Input apparatus, control system, handheld apparatus, and calibration method

• US 9,207,781 B2
• Filed: 05/29/2009
• Issued: 12/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Kazuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Boddie, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): PARKER, JEFFREY ALAN
• Application Number:
  US12/474,967
• Publication Number:
  US 20090295722A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,384 Days
• Field of Search: 345/158, 345/157, 345/156
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors

Abstract

An input apparatus includes a casing, an output section, a processing section, a judgment section, and a calibration section. The output section includes a reference potential and outputs, as a detection signal, a fluctuation of a potential with respect to the reference potential, that corresponds to a movement of the casing. The processing section executes processing for generating a control command for controlling a screen based on an output value of the output section. The judgment section judges an operational state of the input apparatus. The calibration section executes, when it is judged that the input apparatus is moving, a calibration mode as processing for correcting the reference potential by obtaining the output value over a data obtainment period that is a sampling period of the output value and calculating a correction value of the reference potential based on the obtained output value.

Claims

1. An input apparatus, comprising:

an output section including an angular velocity sensor for outputting a reference potential and a fluctuation of a potential with respect to the reference potential, that corresponds to a movement of the input apparatus;

a processing section for executing processing for generating a control command for controlling a screen based on an output value of the output section;

a judgment section for judging an operational state of the input apparatus; and

a calibration section for;

executing, when it is judged by the judgment section that the operational state of the input apparatus is at least one of a movement state and an immovable state, a calibration mode as processing for correcting the reference potential of the angular velocity sensor by;

responsive to determining the input apparatus is in the movement state, selecting a first cutoff frequency corresponding to a relative longer data obtainment period,

responsive to determining the input apparatus is in the immoveable state, selecting a second cutoff frequency corresponding to a relative shorter data obtainment period, and

obtaining the output value from the angular velocity sensor over the selected data obtainment period that is a sampling period of the output value,

calculating a correction value of the reference potential by determining a DC component of the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor to update the reference potential using the calculated correction value, and

carrying out processing for canceling the fluctuation of the reference potential by subtracting the correction value from the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor.

2. The input apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a setting section for setting the calibration mode executed by the calibration section based on the operational state of the input apparatus judged by the judgment section.

3. The input apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the setting section sets the data obtainment period of the calibration mode based on the operational state of the input apparatus judged by the judgment section.

4. The input apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the judgment section judges the operational state of the input apparatus based on the output value.

5. The input apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the setting section sets a shorter time period for the data obtainment period as the output value becomes smaller.

6. The input apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the calibration section does not execute the calibration mode when a change amount of the output value exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

7. The input apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the angular velocity sensor is configured to detect an angular velocity that acts on the input apparatus,

wherein the judgment section judges the operational state of the input apparatus based on an output value of the angular velocity sensor, and

wherein the calibration section corrects a reference potential of the angular velocity sensor using the output value of the angular velocity sensor obtained over the data obtainment period.

8. The input apparatus according to claim 7,

wherein the calibration section includes a lowpass filter to extract a signal of a predetermined frequency band from a detection signal of the angular velocity sensor, and

wherein the data obtainment period is set based on a cutoff frequency of the lowpass filter.

9. The input apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein the output section includes an acceleration sensor to detect an acceleration that acts on the input apparatus,

wherein the judgment section judges the operational state of the input apparatus based on an output value of the acceleration sensor, and

wherein the calibration section corrects a reference potential of the angular velocity sensor using an output value of the angular velocity sensor obtained over the data obtainment period.

10. The input apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the judgment section judges the operational state of the input apparatus based on a lapse time since an activation of the input apparatus.

11. The input apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the setting section sets a longer time period for the data obtainment period depending on the lapse time since the activation of the input apparatus.

12. The input apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the processing section executes processing in which the generation of the control command is stopped when a difference between the output value of the output section and the correction value of the reference potential is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value.

13. The input apparatus according to claim 12,

wherein the processing section decrements the predetermined value every time the reference potential is corrected.

14. The input apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the processing section includes a first processing mode as processing for generating the control command for controlling the screen based on the output value of the output section, and a second processing mode as processing in which the control of the screen is stopped, and

wherein the judgment section judges that the operational state is a screen-controlled state when the processing section is executing the first processing mode, and judges that the operational state is a screen-uncontrolled state when the processing section is executing the second processing mode.

15. The input apparatus according to claim 14,

wherein the setting section sets a first time period for the data obtainment period when the judgment section judges that the operational state is the screen-controlled state, and sets a second time period shorter than the first time period for the data obtainment period when the judgment section judges that the operational state is the screen-uncontrolled state.

16. The input apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising

a selection switch for causing the processing section to select one of the first processing mode and the second processing mode.

17. The input apparatus according to claim 15,

wherein the setting section includes processing for changing the second time period in accordance with a magnitude of the output value.

21. The input apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a casing.

18. A control system, comprising:

an input apparatus including

an output section including an angular velocity sensor for outputting a reference potential and a fluctuation of a potential with respect to the reference potential, that corresponds to a movement of the input apparatus;

a processing section for executing processing for generating a control command for controlling a screen based on an output value of the output section,

a transmission section for transmitting the control command generated by the processing section,

a judgment section for judging an operational state of the input apparatus, and

a calibration section for;

executing, when it is judged by the judgment section that the operational state of the input apparatus is at least one of a movement state and an immovable state, a calibration mode as processing for correcting the reference potential of the angular velocity sensor by;

responsive to determining the input apparatus is in the movement state, determining a first cutoff frequency corresponding to a relative longer data obtainment period,

responsive to determining the input apparatus is in the immoveable state, determining a second cutoff frequency corresponding to a relative shorter data obtainment period, and

obtaining the output value from the angular velocity sensor over the determined data obtainment period that is a sampling period of the output value,

calculating a correction value of the reference potential by determining a DC component of the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor to update the reference potential using the calculated correction value, and

carrying out processing for canceling the fluctuation of the reference potential by subtracting the correction value from the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor; and

a control apparatus including

a reception section for receiving the control command transmitted by the transmission section, and

a display control section for controlling display of the screen in response to the control command received by the reception section.

22. The control section according to claim 18, further comprising a casing configured to enclose the input apparatus.

19. A handheld apparatus, comprising:

a casing;

a display section;

an output section including an angular velocity sensor for outputting a reference potential and a fluctuation of a potential with respect to the reference potential, that corresponds to a movement of the casing;

a processing section for executing processing for generating a control command for controlling a screen displayed on the display section based on an output value of the output section;

a judgment section for judging an operational state of the handheld apparatus; and

a calibration section for;

executing, when it is judged by the judgment section that the operational state of the handheld apparatus is a movement state or an immovable state, a calibration mode as processing for correcting the reference potential of the angular velocity sensor by;

responsive to determining the handheld apparatus is in the movement state, selecting a relative long data obtainment period,

responsive to determining the input apparatus is in the immoveable state, selecting a relative short data obtainment period, and

obtaining the output value from the angular velocity sensor over the selected data obtainment period that is a sampling period of the output value,

calculating a correction value of the reference potential by determining a DC component of the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor to update the reference potential using the calculated correction value, and

carrying out processing for canceling the fluctuation of the reference potential by subtracting the correction value from the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor.

20. A calibration method, comprising:

outputting by an output section that includes an angular velocity sensor, as a detection signal, a fluctuation of a potential with respect to a reference potential, that corresponds to a movement of an electronic apparatus;

judging an operational state of the electronic apparatus;

responsive to determining the operational state of the electronic apparatus is a movement state, selecting a relative longer data obtainment period;

responsive to determining the operational state of the electronic apparatus is an immoveable state, selecting a relative shorter data obtainment period;

obtaining, when it is judged that the operational state of the electronic apparatus is a movement state, an output value of the detection signal from the angular velocity sensor over the relatively longer data obtainment period that is a sampling period of the output value;

calculating a correction value of the reference potential by determining a DC component of the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor;

carrying out processing for canceling the fluctuation of the reference potential by subtracting the correction value from the obtained output value from the angular velocity sensor; and

updating the reference potential using the calculated correction value.