INFORMATION INPUT DEVICE, INFORMATION INPUT METHOD, INFORMATION INPUT CONTROL PROGRAM, AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE

• US 20100289761A1
• Filed: 01/07/2009
• Published: 11/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Kajiyama, Kunihiro
• Granted Patent: US 9,354,802 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• 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: 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 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/70 methods for entering alphabetical characters, e.g. multi-tap or dictionary disambiguation methods for entering alphabetical characters per se G06F3/0237

Abstract

The present invention provides an information input device, in which information is inputted by easy operations, even if a display unit size is limited. An information input device of the present invention has: a display unit displaying a plurality of figures; a detecting unit arranged in front of the display unit or behind the display unit, and detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists; and a control unit deciding a figure displayed on the display unit and a position at which the figure is displayed, and inputting information based on a signal from the detecting unit, and when the detecting unit detects the physical contact exists, the control unit determines a first figure displayed at a nearest position to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position and decides a second figure displayed at a position surrounding the contacted position based on a kind of the first figure.

Claims

1-21. -21. (canceled)

22. An information input device comprising:

a display unit displaying a plurality of figures;

a detecting unit arranged in front of the display unit or behind the display unit, and detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists; and

a control unit deciding a figure displayed on the display unit and a position at which the figure is displayed, and inputting information based on a signal from the detecting unit, wherein

when the detecting unit detects the physical contact exists, the control unit determines a first figure displayed at a nearest position to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position and decides a second figure displayed at a position adjacent to the first figure based on a kind of the first figure.

23. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

the first figure is a figure which belongs to a first group comprising a plurality of figures, and

the second figure is a figure except the first figure which belongs to the first group.

24. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

a relative position of a position at which the second figure is displayed to a position at which the first figure is displayed is decided based on a kind of the second figure.

25. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

the control unit directs the display unit to display the second figure, and then directs the display unit to display a third figure at the position surrounding the contacted position based on a kind of the second FIG. 1f a figure which is displayed at the nearest position to the contacted position based on the contacted position is the second figure.

31. The information input device according to claim 24, further comprising:

a setting unit in which the relative position is set.

32. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

the control unit inputs the information based on the figure which had been displayed at the position nearest to the contacted position at a time just before when the contact is released, if the detecting unit detects the contact exists and then detects the contacts do not exist.

33. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

the control unit inputs the information based on the figure which had been displayed at a position nearest to the final contacted position, if the detecting unit detects the contact exists, then detects the contacts do not exist, and then detects the contact exists again.

34. The information input device according to claim 22, wherein

the display unit is divided into a plurality of display blocks, and

the control unit decides the first figure displayed in each of the plurality of is display blocks, and then determines the first figure displayed in a block nearest to the contacted position based on the contacted position if the detecting unit detect the contact exists, and decides the second figure displayed in a display block adjacent to the display block in which the first figure is displayed based on a kind of the first figure.

35. The information input device according to claim 34, wherein

the control unit directs the display unit to display the second figure, and then decides the third figure displayed in a block adjacent to the display block in which the second figure is displayed based on a kind of the second figure, if the figure displayed in a block nearest to the contacted position based on the contacted position is the second figure.

37. An electronic equipment comprising the information input device according to claims 22.

26. An information input device comprising:

a display unit displaying a plurality of figures;

a detecting unit arranged in front of the display unit or behind the display unit, and detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists; and

a control unit deciding a figure displayed on the display unit and a position at which the figure is displayed, and inputting information based on a signal form the detecting unit, wherein

when the detecting unit detects the physical contact exists, the control unit determines a first figure displayed at a nearest position to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position and decides a second figure displayed at a position surrounding the contacted position based on a kind of the first figure, and directs the display unit to display the second figure, and then directs the display unit to display a third figure at the position surrounding the contacted position based on a kind of the second FIG. 1f a figure which is displayed at the nearest position to the contacted position based on the contacted position is the second figure.

27. The information input device according to claim 26, wherein

the first figure is a figure which belongs to a first group comprising a plurality of figures, and

the second figure is a figure except the first figure which belongs to the first group.

28. The information input device according to claim 26, wherein

a relative position of a position at which the second figure is displayed to a position at which the first figure is displayed is decided based on a kind of the second figure.

29. The information input device according to claim 26, wherein

the second figure is a figure which belongs to a second group comprising a plurality of figures, and

the third figure is a figure except the second figure which belongs to the second group.

30. The information input device according to claim 26, wherein

a relative position of a position at which the third figure is displayed to a position at which the second figure is displayed is decided based on a kind of the third figure.

36. An information input device comprising:

a display unit displaying a plurality of figures;

a detecting unit arranged in front of the display unit or behind the display unit, and detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists; and

a control unit deciding a figure displayed on the display unit and a position at which the figure is displayed, and inputting information based on a signal form the detecting unit, wherein

when the detecting unit detects the physical contact exists, the control unit to determines a first figure displayed at a position nearest to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position, decides a second figure displayed at a position adjacent to the first figure based on a kind of the first figure, and inputs information based on a kind of the first figure and a relative position of the contacted position at a time just before when the contact is released to a position at which the first figure is displayed, if the detecting unit detects the contact exists and then the contact is released.

38. An information input method comprising:

deciding a figure to be displayed and a position at which the figure is displayed;

displaying a plurality of the figures;

detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists;

determining a first figure displayed at a position nearest to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position, when existence of the physical contact is detected;

deciding a second figure displayed at a position adjacent to the first figure based on a kind of the first figure; and

inputting information based on the contacted position.

39. An information input control program for making a computer included by an information input device control the method according to claim 38.

40. A computer readable medium storing the information input control program according to claim 39.

41. An information input device comprising:

a display means for displaying a plurality of figures;

a detecting means arranged in front of the display means or behind the display means, and for detecting whether a physical contact from an outside exists or not and a contacted position at which the physical contact exists; and

a control means for deciding a figure displayed on the display means and a position at which the figure is displayed, and inputting information based on a signal form the detecting means, wherein

when the detecting means detects the physical contact exists, the control means determines a first figure displayed at a nearest position to the contacted position in the plurality of figures based on the contacted position and decides a second figure displayed at a position adjacent to the first figure based on a kind of the first figure.