WO2000011541A1

WO2000011541A1 - Display device with cursor positioning means

Info

Publication number: WO2000011541A1
Application number: PCT/EP1999/005597
Authority: WO
Inventors: Johannes Bruijns
Original assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
Priority date: 1998-08-18
Filing date: 1999-08-03
Publication date: 2000-03-02

Abstract

The invention relates to a display device (1) comprising a display screen (10) and cursor positioning means. The cursor-positioning means comprise sensor means (2a, 2b, 3a, 3b), e.g. a touch-sensitive strip, along a border of the display screen. Applying a stimulus to the sensor means by means of a stylus or finger causes a coordinate of the cursor position (7) to be made equal to the coordinate (8, 9) of the stimulus.

Description

Display device with cursor positioning means.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a display device for displaying an image on a display screen, comprising user operable positioning means for controlling a cursor position within said image, said cursor position being defined by at least one cursor coordinate along a coordinate direction.

The invention further relates to a method and to a data-processing device or a television receiver comprising a display device according to the invention.

BACKGROUND OF TFfE INVENTION A display device as defined above is widely known. For example, a monitor is known which employs a touch screen as user-operable cursor-positioning means. By touching the touch screen at a predetermined position with a finger or with an object having a similar effect with respect to the touch screen, some function is invoked, taking the position as an input parameter. For example, in a drawing package, the cursor is moved to the indicated position, or a graphically displayed button is operated. A touch screen provides a very natural way of indicating a cursor position within a displayed image, since a user can point directly to said position. A disadvantage of a display device comprising a touch screen is that the information displayed at said position is temporarily covered by a finger or stylus indicating said position. Another disadvantage is that touch screens get dirty by cumulative finger smear. This latter problem can be avoided by consistently using a stylus, but this involves picking up and putting down the stylus every time, which is inconvenient.

Other well-known positioning devices, such as a mouse, a trackball or a touch pad, have other problems, for example, they require a user to move the cursor to a desired position by repeatedly operating the device, e.g. turning a trackball or moving a mouse, in other words, they are relative positioning devices. Moreover, hand-eye coordination is more difficult, because such positioning devices are distant from the screen, and their dimensions are different from the dimensions of the screen.

Digitizing tablets are absolute positioning devices, hence do not require a repeated operation for indicating a particular position on the screen. However, they require a lot of desk space, are expensive and suffer from the same hand-eye coordination problems as e.g. a mouse.

OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide a display device comprising a cursor- positioning device which obviates the problems mentioned. To achieve this object, the display device according to the invention is characterized in that the positioning means comprise -- sensor means adjacent to the display screen, which sensor means are susceptible to a stimulus, the display device being adapted to make, in response to said stimulus, the cursor coordinate substantially equal to a coordinate of said stimulus along said coordinate direction. In this way, an absolute positioning device is provided for controlling a cursor coordinate, adjacent to the display screen, thus yielding easy hand-eye coordination, and preventing the problems of desk space occupation and a hampered viewing of the displayed image. Said stimulus could be representative of a touch or the presence of a stylus or a user's finger, similar to a touch screen, but without the displayed image being temporarily covered, and without the viewing of the image being hampered by cumulative finger smear. Any technique for detecting said stimulus can be applied, e.g. utilizing mechanic pressure, acoustic surface waves, electromagnetic waves or capacitive coupling.

A preferred embodiment of the display device according to the invention, in which said coordinate direction is substantially parallel to a border of the display screen, is characterized in that the sensor means are parallel to and substantially equally long as said border. Most display devices have a rectangular screen, comprising in its normal position two horizontal and two vertical borders. In this embodiment, the sensor means comprise a sensitive strip along the full length of such a border, enabling said coordinate to be controlled throughout its value range, occupying hardly any space, and keeping the distance to the display screen as small as possible.

A further embodiment of the display device according to the invention is characterized in that the display device is adapted to show an auxiliary line on the display screen in response to said stimulus, said auxiliary line being perpendicular to said coordinate direction and having a coordinate along said coordinate direction which is equal to a coordinate of the stimulus. In this way, ease of use is further improved, since the new cursor coordinate can be easily compared with the coordinates of objects displayed elsewhere on the screen. Preferably, the auxiliary line extends throughout the width of the display screen, starting at the location closest to the position where the stimulus is detected, and ending at the opposite side of the screen at the same coordinate along said coordinate direction. The auxiliary line is displayed as long as the stimulus is detected and could be maintained afterwards for a predetermined period of time.

In a preferred embodiment, the sensor means have a counterpart at the opposite side of the screen, enabling both right-handed and left-handed persons to easily control the cursor position.

In a very advantageous embodiment, the display screen is surrounded entirely by sensitive strips, enabling both cursor coordinates, normally being referenced as the horizontal and vertical coordinates, to be controlled throughout their value range. The horizontal coordinate is controlled by touching or approaching the sensitive strip at the top or the bottom of the screen, while the vertical coordinate is controlled by touching or approaching the strip at the left or right side of the screen.

A further embodiment of the invention according to the invention is characterized in that the positioning means are susceptible to a further stimulus, the display device being adapted to invoke a function requiring said cursor position as an input parameter in response to said further stimulus. For example, upon detection of said further stimulus, a graphical button at the cursor position could be pressed, or a pending operation, e.g. moving an object to a different position, could be confirmed, thus providing an alternative to a mouse or touch-pad button. This can be realized in various ways. Distinct buttons could be applied, halfway the borders or near the corners of the screen. In a preferred embodiment, touching or approaching the sensor means at the corners of the screen mimics pressing a mouse or touch- pad button. Other ways are tapping for a short-time or putting extra pressure on the sensor means. The display device according to the invention can be advantageously applied in a computer monitor, a computer with a built-in screen, e.g. a notebook, a head-mounted display, a point- of-sale terminal, a (portable) television receiver, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated by way of a non-limitative example with reference to a drawing in which:

Figure 1 shows a monitor as an embodiment of the display device according to the invention;

Figure 2 shows a monitor as a further embodiment of the display device according to the invention. DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

With reference to Figure 1, a monitor 1 comprises a display screen 10 for displaying an image, e.g. from a video source or a data processing system. In its normal position, the monitor 1 comprises horizontal sensor means 2a and 2b, vertical sensor means 3a and 3b, and buttons 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d. The sensor means 2a, 2b, 3a and 3b enable a user to control a cursor position 7, which is defined by a horizontal coordinate and a vertical coordinate. When a stimulus is applied to the sensor means 2a or 2b at a position 8, e.g. by touching them with a finger or a stylus, a signal is generated which is representative of the horizontal coordinate of the position 8. Techniques for detecting a stylus or the touch by a finger or approaching sensor means are known per se and any of them can be applied. In the case of a touch by a finger, involving a contact plane rather than a contact point, the generated signal is representative of an average horizontal coordinate of the contact plane. In response to the generated signal, the horizontal coordinate of the cursor position 7 is made equal to the horizontal coordinate of the position 8. Furthermore, a vertical auxiliary line 6 is displayed connecting all positions having the same horizontal coordinate. The auxiliary line 6 remains on the screen as long as the stimulus is detected. If the user drags his finger or stylus along the sensor means 2a or 2b, the auxiliary line 6 moves in such a way that its horizontal coordinate is always equal to the horizontal coordinate of the finger or stylus. After lifting the finger or stylus from the sensor means 2a or 2b, the auxiliary line is removed, possibly after a short time interval, and the cursor is shown at its new position.

Similarly, a stimulus can be applied to the sensor means 3a and 3b at a position 9, in response to which a signal is generated which is representative of the vertical coordinate of the position 9. In response to the generated signal, the vertical coordinate of the cursor position 7 is made equal to the vertical coordinate of the position 9. Furthermore, a horizontal auxiliary line 5 is displayed, connecting all positions having the same vertical coordinate. The auxiliary line 5 remains on the screen as long as the stimulus is detected. Dragging the auxiliary line 5 proceeds similarly to dragging the auxiliary line 6. If stimuli are applied to the horizontal and vertical sensor means at the same time, both the auxiliary line 5 and the auxiliary line 6 are displayed, the cursor position being located at their point of intersection. In an advantageous embodiment, the simultaneous display of the auxiliary line 5 and the auxiliary line 6 can be accomplished by successively applying a stimulus to the horizontal and the vertical sensor means, or in reverse order, thus requiring only one finger or stylus. After the stimulus to the horizontal sensor means 2a or 2b, the auxiliary line 6 remains on the screen for a predetermined time interval. If the stimulus to the vertical sensor means 3a or 3b occurs within said time interval, both the auxiliary line 5 and the auxiliary line 6 are displayed simultaneously for another time interval, or as long as new stimuli are applied to any of the sensor means at intervals shorter than said predetermined time interval. The monitor 1 further comprises four buttons 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d, which allow the invocation of a function and apply to the cursor position. For example, if the cursor position coincides with a graphical button, pressing any of the buttons 4a, 4b, 4c or 4d causes the -* relevant button to be pressed. In a drawing package, moving of an object is achieved by dragging the cursor position as described above to the object, selecting the object by pressing any of the buttons 4a, 4b, 4c or 4d, and dragging the object to its new position while keeping one of the buttons 4a, 4b, 4c or 4d pressed. In a further embodiment each of said buttons could be assigned a different function. For example, the buttons 4a and 4c could be assigned the function of the left button of a mouse, while the buttons 4b and 4d are assigned the function of the right button of a mouse. Figure 2 shows a monitor as a further embodiment of the display device according to the invention. It resembles the previous embodiment in most respects, Figure 2 having the same reference numerals for similar parts. The sensor means 2a, 2b, 3a and 3b extend slightly outside the dimensions of the display screen 10, indicated by dotted lines 1 la, 1 lb, 1 lc and 1 Id, and meet each other near the corners of the display screen 10. Applying a stimulus to any of the sensor means 2a, 2b, 3a or 3b outside the dimensions of the display screen 10 does not affect the cursor position 7. Instead, the stimulus is interpreted in the same way as the buttons 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d of the previous embodiment.

The invention can be applied to monitors, computers with built-in screens such as notebooks, head-mounted displays, television receivers, point-of-sale terminals etc. Although the invention has been described with reference to particular illustrative embodiments, variants and modifications are possible within the scope of the inventive concept. Thus, for example, the sensor means 2a, 2b, 3a and 3b and/or the buttons 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d could be part of a conventional touch screen, enabling a user to control the cursor position in the conventional way by applying a stimulus at the desired cursor position, or by applying one or more successive stimuli near the borders of the touch screen, e.g. just outside the displayed image, at the desired horizontal and vertical positions respectively. In this way, the displayed information at the desired cursor position is not temporarily covered, and finger smear is merely cumulated near the borders of the screen, where it is less inconvenient. In another variant, the invention could be embodied as a touch screen which is only susceptible near the borders of the screen.

In summary , the invention relates to a display device (1) comprising a display screen (10) and cursor positioning means. The cursor-positioning means comprise sensor means (2a, 2b, 3a, 3b), e.g. a touch-sensitive strip, along a border of the display screen. Applying a stimulus to the sensor means by means of a stylus or finger causes a coordinate of the cursor position (7) to be made equal to the coordinate (8, 9) of the stimulus.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A display device for displaying an image on a display screen, comprising user operable positioning means for controlling a cursor position within said image, said cursor position being defined by at least one cursor coordinate along a coordinate direction, characterized in that the positioning means comprise sensor means adjacent to the display screen, which sensor means are susceptible to a stimulus, the display device being adapted to make, in response to said stimulus, the cursor coordinate substantially equal to a coordinate of said stimulus along said coordinate direction.

2. A display device as claimed in to claim 1, characterized in that said stimulus is representative of a touch or the presence of a stylus or finger.

3. A display device as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which said coordinate direction is substantially parallel to a border of the display screen, characterized in that the sensor means are parallel to and substantially equally long as said border.

4. A display device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the display device is adapted to show an auxiliary line on the display screen in response to said stimulus, said auxiliary line being perpendicular to said coordinate direction and having a coordinate along said coordinate direction which is equal to a coordinate of the stimulus.

5. A display device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, in which the display has a further border opposite said border, characterized in that the positioning means comprise further sensor means similar to said sensor means, the further sensor means being adjacent to said further border.

6. A display device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, in which said cursor position is further defined by a further cursor coordinate along a further coordinate direction, characterized in that the positioning means comprise further sensor means adjacent to the display screen, similar to said sensor means and adapted to sensor the further cursor coordinate in a similar way.

7. A display device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the positioning means are susceptible to a further stimulus, the display device being adapted to invoke a function requiring said cursor position as an input parameter in response to said further stimulus.

8. A display device as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that said further stimulus comprises touching said sensor means near a corner of the display screen.

9. A data processing device comprising a display device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. A television receiver comprising a display device as claimed in any of the claims 1 to 9.

11. A method of controlling a cursor position within an image on a display screen, said cursor position being defined by at least one cursor coordinate along a coordinate direction, the method comprising a step of applying a stimulus to sensor means, characterized in that the method comprises a step of applying a stimulus to sensor means adjacent to the display screen, and a step of making, in response to said stimulus, the cursor coordinate substantially equal to a coordinate of said stimulus along said coordinate direction.