JPH0895688A - Interface device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To infer the skill degree of a user from the operation of fingers depressing buttons, to make many messages be displayed for an unskilled user and to refrain from performing displays so that the message displays themselves may not hinder a skilled user. CONSTITUTION: This device is composed of an execution interval detection part 25 detecting the time from the changing time of the first contact of a button 24 till the change of a second contact, a state transition control part 26 changing the internal state of an operation object by the changes of the first and second contacts and the time obtained by the execution interval detection part 25, a display control part 27 selecting the meaning of the function of the button set by the state transition control part 26 or the sentence and pictograph showing the guidance for the next operation and controlling a display time based on the input from the execution interval detection part 25 and a display part 28 displaying the selected sentence and pictograph.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an interface device for operating a device equipped with a display device such as a computer or an AV device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the advancement of electronic equipment, the operation of electronic equipment has become complicated. That is, the number of operating procedures is increasing, and the number of buttons on the operating surface is also increasing dramatically. FIG. 10 shows a remote control operation surface for both TV and video operations. The buttons that are likely to be used most are located on the top of the control surface, the other buttons are located on the bottom of the control surface and are hidden by the lid. Since the buttons on the operation surface are arranged regularly,
It is easy to make a mistake if you operate (blind touch) without looking at the operation surface. The number of buttons is more than 50,
If there are multiple actions, the number of operations will be more, and it will take time to store all the functions.

In the field of information equipment such as computers, an attempt is made to solve the complexity of operation by screen display. Blind touch can be performed without looking at the mouse by the pointer on the screen that can be operated using the mouse. If you don't know the command, you can get a list of commands on the help screen, or you can get the information you want to know by using the character string search function.

[0004]

However, it takes a considerable amount of time to obtain the information that one wants to know, and it may not be possible in some cases. In addition, even if you read the instruction manual, you often do not know where you have something you want to know.

Further, when the buttons are regularly arranged in a similar shape, they must be operated by reading the characters or symbols displayed on the buttons, and blind touch cannot be performed.

Further, as the number of functions increases, the number of buttons on the operation surface becomes so large that the user cannot easily select them. If there are more steps, users will be wondering what to do next. Even when the operation is read by the electronic help function, it often takes a considerable amount of time for the user to find out the function he / she wants to know.

In view of the above points, the present invention has an object to provide an interface device which realizes an operation method that can be easily understood by a user.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention has a tactile uneven portion having an uneven shape which can be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin, and an unrecognizable or hard-to-recognize part from the tactile sense of the skin. However, when the button is viewed, it is provided with a visibility uneven portion having a recognizable uneven shape, and the tactile uneven portion and the visibility uneven portion are used to engrave a pictogram indicating the meaning of the button on the button surface. It is an interface device that comprises a button.

Alternatively, a tactile convex portion having a convex shape that can be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin and a tactile sense that cannot be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin,
Or, it is difficult to recognize, but it is provided with a visibility concave portion having a concave shape that can be recognized when the button is seen, and a pictogram representing the meaning of the button is displayed on the button surface by using the tactile convex portion and the visibility concave portion. It is an interface device that has a button stamped on.

[0010] Further, a double button provided with a first contact and a second contact after the time when the button is pressed once or an interval of button movement, and a second button from a time when the first contact changes. An execution interval detection unit that detects the time until the change of the contact point, a state transition management unit that changes the internal state of the operation target by the time obtained from the change of the first and second contact points and the execution time detection unit, and From the time obtained by the interval detection unit and the state transition obtained from the state transition management unit, the meaning of the function of the double button set by the state transition management unit or the sentence or pictogram indicating the guidance for the next operation is displayed. The interface device is configured to have a display management unit that controls the display timing of a selected message and a display unit that displays the selected message.

Further, a plurality of contacts are arranged under the periphery of the button having the pictograms engraved on the surface thereof, and a display unit for displaying the pictograms identical to the pictograms engraved on the button on the screen, and the center of the button and the user The interface device is configured to have a pictogram control unit that moves a displayed pictogram in the same direction as the direction in which the pressed contact point is slid.

[0012]

According to the present invention, by providing the above-mentioned means, the buttons of the remote controller are provided with the concavities and convexities that contribute to the tactile sensation and the concavities and convexities that only contribute to the visibility, so that a button that is easy to recognize even when touched or seen. Can be provided.

Further, when the meaning of the button is lost during operation, the user can receive the message from the display screen by half-pressing the button.
At this time, in the user's thinking, the operation can be executed without having to worry about the search procedure and the presence of the help key that must be provided separately, so that a more user-friendly device can be realized.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of an interface device for AV equipment according to the present invention.
(A), (b) and (c) are the planes of the buttons, and (d) and (e)
(F) is the sectional view on the AA line of (a) (b) (c).

In FIG. 1, 1 is a button for operating a television and a video, 2 is a concavo-convex portion showing a tele-video, 3 is a cross section of the button 1, 4 is a button for operating a CD, 5 is a concavo-convex portion showing a CD, 6 is a cross section of the button 4, 7 is a button for operating the music cassette and the FM radio, 8 is an uneven portion representing a boombox, and 9 is a cross section of the button 7.

The basic operation will be described with reference to the button 1 shown in FIG. If the upper part of button 1 is pressed, the video is played, and if the lower part is pressed, the video is stopped and the television image is displayed. Press the right button to fast forward, and the left button to rewind. That is, although it is one button, it has four contacts inside depending on the position where it is pressed.

The present embodiment is characterized in that a pictographic character constituted by a concavo-convex shape is arranged to represent an operation target of these contacts. In the uneven portion 2 of FIG. 1A, the video-integrated television is expressed by the uneven shape. The user can recognize the television outline 10, the cathode ray tube 11, and the video receiving port 12 thereunder by viewing. Further, these irregularities can be separated into a visible irregularity portion which can be recognized only by looking at it and a tactile irregularity portion which can be recognized not only by looking but also by touching with a finger.

In FIG. 2, the tactile concavo-convex portion is shown by hatching in the concavo-convex portion. 2A shows button 1, FIG. 2B shows button 4, and FIG. 2C shows button 7. When the user touches the button 1 with a finger, the user first touches the CRT 11. This is the shaded portion 16 in FIG. 2A, which can be recognized as a convex curved surface. Next, the television outline 10 is recognized as a convex quadrangle like a shaded portion 15. That is, the user can easily recognize the video-integrated television from the convex curved surface and the quadrangle even by touching it with a finger. From the point of view of tactile sensation, the convex portion is very easy to recognize, but the convex portion needs to have a certain size in order to recognize its outer shape feature. For example, the following range (condition 1) is required. However, (Condition 1) has a slightly different value depending on the type of button material and the roughness of the surface.

(Condition 1) If the range is a circle with a height d> 0.2 [mm] and a width w> 3 [mm], and a height d> 0.2 [mm] and a diameter w> 3 [mm] (condition 1), For example, the presence and shape of the convex portion can be recognized by just touching it with a finger. Outside the range, the convex portion can be slightly recognized, but it is extremely difficult to recognize its shape.

On the other hand, the video receiving port 12 is designed so that it is difficult to recognize it only by touching it with a finger.
This is determined by the depth d and the width w of the recess in FIG. The threshold can be expressed as, for example, (condition 2). However, similar to (Condition 1), the value is slightly different depending on the type of material of the button and the roughness of the surface.

(Condition 2) A rectangle having a depth d <0.2 [mm] and a width w <3 [mm] and a circle having a depth d <0.2 [mm] and a diameter w <3 [mm] (condition 2) For example, even if the presence of the concave portion can be slightly recognized by just touching it with a finger, it is very difficult to recognize the shape thereof.

Therefore, the video receiving port 12 cannot be recognized only by the finger, that is, the tactile sensation. However, tactile perception is generally much lower than visibility. Therefore, when recognizing from the tactile sensation, an uneven portion having a configuration using a typical feature of the recognition target is desirable, and the presence of other uneven portions reduces the recognition performance by the finger. Therefore, if the video receiving port 12 cannot be recognized from the tactile sensation, the recognition as a video-integrated television becomes easier.

Next, FIG. 1B shows a button for operating only the CD, and the concavo-convex portion 5 expresses the CD itself. Further, the groove 13 is formed in the uneven portion 5, but this portion does not contribute to the tactile sensation because it is within the range of (Condition 2). That is, the CD can be imagined from the tactile sensation by recognizing the outer circle 17 of the shaded portion of the CD as a circle and the inner circle 18 of the shaded portion as a hole of the CD as shown in FIG. 2B.

FIG. 1C shows buttons for operating the music cassette and the FM radio, and the uneven portion 8 represents a boombox. In addition, the concave and convex portion 8 has a groove 1 that represents the outer shape of the cassette.
4 is configured, but similarly, since it is within the range of (Condition 2), it does not contribute to the tactile sensation. From the tactile sensation, it can be recognized as shown by the shaded portions 19, 20, and 21 in FIG. The two shaded portions 19 and 20 represent the cassette, and the shaded portion 21 represents the entire boombox.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a remote controller (hereinafter referred to as a remote controller) in which the buttons of FIG. 1 are arranged. The user can intuitively select a button from the concave-convex portions formed in the buttons 1, 4, 7, and the buttons 1, 4, 7 can be easily selected from the concave-convex portions formed in the button without looking at the remote controller. Can be selected, and the functions of the up, down, left and right of the uneven portion can be selected.

As described above, in this embodiment, the button is provided with the uneven portion, and the uneven portion which contributes to the visibility and the uneven portion which contributes only to the tactile feeling are separately designed so that they can be seen or touched. Can be recognized.

The second embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 shows A in the present invention.
It is a second embodiment of the interface device using the V equipment.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 24 designates a first contact point before the time or movement interval in the case of one push with a finger, and a second contact point afterward.
A double button provided with a contact of 25, an execution interval detector 25 for detecting the time from the change of the first contact to the change of the second contact, 26 is a change and execution interval of the first and second contacts A state transition management unit that changes the internal state of the operation target according to the time obtained by the detection unit 25, and 27 indicates the meaning of the function of the double button set by the state transition management unit 25, or guidance for the next operation. A display management unit that selects a sentence or pictogram to be displayed and controls the display timing based on the input from the execution time detection unit 25, and a display unit 28 that displays the selected sentence or pictogram.

Next, an example of the operation of the double button 24 will be described with reference to FIG. 5 (a) (c) (e)
Shows a process in which the double button 24 is pushed by the finger 29. FIG. 5B shows the state of the contact at the time of FIG. 5A, and the two contacts 30 and 31 are in the OFF state. In (c), it is pushed a little, and in (d), only contact 30 is turned on.
State. In (e), both the contacts 30 and 31 are turned on when the button is pressed considerably. When the finger 29 is released from the double button 24, the reverse process described above is followed.

Next, this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3, 4 and 6. In FIG. 6, the double button 33 corresponds to the recording button 22 of the remote controller in FIG. A message is displayed on the display unit 23 when the button is pressed with a finger. The display unit 23 is the display unit 2 of FIG.
Similar to 8. Only the first contact is in the ON state at (b), (e), (h), and the first and second contacts are in the ON state at (c), (f). is there.

In FIG. 6, by pushing with the finger 32, the state from (a) to (b) is entered, and the message (i)
Is displayed on the display unit 28 through the display management unit 27.
It is understood that the user can record by pressing the button as it is. However, the user who knows the operation shifts from the state of (a) to the state of (c) without stopping in the lightly pressed state of (b). The execution interval detector 25 detects the ON or OFF interval between the first contact and the second contact. Then, based on the time when the state (a) shifts to the state (c), the display management unit 27 prevents the message (i) from being issued. Therefore, the time when the message (i) is displayed is set to be always delayed by the time when the finger 32 shifts from (a) to (c) even in the state of (b). Further, in (c), the state of recording is set, and the finger is released from the button to be in the state of (d). At this time, if the display management unit 27 confirms the message (i) in the state of (b), the message (k) is displayed, and the message (k) is displayed to the user who does not confirm the state of (b). Do not show.

Next, the recording time is displayed in the state where (e) is lightly pressed. At this time, when the transition time from (d) to (f) is short, the message (l) is not displayed and the next message (m) is displayed by the same method as the message (i). In (f), the time increases every time the button is pressed, and returns to 0 after the maximum recording time of 3 hours. The message (n) is displayed only when the message (l) is displayed when the finger is released to the state of (g). Finally, the message (o) of the remaining time can be confirmed in the state of (h).

Thus, the messages (i), (k),
(L) and (n) are displayed immediately when the user hesitates to press the button. As a result, button operation will not be lost.

In addition, although one recording button has been described in the embodiment, the operation can be instructed by a message even when the operation involves a plurality of buttons.

As described above, the present embodiment infers the user's proficiency level from the movement of the finger 32, causes the unskilled user to display many messages, and the well-known user to
It is possible to refrain from displaying the message so that the message itself does not interfere with the user.

Next, FIG. 7 shows the button 1 in FIG.
6 is a function table in the case where the contacts arranged vertically and horizontally are composed of two contacts as shown in FIG. It will be described that the same effect as the record button can be obtained with the configuration of FIG. The video status of the target device includes a stop status, a playback status, and a pause, and the button functions differ depending on the status.
Of these, pay particular attention to the operation of the left and right contacts of the button 1.
In the stopped state, if the right side of the button 1 is lightly pressed, fast forward is performed, and "fast forward" is displayed on the display unit 23 in FIG. If you press it too hard, it will be the cue and fast forward. Since a delay is set for the time when the message "fast forward" is selected and displayed by the display management unit 27, if the button is pushed to the beginning fast forward before the delay time, it is displayed on the display unit 23. "Fast forward" is not displayed, but "Fast forward"
Is displayed. Here, the cue fast-forward is an operation of fast-forwarding to the beginning of the next program when there are a plurality of programs recorded on the video tape.

This method is the same for fast-forward playback and cue fast-forward playback, or for single-frame and continuous-frame advance.

As described above, in the present embodiment, it is possible to perform an appropriate display even when the function of each contact of the double button is different.

FIG. 8 shows a third embodiment of the interface device using AV equipment according to the present invention. In FIG. 8, the reference numeral 34 indicates an uneven portion 35 on the surface, and
A button with contacts 36, 37, 38, 39, 40
Is a pictogram control unit, and 41 is a display unit.

The operation will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 9A, the user presses the contact on the left side of the button 34 with the finger 42. On the other hand, on the screen 43 of the display unit 41, the pictogram 44 similar to the pictogram of the concave and convex portion 35 is formed by the pictogram control unit 40 as an image. In this case, the pictogram 44 serves as a pointer that points to a position on the screen. More fingers 4
The contact 37 is changed by the operation 2 and the pictogram 44 is controlled to move to the left. Similarly, if the up / down / left / right of the button is pressed with a finger, the pictogram 44 on the screen moves up / down / left / right. It provides much like a computer mouse. However, the difference is that the pictograms are visually and tactually recognized.

As described above, in the present embodiment, a pointer that is easier to recognize can be realized by expressing the same shape as the pictographic characters engraved on the uneven portion as an image on the screen.

[0042]

As described above, according to the present invention, the concavo-convex portion is formed on the button, and the concavo-convex portion that contributes to the visibility and the concavo-convex portion that contributes only to the tactile sensation are designed separately. Even if you touch it, you will be able to recognize it.

In addition, the user's degree of proficiency is inferred from the action of the finger pressing the button, so that many unskilled users are allowed to display many messages, and well-known users are prevented from seeing the message itself. You can refrain from displaying.

[Brief description of drawings]

1A to 1C are views showing a concave and convex button of an interface device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 1D to 1F are lines AA of FIGS. 1A to 1C. Cross section

2A to 2C are diagrams showing the tactile sensation of this example.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a remote controller of this embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an interface device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

5A to 5F are views showing a button having two contacts according to the present embodiment.

6A to 6O are diagrams showing button operations.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing button functions.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an interface device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

9A and 9B are diagrams showing pointers.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 4, 7, 34 Buttons 2, 5, 8, 35 Concavo-convex section 3, 6, 9 Cross-sectional view 10 Television outline 11 CRT 12 Video receiving port 13, 14 Groove 15, 16, 19, 20, 21 Shaded section 17 Outer circle of shaded area 18 Inner circle of shaded area 22 Recording button 23 Display section 24, 33 Double button 25 Execution interval detection section 26 State transition management section 27 Display management section 28 Display section 29, 32, 42 Finger 30 First contact point 31 Second Contact points 36, 37, 38, 39 Contact point 40 Pictogram control section 41 Display section 43 Screen 44 Pictogram

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A tactile concavo-convex portion having a concavo-convex shape that can be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin, and whether it cannot be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin,
Or, it is difficult to recognize, but it is provided with a visibility irregularity portion having an irregularity shape that can be recognized when looking at the button, and a pictogram representing the meaning of the button is formed by using the tactile irregularity portion and the visibility irregularity portion. An interface device comprising a button imprinted on the surface. 2. A tactile convex portion having a convex shape that can be recognized from the tactile sense of the skin, and a concave shape that cannot be recognized or is difficult to recognize from the tactile sense of the skin, but can be easily recognized when the button is seen. An interface device comprising a visibility concave portion having: and a tactile convex portion and the visibility concave portion are used to form a button in which a pictograph representing the meaning of the button is engraved on the button surface. 3. A double button having a first contact and a second contact after the time when the button is pressed once or an interval of button movement, and when the first contact changes, the double button is provided. An execution interval detection unit that detects the time until the change of the second contact, and a state transition management that changes the internal state of the operation target by the time obtained from the change of the first and second contacts and the execution interval detection unit. Unit, the time obtained by the execution interval detection unit, and the state transition obtained from the state transition management unit, the meaning of the function of the double button set by the state transition management unit, or for the next operation. An interface device comprising: a display management unit that controls a display time by selecting a sentence or pictogram indicating guidance, and a display unit that displays a selected message. 4. A display unit for arranging a plurality of contacts on the lower part of the periphery of a button having a pictogram engraved on the surface thereof, for displaying on the screen the same pictogram as the pictogram engraved on the button, and the center of the button and depending on the user. An interface device, comprising: a pictogram control unit that moves a displayed pictogram in the same direction as the direction in which the position of the pressed contact is slid.