Position indicator

Abstract

To provide a position indicator configured to feed back the feel when writing to a user.SOLUTION: A position indicator is used with a position detection device having a position detection sensor. The position indicator includes: a core body which is brought into contact with an input surface for position detection of the position detection sensor; a position detection signal transmission unit which transmits position detection signals to the position detection sensor; and a stimulus generation unit which generates a stimulus to be acquired through auditory sense and / or tactile sense of a user who holds the position indicator. The stimulus generation unit generates a stimulus in accordance with a state change which occurs in the position indicator when the core body is brought into contact with the input surface for input operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 26

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a position indicator used together with a position detection device having a position detection sensor.

Background Art

[0002] As operation input means for an information processing device such as a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC), a mouse and a keyboard have been used. On the other hand, in input of characters and the like and drawing of pictures, a position indicator used together with a position detection device having a position detection sensor has come to be used as operation input means. Among position indicators, an input tool having a rod-shaped housing and a pen shape is generally called an electronic pen.

[0003] When a position indicator such as an electronic pen makes a position indication on an input surface provided on the detection area of the position detection sensor, the position detection device detects the position coordinates on the detection area of the position detection sensor indicated by the position indicator. Then, the movement locus (writing locus) of the indication position by the position indicator is formed as continuous writing locus data of the detected position coordinates, and the writing locus is displayed on the display screen based on the writing locus data.

[0004] As an input system that uses a position indicator as operation input means and has a display screen, there are those composed of a display device having a display screen, a digitizer device or a tablet device having the functions of a position detection device and an information processing device, and a position indicator; and those composed of a digitizer or a tablet that constitutes a position detection device without a display screen, an information processing device such as a PC having a display screen to which those digitizers or tablets are connected, and a position indicator.

[0005] Position indicators, such as electronic pens, are increasingly required to have the same operability and usage as conventional writing instruments like pencils on writing media such as paper. Furthermore, in recent years, there has been a demand to use the same shapes and casings for electronic pens as for pencils or ballpoint pens that have been used to form writing marks on writing media such as paper. In other words, by making the electronic pen body, which contains all the functions of an electronic pen, into a cartridge (electronic pen cartridge), and by making this electronic pen body cartridge the same shape as a ballpoint pen refill (same thickness and length, and with a similar configuration at the pen tip), the electronic pen cartridge can be incorporated into the outer case (outer casing) of a ballpoint pen.

[0006] Based on this idea, an electronic pen cartridge has been provided that is constructed to have the same shape as a ballpoint pen refill (see Patent Document 1 (WO2016 / 031329) etc.). By using this electronic pen cartridge, it is possible to achieve the same ease of use as a conventional ballpoint pen and not change the feel of using the conventional writing part (it can be used in the same way as before). In other words, by incorporating the cartridge into the casing of a ballpoint pen to construct an electronic pen, it becomes possible to input data into electronic devices with the same feeling as using a ballpoint pen.

[0007] Patent Document 1, mentioned above, also proposes an electronic pen in which multiple electronic pen cartridges are incorporated into the outer case (outer casing) of a multi-color ballpoint pen. In this case, each of the multiple electronic pen cartridges is assigned unique identification information (cartridge ID), and this identification information is transmitted to a position detection device and an information processing device. This allows the information processing device to distinguish the electronic pen cartridge selected by the knocking operation and change the color, line thickness, etc., of the writing produced by the electronic pen.

[0008] Furthermore, a pencil-shaped electronic pen has been realized by creating a hole in the axial direction of the wooden casing of a pencil and inserting an electronic pen cartridge. In addition, a pencil-shaped electronic pen has been proposed in which an electronic eraser is attached to the tail end opposite the pen tip. Specifically, two electronic pen cartridges are used, one attached to the front and one to the tail end, and the electronic pen cartridges at the front and tail ends are distinguished by using different signal frequencies or sending different identification information (cartridge ID) to distinguish between them. When input is received by the electronic pen cartridge at the front, it is processed as an action such as writing or drawing, and when input is received by the electronic pen cartridge at the tail end, it is processed as an action to erase the written characters or drawings. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0009] [Patent Document 1] WO2016 / 031329 publication [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0010] In conventional input systems using electronic pens, the display attributes of the pen's writing, such as line type, thickness, and darkness, are generally not controlled by the electronic pen itself. Instead, the user selects these attributes through the functions of the tablet or PC's information processing unit. Furthermore, the type of writing medium can also be configured to be selectable by the user through the functions of the tablet or PC's information processing unit.

[0011] However, the process of users selecting the line type, line thickness, line darkness, and even the type of writing medium (such as paper) on a tablet or PC requires them to stop the input process using the electronic pen and perform a completely separate operation. This is cumbersome and hinders the efficient and smooth operation of the electronic pen input process.

[0012] The hardness of the pen tip (core hardness) of the electronic pen can be determined in accordance with the identification information of the electronic pen. A tablet device or PC can then determine the hardness of the electronic pen's core based on the identification information received from the electronic pen, and determine the line type and line thickness corresponding to that determined core hardness. The system can then be configured to display the handwriting using the determined line type and line thickness.

[0013] The darkness and thickness of lines produced by writing instruments such as pencils are not solely determined by the hardness of the pencil lead, but also by the characteristics of the writing medium, such as paper. As mentioned earlier, there is a requirement that electronic pens have the same operability and usage characteristics as conventional writing instruments such as pencils when used on writing media such as paper.

[0014] However, simply using the identification information of the electronic pen has a problem: while it is possible to specify a particular writing medium in addition to the hardness of the pen's tip, it is not possible to specify any writing medium at the time of writing.

[0015] In view of the above-mentioned problems, this invention also aims to provide a position indicator that can provide feedback to the user regarding the sensation during handwriting input. [Means for solving the problem]

[0016] To solve the above problems, A position indicator used in conjunction with a position detection device having a position detection sensor, A core body that contacts the input surface for position detection in the position detection sensor, A position detection signal transmission unit that transmits a position detection signal to the position detection sensor; A movement detection unit that detects a movement corresponding to the characteristics of the core body and the input surface on the input surface of the core body when the core body contacts the input surface and a position indication input is made; A stimulus generation unit that generates a stimulus that can be sensed by a user who holds the position indicator through hearing and / or touch; A stimulus drive signal for causing the stimulus generation unit to generate the stimulus corresponding to the movement on the input surface of the core body generated from the movement detection output from the movement detection unit; Generate or receive A stimulus drive signal acquisition unit that acquires the stimulus drive signal; Comprising; When the core body contacts the input surface and a position indication input is made, the stimulus drive signal acquired by the stimulus drive signal acquisition unit is supplied to the stimulus generation unit to generate a stimulus corresponding to the characteristics of the core body and the input surface. [[ID=X]]Provided is a position indicator characterized by the above.

[0017] In the position indicator having the above configuration, when the core body contacts the input surface Position input is made Ta when Movement on the input surface of the core is detected, and a stimulus drive signal is generated from the stimulus generation unit in response to the movement on the input surface of the core. generating a stimulus 。 The user can experience the feeling during a writing input according to the characteristics of the core body and / or the input surface.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0018] [Figure 1] It is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example of an embodiment of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 2] It is a diagram showing a configuration example of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 3] It is a diagram showing another configuration example of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 4] It is a diagram showing another configuration example of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 5]This figure shows an example of a housing for an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example configuration of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of some configurations of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 8] This figure illustrates an example of the configuration of a first functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 9] This figure shows an example of the circuit configuration of the main part of the position detection module in the example shown in Figure 8. [Figure 10] This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the first functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 11] This figure shows an example configuration of a position detection device used in conjunction with an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 12] This figure shows an example of the electronic circuit configuration of the first functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 13] This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the first functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 14] This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the first functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 15] This figure shows another example of a position detection device used in conjunction with an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 16] This figure illustrates an example of the configuration of a second functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 17] This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the second functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 18] This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the second functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 19]This figure illustrates another example of the configuration of the second functional module that constitutes an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 20] This figure shows another configuration example of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 21] This figure shows another configuration example of an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 22] This figure shows an example configuration of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 23] This figure shows a flowchart illustrating an example of processing operation in an input system embodiment using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 24] This figure illustrates an example of processing operation in an input system embodiment using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 25] This figure illustrates an example of processing operation in an input system embodiment using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 26] This figure shows another example configuration of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 27] This figure shows a flowchart illustrating an example of processing operation in another configuration example of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 28] This figure shows a flowchart illustrating an example of processing operation in another configuration example of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 29] This figure shows yet another configuration example of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Figure 30] This diagram illustrates the configuration example shown in Figure 29. [Figure 31] This figure shows a flowchart illustrating an example of processing operation in yet another configuration example of an input system using an embodiment of the position indicator according to this invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0019] Hereinafter, embodiments of the position indicator according to this invention will be described together with embodiments of an input system using the position indicator, with reference to the figures.

[0020] Figure 1 shows an example configuration of one embodiment of an input system. This embodiment of the input system consists of an electronic pen 1 as an example of a position indicator, a tablet 2 as an example of a position detection device, and a PC 3 as an example of an information processing device.

[0021] The tablet 2 is equipped with a position detection sensor 20 on the back of the input surface 2a for receiving instruction input from the electronic pen 1, and also includes a position detection circuit (not shown in Figure 1) connected to the position detection sensor 20. The position detection circuit detects the position (position coordinates) on the input surface 2a indicated by the electronic pen 1 based on a position detection signal exchanged between the electronic pen 1 and the position detection sensor 20. The signal exchange, including the position detection signal, between the electronic pen 1 and the position detection sensor 20 may be by electromagnetic induction or electrostatic coupling.

[0022] Tablet 2 is connected to PC 3 and supplies PC 3 with detection information (hereinafter referred to as position detection information) of the position (position coordinates) on the input surface 2a indicated by the electronic pen 1, as well as information as described later. The connection between Tablet 2 and PC 3 may be wired or wireless. In the example in Figure 1, Tablet 2 does not have a display screen.

[0023] PC3 is configured with an information processing unit 31 connected to a display device 32. The information processing unit 31 is connected to the tablet 2 and receives position detection information from the tablet 2. It generates handwriting display information as a continuous temporal change in the position on the input surface 2a indicated by the electronic pen 1 (the trajectory of the indicated position on the input surface 2a of the electronic pen 1) and displays it on the display screen 32D of the display device 32.

[0024] In this embodiment, PC3 receives position detection-related information supplied from the electronic pen 1 and tablet 2 to PC3 when instructions are input on the input surface 2a by the electronic pen 1, in addition to position detection information. The position detection-related information from tablet 2 includes pressure information and identification information received from the electronic pen 1. The position detection-related information from the electronic pen 1 will be described later.

[0025] The information processing unit 31 of the PC3 uses the position detection-related information received from the electronic pen and / or tablet 2 when displaying handwriting traces and the like on the display screen 32D of the display device 32 based on the position detection information received from tablet 2. In this case, the information processing unit 31 may not only directly use the position detection-related information to determine the display attributes when displaying handwriting traces and the like, but may also generate and use information based on the position detection-related information. For example, as an example of position detection-related information, pen attributes such as pen type, lead hardness, lead thickness, and lead shape are predetermined in correspondence with the identification information from electronic pen 1, and the information processing unit 31 is equipped with a table information storage unit for obtaining these pen attributes from the identification information from electronic pen 1.

[0026] Table information may be stored in advance in the information processing unit 31, but in this example, a server device 4 that provides the table information is connected to the communication network 5, and the information processing unit 31 accesses this server device 4 via the communication network 5 to download the information in advance and store it.

[0027] [Overview of the electronic pen 1 in the position indicator embodiment] The electronic pen 1 in this embodiment is configured to include two functional modules: a first functional module 11 and a second functional module 12.

[0028] The first functional module 11 is equipped with a core body 111 (see Figure 1) whose tip 111a contacts the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, and also has a position detection signal transmission unit that sends a position detection signal to the position detection sensor 20. In this example, the first functional module 11 also has the function of detecting the pressure information applied to the core body 111 and supplying it to the position detection sensor 20 along with the position detection signal. In the following description of the embodiments, the first functional module 11 will be referred to as the position detection module 11.

[0029] In this embodiment, the second functional module 12 includes one or both of the following two functions. Specifically, one of the two functions of the second functional module 12 is to generate information (hereinafter referred to as characteristic selection information) for selecting a display mode when displaying the handwriting trace as the trajectory of the indicated position on the input surface 2a by the electronic pen 1 in the PC 3, and to transmit the generated characteristic selection information to the PC 3 in this example. That is, for this function, the second functional module 12 includes an information generation unit that generates characteristic selection information and a transmission unit that transmits the generated characteristic selection information.

[0030] Here, the display manner when displaying the handwriting trace includes the attributes of the lines of the handwriting trace, such as line density and line thickness, as well as the characteristics (appearance) of the lines of the handwriting trace, such as the wobble of the lines, which depends on the characteristics of the lead body 111 and the material of the input surface 2a.

[0031] Furthermore, the other of the two functions of the second functional module 12 is to provide the user holding the electronic pen 1 with the same kind of stimulation through the housing of the electronic pen 1 as when the user is writing by bringing the tip of the pen body 111 of the electronic pen 1 into contact with the input surface 2a. In this embodiment, for this second function, the second functional module 12 has a stimulation generating unit that generates stimulation that the user holding the electronic pen 1 perceives through hearing and / or touch. An example of a means for generating stimulation that can be perceived through hearing is a speaker, and an example of a means for generating stimulation that can be perceived through touch is a vibrator.

[0032] The drive source for driving the stimulus generation unit is a drive signal generated based on characteristic selection information generated by the information generation unit. This drive signal may be generated by the electronic pen 1 or obtained from the PC 3. When obtained from the PC 3, the characteristic selection information generated by the information generation unit is supplied to the PC 3, and the PC 3, upon receiving this information, generates a drive signal from the characteristic selection information and returns it to the electronic pen 1.

[0033] Furthermore, the drive signal may be supplied to an electronic pen other than the electronic pen 1 that received the characteristic selection information. In this case, a stimulus corresponding to the characteristics of the core and the input surface in the usage conditions of the electronic pen 1 that generated the characteristic selection information will be transmitted to the other electronic pen 1.

[0034] The second functional module 12 may combine the two functions of the information generation unit and the stimulus generation unit described above, or it may be configured to have only one of them.

[0035] Since this will add additional extended functions to the electronic pen 1 besides the position indication function, the second function module 12 will hereafter be referred to as the extended function module 12.

[0036] [Example of the arrangement of the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 in the electronic pen 1] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the arrangement of the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 in the electronic pen 1. The electronic pen 1 has a rod-shaped pen housing 13, and the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are arranged side by side in the axial direction of this rod-shaped pen housing 13. In this case, the position detection module 11 includes a core 111, and the tip portion 111a of the core 111 is configured to be able to protrude to the outside through an opening provided on one side in the axial direction of the pen housing 13.

[0037] In the example electronic pen 1 shown in Figure 2(A), the position detection module 11 and the extension module 12 are integrated into a single structure. In this case, the position detection module 11 and the extension module 12 may be provided on a single common circuit board, or they may be formed on separate circuit boards and then combined to form an integrated structure.

[0038] The integrated position detection module 11 and extension module 12 may be housed and fixed within the pen housing 13, or they may be embedded and fixed within the pen housing 13. In this case, as shown in Figure 2(A), the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 is configured to protrude outward from an opening on one side of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction (hereinafter referred to as the pen tip side).

[0039] The extension module 12 is equipped with an activation switch to activate the extension module 12. In the example shown in Figure 2(A), the activation switch is turned on and off by operating an operation unit 14A provided on the electronic pen 1 so that the user of the electronic pen 1 can operate it. In this example, as shown in Figure 2(A), the operation unit 14A is provided on the outer peripheral side of the pen housing 13 at a position corresponding to the fixed position of the extension module 12 inside the pen housing 13, so that it can be operated by the user. When the user makes a position instruction input by bringing the tip 111a of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 into contact with the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, the user operates the operation unit 14A to turn on the activation switch.

[0040] The position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12, which are integrated, may be configured as a cartridge and be detachable from the pen housing 13. In that case, the operation unit for turning the activation switch of the extension function module 12 on and off is provided on the other side in the axial direction of the pen housing 13 (hereinafter referred to as the tail end side), although it is not shown in the figures, and is configured to be coupled to the activation switch of the extension function module 12 of the cartridge mounted inside the pen housing 13 so as to be able to turn it on and off.

[0041] Alternatively, a cartridge consisting of an integrated position detection module 11 and an extension function module 12 may be coupled to a knock mechanism provided in the housing of the electronic pen 1, and in response to a knock operation by the user, the knock mechanism may cause the pen tip side of the position detection module 11 (the tip portion 111a of the core body 111) to extend and retract to the outside through an opening provided on one side in the axial direction of the pen housing 13.

[0042] In this configuration, where a knocking mechanism is used, the activation switch of the extension module 12 is configured to automatically turn on and off in response to a knocking operation by the user, as described in, for example, Patent Document No. 2016-184444. The activation switch is configured to turn on when the pen tip side of the position detection module 11 protrudes outward from an opening provided on one side of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction.

[0043] Alternatively, the pen housing 13 may be divided into two halves in the axial direction, with one half rotatable relative to the other. A cartridge consisting of an integrated position detection module 11 and an extension module 12 may be configured to move axially in accordance with the rotation of one housing portion relative to the other housing portion. The pen tip side of the position detection module 11 may be configured to extend and retract to the outside through an opening provided on one side of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction.

[0044] Even when the pen tip side of the position detection module 11 is configured to extend and retract to the outside through an opening provided on one side of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction by a rotation mechanism, as described in the above-mentioned Patent Document No. 2016-184444, the activation switch is configured to automatically turn on and off in response to the user's rotation operation, and the activation switch is configured to turn on when the pen tip side of the position detection module 11 is protruding to the outside through the opening provided on one side of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction.

[0045] Next, in the example electronic pen 1 shown in Figure 2(B), the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are configured separately, and the extension function module 12 is housed and fixed within the pen housing 13, or embedded and fixed within the pen housing 13. In this example, as shown in Figure 2(B), an operation unit 14B is provided on the outer peripheral side of the pen housing 13 at a position corresponding to the position where the extension function module 12 is fixed within the pen housing 13, and can be operated by the user to turn the activation switch of the extension function module 12 on and off.

[0046] In the example shown in Figure 2(B), the position detection module 11 may be housed and fixed within the pen housing 13, or embedded and fixed within the pen housing 13, or it may be configured to be detachable from the pen housing 13.

[0047] In the example electronic pen 1 shown in Figure 2(C), the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are configured separately, and the extension function module 12 is detachable from the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1, with a part of its housing protruding from the rear end opening of the pen housing 13. In this example, as shown in Figure 2(C), the operation unit 14C for turning the activation switch of the extension function module 12 on and off is provided on the part of the housing of the extension function module 12 that protrudes from the rear end of the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1, and is operable by the user.

[0048] In the example shown in Figure 2(C), the position detection module 11 may be housed and fixed within the pen housing 13, or embedded and fixed within the pen housing 13, or it may be configured to be detachable from the pen housing 13.

[0049] In the example of the electronic pen 1 described above, the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are arranged in a single pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1. However, the pen housing 13 may be divided into two parts, such as the main body housing and the cap, and configured to be connectable in the axial direction, with the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 being arranged separately in each of these two divided housing parts.

[0050] Figure 3 shows an example of an electronic pen 1 in which the pen housing 13 is divided into a main housing portion 13M and a cap portion 13C. In this example, as shown in Figures 3(A) and (B), a position detection module 11 is disposed inside the main housing portion 13M, and an expansion function module 12 is disposed inside the cap portion 13C.

[0051] In this example, the main housing portion 13M has a cylindrical shape with a predetermined outer diameter R and an opening 13Ma at one end in the axial direction, as shown in Figures 3(A) and (B). The position detection module 11 is disposed inside this main housing portion 13M with the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 protruding from the opening 13Ma. In this example, the other end of the main housing portion 13M in the axial direction is closed.

[0052] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 3(A) and (B), the cap portion 13C includes a storage portion 13Ca for housing the expansion function module 12 and a recess 13Cb that covers one end or the rear end of the main housing portion 13M in the axial direction. The inner diameter of the recess 13Cb is slightly larger than the outer diameter R of the main housing portion 13M. In this example, a wall portion 13Cc is provided between the storage portion 13Ca and the recess 13Cb, and a push button 14D, which constitutes an operation unit for turning the activation switch of the expansion function module 12 on and off, is provided on this wall portion 13Cc.

[0053] And a ring-shaped protrusion 13Cd is formed at a position on the inner peripheral wall surface of the concave portion 13Cb of the cap portion 13C that is separated from the bottom surface of the concave portion 13Cb by a predetermined distance L1. On the other hand, ring-shaped grooves 13Mb and 13Mc that fit with the ring-shaped protrusion 13Cd of the cap portion 13C are formed on the outer peripheral side surface of the main body housing portion 13M on the opening 13Ma side and the tail end side. As shown in FIGS. 3(A) and (B), the ring-shaped groove 13Mb on the opening 13Ma side of the outer peripheral side surface of the main body housing portion 13M is formed at a position separated from the tip of the opening 13Ma by a distance L2 (<L1), and the ring-shaped groove 13Mc on the tail end side of the outer peripheral side surface of the main body housing portion 13M is formed at a position separated from the end surface on the tail end side by a distance L3 (L2 < L3 < L1).

[0054] In this case, as shown in FIG. 3(A), the distance L2 is determined such that when the cap portion 13C is placed to cover the opening 13Ma side of the main body housing portion 13M and the ring-shaped protrusion 13Cd of the cap portion 13C is fitted and locked into the ring-shaped groove 13Mb on the opening 13Ma side of the main body housing portion 13M, the push button 14D provided on the wall portion 13Cc at the bottom of the concave portion 13Cb of the cap portion 13C is not pressed by the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 and the opening 13Ma side of the main body housing portion 13M.

[0055] Also, as shown in FIG. 3(B), the distance L3 is determined such that when the cap portion 13C is placed to cover the tail end side of the main body housing portion 13M and the ring-shaped protrusion 13Cd of the cap portion 13C is fitted and locked into the ring-shaped groove 13Mc on the tail end side of the main body housing portion 13M, the push button 14D provided on the wall portion 13Cc at the bottom of the concave portion 13Cb of the cap portion 13C is pressed by the end surface on the tail end side of the position detection module 11.

[0056] In other words, when the cap portion 13C is placed over the opening 13Ma side of the main housing portion 13M and locked to the main housing portion 13M, the push button 14D is not pressed, and the activation switch of the extension module 12 remains off. On the other hand, when the cap portion 13C is placed over the tail end side of the main housing portion 13M and locked to the main housing portion 13M, the push button 14D is pressed, the activation switch of the extension module 12 turns on, and the extension module 12 starts operating.

[0057] Alternatively, the cap portion 13C may be attached to the tail end of the main body housing portion 13M, and the cap portion 13C may be configured to be rotatable relative to the main body housing portion 13M, so that the cartridge consisting of the position detection module 11 housed inside the main body housing portion 13M can move in the axial direction in accordance with the rotation of the cap portion 13C relative to the main body housing portion 13M, and the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 may be configured to extend and retract to the outside through an opening provided on one side of the main body housing portion 13M in the axial direction.

[0058] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an electronic pen 1 that has a structure that allows the tip 111a of the core 111 of the cartridge of the position detection module 11 to extend and retract in a rotatable manner. In this example, the electronic pen 1 is configured such that the cap portion 13CR is rotatably fitted to the main body housing portion 13MR.

[0059] In this example, a position detection module 11 configured as a cartridge is disposed inside the main housing 13MR. A rotating retraction mechanism 15 is provided at the tail end 13MRt of the main housing 13MR, which rotates the cap 13CR relative to the main housing 13MR, causing the tip 111a of the core 111 of the cartridge-configured position detection module 11 to extend and retract from the opening of the main housing 13MR.

[0060] The rotating retractable mechanism 15 is configured to be screwed into the tail end 13MRt of the main housing 13MR, and by removing the rotating retractable mechanism 15 from the main housing 13MR, the cartridge-configured position detection module 11 can be inserted into and removed from the main housing 13MR. The tail end of the cartridge-configured position detection module 11 is inserted into and held by the rotating retractable mechanism 15. The cap 13CR is rotatable relative to the main housing 13MR, but it is configured to fit with the rotating retractable mechanism 15, allowing rotation to be applied to the rotating retractable mechanism 15.

[0061] The cap portion 13CR is equipped with an expansion module 12, similar to the example described above. The cap portion 13CR is also provided with a fitting portion 13CRa that engages with the rotating retraction mechanism 15 when the cap portion 13CR is placed over the tail end of the main housing portion 13MR. Therefore, when the cap portion 13CR is rotated as indicated by the arrow AR in Figure 4(A), the rotating retraction mechanism 15 rotates simultaneously, causing the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 of the cartridge configuration's position detection module 11 to extend and retract from the opening in the main housing portion 13MR.

[0062] In this example of the electronic pen 1, as shown in Figures 4(A) and (B), a permanent magnet 16a is provided on the tail end 13MRt side of the main body housing 13MR, and a magnetic sensor 16b is provided on the cap portion 13CR, in positions such that they are close to each other due to the rotation of the cap portion 13CR. The magnetic sensor 16b is then connected to a control circuit that controls the on / off state of the activation switch, which is provided in the extension function module 12 inside the cap portion 13CR.

[0063] In this example of the electronic pen 1, as shown in Figure 4(A), when the entire position detection module 11, including the tip 111a of the core body 111, is housed within the main body housing 13MR, the permanent magnet 16a and the magnetic sensor 16b are relatively far apart. Therefore, the magnetic sensor 16b does not detect the magnetic flux from the permanent magnet 16a, its sensor output becomes low, and the activation switch of the extension function module 12 remains in the off state.

[0064] From this state, when the cap portion 13CR is rotated and the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 protrudes from the main body housing portion 13MR, the permanent magnet 16a and the magnetic sensor 16b come into close proximity. Therefore, the magnetic sensor 16b detects the magnetic flux from the permanent magnet 16a, and its sensor output becomes high level, the activation switch of the extension function module 12 is turned on, and the extension function module 12 enters an operational state. In other words, in this example of the electronic pen 1, when the tip portion 111a of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 protrudes from the main body housing portion 13MR and position input becomes possible, the activation switch is turned on and the extension function module 12 also enters an operational state.

[0065] Furthermore, the detection of the rotational position of the cap portion 13CR relative to the main body housing portion 13MR is not limited to a configuration using a magnet and a magnetic sensor. For example, instead of a magnetic sensor, a switch member that turns on or off when the cap portion 13CR rotates from the state in Figure 4(A) to the state in Figure 4(B) may be provided on the cap portion 13CR, and the control circuit of the extension module 12 may monitor the on / off state of the switch member to control the on / off state of the activation switch.

[0066] [Materials for the electronic pen casing] Next, the pen housing 13, the main body housing 13M, 13MR, and the cap 13C, 13CR of the electronic pen 1 are made of resin, but wood may also be used. Alternatively, a combination of resin and wood may be used. Furthermore, some metal may also be used.

[0067] For example, as shown in Figures 2(A) to (C) above, a single pen housing 13 in which the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are arranged can be made of wood as shown in Figure 5.

[0068] In the example shown in Figure 5, a columnar piece of wood with a hexagonal cross-section is cut along its axis (through a cutting plane passing through the axis center) to form two casing halves 13W1 and 13W2. Then, on the cut end faces of each casing half 13W1 and 13W2, semicircular recesses 13W1a and 13W2a are formed along the axis, with the axis center of the original hexagonal column as the center of the recess.

[0069] Then, the housing halves 13W1 and 13W2 are joined together at their cut ends to form a pen housing 13W having a cylindrical hollow portion 13W3 consisting of recesses 13W1a and 13W2a, as shown in the cross-sectional view of Figure 6(A). Then, as shown in Figure 6(A), the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 are arranged axially within the cylindrical hollow portion 13W3 of the pen housing 13W. In this example, the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 are configured as cartridges in which their components are housed in elongated rod-shaped housings 11K and 12K, respectively.

[0070] In this case, as shown in Figures 6(A) and (B), a locking part 17 is provided at an intermediate position in the axial direction of the cylindrical hollow portion of the pen housing 13W, for locking the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 inside the pen housing 13W, and is fixed to the pen housing 13W so that it cannot move in the axial direction.

[0071] In this example, the locking portion 17 has a fitting projection 17a on the position detection module 11 side that engages with a fitting recess 11p provided at the tail end of the housing 11K of the position detection module 11. On the extension module 12 side of the locking portion 17, there is a fitting projection 17b that engages with a fitting recess 12p provided at the tail end of the electronic pen 1 on the housing 12K of the extension module 12.

[0072] Therefore, in this example of the electronic pen 1, the position detection module 11 is inserted into the wooden pen housing 13W from the pen tip side opening, with the fitting recess 11p side leading, and pushed in. This causes the fitting recess 11p to engage with the fitting projection 17a of the locking part 17, and the module can be locked inside the pen housing 13W. In the locked state, a portion of the tip side of the housing 11K of the position detection module 11 and the tip 111a of the core body 111 protrude outside the pen housing 13W. The position detection module 11 can be removed from the pen housing 13W by grasping and pulling on these protruding parts. In other words, the position detection module 11 is replaceable.

[0073] Furthermore, by inserting and pushing the extension module 12 from the opening at the rear end of the wooden pen housing 13W, with the mating recess 12p side leading, the mating recess 12p engages with the mating projection 17b of the locking part 17, and the module can be locked inside the pen housing 13W. Although not shown in the diagram, in this example, the activation switch provided on the extension module 12 is turned on when the mating recess 12p engages with the mating projection 17b of the locking part 17, and the extension module 12 becomes operational.

[0074] Furthermore, a fitting recess is provided on the end face of the extension module 12 that is exposed on the tail end side of the pen housing 13W. By fitting a removal jig into this fitting recess and pulling, the extension module 12 can be removed from the pen housing 13W. In other words, the extension module 12 is replaceable. In addition, the extension module 12 can also be removed from the pen housing 13W by configuring it so that a part of the tail end side of the extension module 12 protrudes outward from the tail end side of the pen housing 13W when locked, and gripping and pulling the protruding part.

[0075] Furthermore, the configuration for turning the activation switch of the extension module 12 on and off is not limited to the example described above. For example, an operating part for turning the activation switch of the extension module 12 on and off may be provided on the tail end side of the extension module 12, protruding from the tail end side of the pen housing 13W, and the activation switch of the extension module 12 may be turned on and off by, for example, pressing the operating part.

[0076] In the examples shown in Figures 6 and 7, the locking portion 17 is provided with fitting protrusions 17a and 17b, and the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 are provided with fitting recesses 11p and 12p. However, conversely, the locking portion 17 may be provided with fitting recesses, and the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 may be provided with fitting protrusions. Alternatively, one of the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 may be provided with fitting recesses and the other with fitting protrusions, while the locking portion 17 may be provided with corresponding fitting protrusions and fitting recesses.

[0077] The electronic circuits of the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12 may sometimes require a power supply voltage. Considering this, as shown in Figure 7, a battery 17E can be provided in the locking portion 17, and the fitting recess 11p of the position detection module 11 and the fitting projection 17a of the locking portion 17 can be made of a conductor, such as a conductive metal. Furthermore, the fitting recess 12p of the expansion function module 12 and the fitting projection 17b of the locking portion 17 can also be made of a conductor, such as a conductive metal. This configuration allows the battery 17E to supply power to the position detection module 11 and the expansion function module 12.

[0078] Furthermore, the electronic circuit of the position detection module 11 may be configured in a way that does not require a power supply voltage. In that case, it is not necessary to make the fitting recess 11p of the position detection module 11 and the fitting projection 17a of the locking part 17 out of a conductor.

[0079] The battery 17E may be a primary battery or a rechargeable secondary battery. When the battery 17E is a secondary battery, charging electrodes may be provided on the outer surface of the pen housing 13W. Alternatively, the secondary battery 17E may be configured to be charged non-contact by electromagnetic induction or electric field induction.

[0080] [Example configuration of the position detection module 11] The position detection module 11 may use either an electromagnetic induction method or a capacitive method.

[0081] <Example of electromagnetic induction method> Figure 8 shows an example configuration of an electromagnetic induction type position detection module 11M. In this example, the position detection module 11M comprises a coil 113M wound around a magnetic core, such as a ferrite core 112M, a pen pressure detection unit 114M, and a circuit board 115M. The ferrite core 112M has an axial through hole (not shown), and the core body 111 MThe ferrite core 112M is inserted through this through hole. The end of the core 111M opposite to the tip 111Ma, which has been inserted through the through hole of the ferrite core 111M, is fitted into the pressure detection unit 114M. The core 111M is made of a non-conductive material, such as resin.

[0082] The pressure detection unit 114M detects the pressure (pen pressure) applied to the tip 111Ma of the pen tip 111M when writing input is performed by bringing the tip 111Ma of the pen tip 111M into contact with the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. In this example, it is configured to detect the pressure as a change in capacitance, which is a well-known method.

[0083] As shown in Figure 9, the circuit board 115M is provided with a capacitor 116M that, together with the coil 113M, constitutes a resonant circuit. In this example, as shown in Figure 9, the circuit board 115M has a resonant circuit RC1 formed in parallel with the coil 113M, in which the capacitor 116M and the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC, which is composed of a pen pressure detection unit 114M, are connected.

[0084] Furthermore, the electromagnetic induction type position detection module 11M can also be configured to supply a signal to the position detection sensor of the tablet 2 in response to the on / off operation of a side switch that can be operated by the user. Figure 10 shows the position detection module with a side switch. 11 This figure shows an example of the configuration of M.

[0085] In other words, as shown in Figure 10, the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1 in this example is provided with a side switch 118, and a position detection module 11 is provided on the outer circumference of the pen tip side of the pen housing 13. M A position detection module 11 is used as a component to shift the resonant frequency of the resonant circuit RC1. MA coil 117 is provided that is magnetically coupled to the coil 113M of the resonant circuit so as to mutually inductively couple with it. The side switch 118 is configured to be turned on by pressing the operating part 118a and is connected between one end 117a and the other end 117b of the coil 117. In this example, a capacitor is provided in series with the side switch 118.

[0086] Figure 11 shows an example of the circuit configuration of the electronic pen 1 equipped with the position detection module 11M shown in Figure 10, as well as an example of the circuit configuration of the position detection device 200M of the tablet 2, which performs position detection by electromagnetic induction coupling with the electronic pen 1.

[0087] In other words, the electronic pen 1 includes a first resonant circuit RC1, which is formed by connecting in parallel a coil 113M, a capacitor 116M, and a variable capacitance capacitor 114MC, which is composed of a pressure-sensing unit 114M, as part of the circuit configuration of the position detection module 11M. Furthermore, a side switch 118 and a capacitor 119 are connected between one end 117a and the other end 117b of a coil 117 provided on the housing 13 of the electronic pen 1. When the side switch 118 is turned on, a closed circuit of a second resonant circuit RC2, consisting of the coil 117 and the capacitor 119, is generated. Alternatively, the capacitor 119 may be omitted, and the closed circuit may simply be formed by connecting one end and the other end of the coil 117 when the side switch 118 is turned on.

[0088] In the electronic pen 1, when the side switch 118 is off, the second resonant circuit RC2 is not formed, and no closed circuit is formed that allows current to flow through the coil 117. In this case, no mutual induction occurs between the coil 113M of the first resonant circuit RC1 of the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 and the coil 117 of the second resonant circuit RC2. Therefore, the resonant frequency of the resonant circuit RC1 of the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 becomes the frequency f1 determined by the coil 113M, the capacitor 116M, and the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC.

[0089] On the other hand, in the electronic pen 1, when the side switch 118 is turned on by the user's operation, a resonant circuit RC2 consisting of a coil 117 and a capacitor 119 is generated, and a closed circuit is formed in which current flows through the coil 117. Then, the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 M The resonant frequency of the first resonant circuit RC1 causes mutual induction between the coil 113M and the coil 117 of the second resonant circuit RC2. Therefore, the position detection module 11 for the electronic pen 1 M The resonant frequency of the resonant circuit RC1 is a frequency f2 that is different from the aforementioned frequency f1.

[0090] On the other hand, the position detection device 200M is configured to include an electromagnetic induction type position detection sensor 201 and a position detection circuit 202. The position detection sensor 201 is configured by stacking an X-axis direction loop coil group 201X and a Y-axis direction loop coil group 201Y.

[0091] The position detection circuit 202 consists of an oscillator 204, a current driver 205, a selection circuit 206, a switching connection circuit 207, a receiving amplifier 208, a position detection circuit 209, a pen pressure detection circuit 210, a side switch operation detection circuit 211, and a control unit 212. The control unit 212 is composed of a microprocessor. The control unit 212 controls the selection of the loop coil in the selection circuit 206, the switching of the switching connection circuit 207, and the processing timing in the position detection circuit 209 and the pen pressure detection circuit 210.

[0092] The X-axis loop coil group 201X and the Y-axis loop coil group 201Y of the position detection sensor 201 are connected to the selection circuit 206. The selection circuit 206 sequentially selects one of the two loop coil groups 201X and 201Y. The oscillator 204 generates an AC signal with frequency f0. The oscillator 204 supplies the generated AC signal to the current driver 205 and the pressure sensitivity detection circuit 210. The current driver 205 converts the AC signal supplied from the oscillator 204 into current and sends it to the switching connection circuit 207.

[0093] The switching connection circuit 207, under control from the control unit 212, switches the connection destination (transmitting terminal T, receiving terminal R) to which the loop coil selected by the selection circuit 206 is connected. Of these connection destinations, the current driver 205 is connected to the transmitting terminal T, and the receiving amplifier 208 is connected to the receiving terminal R. When the position detection sensor 201 transmits a signal, the switching connection circuit 207 is switched to the terminal T side, and conversely, when the position detection sensor 201 receives an external signal, the switching connection circuit 207 is switched to the terminal R side.

[0094] When the switching connection circuit 207 is switched to terminal T, current from the current driver 205 is supplied to the loop coil selected by the selection circuit 206. This generates a magnetic field in the loop coil, which is then detected by the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 facing it. M It is possible to transmit a signal (radio wave) to act on the first resonant circuit RC1.

[0095] On the other hand, when the switching connection circuit 207 is switched to terminal R, the induced voltage generated in the loop coil selected by the selection circuit 206 is sent to the receiving amplifier 208 via the selection circuit 206 and the switching connection circuit 207. The receiving amplifier 208 amplifies the induced voltage supplied from the loop coil and sends it to the position detection circuit 209, the pen pressure detection circuit 210, and the side switch operation detection circuit 211.

[0096] In other words, each loop coil in the X-axis loop coil group 201X and the Y-axis loop coil group 201Y is equipped with a position detection module 11 for the electronic pen 1. M An induced voltage is generated by the radio waves transmitted (received back) from the first resonant circuit RC1.

[0097] The position detection circuit 209 is connected to the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1. MThe induced voltage generated in the loop coil, i.e., the received signal, is detected for the resonant frequency component of the first resonant circuit RC1. This detected output signal is converted into a digital signal and output to the control unit 212.

[0098] The control unit 212 controls the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 based on the digital signals for the resonant frequency components from the position detection circuit 209, i.e., the levels of the voltage values ​​of the induced voltages generated in each loop coil. M Core body 111 M tip portion 111 M Calculate the coordinate values ​​of the indicated positions of point a in the X and Y directions.

[0099] The pressure sensitivity circuit 210 synchronously detects the received signal from the receiving amplifier 208 using the AC signal from the oscillator 204, and based on the frequency difference (phase difference) between the two signals, the position detection module 11 for the electronic pen 1 is determined. M Core body 111 M tip portion 111 M The pen pressure applied to point a is detected.

[0100] The side switch operation detection circuit 211 detects the position of the electronic pen 1 based on the frequency of the output signal from the receiving amplifier 208. M The first resonant circuit RC1 is detected, and it is determined whether the detected frequency is the resonant frequency when the side switch 118 is off or on, and the detection result is output to the control unit 212. Based on the output of this side switch operation detection circuit 211, the control unit 212 detects whether the side switch 118 is on or off.

[0101] The control unit 212 transmits the coordinate values ​​of the position indicated by the electronic pen 1, the pressure value, and the detection result of whether the side switch 118 is on or off to the PC 3 as output from the tablet 2.

[0102] In the example of the electronic pen 1 described above, the position detection module 11 MEven if the cartridge is configured to be housed within the pen housing 13, the side switch 118 can still be provided on the electronic pen 1.

[0103] The electromagnetic induction type position detection module 11M described above does not require a power supply, and the pressure detection output of the pressure detection unit 114M is configured to be detected by the position detection device as a change in the resonant frequency of the resonant circuit RC1. M Alternatively, the pressure detection output of the pressure detection unit 114M can be configured to be transmitted to the position detection device 200M side as, for example, a digital value. In this case, the position detection module 11 M This requires a control circuit and a power supply voltage. Position detection module 11 M The power supply voltage may be generated by providing a battery, but it is also possible to generate the power supply voltage by receiving energy from the position detection sensor without providing a battery, as shown in the following configuration.

[0104] Figure 12 shows the position detection module 11 when configured in this way. M This shows an example of the configuration of the electronic circuit 40 on the circuit board 115M. In this example, the position detection module 11 for the electronic pen 1 M The resonant circuit 40R is electromagnetically coupled with the conductor of the position detection sensor of the tablet 2, thereby transmitting and receiving position detection signals, as well as the pressure information detected by the pressure detection unit 114M and the position detection module 11 M The system is configured to transmit the identification information of the position detection module 11M (hereinafter, the identification information of the position detection module 11M will be referred to as identification information ID1) to the position detection sensor 201 of the tablet 2.

[0105] In other words, in the electronic circuit 40, as shown in Figure 12, a capacitor 116M is connected in parallel to the coil 113M to form a resonant circuit 40R. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 12, the electronic circuit 40 includes a control circuit 401 that controls the transmission of pen pressure information and identification information as additional information. In this example, this control circuit 401 is configured as an IC (Integrated Circuit).

[0106] The IC constituting this control circuit 401 is configured to operate using Vcc, which is a power supply obtained by rectifying an AC signal received by electromagnetic coupling from the position detection sensor 201 of the tablet 2 in a resonant circuit 40R, using a rectifier circuit (power supply circuit) 404 consisting of a diode 402 and a capacitor 403.

[0107] In this example, a switch circuit 405, which is normally open, is provided between the resonant circuit 40R and the rectifier circuit 404. A switch control circuit 406 is also provided, which generates a switch control signal to turn on the switch circuit 405 from the AC signal received from the position detection sensor 201 of the tablet 2 through the resonant circuit 40R. When the electronic pen 1 is brought near the tablet 2, the switch circuit 405 is turned on by the switch control signal from the switch control circuit 406, a power supply voltage Vcc is generated from the rectifier circuit 404, and the control circuit 401 becomes operational.

[0108] In this example, a switch circuit 407, which is controlled on / off by a control circuit 401, is connected in parallel to the resonant circuit 40R, which is composed of a coil 113M and a capacitor circuit 116M. The control circuit 401 receives a timing signal sent from the tablet 2 via a capacitor 408, and controls the operation and non-operation of the resonant circuit 40R by controlling the on / off state of the switch circuit 407 based on this timing signal, thereby transmitting additional digital information as described later.

[0109] Furthermore, in this example, as shown in Figure 12, the control circuit 401 is connected to a variable capacitance capacitor 114MC which is composed of a pen pressure detection unit 114M, and this variable capacitance capacitor 114MC A resistor R is connected in parallel to it. The control circuit 401 charges the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC, then discharges it through the resistor R, and measures the time it takes for the voltage across the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC to reach a predetermined threshold, thereby measuring the capacitance of the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC.

[0110] The control circuit 401 calculates the pen pressure value from the measured capacitance value of the variable capacitance capacitor 114MC. The control circuit 401 then converts the calculated pen pressure value information into a multi-bit digital signal and controls the on / off state of the switch circuit 407 to transmit the pen pressure value information to the tablet 2 as an ASK (Amplitude Shift Keying) modulated signal or an OOK (On Off Keying) modulated signal at a timing that is temporally separated from the position detection signal.

[0111] In this example, the control circuit 401 is connected to an ID memory 409. The position detection module 11 is connected to this ID memory 409. M The identification information ID11M stores a unique multi-bit digital signal, which includes, for example, the manufacturer number and product number.

[0112] The control circuit 401 reads the identification information ID11M stored in the ID memory 409 and controls the switch circuit 407 to turn on and off, thereby transmitting the identification information ID11M to the tablet 2 as an ASK modulated signal or an OOK modulated signal at a different timing from the position detection signal and pressure value information mentioned above.

[0113] <Example of a capacitive system> Figure 13 shows an example of the configuration of a capacitive position detection module 11C. In this example, the position detection module 11C comprises a core body 111C made of a conductive material, such as a conductive metal, a pen pressure detection unit 114C, and a signal transmission circuit 115C. In this example, a primary battery 116CE is provided as a power supply circuit 116C. In this example, the signal transmission circuit 115C is composed of an LC oscillator circuit that utilizes resonance between a coil and a capacitor.

[0114] The end of the pen tip 111C opposite to the tip 111Ca is fitted into the pressure detection unit 114C. The pressure detection unit 114C detects the pressure (pen pressure) applied to the tip 111Ca of the pen tip 111C when writing input is performed by bringing the tip 111Ca of the pen tip 111C into contact with the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. In this example, the pressure detection unit 114C is a well-known type that detects pressure as a change in capacitance, similar to the pressure detection unit 114M.

[0115] The variable capacitance capacitor 114CC, which is part of the pressure sensitivity detection unit 114C, is connected to the signal transmission circuit 115C. The resonant frequency of the LC resonant circuit that makes up the signal transmission circuit 115C changes according to the capacitance of the variable capacitance capacitor 114CC. In other words, the frequency of the frequency signal output from the signal transmission circuit 115C changes according to the capacitance of the variable capacitance capacitor 114CC.

[0116] In this example, the signal emitting circuit 115C is supplied with a power voltage from the primary battery 116CE, and the signal output terminal of this signal emitting circuit 115C is connected to a core body 111C made of a conductive material.

[0117] In the example shown in Figure 13(B), the electronic pen 1 equipped with the position detection module 11C sends a frequency signal from the signal transmission circuit 115C to the position detection sensor of the capacitive position detection device of the tablet 2 via the core body 111C.

[0118] Figure 14 shows another example of a capacitive position detection module 11C, in which an electric double-layer capacitor 1161 charged by an electromagnetic induction charging circuit is used as the power supply circuit 116C instead of a primary battery.

[0119] In other words, in the position detection module 11C of this example, as shown in Figure 14(A), a coil 113C is wound around a magnetic core, such as a ferrite core 112C, which has a through hole through which the core body 111C passes. The core body 111C is fitted into the pressure detection unit 114C through the through hole in the ferrite core 112C.

[0120] When the electronic pen 1 is attached to a charger (not shown), the alternating magnetic field generated by the charger induces an electromotive force in the coil 113C of the position detection module 11C, which charges the electric double-layer capacitor 1161 via the diode 1162, as shown in Figure 14(B). The voltage conversion circuit 1163 then converts the voltage stored in the electric double-layer capacitor 1161 into a constant voltage and supplies it as the power source for the signal transmission circuit 115C. The signal transmission circuit 115C, having received the power supply, sends a signal of a predetermined frequency through the core body 111C to the position detection sensor of the capacitive position detection device of the tablet 2.

[0121] Figure 15 shows an example of the circuit configuration of a position detection device 200C for a tablet 2 that performs position detection by capacitive coupling with an electronic pen 1 equipped with a position detection module 11C in this example.

[0122] As shown in Figure 15, the position detection device 200C in this example consists of a capacitive position detection sensor 220 and a position detection circuit 230 connected to the position detection sensor 220. In this example, the position detection sensor 220 consists of, for example, a plurality of first conductors 221Y1, 221Y2, ..., 221Y m A first group of conductors (where m is an integer greater than or equal to 1) arranged in parallel along the Y-axis, separated from each other by a predetermined distance, and the first group of conductors 221Y1~221Y mMultiple second conductors 222X1, 222X2, ..., 222X extend in a direction intersecting the direction of extension of the first conductor, in this example, in a perpendicular longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction). n The system includes a second group of conductors (where n is an integer greater than or equal to 1) arranged in parallel along the X-axis, separated from each other by a predetermined distance.

[0123] In the following explanation, the first conductor 221Y1~221Y m When it is not necessary to distinguish between the conductors, the conductor is referred to as the first conductor 221Y, and similarly, the second conductor 222X1~~222X n When it is not necessary to distinguish between the conductors, that conductor shall be referred to as the second conductor 222X.

[0124] The position detection circuit 230 consists of a selection circuit 231 which serves as an input / output interface with the position detection sensor 220, a position detection circuit 232, a pen pressure detection circuit 233, and a control circuit 234.

[0125] The selection circuit 231 is a control circuit. 234 Based on the control signal from the selection circuit 231, one conductor 221Y or 222X is selected from either the first or second conductor group. The position detection circuit 232 extracts only the frequency components of the signal transmitted from the position detection module 11C of the electronic pen 1 for the conductor selected by the selection circuit 231, and outputs information corresponding to the signal level of the extracted frequency components to the control circuit 234. Based on this information corresponding to the signal level from the position detection circuit 232, the control circuit 234 calculates the position coordinates on the position detection sensor 220 indicated by the tip 111Ca of the core body 111C of the position detection module 11C of the electronic pen 1.

[0126] The pressure sensitivity circuit 233 detects the frequency of the frequency signal transmitted from the position detection module 11C of the electronic pen 1 and supplies the detected frequency information to the control circuit 234. The control circuit 234 calculates the pressure sensitivity value detected by the pressure sensitivity unit 114C from the frequency information from the pressure sensitivity circuit 233.

[0127] The control circuit 234 then supplies the calculated coordinate values ​​of the position indicated by the electronic pen 1 and the pressure values ​​to the PC 3.

[0128] In the capacitive position detection module 11C described above, the pressure sensitivity information is transmitted to the tablet 2 as a frequency change of the frequency signal from the signal transmission circuit 115C. However, similar to the electronic circuit of the electromagnetic induction type position detection module 11M example shown in Figure 12, the pressure sensitivity information may also be transmitted to the position detection device of the tablet 2 by ASK modulating or OOK modulating the frequency signal from the signal transmission circuit 115C. Furthermore, the identification information ID 11C of the position detection module 11C can also be transmitted to the position detection device of the tablet 2 by ASK modulating or OOK modulating the frequency signal from the signal transmission circuit 115C.

[0129] Furthermore, in the electronic pen 1 using this capacitive position detection module 11C, if the signal transmission circuit 115C is configured to use an LC oscillator circuit, as shown in Figure 10, by providing a coil 117 and a side switch 118 around the housing 13 of the electronic pen 1, the frequency of the frequency signal from the signal transmission circuit 115C can be changed according to the on / off state of the side switch 118, thus enabling the configuration to include a side switch.

[0130] Furthermore, the position detection module 11M and position detection module 11C described above contain information on pen pressure values ​​and identification information. ID11M or ID11C Such additional information may be transmitted to the tablet 2 separately from the position detection signal by, for example, providing a wireless communication unit that conforms to the Bluetooth® standard. However, in that case, the position detection module 11M must also be provided with a power supply circuit.

[0131] [Example configuration for extension module 12] Next, an example configuration of the extension module 12 will be described. Figure 16 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of the extension module 12. As mentioned above, the extension module 12 in this example of Figure 16 includes an information generation unit 121 that generates characteristic selection information and a wireless communication unit 122 as an example of a transmission unit that transmits the generated characteristic selection information. In this example, the extension module 12 also includes a stimulus generation unit 123. Furthermore, in this example, the extension module 12 includes an ID memory 124 that stores identification information of the extension module 12 (hereinafter referred to as the identification information ID2 of the extension module 12). The identification information ID2 stored in the ID memory 124 is unique, including, for example, a manufacturer number or product number. Na It is considered information.

[0132] In this example, the extension module 12 is configured such that the information generation unit 121, the wireless communication unit 122, the stimulus generation unit 123, and the ID memory 124 are connected to a control circuit 120 that controls the overall operation of the extension module 12. The control circuit 120 is composed of a microprocessor and is configured to execute control operation processing by a pre-installed software program.

[0133] The first functional unit is composed of a control circuit 120, an information generation unit 121, and a wireless communication unit 122. Furthermore, the control circuit 120, the information generation unit 121, and the stimulus generation unit 123 Alternatively, the control circuit 120, the wireless communication unit 122, and the stimulus generation unit 124 constitute the second functional unit. Furthermore, the texture detection unit 10X, the control circuit 120, and the stimulus generation unit, which will be described later, are also included. 123 In some cases, a second functional unit is formed by the same component.

[0134] In this example, the extension module 12 is equipped with a power supply circuit 125, and the power supply voltage Vcc generated by this power supply circuit 125 is supplied to the control circuit 120, information generation unit 121, wireless communication unit 122, stimulus generation unit 123, and ID memory 124. The power supply circuit 125 is not shown in Figure 16, but it is equipped with an energy storage element such as a primary battery or a rechargeable secondary battery. In the example in Figure 16, a start switch consisting of a power switch 14S is connected to the power supply circuit 125, and when this power switch 14S is turned on, the power supply circuit 125 starts operating, the power supply voltage Vcc is supplied to the above-mentioned units, and the extension module 12 starts operating.

[0135] As mentioned above, it is not mandatory for the extension module 12 to include both the information generation unit 121 and the stimulus generation unit 123; it can be configured to include only one of them. Furthermore, the ID memory 124 is not mandatory and may be omitted. Additionally, instead of the wireless communication unit 122, the generated characteristic selection information may be transmitted to the PC3 via a wired connection.

[0136] In a writing instrument, the appearance of the writing trace is determined by the characteristics of the pen tip and the characteristics of the writing medium, such as paper, on which the writing is performed. Therefore, in this embodiment, the information generation unit 121 generates information for selecting the display mode when displaying the writing trace, which corresponds to the characteristics of the tip portion 111a of the lead body 111 that comes into contact with the input surface 2a, and the characteristics of the input surface 2a. In this case, the characteristic selection information can be generated as information acquired when the electronic pen 1 is actually brought into contact with the input surface 2a and writing is performed (referred to as actual characteristic selection information).

[0137] In this example, the information for selecting actual characteristics is acquired as the movement of the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 when the electronic pen 1 is actually brought into contact with the input surface 2a and writing force is applied. Therefore, in this example, the information generation unit 121 is composed of a motion sensor (movement sensor) for detecting movement corresponding to the movement of the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1. In this example, a gyro sensor (angular velocity sensor) 1211 and an acceleration sensor 1212 are provided as motion sensors. The information for selecting actual characteristics is also information corresponding to actual characteristics, which includes information on movement corresponding to the actual characteristics of the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 when the electronic pen 1 is actually brought into contact with the input surface 2a and writing force is applied.

[0138] For example, when a position instruction is input on an input surface 2a having predetermined surface roughness, thickness, hardness, and material properties, using the tip 111a of a core body 111 having predetermined hardness, shape, thickness, size, and material properties, the tip 111a of the core body 111 moves according to the properties of the input surface 2a. The gyro sensor 1211 and the acceleration sensor 1212 detect the movement corresponding to the movement of the tip 111a of the core body 111 and supply the detected movement detection output to the control circuit 120.

[0139] The control circuit 120 converts the motion detection outputs of the gyro sensor 1211 and acceleration sensor 1222 received from the information generation unit 121 into transmission signals for sending to the PC3 as actual characteristic selection information, and transmits them to the PC3 via the wireless communication unit 122. Note that the motion detection output transmitted via the wireless communication unit 122 of the extension module 12 is for position detection. for Since the core body 111 of module 11 is in contact with the input surface of the position detection sensor and synchronized with the writing input operation, it goes without saying that it is also synchronized in timing with the coordinate output and pressure value information sent to PC3 via tablet 2.

[0140] In this example, the control circuit 120 includes identification information ID2 read from the ID memory 124 in the transmission signal. On the PC3 side, this identification information ID2 is recognized as the identification information of the extension module 12, and may also be recognized as the identification information of the electronic pen 1 if identification information ID1 is not sent from the position detection module 11 to the PC3 via the tablet 2. When identification information ID1 is sent from the position detection module 11 to the PC3 via the tablet 2, the PC3 recognizes identification information ID1 and ID2 respectively as the identification information of the position detection module 11 itself (position detection module ID) and the identification information of the extension module 12 itself (extension module ID).

[0141] As described later, PC3 processes the received actual characteristic selection information by reflecting it in the display of the handwriting trace as a time-series change in the position indicated by the electronic pen 1 received from tablet 2. In this case, the actual characteristic selection information is used as actual identification corresponding information, which includes information on the movement of the pen tip corresponding to the actual characteristics.

[0142] Furthermore, PC3 uses the identification information received from electronic pen 1 (pen ID, position detection module ID, and extension function module ID) to define specific display attributes (e.g., color, darkness, thickness of the handwriting to be displayed) when displaying the handwriting traces made by electronic pen 1 on the display screen in PC3, or to define specific attributes (e.g., hardness, thinness) of the pen tip 111. In addition, PC3 also transmits the received actual characteristic selection information to other electronic pens for provision.

[0143] In this example, the stimulus generating unit 123 includes an actuator that generates stimuli that are perceived by the user holding the electronic pen 1 through hearing and / or touch, as described above. An example of a stimulus perceived through hearing is a sound (acoustic) stimulus, and in this example, a speaker 1231 is provided as an actuator (acoustic vibrator) that generates acoustic stimuli.

[0144] The stimuli perceived through touch include at least one of force, vibration, or movement, applied to the user holding the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1, and the stimulus generating unit 123 is equipped with actuators that generate these stimuli. In this example, a vibrator 1232 is provided as an actuator for providing vibration to the user. Note that a rotating vibrator or an expandable vibrator (such as an axis movement mechanism using a piezoelectric element or a movement mechanism that moves the axis forward / backward or left / right using a coil) can also be used as the actuator that generates the stimuli perceived through touch.

[0145] The speaker 1231 is provided so that the sound emitted can be heard by the user of the electronic pen 1. For this reason, although not shown in the diagram, the side surface of the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1 is provided with multiple through-holes to release the sound emitted by the speaker 1231 to the outside. The vibrator 1232 is provided so that the pen housing 13 vibrates through the extension module 12 by vibrating itself, and the user can feel that vibration.

[0146] In the extended function module 12 of the electronic pen 1 in this example, the control circuit 120, since the actual characteristic selection information received from the information generation unit 121 is also actual characteristic corresponding information, generates an audio signal corresponding to the sound produced by the friction between the input surface and the tip 111a of the core body 111 of the electronic pen 1 when the actual characteristic selection information is obtained, and also generates a vibration drive signal corresponding to the vibration felt by the user. In addition, the control circuit 120 similarly generates an audio signal and a vibration drive signal from the actual characteristic selection information received from the PC 3 via the wireless communication unit 122.

[0147] In this example, the control circuit 120 stores information in a correspondence table for audio signals and vibration drive signals corresponding to various real-world characteristics selected using the real-world characteristic selection information (consisting of various values ​​of motion detection output). Using this information in the correspondence table, the control circuit 120 generates audio signals and vibration drive signals from the information (motion detection output) corresponding to the real-world characteristics selected using the real-world characteristic selection information, which is generated by the information generation unit 121 or received via the wireless communication unit 122. This table information may be stored in the control circuit 120 in advance, but in this example, it is mainly stored in advance from the PC 3. The PC 3 can obtain the necessary table information from the server device 4 via the communication network 5. The same applies to other table information stored in the control circuit 120, which will be described later.

[0148] The control circuit 120 then supplies the generated audio signal to the speaker 1231 via the amplifier 1233, and the generated vibration drive signal to the vibrator 1232 via the drive circuit 1234. As a result, the user can perceive an audible stimulus from the speaker 1231 that corresponds to the actual characteristic selection information, and a vibration stimulus from the vibrator 1232 that corresponds to the actual characteristic selection information.

[0149] <Information for selecting desired characteristics> In this embodiment, instead of the actual characteristic selection information described above, the user is asked to specify the characteristics that the core 111 and / or input surface 2a should have (desired characteristics), and the electronic pen 1's extended function module 12 can transmit this desired characteristic specification information to the PC3. In the following description, the desired characteristic specification information will be referred to as desired characteristic selection information.

[0150] Figure 17 shows an example configuration of the extension module 12 in this example. As shown in Figure 17, in this example, an operating means 18 that can be operated by the user is provided so that the user of the electronic pen 1 can select and specify the desired characteristics that they want to have on the lead body 111. In this example, the information generation unit 121A of the second function module 12 is provided with an operation state detection unit 1213 that detects what the desired characteristics specified by the operating means 18 are, and a desired characteristic selection information generation unit 1214 that generates specification information as desired characteristic selection information based on the detection result of the operation state detection unit 1213.

[0151] In this case, the electronic pen 1 may be provided with both an operating means 18 for selecting and specifying the desired characteristics to be applied to the core body 111 and an operating means for selecting and specifying the desired characteristics to be applied to the input surface 2a, or it may be provided with only one of them.

[0152] Figures 18 and 19 show examples of operating means 18 for specifying desired characteristic selection information, respectively. The examples in Figures 18 and 19 are examples of operating means for selecting and specifying desired characteristics to be given to the lead body 111, and an example of a desired characteristic to be given to the lead body 111 is the selection of the hardness of the lead body 111. For example, in the case of a writing instrument called a pencil, English symbols such as "B", "H", "F", and "HB" are used as indicators to represent the hardness and darkness of the lead, and in this example, the English symbols representing the hardness and darkness of the pencil lead are selected as the information for specifying the desired characteristics of the lead body 111.

[0153] In the example shown in Figure 18, the operating means 18 is a rotating ring 18R located on the outer circumference of the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1, in the portion where the expansion function module 12 is provided inside the housing 13, as shown in Figure 18(A). Figure 18(A) shows the side of the rear end of the electronic pen 1 where the expansion function module 12 is provided, and Figure 18(B) is a cross-sectional view (AA cross-section) of the position of the rotating ring 18R in Figure 18(A).

[0154] As shown in Figures 18(A) and (B), the rotating ring 18R is disposed on the outer circumference of the pen housing 13 so as to be rotatable around the axial center of the pen housing 13. As shown in Figures 18(A) and (B), the portion of the pen housing 13 on which the rotating ring 18R is disposed is made of a transparent member 13T that allows ambient light to pass through. On the other hand, the rotating ring 18R has an opening 18Ra, which is a through hole, formed at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction. Therefore, ambient light enters the interior of the pen housing 13 through the opening 18Ra of the rotating ring 18R and the transparent member 13T of the pen housing 13.

[0155] The expansion function module 12, which is located inside the pen housing 13, uses a transparent housing that allows light to pass through, if a housing is provided. A light receiving sensor 19PD is positioned within the expansion function module 12 to receive light incident through the aperture 18Ra of the rotating ring 18R. This sensor is positioned along the circumference of the pen housing 13, centered on the axial center, to detect the light incident through the aperture 18Ra. 19 As shown in Figure 18(B), the PD has a configuration having multiple divided regions in the circumferential direction. The light receiving sensor PD constitutes the operation state detection unit 1213 of the information generation unit 121A.

[0156] This light receiving sensor 19 The light detection output in each divided region of the PD is supplied to the information generation unit 1214 for selecting desired characteristics of the information generation unit 121A. The information generation unit 1214 for selecting desired characteristics is a light receiving sensor 19 The rotational angular position of the aperture 18Ra of the rotating ring 18R is detected based on which of the multiple divided regions of the PD has the maximum level of photodetection output.

[0157] And in this example, the light receiving sensor 19Corresponding to each divided region of the PD, the hardness and darkness of the pencil lead, as characteristics of the core body 111, are pre-assigned as examples of desired characteristics. The desired characteristic selection information generation unit 1214 detects the hardness and darkness of the pencil lead assigned to the divided region of the light receiving sensor 19PD where the light detection output is at the maximum level, and generates desired characteristic selection information as information specifying the detected hardness and darkness of the pencil lead.

[0158] In this case, the information generation unit for selecting desired characteristics 1214 The control circuit 120 may include a correspondence table of information for selecting desired characteristics according to the hardness of the specified core 111, and may use this correspondence table information to generate information for selecting desired characteristics according to the hardness of the specified core. The control circuit 120 then transmits the information for selecting desired characteristics generated by the information generation unit 121A to the PC3 via the wireless communication unit 122.

[0159] Furthermore, the control circuit 120 stores information in a correspondence table of audio signals and vibration drive signals corresponding to various desired characteristics specified in the desired characteristic selection information. Using the information in this correspondence table, the control circuit 120 generates audio signals and vibration drive signals corresponding to the desired characteristics specified from the desired characteristic selection information, which are generated by the information generation unit 121A or received through the wireless communication unit 122.

[0160] As described later, PC3 processes the received desired characteristic selection information by reflecting it in the display of the handwriting trace, which is the time-series change of the position indicated by the electronic pen 1 received from tablet 2. PC3 can also transmit and provide the received desired characteristic selection information to other electronic pens.

[0161] As shown in Figure 18(A), near the rotating ring 18R of the pen housing 13, letters such as "F," "HB," and "H" are printed to indicate the hardness and darkness of the pencil lead, which can be specified as desired characteristics of the lead body 111. The user can specify the hardness of the lead body 111 as an example of desired characteristics by rotating the rotating ring 18R so that the position of the opening 18Ra corresponds to the position of the letter for the desired hardness of the lead body 111, using these printed letters as a guide.

[0162] Furthermore, using the rotating ring 18R, it is possible to specify the characteristics of the input surface 2a of the position detection sensor as the desired characteristics, rather than specifying the characteristics of the core body 111. In that case, the light receiving sensor 19 Each of the divided regions of the PD is assigned a different characteristic of the input surface 2a. For example, since the characteristics are determined by the material that makes up the input surface 2a, it is possible to assign and specify "glass surface," "hard resin surface," "soft resin surface," "Kent paper," "Japanese paper," etc.

[0163] The example in Figure 18 shows a case where the rotational angular position of the rotating ring 18R is detected optically, but the method of detecting the rotational angular position of the rotating ring 18R is not limited to this. For example, the rotational angular position of the rotating ring 18R can be detected magnetically. That is, in the case of magnetic detection, instead of providing an aperture 18Ra in the rotating ring 18R, a magnet is attached to the position of the aperture 18Ra. On the other hand, instead of providing a light-receiving sensor 19PD with multiple divided regions in the circumferential direction in the extension module 12, multiple magnetic sensors can be arranged circumferentially, separated from each other, and different characteristics such as the hardness of the core body 111 or different characteristics such as the material of the input surface 2a can be associated with each magnetic sensor.

[0164] In the above-described embodiment, the rotating ring 18R is provided on the outer circumference of the pen housing 13. However, if the expansion function module 12 has a housing and the tail end of the housing is configured to protrude from the pen housing, the rotating ring 18R may be provided on the outer circumference of the portion of the housing of the expansion function module 12 that protrudes from the tail end of the pen housing 13.

[0165] Furthermore, the means of specifying the characteristic selection information is not limited to using the rotating ring shown in Figure 18.

[0166] Figure 19 shows another example of an operation method for specifying characteristic selection information, which uses a switch operation method similar to that of a side switch provided for the position detection module 11.

[0167] An example of the operating means 18 shown in Figure 19 is a switch operating means 18S similar to the side switch provided for the position detection module 11 shown in Figure 10, which is operated by the user on the outer circumference of the pen housing 13 of the electronic pen 1. Similar to the example in Figure 10, this switch operating means 18S is connected between the starting end and ending end of a coil 18L that is wound around the outer circumference of the pen housing 13 at the location where the expansion function module 12 is located inside.

[0168] In this example, the operation state detection unit 1213 of the information generation unit 121A of the extension module 12 shown in Figure 17 includes a resonant circuit consisting of a coil 19L and a capacitor 19C. The desired characteristic selection information generation unit 1214 monitors the change in the resonant frequency of the resonant circuit of the operation state detection unit 1213 due to the influence of the coil 18L in response to the on / off state of the switch operation means 18S, and detects the on / off state of the switch operation means 18S. Furthermore, the desired characteristic selection information generation unit 1214 detects the number of repetitions of the on / off operation of the switch operation means 18S, the duration of the on time, etc., and generates desired characteristic selection information specified by the user based on the detection results.

[0169] Furthermore, the information generation unit of the second functional module 12 may be configured to generate both actual characteristic selection information and desired characteristic selection information, and may also be configured to generate and transmit either one of them to the PC3 at the user's discretion.

[0170] <Texture detection unit> In addition to the position detection module 11 and the extension module 12, the electronic pen 1 may also include a texture detection unit that detects the texture of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, such as material feel, texture, and feel.

[0171] Figure 20 is a diagram illustrating an example of an electronic pen 1 equipped with a texture detection unit. In this example of the electronic pen 1, as described above, a position detection module 11 and an extension function module 12 are arranged side by side in the axial direction of the pen housing 13, and a texture detection unit 10TX is provided on the tip portion 111a side of the core body 111 of the position detection module 11 in the pen housing 13.

[0172] In this example, the texture detection unit 10TX consists of an image sensor 101CM and a microphone 102MC. The image sensor 101CM is mounted at a predetermined position on the outer periphery of the pen housing 13 and is configured to capture images of the surface of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. There may be one image sensor 101CM or multiple images sensors 101CM may be mounted at different positions on the outer periphery. The microphone 102MC is also mounted at a predetermined position on the outer periphery of the pen housing 13 and is configured to capture sounds generated by friction between the tip 111a of the core body 111 of the electronic pen 1 and the surface of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. There may also be one microphone 102MC or multiple images sensors 102MC may be mounted at different positions on the outer periphery.

[0173] Although not shown in the diagram, in this example, the texture detection unit 10TX is equipped with a power supply circuit that includes a primary or secondary battery and supplies the power supply voltage to the image sensor 101CM and the microphone 102MC. In this example, the texture detection unit 10TX is also equipped with a wireless communication unit that performs short-range wireless communication using, for example, the Bluetooth® standard, and has the function of transmitting the image data of the input surface 2a captured by the image sensor 101CM and the sound data picked up by the microphone 102MC to the PC3.

[0174] Alternatively, the texture detection unit 10TX may be configured without a wireless communication unit, so that the image data of the input surface 2a captured by the image sensor 101CM and the sound data picked up by the microphone 102MC are input to the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12, and the control circuit 120 transmits them to the PC 3 via the wireless communication unit 122. Furthermore, the texture detection unit 10TX may be configured without a power supply circuit, receiving power voltage from the extension module 12.

[0175] In PC3, the texture detection information received from the texture detection unit 10TX—in this example, the image data of the input surface 2a captured by the image sensor 101CM and the sound data picked up by the microphone 102MC—is processed in the same way as the actual characteristic selection information in the extended function module 12 described above. That is, the image data of the input surface 2a captured by the image sensor 101CM and the sound data picked up by the microphone 102MC are information corresponding to the actual characteristics of the input surface 2a and can be treated as actual characteristic selection information.

[0176] Therefore, in a configuration where the imaging data of the input surface 2a captured by the image sensor 101CM and the sound data picked up by the microphone 102MC are input to the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12, the control circuit 120 can also transmit the motion detection output information acquired from the information generation unit 121 and the imaging data and sound data acquired from the texture detection unit 10TX to the PC3 as information for selecting actual characteristics.

[0177] Furthermore, the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12 can be configured to generate drive signals for driving the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232 of the stimulus generation unit 123 from imaging data and sound data, which are examples of texture detection output from the texture detection unit 10TX. In this case, it is not limited to the case where imaging data and sound data, which are examples of texture detection output from the texture detection unit 10TX, are input to the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12. This is because the control circuit 120 can also be configured to receive imaging data and sound data as texture detection output from the texture detection unit 10TX via the wireless communication unit 122 through the PC3, and generate drive signals based on the received data.

[0178] In the example shown in Figure 20, the configuration of the electronic pen 1 may be such that the extension module 12 does not include an information generation unit that obtains motion detection output as information for selecting actual characteristics, and a texture detection unit 10TX is provided, and its texture detection output is transmitted to the PC3 as information for selecting actual characteristics.

[0179] Alternatively, the electronic pen 1 may be configured to include a texture detection unit 10TX and a position detection module 11 without providing the extension function module 12. However, in that case, the texture detection unit 10TX is provided with a power supply circuit and wireless or wired communication means for transmitting the texture detection output to the PC 3.

[0180] In the electronic pen 1 of the above embodiment described above, when writing input is performed on the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, the position detection module 11 and the extension function module 12 are not only housed in the pen housing 13, but also as shown in Figure 3 Even in the cap-type pen configuration, the pen body 13 is positioned in the axial direction and is held and used by the user with their dominant hand.

[0181] However, extension module 12 is shown in Figure 3As in the example above, if it is configured as a separate component from the pen casing 13, it can also be configured so that it is held separately by the user's dominant and non-dominant hands during use.

[0182] Figure 21 shows an example of the electronic pen 1 with such a configuration. In this example, as shown in Figure 21(A), only the position detection module 11 is housed inside the pen housing 13, with the tip 111a of the core body 111C of the position detection module 11 protruding from an opening on one end of the pen housing 13 in the axial direction. The expansion function module 12 is housed in an expansion function module housing 12K, which is a separate housing from the pen housing 13.

[0183] During use, the pen housing 13 is held in the user's dominant hand HR, and writing force is applied on the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, while the extension function module housing 12K is held in the user's non-dominant hand HL. In the case of the electronic pen 1 in Figure 21, the extension function module 12 does not include the information generation unit 121 in the above example, but is configured to include a wireless communication unit 122 and a stimulus generation unit 123.

[0184] Next, we will describe some examples of processing operations in an input system consisting of an electronic pen 1 with the above configuration, a tablet 2, and a PC 3.

[0185] [Example of input system processing operation 1; Determination of the display method of handwriting] <Processing operation example 1-1: Determine the display mode of the handwriting trace by the electronic pen 1 using the actual characteristic selection information> Figure 22 is a block diagram illustrating the first example of the input system's processing operation. In this example, the PC 3 uses an installed drawing software program to display an image of the handwriting input on the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 using the electronic pen 1 on the display screen 32D of the display device 32, in a display mode based on the characteristic selection information from the electronic pen 1's extension module 12. Other examples of the input system's processing operation described later also similarly involve the PC 3 using an installed drawing software program to display the handwriting input from the tablet 2 using the electronic pen 1.

[0186] As shown in Figure 22, the electronic pen 1 in this example's input system consists of an electromagnetic induction type position detection module 11, which includes a coil 113M that forms a resonant circuit that electromagnetically couples with the position detection sensor of the tablet 2 to interact with signals, and a pressure detection unit 114M. The extended function module 12 of the electronic pen 1 in this example includes a control circuit 120, an information generation unit 121, a wireless communication unit 122, an ID memory 124, and a power supply circuit 125, but does not include a stimulus generation unit 123. As mentioned above, the position detection module 11 may also be of the capacitive type, and the same applies to other examples described later.

[0187] In this example, the PC3 in the input system includes a tablet output processing unit 311 that receives and processes tablet output from tablet 2, a wireless communication unit 312 for communicating with the wireless communication unit 122 of the electronic pen 1, a display mode determination unit 313, and a display information generation unit 314. In this case, the PC3 is configured to process the tablet output from tablet 2 and the information from the extended function module 12 of the electronic pen 1 received via the wireless communication unit 312 in real time, as they are synchronized in terms of timing.

[0188] The display mode determination unit 313 determines the display mode of the handwriting trace to be displayed on the display screen 32D of the display device 32, based on characteristic selection information obtained from the electronic pen 1 via the wireless communication unit 312 and pressure value information from the tablet output processing unit 311.

[0189] The display information generation unit 314 generates handwriting information from the coordinate information of the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 received from the tablet output processing unit 311. It also generates display information based on the display mode determined by the display mode determination unit 313, and supplies this information to the display device 32 to display the handwriting information on the display screen 32D.

[0190] Furthermore, the tablet output processing unit 311, the display mode determination unit 313, and the display information generation unit 314 of PC3 are implemented by the PC3's processor as program-based functional processing. Figure 23 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow executed by the PC3's processor according to the program. The processing operation of this example input system will be explained below following this flowchart.

[0191] In this example, the user turns on the power switch of the extension module 12, holds the electronic pen 1, and performs a writing input operation on the input surface 2a of the position detection sensor of the tablet 2. Then, the position detection circuit of the tablet 2 interacts with the resonant circuit including the coil 113M of the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 via the position detection sensor 20 of the tablet 2. As described above, it detects the position indicated by the tip 111a of the core body 111 of the electronic pen 1, generates coordinate information corresponding to the writing input, and acquires information on the pen pressure value detected by the electronic pen 1 at that time. The tablet 2 then sends the generated coordinate information and pen pressure value information to the PC 3. The pen pressure value changes according to the writing input target and the user's habits, as shown in Figure 24(A), for example.

[0192] At this time, the information generation unit 121 of the electronic pen 1's extension module 12 detects movement corresponding to the movement of the tip 111a of the pen's core 111 using the gyro sensor 1211 and the acceleration sensor 1212. The detected movement detection output changes mainly according to the surface condition (surface roughness, hardness, etc.) according to the material of the input surface 2a, as shown in Figure 24(B), but this also includes the influence of the pen pressure value. The extension module 12 wirelessly transmits the detected movement detection output, along with the identification information ID2 read from the ID memory 124, to the PC 3 via the wireless communication unit 122 as information for selecting actual characteristics.

[0193] PC3 monitors whether it has received tablet output from tablet 2, consisting of coordinate information and pressure information (step S1 in Figure 23). If it determines that no tablet output has been received, it performs other processing (step S2), and after completing that processing, it returns to step S1. If it determines in step S1 that tablet output has been received, PC3 generates handwriting trace information from the coordinate information of the tablet output (step S3).

[0194] PC3 also takes in the received information from the wireless communication unit 312 (step S4) and determines the line width and line thickness of the line that displays the handwriting based on the identification information ID2 contained in the received information. In this case, PC3 has previously obtained and stored information from the server device 4 via the communication network 5, which is a correspondence table between the identification information ID2 and the line width and line thickness. In step S4, the line width and line thickness are determined by referring to the stored table information using the identification information ID2. Note that it is not necessary to determine both the line width and line thickness, but either one or the other, or the line color may also be determined in conjunction with the identification information ID2.

[0195] Next, PC3 extracts motion detection output as actual characteristic selection information from the received information of the wireless communication unit 312, removes the influence of the pen pressure value obtained from the tablet output processing unit 311 from the extracted motion detection output, and then identifies the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 from the motion detection output (step S6).

[0196] In this case, the motion detection output fluctuates as shown in Figure 24(B) depending on the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. As shown in Figure 25, the server device 4 has a correspondence table containing information on multiple types of fluctuations in the motion detection output depending on the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, and the material corresponding to each type of fluctuation. The PC 3 has previously acquired and stored this correspondence table information from the server device 4 via the communication network 5, and uses this correspondence table information to identify the material of the input surface 2a based on the motion detection output extracted from the received information of the wireless communication unit 312.

[0197] Alternatively, instead of using information from such a correspondence table, the PC3 can be configured to analyze the motion detection output information and calculate which type of motion detection output corresponds to the material.

[0198] Following step S6, PC3 generates handwriting display information that replicates the appearance of writing directly on the input surface 2a with a writing instrument, based on the line width and line density identified in step S5 and the material of the input surface 2a identified in step S6. This generated display information is then sent to the display device 32 for display on the display screen 32D (step S7). In this case, when generating the handwriting display information, pressure sensitivity information extracted from the tablet detection output may be taken into consideration, or the user may be able to select whether or not to take this into consideration. If pressure sensitivity information is not taken into consideration in the display information, it is expected that handwriting traces that eliminate the user's writing habits can be displayed.

[0199] Following step S7, PC3 determines whether writing has ended based on whether the tablet detection output has been interrupted for a predetermined period of time or more (step S8). If PC3 determines in step S8 that writing has not ended, it returns to step S1 and repeats the process from step S1 onward. If PC3 determines in step S8 that writing has ended, it terminates this processing routine.

[0200] Thus, in PC3, the handwriting traces obtained from tablet 2 using the electronic pen 1 are not simply displayed as a sequence of coordinate information with uniform line width, line thickness, and other uniform display characteristics. Instead, the handwriting fluctuations corresponding to the material of the input surface 2a and the hardness of the electronic pen 1's lead are included in the display characteristics of the handwriting traces. Therefore, this example demonstrates the remarkable effect of displaying handwriting traces on the display screen 32D that correspond to the writing medium and the hardness of the pencil lead, similar to when drawing on a writing medium such as paper with a pencil.

[0201] In the above processing example, step S6 identifies the material of the input surface 2a and displays the writing trace as if it were written on that identified material. However, it is also possible to omit step S6 and generate display information in step S7 such that the line width and line thickness identified in step S5 are varied (including variations in line width and line thickness) according to the motion detection output (including the involvement of pen pressure values).

[0202] In the example above, PC3 uses identification information ID2 from the extension module 12 to determine the line width and line thickness, but identification information ID1 (ID) obtained from the ID memory provided in the position detection module 11 can also be used. 11 M or ID 11 You may also use C). The same applies to the following examples.

[0203] <Processing operation example 1-2: Determine the display attributes and display mode of the handwriting trace by the electronic pen 1 using the information for selecting desired characteristics> In this example, the electronic pen 1 that constitutes the input system is, as an example of an operating means for specifying desired characteristic selection information, shown in Figure 18(A) The electronic pen 1 is equipped with a rotating ring 18R located on the outer circumference of the pen housing 13, in the area where the extension function module 12 is installed. In this example, the user can select the material of the input surface 2a using this rotating ring 18R, and the extension function module 12 wirelessly transmits information indicating the selected material of the input surface 2a to the PC 3 as desired characteristic selection information. communication Configure it to transmit through section 122.

[0204] In this example, PC3 identifies the hardness and thinness of the core 111 based on the identification information ID2 from the extension module 12, and determines the line width and line density. In this example, the motion detection output generated by the information generation unit 121 from the extension module 12 is not transmitted to PC3.

[0205] In this example, PC3 receives selection information for the rotational angle position of the opening 18Ra of the rotating ring 18R from the extension module 12, and, as described above, refers to pre-stored table information to identify the material of the input surface 2a selected by the user. PC3 also identifies the line width and line density of the writing trace from the identification information ID2, as described above.

[0206] Then, PC3 receives coordinate information from the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 obtained from tablet 2, generates information about the writing trace, and generates display information of the generated writing trace so that it represents the writing trace on the input surface 2a of the specified material. At this time, the display information of the generated writing trace can reflect the amount of pressure value information included in the information obtained from tablet 2, as in the example above. As mentioned above, the user may choose whether or not to reflect the amount of pressure value information.

[0207] In this example, PC3 can display the writing instability of the electronic pen 1 according to the material of the input surface 2a selected by the user, in addition to the display of the writing trace. Therefore, according to this example, regardless of the actual material of the input surface 2a, the writing trace when writing with the electronic pen on an input surface of the material desired by the user can be displayed on the display screen 32D, which is a remarkable effect.

[0208] Furthermore, the hardness of the lead body 111 may be selected using the rotating ring 18R of the electronic pen 1, and the material of the input surface 2a may be identified by identification information (ID) from the extension function module 12. Alternatively, the combination of the hardness of the lead body 111 and the material of the input surface 2a may be selected using the rotating ring 18R of the electronic pen 1. Moreover, the electronic pen 1 may be provided with both selection and specification functions using the rotating ring 18R and selection and specification using the switch means shown in Figure 18, with the hardness and other characteristics of the lead body 111 of the electronic pen being selected and the material of the input surface 2a being selected and specified using the other.

[0209] <Processing operation example 1-3: The display mode of the handwriting trace by the electronic pen 1 is determined by the texture detection output from the texture detection unit 10TX> In this example, the electronic pen 1 that constitutes the input system includes a texture detection unit 10TX. The imaging output of the image sensor 101CM of the texture detection unit 10TX and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC are input to the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12 and transmitted to the PC 3 via the wireless communication unit 122 as information for selecting actual characteristics.

[0210] In this example, PC3 identifies the hardness and thinness of the core 111 based on the identification information ID2 from the extension module 12, and determines the line width and line density. In this example as well, the motion detection output generated by the information generation unit 121 from the extension module 12 is not transmitted to PC3. Therefore, in this example, the information generation unit 121 does not need to be provided in the extension module 12.

[0211] Then, PC3 receives coordinate information from the tip 111a of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 obtained from tablet 2 to generate information about the writing trace, and generates the display information of the generated writing trace so that it is a writing trace on the input surface 2a of a material identified based on the texture detection output detected by the texture detection unit 10TX received from electronic pen 1. In this case, PC3 stores information from a correspondence table of materials of the input surface 2a to the texture detection output, and uses the information from this correspondence table to identify the material of the input surface 2a corresponding to the received texture detection output. At this time, the display information of the generated writing trace can reflect the information of the pen pressure value included in the information obtained from tablet 2, as in the example above.

[0212] In this case, the texture detection output (the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC) fluctuates according to the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. The server device 4 has information in a correspondence table that shows multiple types of fluctuations in the texture detection output depending on the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, and the material corresponding to each type of fluctuation. The PC 3 has previously acquired and stored this correspondence table information from the server device 4 via the communication network 5, and uses this correspondence table information to identify the material of the input surface 2a based on the texture detection output extracted from the received information of the wireless communication unit 312.

[0213] Furthermore, the texture detection output may be either the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM or the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC.

[0214] Furthermore, in the above example, the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 was identified from the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC, which are examples of texture detection outputs. However, the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC also change depending on the hardness and material of the core body 111. Therefore, the characteristics identified for the texture detection output may also be a combination of the characteristics of the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 and the characteristics of the hardness and material of the core body 111. Alternatively, if the characteristics of the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 are fixed, the characteristics identified for the texture detection output may be the characteristics of the hardness and material of the core body 111. In either case, as in the above example, information from a correspondence table between the texture detection output and their characteristic values ​​is prepared and used.

[0215] In this example, PC3 can display the writing instability of the electronic pen 1, which corresponds to the material of the input surface 2a and the hardness of the electronic pen, as determined using the actual characteristic selection information described above, in the display mode of the writing trace.

[0216] In the example described above, the texture detection output is sent to the PC3 along with the identification information ID2 using the wireless communication unit 122 of the extension module 12. However, if the texture detection unit 10TX is equipped with a wireless communication unit, it is not necessary to route the signal through the wireless communication unit 122 of the extension module 12. Furthermore, if the system is configured to obtain the identification information ID1 from the position detection module 11 and use it in place of the identification information ID2, it is not necessary to provide the extension module 12 on the electronic pen 1.

[0217] In the examples above, the core hardness and other properties were identified from the identification information ID1 and ID2. However, PC3 may process the core hardness and other properties using predetermined default values, in which case identification information would not be necessary to identify the core hardness and other properties.

[0218] [Example of input system processing operation 2; providing stimulation to the user during writing] <Processing operation example 2-1: Stimulus generation according to information used for selecting actual characteristics during writing> Figure 26 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the input system's processing operation 2. This example includes the function of determining the display mode of the handwriting trace, as described in the example of the input system's processing operation 1-1 explained using Figures 22 to 25, as well as a function of providing stimulation to the user while writing. In Figure 26, the same reference numerals are used for parts identical to those in Figure 22, and their explanations are omitted.

[0219] In this example, as shown in Figure 26, the electronic pen 1's extension module 12 is provided with a stimulation generation unit 123 connected to the control circuit 120, in addition to the parts shown in Figure 22. On the other hand, the PC3 is provided with a stimulation drive signal generation unit 315, in addition to the parts shown in Figure 22.

[0220] The PC3's stimulation drive signal generation unit 315, using the motion detection output received via the wireless communication unit 312 and the pressure value information from the tablet output processing unit 311, identifies the material of the input surface 2a by referring to the information in the correspondence table pre-stored in the PC3, as described above. Based on the identified material of the input surface 2a, it generates an audio drive signal to acoustically drive the speaker 1231 of the stimulation generation unit 123 of the electronic pen 1 and a vibration drive signal to drive the vibrator 1232. The PC3 then transmits the generated audio drive signal and vibration drive signal to the electronic pen 1.

[0221] In this example, the extended function module 12 of the electronic pen 1 acquires these audio drive signals and vibration drive signals via the wireless communication unit 122 and supplies them to the stimulation generation unit 123 to drive the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232. Otherwise, it operates in the same manner as the example in Figure 22 described above.

[0222] Figure 27 shows an example of the operation flow of the electronic pen 1 in this example. Specifically, the position detection module 11 of the electronic pen 1 monitors the electromagnetic induction coupling with the position detection sensor of the tablet 2 (step S11), and when electromagnetic induction coupling occurs, it performs signal interaction between the position detection sensor and the position detection module 11 due to electromagnetic induction coupling, and the tablet 2 detects the position coordinates of the tip 111a of the pen body 111. can Make it so (Step S12).

[0223] Then, the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12 of the electronic pen 1 transmits the motion detection output generated by the information generation unit 121, along with the identification information ID 2, to the PC 3 via the wireless communication unit 122 (step S13).

[0224] Next, the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12 monitors the reception of the stimulation drive signal from the PC3 (step S14), and when it determines that a stimulation drive signal has been received, it uses the received stimulation drive signal to drive the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232 of the stimulation generation unit 123 to transmit a stimulus to the user according to the material of the input surface 2a during writing input (step S15).

[0225] Next, the electronic pen 1 determines whether the electromagnetic induction coupling between the position detection module 11 and the position detection sensor of the tablet 2 has been released (step S16). If it determines that the coupling has not been released, the process returns to step S12 and the process from step S12 onward is repeated.

[0226] In step S16, when it is determined that the electromagnetic induction coupling between the position detection module 11 and the position detection sensor of the tablet 2 has been released, the electronic pen 1 determines whether the power switch has been turned off and the extension function module 12 has been turned off (step S17). If it is determined that it has not been turned off, the process returns to step S11 and the process from step S11 onwards is repeated.

[0227] Next, Figure 28 shows an example of the processing flow in PC3 in this example. In Figure 28, steps S1' to S7' are the same as steps S1 to S7 in the flowchart shown in Figure 23.

[0228] In this example, following step S7', PC3 identifies the material of the input surface 2a of tablet 2 from the motion detection output received via wireless communication unit 312 and the pressure value information acquired from tablet 2, and based on this identification, generates a stimulation drive signal to drive the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232 of the electronic pen 1's extension module 12 (step S21). Then, it transmits the generated stimulation drive signal to electronic pen 1 via wireless communication unit 312 (step S22).

[0229] Following step S22, PC3 determines whether writing has ended based on whether the tablet detection output has been interrupted for a predetermined period of time or longer (step S8'). If PC3 determines in step S8' that writing has not ended, it returns to step S1' and repeats the process from step S1' onward. If PC3 determines in step S8' that writing has ended, it terminates this processing routine.

[0230] Thus, according to this example, when a user of the electronic pen 1 applies writing pressure to the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, they can receive a stimulus through the electronic pen 1 that corresponds to the material of the input surface 2a.

[0231] <Processing operation example 2-2: Texture detection unit during writing> 10 Stimulus generation via texture detection output from TX > In this example, the electronic pen 1 that constitutes the input system includes a texture detection unit 10TX, similar to the processing operation examples 1-3 described above. In this example, the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM of the texture detection unit 10TX and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC are input to the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12. The extension module 12 in this example transmits the imaging output of the image sensor 101CM of the texture detection unit 10TX and the sound pickup output of the microphone 102MC to the PC3 via the wireless communication unit 122 as actual characteristic selection information. In addition, the extension module 12 is provided with a stimulus generation unit 123.

[0232] In this example, PC3 is configured similarly to Figure 26 and operates similarly to processing operation example 1-3. However, in this example, the texture detection output received from the electronic pen 1 is used in the display mode determination unit 313 to determine the display mode of the handwriting, and is also used in the stimulation drive signal generation unit 315 to generate the stimulation drive signal. In this example, the stimulation drive signal generated by the stimulation drive signal generation unit 315 based on the texture is transmitted to the electronic pen 1 via the wireless communication unit 312.

[0233] In this example of the electronic pen 1, similar to the processing operation example 2-1 described above, the control circuit 120 of the extension module 12 supplies the stimulus drive signal received from the PC3 by the wireless communication unit 122 to the stimulus generation unit 123, driving the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232 to provide acoustic and vibrational stimuli to the user of the electronic pen 1.

[0234] [Example of input system processing operation 3; providing stimulation to virtual experience users during writing] <Processing operation example 3-1: Stimulus generation according to information for selecting desired characteristics from electronic pen 1> In this example, the extended function module 12 of the electronic pen 1 that constitutes the input system includes an operating means 18 for specifying desired characteristic selection information, as well as a stimulus generating unit 123, similar to the case of processing operation example 1-2 described above.

[0235] In this example, as described in the processing operation example 1-2 above, the user selects the material of the input surface 2a using the rotating ring 18R, which is an example of an operating means 18 for specifying desired characteristic selection information provided on the electronic pen 1. The extended function module 12, upon receiving this selection, sends the information indicating the selected material of the input surface 2a to the PC3 as desired characteristic selection information. Wireless communication unit 122 Send via this method.

[0236] As described above, PC3 identifies the material of the input surface 2a selected by the user of the electronic pen 1 based on the desired characteristic selection information received from the electronic pen 1, and generates the display information of the writing trace so that it represents the writing trace on the input surface 2a of the identified material.

[0237] In this example, PC3 further generates a stimulus drive signal that causes the stimulus generation unit 123 of the electronic pen 1 to generate stimuli (e.g., acoustic and vibrational stimuli) that the user is expected to feel when the user applies writing pressure with the electronic pen 1 on the input surface 2a of the material identified based on the desired characteristic selection information, and transmits this signal to the electronic pen 1.

[0238] The electronic pen 1 receives a stimulation drive signal from the PC 3 and, in the same manner as in processing example 2-1 described above, drives the speaker 1231 and vibrator 1232 of the stimulation generating unit 123 of the extension module 12 to provide the user with acoustic and vibrational stimulation.

[0239] In this example, instead of providing stimulation corresponding to actual usage conditions, the user of the electronic pen 1 can be given stimulation corresponding to the material of the input surface 2a selected and specified by the user through the operating means of the electronic pen 1. This has the effect of allowing the user to experience a virtual stimulation of what it would feel like to generate a writing trace on the selected input surface 2a material.

[0240] Incidentally, as the information for selecting desired characteristics, what is selected and specified by the operation means may be the hardness of the core 111 instead of the material of the input surface 2a, or further, as described above, it may be both the hardness of the core 111 and the material of the input surface 2a.

[0241] <Processing operation example 3-2: Generation of experience stimuli under conditions specified by the application on PC3> In the above-described processing operation example 3-1, the operation means 18 for selecting and specifying the information for selecting desired characteristics provided on the electronic pen 1 is used to select characteristics such as the hardness of the core 111 or characteristics such as the material of the input surface 2a. However, on the PC3 side, it is also possible to select other characteristics such as the hardness of the core 111 or characteristics such as the material of the input surface 2a.

[0242] FIG. 29 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration example of an input system when executing this processing operation example 3-2.

[0243] As shown in FIG. 29, in the electronic pen 1 of this example, the expansion function module 12 is provided with a stimulus generation unit 123, but the information generation unit 121 and the ID memory 124 are not provided. And in this example, the control circuit 120 of the expansion function module 12 receives the stimulus drive signal sent from the PC3 through the wireless communication unit 122 and supplies it to the stimulus generation unit 123 to generate acoustic stimuli and vibration stimuli for the user holding the electronic pen 1.

[0244] And as shown in FIG. 29, the PC3 of this example includes an operation input unit 33 for receiving a user's operation input. This operation input unit 33 is composed of a keyboard, a mouse pad, or a touch panel, etc.

[0245] In the PC3 of this example, a drawing software program (hereinafter abbreviated as drawing software) that draws a writing trace based on the coordinate information from the tablet 2 has a function of accepting selection and specification of desired characteristics such as the hardness of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 as an example of information for selecting desired characteristics, and desired characteristics such as the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. Prior to the position indication input (writing input) on the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 by the core 111 of the electronic pen 1, the user uses the said function of the drawing software to select and specify the desired characteristics of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 and the desired characteristics of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 through the operation input unit 33.

[0246] The stimulation drive signal generation unit 315 of the PC3 generates a stimulation drive signal corresponding to this selection and specification, and transmits the generated stimulation drive signal to the electronic pen 1 through the wireless communication unit 312. In this example, the stimulation drive signal generation unit 315 of the PC3 has table information for generating a stimulation drive signal from the selected desired characteristics of the core 111 of the electronic pen 1 and the desired characteristics of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2. This table information is obtained in advance from the server device 4 through the communication network 5.

[0247] FIG. 30 is a diagram showing an example of table information for generating a stimulation drive signal. In this example, as an example of the desired characteristics of the core 111, symbols "B", "HB", "H", "F", which are index symbols for the darkness and hardness of the lead of a writing instrument, are used. For example, in the example of FIG. 30, index symbols such as "B", "HB", "2H", "3H" are selectable. Also, as an example of the desired characteristics of the input surface 2a, in the example of FIG. 30, materials such as "glass", "Kento paper", "drawing paper", "Japanese paper" are selectable.

[0248] As is well known, the indicator symbol "B" indicates a dark lead and a soft lead, while "H" indicates a light lead and a hard lead. Furthermore, as the number increases, such as "2B," "3B," etc., the lead becomes darker and softer, and as the number increases, such as "2H," "3H," etc., the lead becomes lighter and harder. "HB" represents a lead with a darkness and hardness intermediate between "B" and "H." As shown above each indicator symbol in Figure 30, the darker and softer the pencil lead, the thicker it becomes, and the lighter and harder the lead, the thinner it becomes.

[0249] Furthermore, as illustrated to the left of each material of the input surface 2a in Figure 30, the surface condition of the input surface 2a differs depending on the material. "Glass" has a surface condition with almost no irregularities, while "Kent paper," "drawing paper," and "Japanese paper" have surface conditions with irregularities corresponding to each material.

[0250] The table information prepared in server device 4 is created, for example, as follows: Each pencil with different lead hardness and darkness is used to actually write on materials such as "glass," "Kent paper," "drawing paper," and "Japanese paper." This generates a sound corresponding to the relationship between the lead hardness and darkness of the pencil and the material of the input surface 2a, and vibrations are transmitted to the user holding the pencil. The sound generated at that time is picked up by a microphone, and the vibrations felt by the user holding the pencil are detected by a motion sensor or the like.

[0251] Then, an acoustic drive signal is generated from the audio signal of the sound picked up by the microphone to acoustically drive the speaker 1231 of the stimulation generating unit 123 of the electronic pen 1. Alternatively, the audio signal of the sound picked up by the microphone may be used directly to generate the acoustic drive signal. In addition, a vibration drive signal is generated from the motion detection output detected by the motion sensor to drive the vibrator 1232 of the stimulation generating unit 123 of the electronic pen 1.

[0252] In this case, as shown in Figure 30, different acoustic drive signals SP1, SP2, ..., SP16 and vibration drive signals VB1, VB2, ..., VB16 are generated for each combination of pencil lead darkness and hardness and input surface material. Then, as shown in Figure 30, a correspondence table is generated by associating each combination of pencil lead darkness and hardness and input surface material with a stimulus drive signal consisting of a pair of acoustic drive signals and vibration drive signals.

[0253] Next, the processing flow in PC3 in this example will be explained with reference to the flowchart in Figure 31.

[0254] Prior to processing the tablet output from tablet 2, PC3 (drawing application, hereinafter the same) notifies the user via the display screen 32D and / or by voice a message prompting them to select the hardness and darkness of the pencil lead as information for selecting the hardness and darkness of the core body 111 of the electronic pen 1, and the material of the input surface 2a of tablet 2 (step S31).

[0255] Next, the PC3 monitors the user's selection of pencil lead darkness and hardness and the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2 via the operation input unit 33 (step S32). When it determines that the selection has been received, it refers to the correspondence table shown in Figure 30 mentioned above, using the received pencil lead darkness and hardness and the material of the input surface 2a of the tablet 2, and selects a stimulus drive signal consisting of an acoustic drive signal and a vibration drive signal (step S33).

[0256] Next, PC3 waits to receive a tablet output from tablet 2, which consists of coordinate information and pressure information (step S34). When it determines that the tablet output has been received, it generates handwriting information from the coordinate information of the tablet output (step S35).

[0257] Next, PC3 generates display information for a writing trace on the input surface 2a of the selected material, based on the pencil lead darkness and hardness received in step S32 and the material of the input surface 2a, and sends the generated display information to the display device 32 to display it on the display screen 32D (step S36). In this case, when generating the display information for the writing trace, the pressure value information extracted from the tablet detection output may always be taken into account, or the user may be able to select whether or not to take it into account.

[0258] Then, PC3 transmits the stimulation drive signal selected in step S33 to the electronic pen 1 via the wireless communication unit 312 (step S37). In this case, the stimulation drive signal transmitted to the electronic pen 1 takes into account the pressure value information extracted from the tablet detection output. The user may choose whether or not to include the pressure value information.

[0259] Following step S37, PC3 determines whether writing has ended based on whether the tablet detection output has been interrupted for a predetermined period of time or more (step S38). If PC3 determines in step S38 that writing has not ended, it returns to step S34 and repeats the process from step S34 onward. If PC3 determines in step S38 that writing has ended, it terminates this processing routine.

[0260] In this example, instead of stimuli corresponding to actual usage conditions, the user can be given stimuli corresponding to the hardness of the core of the electronic pen 1, the line density, and the material of the input surface 2a, which are selected and specified by the user through the operation means of PC3 in the drawing application. The user can then experience a virtual sensation of the stimuli generated when a writing trace is produced for the hardness of the core of the electronic pen 111, the line density, and the material of the input surface 2a, as selected by PC3.

[0261] In the example shown in Figure 29, the extension module 12 does not send anything, but it is also possible to send the identification information ID2 stored in the ID memory 124 of the extension module 12 to the PC3, and for the PC3 to select the type of line of the handwriting (solid line, dashed line, dotted line, etc.) and the color of the line according to the identification information ID2.

[0262] Alternatively, instead of using identification information from the extension module 12, the PC3 may select the type of handwritten line and the color of the line according to identification information ID 2, using identification information ID 1 from the position detection module 11.

[0263] In the above-described processing operation examples 2 and 3, PC3 was configured to send (reply to) the stimulus drive signal only to the electronic pen 1 that sent the actual characteristic selection information, desired characteristic selection information, and texture detection output. However, it may also send the signal to other electronic pens to transmit the same stimulus to the users of those other electronic pens as it did to electronic pen 1.

[0264] [Other embodiments or modifications] In the above-described embodiment, the motion sensor was only described as being used to detect the movement of the pen tip during writing input on the sensor's input surface. However, it can also be used when the user moves the pen not only on the input surface but also in a space away from the input surface, such as swinging it back and forth, left and right, axially, or moving it to draw a predetermined shape such as a circle. The PC3 then recognizes a predetermined processing operation corresponding to each movement from the motion detection output and controls the system to execute that processing operation.

[0265] Furthermore, the PC can be configured to recognize the movements of the electronic pen 1 as described above as user gestures and to perform processing corresponding to those gestures.

[0266] Note that the position detection module 11 and the extended function module 12 are not limited to being arranged side by side in the axial direction of the housing of the position indicator. For example, the position detection module 11 and the extended function module 12 may be arranged side by side in a direction intersecting the axial direction on one end side in the axial direction of the housing of the position indicator, or the extended function module 12 may be arranged in a ring-shaped region around the position detection module 11.

[0267] In addition, as the position indicator, an example of an electronic pen using a pen-shaped housing has been described, but it is not limited to the electronic pen, and those with various housing shapes can be used.

[0268] Also, in the above input system, the PC 3 as an information processing device is separately provided for the tablet 2, but a configuration of a device (such as a tablet PC) that combines the functions of the PC 3 and the tablet 2 may also be used. <s

[0269] Note that the characteristic selection information (actual characteristic selection information and desired characteristic selection information) generated by the extended function module 12 is for position detection for A wireless communication unit is provided in the position detection for module 11, and it can also be configured to transmit to the PC 3 through the wireless communication unit of the position detection

[0270] Also, without providing a wireless communication unit in the position detection for module 11, the characteristic selection information (actual characteristic selection information and desired characteristic selection information) generated by the extended function module 12 is transmitted to the tablet 2 together with the position detection signal from the position detection for module 11, and may be configured to be transmitted from this tablet 2 to the PC 3. Thus, when the characteristic selection information is configured to be transmitted from the electronic pen 1 to the PC 3 through the tablet 2, in particular, the rotary ring 18R and the switch operation means 18S for selecting the desired characteristic selection information are provided in relation to the position detection for module 11, and are provided in relation to the position detection forModule 11 may be configured to include means for detecting the selected state by the rotating ring 18R and the selected state by the switch operating means 18S.

[0271] In the example of the position indicator electronic pen described above, the configuration was divided into a position detection module and an extension function module. However, if the electronic pen is configured to combine the functions of both the position detection module and the extension function module, it is not necessary to provide it as two separate modules. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0272] 1...Electronic pen, 2...Tablet, 3...PC, 4...Server device, 5...Communication network, 10TX...Texture detection unit, 11...Position detection module, 12...Expansion function module, 13...Pen housing, 14...Operation unit, 15...Rotating retractable mechanism, 18R...Rotating ring, 18S...Switch operating means, 31...Information processing unit, 32...Display device, 111,111M,111C...Core body, 113M...Coil, 114 M, 114C... Pen pressure detection unit, 115C... Signal transmission circuit, 118... Side switch, 120... Control circuit, 121... Information generation unit, 122... Wireless communication unit, 123... Stimulus generation unit, 124... ID memory, 125... Power supply circuit, 200M, 200C... Position detection device, 311... Tablet output processing unit, 312... Wireless communication unit, 313... Display mode determination unit, 314... Display information generation unit, 315... Stimulus drive signal generation unit

Claims

1. A position indicator used in conjunction with a position detection device having a position detection sensor, A core body that contacts the input surface for position detection in the position detection sensor, A position detection signal transmission unit that transmits a position detection signal to the position detection sensor, A motion detection unit detects the movement of the core on the input surface when the core is in contact with the input surface and a position indication input is being made, in accordance with the characteristics of the core and the characteristics of the input surface. A stimulus generating unit that generates stimuli that are perceived by the user holding the position indicator through hearing and / or touch, A stimulus drive signal acquisition unit generates or receives and acquires a stimulus drive signal for causing the stimulus to be generated from the stimulus generation unit in accordance with the movement of the core on the input surface, which is generated from the motion detection output from the motion detection unit. Equipped with, When the core body is in contact with the input surface and a position indication input is made, the stimulus drive signal acquired by the stimulus drive signal acquisition unit is supplied to the stimulus generation unit to generate a stimulus corresponding to the characteristics of the core body and the characteristics of the input surface. A position indicator characterized by the following features.

2. The motion detection unit includes a motion detection sensor that detects the movement of the core body. The position indicator according to feature 1.

3. The stimulus drive signal acquisition unit is: The system includes a correspondence table between the motion detection output from the motion detection unit and the stimulus drive signal, and uses the correspondence table to generate and acquire the stimulus drive signal corresponding to the motion detection output. The position indicator according to feature 1.

4. The position detection sensor includes a texture detection unit that detects the texture of the input surface, The system includes a control unit that causes the stimulus to be generated by the stimulus generation unit based on the detection output of the texture detection unit. The position indicator according to feature 1.

5. The texture detection unit includes an image sensor provided at the end of the core body that contacts the input surface of the position detection sensor, The control unit generates the stimulus using the stimulus generation unit based on the imaging output from the image sensor. The position indicator according to feature 4.

6. The texture detection unit includes a microphone provided at the end of the core body that contacts the input surface of the position detection sensor, The control unit generates the stimulus using the stimulus generation unit based on the output from the microphone. The position indicator according to feature 4.

7. The stimulus drive signal acquisition unit includes a communication unit that transmits the motion detection output from the motion detection unit to an external device and receives the stimulus drive signal from the external device, The stimulus is generated by the stimulus generating unit based on the stimulus drive signal received through the communication unit. The position indicator according to feature 1.

8. The system includes an information generation unit that generates characteristic selection information corresponding to the characteristics of the core body and / or the characteristics of the input surface, A communication unit transmits the characteristic selection information generated by the information generation unit to an external device, and receives the stimulus drive signal generated from the characteristic selection information by the external device. A control unit that causes the stimulus to be generated by the stimulus generation unit based on the stimulus drive signal received through the communication unit, The position indicator according to claim 1, characterized by comprising the following:

9. The characteristic selection information is a desired characteristic selection information that specifies at least one of the desired characteristics that the core should have and the desired characteristics that the input surface should have. The information generation unit generates the desired characteristic selection information in response to user operations via an operation unit provided on the housing, which is operable by the user. The position indicator according to feature 8.

10. The operating unit is a ring-shaped operating unit that is rotatably wound around the housing, and the information generation unit generates the desired characteristic selection information according to the rotation angle of the ring-shaped operating unit. The position indicator according to feature 9.

11. The operation unit is a switch operation unit provided at a predetermined position on the outer circumference of the housing, and the information generation unit generates the desired characteristic selection information in response to the operation of the switch operation unit. The position indicator according to feature 9.

12. The stimulus generating unit comprises at least one of an actuator, a vibrator, and a speaker. The position indicator according to feature 1.

13. The actuator provides the user with at least one of the following: a stimulus through force, a stimulus through vibration, or a stimulus through movement. The position indicator according to feature 12.

14. The aforementioned stimulation generating unit includes a speaker and / or a vibrator. The position indicator according to feature 1.

15. The pen pressure detection unit is provided to detect the pressure applied to the core body, The pen pressure information detected by the pen pressure detection unit is passed to the external device, which generates the stimulus drive signal based on the characteristic selection information and the pen pressure information. The position indicator according to feature 8.

16. The system stores information in a correspondence table between the detection output of the texture and the stimulus drive signal supplied to the stimulus generation unit. The position indicator according to feature 4.

17. The position detection signal is exchanged with the position detection sensor using an electromagnetic induction method. The position indicator according to feature 1.

18. The position detection signal is exchanged with the position detection sensor using a capacitive method. The position indicator according to feature 1.

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