Operating system, glove-type device, and program

Abstract

To improve the accuracy of operation recognition in glove-type devices. [Solution] The operating system S includes a first detection unit 141 that detects when the thumb of a user wearing a glove-type device 1 touches or comes into contact with another finger, a second detection unit 142 that detects the position of the user's thumb, and a control unit 143 that identifies the operation content based on the detection result of the first detection unit 141 and the detection result of the second detection unit 142.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an operating system, a glove-type device, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a technique for detecting the movement of a user wearing an operation device in the shape of a glove has been known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Conventional operation devices are provided with contact sensors and pressure sensors, but the results detected by these are used individually. In such a case, since an operation is recognized as being performed based on a single detection result, when a user accidentally moves a finger, there is a case where an unintended operation is misrecognized as having been performed.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these points, and an object thereof is to improve the recognition accuracy of operations in a glove-type device.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] An operating system according to a first aspect of the present invention is an operating system for detecting the operation content of a user wearing a glove-type device, the operating system including: a first detection unit that detects that the thumb of the user has come into contact with or close to another finger; a second detection unit that detects the position of the thumb of the user; and a control unit that specifies the operation content based on the detection result of the first detection unit and the detection result of the second detection unit.

[0007] The control unit may determine the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit after the first detection unit has detected that the user's thumb has touched or is close to the other fingers.

[0008] The control unit may further determine the operation based on the direction of movement of the user's thumb in the longitudinal direction of the other fingers.

[0009] The control unit may identify the operation based on the position of the user's thumb, with reference to the position where the user's thumb touches or is close to the other fingers.

[0010] The surface of the portion of the glove-type device into which the other fingers are inserted may be marked to indicate a position where the user should touch or bring their thumb close to.

[0011] The surface may have a plurality of marks, and the control unit may identify the operation based on the position of the mark that the user's thumb touches or is close to among the plurality of marks.

[0012] The control unit may determine the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit when the position where the user's thumb contacts the other fingers, as detected by the first detection unit, and the pressure detected by the first detection unit satisfy predetermined conditions.

[0013] The control unit may identify the operation as a selection operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit is a first value, and identify the operation as a movement operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit is a second value.

[0014] The control unit may specify the operation content according to the movement speed determined based on the amount of change per unit time of the position detected by the second detection unit.

[0015] A glove-type device according to a second aspect of the present invention is a glove-type device for detecting user operations, comprising: a first detection unit for detecting when the user's thumb is in contact with or close to another finger; a second detection unit for detecting the position of the user's thumb; and a control unit for identifying the operation based on the detection result of the first detection unit and the detection result of the second detection unit.

[0016] A glove-type device according to a third aspect of the present invention is a glove-type device for detecting user operations, comprising: a first detection unit for detecting when the user's thumb is in contact with or close to another finger; a second detection unit for detecting the position of the user's thumb; and a communication unit for transmitting the detection result of the first detection unit and the detection result of the second detection unit to an external device.

[0017] A fourth aspect of the present invention is a program that causes a processor to perform the following steps: to detect that the thumb of a user wearing a glove-type device has come into contact with or is in close proximity to another finger; to detect the position of the user's thumb after it has been detected that the user's thumb has come into contact with or is in close proximity to the other finger; and to identify the user's operation based on the detected position of the user's thumb. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the present invention, the accuracy of recognition of operations in a glove-type device is improved. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0019] [Figure 1] This is a diagram illustrating the overview of the operating system S. [Figure 2] This diagram illustrates the finger movements of a user operating a glove-type device 1. [Figure 3] This diagram shows the configuration of the glove-type device 1. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of operation data. [Figure 5]It is a flowchart showing the flow of processing executed by CPU 134.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0020] [Overview of Operating System S] FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the overview of operating system S. Operating system S is a system for detecting the operation content of a user wearing glove-type device 1. Glove-type device 1 is used, for example, to operate external device 100. External device 100 is, for example, a game machine, a computer, a smartphone, a headset, or a robot. Glove-type device 1 transmits operation data indicating the detected operation content to external device 100 via communication channel W.

[0021] The glove-type device 1 shown in FIG. 1 has contact sensor 11, position sensor 12, and control unit 13, but all or part of the functions of control unit 13 may be mounted on a device external to glove-type device 1. In the following description, the case where glove-type device 1 functions as operating system S will be mainly described.

[0022] Glove-type device 1 is a device for realizing selection operations by buttons and up / down / left / right movement operations (for example, drag operations) by the movement of the user's finger like a mouse. The up / down / left / right movement operations are operations equivalent to those by a joystick. <>

[0023] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the movement of the finger when the user of glove-type device 1 operates. The user can perform a selection operation by making an operation (1) in FIG. 2 in which the thumb contacts or approaches another finger (index finger in FIG. 2), and can perform a movement operation by making an operation (2) in FIG. 2 in which the thumb is moved in a state of contacting or approaching the index finger.

[0024] The example shown in Figure 2 illustrates a case where the user moves their thumb along the longitudinal direction of the index finger (the direction indicated by the arrow), but the user may also move their thumb along the short-arm direction of the index finger. Furthermore, the glove-type device 1 may be configured so that the user can perform selection and movement operations by touching or bringing the thumb close to another finger instead of the index finger.

[0025] To achieve this functionality, the glove-type device 1 includes a contact sensor 11 located near the tip of the thumb and a position sensor 12 located on the thumb-side side of the fingers other than the thumb. In the example shown in Figure 1, the position sensor 12 is located along the thumb-side side of the index finger.

[0026] The contact sensor 11 is a pressure sensor that detects pressure applied, for example, near the tip of the thumb, and transmits pressure data indicating the detected pressure to the control unit 13. The contact sensor 11 is provided on the surface of the glove-type device 1 on the other finger side of the area where the thumb is inserted. The contact sensor 11 may also be a proximity sensor that detects when the thumb is in close proximity to the other fingers and transmits proximity data indicating that it is in close proximity to the other fingers to the control unit 13. In this specification, "proximity" means that the distance between the thumb and the other fingers is within a distance at which the position of the thumb can be detected (for example, within a distance of less than 5 mm).

[0027] The contact sensor 11 may transmit pressure data at a predetermined interval, or it may transmit pressure data when the pressure value is above a threshold. The contact sensor 11 may also transmit proximity data at a predetermined interval, or it may transmit proximity data when it detects that the thumb is in close proximity to another finger. The contact sensor 11 may include both a pressure sensor and a proximity sensor. In the following description, the case where the contact sensor 11 is a pressure sensor will be used as an example.

[0028] The position sensor 12 detects the position where the thumb is in contact or nearby and transmits position data indicating the detected position to the control unit 13. The position sensor 12 is, for example, one of the following: a capacitive touch sensor, a resistive touch sensor, an infrared proximity sensor, a capacitive proximity sensor, an optical sensor, or an ultrasonic sensor. The position sensor 12 may be provided on the surface or back surface of the fabric member constituting the glove-type device 1. The position sensor 12 may transmit position data at a predetermined period, or it may transmit position data when it detects that an object (e.g., a thumb) has come into contact with or is nearby the position sensor 12.

[0029] The control unit 13 identifies the user's operation based on the pressure data transmitted by the contact sensor 11 and the position data transmitted by the position sensor 12. In the example shown in Figure 1, a rectangular control unit 13 is provided on the back of the hand, but the shape of the control unit 13 and the location where it is provided are arbitrary.

[0030] Figure 3 shows the configuration of the glove-type device 1. As shown in Figure 3, the control unit 13 includes a first communication unit 131, a second communication unit 132, a storage unit 133, and a CPU 134. The CPU 134 includes a first detection unit 141, a second detection unit 142, and a control unit 143.

[0031] The first communication unit 131 has a communication interface for receiving pressure data from the contact sensor 11 and position data from the position sensor 12. The communication interface is, for example, SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface). 2 Although it is an Inter-Integrated Circuit (C), the type of communication interface is arbitrary. The first communication unit 131 inputs the received pressure data to the first detection unit 141 and the received position data to the second detection unit 142.

[0032] The second communication unit 132 has a communication interface for transmitting operation data indicating the operation content to the external device 100 which is the target of the user's operation. The second communication unit 132 may have wireless communication functions such as Bluetooth® or Wi-Fi®, or it may have wired communication functions.

[0033] The memory unit 133 has storage media such as ROM (Read Only Memory) and RAM (Random Access Memory). The memory unit 133 stores programs that the CPU 134 executes. The memory unit 133 also stores various data that the CPU 134 uses to identify the operation content.

[0034] The storage unit 133 stores operation data that associates the operation content with a combination of the magnitude of the pressure detected by the contact sensor 11 and the position of the thumb or the manner of change in position detected by the position sensor 12. The storage unit 133 may also store operation data that associates the operation content with a combination of the position of the thumb detected by the position sensor 12 when the contact sensor 11 detects a pressure of a predetermined magnitude and the position of the thumb or the manner of change in position detected by the position sensor 12 thereafter.

[0035] The CPU 134 functions as the first detection unit 141, the second detection unit 142, and the control unit 143 by executing the program stored in the memory unit 133.

[0036] The first detection unit 141 detects when the user's thumb touches or comes into contact with another finger. Specifically, the first detection unit 141 detects that the thumb has touched another finger if the pressure data received via the first communication unit 131 is above a threshold. If the contact sensor 11 is a proximity sensor, the first detection unit 141 detects that the thumb has come into contact with another finger if the proximity data received via the first communication unit 131 indicates that the thumb is in close proximity to another object. The first detection unit 141 notifies the control unit 143 of the detection result.

[0037] The second detection unit 142 detects the position of the user's thumb. Specifically, the second detection unit 142 detects the position of the thumb based on the position data received via the first communication unit 131. If the position sensor 12 is located on the side of the index finger, the second detection unit 142 detects the position of the thumb on the side of the index finger. The second detection unit 142 notifies the control unit 143 of the detected position.

[0038] The control unit 143 identifies the user's operation based on the detection results of the first detection unit 141 and the detection results of the second detection unit 142. Specifically, the control unit 143 identifies the operation based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit 142 after the first detection unit 141 has detected that the user's thumb has touched or been in close proximity to another finger. The control unit 143 may further identify the operation based on the direction of movement of the thumb in the longitudinal direction of the user's other fingers. To prevent misrecognition, the control unit 143 may identify the operation based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit 142, provided that the first detection unit 141 has detected that the user's thumb has touched or been in close proximity to another finger for a predetermined time or longer (e.g., 1 second or more).

[0039] The control unit 143 may identify the operation based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit 142 when the position where the user's thumb touches another finger, as detected by the first detection unit 141, and the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 satisfy predetermined conditions. For example, the control unit 143 starts the process of identifying up, down, left, or right movement operations when pressure above a threshold is detected at a preset position on the index finger. This reduces the probability of an incorrect movement operation compared to when the second detection unit 142 starts the process of identifying a movement operation simply by detecting contact or proximity of the user's thumb.

[0040] The control unit 143 may identify the operation as a selection operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 is a first value, and identify the operation as a movement operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 is a second value. A movement operation is an operation to move the controlled object up, down, left, right, etc. With this configuration, selection operations and movement operations can be used interchangeably using the limited space of the sides of other fingers. In addition, since the control unit 143 switches the operation mode according to the pressure value, the user does not need to accurately press a specific position with their thumb, thus improving operability. Note that the first value and the second value are not limited to one value each. The first value is a value that falls within the first range, and the second value is a value that falls within the second range that does not overlap with the first range.

[0041] The control unit 143 identifies the operation content by referring to the operation content data stored in the storage unit 133. Figure 4 shows an example of operation content data. In the operation content data shown in Figure 4, the pressure detected by the contact sensor 11 (detected pressure), the position of the thumb at the time pressure is applied to the contact sensor 11 (thumb detection position), the manner of thumb movement, and the operation content are associated. Positions A and B are, for example, different positions on the index finger. For example, position A is closer to the fingertip of the index finger than position B, and position B is closer to the base of the index finger than position A.

[0042] For example, if the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 is a first value and the thumb's position at that time is position A, the control unit 143 determines that a selection operation equivalent to, for example, pressing the left mouse button has been performed, without specifying the thumb's movement pattern based on the thumb's position detected by the second detection unit 142. If the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 is a first value and the thumb's position at that time is position B, the control unit 143 determines that a selection operation equivalent to, for example, pressing the right mouse button has been performed, without specifying the thumb's movement pattern based on the thumb's position detected by the second detection unit 142.

[0043] The control unit 143 determines that a movement operation equivalent to an upward movement of the joystick has been performed if the pressure detected by the first detection unit 141 is a second value which is greater than the first value, the position of the thumb at that time is position A, and the thumb then moves toward the fingertip of the index finger. The control unit 143 determines that a movement operation equivalent to a downward movement of the joystick has been performed if the thumb moves toward the base of the index finger.

[0044] The control unit 143 determines that a movement operation equivalent to moving the joystick to the right has been performed if the thumb moves toward the back of the index finger. The control unit 143 determines that a movement operation equivalent to moving the joystick to the left has been performed if the thumb moves toward the palm side of the index finger. Based on the amount of movement determined based on the position detected by the second detection unit 142, the control unit 143 determines the amount by which to move the controlled object (cursor, on-screen object, camera viewpoint, moving object, menu selection position, etc.) in each of the up, down, left, and right directions.

[0045] The control unit 143 determines that if the pressure value detected by the first detection unit 141 is the second value, the position of the thumb at that time is position B, and the thumb then moves toward the tip of the index finger, then a movement operation to move forward in three-dimensional space has been performed. The control unit 143 determines that if the thumb moves toward the base of the index finger, then a movement operation to move backward in three-dimensional space has been performed.

[0046] As described above, the control unit 143 identifies the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb, with reference to the position where the user's thumb is in contact with or close to other fingers (for example, position A, position B). This increases the variety of operations that can be performed by thumb movements.

[0047] The glove-type device may have marks on the surface of the part where the other fingers are inserted, indicating the positions (e.g., positions A and B) where the user should touch or bring their thumb close. That is, multiple marks may be placed on the surface of the other fingers of the glove-type device 1, and the control unit 143 may identify the operation to be performed based on the position of the mark that the user's thumb touches or brings close to. This increases the probability that the user can perform the operation correctly.

[0048] If movement in the up, down, left, or right directions is sufficient, the control unit 143 may consider the position where the thumb touches or is close to another finger as position A. That is, the control unit 143 moves the object to be moved in the up, down, left, or right directions, starting from the position where the thumb touches or is close to another finger. This makes it possible to perform movement in the up, down, left, or right directions even if the position where the user presses to initiate the movement operation is deviated from a predetermined position (for example, position A).

[0049] The control unit 143 may specify the operation content according to the movement speed determined based on the amount of change per unit time of the position detected by the second detection unit 142. For example, if the movement speed is above a threshold, the control unit 143 may rapidly accelerate the controlled object. The control unit 143 may also switch the operation mode or terminate the movement operation if the movement speed is above a threshold.

[0050] [Processing flow executed by CPU134] Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the processing flow executed by CPU 134. CPU 134 repeats the process shown in Figure 5 at a predetermined interval.

[0051] The first detection unit 141 acquires pressure data from the contact sensor 11 (S11), and the second detection unit 142 acquires position data from the position sensor 12 (S12). The control unit 143 determines the content of the selection operation corresponding to the position indicated by the position data if the pressure indicated by the pressure data is a first value (YES in S13) (S14). In the example shown in Figure 4, the control unit 143 determines that the left button was pressed when a first value pressure is detected at position A, and determines that the right button was pressed when a first value pressure is detected at position B.

[0052] If the pressure indicated by the pressure data is not the first value (NO in S13) but the second value (YES in S15), the control unit 143 identifies the position indicated by the position data (S16) and outputs position information indicating the identified position (S17). The control unit 143 repeats the processes from S11 to S17 until the termination operation is performed (NO in S18). If the user continues to move the position of their thumb while applying the second value of pressure, the output of the position information in S17 is repeated, thereby realizing the movement operation.

[0053] [First variation] In the above description, an example was given in which the contact sensor 11 is provided near the tip of the thumb, but the contact sensor 11 may also be provided on the thumb-side surface of the area where another finger (for example, the index finger) is inserted. In this case, the contact sensor 11 may be positioned above or below the position sensor 12, or it may be provided overlapping the position sensor 12.

[0054] [Second variation] In the above description, an example was given in which the contact sensor 11 is located near the tip of the thumb, but the position sensor 12 may also function as the contact sensor 11. In this case, the first detection unit 141 may detect that the user's thumb has come into contact with or is in close proximity to the position sensor 12 based on the position data notified from the position sensor 12, and the second detection unit 142 may detect the position of the user's thumb based on the position data after the first detection unit 141 has detected that the user's thumb has come into contact with or is in close proximity to the same position on the position sensor 12 for a predetermined period of time or longer.

[0055] [Third variation] To allow the user to recognize that the result of their operation has been received, the device may be provided with stimuli such as vibration, sound, or touch. Specifically, the glove-type device 1 is equipped with a stimulus generating device that generates stimuli, and the stimulus generating device generates stimuli under the control of the CPU 134. For example, a stimulus generating device that generates vibrations is provided at both ends of the position sensor 12, and when the user's thumb reaches the position of the stimulus generating device, the stimulus generating device generates a vibration, allowing the user to recognize that the thumb has reached the end of the position sensor 12. This makes it easier for the user to recognize the operable range.

[0056] [Fourth variation] The means for detecting when the thumb touches or comes into close proximity to another finger is preferably a contact sensor 11, but is not limited to this. For example, the system may detect when the thumb touches or comes into close proximity to another finger from an image captured by a camera.

[0057] [Fifth variation] In the above description, we have described a case in which the CPU 134 of the control unit 13 of the glove-type device 1 has a control unit 143, and the control unit 143 identifies the user's operation based on the detection result of the first detection unit 141 and the detection result of the second detection unit 142. However, instead, the control unit 13 may transmit the detection result of the first detection unit 141 and the detection result of the second detection unit 142 from the second communication unit 132 to the external device 100, and the external device 100 may identify the user's operation based on the detection result of the first detection unit 141 and the detection result of the second detection unit 142.

[0058] [Effects of the operating system S] As described above, the operating system S includes a first detection unit 141 that detects when the user's thumb touches or comes into close proximity to other fingers, a second detection unit 142 that detects the position of the user's thumb, and a control unit 143 that identifies the operation content based on the detection results of the first detection unit 141 and the detection results of the second detection unit 142. In this way, the control unit 143 identifies the operation content based on the first movement and the second movement of the thumb, thereby improving the accuracy of operation recognition in the glove-type device 1.

[0059] Although the present invention has been described above using embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of its gist. For example, all or part of the apparatus can be configured by functionally or physically distributing and integrating in any unit. Furthermore, new embodiments resulting from any combination of multiple embodiments are also included in the embodiments of the present invention. The effects of the new embodiments resulting from the combinations are combined with the effects of the original embodiments. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0060] 1. Glove-type device 11. Contact Sensor 12 Position Sensors 13 Control Unit 100 External device 131 First Communications Department 132 Second Communications Department 133 Storage section 134 CPU 141 First detection unit 142 Second detection unit 143 Control Unit

Claims

1. An operating system for detecting the actions of a user wearing a glove-type device, A first detection unit that detects when the user's thumb comes into contact with another finger, A second detection unit for detecting the position of the user's thumb, A control unit that identifies the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit when the position of the user's thumb that the first detection unit detected when the user's thumb contacted the other fingers, and the pressure applied to the thumb when the thumb contacted the other fingers, satisfy predetermined conditions, An operating system having.

2. The control unit determines the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit after the first detection unit has detected that the user's thumb has come into contact with the other fingers. The operating system according to claim 1.

3. The control unit further determines the operation content based on the direction of movement of the user's thumb in the longitudinal direction of the other fingers. The operating system according to claim 2.

4. The control unit identifies the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb, with reference to the position where the user's thumb touches the other fingers. The operating system according to claim 1.

5. The surface of the part of the glove-type device into which the other fingers are inserted is marked with a mark indicating the position where the user should place their thumb. The operating system according to claim 1.

6. The surface of the portion of the glove-type device into which the other fingers are inserted is marked with a plurality of marks indicating a plurality of positions to which the user should make contact with their thumb. The operating system according to claim 1.

7. The control unit identifies the operation as a selection operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit is a first value, and identifies the operation as a movement operation when the pressure detected by the first detection unit is a second value. The operating system according to claim 1.

8. The control unit identifies the operation content according to the movement speed, which is determined based on the amount of change per unit time of the position detected by the second detection unit. The operating system according to claim 1.

9. A glove-type device for detecting user actions, A first detection unit that detects when the user's thumb comes into contact with another finger, A second detection unit for detecting the position of the user's thumb, A control unit that identifies the operation content based on the position of the user's thumb detected by the second detection unit when the position of the user's thumb that the first detection unit detected when the user's thumb contacted the other fingers, and the pressure applied to the thumb when the thumb contacted the other fingers, satisfy predetermined conditions, A glove-type device having a glove.

10. In the processor, A step of detecting the pressure applied to the thumb when the thumb of a user wearing a glove-type device comes into contact with other fingers, A step to identify the user's operation based on the position where the user's thumb contacted the other fingers, when the position where the user's thumb contacted the other fingers and the detected pressure satisfy predetermined conditions, A program to execute.

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