Electronic device, detection control method, and program

Abstract

To provide an electronic device, a detection control method, and a program which can reduce processing load and power consumption.SOLUTION: An electronic device (1) has a display unit (14), a touch panel (151) with a plurality of sensors arranged thereon, and a CPU (11) for, based on a measured value measured by at least a part of sensors among the plurality of sensors, detecting a touch operation on the touch panel. The CPU (11) switches between and executes a first specific processing for specifying, as an operation position to which the touch operation is directed, a position corresponding to a coordinate calculated based on the measured values measured by the two or more sensors and a second specifying processing for specifying a target sensor whose measured value satisfies a predetermined condition among the plurality of sensors based on a display content displayed on the display unit (14).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an electronic device, a detection control method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] In a touch panel, when a touch operation is detected, the position of the touch operation is specified and information at that position is output. In a capacitance-type touch panel, a plurality of sensor electrodes are arranged side by side, and the touch position is specified according to changes in the capacitance of each sensor electrode. In this capacitance method, since it is necessary to sequentially scan the amount of change in the capacitance of each sensor electrode, when the number of sensor electrodes increases to improve the detection position accuracy, the processing amount increases.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reducing the number of sensor electrodes to be scanned by taking advantage of the fact that the detection resolution of the operation position of the touch panel required varies according to the content displayed on the display screen.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, in the above technique, since the coordinates of the touch position are obtained interpolatively from the ratio of the change amounts of the measured values of a plurality of sensors, ultimately, an extra amount of calculation is generated, and there is a problem that it is difficult to reduce the processing load and power consumption.

[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic device, a detection control method, and a program capable of reducing the processing load and power consumption.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] To achieve the above object, an electronic device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes: a display unit; a touch panel in which a plurality of sensors are arranged side by side; a control unit that detects a touch operation on the touch panel based on measurement values measured by at least some of the plurality of sensors; and is provided with: The control unit switches and executes a first specifying process of specifying, as an operation position where the touch operation is performed, a position corresponding to coordinates calculated based on measurement values by two or more of the sensors, and a second specifying process of specifying a target sensor among the plurality of sensors whose measurement values satisfy a predetermined condition, based on display content to be displayed by the display unit.

Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present disclosure, there is an effect that the processing load and power consumption in the electronic device can be reduced.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

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Figure 11

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment.

[0011] The electronic device 1 is, for example, a portable electronic device such as a smartwatch, and may be one in which it is difficult to sufficiently secure the battery capacity according to the limitations of weight and size. The electronic device 1 includes a CPU 11 (Central Processing Unit), a RAM 12 (Random Access Memory), a storage unit 13, a display unit 14, an operation reception unit 15, and the like.

[0012] The CPU 11 is a main processor that performs arithmetic processing and overall controls the overall operation of the electronic device 1. The CPU 11 may have a single processor, or may have a plurality of processors, and the plurality of processors may operate in parallel for a certain process or operate independently for each process.

[0013] The RAM 12 is, for example, a DRAM, provides a working memory space for the CPU 11, and stores temporary data.

[0014] The storage unit 13 has a non-volatile memory and stores a program 131 and setting data. The non-volatile memory may be, for example, a flash memory. The program 131 includes control processing related to the reception of operations of the touch panel 151 described later.

[0015] The display unit 14 has a digital display screen. The digital display screen can display various characters, signs, graphics, and images by means of a dot matrix method. The digital display screen may be a color display screen or a display screen with limited colors.

[0016] The operation reception unit 15 receives an input operation from the outside and outputs the content of the received input operation as an operation signal to the CPU 11. The operation reception unit 15 includes a touch panel 151 and a processor 152. The touch panel 151 is positioned to overlap with the digital display screen. The processor 152 identifies the operation position from the detection content of the input operation on the touch panel 151.

[0017] The electronic device 1 may have various other configurations, for example, a communication unit, a physical sensor, a notification operation unit, and the like. The CPU 11 and the processor 152 constitute the control unit in the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment.

[0018] Next, the touch panel 151 will be described. FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are diagrams for explaining the touch panel 151 in the electronic device 1.

[0019] In the touch panel 151, a plurality of electrodes P1 to P20 are arranged within the detection range of the touch operation. The electrodes P1 to P20 can be set to a certain potential different from the ground voltage, and generate capacitance with the ground plane in a self-capacitance method according to the contact with an insulator such as a finger (having low electrical conductivity) or the approach to an appropriate range within the electric field corresponding to the above potential. That is, this capacitance changes according to the touch operation related to the above contact or approach. The processor 152 can measure and acquire the capacitance of each of the electrodes P1 to P20. That is, the electrodes P1 to P20 each function as a capacitance sensor. The detection range of the touch operation by the touch panel 151 may be equal to the range of the digital display screen W, or may be set slightly wider than the range of the digital display screen W. Alternatively, the detection range may be smaller than the digital display screen W, that is, the touch operation may not be detected in a part of the digital display screen W.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2(a), the digital display screen W of the electronic device 1 does not have to be rectangular. For example, the digital display screen W may be circular. For example, among the electrodes P1 to P20 of the touch panel 151, 16 of the electrodes P1 to P16 are arranged in a 4-row and 4-column two-dimensional matrix. The remaining four arc-shaped portions have electrodes P17 to P20 located therein, respectively.

[0021] FIG. 2(b) is a diagram for explaining the wiring from each of the electrodes P1 to P20 of the touch panel 151. There are various methods for the touch panel 151, but as described above, the touch panel 151 may be a self-capacitance method. One signal line extends from each of the electrodes P1 to P20, and each is independently connected to a capacitance detection unit (not shown) so that a voltage can be applied to the electrodes P1 to P20 via the signal lines. Each of the electrodes P1 to P20 generates a capacitance with the ground plane in response to contact with an insulator (such as a finger with low electrical conductivity) or approach within an appropriate range in the electric field corresponding to the above potential. In a normal touch panel, it is necessary to specify the touch position with higher accuracy than the position range of the electrodes P1 to P20. The touch panel 151 measures the capacitance of each of the electrodes P1 to P20 and detects a change therein, thereby detecting a touch operation. Depending on the size of the finger or the like, this change in capacitance occurs not only in a single electrode but also in a plurality of surrounding electrodes. The operation position is calculated by obtaining the center of gravity of the changes in capacitance in these two or more electrodes.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 3, for example, when the amounts of change D1 to D3 in the capacitance of electrodes P1 to P3 are caused by a touch operation, the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15 specifies the centroid position of the amount of change in the capacitance at each of the electrodes P1 to P3 of the touch panel 151 as the touch position. The centroid position may be, for example, a position weighted by the amounts of change D1 to D3 of capacitance with respect to the center positions of the respective electrodes P1 to P3. Alternatively, the calculation procedure for the centroid position may be arbitrarily determined. Also, since the number of electrodes whose capacitance changes is not limited to three, the centroid position may be calculated by different procedures according to the number of electrodes whose capacitance has changed.

[0023] The information on the operation position thus specified is output from the operation reception unit 15 to the CPU 11. The CPU 11 specifies the display content corresponding to the operation position, passes the operation position information to the application program (hereinafter referred to as an app) related to the display content, and performs processing according to the display content.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display on the digital display screen W. In the example of FIG. 4(a), a plurality of displayed options can be changed by a scroll operation in the vertical direction. The scroll operation is performed in response to reception of a slide operation. Also, when the scroll operation can be stopped at an arbitrary position, the boundary positions of the respective options can change arbitrarily. Therefore, in this case, the operation reception unit 15 detects the continuation or discontinuation of the operation and the movement of the operation position with an accuracy that enables detection of the slide operation and which option is selected.

[0025] On the other hand, in the example of FIG. 4(b), 16 fixed buttons B1 to B16 (labels) are fixedly displayed in association with the positions of electrodes P1 to P16. The display ranges of buttons B1 to B16 are each associated with a touch operation of a target to be received. That is, if a representative electrode (target sensor) that has been touched is identified, information on the operation position with high accuracy is unnecessary. The condition (predetermined condition) for identifying a representative electrode may be, for example, that it is the electrode with the largest change in capacitance. The switching of the display screen may be performed by an input operation on a mechanical push button switch provided separately in the operation reception unit 15. Alternatively, a display screen switching command may be assigned to any one of the displayed buttons B1 to B16.

[0026] In such a display case, the operation reception unit 15 may not be able to identify various operation types other than a simple tap operation, particularly a continuous operation in which the touch position changes over time. Examples of such operation types include a slide operation, a flick operation, a pinch-in operation, and a pinch-out operation. Furthermore, since no buttons are displayed at the positions of electrodes P17 to P20, it is not necessary to receive touch operations in the range of these electrodes. Therefore, for at least some of such electrodes, the acquisition target and detection target of capacitance change may not be set, and the detection process itself may be omitted.

[0027] As described above, there is a difference in the required time resolution and position resolution of operation detection between the case of the display in FIG. 4(a) and the case of the display in FIG. 4(b). When performing the same operation detection as in FIG. 4(a) in the case of operation detection according to FIG. 4(b), it becomes excessive processing, and the processing load and power consumption increase uselessly. In the present embodiment, the operation reception detection method is switched to one of the patterns in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b) and executed based on the display content. The degree of decrease in detection accuracy may be defined in advance within the application.

[0028] In addition, when the digital display screen W displays information related to a plurality of applications simultaneously, the detection of overall operation reception may be performed with an accuracy corresponding to the application that requires the highest accuracy detection. The switching can be made at any time based on the setting information from each application.

[0029] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the control procedure of the detection switching control process executed by the CPU 11. This detection switching control process functions as switching control means in the program 131 of the present embodiment and is continuously executed while the display operation by the display unit 14 is being performed and the touch panel 151 is also operating.

[0030] The CPU 11 acquires the display information by the display unit 14 (S1). The CPU 11 determines whether there has been a change in the display content (S2). If it is determined that there has been no change in the display content (S2; N), the process of the CPU 11 returns to process S1.

[0031] If it is determined that there has been a change in the display content (S2; Y), the CPU 11 determines whether it is a display such as a button that accepts an operation corresponding to the range of the electrodes (S3). This determination process is not limited to the case where it is directly determined based on the display content and the information on the operation reception range. The application may output a flag indicating that the display content is such, and the determination may be made according to the flag.

[0032] If it is determined that it is a display such as a button that accepts an operation corresponding to the range of the electrodes (S3; Y), the CPU 11 causes the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15 to start a button operation detection control process (second specific process, second specific means) described later (S4). Then, the process of the CPU 11 returns to process S1. If it is determined that it is not a display such as a button that accepts an operation corresponding to the range of the electrodes (S3; N), the CPU 11 causes the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15 to start a panel operation detection control process (first specific process, first specific means) described later (S5). Then, the process of the CPU 11 returns to process S1. Note that in processes S4 and S5, if the same process has already been started, it is not necessary to restart the same process again.

[0033] Figure 6 is a flowchart showing the control procedure of the normal panel operation detection control process executed by the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15. This process, which is the first specific process of the present embodiment, is a control process when the operation reception unit 15 detects various operations at an arbitrary position with high accuracy as described above. The panel operation detection control process is continuously performed as long as the detection accuracy is not changed or the operation detection of the touch panel 151 itself is not stopped after being started from the program 131 as the first specific means.

[0034] The processor 152 assigns "0" to the variable m. The processor 152 initializes the measurement time and starts measuring from the initial value (0) (S11). The processor 152 assigns "1" to the variable n (S12). The processor 152 measures the capacitance of the nth electrode (referred to as electrode (n)) and stores the amount of change from the reference value of the capacitance as the change amount D(n, m) (S13). The processor 152 adds "1" to the variable n (S14). The processor 152 determines whether the value of the variable n is 21 or more, that is, whether it is larger than the number (20) of electrodes P1 to P20 (S15).

[0035] If it is determined that the value of the variable n is not 21 or more (S15; N), the process of the processor 152 returns to process S13. If it is determined that the value of the variable n is 21 or more (S15; Y), the processor 152 adds 1 to the variable m (S16). The processor 152 determines whether the measurement time has exceeded the reference time (execution period) (S17). If it is determined that the measurement time has not exceeded the reference time (S17; N), the process of the processor 152 returns to process S12.

[0036] If it is determined that the measurement time has exceeded the reference time (S17; Y), the processor 152 calculates the average change amount D(n) as the value obtained by dividing the sum ΣD(n, *) of the m change amounts D(n, m) obtained for each of the variables n by the value of the variable m (S18). The processor 152 extracts the values that exceed the reference value Dth from the average change amount D(n) (S19).

[0037] The processor 152 determines whether two or more change amounts D(n) have been extracted (S20). If it is determined that two or more change amounts D(n) have not been extracted (S20; N), the processor 152 returns the process to S11. That is, in this case, it is determined that no input operation has been received. If it is determined that two or more change amounts D(n) have been extracted (S20; Y), the processor 152 calculates the centroid position of the extracted D(n) (S21). The processor 152 outputs the coordinates of the calculated centroid position to the CPU 11 as the operation reception position (S22). Then, the process of the processor 152 returns to the process S11.

[0038] Note that in the above, for each of the variables n, the measurement of the capacitance and the calculation of the change amount D(n, m) are each performed m times during the reference time, but this is not limited thereto. One change amount may be directly treated as the above average change amount D(n).

[0039] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control procedure of the normal operation reception control process executed by the CPU 11. This normal operation reception control process is started when the operation reception position is input from the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15 to the CPU 11.

[0040] The CPU 11 acquires the input operation reception position (S31). The CPU 11 determines whether the operation content is a tap operation (S32). The CPU 11 determines whether a tap operation has been received, for example, based on whether the previously detected input operation is continued and whether the operation reception position has moved. If it is determined that no tap operation has been received (S32; N), the CPU 11 performs processing according to the type of the received operation. This branch may include a case where it is not yet determined whether it is a tap operation. In this case, no specific processing is executed, and the reception history of the input operation is temporarily stored in the RAM 12 or the like.

[0041] When it is determined that a tap operation has been received (S32; Y), the CPU 11 acquires the number In of options displayed on the digital display screen by the display unit 14 (S33). The CPU 11 assigns "1" to the variable i (S34).

[0042] The CPU 11 determines whether the X coordinate Lx of the operation reception position L is greater than the minimum value A(i)xL of the X coordinates of the range A(i) of the displayed option i (S35). If it is determined that Lx > A(i)xL is not true (S35; N), the process of the CPU 11 transfers to process S38.

[0043] If it is determined that Lx > A(i)xL is true (S35; Y), the CPU 11 determines whether the X coordinate Lx of the operation reception position L is less than the maximum value A(i)xU of the X coordinates of the range A(i) of the displayed option i (S36). If it is determined that Lx < A(i)xU is not true (S36; N), the process of the CPU 11 transfers to process S38.

[0044] If it is determined that Lx < A(i)xU is true (S36; Y), the CPU 11 determines whether the Y coordinate Ly of the operation reception position L is greater than the lower limit value A(i, Lx)yL of y and less than the upper limit value A(i, Lx)yU of y at the X coordinate A(i)x of the range A(i) of the option i (S37).

[0045] If it is determined that A(i, Lx)yL < Ly < A(i, Ly)yH is true (S37; Y), the CPU 11 acquires the processing content corresponding to the option A(i) (S40). The CPU 11 executes the acquired processing content (S41). Then, the CPU 11 ends the normal operation reception control process.

[0046] If it is determined that A(i, Lx)yL < Ly < A(i, Ly)yH is not true (S37; N), the process of the CPU 11 transfers to process S28.

[0047] When shifting to process S38, the CPU 11 adds 1 to the variable i (S38). The CPU 11 determines whether the variable i is greater than the number of options In (S39). If it is determined that the variable i is not greater than the number of options In (S39; N), the process of the CPU 11 returns to process S35. If it is determined that the variable i is greater than the number of options In (S39; Y), the CPU 11 ends the normal operation reception control process. That is, it means that the received tap operation was not within the valid range as a request for any process.

[0048] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the control procedure of the button operation detection control process executed by the processor 152 of the operation reception unit 15. This button operation detection control process, which is the second specific process of the present embodiment, is executed when detecting only the touch operation of the fixed display button as described above. After the button operation detection control process is started from the program 131 as the second specific means, it is continuously performed as long as the detection accuracy is not changed or the operation detection of the touch panel 151 itself is not stopped.

[0049] The processor 152 assigns "0" to the variable m. The processor 152 initializes the measurement time and starts the measurement from the initial value (0) (S51). The processor 152 assigns "1" to the variable n (S52). The processor 152 measures the capacitance of the electrode (n) and temporarily stores the change amount from the reference capacitance in the RAM 12 as the change amount D(n, m) (S53).

[0050] Processor 152 adds 1 to variable n (S54). Processor 152 determines whether variable n is 17 or greater (S55). The "17" here is the maximum value of the electrode range corresponding to the displayed button +1, and it may be a variable value depending on the display content. If it is determined that variable n is not 17 or greater (S55; N), the processing of Processor 152 returns to process S53. If it is determined that variable n is 17 or greater (S55; Y), Processor 152 adds 1 to variable m (S56). Processor 152 determines whether the measurement time has exceeded the reference time (execution cycle) (S57). If it is determined that the measurement time has not exceeded the reference time (S57; N), the processing of Processor 152 returns to process S52.

[0051] If it is determined that the measurement time has exceeded the reference time (S57; Y), Processor 152 calculates the average change amount D(n) as the value obtained by dividing the sum ΣD(n, *) of the m change amounts D(n, m) obtained for each of variable n by variable m (S58). Processor 152 extracts those that exceed the reference value Dth from the average change amounts D(n) (S59).

[0052] Processor 152 determines whether one or more average change amounts D(n) have been extracted (S60). If it is determined that one or more average change amounts D(n) have not been extracted (S60; N), the processing of Processor 152 returns to process S51.

[0053] If it is determined that one or more average change amounts D(n) have been extracted (S60; Y), Processor 152 identifies variable n, which represents the number of the electrode that obtained the maximum average change amount D(n) (S61). Processor 152 outputs the identified variable n to CPU 11 (S62). Then, the processing of Processor 152 returns to process S51.

[0054] Note that, similar to the description of FIG. 5, each single change amount D(n) may be directly the extraction target in process S59.

[0055] Also, the reference time in the panel operation detection control process of FIG. 6 and the reference time in the button operation detection control process of FIG. 8 may be different from each other. For example, depending on the required time resolution or the like, the reference time in the panel operation detection control process may be shorter than the reference time in the button operation detection control process. In this case, when returning from process S17 to process S13, an interruption time of the process may be set so that the value of the variable m related to the number of repetitions according to the reference time of the button operation detection control process does not become larger than necessary.

[0056] FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of a button operation reception control process executed by the CPU 11. This button operation reception control process starts when the value of the variable n is input from the operation reception unit 15 to the CPU 11.

[0057] The CPU 11 acquires the value of the variable n as the number of the electrode that has received the operation (S71). The CPU 11 specifies the display button corresponding to the n-th electrode and acquires the processing content corresponding to the display button (S72).

[0058] The CPU 11 determines whether there is the acquired processing content (S73). If it is determined that there is the processing content (S73; Y), the CPU 11 executes the processing of the acquired content (S74). Then, the CPU 11 ends the button operation reception control process. If it is determined that there is no processing content (S73; N), the CPU 11 ends the button operation reception control process.

[0059] FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the difference between the load related to the panel operation detection control process and the normal operation reception control process and the load related to the button operation detection control process and the button operation reception control process. As shown in Fig. 10(a), in the panel operation detection control process, it is necessary to calculate the position where the operation was received as described above (U12). On the other hand, in the button operation detection control process, it is only necessary to identify the electrode that received the operation (U22). Therefore, the processing load and processing time can be made smaller for the latter. Also, accordingly, as described above, in the button operation detection control process, it is possible not to detect the capacitance of some electrodes or to set an interruption time during the detection of capacitance within the reference time. Therefore, the load related to the capacitance detection operation (U21) of each electrode can be smaller than the load related to the capacitance detection operation (U11) of each electrode in the panel operation detection control process.

[0060] Also, as shown in Fig. 10(b), in the normal operation reception control process, a process (U13) for specifying the processing content according to the operation reception position is necessary. Also, in this process U13, it is also necessary to discriminate and detect operations other than the tap operation. On the other hand, in the button operation reception control process, since the processing content corresponding to the specified operation reception electrode is uniquely determined, the process (U23) related to the specification of the processing content is significantly smaller than that in the normal operation reception control process. Also, in the button operation reception control process, it is not necessary to identify operations other than the tap operation in the first place. There is no difference in the load and time (U14, U24) for executing the specified process.

[0061] Therefore, in the combination of the button operation detection control process and the button operation reception control process, the processing load and power consumption of the entire electronic device 1 are also reduced compared to the combination of the panel operation detection control process and the normal operation reception control process.

[0062] As described above, the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment includes a display unit 14, a touch panel 151 in which a plurality of sensors, i.e., electrodes P1 to P20, are arranged in a line, and a CPU 11. The CPU 11 detects a touch operation on the touch panel 151 based on measured values measured by two or more of the electrodes P1 to P20. The CPU 11 executes a first specifying process of specifying, as an operation position where a touch operation has been performed, a position corresponding to the coordinates on the touch panel 151 calculated based on the measured values, and a second specifying process of specifying, as target sensors, electrodes among the plurality of sensors whose measured values satisfy a predetermined condition, and switches and executes these processes based on the display content to be displayed by the display unit 14. In this way, the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment can display sufficient display content as long as a touch operation can be detected for each electrode. In the display state of such display content, the electronic device 1 can simplify and omit the touch detection operation of the touch sensor, particularly the calculation of the coordinates on the touch panel 151 related to the operation position. Thereby, the processing load and power consumption when it is not necessary to fully utilize the touch sensor can be reduced.

[0063] Further, the sensor is a capacitance sensor, and the touch panel 151 may be of a self-capacitance type. The capacitance sensor can accurately and stably detect a touch operation, and by the switching of the present disclosure, the electronic device 1 can more efficiently reduce the load and power consumption while maintaining the detection accuracy.

[0064] Further, the predetermined condition may include that the change in the measured value in the target sensor is the largest among the plurality of sensors (electrodes). In a touch operation, there is a certain touch area of a touch target such as a finger, and the change in capacitance also varies within the range of the touch area. By simply specifying the electrode with the largest change in capacitance, the operation position for each sensor can be specified with a simple process, and the load and power consumption are reduced.

[0065] Also, in the first specific process, the CPU 11 acquires changes in measurement values at all electrodes. In the second specific process, the CPU 11 may not acquire changes in measurement values of at least some of the electrodes located in a range where touch operations are not accepted according to the display content. In the above embodiment, even if there is a touch operation on electrodes P17 to P20, there is no process associated with the touch operation. Therefore, no problem occurs even if changes in the measurement values of electrodes P17 to P20 are not detected. In this way, by omitting unnecessary measurements and calculations of change amounts, the electronic device 1 can reduce the processing load and power consumption.

[0066] Also, the second specific process may be executed when the display ranges of buttons B1 to B16, which are labels displayed by the display unit 14 and associated with the touch operation reception range, correspond to electrodes P1 to P16. If the boundaries of the display ranges of buttons B1 to B16 do not overlap with the ranges of electrodes P1 to P16, the processing content corresponding to the detected electrode cannot be specified. Therefore, with the above correspondence relationship, the electronic device 1 can easily execute processes corresponding to the easily operated buttons B1 to B16.

[0067] Also, in the second specific process, the CPU 11 may not target continuous touch operations accompanied by temporal changes in the touch position for detection. If only tap operations are detected, since the detection of other processes where the position changes over time, such as swipes, is omitted and there is no apparent change on the surface, the electronic device 1 can efficiently reduce the processing load.

[0068] Also, the execution period of the second specific process may be longer than the execution period of the first specific process. If detections such as swipes and flicks are not performed, since touch operations are performed with a certain duration, even if the detection frequency is low, it is difficult for detection omissions to occur. Therefore, even if the electronic device 1 sets the execution period of the second specific process to be longer than that of the first specific process, no malfunction occurs, and the electronic device 1 can effectively reduce the processing load and power consumption.

[0069] Further, when the display content is for receiving an input operation other than a tap operation, or when the display content is not defined in association with the ranges of the plurality of electrodes P1 to P20, the CPU 11 executes the first specific process. On the other hand, when the display content is for receiving only a tap operation to a range defined in association with the ranges of the plurality of electrodes P1 to P20, the CPU 11 may execute the second specific process. In this way, by switching between the first specific process and the second specific process according to the display content, the electronic device 1 can easily improve the processing efficiency related to receiving operations on the touch panel 151.

[0070] Also, in the touch operation detection control method according to the electronic device 1 of the present embodiment, the first specific process of specifying, as the operation position where the touch operation is performed, the position corresponding to the coordinates on the touch panel 151 calculated based on the measurement values measured by two or more of the electrodes, and the second specific process of specifying, as the target sensors, the electrodes among the plurality of electrodes whose measurement values satisfy a predetermined condition are switched and executed. The switching is performed based on the display content to be displayed by the display unit 14. According to such a detection control method, in the case of sufficient display content where a touch operation can be detected for each electrode unit, in the touch detection operation of the touch sensor, the calculation of the operation position can be omitted. Thereby, it is possible to reduce the processing load and power consumption corresponding to the detection of the touch operation according to the simple use of the touch sensor.

[0071] Also, the program 131 of the present embodiment causes a computer to execute the processing according to the above detection control method. According to such a program 131, it is possible to control to reduce the processing load and power consumption of the touch sensor based on the display content only by software processing. Therefore, it is possible to operate the electronic device 1 more efficiently while avoiding an increase in hardware cost.

[0072] Note that the above embodiment is an example, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above description, it was explained that the 17th electrode does not collectively correspond to the button display, but this is not limiting. As shown in FIG. 11(a), there may be electrodes that do not correspond to the button display in a scattered manner. In this case, the capacitance of the electrodes that do not correspond to the button display may not be measured. Alternatively, similar to the above embodiment, the capacitances of all electrodes with numbers less than or equal to the largest number among the electrodes corresponding to the button display may be measured.

[0073] Also, as shown in FIG. 11(b), one button may be displayed across a range of a plurality of electrodes.

[0074] Also, in the above description, the capacitive touch panel has been described, but this is not limiting. The content of the present disclosure may be applied to all touch panels in which a plurality of sensors are arranged and an operation position is detected based on the measured amount of each sensor and the distribution of the change amount thereof.

[0075] Also, the method for calculating the touch operation position by measuring electrodes (sensors) having a number less than the number of pixels of the digital display screen may be arbitrary.

[0076] Also, the number and positional relationship of the electrodes P1 to P20 in the touch panel 151 are not limited to the above. It is sufficient that the number is less than the number of pixels of the digital display screen and is consistent with the shape of the button displayed on the digital display screen.

[0077] Also, in the above description, a portable electronic device such as a smartwatch has been described as an example of the electronic device 1, but this is not limiting. The electronic device 1 may be any configuration related to the control of a device that receives a touch operation.

[0078] In the above description, the storage unit 13 composed of a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory is taken as an example of a computer-readable medium for storing the program 131 related to the detection and reception control of the touch operation of the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. As other computer-readable media, other non-volatile memories such as MRAM, and portable recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD disks can be applied. Further, a carrier wave is also applied to the content of the present disclosure as a medium for providing the data of the program according to the present disclosure via a communication line. In addition, the specific configurations, the contents and procedures of the processing operations shown in the above embodiments can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. The scope of the present invention includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalent scope.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0079] 1 Electronic device 11 CPU 12 RAM 13 Storage unit 131 Program 14 Display unit 15 Operation reception unit 151 Touch panel 152 Processor B1~B16 Buttons P1~P20 Electrodes W Digital display screen

Claims

1. A display unit, a touch panel on which a plurality of sensors are arranged in a row, a control unit that detects a touch operation on the touch panel based on measurement values measured by at least some of the plurality of sensors, comprising: The control unit switches and executes a first specifying process of specifying, as an operation position where the touch operation is performed, a position corresponding to coordinates calculated based on measurement values by two or more of the sensors, and a second specifying process of specifying target sensors among the plurality of sensors whose measurement values satisfy a predetermined condition, based on display content to be displayed by the display unit. An electronic device.

2. The sensor is a capacitance sensor, and the touch panel is a self-capacitance type. The electronic device according to claim 1.

3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition includes that a change in the measurement value in the target sensor is the largest among the plurality of sensors.

4. The control unit: in the first specifying process, obtains changes in the measurement values by all of the sensors; in the second specifying process, does not obtain changes in the measurement values of at least some of the sensors located in a range where the touch operation is not accepted with respect to the display content. The electronic device according to claim 1.

5. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the second specifying process is executed when a display range of a label associated with the touch operation to be received and displayed by the display unit corresponds to the range of the sensors.

6. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit does not target a continuous touch operation accompanied by a temporal change in the touch position in the second specifying process.

7. The execution period of the second specifying process is longer than the execution period of the first specifying process.

8. The control unit: when the display content is content that accepts an input operation other than a tap operation, or when the display content is not defined in association with the range of the plurality of sensors, executes the first specifying process; when the display content is content that accepts only a tap operation to a range defined in association with the range of the plurality of sensors, executes the second specifying process. The electronic device according to claim 1.

9. A method for detecting and controlling a touch operation in an electronic device including a display unit and a touch panel on which a plurality of sensors are arranged in a row, A first specifying process for specifying, as an operation position where the touch operation has been performed, a position corresponding to coordinates calculated based on measurement values measured by two or more of the plurality of sensors, and a second specifying process for specifying a target sensor among the plurality of sensors whose measurement values satisfy a predetermined condition are switched and executed based on display contents to be displayed by the display unit. Detection control method.

10. A program for causing a computer of an electronic device including a display unit and a touch panel in which a plurality of sensors are arranged side by side to function as a first specifying means for specifying, as an operation position where a touch operation has been performed, a position corresponding to coordinates calculated based on measurement values measured by two or more of the plurality of sensors, a second specifying means for specifying a target sensor among the plurality of sensors whose measurement values satisfy a predetermined condition, and a switching control means for switching and executing the first specifying means and the second specifying means based on display contents to be displayed by the display unit. ​

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