JPH0981313A - Multi football input device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [PROBLEMS] To provide a multi-football type input device capable of maintaining a function even when a ball has an obstacle and always smoothly operating an input operation. SOLUTION: This multi-football input device is
Buttons 1 and 2 operated by an operator, and a plurality of balls B _{1 to} B _n freely rotated by the operator's foot.
(Here, n = 48) and the signal operation / transmission unit 3 that adds and outputs the movement amount signals respectively output from the pointing devices corresponding to the balls B _{1 to} B _n . Each of the balls B _{1 to} B _n has three fulcrums P
X-axis, which is supported by 1, P2 and P3, outputs an X-axis direction movement amount signal between the fulcrums P1 and P2 and between the fulcrums P2 and P3 as a part of the movement amount signal of each corresponding ball. A direction movement amount detection unit M _X and a Y axis direction movement amount detection unit M _Y that outputs a Y axis direction movement amount signal as another unit of the movement amount signal are provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multi-football type input device provided with a pointing device mainly used for input display operation on a display screen of a display device provided in an information processing system such as a computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an information processing system such as a computer is provided with an input device for input display operation for variably performing input display on a display screen of an attached display device. As such an input device, a mouse, a thumbball, or the like that can be operated with a hand or a foot is known, and a pointing device is usually used to detect a movement amount due to rotation of the ball.

Incidentally, as a known technique related to such an input device and a pointing device, a foot-controlled computer cursor control device disclosed in JP-A-62-92020 and JP-A-63-2 are disclosed.
Foot mouse disclosed in Japanese Patent No.
Examples include a pointing device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 107741; a pointing device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-220618; and a mouse disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-224812.

[0004]

In the case of the football type input device having the above-mentioned pointing device, since only one ball is provided, there is a problem that the pointing device does not function when the ball has an obstacle. .

If only one ball is used in a football type input device, the operator's line of sight is usually on the display screen and he is not looking at his feet. There is also a problem that the operator's thinking is interrupted and the input display operation cannot be smoothly operated.

The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and its technical problem is to maintain a function even if a ball has a failure, and to perform an input / display operation smoothly at all times. To provide a football type input device.

[0007]

According to the present invention, in a multi-football type input device provided with a pointing device used for input display operation on a display screen of a display device, a plurality of buttons operated by an operator are provided. , A multi-football input including a plurality of balls that can be freely rotated by an operator's foot and a signal calculation and transmission unit that adds and outputs respective movement amount signals output from pointing devices corresponding to the plurality of balls The device is obtained.

In this multi-football type input device, a plurality of balls are supported by a plurality of fulcrums, and further, between predetermined ones of the plurality of fulcrums,
An X-axis direction movement amount detection unit as a pointing device that detects the X-axis direction movement amount of the corresponding ball and outputs an X-axis direction movement amount signal that is a part of the movement amount signal, and a Y-axis direction movement amount. It is preferable to provide a Y-axis direction movement amount detection section as a pointing device that detects the signal and outputs the Y-axis direction movement amount signal to the movement amount signal.

Further, in this multi-football type input device, at least one of the plurality of buttons is operated by an operator's foot, and the signal operation / transmission unit is configured to control the X-axis direction component movement amount signal and the Y-axis direction. It is preferable to output a logical sum signal relating to the component movement amount signal.

[0010]

In the multi-football type input device of the present invention,
Equipped with a large number of balls that can be freely rotated by the operator's foot, even if some balls are damaged, the addition output of each movement amount signal output from the pointing device corresponding to each ball Is hardly affected. In particular, this effect becomes remarkable when the signal operation transmitting unit that adds and outputs the respective movement amount signals outputs a logical sum signal based on the logical sum of the respective movement amount signals.

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The multi-football input device of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic structure of a multi-football input device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing its external structure.

This multi-football input device includes a plurality of (two in this case) buttons 1 and 2 operated by an operator, and a plurality of balls B _{1 to} B _n (here, freely rotated by the operator's foot). , N = 48), and the signal operation / transmission unit 3 for additionally outputting the movement amount signals respectively output from the pointing devices corresponding to these balls B _{1 to} B _n . However, at least one of the buttons 1 and 2 is operated by the foot of the operator.

Here, each of the balls B _{1 to} B _n has a plurality of (here, three) fulcrums P1, P2, P as shown in the figure.
3 supported by the fulcrums P1, P2 and fulcrum P2.
Between P3 and X in each corresponding ball
An X-axis direction movement amount detection unit M _X as a pointing device for detecting the movement amount in the axial direction and outputting an X-axis direction movement amount signal which is a part of the movement amount signal, and detecting the movement amount in the Y-axis direction. And a Y-axis direction movement amount detection section M _Y as a pointing device for outputting a Y-axis direction movement amount signal which is another part of the movement amount signal.

In this multi-football input device,
The operator needs to press one of the buttons 1 and 2 with his foot and the operation to rotate an arbitrary number of the balls B _{1 to} B _{n with} his foot. When any one of the balls B _{1 to} B _n is rotated while pressing any one of them, each of the balls B _{1 to} B _n is rotated.
The movement amount signal indicating the movement amount of the X-axis is detected by the X-axis direction movement amount detection unit M _X and the Y-axis direction movement amount detection unit M _Y corresponding to an arbitrarily selected one of the balls B _{1 to} B _n. It is divided into a direction component and a Y-axis direction component and detected as an X-axis direction movement amount signal and a Y-axis direction movement amount signal according to the movement amount.

In the signal calculation / transmission unit 3, the sum of the respective movement amount signals in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction detected by the corresponding X-axis direction movement amount detection unit M _X and Y-axis direction movement amount detection unit M _Y is added. And the addition sum signal calculated as above and the buttons 1 and 2 are independent of each other when one of the buttons 1 and 2 is pressed.
A pressed state ON signal indicating that any one of the above is pressed is transmitted to the information processing management device 4 such as a computer.
The information processing management device 4 receives the addition signal and the pressed state ON signal from the signal calculation transmission unit 3 to perform necessary data processing management, and controls an image processing device (not shown) to display a display device (not shown). The input is variably displayed on the screen. Incidentally, the buttons 1 and 2 generate and output a depression signal when pressed with a foot, but do not generate a depression signal when not pressed.

In the multi-football type input device described above, the signal addition transmission 3 transmits the addition sum signal obtained by adding the movement amount signals of any one of the balls B _{1 to} B _n to the information processing management device 4. However, the signal addition and transmission 3 may be provided with a logical sum circuit to transmit a logical sum signal based on the logical sum of the movement amount signals to the information processing management device 4. In this case, even if some of the balls B _{1 to} B _n that are arbitrarily selected include a fault, the information processing management device 4 does not have a fault as in the case where the fault has occurred. It is convenient because it can perform data processing. Further, in the multi-football input device described above, the balls B _{1 to} B _n are supported by the three fulcrums P1, P2, P3, respectively, but may be supported by four or more fulcrums.

[0018]

As described above, according to the multi-football input device of the present invention, the multi-football input device is provided with a large number of balls that can be freely rotated by the operator's foot, and the output is made from the pointing device corresponding to each ball. Since the respective moving amount signals in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are added to obtain the added output, even if some balls are damaged, the added output is hardly affected and, as a result, the resistance is increased. Obstacles and operability are improved and reliability is guaranteed. Further, in this multi-football type input device, since it is sufficient to rotate the ball at an arbitrary position on the pointing device, the operator's thinking is not interrupted in order to recognize the position of the pointing device, and the input operation is prevented. You will be able to operate smoothly at all times. Furthermore, with this multi-football input device,
Since it has a structure in which a large number of balls are supported by a large number of fulcrums, it is hard to fail and has excellent durability.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a multi-football input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of the multi-football type input device shown in FIG.

[Explanation of Codes] 1, 2 Buttons 3 Signal Calculation Transmission Unit 4 Information Processing Management Device B _{1 to} B _n Balls P1, P2, P3 Supports M _X x-axis direction movement amount detection part _MY y-axis direction movement amount detection part

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A multi-football type input device provided with a pointing device used for input / display operation on a display screen of a display device, wherein a plurality of buttons operated by an operator and freely rotated by an operator's foot. A multi-football input device comprising: a plurality of balls and a signal calculation transmission unit that adds and outputs respective movement amount signals output from the pointing devices corresponding to the plurality of balls. 2. The multi-football input device according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of balls is supported by a plurality of fulcrums. 3. The multi-football input device according to claim 2, wherein a movement amount in the X-axis direction with respect to a corresponding ball is detected between predetermined ones of the plurality of fulcrums, and a part of the movement amount signal is included in the movement amount signal. And an X-axis direction movement amount detection unit as the pointing device for outputting the X-axis direction movement amount signal, and a Y-axis direction movement amount signal which is the other unit and detects the movement amount in the Y-axis direction. And a Y-axis direction movement amount detecting section as the pointing device for outputting the multi-football type input device. 4. The multi-football type input device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of buttons is operated by an operator's foot. Multi-football type input device. 5. The multi-football type input device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the signal operation / transmission unit includes the X
A multi-football type input device which outputs a logical sum signal relating to an axial component movement amount signal and a Y-axis direction component movement amount signal.