Touch-type key input apparatus

• US 8,928,588 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2010
• Issued: 01/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Kato, Syunji
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu, Amare
• Assistant Examiner(s): MATHEWS, CRYSTAL
• Application Number:
  US12/803,984
• Publication Number:
  US 20110309954A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,639 Days
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/018 Input/output arrangements for oriental characters
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0236 using selection techniques to select from displayed items
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• 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

Abstract

A touch press key inputting device includes: a plurality of character keys 21˜32 with at least 2 characters displayed on the surface of each key; an input judging means 72 for sensing the character keys touched and the first touched points in the area of the character keys, performing a movement longer than a specified length originally touched, and judging a moving direction in touch press inputting; a character selecting and outputting means 73 for selecting and outputting the characters displayed in the moving direction, corresponding to the moving direction judged by the input judging means, relative to the reference positions of the character keys. Since the characters on the positions are selected and output corresponding to the touch press inputting operations of the characters displayed on the key surfaces of respective character keys 21˜32, the inputting operations can be directly sensed and easily assured, and the inputting operability is improved.

Claims

1. A mobile electronic device comprising:

a touch-sensitive screen configured to display an output region and a soft keypad region comprising a plurality of keys that have interpretable moving directions associated therewith, a first key of said plurality of keys displaying a first character that comprises at least one of an alphabetic, numeric, and symbol character;

an input judge that determines when said first key has been activated with a first-type of key touch and when said first key has been activated with a second type of key touch; and

an output selector that responsive to each activation of said first input key with said first type of key touch, outputs said first character to said output region and responsive to each activation of said first input key with said second type of key touch, outputs a first multi-character sequence to said output region, wherein said second type of key touch is a draw-line type of key touch having a respective direction, the output selector determining the multi-character sequence based only on said draw-line having a starting point on said first input key and the respective direction of the draw-line type of key touch.

2. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said first character is an alphabetic character and said multi-character sequence begins with said alphabetic character.

3. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said first type of key touch is one of a striking type of key touch and a draw-line type of key touch.

4. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said respective direction of said draw-line type of key touch is determined only by a start point and an end point of the draw-line key touch.

5. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said respective direction is one of up, down, left, right, left-up, right-up, left-down and right-down.

6. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said output selector outputs a second multi-character sequence responsive to each activation of said first key with a third type of key touch, wherein said third type of key touch is a draw-line type of key touch having a respective direction that is different from the respective direction of said second type of key touch.

7. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said mobile electronic device is one of a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant and a mobile computer.

8. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said first multi-character sequence is a word commonly used in a given language.

9. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 1, wherein said first multi-character sequence is a word commonly used by the user.

10. A mobile electronic device comprising:

a display screen;

a touch-sensitive keypad having a plurality of keys that have interpretable moving directions associated therewith, a first key of the plurality of keys displaying a first character that comprises at least one of an alphabetic, numeric, and symbol character;

an input judge that determines when said first key has been activated with a first type of key touch and when said first key has been activated with a second type of key touch; and

an output selector that responsive to each activation of said first key with said first type of key touch, outputs said first character to said display screen and responsive to each activation of said first key with said second-type of key touch, outputs a first multi-character sequence to said display screen, wherein said second type of key touch is a draw-line type of key touch having a respective direction, the output selector determining the multi-character sequence based only on the draw-line having a starting point on said first input key and the respective direction of the draw-line type of key touch.

11. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 10, wherein said first character is an alphabetic character and said first multi-character sequence begins with said first character.

12. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 10, wherein said respective direction is one of up, down, left, right, left-up, right-up, left-down and right-down.

13. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 10, wherein said output selector outputs a second multi-character sequence responsive to each activation of said first key with a third type of key touch, wherein said third type of key touch is a draw-line type of key touch having a respective direction that is different from the respective direction of said second type of key touch.

14. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 10, wherein said first multi-character sequence is one of a word commonly used in a given language and a word commonly used by the user.

15. The mobile electronic device as featured in claim 10, wherein a direction associated with a draw-line type of key touch is determined only by a start point and an end point of the draw-line key touch.