PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, CHARACTER INPUT SCREEN DISPLAY METHODS, AND PROGRAMS

• US 20110175820A1
• Filed: 09/16/2009
• Published: 07/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Toba, Hiroyuki
• Application Number:
  US13/122,269
• Publication Number:
  US 20110175820A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/169
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0236 using selection techniques to select from displayed items
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/70 methods for entering alphabetical characters, e.g. multi-tap or dictionary disambiguation methods for entering alphabetical characters per se G06F3/0237

Abstract

A portable telephone determines whether or not an entry that serves to select a particular character input mode has been accepted. If the portable telephone determines that the entry that serves to select the particular character input mode has been accepted, the portable telephone displays a list screen on which lists of particular types of characters are categorized and are indicated using tabs corresponding to the types at a part of a character input screen. Thereafter, if the portable telephone accepts an entry from the user that serves to select a tab, the portable telephone selects a tab corresponding to the entry from the list screen and displays a list screen of the particular type of character corresponding to the selected tab on a character input screen.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device comprising:

a plurality of input buttons that serve to input characters;

a display section that displays an editing screen that serves to edit a sentence using the characters that have been input;

a storage section that categorizes particular types of characters and stores them as categorized;

an input screen control section that causes said display section to display a particular mode selection key that serves to change to a particular character input mode in which said particular types of characters are input; and

a list display control section that reads said particular types of characters from said storage section and causes said display section to display a plurality of tabs caused to correspond to the particular types of characters that have been read and a type of character caused to correspond to a first tab that is any one of the plurality of tabs such that they do not entirely cover said editing screen if the particular mode selection key displayed on said display section is selected by a user,

wherein said list display control section changes a type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character caused to correspond to said first tab to a type of character caused to correspond to a second tab other than said first tab if said second tab other than said first tab of the plurality of tabs that said display section displays is selected by the user.

2. The portable electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a chart computation section that computes a display completion rate that is a ratio of the number of characters that have been displayed on said display section to the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab and that generates a chart that represents the display completion rate if the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab exceeds the number that can be displayed on said display section,

wherein said list display control section causes said display section to display said chart such that said chart does not entirely cover said editing screen.

3. The portable electronic device according to claim 1,

wherein said list display control section causes said display section to display a tab selection key that serves to select said tab and, if the tab selection key is selected, said list display control section changes the type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character that is currently displayed to a type of character caused to correspond to a tab selected by the tab selection key.

4. The portable electronic device according to claim 3,

wherein said storage section stores a correspondence of said tab selection key and a pre-designated input button from among said plurality of input buttons, wherein said list display control section recognizes that the tab selection key is selected if the input button caused to correspond to said tab selection key is pressed.

5. A character input screen display method, comprising:

an input screen control process that causes a display section that displays an editing screen that serves to edit a sentence using characters that are input through a plurality of input buttons that serve to input characters to display a particular mode selection key that changes to a particular character input mode in which particular types of characters are input; and

a list display control process that causes said display section to display a plurality of tabs caused to correspond to the particular types of characters and a type of character caused to correspond to a first tab that is any one of the plurality of tabs such that they do not entirely cover said editing screen if the particular mode selection key displayed on said display section is selected by a user,

wherein said list display control process changes a type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character caused to correspond to said first tab to a type of character caused to correspond to a second tab other than said first tab if said second tab other than said first tab of the plurality of tabs displayed by said display section is selected by the user.

6. The character input screen display method according to claim 5, further comprising:

a chart computation process that computes a display completion rate that is a ratio of the number of characters that have been displayed on said display section to the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab and that generates a chart that represents the display completion rate if the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab exceeds the number that can be displayed on said display section,

wherein said list display control process causes said display section to display said chart such that said chart does not entirely cover said editing screen.

7. The character input screen display method according to claim 5,

wherein said list display control process causes said display section to display a tab selection key that serves to select said tab and, if the tab selection key is selected, said list display control process changes the type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character that is currently displayed to a type of character caused to correspond to a tab selected by the tab selection key.

8. A program product that causes a portable electronic device that has a display section that displays an editing screen that serves to edit a sentence using characters that are input to execute the procedures comprising:

an input screen control procedure that causes said display section to display a particular mode selection key that serves to change to a particular character input mode in which particular types of characters are input; and

a list display control procedure that causes said display section to display a plurality of tabs caused to correspond to the particular types of characters and a type of character caused to correspond to a first tab that is any one of the plurality of tabs such that they do not entirely cover said editing screen if the particular mode selection key displayed on said display section is selected by a user,

wherein said list display control process changes a type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character caused to correspond to said first tab to a type of character caused to correspond to a second tab other than said first tab if said second tab other than said first tab of the plurality of tabs displayed by said display section is selected by the user.

9. The program product that causes said portable electronic device to execute the procedures according to claim 8, further comprising:

a chart computation procedure that computes a display completion rate that is a ratio of the number of characters that have been displayed on said display section to the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab and that generates a chart that represents the display completion rate if the number of characters whose type is caused to correspond to said selected tab exceeds the number that can be displayed on said display section,

wherein said list display control procedure causes said display section to display said chart such that said chart does not entirely cover said editing screen.

10. The program product according to claim 8,

wherein said list display control procedure causes said display section to display a tab selection key that serves to select said tab and, if the tab selection key is selected, to changes the type of character to be displayed on said display section from a type of character that is currently displayed to a type of character caused to correspond to a tab selected by the tab selection key.