Coordinate input stylus

• US 6,259,438 B1
• Filed: 06/04/1998
• Issued: 07/10/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Original Assignee: Wacom Co Limited (Wacom)
• Inventors: Fukushima, Yasuyuki, Rawlings, Scott, Fleck, David C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe, Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bowers, Benjamin D.
• Application Number:
  US09/090,307
• Time in Patent Office: 1,132 Days
• Field of Search: 178/18-1-, 178/19-1-, 345/179-184
• US Class Current: 345/184
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03545 Pens or stylus

Abstract

A stylus for use in a coordinate input system (e.g. digitizer tablet system) includes a finger wheel. The degree of rotation of the finger wheel by the user determines the extent to which a chosen graphical parameter (e.g. line thickness, color, shading, gray scale, etc.) is varied. Thus, a user can easily vary the graphical parameter while drawing by merely rotating the finger wheel about its fixed rotational axis. Preferably, rotation of the wheel causes an intermediate gear wheel with teeth thereon to rotate which in turn causes a potentiometer to detect the degree of rotation of the finger wheel. In alternative embodiments of this invention, a touchpad for inputting finger position and/or finger pressure information may be provided on the side of the stylus instead of the finger wheel.

Claims

1. A stylus for use in a digitizer coordinate input system, the stylus comprising:

a housing;

electronic circuitry disposed within said housing;

a rotatable finger wheel or dial that is rotatable about a central axis by a user, wherein a degree θ

to which said finger wheel is rotated determines the extent to which a control or graphical parameter utilized by the digitizer coordinate input system is varied;

said finger wheel including a plurality of teeth defined in a peripheral portion thereof;

a gear wheel including a first set of teeth for meshing with said teeth of said finger wheel and a second set of teeth for meshing with corresponding teeth on a potentiometer so that the potentiometer detects said degree θ

to which said finger wheel is rotated and causes said parameter to be varied as a function thereof; and

wherein said first set of teeth on said gear wheel defines a peripheral portion having a different diameter than a peripheral portion of said second set of teeth on said gear wheel.

2. The stylus of claim 1, wherein said finger wheel includes an integrally formed portion including an at least partially annular T-shaped portion for enabling a grip portion to be mounted on said finger wheel.

3. The stylus of claim 2, wherein said grip portion includes an elastomeric material attached to less than the entire periphery of said finger wheel, and wherein said T-shaped portion extends around less than 360 degrees about said central axis of said wheel and said T-shaped portion extends annularly around at least 180 degrees about said central axis.

4. The stylus of claim 1, wherein said wheel axis is oriented substantially perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of said stylus, and wherein said teeth of said finger wheel extend over an arc ranging from about 80-140 degrees about said central axis of said finger wheel.

5. The stylus of claim 1, further including a tuning circuit for receiving electromagnetic waves from loop coils of a tablet and for transmitting electromagnetic waves to loop coils of the tablet.

6. The stylus of claim 5, wherein the loop coils from which the waves are received are different than the loop coils to which the waves from the tuning circuit are transmitted.

7. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the finger wheel is not spring-biased to any position, and the stylus outputs a signal to a corresponding tablet system which indicates the rotational position of the finger wheel relative to a predetermined rotational position.

8. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the housing includes an aperture defined therein for allowing said finger wheel to protrude outwardly through said aperture.

9. The stylus of claim 1, wherein the parameter includes one of:

line thickness, scrolling, navigating, color, shading, gray scale, and texture.

10. A graphics coordinate input system including a digitizer tablet and the stylus of claim 1.