Mobile device and key arranging method

• US 6,933,926 B2
• Filed: 06/01/2001
• Issued: 08/23/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Ukita, Yoshitaka, Ozawa, Masao
• Primary Examiner(s): Eisen, Alexander
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KIMNHUNG T
• Application Number:
  US09/872,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20010048428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,544 Days
• Field of Search: 345/168, 345/172, 345/161, 341 22- 23, 341/27, 400/472, 400486-489, D14392-393
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1664 Arrangements for ergonomically adjusting the disposition of keys of the integrated keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/0225 User interface arrangements, e.g. keyboard, display; Interfaces to other computer systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0219 Special purpose keyboards

Abstract

A mobile device includes a vertically-oriented handheld housing and keys corresponding to keys of a horizontally-oriented keyboard of a personal computer divided into a plurality of groups, each group of keys being shifted in a vertical direction of the housing with respect to one another, to allow a mobile device to accommodate a key layout similar to the key layout of the computer keyboard.

Claims

1. A mobile device comprising:

a handheld housing that is taller than it is wide when the mobile device is in an upright position; and

a plurality of device keys mounted on the housing, the plurality of device keys corresponding to a QWERTY keyboard of a personal computer having the plurality of device keys arranged in three rows, wherein

each of the three rows of device keys is divided into a leading portion and a following portion;

each of the three rows of device keys corresponds to a single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard of the personal computer, wherein the leading portion includes all five device keys in their original sequence corresponding to a left portion of the single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard, and the following portion includes device keys in their original sequence corresponding to a right portion of the single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard;

the following portion of the first row is arranged below the leading portion of the first row and is misaligned therewith in a horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the first row;

the following portion of the second row is arranged below the leading portion of the second row and misaligned in the horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the second row; and

the following portion of the third row is arranged below the leading portion of the third row and is misaligned in the horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the third row.

2. The mobile device according to claim 1, wherein the device keys are colored such that a color of the leading portions of the three rows of device keys is different from a color of the following portions of the three rows of device keys.

3. The mobile device according to claim 1, wherein the device keys are colored such that a color of the leading portion and a following portion of the first row are the same, a color of the leading portion and a following portion of the second row are the same and different from the color of the first row, and a color of the leading portion and the following portion of the third row are the same and are the same as the color of the first row.

4. The mobile device according to claim 1, further comprising touch-sensitive liquid crystal display panel input means mounted on the housing, and

wherein the plurality of device keys on the housing are formed by the touch-sensitive liquid crystal display panel input means.

11. The mobile device according to claim 1, wherein

adjacent ones of the device keys of the leading portion and the following portion of the first row of device keys are separated in the longitudinal direction of the housing by a first spacing;

and

the first key of the leading portion of the first row is separated in the longitudinal direction of the housing from the first key of the following portion by a second distance different than the first distance.

5. A key arranging method for arranging device keys on a handheld housing of a mobile device in which the handheld housing is taller than it is wide when the device is in an upright position, the device keys corresponding to three rows of keys of a QWERTY keyboard of a personal computer, the key arranging method comprising the steps of:

assigning each row of three rows of the device keys into a leading portion and a following, portion, each of the three rows of device keys corresponding to a single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard of the personal computer, wherein the leading portion includes all five device keys in their original sequence corresponding to a left portion of the single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard, and the following portion includes device keys in their original sequence corresponding to a right portion of the single horizontal row of keys on the QWERTY keyboard;

arranging the following portion of the first row below the leading portion of the first row so as to be misaligned therewith in a horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the first row;

arranging the following portion of the second row below the leading portion of the second row so as to be misaligned therewith in the horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the second row; and

arranging the following portion of the third row below the leading portion of the third row so as to be misaligned therewith in the horizontal direction, so that a first key of the following portion is not directly below a first key of the leading portion of the third row.

6. The key arranging method according to claim 5, further comprising the step of making a color of the leading portions of the three rows of device keys different from a color of the following portions of the three rows of device keys.

7. The key arranging method according to claim 5, further comprising the step of making a color of the device keys such that a color of the leading portion and the following portion of the first row are the same, a color of the leading portion and the following portion of the second row are the same and are different from the color of the first row, and a color of the leading portion and following portion of the third row are the same and are the same as the color of the first row.

8. The key arranging method according to any one of claims 5-7, further comprising the steps of:

providing a touch-sensitive liquid crystal display panel input means on the housing;

forming device key images at predetermined positions on the liquid crystal display panel input means; and

associating the device key images formed at the predetermined positions on the liquid crystal display panel input means with a plurality of device keys on the housing,

wherein the plurality of device keys on the housing are arranged on the liquid crystal display panel input means on the housing.

9. The key arranging method according to claim 5, wherein the step of arranging the device keys on said device further comprises:

separating adjacent ones of the device keys of the leading portion and following portion of the first row of device keys in the longitudinal direction of the housing by a first spacing; and

separating the first key of the leading portion from the first key of the following portion of the first row in them longitudinal direction by a second spacing different than said first spacing so as to enhance the misaligning.

10. The key arranging method according to claim 9, wherein the second spacing is greater than the first spacing.