Operation input system

• US 9,110,571 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2012
• Issued: 08/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2012
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Aisin AW Company Limited (Aisin Corp.)
• Inventors: Ninomiya, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): To, Jennifer
• Assistant Examiner(s): LI, LIANG Y
• Application Number:
  US13/721,816
• Publication Number:
  US 20130246965A1
• Time in Patent Office: 971 Days
• Field of Search: 715/790, 715/793, 434/112, 434/113, 434/114, 434/115, 341/21
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range

Abstract

An operation input system and method are provided. The system includes a display device including a display screen, an input device that provides an input into the display device and a control device that includes a protrusion control section that controls a protrusion state of each of the plurality of protrusion members in accordance with a display content in the windows displayed on the display screen. The system is controlled such that when a first window and a second window are displayed so as to partially overlap each other, the protrusion control section makes the protrusion state of the protrusion members protruded in accordance with the display content of a hidden region of the second window different from the protrusion state of the protrusion members protruded in accordance with the display content of an entire region of the first window.

Claims

1. An operation input system comprising:

a display device including a display screen;

an input device that provides an input into the display device; and

a control device, wherein;

the display device is configured to display an image including a plurality of windows on the display screen;

the input device includes a plurality of protrusion members arranged along an operation surface of the input device and provided so as to independently protrude from the operation surface;

the control device includes;

a protrusion control section that controls a protrusion state of each of the plurality of protrusion members in accordance with a display content in the windows displayed on the display screen; and

a corresponding region setting section that, in the case where the plurality of windows are displayed on the display screen, sets a corresponding region on the operation surface in correspondence with a shape of a visible portion on the display screen of each of the plurality of windows; and

in the case where at least a first window and a second window are displayed on the display screen as partially overlapping each other, the protrusion control section makes the protrusion state of each of the protrusion members protruded in accordance with the display content of a hidden region of the second window different from the protrusion state of the protrusion members protruded in accordance with the display content of an entire region of the first window and a displayed region of the second window, the hidden region being a region of the second window hidden under the first window in an overlapping portion between the first window and the second window, and the displayed region being a region of the second window other than the hidden region, wherein a protrusion state in which a level of a distal end portion of the protrusion member in a protrusion direction is higher than a level of the operation surface is defined as a first state, and a protrusion state in which the level of the distal end portion of the protrusion member in the protrusion direction is not higher than the level of the operation surface is defined as a second state,

the corresponding region corresponding to the first window is a first corresponding region and the corresponding region corresponding to the second window is a second corresponding region, and

the protrusion control section, in the case where the first window and the second window are displayed on the display screen as partially overlapping each other, further controls the protrusion state of each of the plurality of projection members such that the protrusion state of the protrusion members controlled in accordance with the display content of the hidden region is controlled to the second state, such that the protrusion state of each of the protrusion members controlled in accordance with the display content of the entire region of the first window and the displayed region of the second window is controlled to the first state, and such that the protrusion state of each of the protrusion members disposed at a boundary between operation surface regions that is a boundary between an operation surface region including the first corresponding region and an operation surface region including the second corresponding region is controlled to the first state,

wherein the boundary between operation surface regions is configured to include a boundary between corresponding regions that is a boundary between the first corresponding region and the second corresponding region and a boundary along line segments obtained by extending respective end portions of the boundary between corresponding regions to an outer periphery of the operation surface over the shortest distance.

2. The operation input system according to claim 1, wherein in the case where the first window and the second window are displayed on the display screen with no overlap between each other, the protrusion control section controls the protrusion state of each of the plurality of protrusion members in accordance with the display content of the entire region of the first window and the display content of the entire region of the second window.

3. The operation input system according to claim 1, wherein:

in the case where both at least one slide-support region and a non-slide-support region are set on the operation surface, the slide-support region being a type of the corresponding region in which a slide operation performed on the operation surface is received as an input operation and the non-slide-support region being a type of the corresponding region other than the slide- support region, the protrusion control section protrudes the distal end portion of the protrusion member from the operation surface along a first boundary between an operation surface region including the slide-support region and an operation surface region including the non-slide-support region.

4. The operation input system according to claim 3, wherein in the case where a first slide-support region, a second slide-support region, and the non-slide-support region are set on the operation surface, the first slide-support region being a first one of the slide-support regions and the second slide-support region being a second one of the slide-support regions, the protrusion control section protrudes the distal end portion of the protrusion member from the operation surface along a second boundary between an operation surface region including the first slide-support region and an operation surface region including the second slide-support region into a protrusion state different from the protrusion state at the first boundary.

5. The operation input system according to claim 3, wherein in setting both the slide-support region and the non-slide-support region on the operation surface, the corresponding region setting section makes a ratio in area of the slide-support region to the non-slide-support region higher than a ratio in area of a visible portion, on the display screen, of the window corresponding to the slide-support region to a visible portion, on the display screen, of the window corresponding to the non-slide-support region.