JP5757725B2 - Position detection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a position detection device that detects the position of an object.

  Proximity sensors that have two antennas, generate an alternating electromagnetic field from one antenna, receive this by the other antenna, detect the phase of the received signal, and detect the position and movement of the object have been proposed. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In addition, there has been proposed a position detection device that calculates the position of an object from distance information measured with an infrared sensor arranged at three or more positions (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

JP 2006-275629 A (page 3-5, FIG. 1) JP 2007-80214 A (page 6, FIG. 3)

  However, when a position detection device as described in Patent Document 2 is configured using a plurality of proximity sensors described in Patent Document 1, there is a problem that the device cannot be configured on a display and the device becomes large. is there. In particular, in an antenna unit that detects an object to be inspected with an antenna configuration having no directivity, this cannot be held in, for example, a single button region, and the apparatus becomes large.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a small position detection device using a proximity sensor that detects the position of an object by transmitting and receiving AC radio waves.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the position detection device of the present invention employs the following configuration.

The position detection device of the present invention receives a radio wave transmitted from a transmission antenna based on a signal from an AC signal generation source by a reception antenna, and performs phase detection on the received signal using a signal from the AC signal generation source. A position detection device that acquires information and detects the position of an object using information acquired at a plurality of locations, and includes a plurality of reception antennas that receive radio waves transmitted from one transmission antenna, and each reception antenna. And a plurality of phase detection means for detecting a phase of the received signal by a signal from an AC signal generation source, respectively, and the transmission antenna is a ring-shaped antenna, and is arranged inside the transmission antenna and separated from each other And

In addition to the above-described configuration, the position detection apparatus of the present invention includes three or more receiving antennas and phase detection means.

Further, the position detection apparatus of the present invention receives a radio wave transmitted from a transmission antenna based on a signal from an AC signal generation source by a reception antenna, and uses the signal from the AC signal generation source to detect the received signal in phase detection. Is a position detection device that detects the position of an object using information acquired at a plurality of locations, and a plurality of reception antennas that receive radio waves transmitted from one transmission antenna, and each reception A plurality of phase detection means for detecting the phase of the signal received by the antenna by a signal from the AC signal generation source , a phase shift means for phase shifting the signal from the AC signal generation source, and a signal phase-shifted by the phase shift means and a plurality of combining means for combining the signals received by each receiving antenna and each phase detection means, a synthesis signal synthesized by the synthesizing means, to phase detection by the signal from the AC signal source It is characterized in.

Furthermore, the position detection device of the present invention is configured such that the position detection device of the present invention receives a radio wave transmitted from a transmission antenna based on a signal of an AC signal generation source by a reception antenna, and the received signal is an AC signal generation source. Is a position detection device that detects information by phase detection using signals from and detects the position of an object using information acquired at a plurality of locations, and receives radio waves transmitted from a single transmission antenna A plurality of reception antennas, and a plurality of phase detection means for phase-detecting the signals received by the respective reception antennas by signals from an AC signal generation source, the transmission antenna has a plurality of rod-shaped portions, It is a rod-shaped antenna, and each rod-shaped portion of the transmission antenna and each reception antenna are alternately arranged side by side.

Further, the position detection device of the present invention receives a radio wave transmitted from a transmission antenna based on a signal from an AC signal generation source by a reception antenna, and uses the signal from the AC signal generation source to perform phase detection on the received signal. Is a position detection device that detects the position of an object using information acquired at a plurality of locations, and generates a plurality of AC signal sources that generate AC signals of different frequencies, and generates each AC signal. Based on the signal from the source, a plurality of transmission antennas that transmit radio waves of different frequencies, a single reception antenna that receives a plurality of radio waves from the plurality of transmission antennas, and each AC signal received by the reception antenna comprising a plurality of phase detecting means for respectively detecting the phase by a signal from a signal source, a receiving antenna is a ring-shaped antenna, each transmit antenna, receive antenna Characterized in that it is spaced apart from one another on the inside.

Furthermore, the position detection apparatus of the present invention is characterized by including three or more AC signal generation sources, transmission antennas, and phase detection means in addition to the configuration described above.

Further, the position detection apparatus of the present invention receives a radio wave transmitted from a transmission antenna based on a signal from an AC signal generation source by a reception antenna, and uses the signal from the AC signal generation source to detect the received signal in phase detection. Is a position detection device that detects the position of an object using information acquired at a plurality of locations, and generates a plurality of AC signal sources that generate AC signals of different frequencies, and generates each AC signal. A plurality of transmitting antennas for transmitting radio waves of different frequencies based on a signal from the source; and a single receiving antenna for receiving a plurality of radio waves from the plurality of transmitting antennas.
A plurality of phase detection means for phase-detecting signals received by the respective reception antennas from signals from the respective AC signal generation sources; a plurality of phase shift means for phase-shifting signals from the respective AC signal generation sources; A plurality of combining means for combining the signal phase-shifted by the phase means and the signal received by one receiving antenna, and each phase detecting means converts the combined signal synthesized by each combining means to each AC signal It is characterized in that phase detection is performed by a signal from a generation source.

  Further, in the position detection device of the present invention, in addition to the configuration described above, the transmission antenna is a rod-shaped antenna, the reception antenna has a plurality of rod-shaped portions, each transmission antenna and each rod-shaped portion of the reception antenna, Are alternately arranged side by side.

The position detection apparatus of the present invention includes two proximity sensor groups each having a transmission antenna, a reception antenna, an AC signal generation source, and a phase detection unit, and the lengths of the transmission antenna and the reception antenna of each proximity sensor group. The transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna of each proximity sensor group are arranged so as to be perpendicular to each other.

  The position detection device of the present invention is a configuration in which a plurality of proximity sensors that detect the position of an object by transmitting and receiving AC radio waves are used, and the oscillation circuit and the transmission antenna are shared by the plurality of proximity sensors, thereby reducing the size of the position detection device. It can be realized.

  In addition, the position detection device of the present invention realizes a compact position detection device by sharing a reception antenna with a plurality of proximity sensors in a configuration using a plurality of proximity sensors that transmit and receive AC radio waves to detect the position of an object. It becomes possible to do.

  Furthermore, the position detection device of the present invention is configured by using a ring-shaped antenna and a plurality of antennas arranged apart from each other inside the ring-shaped antenna, thereby further reducing the size of the transmission antenna and the reception antenna. It can be configured.

It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 1 of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 2 of this invention. It is a wave form diagram explaining operation | movement of the position detection apparatus of Example 2 of this invention. It is a wave form diagram explaining operation | movement of the position detection apparatus of Example 2 of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 3 of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 4 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna. It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 5 of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the structure of the position detection apparatus of Example 5 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structural example of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail.
[Example 1: FIG. 1]
First, the configuration of the position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of a position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the position detecting device 1a of the first embodiment, one of the oscillator 2 and the transmission antenna 3, a plurality of receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, 4D and positions phase detector 9R, 9 L, 9U, 9D Is used to realize a plurality of proximity sensors.

  The position detection device 1 a includes an oscillator 2 and a transmission antenna 3 that radiates an AC signal Ea to a region to be inspected based on a low frequency signal generated by the oscillator 2.

The oscillator 2 is an example of an AC signal generation source, and is configured using, for example, a crystal resonator. The AC signal Ea radiated from the transmitting antenna 3 has high frequency stability because the stability of the frequency and intensity affects the output stability of the proximity sensor, and is stable with respect to temperature, changes with time, etc. It is desirable to use a simple crystal resonator.

  For example, a tuning fork type crystal resonator that enables oscillation in the VLF band is used in order to aim for a low power consumption configuration assuming that it is used in a portable device or the like. The circuit configuration of the oscillator may be a general Colpitts type generator circuit used for a timepiece or the like in consideration of low power consumption.

  In addition to quartz resonators, piezoelectric elements such as PZT thin films and ceramics (ceramic oscillators), MEMS vibrators formed on the surface of a vibrating body composed of piezoelectric elements such as PZT thin films, and tantalum The oscillator 2 may be configured using a vibrator using lithium acid single crystal, lithium niobate single crystal, or langasite.

  Further, the position detection device 1a includes receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D that receive an AC signal Eb from the region to be inspected. The buffer 6 is provided in order to prevent the oscillator 2 from being affected by the circuit at the subsequent stage and causing a change in frequency and amplitude. Further, the position detection device 1a performs phase detection on the signals received by the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D using the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D that amplify the output of the receiving antenna 4 and the output signal of the oscillator 2. Phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D are provided. Further, the position detection device 1a includes LPFs (low pass filters) 10R, 10L, 10U, and 10D that smooth the outputs of the phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D, and output terminals 11R, 11L, 11U, and 11D.

  Next, the operation of the position detection device 1a having the above-described configuration will be described. First, a low-frequency signal is generated by the oscillator 2, and the AC signal Ea is radiated to the inspection area by the transmitting antenna 3. The AC signal Ea radiated from the transmitting antenna 3 forms an electromagnetic field determined by the atmosphere, dielectric, conductor, etc. existing in this area in the area to be inspected. The receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D receive an AC signal Eb corresponding to an electromagnetic field formed in the inspection area.

  At this time, if an object existing in the inspected area does not move at all, the electromagnetic field formed by the AC signal Ea transmitted by the transmitting antenna 3 is in a steady state, and the AC signal Eb received by the receiving antenna 4 has a stable phase. And with amplitude. However, when an inspected object O having an appropriate dielectric constant such as a human finger enters this region, the electromagnetic field changes due to disturbance. As a result, the phase and amplitude of the AC signal Eb received by the receiving antenna 4 change.

  Signals received by the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are electrically amplified by the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D. The outputs of the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D are phase-detected at the frequency of the oscillator 2 by the phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D, smoothed by the LPFs 10R, 10L, 10U, and 10D. Is output as a change.

  As described above, when an object to be inspected O having an appropriate dielectric constant such as a human finger enters the area to be inspected, the electromagnetic field changes due to disturbance. As a result, the phase and amplitude of the AC signal Eb received by the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D change, so that the outputs of the phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D change. The DC output from 10U, 10D varies. By the change of the DC output, it is possible to know the presence and movement of the test object O and the distance from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D to the test object O.

When the position detection device 1a shown in FIG. 1 receives radio waves transmitted by sharing one oscillation circuit 2 and one transmission antenna 3 with the reception antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D, respectively, each amplifier 8R, In 8L, 8U, and 8D, signals reflecting different information depending on each receiving antenna are input. Even if the output signal of each amplifier is phase-detected with the reference signal from the buffer 6 that is the signal of the same oscillator 2, the output terminals 11R, 11L, 11U, and 11D smoothed by the LPFs 10R, 10L, 10U, and 10D are used. Produces separate outputs, each of which reflects the signal from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, 4D and can constitute four proximity sensors.

  The receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are arranged at different locations, the distances from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D to the test object O are measured, and the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are measured. It is possible to detect the position of the test object O with respect to each of the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, 4D from the information of the distance to the test object O and the information of the positions of the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, 4D. It becomes possible.

Here, the position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment of the present invention is configured by four proximity sensors. Since the oscillation circuit 2 and the transmission antenna 3 are shared by the four proximity sensors, The configuration can be reduced in size.
[Example 2: FIGS. 2 to 4]
Next, the configuration of the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment is similar to the position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment, and includes one oscillator 2 and a transmission antenna 3, and a plurality of reception antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D. and position phase detector 9R, 9 L, 9U, 9D using, is obtained by implementing a plurality of proximity sensors.

  The position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment includes the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D that electrically connect the transmission antenna 3 and the reception antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D in the position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment. . Resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D are coupling resistances of the transmitting antenna 3 and the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D. If the values of the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D are too small, the electrical coupling becomes strong. On the other hand, if the value of the resistor 7 is too large, the electrical coupling is too weak. For this reason, selection of the resistance values of the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D is important. In the case of the first embodiment, the resistance value of the resistor 9 is suitably about 0.5 to 1 MΩ.

  Here, there is a concern that all the antennas will be coupled by the resistors and the mutual input will be affected. However, the transmitting antenna 3 is kept in a stable state by the output of the buffer 6, and the signals from the receiving antennas are the other signals. Since it is attenuated by resistance before reaching the antenna, interference between the receiving antennas does not occur, and four proximity sensors can be realized. In addition, if the phase is shifted using a single phase shift means and this signal is distributed to each receiving antenna using a buffer or the like, a configuration that avoids such interference without using a plurality of phase shift means. realizable.

  Next, the operation of the position detection device 1b having the above-described configuration will be described. In the following description, in order to clarify the operation, the reference signals from the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D multiplied by the phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D are preliminarily used by using a binarization circuit. A rectangular wave having only phase information is used by alternately changing the upper and lower power supply voltages. The effects of other signals are the same regardless of whether they are a rectangular wave or a sine wave, but in this description, all signals are sine waves. Here, in order to actually change the waveform of the oscillation circuit to a sine wave, an AGC is required for the oscillation circuit.

  FIG. 3 is a waveform diagram illustrating the operation of the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the inputs of the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U and 8D are connected to the output of the buffer 6 which is the output of the oscillation circuit using a large resistor 7. Since the output from the buffer 6 has inherited the property of alternating current centered on the intermediate potential of the power supply voltage from the oscillator 2, the average value of alternating current can be clamped to the intermediate potential of the power supply voltage by this connection.

Further, with this configuration, the output of the buffer 6 and the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D are constituted by the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D having large values and the small parasitic capacitances 5R, 5L, 5U, and 5D that the actual circuit elements have. A low pass filter is formed between the inputs. A low-pass filter composed of the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U and 7D and parasitic capacitances 5R, 5L, 5U and 5D serves as a phase shift means between the output of the buffer 6 and the inputs of the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U and 8D. A phase difference between waveforms is generated. The signal phase-shifted by the phase-shifting means is shown by the phase-shift transmission waveform in FIG.

On the other hand, the AC signal Eb from the receiving antenna 4 does not cause a phase difference with the AC signal Ea from the transmitting antenna 3. Signals received by the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are shown by the received waveforms in FIG. Further, the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D are connected to the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D. By this connection, the AC signal E b from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D and the resistor are connected. Output signals from 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D are synthesized. The connection between the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D and the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D is an example of a combining unit. The waveform of this synthesized signal is shown by the synthesized waveform in FIG.

  FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of changes in the composite waveform. As shown in FIG. 4, the amplitude and phase of the composite waveform change due to the change in the amplitude of the received waveform that reflects the change in the object O. That is, a change in the amplitude of the received waveform that reflects the change in the object O is detected as a change in the amplitude and phase of the synthesized waveform by detecting the synthesized waveform at a detection position in phase with the received waveform.

  The phase shift transmission waveform generated by the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U and 7D and the parasitic capacitors 5R, 5L, 5U and 5D is set to the values of the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U and 7D or the amplification factors of the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U and 8D. If the amplitude is adjusted so that the amplitude exceeds the power supply voltage, the phase shift transmission waveform and composite waveform are trapezoidal or rectangular waveform with the amplitude limited by the power supply voltage. It will be reflected only in the phase. In such a state, fine amplitude adjustment of each waveform is not necessary, and environmental factors that change the amplitude are excluded, and as a result, the SN of the detection result is improved.

  Further, by adjusting each signal so that the amplitude of the received waveform is smaller than that of the phase-shifted transmission waveform, the signal to be detected is affected by the effect of static electricity superimposed when the object O is charged. Can be suppressed as much as possible to a positive or negative voltage level as much as possible, and a robust proximity sensor that is not affected by the charging of the object O can be realized. Each signal is adjusted so that the amplitude of the received waveform is smaller than that of the phase-shifted transmission waveform by adjusting the values of the resistor 7 and the capacitor 5. When the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D are increased, the ratio of signals from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D is increased. Further, when the values of the parasitic capacitors 5R, 5L, 5U, and 5D are increased, the ratio of signals from the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D is also increased. The overall level adjustment is performed by the amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U, and 8D.

  As described above, when an object to be inspected O having an appropriate dielectric constant such as a human finger enters the area to be inspected, the electromagnetic field changes due to disturbance. As a result, the phase and amplitude of the AC signal Eb received by the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D change, so the outputs of the phase detectors 9R, 9L, 9U, and 9D change, and smoothers 10R that smooth the output. The DC output from 10L, 10U, 10D changes. The presence and movement of the test object O can be known by the change in the DC output.

  The position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes four proximity sensors. However, since the oscillation circuit 2 and the transmission antenna 3 are shared by the four proximity sensors, the same as in the first embodiment. In addition, the overall configuration can be reduced in size.

[Example 3: FIG. 5]
Next, the configuration of the position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 5 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of the position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment includes a plurality of oscillators 2R, 2L, 2U, and 2D having different frequencies and transmission antennas 3R, 3L, 3U, and 3D, a single reception antenna 4 and a plurality of reception antennas. position phase detector 9R, with 9 L, 9U, the 9D, which realizes a plurality of proximity sensors.

  The position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment shares a reception antenna 4 with radio waves transmitted using a plurality of oscillation circuits 2R, 2L, 2U, and 2D having different frequencies and a plurality of transmission antennas 3R, 3L, 3U, and 3D. In this case, signals reflecting different information from the respective antennas are input to the respective amplifiers 8R, 8L, 8U and 8D.

Although the signals are input from the same receiving antenna 4 and mixed, the output signals of the amplifiers are the frequencies from the buffers 6R, 6L, 6U and 6D which are signals of a plurality of oscillation circuits 2R, 2L, 2U and 2D having different frequencies. Phase detection with reference signals having different phases from each other, separate outputs are obtained from the output terminals 11R, 11L, 11U, and 11D smoothed by the LPFs 10R, 10L, 10U, and 10D. 4 proximity sensors can be realized.
[Example 4: FIG. 6]
Next, the configuration of the position detection device 1d according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of the position detection device 1d according to the fourth embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the position detection device 1d according to the fourth embodiment has a plurality of oscillators 2R, 2L, 2U, and 2D having different frequencies and transmission antennas 3R, 3L, and 3U, similarly to the position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment. using a 3D, one reception antenna 4, and a plurality of positions phase detector 9R, 9 L, 9U, the 9D, which realizes a plurality of proximity sensors.

The position detection device 1d according to the fourth embodiment is different from the position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment in that the resistors 7R, 7L, 7U, and 7D that electrically connect the transmission antennas 3R, 3L, 3U, and 3D and the reception antenna 4 are transferred. Provide as a phase means. In this case, it is feared that all the antennas are coupled due to the connection by the resistor and the mutual input is affected. However, the output antenna is kept in a stable state by the outputs of the buffers 6R, 6L, 6U, and 6D. Since the frequency and phase are different, interference between the transmitting antennas does not occur, and in this case as well, four proximity sensors can be realized.

  In general, it is described that the phase detector can be regarded as a very sharp band-pass filter, and can actually exclusively detect AC signals of different frequencies. However, interference is still generated when the frequency difference is small. The frequency difference used for each oscillator including the resonance phenomenon when the frequencies of the plurality of oscillators are close needs to be separated by about 100 Hz or more even when the VLF band is used. Furthermore, when using a high frequency, when using a plurality of proximity sensors, it is preferable to have a frequency difference of about 1% or more of the frequency to be used.

Position detecting apparatus 1d of the fourth embodiment, which includes the transmission antennas 3R, 3L, 3U, resistance 7R for electrically connecting the receiving antenna 4 3D, 7L, 7U, the 7D as phase shifting means, Figure 2 The same operation as that of the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment described with reference to FIG.

  The position detection device 1c according to the third embodiment of the present invention and the position detection device 1d according to the fourth embodiment are configured by four proximity sensors. However, since the reception antenna 4 is shared by the four proximity sensors, The entire configuration can be reduced in size.

[Configuration Examples of Transmitting Antenna and Receiving Antenna: FIGS. 7 to 9]
Next, the configuration of the transmission antenna 3 and the reception antenna 4 used in each embodiment of the position detection device described above will be described.

  Recently, there is an increasing need for an input device linked with video information drawn on a display, that is, an input device called a touch panel. If the transmission antenna and the reception antenna of the position detection apparatus of the present invention are arranged at different positions on the display, a position detection apparatus that detects the position of the object to be detected located in the three-dimensional region on the display can be configured. The input device can be configured by controlling the input to the device in accordance with the three-dimensional position information of the object to be examined by this position detection device.

Hereinafter, the transmitting antenna 3 and the receiving antenna 4 formed using a transparent electrode such as ITO on a transparent substrate in order to constitute such a position detection device will be described.
FIG. 7 is an example of the antenna configuration used in the position detection device 1a of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and the position detection device 1b of the second embodiment shown in FIG. In the configuration shown in FIG. 7, the transmitting antenna 3 is a ring antenna, the receiving antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are dot antennas, and the distance between the vertically opposing left and right sides is shown as d. It was. In this configuration, in the case of the circuit shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the value of d is brought close to the diameter of the ring antenna 3, so that the transmission / reception antennas of the four sets of proximity sensors are arranged about 1 cm apart. Occupies an area of about 1 cm in diameter.

FIG. 8 is an example of the antenna configuration used in the position detection device 1c of the third embodiment shown using FIG. 5 and the position detection device 1d of the fourth embodiment shown using FIG. In the configuration shown in FIG. 8, the reception antenna 4 is a ring antenna, the transmission antennas 4R, 4L, 4U, and 4D are dot antennas, and the distance between each facing vertically and horizontally is shown as d. It was. In this configuration, in the case of the circuit shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 , the value of d is made close to the diameter of the ring antenna 4, so that the transmission / reception antennas of the four sets of proximity sensors are arranged approximately 1 cm apart. Occupies an area of about 1 cm in diameter.

  With the antenna configuration shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, it is possible to realize a configuration in which a plurality of antennas having good symmetry in sensitivity output are arranged apart from each other in a narrow region, and the sensitivity of the proximity sensor depends only on the distance.

  With the position detection device using the antenna configuration shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, it is possible to give a direction instruction or input function to one non-contact button as a spatial input device. The concept of a button generally defines its existence area as a limited small area. In Examples 1 and 2, it is assumed that this area has a size of about 1 cm 2.

  If the diameter of the ring antenna is 1 cm and the number of proximity sensors required for motion detection in the two directions is four, the four ring antennas must be housed in one button. Even if the center of the ring antenna is arranged at the apex of the square, the size of the button needs to be at least 2 cm square. In this case, the distance between the virtual centers of the antenna sets of the four proximity sensors is about 1 cm.

  In the proximity sensor of the present invention, a transmission antenna and a reception antenna formed with a transparent electrode on a transparent substrate are configured as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. It is possible to configure a position detection device that detects the position of the test object located in the three-dimensional region. The input device can be configured by controlling the input to the device in accordance with the three-dimensional position information of the object to be examined by this position detection device. 7 and FIG. 8 can constitute a position detecting device provided with a plurality of antennas that provide sensitivity that depends almost only on the distance in a small region as indicated by the concept of a button. it can.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of another antenna configuration. In the antenna configuration shown in FIG. 9, each of the receiving antennas 4D, 4L, 4R, and 4U indicated by solid lines is a rod-shaped antenna, and the extending direction of the rod is directed in the vertical direction on the paper surface and parallel with a certain interval in the horizontal direction on the paper surface. It is arranged. The transmitting antenna 3 indicated by the dotted line corresponding to these has a shape in which a plurality of rod-shaped antennas are bundled, and the rod-shaped portions are arranged in parallel with the receiving antennas 4D, 4L, 4R, and 4U, respectively. In this antenna arrangement, the influence of the approach of the object O is irrelevant to the direction in which the bar extends, that is, the vertical direction of the paper, and only information on the position in the horizontal direction of the paper and the direction perpendicular to the paper is obtained.

In FIG. 9, all of the illustrated transmitting antennas 3 are connected, and radio waves are transmitted to the space with the same output on all wirings. Meanwhile receiving antenna 4D each carrying location information in the horizontal direction from the arrangement, 4L, 4R, since 4U is desirable to receive a transmission antenna 3 or et comparable signal, arranged at both ends, for example, outside of the 4D and 4U It is better that the transmitting antenna 3 is present.

In Figure 9, and shows an example of an antenna structure used in the position detecting apparatus of Example 1 and 2 comprises a single transmit antenna and multiple receive antennas. However, the antenna configuration used in the position detection apparatuses of the third and fourth embodiments including a plurality of transmission antennas and one reception antenna can be configured in the same manner as in FIG. In this case, a plurality of rod-shaped transmission antennas are arranged in parallel, and a plurality of rod-shaped portions of the reception antenna are arranged between the transmission antennas.

[Example 5: FIGS. 10 to 14]
Next, the configuration of the position detection device 1e according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The position detection device 1e according to the fifth embodiment makes it possible to obtain position information of the object O approaching a plane with high resolution. FIG. 10 is an example of a circuit diagram illustrating a configuration of the position detection device 1e according to the fifth embodiment. As shown in FIG. 10, the position detection device 1e according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention includes two sets of the proximity sensor groups 1ea and 1eb as the configuration of the position detection device 1a according to the first embodiment described with reference to FIG. It is.

As shown in FIG. 10, in the position detection device 1e of the fifth embodiment, one proximity sensor group 1ea includes an oscillator 2X, a transmission antenna 3X, a plurality of reception antennas, for example, 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, 4X4, and a plurality of reception antennas. comprising position phase detector for example 9X1,9X2,9X3,9X4, and, a plurality of LPF example 10X1, 10X2, 10X3, 10X4. Also, the other proximity sensors 1eb, an oscillator 2Y, a transmitting antenna 3Y, a plurality of receiving antennas for example 4Y1,4Y2,4Y3,4Y4, a plurality of position phase detector for example 9Y1,9Y2,9Y3,9Y4, and, A plurality of LPFs, for example, 10Y1, 10Y2, 10Y3, 10Y4 are provided. In the position detection device 1e of the fifth embodiment, the frequencies of the oscillators 2X and 2Y of the proximity sensor groups 1ea and 1eb are different from each other. Accordingly, the proximity sensor groups 1ea and 1eb do not interfere with each other.

  Although the circuit configuration to be used is slightly complicated, the configuration of the position detection device 1b according to the second embodiment described with reference to FIG. 2 as the position detection device 1f illustrated in FIG. 11 is referred to as proximity sensor groups 1fa and 1fb. It is good also as a structure provided with two sets. Thereby, SN and other performances can be improved.

FIG. 12 is an example of antenna configurations of the proximity sensor group 1ea of the position detection device 1e and the proximity sensor group 1fa of the position detection device 1f according to the fifth embodiment. Each of the receiving antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, and 4X4 indicated by solid lines is a rod-shaped antenna, and is arranged in parallel with an interval in the horizontal direction of the paper with the extending direction of the rod directed in the vertical direction of the paper. A transmitting antenna 3X indicated by a dotted line corresponding to these has a shape in which a plurality of rod-shaped antennas are bundled, and the rod-shaped portions are arranged in parallel with the receiving antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, and 4X4, respectively. In this antenna arrangement, the influence of the approach of the object O is irrelevant to the direction in which the bar extends, that is, the vertical direction of the paper, and only information on the position in the horizontal direction of the paper and the direction perpendicular to the paper is obtained.

  In FIG. 12, all of the illustrated transmitting antennas 3X are connected, and radio waves are transmitted to the space with the same output on all wirings. On the other hand, it is desirable that each receiving antenna 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, 4X4, which carries position information in the horizontal direction from the arrangement, receives the same signal from the transmitting antenna 3X, so that it is arranged at both ends, for example, outside of 4X1 and 4X4. The transmission antenna 3X should be present.

  FIG. 13 is an example of an antenna configuration of the proximity sensor group 1eb of the position detection device 1e according to the fifth embodiment and the proximity sensor group 1fb of the position detection device 1f. Receiving antennas 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, and 4Y4 indicated by solid lines are rod-shaped antennas, and are arranged in parallel with an interval in the vertical direction of the paper, with the extending direction of the rods in the horizontal direction of the paper. A transmitting antenna 3Y indicated by a broken line corresponding to these has a shape in which a plurality of rod-shaped antennas are bundled, and the rod-shaped portions are arranged in parallel with the receiving antennas 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, 4Y4, respectively. In this antenna arrangement, the influence of the approach of the object O is irrelevant to the direction in which the bar extends, that is, the horizontal direction of the paper, and only the information in the vertical direction of the paper and the direction perpendicular to the paper is obtained.

  In FIG. 13, the illustrated transmission antennas 3Y are all connected, and transmit radio waves to the space with the same output on all wirings. On the other hand, it is desirable that each receiving antenna 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, 4Y4, which bears position information in the vertical direction from the arrangement, receives the same signal from the transmitting antenna 3Y, so that it is arranged at both ends, for example, outside of 4Y1 and 4Y4. The transmission antenna 3Y should be present.

  The position detection device 1e or 1f according to the fifth embodiment transmits signals having different frequencies generated using the two oscillation circuits 2X and 2Y having different frequencies using the two transmission antennas 3X and 3Y, respectively. Then, the signals received from the plurality of reception antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, and 4X4 are not affected at all by the information from the transmission antenna 3Y due to the nature of phase detection, and only the signals from the transmission antenna 3X are extracted. In the output terminals 11X1, 11X2, 11X3, and 11X4, only the information reflecting the change that occurs between the transmitting antenna 3X and the receiving antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, and 4X4 is generated when the object O approaches. On the other hand, the signals received from the plurality of receiving antennas 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, and 4Y4 are not affected at all by the information from the transmitting antenna 3X due to the nature of phase detection, and only the signals from the transmitting antenna 3Y are extracted. In the output terminals 11Y1, 11Y2, 11Y3, and 11Y4, only the information reflecting the change that occurs between the transmitting antenna 3Y and the receiving antennas 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, and 4Y4 is generated when the object O approaches.

  As shown in FIG. 12 and FIG. 13, if a plurality of parallel rod-shaped antennas facing a specific direction are formed, position information only in the left-right direction and the direction perpendicular to the paper surface, respectively, with respect to the approach of the object O, Position information in only the vertical direction and the direction perpendicular to the paper surface can be obtained separately.

  Next, a case where a plurality of antennas arranged in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction on the paper surface are mixed will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 14, the transmitting antennas 3X and 3Y and the receiving antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, 4X4 and 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, 4Y4 described in FIGS. Since each antenna crosses at the intersection on the same plane, the set of 3X, 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, 4X4 and 3Y, 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, 4Y4 is slightly shifted in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface so as not to contact each other. Are arranged.

In such an arrangement, information in the horizontal direction of the paper surface is obtained from the reception antennas 4X1, 4X2, 4X3, and 4X4 and information in the vertical direction of the paper surface is obtained from the reception antennas 4Y1, 4Y2, 4Y3, and 4Y4 as information that does not interfere with each other. Since these can be regarded as information of two axes in an orthogonal coordinate system, coordinate information of the object O approaching the plane determined by these antennas can be obtained by a combination of the two information.

  When there is one object to be detected, the position can be detected by arranging the ring antennas at the four corners of the area as shown in FIGS. However, what this embodiment aims at is that when there are a plurality of objects O, they can be recognized separately. When there are a plurality of objects O, the reception antenna inputs the information from them in a superimposed manner, and thus recognizes the plurality of objects as one large object. In order to cope with the detection of a plurality of objects, it is necessary to increase information by increasing the number of receiving antennas. If there are a plurality of receiving antennas and there is a receiving antenna for viewing a plurality of objects from the same direction as a receiving antenna, the plurality of objects can be separated and grasped. For this purpose, it is necessary to arrange many receiving antennas.

  In the present embodiment, in order to avoid complexity, the description has been given assuming that the number of receiving antennas and receiving circuits installed in the horizontal direction of the paper and the vertical direction of the paper are four. Assuming that the actual size of the input panel is about 100 mm × 200 mm and the size of a human finger that is promising as the object O is an object having a spread of about 10 mm, An antenna arrangement of 20 upper and lower 10 or more becomes a practical quantity. When the ring antennas as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 are used, the number of antennas becomes the resolution as it is, so that the number of longitudinal antennas × the number of row antennas, that is, 200 antennas is required. However, in the method of this embodiment, in this example, since it can be regarded as two orthogonal one-dimensional array information having a resolution of 10 mm, the total number of antennas may be the number of vertical antennas + the number of horizontal antennas, that is, 30. The practical range.

  In this way, the rod-shaped antenna is arranged like a net on a certain plane to constitute the input plane. However, the actual antenna may be a net stretched by conducting wires in space, or on a printed circuit board. A wired wiring pattern may be used. If the printed circuit board is FPC, the input plane constituted by the antenna is a deformable flexible input plane. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when the antenna is transparently formed of ITO or the like on a transparent plane such as glass or resin, the transparent input plane is superimposed on the display to display the gesture input device for the display. Can be used as

  The example provided with the proximity sensor group which has one transmitting antenna, several receiving antenna, and several phase detection means was demonstrated as the position detection apparatus 1f of Example 5 of this invention. However, apart from this, a proximity sensor group having the same configuration as that of the position detection devices of the third and fourth embodiments, that is, a configuration including a proximity sensor group having one reception antenna, a plurality of transmission antennas, and a plurality of phase detection means. Also good. Even in a configuration including a proximity sensor group having one reception antenna, a plurality of transmission antennas, and a plurality of phase detection means, by configuring the transmission antenna and the reception antenna as shown in FIGS. It becomes possible to detect the position of the upper object.

1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e, 1f Position detection device 1ea, 1eb, 1fa, 1fb Proximity sensor group 2, 2D, 2L, 2R, 2U Oscillator 3, 3D, 3L, 3R, 3U Transmitting antenna 4, 4D, 4L 4R, 4U receiving antenna 5, 5D, 5L, 5R, 5U Parasitic capacitance 6, 6D, 6L, 6R, 6U Buffer 7D, 7L, 7R, 7U Resistor 8D, 8L, 8R, 8U Amplifier 9D, 9L, 9R, 9U Phase detector 10D, 10L, 10R, 10U LPF
11D, 11L, 11R, 11U Output terminal

Claims (9)

The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of receiving antennas for receiving radio waves transmitted from one transmitting antenna;
A plurality of phase detection means for detecting a phase of a signal received by each of the reception antennas using a signal from the AC signal generation source ;
The transmitting antenna is a ring antenna,
Each of the receiving antennas is disposed inside the transmitting antenna and spaced apart from each other . The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of receiving antennas for receiving radio waves transmitted from one transmitting antenna;
A plurality of phase detection means for detecting the phase of the signal received by each of the receiving antennas using the signal from the AC signal generation source;
Phase-shifting means for phase-shifting the signal from the AC signal source;
A plurality of combining means for combining the signal phase-shifted by the phase-shifting means and the signal received by each receiving antenna;
The position detecting device characterized in that the plurality of phase detection means detect a phase of the synthesized signal synthesized by the plurality of synthesis means by a signal from the AC signal generation source . The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of receiving antennas for receiving radio waves transmitted from one transmitting antenna;
A plurality of phase detection means for detecting a phase of a signal received by each of the reception antennas using a signal from the AC signal generation source;
The transmitting antenna has a plurality of rod-shaped portions,
The receiving antenna is a rod-shaped antenna,
The position detecting device , wherein each rod-like portion of the transmitting antenna and each receiving antenna are alternately arranged side by side . The position detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising three or more of the reception antennas and the phase detection means. The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of the AC signal generation sources for generating AC signals of different frequencies;
A plurality of transmitting antennas for transmitting radio waves of different frequencies based on signals from the AC signal generation sources;
One receiving antenna for receiving a plurality of radio waves from the plurality of transmitting antennas;
A plurality of phase detection means for phase-detecting each signal received by the receiving antenna with a signal from each AC signal generation source, and
The receiving antenna is a ring-shaped antenna,
Each of the transmitting antennas is arranged away from each other inside the receiving antenna . The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of the AC signal generation sources for generating AC signals of different frequencies;
A plurality of transmitting antennas for transmitting radio waves of different frequencies based on signals from the AC signal generation sources;
One receiving antenna for receiving a plurality of radio waves from the plurality of transmitting antennas;
A plurality of phase detection means for phase-detecting each signal received by the receiving antenna with a signal from each AC signal generation source , and
A plurality of phase-shifting means for phase-shifting signals from each of the AC signal generation sources;
A plurality of combining means for combining the signal phase-shifted by each phase-shifting means and the signal received by the one receiving antenna;
Each of the phase detection means detects a phase of the synthesized signal synthesized by each of the synthesis means based on a signal from each of the AC signal generation sources . The radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna based on the signal of the AC signal generation source is received by the reception antenna, and the received signal is phase-detected using the signal from the AC signal generation source to obtain information, and a plurality of A position detection device that detects the position of an object using the information acquired at a place,
A plurality of the AC signal generation sources for generating AC signals of different frequencies;
A plurality of transmitting antennas for transmitting radio waves of different frequencies based on signals from the AC signal generation sources;
One receiving antenna for receiving a plurality of radio waves from the plurality of transmitting antennas;
Each signal received by the receiving antenna is respectively determined by a signal from each AC signal source.
A plurality of phase detection means for phase detection,
The transmitting antenna is a rod-shaped antenna,
The receiving antenna has a plurality of rod-shaped portions,
Each transmitting antenna and each rod-shaped part of the receiving antenna are alternately arranged side by side.
A position detecting device characterized by that . The position detection device according to any one of claims 5 to 7, further comprising three or more of the AC signal generation source, the transmission antenna, and the phase detection means. Two proximity sensor groups having the transmission antenna, the reception antenna, the AC signal generation source, and the phase detection means,
The transmission antenna and the reception antenna of each of the proximity sensor groups are arranged so as to overlap each other so that the longitudinal directions of the transmission antenna and the reception antenna of each of the proximity sensor groups are orthogonal to each other. The position detection device according to claim 3 or claim 7 .

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