Information processing apparatus

• US 9,052,783 B2
• Filed: 08/02/2011
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Koshiyama, Atsushi, Oba, Haruo, Morita, Shintarou, Nakano, Minoru, Kondo, Masao, Adachi, Hiroaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lao, Lun-Yi
• Assistant Examiner(s): KHAN, IBRAHIM A
• Application Number:
  US13/195,888
• Publication Number:
  US 20120032905A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,407 Days
• Field of Search: 345/104, 345156-158, 345173-176, 178 1805- 1806, 178 1803- 1809, 463/37
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0339 Touch strips, e.g. orthogonal touch strips to control cursor movement or scrolling; single touch strip to adjust parameter or to implement a row of soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04101 2.5D-digitiser, i.e. digitiser detecting the X/Y position of the input means, finger or stylus, also when it does not touch, but is proximate to the digitiser's interaction surface and also measures the distance of the input means within a short range in the Z direction, possibly with a separate measurement setup
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/043 using propagating acoustic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer

Abstract

An information processing apparatus includes a display unit located on a front surface of a case. The information processing apparatus also includes a sensing unit located on a side surface of the case facing away from the display unit.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a display located on a front surface of a case; and

a sensing unit located on a side surface of the case facing away from the display, the sensing unit including;

(1) a first plurality of sensors disposed on the side surface of the case and configured to detect a position of an object, that does not touch the side surface of the case, in a longitudinal direction of the case,

(2) a sensor disposed on the side surface of the case above or below the plurality of sensors relative to the front surface of the case, the sensor configured to detect a distance between the object and the sensing unit in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case, and

(3) a second plurality of sensors disposed on the side surface of the case above or below the sensor relative to the front surface of the case, the second plurality of sensors configured to detect the distance between the object and the sensing unit in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the plurality of sensors is disposed in the longitudinal direction of the case, and

wherein the display is controlled in accordance with a change in the position and the distance of the object.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the sensing unit includes a capacitance sensor.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

display circuitry configured to control, in accordance with a movement of the object, a display position of an object on the display unit.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein adjacent sensors of the plurality of sensors are disposed with a gap between the adjacent sensors, and the position is determined by dividing the gap in accordance with a ratio between values obtained by the adjacent sensors.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the sensing unit is provided on a plurality of side surfaces of the case, and, when the object is moved from an area facing one of the side surfaces of the case to an area facing another one of the side surfaces of the case, the display is controlled to rotate a displayed object.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the sensing unit is disposed on a plurality of side surfaces of the case, and the position is determined based on simultaneous values from sensors disposed on different side surfaces of the case.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

an inclination sensor configured to detect an angle of inclination of the information processing apparatus, and the position is determined based on the angle of inclination.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising:

a light that illuminates an operation area, wherein the information processing apparatus sets the operation area in accordance with the angle of inclination.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, when the information processing apparatus attaches to a stand, an angle of inclination associated with the stand is acquired, and the position is determined based on the angle of inclination.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a detector that detects that the information processing apparatus has been placed on a horizontal surface, wherein the information processing apparatus starts determining the position when the information processing apparatus has been placed on the horizontal surface.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensing unit is provided on a plurality of side surfaces of the case, and the sensor continuously extends across the plurality of side surfaces.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the sensor continuously extends across every side surface of the case.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensing unit is provided on a plurality of side surfaces of the case, the sensor extends as far as opposite ends of one of the side surfaces, and the sensor determines a position of the object in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

first circuitry configured to pick up a sound, wherein the display is controlled based on the sound.

16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the sound is at least one of a tapping and a scraping.

17. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:

second circuitry configured to pick up a sound, wherein a phase difference between the sound picked up by the first circuitry and the sound picked up by the second circuitry is measured to input an operation.

18. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

a length of an area, on the side surface of the case, that all of the plurality of first sensors occupy in the longitudinal direction is equal to a length of the sensor in the longitudinal direction.

19. The information processing apparatus according to claim 18, wherein

a length of an area, on the side surface of the case, that all of the plurality of second sensors occupy in the longitudinal direction is equal to the length of the sensor in the longitudinal direction.

20. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

a length of an area, on the side of the surface of the case, that one of the plurality of second sensors occupies in the longitudinal direction is equal to a length of an area, on the side of the surface of the case that at least two of the plurality of first sensors occupy in the longitudinal direction.

21. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

means for displaying an image, the means for displaying located on a front surface of a case; and

means for sensing, the means for sensing located on a side surface of the case facing away from the means for displaying, the means for sensing including;

(1) a means for detecting a position of an object, that does not touch the side surface of the case, in a longitudinal direction of the case, the first means disposed on the side surface of the case,

(2) a first means for detecting a distance between the object and the means for sensing in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case, the first means for detecting the distance disposed on the side surface of the case and above or below the means for detecting the position relative to the front surface of the case, and

(3) a second means for detecting the distance between the object and the means for sensing in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case, the second means for detecting disposed on the side surface of the case above or below the sensor relative to the front surface of the case.

22. A method, comprising:

sensing, by a sensing unit located on a side surface of a case facing away from a display, an object that does not touch the side surface of the case; and

controlling the display based on the sensing, the display located on a front surface of the case, the sensing unit including;

(1) a first plurality of sensors disposed on the side surface of the case and configured to detect a position of the object in a longitudinal direction of the case,

(2) a sensor disposed on the side surface of the case and above or below the plurality of sensors relative to the front surface of the case, the sensor configured to detect only a distance between the object and the sensing unit in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case, and

(3) a second plurality of sensors disposed on the side surface of the case above or below the sensor relative to the front surface of the case, the second plurality of sensors configured to detect the distance between the object and the sensing unit in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and parallel to the front surface of the case.