JPH11119912A - Optical input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical touch panel of high resolution. SOLUTION: An optical touch panel 100 is provided with a light-transmitting plate 102, horizontal/vertical light-emitting element streams 104X and 104Y, a light-receiving element 108 provided at one corner of the light-transmitting plate, horizontal/vertical optical path change members 106X and 106Y for changing the optical path of light from the horizontal/vertical light-emitting element to the direction of the light-receiving element, and a detector 110 for detecting the touch position of an input means from the change of horizontal and vertical light caused by the touch of an input means 114 to the light-transmitting plate 102. Thus, since light can be guided stably through the light transmission plate, an optical touch panel which stably and exactly operates can be provided. Further, since the light-emitting part and the light-receiving part can be miniaturized, the device can be miniaturized and reduced in power consumption.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical input device, and in particular, to a liquid crystal display (LCD).
d Crystal Display), plasma display (PDP: Plasma Display P)
anel), EL display (Electro Lu)
minesence Display), LED display (Light Emitting Diode)
Display) and CRT display (Cathode)
In connection with touch panels that can be used for Ray Tube display, etc., mobile terminals and PDAs (Pers
The present invention relates to an optical input device of a touch panel type that can be mounted on various display devices from small display devices such as on-line digital assistants to large display devices.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various types of touch panels to be mounted on a display surface of a display device, such as an optical touch panel, a capacitive touch panel, and an ultrasonic touch panel, have been proposed.

(1) Optical Touch Panel First, an optical touch panel will be described. As shown in FIG. 14, an optical touch panel is mounted on a display surface 11 of a display device 10 such as an LCD. A light-transmitting plate 12, an optical filter 13 erected on four sides of the light-transmitting plate 12 to cut visible light, and a light-emitting element array 14 such as an LED that emits light through the optical filter 13. A light-receiving element array 15 such as a phototransistor that receives light via the optical filter 13 is provided. The light emitting element array 14 and the light receiving element 15 are arranged so as to form a pair in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction with the light transmitting plate 12 interposed therebetween.

With this configuration, the scanning light emitted from the light emitting element array 14 sequentially passes through the optical filter 13, crosses the upper surface of the light transmitting plate 12, and is again received by the light receiving element array 15 via the optical filter 13. You. When the optical path of the scanning light is blocked by a finger, a raster, or the like, the X and Y coordinates of the blocked position are detected, and a predetermined input operation is performed.

As described above, the optical touch panel has a structure in which the light-emitting element array 14 composed of LEDs and the like is structured,
A light receiving element array including a phototransistor and the like is opposed to each other through an optical filter 13. Therefore, it had the following problems.

[0006] As the screen size increases, the optical path of the scanning light also increases, and a high-output light emitting element is required.
Therefore, the size of the light emitting element has to be increased. Further, in addition to the large number of elements / parts, the mounting space is large, and miniaturization is difficult. Furthermore, a display device to which a touch panel is attached, such as an LCD or a CRT,
In order to match the touch panel, it was necessary to manufacture a bezel custom, which increased development costs and made it difficult to flexibly respond to display model changes.

Furthermore, the size of the light-emitting element such as an LED is large, so that the optical axis is high, and thus the operating position is high, causing a parallax. As shown in FIG. 15, this tendency appears remarkably when a touch panel is used on a screen having a curvature like a CRT, and has become a problem. In addition, since the mounting pitch of the LED and the phototransistor is defined, there is a problem that the resolution cannot be set high. Furthermore, in the conventional device, a two-terminal phototransistor has been used as a light receiving element array to cope with miniaturization. However, when weak light is input, the rising speed is reduced due to the capacitance between the electrodes, and the required response speed is reduced. There was also a problem that it could not be obtained.

(2) Capacitive touch panel Next, the capacitive touch panel will be described.
A touch panel member provided with an O film is used. The X coordinate and the Y coordinate of the touch position of the conductive material are detected by utilizing a change in capacitance generated when a conductive material comes into contact with the touch surface. However, it had the following problems.

Since the touch panel member is provided with the ITO film, there is a problem that it is difficult to prevent the optical path of disturbance light from being changed. Further, since the operation principle uses a change in capacitance, the operation is not possible unless the material is a conductive material, and thus a special input device such as a pen is required. In addition, there has been a problem that the device is easily affected by the surrounding environment (radio wave noise, humidity) and malfunctions easily. And the whole screen is ITO
Since it is necessary to cover with a touch panel member on which a film is formed, there is a problem that transmittance and visibility are reduced. Furthermore, the capacitive touch panel has a problem that it is inherently weak in electrostatic withstand voltage.

(3) There is an ultrasonic touch panel. Next, the ultrasonic touch panel is explained. This ultrasonic touch panel uses surface acoustic waves that propagate on the surface of a material such as plastic, and touches the surface of the touch panel with a material that absorbs sound waves. , The X coordinate and the Y coordinate of the touch position are detected by utilizing the attenuation of the surface acoustic wave. However, the ultrasonic touch panel has the following problems.

First, as a characteristic of the use of ultrasonic waves, there is a problem that the structure is easily affected by sound wave noise and a closed structure cannot be formed due to the use of surface acoustic waves. In addition, there is also a problem that if dust, dirt or scratches are made on the surface of the touch panel, malfunctions are likely to occur.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the conventional touch panel, and it is possible to simplify and reduce the size of the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. Further, the degree of freedom in designing the bezel structure and the like is increased, and the device can be simplified and downsized. Therefore, the device can be suitably applied to portable terminals and PDAs.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved optical touch panel.

Still another object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for a high-output device as a light-emitting section even when applied to a large-sized display device, and thus to reduce the size of the device. In addition, even when the present invention is applied to a screen having a curvature such as a CRT, a new and improved optical touch panel that can be freely installed in accordance with the curved surface and does not cause a parallax problem is provided. That is.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a light emitting device having a high resolution by using a small light emitting device, and by freely increasing the number of light emitting devices according to the required resolution. To provide a new and improved optical touch panel that can be easily manufactured.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a touch panel having no influence on transmittance and visibility, being less susceptible to noise such as dirt and scratches, and providing a touch sensation. Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved optical touch panel, which is excellent in erroneous input and hard to cause erroneous input.

[0016]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an optical touch panel according to the present invention comprises a touch panel provided on a display surface of a display device and a touch panel provided along one horizontal side of the touch panel. A horizontal light emitting element array arranged along one vertical side of the touch panel, a light emitting element array provided at least at one corner of the touch panel, and the other of the touch panel. A horizontal light path changing member for changing the light path of horizontal light emitted from the row of horizontal light emitting elements and transmitted substantially parallel to the display surface toward the light receiving element, and the other of the touch panel; Vertical light emitted from the array of vertical light emitting elements and transmitted substantially parallel to the display surface to change the optical path in the direction of the light receiving element. A directional light path changer, is characterized by having a detecting device for detecting an operation position of the input means from the change in the horizontal direction light and the vertical beam by the operation of the input means from the outside.

According to this configuration, the light emitted from each light emitting element travels in the touch panel or on the touch panel, the light path is changed by the light path changing member on the opposite side, and is received by the light receiving element. Then, the touch position can be detected based on the amount of light changed by the operation of the external input means. As described above, in the optical touch panel according to the present invention, unlike the conventional device, it is not necessary to provide the number of light receiving elements corresponding to the light emitting element rows, so that the size of the device can be reduced.

In the present specification, unless otherwise specified, it is assumed that the touch panel has a substantially rectangular shape, the horizontal direction indicates a side direction extending to one side of the substantially rectangular touch panel, and the vertical direction indicates the horizontal direction. Indicate the side direction extending to the other side of the touch panel orthogonally to. Further, the input means is not limited to an object such as a touch pen, and for example, an operator's finger or the like can be used as the input means. In addition, the operation by the input means includes not only the operation of directly touching the touch panel, but also all the operations that change the light transmitted on or in the touch panel, such as an operation of blocking light traversing the touch panel. Shall be considered.

Further, the touch panel may be constituted by, for example, a light guide plate. That is, the optical input device is
3. A touch panel comprising a light guide plate provided on a display surface of a display device, a row of horizontal light emitting elements arranged along one horizontal side of the touch panel, and one of the touch panels. A light emitting element array arranged along at least one vertical side of the touch panel; a light receiving element provided at at least one corner of the touch panel; and a light emitting element array arranged on the other horizontal side of the touch panel and emitting light from the horizontal light emitting element array. A horizontal light path changing member for changing the light path of the horizontal light transmitted through the light guide plate toward the light receiving element; and a horizontal light path changing member disposed on the other vertical side of the touch panel and emitted from the vertical light emitting element row. A vertical light path changing member for changing the light path of the vertical light transmitted through the light guide plate toward the light receiving element; It can be configured to have a detection device for detecting the operation position of the input means from the change of the vertical beam and.

According to this configuration, the light emitted from each light emitting element can be stably transmitted through the light guide plate and can reach the light receiving element. As a result, a filter for shielding disturbance light and a complicated bezel mechanism are not required, and an optical touch panel that is resistant to noise and that operates stably and accurately can be provided. Furthermore, if a light guide plate is used as a touch panel, if the light guide plate is contacted from the outside by an input means, the amount of light transmitted through the light guide plate can be easily changed, and position detection becomes easy.

The light receiving element is provided at one corner of the touch panel and receives light from the horizontal light emitting element row and light from the vertical light emitting element row. Or a horizontal light receiving element provided at one corner of the touch panel for receiving light from the horizontal light emitting element row, and a horizontal light receiving element provided at another corner of the touch panel, as described in claim 4. And a vertical light receiving element for receiving light from the vertical light emitting element row. Whichever configuration is employed, unlike the conventional device, there is no need to provide a number of light receiving elements corresponding to the number of light emitting elements, so the number of light receiving elements is dramatically reduced, and the size of the device is reduced. Simplification can be achieved.

The horizontal light path changing member and the vertical light path changing member may correspond to the horizontal light emitting elements and the vertical light emitting elements, respectively. It is possible to form a mirror row or a prism row, such as a half mirror, provided as such. According to such a configuration, light emitted from each light emitting element and transmitted through the light guide plate can be guided to the light receiving element with a simple configuration.

Further, each of the mirror rows or the prism rows has a plurality of optical path changing surfaces having different heights, and each of the mirror rows or the prism rows has a plurality of optical path changing surfaces. If the light emitted from the light emitting element and each light emitted from each of the vertical direction light emitting elements is configured to be changed in the light path on the light path changing surface at a different height, the light receiving element is not attenuated and the light path changed light is not attenuated. , And a smaller light emitting element can be used, and the accuracy of position detection can be improved.

Incidentally, in the optical touch panel, the optical path length from the light emitting element to the light receiving element differs depending on the light path changing position of the light, and accordingly, the amount of light detected by the light receiving element also changes. Therefore, as described in claim 9, the dimensions of the respective optical path changing surfaces of the mirror row or the prism row are set as follows.
If adjustment is made so that the light beams that have changed the optical path on the respective optical path changing surfaces and reached the light receiving elements are substantially equal, position detection with higher accuracy can be performed.

Further, when the horizontal light receiving element rows and the vertical light receiving element rows are each constituted by a chip type LED, the light guide plate can be provided on the light guide plate without using a bezel structure. Since the rows can be directly installed, the size and weight of the apparatus can be further reduced.

Further, according to the present invention, if a lens device is provided which collects light emitted from the horizontal light receiving element row and the vertical light receiving element row and guides the light to the light guide plate. Since light can be efficiently introduced into the light guide plate, the position detection accuracy can be improved.

Furthermore, if the light receiving element is constituted by a photodiode as described in claim 12, it is possible to reduce the size of the device and to achieve a high-speed response even with weak light. Therefore, the response speed of the entire device can be reduced, and as a result, the number of detections per element can be increased, so that the detection accuracy can be improved and the influence of disturbance light can be reduced.

Further, if the light receiving element is constituted by a one-dimensional image sensor, it is possible to specify a pixel for receiving the light whose path has been changed. By combining with a configuration having different optical path changing positions according to the respective light receiving elements as described in (1), position detection can be performed with higher resolution.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a touch panel comprising a light guide plate provided on a display surface of a display device, and a row of horizontal light emitting elements arranged along one horizontal side of the touch panel. A horizontal light receiving element array arranged along the opposing side to receive horizontal light emitted from the horizontal light emitting element array and transmitted through the light guide plate; and one of the vertical sides of the touch panel. A vertical light emitting element array arranged along the vertical direction, and a vertical light receiving element array arranged along the opposite side thereof for receiving vertical light emitted from the vertical light emitting element array and transmitted through the light guide plate. An optical input device comprising: a detection device that detects an operation position of the input device from a change in the horizontal light and the vertical light due to an operation of the input device on the light guide plate from outside. It can be.

According to this configuration, light emitted from each light emitting element can be stably transmitted through the light guide plate and can reach the light receiving element. As a result, a filter for shielding disturbance light and a complicated bezel mechanism are not required, and an optical touch panel that is resistant to noise and that operates stably and accurately can be provided. Furthermore, if a light guide plate is used as a touch panel, if the light guide plate is contacted from the outside by an input means, the amount of light transmitted through the light guide plate can be easily changed, and position detection becomes easy.

[0031]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the optical touch panel according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description and the accompanying drawings, members having substantially the same function and configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

First, a schematic configuration of the optical touch panel 100 according to the first embodiment and an operation principle thereof will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the optical touch panel 100 according to the present embodiment includes a light guide plate 102 made of a transparent material such as acrylic, and a light guide plate 1 of the light guide plate 102.
02, a plurality of LEDs 1 arranged at appropriate intervals on one side
A light emitting element array 104 composed of the light emitting elements 04a to 104e, an optical path changing member 106 arranged on a side of the light guide plate 102 opposite to the side where the light emitting element array 104 is arranged, and light whose optical path has been changed by the optical path changing member 106 is received. A light receiving element 108 composed of a photodiode or the like, and a controller 110 that drives the light emitting element array 104 and determines an input operation based on a change in light detected by the light receiving element 108. In addition, code 1
Reference numeral 02a denotes a lens for condensing light emitted from each of the LEDs 104a to 104e and efficiently guiding the light into the light guide plate 102. In the example shown in FIG. 1, for ease of explanation, a configuration in which light is emitted only in the y direction in the figure is shown. However, in actuality, a configuration in which light is also emitted in the x direction in the figure is shown. Needless to say, it is necessary to obtain the orthogonal coordinate system.

Next, the operation principle of the optical touch panel 100 configured as described above will be described.
Lights 112 a to 112 e are sequentially emitted from the LEDs 104 a to 104 e of the light emitting element array 104. The light 112a to 112e emitted from the LED is
And transmitted through the light guide plate 102 to reach the optical path changing member 106. The light reaching the optical path changing member 106 is changed its optical path toward the light receiving element 108 by the optical path changing member 106, and the light whose path has been changed is received by the light receiving element 108.

Here, when the surface of the light guide plate 102 is pressed by the input means 114 such as a touch pen or a finger as shown in the figure, the refractive index of the light guide plate 102 in the pressed portion changes, and the pressed portion is changed. The amount of light 112b that passes through and reaches the light receiving element 108 changes. And controller 1
10 are light beams 112a to 112a detected by the light receiving element 108.
It is possible to determine the position of the light guide plate 102 at which the input means 114 is pressed by the change in the light amount 112e.

Next, the actual arrangement of the optical touch panel according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, the optical touch panel 100 shown in FIG.
In a, one light receiving element 108XY can detect the orthogonal coordinate positions in the X direction and the Y direction. That is, a horizontal light emitting element array 104X is arranged on one X-axis side of the light guide plate 102, and a horizontal optical path changing member 106X is arranged on the other X-axis side. A horizontal light emitting element array 104Y is provided on one Y axis side of the light guide plate 102.
And a horizontal optical path changing member 106Y is arranged on the other Y-axis side. Then, the light 112X emitted from the horizontal light emitting element array 104X is changed in optical path by the optical path changing member 106X and reaches the light emitting element 108XY. On the other hand, the light 112Y emitted from the vertical light emitting element array 104Y is first changed in optical path in the Y-axis direction by the optical path changing member 106Y, and is changed in the X-axis direction by the optical path changing plate 116 provided at one corner of the light guide plate 102. The light-emitting element 108 is changed and passes through the light path changing member 106X.
It is configured to reach XY.

On the other hand, in the optical touch panel 100b shown in FIG. 3, two light receiving elements are provided, the X coordinate position is detected by the horizontal light receiving element 108X, and the Y coordinate position is detected in the vertical direction. A configuration in which detection is performed by the light receiving element 108Y is employed. Like the optical touch panel 100a shown in FIG. 2, the optical touch panel 100b according to the present embodiment also has a light guide plate 1
02, a horizontal light emitting element array 104X is arranged on one X-axis side, and a horizontal optical path changing member 106X is arranged on the other X-axis side. A horizontal light emitting element array 104Y is arranged on one Y-axis side of the light guide plate 102, and a horizontal optical path changing member 106Y is arranged on the other Y-axis side. Then, the light 112X emitted from the horizontal light emitting element array 104X is changed its optical path by the optical path changing member 106X and reaches the horizontal light emitting element 108X.
Similarly, the light 112Y emitted from the vertical direction light emitting element array 104Y is configured such that the light path is changed by the light path changing member 106Y and reaches the vertical direction light emitting element 108Y.

It is needless to say that the arrangement of the optical touch panel according to the present invention is not limited to the above example. For example, in the arrangements shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the light path changing directions of the light in the light path changing members 106X and 106Y are the same, but the light path changing directions can be made different depending on the X axis direction and the Y axis direction. Needless to say, For example, in FIG. 2, if the light path changing direction of the light path changing member 106X is reversed, the light path changing member
It is also possible to detect light in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction by arranging the light receiving element 108XY at the position where there is. According to this configuration, one light receiving element 108XY
Thus, even when detecting light in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, the difference between the longest optical path length and the shortest optical path length can be made relatively small.

Next, some examples of the configuration of the optical path changing member 106 applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 shows a first embodiment of the optical path changing member 106. This optical path changing member 106a is
It is composed of a mirror array 120 provided corresponding to each light emitting element. Each light path changing surface of the mirror array 120 is arranged to change the light path of the light emitted from each light emitting element and transmitted through the light guide plate toward the light path changing member. The mirror array 120 is composed of a half mirror, and is configured so that light traveling in the direction of the optical path changing member can be passed as it is. Therefore, each mirror 120
The light of the light emitting element corresponding to the mirror 120 changes the optical path in the direction of the optical path changing member, and the light path changing light of another light emitting element can be sent to the light emitting element as it is.

FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the optical path changing member 106. This optical path changing member 106b is
It is composed of a prism array 130 provided corresponding to each light emitting element. Each prism 130 has its prism 1
30 has an optical path changing surface for changing the light path of the light of the light emitting element corresponding to 30 in the direction of the optical path changing member. However, each prism 130 is configured so that light path changing light for other light emitting elements can be sent to the light emitting elements as it is.

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the optical path changing member 106. This optical path changing member 106c is
A plurality of light path changing surfaces 140 extending in the thickness direction D of the light guide plate
a to 140d, and each optical path changing surface 140a to 1
40d are provided corresponding to different light emitting elements, respectively. According to such a configuration, each light transmitted from the light guide plate (light from the front to the back of the paper)
Is changed in the direction of the optical path changing member at different height positions. Accordingly, light corresponding to each light emitting element reaches a different height position of the light receiving element. As described later, if a one-dimensional image sensor such as a CCD is used as the light receiving element, an optical touch panel with a high resolution is used. Can be realized.

FIG. 7 shows a fourth embodiment of the optical path changing member 106. This optical path changing member 106d is
A plurality of light path changing surfaces 142a extending in the width direction W of the light guide plate
To 142d, and each of the optical path changing surfaces 142a to 142d.
0d are provided corresponding to different light emitting elements, respectively. According to such a configuration, each light transmitted from the light guide plate is changed in the light path toward the light path changing member at a different horizontal position. Therefore,
Since the light corresponding to each light emitting element reaches a different horizontal position of the light receiving element, the light path changing member 1 according to the third embodiment
As in the case of 06c, if a one-dimensional image sensor such as a CCD is used as a light receiving element, it is possible to realize a high-resolution optical touch panel.

FIG. 8 shows a fifth embodiment of the optical path changing member 106. This optical path changing member 106e is
A plurality of light path changing surfaces 144a to 144e having different areas are provided, and each of the light path changing surfaces 144a to 144e is provided corresponding to a different light emitting element. As can be easily understood from FIGS. 2, 3 and 8, the optical path length from the light emitting element to the light receiving element differs according to the position of each light emitting element. Therefore, if the light path is changed by the light path changing surface having the same area, the amount of light received by the light receiving element differs according to each light emitting element due to attenuation of the optical transmission path. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the light path changing surface 14 according to the light path lengths 146a to 146e so that the amount of light received by the light receiving element is constant.
The areas 4a to 144e are adjusted. Therefore, if such a configuration is adopted, it is possible to more stably and accurately detect light.

Next, the configuration of a light receiving element applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

The light receiving element 108 can be composed of, for example, a photodiode. As shown in FIGS.
04 and the optical path changing member 106. The conventional optical touch panel employs a two-terminal phototransistor as a light receiving element to achieve miniaturization. Therefore, there is a problem that the input speed of the weak touch light decreases due to the capacitance between the electrodes. . In particular, a touch panel having a large screen size requires a certain response speed because the number of necessary elements increases. Therefore, in a touch panel having a large screen size, in consideration of the operation performance of the phototransistor, it is necessary to employ a high-output LED in order to secure a required response speed. However, the high-output LED has a problem that the size of the device cannot be reduced because the external dimensions of the element are large.
In this regard, according to the present embodiment, a photodiode capable of responding at high speed even with weak light is employed, so that the response speed of the entire device can be reduced even if the number of elements is increased, and one element Since the number of times of detection can be increased, the accuracy of detection can be improved, and the influence of disturbance light can be reduced.

As described above, in the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment, since the response speed of the light receiving element can be improved, the number of ordinary scan pulses can be increased as compared with the conventional apparatus. . Therefore, as shown in FIG. 13, during normal operation, driving is performed at a constant period, and when disturbance light is input, the frequency is changed and scanning is performed at a period that is not synchronized with the period of the disturbance, thereby achieving higher accuracy. It is possible to perform detection. further,

FIG. 11 shows another embodiment of the light receiving element applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, this light receiving element is constituted by a one-dimensional image sensor such as a CCD. Since a one-dimensional image sensor has, for example, one pixel of about several tens of microns, a high-resolution optical touch panel can be configured. Further, according to the one-dimensional image sensor, the light detection position can be easily specified. For example, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the light path changing light is guided to different positions according to each light emitting element. If the configuration is adopted, different light emitting elements can be assigned to each of the pixels 109a to 109g, and an optical touch panel with higher resolution can be constructed. Further, if all the pixels of the CCD are applied to one optical path changing surface, the resolution can be further increased.

As described above, according to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment, since light is transmitted by the light guide plate, it is not necessary to shield disturbance light with a filter as in the related art, and thus attenuation by the filter is reduced. Since there is no light, it is possible to transmit light efficiently. Also, light traveling in the air attenuates in inverse proportion to the square of the distance, but light propagating in a substance such as a light guide plate is less attenuated, and light can be transmitted efficiently. Therefore, according to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment, for example, the chip type LE
It is possible to employ a small-sized LED having a small output such as D, and it is possible to realize a reduction in size and power saving of the device.

Further, in the conventional optical touch panel, since light is transmitted through the air and the position is detected by using the light shielding, it is very difficult to prevent malfunction due to the input of disturbance light in the horizontal direction. Was difficult. However, the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment uses a light guide plate, transmits light through the light guide plate, and detects the change using a surface light path change. Operation can be ensured.

Further, in the conventional optical touch panel, since the light emitting element is large and the optical axis is high,
Since the actual image position and the touch position are separated by about 3 to 8 mm, a large parallax is generated depending on the operation angle. However, according to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment, it is possible to make the display image and the touch position close to each other, and it is possible to obtain a touch panel structure in which parallax is less likely to occur and therefore, erroneous operations are reduced.

The parallax was particularly large in the peripheral portion due to the curvature of the cathode ray tube when the touch panel was attached to the CRT. However, according to the touch panel according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, a plastic panel can be molded in accordance with the curvature of the CRT, so that parallax can be eliminated. It can be suitably adopted.

Further, according to the present embodiment, since the size of the light receiving element can be reduced, it is possible to adopt, for example, a configuration in which the light receiving element is embedded in one corner of the light guide plate. Therefore, an integrated light receiving section is formed. be able to. Also in the same way. Since the size of the light emitting element can also be reduced, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which the chip type LED is integrally mounted on the end face of the light guide plate, and thus an integrated light emitting section can be configured. With such a configuration, a complicated bezel structure, which is an essential element in a conventional optical touch panel, is not required, and an integral type completely sealed touch panel in which a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit are attached to a light guide plate can be configured. Therefore, an apparatus having excellent environmental resistance can be realized.

Although the preferred embodiment of the optical touch panel according to the present invention has been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. It is obvious that a person skilled in the art can conceive various changes or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims, and those changes naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention. It is understood to belong.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration has been described in which the light path changing member is provided on the side facing the light emitting element row to collect the light to the light receiving element, but the present invention is not limited to this example. As in the optical input device 200 shown in FIG. 14, the light path changing member is omitted, and light receiving element rows 208a to 208d corresponding to the surfaces facing the light emitting element rows are provided, and the light emitting elements are formed by the respective light receiving element rows 208a to 208d. Emitted from the row,
A configuration that directly receives light transmitted through the light guide plate may be employed.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, an example was shown in which the light guide plate and the optical path changing member were used in combination.
Uses a conventional touch panel structure that does not use a light guide plate. However, it is possible to reduce the number of light receiving elements by arranging an optical path changing member at the position where the conventional light receiving element array is arranged. It is.

[0057]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, the following excellent effects can be obtained.

First, according to the optical touch panel of the present invention, since light is transmitted by the light guide plate, there is no attenuation by the filter, so that light can be transmitted efficiently. Further, since light is transmitted by the light guide plate, it is possible to transmit light efficiently without attenuating the light. Therefore, according to the optical touch panel according to the present invention, it is possible to employ a small-sized LED having a small output such as a chip-type LED, for example, and it is possible to reduce the size and power consumption of the device.

Further, according to the present invention, the size of the light receiving element can be reduced, so that, for example, a configuration in which the light receiving element is embedded in one corner of the light guide plate can be adopted. Therefore, an integrated light receiving section can be formed. it can. Also in the same way. Since the size of the light emitting element can also be reduced, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which the chip type LED is integrally mounted on the end face of the light guide plate, and thus an integrated light emitting section can be configured. With such a configuration, a complicated bezel structure, which is an essential element in a conventional optical touch panel, is not required, and an integral type completely sealed touch panel in which a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit are attached to a light guide plate can be configured. Therefore, an apparatus having excellent environmental resistance can be realized.

Further, in the conventional optical touch panel, since the light emitting element is large and the optical axis is high,
Since the actual image position and the touch position are separated by about 3 to 8 mm, a large parallax is generated depending on the operation angle. However, according to the optical touch panel according to the present embodiment, it is possible to make the display image and the touch position close to each other, and it is possible to obtain a touch panel structure in which parallax is less likely to occur and therefore, erroneous operations are reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view schematically showing the configuration and operation of an optical touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a first embodiment of an optical path changing unit applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a second embodiment of an optical path changing unit applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a third embodiment of an optical path changing unit applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a fourth embodiment of an optical path changing unit applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a fifth embodiment of an optical path changing unit applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of arrangement of light receiving elements applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the arrangement of light receiving elements applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the light receiving element applicable to the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic sectional view showing a state in which the optical touch panel according to the present invention is applied to a CRT.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic state of operation pulses of the optical touch panel according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory view schematically showing the configuration and operation of an optical touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic sectional view showing a configuration of a conventional optical touch panel.

FIG. 16 is a schematic sectional view showing a configuration of a conventional optical touch panel.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 optical touch panel 102 light guide plate 102 a lens 104 light emitting element array 104 a to 104 e LED 106 optical path changing member 108 light receiving element 110 controller 112 a to 112 e optical path 114 input means

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Katsuhiko Hatakeyama 1-14-4 Kameido, Koto-ku, Tokyo Inside Dowa Visual System Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yuichi Ise 1-14-4, Kameido, Koto-ku, Tokyo Dowa Visual System Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shigeyoshi Inuyama 1-14-4 Kameido, Koto-ku, Tokyo Dowa Visual System Co., Ltd.

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. A touch panel provided on a display surface of a display device, a row of horizontal light emitting elements arranged along one horizontal side of the touch panel, and a row arranged along one vertical side of the touch panel. A vertical light emitting element row, a light receiving element provided at at least one corner of the touch panel, and a light emitting element arranged on the other horizontal side of the touch panel and emitted from the horizontal light emitting element row to be substantially parallel to the display surface. A horizontal light path changing member for changing the light path of horizontal light transmitted to the light receiving element toward the light receiving element; and a horizontal light path changing member disposed on the other vertical side of the touch panel and emitted from the vertical light emitting element row and substantially on the display surface. A vertical light path changing member for changing the light path of the vertical light transmitted in parallel to the light receiving element, and the horizontal light and the vertical light by an operation of an external input means; A detection device for detecting an operation position of the input means from a change in light direction.
Optical input device. 2. A touch panel comprising a light guide plate provided on a display surface of a display device, a row of horizontal light emitting elements arranged along one horizontal side of the touch panel, and one vertical side of the touch panel. A light-emitting element array provided along at least one corner of the touch panel, and a light-emitting element arranged on the other horizontal side of the touch panel and emitted from the horizontal light-emitting element array to emit light. A horizontal light path changing member for changing the light path of horizontal light transmitted through the light plate toward the light receiving element; and the light guide plate disposed on the other vertical side of the touch panel and emitted from the vertical light emitting element row. A vertical light path changing member for changing the light path of vertical light transmitted through the light receiving element toward the light receiving element; A detection device for detecting an operation position of the input means from a change in directional light. 3. The light receiving element is provided at one corner of the touch panel to receive light from the horizontal light emitting element row and light from the vertical light emitting element row. The optical input device according to claim 1. 4. The horizontal light receiving element provided at one corner of the touch panel to receive light from the horizontal light emitting element row, and the vertical light emitting element provided at another corner of the touch panel. 4. The optical input device according to claim 1, further comprising a vertical light receiving element for receiving light from a column. 5. The horizontal light path changing member and the vertical light path changing member each comprise a mirror array having a reflecting surface corresponding to each of the horizontal light emitting elements and each of the vertical light emitting elements. Claims 1, 2,
The optical input device according to any one of items 3 and 4. 6. The horizontal light path changing member and the vertical light path changing member are each formed of a prism array having a reflecting surface corresponding to each of the horizontal light emitting elements and each of the vertical light emitting elements. Claim 1,
5. The optical input device according to 2, 3, or 4. 7. The mirror array includes a plurality of reflecting surface arrays having different height positions, and each light emitted from each of the horizontal light emitting elements and each of the vertical light emitting elements has a different height position. The optical input device according to claim 5, wherein an optical path is changed by a reflection surface. 8. The prism array includes a plurality of reflective surface arrays having different height positions, and each light emitted from each of the horizontal light emitting elements and each of the vertical light emitting elements has a different height position. 7. The optical input device according to claim 6, wherein an optical path is changed by a reflection surface. 9. The size of each of the reflecting surfaces is adjusted such that the light path is changed at each of the reflecting surfaces and each of the light reaching the light receiving element is substantially equal. The optical input device according to any one of claims 6, 7, and 8. 10. The device according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal light receiving element row and the vertical light receiving element row are each formed of a chip type LED.
10. The optical input device according to any one of 8 and 9. 11. A lens device further comprising a lens device for condensing light emitted from the horizontal light receiving element row and the vertical light receiving element row and guiding the light to the light guide plate. , 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10. 12. The device according to claim 1, wherein said light receiving element is a photodiode.
The optical input device according to any one of 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11. 13. The device according to claim 1, wherein said light receiving element is a one-dimensional image sensor.
The optical input device according to any one of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11. 14. A touch panel comprising a light guide plate provided on a display surface of a display device, a row of horizontal light emitting elements arranged along one horizontal side of the touch panel, and arranged along an opposite side thereof. A horizontal light receiving element array for receiving horizontal light emitted from the horizontal light emitting element array and transmitted through the light guide plate; and a vertical light emitting element arranged along one vertical side of the touch panel. A vertical light receiving element array arranged along the opposing side thereof to receive vertical light emitted from the vertical light emitting element array and transmitted through the light guide plate; An optical input device, comprising: a detection device that detects an operation position of the input means from a change in the horizontal light and the vertical light due to an operation on the light guide plate.