CN1155897C - Computer system with user interface using rotary switches and method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A computer system having a user interface using a rotary switch, a push button switch, and a shell is disclosed. The rotary switch performs two functions. One is a screen scrolling function, and the other is a function of selecting an application program recorded in the shell. The pushbutton switch associated with the rotary switch selects the function of the rotary switch and enables the rotary switch to perform the selected function. The push button switch also executes and terminates the selected application. Therefore, a user interface including a rotary switch, a push button switch, a device driver and a shell program is provided, so that the user interface can conveniently perform screen scrolling and execute and terminate a selected application program.

Description

Computer system with user interface using rotary switches and method thereof

technical field

The present invention relates to a computer system. More particularly, the present invention relates to a computer system having a user interface using a rotary switch, in which screen scrolling and application programs can be performed by using the rotary switch, thereby making the user interface more convenient.

Background technique

Recently, computer systems have become information processing systems for personal and office use. A computer system generally includes: a central processing unit, volatile memory, nonvolatile memory, display monitor, keyboard, pointing input device, CD-ROM drive (CD-ROM drive), modem, hard disk storage device, and printer . In addition, there is a motherboard for electrically connecting the above devices to each other. This motherboard is a type of printed circuit board called a motherboard. The central processing unit is often referred to as a "microprocessor". With the advancement of semiconductor technology, the performance of microprocessors, semiconductor memory devices, etc. is rapidly increasing. Along with this advancement, the user interface has also been developed into various forms so that users can use it in a more convenient manner.

Now, as a user interface for executing computer system application programs and inputting command codes, GUI (Graphical User Interface) is becoming mainstream. For example, in the windows (R) operating system developed by Microsoft (R) Corporation, an application program can be executed by selecting a relevant icon on the desktop with a keyboard and a pointing input device such as a mouse. Alternatively, the application may be executed using a file manager or window explorer. In a GUI environment, it is always necessary to position the input device. Common pointing input devices used in computer systems include mice or touch pads. A pointing input device used in a desktop computer is connected to the main body of the computer in a wired or wireless manner. In the case of a portable computer, the positioning device is integrally connected to the computer body. Earlier pointing input devices used in portable computers were trackballs, but now touchpads have become mainstream.

Also, one of the operations that is often used when using a computer is screen scrolling. If the screen scrolling function is performed, generally a keyboard or a pointing device can be used. In the method of using the keyboard, the screen is scrolled by moving the cursor to a desired position using the page-up and page-down keys and the direction arrow keys. In the method using the pointing device, one of the many functions of the pointing device, the dragging function, is used. That is, the scroll bar is dragged by the pointing device, thereby performing screen scrolling. However, in screen scrolling using a pointing device, dragging must be performed many times, resulting in inconvenience to the user. In addition, in the case of a portable computer, if a pointing device is used to scroll the screen, it will be more inconvenient.

Contents of the invention

The present invention aims to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a computer system having a user interface using a rotary switch, in which screen scrolling and application programs can be performed by using the rotary switch, and thus the user interface is more convenient.

In order to achieve the above object, the computer system according to the present invention includes: a first switch device generating a plurality of switch signals according to the direction of rotation; And input the data to the controller in the computer system.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the computer system further comprises: a second switch device for selecting a mode from a first mode and a second mode, the first mode is a kind of first switch device used as a screen scroll switch mode, the second mode is a mode in which the first switch device selects one operation from a plurality of operations; and the controller generates screen scrolling data according to the switch signal from the first rotary switch in the first mode and inputs the data to In the computer system, and according to the switch signal from the first rotary switch in the second mode, data for selecting one function from the plurality of functions is generated, and the data is input into the computer system.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first switch device is a rotary switch for outputting two pulse signals with mutually different phase differences according to clockwise rotation or counterclockwise rotation; the second switch device is a push button switch and Connect to the center of the rotary switch.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the computer system is a portable computer system and the rotary switch is mounted in the main body of the system.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for controlling a computer system having a rotary switch for scrolling a screen according to the present invention includes the steps of: judging whether there is an input signal from the rotary switch; judging the rotation direction of the rotary switch; and Data for screen scrolling is generated according to the rotation direction of the rotary switch.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the method for controlling a computer system according to the invention comprises the step of: preparing a selector switch for selecting a mode from a first mode and a second mode, the first mode being A mode in which the rotary switch is used as a screen scroll switch, and a second mode is a mode in which the rotary switch selects one function from a plurality of functions; the rotary switch is set in the first mode or the second mode according to the input from the selection switch A function of: generating data for screen scrolling according to the rotation direction of the rotary switch in a first mode; and generating data for selecting one operation from a plurality of operations according to the rotation direction of the rotary switch in a second mode.

In the present invention, the user can scroll the screen and possibly select a desired one from a plurality of operations.

Description of drawings

The above-mentioned purpose and other advantages of the present invention can be more clearly understood by referring to the accompanying drawings and the detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present invention, wherein the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a portable computer in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of key parts of the portable computer of Figure 1:

Figure 3 illustrates the use of the portable computer of Figure 1;

FIG. 4 shows the hardware and software layers related to the rotary switch of the portable computer of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the microcontroller of FIG. 4 .

Detailed ways

The present invention is explained below with reference to the drawings.

A new computer system according to the present invention includes: a rotary switch; a push button switch for selecting a function of the rotary switch; and a shell program related to the rotary switch. The user can scroll through the screen by using the rotary switch, and can select the program recorded in the shell. Pushbutton switches are used to select one of the two functions of the rotary switch and can also be used to execute the selected program.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portable computer in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 , a portable computer 100 according to the present invention generally includes: an LCD screen (liquid crystal display) 110 ; and a system main body 120 hinged to the LCD screen 110 . The system main body 120 includes: a keyboard 130 , a touchpad 140 , two pushbutton switches 150 and 155 associated with the touchpad 140 , a rotary switch 160 (of the present invention), and another pushbutton switch 170 associated with the rotary switch 160 . The portable computer 100 also includes a device driver and a shell program related to the rotary switch 160 . Device drivers and shell programs will be described later.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of key parts of the portable computer of FIG. 1 . Referring to FIG. 2 , a rotary switch 160 is disposed under the touchpad 140 and between two button switches 150 and 155 related to the touchpad 140 . In the center of the rotary switch 160, a push button switch 170 related to the rotary switch 160 is provided. In this embodiment of the invention, the rotary switch 160 is an infinite loop rotary switch manufactured by Alps(R) Corporation called "Dial" (model: ECl2El2244). Such a rotary switch R-SW generally has two signal input terminals that generate different pulse signals according to the clockwise or counterclockwise rotation direction of the rotary switch. The rotary switch has two functions. One of them is a screen scrolling function (hereinafter referred to as "first mode"), and the other function is a function of selecting an application program recorded in the shell program (hereinafter referred to as "second mode"). The push button switch 170 associated with the rotary switch 160 selects one of the two modes so that the rotary switch 160 can perform one of the two functions. Also, when an application program is selected by the rotary switch 160, the button switch 170 executes the selected program or terminates the operation. The mode is converted by double-clicking the button switch 170, and the selected program is executed by clicking the button switch 170 in the second mode.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of the portable computer of FIG. 1 . Referring to FIG. 3 , a user can select one of two functions of the rotary switch 160 by using a button switch 170 related to the rotary switch 160 . When the rotary switch 160 performs the screen scrolling function, the user can scroll the screen by rotating the rotary switch 160 clockwise or counterclockwise. On the other hand, when the rotary switch 160 performs another function, the user can select one of the application programs recorded in the shell program by using the rotary switch 160 . In addition, the user can execute or terminate a selected application program using the push button switch 170 . As shown in the figure, the user's hand 200 does not have to move substantially to perform these functions.

The key components of the rotary switch and their operation will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 . FIG. 4 shows the hardware and software layers related to the rotary switch of the portable computer of FIG. 1 . FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the operation of the microcontroller of FIG. 4 .

Referring to FIG. 4 , the portable computer according to the present invention roughly includes: a hardware layer 300 and a software layer 400 . The hardware layer 300 includes a microcontroller 310 of the present invention. The microcontroller 310 includes: a touch pad 140 , two push button switches 150 and 155 associated with the touch pad 140 , a rotary switch 160 , and another push button switch 170 associated with the rotary switch 160 . The software layer 400 includes: a device driver 410 , a shell 420 , and a plurality of application programs 430 .

The microcontroller 310 receives input signals from the touchpad 140 , from the two pushbutton switches 150 and 155 associated with the touchpad 140 , from the rotary switch 160 , and from the pushbutton switch 170 associated with the rotary switch 160 . In response to these input signals, microcontroller 310 generates various data to input them to device driver 410 . Upon receiving input signals from the touch panel 140 and the two push button switches 150 and 155, the microcontroller 310 processes in the same manner as in general processing. Although not shown in the figure, the microcontroller 310 also processes input signals from the keyboard, and in this case, the function of the microcontroller 310 is the same as that of a general keyboard controller. The processing of input signals from pointing input devices and keyboards of portable computers is known to those of ordinary skill in the art. However, when an input from the push button switch 170 of the rotary switch 160 is received, a special keyboard scan code is generated according to the type of the input signal, and is input to the device driver 410 . Special keyboard scan codes are combinations of keyboard scan codes that are not currently assigned to the system. Those of ordinary skill in the art can easily implement.

The operation of microcontroller 310 will now be described with reference to FIG. 5 . This figure shows the routine executed by the microcontroller 310 for the processing of inputs from the rotary switch 160 and (in relation to the former) the push button switch 170 . Referring to FIG. 5a, the microcontroller 310 starts to control from step S100. In step S200, it is judged whether there is an input from the rotary switch 160 or from the relevant button switch 170. If there is an input, the system proceeds to step S300 to judge whether the input is from the rotary switch 160 or from the relevant button switch 170 . If an input from the push button switch 170 is input, the system proceeds to step S400 to execute a processing procedure regarding the input of the push button switch 170 . On the other hand, if the input is from the rotary switch 160, the system proceeds to step S500 to execute a processing procedure regarding the input of the rotary switch 160.

FIG. 5 b is a flow chart showing a subroutine for processing the input of the push button switch 170 . Referring to this figure, at step S410, the microcontroller 310 starts a subroutine for processing the input of the button switch 170. In step S420, it is determined whether the input is related to mode switching. That is, as described above, one of the two functions of the rotary switch 160 can be selected by using the push button switch 170 . That is, it is judged whether or not the input of the button switch 170 is related to a selection function. For example, the mode can be switched by double-tapping the button switch 170 .

If the input is for switching modes, the system proceeds to step S430 for mode switching. That is, if the mode at the moment of input is the first mode, the mode is switched to the second mode. On the other hand, if the mode is the second mode, then the mode transitions to the first mode. As described above, in the first mode, the screen scrolling function is performed, and in the second mode, an application program is selected and executed. On the other hand, if the input is not for switching modes, the system proceeds to step S440 to determine the current mode. Only when the current mode is the second mode, the system proceeds to step S450 to generate a keyboard scan code related to the input of the button switch. Accordingly, the key scan code associated with the input from the button switch 170 is input to the device driver 410 . Then, in step S460, the processing of the input of the button switch 170 is completed.

FIG. 5c is a flow chart showing a subroutine for the processing of the rotary switch 160 input. Referring to FIG. 5c, at step S510, the microcontroller 310 starts a subroutine for processing the input of the rotary switch 160. Referring to FIG. In step S515, the current mode is judged. If the current mode is the first mode, the system proceeds to step S520 to determine the direction of rotation. Depending on the direction of rotation, an associated keyboard scan code for performing up/down scrolling is generated in step S525 or step S530. On the other hand, if the current mode is the second mode, the system proceeds to step S540 to determine the direction of rotation. According to the direction of rotation, in step S545 or step S555, a relevant keyboard scan code related to the direction of rotation is generated. Input the keyboard scan code generated in the above steps into the device driver 410 . Then, in step S560, the processing of the input of the rotary switch 160 is completed.

Referring to FIG. 4 , the keyboard scan code generated by the microcontroller 310 processing the input is input to the device driver 410 . In the first mode, keypad scan code data is entered into an associated application 430 for screen scrolling. In the second mode, the input keyboard scan code data is entered into the shell program 420 . Shell 420 may have menus that can be selected by rotary switch 160 . If the button switch 170 is input to execute the selected application, the shell 420 executes the application selected by the rotary switch 160 .

As described above, the rotary switch, the push button switch, the device driver and the shell program constitute an improved user interface for screen scrolling and for executing and terminating application programs.

In the above description, the present invention is described according to specific embodiments and drawings, but those skilled in the art should understand that various changes and modifications can be added without departing from the spirit and spirit of the present invention defined in the appended claims. scope.

According to the present invention as described above, the user can perform (frequently performed) scrolling up/down of the screen using the rotary switch. In addition, a plurality of application programs recorded in the shell can be easily executed by utilizing the rotary switch.

Claims (7)

1. A computer system comprising: a first switching device for generating a plurality of switching signals depending on the direction of rotation; and A controller connected to said first switching device for generating screen scrolling data based on a switching signal from said first switching device and inputting the data into said computer system. 2. The computer system of claim 1, further comprising: A second switch for selecting a mode from a first mode in which the first switch device is used as a screen scroll switch and a second mode in which the first switch device selects from a plurality of select a mode of operation in the operation; and In the first mode, the controller generates picture scrolling data according to the switching signal from the first rotary switch device, and inputs the data into the computer system, and in the second mode, the controller generates the scrolling data according to the switching signal from the first rotary switch device. The switching signal of the first rotary switch means generates data for selecting an operation from a plurality of operations, and the data is input to the computer system. 3. The computer system according to claim 2, wherein the first switching device is a rotary switch for generating two pulse signals with different phase differences according to clockwise rotation and counterclockwise rotation. 4. The computer system according to claim 3, wherein said second switch means is a push button switch disposed centrally on said rotary switch. 5. The computer system according to claim 4, wherein the computer system is a portable computer system, and the rotary switch is installed in a main body of the computer system. 6. A method for controlling a computer system having a rotary switch for scrolling, comprising the steps of: judging whether there is an input from the rotary switch; determining the direction of rotation of the rotary switch; and Data for screen scrolling is generated according to the rotation direction of the rotary switch. 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of: A selection switch is prepared for selecting a mode from a first mode in which the rotary switch is used as a screen scroll switch and a second mode in which the rotary switch selects from a plurality of operations a mode of operation; setting the function of the rotary switch to a first mode or a second mode based on input from the selector switch; generating data for screen scrolling according to the rotation direction of the rotary switch in the first mode; and Data for selecting one of a plurality of operations is generated in accordance with a rotational direction of the rotary switch in a second mode.

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