Abstract: Coordinates input apparatus and method which can accurately calculate a coordinate position by two vibration sensors are provided. The occurrence of a vibration of an input pen is controlled by at least two kinds of forms. At least two vibration sensors each for detecting the vibration from the input pen are provided. On the basis of the time until the vibration of each form arrives every vibration sensor, the distance from the input position of the input pen is calculated every vibration of each form. A difference between the distances calculated every vibration of each form which is calculated is calculated every vibration sensor.

Abstract: With the use of transfer delay of supersonic wave, an apparatus for measuring a distance and inputting coordinates accurately is implement. When a distance is measured with the use of the transfer of supersonic wave, the transfer delay time is measured at the specified portion of a detected signal. The position of the specified portion to be measured may shift due to the level of the detected signal or noise. The signal obtained by delaying the specified time the envelope of the detected signal is generated. The signal obtained by attenuating the envelope at the specified rate and adding the specified offset is also generated. A gate signal is formed by obtaining the differential of these two generated signals. The delay time is measured during the gate period. With this configuration, the gate-period timing is immune to influences of the signal level and noise, providing highly precise coordinate inputs.

Abstract: Disclosed is a coordinate input device, having a vibration transmission plate, that simplifies the measurement of a vibration transmission speed, which is used as a known constant to calculate a distance between a vibration input location and individual vibration sensors, and that ensures the accurate performance of calculations to acquire input coordinates. According to the present invention, a vibration transmission plate has anisotropic properties that are associated with two axes. As a result, the speeds at which vibrations arrive at vibration sensors differ depending on which pair of vibration sensors, 6a and 6d, or tb and 6c, is involved. Therefore, the vibration transmission speeds are measured for the individual pairs of vibration sensors, 6a and 6d, and 6b and 6c, and the measured values are stored as known values. These values are employed as constants to be used for calculations performed to acquire coordinates.

Abstract: There is provided a highly precise coordinate input device not requiring a particular designating tool. A sheet, composed of a piezoelectric plate polarized in the direction of thickness, is superposed with a vibration transmitting plate, provided with vibration sensors in predetermined positions. The sheet generates vibration by a pulse signal generated by a sheet driver. When the sheet is pressed for example with a pen, the vibration is transmitted to the vibration transmitting plate from the pressed position, and is detected by the vibration sensors. A controller calculates the distance between the vibration input point and the vibration sensor, based on the delay time from the start of vibration to the detection. This operation is conducted for the plural sensors, and the coordinate is calculated from thus calculated distances.

Abstract: A highly portable information processing apparatus projects a hand-written input image in real time while the projected image is not hindered by the hand-writing operation. An image to be projected is displayed on a transmission type liquid crystal display provided in a main control unit and a light beam is projected from the bottom thereof. The light beam passes through lenses and is projected to a coordinate input plate and reflected thereby, passes through lenses, is reflected by a reflection plate and then projected to a screen. The coordinate input plate allows the viewing of the projected image from a plane opposite to the projection plane so that an operator may point a desired coordinate while watching the image. The pointed coordinate is displayed by a main control unit on the liquid crystal screen as an image. The projected light is not intercepted by an obstacle in a path to projection on the screen.

Abstract: It is an object to provide a portable coordinates input apparatus which can be manufactured at low costs. An input pen applies a voltage to a desired position in a coordinate input area on a vibration propagating plate having a piezoelectric performance and having a first surface including the coordinate input area and a second area that faces the first surface. A vibration generated by the voltage is detected as an electric signal by a vibration detecting electrode arranged out of the coordinate input area.

Abstract: Disclosed is a coordinate input apparatus including a vibrating input pen 3, a piezoelectric element 4 in the pen 3, a vibration transfer plate 8 and vibration sensors 6 provided around the vibration transfer plate 8. The vibrator 4 is driven by a vibrator driving circuit 2 to generate a vibration, which is transmitted to vibration transfer plate 8. The apparatus is capable of calculating coordinate thereon accurately with phase information of detected signal waveform.

Abstract: There is provided a coordinates input apparatus in which a vibration input from a vibration pen having a piezoelectric transducer is detected by a plurality of vibration sensors attached to a vibration propagating plates such as an input tablet and the coordinates of this pen on the plate are detected. The tip of the vibration input pen is made of a material of a resin of the polyamideimide system such as thermoplastic polyamideimide or aromatic polyamideimide. With this material, a desired image can be smoothly input to the input tablet without scratching the glass surface thereof and the accurate coordinates can be detected.

Abstract: A gesture input apparatus comprises: a plurality of multiaxis angular velocity sensors or multiaxis acceleration sensors respectively for detecting multiaxis angular velocities or multiaxis accelerations; a difference sampling circuit for outputting the difference between one of outputs from the sensors, as a reference value, and outputs from the other sensors; a gesture dictionary for pre-storing sample values of feature relative value outputs; an arithmetic operation controller for recognizing gesture, by comparing an output value from the difference sampling circuit with a value within the gesture dictionary, based on output indicative of change in elapse of time, from said difference sampling circuit, as one set of data; and a distance sensor for detecting the relative distance between a fixed member and a movable member by using sound waves or light.

Abstract: A coordinate input apparatus which can attain an accurate coordinate input operation, includes a sensor for detecting an input variation. The vibration is amplified, and an envelope detection circuit generates the envelope of the amplified vibration. A gate signal generation circuit receives the envelope and a second-order differential signal of the envelope generated by an inflection point detection circuit. The gate signal generation circuit attenuates the envelope and adds a predetermined offset to the attenuated envelope. The gate signal generation circuit compares the sum signal with the second-order differential signal to generate a gate signal. In the duration of the gate signal, a tg comparator detects, as a group delay time, a time up to the zero cross point of the second-order differential signal, and a tp comparator detects, as a phase delay time, a time up to the zero cross point in a predetermined order of a phase signal.

Abstract: An information apparatus comprises a main apparatus and a subsidiary apparatus which are separable. The main and subsidiary apparatuses has electrical connectors which are connected substantially automatically when the two apparatuses are attached. The connectors are provided with covers which are movable in association with the attaching procedure. Thereby, the connectors can be kept clean and free from dust contamination or breakage, and the reliability of the information apparatus can be enhanced.

Abstract: A shift of an input coordinate by a change in temperature in a coordinate input device is prevented. An arithmetic operation and control circuit 1 applies a drive signal to a vibration pen 3 and starts a timer. The drive signal applied to the vibration pen 3 is delayed by a delay circuit 12, which drives a vibrator drive circuit 2 to generate vibration. A delay time of the delay circuit 12 is shortened as a temperature rises and a sum time of the delay generated by the delay circuit 12 and a delay generated in the vibration pen 3 as the temperature changes is constant regardless of the temperature. As a result, a vibration propagation time measured by the timer represents a net propagation time plus a constant delay time regardless of the temperature. Thus, the stable coordinate input is assured regardless of the temperature.

Abstract: In a distance measuring device for calculating the distance from the arrival time of the Lamb wave, the thickness of the propagation plate and the frequency of the Lamb wave are optimized in relation to the material of the propagation plate in order not to deteriorate the precision of distance detection even in case an approximate wave velocity is used in the calculation. The plate thickness and the frequency are so selected, in relation to the plate material, as to minimize a function G(f, d) defined by:G(f, d)=Vg.multidot.Vp/{f(Vg-Vp)}whereinf: frequencyVg: group velocity of Lamb waveVp: phase velocity of Lamb waved: plate thickness.

Abstract: Vibration applied to a tablet is sensed by a sensor provided on the tablet and a time delay from generation of the vibration to the sensing thereof is measured, whereby distance from the vibration source to the sensor can be measured. If the vicinity of the leading edge of the envelope of registration is sensed when sensing the vibration, the effects of reflected waves from the periphery of the tablet are reduced. To this end, the envelope is differentiated to detect an inflection point. The peak gain frequency of the differentiating circuit is greater than the frequency of vibration generated by the vibration source. As a result, the phase of the output signal produced by the differentiating circuit is advanced by about .pi./2 with respect to the phase of the input signal, thereby making it possible to sense vibration more quickly.

Abstract: A high-precision coordinate input apparatus having a small circuit construction. A vibrating pen transmits vibration onto a vibration transmitting tablet, then vibration sensors provided at corners of the vibration transmitting tablet detect the vibration. One of the vibration sensor is used as a reference sensor. Time difference between vibration detecting timing by this reference sensor and detecting timing by one of the other sensors is measured. This measurement is performed on all the vibration sensors with respect to the reference sensor. The obtained time differences are converted into distance differences for calculation of the coordinates of the position in which the vibration has been generated. The vibrating pen has a power source and it operates independent of the apparatus main body. The vibrating pen changes its frequency of vibration in accordance with the voltage of the power source.

Abstract: A distance measuring device is capable, even utilizing the Lamb wave with velocity fluctuating from device to device, of easily setting an approximate wave velocity and of effecting precise distance calculation even with such approximate wave velocity. There is employed a system of measuring the thickness d of the wave transmitting plate, then determining the group velocity Vg of the Lamb wave from the measured thickness, then determining the phase velocity Vp of the Lamb wave from the plate thickness d and the frequency f of the Lamb wave, and deriving the distance from Vg, Vp and the arrival delay time of the Lamb wave.

Abstract: A piezoelectric sensor for detecting elastic plate vibrations in an object such as the transmission plate in a coordinate input apparatus is prismatic in shape and is fixed to the surface of the object. The prismatic sensor is arranged so that it is parallel to the direction of propagation of the vibrations and has an electrode surface perpendicular to the surface of the object. The arrangement of the prismatic sensor permits the thickness of the object in which the plate vibrations propagate to be substantially reduced and reduces the manufacturing cost of coordinate input apparatus using the prismatic sensor.

Abstract: Oscillation applied to a tablet is sensed by a sensor on the tablet and a time delay from generation of the oscillation to the sensing thereof is measured, whereby distance from the oscillation source to the sensor can be measured. If this distance is measured for each of a plurality of different sensors, the position of the oscillation source on the tablet can be determined. The measured delay time includes not only time for transmission through the tablet but also an error. Accordingly, the delay time between the oscillation source and a sensor is not used as is, one of the sensors is adopted as a reference sensor and a difference in delay time between this sensor and the oscillation source is used to measure the distance between the oscillation source and each sensor. As a consequence, errors attributable to respective sensors are canceled out so that measurement precision is improved.

Abstract: When vibration is entered on a vibration transmitting tablet, the vibration is sensed by vibration sensors attached at four corners of the tablet. When this is done, a time delay from entry of the vibration to detection thereof is measured, and the distance between each sensor and the source of the vibration is calculated in dependence upon the time delay. At this time the vibration sensors also sense reflected waves resulting from reflection of the vibration at the end face of the tablet. The larger the angle of reflection, the greater the magnitude of the reflected waves sensed. Accordingly, sensors most likely to sense reflected waves are excluded from calculation, and coordinates are calculated based upon vibration sensed by the remaining sensors only. As a consequence, a discontinuity in coordinates occurs at the boundary of a region decided by whichever of the sensors are excluded.

Abstract: Disclosed is a coordinate input apparatus for detecting an input vibration from a vibration pen by a vibration sensor provided on a vibration transmitting plate to measure a vibration transmission time to the vibration pen to detect the input coordinates of the vibration pen on the vibration transmitting plate on the basis of the measurement result. The vibration pen is made wireless by incorporating all mechanisms required to generate the vibration. A drive timing for vibration input from the vibration pen and used as a measurement origin of the vibration transmission time is transmitted to a main body for performing the coordinate detection processing by bringing the vibration pen in temporary contact with the main body.