Predictive keyboard

• US 6,573,844 B1
• Filed: 01/18/2000
• Issued: 06/03/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Venolia, Daniel, Huang, Xuedong, Hon, Hsiao-Wuen, Goodman, Joshua
• Primary Examiner(s): EDWARDS JR, TIMOTHY
• Application Number:
  US09/484,079
• Time in Patent Office: 1,232 Days
• Field of Search: 341/22, 345/168, 345/173, 382/229, 382/230
• US Class Current: 341/22
• 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

Abstract

Predictive keyboards, such as predictive soft keyboards, are disclosed. In one embodiment, a computer-implemented method predicts at least one key to be entered next within a sequence of keys. The method displays a soft keyboard where the predicted keys are displayed on the soft keyboard differently than the other keys on the keyboard. For example, the predicted keys may be larger in size on the soft keyboard as compared to the other keys. This makes the predicted keys more easily typed by a user as compared to the other keys.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

predicting at least one key to be entered next within a sequence of keys, wherein predicting includes determining that the at least one key has a probability of being next entered greater than a first predetermined threshold; and

displaying a soft keyboard where the at least one key are displayed differently on the soft keyboard than other keys on the keyboard.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein predicting at least one key further comprises selecting as the at least one key up to a predetermined maximum number of the at least one key to be predicted.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein predicting at least one key comprises:

a) determining a probability for each potential key of a plurality of potential keys that the potential key will be entered next and selecting as a current key a potential key having a highest probability of the plurality of potential keys; and

,

b) upon determining that the probability of the current key is greater than a predetermined first threshold, setting the current key as one of the at least one key and adding the probability of the current key to a running total; and

,

upon determining that the running total is less than a predetermined second threshold, repeating b) for a new current key selected as one of the plurality of potential keys having a probability next-highest to the probability of the current key, unless a predetermined maximum number of the at least one key has already been met.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying a soft keyboard where the at least one key are displayed differently on the soft keyboard than other keys on the keyboard comprises displaying the at least one key in a different color than the other keys on the keyboard.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying a soft keyboard where the at least one key are displayed differently on the soft keyboard than other keys on the keyboard comprises displaying the at least one key as larger in size than the other keys on the keyboard.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein displaying the at least one key as larger in size than the other keys on the keyboard comprises displaying the at least one key in front-to-back order by probability to be entered next.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein predicting the at least one key further comprises calculating a sum of probabilities of each of the at least one key, wherein predicting terminates when the sum is greater than a second predetermined threshold.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein predicting at least one key comprises utilizing a statistical model to predict the at least one key based on already entered keys of the sequence of keys.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein utilizing a statistical model comprises utilizing one of a statistical character model and a statistical word model.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein utilizing a statistical model further comprises smoothing a character model with a word model.

11. A machine-readable medium having instructions stored thereon for execution by a processor to perform a method comprising:

determining at least one key having a probability to be entered next within a sequence of keys, each of the at least one key having a probability greater than a first predetermined threshold, the determining comprising calculating a running total, incrementally, of the sum of probabilities of each of the at least one key from highest probability to lowest in descending order until a second predetermined threshold is reached; and

displaying a soft keyboard when the determining terminates and where the at least one key are displayed as larger in size than other keys on the keyboard.

12. The medium of claim 11, wherein determining at least one key comprises utilizing a statistical model to determine the probability of each of the at least one key to be entered next, based on already entered keys of the sequence of keys.

13. The medium of claim 11, wherein determining terminates when the number of the at least one key reaches a predetermined maximum number of the at least one-key.

14. The medium of claim 11, wherein determining at least one key comprises:

a) determining a probability for each potential key of a plurality of potential keys that the potential key will be entered next and selecting as a current key a potential key having a highest probability of the plurality of potential keys; and

,

b) upon determining that the probability of the current key is greater than the predetermined first threshold, setting the current key as one of the at least one key, and adding the probability of the current key to the running total; and

upon determining that the running total is less than the predetermined second threshold, repeating b) for a new current key selected as one of the plurality of potential keys having a probability next-highest to the probability to be entered next of the current key, unless a predetermined maximum number of the at least one key has already been met.

15. The medium of claim 11, wherein displaying a soft keyboard where the at least one key are displayed as larger in size than other keys on the keyboard comprises displaying the at least one key in front-to-back order by probability to be entered next.

16. A computerized system comprising:

a display;

a soft keyboard rendered on the display such that at least one predicted key having a probability to be entered next are rendered differently on the display compared to other keys of the keyboard; and

a computer program on a computer-readable medium, the computer program adapted to determine the at least one predicted key to be entered next by determining that the at least one predicted key each has a probability of being next entered greater than a first predetermined threshold.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the computer program determines the at least one predicted key by utilizing a statistical model.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the computer program is adapted to calculate a sum of the individual probabilities of each at least one predicted key, where the sum is less than a second predetermined threshold, and where each of the at least one predicted key has a probability to be entered next greater than any other key besides the at least one key.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the computer program is adapted to determine up to a predetermined maximum of the at least one predicted key.

20. The system of claim 16, wherein the at least one predicted key of the keyboard are rendered as larger in size than the other keys of the keyboard.

21. The system of claim 16, wherein the at least one predicted key of the keyboard are rendered in front-to-back order by probability to be entered next.