KR101749031B1 - Apparatus and method for generating virtual force information - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention proposes an apparatus and method for generating virtual force information for detecting a degree of depression of a touch screen by a user in a device having a touch screen without sensing a degree of decompression and outputting an electrical signal corresponding thereto. An apparatus according to the present invention includes an input information obtaining unit for obtaining touch input information generated when a device is touched; A touch information estimator for estimating at least one of first information related to the ratio, second information related to the acceleration, third information related to the intensity, and fourth information related to the distribution based on the touch input information; And a force information generating unit for virtually generating force information related to the touch input based on at least one of the first to fourth information.

Description

[0001] Apparatus and method for generating virtual force information [

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for generating force information. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for virtually generating force information.

Mobile devices that provide various functions depending on the degree of pressing force of a touch screen provided in a mobile terminal or the like have been developed and released. However, conventional terminals recognize force touch by using a separate pressure sensor that can measure the degree of force of pressing the touch screen. Therefore, in the case of the touch screen not provided with the pressure-reducing sensor capable of measuring the degree of the depressurization, there is a limitation that the user can not measure the degree of pressing the touch screen.

Korea Patent Publication No. 2011-0123093 (published on November 14, 2011, entitled: Touch Screen Device)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for detecting a degree of depression of a touch screen, And an apparatus and method for generating virtual force information.

However, the objects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other objects not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a touch input device including: an input information obtaining unit that obtains touch input information generated when a device is touched; A touch information estimator for estimating at least one of first information related to the rate, second information related to the acceleration, third information related to the intensity, and fourth information related to the distribution based on the touch input information; And a force information generator for virtually generating force information related to a touch input based on at least one of the first information and the fourth information.

Preferably, the input information obtaining unit obtains at least one of a touch area, a touch duration, a pulse value of a panel according to a touch, a current value of a panel according to a touch, and a touch distribution as the touch input information.

Preferably, the touch information estimating unit estimates at least one of a rate of change associated with the touch area and a rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information.

Preferably, the touch information estimating unit estimates a change rate associated with the touch duration as the first information based on pattern information of each group calculated using a signal detection theory.

Preferably, the touch information estimating unit estimates the second information based on the two pieces of rate-of-change information obtained by the first information, or calculates one of the rate-of-change information selected from the rate-of-change information and the sensing information obtained using the gyro sensor Estimates the second information based on the fourth information or the sensing information, or estimates the second information based on the fourth information and the sensing information.

Preferably, the touch information estimator uses the rate of change associated with the touch area and the rate of change associated with the touch duration when estimating the second information based on the two rate of change information as the two rate of change information, The rate of change associated with the touch area when estimating the second information based on one rate of change information and the sensing information is used as the rate of change information.

Preferably, the touch information estimator estimates the third information based on at least one of a pulse value of the panel according to the touch and a current value of the panel according to the touch, or estimates the touch distribution as the fourth information.

Preferably, the force information generation unit calculates a difference value between any one of the first information and the second information and the previous information, and compares the difference with at least one reference value, And generates the force information.

Preferably, the force information generation unit compares the reference value with the difference value in order from a first reference value having a minimum value when the reference value is at least two, and when a second reference value having a value larger than the difference value is detected, And generates the force information based on the order information of the reference value.

Preferably, the force information virtual generating apparatus further includes a recognition range determining unit for determining a recognition range of the touch input, and the touch information estimating unit may calculate a change rate related to the touch area as the first information based on the recognition range .

Preferably, the recognition range determining unit determines the recognition range on the basis of the length information in the uniaxial direction and the length information in the other axis direction obtained from the first touch input or the previous touch input.

Preferably, the force information virtual production apparatus operates on a device not equipped with a sensor for recognizing the force information.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a touch screen display device, comprising: acquiring touch input information generated when a device is touched; Estimating at least one of information related to the ratio based on the touch input information, second information related to the acceleration, third information related to the intensity, and fourth information related to the distribution. And generating virtual force information related to a touch input based on at least one of the first information and the fourth information.

Preferably, the acquiring step acquires at least one of a touch area, a duration of a touch, a pulse value of a panel according to a touch, a current value of a panel according to a touch, and a touch distribution as the touch input information.

Preferably, the estimating step estimates at least one of a rate of change associated with the touch area and a rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information.

Preferably, the estimating step estimates a rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information based on pattern information of each group calculated using Signal Detection Theory.

Preferably, the estimating step estimates the second information based on the two pieces of rate-of-change information obtained from the first information, or calculates one of the rate-of-change information selected from the rate-of-change information and the sensing information obtained using the gyro sensor Estimates the second information based on the fourth information or the sensing information, or estimates the second information based on the fourth information and the sensing information.

Preferably, the estimating step uses the rate of change associated with the touch area and the rate of change associated with the touch duration when estimating the second information based on the two rate of change information as the two rate of change information, The rate of change associated with the touch area when estimating the second information based on one rate of change information and the sensing information is used as the rate of change information.

Preferably, the estimating step estimates the third information based on at least one of the pulse value of the panel according to the touch and the current value of the panel according to the touch, or estimates the touch distribution as the fourth information.

Preferably, the generating step calculates a difference value between any one of the first information and the second information and the previous information, and based on a result obtained by comparing the difference value with at least one reference value And generates the force information.

Preferably, the generating step compares the reference value with the difference value in order from a first reference value having a minimum value when at least two reference values are used, and when a second reference value having a value larger than the difference value is detected, And generates the force information based on the order information of the reference value.

Preferably, prior to the acquiring step, further comprising the step of determining a recognition range of the touch input, wherein the estimating step estimates a change rate associated with the touch area as the first information based on the recognition range .

Preferably, the determining step determines the recognition range on the basis of the length information in the uniaxial direction and the length information in the other axis direction obtained from the first touch input or the previous touch input.

Preferably, the force information virtual generation method operates on a device not equipped with a sensor for recognizing the force information.

The present invention can achieve the following effects through the above-described configurations.

First, even a device having a touch screen, which does not have a decompression sensor that detects the degree of decompression and outputs an electrical signal corresponding thereto, can detect the degree of the user pressing the touch screen.

Second, it can be applied to all terminals by being manufactured in an application form.

1 to 3 are reference views for explaining the first embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a reference diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a reference diagram for explaining a third embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a reference diagram for explaining a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a reference diagram for explaining a sixth embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a flowchart illustrating a process using a virtual force touch according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a force information virtualization apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a force information generation method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used to designate the same or similar components throughout the drawings. In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may make the subject matter of the present invention rather unclear. In addition, the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below, but it is needless to say that the technical idea of the present invention is not limited thereto and can be variously modified by those skilled in the art.

The present invention relates to a virtual force touch capable of realizing a force touch by inferring the force of a finger when touching a device based on a contact area in a device (hereinafter referred to as a force touch non-contact device) Force touch interaction.

In order to recognize the finger force of the user at the current device, the force is recognized on the screen such as a sensor attached to the hardware (eg, a decompression sensor) or a gel-type substance. If the existing touch interface uses a long press that reflects only the number of times and the time of the tap, the present invention enables users to support various touch interactions using force even in a device which can not recognize the force touch.

Hereinafter, a virtual force touch algorithm for applying force touch in a non-force touch device will be described.

The present invention proposes the following method for inferring force interaction. When calculating based on the rate of change, it is necessary to calculate (1) the area change rate of the finger, (2) the time change based on the signal detection theory, (3) based on (1) and (2) The change of the acceleration is calculated through In order to recognize the intensity of the force of the finger from the beginning, it is recognized based on (4) the contact area of the finger, (5) the pulse of the finger, and (6) Finally, (7) describe how to infer the angle of the finger and force based on the shape of the contact surface of the finger.

(1) First embodiment: The force is recognized based on the rate of change of the width of the finger contact surface

In the present invention, it is determined that the input step of the force increases when the change in the ratio of the entire contact surface of the finger exceeds an interval (i).

In the present invention, the section from the center to the point farthest from the center in the contact surface of the finger is recognized as the diameter (r). In the present invention, when the contacted finger exceeds the set i set in steps, it is recognized that the phase of the force touch has changed.

For example, it is assumed that the two-stage force is recognized as shown in FIG. In this case, when the change of the contact area by the interval i is recognized in the apparatus to which the present invention is applied, it is recognized that the phase of the force is increased by one step. If the change of the contact area exceeding 2i is detected, Is increased by two stages.

Meanwhile, the area setting and the dividing method through the pattern matching according to the screen coordinates of the contact surface are as follows.

Firstly, a method of newly capturing an area will be described, and a method for distinguishing a new step based on the area will be described.

Smart devices such as smart phones and tablets should be capable of recognizing the increase and decrease of area in order to provide input values by measuring area through electrostatic touch method. In order to recognize the value of the user input simply by increasing or decreasing the area in the conventional manner, it is necessary to measure only the change of the area and the change of the area. In this case, however, the user may receive an unintended input when the area changes which can not be controlled by the user.

Therefore, in the present invention, the pattern of the area is recognized by judging the change of the finger area through the change ratio of the area. By receiving the input through increasing or decreasing the recognized pattern and finger area, the user is prevented from unintended input and suggests a method for correct input. The following description refers to Fig.

Fig. 2 (a) is an example of a case of being sagged left and right, and Fig. 2 (b) is an example of a case of being sagged up and down. And (c) is an example of a case close to a circle.

As shown in Fig. 2, in the case of (a), it is a case of being sideways. In order to judge that it is stretched to the left and right, the ratio of Rx and Ry is considered and Ry / Rx <1. Therefore, when the pattern change is increased with respect to the threshold value (LRIDth) for increase / decrease between Ry / Rx (initial value) and Ry '/ Rx' (change value), the pattern is recognized as a pattern and set as a threshold value therefor.

In the same case, as in (b), when Ry / Rx> 1, the value is increased or decreased with respect to the upper and lower thresholds (UDIDth).

When Ry / Rx = Ry / Rx = 1, the change pattern can be regarded as a circle and set as one intermediate value. That is, a change from (a) to (c) may result in a change to (b), and a change may also occur from (b) to (c) → (a). That is, (a) can be touched, (c) can be set to be a soft force, and (b) can be set to be the same as a strong force. In addition, a value can be specified through classification of a threshold value in which the value of the change in Ry / Rx is constant.

3 is a diagram showing input value setting for each step. In the composite pattern (c) of FIG. 3, IDth denotes one of LRIDth and UDIDth, and IDth 'denotes another one of LRIDth and UDIDth. For example, if IDth is LRIDth, IDth 'is UDIDth.

(2) Second embodiment: Based on the signal detection theory, the force is calculated by calculating the rate of change of finger contact time

To calculate the change of time, we use the observer's signal sensitivity and response criterion for group characteristics based on Signal Detection Theory (SDT).

The present invention calculates and analyzes patterns of people based on gender, nationality, proficiency level group, etc. based on experiments on force touch. As a result, a threshold for optimizing a hit value is calculated as shown in FIG. 4, and an optimized time-varying pattern is calculated for each group. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the result of calculating an optimized threshold value of the Signal Detection Theory.

(3) Third Embodiment: To calculate the acceleration of the finger, the width of the contact surface, the rate of change of time, the gyro sensor and the like are used

In the present invention, the finger contact surface described in the first embodiment, the time rate of change described in the second embodiment, and the gyro sensor mounted on the device are used to calculate the change in acceleration.

First, the first method for calculating the acceleration is to calculate based on the finger contact area and time variation. When the center of the contact surface of the finger changes, it is assumed that the change of the force is accompanied by the acceleration. Thus, the change in force is calculated based on the rate of change in total acceleration. In this case, if the acceleration is different for each interval of t, the change of the acceleration by the interval is calculated. At this time, the acceleration (a) is calculated based on the change of the distance d of the finger and the change of the time t.

a = DELTA d / DELTA t

Similarly to the situation described in the first embodiment, when the change in the acceleration of the touched finger exceeds the set i in steps, the present invention recognizes that the phase of the force touch has changed. In this case, when it is recognized that acceleration of the device to which the present invention is applied is changed, it is recognized that the phase of the force has increased by one step. If a change of acceleration exceeding 2i is detected, .

Suppose, as shown in FIG. 5, that such a change in acceleration is not continuous and that a rapid change occurs in each section. FIG. 5 shows a graph of the change in the virtual force touch according to the interval.

For example, as shown in Fig. 5, suppose that the change in the area of the first 0.1 second interval and the subsequent 0.2 second interval of the 0.3 second time period in which the finger contacts the display, that is, the acceleration per interval is 10 and 20, respectively. In this case, the acceleration variation of each section is calculated in the present invention.

Also, in the present invention, based on a gyro sensor mounted on the device, the acceleration that the actual user applies to the display is calculated. The user tilts and positions the display when he or she actually tries to perform a touch interaction through a finger while using a device such as a smart phone. As with the touch interaction, the display moves in three dimensions when the user holding the device hands on the display. In the present invention, this acceleration is calculated by a gyro sensor attached to the device to estimate the input of the force.

(4) Fourth Embodiment: The force is recognized through the area of the finger contact surface

In the present invention, a change in the contact area of the finger is deduced to recognize the magnitude of the force. The section from the center to the point farthest from the center is called the radius (r). In the present invention, the area of the contact surface is determined based on the diameter. If we want to distinguish between phases of a force, if we call the whole step n depth, we distinguish this step according to the change of r increased by the same interval.

Fig. 6 is a view showing a change in the diameter r of the contact area.

(5) Fifth Embodiment: Recognition based on a finger pulse

In the present invention, the size of a pulse (hereinafter referred to as p) is recognized based on the contact area of the finger to recognize the magnitude of the force. The present invention uses the size of the touch panel inside the contact surface of the display to distinguish the force, assuming that the intensity of the force applied to the contact surface of the finger is proportional to the intensity of the pulse of the finger sensed by the display. If we want to distinguish the steps of the force in the contact surface, if the overall step is n depth, the present invention distinguishes these steps according to the change of p increased at the same interval.

(6) Sixth embodiment: recognition based on the microcurrent of the finger

In the present invention, a change in the microcurrent (m) in the contact area is used to recognize the magnitude of the force. The present invention uses the size of the touch panel inside the contact surface of the display, assuming that the intensity of the force applied to the contact surface of the finger is proportional to the intensity of the microcurrent sensed by the touch panel. If we want to distinguish the steps of the force in the contact surface, if the entire step is called n depth, the present invention distinguishes these steps according to the change of m increased at the same interval.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a change in micro-current intensity (m) per finger.

(7) Seventh Embodiment: Inferring the angle of the finger and force based on the shape of the contact surface

In addition, in the present invention, not only the area of the contact surface but also the shape are measured to determine the distribution of the force of the finger and the angle depending on the display.

First, the present invention determines the volume (v) of a finger and a finger based on the shape of a contact surface. The present invention secures the contact surface shape of each finger by sex, nationality, proficiency group, etc. calculated by the force touch test. Based on this, v is deduced as the shape of the contact surface, and the phase of the force is calculated according to v for each finger.

In the present invention, the shear force is measured by calculating the shape of the contact surface and the acceleration in the gyro sensor of the device. Shear force is defined as follows. Generally, a finger usually comes into direct contact with the display and exerts a force, but in Shear Force, the finger touches the display and exerts a force at various angles.

In the present invention, two methods are used to calculate the shear force. First, the input of the force is estimated by simultaneously calculating the acceleration of the measured display using the gyro sensor together with the width of the display contact surface. This follows the assumption of the present invention that the tilt and position of the display changes when performing force-touch based interaction, as described in the third embodiment, and that the gyro sensor can calculate it.

The process using the virtual force touch as described above is as shown in FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process using a virtual force touch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

For the virtual force touch, we extract the values that the virtual force touch can occur through the force database which is set in advance for the seven ways of recognizing the force, and change it to the actual force (Newton) value. And provides a method of providing a force touch UI to a user by applying six or more touches related to touch in each step.

First, the virtual force touch recognition system determines whether a touch is input (JT: Just Touch) (S110).

If it is determined that the touch is not inputted, the virtual force touch recognition system determines that the touch is NT (Non Touch) and ends the process.

On the other hand, if it is judged that the touch is inputted, the virtual force touch recognition system calculates seven kinds (area, area change rate, time change rate, acceleration according to area and time change, finger pulse, finger shape, panel pulse, etc.) And determines whether or not the force is generated in accordance with each change (isForce) (S120).

The virtual force touch recognition method in step S120 is performed through matching between the touch input and the information stored in the database (Force DB), and the checking force is as follows.

1. Ms_chg < Ms_f (th)

2. Ms_R <Ms_R_f (th)

3. T-elapsed <T_f (th)

4. Acc < Acc_f (th)

5. F_pls < F_pls_f (th)

6. F_shp < F_shp_f (th)

7. P_pul <P_pul_f (th)

If it is determined in step S120 that the force is not detected, the virtual force touch recognition system determines that the touch input is LT (Long Touch) (S180) and ends the process.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S120 that the force is detected, the virtual force touch recognition system determines whether the force value is less than the minimum value (isForce < minF) (S130).

In step S130, the virtual force touch generated through the virtual force touch database changes the force value of the force touch to a new value. Based on the cognitive characteristic and the mechanical engineering characteristic, (Step). This depth is determined by the previous virtual force touch value.

The virtual force-touch cognitive and engineering depth classification method in step S130 is performed through a depth matching between the touch input and the information stored in the database (Force DB), wherein the Checking Force and the Cognitive & Engineering Threshold are as follows .

- Checking Force -

1. Ms_chg < Ms_f (th)

2. Ms_R <Ms_R_f (th)

3. T-elapsed <T_f (th)

4. Acc < Acc_f (th)

5. F_pls < F_pls_f (th)

6. F_shp < F_shp_f (th)

7. P_pul <P_pul_f (th)

- Cognitive & Engineering Threshold -

1. Min depth

2. Second depth

3. ...

4. Max depth

If it is determined in step S130 that the POS value is less than the minimum value, the virtual force touch recognition system determines that the touch input is OT (Out of Touch) (S140) and ends the process.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S130 that the force value is equal to or greater than the minimum value, the virtual force touch recognition system determines whether the force value exceeds the maximum value (isForce> maxF) (S150).

If it is determined that the force value is greater than the maximum value, the virtual force touch recognition system determines that the touch input is ST (Strong Force Touch) (S160) and performs the operation from step S120 again.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the force value is less than the maximum value, the virtual force touch recognition system determines that the touch input is WT (Weak force Touch) (S170) and performs the operation from step S120 again.

The present invention described above proposes an algorithm capable of recognizing the force of the finger even when the sensor capable of sensing the force touch is not mounted on the hardware. In the case of the conventional touch interface, only the interaction that reflects only the number of times of the tap or the tap time was possible, and there was no algorithm that can recognize the strength of the force.

In the present invention, the force of the finger is recognized based on the width and the time pattern of the contact surface when the user touches the display, and the pulse and microcurrent of the finger. In addition, according to the movement of the finger, the ratio of the force of the finger is calculated by recognizing the change of the width, time, and acceleration of the contact surface.

The present invention implements an algorithm capable of recognizing various patterns when a person touched a display by applying a force to the display, thereby realizing the interaction using the force of the finger even in a device without the force touch. This will actually provide a user experience similar to ForceTouch.

Since existing smart devices are flat-panel displays, they have a limitation that they can be input / output only by touching. Therefore, existing touch interaction can perform limited interaction such as tab and swipe based on the length and number of times and contact area of finger. In the case of ForceTouch, which is currently being introduced, various interactions are possible reflecting the force of the finger. However, there is a limitation that the force can be recognized only when a sensor or gel-type material capable of sensing the force touch is mounted on the hardware.

According to the present invention, the optimum value of the contact surface width, the time pattern, and the shape of the contact surface is calculated on the basis of the experiment that the force step of the force touch can be classified. In addition, the force of the finger is inferred based on the pulse of the finger and the magnitude of the microcurrent of the touch panel. Accordingly, in the present invention, the accuracy of the algorithm is improved by distinguishing not only the phase of the force of the finger but also the step of the finger and the contact of the finger in the front and the non-front.

If the algorithm proposed in the present invention is applied, various interactions can be performed while replacing hardware based force touch. In other words, it has high market value because it can improve user convenience and satisfaction while minimizing development cost.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention has been described with reference to Figs. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Hereinafter, preferred forms of the present invention that can be inferred from the above embodiment will be described.

9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a force information virtualization apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The force information virtual creation apparatus 200 is characterized in that it operates on a device not equipped with a sensor for recognizing the force information. 9, the force information virtual generating apparatus 200 includes an input information obtaining unit 210, a touch information estimating unit 220, a force information generating unit 230, a power supply unit 240, and a main control unit 250 do.

The power supply unit 240 performs a function of supplying power to each of the components constituting the force information virtualization apparatus 200. The main control unit 250 performs a function of controlling the overall operation of each of the components constituting the force information virtual generating apparatus 200. The power supply unit 240 and the main control unit 250 may not be provided in the present embodiment in consideration of the fact that the force information virtualization apparatus 200 is mounted on a device such as a smart phone or a tablet.

The input information obtaining unit 210 performs a function of obtaining touch input information generated when a user touches the device.

The input information obtaining unit 210 may obtain at least one of a touch area, a touch duration, a pulse value of a panel according to a touch, a current value of a panel according to a touch, and a touch distribution as touch input information.

The touch information estimating unit 220 estimates the touch information based on the first information related to the rate, the second information related to the acceleration, the third information related to the intensity, and the distribution related to the intensity based on the touch input information obtained by the input information obtaining unit 210 And estimates at least one of the fourth information.

The touch information estimating unit 220 may estimate at least one of a rate of change associated with the touch area and a rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information. At this time, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information based on the pattern information for each group calculated using the signal detection theory (Signal Detection Theory).

The touch information estimating unit 220 estimates the rate of change associated with the touch duration as the first information based on the pattern information for each group stored in the database. Pattern information per group stored in the database can be calculated in advance using signal detection theory.

The touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the second information based on the two rate of change information obtained as the first information. The touch information estimating unit 220 may use the rate of change associated with the touch area and the rate of change associated with the touch duration as two rate of change information when estimating the second information based on the two rate of change information.

Also, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the second information based on the sensing information obtained using the rate-of-change information and the gyro sensor selected from the two rate-of-change information. The touch information estimating unit 220 may use the rate of change associated with the touch area as one rate of change information when estimating the second information based on any one of the rate of change information and the sensing information.

Also, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the second information based on the fourth information and the sensing information. Meanwhile, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the second information based only on the sensing information obtained using the gyro sensor.

The touch information estimating unit 220 may estimate the third information based on at least one of the pulse value of the panel according to the touch and the current value of the panel according to the touch. Also, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the touch distribution as the fourth information.

The force information generation unit 230 performs a function of virtually generating force information related to touch input based on at least one of the first information to the fourth information estimated by the touch information estimation unit 220. [

The force information generation unit 230 calculates a difference value between any one of the first information and the second information and the previous information and compares the difference value with at least one reference value to generate the force information based on the result Can be generated.

When at least two reference values are used, the force information generation unit 230 compares the first reference value having the minimum value with the difference value in order from the first reference value. If the second reference value having a value larger than the difference value is detected, Force information can be generated on the basis.

For example, a plurality of reference values i, 2i, 3i, ... , and ni. The force information generating unit 230 generates i, 2i, 3i, ..., , ni are sequentially compared with the difference values to determine which reference values are located between the difference values. If it is determined that the difference value is larger than 2i and smaller than 3i, the force information generation unit 230 determines the first reference value and the second reference value as i and 3i, respectively. When the second reference value is 3i, the second reference value is located third from the first reference value. That is, the order information of the second reference value (the position information of the second reference value when the first reference value is taken as a reference) is 3. Then, the force information generator 230 generates the force information on the assumption that the step of the force is increased by two steps based on the order information of the second reference value.

The force information virtual generation apparatus 200 may further include a recognition range determination unit 260. [

The recognition range determination unit 260 performs a function of determining a recognition range of the touch input. When the force information virtual generating apparatus 200 further includes the recognition range determining unit 260, the touch information estimating unit 220 determines whether or not the touch information is touched with the first information based on the recognition range determined by the recognition range determining unit 260 The rate of change associated with the area can be estimated.

The recognition range determination unit 260 can determine the recognition range based on the length information in the uniaxial direction and the length information in the other axis direction obtained from the first touch input or the previous touch input.

Next, an operation method of the force information virtual generating apparatus 200 will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a force information generation method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

First, the input information obtaining unit 210 obtains the touch input information generated when the device is touched (S310).

Then, the touch information estimating unit 220 estimates at least one of the first information related to the ratio, the second information related to the acceleration, the third information related to the intensity, and the fourth information related to the distribution based on the touch input information (S320).

Then, the force information generating unit 230 virtually generates the force information related to the touch input based on at least one of the first to fourth information (S330).

Meanwhile, before the step S310, the recognition range determination unit 260 can determine the recognition range of the touch input. Then, in step S320, the touch information estimating unit 220 can estimate the rate of change associated with the touch area as the first information based on the recognized range.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and all elements constituting the embodiment of the present invention described above are described as being combined or operated in one operation. That is, within the scope of the present invention, all of the components may be selectively coupled to one or more of them. In addition, although all of the components may be implemented as one independent hardware, some or all of the components may be selectively combined to perform a part or all of the functions in one or a plurality of hardware. As shown in FIG. In addition, such a computer program may be stored in a computer readable medium such as a USB memory, a CD disk, a flash memory, etc., and read and executed by a computer to implement an embodiment of the present invention. As the recording medium of the computer program, a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, a carrier wave medium, and the like can be included.

Furthermore, all terms including technical or scientific terms have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs, unless otherwise defined in the Detailed Description. Commonly used terms, such as predefined terms, should be interpreted to be consistent with the contextual meanings of the related art, and are not to be construed as ideal or overly formal, unless expressly defined to the contrary.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications, substitutions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. will be. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention and the accompanying drawings are intended to illustrate and not to limit the technical spirit of the present invention, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments and the accompanying drawings . The scope of protection of the present invention should be construed according to the following claims, and all technical ideas within the scope of equivalents should be construed as falling within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (18)

An input information acquisition unit for acquiring touch input information generated when a device is touched;
Based on the touch input information, touch information for estimating at least one of information related to the ratio of the contact area of the finger, second information related to the acceleration, third information related to the intensity, Estimation; And
A force information generating unit for virtually generating force information related to a touch input based on at least one of the first information and the fourth information,
/ RTI &gt;
Wherein the touch information estimating unit estimates the touch information based on a ratio between (i) a first length from a center of the contact area to a farthest point and (i) a second length from a center of the contact area to a closest point, Respectively,
Wherein the force information generation unit determines the change in the ratio between the first length and the second length and generates the force information by recognizing the change pattern of the contact area. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the input information obtaining unit obtains at least one of a touch area, a touch duration, a pulse value of a panel according to a touch, a current value of a panel according to a touch, and a touch distribution as the touch input information. Device. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the touch information estimating unit estimates at least one of a rate of change associated with a touch area and a rate of change associated with a touch duration as the first information. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the touch information estimator estimates a rate of change associated with a touch duration as the first information based on pattern information of each group calculated using a signal detection theory. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the touch information estimating unit estimates the second information based on the two pieces of change rate information obtained from the first information or generates the touch information based on the rate of change information selected from the rate of change information and the sensing information obtained using the gyro sensor, Estimates second information, or estimates the second information based on the fourth information and the sensing information. 6. The method of claim 5,
Wherein the touch information estimating unit uses the rate of change associated with the touch area and the rate of change associated with the touch duration when estimating the second information based on the two rate of change information as the two rate of change information, And a rate of change associated with the touch area when estimating the second information based on the sensing information is used as any one of the rate of change information. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the touch information estimation unit estimates the touch information as the third information based on at least one of a pulse value of the panel according to the touch and a current value of the panel according to the touch or estimates the touch distribution as the fourth information. Virtual device. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the force information generation unit calculates a difference value between any one of the first information and the second information and the previous information and compares the difference information with at least one reference value to generate the force information based on a result obtained by comparing the difference information with at least one reference value And generating the force information. 9. The method of claim 8,
Wherein the force information generating unit compares the first reference value having the minimum value with the difference value in order from the first reference value having a minimum value when the reference value is used in at least two of the plurality of reference values and if the second reference value having a value larger than the difference value is detected, And generates the force information based on the force information. The method according to claim 1,
A recognition range determining unit for determining a recognition range of the touch input,
Further comprising:
Wherein the touch information estimator estimates a change rate associated with the touch area as the first information based on the recognition range. 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the recognition range determining unit determines the recognition range on the basis of the length information in the uniaxial direction and the length information in the other axis direction obtained from the first touch input or the previous touch input. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the force information virtual generation device operates on a device not equipped with a sensor for recognizing the force information. Acquiring touch input information generated when a device is touched;
Estimating at least one of information related to the ratio of the contact area of the finger based on the touch input information, second information related to the acceleration, third information related to the intensity, and fourth information related to the distribution. And
Generating virtual force information related to touch input based on at least one of the first information and the fourth information;
/ RTI &gt;
Wherein estimating the information comprises estimating the information based on a ratio between (i) a first length from a center of the contact area to a farthest point and (i) a second length from a center of the contact area to a closest point, 1 information,
Wherein the step of virtually generating the force information comprises generating the force information by determining a change in the ratio between the first length and the second length and recognizing a change pattern of the contact area, . 14. The method of claim 13,
Wherein the estimating step estimates at least one of a rate of change associated with a touch area and a rate of change associated with a touch duration as the first information. 14. The method of claim 13,
Wherein the estimating step estimates the second information based on the two rate of change information obtained from the first information, or calculates the rate of change based on the rate of change information selected from the rate of change information and the sensing information obtained using the gyro sensor Estimating second information, or estimating the second information based on the fourth information and the sensing information. 16. The method of claim 15,
Wherein the estimating step uses the rate of change associated with the touch area and the rate of change associated with the touch duration when estimating the second information based on the two rate of change information as the two rate of change information, And a rate of change associated with the touch area when estimating the second information based on the sensing information is used as the rate of change information. 14. The method of claim 13,
Wherein the generating step calculates a difference value between any one of the first information and the second information and the previous information and compares the difference information with at least one reference value to generate the force information And generating a force information virtual generation method. 14. The method of claim 13,
Determining a recognition range of the touch input
Further comprising:
Wherein the estimating step estimates the rate of change associated with the touch area as the first information based on the recognition range.

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