Apparatus with selectable functions

• US 20100220070A1
• Filed: 02/16/2010
• Published: 09/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Niwa, Shinji, Akahori, Ichiro, Asami, Katsushi
• Granted Patent: US 8,314,778 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/014 Hand-worn input/output arrangements, e.g. data gloves
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0393 Accessories for touch pads or touch screens, e.g. mechanical guides added to touch screens for drawing straight lines, hard keys overlaying touch screens or touch pads
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A user can wear a transmitter module on a finger. The transmitter module transmits an electric signal through a finger. An electronic device includes a touch panel as an input device and a conductive film. The conductive film is a part of a receiver module which receives the electric signal when the body part is approached to the conductive film. The control unit provides a performing module which selectively performs one function among the functions according to the detection result of the receiver module. A first function is performed when the user approaches a finger wearing the transmitter module. A second function is performed when the user approaches another finger not wearing the transmitter module.

Claims

1. An apparatus with selectable functions comprising:

an input device capable of being operated by a user to input an operation signal;

a receiver module which includes an electric conductor for receiving, by a direct contact or an electric coupling, an electric signal from a body part of an user who wears a transmitter module which transmits an electric signal through the body part, and which detects a contact or proximity of the electric conductor with the body part of the user based on the signal received by the electric conductor; and

a performing module which is configured to be able to perform a plurality of functions corresponding to the operation signal supplied from the input device, and selectively performs the functions according to the detection result of the receiver module.

2. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, wherein

the input device detects a touching motion of a user to a touch surface, locate coordinates of a position where the touching motion is detected on the touch surface, and supplies the coordinates into the performing module as the operation signal, and wherein

the performing module is configured to be able to perform a plurality of functions corresponding to the coordinates supplied from the input device, and, in response to a supply of the coordinates from the input device by detecting the touching motion, selectively performs one function according to the detection result of the receiver module, the one function being selected from the functions corresponding to the coordinates.

3. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, wherein

the input device includes at least one mechanical operable member, and supplies the operation signal indicative of the operable member which is actually operated into the performing module, and wherein

the performing module is configured to be able to perform a plurality of functions corresponding to the operable member on the input device, and, in response to a supply of the operation signal from the input device caused by operating the operable member, selectively performs one function according to the detection result of the receiver module, the one function being selected from the functions corresponding to the operable member actually operated.

4. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, further comprising

a display device, and wherein

the performing module changes operation screen images displayed on the display device according to the detection result of the receiver module, and wherein the performing module selectively performs one function according to the detection result of the receiver module by performing the function corresponding to a user'"'"'s operation information which is indicated by the operation screen image displayed on the display device and is determined based on the operation signal supplied from the input device.

5. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, wherein

the electric conductor of the receiver module is provided as a conductive film placed on a surface of the input device.

6. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 2, wherein

the electric conductor of the receiver module is provided as the conductive film placed on the touch surface.

7. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, wherein

the receiver module detects a contact or proximity of an electric conductor with each one of body parts of the user who wears a plurality of transmitter modules each of which transmits a unique electric signal through the body parts;

and

a performing module selectively performs the functions according to the detection result indicative of each one of the transmitter modules.

8. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 7, wherein

the performing module selectively performs one function according to a detection order of the transmitter modules which are detected by the receiving module as the contact or the proximity, the one function being selected from the functions corresponding to the operation signal supplied from the input device.

9. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 7, wherein

the performing module selectively performs one function according to a combination of the transmitter modules which are simultaneously detected by the receiving module as the contact or the proximity at a time of supply of the operation signal from the input device.

10. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, further comprising

a setting module which changes a relationship between the function which should be performed corresponding to the operation signal supplied from the input device and the detection result of the receiving module according to an instruction from the user.

11. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, further comprising

a transmitter module which transmits the electric signal through the body part.

12. The apparatus with selectable functions in claim 1, further comprising

a plurality of transmitter modules each of which transmits the unique electric signal through the body part.