JP2018101230A - Input system and input program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique for improving convenience in an input system.SOLUTION: An input system includes a viewpoint detection unit for detecting a user viewpoint, an operation detection unit for detecting an operation done to an operation unit by a user, a display control unit for displaying a user interface screen to receive a plurality of instructions on a display unit, and an operation instruction receiving unit configured to enable the operation unit to receive all of the plurality of instructions when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen but to enable the operation unit to receive only a part of the instructions when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, thereby setting the operation unit to receive the instructions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an input system and an input program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, it has been known to change a screen display or the like depending on whether a user is viewing a screen. For example, Patent Document 1 describes that when it is determined that the driver is not viewing the screen inside the vehicle, the brightness of the screen is lowered. In Patent Document 2, when the driver is viewing the display unit of the navigation system, the driving direction is presented on the map displayed on the display unit, and when the driver is not viewing the display unit, the voice is spoken. And guide the driving direction.

JP 2008-292753 A Special table 2014-516181 gazette

In the case of an input system that inputs an instruction using a display unit that displays a user interface screen and an operation unit such as a touchpad, for example, the user can visually recognize the screen while viewing a button (in response to the instruction). A series of operations such as moving a pointer or cursor to the corresponding button) and selecting the button is performed. However, in order to perform these series of operations, the user needs to visually recognize the screen as described above. If an instruction can be input via the operation unit without visually recognizing the screen, convenience is improved.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a technique for improving convenience in an input system.

  In order to achieve the above object, the input system includes a viewpoint detection unit that detects a user's viewpoint, an operation detection unit that detects a user's operation on the operation unit, and a user interface screen that receives a plurality of instructions. When the display control unit to be displayed on the display unit and the viewpoint exist on the user interface screen, all of the plurality of instructions are set to be accepted by the operation unit, and when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, the plurality of instructions An operation instruction accepting unit that accepts an instruction from the operation unit.

  Furthermore, in order to achieve the above object, the input program includes a computer, a viewpoint detection unit that detects a user's viewpoint, an operation detection unit that detects a user's operation on the operation unit, and a user who receives a plurality of instructions. Display control unit that displays the interface screen on the display unit, if the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, set all the multiple instructions to be accepted by the operation unit, and if the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, multiple Only a part of the instruction is set to be receivable by the operation unit, and functions as an operation instruction reception unit that receives an instruction from the operation unit.

  That is, in the input system and program, even if the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, some of the instructions that can be accepted when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen can be accepted. It is. Therefore, the user can input some of the instructions via the operation unit without visually recognizing the user interface screen, which improves convenience. The user can input a plurality of instructions including the part of the instructions via the operation unit by visually recognizing the user interface screen. Therefore, the user can input various instructions other than the partial instruction and the partial instruction via the operation unit while visually recognizing the user interface screen.

It is a block diagram of an input system. FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen, and FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating whether each instruction can be accepted. FIG. 3A is a flowchart showing input processing, and FIG. 3B is a diagram showing correspondence between operation contents and processing. The figure which shows the example of a screen concerning other embodiment.

Here, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order.
(1) Configuration of input system:
(2) Input processing:
(3) Other embodiments:

(1) Configuration of input system:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an input system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The input system 10 is mounted on a vehicle. The input system 10 includes a control unit 20 including a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and the control unit 20 can execute a desired program recorded in the ROM or the recording medium 30.

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 20 can execute an audio control program (not shown), an air conditioning control program, a navigation program, and the like. The control unit 20 can realize an audio function for playing back a music (track) recorded on the recording medium 30 by executing an audio control program. Moreover, the control part 20 can implement | achieve the air-conditioning control function including the temperature adjustment of a vehicle interior by running an air-conditioning control program.

  Further, the control unit 20 displays a map on the display 40 by executing a navigation program, and has a route guidance function for guiding a vehicle equipped with the input system 10 to a designated destination based on a GPS signal (not shown). Can be realized.

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 20 executes an input program 21 recorded in a ROM, a recording medium 30 or the like (not shown) in order to provide a user interface related to functions realized by the respective programs as described above. The input program 21 includes input processing described later. In order to execute processing by the input program 21, the vehicle includes a display (display unit) 40, a touch pad 41, and a line-of-sight detection sensor 42.

  The display 40 is connected to the control unit 20 via an interface (not shown). The control unit 20 outputs a control signal to the display 40 to designate arbitrary coordinates and display an arbitrary image on the display 40. Can be displayed. The touch pad 41 is an input device including a rectangular flat contact detection surface, detects a position where a detection target object is in contact with the contact detection surface, and outputs coordinates indicating the detection position. The control unit 20 acquires the contact position based on the coordinates.

  The line-of-sight detection sensor 42 includes an infrared output unit and at least two infrared cameras. The infrared camera is attached to a vehicle interior structure (for example, a wall surface of an instrument panel) so as to include the driver's face in the field of view. The infrared camera detects and outputs an eye position and a user's line-of-sight direction (vector) based on an image of a user's (driver's) eye photographed by infrared rays output from the infrared output unit. Based on the output, the control unit 20 can specify the eye position and line-of-sight direction in a predefined three-dimensional space. The line-of-sight direction is acquired as, for example, a direction connecting a reference point set for each eye and a moving point whose position changes according to the movement of the eyeball, and various other methods may be employed. In addition, although the user's line-of-sight direction can be specified in one direction based on the average value of the line-of-sight directions specified in each of both eyes, various methods can be adopted as the method of specifying the line-of-sight direction.

  In the above configuration, the control unit 20 uses the display 40 and the touch pad 41 as a user interface, and receives input from the user via the user interface screen. For this purpose, the input program 21 includes a viewpoint detection unit 21a, an operation detection unit 21b, a display control unit 21c, and an operation instruction reception unit 21d.

  The viewpoint detection unit 21a is a program module that causes the control unit 20 to realize a function of detecting a user's viewpoint. In the present embodiment, the position of the display 40 serving as a viewpoint detection area is specified in advance by a three-dimensional coordinate system that defines the position of the vehicle interior space. The control unit 20 acquires the position and line-of-sight direction of the user's eyes based on the output of the line-of-sight detection sensor 42, and the position and line-of-sight direction of the user's eyes within the three-dimensional coordinate system in which the position of the screen is defined. Is identified. Then, an intersection point between a virtual line extending in the line-of-sight direction from the eye position and the display surface of the display 40 is specified as a viewpoint. When the viewpoint does not exist on the screen, for example, the viewpoint may be indefinite, or may be determined to exist on another structure (for example, an instrument panel or the like).

  The operation detection unit 21 b is a program module that causes the control unit 20 to realize a function of detecting a user operation on the touch pad 41. Based on the signal output from the touch pad 41, the control unit 20 acquires the coordinates on the touch pad 41 touched by the user by the processing of the operation detection unit 21b. The control unit 20 specifies a user operation (such as a tap operation or a tracing operation) based on the change in the coordinates over time. Specifically, for example, the control unit 20 determines that the operation in which the contact coordinates detected between the contact start and the contact completion are within a predetermined range including the contact start coordinates is a tap operation. Further, the control unit 20 determines that the operation in which the contact coordinates detected between the start of contact and the end of contact are outside the predetermined range including the contact start coordinates is a tracing operation. The tracing operation includes so-called swipe operation and flick operation. In this specification, the operation from the start of contact to the end of contact is referred to as one operation.

  The display control unit 21c is a program module that causes the control unit 20 to realize a function of displaying a user interface screen on the display 40 (display unit). Image information (button (icon) drawing information, character drawing information, map drawing information, etc.) for drawing an object constituting the user interface screen is recorded in advance on the recording medium 30 as display information 30a.

  For example, when the control unit 20 executes the audio control program, the control unit 20 refers to the display information 30a, and includes a list of tracks recorded on the recording medium 30, a button for adjusting the volume, specifying a track, and the like. Record (draw) the screen in the RAM. The control unit 20 acquires information on the drawn user interface screen by the processing of the display control unit 21c, and outputs a control signal for displaying the user interface screen to the display 40. As a result, a user interface screen in the audio control program is displayed on the display 40.

  FIG. 2A shows a screen 40a as an example of a user interface screen in the audio control program. The screen 40a includes a volume up button b1, a volume down button b2, a track down button b3, a track up button b4, and track designation buttons b5 (b51 to b56). Each of the track designation buttons b5 also serves as a display of a track list element. The screen 40a also includes a volume indicator vi indicating the volume level and a scroll bar sb indicating the display range of the track list.

  The volume up button b1 is an object for receiving a volume up instruction, and the volume down button b2 is an object for receiving a volume down instruction. The track up button b4 is an object for receiving a track up instruction for advancing the reproduction target track to the next track (the next track in the arrangement order in the track list) of the currently reproduced track. The track down button b3 is an object for receiving a track down instruction for returning the reproduction target track to the track immediately before the currently reproduced track (or replaying from the beginning of the currently reproduced track). The track designation button b5 is an object for receiving a track designation instruction for directly designating a track to be reproduced.

  A cursor C and a pointer P are displayed on the screen 40a. The pointer P is a figure that moves to an arbitrary position in the screen 40a according to the tracing operation on the touch pad 41 and points to the arbitrary position. The cursor C is a figure (for example, a figure similar to the outline of the button) that can identify the button indicated by the pointer P from other buttons. The cursor C is displayed for the button when the button is displayed at the position indicated by the pointer P. For example, in FIG. 2A, the pointer P indicates the track designation button b5, and the cursor C is displayed on the track designation button b5. The pointer P and the cursor C are displayed when the viewpoint exists on the screen 40a, and may not be displayed when the viewpoint does not exist on the screen 40a.

  The operation instruction receiving unit 21d is a program module for causing the control unit 20 to realize a function of receiving an instruction by an operation performed on the touch pad 41. In this embodiment, the instruction that can be accepted is controlled by the operation instruction accepting unit 21d depending on whether or not the user's viewpoint exists on the display 40. When the viewpoint exists on the screen, the control unit 20 receives an instruction corresponding to the operation in the detailed operation mode. On the other hand, when the viewpoint does not exist on the screen, the control unit 20 receives an instruction according to the operation in the simple operation mode. The instructions that can be accepted in the simple operation mode are a part of a plurality of instructions that can be accepted in the detailed operation mode.

  FIG. 2B is a diagram showing whether or not each instruction can be accepted for each mode when the screen 40 a is displayed on the display 40. As shown in the figure, in the detailed operation mode, a volume up instruction, a volume down instruction, a track up instruction, a track down instruction, and a track designation instruction are set to be receivable. In the simple operation mode, among the instructions that can be accepted in the detailed operation mode, only a volume up instruction, a volume down instruction, a track up instruction, and a track down instruction are set to be accepted. As described above, in this embodiment, the instruction that can be accepted in the simple operation mode is an instruction related to the same type of function (that is, the audio function) as the instruction that can be accepted in the detailed operation mode. Compared with the case where the instructions that can be accepted in the simple operation mode are different types of functions from the instructions that can be accepted in the detailed operation mode, the user can easily estimate the instructions that can be input without looking at the user interface screen.

  The detailed operation mode and the simple operation mode have different operation contents for inputting the same instruction. Specifically, in the detailed operation mode, an operation of moving the pointer P to a button corresponding to an instruction to be input (strapping operation), and an operation of determining selection of the button in a state where the pointer P points to the button. By performing at least two operations (tap operation), an instruction corresponding to the button can be input. Note that the operation from the start of contact with the touch pad 41 to the end of the contact is referred to as one operation. Further, in order to move the pointer P to the target button position, the user needs to visually recognize the screen.

  On the other hand, in the simple operation mode, a tracing operation in a predetermined direction on the rectangular contact detection surface of the touch pad 41 is associated with a receivable instruction in advance. Specifically, an upper side, a lower side, a right side, and a left side are defined in a rectangular region indicating a contact detection surface. The top, bottom, left, and right on the contact detection surface of the touch pad 41 correspond to the top, bottom, left, and right defined in the display 40, respectively. For example, a tracing operation (a tracing operation in the upward direction) that is a direction from the lower side to the upper side and that is perpendicular to (or substantially perpendicular to) the upper side is associated with a sound volume increase instruction. As described above, in the simple operation mode, an instruction can be input by one operation of a tracing operation in a predetermined direction. Therefore, in the simple operation mode, an instruction can be input more easily than in the detailed operation mode. Further, once the user can grasp the above-described up / down / left / right directions on the contact detection surface of the touch pad 41, the user can recognize the touch pad 41 without viewing the contact detection surface of the touch pad 41 or the screen of the display 40. It is possible to perform a tracing operation in a predetermined direction on the contact detection surface.

(2) Input processing:
Next, input processing executed by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to FIG. 3A. The input process is executed by the repetitive control unit 20 while the user interface screen is displayed on the display 40. When the input process is started, the control unit 20 determines whether or not an operation has been performed on the touch pad 41 by the process of the operation detection unit 21b (step S100). If it is not determined in step S100 that the operation has been performed, the control unit 20 ends the input process.

  When it is determined in step S100 that the operation has been performed, the control unit 20 detects the viewpoint of the user by the processing of the viewpoint detection unit 21a (step S105). In the present embodiment, it is only necessary to be able to detect at least the accuracy with which it is possible to determine whether the position where the viewpoint exists is within the screen of the display 40 or outside the screen, but when the position is within the screen, the viewpoint is located within the screen. You may make it acquire a coordinate.

  Subsequently, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the viewpoint exists in the screen by the processing of the operation instruction receiving unit 21d (step S110). When it is determined in step S110 that the viewpoint exists in the screen, the control unit 20 receives an instruction corresponding to the operation content in the detailed operation mode by the process of the operation instruction receiving unit 21d (step S115). Specifically, the control unit 20 receives the instruction and executes a process for realizing the content of the instruction. When it is not determined in step S110 that the viewpoint exists in the screen, the control unit 20 receives an instruction corresponding to the operation content in the simple operation mode by the process of the operation instruction receiving unit 21d (step S120). Specifically, the control unit 20 receives the instruction and executes a process for realizing the content of the instruction.

  Next, specific examples of processing contents in steps S115 and S120 will be described. FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating a correspondence between the processes executed by the control unit 20 in steps S115 and S120 when the screen 40a illustrated in FIG. 2A is displayed on the display 40. When the screen 40a shown in FIG. 2A is displayed on the display 40, in step S115, processing corresponding to the operation is executed in the detailed operation mode shown in FIG. 3B. Specifically, when the content of the operation detected in step S100 is a tracing operation in an arbitrary direction including four directions, up, down, left, and right, the control unit 20 moves to a position corresponding to the movement direction and movement amount of the tracing operation. The pointer P is moved.

  If the operation detected in step S100 is a tap, and the pointer P at that time points to the volume up button b1, the control unit 20 receives a volume up instruction and executes the audio control program. Increase the volume by one level. Further, the control unit 20 updates the volume indicator vi according to the volume level by the processing of the display control unit 21c.

  If the operation detected in step S100 is a tap, and the pointer P at that time points to the volume down button b2, the control unit 20 receives the volume down instruction and executes the audio control program. Decrease the volume by one level. Further, the control unit 20 updates the volume indicator vi according to the volume level by the processing of the display control unit 21c.

  If the operation detected in step S100 is a tap and the pointer P at that time points to the track up button b4, the control unit 20 receives the track up instruction and executes the audio control program. Advance the track. In response to receiving the track up instruction, the control unit 20 may update the range of tracks to be displayed in the track list on the screen 40a and the scroll bar sb.

  If the operation detected in step S100 is a tap and the pointer P at that time points to the track down button b3, the control unit 20 receives the track down instruction and executes the audio control program. Return the track. In response to receiving the track down instruction, the control unit 20 may update the range of tracks to be displayed in the track list on the screen 40a and the scroll bar sb.

  When the operation detected in step S100 is a tap, and the pointer P at that time points to an object corresponding to a tap operation other than the above, the control unit 20 performs processing associated with the object. Execute. For example, when a tap is made with the pointer P on the button for returning to the previous screen (not shown in FIG. 2A), the control unit 20 displays the screen one level higher on the screen 40a on the display 40 instead of the screen 40a. . When the operation detected in step S100 is a tap, and the pointer P at that time does not point to an object corresponding to the tap operation (for example, when pointing to the background portion), the control unit 20 Processing according to the operation is not executed.

  When the screen 40a shown in FIG. 2A is displayed on the display 40, in step S120, processing corresponding to the operation is executed in the simple operation mode shown in FIG. 3B. Specifically, when the content of the operation detected in step S100 is a tracing operation in the upward direction, the control unit 20 receives a volume up instruction and executes an audio control program to increase the volume by one level. Further, the control unit 20 updates the volume indicator vi according to the volume level by the processing of the display control unit 21c.

  When the operation detected in step S100 is a downward tracing operation (a tracing operation in a direction from the upper side toward the lower side and perpendicular to (or substantially perpendicular to) the lower side), the control unit 20 reduces the volume. An instruction is received and the audio control program is executed to lower the volume by one level. Further, the control unit 20 updates the volume indicator vi according to the volume level by the processing of the display control unit 21c.

  When the operation detected in step S100 is a tracing operation in the right direction (a tracing operation in a direction from the left side to the right side and a right angle (or a substantially right angle) with respect to the right side), the control unit 20 performs the track-up operation. Accept instructions and run audio control program to advance track. In response to receiving the track up instruction, the control unit 20 may update the range of tracks to be displayed in the track list on the screen 40a and the scroll bar sb.

  When the operation detected in step S100 is a leftward tracing operation (a tracing operation in a direction from the right side to the left side and perpendicular to (or substantially perpendicular to) the left side), the control unit 20 performs track down. Accept instructions and run audio control program to return track. In response to receiving the track down instruction, the control unit 20 may update the range of tracks to be displayed in the track list on the screen 40a and the scroll bar sb.

  When the operation detected in step S100 is a tracing operation in an arbitrary direction other than the four directions of up, down, left, and right, the control unit 20 does not execute processing according to the tracing operation. When the operation detected in step S100 is a tap operation, the control unit 20 does not execute a process corresponding to the tap operation.

  As described above, in the detailed operation mode, when selecting a button in the screen, two operations are required, that is, the pointer is moved to the button by a tracing operation and the selection of the button is determined by a tap operation. It is necessary for the user to visually check the user interface screen to determine whether or not the object whose selection is to be determined by the operation is a button as intended by the user. On the other hand, in the simple operation mode, an operation for inputting a receivable instruction (volume adjustment or change of a reproduction target track) does not require visual recognition of the user's screen. Furthermore, the user can confirm the result of accepting those instructions by hearing. That is, in the simple operation mode, the user does not need to visually recognize the screen when performing an operation or confirming the operation result. Therefore, for example, even while looking at the front of the vehicle, the user can input an instruction corresponding to the operation by performing a predetermined simple operation on the touch pad 41 and the result of the instruction. Can be recognized. Since the user does not need to move his / her line of sight to the display 40, convenience is improved.

  In addition, the user can input a plurality of instructions including some instructions that can be input without visually recognizing the user interface screen by visually recognizing the user interface screen. Therefore, it is possible to configure a system that can deal with various instructions other than the partial instructions and the partial instructions.

(3) Other embodiments:
The above embodiment is an example for carrying out the present invention. When the user's viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, all of a plurality of instructions can be received by the operation unit, and the user's viewpoint is the user interface. Various other embodiments can be adopted as long as only a part of a plurality of instructions can be received by the operation unit when they do not exist on the screen. For example, the input system 10 may be applied to various systems and general-purpose computer systems. The input system 10 may be a system realized by a plurality of devices (for example, a client and a server). The input system 10 is not limited to the configuration mounted on the vehicle.

  Furthermore, at least a part of the viewpoint detection unit 21a, the operation detection unit 21b, the display control unit 21c, and the operation instruction reception unit 21d configuring the input system 10 may be divided into a plurality of devices. For example, the operation detection unit 21b may be realized by a control unit in the touch pad 41, or the viewpoint detection unit 21a may be realized by a control unit in the line-of-sight detection sensor 42. Of course, a part of the configuration of the above-described embodiment may be omitted, and the processing order may be changed or omitted.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the screen related to the audio function is displayed is taken as an example. However, the present invention can be applied to the case where screens related to various functions other than this example are displayed. For example, the case where the basic screen regarding the route search function is displayed on the display 40 will be described as an example. On the basic screen, a map is displayed and various buttons including a destination setting button and a search condition setting button are displayed. Here, the destination setting button is a button for displaying a destination setting screen that provides an interface for setting the destination. The search condition setting button is a button for displaying a search condition setting screen that provides an interface for setting search conditions such as distance priority and general road priority. When the basic screen is displayed and the viewpoint does not exist on the basic screen, for example, when a tap operation is performed, the control unit 20 may set the home as the destination. If the viewpoint is on the basic screen, to set the destination as home, move the pointer to the destination setting button to determine the selection, and move the pointer to the button indicating home on the destination setting screen. It is necessary to perform operations such as determining the selection. In addition to setting the destination as home, when a predetermined operation is performed when the viewpoint is not on the basic screen, other processing related to the route search function associated with the operation may be executed. .

  The viewpoint detection unit only needs to be able to detect the viewpoint of the user, and various configurations can be employed. For example, as in the above-described embodiment, the line of sight is specified by specifying the movement of the user's eyes based on the output of the camera that captures the user's eyes, and the intersection of the line of sight and the previously specified display screen It is possible to adopt a configuration that regards as a starting point. The number of eyes to be detected may be one or two, but in order to improve accuracy, it is preferable that the number of eyes to be detected is two. The viewpoint when the eyes of two eyes are specified may be statistically specified from each viewpoint specified based on the eyes of each eye, or the viewpoint is specified based on the bias by the dominant eye. Also good. Furthermore, the viewpoint may be specified at least on the display area that the user is viewing.

  The operation detection unit only needs to be able to detect a user operation on the operation unit, and various configurations can be employed. For example, as in the above-described embodiment, a configuration for detecting a user's touch operation on the touch pad may be employed. The touch operation of the detection target may include single tap, double tap, long tap, flick, swipe, pinch in, pinch out, and the like. The user's operation is an operation in which the user operates the apparatus, and it is possible to adopt a configuration that is performed when the user's body physically contacts the apparatus. In this case, the user's operation is not limited to being performed by the user's hand, and may be performed by a body part other than the hand. It may be configured to detect contact with a stylus pen or the like. In addition to the physical contact of the user's body, the operation of bringing the user's body closer to the operation unit (detecting the proximity of the user's body to the operation unit using a proximity sensor), etc. You may employ | adopt the structure to detect.

  Note that an input device other than the touchpad may be employed for the operation unit. The input device may be a device that can realize an operation of temporarily selecting a target by moving a cursor or a pointer and an operation of determining selection of the temporarily selected target. Specifically, for example, a trackball, a wheel pad, a mouse, a jog dial, a direction key and a determination key, and the like may be employed. The temporary selection of the target may be realized when it is detected that the viewpoint has moved to the target.

  The display control unit only needs to be able to display a user interface screen for receiving a plurality of instructions on the display unit, and various configurations can be employed. For example, a user interface screen other than the user interface screen targeted by the present invention may be displayed at the same time on the display unit. A plurality of user interface screens targeted by the present invention may be displayed simultaneously on the display unit. Further, the display unit may be configured by a single display or may be configured by a plurality of displays.

  The operation instruction reception unit sets all of a plurality of instructions to be receivable by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, and only a part of the plurality of instructions when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen. Is set to be receivable by the operation unit, and an instruction from the operation unit may be received. The correspondence between the type of operation performed on the operation unit and the instruction when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen may be determined in advance, and may be any correspondence.

  For example, the instruction that can be accepted when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is an instruction related to the same type of function as the instruction that can be accepted when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen as in the above embodiment. Alternatively, it may be an instruction related to a function of a different type from the function mainly displayed on the user interface screen. As the latter, for example, when a route guidance function screen (for example, a screen on which a map is displayed) is being displayed, the route guidance function is performed by performing an upward tracing operation without a viewpoint on the screen. An operation related to a different audio function (for example, volume increase) may be performed. It should be noted that the user can perform operations related to the audio function by operating while viewing the screen while the route guidance function screen is displayed. For example, a button for displaying an audio setting screen may be displayed on the route guidance function screen. When the user performs an operation of moving the pointer to the button and an operation of determining selection of the button, an audio setting screen is displayed. Then, the user may be able to input a volume up instruction by performing an operation of moving the cursor to the volume up button in the audio setting screen and an operation of determining selection of the button. Therefore, the sound volume increase instruction in this case corresponds to “a part of a plurality of instructions”.

  In addition, regardless of the contents of the displayed screen, when the viewpoint does not exist on the screen, the volume adjustment mode and the air conditioning adjustment mode are switched by a left drag operation or a right drag operation. May be. When the drag operation is performed in the upward or downward direction in the volume adjustment mode, the audio volume is increased or decreased. In the air conditioning mode, the upward or downward drag operation is performed. When the operation is performed, the configuration may be such that the set temperature in the passenger compartment is increased or decreased, respectively.

  A single user interface screen may be displayed on the display unit, or a plurality of user interface screens may be displayed. FIG. 4 shows that the first screen 401, the second screen 402, and the third screen 403 are displayed on the display 40. For example, a screen related to the audio function (eg, FIG. 2A) is displayed on the first screen 401, a screen related to the route search function is displayed on the second screen 402, and a screen related to the air conditioning function is displayed on the third screen 403. An example in which a screen is displayed can be assumed. The user can input various instructions regarding the audio function by operating the touch pad 41 while visually recognizing the first screen 401. As for the route search function, the user can input various instructions regarding the route search function by operating the touch pad 41 while viewing the second screen 402. As for the air conditioning function, the user can input various instructions regarding the air conditioning function by operating the touch pad 41 while viewing the third screen 403.

  In the example of FIG. 4, when a predetermined operation is performed on the touch pad 41 when the user's viewpoint does not exist on the display 40, for example, any one of the first to third screens is active. An instruction regarding the same type of function as the screen may be accepted. The active screen may be, for example, a screen that the user is viewing immediately before the viewpoint is outside the display 40. On the active screen, the cursor and the pointer may remain displayed even when the viewpoint is outside the display 40.

  The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint is on the user interface screen may include an operation that requires the user to visually recognize the user interface screen. As an operation that requires visual recognition, for example, in addition to an operation of moving the pointer, an operation of scrolling the map itself displayed on the screen (changing the display range of the map) may be assumed.

  The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen may be an operation that does not require the user to visually recognize the user interface screen. Specifically, for example, in the case of temperature adjustment of an air conditioning function, the user can change the set temperature by adopting a configuration that generates a sound to notify that when an instruction to change the set temperature is accepted. I can recognize that. Alternatively, the user can recognize the change in the set temperature based on the change in the sensible temperature.

  The two or more operations for inputting an instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen are not limited to being constituted by a tracing operation and a tap operation. Two or more operations may be any combination of operations. All of the two or more operations may be operations that require the user's visual recognition, or only some of them may be operations that require visual recognition. In addition, one operation for inputting an instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is a linear tracing operation performed by an indicator such as a flick or swipe. It is not limited to being. For example, a volume up (or temperature up) instruction may be input by performing a clockwise tracing operation on a touch pad or a wheel pad. Further, it may be possible to input a sound volume down (or temperature down) instruction by performing a counterclockwise tracing operation. Further, for example, a volume down instruction may be input by performing a pinch-in operation on the touch pad, and a volume up instruction may be input by performing a pinch-out operation.

  In the above embodiment, in the simple operation mode, the configuration in which the volume is increased or decreased by one level according to one tracing operation (eg, flick) in a specific direction is shown. The volume may be increased or decreased by a degree corresponding to the time from the contact start to the contact end of the tracing operation (eg, swipe) or the distance from the contact start to the contact end. Specifically, the degree of increase / decrease in volume may be increased as the time or the distance is longer. In that case, in the detailed operation mode, for example, the volume may be increased or decreased according to the time for which the volume up button or the volume down button is long-tapped.

  The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen is made by an operation of n + 1 or more (n is an integer of 2 or more), and the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen. The instructions that can be accepted by may be performed by n or less operations. In the case of this configuration, the user can input an instruction by performing fewer operations on the operation unit than when viewing and operating the user interface screen without viewing the user interface screen.

  In addition to the input device that enables general-purpose instruction input as described above, the operation detection unit is a dedicated operation unit provided to input a specific instruction separately from the above-described operation unit. It may be possible to detect the user's operation on the, and various configurations can be adopted. As operations for the dedicated operation unit, for example, pressing of a button, rotation of a jog dial, contact operation with a wheel pad or a touch pad (or rotation contact operation) may be assumed. Further, a configuration may be employed in which an operation of causing the user's body to approach the dedicated operation unit (detecting that the user's body has approached the dedicated operation unit using a proximity sensor) or the like may be employed.

  When the dedicated operation unit is provided, the operation instruction receiving unit may be able to receive a specific instruction from the dedicated operation unit. The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen may be the same as the specific instruction. In the case of this configuration, the user can also input a specific instruction that can be input by operating the dedicated operation unit by operating the operation unit without looking at the user interface screen. As the dedicated operation unit, specifically, for example, a volume up button or a volume down button may be provided in the steering unit. Further, for example, an up button or a down button for the air conditioning set temperature may be provided on the instrument panel.

  In addition, when the viewpoint does not exist on the screen of the display 40, the contents of instructions that can be accepted when operating the touch pad 41 may be guided to the user. The guidance may be realized in any manner. For example, in order to indicate that an instruction to increase or decrease the set temperature in the passenger compartment can be accepted when the viewpoint does not exist on the display 40, an instrument is provided. You may make it illuminate the up button and down button of the preset temperature provided in the panel so that it can be distinguished from other buttons by an illumination means. More specifically, it may be illuminated with a different color from the other buttons. Further, for example, when another button is illuminated by lighting, the target button may be illuminated by blinking. The illumination means may be provided on the button, or may be provided separately from the button. With such a configuration, the user can recognize that an instruction corresponding to a target button included in one corner of the field of view can be input even while viewing the front of the vehicle.

  Further, as in the present invention, when the user's viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, all of the plurality of instructions can be received by the operation unit, and when the user's viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, the plurality of instructions can be received. The method of allowing only a part of the instruction to be accepted by the operation unit can also be applied as a program or method. In addition, the system, program, and method as described above may be realized as a single device, or may be realized using components shared with each part of the vehicle, and include various aspects. It is a waste. Further, some changes may be made as appropriate, such as a part of software and a part of hardware. Furthermore, the invention can be realized as a recording medium for a program for controlling the system. Of course, the software recording medium may be a magnetic recording medium, a magneto-optical recording medium, or any recording medium to be developed in the future.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Input system, 20 ... Control part, 21 ... Input program, 21a ... View point detection part, 21b ... Operation detection part, 21c ... Display control part, 21d ... Operation instruction reception part, 30 ... Recording medium, 30a ... Display information, 40 ... Display, 40a ... Screen, 41 ... Touchpad, 42 ... Gaze detection sensor, 401 ... First screen, 402 ... Second screen, 403 ... Third screen, b1 ... Volume up button, b2 ... Volume down button, b3 ... Track down button, b4 ... Track up button, b5 ... Track designation button, C ... Cursor, P ... Pointer, sb ... Scroll bar, vi ... Volume indicator

Claims (6)

A viewpoint detection unit that detects a user's viewpoint;
An operation detection unit for detecting an operation of the user on the operation unit;
A display control unit for displaying a user interface screen for receiving a plurality of instructions on the display unit;
When the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, all of the plurality of instructions are set to be accepted by the operation unit, and when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, a part of the instructions An operation instruction accepting unit that accepts the instruction by the operation unit,
An input system comprising: The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is the same type as the instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen. Instructions about the function,
The input system according to claim 1. The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen includes an operation that requires the user to visually recognize the user interface screen,
The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is made by an operation that does not require visual recognition of the user interface screen by the user.
The input system according to claim 1 or 2. The instruction that can be received by the operation unit when the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen is made by two or more operations,
The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is made by one operation.
The input system according to claim 1. The operation detection unit detects an operation for a dedicated operation unit provided for inputting a specific instruction,
The operation instruction receiving unit receives the specific instruction by the dedicated operation unit,
The instruction that can be accepted by the operation unit when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen is the same as the specific instruction.
The input system according to claim 1. Computer
A viewpoint detector that detects the user's viewpoint;
An operation detection unit for detecting an operation of the user on the operation unit;
A display control unit for displaying a user interface screen for receiving a plurality of instructions on the display unit;
When the viewpoint exists on the user interface screen, all of the plurality of instructions are set to be accepted by the operation unit, and when the viewpoint does not exist on the user interface screen, a part of the instructions An operation instruction accepting unit that accepts the instruction by the operation unit,
As an input program to make the computer function as.

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