Reduced keyboard and method for simultaneous ambiguous and unambiguous text input

• US 6,286,064 B1
• Filed: 06/24/1999
• Issued: 09/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Tegic Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Kushler, Clifford A., King, Martin T., Grover, Dale L., Grunbock, Cheryl A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): DU, THUAN N
• Application Number:
  US09/339,549
• Time in Patent Office: 803 Days
• Field of Search: 710/1, 710/67, 341/20, 341/22, 341/23, 341/25, 364/419
• US Class Current: 710/67
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0234 using switches operable in different directions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0237 using prediction or retrieval techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0238 Programmable keyboards key guide holders G06F3/0224

Abstract

A reduced keyboard disambiguating system. The keyboard has twelve keys, nine of them labeled with numerous letters and other symbols, and those nine plus one more are labeled each with one of the ten digits. Textual entry keystrokes are ambiguous. The user strikes a delimiting “Select” key at the end of each word, delimiting a keystroke sequence that could match any of many words with the same number of letters. The keystroke sequence is processed with a complete vocabulary, and words which match the sequence of keystrokes are presented to the user in order of decreasing frequency of use. In addition, stems of longer words whose initial letters match the sequence of keystrokes are also presented to the user in order of decreasing frequency of use. The first word in the presented list is automatically selected by the input of the first character in the next word. The letters are assigned to the keys in a non-sequential order which reduces chances of ambiguities. The “Select” key is pressed to select the desired word other than the first word, and spacing between words and punctuation is automatically computed. For words which are not in the vocabulary, a simultaneous unambiguous interpretation of each keystroke is performed to specify each letter of a desired word. The system simultaneously interprets all keystroke sequences as both ambiguous and unambiguous keystrokes. The user selects the desired interpretation. The system also presents to the user the number which is represented by the sequence of keystrokes for possible selection by the user.

Claims

1. A system for disambiguating ambiguous input sequences entered by a user and for the interpretation and display of unambiguous input sequences entered by the user, the system comprising:

(a) a user input device having a plurality of inputs, each of the plurality of inputs associated with a plurality of characters, an input sequence being generated each time an input is selected by manipulating the user input device, wherein the generated input sequence corresponds to the sequence of inputs that have been selected, and wherein the generated input sequence has a textual interpretation that is unambiguous and a textual interpretation that is ambiguous due to the plurality of characters associated with each input;

(b) a memory containing a plurality of objects, each of the plurality of objects associated with an input sequence;

(c) a display to depict system output to the user; and

(d) a processor coupled to the user input device, memory and display, the processor;

(i) processing each generated input sequence as an ambiguous selection of the characters associated with the input sequence to identify from the plurality of objects in memory at least one object associated with each generated input sequence;

(ii) simultaneously processing each generated input sequence as an unambiguous selection of a specific character associated to identify an unambiguous textual interpretation that is associated with the generated input sequence; and

(iii) generating an output signal causing the display to display at least one of the identified objects associated with the generated input sequence and to simultaneously display the identified unambiguous textual interpretation that is associated with the input sequence.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of inputs of the user input device are implemented as a plurality of keys displayed on a touchscreen, each of the plurality of keys including a plurality of characters.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein contacting the touchscreen directly where a character is displayed is simultaneously processed as an unambiguous selection of the character and as an ambiguous selection of any of the plurality of characters associated with the key.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein when the touchscreen is contacted, the character that is associated with the location of contact on the touchscreen is visually indicated by distinct formatting.

5. The system of claim 2 wherein a specific character is unambiguously selected by initially contacting the touchscreen on the key where the character is displayed and then performing a distinguishable movement to indicate the specific character.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the distinguishable movement specifies an added diacritic mark.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein the distinguishable movement specifies an alternate form of a character.

8. The system of claim 2 wherein a specific character is unambiguously selected by contacting a displayed key a number of times, wherein the number of times the displayed key is contacted corresponds to the position of the desired character on the key.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the character that is unambiguously selected is visually indicated by distinct formatting.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the display of the contacted key is modified to show the specific character that has been unambiguously selected.

11. The system of claim 8 wherein the characters on each key are displayed in order of their frequency of use in a particular language.

12. The system of claim 8 wherein a next specific character is unambiguously selected from the contacted key following a time interval that exceeds a predetermined period of time during which no key has been contacted.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the display of the contacted key is restored to its original appearance following expiration of said time interval.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein the length of the predetermined period of time is automatically adjusted as a function of a running average of time intervals between successive pairs of contacts on the same key, when said time intervals are less than the predetermined period of time and when the unambiguous textual interpretation of the input sequences containing said pairs of contacts is selected by the user for output.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of inputs of the user input device are implemented as a plurality of mechanical keys, each of the plurality of keys associated with a plurality of characters.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the mechanical keys are activated in a plurality of distinct ways to unambiguously select specific characters.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein a specific character is unambiguously selected by activating a given key a number of times and wherein the number of times the given key is activated corresponds to the position of the desired character on the key.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein an additional character is unambiguously selected by activating the given key a number of times and wherein the number of times the given key is activated is greater than the number of characters displayed on the key.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein the characters on each key are displayed in order of their frequency of use in a particular language.

20. The system of claim 17 wherein a next specific character is unambiguously selected from the given key following a time interval that exceeds a predetermined time interval during which no key has been contacted.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the length of the predetermined time interval is automatically adjusted as a function of a running average of time intervals between successive pairs of activations of the same key, when said time intervals are less than the predetermined time interval and when the unambiguous textual interpretation of the input sequences containing said pairs of activations is selected by the user for output.

22. The system of claim 1 wherein the unambiguous textual interpretation is displayed in a dedicated location on the display.

23. The disambiguating system of claim 1 wherein unknown words that do not correspond to any object in the memory are unambiguously input to the system, objects corresponding to said previously unknown words are automatically added provisionally to the memory so that said unknown words can be generated by selecting the corresponding sequence of inputs.

24. The disambiguating system of claim 23 wherein when an object has been provisionally added to the memory corresponding to a previously unknown word that has been unambiguously input, and wherein all occurrences of said word are deleted from the output, said object is automatically deleted from the memory.

25. The disambiguating system of claim 23 wherein when an object has been provisionally added to the memory corresponding to a previously unknown word that has been unambiguously input, and wherein the input sequence associated with said word is not generated prior to receipt of a signal indicating that the system is to be turned off, said object is automatically deleted from the memory.

26. The disambiguating system of claim 23 wherein the memory includes objects that are associated with input sequences corresponding to common spelling and keystroke errors.

27. A disambiguating system for disambiguating ambiguous input sequences entered by a user, the disambiguating system comprising:

(a) a user input device having a first and second plurality of inputs, each of the first plurality of inputs associated with a plurality of characters, wherein selection of one or more of the first plurality of inputs generates an input sequence, each of the second plurality of inputs being associated with unambiguous inputs, wherein selection of one or more of the second plurality of inputs generates signals that control system operation;

(b) a memory containing a plurality of objects, each of the plurality of objects associated with an input sequence;

(c) a display to depict system output to the user; and

(d) a programmable processor coupled to the user input device, memory and display, said processor being programmed for;

(i) identifying from the plurality of objects in the memory at least one object associated with each generated input sequence;

(ii) causing the display of a list of at least one identified object associated with each generated input sequence as a textual interpretation of the generated input sequence;

(iii) responding to an unambiguous signal generated by selection of one or more of the second plurality of inputs by selecting one object from the displayed list and entering the selected object into a text entry display location on the display; and

(iv) responding to an unambiguous signal generated by selection of one or more of the second plurality of inputs by moving an object from the text entry display location to the displayed list, with the input sequence associated with the object being used to establish the displayed list of at least one object associated with the input sequence.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein the unambiguous signal that causes the processor to move an object from the text entry display location to the displayed list is a signal that deletes the character immediately following the object in the text entry display location.

29. The system of claim 27 wherein each of the plurality of objects in the memory are further associated with a frequency of use, wherein the object associated with each input sequence that has the highest frequency of use is displayed as a first identified object, thereby becoming the default object for the associated input sequence, and wherein if a second identified object that is not the default object is associated with the same generated input sequence and has a frequency of use that exceeds a selected threshold wherein said threshold is a function of the frequency of use of the default object and of the average frequency of use of all objects in memory, the default object is identified as a high-ambiguity object.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein an indicator is given when an input sequence corresponding to a high-ambiguity object is generated and the high-ambiguity object associated with the generated input sequence is selected for entry into a text entry display location.

31. The system of claim 29, wherein when a high-ambiguity object is displayed by the output component, the high-ambiguity object is automatically indicated using distinctive visual formatting.

32. The system of claim 29, wherein the memory contains additional information for at least one high-ambiguity object from which the processor determines from the context of the high-ambiguity object in the text entry display location, one or more contexts in which the high-ambiguity object is automatically replaced with a next most frequent object associated with the same input sequence associated with the high-ambiguity object.