TWI789809B - touch panel device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a reliable and low-cost touch panel device that detects the amount of operation. The touch panel device includes: a capacitive touch panel having an electrode pattern; and a rotary operation unit having a counter electrode facing the electrode pattern and being rotatably mounted on the touch panel. The electrode pattern is composed of circular first electrodes (parasitic capacitors) and second electrodes that are insulated from each other. The first electrode is composed of a plurality of small patterns (parasitic capacitances) insulated from each other. When the rotary operation part is rotated, a capacitance change occurs between the counter electrode and the touch panel, and the position of the counter electrode can be detected. Since the rotating operation part is non-conductive, it has nothing to do with the capacitance of the human body, and since the detection of the position depends on the parasitic capacitance of the electrode pattern, the accuracy is high.

Description

touch panel device field of invention

The present invention relates to a touch panel device that detects the operation of a rotary operation unit mounted on a capacitive touch panel through an electrode pattern of the touch panel, and more particularly relates to a device that detects the operation of a rotary operation unit mounted on a capacitive touch panel regardless of the capacitance of a person who touches and operates the rotary operation unit. , are touch panel devices that can reliably detect the operation of the rotary operation unit.

Background of the invention

Various electronic devices that have the function of controlling various physical quantities are provided with adjustment components for operators to adjust the physical quantities with their fingers. As such an adjustment member, a knob-type rotary operation part (operation knob) is known in which an operator pinches and rotates with fingers. For example, in order to perform volume adjustment in audio equipment and temperature adjustment in air conditioners, known variable resistors and rotary encoders are provided as electronic components for adjustment in the volume or temperature adjustment circuits of each equipment. Rotation operation parts are attached to these rotation shafts. The operator can adjust the volume or temperature by pinching the rotary operation part with fingers and rotating it. In addition, a variable resistor is an electronic component that converts a change in mechanical position into a change in resistance value and outputs it as an analog electrical signal, also known as a potentiometer. In addition, a rotary encoder is a sensor that outputs the rotational displacement of an input shaft as a digital signal using a built-in grid disk.

In addition, in addition to knob-type adjustment components using variable resistors and the like, a known adjustment component is a capacitive touch panel as shown in FIG. 5 . In this touch panel, the lower surface side of the cover glass constituting a part of the panel has a touch key 101 composed of a plurality of electrode patterns 100. In FIG. 5, only the touch key 101 is shown, and structural members of the panel, etc. are omitted. . In the example of FIG. 5 , each electrode pattern 100 of the touch key 101 Arranged linearly along the direction of operation, for example, if the touch key 101 is an operating portion for volume adjustment in audio equipment, as conceptually shown in Figure 5, if the operator touches the touch key with a finger through the cover glass 101, and perform a sliding gesture operation in the direction indicated by the arrow, the touch panel will detect the position of the electrode pattern 100 approached by the finger, so the device adjusts the volume according to the position of the electrode pattern 100 detected by the touch panel. For example, when the finger is slid to the right of the arrow, the volume is increased, and when the finger is slid to the left of the arrow, the volume is decreased.

In the case where the variable resistor and the adjustment member of the rotary operation unit are connected to the shaft of the rotary encoder, since the rotary operation unit is rotated to operate, even if the rotary operation unit is not directly visually recognized, it can be adjusted only by the feeling of the fingers. Simple and intuitive understanding of operation volume. However, since variable resistors and rotary encoders have a rotating part, there is a problem that electronic components have a wear life and are relatively expensive.

In addition, in the case where the adjustment member is a touch panel, the adjustment operation is performed by the operator's finger through a slide gesture operation. Therefore, unless the touch key and the finger are directly visually recognized, there is no way to know the position of the touch key touched by the finger, and it is difficult to intuitively understand the operation amount only by the feeling of the finger. Especially in the case of in-vehicle electronic equipment, since it is not advisable to look at the touch panel while driving, it is difficult to grasp the amount of operation especially while driving, and the operation itself tends to become unstable.

The present invention is made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and its object is to provide a touch panel device, which is low in cost due to the use of a touch panel, can intuitively grasp the amount of operation, and detects the amount of operation. reliable.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a touch panel device is provided. touch The touch panel device includes: a capacitive touch panel having an electrode pattern; and a rotary operation unit having a counter electrode facing the electrode pattern and being rotatably attached to the touch panel.

In the touch panel device of the aforementioned embodiment, the electrode pattern is composed of a circular first electrode and a second electrode, the first electrode and the second electrode are insulated from each other, and the first electrode and the second electrode are insulated. At least one of the two electrodes is grounded, and the counter electrode is arranged to straddle the first electrode and the second electrode in a radial direction in a state facing the electrode pattern.

In the touch panel device of the aforementioned embodiment, in the touch panel device of the second aspect of the present invention, one of the first electrode and the second electrode is separated and insulated from each other in the circumferential direction, and at least The other side is grounded.

In the touch panel device of the foregoing embodiment, a plurality of the counter electrodes are provided.

According to the touch panel device of the above-mentioned embodiment, when the operator pinches the rotating operation part with fingers and rotates it, the counter electrode of the rotating operation part moves relative to the electrode pattern of the touch panel, and thus the counter electrode and the touch panel move. Capacitance changes between the control panels, and the position where this change occurs can be detected through the touch panel. In the touch panel device based on the principle of position detection, if a structure that is not easily related to the capacitance of the human body that operates the rotary operation part is adopted, such as using a non-conductive material to form the rotary operation part, etc., the human body that operates the rotary operation part is not likely to flow. Therefore, the above-mentioned position detection by detecting the change of capacitance mainly depends on the parasitic capacitance on the electrode pattern side of the touch panel, so the position detection operation is reliable and the accuracy is improved.

In addition, according to the touch panel device of the above-mentioned embodiment, when the operator pinches the rotating operation part with his fingers and rotates it, the counter electrode arranged across the first electrode and the second electrode follows the circular shape of the touch panel. The first electrode and the second electrode move. When the position of the counter electrode relative to the first electrode and the second electrode changes in the circumferential direction due to this action, at the changed position, the parasitic capacitance of the first electrode and the parasitic capacitance of the second electrode combine , due to the gap between the counter electrode and the touch panel The capacitance changes before and after the movement, so the location of this change can be detected by the touch panel. In this way, in this touch panel device, the position of the counter electrode is detected by detecting the change in the capacitance generated by the combination of the parasitic capacitance of the first electrode and the parasitic capacitance of the second electrode. Regardless of the capacitance, the position detection action is reliable and the accuracy is improved. That is, if the rotary operation part is made of a non-conductive material, no current flows in the human body operating the rotary operation part, regardless of the capacitance of the human body, and even if the rotary operation part is made of a conductive material, the electric current flows through the human body operating the rotary operation part. The current is also relatively small, so the influence of human body capacitance is still small. Therefore, it can be operated with bare hands or with thicker gloves.

In addition, according to the touch panel device of the above-mentioned embodiment, since one of the first electrode and the second electrode is formed to be spaced apart and insulated from each other in the circumferential direction, it is possible to precisely detect the circumference of the counter electrode. The location of the direction.

In addition, according to the touch panel device of the above-mentioned embodiment, if the arrangement of the plurality of counter electrodes in the circumferential direction is appropriately set, the change in the capacitance respectively generated between each of the plurality of counter electrodes and the electrode pattern If they are different, the position in the circumferential direction of the counter electrode can be detected more precisely, and the rotation direction of the counter electrode can also be detected.

1,1a: Touch panel device

2: Display panel

3: Translucent adhesive sheet

4: Capacitive touch panel

5: Translucent cover glass

6: Rotary operating part; operating knob

7: Decorative layer

8: Anti-slip pattern

9: shaft hole

10: Counter electrode

11: Mounting bracket

12: fixed rod

13: Concave

14: Longitudinal groove

15: board part

16: Bending part

20: Electrode pattern

21: The first electrode

21a: Small patterns constituting the first electrode

22: Second electrode

100: electrode pattern

101:Touch key

ZP1, ZP2: parasitic capacitance

ZS:capacitance

H: human body

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the overall configuration of a touch panel device according to a first embodiment.

Part (a) in Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the rotation operation part of the touch panel device of the first embodiment seen from the lower surface side; part (b) is the bottom surface of the same rotation operation part; part (c) ) is an exploded perspective view of the same touch panel device.

Part (a) in FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the rotary operation part of the touch panel device according to the first embodiment seen from the upper surface side; and part (b) is a perspective view of the same rotary operation part seen from the bottom side Perspective view; Part (c) is a diagram showing the positional relationship of the counter electrode of the rotary operation unit with respect to the electrode pattern of the touch panel in the same touch panel device, and the parasitic capacitance of the same electrode pattern.

Part (a) in FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the rotation operation part of the touch panel device of the second embodiment seen from the upper surface side; part (b) shows the rotation operation in the same touch panel device The positional relationship of the counter electrode on the touch panel with respect to the electrode pattern of the touch panel and the parasitic capacitance of the same electrode pattern.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an electrode pattern (touch key) and a slide gesture operation by a finger in a conventional capacitive touch panel.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the touch panel device 1 of the present embodiment includes: a display panel 2; The translucent cover glass 5 is pasted on the upper surface of the touch panel 4 with the translucent adhesive sheet 3; It should be noted that the display principle and display content of the display panel 2 are not limited. In addition, a decorative layer 7 such as black is provided on the periphery of the lower surface of the cover glass 5 , and the display area of the display portion of the display panel 2 is divided into a frame shape.

According to this touch panel device 1, the display on the display panel 2 can be seen from the front side of the cover glass 5 through the touch panel 4, and the display can be selected and operated by operating the rotation operation part 6 while visually recognizing the display. The electrode pattern of the touch panel 4 directly below the operation unit 6 .

As shown in (a) and (b) of FIG. 2 , the rotary operation portion 6 has a cylindrical shape. The rotary operation part 6 is made of a non-conductive material such as a non-conductive resin, or a conductive material whose surface is processed to be non-conductive. Anti-slip lines 8 composed of a plurality of grooves parallel to the generatrices (lines parallel to the central axis on the peripheral surface of the cylinder) are formed on the rotary operation part 6 . A shaft hole 9 parallel to the central axis of the cylinder is formed at the center of the rotary operation portion 6 . The shaft hole 9 does not open on the upper surface, but opens in the center of the bottom surface. A rectangular counter electrode 10 is provided on a part of the bottom surface, and is in contact with the edge of the shaft hole 9 and the outer circumference of the rotary operation portion 6 . The counter electrode 10 is embedded in the bottom surface of the rotary operation part 6 , and the surface of the counter electrode 10 and the bottom surface of the rotary operation part 6 are the same surface.

The details will be described later, but the opposite electrode 10 is provided opposite to the electrode pattern 20 (see (c) in FIG. 3 ) of the touch panel 4 . Furthermore, to illustrate an example of the size, the diameter of the shaft hole 9 is (approximately 40%) of the diameter of the rotary operation portion 6 . In addition, the size (width) of the counter electrode 10 in the circumferential direction (rotational direction) is approximately (one-twentieth) that of the circumference of the rotary operation part 6. Therefore, if the rotary operation part 6 is rotated by the width of the counter electrode 10 To carry out the rotation operation, the rotation angle is about (15 degrees to 20 degrees).

As shown in (c) of FIG. 2 , on the surface of the cover glass 5 , a mounting stay (stay) 11 as a support shaft of the rotation operation part 6 is provided. That is, two fixing rods 12 protrude from the bottom of the mounting bracket 11, and two recesses 13 are provided on the surface of the cover glass 5, through which the inside of the recess 13 (and between the recess 13 and the recess 13 as required) Apply adhesive on the surface of the cover glass 5 in between) and insert the fixing rod 12 into the recess 13 to fix the mounting bracket 11 vertically on the surface of the cover glass 5 .

As shown in (c) of FIG. 2 , the mounting bracket 11 has a substantially cylindrical shape with a slightly tapered upper tip. At least the upper part of the mounting bracket 11 is hollow, and its outer diameter is slightly larger than the inner diameter of the shaft hole 9 of the rotary operation part 6 . Also, the upper portion of the mounting bracket 11 is divided into a plurality of plate portions 15 by a plurality of longitudinal grooves 14 formed substantially parallel to the central axis of the substantially cylindrical shape from the upper end portion to the substantially central portion thereof. The lower part of each plate part 15 is integral, but the upper end part is an independent free end, and therefore elastically deformable in the radial direction. In addition, the length of the mounting bracket 11 is substantially the same as the length of the shaft hole 9 of the rotary operation part 6 . Therefore, if the rotation operation unit is attached to the installation bracket 11 by inserting the installation bracket 11 on the cover glass 5 into the shaft hole 9 of the rotation operation unit 6, the plate portion 15 that becomes the installation bracket 11 is slightly displaced inward. The bottom surface of the rotating operation part 6 is in contact with the surface of the cover glass 5 due to elastic contact with the inner surface of the shaft hole 9 .

In addition, a bent portion 16 is provided in the middle of each plate portion 15 of the mounting bracket 11, and an unillustrated locking portion is provided at a key point of the inner peripheral surface of the shaft hole 9 of the rotating operation portion 6, so , when the installation bracket 11 is inserted into the shaft hole 9 of the rotation operation part 6, the bending part 16 will be locked on the locking part of the shaft hole 9, so even if the installed rotation operation part 6 is pulled It falls off the mounting bracket 11 easily.

In this way, when the rotation operation unit 6 is attached to the attachment bracket 11 , if the rotation operation unit 6 is pinched and rotated with fingers, the rotation operation unit 6 can be rotated relative to the attachment bracket 11 . By this operation, the counter electrode 10 positioned on the bottom surface of the rotary operation portion 6 moves in the circumferential direction along the surface of the cover glass 5 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the rotation operation part 6 faces the electrode pattern 20 of the touch panel 4 located below the cover glass 5 . That is, as shown in (a) and (b) in FIG. An electrode pattern 20 formed of circular first electrodes 21 and second electrodes 22 is provided on the touch panel 4 .

(c) in FIG. 3 shows the electrode pattern 20 of the touch panel 4, and also shows the positions of the electrode pattern 20 and the counter electrode 10 by projecting the counter electrode 10 on the plan view of the electrode pattern 20. relation. As shown in (c) of FIG. 3 , both the first electrode 21 and the second electrode 22 are annular patterns concentric with the mounting bracket 11 , with the first electrode 21 on the outer side and the second electrode 22 on the central side. The radial dimensions of the first electrode 21 and the second electrode 22 are equal and insulated from each other. The outer first electrode 21 is composed of a plurality of (six are shown in the figure) small patterns 21 a divided in the circumferential direction. The small patterns 21a are formed in the shape of a curved arrow with one end being a convex triangle and the other end being a concave triangle, and facing in the same direction and combined with each other, the aforementioned ring-shaped first electrode 21 is formed as a whole. The small patterns 21a are insulated from each other. The second electrode 22 is a single ring electrode pattern.

In (c) of FIG. 3 , as visualized with an impedance symbol Z, each small pattern 21 a of the first electrode 21 and the second electrode 22 have parasitic capacitances ZP1 , ZP2 , respectively. In the same figure, the parasitic capacitance ZP1 of the small pattern 21a of the first electrode 21 shows only one small pattern 21a, but actually each of the six small patterns 21a has a parasitic capacitance ZP1.

Parasitic capacitance (stray capacitance, stray capacity) is not caused only by the specific components installed, but is generated by the interaction caused by the physical structure inside the electronic component or inside the electronic circuit, and is not the capacitive component expected by the designer. Therefore, the first electrode 21 (small pattern) is shown in (c) in FIG. 3 21a) and the second electrode 22 are grounded through the parasitic capacitances ZP1 and ZP2 respectively, but only the second electrode 22 is grounded (connected to GND) as an actual circuit in this embodiment.

In addition, the grounding here refers to connecting the electrode (electrode pattern 20) to a potential reference point with an electrical conductor. The ground (GND) is mostly used as a typical potential reference point, but it also includes wiring, casings, some In the case of electronic components, etc. that have impedance. In short, it only needs to be in a state where charges flow out from the electrodes (electrode pattern 20 ).

According to this touch panel device 1, when the operator pinches the rotary operation part 6 with fingers and rotates it, the counter electrode 10 of the rotary operation part 6 moves relative to the electrode pattern 20 of the touch panel 4, thereby A capacitance change occurs between the electrode 10 and the touch panel 4 , and the position where this change occurs can be detected through the touch panel 4 . In detail, by rotating the rotary operation part 6, in the state where the opposite electrode 10 faces the electrode pattern 20, the opposite electrode 10 arranged across the first electrode 21 and the second electrode 22 in the diameter direction moves along the contact surface. The circular first electrodes 21 and the second electrodes 22 of the control panel 4 move, and the positions relative to the first electrodes 21 and the second electrodes 22 change in the circumferential direction. After the position of the counter electrode 10 changes, the capacitance ZS in the system of the touch panel 4 becomes a value combining the parasitic capacitance ZP1 of the first electrode 21 and the parasitic capacitance ZP2 of the second electrode 22 through the counter electrode 10 . Due to the difference between this value and the capacitance ZS before the movement, the capacitance between the counter electrode 10 and the touch panel 4 changes before and after the movement, so the position where this change occurs can be detected through the touch panel 4 .

In this way, in this touch panel device 1 , the position of the counter electrode 10 is detected by detecting a change in capacitance resulting from the combination of the parasitic capacitance of the first electrode 21 and the parasitic capacitance of the second electrode 22 . Therefore, regardless of the capacitance of the human body H in contact with the rotary operation unit 6, the position detection operation is reliable and the accuracy is improved. That is, since the rotary operation portion 6 of the touch panel device 1 is made of a non-conductive material, no current will flow in the human body H that operates the rotary operation portion 6, and the capacitance of the human body H is related to the capacitance of the counter electrode 10. Position detection is irrelevant. Therefore, it can be operated in any situation, whether it is bare hands or wearing thick gloves. The high degree of freedom regarding this use case, due to the envisioned driving in a car The operator wears gloves, so it is particularly advantageous when it is mounted on a vehicle-mounted device. In addition, in this touch panel device 1 , even if the rotary operation portion 6 is made of conductive material, the current flowing through the human body H operating the rotary operation portion 6 is relatively small, so the influence of the capacitance of the human body H is still small.

A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4 .

(a) in FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the rotary operation unit 6, and corresponds to (a) in FIG. 3 of the first embodiment. (b) in FIG. 4 shows a projected image of the electrode pattern 20 and the counter electrode 10 , corresponding to (c) in FIG. 3 . As can be seen from FIG. 4 , the difference between the touch panel device 1 a of this embodiment and the touch panel device 1 of the first embodiment lies in the number of counter electrodes 10 . Other structures are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the description of the first embodiment is quoted to avoid redundant description.

As shown in (b) of FIG. 4 , the touch panel device 1 a of this embodiment has two counter electrodes 10 , 10 . The two counter electrodes 10, 10 are arranged at positions slightly deviated from the symmetrical positions that are 180 degrees apart from each other in the rotational direction of the rotary operation part 6, and in the specific example shown, deviate from the aforementioned symmetrical positions (25 degrees - 30 degrees). degree) about the positional relationship. Since the first electrode 21 is composed of six small patterns 21a of the same shape, if the two opposite electrodes 10, 10 are separated by 180 degrees in the direction of rotation, it will be in the following state: the two opposite electrodes 10, 10 are facing The positions of the pair of small patterns 21 a are identical to each other, and the two counter electrodes 10 , 10 are projected at the same position of different small patterns 21 a of the same shape. However, the two counter electrodes 10 and 10 of the present embodiment are arranged away from the aforementioned symmetrical position, and the phases of overlapping with the small pattern 21 a are different from each other.

In the touch panel device 1a of the present embodiment, when the rotation operation part 6 is pinched and rotated with fingers, the two counter electrodes 10, 10 of the rotation operation part 6 are respectively opposite to the electrode patterns 20 of the touch panel 4 Relative movement, thus, capacitance change occurs between the two opposite electrodes 10, 10 and the touch panel 4, but since the change is different on the two opposite electrodes 10, 10, therefore, for the opposite electrodes 10, 10, The detection accuracy of the 10 position is higher than that of the first embodiment, and the rotation direction of the rotary operation part 6 can also be detected. In addition, if the overlapping phases with respect to the small patterns 21a are different, providing three or more counter electrodes 10 can further improve the detection accuracy.

It should be noted that, as shown in FIG. 1 , the touch panel devices 1 and 1a of the aforementioned embodiments are configured such that a touch panel 4 is attached to a display panel 2 , a cover glass 5 is attached to the touch panel 4 , and The rotation operation part 6 is provided on the upper surface of the cover glass 5. As shown in FIG. However, a simple structure in which the touch panel 4 and the cover glass 5 are integrated as described below may be used. That is, in the first embodiment, electrode patterns are formed on the lower surface of the cover glass 5 including the decoration layer 7 in the range inside the decoration layer 7, and the electrode patterns are covered with an insulating protective film to form a touch panel. If such a single-piece touch panel is bonded to the display panel 2 and the rotation operation portion 6 is provided on the upper surface of the touch panel, a touch panel device with a simpler structure can be formed.

6: Rotary operating part; operating knob

8: Anti-slip pattern

9: shaft hole

10: Counter electrode

20: Electrode pattern

21: The first electrode

21a: Small patterns constituting the first electrode

22: Second electrode

ZP1, ZP2: parasitic capacitance

H: human body

Claims (4)

A touch panel device, comprising: a capacitive touch panel having an electrode pattern; and a rotary operation unit having a counter electrode facing the electrode pattern and being rotatably mounted on the touch panel The electrode pattern is composed of a circular first electrode and a second electrode, the first electrode and the second electrode are insulated and arranged adjacent to each other, and at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode is grounded. The touch panel device according to claim 1, wherein the counter electrode is arranged to straddle the first electrode and the second electrode in the diameter direction in a state of facing the electrode pattern. The touch panel device according to claim 2, wherein one of the first electrode and the second electrode is separated and insulated from each other in the circumferential direction, and at least the other is grounded. The touch panel device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a plurality of the above-mentioned counter electrodes are provided.

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