Input device and image forming apparatus

Abstract

The present invention provides an input device and an image forming apparatus that can suppress false detection of non-contact operations and prevent actions unintended by the operator from being performed. [Solution] The input device, the operation panel 50, includes a display unit 51 that displays an operation screen and a non-contact sensor 53 that detects non-contact operations of an indicator on the operation screen. The area on the right side of the figure, which extends beyond the screen of the display unit 51 on the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 that detects non-contact operations, is a switching area 153 that switches between enabling and disabling non-contact operations corresponding to "long press operations" in contact operations. By moving the indicator into this switching area 153, the enabling and disabling of non-contact operations corresponding to "long press operations" can be switched.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an input device and an image forming apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, an input device including a display unit that displays an operation screen and a non-contact operation detection unit that detects a non-contact operation of an indicator on the operation screen is known.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes an input device having a non-contact operation detection unit including a light emitting element that emits infrared rays forming an optical detection surface and a light receiving element that receives the infrared rays emitted from the light emitting element. A detection surface parallel to the display surface is formed above the display surface of the display unit on which the operation screen is displayed, and a non-contact operation is detected by detecting the entry position of a finger (indicator) to be operated on the detection surface.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, there has been a risk of false detection of non-contact operations and execution of operations unintended by the operator.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is an input device including a display unit that displays an operation screen and a non-contact operation detection unit that detects a non-contact operation of an indicator on the operation screen, and includes a switching unit that switches the validity / invalidity of a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" in a contact operation by an operator.

Effects of the Invention

[0006] According to the present invention, false detection of non-contact operations can be suppressed, and execution of operations unintended by the operator can be suppressed.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0007] [Figure 1] A perspective view of the image forming apparatus of this embodiment. [Figure 2] Perspective view of the control panel. [Figure 3] A plan view of the control panel. [Figure 4] Front view of the control panel. [Figure 5] A functional block diagram of the control panel. [Figure 6] A schematic diagram showing an example of a control panel configuration that switches between enabling and disabling contactless operation corresponding to "long press operation". [Figure 7] This diagram explains contactless operation when "long press operation" is enabled. [Figure 8] This diagram shows an example of a notification mechanism that indicates whether a "long press operation" is enabled or disabled. [Figure 9] This diagram shows an example where the switching area is located in front of the display unit. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0008] The following describes an embodiment in which the input device according to the present invention is used in the operation panel of an image forming apparatus. Figure 1 is a perspective view of the image forming apparatus 1 of this embodiment. The image forming apparatus 1 is a copier in which an image reading device 2 is positioned on top of the main body 3 of the image forming apparatus. The main body 3 of the image forming apparatus includes a recording paper storage section 5 that houses recording paper as a recording medium on which an image is formed, and an image forming section (image making section) as an image forming means.

[0009] Furthermore, an operation panel 50, which is an input device for the user to perform various input operations related to the image forming process and for which information related to the image forming process is displayed, is installed on the front of the image forming apparatus 1 (the front where the user performs normal operations). The operation panel 50 is rotatably supported on a support shaft 50a and its tilt angle can be changed.

[0010] The image forming unit includes, for example, an exposure unit as an exposure means, a plurality of photosensitive drums, a developing device that uses four colors of toner: cyan (C), magenta (M), yellow (Y), and black (K), a transfer belt as an intermediate transfer body, a secondary transfer unit, a fixing unit, etc. Based on the scanned image of the original read by the image reading device 2 or print data transmitted from an external device such as a PC (personal computer), the image forming unit creates an image, for example, as follows: Based on the print data, the image forming unit exposes each color of photosensitive drum with the exposure unit to form an electrostatic latent image on each photosensitive drum, and then develops the image by supplying toner onto the latent image on each photosensitive drum with the developing unit for each color of the developing device. The image forming unit can also form a color image by first transferring the toner images on each color of photosensitive drum to the transfer belt, then transferring them to recording paper as a recording medium in the secondary transfer unit, and finally fixing the toner images on the recording paper by heating and pressurizing them in the fixing unit. The recording paper on which the image has been formed is discharged into the output tray 19 on the top surface of the image forming apparatus body 3.

[0011] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the control panel 50, Figure 3 is a plan view of the control panel 50, and Figure 4 is a front view of the control panel 50. As shown in Figure 2, the operation panel 50 includes a display unit 51 such as an LCD or CRT, a touch panel 52 as a contact operation detection unit, and a non-contact sensor 53 as a non-contact operation detection unit.

[0012] The touch panel 52 is a capacitive or pressure-sensitive contact sensor and is mounted on top of the display unit 51. The touch panel 52 detects the position of touch when the user's finger touches the touch-sensing surface.

[0013] The non-contact sensor 53 is configured as a non-contact operation unit and is detachably attached to the operation panel 50. It is optionally mounted on the back of the operation panel 50. The non-contact sensor 53 is connected to a connection terminal such as a USB terminal located at the bottom of the operation panel 50, enabling communication with the panel control unit 60, which will be described later, and power supply.

[0014] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the non-contact sensor 53 has an array of optical units consisting of a light-emitting element that emits infrared light L and a light-receiving element that receives infrared light. Note that the infrared light L shown in Figure 3 is a schematic representation, and the spacing between the infrared light L elements is narrower than in Figure 3. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the spatial area above the operation screen of the display unit 51, at a predetermined distance from the screen, serves as the detection surface 53a for detecting non-contact operations on the user's operation screen. When the user's finger enters this detection surface 53a, the diffusely reflected infrared light L from the light-emitting element reflected from the finger is received by multiple light-receiving elements, and the position of the fingertip is detected based on the amount of infrared light received by each light-receiving element.

[0015] In this embodiment, the detection surface 53a is larger than the screen of the display unit 51, and as shown in Figure 3, the right side and the front side of the detection surface 53a extend beyond the screen of the display unit 51.

[0016] The non-contact sensor 53 in this embodiment has a single-axis scanning optical path consisting only of infrared light L irradiated from the back of the operation panel 50 toward the vertical direction of the display unit 51 (front-to-back direction of the device, Y direction in the figure). Furthermore, the position of the fingertip is detected by receiving infrared light diffusely reflected from the user's finger that has entered the detection surface 53a toward the back of the operation panel 50 with a light-receiving element. Therefore, the non-contact sensor 53 in this embodiment only needs to be placed on the back of the operation panel 50, ensuring good operability at the edge of the operation screen and not compromising the appearance.

[0017] Figure 5 is a functional block diagram of the control panel 50. As shown in FIG. 5, the operation panel 50 includes a panel control unit 60 composed of a computer device such as a microcomputer. The panel control unit 60 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 60a. Further, it includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 60c and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 60b as storage means connected to the CPU 60a via a bus line. The CPU 60a controls the display unit 51 by executing a control program which is a computer program pre - incorporated. Also, the CPU 60a detects a user's operation based on the position information detected by the non - contact sensor 53 or the touch panel 52 and the operation screen displayed on the display unit 51 by executing a control program which is a computer program pre - incorporated. The ROM 60c pre - stores fixed data such as computer programs and control data. The RAM 60b functions as a work area or the like that stores various data in a rewritable manner.

[0018] As described above, the touch panel 52 detects the touched position when a user's finger touches the sensing surface that senses contact. The position information detected by the touch panel 52 is sent to the panel control unit 60. Then, the panel control unit 60 detects a contact operation on the operation screen displayed on the display unit 51 based on the position information detected by the touch panel 52.

[0019] As described above, the non - contact sensor 53 receives the diffused reflected light of the infrared rays of the light - emitting element reflected from the user's finger that has entered the detection surface 53a by a plurality of light - receiving elements, and detects the position of the fingertip based on the amount of infrared light received by each light - receiving element. The position information detected by the non - contact sensor 53 is sent to the panel control unit 60. Then, the panel control unit 60 detects a non - contact operation on the operation screen displayed on the display unit 51 based on the position information detected by the non - contact sensor 53.

[0020] The panel control unit 60 identifies information regarding the image forming operation input by the user based on the user's operation on the detected operation screen, and transmits the identified information regarding the image forming operation to the main unit control unit 61 (control unit of the image forming apparatus).

[0021] Contact operations include not only the so-called "tap operation," in which the finger acting as the indicator briefly touches and then releases the operation screen, but also the so-called "long press operation," in which the target of the operation screen is pressed and held for a certain period of time. In this embodiment, the action assigned to the icon image is executed by performing a "tap operation" on the icon image displayed on the operation screen as the target of the operation.

[0022] On the other hand, by "long-pressing" an icon image, the icon image becomes draggable (movable). While holding down the icon image, you can move your finger across the screen to move the icon image to the desired position, or move it onto another icon image to swap their positions. Also, by "long-pressing" an icon image, an "x" will appear in the upper right corner of the icon image, and tapping this "x" will delete the icon image from the screen. Furthermore, by "long-pressing" any part of the screen other than the icon image, you can zoom in and out of the screen.

[0023] The non-contact operation corresponding to "tap operation" involves briefly positioning a finger on the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 and then removing the finger from the detection surface 53a. On the other hand, the non-contact operation corresponding to "long press operation" involves holding the finger for a certain period of time at a position on the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 that corresponds to the area above the target being operated on the display.

[0024] However, the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 is above the display unit 51 and is invisible, so the operator cannot sense when a finger enters or leaves the detection surface 53a. Therefore, even if the operator intends to perform a non-contact operation corresponding to a "tap operation" on an icon image in order to perform an action corresponding to the icon image, the time from when the finger enters the detection surface 53a until it leaves the detection surface may exceed a certain time, and the non-contact sensor 53 may detect a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation". As a result, the action corresponding to the "long press operation" is executed, and an action different from the one intended by the operator is performed.

[0025] As mentioned above, the contactless operations corresponding to "long press operations" are operations that are not performed during normal use of the image forming apparatus, such as moving or deleting icon images, and are infrequently performed operations. Therefore, some users may be confused or suspect a malfunction of the apparatus when an unfamiliar operation suddenly occurs.

[0026] By increasing the aforementioned fixed time (finger waiting time) used to determine whether a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press" has been performed, the detection of non-contact operations corresponding to a "long press" that were not intended by the operator can be suppressed. However, if the aforementioned fixed time is increased, the operator may become anxious about whether their finger is entering the detection surface 53a during a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press," and may retry the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press" or suspect a malfunction.

[0027] Therefore, in this embodiment, the non-contact sensor 53 switches the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" on the icon image displayed on the display unit 51 between enabled and disabled. The features of this embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0028] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an operation panel configuration that switches between enabling and disabling contactless operation corresponding to "long press operation," and Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating contactless operation when "long press operation" is enabled. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 6, the area on the right side of the figure that extends beyond the screen of the display unit 51 on the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 is a switching area 153 that switches between enabling and disabling the "long press operation".

[0029] This allows for the "long press operation" to be enabled or disabled via contactless operation. Therefore, compared to systems with a physical switch on the control panel, it does not force users who want to operate the device contactless to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses through contact with an unspecified number of people to perform contact operations. Furthermore, by using the area of ​​the detection surface 53a that extends beyond the screen of the display unit 51 as the switching area 153 for enabling or disabling the "long press operation," a portion of the display resources of the display unit 51 is not consumed by the switching area 153.

[0030] As shown in Figure 7, when the non-contact sensor 53 detects that a finger has entered the switching area 153, the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled. On the other hand, when the non-contact sensor 53 does not detect that a finger has entered the switching area 153, the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is disabled.

[0031] The following describes an example of a contactless operation that corresponds to a "long press" operation. When the operator performs a contactless operation corresponding to a "long press," they move the fingers of their right hand into the switching area 153, as shown in Figure 7, to activate the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press." Then, while maintaining the state in which the fingers of the right hand are in the switching area 153, they move the fingers of their left hand into the detection surface 53a and point to the icon image of the operation target displayed on the operation screen shown on the display unit 51 for a certain period of time. As a result, the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press" on the icon image is detected, and the icon image becomes draggable (movable) or can be deleted from the operation screen.

[0032] When the contactless operation corresponding to "long press" is enabled, it is preferable to disable the contactless operation corresponding to "tap". In this embodiment, the user enables the contactless operation corresponding to "long press" when performing the contactless operation corresponding to "long press". When this contactless operation corresponding to "long press" is enabled, even if the fingertips of the left hand leave the detection surface 53a immediately after entering the detection surface 53a due to a change in posture, the contactless operation corresponding to "tap" will not be detected. This prevents the execution of an action corresponding to a "tap" that the user did not intend.

[0033] On the other hand, when the finger is not in the switching area 153, detection of a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press" is disabled. As a result, even if the time from when the finger enters the detection surface 53a until it leaves the detection surface exceeds a certain period of time, it will not be detected as a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press".

[0034] In this embodiment, the contactless operation corresponding to "long press" is enabled for two-handed operation and disabled for one-handed operation, similar to the "shift key" or "controller key" on a keyboard. Since operation of the control panel is usually done with one hand, the contactless operation corresponding to "long press" will not be enabled unless the user intends to perform the contactless operation corresponding to "long press". This prevents the user from unintentionally executing an action corresponding to "long press".

[0035] Furthermore, the waiting time on the finger icon image for contactless operations corresponding to "long press" can be made to be about the same as the long press time for contact operations, allowing users to perform contactless operations corresponding to "long press" without any discomfort.

[0036] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 8, the control panel 50 may be provided with an alert lamp 70 that lights up when the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled, informing the user that the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled. This allows the user to perform the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" while visually confirming that it is enabled, thereby suppressing operational errors. Alternatively, the display unit 51 may be configured to display an alert icon 71 indicating that the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled.

[0037] Furthermore, the switching area 153 may be configured so that each time a contactless operation corresponding to a "tap operation" is performed, the enable / disable state of the contactless operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is toggled, similar to the "Caps Lock key" on a keyboard. With this configuration, the contactless operation corresponding to a "long press operation" can also be performed with one hand. In this configuration, it is difficult to determine whether the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is currently enabled. Therefore, as shown in Figure 7, it is preferable to provide a notification means, such as a notification lamp 70 or a notification icon 71, to notify that the "long press operation" is enabled.

[0038] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 9, the area of ​​the detection surface 53a of the non-contact sensor 53 that extends beyond the front edge of the display unit 51 screen (the lower area in Figure 9(a)) may be used as a switching area 153 for enabling / disabling the "long press operation".

[0039] In the configuration shown in Figure 9, a finger other than the one pointing to the icon image may unintentionally enter the switching area 153, potentially unintentionally switching the "long press" function on or off. Therefore, it is preferable to have the following specification for switching the "long press" function on or off: that is, the "long press" function on or off can be switched by performing a predetermined gesture in the switching area 153. In the figure, as shown in Figure 9(b), the "long press" function on or off can be switched by entering the switching area 153 with two fingers, but this is not the only option. For example, the "long press" function on or off could be switched by sliding a finger from one end to the other in the left-right direction of the switching area 153. By making the "long press" function on or off switchable by performing a predetermined gesture (action) in the switching area 153 in this way, unintentional switching can be prevented.

[0040] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" can only be switched on or off using non-contact operation. However, a physical switch may be installed on the control panel as a switching unit, so that the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" can also be switched on or off using the switch.

[0041] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and unless otherwise specifically limited in the above description, various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the spirit of the present invention as described in the claims. In the above description, the non-contact sensor 53 is mounted as a non-contact operation unit on an operation panel 50 which optionally includes a touch panel 52, but an operation panel equipped only with the non-contact sensor 53 and without a touch panel 52 is also possible. Furthermore, the input device of the present invention is not limited to image forming apparatuses, but can also be applied to input devices for bank ATMs, ticket dispensers, cash registers, automatic payment machines, and the like.

[0042] The above is just one example; each of the following embodiments produces its own unique effects. (Aspect 1) An input device such as an operation panel 50 is provided, which includes a display unit 51 that displays an operation screen and a non-contact operation detection unit such as a non-contact sensor 53 that detects non-contact operations of an object such as a finger on the operation screen, and which includes a switching unit such as a switching area 153 that allows the operator to switch between enabling and disabling non-contact operations corresponding to "long press operations" in contact operations. Touch operations include "tap operations," which involve briefly touching and releasing the screen with a finger or other object, and "long press operations," which involve pressing and holding an object, such as an icon image on the screen, for a certain period of time. Generally, performing a "tap operation" executes the action assigned to the object, such as an icon image. Performing a "long press operation" allows you to drag (move) the object or delete it from the screen. Non-contact operations corresponding to "tap operations" involve briefly positioning the indicator object on the detection surface 53a of a non-contact operation detection unit such as a non-contact sensor 53, and then removing the indicator object from the detection surface 53a. On the other hand, non-contact operations corresponding to "long press operations" involve entering the indicator object onto the detection surface 53a and then having the indicator object wait for a certain period of time above the target object. However, since the detection surface 53a of the non-contact operation detection unit is invisible, the operator cannot sense when their finger enters or leaves the detection surface 53a. Therefore, even if the operator intends to perform a non-contact operation corresponding to a "tap operation," in reality, the finger may not have left the detection surface 53a, and the time from when the finger enters the detection surface 53a until it leaves the detection surface exceeds a certain period of time, potentially causing the non-contact detection unit to mistakenly detect it as a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation." As a result, the operation performed by a "long press operation" may be executed instead of the operation performed by a "tap operation," potentially resulting in an operation different from the one the operator intended. In contrast, in Embodiment 1, when performing a contactless operation corresponding to a "tap operation," the switching unit disables the contactless operation corresponding to a "long press operation." This prevents the contactless operation detection unit from mistakenly detecting a contactless operation corresponding to a "long press operation" when the operator intended to perform a contactless operation corresponding to a "tap operation." This suppresses the execution of actions that the operator did not intend. When an operator wants to perform a contactless operation that corresponds to a "long press," they can enable the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press" to enable the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press."

[0043] (Aspect 2) In embodiment 1, when a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is enabled, the non-contact operation detection unit, such as the non-contact sensor 53, detects only the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation". According to this, as described in the embodiment, even if a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is enabled and the operator intends to perform a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation," and the operator loses their balance or otherwise causes the operator to momentarily position the object on the detection surface 53a of the non-contact operation detection unit such as the non-contact sensor 53, and then remove the object from the detection surface 53a, resulting in a non-contact operation corresponding to a "tap operation," the non-contact operation detection unit such as the non-contact sensor 53 will not detect that it is a non-contact operation corresponding to a "tap operation." This prevents unintended actions from being performed by the operator.

[0044] (Aspect 3) In embodiment 1 or 2, the switching area, such as the switching region 153, is a predetermined area of ​​the detection surface 53a that detects the non-contact operation of a non-contact operation detection unit, such as a non-contact sensor 53. According to this, as described in the embodiment, it is possible to switch the enable / disable of contactless operation corresponding to "long press operation" using contactless operation. This makes it possible to switch the enable / disable of contactless operation corresponding to "long press operation" without forcing users who want to operate without contact to perform contact operations in order to prevent the spread of bacterial and viral infections through contact with an unspecified number of people.

[0045] (Aspect 4) In embodiment 3, when a non-contact operation detection unit such as a non-contact sensor 53 detects an object such as a finger in a predetermined area such as a switching area 153, a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is enabled. According to this, as described in the embodiment, when performing a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation," the user inserts the indicator into a predetermined area of ​​the detection surface 53a with one hand to activate the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation," and then performs the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" with the other hand. The non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is performed in a manner similar to the operation specifications of a "shift key" or "controller key" in keyboard operation. In this way, the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is performed with both hands, making it different from a normal non-contact operation performed with one hand. By making the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" different from a normal non-contact operation performed with one hand in this way, the user is made to consciously perform the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation," and the occurrence of operational errors can be suppressed.

[0046] (Appendix 5) In embodiment 3, each time a non-contact operation detection unit, such as a non-contact sensor 53, detects an object such as a finger in a predetermined area such as a switching area 153, the enabled / disabled state of the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is switched. According to this, as described in the embodiment, the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press" is enabled / disabled using an operation specification such as the "Caps Lock key" in keyboard operation. As a result, unlike in embodiment 4, the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press" can be performed with one hand.

[0047] (Aspect 6) In embodiment 3, each time a non-contact operation detection unit, such as a non-contact sensor 53, detects a predetermined gesture of an object such as a finger in a predetermined area such as a switching area 153, the enabled / disabled state of the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is switched. According to this, as described in the embodiment, it is possible to prevent an indicator such as a finger from unintentionally entering a predetermined area such as the switching area 153, which would unintentionally switch the enabled / disabled state of the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation".

[0048] (Aspect 7) In any of embodiments 3 to 6, the predetermined area, such as the switching area 153, is located outside the display unit 51. According to this, unlike the case where a predetermined area such as the switching area 153 is located within the display unit 51, as described in the embodiment, the predetermined area does not take up any of the resources of the display unit 51, and the entire screen of the display unit can be used to arrange the operable objects that can be operated by contactless operation.

[0049] (Pattern 8) In any of embodiments 1 to 7, the device has notification means such as a notification lamp 70 that notifies whether the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is valid or invalid. According to this, as described in the embodiment, the operator can perform the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" while visually confirming that the contactless operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled, thereby suppressing operational errors.

[0050] (Aspect 9) In any of embodiments 1 to 8, the device has a contact operation detection unit such as a touch panel 52 that detects contact operations of an object such as a finger on the operation screen. This allows for both contactless and contact operations.

[0051] (Aspect 10) In any of embodiments 1 to 9, the non-contact operation detection unit, such as the non-contact sensor 53, has an infrared scanning optical path in the front-to-back direction of an input device such as an operation panel 50, and detects the non-contact operation of an indicator by receiving infrared light reflected from an indicator that has entered the detection surface of the non-contact operation detection unit that detects non-contact operations, thereby detecting the position of the indicator. According to this, the non-contact operation detection unit, such as the non-contact sensor 53, only needs to be provided on one side of the display surface in the front-to-back direction, thereby suppressing any impairment of operability or appearance due to the non-contact operation detection unit.

[0052] (Aspect 11) In an image forming apparatus 1 equipped with an input device such as an operation panel 50, one of the input devices from embodiments 1 to 10 was used as the input device. According to this, it is possible to suppress unintended actions by the operator during contactless operation. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1: Image forming apparatus 50: Control Panel 51:Display section 52: Touch panel 53: Non-contact sensor 53a: Detection surface 60: Panel Control Unit 61: Main Unit Control 70: Notification lamp 71: Hochi icon 153: Switching area [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0054] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6828563

Claims

1. A display unit that shows the operation screen, An input device comprising a non-contact operation detection unit for detecting non-contact operations on the operation screen of an indicator, An input device characterized by having a switch that allows the operator to enable or disable non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" in contact operation.

2. An input device according to claim 1, The input device is characterized in that, when a non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is enabled, the non-contact operation detection unit detects only the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation".

3. An input device according to claim 1, The input device is characterized in that the switching section is a predetermined area of ​​the detection surface that detects the non-contact operation of the non-contact operation detection section.

4. The input device according to claim 3, An input device characterized in that, when the non-contact operation detection unit detects the indicator in the predetermined area, a non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is enabled.

5. The input device according to claim 3, An input device characterized in that each time the non-contact operation detection unit detects the indicator in the predetermined area, the non-contact operation corresponding to the "long press operation" is switched on or off.

6. The input device according to claim 3, An input device characterized in that each time the non-contact operation detection unit detects a predetermined gesture of the indicator in the predetermined area, the non-contact operation corresponding to a "long press operation" is switched on or off.

7. The input device according to claim 3, The input device is characterized in that the predetermined area is located outside the display unit.

8. An input device according to claim 1, An input device characterized by having a notification means for notifying whether the non-contact operation corresponding to the aforementioned "long press operation" is valid or invalid.

9. An input device according to claim 1, An input device characterized by comprising a contact operation detection unit that detects a contact operation of the indicator body to the operation screen.

10. An input device according to claim 1, The input device is characterized in that the non-contact operation detection unit has an infrared scanning optical path in the front-to-back direction of the input device, and detects the non-contact operation of the indicator by receiving infrared light reflected from the indicator that has entered the detection surface of the non-contact operation detection unit that detects the non-contact operation, thereby detecting the position of the indicator.

11. In an image forming apparatus equipped with an input device, An image forming apparatus characterized in that the input device described in claim 1 is used as the input device.

Images