Abstract: A coordinate input device of touch-type capable of giving an electric signal to a transducer, even if said transducer is disposed on a back surface of a substrate. The device contains acoustic wave transducers (piezoelectric vibrators), each functioning for oscillating a bulk wave (a first wave) toward a top surface of a substrate; a planar wiring formed on a back surface of the substrate by, e.g., transfer printing with conductive paste, for supplying the piezoelectric vibrator with electric power; diffractive acoustic wave mode couplers, each functioning for converting said bulk wave into a surface acoustic wave (a second wave) and vice versa; and a detector to detect scatter in the surface acoustic wave on the top surface of the substrate. Employing the planar wiring allows the wiring to be disposed even on the back surface of the substrate and also it may resolve the problem of fragility associated with a cable wiring.

Abstract: The present invention provides a way to measure and track non-linear corrections in touchscreens. Some or all of the relevant non-linear corrections may be determined automatically. Production floor test equipment may make electronic measurements, compute parameters, and load the parameters in non-volatile memory of the controller electronics. Alternatively, the controller electronics can make the electronic measurements and determine non-linear parameters. The latter embodiment of the invention permits the determination of non-linear parameters in the field, dynamically tracking changes in the non-linear characteristics of installed touchscreens that occur over time or due to environmental conditions.

Abstract: A touch panel device includes a screen that has a plurality of display areas in a first layer, and a plurality of touch areas in a second layer. The second layer lies over the first layer. One touch area is superposed over one display area. The touch area is generally larger than the display area. A position of each touch area is slightly offset from the corresponding display area, depending upon a relative positional relationship between the touch panel device and a user of the touch panel device. The offsetting may be determined based on ergonomics in order to effectively prevent an erroneous operation of a user to the touch panel device. The user is a vehicle driver if the touch panel device is used in a car navigation machine.

Abstract: The universal input device provides a common user interface for a variety of different computing platforms including printed documents. Using the present system, one may use the universal input device to control various computing devices as well as capture handwritten electronic ink and have the electronic ink be associated with new or stored documents. The universal input device can be identified by a specific identification in order to allow for multiple users to operate on a document and/or within an application program simultaneously or not. An off-set optical system with infrared illumination handles perspective and helps detect positional encoding which can be covered by existing ink under common visible light illumination.

Abstract: A method of detecting and interpreting a path of designated positions is disclosed. The method concurrently detects a plurality of designated positions on a touch panel, again detects the plurality of designated positions subsequent to a travel of the designated positions, determines the distances between each of the current designated positions and the respective immediately preceding designated positions, treats an immediately preceding designated position, closest to the current designated position of interest, as the immediately preceding designated position of the current designated position of interest, and acquires the path of each designated position, thereby recognizing the paths of the plurality of designated positions that move concurrently. A combination of the paths of the plurality of designated positions is interpreted to identify a designation input by a user, and an operation thus designated is executed.

Abstract: The universal input device provides a common user interface for a variety of different computing platforms including printed documents. Using the present system, one may use the universal input device to control various computing devices as well as capture handwritten electronic ink and have the electronic ink be associated with new or stored documents. The universal input device can be identified by a specific identification in order to allow for multiple users to operate on a document and/or within an application program simultaneously or not. An off-set optical system with infrared illumination handles perspective and helps detect positional encoding which can be covered by existing ink under common visible light illumination.

Abstract: A touch control panel comprises a transparent substrate, a contact layer, a first transparent electrode formed over the transparent substrate and a second transparent electrode formed over the contact layer facing the first transparent electrode. The space between the first transparent electrode and the second transparent electrode contains a plurality of spacers. The transparent substrate or the contact layer or both have ultra-violet ray shielding capability.

Abstract: A force sensing resistor includes two substrates. Conductive traces including first, common, and calibration fingers are on the first substrate and define a contact area. A spacer surrounds the contact area and attaches the substrates together such that a cavity separates the substrates in the contact area. A first resistive layer is on the second substrate and arranged within the cavity. In response to a force moving one substrate, the first resistive layer electrically connects the first and common fingers with a resistance dependent upon resistivity of the first resistive layer and the applied force to produce an electrical signal indicative of the applied force. A second resistive layer is arranged within the cavity and electrically connects the calibration and common fingers with a resistance dependent upon resistivity of the second resistive layer to produce an electrical signal indicative of the resistivity of the second resistive layer.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for avoiding pressing inaccuracies on a touch panel. The touch panel includes a panel, a control module having an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a delay buffer, and a processor, the delay buffer able to buffer a trigger signal for interrupting the processor. The method includes sequentially receiving a plurality of analog signals generated by the panel when the panel is touched with the control module, transforming the plurality of analog signals into a plurality of corresponding digital signals and transmitting the plurality of digital signals to the processor with the analog-to-digital converter, neglecting a first m digital signals of the plurality of digital signals, and neglecting a last n digital signals of the plurality of digital signals, where m and n are integers with values equal to or larger than 1.

Abstract: A method and system for correcting alignment and linearity errors in devices using a finger or stylus input device with a display device interactively coupled to a digitizer is disclosed. Touching intersections in a calibration grid on the display device may be performed to create a linearity map. Subsequently, detected stylus input is mapped to a sector in the linearity map, and resultant screen coordinates are calculated using ratios within a reference rectangle corresponding to the detected stylus input and the mapped sector.

Abstract: A touch screen assembly includes a first outer layer (102) and a second outer layer (110) separated by a separator layer (118). The first and second outer layers are transparent, and the separator layer has openings (120) at button locations where buttons will be defined. On each of the outer layers is a layer of transparent conductor (104, 112). On the first outer layer the transparent conductor is in the form of a contiguous trace or path. The touch screen assembly is placed on a display element (203) and images displayed on the display element can be seen through the touch screen assembly. Images such as characters are displayed at button locations, and when a user presses on one of the images the conductive layers on the first and second outer layers of the touch screen assembly come into contact.

Abstract: A touch sensor system and a method of operating the system is provided to detect the touch of a person. An AC power source is provided with an isolated power supply connected to thereto with a DC voltage source output. The DC voltage source is referenced to ground. An impedance limiting circuit is connected to the output of the DC voltage source. An analog-to-digital converter is connected to the impedance limiting circuit. A processor is connected to the analog-to-digital converter with the touch sensor connected to the impedance limiting circuit. The touch sensor is capacitively coupled to the AC power source. The waveform output of touch sensor is monitored and with the waveform output as an OFF reference waveform when the touch sensor is not being touched and the waveform output is stable being calculated and saved.

Abstract: An OLED display and touch screen system including a substrate; an OLED display including an array of individually addressable OLEDs formed on the substrate; and a touch screen including an OLED light emitter formed on the substrate and a light sensor formed on the substrate across the display from the light emitter, and optics located around the display above the light emitter and the light sensor for directing light emitted from the light emitter across the display to the light sensor.

Abstract: A presentation system comprises: a screen device; a projecting device for projecting an image onto the screen device; an indication mark for setting two reference points, which is two orthogonal points on a rectangular virtual screen, near a presenter and for the presenter operating a point on the virtual screen; a photographing device for photographing the virtual screen and the indication mark; and an arithmetic operation device for generating coordinates of the virtual screen from the two reference points photographed by the photographing device, and for calculating coordinates of the indication mark on the generated virtual screen. The projecting device projects a point image onto the coordinates of the indication mark on the image.

Abstract: The present invention generally relates to interactive hypermedia systems and more particularly to a method and system for locating on a physical document items referenced in another physical document. The present invention discloses a method and system for creating hyperlinks from items (e.g. words, pictures, foot notes, symbols, icons) on a first physical document to particular points on a second physical document (manuscript or printed document), for activating these hyperlinks simply by touching the first document, and for highlighting by means of a light emitting source, the position of the items on the second document. In a preferred embodiment, the present invention discloses a method and system for highlighting on a hard-copy map the geographic positions of places referenced in a hard-copy document.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a novel new technique for detecting an intended activation of a touch sensor in the presence of noise. An algorithm is described that compares a cumulative deviation of a touch sensor reading to a scale to obtain a ratio expressed as a percentage. The percentage is compared against a target threshold and the period required to reach the threshold is examined to determine whether the rise or fall in touch sensor readings is attributable to a touch or to system noise. Additional disclosed embodiments describe circuits configured to operate in a noisy environment and have touch sensors arranged as arrays that are capable of detecting a direction and speed of a human-like contact.

Abstract: Disclosed is a touch screen calibration system and method that applies a signal to a the terminals of a touch screen and applies a calibration impedance to those terminals; the effect of the calibration impedance applied to the terminals is sensed; the X, Y position for each terminal is calculated upon application of the calibration impedance and the offset error for each terminal is calculated and applied to obtain the corrected touch position for a measured touch position; in addition the gain error may be calculated for each terminal and applied to obtain the corrected touch position.

Abstract: The present invention provides an image processing apparatus that efficiently identifies input characters and the like by an intensity image analysis based on range information. The image processing apparatus performs distance measurement by performing three-dimensional measurement by pattern projection to characters written to a manuscript, whiteboard, and the like, gets an intensity image used as a so-called actual image and an image for distance measurement in parallel, and identifies input characters by an intensity image analysis based on range information. The image processing apparatus picks up characters, patterns, and the like written onto paper or the like with a pen, performs geometric transformation for picked-up images, and performs natural input character analysis and reading processing. Furthermore, by comparing images picked up in a time-series, noise elimination and manuscript position modifications become possible.

Abstract: A pen input apparatus includes a plurality of penpoints for drawing tracks on a recording medium such as paper, and a selector for selecting a specific penpoint from the plurality of penpoints. The input apparatus including a type recognition unit for recognizing the type of the selected penpoint (such as the color of a line which can be drawn, the thickness of the line, pen type such as ballpoint pen, sign pen or fluorescent pen), and a transmitter for transmitting the track of the penpoint as position information, and transmitting the information on the type recognized by the type recognition unit to a computer system.

Abstract: A touch system includes a reference frame, and at least two cameras having fields of view that overlap within the reference frame. The position of an object relative to the reference frame is determined from captured images of the object based on triangulation. The fields of view of the at least two cameras are rotated with respect to the coordinate system of the reference frame to define offset angles.

Abstract: There is a described a user interface device having first and second imaging means for forming first and second images of a three-dimensional zone from two different viewpoints, and image data generating means for generating image data corresponding to the first and second images. A processor determines the position of an object within the three-dimensional zone from the image data for the first and second images, associates the determined position with corresponding information and generates a data signal in accordance with the information corresponding to the determined position. In an embodiment, the user interface device is in the form of a virtual keyboard. In another embodiment, the user interface device is in the form of a tablet for handwriting recognition.

Abstract: Apparatus and methods are disclosed for simultaneously tracking multiple finger and palm contacts as hands approach, touch, and slide across a proximity-sensing. compliant, and flexible multi-touch surface. The surface consists of compressible cushion, dielectric, electrode, and circuitry layers. A simple proximity transduction circuit is placed under each electrode to maximize signal-to-noise ratio and to reduce wiring complexity. Such distributed transduction circuitry is economical for large surfaces when implemented with thin-film transistor techniques. Scanning and signal offset removal on an electrode array produces low-noise proximity images. Segmentation processing of each proximity image constructs a group of electrodes corresponding to each distinguishable contact and extracts shape, position and surface proximity features for each group.

Abstract: A display screen is positioned relative to the interior side of a protective barrier. Also positioned relative to the interior side of the protective barrier are emitters adapted for emitting energy beams and detectors adapted for detecting the energy beams. Emission guides positioned relative to the exterior side of the protective barrier are adapted to receive the energy beams and to channel the energy beams across the exterior side of the protective barrier and through to the interior side of the protective barrier for detection. The display screen, the emitters and the detectors may not be accessible from the exterior side of the protective barrier. A touch on the exterior side of the protective barrier will interrupt at least two energy beams. The location of the touch on the exterior side of the protective barrier may be calculated based on the interrupted energy beams.

Abstract: A signal waveform detection circuit detects the three-dimensional coordinate value of an indicating tool which is defined in the first, second, and third dimensions. An arithmetic control circuit compares the coordinate value in the first dimension of the three-dimensional coordinate value with a predetermined value, and controls outputting of the coordinate values in the second and third dimensions on the basis of the comparison result.

Abstract: A system comprising: a wireless communications system for transmitting data from a data capturing device to a data processing device. The wireless communications system has a transmitter in communication with the data capturing device and a receiver in communication with the data processing device. The transmitter has a finite transmission range. The system also includes a buffer in communication with the data capturing device for temporarily storing at least some of the captured data which is only transmitted to the receiver when the receiver is located within the transmission range of the transmitter.

Abstract: Reproduction apparatus is periodically calibrated using only one member of a group of receivers. A correction is applied for other members of the group based on their relative differences from the one member. The one member to be calibrated periodically is designated the “key” member. Whenever a new member of the group comes into the lab, it, along with the key member are calibrated. The ratios of the density outputs over the full exposure range are calculated and saved for the new member. Then, at each reproduction apparatus calibration, the density outputs for the key member are determined and the ratios of density outputs are applied to predict the corresponding density outputs of the other group members, as if they were being calibrated at the same time.

Abstract: A flexible, capacitive touch sensor, and a method of manufacturing a plurality of such touch sensors, are provided. The capacitive touch sensor comprises a thin, flexible, transparent, insulating substrate. A thin, flexible, transparent layer of resistive material is applied to one side of the substrate, and a thin, flexible, transparent, pressure-sensitive layer of adhesive material is applied to the substrate's other side. A releasable sheet may cover this adhesive layer. A plurality of thin, flexible electrodes, electrical leads and conductive areas are applied to the resistive layer. A thin, flexible, transparent layer of protective material protects the touch sensor's active touch area. Compounds may be added to this protective layer to enhance its conductivity and lubricity. A reel-to-reel process for manufacturing a plurality of such capacitive touch sensors also is described.

Abstract: A method for calibration of touchscreen display coordinates includes displaying a calibration target; sensing a calibration touch for the calibration target; obtaining a calibration touchpoint coordinate for the calibration touch; determining if the calibration touchpoint coordinate is valid; and if so, storing the calibration touchpoint coordinate in a touchpoint history database and using calibration touchpoint coordinates to define a calibration reference point for operation, otherwise generating a computed reference calibration point as an average of using a predetermined number of the calibration touchpoint coordinates in the touchpoint history database.

Abstract: A technique for supporting a user of a first device coupled to a second device of a support agent. A current screen image of the first device is sent to the second device. The second device displays the current screen image of the first device. The agent device determines the position of an input icon to be displayed on the current screen image, and the position is sent to the first device. The first device displays an input icon on the current screen image on the first device based on the position. The second device also determines how the user should operate the input icon on the first device. Corresponding operation information is transferred to the first device.

Abstract: Y coil Y1 is mounted on the attachment panel 24 so that its long sides Y1f and Y1g follow the front surface 24n, and is bent at a first edge 24a1 onto an edge surface 24a, and is further bent at a second edge 24a onto a rear surface 24b. Even if the pen moves to near an edge portion of the writing surface, the signal generated by long sides Y1f, Y1g will have a little influence from a signal generated from the short side Y1d. When the X coordinate calculated in S1306 is judged to be a coordinate in the X axis edge (S1308:YES), then an X axis edge flag is set in S1310 and a correction coefficient K that corresponds to the distance of the pen from the edge of the Y coil is extracted in S1312 by referring to a correction table. When the Y coils are scanned in S1314, if the X axis edge flag is judged to be set (S1316:YES), then in S1318, all of the values detected for the Y coils in S1314 are multiplied by the correction coefficient K.

Abstract: A capacitive sensor-based input device for coordinate data input includes an input unit that detects the variation of capacitances at a plurality of detection points, and a control unit that calculates detection outputs from the plurality of detection points to detect the peak position in the variation of capacitances to generate coordinate data. When the maximum value detected at any one of the detection points transitions relative to the previous and following values by less than a first threshold value, the coordinate data is cancelled. When it varies by more than the first threshold value but less than a second threshold value, a corrected value to generate the coordinate data is decreased, thereby suppressing an oscillation of a cursor on a screen while a finger rests on the input device.

Abstract: Method and system for selecting and accessing multimedia information/services located on a user workstation or on a server by touching finger items that are electronically illuminated over the surface of a hard-copy document or any other physical surface. The system includes: an opto-touch foil, placed over (or under) a portion of the document, used to highlight hyperlinked items over the surface of the physical document and to read coordinates of these hyperlinked items; and a user workstation for accessing the information/service associated with the hyperlinked items. Hyperlinked items are illuminated by the luminous signal for identifying and selecting hyperlinked items. When a user selects an item, the workstation receives a signal indicating the position of this selected item. The user workstation identifies, locates and accesses the information/service associated with the position of the selected item.

Abstract: A flat panel display comprises the following components. A display module has a lower glass substrate for fabricating thin film transistors, an upper glass substrate for fabricating a color filter, and a displaying molecule layer inserted between the lower glass substrate and the upper glass substrate. The lower glass substrate is connected electrically to a control circuit board via a flexible printed circuit board for driving the thin film transistors. And a backlight unit is fabricated beneath the display module and has a lightguide, a lamp disposed aside the lightguide to emit lights into the lightguide in the edgelight form, and a plurality of optical films disposed on the lightguide for scattering the lights emitted from the lightguide uniformly. The backlight unit comprises a sensor board disposed beneath the lightguide for receiving inputting signals from a signal stylus above the flat panel display.

Abstract: An interactive display system comprising a touch sensitive display surface for sensing pressure applied thereto and in response generating control signals indicating locations of the applied pressure, a personal computer for receiving the control signals and in response generating graph images, and an LCD panel in combination with an overhead projector for receiving and projecting the graphic images onto the touch sensitive display surface at the indicated locations. The LCD panel and overhead projector may be provided an an integral unit.

Abstract: A method and system for correcting alignment and linearity errors in devices using a finger or stylus input device with a display device interactively coupled to a digitizer is disclosed. Touching intersections in a calibration grid on the display device may be performed to create a linearity map. Subsequently, detected stylus input is mapped to a sector in the linearity map, and resultant screen coordinates are calculated using ratios within a reference rectangle corresponding to the detected stylus input and the mapped sector.

Abstract: A software tool acquires data on the position of touches relative to controls on a particular window or dialog box using touch screen controls. Subjects or users log on and the time the bring a dialog box into focus is time stamped. The coordinates of each touch is recorded along with a time stamp of the touches. The test sessions are saved in a data file identifying the subject. The software tool is used by a User Interface designer to design controls for a touch screen application. The acquired data is played back graphically to the designer where each touch appears as a dot or like indication over laid over a representation of the dialog box to which it relates. The acquired data may be displayed in various ways including composite, realtime or in a single dialog box or a single touch. Previous touch data may be kept or discarded giving the UI designer many options of how to analyze the dat to determine optimum size and placement of controls.

Abstract: A method and system for automated identification of pre-printed forms, based on the location of a mark made manually on the form. The method comprises the steps of identifying the existence and location of a mark made manually on a form and identifying the pre-printed form based on the location of the mark. The system comprises a digitizer and a pre-printed form comprising one or more pre-printed indicators unique to the form indicating where a user is to enter one or more identifying marks. The digitizer transmits image data to a computer processor, coupled to a database, including one or more digitized images of marks made on a form. The processor identifies the existence and location of one or more identifying marks made by the user, and identifies the form based on the location of said one or more marks.

Abstract: A method and system designed to augment, rather than replace, the work habits of its users. These work habits include practices such as drawing on Post-it™ notes using a symbolic language. The system observes and understands the language used on the Post-it notes and the system assigns meaning simultaneously to objects in both the physical and virtual worlds. Since the data is preserved in physical form, the physical documents serve as a back-up in the case of electronic system failure. With the present invention users can rollout a primary paper document such as a map, register it, and place secondary physical documents on the map. The secondary physical documents can be moved from one place to another on the primary document. Once an object is augmented, users can modify the meaning represented by it, ask questions about that representation, view it in virtual reality, or give directions to it, all with speech and gestures.

Abstract: A touch panel coordinate rotation device is provided in a touch panel device that includes a touch panel provided on the image plane of a display device and a coordinate detecting device for detecting the touched position on the touch panel and outputting the coordinates of the touched position. The touch panel coordinate rotation device can rotate the coordinates of a touch panel at a desired angle. The touch panel coordination rotation device includes a memory device for storing a rotation angle of an image on the display device based on the standard angle, and a coordinate calculating device for calculating the new coordinates by rotating the coordinate output from the coordinate detecting device at the rotation angle stored in the memory device, when the rotation angle stored in the memory device is not 0.

Abstract: A touch screen capable of isolating noise signals is mainly a touch screen installing at the front side of a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen or cathode ray tube (CRT) for eliminating electromagnetic and radio frequency interference received by the LCD and CRT. The touch screen includes an antenna like conductive wire which is able to receive same noise signals mixed in the touch control signals. The touch screen controller uses the noise signals received by the antenna wire to offset the noise signals in the controller for increasing accuracy of the touch screen.

Abstract: A coordinate input and detection device includes a touch panel, light emitting units, a reflective member, intensity distribution detection units, a coordinate detection unit, and filters. Each of light beams projected from the light emitting units travels and has a sector shape in a direction parallel to a surface of the touch panel. The light beams are reflected by the reflective member and received by the intensity distribution detection units. A coordinate detection unit detects a coordinate value of a position where the light beams are interrupted based on intensity distributions detected by the intensity distribution detection units. The filters are disposed in optical paths in directions perpendicular to directions in which the light beams travel, and have transmission rates varying with respect to positions within the filters.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for aligning more than two fragments of an image to assemble the image while providing high alignment quality between each pair of overlapping image fragments. Image registration operations are performed rapidly. The disclosed method and apparatus finds application in, for example, scanning, copying, and facsimile transmission of large format documents.

Abstract: Techniques for quantitatively assessing the visual quality of information displays are described. A group of flat panel displays are tested to produce quantitative visual test data to allow an assessment of the visual quality of each of the flat panel displays. In one aspect, eight key photometric indices of visual quality are produced. Additionally, composite indices composed to two or more individual photometric indices are provided.

Abstract: A resistive or capacitive position touchscreen includes a glass substrate having a uniform resistive coating and series resistive chains of overlapping discrete electrodes adjacent to the peripheral edges of the substrate. Gaps in an otherwise insulating linear discontinuity running parallel to each chain form resistive current paths across the touch area. There are at least two gaps for each electrode so that multiple current paths connect to each electrode. Each gap produces a local ripple in the voltage field which decays away with distance from the gap. Since the ripple decay length is determined by the distance between current paths, the magnitude of the ripple near the electrodes is reduced exponentially by a factor corresponding to the number of gaps per electrode.

Abstract: A method aims at identifying, starting from objects in a digital image, a virtual raster included in a coding pattern. The objects in the image at least partially reproduce marks on a base, each mark being associated with a respective point of intersection of raster lines belonging to the virtual raster. The method comprises the steps of matching sets of objects against a cell unit, which corresponds to a recurring known basic element of said raster; when a set corresponds with the cell unit, identifying the objects in the set as approved; and reconstructing the virtual raster on the basis of the mutual arrangement of the approved objects. A computer program, a storage medium and a device for position determination are also described.

Abstract: A coordinate input/detection device is provided with a coordinate input area. The coordinate input/detection device uses first and second light-emitting units to emit light to a plurality of retro reflectors provided around the coordinate input area. The plurality of retro reflectors reflect the light from the first light-emitting unit toward a first light-receiving unit provided at one of first and second positions, and the light from the second light-emitting unit toward a second light-receiving unit provided at the other position among the first and second positions, the first and second light-receiving units corresponding to the first and second positions respectively. A position recognition unit recognizes whether each of the first and second light-receiving units is installed at the first position or the second position, based on an output signal of each of the first and second light-receiving units.

Abstract: In place of a conventional n×m sense line/drive line matrix for keyboard key detection, discrimination between keyboard keys is carried out with one or more current divider or voltage divider circuits, with the result that the number of necessary IC pin connections may be reduced. The keyboard key switches are arranged into one or more current divider or voltage divider circuits. In a current divider embodiment, the key switches of each circuit are arranged in parallel with each other at respective points along a resistive switch line extending from Vcc to ground. When closed by key depression, the switches provide shortened paths from Vcc to ground, thus resulting in a current division effect. A voltage along the line is input to an A/D converter of a micro-controller which performs keyboard key discrimination.

Abstract: A touch panel comprises a substrate 11 allowing acoustic wave to be propagated and a transducer 13a, mounted to this substrate, for transmitting or receiving the acoustic wave. A chamfered portion 16 is formed in the end face or the corner portion of the substrate 11 to make the acoustic wave turn around and be propagated from the front surface to the rear surface through the end face of the substrate 11. The acoustic wave propagated through the chamfered portion is received by the transducer 13a placed on the rear surface of the substrate 11. The radius (R) of the chamfered portion 16 of the substrate is 0.5 mm or more. This touch panel may prevent from forming raised portions on the front surface of the propagation medium, so that the touch panel may be enhanced in applicability to thin LCD monitors, and simplified in structure.

Abstract: An apparatus that includes angle detection sections periodically detecting a point on a panel as angles. An angle storing section stores the angles detected during an immediately earlier Ucycle among angles periodically detected, and an angle choosing section chooses angles which are most adjacent to the angles stored among angles detected during the immediately earlier cycle when a number of angles detected during a present cycle is greater than a number of angles detected during the immediately earlier cycle. A coordinate arithmetic section detects during the immediately earlier cycle coordinates based on the angles chosen. In this apparatus, when the number of angles detected during the present cycle is one greater than the number of angles detected during the immediately earlier cycle for each angle detecting section, the coordinates inputted by an other pointing device can be detected through angles which have not been chosen.

Abstract: A multi-function switch unit having at least one operation button, a screen located at the rear of the operation button to display an image of function of the operation button. The image on the screen is visible through the operation button. An input device sets the transfer direction and transfer distance of the position of the image on the screen. An indication position adjusting device moves the image position on the screen according to the transfer direction and distance input by the input device such that the image transferred is better visible through the operation button. The multi-function switch unit may have a plurality of the operation buttons and can display a plurality of marks each indicating one of different directions such that the marks each are visible through different one of the operation buttons.