Patent Application
20140132555
The field of the invention is that of human-machine interfaces, known as “HMI”s, that require the validation of a critical action. In certain technical or industrial contexts, the implementation of systems can have serious consequences and requires the user to have full knowledge of the facts. Examples that may be cited include the aerospace and nuclear sectors.
In civil or military aircraft cockpits, the instrument panels have various means for interacting with the main systems of the aircraft, such as the on-board avionics, the engines, the weapon system etc.
When the action or the task is highly critical, these means for interacting must make it possible to avoid any unintentional control from the pilot or the crew. To this end, aircraft are equipped with covered switches called “guarded switches”. To perform the action, the user must first raise a protective mechanical cover to gain access to the control switch. The cover is equipped with a spring system which holds it in the safety position above the control switch if the user releases it.
Current development in human-machine interfaces consists in gradually replacing the mechanical or electromechanical control devices with controls provided by tactile interfaces arranged on visualization screens. The control switches are thus becoming virtual. This type of technical solution has many advantages. It is easier to implement and takes up a good deal less space than the old systems. It is much easier to reconfigure and able to evolve according to the needs of the aircraft manufacturer. It also enables access to new functions such as graphic animations.
Of course, the safety afforded by a virtual guarded switch controlled by a tactile surface must be at least identical to that of guarded switches with a mechanical cover. To solve this problem, several technical solutions have been proposed.
A first solution described in the French patent FR 2 911 409 entitled “Procédés et système assurant une commande sécurisée à partir d'un écran tactile” (Methods and system ensuring secure control from a tactile screen) presents a method for displaying a secure switch comprising a graphic representation of a guarded switch. Control of the switch is afforded by a first unlocking step and a second control step, the graphic representation being modified at each step. In a variant, the patent U.S. Pat. No. 7,788,604 entitled “Three state icons for operations” presents an icon having three states, a locked state, an unlocked state and a control state.
A second solution is described in the French patent FR 2 853 095 “Dispositif d'interface homme machine sécurisé pour écran tactile” (Secure human-machine interface device for tactile screen). This solution also describes a representation of a guarded switch controlled by a tactile surface. In this solution, the operator must perform a movement with a particular geometrical shape to unlock the guarded switch.
A third solution making it possible to validate an action of the user as not being accidental or due to external causes is described in the patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,801,682 entitled “Tactile designation device with high-resolution transparent capacitive surface” and consists in realizing two different tactile pressure detection modes, the first of capacitive type, the second using strain gauges, with the detection of an action by a first detection mode having to be confirmed by the second mode to validate the action.
A fourth solution consists in validating an action on the condition that it responds to a movement of predefined shape. In this category may be cited the patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,252,951 entitled “Graphical user interface with gesture recognition in a multi-application environment”, the patent application US 2010/0162182 entitled “Method and apparatus for unlocking electronic appliance” and the patent application EP 2009/062682 entitled “Method for application launch and system function invocation”. This last solution is generally dedicated to mobile telephony applications.
A fifth solution, which is a variant of the previous solutions, consists in graphically indicating to the user the gesture to carry out to unlock a particular function. In this category may be cited the patent U.S. Pat. No. 7,657,849 entitled “Unlocking a device by performing gestures on an unlock image” and the patent application US 2010/0248689 entitled “Unlock screen”, which describes a particular animation enabling passage from one graphic page to the next. Finally, the patent U.S. Pat. No. 7,593,000 describes a method enabling the storage in memory of a particular gesture for authentication. In the neighbouring field of motor vehicles, motion detection is also used to perform controls. One may in particular refer to the patent applications US 2011/0050589 entitled “Gesture-based information and command entry for motor vehicle” and WO 2011/083212 entitled “Control device for a motor vehicle”.
The method according to the invention also provides secure control from a tactile screen. In order to ensure both optimum security and a mode of operation that is easily understood by the user, it combines several principles, which are as follows:
More precisely, the subject of the invention is a display and activation method providing a secure control for an appliance implemented by an electronic system comprising at least means for generating graphic symbols, a visualization device and a tactile surface associated with said visualization device and arranged in such a way as to detect several simultaneous touches, characterized in that the display and activation method comprises:
Advantageously, the first symbol represents a control button in a first state or a rectilinear cursor.
Advantageously, the second symbol displayed in the second step represents a simple coloured geometrical shape or a control button in a second state or the outline of the gesture to carry out.
Advantageously, the gesture to carry out in the third step is a single long press or a rectilinear movement or a semi-circular movement.
Advantageously, the fourth step of validating the command is effective only after a predetermined time of simultaneous touches.
Advantageously, during the fourth step of validating the control, an indicator of the time elapsed is displayed, the length of the indicator corresponding to the predetermined time of simultaneous touches.
Advantageously, the fourth step of validating the command is effective only after three simultaneous touches.
The invention also relates to an electronic system for aircraft comprising at least means for generating graphic symbols, a visualization device and a tactile surface associated with said visualization device and arranged in such a way as to detect several simultaneous touches, characterized in that a secure control for an aeronautical appliance is activated by the display and activation method described above.
The invention will be better understood and other advantages will emerge on reading the following description, which is in no way limiting and makes reference to the appended drawings, among which:
The implementation of the display and activation method providing a secure control according to the invention requires means for generating graphic symbols, a visualization device and a tactile surface associated with the visualization device and arranged in such a way as to detect several simultaneous touches, also called “Multi-touch”. These technical means are easily available to those skilled in the art.
The implementation of the method involves the programming of a piece of software configured to perform the various steps of the method. It does not present any particular difficulties to those skilled in the art. As has been said, the display and activation method comprises five steps which are:
By way of example,
A first variant shown in
A second variant shown in
A third variant shown in
A fourth variant shown in
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/03013 | Nov 2012 | FR | national |
