Operating tool with conductor pieces

• US 8,563,880 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2007
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nc3, Inc. (Alberici Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Newcom, Inc.
• Inventors: Ogawa, Yasuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar, Vijay
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chatly, Amit
• Application Number:
  US12/439,115
• Publication Number:
  US 20100012396A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,213 Days
• Field of Search: 345/184, 345/156, 178/18.03
• US Class Current: 178/18.03
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1075 using a touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/046 by electromagnetic means

Abstract

An inexpensively-produced operating tool to which information about the direction of the operating tool or various kinds of identification information can be provided, and in which a switch can be provided. An operating tool (100), which is placed on the detection plane of a conductor detector capable of detecting a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient of loop coil groups crossing each other, comprises a plurality of conductor pieces (102). The conductor piece has, for example, a circular shape, a rectangular shape, or a ring shape. At least a part of the plurality of conductor pieces may be arranged in a predetermined pattern such that the conductor detector can detect the direction of the operating tool.

Claims

1. An operating tool placed on a detection plane of a conductor detector that can detect a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient between loop coil groups crossing each other, said operating tool comprising a plurality of conductor pieces that can be detected by the conductor detector, at least some of the plurality of conductor pieces being arranged in a predetermined pattern that allows the operating tool to have coded identification information provided based on presence/absence of the conductor pieces at predetermined positions.

2. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces has a rectangular shape.

3. The operating tool according to claim 1 in which at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is a loop coil having switch for opening/closing the loop of the loop coil.

4. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which at least three of the plurality of conductor pieces are arranged in a pattern that allows the conductor detector to detect the direction of the operating tool.

5. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces has a shape that allows the conductor detector to detect the direction of the operating tool.

6. The operating tool according to claim 1, which further comprises a rotating member which is rotated about an axis perpendicular to the detection plane, wherein at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is arranged on the rotating member.

7. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which the operating tool has a card shape, and the plurality of conductor pieces are each made of a thin film.

8. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which the plurality of conductor pieces each have a width equal to or slightly larger than the width of each of the loop coil group of the conductor detector.

9. The operating tool according to claim 1, in which at least one of the plurality of the conductor pieces has a rectangular shape or a ring shape.

10. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the predetermined pattern of the plurality of the conductor pieces comprises a regular pattern.

11. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the predetermined pattern of the plurality of the conductor pieces comprises an asymmetric pattern.

12. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the predetermined pattern of the plurality of the conductor pieces comprises an L-shaped pattern, a T-shaped pattern or an I-shaped pattern.

13. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of the conductor pieces comprises conductive ink.

14. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the conductor pieces comprise a physical structure other than a coil structure.

15. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein the conductor detector is configured to detect a change in the electromagnetic coupling due to influence of an eddy current generated in each conductor piece at the intersection of the loop coils.

16. The operating tool according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces comprises an arc configuration having two terminal ends facing and spaced from each other, the two terminal ends coupled to a switch for opening/closing the arc configuration.

17. The operating tool according to claim 1 further comprising a rotating member which is rotated about an axis perpendicular to the detection plane, at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is arranged on the rotating member, and wherein the entire structure for the rotating member comprises a disk structure and an axial structure.

18. An operating tool placed on a detection plane of a conductor detector that can detect a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient between loop coil groups crossing each other, said operating tool comprising:

a plurality of conductor pieces that can be detected by the conductor detector, at least some of the plurality of conductor pieces being arranged in a predetermined pattern that allows the operating tool to have identification information; and

wherein at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is a loop coil having a switch for opening/closing the loop of the loop coil.

19. An operating tool placed on a detection plane of a conductor detector that can detect a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient between loop coil groups crossing each other, said operating tool comprising:

a plurality of conductor pieces that can be detected by the conductor detector, at least some of the plurality of conductor pieces being arranged in a predetermined pattern that allows the operating tool to have identification information; and

a rotating member which is rotated about an axis perpendicular to the detection plane, wherein at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is arranged on the rotating member.

20. An operating tool placed on a detection plane of a conductor detector that can detect a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient between loop coil groups crossing each other, said operating tool comprising:

a plurality of conductor pieces that can be detected by the conductor detector, at least some of the plurality of conductor pieces being arranged in a predetermined pattern that allows the operating tool to have identification information; and

wherein at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces comprises an arc configuration having two terminal ends facing and spaced from each other, the two terminal ends coupled to a switch for opening/closing the arc configuration.

21. An operating tool placed on a detection plane of a conductor detector that can detect a conductor by detecting a change in coupling coefficient between loop coil groups crossing each other, said operating tool comprising:

a plurality of conductor pieces that can be detected by the conductor detector, at least some of the plurality of conductor pieces being arranged in a predetermined pattern that allows the operating tool to have identification information; and

a rotating member which is rotated about an axis perpendicular to the detection plane, at least one of the plurality of conductor pieces is arranged on the rotating member, and wherein the entire structure for the rotating member comprises a disk structure and an axial structure.