JPH0637929U - Coordinate input device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a coordinate input device in which a coordinate position on a display and a state of an operating unit always correspond to each other by utilizing a change in capacitance. [Structure] Four-divided electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c, 1
A movable plate 3 made of a conductor is provided between each electrode surface of the first member 1 having 2d and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 so as to be slidable in all directions via an insulating layer or a dielectric.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention relates to a coordinate input device capable of changing a coordinate signal based on a change in capacitance.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 A mouse, a trackball, a controller, a cursor key and the like are known as conventional coordinate input devices. The coordinate signals output by these coordinate input devices are specified only through the relative operation of confirming the cursor position displayed on a display such as a CRT, and only the state of the operation unit of the coordinate input device is detected. Of course, it is not possible to specify the coordinate signal from, and it is not possible to assume the standard of the coordinate signal.

[0003]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 On the other hand, in recent years, there have been advances in the use of specialized devices for computers, the multifunctionalization of home remote controllers, the sophistication of game software, and the diversification of their usage locations. Therefore, instead of the conventional coordinate input device that specifies the coordinate signal by relative operation, it is possible to specify the coordinate signal by the coordinate input device itself or to assume a guideline for the coordinate signal. The emergence of coordinate input devices with excellent operability that enable them to perform actions is highly anticipated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and can be used in a wide range of applications such as a computer, a game machine, and other audio-visual related equipment, and moreover, a coordinate on a display such as a CRT. It is an object of the present invention to provide a coordinate input device that is excellent in operability because the position and the state of the operation unit always correspond. Another object of the present invention is to provide a coordinate input device that can easily achieve miniaturization, high performance, and long life.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 In the coordinate input device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the four electrode surfaces of the first member having the electrode surface divided into four in the circumferential direction and the electrode surface provided in the second member are arranged to be spaced apart from each other. A movable plate made of a conductor is provided between the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member via an insulating layer so as to be slidable in all directions, and the movable plate is attached to the movable plate. The operation portion for sliding the is connected, and the connection terminal is connected to each of the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member.

According to another aspect of the coordinate input device of the present invention, the four electrode surfaces of the first member having the electrode surface divided into four in the circumferential direction and the electrode surface provided in the second member are spaced from each other. A movable plate made of a material having a high dielectric constant is provided between the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member so as to be slidable in all directions. An operation unit for sliding the movable plate is connected, and a connection terminal is connected to each of the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member. .

[0007]

[Action]

 According to the invention of claim 1, for example, when a potential is applied between the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member to change the position of the movable plate made of a conductor, the first member and the second member The capacitance between the respective electrodes of the member changes according to the position of the movable plate. Therefore, it is possible to extract the differential voltage based on the change in the electrostatic capacity and output the coordinate signal. Further, it is possible to specify the position of the movable plate or assume the position of the movable plate depending on the state of the operation unit.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the movable plate itself is formed of a material having a high dielectric constant, the structure is simplified and the reduction in thickness is facilitated.

[0009]

【Example】

 FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing main components of the coordinate input device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 3, 1 is a first member, 2 is a second member, and 3 is a movable plate. The first member 1 comprises an insulating substrate 11 having electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d which are divided into four parts at intervals of 90 degrees in the circumferential direction, and a central portion of a display (not shown) is provided. A rectangular opening 13 having the same aspect ratio as the aspect ratio is provided, and connection terminals 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d are connected to the respective electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d. The second member 2 is provided with one electrode surface 22 on the entire surface on one side of the insulating substrate 21, and has an opening 23 having the same shape and size as the opening 13 of the first member 1 in the central portion. A connection terminal 24 is connected to the electrode surface 22. A printed wiring board can be diverted to the first member 1 and the second member 2. The movable plate 3 is made of a disk-shaped conductor, and has a center hole 31 formed in the center thereof. A printed wiring board 32 (see FIG. 4) in which copper foils 33, 33 are formed on both sides and the copper foils 33, 33 on both sides are short-circuited through through holes can be diverted to the movable plate 3. At that time, the through hole can be used as the central hole 31. It is also possible to use a conductor such as a copper plate or a dielectric such as a plate-like body made of a polymer material for the movable plate 3.

As shown in FIG. 4, the four electrode surfaces 21 a and 21 b of the first member 1 (electrode surfaces 21 c and 21 d are not shown in the figure) and the electrode surface 21 of the second member 2 are spaced apart and parallel to each other. To be opposed to. Then, the movable plate 3 is slidably installed in all directions between the four electrode surfaces 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d of the first member 1 and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 via the insulating layers 4 and 4. To be done. Although an air layer is used as the insulating layers 4 and 4 in FIG. 4 which is the embodiment of the invention of claim 1, the insulating layers 4 and 4 are made of an insulating material such as polyethylene film as shown in FIG. It is also possible to use a film or an insulator coat that covers the conductive portion of the movable plate 3.

Each of the four electrode surfaces 12 a, 12 b, 12 c and 12 d of the first member 1 having the three-layer structure as described above, the second electrode 2 and the movable plate 3 cooperate to form a variable capacitor. Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the two opposing electrode surfaces 12a, 12b of the first member 1 were made to correspond to the X axis, and the other two opposing electrode surfaces 12c, 12d were made to correspond to the Y axis. In this case, the respective overlapping states of the four electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d are different with respect to the movable plate 3 set at four different positions shown by the symbols w, x, y, z in FIG. Therefore, by sliding the movable plate 3 between the four electrode surfaces 12 a, 12 b, 12 c, 12 d of the first member 1 and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2, the four electrode surfaces 12 a, Various overlapping states of 12b, 12c, and 12d can be set, and each overlapping state differs depending on the position of the movable plate 3. As a result, it is possible to output coordinate signals in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction.

FIG. 6 illustrates a bridge circuit for extracting the coordinate signal in the X-axis direction. In this bridge circuit, when the movable plate 3 slides to the right from the reference position p shown in FIG. 5 or the movable plate 3 slides to the left from the reference position p, the X axis of the first member 1 The capacitance between the two electrode surfaces 12a and 12b in the direction and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 changes, the balance of the bridge circuit in FIG. 6 is lost, and a differential voltage is generated between Va and Vb. To do. Although not shown, the same applies to the bridge circuit for extracting the coordinate signal in the Y-axis direction. Therefore, the combined coordinate signal can be displayed on the display (not shown) by processing the coordinate signal in the X-axis direction and the coordinate signal in the Y-axis direction. In this case, the position of the movable plate 3 corresponds to the position of the coordinate signal displayed on the display. If the differential voltage between Va and Vb is taken out and the coordinate signal is output as described above, fluctuations in component accuracy and errors due to environmental factors are offset, so accurate detection is possible. It will be possible.

Next, a specific configuration for configuring the coordinate input device will be described. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a coordinate input device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing some components of the coordinate input device.

In FIG. 1, a back cover 51 is provided with a wiring board 54 on which a battery 52 as a power source and various necessary electronic components 53 are mounted. In the coordinate input device of the illustrated example, a confirmation switch 55 composed of a key switch, a start switch 56 and a cancel switch 57 are mounted on a wiring board 54, and an optical element or a high frequency element as a transmitter 58 is provided. It is installed. Then, the key plate 61 is arranged so as to overlap the confirmation switch 55, and the key top 62 is arranged so as to overlap the start switch 56 and the cancel switch 57.

Then, between the front cover 71 and the key plate 61, the above-mentioned first member 1 having a three-layer structure, the movable plate 3, and the second electrode 2 are interposed. The spacing between the first member 1 and the second member 3 is secured by the spacer 10 shown in FIG. 3, and the spacing between the second member 3 and the wiring board 54 is secured by the spacer 20 shown in FIG. It An operation knob 73 and a button 74 are arranged on the front cover 71 via a mask ring 72.

The shaft portion 75 of the button 74 is inserted through the central hole 73a of the operation knob 73, the central hole 72a of the mask ring 72 and the opening 71a of the front cover 71 and is provided on the movable plate 3 side shown in FIG. The back cover 51 and the front cover 71 are connected to the connecting shaft 34 as shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 77 is a cover arranged on the entire surface of the transmitter 58.

With this configuration, the operation knob 73 can slide in all directions, and the movable body 3 follows the movement of the operation knob 73 so that the movable body 3 has the four electrode surfaces 12 a, 12 b of the first member 1. , 12c, 12d and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 slide. Then, no matter which position the operation knob 73 is set to, the confirmation switch 55 is turned on by pressing the button 74. Further, by pushing the key top 62, the start switch 56 or the cancel switch 57 is turned on.

Therefore, it is possible to display the coordinate signal on the display and output the coordinate signal from the transmitter 58 by adopting the control method represented by the block diagram shown in FIG.

By the way, the coordinate input device according to the present invention is a variable capacitor including four electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c and 12d of the first member 1, an electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 and the movable plate 3. It employs a non-contact structure that detects changes in the capacitance of the. Therefore, the accuracy of the mutual distance δ1 between each electrode surface (represented by reference numeral 12) of the first member 1 and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 and the thickness δ2 of the movable plate 3 shown in FIGS. Highly accurate coordinate input is possible just by managing it. That is, even if the movable body 3 is biased between the first member 1 and the second member 2 as shown in FIG. 7, or the first member 1 and the second member 2 as shown in FIG. Even if they are inclined between, they become independent of the accuracy of the output coordinate signal. The above δ1 can be set to 1.6 mm.

In the coordinate input device according to the embodiment of the invention of claim 1 described above, the printed wiring board 32 (see FIG. 4) having the copper foils 33 and 33 short-circuited to each other as the movable plate 3 is provided. It is diverted. That is, the movable plate 3 according to this embodiment is constructed by using a dielectric material made conductive by the copper foils 33 and 33, and a coordinate input device using such a movable plate 3 is industrially produced. It is useful for doing.

However, the movable plate itself is made of a material having a high dielectric constant, and such a movable plate is used as the four electrode surfaces 12 a, 12 b, 12 c, 12 d of the first member 1 and the electrode surface of the second member 2. It may be arranged so as to be slidable in all directions with respect to 22. The coordinate input device according to the invention of claim 2 employs such a configuration. That is, the movable plate used in the coordinate input device according to the present invention is not a conductor, but the movable plate itself is made of a material having a high dielectric constant. According to such a coordinate input device, the movable plate can be made thin, so that the mutual distance δ1 between the electrode surfaces 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d of the first member 1 and the electrode surface 22 of the second member 2 can be reduced. This makes it possible to reduce the size and thickness of the coordinate input device. The other parts of the coordinate input device according to the invention of claim 2 are the same as those of the coordinate input device according to the invention of claim 1.

[0023]

[Effect of device]

 According to the input device of the first and second aspects of the invention, it is possible to specify the coordinate signal to be output or to assume the coordinate signal depending on the state of the operation unit. For this reason, when the coordinate signal is displayed on the display, the display position of the coordinate signal is assumed from the state of the operation section, which greatly improves the operability.

Further, since the input device of the present invention employs a non-contact structure that detects a change in capacitance, it facilitates miniaturization, high performance, long life, and high reliability. Not only that, but there is also an effect that a highly accurate coordinate signal can be output only by controlling the accuracy of the distance between the first member and the second member and the thickness of the movable plate. And, in particular, according to the invention of claim 2, since the movable plate itself is made of a material having a high dielectric constant, it has a useful effect that the structure is simple and the thinning can be easily achieved. .

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a coordinate input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing some components of the coordinate input device.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing components constituting the main body of the coordinate input device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a cross section of an overlapping state of a first member, a movable plate, and a third member.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a movable range of a movable plate with respect to four electrode surfaces of a first member.

FIG. 6 is a bridge circuit diagram used for outputting a coordinate signal in the X-axis direction.

FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory view.

FIG. 8 is an operation explanatory view.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of an overlapping state of the first member, the movable plate, and the third member.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 1st member 2 2nd member 3 Movable plate 4 Insulating layer 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d Four electrode surfaces 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d Connection terminals on the electrode surface of the 1st member 22 2nd member Electrode surface 24 Connection terminal on the electrode surface side of the second member 73 Operation knob (operation part)

Claims (2)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. The four electrode surfaces of a first member, which have electrode surfaces divided into four in the circumferential direction, and the electrode surfaces of the second member, which are opposed to each other with a space, are provided. A movable plate made of a conductor is provided between the two electrode surfaces and the electrode surface of the second member via an insulating layer so as to be slidable in all directions, and an operation unit for sliding the movable plate on the movable plate. And a connecting terminal is connected to each of the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member. 2. The four electrode surfaces of the first member having the electrode surfaces divided into four in the circumferential direction and the electrode surface provided on the second member are arranged to face each other with a space therebetween. A movable plate made of a material having a high dielectric constant is provided between the two electrode surfaces and the electrode surface of the second member so as to be slidable in all directions, and an operation unit for sliding the movable plate on the movable plate is provided. A coordinate input device, wherein the connection terminals are connected to each of the four electrode surfaces of the first member and the electrode surface of the second member.