JPH03216717A - Work system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent an operator from forgetting to take rest owing to the self control by prohitibing the input of information from an input device or displaying a prescribed message or giving an alarm when continuous work time reaches the reference time. CONSTITUTION:An alarm automatic off-function 5a for urging the operator to take a rest when continuous work time by the operator exceeds the prescribed time and an automatic off-function 5b which shuts down the display screen of a display device 3 when a keyboard operation is not executed by the operator for more than prescribed time are provided in a controller 5. When continuous work time reaches previously decided time, the input of information from the input device 1 is prohibited or the message or an alarm is given. Thus, the operator forgetting to take a rest owing to the self control of the operator operating the input can be prevented.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention provides a work system having an input means that allows desired information to be input, and a display means that displays information in accordance with the operation of the input means; Furthermore, the present invention relates to a system having a function of prompting an operator to take a rest during long hours of work in the system, and relates to a technique that is effective when applied to, for example, a computer system.

[Conventional technology]

In order to exchange information between humans and the computer system in a computer system (electronic computer), an input/output device is required as an interface between the two. An example of an input device is a keyboard that converts characters and symbols into codes through human typing operations, which can then be input into a computer.As an output device, there is a keyboard that can be used to visualize output data from a computer.
RT displays can be mentioned. In such a device, desired information can be made to be recognized by a computer by operating a keyboard, and the results of processing according to a predetermined program can be displayed on a CRT display. In computer systems, certain tasks can be performed by using such input/output devices.

In addition, personal computers, especially those that operate using batteries as a power source, generally use a liquid crystal display instead of a CRT display, but if no keyboard operations are performed for a certain period of time, the display screen shuts down (goes into a blank state). ) and has a function to display the information again with subsequent keyboard operations. This function is particularly called an auto-off function, and is said to be effective in reducing power consumption and extending battery life.

An example of literature describing computer systems is "Telecommunications Handbook" published by Ohmsha on August 20, 1981.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) According to the inventor's study of work using the above-mentioned input/output device, the following problems were found.

When working with the above-mentioned input/output devices, there is a risk of physical discomfort or eye fatigue due to continuous keyboard operation and continuous viewing of the display screen for long periods of time, so in general, It is considered desirable to take a 15-minute break for every hour of continuous work. However, operators may become so absorbed in their work that they forget to take a break. In other words, when working with the above-mentioned input/output devices, it is actually difficult to take a break through self-management, and by the time the operator realizes it, the long hours of work have caused various physical problems. That is the reality.

Note that the conventional auto-off function shuts down the display screen when no keyboard operations are performed for a certain period of time, so this function does not solve the above problem.

An object of the present invention is to provide a work system that prevents forgetting to take breaks through self-management.

The above and other objects and novel features of the present application will become apparent from the description of the present specification and the accompanying drawings.

[Means to solve the problem]

A brief overview of typical inventions disclosed in this application is as follows.

That is, there is a measuring means that measures continuous working time by operating an input means that enables information input, and when the measurement result of this measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time, a measuring means that measures continuous working time by operating an input means that enables information input, and when the measurement result of this measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time, the time of continuous work is measured by the input means for a predetermined period of time. The work system includes input control means for prohibiting information input.

Here, the display screen may be configured to be shut down when the continuous working time measured by the first measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time.

Further, when the measurement result of the measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time, it may be configured to issue a message or warning to urge interruption of the work.

[For production]

According to the above means, when the continuous working time reaches a predetermined reference time, information input from the input means is prohibited or a message or warning is issued, and this causes the input means to It acts to prevent forgetting to take a rest due to the self-management of the operator.

〔Example〕

FIG. 2 shows a computer system that is an embodiment of the present invention.

The computer system shown in the figure includes an input device 1 that allows desired information to be input by an operator's operation, information input from the input device 1, a predetermined program, and information processing results obtained by executing the program. A storage device 2 for storing data, a display device 3 capable of displaying the stored contents of the storage device 2 as needed, an arithmetic device 4 that performs predetermined arithmetic processing for information processing, and operation control of each part of the system of this embodiment. It includes a control device 5 that controls the.

The input device 1 includes, but is not particularly limited to, a keyboard that can encode characters, symbols, etc. according to the operator's typing operations, and this input device 1 corresponds to input means in the present invention.

Although not particularly limited, the memory device 2 often uses magnetic memory elements and semiconductor memory elements, and the memory device 2 includes:
It includes not only a main storage device whose reading and writing of information is directly controlled by the control device 5, but also auxiliary storage devices such as magnetic tape and magnetic disks. Note that this auxiliary storage device is treated as a peripheral device like the input device 1 and display device 3 described above.

The display device 3 includes, but is not particularly limited to, the storage device 2
It includes a D/A converter that converts information read out into an analog signal and a CRT display that visualizes the output of this D/A converter. Here, this display device 3 is an example of display means in the present invention.

The arithmetic device 4 may include, but is not particularly limited to, the storage device 1.
The arithmetic unit 4 has a function of mainly performing four arithmetic operations and logical operations on information in the 12, and this arithmetic unit 4 includes a group of registers for storing thousands of data, an arithmetic circuit with an adder as its core, a logic operation circuit, and its Contains control circuitry.

The control device I5 controls the operation of the input device 1, the storage device 2, the display device 3, and the calculation device 4, although it is not particularly limited, and automatically performs calculations and other processing according to the program in the storage device 2. progress sequentially. This control device 5 includes a central processing unit (CPU) together with the arithmetic unit 4.
Alternatively, it may also be called a processor.

In the system of this embodiment, the control device 5 includes, but is not particularly limited to, a warning auto-off function 6 for prompting the operator to take a rest when the operator's continuous work time exceeds a predetermined time, and a keyboard operation by the operator for more than a predetermined time. It also has an auto-off function that shuts down the display screen of the display device 3 to reduce power consumption when the display screen is not performed.

FIG. 1 shows main functional blocks of the control device 5. As shown in FIG.

As shown in the figure, the control device 5 is provided with an input control means 6, a first measurement means 7, and a first display control means 10 in order to realize the above-mentioned warning auto-off function 5a, and the above-mentioned auto-off function 5a. A second measurement means 9 and a second display control means 11 are provided to realize the function 5b.

The first measuring means 7 measures the continuous working time by operating the input device 1. Here, the continuous working time can be measured by measuring the time during which key inputs are continuously performed after the system of this embodiment is powered on. However, if the interval between key inputs is too long, in other words, if the interval between key inputs exceeds a predetermined time, it is considered that the work using the keyboard is interrupted, and the first Measurement by the measuring means 7 is not performed.

The input control means 6 prohibits information input from the input device 1 for a predetermined period of time when the continuous working time measured by the first measuring means 7 reaches a predetermined first reference time. . Here, the first reference time is not particularly limited, but is determined to be equal to the longest possible continuous working time without causing any physical damage, and in this embodiment system, it is set to 2 hours. This first reference time is not fixed and can be changed as appropriate depending on individual differences among operators or the content of work.In addition, information input from the input device 1 is prohibited regardless of the operator's keyboard operations. This is made possible by preventing the encoding of characters and symbols associated with the keyboard operations, or by preventing the encoding information from being incorporated into the system. This information input prohibition time is a time for forcibly interrupting work and allowing the user to take a rest, and can be set arbitrarily. In the system of this embodiment, the time is set to 3 minutes.

Furthermore, in the system of this embodiment, in order to notify the operator that the warning auto-off function 5a has been activated and to cancel the interruption of work, when the continuous work time reaches the first reference time, the input device 1 is activated. In addition to prohibiting information input from the computer, the display screen of the display device 3 is also shut down at the same time. The display screen is shut down by stopping the power supply for displaying information to the display device 13, or by providing the display device 3 with information for setting the display screen to the lowest brightness state instead of the previously displayed information. This is achieved by

Further, the second measuring means 9 measures the time during which no information is input by operating the input device [1] after the power of the system of this embodiment is turned on. The fact that information has not been input is detected by the measurement control means 8 that monitors the operating state of the input device 1.

The second display control means 11 shuts down the display screen of the display device 3 when the time measured by the second measuring means 9 reaches a predetermined second reference time. In other words, if no information is input by operating the input device 1 for a certain period of time or more, it is assumed that the work using the system of this embodiment has been interrupted, and the display screen is shut down to reduce power consumption. Ru. Since the purpose of the shutdown here is to reduce power consumption, it is performed until the subsequent key input, and is realized by stopping the power supply for displaying information to the display device 3. Furthermore, the above-mentioned measurement control Means 8 is
When a predetermined condition is satisfied, the first and second measuring means 7,
8 set/reset, and the above first and second
The display control means 10.11 cancels the display screen shutdown, and the input control means 6 cancels the inhibition of information input.

Next, the operation of the embodiment system having the above configuration will be explained according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the system of this embodiment is powered on (step STI). The measurement control means 8 sets the first and second measurement means 7.8 (timer setting) (step ST2). Then, the measurement control means 8 determines whether or not there is a key input (step S
T3). If it is determined that there is a key input in this determination, it means that the operator is working by operating the input device 1, so the first measuring means 7 determines that the continuous working time is 2. It is determined whether the time (first reference time) has been reached (step ST4). Note that even when there is a key input, even when there is no key input, the work continues unless it is determined in step ST9 (to be described later) that the no-input state has exceeded the second reference time (Y). If it is determined in step ST4 that the continuous working time has reached 2 hours, the display screen of the display device 3 is shut down by the first display control means 10. (Step ST5). At the same time, subsequent input of information is prohibited under the control of the input control means 6. This display screen shutdown and information input prohibition time is set to 3 minutes. As a result, the operator is forced to take a rest.6 The above-mentioned display screen shutdown and information input prohibition time is set to 3 minutes, but if the operator does not make any key input again after 3 minutes, the display screen remains shut down.

In other words, when the display screen is shut down and the information input prohibition period of 3 minutes has elapsed, the information input prohibition is first lifted.
The measurement control means 8 determines whether a key input has been made (step ST6). If it is determined that a key input has been made in this determination, the display screen is shut down by the first display control means 1o and returned to the display state immediately before the shutdown (
Step ST7). Then, the measurement control means 9 resets (timer reset) the first measurement means 7 (step ST8). The first measuring means 7 is set again for measuring the next continuous working time (step ST2).

Further, if it is determined in step ST3 that no key input has been made, the second measuring means 9 determines whether or not a certain period of time (second reference time) has elapsed. (Step ST9) In this determination, if it is determined that the state of no key input has not passed for a certain period of time It N 71, the above step ST is performed.
Return to the determination in step 3. When the no-input state exceeds a certain period of time, the second display control means 1 is activated to reduce power consumption.
1, the display screen of the display device 3 is shut down (step STIO). This shutdown is canceled by a subsequent key input. That is, only when a subsequent key input is made, the display screen of the display device 3 is returned to the display state immediately before the shutdown (step S
TII, ST7). Then, the second measurement means 9 is reset by the measurement control means 8 (step ST8),
The second measuring means 9 is set again (step ST2
). The above-described determination execution is repeated until the system of this embodiment is powered off.

According to the above embodiment, the following effects are achieved.

(1) The continuous working time is measured by the first measuring means 7, and when this continuous working time reaches a predetermined first reference time, the input control means 6 prohibits information input. Even though the operator has been immersed in work, the operator can take a proper rest, and can suppress problems such as physical discomfort or eye fatigue caused by long hours of work.

(2) When the above continuous working time reaches a predetermined first reference time, the above information input is prohibited and the display screen is shut down by the first display control means 10. Therefore, the operator can be immediately informed that the warning auto-off function 5a has been activated, and this also makes it possible to eliminate work interruption.

(3) Not only when a key input is made, but even when there is no key input, as long as the non-input state does not exceed the second reference time, in other words, the non-input state is determined in step ST9. Unless it is determined that a certain period of time has elapsed (#Y I+), the work is considered to be continuing, which makes it possible to accurately measure continuous work time.

Although the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically explained based on the embodiments above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be modified in various ways without departing from the gist thereof.

For example, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the warning auto-off function 5a and the auto-off function 5b are provided, but the auto-off function 5b may be omitted.

Further, in the above embodiment, the first display control means 10 shuts down the display screen at the same time as the input control means 6 prohibits information input, but the display screen is not shut down. Good too. That is, the object of the present invention is achieved to a certain extent by prohibiting information input.

Further, instead of shutting down the display screen, a message such as "Please take a break" may be displayed on the display screen of the display device 3, urging the user to interrupt the work.

Display control of such messages can be configured to be performed by the first display control means 10. That is, when the continuous working time reaches the first reference time, the first display control means 10 displays the above message in place of the previous display content or in a display area that does not affect the display content. In particular, when displaying the above message in a display area that does not affect the previous display content, the message should be flashed at a predetermined cycle or in a different color from the previous display content to make it easier to recognize the message. It is a good idea to display it. Further, instead of displaying a message, a warning may be issued by a warning means such as a buzzer or a warning lamp. When displaying such messages or issuing warnings,
It is also possible not to prohibit information input in the above embodiment. By doing this, you will not be suddenly prohibited from inputting information during work as in the above embodiment, so you can continue the work until it is convenient to stop and then take a rest. I can do it.

Furthermore, the input means in the present invention includes not only a keyboard but also various input devices such as a trackball, joystick, or mouse, and the display means in the present invention includes not only a CRT display but also a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, etc. This includes various display devices.

In the above description, the invention made by the present inventor was mainly applied to a computer system, which is the background field of application, but the present invention is not limited thereto. can also be widely applied to terminal devices of communication systems. The present invention can be applied at least to conditions where desired information is inputted via an input means.

〔Effect of the invention〕

A brief explanation of the effects obtained by typical inventions disclosed in this application is as follows. Namely, when the continuous working time reaches a predetermined reference time, information is input from the input means. By prohibiting the operator from taking a rest or by displaying a predetermined message or issuing a warning, it is possible to prevent the operator from forgetting to take a rest due to self-control.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a main functional block diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an overall block diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an operation flowchart of the system according to the present embodiment. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Input device, 2... Storage device, 3... Display device, 4... Arithmetic device, 5... Control device, 5a...
Warning auto-off function. 5b...Auto-off function, 6.
...Input control means, 7...First measurement means, 8...
Measurement control means, 9... second measurement means, 10... first display control means, 11... second display control means. Figure l Figure 2

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A work system comprising an input means that allows desired information to be input, and a display means that displays information in accordance with the operation of the input means, the work system comprising: A measuring means for measuring working time; and an input control means for prohibiting information input from the input means for a predetermined period of time when the continuous working time measured by the measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time. A work system comprising: 2. The work system according to claim 1, further comprising display control means for shutting down the display screen when the continuous working time measured by the measuring means reaches the reference time. 3. A work system comprising an input means that allows desired information to be input and a display means that displays information in accordance with the operation of the input means, and a measurement system that measures continuous working time by operating the input means. and display control means for causing the display means to display a message for prompting interruption of the work when the continuous working time measured by the measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time. work system. 4. A work system that includes an input means that allows desired information to be input and a display means that displays information in accordance with the operation of the input means, and a measurement system that measures continuous working time by operating the input means. A work system comprising: means; and a warning means for issuing a warning to urge interruption of the work when the continuous work time measured by the measuring means reaches a predetermined reference time. 5. Claims 1 and 2, wherein the measuring means continues to measure the continuous working time unless the information input state exceeds a predetermined time.
The work system described in 3 or 4.