JP2008191791A - Coordinate input device, coordinate input method, control program, and computer-readable recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To output a coordinate desired to be input by a user by use of a touch pad. <P>SOLUTION: A remote control device 2 has: a coordinate conversion part 22 determining center coordinates of a contact area wherein a finger of the user contacts with the touch pad 20; a contact area increase rate decision part 24 detecting an increase rate of an area of the contact area; and a coordinate adjustment part 28 correcting the center coordinates to determine the output coordinates when the increase rate of the area of the contact area is a prescribed area increase rate or above. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a coordinate input device and the like for transmitting coordinates input from a touchpad to the outside.

  In recent years, various electronic devices such as PCs (personal computers) have been rapidly improved in performance, multifunctionalization, and downsizing, and input devices that give input instructions to these electronic devices are also used in high-performance electronic devices. Various devices have been devised in order to cope with the downsizing, multifunctionalization, and miniaturization.

  For example, in order to move the position of a cursor displayed on the screen of a television connected to the Internet, a touch pad is incorporated in the television remote control.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the remote control device 100 in which the touch pad 101 is incorporated.

  The remote control device 100 is for operating an electronic device. For example, the remote control device 100 is for operating an electronic device whose cursor is displayed on a display screen. Examples of the electronic device on which the cursor is displayed on the display screen include a television and a PC connected to the Internet. The remote control device 100 receives coordinates from the touch pad 101. Then, the remote control device 100 converts the input coordinates into an IR signal and transmits the IR signal to an electronic device such as a television or a PC that is a receiving device (not shown). Thereby, the position of the cursor displayed on the receiving device can be moved.

  Further, Patent Document 1 discloses an apparatus that allows a user to operate an electronic device with one hand.

In Patent Document 1, a stick for operating a pointer is provided on the side where the liquid crystal display is formed, and the convenience for the user is improved by arranging a scroll button near the stick. A pointing device is disclosed. Thus, the user can operate the stick with the thumb of the right hand and can operate the pointer displayed on the liquid crystal display screen.
JP 2001-282386 (release date: October 12, 2001)

  However, as described above, the remote control device 100 in FIG. 9 transmits the coordinates input from the touch pad 101 to the receiving device as they are. For example, the thumb that is in contact with the touch pad 101 is moved from the wrist side to the fingertip side. In some cases, the cursor position displayed on the receiving device does not move as expected by the user. This is due to the following reason.

  When the user inputs coordinates from the touch pad 101 and moves the cursor position, the user usually holds the remote control device 100 facing the receiving device. Then, depending on how the user holds the remote control device 100, the coordinates are input from the touchpad 101 with the user's thumb belly (between the fingertip and the first joint), or the coordinates are input with the tip of the thumb. In some cases, the coordinates may be input with an index finger or the like other than the thumb.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the user touches the belly of the thumb with the touch pad 101 and moves the finger from the wrist side to the fingertip side, that is, from the user side to the receiving device side. .

  From time t1 to time t3 in FIG. 10, the thumb when the user moves the thumb touching the touch pad 101 from the user side to the receiving device side and the cursor displayed on the display screen of the receiving device at that time This represents how the position moves. The time t1 represents the position of the thumb when the belly of the thumb touches the touch pad 101 and the position of the cursor at that time. The time t2 indicates that the position of the thumb in contact with the touch pad 101 is higher than the time t1. The position of the thumb when moving to the receiving side and the position of the cursor at that time are shown, and time t3 is the position of the thumb when the first joint of the user's thumb contacts the touch pad 101 and the position of the cursor at that time. Represents.

  When the contact position of the thumb belly is moved from the user side to the receiving device side, the first joint of the thumb contacts the touch pad 101 as shown at time t3. Therefore, the center coordinate of the contact area between the thumb and the touch pad 101 moves downward from the position of time t2, and the user wants to move the cursor position on the display screen upward. Instead, the position of the cursor on the display screen moves downward on the page.

  Thus, when a user inputs coordinates from the touch pad 101 with the belly of the thumb, the coordinates expected by the user may not be input. For this reason, there have been cases where the cursor position cannot be moved as expected by the user.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a coordinate input device, a coordinate input method, a control program, and a computer that can output coordinates desired by a user using a touch pad An object is to provide a readable recording medium.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a coordinate input device according to the present invention includes a touch pad, detects a contact area where a user's finger is in contact with the touch pad, and outputs output coordinates determined based on the contact area. A coordinate input device for outputting, representative coordinate determining means for determining representative coordinates representing the coordinates of the contact area based on the coordinates of the contact area, and an area increase rate for detecting an increase rate of the area of the contact area And a coordinate adjusting unit that corrects the representative coordinates and determines the output coordinates when the area increase rate detected by the area increase rate detection unit is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate. It is characterized by being.

  The coordinate input method of the present invention includes a touch pad, detects a contact area where a user's finger is in contact with the touch pad, and outputs an output coordinate determined based on the contact area. A coordinate input method, a representative coordinate determination step for determining a representative coordinate representing the coordinates of the contact region based on the coordinates of the contact region, and an area increase rate detection step for detecting an increase rate of the area of the contact region And a coordinate adjustment step of correcting the representative coordinates and determining the output coordinates when the area increase rate detected in the area increase rate detection step is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate. It is a feature.

  When a user operates a coordinate input device such as a remote control device provided with a touch pad with one hand, the user usually inputs coordinates by bringing the belly of the thumb into contact with the touch pad.

  In this case, depending on the direction in which the user moves the thumb, the first joint of the thumb may come into contact with the touch pad. At this time, the fingertip of the thumb gradually moves away from the touch pad. Therefore, since the contact area on the touch pad moves in a direction different from the direction that the user wants to move, the coordinates intended by the user cannot be acquired. Here, when the touch pad comes into contact with the first joint of the user's thumb, the area of the contact region where the touch pad and the user's thumb are in contact increases. The present invention utilizes this fact to detect that the first joint of the thumb has touched the touch pad, correct the coordinates determined based on the contact area on the touch pad, and thereby the coordinates intended by the user Is output.

  According to the coordinate input device and the coordinate input method of the present invention, when the rate of increase in the area of the contact region is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate, the output coordinates are corrected by correcting the representative coordinates determined from the coordinates of the contact region. To decide. Accordingly, when the user inputs coordinates by making contact with the touch pad with the thumb of the thumb, even if the first joint of the thumb contacts the touch pad, the coordinates of the position that the user wants to input can be output. Here, as the representative coordinates, for example, the coordinates of the center of the contact area can be used.

  That is, according to the coordinate input device and the coordinate input method, the belly of the first joint of the thumb is different in thickness from the tip of the thumb, and the contact area where the touch pad and the thumb are in contact with each other is used. By examining the area, it can be detected that the first joint of the thumb has touched the touch pad, and it is possible to prevent the user from inputting coordinates different from the coordinates that the user wants to input to the coordinate input device.

  Furthermore, the coordinate input device according to the present invention includes a speed detection unit that detects a speed at which the representative coordinate moves, a direction detection unit that detects a direction in which the representative coordinate moves, and the coordinate adjustment unit that includes the area increase rate. When the increase rate of the area detected by the detection means is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate, the coordinate moves at the speed detected by the speed detection means immediately before in the direction detected by the direction detection means immediately before. The above-mentioned output coordinates are determined.

  With the above configuration, when the first joint of the user's thumb is in contact, that is, when the increase rate of the area of the contact region is equal to or greater than the predetermined reference area increase rate, the first joint of the user's thumb is touched. The above adjustment can be performed based on the moving direction and moving speed of coordinates input by the user until the pad comes into contact. For this reason, in the correction, the output coordinates can be corrected to the coordinates that the user wants to move more reliably.

  Furthermore, the coordinate input device of the present invention includes an area detection unit that detects an area of the contact region, and the coordinate adjustment unit is configured to display the representative when the area detected by the area detection unit is equal to or less than a predetermined reference area. The coordinates are determined as the output coordinates.

  With the above configuration, the coordinate input device can further determine the representative coordinate as the output coordinate when the area detected by the area detection means is equal to or smaller than a predetermined reference area.

  As a result, the coordinate input device can turn ON / OFF whether or not to correct the representative coordinate in accordance with the area of the contact area of the touchpad.

  That is, according to the above configuration, when the area of the contact area of the user's finger that is in contact with the touch pad exceeds a predetermined reference area, the coordinate input device operates the touch pad with the belly of the thumb. Can be determined. The coordinate input device determines that the user is operating the touch pad with the tip of the finger when the contact area of the user's finger in contact with the touch pad is less than a predetermined reference area increase rate. be able to.

  Thereby, the said coordinate input device can correct | amend the input coordinate appropriately, only when it is judged that the user is operating the touchpad with the belly of the thumb.

  Therefore, the coordinate input device is used regardless of whether coordinates are input from the touch pad with the belly of the thumb, or coordinates are input from the touch pad with a finger other than the tip of the thumb or the thumb. The user can input coordinates to the touch pad without being aware of whether or not the coordinates are corrected.

  The coordinate input device may be realized by a computer. In this case, a control program for the coordinate input device that causes the computer to realize the coordinate input device by operating the computer as the respective means, and A computer-readable recording medium on which is recorded also falls within the scope of the present invention.

  As described above, the coordinate input device according to the present invention detects, based on the coordinates of the contact area, the representative coordinate determination means for determining the representative coordinates representing the coordinates of the contact area, and the increase rate of the area of the contact area. An area increase rate detecting means that performs the correction, and when the area increase rate detected by the area increase rate detection means is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate, the coordinate adjustment means that corrects the representative coordinates and determines the output coordinates. It is the structure provided with.

  The coordinate input method of the present invention includes a representative coordinate determination step for determining a representative coordinate representing the coordinates of the contact region based on the coordinates of the contact region, and an area increase rate for detecting the increase rate of the area of the contact region. And a coordinate adjustment step of correcting the representative coordinates and determining the output coordinates when the area increase rate detected in the area increase rate detection step is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate. Is the method.

  Therefore, when the user inputs coordinates by making contact with the touch pad with the thumb of the thumb, even if the first joint of the thumb contacts the touch pad, the coordinates of the position that the user wants to input can be output. That is, there is an effect that it is possible to prevent the user from inputting coordinates different from the direction of the coordinates that the user wants to input to the coordinate input device.

  One embodiment of the present invention is described below with reference to FIGS.

[Transmission / reception system]
First, the transmission / reception system of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a state diagram showing an outline of the transmission / reception system according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 2, when an IR signal is transmitted from the remote control device 2 to the reception device 3, the remote control device 2 has the surface on which the IR transmission unit 30 is formed facing the reception device 3 side. In the present embodiment, the direction from the side closer to the user in remote control device 2 to the side of receiving device 3 (the side on which IR transmitting unit 30 is formed) is the y plus direction. Conversely, the direction from the receiving device 3 side (the side where the IR transmitter 30 is formed) in the remote control device 2 to the side closer to the user is the y-minus direction. The direction perpendicular to the y plus direction (y minus direction) on the touch pad 20 of the remote control device 2, that is, the direction from the left to the right of the user is defined as the x direction.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the transmission / reception system includes a remote control device (coordinate input device) 2 and a receiving device 3. From the remote control device 2, an IR (Infrared Ray, for example IrSimple) signal is transmitted to the receiving device 3. And in the receiver 3, a process is performed based on the received IR signal.

  The receiving device 3 includes a display screen 4 and a receiving unit 5. The receiving unit 5 receives an IR signal transmitted from the IR transmitting unit 30 of the remote control device 2. As a result, the received IR signal is input to the receiving device 3.

  The receiving device 3 is a device that can be operated by the user based on the IR signal transmitted from the remote control device 2. For example, it is a device that can move the position of the cursor displayed on the display screen 4 in accordance with the coordinates input by the remote control device 2. Examples of the receiving device 3 include a television and a personal computer connected to the Internet.

  The remote control device 2 includes a plurality of keys 10, a touch pad 20, and an IR transmission unit 30. The plurality of keys 10 and the touch pad 20 are formed on the surface on which the user operates when the user uses the remote control device 2, and the IR transmitter 30 uses the remote control device 2 by the user. In this case, it is formed on the side surface facing the receiving device 3. When the user holds the remote controller 2 with one hand, the key 10 is normally pressed with the thumb of the user or coordinates are input from the touch pad 20. However, depending on how the user holds the remote controller 2, the key 10 may be pressed by a finger other than the thumb, for example, the index finger, or coordinates may be input from the touch pad 20.

  When the key 10 is pressed, a signal for operating the receiving device 3 is transmitted from the remote control device 2. Examples of the signal for operating the receiving device 3 include a signal for switching the power ON / OFF of the receiving device 3 and a signal for switching a television broadcast channel.

  The touch pad 20 is for detecting a contact area when a user using the remote control device 2 makes a finger contact the surface (touch surface) of the touch pad 20.

  In the present embodiment, when the user touches the touchpad 20 and moves the finger in the y-plus direction, the position of the cursor displayed on the display screen 4 moves upward. Conversely, when the user touches the touch pad 20 and moves his / her finger in the y-minus direction, the position of the cursor displayed on the display screen 4 moves downward.

  The IR transmitter 30 is for transmitting an IR signal to the receiver 3. A signal generated based on an operation performed on the remote control device 2 by the user is transmitted to the receiving device 3 as an IR signal.

  The remote control device 2 normally outputs, as output coordinates, representative coordinates (for example, coordinates at the center of the contact area) that represent the coordinates of the contact area where the user's finger and the touch pad 20 contact.

  In remote control device 2, in particular, when the first joint of the user's thumb comes into contact with touch pad 20, the increase rate of the area of the contact region is greater than or equal to a predetermined area increase rate (predetermined reference area increase rate) In such a case, the representative coordinates are corrected and the output coordinates are determined. As a result, the remote control device 2 can suppress the movement of the output coordinates against the user's intention such as moving in the y minus direction after moving in the y plus direction. Regarding a method in which the remote control device 2 determines whether or not the area increase rate of the contact area where the user's thumb belly and the touch pad 20 are in contact is equal to or greater than a predetermined area increase rate, and corrects the representative coordinates. Will be described later.

  Further, the remote control device 2 determines whether or not the area of the contact region that has touched the touch pad 20 is equal to or smaller than a predetermined area value (predetermined reference area), and the remote control is set as a normal operation mode based on the determination result. It may have a function of switching between operating the device 2 and operating the remote control device 2 as the correction operation mode.

  The normal operation mode is an operation mode in which representative coordinates are determined from a contact area in contact with the touch pad 20, and the representative coordinates are directly transmitted to the receiving device 3 as output coordinates. In the present embodiment, the representative coordinates are the approximate center coordinates of the contact area in contact with the touch pad 20.

  Further, the correction operation mode is to correct the representative coordinate when the area increase rate of the contact area of the finger in contact with the touch pad 20 becomes a predetermined area increase rate, and to receive the receiver 3 as an output coordinate. Is the operation mode to be transmitted.

  Depending on how the user holds the remote control device 2, the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb, such as an index finger, may be touched on the touch pad 20. For example, when the user touches the touch pad 20 to input coordinates by touching the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb, for example, the index finger, the finger of the user and the touch pad 20 are in contact with each other even when moved in the y plus direction. The area of the area is almost constant. That is, when the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb, such as the index finger, contacts the touch pad 20, the area increase rate of the contact area does not increase greatly.

  Therefore, when the user touches the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb with the touch pad 20, even if the user moves the thumb, for example, the index finger, in the y-plus direction, the coordinates of the center of the contact area B Moves as the user intends. Therefore, it is not necessary for the user who inputs coordinates with the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb such as the index finger to correct the coordinates of the centers of the contact areas B1 to B3. Rather, for a user who inputs coordinates with the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb such as the index finger, if the coordinates are corrected, there is a possibility that the coordinates cannot be input as intended.

  Therefore, when the contact area of the finger touching the touch pad 20 is greater than or equal to a predetermined area value, the remote control device 2 determines that the user is operating the touch pad 20 with the thumb belly. Then, the remote control device 2 corrects the coordinates input from the touch pad 20, converts them into IR signals as output coordinates, and transmits them to the receiving device 3.

  Further, when the contact area of the finger touching the touch pad 20 is less than the predetermined area value, the remote control device 2 allows the user to touch the touch pad 20 with a finger other than the thumb such as the tip of the thumb or the index finger. Judge that you are operating. Then, the remote control device 2 converts the coordinates input from the touchpad 20 into IR signals as coordinates for representing the cursor position as they are, and transmits them to the receiving device 3.

  As a result, even if coordinates are input from the touchpad 20 with the belly of the thumb, or coordinates are input from the touchpad 20 with the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb, the remote control device 2 does not change the area of the contact area of the touchpad 20. Since the coordinate correction is automatically turned on / off according to the coordinate, the coordinate is input from the touch pad 20 to the remote control device 2 without the user being aware of the coordinate correction, and the cursor position of the receiving device 3 is moved. Can be made.

  Note that the remote control device 2 determines whether the user is inputting coordinates on the touch pad 20 with the belly of the thumb or whether the user is inputting coordinates with the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb; A method for correcting the coordinates will be described later.

[Detailed explanation of remote control device]
Next, details of the remote control device 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3 to 6.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the remote control device of the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the remote control device 2 includes a touch pad 20, a touch pad I / F 21, a coordinate conversion unit (coordinate determination unit) 22, a contact area determination unit (area detection unit) 23, and a contact area increase. Rate determination unit (area increase rate detection unit) 24, recording unit 25, movement direction calculation unit (direction detection unit) 26, movement speed calculation unit (speed detection unit) 27, coordinate adjustment unit 28, IR control Unit 29 and IR transmitter 30 (transmission means).

  The remote control device 2 further includes a key 10, a key I / F (interface) 11, and a key control unit 12.

  When the key 10 is pressed, a signal indicating which key 10 is pressed is transmitted from the key I / F 11 to the key control unit 12. Then, the key control unit 12 transmits an IR control signal, which is a signal for operating the receiving device 3 according to the pressed key 10, to the IR control unit 29. As a result, the IR control signal is transmitted from the IR control unit 29 to the IR transmission unit 30 and is transmitted to the reception device 3 as an IR signal.

  In addition, when a finger touches the surface, the touch pad 20 detects which area on the touch pad 20 is touched, and transmits the detected area to the touch pad I / F 21 as a contact area signal. As a method for detecting whether or not the user has touched the touchpad 20, a commonly used method can be used in the present embodiment, and is not particularly limited.

  The touch pad I / F 21 converts the contact area in contact with the touch pad 20 into coordinates, and transmits the coordinates to the contact area determination unit 23 as the contact area coordinates.

  The coordinate conversion unit 22 calculates representative coordinates from the coordinates of the contact area, and continuously transmits them to the coordinate adjustment unit 28 at regular intervals. Here, in the present embodiment, center coordinates (x, y), which are substantially center coordinates, of contact area coordinates are used as representative coordinates. The representative coordinates are not limited to the approximate center of the contact area coordinates, and may be coordinates other than the approximate center.

  Here, normally, the center coordinates (x, y) indicate the position of the cursor displayed on the display screen 4 of the receiving device 3. However, in the present embodiment, in the normal operation mode, the center coordinates (x, y) are used as coordinates for representing the position of the cursor. In the correction operation mode, the center coordinates ( Coordinates corrected for x, y) are used as coordinates for representing the position of the cursor. Then, the center coordinates (x, y) or the coordinates corrected with respect to the center coordinates (x, y) are continuously transmitted from the IR transmitter 30 at predetermined time intervals.

  When the coordinate conversion unit 22 receives the start point acquisition signal from the contact area increase rate determination unit 24, the coordinate conversion unit 22 transmits (x1, y1), which is the center coordinates when the start point acquisition signal is received, to the recording unit 25. In addition, when the end point acquisition signal is received from the contact area increase rate determination unit 24, the center coordinate signal (x2, y2) when the end point acquisition signal is received is transmitted to the recording unit 25. It may be. The start point acquisition signal and the end point acquisition signal will be described later.

  The contact area determination unit 23 calculates the area of the contact area from the contact area coordinates. Then, the calculated area value is transmitted to the contact area increase rate determination unit 24. Further, the contact area determination unit 23 operates the remote controller 2 as the normal operation mode or the correction operation mode by determining whether or not the area value is equal to or larger than a predetermined reference area value. You may have the function to switch.

  Specifically, when the area of the contact region is less than a predetermined area value, the contact area determination unit 23 determines that the user has touched the tip of the finger with the touch pad 20, and sets the normal operation mode. In order to operate the remote control device 2, a signal indicating that the area of the contact region is less than a predetermined area value is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28. When the area of the contact area is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value, the contact area determination unit 23 determines that the user has touched the touch pad 20 with the belly of the thumb, and the remote control device 2 as the correction operation mode. In order to operate, the contact area coordinate signal is transmitted to the contact area increase rate determination unit 24. In addition, the contact area determination unit 23 transmits a signal indicating that the area of the contact region is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value to the coordinate adjustment unit 28.

  It should be noted that the correction of the coordinates when the first joint of the abdomen of the thumb is in contact can be corrected only by the determination of the area increase rate by the contact area increase rate determination unit 24. Therefore, the mode switching function of the contact area determination unit 23 is as follows. It may be omitted. Further, the predetermined area value can be arbitrarily set according to the thickness of the user's finger.

  Here, a method in which the contact area determination unit 23 determines whether or not the area of the contact region is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value will be described with reference to FIGS. First, using FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the movement of the finger and the change in the area of the contact area when the user touches the touch pad 20 will be described, and then the contact area will be described using FIG. 5. A method will be described in which the determination unit 23 determines whether or not the area of the contact region is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value.

  3 shows the movement of the thumb when the user touches the touch pad 20 and the thumb and moves the thumb, the positions of the contact areas A1 to A3, which are areas where the thumb and the touch pad 20 are in contact, and It is the schematic showing the change of an area.

  In FIG. 3, time t1 to time t3 represent the state of the thumb when the user moves the thumb in contact with the touch pad 20 in the y-plus direction and the contact area on the touch pad 20 at that time.

  Time t1 represents the position of the thumb when the user's thumb belly touches the touch pad 20, and the contact area A1 between the user's thumb and the touch pad 20 at that time.

  Time t2 represents the position of the thumb when the position of the user's thumb in contact with the touch pad 20 moves in the y-plus direction from time t1, and the contact area A2 at that time.

  The time t3 represents the position of the thumb when the first joint of the user's thumb contacts the touch pad 20, and the contact area A3 at that time.

  In the state at time t1 and time t2, the areas of the contact region A1 and the contact region A2 are substantially constant. On the other hand, in the state at time t3, the area of the contact area A3 is larger than that of the contact area A1 and the contact area A2. Further, at time t3, the first joint of the user's thumb comes into contact with the touch pad 20, and the fingertip of the thumb is separated from the touch pad 20 as compared with the state at time t1 and time t2. For this reason, the position of the contact area A3 moves in the y-minus direction compared to the contact area A2.

  That is, although the user intends to move the contact area A3 at time t3 in the y-plus direction relative to the contact area A2 at time t2, the user touches the contact area A2 at time t2. Is moved in the y-minus direction from the contact area A3 at time t3 and input to the remote control device 2.

  FIG. 4 shows the movement of a finger when the user touches the touch pad 20 and the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb such as an index finger which is a finger other than the thumb and moves the contacted finger. It is the schematic showing the change of the position and area of the contact area | region B which is an area | region where the touchpad 20 is contacting.

  In FIG. 4, time t1 represents a state immediately before the user touches the tip of the thumb with the touch pad 20 and moves the thumb, and a contact area B1 between the user's thumb and the touch pad 20 at that time. .

  Time t2 represents a state in which the user has moved the thumb that is in contact with the touch pad 20 slightly in the y-plus direction from the position of time t1, and the contact area B2 between the thumb and the touch pad 20 at that time.

  In addition, time t3 represents a state in which the user moves the thumb that is in contact with the touch pad 20 further in the y plus direction from the position of t2. Further, the contact area B3 represents an area where the user's thumb and the touch pad 20 are in contact at the time t3.

  As shown at times t1 to t3, the contact areas B1 to B3 have a smaller area than the contact areas A1 to A3 shown in FIG. Further, when the user moves the finger in contact with the touch pad 20 in the y plus direction from time t1 to t3, the contact areas B1 to B3 also move in the y plus direction.

  That is, when the user touches a finger other than the thumb, such as an index finger that is a finger other than the thumb, and inputs coordinates from the touch pad 20, the first joint of the finger is a touch pad like the thumb. The state (time t3 of FIG. 3) that a fingertip will come off from the touchpad 20 and contact with 20 is hard to arise. Therefore, the contact areas B1 to B3 can be moved in a direction that the user wants to move compared to the contact areas A1 to A3.

  Next, a method in which the contact area determination unit 23 determines whether or not the area of the contact region is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value will be described with reference to FIG.

  That is, a method in which the remote controller 2 changes between the normal operation mode and the correction operation mode will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a graph showing temporal changes in the contact areas of the contact regions A1 to A3 and the contact regions B1 to B3 in FIGS.

  In FIG. 5, a curve a represents a time change of each contact area of the contact regions A1 to A3 at each of the times t1 to t3 in FIG. 3. Moreover, in FIG. 5, the curve b represents the time change of each contact area of contact region B1-B3 in each of the time t1-t3 of FIG. A broken line c represents a predetermined reference area value.

  As shown in FIG. 5, when the user touches the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb with the touch pad 20 as compared with the case where the user touches the belly of the thumb with the touch pad 20 (curve a) ( Curve b) has a small contact area. Accordingly, a predetermined value is determined between the value of the contact area when the belly of the thumb is brought into contact with the touch pad 20 and the value of the contact area when a finger other than the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb is brought into contact with the touch pad 20. An area value c is set. As a result, the contact area calculation unit 23 determines whether or not the area value obtained from the contact area coordinates input to the contact area calculation unit 23 is equal to or greater than the predetermined area value c. Can switch between the normal operation mode and the correction operation mode.

  The contact area increase rate determination unit 24 in FIG. 2 receives the area value of the contact region from the contact area determination unit 23, calculates the increase rate from the received area value, and the calculated area increase rate is a predetermined area. It is determined whether or not the increase rate threshold is exceeded. The area increase rate can be obtained as an increase rate of the area of the contact region detected this time with respect to the area of the contact region detected last time each time the touch pad 20 detects the contact region.

  Then, when the area increase rate of the contact area becomes less than the predetermined area increase rate, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 transmits a start coordinate acquisition signal to the coordinate conversion unit 22, and then the contact area. When the increase rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate, an end coordinate acquisition signal is transmitted to the coordinate conversion unit 22 and an area increase rate determination result signal is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28.

  The predetermined area increase rate can be arbitrarily set according to the user's input operation.

  6 (a) and 6 (b), the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines whether the increase rate of the contact area is less than a predetermined area increase rate, and the contact area from the received contact area coordinate signal. A method for determining whether or not the increase rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined area increase rate will be described.

  FIG. 6A is a graph showing a temporal change in the contact area between the touch pad 20 and the finger when the user moves the finger from time t0 to time t3, and FIG. It is a graph showing the time change of the increase rate of the contact area in a). Note that times t1 to t3 in FIGS. 6A and 6B correspond to times t1 to t3 in FIG. 3, respectively.

  When the user touches the surface of the touch pad 20 with the belly of the thumb and moves the thumb in the y-plus direction, the thumb and the touch pad 20 come into contact at times t1 to t3 in FIG.

  6A and 6B, t0 represents immediately before the user touches the touch pad 20 with the belly of the thumb and moves the touched finger.

  A region a1 in FIG. 6A represents a temporal change in the contact area between the touch pad 20 and the finger from time t0 to time t1 (see time t1 in FIG. 3). A region a2 represents a temporal change in the contact area between the touch pad 20 and the finger from time t1 to time t2 (see time t1 to time t2 in FIG. 3). A region a3 represents a temporal change in the contact area between the touchpad 20 and the finger from time t2 to time t3 (see time t2 to t3 in FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the region a1 increases from time t0 to time t1. Then, the region a2 shows a substantially constant value from time t1 to time t2. Then, in the area a3 from time t2 to time t3, the contact area where the finger and the touch pad 20 come into contact increases rapidly. This is because the first indirect vicinity of the thumb starts to contact the touch pad 20 as shown at times t2 to t3 in FIG.

  Next, the increase rate of the contact area in FIG. 6A will be described with reference to FIG. A broken line e in FIG. 6B represents a predetermined area increase rate threshold.

  In FIG. 6B, the area increase rate decreases from time t0 to time t1. At time t1, the area increase rate falls below a predetermined area increase rate threshold. And there is almost no increase in area from time t1 to t2. At time t2, the area increase rate exceeds a predetermined area increase rate threshold. At time t3, the area increase rate again falls below a predetermined area increase rate threshold.

  As described above, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 can determine whether the increase rate of the contact area is less than a predetermined area increase rate, and can detect the time t1 at that time. Further, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines whether or not the increase rate of the contact area is less than the predetermined area increase rate, and then again exceeds the predetermined area increase rate, The time t2 at that time can be detected.

  In FIG. 2, the recording unit 25 records the center coordinate (x, y) at the time t1 and the center coordinate (x, y) at the time t2 transmitted from the coordinate conversion unit 22, and at the time t1. , Time t2 is recorded. Then, the recording unit 25 transmits the center coordinate (x, y) at the time t1 and the center coordinate (x, y) at the time t2 to the movement direction calculation unit 26, and the center coordinate (x at the time t1) , Y), the central coordinates (x, y) at the time t2, and the times t1, t2 are transmitted to the moving speed calculation unit 27.

  The movement direction calculation unit 26 calculates the movement direction of the coordinates in order to correct the center coordinates (x, y) at time t1 and the center coordinates (x, y) at time t2 to output coordinates, and the movement A movement direction calculation result signal representing the direction calculation result is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28. In addition, the moving speed calculation unit 27 corrects the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t1, the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t2, and the center coordinates (x, y) from the times t1 and t2. And a movement speed calculation result signal, which is a signal representing the correction value, is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28.

As described above, by calculating the moving direction and moving speed and correcting the center coordinates (x, y) as output coordinates, it is possible to correct the coordinates to be input by the user.
In addition, the calculation method of the moving direction and moving speed for correcting the center coordinates (x, y) is not particularly limited. For example, in order to simplify the configuration of the remote control device 2, the central coordinates (x, y) may be corrected without calculating the moving direction and moving speed. In this case, the remote controller 2 may omit the recording unit 25, the movement direction calculation unit 26, and the movement speed calculation unit 27.

  The coordinate adjustment unit 28 receives the center coordinates (x, y) from the coordinate conversion unit 22 and transmits the received center coordinates (x, y) to the IR control unit 29 or the center coordinates (x, y). The corrected corrected coordinates (x, y + α) (signal indicating the adjusted cursor coordinates) are transmitted to the IR control unit 29. The correction coordinates (x, y + α) will be described later.

  When the coordinate adjustment unit 28 receives a signal from the contact area determination unit 23 indicating that the area of the contact region is less than a predetermined area value, the coordinate adjustment unit 28 operates the remote controller 2 in the normal operation mode. That is, the central coordinates (x, y) received from the coordinate conversion unit 22 are transmitted to the IR control unit 29. Even if the area increase rate determination result signal is received from the contact area increase rate determination unit 24, the center coordinate (x, y) is transmitted to the IR control unit 29 without being corrected.

  Thereby, in the state where the remote control device 2 is operating in the normal operation mode, even if the area increase rate of the contact area in contact with the touch pad 20 is equal to or greater than a predetermined area increase rate, the coordinate conversion unit 22 The transmitted center coordinates (x, y) are not corrected.

  When the coordinate adjustment unit 28 receives a signal from the contact area determination unit 23 indicating that the area of the contact area is equal to or larger than a predetermined area value, the coordinate adjustment unit 28 operates the remote control device 2 as the correction operation mode.

  That is, the coordinate adjustment unit 28 receives the movement direction calculation result signal from the movement direction calculation unit 26 and further receives the movement speed calculation result signal from the movement speed calculation unit 27. Then, the coordinate adjustment unit 28 stops the transmission of the center coordinates (x, y) transmitted to the IR control unit 29, and receives the center coordinates (x, y) transmitted almost simultaneously when the area increase rate determination result signal is received. The correction coordinates (x, y + α) are transmitted to the IR control unit 29 after y). The corrected coordinates are output coordinates obtained by correcting the center coordinates (x, y) with the movement direction calculated by the movement direction calculation unit 26 and the movement speed calculated by the movement speed calculation unit 27.

  The IR control unit 29 receives the center coordinates (x, y) or the correction coordinates (x, y + α), which are output coordinates received from the coordinate adjustment unit 28, and a signal received from the key control unit 12, and an IR signal pattern And transmitted to the IR transmitter 30. The IR transmitter 30 includes a light emitting element (not shown), and the light emitting element emits light according to the IR signal pattern. As a result, an IR signal is generated, and the generated IR signal is transmitted from the IR transmitter 30 to the receiver 5 of the receiver 3.

[Coordinate correction method]
Next, a method in which the remote controller 2 corrects coordinates will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating how the thumb moves when the user inputs coordinates by touching the surface of the touch pad 20 with the belly of the thumb. The contact areas A0 to A3 are respectively displayed at times t0 to t3. The contact area of the finger on the touchpad 20 is represented. The center coordinates (x, y) represent the coordinates of the approximate center of the contact areas A0 to A3, or the corrected coordinates (x, y + α) are coordinates obtained by correcting the center coordinates (x, y) in the contact area A3. Represents.

  6A and 6B, the output coordinates are center coordinates (x, y) representing the center of the contact area A (see t0 to t2 in FIG. 6). At time t3, which is the time when the first joint of the thumb contacts the touch pad 20, the center coordinates (x, y) representing the center of the contact area A3 are corrected to the corrected coordinates (x, y + α). Then, the corrected coordinates (x, y + α) are transmitted to the IR control unit 29 as output coordinates.

[Remote control flowchart]
Next, the flow of processing in the remote controller 2 will be described with reference to FIG. That is, the flow of processing in the remote controller 2 when the user inputs coordinates from the touch pad 20 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in the remote control device 2.

  First, when the user of the remote control device 2 touches the touch pad 20 with a finger, the touch pad I / F 21 performs coordinate conversion of the contact area where the user touches the finger, the coordinate conversion unit 22 as the contact area coordinates, and the contact It transmits to the area determination part 23 (S1).

  Then, the coordinate conversion unit 22 determines the center coordinates (x, y) from the contact area coordinates, and transmits the center coordinates (x, y) to the coordinate adjustment unit 28. The coordinate adjustment unit 28 transmits the received center coordinates (x, y) as it is to the IR control unit 29 as the cursor position, and the IR control unit 29 controls the IR transmission unit 30 to send the IR signal to the reception device 3. (S2).

  Further, the contact area determination unit 23 calculates the area of the contact region from the contact region coordinates, and determines whether or not the calculated area value is greater than or equal to a predetermined area value (S3). That is, the contact area determination unit 23 changes between the normal operation mode and the correction operation mode.

  Next, in S3, when it is determined that the area calculation result is less than a predetermined area value, the coordinate adjustment unit 28 sets the center coordinate (x, y) transmitted from the coordinate conversion unit 22 as the center. It is converted into a coordinate signal and transmitted to the IR control unit 29. Next, the center coordinate signal is transmitted from the IR control unit 29 to the receiving device 3 through the IR transmission unit 30 as a signal indicating the cursor position coordinates (normal operation mode (S4)). Then, the process of S4 is performed until the user removes his / her finger from the touch pad 20 (S12).

  In S3, when the contact area determination unit 23 determines that the calculation result is equal to or greater than a predetermined area value, the remote control device 2 operates as the correction operation mode.

  Accordingly, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 detects whether or not the area increase rate of the contact region is a predetermined area increase rate. The contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines the time t1 when the area increase rate of the contact area is less than the predetermined area increase rate (see FIG. 6B), and the center coordinates (x, y at that time). ) Is transmitted to the coordinate conversion unit 22. Then, the coordinate conversion unit 22 records the central coordinates (x, y) and the time t1 at the time t1 in the recording unit 25 (S5).

  Further, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines whether or not the area increase rate of the contact region is equal to or greater than a predetermined area increase rate (S6).

  When the increase rate of the contact area becomes equal to or greater than the predetermined area increase rate, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines the time t2 at that time (see FIG. 6B), and the center coordinates ( An end point acquisition signal for recording x, y) is transmitted to the coordinate conversion unit 22, and an area increase rate determination result signal is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28. The coordinate conversion unit 22 records the central coordinates (x, y) and the time t2 at the time t2 in the recording unit 25 (S7).

  Then, the central coordinates (x, y) at the time t1 and the central coordinates (x, y) at the time t2 recorded in the recording unit 25 are transmitted to the movement direction calculation unit 26, and the center at the time t1 is transmitted. The coordinates (x, y), the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t2, and the times t1, t2 are transmitted to the moving speed calculation unit 27.

  Then, the movement direction calculation unit 26 calculates the movement direction of the center coordinates at the times t1 to t2 from the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t1 and the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t2. The movement direction calculation result signal, which is a signal representing the calculation result, is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28. Further, the moving speed calculation unit 27 calculates the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t1, the center coordinates (x, y) at the time t2, and the moving speed of the coordinates in the area a2 from the times t1 and t2. Then, a movement speed calculation result signal, which is a signal representing the calculation result, is transmitted to the coordinate adjustment unit 28 (S8).

  The coordinate adjustment unit 28 is calculated by the movement direction calculation unit 26 during a period in which the area increase rate of the contact region is equal to or greater than a predetermined area increase rate (period t2 to t3 (see FIG. 6B)). The correction coordinate (x, y + α), which is a coordinate for moving the cursor position at the movement speed calculated by the movement direction and movement speed calculation unit 27, is converted into a correction coordinate signal, and the correction coordinate signal is converted into the IR control unit 29. Send to. That is, during the period from t2 to t3, the coordinates are corrected so that the coordinates are moved in the direction opposite to the movement direction of the coordinates input by the user from the touch pad 20.

  The IR control unit 29 converts the output coordinates, which are the center coordinates or the correction coordinates transmitted from the coordinate adjustment unit 28, into IR signals, and transmits the IR signals from the IR transmission unit 30 to the receiving device 3 (S9).

  Next, when the area increase rate of the contact area becomes less than the predetermined area increase rate (see FIG. 7B), the contact area increase rate determination unit 24 determines the center coordinates (x, y) at that time. Is transmitted to the coordinate conversion unit 22 (S10).

  If the user has not lifted his / her finger from the touch pad 20 (S11), the coordinate conversion unit 22 records the central coordinates (x, y) and time t1 when the start point acquisition signal is received in the recording unit 25. . That is, the process returns to S5.

  Finally, each block of the remote control device 2, particularly the coordinate conversion unit 22, the contact area determination unit 23, the contact area increase rate determination unit 24, the movement direction calculation unit 26, the movement speed calculation unit 27, and the coordinate adjustment unit 28, You may comprise by a logic and may implement | achieve by software using CPU as follows.

  That is, the remote controller 2 includes a CPU (central processing unit) that executes instructions of a control program that realizes each function, a ROM (read only memory) that stores the program, a RAM (random access memory) that expands the program, A storage device (recording medium) such as a memory for storing the program and various data is provided. An object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium on which a program code (execution format program, intermediate code program, source program) of a control program of the remote control device 2 which is software for realizing the above-described functions is recorded so as to be readable by a computer. This can also be achieved by supplying the remote control device 2 and reading and executing the program code recorded on the recording medium by the computer (or CPU or MPU).

  Examples of the recording medium include tapes such as magnetic tapes and cassette tapes, magnetic disks such as floppy (registered trademark) disks / hard disks, and disks including optical disks such as CD-ROM / MO / MD / DVD / CD-R. Card system such as IC card, IC card (including memory card) / optical card, or semiconductor memory system such as mask ROM / EPROM / EEPROM / flash ROM.

  The remote control device 2 may be configured to be connectable to a communication network, and the program code may be supplied via the communication network. The communication network is not particularly limited. For example, the Internet, intranet, extranet, LAN, ISDN, VAN, CATV communication network, virtual private network, telephone line network, mobile communication network, satellite communication. A net or the like is available. Also, the transmission medium constituting the communication network is not particularly limited. For example, even in the case of wired such as IEEE 1394, USB, power line carrier, cable TV line, telephone line, ADSL line, etc., infrared rays such as IrDA and remote control, Bluetooth ( (Registered trademark), 802.11 wireless, HDR, mobile phone network, satellite line, terrestrial digital network, and the like can also be used. The present invention can also be realized in the form of a computer data signal embedded in a carrier wave in which the program code is embodied by electronic transmission.

  The present invention can be widely applied to a coordinate input device provided with a touch pad because coordinates are corrected to a position intended by a user even when the first joint touches when operating the touch pad with the belly of the thumb. And is particularly suitable for remote control devices such as televisions and personal computers.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a remote control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an outline of the transmission / reception system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows how the thumb moves when the user touches the thumb of the thumb on the touchpad of the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention, and changes in the contact area between the thumb and the touchpad at that time. FIG. FIG. 4 shows how the user moves his / her finger when the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb is brought into contact with the touch pad of the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention, and the finger and the touch pad at that time. It is the schematic showing the change of a contact area. FIG. 5 is a graph showing a change in the contact area in the contact area between the touch pad of the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention and the user's finger. FIG. 6A is a graph showing a change in the contact area in the contact area between the touchpad of the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention and the user's finger, and FIG. It is a graph showing the change of the increase rate of the contact area shown to a). FIG. 7 shows how the user moves his / her finger when the tip of the thumb or a finger other than the thumb contacts the touchpad of the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention, and the finger and the touchpad at that time. It is the schematic showing the change of a contact region, the coordinate input into a remote control apparatus, and the corrected coordinate. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing in the remote control device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a user holds a conventional remote control device with one hand. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing how the thumb moves when the user touches the belly of the thumb on the touchpad of a conventional remote control device, and changes in the contact area between the thumb and the touchpad at that time.

Explanation of symbols

2 Remote control device (coordinate input device)
10 key 12 key control unit 20 touch pad 22 coordinate conversion unit (representative coordinate determining means)
23 Contact area determination unit (area detection means)
24 Contact area increase rate determination unit (area increase rate detection means)
25 Recording unit 26 Moving direction calculation unit (direction detection means)
27 Movement speed calculation part (speed detection means)
28 Coordinate adjustment unit (coordinate adjustment means)
29 IR control unit 30 IR transmission unit (transmission unit)

Claims (6)

A coordinate input device that includes a touchpad, detects a contact area where a user's finger is in contact with the touchpad, and outputs output coordinates determined based on the contact area,
Representative coordinate determining means for determining representative coordinates representing the coordinates of the contact area based on the coordinates of the contact area;
An area increase rate detecting means for detecting an increase rate of the area of the contact region;
Coordinate adjustment means for correcting the representative coordinates and determining the output coordinates when the area increase rate detected by the area increase rate detection means is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate. A coordinate input device. Speed detecting means for detecting the speed at which the representative coordinates move;
Direction detecting means for detecting a direction in which the representative coordinate moves;
The coordinate adjusting means has the speed detected by the speed detecting means immediately before the direction detecting means when the area increasing rate detected by the area increasing rate detecting means is equal to or higher than a predetermined reference area increasing rate. 2. The coordinate input device according to claim 1, wherein the output coordinates are determined so that the coordinates move in the detected direction. Comprising an area detecting means for detecting the area of the contact region,
3. The coordinate adjustment unit according to claim 1, wherein the coordinate adjustment unit determines the representative coordinate as the output coordinate when the area detected by the area detection unit is less than a predetermined reference area. Coordinate input device. A coordinate input method of a coordinate input device comprising a touchpad, detecting a contact area where a user's finger is in contact with the touchpad, and outputting output coordinates determined based on the contact area,
Based on the coordinates of the contact area, a representative coordinate determination step for determining representative coordinates representing the coordinates of the contact area;
An area increase rate detecting step for detecting an increase rate of the area of the contact region;
A coordinate adjustment step of correcting the representative coordinates and determining the output coordinates when the area increase rate detected in the area increase rate detection step is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference area increase rate. Coordinate input method.   A control program for operating the coordinate input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the control program causes a computer to function as each of the means.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 5 is recorded.

Images