JP5961518B2 - Input device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an input device.

  Conventionally, solar cells have been used as power supply sources for low power consumption devices such as calculators and watches (for example, Patent Document 1 to Patent Document 3). These devices include buttons, crowns, and the like as input means to the devices.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-15401 JP 2000-212282 A JP 2011-60608 A

  However, the technology using a conventional solar cell as an input means has a problem that an erroneous operation increases because the function of distinguishing between the explicit operation of the operator and the approach to the unintended solar cell is not sufficient. There was room for improvement.

  In addition, in a conventional input device, when trying to reduce the size, input means such as buttons and crowns may hinder downsizing. Furthermore, if the input means is downsized, the operability may deteriorate.

  There are several ways to downsize a device without degrading operability. For example, (1) a method of installing a sensor such as a microphone or an acceleration sensor so that the operability is not adversely affected even if the sensor is downsized, (2) a method of using input means of an external device, or (3) For example, a method of mounting a touch panel on a solar cell.

  However, (1) the method of mounting a new sensor on a device has a problem that it may hinder the miniaturization of the device because the sensor is newly mounted, and the cost and power consumption increase. . (2) The method using the input means of the external device may require a new external device equipped with the input means, and it is necessary to newly install a communication means with the external device. There is a problem that power consumption increases. Furthermore, (3) The method of mounting a touch panel on a solar cell has a problem that the cost increases because the touch panel is added, and the amount of light received by the solar cell is reduced by the touch panel, so that the generated power is reduced. .

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an input device that can be reduced in size efficiently without deteriorating operability in a low power consumption device using a solar cell. To do.

  An input device according to the present invention detects a solar cell module composed of a plurality of solar cells, an output adjustment unit for adjusting a voltage value output from the solar cell module, and an illuminance of light irradiated on the solar cell module An illuminance detection unit that performs a load determination on the solar cell module, and a contact determination unit that determines whether or not an operator's finger has touched the solar cell module. The finger touches the solar cell module based on the illuminance of light detected by the illuminance detection unit when the solar cell module is not shaded and the load applied to the solar cell module by the output adjustment unit and the output of the solar cell module. Determine whether or not.

  According to the input device of the present invention, the solar cell module supplies power for operating the output adjustment unit, the illuminance detection unit, and the contact determination unit to the output adjustment unit, the illuminance detection unit, and the contact determination unit. Moreover, if the light irradiated to a solar cell module is interrupted, the illumination intensity of the light irradiated to the photovoltaic cell of a solar cell module will change. The illuminance detection unit detects the illuminance applied to the solar cell module in the absence of a shadow. A contact determination part detects the change of the illumination intensity of the light irradiated to a solar cell module by the output of a solar cell module changing, and determines whether the finger | toe contacted the solar cell module. Furthermore, since input can be performed by contact with the solar cell module, the solar cell as the power supply source and the input means are integrated, and the device can be miniaturized without impairing operability.

  Further, in the above input device, the illuminance detection unit detects the illuminance based on the time from when the output adjustment unit overloads the solar cell module until the output of the solar cell module returns to a steady state. May be a feature.

  With this configuration, the illuminance detection unit can detect the illuminance based on the time from when the output adjustment unit overloads the solar cell module until the output of the solar cell module returns to the steady state. become. For this reason, since it becomes possible to detect illumination intensity without adding a new sensor, the power consumption and size reduction of a device are attained.

  In the input device, the output adjustment unit determines a load according to the illuminance output from the illuminance detection unit, and adjusts the load applied to the solar cell module to be the determined load. It is good.

  If comprised in this way, the load according to the illumination intensity which an illumination intensity detection part outputs will be applied to a solar cell module. By applying a load according to the illuminance, the contact determination unit can correctly determine the contact of the finger with the solar cell module. Further, by setting an appropriate load, the contact determination unit can always perform contact determination based on the same determination criterion. And since it can implement | achieve a load to a solar cell module with a simple circuit, the reduction in power consumption and size reduction of a device are attained.

  In the input device, the contact determination unit determines a threshold value corresponding to at least one of the illuminance of light detected by the illuminance detection unit and the load applied to the solar cell module by the output adjustment unit, and the output voltage of the solar cell module When the value falls below the threshold value, it may be determined that the finger contacts the solar battery cell of the solar battery module.

  With this configuration, the determination of whether or not the output voltage is below the threshold can be realized with a simple configuration, so that the power consumption and size of the device can be reduced.

  Moreover, in said input device, a contact determination part may measure the open circuit voltage of a solar cell module, and may determine whether the finger | toe contacted the solar cell of the solar cell module according to the open circuit voltage. .

  With this configuration, the contact determination unit further measures the open voltage of the solar cell module when the output voltage of the solar cell module is lower than the determination threshold, and the operator's finger moves the solar cell according to the open voltage. It can be determined whether the module has contacted the solar cells. For this reason, the factor that the output voltage of the solar cell module has fallen below the determination threshold is because the finger contacts one solar cell included in the solar cell module, or so as to cover the entire solar cell module, for example, It is possible to identify whether an object such as a hand has approached. Therefore, the accuracy of the contact determination is improved and erroneous input can be suppressed, so that operability is improved.

  Further, in the above input device, the contact determination unit determines that the input is a tap input when the finger leaves the solar cell module without sliding on the solar cell module after the finger contacts the solar cell module. If the finger touches the battery module, then the finger slides over the solar cell module across the plurality of solar cells and then leaves the solar cell module, it may be determined that the input is a slide input.

  If comprised in this way, a tap input and a slide input will be attained. Therefore, by increasing the types of operations that can be input, even a quick finger operation can be input, so that a quick input is possible.

  In the above input device, a plurality of solar cell modules may be provided, and the contact determination unit may determine whether or not a finger is in contact with each solar cell module.

  If comprised in this way, a different input can be performed now according to which solar cell module contacted. For this reason, the operability of the input device is improved by increasing the types of operations that can be input.

  Further, in the above input device, the contact determination unit is configured such that a finger trajectory slid on the solar cell module while contacting the finger after the finger contacts the solar cell module coincides with a predetermined trajectory. In this case, the input corresponding to the trajectory may be determined.

  If comprised in this way, when the locus | trajectory of a finger | toe corresponds with the locus | trajectory defined beforehand, a contact determination part will determine with it being the input according to a locus | trajectory. Therefore, since more types of operations that can be input increase, quick input becomes possible.

  Moreover, in said input device, the several photovoltaic cell contained in a photovoltaic module may be arrange | positioned separately.

  If comprised in this way, the several photovoltaic cell contained in the said photovoltaic module will be arrange | positioned at arbitrary distances. For this reason, for example, an object larger than a finger, such as a hand, can reduce the possibility of erroneous input due to simultaneously covering a plurality of solar cells included in one solar cell module, thereby suppressing erroneous input. it can.

  In addition, the solar cell is used as an illuminance sensor and a proximity sensor, and it is considered that inputting by these sensor outputs is close to a known technique. However, the difference between the known technique and the technique of the present invention is that the former simply uses a solar cell as a sensor, whereas the present invention uses the solar cell as a power supply source. In addition, it can be easily realized that an existing sensor can be used as a power supply source, but there is a problem that erroneous input increases. On the other hand, the present invention is different in that an input means is provided while using a solar cell as a power supply source and without erroneous input.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, in the low power consumption device using a solar cell, the input device which can be reduced in size efficiently without deteriorating operability can be provided.

It is a circuit diagram which shows the circuit example of the input device which concerns on this embodiment. (A) is the schematic which shows the relationship between the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment, and a cell, (B) is the equivalent circuit schematic of the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment. It is the schematic showing the example of arrangement | positioning of the photovoltaic cell which concerns on this embodiment. It is the schematic showing the example of arrangement | positioning of the photovoltaic cell which concerns on this embodiment. It is the schematic showing the contact with the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment, and a finger | toe. (A) is the schematic showing a mode that a finger | toe slides on the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment, (B) is a contact and non-contact at the time of sliding a finger | toe on the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment. It is the schematic showing the time change of a contact. It is the schematic which shows the example of input operation in this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the IV characteristic of the solar cell module when the partial shadow and whole shadow concerning this embodiment generate | occur | produce. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the distance of the solar cell module which concerns on this embodiment, and a shield, and the output voltage of a solar cell module. It is a block diagram showing the outline | summary of the input device which concerns on this embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

  The input device 101 according to the present embodiment is suitably employed in a device in which a solar cell as a power supply source and an input unit are integrated.

  First, the input device 101 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 10.

  FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram illustrating a circuit example of the input device 101 according to the present embodiment. Moreover, FIG. 2 (A) is the schematic which shows the relationship between the solar cell module 10 which concerns on this embodiment, and the photovoltaic cell 1-the photovoltaic cell 4. FIG. FIG. 2B is a circuit diagram showing an equivalent circuit of the solar cell module 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 10 is a block functional diagram of the input device 101.

  As illustrated in FIG. 10, the input device 101 includes a solar battery module 10 including the solar battery cells 1 to 4, and an output adjustment unit 103 that adjusts the voltage value of the output voltage output from the solar battery module 10. And an illuminance detection unit 105 that detects the illuminance of the light applied to the solar cell module 10, and a contact determination unit 107 that determines whether or not a finger contacts the solar cell module 10.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for example, the output adjustment unit 103, the illuminance detection unit 105, and the contact determination unit 107 of the input device 101 are realized by a circuit 100 including the solar cell module 10. Here, the circuit 100 that implements the input device 101 will be described in a simplified manner for ease of understanding. That is, the circuit 100 includes a solar cell module 10, a variable resistor POT1, a variable resistor POT2, a comparator OP, a diode D, and a capacitor C. The capacitor C and the diode D of the circuit 100 are for supplying a stable voltage to the outside.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the solar cell module 10 of the input device 101 includes solar cell 1 to solar cell 4 (abbreviated as “cell 1” to “cell 4” in FIG. 2A). It is configured to be connected in series. Moreover, the bypass diode does not need to be inserted into the solar battery cells 1 to 4. Further, the solar cell module 10 may be replaced with an equivalent circuit E10 equivalent to a circuit in which batteries are connected in series as shown in FIG. With this configuration, the circuit 100 is supplied with power by the solar cell module 10. Moreover, since the solar cell module 10 has a plurality of solar cells connected in series, the voltage value of the output voltage can be increased, and the voltage required by the device can be satisfied without using a booster circuit or the like. become able to.

  The contact determination unit 107 can be configured by, for example, a comparator OP and a variable resistor POT2. The contact determination unit 107 sets a threshold value for appropriate contact determination according to illuminance and load by the variable resistor POT2. The comparator OP compares the output voltage of the solar cell module 10 with a threshold value, and outputs an output indicating contact when the voltage value of the output voltage of the solar cell module 10 falls below the threshold value. The output is an output indicating that an input has been made by the operation of the operator. Therefore, the contact determination unit 107 can determine whether or not a finger has contacted the solar cell module 10.

  Moreover, the contact determination part 107 may measure the open circuit voltage of the solar cell module 10, and may determine whether the finger | toe contacted the solar cell of the solar cell module 10 according to the open circuit voltage. Thereby, the factor that the output voltage of the solar cell module 10 is lower than the threshold value is that the finger touches one solar cell included in the solar cell module 10 or the entire solar cell module 10 is covered. For example, it is possible to identify whether an object such as a hand has approached. Therefore, the accuracy of the contact determination is improved, and erroneous input can be suppressed.

  Further, in order to prevent erroneous input more reliably, the open voltage may be measured in cooperation with the output adjustment unit 103 after the threshold value is lowered, and the final determination may be performed. Thereby, it becomes possible to accurately detect that a finger is in contact with one cell of the solar cell module 10. In addition, by preparing a plurality of solar cell modules 10 and monitoring the voltage value of the output voltage of each solar cell module 10, it is possible to determine which solar cell module the operator's finger touches.

  Here, the contact of the finger F and the change in the amount of received light in the solar cell module 10 will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating contact between the solar cell module 10 and the finger F according to the present embodiment. Each solar cell (cell 1 to cell 4) of the solar cell module 10 is designed such that each area of the cells 1 to 4 is 3 cm ² or less. Alternatively, each solar cell (cell 1 to cell 4) can cover 80% or more of the area of cell 1 to cell 4 with the finger F when the finger F contacts the cell 1 to cell 4. Designed to.

  By comprising in this way, when an operator contacts the finger | toe F with the solar cell module 10, one solar cell in the solar cell module 10 can be substantially covered.

  When the operator contacts the finger F with the solar battery module 10, the amount of light received by the solar battery cell (cell 4) covered with the finger F is drastically reduced. On the other hand, the received light amount of the remaining three cells (cell 1 to cell 3) not covered with the finger F does not change much.

  Hereinafter, a decrease in the amount of received light only for some of the solar cells of the input device 101 is referred to as “partial shadow”, and a decrease in the amount of received light in all the cells of the input device 101 to the same extent is referred to as “overall shadow”. It expresses explicitly.

  Next, it will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9 that it is possible to accurately determine whether a finger is in contact or in proximity by applying a load to the solar cell module.

  FIG. 8 shows the results of measuring the IV characteristics of a solar cell module composed of four cells under several conditions. Combines three light-shielding patterns: no shadow, partial shadow (reduction of light received by only one cell), and overall shadow (reduction of light reception by all cells) and five types of reduction of received light. The results are obtained under a total of 11 conditions. In the present embodiment, the amount of decrease in the amount of received light may be adjusted by the distance between the shield and the solar cell module.

  P in FIG. 8 represents a partial shadow, F represents a whole shadow, and the subsequent numbers represent distances. For example, P5 represents an IV characteristic under a partial shadow condition with a distance of 5 mm. As shown in FIG. 8, the power generation amount decreases as the distance approaches 0 mm for both the partial shadow and the entire shadow, that is, as the amount of received light decreases.

  In addition, when the distance is the same, the power generation amount is lower in the whole shadow than in the partial shadow. Further, the open voltage (voltage when the current is 0) decreases for both the partial shadow and the entire shadow according to the distance, but the degree of decrease is smaller in the partial shadow (for example, P5, P3, and F10). ), It can be seen that the open-circuit voltage of P5 and P3 is larger than the open-circuit voltage of F10, and the degree of decrease with distance is smaller in the partial shadow.

  The straight line in FIG. 8 is a 100 kΩ load straight line. By using the load straight line, when a 100 kΩ load is connected to the solar cell module, it is possible to know how much the voltage drop of the solar cell module due to the partial shadow or the total shadow is. That is, the intersection of the load straight line and the IV characteristic of the solar cell module is the output voltage of the solar cell under that condition.

  For example, when the load is 100 kΩ, the output voltage is 0.5 V or less under the condition of a distance of 0 mm and a partial shadow.

  Next, FIG. 9 shows the relationship between the distance and the output voltage when the load is 100 kΩ. In the case of a partial shadow, when the distance becomes 5 mm or less, the output voltage decreases rapidly, whereas in the case of an entire shadow, the output voltage decreases slowly from the region where the distance is about 20 mm.

  Here, for example, when 0.5V is considered as a threshold value, a partial shadow with a distance of 0 mm and a partial shadow with a distance of 1 mm can be identified. This corresponds to being able to identify whether the operator's finger is in contact with or close to the solar cell module.

  However, when the threshold value is used, an entire shadow having a distance of 2 mm or less is also determined as a contact. This corresponds to a state in which a shield (for example, an operator's hand) is close by a distance of 2 mm or less so as to cover the entire solar cell module.

  In this state, there is still a possibility of erroneous input. Here, when attention is paid to the open voltages of P0, F1, and F3 in FIG. 8 (focus on F1 and F3 because there is no F2 in FIG. 8), the open voltage of P0 is more than the open voltages of F1 and F3. It is clear that Further, it can be seen that the open circuit voltage at P0 is larger than the open circuit voltage at F5.

  As a result, it is possible to prevent erroneous input due to the entire shadow caused by a large shielding object that is performed unintentionally. In other words, when the output voltage of the solar cell module falls below the threshold value with a load applied, if the open circuit voltage is further measured and the value exceeds another threshold value, only one cell is detected. It can be accurately determined that the light is shielded, that is, the operator's finger has touched one cell.

  The open-circuit voltage can be measured easily because it is only necessary to remove the 100 kΩ load described above.

  In addition, when the load is not connected, the open circuit voltage becomes the output voltage of the solar cell module. From FIG. 8, the open-circuit voltages of P0 and F10 are almost equal, so that it is difficult to distinguish both when no load is connected. That is, it is difficult to distinguish between a case where the operator intends to operate and covers one cell with a finger and a case where a large object unintentionally approaches a distance of 10 mm from the solar cell module.

  In this embodiment, by applying a load to the solar cell module, the conditions for erroneous input are severe, that is, when the load is not applied, the entire shadow with a distance of 10 mm or less becomes a cause of erroneous input. When a load is applied, the distance becomes 2 mm or less, and by using an open circuit voltage, it is possible to prevent erroneous input.

  When an operation that covers only one cell, that is, a partial shadow is used, a change in the output voltage with respect to the distance increases, and contact and proximity can be accurately identified.

  In addition, the load applied to the solar cell includes the load of the individual parts constituting the present invention, or can be replaced with an external load. Therefore, the solar cell is operated without receiving a power supply such as a battery or an external power source. In addition, power can be supplied to the outside.

  The illuminance detection unit 105 can be configured by, for example, the variable resistor POT1, the variable resistor POT2, and the comparator OP of the circuit 100 illustrated in FIG. The variable resistor POT2 is also used as a threshold for determining contact in the input means of the input device 101, but can also be used as a component of the illuminance detection unit. While the solar cell module 10 is overloaded, the voltage value of the output voltage continues to decrease, and when the overload is eliminated, the output voltage increases. The time for the voltage value of the output voltage to return to the original voltage value before the reduction depends on the load and the ambient illuminance. That is, if the load is the same, the return time is shorter when the illuminance is higher. Therefore, the illuminance is detected by measuring the return time. In this way, the illuminance detection unit 105 detects the illuminance of light based on the time until the voltage value of the output voltage of the solar cell module 10 returns to a constant value after being overloaded. The load may be adjusted according to the illuminance of sunlight. For example, in a darker environment, the load is preferably set to be lighter. Thereby, the illumination intensity detection part 105 can detect illumination intensity rapidly also in a dark environment. The illuminance detection unit 105 can be replaced with a general illuminance sensor. However, in that case, a new sensor is added, resulting in an increase in cost and an obstacle to miniaturization. By configuring the illuminance detection unit 105 as such, the illuminance can be detected without adding a new sensor.

  The output adjustment unit 103 is, for example, the variable resistor POT1 of the circuit 100 illustrated in FIG. The variable resistor POT1 adjusts the load applied to the solar cell module 10. The output adjustment unit 103 may determine a load according to the illuminance and apply the load to the solar cell module 10. Moreover, the output adjustment part 103 does not need to load the solar cell module 10 in order to detect an open circuit voltage. Thereby, the output adjustment unit 103 can adjust the voltage value of the output voltage output from the solar cell module 10 by the variable resistor POT1.

  Moreover, when supplying electric power outside, you may monitor external load and may adjust so that the load concerning the solar cell module 10 may become always constant.

  As described above, the contact determination unit 107 can accurately determine whether a finger is in contact or in proximity by applying a load to the solar cell module. However, in an actual usage environment, the ambient illuminance differs from one another, so it is important to operate properly even at different illuminances. For this purpose, it is necessary to appropriately set the load applied to the solar cell module according to the illuminance and the threshold value for contact determination. For example, in a darker environment, the load must be set lighter. Further, an appropriate threshold for contact determination varies depending not only on the illuminance but also on the load. In the present embodiment, the illuminance detection unit 105 detects the illuminance applied to the solar cell module in a state where the solar cell module is not shaded, that is, in a state where the finger is neither in contact nor in proximity, and the output adjustment unit 103 determines a load according to the detected illuminance. The contact determination unit 107 sets a contact determination threshold based on the illuminance detected by the illuminance determination unit 105 and the load determined by the output adjustment unit 103. Thereby, the contact determination part 107 can always perform a contact determination with the same determination reference | standard.

  Here, the input in the input device 101 is demonstrated using FIG. The invention according to this embodiment performs input by bringing a finger into contact with the solar battery cell of the solar battery module 10.

  FIG. 6 shows a state when the finger is slid while being in contact with the solar cell module. In FIG. 6A, the finger is moving from left to right, and the state when the finger is in a position straddling two cells is shown.

  Thus, when a finger straddles two cells without completely covering one cell, the contact determination unit determines that it is non-contact. This is because the output voltage of the solar cell module decreases in the former case when one cell is completely covered and when the two cells are covered, for example, by half.

  When the finger moves further to the right from this state, the finger completely covers the second cell from the left, and the contact determination unit determines that it is a contact. That is, the determination result of the contact determination unit repeats contact and non-contact as shown in FIG. 6B depending on the position of the finger.

  When such repeated contact and non-contact are observed, it can be determined that the finger has slipped on the solar cell module, and this can be used as an input operation. Although the direction in which the finger has moved cannot be detected, it is possible to detect how many cells the finger has passed, and therefore it is possible to input according to the distance the finger is slid. Moreover, after a finger | toe contacts with the solar cell module 10, after a finger | toe slips on the solar cell module 10 over several solar cells, when it leaves | separates from the solar cell module 10, it determines with a slide input. On the other hand, after the finger contacts the solar cell module 10, the contact determination unit 107 determines that the input is a tap input when the finger leaves the solar cell module 10 without sliding on the solar cell module 10.

  In this way, tap input and slide input are possible. Therefore, the types of operations that can be input are increased, and even quick finger operations can be input, so that quick input is possible.

  Moreover, the input device 101 may further include a plurality of solar cell modules, and the contact determination unit 107 may determine whether or not a finger has come into contact with each of the plurality of solar cell modules.

  That is, after the finger touches any one of the plurality of solar cell modules, the finger slides on the solar cell module across the solar cells of the solar cell module. When it is separated from the solar cell module, it may be determined as a slide input. In addition, the contact determination unit 107 taps the finger when the finger contacts the solar cell module of any one of the plurality of solar cell modules and then moves away from the solar cell module without sliding on the solar cell module. The input may be determined.

  If it does in this way, even if it is a case where input device 101 is provided with a plurality of solar cell modules, tap input and slide input will be possible. Therefore, the types of operations that can be input are increased, and even quick finger operations can be input, so that quick input is possible.

  Next, the arrangement of the solar cell module 10 in the input device 101 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

  3 and 4 are schematic views illustrating an arrangement example of solar cells according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a plurality of solar cells are arranged separately. The dotted line in FIG. 3 represents each solar cell module (solar cell module A to solar cell module D).

  As shown in FIG. 3, solar cells are arranged in the input device 101 using a plurality of solar battery modules 10. Or as shown in FIG. 4, the cell contained in each solar cell module (solar cell module A-solar cell module D) is not adjacent, and may be arrange | positioned in the distant position.

  The alphabet of the solar cell in FIGS. 3 and 4 corresponds to the solar cell module, and the number corresponds to the number of the solar cell in the solar cell module.

  In such a configuration, quick input can be performed by increasing the types of input operations. Moreover, since contact with each solar cell module can be detected independently, so-called multi-touch in which a plurality of fingers are in contact with a plurality of modules can be used as an input operation. Furthermore, another input operation is also possible. Furthermore, the possibility of erroneous input caused by simultaneously covering a plurality of solar cells included in one solar cell module with an object larger than a finger, such as a hand, can be reduced and erroneous input can be suppressed. .

  In the arrangement shown in FIG. 3, since cells included in the same solar battery module are adjacent to each other, there is an increased possibility of erroneous input when a large shielding object comes close. For example, when a vertically long object approaches from the left side of FIG. 3, the solar cell module A is in the state of an overall shadow, and erroneous input is likely to occur.

  On the other hand, if the arrangement example of FIG. 4 is used, even if the above situation occurs, each solar cell module is only in a partial shadow state, and erroneous input is unlikely to occur.

  When the arrangement shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 is performed, the contact of the finger with each solar cell module can be detected independently. For example, it can be detected that the finger is slid from the module A to the module D. (Speaking in FIG. 3, this corresponds to moving the finger from left to right), and sliding the finger from module D to module A (movement opposite to the aforementioned movement) can also be separated. When the finger is slid in the vertical direction of FIG. 3, that is, when the finger moves in the same module, as described above, it can be detected that the finger has moved, but the direction cannot be detected. In particular, as shown in FIG. 4, when solar cells are arranged at arbitrary positions, erroneous input can be prevented by independently detecting contact determination of each cell.

  Further, the contact determination unit 107, after the finger touches the solar cell module 10, when the finger trajectory slid on the solar cell module 10 while touching the finger matches the predetermined finger trajectory, The input corresponding to the trajectory is determined.

  If comprised in this way, when the locus | trajectory of a finger | toe corresponds with the locus | trajectory defined beforehand, the contact determination part 107 will determine with it being the input according to a locus | trajectory. For this reason, more types of input operations can be performed, and quick input is possible.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of setting the trajectory described above. For example, when the solar cell module C is contacted four times in succession, the contact determination unit 107 determines that the corresponding “1” has been input, and the input device 101 inputs “1”. A blank included in the order of contact between the input 4 and the input 5 represents a non-contact state for a certain time. In this setting example, the operator may touch the solar cell module 10 corresponding to the input to be input with a finger.

  That is, after contacting the solar cell module A, the solar cell module B is contacted, and the solar cell module C, solar cell module D, solar cell module C, solar cell module B, solar cell module A, solar cell module B are sequentially contacted. When the solar cell module C and the solar cell module D come into contact with each other, the corresponding “2” may be input.

  Alternatively, after contacting the solar cell module A, the solar cell module B is contacted, and the solar cell module C, solar cell module D, solar cell module C, solar cell module B, solar cell module A, solar cell module B are sequentially contacted. When contacted with the solar cell module C, the solar cell module D, the solar cell module C, the solar cell module B, and the solar cell module A, the corresponding “3” may be input.

  Alternatively, after contacting the solar cell module A, further contacting the solar cell module A, and sequentially contacting the solar cell module A, the solar cell module B, the solar cell module C, and the solar cell module D, a certain amount of time If the solar cell module C, the solar cell module C, the solar cell module C, and the solar cell module C are further contacted after the contact state, a corresponding “4” may be input.

  Or it contacts with the solar cell module A, and further contacts with the solar cell module A, and in order, the solar cell module A, the solar cell module B, the solar cell module C, the solar cell module D, the solar cell module C, and the solar cell module B. After contact with solar cell module A, after a non-contact state for a certain period of time, further contact with solar cell module A, solar cell module B, solar cell module C, solar cell module D corresponds to “5”. May be input.

  In this way, a trajectory corresponding to the shape and writing order of Arabic numerals “1” to “5” may be set, and the corresponding trajectory may be an alphabet or other symbol instead of an Arabic numeral.

  If comprised in this way, it can input by contacting the solar cell of the solar cell module 10. FIG.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was concretely demonstrated based on the embodiment, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the number of solar cells that are in contact for input is one at a time. However, the number of solar cells that are in contact for input may be two or more at the same time. Even in such a configuration, the input device 101 can function.

  Further, for example, in the above-described embodiment, the input in the input device 101 has been described by taking character input as an example. However, information input by the input device 101 is not limited to characters. Even in such a configuration, the input device 101 can function.

  As described above, the present invention introduces an operation of bringing a finger into contact with one cell to a solar cell module composed of a plurality of cells, and applying a load to the solar cell module allows the finger to come into contact. It is possible to accurately determine whether it is close or close. Therefore, the present invention can be used as an input means in a device using a solar cell as a power supply source, such as a calculator, a watch, and a remote controller.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Solar cell module, 101 ... Input device, 103 ... Output adjustment part, 105 ... Illuminance detection part, 107 ... Contact determination part.

Claims (9)

A solar cell module composed of a plurality of solar cells;
An output adjustment unit for adjusting a voltage value output by the solar cell module;
An illuminance detection unit that detects the illuminance of light irradiated on the solar cell module;
A contact determination unit for determining whether or not an operator's finger has contacted the solar cell module;
With
The output adjustment unit has a function of applying a load to the solar cell module,
The contact determination unit is based on the illuminance of the light detected by the illuminance detection unit when the solar cell module is not shaded and the load applied by the output adjustment unit to the solar cell module and the output of the solar cell module. Determining whether or not a finger touches the solar cell module,
Input device. The illuminance detection unit detects illuminance based on the time from when the output adjustment unit overloads the solar cell module until the output of the solar cell module returns to a steady state.
The input device according to claim 1. The output adjustment unit determines a load according to the illuminance output from the illuminance detection unit, and adjusts the load applied to the solar cell module to be the determined load.
The input device according to claim 1 or 2. The contact determination unit determines an illuminance of the light detected by the illuminance detection unit and a threshold according to the load applied to the solar cell module by the output adjustment unit,
When the output voltage of the solar cell module falls below the threshold, it is determined that a finger is in contact with the solar cell of the solar cell module,
The input device as described in any one of Claims 1-3. The contact determination unit measures an open voltage of the solar cell module,
It is determined whether or not a finger contacts the solar battery cell of the solar battery module according to the open voltage,
The input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The contact determination unit
After the finger contacts the solar cell module, if the finger leaves the solar cell module without sliding on the solar cell module, it is determined as a tap input,
After the finger touches the solar cell module, the finger slides over the solar cell module across the plurality of solar cells, and then moves away from the solar cell module to determine slide input.
The input device according to any one of claims 1 to 5. A plurality of the solar cell modules are provided,
The contact determination unit determines whether or not a finger is in contact with each of the solar cell modules.
The input device according to any one of claims 1 to 6. The contact determination unit
After the finger touches the solar cell module, when the locus of the finger slid on the solar cell module while touching the finger matches a predetermined locus, the input is in accordance with the locus. To determine,
The input device according to claim 7. A plurality of solar cells included in the solar cell module are arranged apart from each other,
The input device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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