WO2012086457A1

WO2012086457A1 - Operation input system

Info

Publication number: WO2012086457A1
Application number: PCT/JP2011/078758
Authority: WO
Inventors: 圭司外川; 紀行福島
Original assignee: 株式会社ソニー・コンピュータエンタテインメント
Priority date: 2010-12-22
Filing date: 2011-12-13
Publication date: 2012-06-28
Also published as: JP2014052664A; WO2012086601A1

Abstract

Provided is an operation input system, comprising an operation input element, with which detection of a greater number of operation directions is possible. An operation input system comprises: an operation input element (3); and a control device, which uses the values which denote the amount of pressure which each detection body (32) detects, to compute the degree of parallel movement of the operation body (31) along each of the three axes of reference, and the degree of rotation of the operation body (31) wherein each of the three axes of reference are treated as axes of rotation. The operation input element (3) further comprises: an operation body (31) which receives an input operation, said operation body (31) being capable of parallel movement along each of three mutually orthogonal axes of reference, and being rotatably supported with each of the three axes of reference being treated as axes of rotation; and a plurality of detection bodies (32) which are positioned along the circumference direction of the operation body (31), and which detect the amount of pressure received, by the parallel movement and rotation of the operation body (31).

Description

Operation input system

The present invention relates to an operation input system.

Conventionally, an operation device that is connected to an information processing device such as a PC (Personal Computer) or a game device and transmits an operation signal to the information processing device is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). The controller (operation device) described in Patent Document 1 includes a left grip portion and a right grip portion that are gripped by the left and right hands of a user, and a direction key and an operation button that are disposed in front of the controller. . Among these, the direction key is disposed at a position corresponding to the thumb when the left grip portion is gripped with the left hand, and the operation button is disposed at a position corresponding to the thumb when the right grip portion is gripped with the right hand. It is installed. Further, the controller is provided with two analog sticks between areas where direction keys and operation buttons are arranged. Such an analog stick has an orthogonal biaxial joystick structure, and the analog stick is provided in a hemispherical manner so as to be freely displaceable. And if the said analog stick is operated, a controller will output the operation signal according to the displacement direction.

US Patent Application Publication No. 2009/0131171

In recent years, a lot of software such as game software that requires complicated operations has been distributed. For example, in a game called FPS (First Person Person shooter), an operation for changing the line of sight of the character and an operation for changing the aim of the target are performed while moving the character. On the other hand, the controller described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 detects the up / down / left / right directions with the direction key and detects the pan and tilt directions with the analog stick. However, more complicated operations are possible. There is a demand for a controller (operation device) that can detect the operation direction.

An object of the present invention is to provide an operation input system including an operation element that can detect more operation directions.

The operation input system according to the present invention is supported so as to be movable along each of three reference axes orthogonal to each other and to be rotatable about each of the three reference axes as a rotation axis. An operating element comprising: an operating body to be received; and a plurality of detecting bodies that are arranged along a circumferential direction of the operating body and detect a magnitude of pressure received by parallel movement and rotation of the operating body; Using a value indicating the magnitude of the pressure detected by each of the detection bodies, the amount of parallel movement of the operating body along each of the three reference axes and each of the three reference axes as rotation axes. And a control device that calculates a rotation amount of the operating body.

The perspective view which shows the operating device which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the operation element in the said embodiment. The longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the operation element in the said embodiment. The cross-sectional view which shows the operation element in the said embodiment. The longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which the operation body of the operation element in the said embodiment displaced. (A) The front view which shows the displacement state to the X direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the displacement state to the X direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (A) The front view which shows the displacement state to the Y direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the displacement state to the Y direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (A) The front view which shows the displacement state to the Z direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the displacement state to the Z direction of the operation part in the said embodiment. (A) The front view which shows the yaw rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the yaw rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. (A) The front view which shows the pitch rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the pitch rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. (A) The front view which shows the roll rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. (B) The side view which shows the roll rotation state of the operation part in the said embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship and detection direction of the detection body in the said embodiment. The perspective view which shows the operation element which the operating device which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention has. The longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the operation element in the said embodiment. The cross-sectional view which shows the operation element in the said embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship and detection direction of the detection body in the said embodiment.

The operation input system according to the embodiment of the present invention is supported so as to be able to translate along each of three reference axes orthogonal to each other, and to be rotatable about each of the three reference axes as a rotation axis, An operating element comprising: an operating body that receives an input operation; and a plurality of detection bodies that are arranged along a circumferential direction of the operating body and that detect a magnitude of pressure received by translation and rotation of the operating body; Using the value indicating the magnitude of the pressure detected by each of the plurality of detection bodies, the amount of translation of the operating body along each of the three reference axes and the rotation of each of the three reference axes And a control device for calculating a rotation amount of the operating body as an axis.

In the operation input system, each of the plurality of detection bodies has a follower that engages with the operation body and follows the movement of the operation body, and the pressure applied to the follower by the displacement of the operation body. It is good also as detecting a magnitude | size.

Furthermore, each of the plurality of detection bodies may detect the magnitude of pressure applied to the follower along each of two directions that intersect the direction toward the operating body and intersect each other.

Further, in the operation input system, one of the follower and the operation body has a hole, and the other is inserted into the hole to transmit the movement of the operation body to the follower. It is good also as a clearance gap being provided between the front-end | tip of the said insertion part, and the said hole part.

[First Embodiment]
DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

The operation input system according to the present embodiment includes an operation device 1 that a user holds to perform an input operation, and an information processing device D that operates according to an operation signal transmitted from the operation device 1. . FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an operating device 1 according to the present embodiment. In the following drawings, the Z direction indicates the axial direction of the operating body 31 to be described later, and the X direction and the Y direction are the right direction when the housing 2 is viewed from the front out of the directions orthogonal to the Z direction. Indicates upward direction. The X1 direction indicates a direction inclined by 45 ° from the X direction toward the Y direction on the XY plane, and the Y1 direction indicates a direction inclined by 45 ° from the Y direction toward the opposite direction to the X direction.

The operating device 1 according to the present embodiment is connected to an information processing device D such as a PC or a game device, and transmits an operation signal corresponding to an input operation to the information processing device D. As shown in FIG. 1, the operating device 1 includes a synthetic resin casing 2 and a pair of operating elements 3 provided in the casing 2 (the left and right operating elements in FIG. 1 are respectively 3L and 3R. ).

[Case configuration]
The housing 2 includes a left grip 21L that is gripped by the user's left hand and a right grip 21R that is gripped by the user's right hand. Further, on the front surface 2F of the housing 2, a first disposing portion 22 where the cross key K1 is disposed is provided at a position corresponding to the thumb when the left gripping portion 21L is gripped with the left hand of the user. Yes. Further, on the front surface 2F, a second disposing portion 23 in which four operation keys K2 are disposed is provided at a position corresponding to the thumb when the right grip portion 21R is gripped with the right hand of the user. .

In addition, on the front surface 2F, between the first disposing portion 22 and the second disposing portion 23, the manipulator disposing portions 24 provided with the manipulating

members

3L and 3R (left and right manipulating element arrangements) are provided. The installation portions are 24L and 24R, respectively). Further, other operation keys K3 are provided on the upper surface 2T of the housing 2 on the left and right sides, and these arrangement positions are positions corresponding to the index finger of the user.

Among these, the operation

element arranging parts

24L and 24R are configured as holes having a substantially circular shape in plan view, and the operation element 3 is provided in the hole part. Then, both ends of the central axis of the operation body 31 constituting the operation element 3 (3L, 3R) are exposed to the outside of the housing 2 from the front surface 2F and the back surface 2R.

When using the operating device 1, for example, the user operates the operation keys with the left and right index fingers while holding the left gripping part 21 L and the right gripping part 21 R so as to be wrapped with the left and right palms, the little finger, and the ring finger. While inputting K3, the cross key K1 and the operation key K2 are input with the left and right thumbs. In addition, when operating the

operating elements

3L and 3R in this state, the

operating elements

3L and 3R are operated with the left and right thumbs, and, if necessary, the

operating elements

3L and 3R are sandwiched between the thumb and the middle finger. To operate. Further, as will be described later, it is also possible to roll the

operating elements

3L and 3R by pinching the

operating elements

3L and 3R with the thumb and forefinger.

[Configuration of controls]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the operation element 3, and FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view (cross-sectional view in the X1Z plane) showing the operation element 3. FIG. 4 is a transverse cross-sectional view (cross-sectional view on the XY plane at the axial center of the operation element 3) showing the operation element 3. Further, FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view (cross-sectional view on the X1Z plane) of the operation element 3 showing a state of the detection body 32 when the operation body 31 is displaced (rotated in the direction opposite to the X1 direction).

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the operation element 3 (3L, 3R) includes a cylindrical operation body 31 that is operated by a user, and four detection bodies 32 that detect the displacement direction of the operation body 31. , Each of the detection bodies 32 is supported, and thus has a support body 33 that supports the operation body 31. The operation element 3 detects the displacement of the operation body 31 in the 6-axis direction by each detection body 32. That is, the operation element 3 detects the parallel movement of the operation body 31 in the XY plane and the parallel movement in the Z direction, and rotates the operation body 31 with a virtual straight line on the XY plane as a rotation axis (for example, , Yaw rotation and pitch rotation), and rotation of the operating body 31 with the Z direction as a rotation axis (roll rotation).

[Operation body configuration]
The operating body 31 includes a cylindrical shaft portion 311, a pair of fixing portions 312 attached to both ends of the shaft portion 311, and a pair of elastic portions 313 and action portions 314 sandwiched between the fixing portions 312. .

Among these, the fixing portion 312 is formed in a circular shape in plan view having substantially the same diameter as the elastic portion 313, and is fixed to the shaft portion 311 with a screw 315. A cylindrical cap 316 (see FIG. 1) is attached to these fixing portions 312 so as to cover the fixing portion 312 and is a portion operated by the user. A pair of elastic portions 313 and action portions 314 are arranged at positions sandwiched between such fixing portions 312.

The pair of elastic portions 313 is formed in a cylindrical shape by an elastic member such as rubber, and is provided so as to surround the shaft portion 311 and sandwich the action portion 314. The pair of elastic portions 313 connect the shaft portion 311 and the fixing portion 312 and the action portion 314, and mediate the displacement of the shaft portion 311 and the fixing portion 312 to the action portion 314. The elastic portion 313 is elastically deformed and bent when the shaft portion 311 and the fixed portion 312 are rotationally displaced, so that the rotation is absorbed, and only the pressure generated by the rotational displacement acts. Is transmitted to the unit 314. For this reason, even if the axial part 311 and the fixing | fixed part 312 are displaced, the action part 314 is hardly displaced, and even if it is displaced, it is a little compared with the displacement amount of the axial part 311 and the fixing | fixed part 312.

The action part 314 is formed in an annular shape with a synthetic resin or metal having higher rigidity than the elastic part 313, and is fixed to the elastic part 313 with an adhesive or the like. The action part 314 has a diameter larger than that of the elastic part 313, and the action part 314 has a hole part into which an insertion part 3211 (described later) is inserted at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the XY plane. 3141 are formed so as to penetrate the action part 314, respectively. The action unit 314 transmits the pressure in the displacement direction of the operating body 31 transmitted through the elastic unit 313 to the detection body 32 through the insertion unit 3211. The hole 3141 into which the insertion part 3211 is inserted corresponds to the hole of the present invention, and the formation position of the hole 3141 corresponds to the detection site of the present invention. Therefore, in the operating body 31 of the present embodiment, four detection sites are provided. A predetermined gap is formed between the inner wall of the hole through which the shaft portion 311 is inserted in the action portion 314 and the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 311, and the stroke amount of the operating body 31 is secured by the gap. The

[Configuration of the detection object]
In this embodiment, the detection body 32 (the detection bodies positioned at the X1 direction front end side and the base end side are 32X1 and 32X2 and the Y1 direction front end side and base end side detection bodies are 32Y1 and 32Y2) is a strain gauge. Each of the pressures in the displacement direction of the operating body 31 is detected. Specifically, each detection body 32 is provided at a position corresponding to the above-described hole 3141, and thereby the operation body 31 is arranged at equal intervals (every 90 ° in the present embodiment) in the circumferential direction of the operation body 31. It is arranged so that it surrounds. Each of these detectors 32 includes a follower 321 that protrudes toward the operating body 31 and a detector 322 that detects the direction of pressure applied to the follower 321.

Among these, the detection unit 322 detects a change in the pressure of the operation body 31 by detecting a pressure change transmitted through the follower 321 when the operation body 31 is displaced.

The follower 321 is formed of a member having rigidity or flexibility. The follower 321 has an insertion part 3211 that is inserted into the hole 3141 at the tip of the follower 321 in the protruding direction.

These insertion portions 3211 have an outer diameter dimension that is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the corresponding hole portion 3141, whereby a slight clearance is provided between the inner surface of the hole portion 3141 and the outer surface of the insertion portion 3211. Is formed. More specifically, a clearance C 1 is formed between the end surface of the insertion portion 3211 orthogonal to the protruding direction (insertion direction into the hole 3141) and the inner surface of the hole 3141. Further, since the hole 3141 formed in the action part 314 is formed so as to penetrate the action part 314, a clearance is provided between the hole 3141 and the end surface of the insertion part 3211 in the protruding direction. C2 is formed.

Such a follower 321 is displaced according to the displacement of the operating body 31 to cause a change in the pressure direction detected by the detector 322.

For example, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the operating body 31 is rotationally displaced in the direction opposite to the X1 direction (P direction) with the Y1 direction as a rotational axis. The follower 321 of the detector 32X1 located on the side transmits the pressure in the Z direction to the detector 322, and the follower 321 of the detector 32X2 located on the base end side in the X1 direction is in a direction opposite to the Z direction. Is transmitted to the detection unit 322. And the detection part 322 of these detection bodies 32X1 and 32X2 detects the pressure direction of each tracking part 321.

In addition, since the above-mentioned clearance C1 is formed between the insertion part 3211 and the hole 3141 in the follower part 321, the follower part 321 of the detection bodies 32Y1 and 32Y2 positioned on the distal end side and the proximal end side in the Y1 direction. No pressure is transmitted in the rotational displacement of the operating body 31 shown in FIG. For this reason, the detection bodies 32Y1 and 32Y2 do not detect the displacement of the operation body 31.

Based on the detection results of these detection bodies 32, the displacement direction of the operation body 31 is detected.

Moreover, the structure which contact | abuts the said tracking part 321 (insertion part 3211) is not arrange | positioned at the protrusion direction front end side (following direction of the insertion part 3211 to the hole 3141) of the tracking part 321. A clearance C2 is formed. For this reason, when the operating body 31 is displaced along the protruding direction, the detection body 32 having the follower 321 protruding in the protruding direction does not detect the displacement of the operating body 31. This prevents internal force interference between the operating body 31 and the detecting body 32 and prevents the detection error of the operating body 31 from occurring.

[Structure of the support]
As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the support body 33 has a regular rectangular tube shape made of metal or the like, and is disposed so as to surround the operation body 31 (particularly the action portion 314). Each detection body 32 is attached to each of the four planes of the support 33 by screws 331 so that the follower 321 faces the operating body 31. The dimension of the operation body 31 in the axial direction (Z direction) of the support body 33 is set to about 1/3 of the dimension of the operation body 31 in the same direction. Are exposed from the support 33. As described above, the caps 316 are attached to both ends of the operation body 31, and the operation body 31 can be operated (displaced).

[Operation body displacement detection]
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the X direction. 6A and 6B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the X direction (translation in the XY plane), the direction following the displacement of the operating body 31 is set to each follower 321. Pressure is applied. Specifically, pressure in the direction opposite to the Y1 direction is applied to the detection bodies 32X1 and 32X2, and pressure in the X1 direction is applied to the detection bodies 32Y1 and 32Y2. Then, by detecting the pressure direction that each detection body 32 applies to each follower 321, the operation element 3 L detects the displacement of the operation body 31 in the X direction.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the Y direction. 7A and 7B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 7, when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the Y direction (translation in the XY plane), the corresponding operating body is placed in each follower 321 as described above. A directional pressure is applied following the displacement of 31. Specifically, pressure in the Y1 direction is applied to the detection bodies 32X1 and 32X2, and pressure in the X1 direction is applied to the detection bodies 32Y1 and 32Y2. Then, the operation element 3L detects the displacement of the operation body 31 in the Y direction by detecting the pressure direction applied to each follower 321 by each detection body 32.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the Z direction. 8A and 8B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the Z direction (parallel movement in the Z direction), pressure in the Z direction is applied to all the followers 321. Then, by detecting the pressure direction that each detection body 32 applies to each follower 321, the operation element 3 L detects the displacement of the operation body 31 in the Z direction.

Thus, the operation element 3 detects the parallel movement along the X, Y, and Z directions of the operation body 31 by detecting the pressure direction applied to the follower 321 by each detection body 32. Note that the parallel movement of the operating body 31 in the other direction on the XY plane is also detected in the same manner.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced (yaw rotated) in the X direction with the Y direction as a rotation axis. 9A and 9B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the X direction (yaw rotation) about the Y direction as a rotation axis, the followers of the detection bodies 32X1 and 32Y2 shown in FIG. Pressure in the direction opposite to the Z direction is applied to 321, and pressure in the Z direction is applied to the follower 321 of the detection bodies 32X2 and 32Y1. Then, when each detector 32 detects the direction of pressure applied to the follower 321, the operator 3 L detects the yaw rotation of the operator 31 in the X direction.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced (pitch rotation) in the Y direction with the X direction as a rotation axis. 10A and 10B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced in the Y direction (pitch rotation) with the X direction as the rotation axis, the followers of the detection bodies 32X1 and 32Y1 shown in FIG. A pressure in the direction opposite to the Z direction is applied to 321, and a pressure in the Z direction is applied to the follower 321 of the detection bodies 32 X 2 and 32 Y 2. Then, when each detection body 32 detects the pressure direction applied to the follower 321, the operation element 3 L detects the pitch rotation of the operation body 31 in the Y direction.

It should be noted that rotation in another direction with a virtual straight line on the XY plane as the rotation axis is also detected.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the operating device 1 when the operating body 31 of the operating element 3L is displaced (rolled) with the Z direction as a rotational axis. 11A and 11B are a front view and a side view of the operating device 1.

As shown in FIG. 11, when the operation body 31 of the operation element 3L is displaced (roll rotation) with the Z direction as a rotation axis, the followers 321 of all the detection bodies 32 shown in FIG. Pressure in the same direction (same direction as seen from the protruding direction of the follower 321) when the detection bodies 32 are viewed from the front is applied. For example, in the example of FIG. 11, the operating body 31 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction when the operating device 1 is viewed from the front. However, in this state, the operating body 31 faces the follower 321 and the Z direction is upward. Thus, when the follower 321 is viewed, the leftward pressure is applied to each follower 321. On the other hand, when the operating body 31 is rotated in a clockwise direction, the rightward pressure is applied to each of the following portions 321. When each detection body 32 detects the pressure direction applied to the follower 321, the operator 3 L detects roll rotation about the Z direction of the operation body 31 as a rotation axis.

In addition, when the parallel movement and the rotational displacement of the operation body 31 are combined, it is detected similarly.

The operating element 3R has the same configuration as the operating element 3L, and detects the displacement of the operating body 31 in the same manner as the operating element 3L.

The displacement of the operating body 31 detected in this way is transmitted as a control signal from the

operating elements

3L and 3R to the control device (not shown) of the operating device 1. Then, the control device performs various corrections such as sensitivity correction, bias correction, variation correction, and drift correction between the detection bodies 32, performs dead zone processing, and the like, and obtains an operation signal based on the control signal as the above-described information. Transmit to processing device D.

[Calculation of parallel movement amount and rotation amount of operating body]
As described above, the control device of the operating device 1 detects the direction of parallel movement and the direction of rotation of the operating body 31 based on the direction of pressure detected by each detector 32. Further, the controller device 1 calculates the magnitude of the translation (amount of translation) of the operating body 31 along the X, Y, and Z directions by using the magnitude of the pressure detected by each detector 32. To do. Similarly, by using the magnitude of the pressure detected by each detection body 32, pitch rotation, yaw rotation, and roll with the operation body 31 as rotation axes in the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction, respectively. The magnitude of rotation (the amount of rotation) is calculated. Hereinafter, a method of calculating the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount will be described.

Hereinafter, each of the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction is set as a reference direction, and the parallel movement amounts of the operation body 31 along the reference direction are expressed as Px, Py, and Pz. Here, for any of Px, Py, and Pz, the displacement in the reference direction is represented by a positive value, and the displacement in the direction opposite to the reference direction is represented by a negative value. In addition, the rotation amounts of the operation body 31 with the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction as rotation axes are denoted as Rx, Ry, and Rz. Here, for Rx, the rotation of the front surface of the operating body 31 in the Y direction (rotation in the direction shown in FIG. 10) is represented by a positive value, and the reverse rotation is represented by a negative value. Regarding Ry, the rotation of the front surface of the operating body 31 in the X direction (the rotation in the direction shown in FIG. 9) is expressed by a positive value. For Rz, a counterclockwise rotation (rotation in the direction shown in FIG. 11) when viewed from the front is represented by a positive value.

Further, each detection body 32 detects the magnitude of the pressure applied to the follower 321 along each of the two directions intersecting with the direction toward the operation body 31 and intersecting each other. In this embodiment, each detection body 32 is orthogonal to the protruding direction of the follower 321 (the direction toward the operating body 31) and two directions orthogonal to each other as the detection direction, and the action part along the detection direction. The magnitude of the pressure exerted on the follower 321 by 314 is detected. More specifically, each detection body 32 detects the magnitude of the pressure applied to the follower 321 along the vertical detection direction with the Z direction as the vertical detection direction. In addition, each detection body 32 faces the follower 321 and follows the horizontal detection direction with the left hand direction when the follower 321 is viewed so that the Z direction is on the horizontal detection direction. The magnitude of the pressure applied to the part 321 is detected. That is, the detection body 32X1 is the horizontal detection direction, the detection body 32Y1 is the reverse direction of the X1 direction, the detection body 32X2 is the reverse direction of the Y1 direction, and the detection body 23Y2 is the horizontal detection direction. In the following, the magnitude of the pressure in the horizontal detection direction detected by each of the detection bodies 32X1, 32Y1, 32X2, and 32Y2 will be referred to as pressure values x1, x2, x3, and x4, and the magnitude of the pressure in the vertical detection direction. The pressure values are expressed as y1, y2, y3, and y4. When any pressure is detected in the direction opposite to the detection direction, any of the detection bodies 32 outputs a negative value indicating the magnitude of the pressure as the pressure value. FIG. 12 shows the positional relationship between the detection bodies 32X1, 32Y1, 32X2, and 32Y2 and the detection direction thereof. In this figure, the center point O indicates the center position of the operating body 31. As shown in this figure, the follower 321 of each detection body 32 has a square apex inscribed in a circle centered on the center point O on the XY plane orthogonal to the longitudinal direction (Z direction) of the operation body 31. Placed in position.

When the operating body 31 is displaced in the X direction, due to the displacement, pressure is distributed and applied to the follower 321 of each detecting body 32. As a result, the detection body 32X1 and the detection body 32Y1 detect pressure opposite to the horizontal detection direction, and the detection body 32X2 and detection body 32Y2 detect pressure in the horizontal detection direction. Therefore, the parallel movement amount Px of the operating body 31 is calculated by projecting and adding the pressure values x1 to x4 in the horizontal detection direction detected by the respective detection bodies 32 in the X direction. That is, the parallel movement amount Px is calculated by the following calculation formula.

Here, G ₁ is a proportionality constant determined in advance.

Similarly, the amount of parallel movement Py in the Y direction, as a proportional constant defined the G ₂ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

For the parallel movement amount Pz in the Z direction, each detector 32 detects the magnitude of the pressure along the Z direction, so the pressure values y1 to y4 in the vertical detection direction detected by each detector 32 are simply added together. It is calculated by that. That is, parallel movement amount Pz as proportional constant defined the G ₃ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

Further, when the operating body 31 is rotated in the Y direction with the X direction as the rotation axis, as described above, the detection body 32X1 and the detection body 32Y1 detect the pressure in the direction opposite to the Z direction, and the detection body 32X2 and the detection body 32Y2 detect pressure in the Z direction. Here, each detection body 32 is arranged in a direction shifted by 45 ° from the Y direction, which is the rotation direction, when viewed from the center of the operation body 31. For this reason, the rotation amount Rx is calculated by multiplying the pressure values y1 to y4 in the vertical detection direction detected by the respective detection bodies 32 by a coefficient in consideration of the moment. In other words, rotation amount Rx is a proportionality constant that is determined to G ₄ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

Similarly, the pivot amount Ry as proportional constant defined the G ₅ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

Further, when the operating body 31 is rotated counterclockwise as viewed from the front with the Z direction as a rotation axis, each of the detection bodies 32 detects a pressure in the horizontal detection direction. Therefore, the rotation amount Rz is calculated by adding the pressure values x1 to x4 in the horizontal detection direction detected by the respective detection bodies 32. In other words, rotation amount Rz is as a proportional constant defined the G ₆ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

The proportional constants G ₁ to G ₆ are determined in advance by the relationship between the numerical value of the detection result by the detection body 32 and the actual amount of translation and rotation of the operation body 31, and are stored in the control device of the operation apparatus 1. Is done. Note that the proportional constants G ₁ to G ₃ may be the same value or different values. Similarly, G ₄ to G ₆ may be the same value or different values.

In the above description, the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount of the operating body 31 are calculated using a previously prepared calculation formula and predetermined proportional constants G ₁ to G _6. The parallel movement amount and the rotation amount may be calculated by a method other than the above. For example, the controller device 1 may calculate the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount of the operation body 31 using calibration data obtained by executing calibration in advance. Here, the calibration data is data indicating the relationship between the pressure value detected by the detection body 32 and the physical parallel movement amount and rotation amount of the operation body 31 calculated by executing calibration. is there. A specific example in this case will be described below.

When executing calibration, it is necessary to sequentially execute six types of reference operations on the operation body 31. This reference operation includes a translation operation for translating the operation body 31 by a predetermined amount of displacement in each of the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction, and a rotation operation in each of the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction. This is a rotation operation that rotates the operating body 31 by a rotation amount determined as a moving axis. Alternatively, the reference operation may be an operation of moving and rotating the operating body 31 with a force determined in each direction.

Calibration is executed, for example, when the operating device 1 is shipped from the factory. In this case, a parallel movement operation can be realized by fixing the operating device 1 to the stage, holding the operating body 31 with an arm or the like, and pulling it in each reference direction with a predetermined force. Further, a rotating operation can be realized by holding the operating body 31 with an arm or the like and rotating it with a predetermined force. Further, the calibration may be executed by the user of the controller device 1. In this case, the operation input system according to the present embodiment causes the user to perform six types of reference operations, for example, by displaying a message prompting execution of calibration on the screen of a monitor connected to the information processing apparatus D. . This makes it possible to generate calibration data that reflects a habit of operation by the user who performed calibration. When a plurality of users use the controller device 1, calibration data unique to each user may be generated by causing each of the plurality of users to perform calibration. Further, the calibration by the user may be executed only once when the user uses the controller device 1 for the first time, or may be executed every time the user uses the controller device 1.

The calibration data is calculated using measurement data including pressure values detected by the respective detection bodies 32 when each of the six types of reference operations is executed. Hereinafter, when a parallel movement operation in the X direction is performed on the operation body 31, the pressure values x1 and y1 detected by the detection body 32X1, the pressure values x2 and y2 detected by the detection body 32Y1, and the detection body 32X2 The pressure values x3 and y3 detected by, and the pressure values x4 and y4 detected by the detector 32Y2 are expressed as px1, px2, px3, px4, px5, px6, px7, and px8, respectively. Similarly, the pressure values detected by the four detectors 32 when the translation operation in the Y direction is performed are represented as py1 to py8, and four when the translation operation in the Z direction is performed. The pressure values detected by the detector 32 are expressed as pz1 to pz8. In addition, the pressure values detected when the rotation operation with the X direction as the rotation axis is expressed as rx1 to rx8, and detected when the rotation operation with the Y direction as the rotation axis is performed. The obtained pressure values are expressed as ry1 to ry8, and the pressure values detected when the rotation operation with the Z direction as the rotation axis is performed are expressed as rz1 to rz8.

The matrix A shown below is defined by these measurement data.

When it is assumed that a linear relationship is established between the pressure value detected by each detector 32 and the amount of translation and rotation of the operating body 31, the generalized inverse matrix A ⁻¹ of this matrix A is the calibration data. It becomes. That is, when certain pressure values x1 to x4 and y1 to y4 are detected, the parallel movement amounts Px, Py, Pz and rotation amounts Rx, Ry, Rz of the operating body 31 at that time are as follows using A- ^1. It is calculated by the following formula.

The arithmetic unit of the controller device 1 calculates each component of the generalized inverse matrix A- ¹ using the measurement data obtained at the time of executing calibration, and stores it as calibration data. When the user performs an input operation using the operator 3, the parallel movement amounts Px, Py, Pz and the rotation amounts Rx, Ry, Rz are calculated using the stored calibration data, and information processing is performed. Transmit to device D. Specifically, if the component of m rows and n columns of the matrix A ⁻¹ is a _mn , for example, the parallel movement amount Px is

It can be calculated with the following formula.

When executing calibration, the calibration data may be corrected or the validity of the calibration data may be evaluated using the coefficients used in the above-described calculation formula. For example, when Equations (1) and (9) are compared, a ₁₁ to a ₁₈ are theoretically assumed to be the following values.
a ₁₁ = a ₁₃ = −G ₁ · cos 45 °
a ₁₅ = a ₁₇ = G ₁ · cos 45 °
a ₁₂ = a ₁₄ = a ₁₆ = a ₁₈ = 0
For this reason, when the values of the respective components of the matrix A- ¹ calculated by executing the calibration greatly deviate from the theoretical values, an error is output and the calibration is executed again, or the values close to the theoretical values are obtained. The calibration data may be corrected so that

As described above, the controller device 1 uses the values x1 to x4 and y1 to y4 that are detection results of the respective detectors 32 to translate the operation body 31 along three reference directions orthogonal to each other. Px, Py, and Pz can be calculated. Similarly, the controller device 1 can calculate the rotation amounts Rx, Ry, and Rz of the operating body 31 with the three reference directions as the rotation axes using the values x1 to x4 and y1 to y4.

In the above description, the control device included in the controller device 1 calculates the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount. The control device may be an arithmetic element such as a microcomputer built in the operation device 1. In the operation input system according to the present embodiment, the calculation of the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount is not necessarily performed by the operation device 1, and may be performed by the information processing device D. In this case, the controller device 1 transmits the numerical information of x1 to x4 and y1 to y4, which are detection results of the respective detection bodies 32, as they are to the information processing device D as operation signals indicating the operation contents of the user, and the information processing device D A control device such as a CPU built in the CPU calculates the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount of the operation body 31 using the operation signal received from the operation device 1.

The operation input system according to the present embodiment described above has the following effects.

(1) The two detectors 32 arranged in the X1 direction and the two detectors 32 arranged in the Y1 direction orthogonal to the X1 direction in the XY plane, translate the operation body 31 in the XY plane, in the Z direction. , A rotation with a virtual straight line on the XY plane as a rotation axis, and a rotation with the Z direction as a rotation axis can be detected.

According to this, the displacement direction of the operating body 31 can be detected more than the conventional analog stick. Therefore, the convenience of the operating device 1 can be improved.

(2) Each follower 321 of each detection body 32 is engaged with the action portion 314 of the operation body 31 to reliably transmit the direction of pressure generated by the displacement of the operation body 31 to each detection body 32. Can do. Accordingly, each detection body 32 can reliably detect the displacement direction of the operation body 31.

(3) An insertion portion 3211 to be inserted into a hole 3141 formed in the action portion 314 is formed at the leading end of the follow-up portion 321 in the protruding direction from the detection body 32, whereby the operating body 31 and the detection body 32 can be physically connected with a simple configuration. According to this, the direction of the pressure generated by the displacement of the operation body 31 can be reliably transmitted to the detection body 32 via the follower 321. Therefore, each detection body 32 can detect the displacement direction of the operation body 31 more reliably.

(4) Clearances C1 and C2 are formed between the inner surface of the hole 3141 and the outer surface of the insertion portion 3211. For this reason, when the operating body 31 is slightly displaced by a dimension corresponding to the clearance C1, the detecting body 32 does not detect the displacement of the operating body 31. According to this, it can suppress that the displacement detection of the operation body 31 by the detection body 32 arises frequently.

Further, since the clearance C2 is formed, the operating body 31 extends along the protruding direction of the insertion portion 3211 (insertion direction into the hole 3141) in a state where the insertion portion 3211 does not contact the inner surface of the hole 3141. Can be displaced. According to this, it is possible to prevent internal force interference between the detection body 32 having the insertion portion 3211 and the operation body 31. In this case, since the displacement of the operation body 31 is detected by the other detection body 32, the displacement direction of the operation body 31 can be detected appropriately.

(5) The operation body 31 is supported by the follower 321 (insertion section 3211) of each detection body 32 supported by the support body 33 so as to surround the operation body 31. According to this, it is not necessary to separately provide another configuration for supporting the operation body 31 so as to be displaceable in the above-described direction. Therefore, the configuration of the operation element 3 can be simplified.

(6) The operation body 31 has a pair of elastic parts 313 so as to sandwich the action part 314 in which the hole 3141 serving as a detection part is formed, and the elastic part 313 is moved when the operation body 31 is displaced. Elastically deforms and bends. According to this, since the user can actually feel the input operation on the operation body 31, the operability of the operation element 3 can be further improved.

(7) In the operating device 1, since both ends of the operating body 31 are exposed on the front 2F side and the back 2R side of the housing 2, the operating body 31 is operated so that the both ends are sandwiched between the thumb and the middle finger. it can. Therefore, the operability of the operating element 3 and thus the operating device 1 can be further improved.

(8) In the operating device 1, operating element arrangement portions 24 L and 24 R where the operating element 3 is provided are provided between the first arranging part 22 and the second arranging part 23. The operation element 3 is disposed in each of the

installation portions

24L and 24R. According to this, the left and right operators 3 can be operated with the left hand of the user holding the left gripping portion 21L and the right hand of the user holding the right gripping portion 21R. Therefore, since the operation element 3 can be operated without releasing the hand from the operation device 1, the operability of the operation device 1 can be improved.

[Second Embodiment]
Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

The operating device according to the present embodiment has the same configuration as the operating device 1 described above. Here, the operation element 3 (3L, 3R) provided in the operation device 1 has a configuration including four detection bodies 32. On the other hand, the operator provided in the operating device according to the present embodiment has three detectors. In this respect, the operating device according to the present embodiment and the operating device 1 are different. In the following description, parts that are the same as or substantially the same as those already described are assigned the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the operating element 4 provided in the operating device according to the present embodiment. 14 and 15 are a longitudinal sectional view (cross sectional view on the XZ plane) and a lateral sectional view (cross sectional view on the XY plane) showing the operation element 4.

Although the detailed illustration of the operating device according to the present embodiment is omitted, the operating device has the same configuration and function as the above-described operating device 1 except that the operating device 4 is provided instead of the operating device 3.

As shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, the operation element 4 supports the operation body 41, the three detection bodies 32 (32A to 32C), and the detection bodies 32, and thus supports the operation body 41. And a body 43.

The operating body 41 has the same configuration as that of the operating body 31 except that it has an operating portion 414 instead of the operating portion 314.

Similarly to the action part 314, the action part 414 is an annular body that is disposed substantially at the center in the axial direction of the operation body 41 so as to surround the shaft part 311 and be sandwiched between the pair of elastic parts 313. Three holes 4141 are formed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the operating body 41 on the XY plane on the outer surface of the action portion 414, and protrusions 4142 are formed between the formation portions of the holes 4141. .

Among these, the insertion part 3211 of the detection body 32 arranged according to the formation position of the hole 4141 is inserted into each hole 4141.

The inner diameters of these hole portions 4141 are formed larger than the outer diameter of the insertion portion 3211, similar to the above-described hole portion 3141, and there is a predetermined gap between the inner surface of the hole portion 4141 and the outer surface of the insertion portion 3211. The clearance C1 is formed. The hole portion 4141 is formed so as to penetrate the action portion 414, and the operating body 31 is displaced in the direction in which the hole portion 4141 is formed also between the protruding end surface of the insertion portion 3211 and the shaft portion 311. Even so, the clearance C 2 is formed so that the insertion portion 3211 and the shaft portion 311 do not contact each other.

Each projection 4142 has a substantially semicircular cross section in the XY plane. These protrusions 4142 are positioned in a recess 431 formed on the inner side of the support body 43 in accordance with the protrusions 4142. These protrusions 4142 and recesses 431 suppress excessive displacement of the follower 321.

The support body 43 has a regular triangular tube shape made of metal or the like, and is disposed so as to surround the operation body 41 (particularly the action portion 414). The detection bodies 32 are attached to the three planes of the support body 43 with screws 331 so that the follower 321 faces the operating body 41. Similarly to the support body 33, the dimension of the support body 43 in the Z direction is set to about 1/3 of the dimension of the operation body 41 in the same direction. , Exposed from the support 43. Caps 316 (see FIG. 1) are attached to both ends of the operating body 41.

Such an operation element 4 detects the displacement of the operation body 41 in the same manner as the operation element 3 described above.

That is, for the parallel movement of the operating body 41 in the XY plane, the detecting section 322 detects the displacement of each follower 321 on the XY plane, and the operating element 4 detects the displacement direction of the operating body 41. As in the case of the operator 3, when the displacement direction of the operating body 41 coincides with the protruding direction of the follower 321 and the formation direction of the hole 4141, the follower 321 is not displaced. Internal interference between the body 41 and the detection body 32 is prevented.

When the operating body 41 is translated along the Z direction, each follower 321 is displaced along the Z direction. Therefore, when the detector 322 detects the displacement direction of each follower 321, the operator 4 is The displacement along the Z direction of the operating body 41 is detected.

Further, when the operating body 41 is rotationally displaced with a virtual straight line on the XY plane as a rotational axis, the displacement of the one or two followers 321 in the direction opposite to the Z direction, and one or two When the detection unit 322 detects the displacement of the follower 321 in the Z direction, the operation element 4 detects the displacement direction of the operation body 41.

Further, when the operating body 41 is rotationally displaced (rolled rotationally) with the Z direction as the rotational axis, the detecting unit 322 detects the displacement of each follower 321 in the same direction. The displacement direction of the operating body 41 is detected.

Note that the displacement of the operating body 41 detected by the operating element 4 is transmitted as a control signal from the operating element 4 to the control device of the operating apparatus, as in the case of the operating element 3. And the said control apparatus performs the above-mentioned various corrections, performs a dead zone process etc., and transmits the operation signal based on the said control signal to the above-mentioned information processing apparatus D.

Hereinafter, in the second embodiment, a specific example of a method in which the control device of the operation device 1 calculates the parallel movement amounts Px, Py, Pz and the rotation amounts Rx, Ry, Rz of the operation body 41 will be described. Also in this embodiment, each detection body 32 detects the magnitude of pressure applied to the follower 321 along the vertical detection direction and the horizontal detection direction, as in the first embodiment. Here, the vertical detection direction is the Z direction, and the horizontal detection direction is the left hand direction when the detection bodies 32 are viewed so as to face the follower 321 and the Z direction is on the top. Hereinafter, the magnitude of the pressure in the horizontal detection direction detected by each of the

detection bodies

32A, 32B, and 32C is expressed as pressure values xa, xb, and xc, and the magnitude of the pressure in the vertical detection direction is set to the pressure value ya, Indicated as yb and yc. FIG. 16 shows the positional relationship between the detection bodies 32A to 32C and their detection directions. In this figure, the center point O indicates the center position of the operating body 41. As shown in this figure, the follower 321 of each detection body 32 is an equilateral triangle inscribed in a circle centered on the center point O on the XY plane orthogonal to the longitudinal direction (Z direction) of the operation body 41. It is placed at the vertex position.

When the operating body 41 moves in parallel along the X direction, pressure is applied in a distributed manner to the followers 321 of the detecting

bodies

32A and 32B due to the parallel movement. On the other hand, since the follower 321 of the detection body 32C is disposed in parallel with the X direction, the pressure is not detected only by the displacement along the X direction. In particular, when the operating body 41 is displaced in the reverse direction of the X direction (that is, the direction toward the detection body 32C) because the hole 4141 is provided so as to penetrate the action portion 414 and the clearance C2 is formed. Even so, the pressure from the action part 414 is not applied to the follower 321 of the detection body 32C. Therefore, the parallel movement amount Px is calculated by projecting and adding the detection results in the horizontal detection direction by the

detection bodies

32A and 32B in the X direction. Specifically, the amount of parallel movement Px as proportional constant defined the G ₁ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

When the operation body 41 moves in parallel along the Y direction, pressure is applied to each of the three detection bodies 32 in a dispersed manner. Therefore the amount of parallel movement Py is a proportionality constant which is determined with G ₂ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

The parallel movement amount Pz in the Z direction is calculated by adding up the pressure values ya to yc in the vertical detection direction detected by the respective detectors 32 as in the first embodiment. That is, parallel movement amount Pz as proportional constant defined the G ₃ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

When the operating body 31 is rotated in the Y direction about the X direction as a rotation axis, the detection body 32A detects pressure in the reverse direction of the Z direction, and the detection body 32B detects pressure in the Z direction. . On the other hand, no pressure is applied to the follower 321 of the detection body 32C arranged in the direction along the rotation axis. Here, the

detection bodies

32A and 32B are arranged in a direction shifted by 30 ° from the Y direction, which is the rotation direction, when viewed from the center of the operation body 41. Therefore, the rotation amount Rx is calculated by multiplying the pressure values ya and yb in the vertical detection direction detected by the

detection bodies

32A and 32B by a coefficient that takes into account the moment. In other words, rotation amount Rx is a proportionality constant that is determined to G ₄ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

When the operation body 31 is rotated in the X direction about the Y direction as a rotation axis, the

detection bodies

32A and 32B detect pressure in the reverse direction of the Z direction, and the detection body 32C detects pressure in the Z direction. . Here, the

detection bodies

32A and 32B are arranged in a direction shifted by 60 ° from the X direction as the rotation direction when viewed from the center of the operation body 41, but the detection body 32C is located at a position along the rotation direction. Has been placed. Therefore, the rotation amount Ry is calculated by multiplying the pressure values ya and yb by a coefficient considering the moment, and adding these values and the pressure value yc. In other words, rotation amount Ry as proportional constant defined the G ₅ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

Further, when the operating body 31 is rotated counterclockwise as viewed from the front with the Z direction as a rotation axis, each of the detection bodies 32 detects a pressure in the horizontal detection direction. Therefore, the rotation amount Rz is calculated by adding the pressure values xa to xc in the horizontal detection direction detected by the respective detection bodies 32. In other words, rotation amount Rz is as a proportional constant defined the G ₆ in advance, is calculated by the following equation.

As in the first embodiment, the proportional constants G ₁ to G ₆ are determined in advance by the relationship between the numerical value of the detection result by the detection body 32 and the actual amount of translation and rotation of the operation body 41, and the operation It is stored in the control device of the device 1.

Further, similarly to the first embodiment, the controller device 1 may calculate the parallel movement amount and the rotation amount using calibration data obtained by calibration instead of the method using the above-described calculation formula. . Specifically, the measurement data necessary for calibration is acquired by executing the same reference operation as in the first embodiment. In the following, the pressure values xa and ya detected by the detection body 32A, the pressure values xb and yb detected by the detection body 32B, and the detection body when the operation body 41 is translated in the X direction. The pressure values xc and yc detected by 32C are expressed as px1, px2, px3, px4, px5 and px6, respectively. Similarly, the pressure values detected by the three detectors 32 when the translation operation in the Y direction is performed are represented as py1 to py6, and three when the translation operation in the Z direction is performed. The pressure values detected by the detector 32 are expressed as pz1 to pz6. In addition, the pressure values detected when the rotation operation with the X direction as the rotation axis is expressed as rx1 to rx6, and detected when the rotation operation with the Y direction as the rotation axis is performed. The obtained pressure values are expressed as ry1 to ry6, and the pressure values detected when the rotation operation with the Z direction as the rotation axis is performed are expressed as rz1 to rz6.

The matrix B shown below is defined by these measurement data.

The inverse matrix B ⁻¹ becomes calibration data. That is, when certain pressure values xa to xc and ya to yc are detected, the parallel movement amounts Px, Py, Pz and the rotation amounts Rx, Ry, Rz of the operating body 41 at that time are as follows using B- ^1. It is calculated by the following formula.

The arithmetic unit of the controller device 1 calculates each component of the inverse matrix B ⁻¹ using the measurement data obtained when the calibration is executed, and stores it as calibration data. When the user performs an input operation using the operator 3, the parallel movement amounts Px, Py, Pz and the rotation amounts Rx, Ry, Rz are calculated using the stored calibration data, and information processing is performed. Transmit to device D.

As in the first embodiment, also in this embodiment, the controller device 1 directly transmits the pressure value detected by the detection body 32 to the information processing device D, and the control device built in the information processing device D operates the controller device D. The parallel movement amount and the rotation amount of the body 41 may be calculated.

The operation device according to the present embodiment described above has the following effects in addition to the same effects as the operation device 1 described above.

That is, the operating element 4 can detect the displacement of the operating body 41 in the same direction as the displacement direction of the operating body 31 that can be detected by the four detecting bodies 32 in the operating element 3 by the three detecting bodies 32. However, the number of the detection bodies 32 is smaller than that of the operation element 3 having the four detection bodies 32. Therefore, the operation element 4 can be manufactured at a lower cost than the operation element 3, and the operation device can be manufactured at a lower cost.

[Modification of Embodiment]
The best configuration for implementing the present invention has been disclosed in the above description, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the description limited to the shape, material, etc. disclosed above is an example for easy understanding of the present invention, and does not limit the present invention. The description by the name of the member which remove | excluded the limitation of one part or all of such is included in this invention.

In the first embodiment, the operating element 3 has four detection bodies 32 that detect the displacement of the operating body 31, and in the second embodiment, the operating element 4 detects the displacement of the operating body 41 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the number of detection bodies provided in the operation element may be 1 or 2 or 5 or more. Of these, in the case where the operating element includes two detection bodies, the operation elements may be arranged at a position corresponding to one of the detection bodies 32X1 and 32X2 and the detection bodies 32Y1 and 32Y2. Furthermore, you may comprise an operation element combining the above-mentioned detection body.

In addition, although the detection body is configured to have a strain gauge as a sensor for detecting pressure, the present invention is not limited to this, and other pressure-sensitive sheets and the like can also be adopted. For example, instead of the detection body 32 having a strain gauge in the operation element 3, a detection body having a follow-up section similar to the detection body 32 and a detection section having a Hall element may be employed. In this case, it is good also as a structure which provides the follower part in which the insertion part was formed in the front end in the action part side, and forms the hole part in which the said insertion part is inserted in a detection part. Further, instead of the detection body 32, it is possible to employ a detection body including a follower connected to the action unit 314 and a detection unit having a pressure-sensitive sheet for detecting the displacement direction of the follower. is there.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the operation body itself does not include a sensor configuration, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the operation body may include a multi-axis sensor such as a 2-axis sensor.

In each of the above-described embodiments, the insertion portion is inserted and a hole serving as a detection site in displacement detection by the detection body 32 is formed in the operation body. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, an insertion part may be formed in the operating body, and a hole may be formed in the follow-up part that transmits the displacement of the operating body to the detection body. In this case, the position where the insertion portion is formed becomes the detection site. In addition, if the above-mentioned clearances C1 and C2 are formed between the hole and the insertion portion, it is possible to prevent internal interference between the operation body and the detection body.

In each of the above embodiments, the pair of elastic portions 313 are each formed in a cylindrical shape, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the entire operating body may be formed of a rigid member such as a synthetic resin without providing the elastic portion. Even when the elastic portion is provided, the operational feeling of the operating body in the predetermined direction is changed by changing the shape, material, etc. so that resistance is generated in the displacement of the operating body in the predetermined direction. May be changed.

In the above embodiments, both ends of the operating body are exposed on the front 2F side and the back 2R side of the housing 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, it is only necessary that a part of the operating body is exposed from the casing.

In each of the above embodiments, two operating elements are provided in each operating device, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the number of operators provided in the operating device can be changed as appropriate. In addition, the position of the operation element arrangement portion can be set as appropriate.

In each of the embodiments described above, the operation body protrudes from the support body and is further exposed from the housing 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the operation body may be formed in an annular shape and disposed in the support body, and the user may operate the operation body by inserting a finger into the opening of the operation body through the opening of the support body. . Further, the operation element may be arranged so that only one end of the operation body is exposed from the casing.

In each of the above embodiments, the operating body is formed in a cylindrical shape, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the operating body may be formed in a prismatic shape.

In each of the above embodiments, the operating element detects the displacement direction of the operating body, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, a button that protrudes and sunk at the end of the operation body may be provided, and an operation element that also detects the input state of the button may be configured. In this case, the button may be provided at both ends of the operating body, or may be provided only at one end.

In the first embodiment, the operation element 3 is arranged in the housing 2 so that the two detection bodies 32 are respectively positioned in the X1 direction and the Y1 direction inclined by 45 ° with respect to the X direction and the Y direction on the XY plane. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the arrangement of the operation elements can be set as appropriate in consideration of the detection sensitivity of the detection object, the usability of the user, and the like. The same applies to the controls shown in the second embodiment.

In each of the above embodiments, the operating device of the present invention is cited as an operating device connected to an information processing device, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the operation device may be provided in a portable information terminal (portable terminal).

Claims

An operating body that is supported so as to be able to translate along each of three reference axes orthogonal to each other and to be rotatable about each of the three reference axes as a rotation axis, and to accept an input operation;
A plurality of detection bodies that are arranged along a circumferential direction of the operation body, and that detect a magnitude of pressure received by parallel movement and rotation of the operation body;
An operator comprising:
Using the value indicating the magnitude of the pressure detected by each of the plurality of detection bodies, the amount of translation of the operating body along each of the three reference axes and the rotation of each of the three reference axes A control device for calculating a rotation amount of the operating body as an axis;
An operation input system comprising:
The operation input system according to claim 1,
Each of the plurality of detection bodies includes a follower that engages with the operation body and follows the movement of the operation body, and detects a magnitude of pressure applied to the follower by displacement of the operation body. An operation input system characterized by
The operation input system according to claim 2,
Each of the plurality of detection bodies detects a magnitude of pressure applied to the follower along each of two directions intersecting with the direction toward the operation body and intersecting each other. system.
In the operation input system according to claim 2 or 3,
Either one of the follower and the operation body has a hole, and the other has an insertion part that is inserted into the hole and transmits the movement of the operation body to the follower.
An operation input system, wherein a gap is provided between the distal end of the insertion portion and the hole portion.