METHOD FOR OPERATING A CONTROL SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE AND CONTROL SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE

• US 20110148799A1
• Filed: 04/07/2009
• Published: 06/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Original Assignee: Volkswagen AG
• Inventors: Wäller, Christoph
• Granted Patent: US 8,564,560 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/143 Touch sensitive instrument input devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/143 Touch sensitive input devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3664 Details of the user input interface, e.g. buttons, knobs or sliders, including those provided on a touch screen; remote controllers; input using gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 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 method for operating an operator control system (1) comprises presentation of at least one operator control panel (5-9) on a display unit (2), wherein the at least one operator control panel (5-9) is provided for a user to touch in order to operate a operator control function, detection of a touch (10-12) on a touch-sensitive interface (3) by the user, determination of whether the at least one operator control panel (5-9) has been hit during the touch (10-12) by virtue of coordinates of the touch (10-12) being compared with coordinates of the at least one operator control panel (5-9), and enlarged presentation of the at least one operator control panel (5-9) if no operator control panel (5-9) has been hit.

Claims

1. A method for operating an operator control system for a vehicle, wherein the operator control system comprises a graphical display unit and a touch-sensitive interface, wherein coordinates from information presented on the display unit are associated with coordinates of the touch-sensitive interface, wherein the method comprises:

presentation of at least one operator control panel on the display unit, wherein the at least one operator control panel is provided for a user to touch in order to operate an operator control function,

detection of a touch on the touch-sensitive interface by the user,

determination of whether the at least one operator control panel has been hit during the touch by virtue of the coordinates of the touch being compared with the coordinates of the at least one operator control panel, and

enlarged presentation of the at least one operator control panel if no operator control panel has been hit.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that an enlargement of the at least one operator control panel for the enlarged presentation is determined on the basis of a distance between the coordinates of the at least one operator control panel and the coordinates of the touch.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the enlargement decreases as the distance between the coordinates of the at least one operator control panel and the coordinates of the touch increases.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the enlarged presentation comprises enlarged presentation of precisely one operator control panel from the at least one operator control panel, wherein the precisely one operator control panel is enlarged such that it comprises the coordinates of the touch.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the at least one operator control panel comprises a plurality of operator control panels, and in that the enlarged presentation comprises enlarged presentation of the plurality of operator control panels, wherein the plurality of operator control panels are enlarged uniformly.

9. The operator control system as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that the operator control system is designed to perform the method as claimed in one of claims 1-7.

6. A method for operating an operator control system for a vehicle, wherein the operator control system comprises a graphical display unit and a touch-sensitive interface, wherein the method comprises:

presentation of at least one operator control panel on the display unit, wherein the at least one operator control panel is provided for a user to touch in order to operate an operator control function, and

enlarged presentation of the at least one operator control panel on the basis of a state of the operator control system, wherein the state of the operator control system can be altered by inputs from the user.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the operator control system determines a frequency for the enlarged presentation of the at least one operator control panel and presents the at least one operator control panel in enlarged form on the basis of the frequency.

8. An operator control system for a vehicle, comprising:

a graphical display unit which is designed to present a piece of information for a user,

a touch-sensitive interface which is designed to detect a touch by the user, wherein coordinates from information presented on the display unit are associated with coordinates of the touch-sensitive interface, and

a control unit which is coupled to the display unit and to the touch-sensitive interface and which is designed

to present at least one operator control panel on the display unit, wherein the at least one operator control panel is provided for the user to touch in order to operate an operator control function,

to detect a touch on the touch-sensitive interface by the user,

to determine whether the at least one operator control panel has been hit during the touch by comparing the coordinates of the touch with the coordinates of the at least one operator control panel, and

to present the at least one operator control panel in enlarged form on the display unit if it has been determined that no operator control panel has been hit.