Pointer position detection method and sensor controller

Abstract

To enable touch inputting in a state that an active pen 2 is available near a panel surface, while utilizing an exclusive mode.SOLUTION: A sensor controller performs: entry to a SPT2 mode of detecting respective positions of an active pen and a passive pointer on a time-division basis, in the case that a pen has been detected and a writing pressure value indicates that a pen tip of the active pen is not in contact with a panel surface (step S8); entry to an exclusive mode of not conducting position detection of the passive pointer, whilst conducting position detection of the active pen, in the case that a pen has been detected and a writing pressure value indicates that a pen tip of the active pen is in contact with the panel surface (step S9); and detection of respective positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on a time-division basis, when a pen is not detected, and entry to a SPT1 mode in which a detection frequency of a position of the passive pointer is higher than that in the SPT2 mode (step S7).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a pointer position detection method and a sensor controller, and more particularly to a pointer position detection method and a sensor controller for detecting the positions of a passive pointer and an active pen.

Background Art

[0002] An input system corresponding to both input by an active electrostatic type electronic pen (hereinafter referred to as an "active pen") and input by a finger or an auxiliary device that does not transmit a signal in the same manner as a finger (hereinafter collectively referred to as a "passive pointer") is known. Note that the position of the passive pointer is detected by detecting a capacitive coupling generated between the tip of the passive pointer and a sensor electrode disposed in the panel surface. Hereinafter, input by the active pen is referred to as "pen input", and input by the passive pointer is referred to as "touch input". This type of input system is generally configured to detect the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface in a time-division manner and supply them to an operating system.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses an example of such an input system. The input system described in Patent Document 1 is configured to divide the position detection of the passive pointer for one panel surface into two or more times. This is to enable the position detection of the active pen to be performed at a high detection rate and at equal intervals. Patent Document 1 also discloses a technique for preventing respective misdetections by mutually using the detection result of the passive pointer and the detection result of the active pen.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Incidentally, in order to obtain a detection rate of the position of the active pen higher than that of the example of Patent Document 1 described above, the inventor of the present application has considered stopping the position detection of the passive pointer when the active pen is detected. Hereinafter, the operation mode of the input system that detects the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer in a time-sharing manner is referred to as the "SPT (Simultaneous Pen Touch) mode", and the operation mode of the input system that stops the position detection of the passive pointer and detects only the position of the active pen is referred to as the "exclusive mode".

[0006] However, if the input system is switched to the exclusive mode when the active pen is detected, as a matter of course, touch input cannot be performed when the active pen is detected. Then, touch input in a state where the active pen is very close to the panel surface becomes impossible. For example, when performing pen input with the right hand, the pen tip is slightly separated from the panel surface, and during that time, a pinch-out operation (a gesture operation in which the distance between two fingers is gradually widened) is performed with the left hand to enlarge the display. Such an operation causes inconvenience to the user during some operations.

[0007] Therefore, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a pointer position detection method that enables touch input in a state where the active pen is very close to the panel surface while using the exclusive mode.

[0008] Also, as described in Patent Document 1, if the detection result of the passive pointer and the detection result of the active pen are used mutually, each false detection can be prevented. However, if the input system is switched to the exclusive mode, the detection of the passive pointer is no longer performed, so this false detection prevention function no longer works.

[0009] Accordingly, another object of the present invention is to provide a pointer position detection method that can utilize the false detection prevention function for as long a period as possible while using the exclusive mode.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] The pointer position detection method according to the present invention is executed by a sensor controller connected to a sensor including a plurality of sensor electrodes, and uses the sensor to detect the position of a passive pointer that does not transmit a signal and the position of an active pen configured to be able to transmit a pen signal from a pen electrode provided at a tip portion. The pointer position detection method includes an acquisition step of acquiring a pen pressure value indicating the pressure applied to the pen tip of the active pen, and a control step of controlling an operation mode of the sensor controller according to the pen pressure value. The control step sets the operation mode of the sensor controller to a first operation mode in which the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface are detected in a time-division manner when the pen pressure value indicates that the pen tip is not in contact with the panel surface, and sets the operation mode of the sensor controller to a second operation mode in which the position of the active pen on the panel surface is detected while the position of the passive pointer on the panel surface is not detected when the pen pressure value indicates that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface.

[0011] The sensor controller according to the present invention is a sensor controller that uses a sensor including a plurality of sensor electrodes to detect the position of a passive pointer that does not transmit a signal and the position of an active pen configured to be able to transmit a pen signal from a pen electrode provided at a tip portion, and obtains a pen pressure value indicating the pressure applied to the pen tip of the active pen. When it is indicated by the pen pressure value that the pen tip is not in contact with the panel surface, it enters a first operation mode of detecting the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface in a time-sharing manner, and when it is indicated by the pen pressure value that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface, it enters a second operation mode of detecting the position of the active pen on the panel surface while not detecting the position of the passive pointer on the panel surface.

Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, since the sensor controller operates in the first operation mode (SPT mode) until the pen tip of the active pen contacts the panel surface, it is possible to perform touch input in a state where the active pen is very close to the panel surface while using the second operation mode (exclusive mode), and it is also possible to use the false detection prevention function for as long a period as possible.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration and usage state of the input system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The input system 1 is an input system corresponding to both the pen input and the touch input described above, and includes an active pen 2, a tablet terminal 3 having a touch surface 3a (panel surface), and a passive pointer 4. The fingers 4a and 4b shown in FIG. 1 are each an example of the passive pointer 4. In the following description, the active pen 2 and the passive pointer 4 may be collectively referred to as "pointer".

[0016] Figure 1 shows an example in which the user holds the pen 2 in the right hand and performs a pinch-out operation with the fingers 4a and 4b of the left hand with the pen tip slightly lifted. Such a situation can occur, for example, when an input field displayed on the screen is enlarged by a pinch-out operation and then pen input is performed on this input field. When the user lifts the pen tip of the pen 2 only slightly, the distance D between the pen tip and the touch surface 3a (more precisely, the sensor 30 described later) is generally shorter than the maximum reach distance of the downlink signal DS (described later) transmitted by the pen 2. Therefore, since the tablet terminal 3 can detect the active pen 2, if the input system 1 is operating in the exclusive mode described above, the pinch-out operation cannot be performed. One of the objects of the present invention is to eliminate such inconvenience by enabling touch input in a state where the active pen 2 is very close to the touch surface 3a while utilizing the exclusive mode.

[0017] The active pen 2 is an electronic pen that operates by the active electrostatic method. Although not shown, a control unit and a transceiver are provided inside the active pen 2, and the control unit is configured to be able to transmit and receive signals to and from the tablet terminal 3 via the transceiver. Hereinafter, the signal transmitted from the tablet terminal 3 to the active pen 2 is referred to as an uplink signal US, and the signal (pen signal) transmitted from the active pen 2 to the tablet terminal 3 is referred to as a downlink signal DS.

[0018] A pen electrode is provided at the tip portion of the active pen 2, and the transceiver of the active pen 2 receives the uplink signal US and transmits the downlink signal DS via the capacitance formed between this pen electrode and a sensor 30 (see FIG. 2 described later) provided in the touch surface 3a of the tablet terminal 3. Note that the pen electrode for receiving the uplink signal US and the pen electrode for transmitting the downlink signal DS may be different or the same.

[0019] The active pen 2 also includes a pen pressure detection unit that detects the pressure (pen pressure) applied to the pen tip, a side switch state detection unit that detects the on / off state of a side switch provided on the side surface, a storage unit (memory) that stores a pre-assigned unique ID, and a power supply unit (battery) that supplies the operating power of the active pen 2. The control unit of the active pen 2 is configured to be able to control each of these units.

[0020] The tablet terminal 3 is an electronic device that combines the function of a liquid crystal display device and the function of a position detector that detects the position of a pointer on the touch surface 3a. The touch surface 3a is provided on the display screen of the liquid crystal. Also, the pointers that the tablet terminal 3 can detect include both the active pen 2 and the passive pointer 4 (fingers 4a, 4b) shown in FIG. 1.

[0021] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the internal configuration of the tablet terminal 3. As shown in the figure, the tablet terminal 3 includes a sensor 30, a sensor controller 31, and a host processor 32. Although not shown, the tablet terminal 3 further includes a display.

[0022] The sensor 30 includes a plurality of sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y arranged in the touch surface 3a. The tablet terminal 3 is a so-called "in-cell type" electronic device, and the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X are also used as electrodes for display (for example, common electrodes of a liquid crystal display). However, the present invention is similarly applicable to an electronic device (non-in-cell type electronic device) in which the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y are independent of the electrodes for display.

[0023] The sensor controller 31 is an integrated circuit that utilizes the intervals of the pixel driving operations, i.e., when a plurality of sensor electrodes 30X are not being used for pixel driving, to detect the positions of the active pen 2 and the passive pointer 4 on the touch surface 3a. Each time the sensor controller 31 detects the position of the active pen 2 or the passive pointer 4, it is configured to output the coordinates indicating the detected position to the host processor 32.

[0024] The sensor controller 31 is also configured to receive various data from the active pen 2 by utilizing the intervals of the pixel driving operations. The various data thus received may include data indicating the pen pressure detected by the above-described pen pressure detection unit (pen pressure value), data indicating the on / off state of the side switch obtained by the side switch state detection unit (switch data), the unique ID stored in the storage unit, and the like. The sensor controller 31 is configured to output the received data to the host processor 32.

[0025] The host processor 32 is the central processing unit of the tablet terminal 3 and serves to execute the operating system of the tablet terminal 3 and various applications such as drawing software by executing programs stored in a memory (not shown). The drawing software includes a function of generating stroke data based on the coordinates sequentially supplied from the sensor controller 31, rendering the data, and displaying it on the display, and a function of adjusting the rendering result based on data such as the pen pressure value supplied from the sensor controller 31 (for example, a function of adjusting the line width according to the pen pressure value).

[0026] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the operation modes of the sensor controller 31. The sensor controller 31 is configured to operate in any one of the SPT1 mode (the third operation mode) shown in FIG. 3(a), the SPT2 mode (the first operation mode) shown in FIG. 3(b), and the exclusive mode (the second operation mode) shown in FIG. 3(d). However, instead of the SPT2 mode, the modified SPT2 mode shown in FIG. 3(c) may be used. In FIGS. 3(a) to 3(d), it is depicted that the detection of each pointer is continuously performed without interruption. However, as described above, since the actual detection is performed using the interval of the pixel driving operation, each detection is executed with an appropriate pause time in between. Hereinafter, each operation mode will be described in detail one by one.

[0027] The SPT1 mode is a mode in which, when the active pen 2 has not been detected yet, the global scan GS of the active pen 2 and the position detection of the passive pointer 4 (hereinafter referred to as touch detection T) are executed in a time-division manner. The sensor controller 31 that has entered the SPT1 mode is configured to repeat this operation unit (UP) with, for example, touch detection T for 2 milliseconds and global scan GS for 3 milliseconds as one operation unit. As can be understood by comparing FIG. 3(a) with FIGS. 3(b) and 3(c), in the SPT1 mode, the frequency of touch detection T is higher than that in the SPT2 mode and the modified SPT2 mode.

[0028] FIG. 4(a) is a diagram showing the configuration of the uplink signal US and the downlink signal DS in the global scan GS. In the global scan GS, first, the sensor controller 31 transmits the uplink signal US, and then, the active pen 2 that has received this uplink signal US transmits the downlink signal DS. The signal transmission and reception are performed in this procedure.

[0029] As shown in Fig. 4(a), the uplink signal US is a signal including a predetermined start bit SB and a command COM indicating a command from the sensor controller 31 to the active pen 2. The command COM transmitted in the global scan GS is configured to include, for example, information on communication resources that the active pen 2 should use for transmitting the downlink signal DS.

[0030] The downlink signal DS during the global scan GS is composed of a position signal that is a burst signal of a predetermined frequency. Although details will be described later, the global scan GS is position detection performed for the entire sensor 30, and the sensor controller 31 obtains the level of the position signal for each position in the touch surface 3a by receiving this position signal using all of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y arranged in the touch surface 3a. Then, based on the result, the position of the active pen 2 is detected and pairing with the active pen 2 is configured to be executed.

[0031] Returning to Fig. 3. The SPT2 mode is a mode in which, when the active pen 2 during pairing is not in contact with the touch surface 3a, the local scan LS of the active pen 2 and the touch detection T are executed in a time-division manner. The sensor controller 31 that has entered the SPT2 mode is configured to repeat this operation unit (UP) with, for example, a touch detection T for 2 milliseconds, a local scan LS for, for example, 3 milliseconds, and a local scan LS for, for example, 3 milliseconds as one operation unit.

[0032] Figure 4(b) is a diagram showing the configuration of the uplink signal US and the downlink signal DS in the local scan LS. Also in the local scan LS, first, the sensor controller 31 transmits the uplink signal US, and then, the active pen 2 that has received this uplink signal US transmits the downlink signal DS. The signal transmission and reception are performed in such a procedure. The command COM transmitted in the local scan LS includes, for example, information specifying one of one or more active pens 2 during pairing and information designating data to be transmitted by the specified active pen 2.

[0033] The downlink signal DS during the local scan LS is composed of a position signal that is a burst signal of a predetermined frequency and a data signal including various data. Since it includes a data signal, the transmission duration of the position signal is shorter than that during the global scan GS. The data included in the data signal is, for example, the pen pressure value, switch data, unique ID, etc. described above. The control unit of the active pen 2 is configured to arrange the data instructed by the command COM in the uplink signal US in the data signal.

[0034] The local scan LS is position detection performed only by a part of the sensor 30. The sensor controller 31 receives this position signal using only a predetermined number of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y arranged in the touch surface 3a and located near the previously detected position, and obtains the level of the position signal for each position near the previously detected position. Then, the position of the active pen 2 is detected based on the result. Also, the sensor controller 31 acquires the data transmitted by the active pen 2 by decoding the received data signal.

[0035] Here, in the present embodiment, a relatively small number (here, 4) and a relatively large number (here, 8) of the sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y used for receiving the position signal during the local scan LS are used. In FIG. 3, this number is shown in parentheses after "LS".

[0036] As understood from the description of FIG. 3(b), in the SPT2 mode, the position signal is received using a relatively small number of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y. When using such a relatively small number of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, since the reception time per one can be made relatively long, a relatively high signal-to-noise ratio can be obtained. Therefore, even if the reception level of the downlink signal DS is small, it can be received, so it is suitable for the case where the active pen 2 is not in contact with the touch surface 3a (that is, when hovering).

[0037] On the other hand, when using a relatively large number of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y as in the exclusive mode described later (see FIG. 3(d)), since the position signal can be received in a wider area, it becomes possible to detect the position of the active pen 2 with relatively high accuracy. However, since only a relatively low signal-to-noise ratio can be obtained, the position signal can be received using such a relatively large number of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y only when the active pen 2 is in contact with the touch surface 3a and the sensor controller 31 can receive the downlink signal DS at a high level.

[0038] Returning to FIG. 3. The SPT2 mode modification is an improvement of the SPT2 mode so that the local scan LS can be performed at equal intervals, and is configured to perform the touch detection T for one panel surface in two divisions. Specifically, the touch surface 3a may be divided into two halves and the touch detection T may be alternately performed. The sensor controller 31 that has entered the SPT2 mode modification is configured to repeat this operation unit (UP) with, for example, the touch detection T / 2 (half of the touch detection T) for 1 millisecond and the local scan LS(4) for, for example, 3 milliseconds as one operation unit.

[0039] The exclusive mode is a mode in which when the detected active pen 2 is in contact with the touch surface 3a, touch detection T is not performed, and only the local scan LS of the active pen 2 is executed. The sensor controller 31 that has entered the exclusive mode is configured to repeatedly execute this operation unit (UP) with, for example, only the local scan LS for 3 milliseconds as one operation unit. As described above, the reception of the position signal in the exclusive mode is executed using a relatively large number (specifically, eight) of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y. The reason is as described above.

[0040] Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 2 again, the configurations of the sensor 30, the sensor controller 31, and the host processor 32 will be described in more detail.

[0041] The sensor 30 has a configuration in which a plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y that each extend in the Y direction and are arranged at equal intervals in the X direction orthogonal to the Y direction and a plurality of sensor electrodes 30X that each extend in the X direction and are arranged at equal intervals in the Y direction are arranged in a matrix. Here, an example is shown in which both the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are constituted by linear conductors, but it is also possible to configure the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y with conductors of other shapes. For example, one of the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y may be configured by a plurality of rectangular conductors arranged two-dimensionally so that the two-dimensional coordinates of the active pen 2 can be detected.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 2, the sensor controller 31 is configured to include an MCU 40, a logic unit 41, transmission units 42 and 43, a reception unit 44, and a selection unit 45.

[0043] The MCU 40 and the logic unit 41 are control units that control the transmission and reception operations of the sensor controller 31 by controlling the transmission units 42, 43, the reception unit 44, and the selection unit 45. Specifically, first, the MCU 60 has a memory (ROM and RAM) inside and is a microprocessor that operates by executing a program stored in this memory. The operation timing of the MCU 40 is controlled by a timing signal supplied from the host processor 32. The operations performed by the MCU 40 include, in addition to the control operation of the logic unit 41, an operation of supplying the pixel driving voltage Vcom to the selection unit 45, an operation of controlling the transmission unit 42 to output the finger detection signal FDS, an operation of supplying a command COM indicating the content of the instruction to the active pen 2 to the transmission unit 43, an operation of detecting the positions of the active pen 2 and the passive pointer 4 respectively (specifically, the coordinates x, y indicating the positions within the touch surface 3a) based on the digital signal supplied from the reception unit 44, an operation of obtaining the data Res (for example, the pen pressure value, switch data, or unique ID described above) transmitted by the active pen 2 by decoding the digital signal supplied from the reception unit 44, an operation of determining the contact state of the active pen 2 with respect to the touch surface 3a based on the pen pressure value included in the data Res, and an operation of entering one of the operation modes shown in FIG. 3 according to the result of this determination and the like. The logic unit 41 has a function of outputting control signals ctrl_t1~ctrl_t4, ctrl_r based on the control of the MCU 40.

[0044] The transmission unit 42 is a circuit that generates the finger detection signal FDS according to the control of the MCU 40 and supplies it to each sensor electrode 30X through the selection unit 45.

[0045] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the principle of the position detection process of the passive pointer 4 executed by the MCU 40. For simplicity, only four sensor electrodes 30X are shown in the figure, but actually more sensor electrodes 30X are arranged. Hereinafter, the description will continue assuming that the number of sensor electrodes 30X is K.

[0046] As shown in the upper right part of FIG. 5, for example, the finger detection signal FDS is composed of K signals s1 to s, each of which consists of pulses represented by K "1"s or "-1"s respectively. K is composed of. Signals s1 to s K Each nth (n = 1 to K) pulse of each constitutes a pulse group p n One pulse group p n Each pulse constituting is input in parallel to each sensor electrode 30X from the transmission unit 42 shown in FIG. 2 through the selection unit 45.

[0047] Returning to FIG. 2. The transmission unit 43 is a circuit that generates an uplink signal US according to the control of the MCU 40 and the logic unit 41 and supplies it to the selection unit 45. As shown in the figure, it includes a pattern supply unit 50, a switch 51, a code sequence holding unit 52, a spreading processing unit 53, and a transmission guard unit 54. Among them, regarding the pattern supply unit 50 in particular, in this embodiment, it is described as being included in the transmission unit 43, but it may also be included in the MCU 40.

[0048] The pattern supply unit 50 holds a start bit SB arranged at the head of the uplink signal US, and is configured to output the held start bit SB according to the instruction of the control signal ctrl_t1 supplied from the logic unit 41.

[0049] The switch 51 has a function of selecting either the pattern supply unit 50 or the MCU 40 based on the control signal ctrl_t2 supplied from the logic unit 41 and supplying the output of the selected one to the spreading processing unit 53. When the switch 51 selects the pattern supply unit 50, the start bit SB is supplied to the spreading processing unit 53. On the other hand, when the switch 51 selects the MCU 40, the command COM is supplied to the spreading processing unit 53.

[0050] The code sequence holding unit 52 has a function of generating and holding a spreading code with a predetermined chip length having autocorrelation characteristics based on the control signal ctrl_t3 supplied from the logic unit 41. The spreading code held by the code sequence holding unit 52 is supplied to the spreading processing unit 53.

[0051] The spreading processing unit 53 has a function of obtaining a transmission chip sequence of a predetermined chip length by modulating the spreading code held by the code sequence holding unit 52 based on the value (start bit SB or command COM) supplied via the switch 51. The spreading processing unit 53 supplies the obtained transmission chip sequence to the selection unit 45 via the transmission guard unit 54.

[0052] The transmission guard unit 54 has a function of inserting a guard period (a period during which neither transmission nor reception is performed), which is necessary for switching between the transmission operation and the reception operation, between the transmission period of the uplink signal US and the reception period of the downlink signal DS, based on the control signal ctrl_t4 supplied from the logic unit 41.

[0053] The selection unit 45 includes switches 58x and 58y, and conductor selection circuits 59x and 59y.

[0054] The switch 58y is a switch element configured such that a common terminal is connected to either the T terminal or the R terminal. The common terminal of the switch 58y is connected to the conductor selection circuit 59y, the T terminal is connected to the output end of the transmission unit 43, and the R terminal is connected to the input end of the reception unit 44. The switch 58x is a switch element configured such that a common terminal is connected to any one of the T1 terminal, the T2 terminal, the D terminal, and the R terminal. Among these, the T2 terminal is actually a set of terminals corresponding to several sensor electrodes 30X. The common terminal of the switch 58x is connected to the conductor selection circuit 59x, the T1 terminal is connected to the output end of the transmission unit 43, the T2 terminal is connected to the output end of the transmission unit 42, the D terminal is connected to the output end of the MCU 40 that outputs the pixel driving voltage Vcom, and the R terminal is connected to the input end of the reception unit 44.

[0055] The conductor selection circuit 59x is a switch element for selectively connecting a plurality of sensor electrodes 30X to the common terminal of the switch 58x. The conductor selection circuit 59x is configured to be able to connect some or all of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X to the common terminal of the switch 58x simultaneously. Also, when the T2 terminal and the common terminal are connected within the switch 58x, the conductor selection circuit 59x connects the plurality of terminals constituting the T2 terminal and the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X one-to-one.

[0056] The conductor selection circuit 59y is a switch element for selectively connecting a plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y to the common terminal of the switch 58y. The conductor selection circuit 59y is also configured to be able to connect some or all of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y to the common terminal of the switch 58y simultaneously.

[0057] The selection unit 45 is supplied with four control signals sTRx, sTRy, selX, and selY from the logic unit 41. Specifically, the control signal sTRx is supplied to the switch 58x, the control signal sTRy is supplied to the switch 58y, the control signal selX is supplied to the conductor selection circuit 59x, and the control signal selY is supplied to the conductor selection circuit 59y. The logic unit 41 controls the selection unit 45 using these control signals sTRx, sTRy, selX, and selY to realize the transmission of the uplink signal US or the finger detection signal FDS and the application of the pixel driving voltage Vcom, as well as the reception of the downlink signal DS or the finger detection signal FDS.

[0058] Specifically, when transmitting the uplink signal US, the logic unit 41 controls the selection unit 45 so that all of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y are simultaneously connected to the transmission unit 43. As a result, the uplink signal US is transmitted simultaneously from all of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y, so that the active pen 2 can receive the uplink signal US anywhere on the touch surface 3a.

[0059] Next, at the timing of receiving the above-described position signal among the downlink signals DS, the logic unit 41 performs different processes depending on whether the above-described global scan GS or the above-described local scan LS is performed. Specifically, first, when performing the global scan GS, the logic unit 41 sequentially selects each of all the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y one by one, and controls the selection unit 45 so that the selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are connected to the receiving unit 44. As a result, a number of position signals equal to the number of the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are sequentially supplied to the receiving unit 44. When performing the local scan LS, first, the MCU 40 selects a number (4 or 8) of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y corresponding to the operation mode in the entry from among the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y in the vicinity of the previously detected position. The logic unit 41 sequentially selects each of the predetermined number of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y thus selected one by one at time intervals corresponding to the number of the selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, and controls the selection unit 45 so that the selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are connected to the receiving unit 44. As a result, a number of position signals equal to the number of the selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are sequentially supplied to the receiving unit 44.

[0060] The MCU 40 is configured to detect the position of the active pen 2 based on the level of the position signal thus supplied to the receiving unit 44. Specifically, based on a digital signal (described later) supplied from the receiving unit 44, the level of the position signal at each intersection of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y is determined. Then, based on each determined level, the position of the active pen 2 is detected. Specifically, an area within the touch surface 3a where the level of the position signal is equal to or higher than a predetermined value may be determined, and for example, the center position thereof may be detected as the position of the active pen 2.

[0061] Next, at the timing of receiving the above-described data signal among the downlink signals DS, first, the MCU 40 selects one of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y that is closest to the position of the active pen 2 detected based on the previous position signal. The logic unit 41 controls the selection unit 45 so that the thus selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are connected to the receiving unit 44. Thereby, the data signal transmitted by the active pen 2 is supplied to the receiving unit 44.

[0062] Next, at the timing of transmitting the finger detection signal FDS, the logic unit 41, together with the MCU 40, selects one sensor electrode 30Y and repeats, for each sensor electrode 30Y, the operation of sequentially inputting the pulse groups p1 to p shown in FIG. 5 to the transmitting unit 42 for each sensor electrode 30X. Specifically described, the logic unit 41 first controls the selection unit 45 so that a plurality of terminals constituting the T2 terminal of the switch 58x and the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X are connected one-to-one. Then, while maintaining that state, the logic unit 41 sequentially selects the plurality of sensor electrodes 30Y one by one and controls the selection unit 45 so that the selected sensor electrode 30Y is connected to the receiving unit 44. K While the MCU 40 further selects one sensor electrode 30Y, the MCU 40 sequentially reads out the pulse groups p1 to p from the memory one pulse group at a time, and each time the pulse groups are read out, supplies the K pulses constituting the read pulse group to the transmitting unit 42. The transmitting unit 42 inputs the K pulses thus supplied to the K sensor electrodes 30X in parallel. As a result of such control, the level of the digital signal supplied from the receiving unit 44 reflects the change in capacitance formed at the intersection of the currently selected sensor electrode 30Y and each sensor electrode 30X. Therefore, the MCU 40 is configured to detect the position of the passive pointer 4 based on the level of the digital signal supplied from the receiving unit 44.

[0063] MCU40 further, while selecting one sensor electrode 30Y, K sequentially reads out the pulse groups p1~p from the memory one pulse group at a time, and each time the pulse groups are read out, supplies the K pulses constituting the read pulse group to the transmitting unit 42. The transmitting unit 42 inputs the K pulses thus supplied to the K sensor electrodes 30X in parallel. As a result of such control, the level of the digital signal supplied from the receiving unit 44 reflects the change in capacitance formed at the intersection of the currently selected sensor electrode 30Y and each sensor electrode 30X. Therefore, the MCU 40 is configured to detect the position of the passive pointer 4 based on the level of the digital signal supplied from the receiving unit 44.

[0064] Here, while referring to FIG. 5 again, the position detection process of the passive pointer 4 executed by the MCU 40 will be described in more detail. In the following description, it is assumed that the number of sensor electrodes 30X is four (i.e., K = 4), but the same applies when the number of sensor electrodes 30X is three or less or five or more.

[0065] When the number of sensor electrodes 30X is four, the signals s1 to s K will each be composed of pulses represented by four "1"s or "-1"s. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the signal s1 is composed of "1,1,1,1", the signal s2 is composed of "1,1,-1,-1", the signal s3 is composed of "1,-1,-1,1", and the signal s4 is composed of "1-1,1,-1".

[0066] Functionally, the MCU 40 is configured to include a shift register 40a and a correlator 40b. The shift register 40a is a storage unit in the FIFO format and is configured to be able to store the same number of data as the number of sensor electrodes 30X (i.e., K pieces). When new data is stored in the shift register 40a, the data stored K times ago is erased. As described above, the MCU 40 and the logic unit 41 select one sensor electrode 30Y and repeat the operation of sequentially inputting the pulse groups p1 to p4 to each sensor electrode 30X for each sensor electrode 30Y. As a result, four levels L1 to L4 corresponding to the pulse groups p1 to p4 will sequentially appear on the selected sensor electrode 30Y. The MCU 40 sequentially acquires the levels L1 to L4 that appear on the sensor electrode 30Y in this way via the receiver 44 and stores them in the shift register 40a each time.

[0067] Regarding the specific content of the levels L1 to L4, the case where the sensor electrode 30Y1 shown in FIG. 5 is selected will be taken as an example and described in detail. In the following description, the capacitances formed between the sensor electrode 30Y1 and each of the four sensor electrodes 30X1 to 30X4 are respectively C 11 ~C 41 shall be used.

[0068] First, the level L1 stored in the shift register 40a corresponding to the pulse group p1 is the inner product of the capacitance vector (C 11 , C 21 , C 31 , C 41 ) and the vector (1, 1, 1, 1) representing the pulse group p1. This inner product is, as also shown in FIG. 3, C 11 + C 21 + C 31 + C 41 and is calculated. Similarly, the level L2 stored in the shift register 40a corresponding to the pulse group p2 is the inner product of the capacitance vector (C 11 , C 21 , C 31 , C 41 ) and the vector (1, 1, -1, -1) representing the pulse group p1, and is calculated as C 11 + C 21 - C 31 - C 41 . The level L3 stored in the shift register 40a corresponding to the pulse group p3 is the inner product of the capacitance vector (C 11 , C 21 , C 31 , C 41 ) and the vector (1, -1, -1, 1) representing the pulse group p3, and is calculated as C 11 - C 21 - C 31 + C 41 . The level L4 stored in the shift register 40a corresponding to the pulse group p4 is the inner product of the capacitance vector (C 11 , C 21 , C 31 , C 41 ) and the vector (1, -1, 1, -1) representing the pulse group p4, and is calculated as C 11 - C 21 + C 31 - C 41 .

[0069] The MCU 40 uses the correlator 40b to sequentially calculate the correlation values T1 to T4 between the levels L1 to L4 stored in the shift register 40a for each of the four pulse groups p1 to p4. As shown in FIG. 5, the specific contents of the correlation values T1 to T4 thus calculated are 4C 11 , 4C 21 , 4C 31 , 4C 41 respectively. That is, the changes in the capacitance formed at the intersections of the sensor electrodes 30X1 to 30X4 and the sensor electrode 30Y1 are respectively reflected in the correlation values T1 to T4. Therefore, the MCU 40 can detect the position of the passive pointer 4 by referring to the correlation values T1 to T4 calculated for each sensor electrode 30Y. Specifically, an area within the touch surface 3a where the change in capacitance is equal to or greater than a predetermined value may be determined, and for example, its center position may be detected as the position of the passive pointer 4. Note that when there are a plurality of separated areas within the touch surface 3a where the change in capacitance is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the MCU 40 may detect each of them as the position of the passive pointer 4.

[0070] Returning to FIG. 2, the logic unit 41 controls the switch 58x so that the D terminal is connected to the common terminal at the timing of applying the pixel driving voltage Vcom. As a result, the pixel driving voltage Vcom is supplied to each of the plurality of sensor electrodes 30X, and it becomes possible to execute the pixel driving operation.

[0071] The receiving unit 44 is a circuit that receives the downlink signal DS transmitted by the active pen 2 or the finger detection signal FDS transmitted by the transmitting unit 42 based on the control signal ctrl_r of the logic unit 41. Specifically, it is configured to include an amplifier circuit 55, a detection circuit 56, and an analog-to-digital (AD) converter 57.

[0072] The amplifier circuit 55 amplifies and outputs the downlink signal DS or the finger detection signal FDS supplied from the selection unit 45. The detector circuit 56 is a circuit that generates a voltage corresponding to the level of the output signal of the amplifier circuit 55. The AD converter 57 is a circuit that generates a digital signal by sampling the voltage output from the detector circuit 56 at predetermined time intervals. The digital signal output by the AD converter 57 is supplied to the MCU 40.

[0073] Based on the digital signals thus supplied, the MCU 40 detects the positions (coordinates x, y) of the passive pointer 4 and the active pen 2, and acquires the data Res transmitted by the active pen 2. To be more specific, first, regarding the position of the passive pointer 4, the MCU 40 generates pulse groups p1 to p2 for each sensor electrode 30Y based on the supplied digital signals. K Levels L1 to L K Obtain level L1~L K The method of detecting the position of the passive pointer 4 from the received digital signal is as described above with reference to Fig. 5. Next, regarding the position of the active pen 2, the MCU 40 determines the level of the position signal at each intersection of the multiple sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y based on the supplied digital signal as described above, and detects the position of the active pen 2 based on each determined level. Finally, regarding the data Res, the MCU 40 obtains the data Res by decoding the digital signal supplied from the receiving unit 44. The MCU 40 is configured to output the position (coordinates x, y) and data Res thus detected to the host processor 32.

[0074] Further, the MCU 40 determines the contact state of the active pen 2 with respect to the touch surface 3a based on the pen pressure value included in the acquired data Res. When it is determined that the active pen 2 has newly come into contact with the touch surface 3a (i.e., when the pen pressure changes from 0 to a positive value), the pen-down information IN-PROXY is output to the host processor 32. When it is determined that the active pen 2 has left the touch surface 3a (i.e., when the pen pressure changes from a positive value to 0), the pen-up information OUT-PROXY is output to the host processor 32. The pen-down information IN-PROXY and the pen-up information OUT-PROXY thus output are used by the host processor 32 to recognize the start and end of a stroke.

[0075] The MCU 40 further selects one of the above-described SPT1 mode, SPT2 mode (or modified SPT2 mode), and exclusive mode according to whether the downlink signal DS is received and whether the pen tip is shown to be in contact with the touch surface based on the pen pressure value included in the acquired data Res, and enters the selected operation mode. Then, control such as the logic unit 41 is performed according to the operation mode during entry. Hereinafter, with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 6 to 10, the processing performed by the MCU 40 in this regard will be described in detail.

[0076] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a part of the processing performed by the MCU 40 related to the detection of the active pen 2 and the passive pointer 4. As shown in the figure, the MCU 40 first enters the SPT1 mode (step S1). Then, the processes of steps S3 to S9 are repeatedly executed (step S2).

[0077] The MCU 40 that has started the processes of steps S3 to S9 first performs position detection processing (step S3). The details of this position detection processing differ depending on the operation mode in which the MCU 40 has entered. The details of the position detection processing in each operation mode will be described later with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10. The MCU 40 performs processing (control step) for controlling the operation mode of the sensor controller 31 by executing steps S4 to S9 according to the result of this position detection processing (specifically, the presence or absence of detection of the active pen 2 and the pen pressure value received from the active pen 2).

[0078] Specifically, the MCU 40 first determines whether or not the active pen 2 has been detected within the position detection processing (step S4. determination step). This determination may be made according to whether or not the downlink signal DS has been detected within the position detection processing. That is, if the downlink signal DS has been detected even once, it is determined that the active pen 2 has been detected, and if the downlink signal DS has not been detected even once, it is determined that the active pen 2 has not been detected.

[0079] The MCU 40 that has determined "not detected" in step S4 releases the pairing (step S6) if it has been paired with the active pen 2 in step S17 (see FIG. 7) described later, enters the SPT1 mode (step S7), and then returns to step S3. As a result, in the next position detection processing, the global scan GS of the active pen 2 is performed in time division with the position detection of the passive pointer 4.

[0080] The MCU 40 that has determined "detected" in step S4 then determines whether the pen pressure value received from the active pen 2 is equal to 0 or greater than 0 (step S5). Note that the pen pressure value being equal to 0 indicates that the tip of the active pen 2 is not in contact with the touch surface 3a, and the pen pressure value being greater than 0 indicates that the tip of the active pen 2 is in contact with the touch surface 3a.

[0081] In step S5, when the MCU40 determines that "the pen pressure value is equal to 0", it enters the SPT2 mode (or the modified SPT2 mode) (step S8) and returns to step S3. As a result, in the next position detection process, the local scan LS of the active pen 2 will be performed in a time-sharing manner with the position detection of the passive pointer 4. Also, as shown in FIGS. 3(b) and 3(c), in this case, since the position signal is received using the four sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, it is possible to obtain a relatively high signal-to-noise ratio.

[0082] On the other hand, when the MCU40 determines that "the pen pressure value is greater than 0" in step S5, it enters the exclusive mode (step S9) and returns to step S3. As a result, in the next position detection process, the position detection of the passive pointer 4 is not performed, and only the local scan LS of the active pen 2 is performed. Therefore, it is possible to relatively increase the detection rate (detection frequency) of the position of the active pen 2. Also, as shown in FIG. 3(d), in this case, since the position signal is received using the eight sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, it is possible to detect the position of the active pen 2 with relatively high accuracy.

[0083] Next, with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10, the position detection process in each operation mode will be described in detail.

[0084] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the processing flow of the position detection process in the SPT1 mode. As shown in the figure, the MCU40 first detects the position of the passive pointer 4 by executing touch detection (position detection of the passive pointer 4; hereinafter the same) (step S10).

[0085] Here, in step S10, there may be a case where the position of the active pen 2 is detected as the position of the passive pointer 4 due to the capacitive coupling generated between the pen electrode provided at the tip of the active pen 2 and the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y. Also, there may be a case where a position unintended by the user is detected as the position of the passive pointer 4, such as when the user's hand is on the touch surface 3a.

[0086] Therefore, instead of automatically setting all of the one or more positions detected in step S10 as touch positions, the MCU 40 determines one or more touch positions from among the one or more positions detected in step S10 based on the result of the position detection of the active pen 2 that was executed immediately before and the area of the region within the touch surface 3a where the above-described change in capacitance is equal to or greater than a predetermined value (step S11). Thereby, false detection as described above is prevented. The MCU 40 then outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the determined touch position to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 (step S12).

[0087] Next, the MCU 40 transmits an uplink signal US (step S13) and determines whether or not a downlink signal DS as a response thereto has been detected (step S14). If the downlink signal DS has not been detected, the position detection process ends. On the other hand, if the downlink signal DS has been detected, the position signal transmitted by the active pen 2 is received using each of the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, and the position of the pen is detected based on the result (step S15).

[0088] Here, in step S15, there is a case where the downlink signal DS transmitted by the active pen 2 is also transmitted from the hand holding the active pen 2, and as a result, the position of the hand holding the active pen 2 may be detected as the position of the active pen 2. Further, a current path is formed that enters the arm on the side opposite to the hand holding the active pen 2 through the sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y from the pen electrode provided at the tip of the active pen 2, passes through the human body, and returns to the active pen 2. As a result, there is also a case where a position where neither the active pen 2 nor the passive pointer 4 is in contact is detected as the position (ghost position) of the active pen 2 because the downlink signal DS is detected below this arm.

[0089] Therefore, instead of automatically setting all of the one or more positions detected in step S15 as the pen positions, the MCU 40 determines one or more pen positions from among the one or more positions detected in step S15 based on the result of the position detection of the passive pointer 4 that was executed immediately before (step S16). Thereby, false detections such as those described above are prevented. The MCU 40 then performs pairing with the active pen 2 that has transmitted the position signal (step S17), outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the determined pen position to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 (step S18), and ends the position detection process.

[0090] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the processing flow of the position detection process in the SPT2 mode. As shown in the figure, the MCU 40 first outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the touch position to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 by executing steps S10 to S12 described above.

[0091] Next, the MCU 40 assigns 1 to the variable M (step S20) and determines whether the variable M is 2 or less (step S21). If the variable M is 2 or less, the MCU 40 transmits the uplink signal US (step S22) and determines whether the downlink signal DS as its response has been detected (step S23). If the variable M is not 2 or less, the position detection process ends.

[0092] When it is determined in step S23 that the downlink signal DS has not been detected, the MCU 40 increments the variable M by 1 and returns to step S21. On the other hand, when it is determined that the downlink signal DS has been detected, four sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y are selected based on the previous pen position, and the position signal transmitted by the active pen 2 is received using the selected sensor electrodes 30X and 30Y, and the pen position is detected based on the result (step S24). Subsequently, the MCU 40 selects one sensor electrode 30X or 30Y based on the previous pen position, and receives the data signal transmitted by the active pen 2 using the selected sensor electrode 30X or 30Y (step S25). The MCU 40 will acquire data such as the pen pressure value transmitted by the active pen 2 by receiving this data signal (acquisition step).

[0093] Next, the MCU 40 determines one or more pen positions from among one or more positions detected in step S24 based on the result of the position detection of the passive pointer 4 that was executed immediately before, in the same manner as step S16 shown in FIG. 7 (step S26). Then, the coordinates (x, y) indicating the determined pen position are output to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 together with the data included in the received data signal (step S27). After that, the MCU 40 increments the variable M by 1 and returns to step S21.

[0094] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a processing flow of the position detection process in the SPT2 mode improvement. As shown in the figure, the MCU 40 first executes 1 / N processing of touch detection (step S30). The 1 / N processing of touch detection is one-time processing in the case where the touch detection for one panel surface is divided into N times and executed. For example, it is conceivable that the touch surface 3a is divided into N regions, and touch detection is sequentially performed for these N regions.

[0095] The MCU 40 that has executed the 1 / N processing of touch detection records the partial detection data indicating the result in a memory (not shown) (step S31), and further generates the overall detection data by synthesizing the partial detection data for the past N-1 times (step S32). Then, based on the generated overall detection data, the positions of one or more passive pointers 4 are detected (step S33), and based on the result of the position detection of the active pen 2 that was executed immediately before and the area of the region within the touch surface 3a where the capacitance change described above is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, one or more touch positions are determined from among the one or more positions detected in step S33 (step S34). The MCU 40 that has thus determined the touch position outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the determined touch position to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 (step S35).

[0096] Subsequently, the MCU 40 outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the pen position and the data included in the received data signal to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 by executing steps S22 to S27 described with reference to FIG. 8, and ends the position detection process.

[0097] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the processing flow of the position detection process in the exclusive mode. In this case, the MCU 40 transmits the uplink signal US without performing the process for detecting the position of the passive pointer 4 (step S40). Then, it is determined whether or not the downlink signal DS as the response has been detected (step S41), and if it is determined that it has not been detected, the position detection process ends.

[0098] On the other hand, if it is determined that the downlink signal DS has been detected, the MCU 40 selects eight sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y based on the previous pen position, receives the position signal transmitted by the active pen 2 using the selected sensor electrodes 30X, 30Y, and detects the position of the pen based on the result (step S42). Subsequently, the MCU 40 selects one sensor electrode 30X, 30Y based on the previous pen position, and receives the data signal transmitted by the active pen 2 using the selected sensor electrode 30X, 30Y (step S43).

[0099] Next, the MCU 40 outputs the coordinates (x, y) indicating the position detected in step S42 and the data included in the data signal received in step S43 to the host processor 32 shown in FIG. 2 (step S44), and ends the position detection process. In the exclusive mode, the process like step S26 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is not performed, and the position detected in step S42 is output as the pen position as it is. This is because the position detection of the passive pointer 4 is not performed.

[0100] As described above, according to the input system 1 according to the present embodiment, until the pen tip of the active pen 2 contacts the touch surface 3a, the sensor controller 31 operates in the SPT1 mode or the SPT2 mode (or the modified SPT2 mode) that also detects the position of the passive pointer 4. Therefore, while using the exclusive mode in which the detection of the passive pointer 4 is not performed, touch input is possible in a state where the active pen 2 is very close to the touch surface 3a. In addition, since the period of operating in the exclusive mode can be minimized, it is possible to use the false detection prevention function (specifically, the process of step S16 shown in FIG. 7 and the process of step S26 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9) for as long a period as possible.

[0101] As described above, the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described. However, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof.

[0102] For example, in the above embodiment, when the MCU 40 does not detect the downlink signal DS even once in one position detection process, it immediately releases the pairing and enters the SPT1 mode (steps S6 and S7 in FIG. 6). However, it may be configured to release the pairing and enter the SPT1 mode only when the downlink signal DS has not been detected for a predetermined number of times or for a predetermined period of time.

[0103] Also, in the above-described embodiment, the MCU 40 entered the exclusive mode in response to the pen pressure value becoming a value greater than 0 (step S9 in FIG. 6). However, when entering the SPT2 mode, the detection of a gesture operation (for example, a pinch-out operation) by the passive pointer 4 may be started. While the detected gesture operation continues, even if the pen pressure value becomes greater than 0, the exclusive mode is not entered, and the exclusive mode is entered in response to the end of the detected gesture operation. In this way, even if the user touches the touch surface 3a with the pen tip during, for example, a pinch-out operation, it becomes possible to continue the touch input until the completion of the pinch-out operation.

Explanation of Signs

[0104] 1 Input system 2 Active pen 3 Tablet terminal 3a Touch surface 4 Passive pointer 4a, 4b Fingers 30 Sensor 30X, 30Y Sensor electrodes 31 Sensor controller 32 Host processor 40a Shift register 40b Correlator 41 Logic unit 42, 43 Transmitting unit 44 Receiving unit 45 Selection unit 50 Pattern supply unit 51 Switch 52 Code string holding unit 53 Diffusion processing unit 54 Transmission guard unit 55 Amplification circuit 56 Detection circuit 57 Analog-to-digital converter 58x, 58y Switch 59x, 59y Conductor selection circuit COM Command ctrl_t1~ctrl_t4, ctrl_r Control signal DS Downlink signal FDS Finger detection signal GS Global scan IN-PROXY Pendown information LS Local scan OUT-PROXY Penup information SB Start bit sTRx, sTRy, selX, selY control signal T Touch detection US Uplink signal Vcom Pixel driving voltage

Claims

1. A pointer position detection method, which is executed by a sensor controller connected to a sensor including a plurality of sensor electrodes, and detects, using the sensor, a position of a passive pointer that does not transmit a signal and a position of an active pen that is configured to be able to transmit a pen signal from a pen electrode provided at a tip portion thereof, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring a writing pressure value indicating a pressure applied to a pen tip of the active pen; a control step of controlling an operation mode of the sensor controller in response to the writing pressure value; a determination step of determining whether or not the pen signal is detected, The control step includes: when it is determined in the determining step that the pen signal has been detected and the writing pressure value indicates that the pen tip is not in contact with a panel surface, an operation mode of the sensor controller is set to a first operation mode in which the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface are detected in a time-division manner; when it is determined in the determining step that the pen signal has been detected and the writing pressure value indicates that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface, the operation mode of the sensor controller is set to a second operation mode in which the position of the active pen on the panel surface is detected but the position of the passive pointer on the panel surface is not detected; when it is determined in the determining step that the pen signal has not been detected, the operation mode of the sensor controller is set to a third operation mode in which the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface are detected in a time-division manner, and the position of the passive pointer is detected more frequently than in the first operation mode. How to detect the pointer position.

2. The obtaining step obtains the writing pressure value by decoding the pen signal received by the sensor.

2. The method for detecting a pointer position according to claim 1.

3. the position detection of the active pen in the third operational mode is a global scan of the entire sensor; the position detection of the active pen in the first and second operation modes is a local scan performed using only a portion of the sensor; 2. The method for detecting a pointer position according to claim 1.

4. the position detection of the active pen in the second mode of operation is performed using a greater number of the sensor electrodes than the position detection of the active pen in the first mode of operation; The method for detecting a pointer position according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. the sensor controller selects a different number of the sensor electrodes when the sensor controller is in the first operation mode from a number of the sensor electrodes when the sensor controller is in the second operation mode, and sequentially selects the selected sensor electrodes one by one at a time interval corresponding to the number of the selected sensor electrodes, thereby detecting the position of the active pen. The method for detecting a pointer position according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. the sensor controller is configured to start detecting a gesture operation by the passive pointer when entering the first operation mode, not to enter the second operation mode while the detected gesture operation continues even if the pen pressure value indicates that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface, and to enter the second operation mode in response to the end of the detected gesture operation. The method for detecting a pointer position according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. The sensor controller includes: determining a position of the active pen from among the detected positions of the one or more active pens based on a result of the position detection of the passive pointer; determining a position of the passive pointer from among the detected positions of the one or more passive pointers based on a result of the position detection of the active pen; The method for detecting a pointer position according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A sensor controller that detects the position of a passive pointer that does not transmit a signal and the position of an active pen that is configured to be able to transmit a pen signal from a pen electrode provided at a tip portion thereof, using a sensor including a plurality of sensor electrodes, acquiring a pen pressure value indicating a pressure applied to a tip of the active pen; determining whether the pen signal is detected; when it is determined in the determination that the pen signal has been detected and the writing pressure value indicates that the pen tip is not in contact with a panel surface, entering a first operation mode in which the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface are detected in a time-division manner; when it is determined in the determination that the pen signal has been detected and the writing pressure value indicates that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface, entering a second operation mode in which a position of the active pen on the panel surface is detected but a position of the passive pointer on the panel surface is not detected; when it is determined that the pen signal has not been detected in the determination, the positions of the active pen and the passive pointer on the panel surface are detected in a time-division manner, and a third operation mode is entered in which the position of the passive pointer is detected more frequently than in the first operation mode. Sensor controller.

9. obtaining the pen pressure value by decoding the pen signal received by the sensor; The sensor controller according to claim 8.

10. the position detection of the active pen in the third operational mode is a global scan of the entire sensor; the position detection of the active pen in the first and second operation modes is a local scan performed using only a portion of the sensor; The sensor controller according to claim 8.

11. the position detection of the active pen in the second mode of operation is performed using a greater number of the sensor electrodes than the position detection of the active pen in the first mode of operation; A sensor controller according to any one of claims 8 to 10.

12. selecting a different number of the sensor electrodes when the device is in the first operation mode and when the device is in the second operation mode, and sequentially selecting the selected sensor electrodes one by one at a time interval corresponding to the number of the selected sensor electrodes, thereby detecting the position of the active pen. A sensor controller according to any one of claims 8 to 10.

13. the touch panel is configured to start detecting a gesture operation by the passive pointer when the touch panel is in the first operation mode, not to enter the second operation mode while the detected gesture operation is continuing even if the pen pressure value indicates that the pen tip is in contact with the panel surface, and to enter the second operation mode in response to the end of the detected gesture operation. A sensor controller according to any one of claims 8 to 12.

14. determining a position of the active pen from among the detected positions of the one or more active pens based on a result of the position detection of the passive pointer; determining a position of the passive pointer from among the detected positions of the one or more passive pointers based on a result of the position detection of the active pen; A sensor controller according to any one of claims 8 to 13.

Images