Adaptive Display Interface for Multifunction Printer Input
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Solution Overview
Problem
Multifunctional image forming devices face challenges in operability due to differences in input methods, such as touch panels and mice, which affect how users select items, leading to suboptimal user experience.
Innovation Solution
An image forming apparatus that includes a display unit, multiple input units, and a recognition unit to adapt the display based on the input method used, showing a first screen for function menu selection and a second screen for item selection, with adjustments in layout and functionality based on the recognized input unit, allowing for optimized user interaction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a unified screen layout is displayed for both touch panel and mouse inputs, then device complexity is reduced, but operability deteriorates due to mismatched interaction patterns
Solution Approach 1:
The screen layout dynamically changes based on the detected input device type. When a touch panel is detected, the system displays a first screen layout optimized for touch interaction. When a mouse is detected, the system displays a second screen layout optimized for cursor-based interaction. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by maintaining low complexity through a single adaptable layout structure while achieving high operability through device-specific optimization.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes display parameters such as icon size, spacing, and arrangement based on the input device type. For touch panels, larger icons with wider spacing are displayed to facilitate accurate touch input. For mice, smaller icons with narrower spacing are displayed to maximize screen real estate while maintaining cursor precision. This parameter adaptation allows the system to maintain simplicity while optimizing operability for each device type.
2Area of stationary object
If the display area is limited, then device size is reduced, but the number of displayable functions is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the display content into hierarchical levels, presenting frequently used functions on the main screen and less frequently used functions on sub-screens or through pop-up displays. This segmentation allows the limited display area to efficiently present essential functions while maintaining access to a comprehensive set of features through organized navigation structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes temporal dimension by providing pop-up displays and hierarchical navigation that allow access to additional functions without permanently occupying screen space. Functions are displayed in layers, with the ability to access deeper levels of functionality through structured navigation while maintaining a clean primary display interface.
Data Source
AI summary
An image forming apparatus includes a display unit, a plurality of types of input units, an input unit recognizing unit that recognizes a type of input unit via which input is being performed, and a display control unit. If a function menu has been selected of the first screen via the input unit, the display control unit displays a second screen, on the display unit, for selecting an item in the function menu selected on the first screen. Herein, based on a type of input unit recognized by the input unit recognizing unit when the function menu was selected on the first screen, the display control unit displays the second screen that corresponds to the recognized input unit on the display unit.