INPUTTING APPARATUS

• US 20100169834A1
• Filed: 12/23/2009
• Published: 07/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Watanabe, Toshinari, Wakizaka, Masaaki
• Granted Patent: US 8,271,900 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/821
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04895 Guidance during keyboard input operation, e.g. prompting

Abstract

An inputting apparatus including: a display unit on which an image is displayed; a detecting portion configured to detect an approach value which represents an approaching or a touching degree of an input object with respect to each position in the display unit and which becomes larger where the approaching or touching degree is a certain degree than where the approaching or touching degree is a degree smaller than the certain degree; a button-display portion which displays at least one button; a receiving portion which receives an input of a predetermined command assigned to one of the at least one button where an approach value detected in the one button exceeds a first threshold value; and an enlarging and displaying portion which enlarges and displays only the one button on the display unit where the approach value exceeds a second threshold value smaller than the first threshold value.

Claims

1. An inputting apparatus, comprising:

a display unit on which an image is displayed;

a detecting portion configured to detect an approach value which represents an approaching degree or a touching degree of an input object with respect to each of positions in the display unit and which becomes larger where the approaching degree or the touching degree is a certain degree than where the approaching degree or the touching degree is a degree smaller than the certain degree;

a button-display portion configured to display at least one button on the display unit;

a receiving portion configured to receive an input of a predetermined command assigned to one of the at least one button where an approach value detected in the one button displayed by the button-display portion exceeds a first threshold value; and

an enlarging and displaying portion configured to enlarge and display only the one button on the display unit where the approach value detected in the one button exceeds a second threshold value which is smaller than the first threshold value.

2. The inputting apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the button-display portion is configured to simultaneously display a plurality of buttons on the display unit,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion includes an extracting portion configured to extract all ones of the plurality of buttons displayed on the display unit, the ones having respective approach values having detected by the detecting portion, each of which exceeds the second threshold value, and

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to enlarge and display only one of the buttons extracted by the extracting portion, the one having the largest approach value.

3. The inputting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a positional-information detecting portion configured to detect positional information indicating a position of the input object in the one button,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to display a button name representing a name of the one button at a position which is different from the position of the input object detected by the positional-information detecting portion and which overlaps with the one button enlarged and displayed by enlarging and displaying portion.

4. The inputting apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the button-display portion is configured to display the one button by using a frame representing an edge of the one button, and

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to display the button name within the frame.

5. The inputting apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to display the button name at a position distant from the position of the input object by a predetermined distance.

6. The inputting apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to change a manner of the display of the button name such that the button name is displayed within the frame and at the position distant from the position of the input object by the predetermined distance.

7. The inputting apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising an entering-position specifying portion configured to specify an entering position of the input object in the one button on the basis of the positional information detected by the positional-information detecting portion,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to enlarge and display the one button on the basis of the entering position specified by the entering-position specifying portion.

8. The inputting apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the second threshold value is a value which is smaller than an approach value at a time when the input object touches the display unit.

9. The inputting apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the enlarging and displaying portion is configured to enlarge and display, instead of the one button, another button different from the one button where the approach value does not exceed the first threshold value and where an approach value of said other button is larger than that of the one button.

10. An inputting apparatus, comprising:

a display unit on which an image is displayed;

a detecting portion configured to detect an approach value which represents an approaching degree or a touching degree of an input object with respect to each of positions in the display unit and which becomes larger where the approaching degree or the touching degree is a certain degree than where the approaching degree or the touching degree is a degree smaller than the certain degree;

a button-display portion configured to display at least one button on the display unit;

a receiving portion configured to receive an input of a predetermined command assigned to one of the at least one button where an approach value detected in the one button displayed by the button-display portion exceeds a first threshold value; and

a button-name display portion configured to display a button name representing a name of the one button on the display unit at a position not overlapping with the one button, where the approach value detected in the one button exceeds a second threshold value which is smaller than the first threshold value.

11. The inputting apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the button-display portion is configured to display the one button by using a frame representing an edge of the one button, and

wherein the button-name display portion is configured to display the button name on an outside of the frame.

12. The inputting apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the button-display portion is configured to simultaneously display a plurality of buttons on the display unit,

wherein the button-name display portion includes an extracting portion configured to extract all ones of the plurality of buttons displayed on the display unit, the ones having respective approach values having detected by the detecting portion, each of which exceeds the second threshold value, and

wherein the button-name display portion is configured to display a button name of only one of the buttons extracted by the extracting portion, the one having the largest approach value.

13. The inputting apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the button-name display portion is configured to display the button name within a words-balloon frame extended from the one button or within a frame provided at a position not overlapping with the one button.

14. The inputting apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising:

a positional-information detecting portion configured to detect positional information indicating a position of the input object in the one button; and

an entering-position specifying portion configured to specify an entering position of the input object in the one button on the basis of the positional information detected by the positional-information detecting portion,

wherein the button-name display portion is configured to display the words-balloon frame at a position different from the entering position specified by the entering-position specifying portion.

15. The inputting apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the second threshold value is a value which is smaller than an approach value at a time when the input object touches the display unit.

16. The inputting apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the button-name display portion is configured to display, instead of the button name of the one button, a name of another button different from the one button where the approach value does not exceed the first threshold value and where an approach value of said other button is larger than that of the one button.