JPH0476723A - Data processor and its input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable an unskilled person also to accurately plot an accurate graphic by regulating the rotation of a two-dimensional rotating body around a rotation axis and turning a cursor moving direction on a screen to the direction of the rotor. CONSTITUTION:In this data processor, a main storage device 1, an external storage device 2 such as a disk device, a display device 4 such as a CRT for displaying data and a cursor indicating a data input position, and an input device 3 are connected to an arithmetic processor 5. The input device 3 detects the direction or the number of rotation and rotational direction of the two-dimensional rotating body whose rotation is regulated around the rotation axis and outputs a signal indicating the moving direction or moving distance of the cursor and its moving locus to the data processor side. Consequently, the moving direction, positioning and moving locus of the cursor can be accurately controlled even by a beginner.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an input device for moving a cursor displayed on a screen, and a data processing device equipped with the input device. The present invention relates to an input device and a data processing device that are less likely to shake.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, input devices for controlling the movement of a cursor displayed on a screen and drawing figures based on its locus include a keyboard, a mouse, and a trackball as described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-80326. Common.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] Both mice and trackballs rotate a ball (sphere), detect the direction and amount of rotation, and convert this into the direction and amount of movement of the cursor. It is suitable for moving in any direction. However, since the ball rotates around the center point three-dimensionally, that is, in any direction, the direction and amount of rotation cannot be determined quantitatively, and the cursor movement trajectory based on this will also be unstable.For example, a certain point When drawing an arc from a point, it is difficult to accurately position the cursor at that point, and it is also difficult to make the cursor movement trajectory a complete arc. Therefore, it was impossible for anyone but an expert to accurately draw precise figures.

In addition, the cursor movement keys on the keyboard only move the cursor up, down, left, and right, and cannot directly move the cursor diagonally, so it is not possible to input documents diagonally to create a variety of documents. There are also problems.

An object of the present invention is to provide an input device that allows even a beginner to accurately control the positioning of a cursor in two moving directions and the trajectory of the cursor, and a data processing device equipped with the input device.

[Means for Solving the Problem] The input device for the above purpose detects a two-dimensional rotating body whose rotation is regulated around a rotation axis, and the direction or direction of rotation of the two-dimensional rotating body to display a cursor. This can be achieved by providing a means for outputting a signal representing the direction of movement, amount of movement, or locus of movement to the data processing device.

The data processing device for the above purpose includes the above-mentioned input device, and the position, movement direction, and movement amount of a cursor that takes in the output signal of the input device, calculates it, and displays it on the screen.

This can be achieved by including an arithmetic processing device that controls the movement trajectory.

[Operation] Since the rotation of the two-dimensional rotating body is restricted around the rotation axis, even if the operator manipulates the rotating body to change the coordinate position of the cursor, the changed data will not fluctuate. In other words, the trajectory of the cursor does not move. Also, by setting the cursor movement direction on the screen to the direction of the rotating body,
It is possible to move the cursor in any direction on the screen, that is, in diagonal directions.

[Example] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a data processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The arithmetic processing unit 5 includes a main memory bag W.
1, an external storage device 2 such as a disk device, a display device 4 such as a CRT that displays data and a cursor indicating a data input position, and an input device [3 according to an embodiment of the present invention] are connected.

A schematic top view of this input device 3 is shown in FIG. 1(a). The input device 3 includes a normal keyboard and a dial 6 on the left side thereof. An arrow indicating the direction of cursor movement is attached to this dial 6. This dial 6
is designed to rotate around a rotation axis (an axis perpendicular to the plane of the paper) that is not shown.

FIG. 1(b) is an electrical circuit diagram of this dial input device 6. This dial 6 has a variable resistor (volume)
7 sliding contacts are connected.

The resistance value of the variable resistor 7 changes according to the rotation angle of the dial 6. A voltage is applied to this variable resistor 7 from a power supply 8, and the A/D converter 9
The voltage between one end of the variable resistor 7 and the sliding contact is taken in, converted to digital data, and processed by the arithmetic processing unit [5 (second
(Figure). Arithmetic processing unit [5 is
The direction of the dial, the amount of change, the direction of change, the speed of change, etc. of the dial are calculated from the data sent from the dial input device 6, and the position and movement of the cursor displayed on the CRT 4 is controlled.

In the above embodiment, the dial input device is integrated with the keyboard, but only the dial input device portion may be an independent input device. Further, the two-dimensional rotating body is not limited to a dial, and may be, for example, a normal knob shape.

First, as an example using the directionality of the dial, (1
) Cursor movement using a combination of dial and arrow keys, and (2) free directional input of text will be explained.

(1) Cursor Movement Using a Combination of Dial and Arrow Keys An example of how to move the cursor in any direction in order to correct the text while creating a text using a word processor or the like will be explained. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the procedure.

In order to move the cursor not only in the normal up, down, left and right directions, but also in any direction, for example, diagonally, an arbitrary direction cursor movement mode is set (step 11). There is a direction bar on the screen (indicated by the symbol T in Figure 4(a)).
is displayed. Next, turn the dial 6 and set the direction in which you want the cursor K to move using this direction bar T (
Step 12). Next, a key such as a cursor key that is valid for cursor movement is pressed (step 13), and the cursor is moved (step 14).

Next, screen display will be explained. Figure 4(a) shows CR
This is the display screen of T. Each small rectangle indicates an area for one character of text display, K indicates the current cursor position, T indicates a direction bar, and ○ indicates the starting point of the direction bar for the current cursor. FIG. 4(a) also shows an enlarged view of the text display area for one character. In this enlarged display, X is the center point of the text display area for one character, and from there, Y
It is shown in This circular area Y is located at step 11 in FIG.
When in the arbitrary direction cursor movement mode set in , it is determined whether the text display area for one character is specified as the cursor movement position by whether the direction indicator bar T passes within this circular area Y. used for

That is, it is determined whether the direction indicator bar T passes through each of the circular areas Y1 to Y4 in FIG. Y4 is outside the bar T and therefore is not targeted, but circular area Y2 is the planned cursor movement position. Furthermore, since the circular area Y1 is also in contact with the bar T, this is the planned position of the cursor movement.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the cursor movement processing procedure. First, if it is determined in the determination process in step 21 that the arbitrary direction cursor movement mode is set,
Proceed to step 22 and wait for key personnel. If this mode is not set, normal input (step 29) continues. If this mote is activated and a key is pressed, determine whether the key is valid for moving the cursor, such as the up/down/left/right arrow keys or the tab key (step 23).
If the key is not valid, normal processing is performed for the input key in step 27, and the process returns to step 22. Step 2
If it is determined in step 3 that the key is valid for moving the cursor, the direction bar and the direction registered in the pressed key (until the execution key is pressed (until the determination in step 24 becomes affirmative) are In step 25), a temporary cursor is displayed (step 26), and the process returns to step 22.

In this way, the final cursor movement position is determined in steps 25 and 26, and when it is determined that the execution key has been pressed in step 24, the current cursor is moved to that position (step 28), and the main processing end.

A-B in FIG. 6(a) shows the area indicated by the direction indicator bar. Further, FIG. 6(b) shows the relationship between the direction indicator bar and the arrow keys. In other words, if the direction indicator bar points to area A, the up arrow key 30 and right arrow key 31 are valid, and if either of these two keys is input, the cursor will move in the direction indicated by the direction indicator bar. move. At this time, if the up arrow key 32 and left arrow key 33 are pressed, the cursor is moved in the direction of area C opposite to the direction indicated by the direction indicator bar.

Conventionally, when moving the cursor, the cursor was moved horizontally and vertically one column at a time by manually pressing the cursor keys, but by using this method, the cursor can be moved in any direction by manually pressing the keys. It becomes possible to move the cursor while reducing the number of cursors as much as possible.

Furthermore, conventionally, when performing keyboard input, the user would take his/her hands off the keyboard, hold the mouse, perform input from the mouse, and then return to the keyboard to perform input again. However, repeating this over and over again is extremely tedious. However, according to the above-described embodiment of the present invention, this troublesomeness can be avoided and the cursor can be moved quickly.

(2) Free directional input of text As in the case of moving the cursor in any direction, first, it is determined whether the free directional input mode is set (step 41). If this mode is set, a direction bar is displayed, the input direction of the sentence to be input is read from the direction of the direction bar set by the user, and a cursor is displayed (step 42). .

Once the key force is performed by the user (step 43)
,first.

It is determined whether the input position is not in the input protection area (overwriting prohibited area) H (see FIG. 8(a)) (step 44). If it is an input protected area, a line feed is performed (step 45), a line feed mark F is displayed, and text is input in the currently specified direction. If it is not an input protected area, input is performed in the specified direction up to the limit value in the display device or application program, etc. (step 46). When the free direction input mode is canceled, the process proceeds from step 41 to step 47, where the cursor is set and displayed at a position prompting the next input.

On the display screen of FIG. 8(a), as mentioned above, H is the input protection area, and input to this area is prohibited.

O is the starting point of the direction indication bar, and the direction indication bar T is displayed from here.When the input of the 5 diagonal directions is completed, the cursor is set. The cursor that has been set is indicated by K.

By using this method, instead of inputting text and then modifying the direction, you can freely decide the direction and then input. This is convenient because you can enter different inputs.

In addition, when setting an entry protection area (write-protected area), you can use the direction bar to enclose the area.
It is possible to configure settings.

Furthermore, even for sentences that have already been input, it is possible to change the input direction using this direction bar later.

Note that this method can also be used to perform normal vertical writing or horizontal writing input. A vertical writing input screen is shown in FIG. 8(b). Here, T is the direction bar, O is its starting point,
F is a new line mark and K is a cursor.

Next, as an example where one rotation of the dial 106 is regarded as 100% rotation and the value indicated by the dial is quantitatively understood, (3) compass input, (4) characters.

The figure enlargement and reduction functions will be explained.

(3) A method of inputting a circle by associating one rotation of the compass input dial with one rotation of the compass will be explained.

FIG. 9(a) is a flowchart regarding the yen input procedure. To draw an arc, first display the direction bar (
Step 51). Next, the cursor is moved using this direction bar to determine the center point of the circle (step 52).

The movement of the cursor is the same as the movement of the cursor using the dial and arrow key combination described in (1) above. Next, the radius is set by aligning the starting point of the direction indicator bar with the center point and changing the length of the direction indicator bar using a dial (step 53). After setting the center point and radius, rotate the dial to input the arc. A circle is drawn by turning the dial to the right, and a circle is erased by turning it to the left (step 54). 1
It is convenient to trace the dial again on the degree drawing to draw an even darker arc. Next, determine whether or not this input location is an input protection area.Step 5
5) If it is not the protected area, the input arc is displayed on the screen (step 56).

FIG. 9(b) is a detailed flowchart of step 53, in which the length of the already displayed direction indicator bar is changed using a dial. First, display the end point E (Fig. 10) of the displayed direction indicator bar (step 5).
7). Until a decision is made with the execution key (step 58),
The amount of movement of the dial is read (step 59), and if the dial has rotated to the right (step 60), the direction indicator bar is displayed longer than the current length (step 6).
G). At this time, before step 6G, it is necessary to determine whether the end point of the direction indicator bar protrudes from the screen.
4) If it protrudes, the screen is scrolled (step 65). If the dial is rotating to the left (step 61), the length of the direction indicator bar is made shorter than its current length until the end point of the direction indicator bar is at a position equal to the center point of the circle (step 62). Display (step 63).

In this way, you can change the length of the direction indicator bar and adjust the radius of the arc you are currently trying to draw.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a screen in the process of adjusting the radius. ○ represents the center of the arc and the starting point of the direction indicator bar T.

Further, E is the end point of the direction indicator bar T. M is a displayed arc and indicates the dial rotation position state corresponding to the right side of each screen.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the arc display procedure. In the compass input mode (step 71),
If the angle of the arrow on the dial has changed (step 72)
), the ratio (%) is calculated from the angle of the movement (step 73). For example, if one revolution is 360 degrees, Y (ratio) = 100/360X (angle). In step 74, a calculated arc of 9% is drawn on the display screen. By repeating this, the arc is input.

Conventionally, only on application programs such as drawing software, you could specify a circle prepared in advance using a mouse, etc., and display it on the display screen, or use the mouse to directly draw a circle, albeit jagged. The only way to do this was to write a . However, by using this embodiment, accurate circles can be drawn easily. Also, when drawing a pie chart that is divided into parts or a semicircle, you can judge the amount to draw by comparing it with the angle of the dial, so you can calculate and input it like before. It's convenient and you don't have to do it.

(4) Enlargement and reduction function of character 9 figures We will explain the function of determining the enlargement rate and reduction rate by turning the dial and the angle of rotation.

As shown in Fig. 13(a), use the two starting points ○02, rotate the direction bar T by turning the dial, and set the target so as to surround the character C with the execution key (12th Step 75 in the figure). Next, enter the enlargement/reduction mode (step 76), and set the enlargement or reduction ratio by operating the dial (
Step 77).

The arithmetic processing unit calculates the ratio to the whole from this angle of the dial (step 78).

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the detailed procedure of step 78. If the mode is to read the ratio from the dial angle (step 80), the dial angle is read (step 81), the ratio is calculated (step 82), and the calculated value is returned to step 78 in FIG. 12 (step 8).
3). In step 78, the enlargement rate and reduction rate are determined based on the return value (ratio) from step 83.
The image is reduced and displayed on the display screen (step 79).

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing the procedure for actually enlarging and reducing. In this case, as shown in FIG. 13(a), use the direction bar T to specify the character C to be enlarged or reduced (step 91), determine whether or not the mode is the ratio reading mode (step 92), In this case, set the magnification of this character C to 1 (IIT) (step 93).
. Then, read the enlargement/reduction ratio from the rotation angle of the dial (step 94), and calculate the enlargement/reduction ratio by regarding 100% enlargement as the enlargement ratio to, for example, 4 times the angle, and 100% reduction as, for example, zero position.Step 95 ), it is determined whether the part to be displayed falls within the input protection area (step 96), and if not, the character C is changed to the dotted line C' (example of enlargement), as shown in FIG. 13(b). The magnification is changed and displayed as shown (step 97).

By using this method, it is easy to maintain a constant magnification ratio for each character, so it is possible to accurately enlarge each character, rather than enlarging an enclosed area using a mouse, etc. Become.

Next, an example of a method for performing accurate input unlike input using a mouse will be described.

(5) Straight Line Input When drawing a line using a mouse while clicking, there is a problem in that the displayed straight line is blurred by the hand, making it difficult to draw clearly. Therefore, by displaying a direction indicator bar, adjusting the length of the direction indicator bar using a dial, and inputting using the dial, it is possible to easily input a straight line that is accurate and does not curve.

(6) Matching connection points When drawing a circle or inputting a figure, even if the previous end point is stored in the data, the user can only use the mouse to match the starting point to that point by operating the mouse. However, it is difficult to match the points accurately using a mouse. Even in such a case, if the starting point of the direction indicator bar used in the embodiment of the present invention is displayed at the previous ending point, the discontinuity between the five figures and the figure can be eliminated.

(7) Spot movement function If you suddenly want to move the mouse to a certain distance away, you must roughly move the mouse - degrees close to that point, then make fine adjustments to find the new position. It won't happen. In addition, in order to point with the mouse to a part that is not displayed on the display screen, be sure to display the data from the current point to the relevant position on the display screen once, and then visually search from the displayed part. The only way is to bathe.

However, by using the embodiment of the present invention, if you display the direction bar and specify the general search direction with the dial,
Search for the point already specified by the user, the search target character string, or the search target character in an area with a certain width on the extension of the pointing direction or on both sides. can be displayed.

An example will be explained with reference to FIG. O is the starting point of the direction bar. T is the direction bar and T' is its extension. Ql is an area on both sides of the extension of the direction indicator bar, and R1-R7 are points specified by the user or characters to be searched. First, the area currently displayed on the display screen is inside Ql. Now, in order to perform a search with a search direction, use the dial and set the approximate search direction with the direction bar T. Next, if you instruct to execute a search, the point point or search target character, etc. that has already been specified by the user is searched for within the area Q3, and the display area Q3 is moved so that that part is in the center of the display screen. .

By using this method, if the relationship between the current cursor position and the location of the search target is known to some extent, it is possible to perform a limited search from a large number of search targets. This also saves time and the time required by the user to determine whether the object is the object after the search.

Next, the case where a key code is assigned to the position indicated by the dial will be explained. As shown in FIG. 17(a), function key codes and the like are assigned to the width between the angles of the dial. For example, the key code for the F1 key is at angle "a71", and the key code for the F1 key is at angle "b".
Assign a key code to the key so that special keys can also be input from the dial. As a specific example of how to use it, when a function is assigned to each function key in a word processor, etc., the part that explains the function of that function key by turning the dial, the example shown in Figure 16 (b). ``Edit text'' corresponding to the F1 key is displayed brightly. The user simply turns the dial and selects the function he or she wishes to perform. In actual document creation sites, people do not type while looking at the keys, but instead look at the characters on the screen while typing. There is no problem with commonly used keys, but for function selection keys that are not often used when inputting text, look down at the keyboard and confirm before pressing them. Also, when using a mouse to click on a position to explain its function, the user takes his/her hands off the keyboard, switches to the mouse, performs the input, and then returns to using the keys manually. However, such operations are troublesome. However, by using the method of the embodiment of the present invention, it becomes possible to compose sentences without taking your hands off the keyboard and keeping your eyes on the screen, which is convenient.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the effects described below are achieved.

(1) Since the cursor can be moved using a combination of a dial and arrow keys, the cursor can be moved in any direction while minimizing the number of keystrokes. Additionally, you can move the cursor without taking your hands off the keyboard, unlike when using a mouse.

(2) Since it is now possible to input sentences in any direction, it is now possible to input sentences in any direction by simply deciding on the direction and inputting it in the normal way. Furthermore, it is also possible to change the input direction of sentences that have already been input.

(3) Compass input allows you to easily draw accurate circles and ellipses. Furthermore, when dividing into parts or drawing a semicircle as in a pie chart, there is no need to calculate and input data as in the past.

(4) The function of enlarging and reducing character 2 shapes makes it easier to maintain a constant magnification rate for each character, which allows for more precise scaling of each character than by enlarging an enclosed area using a mouse, etc. It becomes possible to expand.

(5) There is no blur when inputting straight lines and dotted lines.
You can easily input straight lines and dotted lines that are accurate and do not curve.

(6) When matching the connection points, discontinuity between figures can be eliminated by displaying the start point of the direction indicator bar at the previous end point.

(7) With the spot movement function, it is possible to move to a position m away or to a place that is not on the same screen at once.

(8) By assigning an arbitrary key code to the position indicated by the dial, you can compose sentences without taking your hands off the keyboard and keeping your eyes on the screen.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1(a) is a top view of an input device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1(b) is an electrical circuit diagram of a main part of the input device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 2 is a top view of an input device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 3, 5, and 7 are block diagrams of the data processing apparatus according to the embodiment; FIGS. Figure 6 (a), (b),
Figures 8(a) and (b) are explanatory diagrams of the screen when moving the cursor in any direction, Figures 9(a) and (b) are flowcharts showing the processing procedure for drawing a circle, and Figure 10 is Explanatory diagrams of circle drawing processing, Figures 11, 12, and 14
15 is a flowchart of the enlargement and reduction processing procedure,
Figures 13 (a) and (b) are screen explanatory diagrams for enlargement and reduction processing, Figure 16 is an explanatory diagram for cursor spot movement processing, and Figures 17 (a) and (b) are dial function assignments. is an explanatory diagram. 3...Input device, 6...Dial, 7...Volume. T...Direction bar, O...Start point of direction bar, K
·cursor. Figure 1 Agent Patent Attorney Tadashi Akimoto Actual Figure Figure (a) Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure (a) (b) D Figure (a) Figure <a> Figure 10 Figure 1 ] Figure 13(a) Figure 16

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A two-dimensional rotating body whose rotation is regulated around a rotation axis;
An input device comprising means for detecting the direction, amount of rotation, and direction of rotation of the two-dimensional rotating body and outputting a signal representing the direction, amount, and trajectory of movement of the cursor to a data processing device. 2. The input device according to claim 1, and an arithmetic processing device that takes in the output signal of the input device, calculates it, and controls the position, movement direction, amount of movement, and movement trajectory of the cursor to be displayed on the screen. Characteristic data processing device.