TEXT INPUT METHOD AND MOBILE TERMINAL THEREFOR

• US 20080096610A1
• Filed: 10/19/2007
• Published: 04/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Kang, Sung-Wook, Eduard, Kurgi, SHIN, Keun-Ho
• Granted Patent: US 8,044,937 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/566
• 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 method for inputting text in a mobile terminal having a touch screen is provided. When detecting a touch-down, the mobile terminal displays a character of the touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size and indicates the character of the touch-down point in the enlarged display. When a drag event occurs before a touch-up event, the mobile terminal determines the dragging distance and direction, changes the touch-down point to a new location according to the dragging distance and direction, and indicates another character at the new location. When a touch-up event occurs at the new location, the mobile terminal then inputs the other character indicated at the new location.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal including:

a touch screen for displaying a soft keypad in a text input mode and generating a touch signal upon detecting a touch-down on the keypad; and

a control unit for receiving the touch signal, controlling the touch screen to display a character of a touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size and indicate the character of the touch-down point in an area of the display containing the character of the touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size, determining a dragging distance and a direction if a drag event occurs before a touch-up event, changing the touch-down point to a new location according to the dragging distance and direction, and indicating another character at the new location.

2. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein said control unit inputs the other character when a touch-up event occurs at the new location.

3. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein said soft keypad is a QWERTY keypad.

4. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein said control unit displays the character of the touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size in the full area of the soft keypad.

5. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein said control unit generates a popup window and displays the character of the touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size in the generated popup window.

6. A method for inputting text in a mobile terminal having a touch screen, which comprises the steps of:

displaying a soft keypad on the touch screen and detecting a touch-down on the keypad in a text input mode;

displaying a character of a touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size and indicating the character of the touch-down point in the an area of the display containing the character of the touch-down point and nearby characters in an enlarged size; and

determining dragging distance and direction if a drag event occurs before a touch-up event, changing the touch-down point to a new location according to the dragging distance and direction, and indicating another character at the new location.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of inputting the other character when a touch-up event occurs at the new location.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein said soft keypad is a QWERTY keypad.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein the character of the touch-down point and nearby characters are displayed in an enlarged size in the full area of the soft keypad.