TWI498806B - Electronic devices and methods for controlling electronic devices - Google Patents

Description

Electronic device and electronic device control method

The present invention relates to an electronic device; and more particularly to an electronic device that implements a touch screen function using a depth camera.

With the development of electronic technology, various consumer electronic products (such as notebook computers, electronic dictionaries, personal digital assistants, mobile phones, etc.) are moving toward miniaturization, which is convenient for users to carry and can be used anytime and anywhere. Usually, in order to avoid scratching of the display panel of the electronic product, the electronic product often uses a folded structure to cover the display panel on the main body portion.

Taking a notebook computer as an example, a notebook computer can be mainly divided into a main body and a screen connected to the main body through a pivoting mechanism. Therefore, when accommodating and carrying the notebook computer, the screen can be covered on the main body of the main body to prevent the surface of the screen from being scratched by foreign objects, or dust from entering the gap of the keyboard, or causing damage to the pivoting mechanism due to inadvertent collision. When the user wants to use the notebook, just open the screen of the notebook.

In general, the screen configured on the notebook is not a touch screen. However, the use of touch or other control methods to replace the operating mode of using the mouse or keyboard to control the electronic device has gradually become the mainstream of the market. Therefore, there is a need for a completely new electronic device design that can implement a touch screen function using a depth camera.

According to an embodiment of the invention, an electronic device includes a main body, a screen, an image taking device, and a protractor device. The host body includes a processing unit. The screen is pivotally connected to the main body of the main body. The image capturing device is coupled to the host body for acquiring the plurality of three-dimensional images, and further analyzing coordinates of the at least one predetermined object included in the three-dimensional image in the three-dimensional space. The measuring angle device is coupled to the main body and the screen to measure the angle between the main body and the screen. The processing unit calculates the range of the display area of the screen in the three-dimensional space according to the angle, and determines whether the predetermined object touches the display area of the screen according to the range of the display area and the coordinates of the predetermined object, and when the predetermined object is judged to be touched When the display area of the screen is displayed, it is further judged that one of the operational actions of the predetermined object in the display area.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a method for controlling an electronic device includes: acquiring a plurality of three-dimensional images through the image capturing device; analyzing coordinates of at least one predetermined object included in the three-dimensional image in a three-dimensional space; and measuring by a centrifugation device The angle between the main body of the electronic device and the screen, wherein the screen is pivotally connected to the main body; the display area of the screen is calculated in the three-dimensional space according to the angle; and the predetermined object is judged according to the range of the display area and the coordinates of the predetermined object. To the display area of the screen; and when the predetermined object is judged to touch the display area of the screen, judge the operation behavior of the predetermined object in the display area, and control the electronic device according to the operation behavior.

100‧‧‧Electronic devices

110, 210‧‧‧ host body

120, 220‧‧‧ screen

130, 230‧‧‧ image capture device

140, 240‧‧‧degree angle device

150‧‧‧Processing unit

160, 560‧‧‧Detection device

570‧‧‧Rotating device

580‧‧‧ trigger switch

1 is a block diagram showing an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view showing an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure.

Figure 3 is a side view showing an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flow chart showing a control method of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5A is a side view showing the image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a touch mode.

Fig. 5B is a side view showing the image taking device in a gesture mode according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6A is a side view showing an electronic device in a touch mode according to an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 6B is a side view showing the electronic device in a gesture mode according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to make the manufacturing, the operation, the objects, the advantages and the advantages of the present invention more obvious, the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings are described in detail as follows: Example: Figure 1 shows A block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device 100 may be a notebook computer, and may include at least a host body 110, a screen 120, an image capturing device 130, and a protractor device 140. The main body 110 can include at least the processing unit 150 and the detecting device 160. The screen 120 is pivotally connected to the main body 110 through a pivoting mechanism (not shown). The image capturing device 130 is coupled to the main body 110 for shooting or photographing The operation obtains a plurality of three-dimensional images, and further analyzes a coordinate of at least one predetermined object included in the three-dimensional image in a three-dimensional space. According to an embodiment of the invention, the image capture device 130 can include a camera (eg, a depth camera) and a control wafer. The control chip is used to control the shooting or photographing operation of the camera, as well as to analyze the three-dimensional image. The angle measuring device 140 is coupled to the main body 110 and the screen 120 for measuring the angle between the main body 110 and the screen 120.

2 is a top view of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the three-dimensional coordinate system used in the present invention is (X, Y, Z), and the coordinates of each component in a three-dimensional space are displayed by an upper view of the electronic device. It is assumed that the length of the screen 220 and the host body 210 is h , the width is w , and the angle device 240 is located at the origin, and its coordinates are (0, 0, 0). In this embodiment, the coordinates of the image capturing device 230 are used. Is ( a , 0, h ), where 0 ≦ a ≦ w .

Figure 3 is a side view showing an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is assumed that the vertex coordinates of one side of one of the screens 220 are (0, i , j ), and the angle formed between the main body 210 and the screen 220 is θ, where 0° ≦ θ ≦ 180°, therefore, according to the two-dimensional coordinates The conversion method can be used to derive the coordinates of the side vertices of the screen 220 as (0, h .sin θ, h .cos θ). As shown in the figure, since the side of the screen and the protractor device can be regarded as forming a line on the YZ plane in the three-dimensional space, the processing unit 150 can further be based on the coordinates (0, 0, 0) of the protractor device. The vertex coordinates (0, h .sin θ, h .cos θ) of the side of the screen 220 are calculated as one of the straight line equations of the line on the YZ plane: z . Sin θ- y . Cosθ=0 (1)

After obtaining the linear equation, the processing unit 150 can further define the range of the display area of the screen in the three-dimensional space according to the linear equation and the size of one of the screens, wherein only the coordinates ( x , y , z ) of any point in the three-dimensional space Satisfy the formula (1) and meet the following conditions:

The location of the point is attributed to the display area of the screen. It is worth noting that this assumes that the size of the screen is almost equal to the size of the display area. However, any person skilled in the art can make some changes and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, for example, further defining the display area in three dimensions according to the size of the display area. The scope is not limited to any one embodiment.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, after the processing unit 150 calculates the display area of the screen in a range of one of the three-dimensional space according to the angle between the screen and the main body of the main body, the image capturing device can be further taken (for example, the image capturing device 130/230). Obtaining a coordinate of at least one predetermined object included in the three-dimensional image in a three-dimensional space, wherein the predetermined object can be set by a corresponding software or application, so that the image capturing device (for example, the image capturing device 130/230) The control chip can identify whether a given object exists in the image frame by image analysis, and further calculate the coordinates of the predetermined object. For example, the user can perform a touch operation by a finger or a pen in advance by using a corresponding software or application. Therefore, the control chip can recognize whether a finger or a pen image appears in the captured image frame by image analysis, and further calculate the coordinates of the finger or the pen after recognizing the image of the finger or the pen.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the coordinates of the predetermined object obtained by the image capturing device (for example, the image capturing device 130/230) are the coordinates of the center of the image capturing device (for example, the image capturing device 130/230). System, therefore, assuming that the coordinates of the image capture device are ( a , 0, d ), where 0≦ d ≦ h , and the coordinates of the given object output by the image capture device are ( Cx , Cy , Cz ), the combination is 1) and condition (1), as long as Cx , Cy , Cz satisfy the formula (2) and the condition (2): ( Cz + d ). Sinθ- Cy . Cosθ=0 (2)

Then, the processing unit 150 can determine that the predetermined object touches the display area of the screen.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, as long as the predetermined object is judged to touch the display area of the screen, the processing unit 150 may further determine an operation behavior of the predetermined object on the display area according to the coordinate change of the predetermined object, and according to the operation behavior Controlling the operation of the electronic device 100. In this way, even if the screen of the electronic device 100 (for example, the screen 120/220) is not a touch screen, the touch function can be implemented by the above manner.

4 is a flow chart showing a control method of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. First, a plurality of three-dimensional images are acquired by the image capturing device, and one of the coordinates of one of the predetermined objects included in the three-dimensional image in a three-dimensional space is analyzed (step S402). Then, the angle between the main body of the electronic device and the screen is measured by the angle measuring device (step S404), wherein the screen is pivotally connected to the main body of the electronic device through the pivoting mechanism. Then, the processing device of the electronic device can calculate a range in which one of the display areas of the screen is within the three-dimensional space according to the included angle (step S406). Then, the processing device can determine whether the predetermined object touches the display area of the screen according to the range of the display area and the coordinates of the predetermined object (step S408). Finally, when the predetermined object is judged to touch the display area of the screen, the processing device may further determine an operation behavior of the object in the display area, and The electronic device is controlled in accordance with this operational behavior (step S410).

Referring to FIG. 1 , according to another embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device 100 may further include a detecting device 160 for detecting whether the shooting range of the image capturing device includes a display area of the screen, so that the electronic device 100 can further Switching between the touch mode and the gesture mode increases the operational flexibility of the electronic device 100.

FIG. 5A is a side view showing the image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a touch mode. Fig. 5B is a side view showing the image taking device in a gesture mode according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6A is a side view showing an electronic device in a touch mode according to an embodiment of the invention. Figure 6B is a side view showing the electronic device in a gesture mode according to an embodiment of the present invention. In conjunction with the 5A, 5B, 6A, and 6B diagrams, the following paragraphs will further describe the touch mode and gesture mode of the electronic device.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the image capture device 230 can include a trigger switch 580. In addition, the image capturing device 230 can be mounted on the main body 210, and the shooting angle of the image capturing device 230 can be changed by a rotating device 570, so that the shooting range of the image capturing device 230 can be changed. As shown in FIG. 5A, in the touch mode, the trigger switch 580 is electrically connected to the detecting device 560. Therefore, when the detecting device 560 can detect the trigger switch 580, the first indicator signal can be transmitted to the processing unit. (not shown). In this way, the processing unit can determine that the image capturing device 230 is currently standing on the main body 210 as shown in FIG. 6A. At this time, since the shooting range of the image capturing device 230 can cover the display area of the screen, the processing unit can activate a touch mode. In the touch mode, the processing unit can obtain the coordinate change of the predetermined object in the display area of the screen as described above, and analyze the operation behavior of the predetermined object in the display area according to the coordinate change, and according to the predetermined object Operational behavior Control electronics.

On the other hand, when the image capturing device 230 is rotated as shown in FIG. 5B, the trigger switch 580 cannot be electrically connected to the detecting device 560. At this time, the detecting device 560 can transmit the second indication signal to the processing unit. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the detecting device 560 may not transmit any indication signal to the processing unit. When the processing unit receives the second indication signal, or does not receive any indication signal, it can be determined that the image capturing device 230 does not currently stand on the host body 210 as shown in FIG. 6A, and thus the image capturing device 230 is inferred. The shooting range may no longer cover the display area of the screen. At this point, the processing unit can initiate a gesture mode. In the gesture mode, the processing unit can obtain the coordinate change of the predetermined object in the three-dimensional space from the image capturing device 230, and analyze the action of the predetermined object in the three-dimensional space according to the coordinate change, and control the electronic device 100 according to the action.

For example, the user can perform a gesture operation by two hands in advance by a corresponding software or application setting, and can set an operation instruction corresponding to each gesture. Therefore, the control chip of the image capturing device can recognize whether the image of the hand appears in the captured image by image analysis, and further recognize the coordinates of the hand after recognizing the image of the hand, and continuously track the coordinate change of the hand. The image capturing device can output the coordinate change of the hand to the processing unit. Therefore, the processing unit can recognize the gesture input by the user according to the change, and after the gesture is recognized, control the electronic device 100 according to the operation instruction corresponding to the gesture. .

The electronic device 100 can be flexibly switched between the touch mode and the gesture mode by the detection of the detecting device 160/560 and the control unit, so that the electronic device 100 can have the functions of touch control and gesture control. .

The above embodiments of the present invention can be performed in a variety of ways, such as It is performed using hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that any component or combination of components that perform the functions described above can be considered as one or more processors that control the functions described above. The one or more processors can be executed in a variety of manners, such as by specifying hardware, or general purpose hardware programmed using microcode or software.

The present invention has been described above with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and the invention may be modified and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

100‧‧‧Electronic devices

110‧‧‧Host body

120‧‧‧ screen

130‧‧‧Image capture device

140‧‧‧degree angle device

150‧‧‧Processing unit

160‧‧‧Detection device

Claims (8)

An electronic device includes: a main body, including a processing unit; a screen pivotally connected to the main body; an image capturing device coupled to the main body for acquiring a plurality of three-dimensional images, and further analyzing the three-dimensional images The at least one predetermined object included in the image is in a coordinate of a three-dimensional space; and a measuring device coupled to the main body and the screen for measuring an angle between the main body and the screen; wherein the processing The unit calculates a range of one of the display areas of the screen in the three-dimensional space according to the angle, and determines, according to the range of the display area and the coordinate of the predetermined object, whether the predetermined object touches the display of the screen An area, and when the predetermined object is determined to touch the display area of the screen, further determining an operational behavior of the predetermined object in the display area, and wherein the electronic device further comprises: a detecting device coupled And the host body is configured to detect whether a shooting range of the image capturing device includes the display area, wherein the shooting range When the display area is included, the processing unit activates a touch mode. In the touch mode, the processing unit determines whether the predetermined object touches the display area, and when the predetermined object is determined to touch the display area At the time, the operational behavior of the predetermined object on the display area is further determined. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit calculates one side of the screen and the measuring angle device in the three-dimensional space according to a coordinate of the measuring angle device in the three-dimensional space and the angle One of the formations One of the line equations, and the range of the display area of the screen in the three-dimensional space is calculated according to the line equation and the size of one of the screens. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit further determines the predetermined object according to the coordinate of the image capturing device in the three-dimensional space, the range of the display area, and the coordinate of the predetermined object. Whether to touch the display area of the screen. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the processing unit activates a gesture mode when the shooting range does not include the display area, wherein the processing unit further analyzes the three-dimensional image according to the three-dimensional image A given object moves in one of the three dimensional spaces. A method for controlling an electronic device includes: acquiring a plurality of three-dimensional images through an image capturing device; analyzing a coordinate of at least one predetermined object included in the three-dimensional images in a three-dimensional space; and measuring through a protractor device One of the main body of the electronic device is at an angle to one of the screens, wherein the screen is pivotally connected to the main body; and the display area of one of the screens is calculated according to the angle; and the image capturing device is detected. Whether the shooting range includes the display area; when the shooting range includes the display area, a touch mode is activated, and in the touch mode, determining the range of the display area and the coordinate of the predetermined object Whether the predetermined object touches the display area of the screen; When the predetermined object is judged to touch the display area of the screen, an operation behavior of the predetermined object in the display area is judged, and the electronic device is controlled according to the operation behavior. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of calculating the display area of the screen in the three-dimensional space according to the angle further comprises: determining one of the angle devices in the three-dimensional space a coordinate equation is calculated according to the coordinates of the angle device and the angle between the side of the screen and a line formed by the protractor device in the three-dimensional space; and according to the linear equation and the screen A size calculates the range of the display area of the screen in the three-dimensional space. The method of claim 5, wherein the step of determining whether the predetermined object touches the display area of the screen according to the range of the display area and the coordinate of the predetermined object further comprises: determining the And a coordinate of the image capturing device in the three-dimensional space; and determining, according to the coordinate of the image capturing device, the range of the display region, and the coordinate of the predetermined object, whether the predetermined object touches the display region of the screen . The method of claim 5, wherein when the shooting range does not include the display area, the method further includes: starting a gesture mode; and analyzing the action of the predetermined object in the three-dimensional space according to the three-dimensional images And controlling the electronic device according to the action.