Data entry methodTechnical Field
The present invention relates to data entry in electronic devices, and in particular, but not exclusively, to mobile communications handsets.
Background
It is often necessary for a user of an electronic device, such as a mobile phone, to enter data into the device, for example to enter a telephone number for a call or to enter text to be sent as an SMS (short messaging service) message.
Generally, a mobile telephone handset includes an IUT-T (International telecommunication Union, telecommunication Standard) keypad, such as the keypad shown at 1 in FIG. 1. This keypad has buttons for each digit from 1 to 0. The buttons 2 to 9 are associated with the groups of letters of the alphabet. The standard layout is as follows:
2ABC；
3DEF；
4GHI；
5JKL；
6MNO；
7PQRS；
8TUV；
9WXYZ。
alternatively, the "1" button can allow the user to enter punctuation marks and other symbols, while the "0" button can allow the user to insert a space.
According to one known input method, a user can press a button associated with a group of digits and letters multiple times in order to select one of the letters in the group associated with the button. For example, if the user wishes to enter the letter a, the "2" button should be pressed once. A second press of this button will cause the letter B to be entered, a third press will cause the letter C to be entered, and a fourth press will cause the number 2 to be entered. Further pressing of this button will cause the cycle to start again, so a fifth press will result in a. Successive presses of the button must occur within a certain time, such as one second, so that the mobile telephone interprets the multiple presses as intending to cycle through a group of three or four letters and one number. If the button is pressed once and the user waits for a delay time, e.g., longer than one second, and then presses the button again, the mobile device interprets these presses as intending to enter two characters. For example, if the "2" button is pressed twice with a four second delay between presses, the device interprets this as an input AA.
According to known asOr a second known way for entering data into a mobile phone, colloquially known as "predictive textA single press of a button associated with a group of letters can result in any one of the letters within the group being entered without requiring multiple presses to represent the second, third or fourth letter in the group.Text entry uses a standard ITU-T mobile phone keypad to simplify text entry. The system uses an electronic dictionary to predict which letter the user is intending to enter by pressing a particular button a single time. By way of example, if the user wishes to enter the word "meet", he need only press the following button: 6. 3, 3 and 8. If supported on the user's phoneThe software will guess that the word to be entered is "meet" as this can be formed by the letters "mno", "def", "tuv".
For some button combinations, multiple words may correspond to a given numeric button sequence. If this is the case, thenOne of the possible words will be selected for display on the display screen 3 of the phone and the user then has the option of scrolling through the other alternative words corresponding to the same button sequence.
Other handheld electronic devices, such as Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), use a fully standard "english typewriter" keyboard for data entry.
Particularly for mobile phones, various problems exist with the current way of inputting data.
First, a compromise between overall handset size and keypad availability is required. It is generally desirable for handsets to be as small as possible to make them easier to carry, but if the keypad includes very small buttons, it may be difficult to accurately enter data using the buttons. In general, the ITU-T keypad occupies a relatively large portion of the surface area of a telephone handset.
Second, the buttons on the cell phone typically need to be printed or marked with symbols, icons, or alphanumeric characters to indicate the function of the particular button. Many of these tokens may need to be different in different linepin areas or in places using languages with different alphabets. There are costs associated with producing multiple handsets for use in different areas.
It is therefore desirable to provide an electronic device with improved means of entering data in order to overcome the above problems.
Disclosure of Invention
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for enabling a user to enter data into an electronic device, the method comprising: determining one or more characters as likely to be selected next by the user; displaying the one or more characters as a suggested next character on a display screen of the electronic device; and providing the user with a means for scrolling through the suggested next character and the plurality of other symbols and selecting one or more of the suggested next characters, or alternatively one or more of the other characters, as data to be entered into the electronic device.
Preferably, one or more characters or symbols selected by the user are displayed on the display screen.
The determining step may include predicting which characters are statistically most likely to be selected next by the user.
The plurality of other symbols may include one or more icons adapted to perform a function when selected by a user.
Scrolling and selection may be performed on a handheld electronic device that includes a scrolling means and a selection means provided by a cylindrical input mechanism. Preferably, scrolling can be achieved by rotating the input mechanism about its axis, while selection can be achieved by pushing the input mechanism along its axis.
The plurality of other symbols may comprise characters grouped as on an ITU-T keypad.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic device into which a user can enter data, the device comprising: determining means for determining one or more characters as likely to be selected next by a user when the device is in a data entry mode; a display screen for displaying the one or more characters as a suggested next character; scrolling means for allowing a user to scroll through the suggested next character and a plurality of other symbols; and selecting means for allowing the user to select one or more of the suggested next characters, or alternatively one or more other characters, as data to be entered into the electronic device.
According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of entering data into an electronic device, the device comprising scrolling means and selection means, and the method comprising: scrolling through a plurality of groups of symbols by scrolling means to indicate one of the groups, the symbols comprising characters grouped as on an ITU-T keypad; selecting the indicated symbol group by the selecting means; selecting one of the symbols of the selected group as data to be entered into the device; and processing the selected symbol as an entered symbol.
The selected symbol may be selected from the selected group by the selection means or alternatively by the character prediction engine.
The plurality of symbols may include one or more icons, and user selection of an icon preferably causes the electronic device to perform a function.
The scrolling means and selection means may be provided by a cylindrical input mechanism whereby scrolling can be effected by rotating the input mechanism about its axis and selection can be effected by pushing the input mechanism along its axis.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic device into which a user can enter data, the device comprising: scrolling means for allowing a user to scroll through a plurality of groups of symbols to indicate one of the groups, the symbols comprising characters grouped as on an ITU-T keypad; first selecting means for allowing a user to select one of the indicated symbol groups; second selection means for selecting one of the symbols from the selected group as data to be entered into the device; and processing means for processing the selected symbol as an entered symbol.
The first selection means may be provided by the same mechanism as the first selection means, in which case the second selection means may be provided by a cylindrical input mechanism, or alternatively the second selection means may comprise a character prediction engine.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of entering data into an electronic device, the device comprising scrolling means and selection means, and the method comprising: scrolling through a plurality of logically arranged groups of symbols by scrolling means to indicate one of the groups; selecting the indicated symbol group by the selecting means; and selecting one of the symbols from the selected set as data to be entered into the device.
The method can suitably further comprise the steps of: subsequently determining, by means of a computer program within the device, one or more symbols as likely to be selected next by the user; and displaying the one or more symbols as a suggested next symbol on a display screen of the electronic device. This enables a fast and user-friendly way of providing text entry.
The logically arranged symbols can be groups of symbols arranged as on an ITU-T keypad. Since the user is already familiar with this arrangement, it is the preferred way to group the symbols.
The set of symbols or one or more symbols can include one or more icons adapted to perform a function when selected by a user.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic device into which a user can enter data, the device comprising: scrolling means for allowing a user to scroll through a plurality of logically arranged groups of symbols to indicate one of the groups; first selecting means for allowing a user to select one of the indicated symbol groups; and second selection means for selecting one of the symbols from the selected set as data to be entered into the device.
The electronic device can further include: determining means for determining one or more symbols as likely to be selected next by a user; and a display screen for displaying the one or more symbols as a suggested next symbol.
Conveniently, the second selection means can be provided by the same mechanism as the first selection means. The second selection means can comprise a character prediction engine.
Drawings
The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 shows a mobile telephone handset having a standard ITU-T keypad;
FIG. 2 illustrates a handset according to an embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 3 shows a character band for display on a display screen of a cell phone;
fig. 4 shows still another example of a character band according to an embodiment of the present invention.
In the drawings, like reference numerals are used to refer to like parts.
Detailed Description
Fig. 2A shows a handset according to an embodiment of the invention. This handset does not have a standard ITU-T keypad (such as that shown in figure 1, item 1), but it has a rotator 2 as an input mechanism. Manipulation of the rotator 2 can cause data such as text data to be entered into the handset and displayed on the display screen 3.
Fig. 2B shows a side view of the rotator input mechanism 2 illustrating that the rotator is a generally cylindrical mechanism that can be pressed down in a direction towards the phone. In general, rotating the rotator 2 about its axis as shown in FIG. 2A causes scrolling through a plurality of symbols, such as alphanumeric characters, and pressing the rotator in the direction illustrated in FIG. 2B causes a highlighted symbol, which may be, for example, a single letter or a group of letters and numbers, to be selected.
A conventional way of implementing a data entry mechanism involves the use of a character band such as that shown in figure 3. The length of this strip will typically be wider than the display screen 3 of the mobile handset and only a portion of the strip will be visible on the screen at a given instant. In fig. 3, region 11 is indicated as being visible on the screen at a given instant in time, and group "2 abc" is highlighted at that instant. The user can move the position of the character band by rotating the input mechanism 2 in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction in order to change the highlighted portion 10. Suitably, moving the rotator clockwise will cause the highlighted portion to adjust to the next character set on the character band to the right ("3 def" in the example shown in FIG. 3), while moving counterclockwise will cause the highlighted portion to move to the left.
Preferably, the user has the option of scrolling faster through the band by "flipping" the band to the left or right. This can be conveniently achieved by using left or right cursor keys that may be separate from the rotator 2 or integral with the rotator 2. In the example shown in fig. 3, pressing the right cursor key will shift the portion of the character strip visible on the display screen 3 to the number and letter groups "5 ijk, 6mno, 7pqrs, 8 tuv". By using the swivel function of the spinner 2, the user is then able to navigate between the groups 13 within the display section.
The above examples relate to the entry of text or numerical data; however, the set of numbers and letters 13 shown in fig. 3 may alternatively be symbols or icons representing functions to be performed by the mobile handset. For example, the characters of FIG. 3 bear a symbol shown next to the number 1 to indicate a voicemail function. By clicking on the rotator when the highlighted portion of the ribbon is located on the "1" button, the voicemail function can be selected by the user. Suitably, a long press of a button can cause the function associated with that button to be implemented, while a quick press can cause a character to be entered. Such an arrangement is known in the field of mobile communication devices.
Other functions can be provided on the character band, e.g.Activation or deactivation of text entry or selection of a text entry mode. Fig. 4 shows a specific embodiment of a suitable character band. The belt 21 comprises a series of functions:activating; a character mode; a capital letter mode; a lower case letter mode; capitalization mode of sentence initial letters; a number mode, a stroke mode, and a pinyin mode. Icons representing each of these functions can be scrolled through in the same manner as the group 13 illustrated in fig. 3.
In each of the character bands 22 to 28, the portion of the indicia 11 represents a portion of the character band that is visible at a given time on the display screen 3 of the handset.
In one embodiment of the invention, the displayed portion 11 displays a series of alphabetic characters predicted by software within the handset as likely to be selected by the user.A text input mechanism can be used in conjunction with this embodiment of the invention to provide a text input devicePrediction of the subsequent letter selected by the user.
Considering the character band 25 in detail, the displayed portion 11 shows five letters. For the following discussion, it can be assumed that the user is beginning to enter a text message into a mobile phone handset. Appropriate software in the handset determines that one of the five letters WATIO is statistically more likely to be entered by the user at the beginning of a sentence. The five letters are thus displayed in the portion 11 so that the user can easily select one of the five letters for the first letter of the message. For convenience, one of the five letters can be initially highlighted, and by rotating the selector 2, the user can move the highlighted position to coincide with the letter he wishes to enter. He may expect the letter to be one of the five displayed letters shown in section 11, or alternatively he may wish to enter some other character not shown in section 11. In this case, the user can scroll beyond the five currently displayed letters into the right-hand portion of the character band containing all the letters of the Latin alphabet by rotating the rotator or using the page-turning function described above. The letters in this right-hand portion will be displayed continuously as the user scrolls past them.
Once the highlighted portion coincides with the letter the user wishes to enter, he can select this letter by pressing the rotator 2.
After the letters have been entered, and if no space characters are subsequently entered, thenThe engine, or any other dictionary-based character prediction engine, can determine which letter or letters are most likely to be next selected by the user. For example, if T is entered at the beginning of a word, the most likely next letter may be H, and this can be shown as the first of e.g. five letters to be displayed in section 11. Then, when the user wants to enter the second letter of the word, he can select one of the five displayed letters 11 or any other letter from the right-hand part of the character band 25 in fig. 4. Suitably, can be throughScrolling beyond the alphabetic characters selects digits 1 through 0, or alternatively, the digital data entry mode can be selected by scrolling left from the display portion 11 until the mode icon, as labeled 2 in FIG. 4, is highlighted and then selected (24).
By displaying the most likely next character first, the speed of data entry can be increased.
It is noted above that the symbol labeled 2 in the character band 25 of fig. 4 represents a digital data entry mode. In each of the character bands 22-28, the portion displayed to the left of the display portion 11 shows a series of symbols that can be selected to perform a function. In the example shown in FIG. 4, each function represents a data entry schema type. 0 represents a pinyin mode; 1 represents a stroke pattern; 2 represents a digital pattern; 3 represents the capital mode of the sentence initial letters; 4 represents a lower case letter pattern; 5 represents capital letter mode; 6 for punctuation character patterns and 7 forOn/off mode. Functionality can also be made available for selection to allow a user to enter a selected language for text data to enableAn operation is performed for the language.
The ribbon 28 is in character mode and therefore the modes labelled 6 and 7 are not included in the left hand portion of the ribbon: (Valid only for latin letters).
The character band 22 is shown in pinyin mode, and thus mode 0 is not available for selection. The character band 23 is shown in stroke mode and modes 1 and 7 are not shown in the left hand portion of the character band because these modes are not active modes. The band 24 is in digital mode and modes 2 and 7 are not shown. Bands 25 to 27 are in case capital letter mode, lowercase letter mode and uppercase letter mode, respectively. The corresponding mode symbol is not shown in the character band.
Preferably, once a character has been selected for input by the user, the character is displayed in a portion of the display screen 3 of the handset. In this way, a message can be created by selection of a sequence of characters, including punctuation marks, space characters and numeric characters, as well as alphabetic characters.
Embodiments of the present invention may be applied to any type of data entry that a user may desire. For example, the character band and/or rotator mechanism 2 can be used for entering a text message, entering a telephone number to be dialed, selecting a handset mode such as, for example, silent mode, or even for changing handset settings such as a clock or ring tone. The display 3 of the handset can be adapted accordingly to allow the user to navigate menus and select modes or functions. It can thus be seen that the use of an input mechanism such as the rotator 2 or cursor set can obviate the need for an ITU-T keypad, thereby overcoming the problems discussed above.
In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the face of the mobile communications handset including the input mechanism need not be marked in any way by means of symbols or characters, and in particular it need not be marked by means of characters which will need to be different depending on the geographical area in which the handset is intended to be used. This overcomes yet another problem discussed above.
In one embodiment of the invention, the rotator 2 can be adapted in such a way that any given alphabetic character is associated with a particular orientation of the rotator. This can further facilitate text data entry as the user can become accustomed to a particular position of the rotator representing a particular letter, and the speed of data entry can thus be further increased. In one particular embodiment, the full rotation of the rotator 2 can be divided into 360/N positions, where N is a letter, number, other symbol such as a punctuation mark, or the number of mode functions available to the user when the handset is in a particular mode of operation. In the example of text data entry, the rotator can be assigned 30 unique positions, where each of these 30 positions represents one letter of the alphabet or one punctuation mark from the group comprising, for example, a period, a comma, a question mark and an exclamation mark. In this way, the user will learn a certain orientation of the selector required for entering a certain letter or symbol. In this particular embodiment, it may be advantageous to mark the surface of the spinner 2 so that the orientation of the spinner can be quickly determined by merely inspecting the spinner.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention uses a combination of symbol grouping and next character prediction. In an example of such an embodiment, when a user enters a text entry mode on a mobile phone, he is presented with symbols grouped logically (e.g., an ITU-T arrangement) and can scroll through the groups for entry of the first character. When a group is selected, the characters within the group can be selected for entry into the phone. After this first character has been entered, the display of the phone changes to show a series of suggested next characters that have been identified as the statistically most likely characters to be entered next.
Yet another aspect of this embodiment that can be applied to any of the embodiments described herein includes including within the series of suggested next characters one or more icons that upon selection cause a function to be performed. For example, the icon can be related to sending a message that has been entered using the method described above. In a specific example, when the device recognizes that the entire sentence has been entered into the device by using a period, a predetermined list of icons can be presented to the user, including a space function and a series of options for sending the message, such as SMS, MMS or email. In this way, messages can be conveniently sent by the user. When the complete message has been entered, the device senses that a period has just been entered and responds by displaying a "send" button or a series of specific icons such as "send SMS", "send MMS" or "send email". When one of these icons is selected, the user can be taken to his contact list to select the individual to whom the message is to be sent.
The above arrangement is more convenient than previous arrangements in which the user has to decide which type of message to send before entering the text.
The applicant is concerned with the following facts: the invention may comprise any feature or combination of features disclosed herein either implicitly or explicitly or any generalisation thereof and not to be limited in scope by any of the definitions set out above. In view of the above description it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that various modifications may be made within the scope of the invention.