Electronic device having virtual keyboard with predictive key and related methods

• US 8,462,131 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2011
• Issued: 06/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John Chacho
• Original Assignee: John Chacho
• Inventors: Chacho, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H
• Application Number:
  US13/166,434
• Publication Number:
  US 20110316800A1
• Time in Patent Office: 720 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/168, 345/169, 345/172, 345/173, 341/22, 382/230, 708/142
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0237 using prediction or retrieval techniques
• 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: G06F 40/274 Converting codes to words; Guess-ahead of partial word inputs

Abstract

An electronic device may include a housing, a touch screen display carried by the housing, and a processor being carried by the housing and cooperating with the touch screen display. The processor may be for operating a virtual keyboard on the touch screen display for receiving textual input from a user. The virtual keyboard may include keys with at least one remappable key with a set position in the virtual keyboard. The processor may selectively assign a predicted key value to the at least one remappable key based upon prior textual input.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

a housing;

a touch screen display carried by said housing; and

a processor being carried by said housing and cooperating with said touch screen display for

operating a virtual keyboard on said touch screen display for receiving textual input from a user, the virtual keyboard comprising a plurality of keys with at least one remappable key with a set position in the virtual keyboard, and

selectively assigning a predicted key value to the at least one remappable key based upon prior textual input.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said processor operates the virtual keyboard in a first mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of letter character keys, and in a second mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of numeric keys.

3. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein the at least one remappable key comprises at least one remappable punctuation mark key.

4. The electronic device of claim 3 wherein said processor receives the prior textual input comprising a first mark from a punctuation mark pair, and selectively maps the at least one remappable punctuation mark key to a second mark from the punctuation mark pair.

5. The electronic device of claim 4 wherein the punctuation mark pair comprises at least one of a pair of bracket marks, a pair of quotation marks, and a pair of parentheses marks.

6. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said processor continuously selectively assigns the at least one remappable key during the textual input.

7. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said processor receives the prior textual input comprising an interrogative phrase, and selectively maps the at least one remappable key to a question mark key.

8. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said processor operates the virtual keyboard comprising a spacebar key;

and wherein the set position is adjacent the spacebar key.

9. An electronic device comprising:

a housing;

a touch screen display carried by said housing; and

a processor being carried by said housing and cooperating with said touch screen display for

operating a virtual keyboard on said touch screen display for receiving textual input from a user, the virtual keyboard comprising a plurality of keys with at least one remappable punctuation mark key with a set position in the virtual keyboard, and

selectively continuously assigning a predicted key value to the at least one remappable punctuation mark key based upon prior textual input.

10. The electronic device of claim 9 wherein said processor operates the virtual keyboard in a first mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of letter character keys, and in a second mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of numeric keys.

11. The electronic device of claim 9 wherein said processor receives the prior textual input comprising a first mark from a punctuation mark pair, and selectively maps the at least one remappable punctuation mark key to a second mark from the punctuation mark pair.

12. The electronic device of claim 11 wherein the punctuation mark pair comprises at least one of a pair of bracket marks, a pair of quotation marks, and a pair of parentheses marks.

13. The electronic device of claim 9 wherein said processor receives the prior textual input comprising an interrogative phrase, and selectively maps the at least one remappable punctuation mark key to a question mark key.

14. The electronic device of claim 9 wherein said processor operates the virtual keyboard comprising a spacebar key;

and wherein the set position is adjacent the spacebar key.

15. A method for operating an electronic device comprising:

operating a virtual keyboard on a touch screen display in the electronic device for receiving textual input from a user, the virtual keyboard comprising a plurality of keys with at least one remappable key with a set position in the virtual keyboard; and

selectively assigning a predicted key value to the at least one remappable key based upon prior textual input.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising operating the virtual keyboard in a first mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of letter character keys, and in a second mode where the plurality of keys comprises a plurality of numeric keys.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the at least one remappable key comprises at least one remappable punctuation mark key.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising receiving the prior textual input comprising a first mark from a punctuation mark pair, and selectively mapping the at least one remappable punctuation mark key to a second mark from the punctuation mark pair.

19. The method of claim 15 further comprising continuously selectively assigning the at least one remappable key during the textual input.