Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Katsuharu Nagai

Hideyuki Hiro

Yoshikazu Takemoto

An electronic appliance includes a first casing having an input portion, a second casing having a screen display portion on one face thereof, a coupling, and a controller portion for controlling screen display on the screen display portion. The first and second casings are coupled together such that the electronic appliance can be moved between a first state, in which the second casing is unfolded relative to the first casing with the screen display portion pointing in the direction of the input portion, and a second state, in which the second casing is folded over the first casing with the face of the second casing opposite to the screen display portion facing the face of the first casing on which the input portion is provided. When the appliance changes between the first and second states, the controller portion rotates the screen display by 90&#xb0; between the first and second states.

Electronic appliance

A handwriting input device, despite having a simple structure, achieves correct acquisition of handwritten information. This input device has a pen stem housed inside a pen body formed in the shape of a pen, with the tip of the pen stem left sticking out of an opening formed at one end. This input device further has a pen stem holder having a hemispherical projection formed in its middle portion, an omnidirectional pressure sensor having an actuator and an operation shaft formed integrally, a data processor for processing electric signals outputted from the sensor, and a connector for connecting the tail-end cap portion of the pen stem holder to the operation shaft of the sensor. Thus, this input device detects the force applied to the tip of the pen stem by sensing pressure; in addition, it also detects the up/down movement of the pen stem by sensing pressure.

Growing community of inventors

Nara, Japan

Katsuharu Nagai