Word spelling and definition educational device

• US 5,203,705 A
• Filed: 11/29/1989
• Issued: 04/20/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. (VTech Holdings Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Franklin Electronic Publishers Incorporated (Saunders Acquisition Corp.)
• Inventors: Hardy, George P., Winsky, Gregory J., McWherter, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Apley, Richard J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H.
• Application Number:
  US07/443,114
• Time in Patent Office: 1,238 Days
• Field of Search: 434/167, 434/169, 364/419
• US Class Current: 434/169
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/0421 Electric word or number games
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/0283 for data storage and retrieval
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/232 Orthographic correction, e.g. spell checking or vowelisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/247 Thesauruses; Synonyms
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/04 characterised by modifying the teaching programme in response to a wrong answer, e.g. repeating the question, supplying a further explanation

Abstract

An electronic spelling correcting machine compares input term against a list of terms in memory and validates spelling and provides a set of terms which may correspond to the input term if the input term is incorrect. The validated term or suggested term is provided with a locating indicia that permits the user to go to the page in a book where definition of the meaning of the word may be found. Various word games are incorporated. A user determined list may be substituted for the main list of terms in order to enable the user to practice word games and thus learn the words based on a selected list of terms of significance to the user. For purposes of game playing, the words incorrectly used from said user list are biased in such a fashion that they are picked in a quasi-random fashion so that the words played incorrectly are selected with greater frequency than the words played correctly.

Claims

1. An electronic language skills teaching aid machine comprising:

user list memory means,

entry means to permit a user to enter user selected terms into said user list memory means to provide a user determined list of terms,

at least one predetermined user controlled function means for operating on terms selected from said user list of terms,

selection means to select one of said terms from said user list of terms for use with said user controlled function means,

error memory means to record user error for each of said terms in said user list when selected by said selection means and processed by said user controlled function means, and

bias means to bias said selection means as a function of the frequency with which terms are incorrectly processed by the user controlled function as indicated by said error memory means.

2. The machine of claim 1 wherein:

said user list includes a sub-list of terms for which user error is recorded by said error memory means,

said bias means being positively correlated to the number of terms on said sub-list to bias selection toward said sub-list as contrasted with the entire user list.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from said user list.

4. The machine of claim 1 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from said user list.

5. A system to aid in the teaching of language skills comprising:

an electronic spelling corrector means having a main list of terms in memory to compare an entered term against said list in memory and to provide an indication that the entered term is a validly spelled term and, if the entered term is not a validly spelled term, to provide a set of terms from said main list which may correspond to the entered term, and user list memory means,

entry means to permit a user to enter user selected terms into said user list memory means to provide a user determined list of terms,

at least one predetermined user controlled function means for operating on terms selected from said main list of terms or said user list of terms,

user controlled pre-selection means to permit the user to select either said main list of terms or said user list of terms for use with said user controlled function means, and

selection means to select one of said terms in the one of said list of terms selected by said pre-selection means for use with said user-controlled function means.

6. The machine of claim 5 wherein said entry means comprises:

enter means actuated by the user to provide an indication that a user selected term is to be entered into said user list,

comparison means to compare said user selected term with said set of terms in said main list in memory to provide an indication of whether said user selected term corresponds to a term in said main list, and

user actuated confirmation means to confirm that a user selected term that is not in said main list is to be placed in said user list.

7. The machine of claim 6 further comprising:

error memory means to record user error for each of said terms in said user list when selected by said selection means and processed by said user controlled function means, and

bias means to bias said selection means as a function of the frequency with which terms are incorrectly processed by the user controlled function as indicated by said error memory means.

8. The machine of claim 7 wherein:

said user list includes a sub-list of terms for which user error is recorded by said error memory means,

said bias means being positively correlated to the number of terms on said sub-list to bias selection toward said sub-list as contrasted with the entire user list.

9. The machine of claim 8 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from the one of said list of terms selected by said pre-selection means.

10. The machine of claim 7 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from the one of said list of terms selected by said pre-selection means.

11. The machine of claim 10 further comprising:

a locating indicia associated with each of said terms in said main list, said locating indicia indicating location in a companion book where a definition or meaning of the term may be found.

12. The machine of claim 7 further comprising:

a locating indicia associated with each of said terms in said main list, said locating indicia indicating location in a companion book where a definition or meaning of the term may be found.

13. The machine of claim 6 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from the one of said list of terms selected by said pre-selection means.

14. The machine of claim 6 further comprising:

a locating indicia associated with each of said terms in said main list, said locating indicia indicating location in a companion book where a definition or meaning of the term may be found.

15. The machine of claim 5 further comprising:

error memory means to record user error for each of said terms in said user list when selected by said selection means and processed by said user controlled function means, and

bias means to bias said selection means as a function of the frequency with which terms are incorrectly processed by the user controlled function as indicated by said error memory means.

16. The machine of claim 15 wherein:

said user list includes a sub-list of terms for which user error is recorded by said error memory means,

said bias means being positively correlated to the number of terms on said sub-list to bias selection toward said sub-list as contrasted with the entire user list.

17. The machine of claim 5 wherein said user controlled function means is a game means in said machine to provide the user with at least one predetermined word game employing terms from the one of said list of terms selected by said preselection means.

18. The machine of claim 5 further comprising:

a locating indicia associated with each of said terms in said main list, said locating indicia indicating location in a companion book where a definition or meaning of the term may be found.