Coordinate input apparatus

• US 4,740,660 A
• Filed: 12/29/1986
• Issued: 04/26/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kimura, Kiyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): SCHREYER, STAFFORD
• Application Number:
  US06/947,401
• Time in Patent Office: 484 Days
• Field of Search: 178/18, 178/19, 324/207, 324/208
• US Class Current: 178/18.02
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/046 by electromagnetic means

Abstract

In a coordinate input apparatus, a compensation loop is installed to surround a main loop, each main loop is scanned thereby rough region where a coordinate indicating tool exists can be detected, compensation value stored in a first memory means is referred corresponding to the detected rough region and current value to be transmitted to the compensation loop is adjusted thereby shift of the polarity inversion position of the magnetic field intensity is suppressed and interpolation value in the rough region is calculated, and correction value stored in a second memory means is drawn for the interpolation value.

Claims

1. A coordinate input apparatus wherein scanning signal is transmitted in sequence into a main loop composed of a plurality of conductors embedded in parallel to each other on an input plane, and coordinate position is detected based on signal detected by a coordinate indicating tool which can point on the input plane arbitrarily, said input apparatus comprising:

a compensation loop installed near the common conductor of the main loop and constituted as a separate conductor;

a switching means for selecting each one loop of the main loop in sequence and transmitting the scanning signal;

a coordinate indicating tool for detecting signal produced by the scanning signal transmitted into each loop using the switching means;

a polarity discrimination means for discriminating inversion of polarity of signal detected by the coordinate indicating tool;

a first memory means for previously storing compensation value corresponding to rough coordinate position on the input plane of the coordinate indicating tool;

a control means for detecting the rough coordinate position of the coordinate indicating tool from the scanning position where the polarity conversion is discriminated by the polarity discrimination means and invoking compensation value from the first memory means corresponding to the position thereof and transmitting current corresponding to the compensation value into the compensation loop;

means for calculating interpolation value to interpolate the position pointed by the coordinate indicating tool from signal level before and after the polarity inversion of signal detected by the coordinate indicating tool;

a second memory means for previously storing correction value to correct error between the interpolation value and the point position of the actual coordinate indicating tool and to specify position within the rough region; and

an operation means for calculating the point position of the coordinate indicating tool from the coordinate position of the rough region and the correction value.