Force-feedback input device

• US 7,535,457 B2
• Filed: 11/08/2004
• Issued: 05/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: ALPS Electric Company Limited (Alps Alpine Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Sasaki, Hiroaki, Ito, Yuji, Haruyama, Takeshi, Kitagawa, Nozomi, Matsumoto, Ken
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe; Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sherman; Stephen G
• Application Number:
  US10/983,783
• Publication Number:
  US 20050099387A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,653 Days
• Field of Search: 345/161, 345/156, 345/157, 345/163
• US Class Current: 345/161
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/014 Force feedback applied to GUI
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/015 Force feedback applied to a joystick
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user

Abstract

In a force-feedback input device, when the cursor moves on a line parallel to a line between a center of a first button and a center of a second button, an area is determined between a first position, which corresponds to the center of the first button, and a second position, which corresponds to the center of the second button, such that the area extends a distance W on both sides of a mid-point between the first and second positions. In this area, the first and second external-force generation portions are controlled so that a scalar value |F| of an attractive force exerted on an operating portion is decreased according to the equation |F|=d/W·|F| as the cursor moves closer to the mid-point, where d is a distance between the cursor and the mid-point.

Claims

1. A force-feedback input device comprising:

display means for displaying a cursor and a plurality of buttons;

input means comprising an operating portion, a detecting portion for detecting an amount of movement of the operating portion, and an actuator for providing a required external force to the operating portion; and

control means for controlling display of the cursor based on an operational amount signal from the detecting portion and for controlling driving of the actuator so as to provide an attractive force to the operating portion based on a positional relationship between the cursor and the buttons;

wherein the control means controls driving of the actuator based on a positional relationship between the cursor and a borderline between a first attractive area and a second attractive area appearing in vicinities of adjacent first and second buttons such that the attractive force decreases as a first distance between the cursor and the borderline decreases; and

wherein the cursor moves on a first line parallel to a second line between a first center of the first button and a second center of the second button in an area determined between a first position corresponding to the first center of the first button and a second position corresponding to the second center of the second button such that the area extends a second distance on both sides of a midpoint between the first position and the second position and wherein the control means controls driving of the actuator such that a scalar value (|F|) of the attractive force exerted on the operating portion is decreased based on an equation

|F|=d/W·

|F|

 

as the cursor moves towards the midpoint, where d is a third distance between the cursor and the midpoint and W represents the second distance.