B are diagrams for explaining an example of an operation when a tracing operation is performed on stitch-like electrodes provided on a covering member of the operating device according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the operation device according to the embodiment.

Summary of the Preferred Embodiments
The operating device according to the embodiment is generally configured to include a housing, a covering member formed using cloth and covering the housing, a first electrode unit provided on the covering member and having flexibility to follow deformation of the covering member, a second electrode unit provided on the housing so as to face the first electrode unit and perform electrostatic coupling, an illumination unit provided on the housing and providing illumination through the covering member to provide feedback of contact detection of the detection object with the first electrode unit, and a control unit electrically connected to the second electrode unit and the illumination unit, determining contact of the detection object with the first electrode unit based on a change in capacitance, and controlling the illumination unit to provide illumination.

Instead of exposing metal or resin, which gives the user a hard impression, this operating device exposes a covering member made of cloth, which gives the user a softer impression than metal or resin. In addition, the operating device is illuminated through the covering member as feedback on the operation, so the lighting itself is softer than when this configuration is not adopted. Therefore, the operating device can suppress the hard impression and make it easier to create a comfortable space for the user.

[Embodiment Mode]
(Overview of operation device 1)
Fig. 1(a) is a diagram showing an example of an operating device, and Fig. 1(b) is an example of a block diagram of the operating device. Fig. 2(a) is a diagram showing an example of a housing with a covering member removed, and Fig. 2(b) shows an example of a cross section taken along line A-A in Fig. 2(a) as viewed from the direction of the arrows. Note that in each of the figures according to the embodiments described below, the ratio between figures may differ from the actual ratio. Also, in Fig. 1(b), the flow of main signals and information is indicated by arrows.

The operation device 1 of this embodiment is mounted on a vehicle, as an example, and the vehicle's on-board device is the operation target 8. Examples of on-board devices include a vehicle control device that controls the overall vehicle settings and automatic driving functions, an air conditioning device that adjusts the temperature inside the vehicle, a navigation device that displays a map of the current location and guides the user to the destination, a display device that displays images, a seat device that controls the position and inclination of the seat, and a music and video playback device that plays music and videos. The operation device 1 can also operate, for example, a mobile terminal connected to these on-board devices by wire or wirelessly. Note that the operation device 1 is not limited to on-board devices, and can be used for electrical appliances, computers, mobile terminals, and the like used at home.

The operation device 1 may be configured to operate a plurality of operation objects 8. In the operation device 1 of this embodiment, the operation objects 8 are, for example, a vehicle control device that adjusts the volume of audio guidance and music outputted in the vehicle cabin, a light control device that controls the turning on and off of the vehicle lights, and an air conditioning device, but are not limited thereto. In addition, the operation device 1 is, for example, disposed in a center console in front of the vehicle between the driver's seat and the passenger seat, but is not limited thereto.

As shown in Figs. 1(a) to 2(b), the operating device 1 is generally configured to include a housing 10, a covering member 2 formed of cloth and covering the housing 10, a first electrode unit 3 provided on the covering member 2 and having flexibility to follow the deformation of the covering member 2, a second electrode unit 4 provided on the housing 10 so as to face the first electrode unit 3 and perform electrostatic coupling, an illumination unit 5 provided on the housing 10 and illuminating through the covering member 2 for feedback of contact detection of the detection target to the first electrode unit 3, and a control unit 7 electrically connected to the second electrode unit 4 and the illumination unit 5, determining the contact of the detection target based on a change in capacitance due to the contact of the detection target to the first electrode unit 3, and controlling the illumination unit 5 to provide illumination. Note that the detection target in this embodiment is, as an example, a user's finger, but it may be anything that can be detected by a capacitance type touch sensor such as a stylus pen.

As shown in Figures 1(a) and 1(b), the operating device 1 further has a display unit 6 that displays letters and numbers through the covering member 2.

The housing 10 is formed using an insulating material such as ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) resin.

(Configuration of Covering Member 2)
The covering member 2 is made of a fabric material such as insulating cloth that covers at least the upper part of the housing 10. The covering member 2 may be configured, for example, to have a bag shape and cover the entire housing 10. As an example, the covering member 2 uses a material that has a transmittance of 60% or less for the light of the illumination unit 5 and the display of the display unit 6, and that is visible to the user.

The covering member 2 has, for example, a texture that is consistent with the surroundings in which it is placed, that is, a surface texture and feel. For example, if the operating device 1 is placed in the center console, a covering member 2 that matches the texture and feel of the center console is used. In addition, for example, if the vehicle has an autonomous driving function and the entire cabin is unified with materials that give a soft impression, such as suede-like materials, so that the interior of the cabin is a relaxing space for the user, the covering member 2 can be configured using the same material as the unified material, or a material that is not the same but gives a less strange feeling.

(Configuration of the first electrode portion 3)
1A, the first electrode unit 3 has at least one embroidery electrode formed of conductive thread and consisting of embroidery indicating the function of the assigned operation target 8. The embroidery electrodes in this embodiment are, for example, embroidery electrodes 30 to 34.

Examples of conductive threads include threads made of resin such as nylon or polyester, the surface of which is coated with a conductive metal such as silver or stainless steel, and threads with conductive carbon kneaded into the thread.

The embroidered electrode 30 is assigned, for example, the function of decreasing the volume. Therefore, as one example, the embroidered electrode 30 is embroidered with a minus sign design, which is easily associated with the function of decreasing a set value.

The embroidered electrode 31 is assigned, for example, the function of increasing the volume. Therefore, as one example, the embroidered electrode 31 is embroidered with a plus sign design, which is easily associated with the function of increasing a set value.

The embroidered electrode 32 is assigned the function of automatically turning on the vehicle's lights depending on the brightness of the surroundings, for example. Therefore, as one example, the embroidered electrode 32 is embroidered with a design that resembles the sun, which is easily associated with the function of lights.

Embroidered electrode 33 is assigned the function of, for example, raising the set temperature of the air conditioner by 1°C. Therefore, embroidered electrode 30 is embroidered with an upward-facing triangular design, which is a different design from embroidered electrode 31 and is easily associated with the function of raising the set value.

The embroidered electrode 34 is assigned the function of lowering the set temperature of the air conditioner by 1°C, for example. Therefore, as an example, the embroidered electrode 34 is embroidered with a downward-facing triangular design, which is a different design from the embroidered electrode 30 and is easily associated with the function of lowering the set value.

The first electrode unit 3 further has at least one stitch-like electrode that is a continuous stitch of thread and detects the tracing operation. As an example, the operating device 1 of this embodiment has one stitch-like electrode 35 formed to cross the left and right of the paper surface of FIG. 1(a). As shown in FIG. 2(b), the housing 10 has a step 103 on the surface 100, and the stitch-like electrode 35 is provided so that the step 103 serves as a guide for the tracing operation. Note that the number of stitch-like electrodes, the number of stitches, the stitch pitch, the stitching method, the overall length, the thickness and direction of the thread, etc. are not limited to the stitch-like electrode 35 of this embodiment.

The stitch-like electrode 35 is assigned the function of increasing or decreasing the set value. For example, when the user traces the stitch-like electrode 35 from left to right on the paper in FIG. 1(a), the set value increases according to the distance of the tracing, and when the user traces from right to left, the set value decreases according to the distance of the tracing. Note that when the distance of the tracing is zero, as an example, but not limited to, the stitch light source is turned on but the set value does not change.

As an example, this setting value is the air volume of the air conditioner. In other words, when the user swipes to the right, the air volume increases, and when the user swipes to the left, the air volume decreases.

In addition, as a modified example, the stitch-like electrode 35 may be assigned a function such as, but is not limited to, scrolling to the next or previous image of a displayed image, changing the scale of a displayed map image, or changing the brightness or color of lighting in the vehicle cabin.

When the user touches the first electrode unit 3, it electrostatically bonds with the second electrode unit 4 arranged opposite it on the housing 10. The first electrode unit 3 is provided to guide the user's finger and to increase the efficiency of electrostatic bonding.

As a modified example, the first electrode portion 3 may be a cloth made of conductive thread, conductive rubber, silicone, or the like, rather than embroidery made of conductive thread. These, like embroidery, have a design that indicates the assigned function.

(Configuration of second electrode portion 4)
1(a) and 1(b), the second electrode unit 4 has touch electrodes 40 to 44 provided on the housing 10 so as to face and electrostatically couple with the embroidery electrodes 30 to 34 of the first electrode unit 3. The second electrode unit 4 also has a plurality of position detection electrodes aligned along the stitch-like electrode 35. The second electrode unit 4 of the present embodiment has, as an example, position detection electrodes 45a to 45l.

The second electrode portion 4 is formed of a conductive metal such as copper or aluminum. In this embodiment, the second electrode portion 4 is provided on the back surface 101 of the upper part of the housing 10 as copper foil, for example. The position detection electrodes 45a to 45l are provided on the back surface 101 of the step 103 of the housing 10, as shown in FIG. 2(b).

As shown in FIG. 2(b), the second electrode unit 4 is electrically connected to an electronic circuit including the control unit 7 and the like via wiring 46. This electronic circuit is formed on the installation surface 110 of the substrate 11 disposed on the bottom surface 102 of the housing 10. The wiring 46 may be an electric wire or a flexible cable.

The touch electrodes 40 to 44 are detection electrodes of a self-capacitance type touch sensor. The touch electrodes 40 to 44 output capacitances detected by electrostatic coupling between the touch electrodes 40 to 44 and a finger and between the touch electrodes 40 to 44 and the embroidery electrodes 30 to 34 of the first electrode unit 3 that are in contact with the finger as capacitance information _S1 to _S5 to the control unit 7.

When the amount of change in capacitance detected based on the acquired capacitance information _S1 to _S5 is equal to or greater than a first electrostatic threshold 71 (described later), the control unit 7 determines that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode corresponding to the touch electrode that has become equal to or greater than the first electrostatic threshold 71. The first electrostatic threshold 71 is a threshold for determining a touch operation on the embroidery electrodes 30 to 34.

Similarly, the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l are detection electrodes of a self-capacitance touch sensor. The position detection electrodes 45a to 45l output capacitances detected by electrostatic coupling between the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l and a finger and between the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l and the stitch-like electrode 35 of the first electrode unit 3 that is in contact with the finger as capacitance information _S6 to _S17 to the control unit 7.

When the amount of change in capacitance detected based on the acquired capacitance information _S6 to _S17 is equal to or greater than a second electrostatic threshold 72 (described later), the control unit 7 determines that the finger is located at the position of the stitch-like electrode 35 corresponding to the position detection electrode that is equal to or greater than the second electrostatic threshold 72. The second electrostatic threshold 72 is a threshold for determining a tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35.

As shown in FIG. 1(a), the touch electrodes 40 to 44 have a rectangular shape larger than the opposing embroidery electrodes 30 to 34. The position detection electrodes 45a to 45l have a rectangular shape with one side sufficiently larger than the thickness of the thread of the stitch electrode 35 and a length that takes into account the size of the finger that will trace the stitch electrode 35, and the other side having a length that divides the stitch electrode 35 into equal intervals. Note that the number of position detection electrodes relative to the stitch electrode 35 is not limited to this.

(Configuration of Illumination Unit 5)
The illumination unit 5 has at least one touch light source arranged corresponding to the touch electrode, and a plurality of stitch light sources arranged along the stitch-like electrodes.

The illumination unit 5 of this embodiment includes touch light sources 50 to 54 arranged on the housing 10 in accordance with the touch electrodes 40 to 44, stitch light sources 55a to 55l arranged on the housing 10 in accordance with the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l aligned along the stitch-like electrodes 35, and a backlight light source 57 that illuminates the film 16a (described later) arranged on the housing 10.

The touch light source 50 to the touch light source 54, the stitch light source 55a to the stitch light source 55l, and the backlight light source 57 are, for example, LED (Light Emitting Diode) elements. These light sources are disposed on the installation surface 110 of the substrate 11 and are electrically connected to the control unit 7.

The touch light sources 50 to 54, the stitch light sources 55a to 55l, and the backlight light source 57 are turned on based on drive signals S ₁₈ to S ₃₅ .

As shown in FIG. 2(b), the touch light sources 50 to 54 are arranged in the cylinder 12 for each light source. In addition, for the touch light sources 50 to 54, a light guide 120 is arranged between the housing 10 and the cylinder 12 for each cylinder 12. As shown in FIG. 2(b), the tip of the light guide 120 is inserted into the openings 15a to 15e formed on the surface 100 of the housing 10 corresponding to the embroidery electrodes 30 to 34.

The backlighting light source 57 is disposed inside the cylindrical body 13. The backlighting light source 57 has a light guide 130 disposed between the housing 10 and the cylindrical body 13. As shown in FIG. 2(b), the tip of the light guide 130 is inserted into an opening 16 formed in the surface 100 of the housing 10.

A film 16a on which a light-transmitting design is formed is attached to this opening 16. As shown in FIG. 2(a), the design is "°C", which indicates the unit of temperature. The unit of temperature does not need to be changed by operation, so it is displayed as a fixed value via the film 16a. The backlighting light source 57 illuminates this film 16a via the light guide 130, thereby displaying the "°C" design on the covering member 2.

The stitching light sources 55a to 55l are arranged inside one cylinder 14. The stitching light sources 55a to 55l are arranged with one light guide 140 between the housing 10 and the cylinder 14. As shown in FIG. 2(b), the tip of the light guide 140 is inserted into an elongated opening 18 formed on the surface 100 of the housing 10 in correspondence with the stitch-like electrode 35.

In the operation device 1, the stitching light sources 55a to 55l output light through a single light guide 140, so that a gradation effect can be obtained in which the position corresponding to the tracing operation is illuminated more strongly than the surroundings. As an alternative, the number of stitching light sources may be different from the number of position detection electrodes.

Light guides 120 to 140 are formed using a resin with high light transmittance, such as transparent or milky white acrylic.

(Configuration of display unit 6)
The display unit 6 displays the temperature portion of the set temperature. As an example, the display unit 6 is configured with a 7-segment display. The 7-segment display has seven sections, and an LED element is arranged in each of the seven sections. The 7-segment display can display numbers by combining the lighting and extinguishing of the LED elements. The display unit 6 of this embodiment displays a two-digit temperature, so has two 7-segment displays, but is not limited to this, and may be configured to further display the temperature after the decimal point (=0.5°C).

The display unit 6 is disposed in an opening 17 formed in the housing 10. The display unit 6 indicates the set temperature together with "°C" illuminated by the backlighting light source 57. The display unit 6 displays the numerical portion of the set temperature based on the drive signal _S36 .

As a modified example, the display unit 6 may be a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display that displays numbers, letters, and other images.

(Configuration of control unit 7)
The control unit 7 is a microcomputer including a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that performs calculations and processing on acquired data according to a stored program, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that is a semiconductor memory, and a ROM (Read Only Memory). The ROM stores, for example, a program for the control unit 7 to operate. The RAM is used as a storage area for temporarily storing calculation results, for example. The control unit 7 also has a means for generating a clock signal therein and operates based on this clock signal.

As shown in FIG. 1(b), the control unit 7 is electrically connected to the memory unit 70. This memory unit 70 is a semiconductor memory arranged on the substrate 11, but is not limited to this, and may be a RAM or ROM of the control unit 7. This memory unit 70 stores a first electrostatic threshold value 71 for determining a touch operation on the embroidery electrode, and a second electrostatic threshold value 72 for determining a tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35. The first electrostatic threshold value 71 and the second electrostatic threshold value 72 have different values, for example.

Figure 3(a) is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation when an embroidered electrode having a plus sign design is operated, and Figure 3(b) is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation when an embroidered electrode having an upward triangular design is operated. Figures 4(a) and 4(b) are diagrams for explaining an example of the operation when a tracing operation is performed on a stitch-like electrode. The arrow in Figure 4(b) indicates the movement direction of the operating finger 90. Here, as an example, the operation is performed with the operating finger 90 (= index finger) of the right hand 9. The thick diagonal lines slanting to the right shown in Figures 3(a) to 4(b) indicate the illuminated area 58 when the light source of the illumination unit 5 is turned on.

3A, when a user touches the embroidery electrode 31 with an operating finger 90 to turn up the volume, the detected capacitance changes compared to when there is no contact due to electrostatic coupling between the operating finger 90 and the touch electrode 41 and between the embroidery electrode 31 and the touch electrode 41. When the amount of change based on the capacitance information _S2 acquired from the touch electrode 41 becomes equal to or greater than a first electrostatic threshold value 71, the control unit 7 determines that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode 31.

The control unit 7 generates a drive signal _S19 for turning on the touch light source 51 corresponding to the embroidery electrode 31 as feedback indicating that a touch operation on the embroidery electrode 31 has been accepted, and outputs the drive signal S19 to the touch light source 51.

The touch light source 51 is turned on during the period during which the drive signal S ₁₉ is supplied. This period is, for example, while a touch operation is detected, but is not limited to this, and the turned on state may continue for a certain period of time even after the touch operation is ended.

The control unit 7 generates operation information S ₃₇ indicating that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode 31 , and outputs the operation information S 37 to the operation target 8 .

3B, when a user touches the embroidery electrode 33 with an operating finger 90 to raise the set temperature, the detected capacitance changes compared to when there is no contact due to electrostatic coupling between the operating finger 90 and the touch electrode 43 and between the embroidery electrode 33 and the touch electrode 43. When the amount of change based on the capacitance information _S4 acquired from the touch electrode 43 becomes equal to or greater than a first electrostatic threshold value 71, the control unit 7 determines that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode 33.

The control unit 7 generates a drive signal _S21 for turning on the touch light source 53 corresponding to the embroidery electrode 33 as feedback indicating that a touch operation on the embroidery electrode 33 has been accepted, and outputs the drive signal S21 to the touch light source 53. The control unit 7 also generates a drive signal _S36 for changing the display on the display unit 6, and outputs the drive signal S36 to the display unit 6.

The touch light source 53 is turned on during the period when the drive signal _S21 is supplied. This period is, for example, while the touch operation is detected, but is not limited to this, and the turned on state may continue for a certain period of time even after the touch operation is ended. The display unit 6 changes the display from "27" to "28" based on the drive signal _S36 .

The control unit 7 generates operation information _S37 indicating that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode 33, and outputs the operation information S37 to the operation target 8. When the user presses and holds the embroidery electrode 33, the control unit 7 outputs operation information _S37 that changes the display on the display unit 6 according to the time the electrode is pressed and held, and that continuously changes the set temperature.

Tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35 The control unit 7 is configured to turn on a stitch light source corresponding to the position on the stitch-like electrode of the detection target detected by the position detection electrode. The control unit 7 stores the position detection electrode that detects the operating finger 90 in the storage unit 70 for a predetermined period, and outputs the operation amount for the predetermined period as operation information S _37. In addition, when the operating finger 90 does not move in a contact state for a predetermined period, it is determined as a tracing operation with an operation amount of zero, as an example, but is not limited to this.

4A, when a user starts a tracing operation by touching the stitch-like electrode 35 with the operating finger 90 to increase the airflow, first, at the contact position (=position detection electrode 45c), the detected capacitance changes due to electrostatic coupling between the operating finger 90 and the position detection electrode 45c and between the stitch-like electrode 35 and the position detection electrode 45c, as compared to when there is no contact. When the amount of change based on the capacitance information _S8 acquired from the position detection electrode 45c becomes equal to or greater than the second electrostatic threshold value 72, the control unit 7 determines that an operation has been performed on the position detection electrode 45c.

The control unit 7 generates a drive signal _S25 for turning on the stitching light source 55c corresponding to the position detection electrode 45c as feedback indicating that an operation on the position detection electrode 45c has been accepted, and outputs the drive signal S25 to the stitching light source 55c.

The stitching light source 55c is turned on while the drive signal _S25 is being supplied. This period is, for example, while the operating finger 90 is detected, but is not limited to this, and the light may be turned on for a certain period of time so as to gradually become weaker even after the operating finger 90 is no longer detected.

As shown in FIG. 4(b), when the user then performs a tracing operation up to the position detection electrode 45g, the stitching light source corresponding to the position detection electrode where the operating finger 90 is detected is sequentially driven. The illumination of this stitching light source is such that the illumination point 58 moves in accordance with the movement of the operating finger 90, as shown in FIG. 4(a) and FIG. 4(b).

This illuminated area 58 moves to follow the contact position of the operating finger 90, even if the user performs a tracing operation from left to right, right to left, or changes direction midway.

The illuminated area 58 is brightest at the position where the stitching light source is lit, and gets darker the further away from this position, in other words, it has a gradation.

The control unit 7 stores the position detection electrodes that have detected the operating finger 90 in the storage unit 70 for a predetermined period. The control unit 7 then generates operation information S37 based on the amount of movement of the operating finger 90 during the predetermined period, i.e., the amount of operation of the tracing operation, and outputs the operation information _S37 to the operation target 8. Note that the predetermined period is, for example, determined as an integer multiple of the period for acquiring the capacitances of the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l.

The operation target 8 increases or decreases the air volume in accordance with the amount of operation based on the obtained operation information _S37 indicating that a tracing operation has been performed.

As a modified example, at least one of the stitching light source and the light guide 140 may be configured to change color in response to the position detection electrodes 45a to 45l. For example, at least one of the stitching light source and the light guide 140 may be configured to gradually change color from blue to red from left to right on the paper in FIG. 1(a).

An example of the operation of the control device 1 according to this embodiment is described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

(motion)
As an example, the control unit 7 of the operating device 1 periodically and in sequence acquires capacitance information _S1 to S5 from the touch electrodes 40 to 44, and capacitance information _S6 to _S17 from the position detection electrodes _45a to 45l. The control unit 7 compares the amount of change in capacitance based on the capacitance information _S1 to _S5 with a first electrostatic threshold value 71, and compares the amount of change in capacitance based on the capacitance information _S6 to _S17 with a second electrostatic threshold value 72 to determine whether or not an operation is performed.

If "Yes" in step 1 is established, that is, if an operation is detected (Step 1: Yes), and the detected operation is a touch operation on the embroidery electrodes (Step 2: Yes), the control unit 7 performs feedback of the touch operation and outputs operation information _S37 (Step 3).

The control unit 7 outputs a drive signal to the touch light source corresponding to the embroidery electrode where the touch operation was detected to turn it on, and also generates operation information _S37 indicating that a touch operation has been performed on the embroidery electrode and outputs it to the operation target 8.

When "Yes" is determined in step 4, that is, when the touch operation is terminated (Step 4: Yes), the control unit 7 performs processing according to the embroidery electrode (Step 5) and proceeds to step 1. In this embodiment, the processing according to the embroidery electrode is, for example, processing to turn off the touch light source for embroidery electrodes 30, 31, 33, and 34, and processing to keep the embroidery electrode 32 lit by the touch operation and to keep it lit and turned off for the embroidery electrode 32 if it was turned on by the touch operation, and to keep it turned off.

Here, in step 2, if the performed operation is a tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35 (Step 2: No), the control unit 7 performs feedback of the tracing operation and outputs operation information _S37 (Step 6).

The control unit 7 outputs a drive signal to the stitch light source corresponding to the position detection electrode where the tracing operation is detected, to turn it on. Each time the position detection electrode detected by the movement of the operating finger changes, the control unit 7 turns on the stitch light source corresponding to the position detection electrode, and turns off the stitch light source corresponding to the position detection electrode that is no longer detected. Then, each time a predetermined period has elapsed since the tracing operation was detected, the control unit 7 generates operation information _S37 indicating the movement distance during this period, i.e., the amount of operation, and that the tracing operation has been performed, and outputs it to the operation target 8.

The moving distance is indicated, for example, as the number of position detection electrodes that detect the operating finger within a predetermined period of time. Therefore, when the user stops the operating finger in contact with the stitch-like electrodes 35 for a period exceeding a predetermined period of time, or when the user performs a touch operation, the control unit 7, for example, turns on the stitch light source corresponding to the position detection electrode that detected the operating finger until the operation is ended, and generates and outputs to the operation target 8 operation information _S37 indicating that a tracing operation with a moving distance of zero has been detected.

When the tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35 is completed (Step 7: Yes), the control unit 7 performs processing according to the stitch-like electrode 35 (Step 8) and proceeds to step 1. In this embodiment, the processing according to the step-like electrode 35 is, for example, turning off the stitch light source. Furthermore, when the tracing operation on the stitch-like electrode 35 is continuing (Step 7: No), the control unit 7 proceeds to step 6.

(Effects of the embodiment)
The operation device 1 according to the present embodiment can suppress a hard impression and easily create a comfortable space for the user. Specifically, as the automatic driving function becomes more advanced, the user will have more opportunities to sit and relax in the seat rather than driving. In that case, it is expected that the interior of the vehicle will be required to be different from what has been seen before, and it will be necessary to create a comfortable space using fabric materials such as cloth rather than hard materials. In the operation device 1 according to the present embodiment, the housing 10 is covered with a covering member 2 made of a fabric material such as cloth that gives a softer impression to the user than metal or resin, rather than exposing metal or resin that gives a hard impression to the user. In addition, since the operation device 1 is illuminated through the covering member 2 as feedback for the touch operation and the tracing operation, the illumination itself is softer than when this configuration is not adopted. Therefore, the operation device 1 can suppress a hard impression and easily create a comfortable space for the user.

The operating device 1 uses embroidered electrodes to represent designs that indicate assigned functions, and these embroidered electrodes increase the precision of the electrostatic coupling between the operating finger and the touch electrodes. The operating device 1 also includes stitch-like electrodes 35 that enable tracing operations and increase the precision of the electrostatic coupling between the operating finger and the position detection electrodes. Therefore, the operating device 1 increases the precision of the electrostatic coupling between the operating finger and the touch electrodes and position detection electrodes by embroidery or stitching using conductive thread, and therefore increases the detection precision of the operating finger and also has an excellent design, creating a better space, compared to a case where this configuration is not adopted.

Although several embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments and modifications are merely examples and do not limit the invention as claimed. These novel embodiments and modifications can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, modifications, etc. can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Furthermore, not all combinations of features described in these embodiments and modifications are necessarily essential to the means for solving the problems of the invention. Furthermore, these embodiments and modifications are included within the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the claims.

1...operation device, 2...covering member, 3...first electrode section, 4...second electrode section, 5...illumination section, 6...display section, 7...control section, 8...operation target, 30-34...embroidery electrodes, 35...stitch-like electrodes, 40-44...touch electrodes, 45a-45l...position detection electrodes, 50-54...light source for touch, 55a-55l...light source for stitch

Claims (6)

A housing and
A covering member formed of a cloth and covering the housing;
A first electrode portion provided on the covering member and having flexibility to follow deformation of the covering member;
a second electrode portion provided on the housing so as to face the first electrode portion and perform electrostatic coupling;
an illumination unit provided in the housing and configured to illuminate through the covering member in order to provide feedback of contact detection of a detection target with the first electrode unit;
a control unit electrically connected to the second electrode unit and the illumination unit, determining whether the detection object has been touched based on a change in capacitance caused by the detection object being touched with the first electrode unit, and controlling the illumination unit to provide illumination;
Equipped with
The first electrode unit has at least one embroidery electrode formed of a conductive thread and having an embroidery pattern indicating a function of an assigned operation target.
Operating device. The first electrode unit further includes at least one stitch-like electrode that is a continuous stitch of the thread and detects a tracing operation,
the second electrode unit has at least one touch electrode provided on the housing so as to face the embroidery electrode and perform electrostatic coupling, and a plurality of position detection electrodes arranged along the stitch-like electrode;
The operating device according to claim 1 . The illumination unit includes at least one touch light source arranged in accordance with the touch electrode, and a plurality of stitch light sources arranged along the stitch-like electrodes.
The operating device according to claim 2 . the control unit turns on the stitch light source in accordance with the position on the stitch-like electrode of the detection target detected by the position detection electrode.
The operating device according to claim 3 . Further, a display unit that displays characters and numbers through the covering member is provided.
The operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 . The device is mounted on a vehicle and operates an in-vehicle device of the vehicle.
The operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 .

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