Pen sensor coordinate narrowing method and apparatus

• US 7,259,754 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2002
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Suzuki, Manabu, Toda, Seiji, Fukuda, Takatoshi, Okada, Yukihiro, Sasaki, Manabu, Miyaoku, Hiroshi, Horiuchi, Keiko, Hagiwara, Kunihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe; Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): LESPERANCE, JEAN E
• Application Number:
  US10/179,031
• Publication Number:
  US 20030095109A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,882 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173, 345/177, 345/179, 345/180, 345/181, 345/182, 345/183
• US Class Current: 345/179
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03542 Light pens for emitting or receiving light
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0386 for light pen

Abstract

When a user indicates a point on a display screen of a computer using a pen sensor, first the display screen is divided into a plurality of areas and the areas are displayed by mutually different colors or brightnesses. The plurality of colors or brightnesses displayed are scanned by the pen sensor and the colors or brightnesses detected by the light receiver to judge in which area the indicated point is located. Next, the judged area is further divided into a plurality of areas which are displayed by mutually different colors or brightnesses. Next, a routine similar to the above is successively repeated to narrow down the area in which the point indicated by the pen sensor is located and finally determine the position of the point, that is, the XY coordinates on the display screen.

Claims

1. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method for determining a position indicated by a pen sensor when scanning a display screen by said pen sensor, said pen sensor coordinate narrowing method comprising:

dividing said display screen into two areas when starting to scan said display screen by said pen sensor;

displaying the two areas by respective, different colors or brightnesses as a first display, and in the first display, continuously moving a boundary line formed by the two areas along a vertical axis or a horizontal axis of said display screen, and from an edge of said display screen in a direction perpendicular to the boundary line, thereby increasing a size of one of the two areas while decreasing a size of another of the two areas;

detecting a change of color or brightness along movement of the boundary line with the pen sensor, and determining a horizontal coordinate or a vertical coordinate of a position indicated by the pen sensor on the display screen based on the change detected by the pen sensor;

further dividing said display screen into a plurality of areas along the vertical axis or the horizontal axis of the display screen as a next scan area, and displaying the plurality of areas by respective, mutually different colors or brightnesses as a second display; and

judging which of the plurality of areas the position of the pen sensor on the display screen is at, based on a single color or brightness of the areas detected by the pen sensor, wherein;

the judged area is used as a next scan area, and the second displaying and the judging are repeated several times so as to determine the horizontal coordinates or the vertical coordinates of the first position indicated by the pen sensor.

2. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:

predicting a range including a second position which said pen sensor will indicate next, after the coordinates of the first position on said display screen indicated by the pen sensor are determined; and

using the predicted range as the next scan area.

3. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 2, wherein the range including the second position predicted is a range including the periphery of the first position.

4. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 2, further comprising using the coordinates of the first position as a starting point and using a range extended toward one corner of the screen as the next scan area.

5. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 2, further comprising using the point where the pen sensor is moved away from the screen as the starting point, predicting the range including a second position next indicated by said pen sensor, and using that range as said next scan area when said pen sensor moves from said first position on said screen.

6. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 2, further comprising computing a direction of movement and speed of movement from said first position based on information up to the point where the pen sensor is moved away from the screen, predicting a position in proximity to said second position, and using the range predicted to include that second position using that proximity position as a starting point as said scan area.

7. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising comparing a color or brightness detected at a position indicated by said pen sensor and a color or brightness displayed on said screen around the position indicated by said pen sensor to prevent erroneous judgment of the coordinates of the pen sensor.

8. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising, after the coordinates of said first position on said screen have been determined, surrounding said first position as a movement detection area, displaying a plurality of areas included in that area by mutually differing colors or brightnesses, and judging that said pen sensor has moved when said pen sensor detects a color or brightness which is different from the color or brightness of said first position.

9. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising displaying emphasis on the display screen indicating that a narrowing operation is underway at said display step.

10. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising considering the scan operation to have ended when the pen sensor is moved away from the screen for a predetermined time.

11. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus for determining a position on a display screen, which is indicated by a pen sensor, comprising:

a moving unit dividing said display screen into two areas when starting to scan said display screen by said pen sensor, displaying the two areas by respective, different colors or brightnesses as a first display, and in the first display, continuously moving a boundary line formed by the two areas along a coordinate axis of said display screen, and from an edge of said display screen in a direction perpendicular to the boundary line, thereby increasing a size of one of the two areas while decreasing a size of another of the two areas;

a determining unit detecting a change of color or brightness along movement of the boundary line with the pen sensor, and determining a position of said coordinate axis based on the change of color or brightness detected by said pen sensor;

a display unit dividing said display screen into a plurality of areas in a direction perpendicular to said coordinate axis of the display screen as a next scan area, and displaying the plurality of areas by respective, mutually different colors or brightnesses, as a second display;

a position detecting unit determining the divided area including said position indicated by said pen sensor based on the color or brightness detected by said pen sensor; and

a control unit repeatedly instructing said display unit to use said divided area determined by said position detecting unit as the next scan area, divide it into a plurality of areas in a direction perpendicular to said coordinate axis of the display screen, and display the areas by respective different colors or brightnesses, and in each case instructing said position detecting unit to determine the divided area including said position, wherein

when the displaying as a second display and the determining are repeated several times, a coordinate of a coordinate axis perpendicular to said coordinate axis, on the first position indicated by the pen sensor, is determined.

12. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 11, further comprising a first sensor for detecting a color or brightness on said screen at a position indicated by said pen sensor and a plurality of second sensors arranged symmetrically with respect to said first sensor.

13. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 11, wherein said display unit, after the coordinates of said first position on said display screen have been determined, displays a movement detection area surrounding said first position and comprised of different colors or brightnesses, and said position detecting unit detects movement or direction of movement of said pen sensor when said pen sensor detects the colors or brightnesses of said movement detection area.

14. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 13, wherein said movement detection area forms a contoured part including the range of the first position.

15. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 11, wherein said display unit stops the display of said scan area when there is no instruction for display of the next scan area even after the elapse of a predetermined time from the display of said scan area.

16. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 11, wherein said display unit displaying emphasis on the display screen indicating that a narrowing operation is underway.

17. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus for determining a position indicated by a pen sensor, comprising:

a moving unit dividing a display screen into two areas when starting to scan said display screen by said pen sensor, displaying the two areas by respective, different colors or brightnesses as a first display, and in the first display, continuously moving a boundary line formed by the two areas along a coordinate axis of said display screen from an edge of said display screen in a direction perpendicular to the boundary line, thereby increasing a size of one of the two areas while decreasing a size of another of the two areas;

a determining unit detecting a change of color or brightness along movement of the boundary line with the pen sensor, and determining a position of said coordinate axis based on the change of color or brightness detected by said pen sensor;

a display unit dividing said display screen into a plurality of areas in a direction perpendicular to said coordinate axis of the display screen as a next scan area, and displaying areas by respective different colors or brightnesses as a second display;

a colors or brightnesses detecting unit detecting colors or brightnesses of said areas displayed on said display screen, using the pen sensor;

a position detecting unit determining the divided area including the position indicated by said pen sensor based on the color or brightness detected by the colors or brightnesses detecting unit;

a control unit repeatedly instructing said display unit to use said divided area determined by said position detecting unit as the next scan area, divide it into a plurality of areas in a direction perpendicular to said coordinate axis of the display screen, and display the areas by respective different colors or brightnesses, has and in each case, instructing said position detecting unit to determine the divided area including said position; and

a movement range predicting unit predicting a range including a second position which said pen sensor will indicate next after the coordinates of the first position on the screen, indicated by the pen sensor, are determined, and using the predicted range as the next scan area to determine the second position, wherein said display unit divides said next scan area into a plurality of areas and displays said plurality of areas by respective, different colors or brightnesses.

18. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 17, wherein said movement range predicting unit uses the range including the periphery of the first position as the next scan area.

19. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 17, wherein said movement range predicting unit uses as said next scan area an area extending toward one corner of said screen using the coordinates of said first position as a starting point.

20. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 17, wherein said movement range predicting unit uses as said next scan area the range predicted to include a second position to be next indicated by said pen sensor point using as a starting point the point where the pen sensor moves over said screen from said first position and said pen sensor is moved away from the screen.

21. A pen sensor coordinate narrowing apparatus as set forth in claim 17, wherein said movement range predicting unit computes a direction of movement and speed of movement from said first position based on information up to the point where the pen sensor is moved away from the screen, predicts a position in proximity to said second position, and uses the range predicted to include that second position using that proximity position as a starting point as said scan area.