Keyboard arrangement

• US 7,938,589 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2006
• Issued: 05/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: Griffin, Jason T.
• Primary Examiner(s): COLILLA, DANIEL JAMES
• Application Number:
  US11/428,063
• Publication Number:
  US 20070166091A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,775 Days
• Field of Search: 400/487
• US Class Current: 400/487
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1664 Arrangements for ergonomically adjusting the disposition of keys of the integrated keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0213 Arrangements providing an integrated pointing device in a keyboard, e.g. trackball, mini-joystick for pointing devices integrated in a laptop computer G06F1/169; joysticks G05G9/047; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0219 Special purpose keyboards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0237 using prediction or retrieval techniques
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/23 Construction or mounting of dials or of equivalent devices; Means for facilitating the use thereof by improving visibility H04M1/22
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27463 Predictive input, predictive dialling by comparing the dialled sequence with the content of a telephone directory
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/70 methods for entering alphabetical characters, e.g. multi-tap or dictionary disambiguation

Abstract

A handheld mobile communication device having a physical keyboard with a first set of keys having indicia associated with the letters A-Z arranged in a standard alphabetic keyboard arrangement and a second set of keys having indica for the numerals 0-9. The numerals are arranged in a numeric phone key arrangement which is at least partially overlaid on the standard alphabetic keyboard arrangement. The second set of keys is differentiated from the keys of the first set using color.

Claims

1. A handheld mobile communication device with a physical keyboard, said device comprising:

a housing with a plurality of keys located at a front surface of the housing;

said plurality of keys comprising a first subset of at least twelve keys having indicia of letters A to Z, said letters being arranged in a standard alphabetic keyboard arrangement, and a second subset of keys having indicia of numerals 0 to 9, said numerals being arranged in a numeric phone key arrangement that is at least partially overlaid on said standard alphabetic keyboard arrangement; and

said second subset of keys are differentiated, based on color, from keys of said first subset of keys that are not overlaid by said second subset of keys

wherein said physical keyboard comprises a total of twenty keys, with the keys being arranged in four rows and five columns;

wherein one of a QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY, and DVORAK array of letters is arranged in three of the four rows and said second subset of keys is associated with each of the four rows;

wherein said four rows comprise in order a first, second, third and fourth row, and the five columns comprising in order a first, second, third, fourth, and fifth column; and

wherein each key is configured to cause data corresponding to one of the indicia on that key to be entered in response to the key being pressed.

2. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein numeric indicia of said second subset of keys is a first color and alphabetic indicia of said first subset of keys is a second color.

3. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said first subset of keys having indicia of letters A to Z number fourteen.

4. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising said indicia of letters A to Z being positioned directly on keys of said first subset of keys in a first color and said indicia of numerals 0 to 9 being positioned directly on keys of said second subset of keys in a second color.

5. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the keys of said second subset of keys have a two tone appearance.

6. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 5, wherein each key of said second subset of keys has a first portion of a first color and a second portion of a second color.

7. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 6, wherein said first portion of each key of said second subset of keys has numeric indicia of a first different color to the first color.

8. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 7, wherein the first different color comprises the second color.

9. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 6, wherein said second portion of each key of said second subset of keys has alphabetic indicia of a second different color to the second color.

10. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 9, wherein the second different color comprises the first color.

11. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 5, wherein each key of said second subset of keys has a first portion having numeric indicia and a second portion having alphabetic indicia.

12. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 11, wherein at least one of (i) font size, (ii) font type and (iii) indicia color of the numeric indicia of the first portion of each key of the said second subset of keys is different to that of the alphabetic indicia of the second portion of said key.

13. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 12, wherein indicia of at least a portion of said first subset of keys that are not overlaid by said second subset of keys comprise a third color.

14. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the standard alphabetic keyboard arrangement comprises one of QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY, and DVORAK layouts.

15. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said first subset of keys associated with the alphabetic keyboard arrangement number fourteen.

16. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys is associated with three of the five columns.

17. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys is associated with the second, third and fourth columns.

18. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys comprises keys in the first, second, third, and fourth rows and wherein keys in the first row comprise a number “

1”

in the second column, a number “

2”

in the third column, and a number “

3”

in the fourth column, keys in the second row comprise a number “

4”

in the second column, a number “

5”

in the third column, and a number “

6”

in the fourth column, keys in the third row comprise a number “

7”

in the second column, a number “

8”

in the third column, and a number “

9”

in the fourth column, and keys in the fourth row comprise a “

*”

in the second column, a number “

0”

in the third column, and a “

#”

in the fourth column.

19. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the fourth row of keys comprises an “

alt”

function key in the first column, a “

next”

function key in the second column, a “

space”

function key in the third column, a “

shift”

function key in the fourth column, and a “

return/enter”

function key in the fifth column.

20. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the first row comprises keys corresponding in order to letters “

QW”

, “

ER”

, “

TY”

, “

UI”

, and “

OP”

.

21. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the first row comprises keys corresponding in order to letters “

QW”

, “

ER”

, “

TY”

, “

UI”

, and “

OP”

, the second row comprises keys corresponding in order to letters “

AS”

, “

DF”

, “

GH”

, “

JK”

, and “

L”

, the third row comprises keys corresponding in order to letters “

ZX”

, “

CV”

, “

BN”

, and “

M”

.

22. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein one of the keys comprises a “

return/enter”

key associated with a return/enter function.

23. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 22, wherein the “

return/enter”

key is positioned in the fifth column.

24. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 22, wherein the “

return/enter”

key is positioned in the fourth row.

25. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising a function associated with at least one of the plurality of keys.

26. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys is arranged symmetrically about a center line.

27. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said plurality of keys is arranged symmetrically about a center line.

28. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys is centered within the five columns of key.

29. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys is centered on the front surface of the housing.

30. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said handheld mobile communication device has a telephony mode and a text-entry mode.

31. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising an auxiliary I/O device.

32. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 31, wherein said auxiliary I/O device being one of a touchpad, a rocker switch, and a thumb-wheel.

33. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising a “

*”

associated with one of the plurality of keys and a “

#”

associated with another of the plurality of keys, wherein the “

*”

key is positioned directly adjacent one side of the key with which the numeral “

0”

is associated and the “

#”

key is positioned directly adjacent the other side of the key with which the numeral “

0”

is associated.

34. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one key of said second subset of keys includes an identifying portion in the form of one of a raised bump or a recessed dimple.

35. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising a first and a second color on the first subset of keys, wherein the first color dominates a top portion of each of the first subset of keys and the second color dominates a bottom portion of each of the first subset of keys.

36. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second subset of keys further comprises the symbols “

*” and

“

#”

.

37. The handheld mobile communication device as recited in claim 1, further comprising a space key centered at a bottom of said plurality of keys.