US 11,681,406 B2
Touch panel device, depressing force calculation method, and storage medium storing depressing force calculation program
Kentaro Mori, Tokyo (JP); Yuichi Sasaki, Tokyo (JP); Akihito Yamamoto, Tokyo (JP); and Sohei Osawa, Tokyo (JP)
Assigned to MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION, Tokyo (JP)
Filed by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Tokyo (JP)
Filed on Feb. 10, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/668,677.
Application 17/668,677 is a continuation of application No. PCT/JP2019/034696, filed on Sep. 4, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0164069 A1, May 26, 2022
Int. Cl. G06F 3/044 (2006.01); G06F 3/041 (2006.01); G02F 1/1333 (2006.01)
CPC G06F 3/0447 (2019.05) [G06F 3/0416 (2013.01); G02F 1/13338 (2013.01)] 5 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A touch panel device comprising:
a touch panel having an operation surface on which a touch operation is performed;
an elastic member that supports the touch panel;
a plurality of depressing force sensors arranged at installation positions outside the elastic member and outputting sensor signals corresponding to magnitude of depressing force and a position on the operation surface to which the depressing force is applied, wherein the installation positions are positions where depression of the touch panel occurs due to the application of the depressing force or where upward warps of the touch panel occur due to the application of the depressing force, depending on the magnitude of the depressing force and the position on the operation surface to which the depressing force is applied; and
processing circuitry
to obtain touch coordinates indicating a position of the touch operation;
to obtain a plurality of detection values corresponding to the sensor signals when the depressing force is applied to the operation surface; and
to load a plurality of predetermined depressing force calculation modes from a storage storing a plurality of regions on the operation surface and the plurality of predetermined depressing force calculation modes corresponding to the plurality of regions, to select a depressing force calculation mode for a region corresponding to the touch coordinates from the plurality of depressing force calculation modes, and to calculate the depressing force by using the selected depressing force calculation mode and the plurality of detection values.