Phonetic-based text input method

• US 20050182616A1
• Filed: 02/13/2004
• Published: 08/18/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Kotipalli, Krishna V.
• Granted Patent: US 8,200,475 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/126 Character encoding

Abstract

A method for transliterating languages in a computer system is disclosed. The method includes using a phonetic mapping engine to map languages to phonetic strings and vice versa. A user unfamiliar with a keyboard layout for a particular language may type phonetic strings using a known keyboard layout of a language known to the user. The typed input is captured by a keyboard hook, and based on a predefined phonetic mapping scheme, can be converted to the desired language.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for inputting languages into a computing device comprising:

receiving phonetic input of a first alphabet;

hooking the phonetic input;

converting the phonetic input to a language that uses a second alphabet, said converting based on a mapping scheme; and

passing the converted phonetic input to an active application executing on the computing device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the hooking step comprises a keyboard hook trapping the input.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the hooking step occurs at the system-wide level.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein an active accessibility API is used to keep track of the active application.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the phonetic input to the application is provided by a keyboard layout that is different from the language to which the phonetic input is converted.

6. A computer implemented method for transliterating languages in a computing device comprising:

receiving a text string in a first language of a first alphabet;

converting the text string to a phonetic string in a second alphabet, based on a first predefined phonetic mapping scheme; and

converting the phonetic string into a second language of a third alphabet, based on a second predefined phonetic mapping scheme.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

displaying a system-level menu bar with menu items, the menu items including an option to transliterate the text string;

wherein the converting steps are initiated by selecting the transliterate option.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the first language is a western language and the second language is an Indic language.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein the first language is an Indic language and the second language is another Indic language.

10. The method of claim 6 further comprising displaying the converted phonetic string on an output device.

11. A computer readable medium on which is stored computer executable instructions that cause a computer to perform a method for inputting languages into a computing device comprising:

receiving phonetic input of a first alphabet;

hooking the phonetic input;

converting the phonetic input to a language that uses a second alphabet, said converting based on a mapping scheme; and

passing the converted phonetic input to an active application executing on the computing device.

12. The computer readable medium of claim 11 wherein the hooking step comprises a keyboard hook trapping the input.

13. The computer readable medium of claim 11 wherein the hooking step occurs at the system-wide level.

14. The computer readable medium of claim 13 wherein an active accessibility API keeps track of the active application.

15. The computer readable medium of claim 11 wherein the converted phonetic input to the application is provided by a keyboard layout that is different from the language to which the phonetic input is converted.

16. A computer readable medium on which is stored computer executable instructions that cause a computer to perform a method for transliterating languages in a computing device comprising:

receiving a text string in a first language of a first alphabet;

converting the text string to a phonetic string in a second alphabet, based on a first predefined phonetic mapping scheme; and

converting the phonetic string into a second language of a third alphabet, based on a second predefined phonetic mapping scheme.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16 further comprising:

displaying a system-level menu bar with menu items, the menu items including an option to transliterate the text string;

wherein the converting steps are initiated by selecting the transliterate option.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the first language is a western language and the second language is an Indic language.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the first language is an Indic language and the second language is another Indic language.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 16 further comprising displaying the converted phonetic string on an output device.

21. A computer readable medium storing computer executable instructions that cause a computer to perform a method for inputting languages into a computing device, said method comprising:

receiving phonetic input of a first alphabet, said phonetic input intended by a user as input for an active application executing on the computing device;

intercepting the phonetic input by an intermediate application prior to receipt by the active application executing on the computing device;

converting the phonetic input by the intermediate application to a language that uses a second alphabet, said converting based on a mapping scheme; and

passing the converted phonetic input to the active application executing on the computing device.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein said intercepting comprises, at a system level, a keyboard hook trapping the input of a first alphabet.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein an active accessibility API keeps track of the active application.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein the converted phonetic input to the application can alternatively be provided by a keyboard layout that is different from a keyboard layout associated with the language in which the phonetic input is received.