Telephone

• US 20060285678A1
• Filed: 09/05/2002
• Published: 12/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Tetsu Ota
• Original Assignee: Tetsu Ota
• Inventors: Ota, Tetsu
• Application Number:
  US10/488,532
• Publication Number:
  US 20060285678A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/433.10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0233 Character input methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/233 including a pointing device, e.g. roller key, track ball, rocker switch or joystick constructional details of pointing devices per se G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27475 using interactive graphical means or pictorial representations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2748 by matching character strings
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/60 logging of communication history, e.g. outgoing or incoming calls, missed calls, messages or URLs
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/70 methods for entering alphabetical characters, e.g. multi-tap or dictionary disambiguation

Abstract

The present invention improves methods for character input and manipulation input into telephones for facilitating input operations in telephones requiring many inputs, such as mobile telephones. In one embodiment, motion detecting apparatus for detecting the motion moving the telephone is equipped, and scrolls the screen according to the kind of the motion. In one embodiment, a finger motion detecting means for detecting user'"'"'s finger motion non-contactingly is equipped, and manipulation is instructed according to the kind of the motion.

Claims

1. A telephone having a display and buttons, characterized by:

the telephone is capable of characters being inputted using the buttons,

a plurality of times of pressing of one button is done for inputting a character,

a plurality of characters is assigned to ones of buttons for inputting characters,

the input from said buttons for inputting characters is determined among the plurality of candidates including said plurality of characters according to the time period between the first pressing and the next second pressing, and

after the first pressing, said plurality of characters that are candidates for the input upon the second pressing is displayed on the display, wherein a candidate that will be inputted if the second pressing was done at that point of time is made visually distinguishable from other candidates.

5. A telephone according to claim 1, wherein said candidate that will be inputted if the second pressing was done at that point of time is made visually distinguishable from other candidates by expanding and shrinking an indicator which appears on the telephone.

14. A telephone according to claim 1, wherein upon determining the input character, the input character is determined among the plurality of characters according to the time period between the first pressing and the next second pressing and the time period between the second pressing and the next third pressing.

15. A telephone according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of candidates includes a series of characters.

16. A telephone according to claim 1, wherein said displaying of said plurality of characters is done in an arrangement in the display that corresponds to arrangement of the corresponding buttons.

17. A telephone according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on character-context evaluation.

18. A telephone according to claim 15, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on word-context evaluation.

19. A telephone according to claim 15, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on sentence-context evaluation.

2. A telephone having a display and buttons, characterized by:

the telephone is capable of characters being inputted using the buttons,

buttons for inputting characters are enabled to sense pressing pressure gradually at least in three levels upon the pressing,

a plurality of characters is assigned to ones of the buttons for inputting characters, and

the input from said buttons for inputting characters is determined among the plurality of candidates including said plurality of characters according to the pressing pressure during user'"'"'s pressing manipulation.

20. A telephone according to claim 2, wherein said plurality of candidates includes a series of characters.

21. A telephone according to claim 2, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on character-context evaluation.

3. A telephone having a display and buttons, characterized by:

the telephone is capable of characters being inputted using the buttons,

a plurality of characters is assigned to ones of buttons for inputting characters, and

the input from said buttons for inputting characters is determined among the plurality of candidates including said plurality of characters according to the time period from the pressing of the button until the release of the button.

4. A telephone according to claim 3, wherein

after said pressing of the button, all of the candidates are displayed on the display, and

a candidate that will be inputted if the button is released in that point of time is made visibly distinguishable from other candidates.

22. A telephone according to claim 3, wherein said plurality of candidates includes a series of characters.

23. A telephone according to claim 3, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on character-context evaluation.

24. A telephone according to claim 4, wherein said displaying of the candidates is done in an arrangement in the display that corresponds to arrangement of the corresponding buttons.

25. A telephone according to claim 22, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on word-context evaluation.

26. A telephone according to claim 22, wherein said plurality of candidates is selected based on sentence-context evaluation.

6-13. -13. (canceled)