Pattern input apparatus

• US 4,616,107 A
• Filed: 02/26/1985
• Issued: 10/07/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/1984
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Pentel Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Pentel Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Abe, Kiyomi, Kazama, Mitsuo, Kobayashi, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): SCHREYER, STAFFORD
• Application Number:
  US06/705,550
• Time in Patent Office: 588 Days
• Field of Search: 178/18, 178/19, 364/520
• US Class Current: 178/18.06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0441 using active external devices, e.g. active pens, for receiving changes in electrical potential transmitted by the digitiser, e.g. tablet driving signals
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes

Abstract

Disclosed is a pattern input apparatus in which an input pen is made to be in contact with a tablet having a matrix composed of sets of conductors disposed at intervals along coordinate axes, thereby applying hand writing information to an electronic computer, or the like. In this pattern input apparatus, the input pen is made to be contact with or moved on the upper surface of the tablet to thereby obtain detection signals, the respective potential levels of at least three higher ones of the obtained detection signals being selected out, the detection signal having the highest potential level among the three selected out detection signals being regarded as a reference signal, subtraction being made between the reference signal and each of the remainder ones of the three selected out detection signals to obtain two potential differences, thereby determining the position of the pen on the basis of the ration between the two potential differences.

Claims

1. A pattern input apparatus comprising:

a tablet having a matrix composed of two sets of conductors disposed at intervals along coordinate axes;

a pair of scanning means respectively connected to said two sets of conductors for successively supplying the conductors of said respective sets with scanning pulses;

an input pen for detecting application of said scanning pulse on adjacent ones of said conductors when said pen is positioned on said tablet, thereby producing position signals;

a selecting circuit for selecting at lest three ones of said position signals respectively having higher electric potentials; and

an operation circuit for determining the position of said input pen in such a manner that one of said three selected position signals having the highest level is regarded as a reference signal and subtractions are performed between said reference signal and each of the remainder ones of said three selected position signals to obtain two potential differences, whereby the position of said pen is determined from the ratio between said two potential differences.

2. A pattern input apparatus according to claim 1, in which said operation circuit includes a converter for digitalizing each of said position signals, and a memory for storing said digitalized signal in the form of a potential level, said memory being controlled to store said digitalized signal only when an output signal from said selecting circuit exists.

3. A pattern input apparatus according to claim 1, in which said operation circuit is constituted by a computer for applying said scanning pulse to said pair of scanning means and for counting the number of the applied scanning pulses, the application and counting of said scanning pulse being stopped in response to the signal from said selecting circuit.