WO2015022749A1

WO2015022749A1 - Display device and display program

Info

Publication number: WO2015022749A1
Application number: PCT/JP2013/071984
Authority: WO
Inventors: 藤本裕二
Original assignee: 富士通株式会社
Priority date: 2013-08-15
Filing date: 2013-08-15
Publication date: 2015-02-19

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to improve the convenience of display devices. A display device according to the present invention is provided with a touch panel, an identification unit, an allocation unit, and a display control unit. The touch panel has a display unit and an input unit. The display unit can display a first image and a second image on a screen in such a manner that the second image overlaps at least part of the first image. The input unit receives an operation. The identification unit identifies the start-point coordinates of the operation. The allocation unit allocates part of the operation region of the touch panel for use as a detection region, which is a region for detecting selection of a selection region. The allocation processing for the detection region is performed when the selection region, which is a region of the first image and is used for selecting a process, is located at the start-point coordinates and at the same time the first image is covered at the start-point coordinates by the second image. The display control unit performs control to display the detection region on the screen.

Description

Display device and display program

The present invention relates to an apparatus for performing screen display processing.

In recent years, various electronic devices having a display function, such as mobile phone terminals and tablets, have become widespread. In these electronic devices, a plurality of applications may operate. For example, an application that can accept input of characters and a soft keyboard that a user uses to input characters may be used at the same time. When a plurality of applications operate simultaneously as described above, one or more windows are often displayed on the screen for each application. However, since a window related to one application is hidden by a window of another application, the user's work may be hindered.

Therefore, in some applications such as a soft keyboard, the window may be displayed semi-transparently. When a translucent window is displayed on the front side, the user can check the display contents of a portion of the window displayed on the back side that overlaps the translucent window.

As a related technique, there is known a portable terminal that displays a character input sheet including a soft keyboard for inputting a character string on a body sheet when a screen switching instruction is detected. In this portable terminal, a character input sheet is displayed so that a character string displayed on the body sheet can be visually recognized (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Further, an input device that displays a first input screen for editing a document and a second input screen for inputting characters is also known. The input device acquires a user operation by detecting an image, and further specifies which of the first input screen and the second input screen is selected using the area of the detected image (for example, , See Patent Document 2).

JP 2009-288873 A JP 2010-165246 A

Even if a semi-transparent window is used in an application, the user's work may be hindered because the operation target window is behind the window of another application. For example, the window displayed on the back side may include a user interface to be operated by the user. In this case, the user needs to perform an operation on the operation target after performing an operation such as closing the window displayed on the front surface in order to enable an operation on the window including the operation target.

In one aspect, the present invention aims to improve the convenience of a display device.

The display device according to the embodiment includes a touch panel, a specifying unit, an assigning unit, and a display control unit. The touch panel has a display unit and an input unit. The display unit can display the first and second images on the screen so that the second image overlaps at least a part of the first image. The input unit accepts an operation. The specifying unit specifies a start coordinate of the operation. The assigning unit assigns a part of the operation area of the touch panel to a detection area that is an area for detecting selection of the selection area. The process of assigning the detection area is the first image, wherein a selection area that is an area used for selection of the process is arranged at the start coordinates, and the first image is at the start coordinates. This is performed when it is covered with the second image. The display control unit performs control for displaying the detection area on the screen.

* Convenience of display device is improved.

It is a figure which shows the example of a display with the display apparatus concerning embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of a structure of a display apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of the hardware constitutions of a display apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of a window displayed on the example of a coordinate, and a display apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of display order data. It is a table which shows the example of position information. It is a figure which shows the example of a display with a display apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of a soft keyboard. It is a table which shows the example of position information. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of a soft keyboard. It is a figure which shows the example of the process performed with a display apparatus. It is a table which shows the example of the process matched with the coordinate of the detection area. It is a flowchart explaining the example of the process performed with a display apparatus. It is a figure explaining the example of a display on the screen of a display apparatus. It is a table which shows the example of the arrangement | positioning method of a user interface. It is a figure explaining the example of a display on the screen of a display apparatus. It is a table which shows the example of position information. It is a figure explaining the example of a display on the screen of a display apparatus. It is a table which shows the example of position information.

FIG. 1 shows a display example on the display device according to the embodiment. It is assumed that the first window generated by the application A is displayed on the screen of a display device including a touch panel. Here, it is assumed that the display content of the first window is an image (first image) indicated by D1. Further, it is assumed that the first window includes an area used for selection of a user process. Hereinafter, an area used for selecting a user process may be referred to as a “selected area”. The selection area is an area where an arbitrary user interface is arranged. Note that the user interface is realized by, for example, a display (icon, button, etc.) for receiving input from the user. Further, the display device holds information such as coordinates for specifying the area where the selected area is arranged. For example, in the example of the image D1, the selection area is the button AA, and the display device holds information such as coordinates for specifying the area where the button AA is displayed.

Next, it is assumed that the second window is displayed on the screen by the user's operation. Here, it is assumed that the display content of the second window is the second image indicated by D2. In this example, the selection area (button BB) is also included in the second window, but the selection area may not be included in the second window. Further, the display device also holds information such as coordinates for specifying the arranged area for the selection area included in the second window.

D3 shows an example of the screen when both the first window and the second window are displayed. In D3, in order to make the positional relationship between the button AA and the button BB easier to understand, at least a part of the second window is transparent, and the first window is visible through the second window. As an example, the case where the second window is displayed in front of this window will be described. Here, an example of a translucent window will be described as an example of a window having transparency, but the first window may be visible, and the degree of transparency is not limited. Of course, it may be transparent.

When the display device detects a touch operation on the second window displayed in the foreground, the display device specifies the start coordinates of the touch operation. When the start coordinate of the touch operation is included in the selection area in the first window, the display device determines that the user may have attempted to select the selection area in the first window, and The detection area 5 associated with the selected area in one window is generated. The detection area 5 is used to detect selection of a selection area in a window displayed on the back surface.

For example, when the user performs a touch operation on the display device displaying the display indicated by D3 on the screen, the display device displays the touch operation start coordinates in the area where the button BB is displayed in the second window. Determine if it is included. Further, the display device determines whether the start coordinate of the touch operation is included in the area where the button AA is displayed in the first window. For example, as shown in D4, it is assumed that the touch operation is started from the position where the button AA is arranged in the first window. In this case, since the start coordinates of the touch operation are included in the area where the button AA is arranged, the display device determines that there is a possibility that the user is going to select the button AA in the first window. To do. Therefore, the display device displays a detection area 5 for detecting a processing request associated with the button AA on the forefront of the screen, as indicated by D5.

The display device determines that the selection area associated with the detection area 5 has been selected if the end coordinates of the touch operation are included in the detection area 5. For example, when the position where the user finishes the touch operation is included in the display detection area 5 shown in D5, the display device determines that the button AA in the first window has been selected, and sets the button AA to the button AA. Perform the associated processing.

In this way, the display device has a detection area for detecting selection of the user interface when the user interface is arranged at the start coordinate in the window displayed behind the other window at the start coordinate of the touch operation. Is displayed in the foreground. In addition, when the end coordinates of the touch operation are included in the detection area, the display device determines that the user interface associated with the detection area has been selected by the user. For this reason, when the button in the window displayed on the back is the selection target, the user starts the touch operation from the display area of the selection target button, and in the detection area associated with the selection target button. By ending the touch operation, a selection target button can be selected. Therefore, the user of the display device according to the embodiment can select the user interface displayed on the back by one touch operation without ending the application displaying the window on the front.

In the description given with reference to FIG. 1, as an example, the case where the user-selectable user interface is a button has been described as an example. However, the user interface can take any form including a button. To do. Furthermore, in the above description, the case where the second window is translucent has been described as an example for easy understanding, but the second window is not limited to the translucent window. For example, the first window may not be visible through the second window.

<Device configuration>
FIG. 2 shows an example of the configuration of the display device 10. In the following, an example in which a soft keyboard window is displayed in front of a certain window will be described. The display device 10 includes a touch panel 11, a software control unit 13, and a storage unit 80. The software control unit 13 includes an input control unit 20, a display control unit 30, a display component control unit 40, an application processing unit 50, a soft keyboard control unit 60, and an arrangement analysis unit 70. The display component control unit 40 includes a coordinate calculation unit 41 and a notification unit 42. The application processing unit 50 includes a position information generation unit 51 and a processing unit 52. The soft keyboard control unit 60 includes a specifying unit 61, an input processing unit 62, an assigning unit 63, and a detecting unit 64. Further, the arrangement analysis unit 70 includes an acquisition unit 71 and an extraction unit 72.

The touch panel 11 includes an input unit 15 and a display unit 16. The display unit 16 includes a screen and displays a window on the screen according to data input from the software control unit 13. The display unit 16 can include a screen using a liquid crystal display (LCD). The input unit 15 receives input from the user. The input unit 15 acquires the coordinates of the input position and determines the type of touch event. There are three types of touch events: a DOWN event, a MOVE event, and an UP event. The DOWN event is a touch event that occurs when the input coordinates are not included in the trajectory of the touch operation that has been observed so far. For example, the DOWN event occurs when the touch operation is started. The MOVE event is a touch event that occurs when input coordinates are included in the trajectory of the touch operation being observed. The UP event occurs when the touch operation is finished. For each input coordinate obtained, the input unit 15 associates the coordinate information with the touch event generated at that coordinate, and outputs it to the input control unit 20. The input control unit 20 outputs coordinate information and a touch event type to the display control unit 30.

The display control unit 30 manages the order of windows displayed on the screen. On the screen, a window generated by an application running on the display device 10 or a window displayed by the Operating System (OS) can be displayed. In addition, a plurality of windows may be displayed in an overlapping manner. The display control unit 30 holds the display order of the windows being displayed. In the following description, information indicating the order in which windows are displayed may be referred to as display order data 81. The display control unit 30 generates and updates the display order data 81 and records the display order data 81 in the storage unit 80.

When a combination of coordinates and a touch event is input from the input control unit 20, the display control unit 30 is associated with the window drawn in the foreground among the windows displayed at the input coordinates. It is determined that input to the application has been performed. When it is determined that an input to an application other than the soft keyboard has been performed, the display control unit 30 outputs a combination of identification information, input coordinates, and touch event type of the application from which the input has been detected to the notification unit 42. On the other hand, when it is determined that the input to the soft keyboard has been performed, the display control unit 30 outputs the combination of the input coordinates and the touch event type to the specifying unit 61.

The coordinate calculation unit 41 holds screen information and uses the position information 82 to calculate the display coordinates of the user interface. The notification unit 42 determines whether there is a selected user interface based on information input from the display control unit 30 or the detection unit 64. At this time, the notification unit 42 converts the notified coordinates into a function of the height and width of the screen using information on the size of the screen. For example, the notification unit 42 can obtain a value obtained by dividing the value of the X coordinate by the maximum value in the X-axis direction on the screen included in the display device 10 as a multiple of the horizontal width of the screen. Similarly, the notification unit 42 can determine the ratio of the Y coordinate to the maximum value in the Y-axis direction on the screen. The notification unit 42 determines whether the user interface has been selected by comparing the obtained value with information associated with the identifier of the application notified from the display control unit 30 in the position information 82. When the user interface is selected, the notification unit 42 outputs information for identifying the selected user interface and an application identifier to the processing unit 52.

The position information generation unit 51 generates information for specifying the size and display position of the user interface in the window. In the following description, information for specifying the size and display position of the user interface in the window may be described as position information 82. It is assumed that the position information generation unit 51 can use the layout file used in the application when generating the position information 82. The layout file includes layout information of a screen to be displayed. For example, the layout file includes information such as the size and coordinates of a user interface included in the screen and coordinates of an area used for display. The method of using the layout file by the position information generation unit 51 is the same as any known method.

The processing unit 52 performs processing according to the selected user interface. For example, when a send button is pressed on the mail creation screen, the processing unit 52 performs a process for sending the created mail. When a user interface associated with the soft keyboard display, such as a button associated with the start of message creation or a keyboard display button, is selected, the processing unit 52 causes the input processing unit 62 to display the soft keyboard. Request activation. In the following description, an application that displays a window in which a user interface (key) is arranged like a keyboard and performs an input operation in response to a touch operation on the area where the key is displayed is referred to as a “soft keyboard”. Sometimes.

The input processing unit 62 activates the soft keyboard in response to a request from the processing unit 52. The specifying unit 61 specifies the start position of the touch operation using the combination of the input coordinates and the touch event input from the display control unit 30. For example, the specifying unit 61 sets the coordinates associated with the DOWN event as the start coordinates of the touch operation. The specifying unit 61 outputs the start position of the touch operation to the detection unit 64, the acquisition unit 71, and the extraction unit 72. Furthermore, the specifying unit 61 outputs the coordinates determined to be not the start coordinates of the touch operation to the detecting unit 64.

When the acquisition unit 71 is notified of the start coordinates from the specification unit 61, the acquisition unit 71 uses the display order data 81 stored in the storage unit 80 to specify an application related to the window displayed on the back of the soft keyboard. . Further, the acquisition unit 71 acquires the display position of the user interface associated with the identified application using the display order data 81 and the position information 82.

The extraction unit 72 uses the information acquired by the acquisition unit 71 and the start coordinates input from the specifying unit 61 to extract a user interface displayed at a position including the start coordinates. If the user interface can be extracted, the extraction unit 72 outputs the extracted user interface information, the identifier of the application that uses the extracted user interface, and the combination of the start coordinates to the allocation unit 63. On the other hand, when there is no user interface including the start coordinates, the extraction unit 72 outputs the start coordinates to the allocation unit 63 together with information indicating that there is no user interface that may have been selected.

The allocation unit 63 allocates a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 to the detection area 5 for detecting an input to the user interface notified from the extraction unit 72. Hereinafter, an area used by the user for the touch operation in the touch panel 11 is referred to as an operation area. Furthermore, the assigning unit 63 assigns a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 to the detection area 6 for detecting the input of each of the character candidates that can be input with the keys of the soft keyboard displayed at the start coordinates. When it is notified that there is no user interface that may have been selected, the allocation unit 63 uses any area of the touch panel 11 as an area for detecting input to the user interface in the rear window. Do not assign. The allocation unit 63 notifies the detection unit 64 of information for specifying the detection region 5 and the detection region 6, information such as a user interface associated with the detection region 5 and input characters associated with the detection region 6. Further, the assigning unit 63 notifies the detection unit 64 of the identifier of the application that uses the user interface.

The detecting unit 64 stores the start coordinates input from the specifying unit 61. Further, the detection unit 64 identifies the processing requested by the user by comparing the end coordinates of the touch operation with the detection area 5 and the detection area 6. For example, the detection unit 64 sets the coordinate associated with the UP event among the coordinates input from the specifying unit 61 as the end coordinate of the touch operation. The detection unit 64 detects a processing request associated with the identified detection region by identifying the detection region including the end coordinates of the touch operation. In other words, the detection unit 64 is assumed to be a process in which the user selects the process associated with the detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation.

When it is determined that the user interface has been selected, the detection unit 64 outputs notification information for notifying that the user interface of the application displayed on the back of the keyboard has been selected to the notification unit 42. Here, the notification information includes data in which the DOWN event is associated with the start coordinates of the touch operation, data in which the UP event is associated with the start coordinates of the touch operation, and the identifier of the application displayed on the back of the soft keyboard Is included. In other words, the notification information is information for notifying that a tap operation has occurred on the user interface in the window displayed on the back. That is, when the touch operation started from the coordinates where the user interface in the back window is arranged ends in the detection area 5, the detection unit 64 selects the user interface in the window displayed on the back. It is determined that Therefore, in order to notify selection of the user interface, the detection unit 64 notifies the notification unit 42 of the same information that is generated when a tap operation on the user interface in the window displayed on the back surface occurs. . The notification unit 42 refers to the position information 82 to identify a user interface associated with the notified application identifier that includes the start coordinates and end coordinates of the touch operation. The notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 together with the application identifier that the specified user interface has been selected. When the display screen of the application is changed according to the notification from the notification unit 42, the processing unit 52 generates a new display screen and outputs it to the display unit 16 via the input control unit 20. The input control unit 20 updates the display order data 81 as appropriate.

On the other hand, when the detection area 6 associated with any of the character candidates that can be input with the keys of the soft keyboard is selected, the detection unit 64 is associated with the detection area 6 including the end coordinates of the touch operation. Perform character input processing.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the display device 10. The display device 10 includes a touch panel 11, a processor 91, a memory 92, and a bus 93. The processor 91 operates as the software control unit 13. The memory 92 is an example of the storage unit 80. The bus 93 connects the touch panel 11, the processor 91, and the memory 92 so that data can be input and output. The memory 92 includes a Read Only Memory (ROM) and a Random Access Memory (RAM). The processor 91 reads the program recorded in the ROM and realizes the software control unit 13. The processor 91 can use a RAM as appropriate. FIG. 3 is an example of the display device 10, and the display device 10 may include other devices as an option. For example, when the display device 10 is realized as a mobile phone terminal, the display device 10 further holds a microphone, a speaker, a wireless processing circuit, an antenna, and the like. Further, a camera or the like may be mounted on the display device 10. Furthermore, the display device 10 may be realized as a tablet or a computer.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 4 shows an example of coordinates used in the display device 10 and an example of a window displayed on the display device 10. In the screen and touch panel, the upper left corner of the screen is set as the origin, as indicated by W0 in FIG. Further, the X axis is set to the right from the origin, and the Y axis is set to the downward from the origin. In the following description, the screen is used as an example when the length in the X-axis direction is a and the length in the Y-axis direction is b. In the first embodiment, an example of the operation of the display device 10 will be described by taking the case where the display device 10 is a mobile phone terminal as an example. The display device 10 may be a device other than the mobile phone terminal, and may be any device that can change the screen display by an input from the touch panel 11.

(1) When the display device 10 is activated, a notification area for notifying the state of the display device 10 is displayed by the OS as indicated by W1 in FIG. At this time, the display control unit 30 generates display order data 81 when displaying the notification area. The display order data 81 includes an identifier of a window displayed on the screen, data representing the window display order, coordinate data for specifying an area for displaying the window, and the like. Here, it is assumed that the display order data 81a shown in FIG. 5 is created when the notification area is displayed. The display control unit 30 displays the notification area on the screen of the display device 10 by outputting the information of the display order data 81a and the window W1 to the display unit 16.

(2) Next, it is assumed that the user activates the application AP1. For example, in the case where the application AP1 is software used for mail creation, an example of a window displayed by the application AP1 is shown in a window W2 in FIG. The display control unit 30 updates the display order data 81a to the display order data 81b in order to display the window W2 on the screen.

Furthermore, the position information generation unit 51 generates position information 82. FIG. 6 shows an example of the position information 82. The position information 82a illustrated in FIG. 6 associates coordinates for specifying a displayed region, an application, processing when selected, and a display name of the user interface for each user interface. For example, in the transmission button in the window W2 generated by the application AP1, the coordinates of the upper left corner are (0, 0.85b) and the coordinates of the lower right corner are (0.5a, b). Similarly, the position information generation unit 51 also includes information in the position information 82a for the save button, destination input area, title input area, and mail text input area. Note that the position information generation unit 51 can also refer to a layout file used to generate the window W2 as appropriate when generating the position information 82a. The position information generation unit 51 uses a character string set in association with each user interface in the layout file as a display name of the user interface.

The display control unit 30 outputs the display order data 81b, the window W1, and the window W2 to the display unit 16. Since the window W2 of the application AP1 is displayed on the back of the notification information window W1 according to the display order data 81b, the display of the screen of the display device 10 is as shown in FIG.

(3) It is assumed that the user selects any one of the destination input area, the title input area, and the mail text input area in the window W2 by a touch operation. At this time, the input unit 15 outputs the coordinates at which the input from the user is detected and the detection of the touch event to the input control unit 20. Here, it is assumed that the coordinates detected together with the type of the touch event are output to the input control unit 20 for the coordinates where the DOWN event is detected and the coordinates where the UP event is detected. The input control unit 20 outputs a combination of information indicating the detected coordinates and the type of touch event to the display control unit 30. The display control unit 30 uses the display order data 81 to specify that the window used by the application AP1 is displayed at the notified coordinates. The display control unit 30 outputs the information acquired from the input control unit 20 together with the identifier of the application AP1 to the notification unit 42. The notification unit 42 uses the position information 82 to specify a user interface including the coordinates notified from the display control unit 30 among the user interfaces used in the application AP1. The notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 that the identified user interface is selected. Here, it is assumed that the input area of the mail text is selected. When the user interface notified from the notification unit 42 is an area used for input processing, the processing unit 52 requests the input processing unit 62 to start a soft keyboard.

(4) FIG. 8 shows an example of a soft keyboard. The input processing unit 62 activates the soft keyboard and outputs information representing the display coordinates of each key included in the soft keyboard as a function of the height and width of the screen to the coordinate calculation unit 41. The coordinate calculation unit 41 calculates display coordinates using information on the height and width of the screen, and generates a soft keyboard window W3 as shown in FIG. The coordinate calculation unit 41 outputs information on the window W3 of the soft keyboard to the display control unit 30. Then, the display control unit 30 sets the display order for the soft keyboard. For example, it is assumed that the display control unit 30 determines to display the activated soft keyboard on the window W2 (that is, the front surface). In this case, the display control unit 30 updates the display order data 81b as indicated by the display order data 81c.

The coordinate calculation unit 41 acquires coordinate information for each key included in the soft keyboard and updates the position information 82. An example of position information 82b including information on each key in the soft keyboard is shown in FIG. For example, the second key from the top in the second column from the left in the soft keyboard has the coordinates of the upper left corner (0.2a, 0.7b) and the coordinates of the lower right corner (0.4a, 0.8b). Yes, used to input alphabets G, H, and I. Similarly, for each key in the soft keyboard, the coordinates and the usage of the key are associated with the position information 82.

The display control unit 30 outputs the window W3 and the display conditions for the window W3 to the display unit 16, whereby a soft keyboard is displayed on the screen. A display D12 in FIG. 10 is a display example of a soft keyboard. A display D12 in FIG. 10 shows an example in which the soft keyboard shown in the window W3 is activated while the display D11 is being displayed. Since the soft keyboard is translucent, it is assumed that the user of the display device 10 can visually recognize the window displayed on the back of the soft keyboard as shown in the display D12.

(5) It is assumed that the user's touch operation is started from the position X as shown in the display D13 in FIG. In the following description, it is assumed that the coordinates of the position X are (0.35a, 0.88b). The input unit 15 outputs to the input control unit 20 a combination of coordinates for detecting the input and information for specifying the type of touch event. Here, the input unit 15 associates the coordinates of the position X and the DOWN event, and outputs them to the input control unit 20. When the display control unit 30 acquires a combination of coordinates and touch events from the input control unit 20, the display control unit 30 outputs the combination to the specifying unit 61. When the type of the touch event is a DOWN event, the specifying unit 61 sets the coordinate associated with the DOWN event as the start coordinate of the touch operation. Here, the specifying unit 61 sets (0.35a, 0.88b) as the start coordinates. The specifying unit 61 notifies the acquisition unit 71, the extraction unit 72, and the detection unit 64 of the obtained start coordinates.

(6) The acquisition unit 71 acquires user interface information included in the window displayed on the back of the soft keyboard. At this time, the acquisition unit 71 appropriately uses the display order data 81c (FIG. 5) to specify that the window W2 generated by the application AP1 is displayed on the back of the window W3 of the soft keyboard. Furthermore, the acquisition unit 71 acquires the position information of the user interface included in the window W2 of the application AP1 by using the position information 82b (FIG. 9).

(7) The extracting unit 72 extracts the user interface including the start coordinates (0.35a, 0.88b) input from the specifying unit 61 using the position information of the user interface acquired by the acquiring unit 71. In the example of display D13 in FIG. 11, the coordinates of the upper left corner of the send button are (0, 0.85b) and the coordinates of the lower right corner are (0.5a, b). The send button is extracted as a user interface including. The extraction unit 72 outputs the obtained result to the allocation unit 63. Accordingly, here, the extraction unit 72 notifies the allocation unit 63 that the transmission button of the application AP1 is displayed at the touch operation start coordinates (0.35a, 0.88b).

(8) The assigning unit 63 specifies a key including the coordinates notified from the extracting unit 72 using the position information 82b (FIG. 9). Here, the touch operation is started from the position X in the display D13. The coordinates of the upper left corner of the key used for inputting P to S are (0.2a, 0.8b), the coordinates of the lower right corner are (0.4a, 0.9b), and the coordinates of the position X are (0. 35a, 0.88b). Therefore, the assigning unit 63 specifies that the key including the touch operation start position X is used for inputting P to S. Therefore, the assigning unit 63 assigns a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 to the detection area 6 (6a to 6d) associated with each of the inputs P to S.

Furthermore, the allocating unit 63 also generates a detection area 5 for detecting an input to the user interface notified from the extracting unit 72. When generating the detection area 5, the allocating unit 63 designates that the display name of the user interface associated with the detection area 5 is displayed in the detection area 5. Here, in step (7), since it is notified that there is a transmission button of the application AP1 at the start position of the touch operation, the allocation unit 63 generates the detection area 5 associated with the transmission button of the application AP1. Further, the display name “transmission” is set to be displayed in the detection area 5. FIG. 12 shows an example of the relationship between the processing corresponding to the

detection areas

5, 6a to 6d generated by the assigning unit 63 and the coordinates of the areas assigned to the

detection areas

5, 6a to 6d. The allocation unit 63 notifies the detection unit 64 of information on the

detection areas

5 and 6a to 6d shown in FIG.

Furthermore, the assigning unit 63 generates an image G1 for allowing the user to visually recognize the

detection areas

5, 6a to 6d, and outputs the generated image G1 to the display control unit 30. The display control unit 30 requests the display unit 16 to display the image G1 on the forefront of the display D13. Therefore, when the

detection areas

5, 6a to 6d are displayed on the screen, the user of the display device 10 can see a display as shown in the display D14.

(9) When the user moves the input position, the combination of the input position newly observed by the input unit 15 and the touch event is notified to the specifying unit 61 as in the procedure (5). When the touch event included in the notified combination is not a DOWN event, the specifying unit 61 outputs the notified combination information to the detection unit 64.

The detecting unit 64 sets the coordinates associated with the UP event among the coordinates input from the specifying unit 61 as the end coordinates of the touch operation. Next, the detection unit 64 specifies a detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation. At this time, the detection unit 64 uses the information of the

detection areas

5 and 6a to 6d notified in advance from the allocation unit 63. The detection unit 64 detects a request for an operation associated with a detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation. That is, the detection unit 64 determines that the process associated with the detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation is the process selected by the user. In the following description, it is assumed that the end coordinates of the touch operation are included in the detection area 5 for detecting an input to the transmission button of the application AP1.

(10) When the end coordinates are included in the detection area 5, the detection unit 64 determines that the transmission button of the application AP1 has been selected. Therefore, the detection unit 64 generates notification information for notifying that the transmission button of the application AP1 has been selected. The detection unit 64 uses, as notification information, a combination of information indicating that a DOWN event has occurred at the start coordinates of the touch operation, information indicating that an UP event has occurred at the start coordinates, and the identifier of the application AP1. That is, the detection unit 64 notifies the notification unit 42 that an input with respect to the start coordinates of the touch operation has been observed and that the input target is the application AP1. In addition, the detection part 64 uses the coordinate notified with the DOWN event from the specific | specification part 61 by the procedure (5) as a start coordinate of touch operation.

(11) The notification unit 42 uses the position information 82 to identify the user interface associated with the identifier of the application notified from the detection unit 64 that includes the touch operation start coordinates. To do. The notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 of the identified user interface together with the application identifier. Here, the notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 that the transmission button of the application AP1 has been selected.

(12) The processing unit 52 performs processing according to the notification from the notification unit 42. For example, when notified that the transmission button of the application AP1 has been selected, the processing unit 52 uses the text displayed in the text input area as the text and the text displayed in the title input area as the title. Send mail to the destination. Further, the processing unit 52 performs a process for changing the display screen in accordance with the mail transmission process.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining an example of processing performed in the display device 10. When an operation for calling a soft keyboard is performed after the application is activated on the display device 10, the soft keyboard is activated (steps S1 and S2). The input unit 15 determines whether a touch operation on the touch panel 11 from the user has been detected (step S3). When the input unit 15 detects the touch operation, the input unit 15 notifies the display control unit 30 of the coordinates and the touch event at which the input is detected (Yes in step S3). The display control unit 30 uses the display order data 81 to determine whether a soft keyboard is displayed at the start coordinates of the touch operation (step S4). When the soft keyboard is displayed at the start coordinates, the acquisition unit 71 acquires information on the user interface displayed in the window displayed on the back of the soft keyboard (Yes in step S4, step S5). The extraction unit 72 determines whether there is a user interface including start coordinates in the user interface from which the acquisition unit 71 has acquired the position (step S6).

When there is a user interface including the start coordinates, the assigning unit 63 assigns the detection area 5 corresponding to the user interface and the detection area 6 corresponding to the key including the start coordinates to a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 (step Yes in S6, step S7). Since the detection unit 64 acquires the touch event and the input coordinates detected by the input unit 15 via the input control unit 20, the display control unit 30, and the like, the coordinates when the touch operation ends and the UP event. A combination is also acquired (step S8). The detection unit 64 determines whether the detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation is associated with the user interface in the rear window (step S9).

When the detection region 5 associated with the user interface in the rear window includes the end coordinates of the touch operation, the detection unit 64 notifies the notification unit 42 of the notification information (Yes in step S9, step S9). S10). Here, the notification information includes the identifier of the application that generated the rear window, the combination of the touch operation start coordinate and the DOWN event, and the combination of the touch operation start coordinate and the UP event. When the notification unit 42 acquires the notification information from the detection unit 64, the user interface displayed at the start position of the touch operation is displayed in the window related to the application identified by the identifier included in the notification information (the back window). It is determined that it has been selected. Therefore, the notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 that the user interface has been selected and information for identifying the selected user interface (step S11). The processing unit 52 performs processing when the user interface notified from the notification unit 42 is selected in accordance with the notification from the notification unit 42. Thereafter, the processing after step S3 is repeated.

On the other hand, when the detection area including the end coordinates of the touch operation is not associated with the user interface in the rear window, the detection unit 64 determines that the input using the soft keyboard has been selected (No in step S9). Therefore, the detection unit 64 performs a process for inputting characters associated with the detection area 6 including the end coordinates (step S14).

In the window displayed on the back, when the user interface is not arranged at the start coordinate, the extraction unit 72 notifies the allocation unit 63 that there is no user interface that the user may have attempted to select in the back window. Notify (No in step S6). Then, the assigning unit 63 assigns the detection area 6 corresponding to each character that can be input with the key including the start coordinates to a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 (step S12). The detection unit 64 acquires the touch event and input coordinates detected by the input unit 15 via the input control unit 20, the display control unit 30, and the like, and also acquires the combination of the coordinate and the UP event when the touch operation ends. (Step S13). Thereafter, the detection unit 64 performs a process of inputting characters associated with the detection area 6 including the end coordinates (step S14).

If it is determined in step S4 that the input is not to the soft keyboard, processing by the application that generated the input target window is performed (step S15). Even after the processing of step S14 or step S15 is performed, the processing after step S3 is performed.

In step S3, when a touch operation is not detected by the input unit 15, the display control unit 30 determines whether the soft keyboard is terminated (step S16). If the soft keyboard has been terminated, the display control unit 30 terminates the process related to the soft keyboard (Yes in step S16). On the other hand, when the soft keyboard has not been terminated, the display control unit 30 waits for a notification from the input unit 15 (No in step S16).

Thus, when there is a user interface associated with the start coordinates of the touch operation, the display device 10 may be selected by the user even if the user interface is not displayed in the foreground. judge. Accordingly, the display device 10 has the detection area 5 for detecting an input to the user interface that is determined to be selected by the user in order to identify the process requested by the user as the foreground. To display. For this reason, when the user wants to select a user interface in the window displayed on the back, the user interface can be selected without performing a process for changing the display order of the windows. Therefore, the user of the display device according to the embodiment can select the button displayed on the back by one touch operation without ending the application displaying the window on the front. The touch operation can be any input operation including flick input.

<Second Embodiment>
As described in the first embodiment, the display device 10 acquires the arrangement of the user interface in the window displayed on the back surface with the start coordinate of the touch operation specified as a trigger. For this reason, even if the arrangement of the user interface of the window displayed on the back surface is changed by the user's touch operation, the display device 10 detects the detection area corresponding to the change of the arrangement of the user interface in real time. 5 can be generated.

In the second embodiment, an example of the operation of the display device 10 when the information on the window displayed on the back of the soft keyboard is changed according to the input from the soft keyboard will be described. Hereinafter, the case where the window of the application AP2 used for information retrieval is displayed on the back of the window of the soft keyboard is taken as an example. In the following description, it is assumed that the position information generation unit 51 holds a history of keywords that the user has searched using the application AP2. In addition, the following description is an example and the application used shall be changed arbitrarily. The window displayed in front of the application window may be other than the soft keyboard window.

(21) FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining a display example on the screen of the display device 10. An example of the window of the application AP2 when no search keyword is input is shown in W4 of FIG. When the application AP2 is activated, a soft keyboard window W3 (FIG. 8) for the user to input a keyword used for the search is displayed so as to overlap the window of the application AP2. Accordingly, until the search keyword is input after the application AP is activated, the display on the display device 10 is as indicated by D21 in FIG.

(22) The user inputs the first character of the search keyword using the soft keyboard. When the touch operation for inputting the first character is started, the acquisition unit 71 is used in the window W4 of the application AP2 by the same processing as the procedures (5) and (6) described in the first embodiment. Get user interface information. Using the information acquired by the acquisition unit 71, the extraction unit 72 determines that no user interface is arranged in the area where the soft keyboard is displayed in the window W4. Therefore, the assigning unit 63 displays the detection area 6 corresponding to the character candidates that can be input using the key including the start coordinates of the user's touch processing on the screen. The detection unit 64 performs an input process of characters assigned to the detection area 6 including the end coordinates of the touch process.

(23) The position information generation unit 51 extracts a keyword that matches the input character of the first character from the stored search history. Further, the position information generation unit 51 arranges the same number of user interfaces as the number of obtained candidates in the window of the application AP2.

FIG. 15 shows an example of a user interface arrangement method. FIG. 15 is an example of information used when the position information generation unit 51 changes the display of the window of the application AP2. The position information generation unit 51 assigns each user interface to perform search processing using one of the extracted keywords as a search keyword. When the arrangement method shown in FIG. 15 is used, the position information generation unit 51 uses the same number of rectangular user interfaces as the number of extracted keywords in the Y-axis direction from the user interface used for inputting the search keywords. Are placed side by side. The position information generation unit 51 assigns the user interfaces located at positions close to the search keyword input area in descending order of possibility of being selected. The prediction method of the high possibility that a keyword will be selected is arbitrary. Here, as an example, it is assumed that the position information generation unit 51 determines that the possibility of selection increases as the frequency of use of each keyword increases. Further, the position information generation unit 51 displays a keyword associated with the interface on the user interface in the window of the application AP2. Further, when the user interfaces 3c to 3j are selected, the processing unit 52 performs a search process using a keyword associated with the selected user interface.

16 is an example of a window of the application AP2 generated by the position information generation unit 51. The window W5 shows an example when “a” is input as the first character of the search keyword. The window W5 shows an example in which eight search keywords whose first character is “a” are extracted. In other words, when “a” is input as the first character of the search keyword, the position information generation unit 51 changes the window display of the application AP2 from the window W4 to the window W5.

(24) The position information generation unit 51 outputs data used for displaying the window W5 to the display unit 16 via the display control unit 30. At this time, even if the first character of the search keyword is input, the soft keyboard is not terminated, so that the display on the display device 10 is as shown at D22 in FIG. Further, the position information generation unit 51 updates the position information 82 according to the layout of the window W5. FIG. 17 shows an example of the updated position information 82c. Note that FIG. 17 shows the user interface information included in the application AP2 in the position information 82c. Even in the position information 82c, the information on the soft keyboard is the No. of position information 82b shown in FIG. It is the same as 2a to 2t.

(25) It is assumed that when the display on the display unit 16 is as indicated by D22 in FIG. 16, the user starts the touch operation from the position Y in order to input the second character of the search keyword. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the coordinates of the position Y are (0.35a, 0.83b). Then, the specifying unit 61 sets the coordinates (0.35a, 0.83b) of the position Y notified together with the DOWN event as the start coordinates Y by the same process as the procedure (5) described in the first embodiment. . The acquisition unit 71 acquires the user interface information included in the window W5 of the application AP2 by the same process as the procedure (6) of the first embodiment. At this time, the acquisition unit 71 also acquires keyword candidates described in each user interface of the window W5 in association with the user interface associated with the keyword. Using the information acquired by the acquisition unit 71, the extraction unit 72 extracts the user interface information in the window W5 including the start coordinate Y as follows.
Application identifier: application AP2
Top left corner coordinate data: (0,0.75b)
Lower right corner coordinate data: (a, 0.85b)
Display content: apple recipe
The extraction unit 72 notifies the allocation unit 63 that the character string “apple record” is displayed on the user interface together with the start coordinate Y (0.35a, 0.83b).

(26) The allocation unit 63 specifies the key including the coordinates notified from the extraction unit 72 using the position information 82c. The start coordinate Y notified from the extraction unit 72 is (0.35a, 0.83b), and the range of keys used for inputting P to S is (0.2a, 0.8b) in the upper left corner, ( 0.4a, 0.9b) is a rectangle with the lower right corner. Accordingly, the allocating unit 63 determines that the key including the start position of the touch operation is a key used for the input of P to S, and uses a part of the operation area of the touch panel 11 for each input of P to S. It is assigned to the associated detection area 6 (6f to 6i). Furthermore, the assigning unit 63 also generates a detection area 5a for detecting selection of the user interface arranged at the start coordinate in the window W5. The allocation unit 63 generates an image for displaying the

detection areas

5a and 6f to 6i, and outputs the generated image to the display unit 16 via the display control unit 30. A display example of the

detection areas

5a, 6f to 6i is shown in D23 of FIG. Furthermore, the assigning unit 63 notifies the detection unit 64 of coordinates for specifying the

detection areas

5a and 6f to 6i.

(27) It is assumed that the touch operation from the user is finished in the detection area 6f. Note that the detection method of the end of the touch operation is the same as the procedure (9) described in the first embodiment. Then, the detection unit 64 determines that “p” has been input. The processing unit 52 includes “p” as the second character of the keyword used for the search in the keyword input area. Further, the position information generating unit 51 changes the display of the window of the application AP2 from the window W5 (FIG. 16) to the window W6 in FIG. 18 by the same processing as in the procedure (23). The window W6 shows an example in which six search keywords starting with “ap” are extracted.

(28) When the position information generation unit 51 outputs the data of the window W6 to the display control unit 30, the display on the screen is changed from D23 in FIG. 16 to D24 in FIG. 18 by the same processing as the procedure (24). . The position information generation unit 51 updates the position information 82c (FIG. 17) to the position information 82d using the information of the window W6. FIG. 19 shows user interface information included in the application AP2 in the position information 82d. As shown in FIG. 19, in the position information 82d, the number of user interfaces associated with the keyword in the application AP2 is six as in the window W6. Further, the keywords associated with each user interface are also updated in association with the information of the window W6 in the position information 82d. Even in the position information 82d, the information on the soft keyboard is the No. of position information 82b shown in FIG. The same as 2a to 2t.

(29) It is assumed that the user starts a touch operation from the position Z when the display on the screen is as indicated by D24 in FIG. Hereinafter, it is assumed that the coordinates of the position Z are (0.5a, 0.72b). The specifying unit 61 sets the coordinates (0.5a, 0.72b) of the position Z notified together with the DOWN event as the start coordinates Z by the same process as in the procedure (5). Similar to the procedure (25), the acquiring unit 71 acquires the user interface information included in the window W6 using the position information 82d. The extraction unit 72 uses the information acquired by the acquisition unit 71 to extract information on the user interface in the window W6 including the start coordinate Z as follows.
Application identifier: application AP2
Upper left corner coordinate data: (0, 0.65b)
Lower right corner coordinate data: (a, 0.75b)
Display contents: apple pie filling
The extraction unit 72 notifies the allocation unit 63 that the character string “apple pie filling” is displayed on the user interface together with the start coordinate Z (0.5a, 0.72b).

(30) The assigning unit 63 specifies the key including the start coordinate Z using the position information 82d. Here, the range of keys used for inputting J to L is a rectangle having (0.4a, 0.7b) as the upper left corner and (0.6a, 0.8b) as the lower right corner. Therefore, the assigning unit 63 determines that the start coordinate Z (0.5a, 0.72b) is included in the key used for inputting J to L. Therefore, the allocating unit 63 includes detection areas 6p to 6r for detecting requests for input of J, K, and L, and a detection area 5b for detecting selection of the user interface notified from the extraction unit 72. Generate. When the information of the detection area is output to the display unit 16 via the display control unit 30, the display on the screen is changed from D24 to D25 in FIG.

(31) It is assumed that the touch operation from the user is finished in the detection area 5b. The detection unit 64 detects the end coordinates of the touch operation, similarly to the procedure (9) described in the first embodiment. When the touch operation is completed in the detection area 5b, the detection unit 64 determines that the user interface of the application AP2 has been selected. Accordingly, the detection unit 64 provides information indicating that a DOWN event has occurred at the start coordinate Z of the touch operation, notification information including the occurrence of an UP event at the start coordinate Z, and the identifier of the application AP2, as a notification unit. Output to 42.

(32) The notification unit 42 uses the position information 82d to identify the user interface associated with the identifier of the application notified from the detection unit 64 that includes the touch operation start coordinates. To do. Here, the notification unit 42 notifies the processing unit 52 that the user interface having the display name of the character string “apple pie filling” is selected by the application AP2.

(33) In response to the notification from the notification unit 42, the processing unit 52 performs a search process using the character string “apple pie filling” as a key. Further, the processing unit 52 requests the input processing unit 62 to end the soft keyboard. The input processing unit 62 requests the display control unit 30 to stop displaying the soft keyboard in response to a request from the processing unit 52. The display control unit 30 deletes the display information related to the soft keyboard from the display order data 81 and requests the display unit 16 to end the display of the soft keyboard. On the other hand, the position information generation unit 51 deletes the user interface information included in the soft keyboard from the position information 82d. When information obtained by the search of the processing unit 52 is output to the display unit 16 via the display control unit 30, the user can visually recognize the search result on the screen.

As described above, even when the arrangement of the user interface of the window displayed on the back surface is changed, the acquisition unit 71 acquires the information on the arrangement of the user interface using the start of the touch operation as a trigger. Therefore, the display device 10 can identify a user interface that may have been selected in real time in response to a change in the back window. Further, in order to specify the process requested by the user, the display device 10 has a detection area for detecting an input to the user interface that is determined to be possibly selected by the user as the foreground. indicate. For this reason, the user can select the user interface displayed on the back surface by one touch operation.

<Others>
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified. Some examples are described below.

In the above description, as an example, a case where a window including a user interface is displayed on the back of a soft keyboard used for alphabet input is described, but the type of the soft keyboard is arbitrary. For example, the soft keyboard may be capable of inputting kana characters such as hiragana and katakana, converting to kanji, and may be used for inputting numbers. In any case, the user interface displayed on the back of the soft keyboard can be selected by one touch operation by the same processing as described above.

The display order data 81, position information 82, etc. used in the above description are examples, and the position of the user interface is arbitrarily changed according to the implementation. Furthermore, information elements included in the display order data 81 and the position information 82 can be changed according to the implementation. Similarly, with respect to the information described with reference to FIGS. 12 and 15, data such as coordinates may be changed depending on the implementation, and the included information elements may be changed.

Furthermore, the layout information generated by the position information generation unit 51 can be, for example, any information that can be used to specify the position of the user interface to be displayed. When the layout generated by the position information generation unit 51 has a positional relationship between user interfaces but does not include the size of each user interface, the coordinate calculation unit 41 displays information such as the size of each user interface. Can be held. The coordinate calculation unit 41 can calculate the coordinates of each user interface using the stored information. Further, the position information generation unit 51 can hold the display position of each user interface as coordinate data instead of a function of the height or width of the screen. In this case, the coordinate calculation unit 41 uses the coordinates output from the position information generation unit 51 as the coordinates of the user interface.

It is assumed that the position information generation unit 51 can also predict the likelihood that a keyword will be used by using the length of time that has elapsed since the last use for search.

In addition, although the case where the display device 10 includes an LCD as a display device has been described as an example, the display device 10 may include an arbitrary display device that can be used together with the touch panel 11 instead of the LCD. .

5, 6 Detection area 10 Display device 11 Touch panel 13 Software control unit 15 Input unit 16 Display unit 20 Input control unit 30 Display control unit 40 Display component control unit 41 Coordinate calculation unit 42 Notification unit 50 Application processing unit 51 Position information generation unit 52 Processing unit 60 Soft keyboard control unit 61 Identification unit 62 Input processing unit 63 Assignment unit 64 Detection unit 70 Placement analysis unit 71 Acquisition unit 72 Extraction unit 80 Storage unit 81 Display order data 82 Position information 91 Processor 92 Memory 93 Bus

Claims

A touch panel having a display unit capable of displaying the first and second images on a screen and an input unit for receiving an operation so that the second image overlaps at least a part of the first image;
A specifying unit for specifying the start coordinates of the operation;
In the first image, a selection area that is an area used for selection of processing is arranged at the start coordinates, and the first image is covered with the second image at the start coordinates. An allocation unit that allocates a part of the operation area of the touch panel to a detection area that is an area for detecting selection of the selection area;
A display device comprising: a display control unit that performs control for displaying the detection area on the screen.
A processing unit that performs processing associated with the first and second images;
When the operation ends in the detection area, a notification unit that notifies the processing unit that the selection area has been selected,
Further comprising
The display device according to claim 1, wherein when the selection area is notified that the selection area is selected, the processing unit performs a process associated with the selection area.
In the second image, when the first area, which is the area associated with the process related to the second image, is arranged at the start coordinates, the assigning unit Assigning a portion different from the detection area to a second area for detecting selection of the first area;
The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit performs control for displaying the detection area and the second area on the screen.
A detection unit for detecting end coordinates of the operation;
When the operation ends in the detection area, the detection unit starts the operation at the start coordinate in the first image, and ends the operation at the start coordinate in the first image. Output notification information indicating that to the notification unit,
The display device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein when the notification information is input, the notification unit notifies the processing unit that the selection area has been selected.
When the operation is started, an acquisition unit that acquires the coordinates of the selection region;
Further comprising
When the first region in the second image is selected, the processing unit performs an editing process on the first image,
When the second operation occurs after the first image is changed to the third image by the editing process resulting from the first operation, the specifying unit specifies the start coordinates of the second operation. And
The obtaining unit obtains coordinates of a selected region in the third image;
The assigning unit includes a start coordinate of the second operation included in a selection area in the third image, and the third image is the second coordinate of the second operation. 5. The display device according to claim 3, wherein the detection area is allocated when the image is covered with an image.
6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the second image has transparency, and the selection area of the first image is visible.
In a display device including a touch panel having a display unit and an input unit,
Displaying the first and second images on the screen of the display unit such that the second image overlaps at least part of the first image;
Accepts operations to the input unit,
Identify the starting coordinates of the operation,
In the first image, a selection area that is an area used for selection of processing is arranged at the start coordinates, and the first image is covered with the second image at the start coordinates. A part of the operation area of the touch panel is allocated to a detection area that is an area for detecting selection of the selection area,
A display program for performing a process of displaying the detection area on the screen.
The display program according to claim 7, wherein when the operation is finished in the detection area, the display apparatus performs processing associated with the selection area.
In the second image, when the first area that is an area associated with the process related to the second image is arranged at the start coordinate, the detection area of the operation area of the touch panel is Assigning a different portion to a second region for detecting selection of the first region;
The display program according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising a process of displaying the detection area and the second area on the screen.
Detecting the end coordinates of the operation;
When the operation ends in the detection area, the same processing as when the operation starts at the start coordinates in the first image and ends at the start coordinates in the first image is performed. The display program according to claim 8, wherein the display program is executed by the display device.
When the first region in the second image is selected, the first image is edited,
When the second operation occurs after the first image is changed to the third image by the editing process resulting from the first operation, the start coordinates of the second operation are specified,
Obtaining the coordinates of the selected region in the third image;
The start coordinates of the second operation are included in the selected area in the third image, and the third image is covered with the second image at the start coordinates of the second operation. 11. The display program according to claim 9, further comprising a process of allocating the detection area.