Patent Application
20100085312
The present invention relates generally to portable communication devices and, more particularly, to keyboard arrangements for portable communication devices.
In recent years, mobile phones have evolved from devices used primarily for voice communications into devices capable of both voice and data communications. Mobile phones can now be used to surf the web, send and receive text messages, send and receive emails, compose documents, and implement many other data communication functions that people once performed on computers. Many of these data communication functions require the user to enter-text. Many mobile communication devices still rely on a standard numeric phone keypad for text entry where a plurality of letters or symbols are assigned to each key. Text entry with a standard numeric keypad can be slow and laborious. Some mobile phones, such as the Blackberry, include a full QWERTY keypad to make text entry easier. Including a fully QWERTY keypad on a mobile phone makes text entry easier but consumes a large amount of space. Since space is limited in a mobile phone, it is desirable to provide a mechanism for text entry that is easier to use and more convenient than a standard numeric keypad, and takes less space than a conventional QWERTY keypad.
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for entering alphanumeric characters into a mobile phone or other portable computing device. The computing device may include a display for displaying text and other characters entered by a user. A first user input device is provided for selecting a row in a character array, and a second user input device is provided for selecting a character in the selected row. A processor receives input via the first and second user input devices and outputs the selected characters. The character array may, for example, comprise an array of characters that corresponds to a QWERTY keypad. The present invention takes up less space than a standard QWERTY keypad, while providing an easy and convenient method for text entry.
Exemplary embodiments of the invention comprise a device for entering alphanumeric characters into a computing device. One exemplary device comprises a first user input device for receiving user selection of a row in a character array containing a plurality of alphanumeric characters; a second user input device for receiving user selection of an alphanumeric character in a row of said character array selected by a user via the first user input device; and a processor to output the selected character responsive to user input received via the second user input device.
Some embodiments of the device may further comprise a display, and the processor may be configured to display the selected row on said display responsive to user input received via the first user input device.
In some embodiments of the device, the processor may be configured to change the appearance of the selected character on said display responsive to user input received via the second input device to indicate the user selection of a character.
In some embodiments of the device, the processor may be configured to highlight the selected character to indicate the user selection of a character to indicate a user selection of a character.
In some embodiments of the device, the processor is configured to change the size of the selected character to indicate the user selection of a character.
In some embodiments of the device, the display comprises a touch screen display that also functions as the second user input device for receiving user selection of a character in a selected row.
In some embodiments of the device, the first and second user input devices comprise one of an input key, a wheel, a pointing device, a touch-sensitive input, and an optical input.
Other embodiments of the invention comprise methods for inputting text into a computing device. One exemplary method comprises receiving a first user input at a first user input device indicating a user selection of a row in a character array containing a plurality of alphanumeric characters; receiving a second user input at a second user input device indicating user selection of an alphanumeric character in a row of said character array selected by a user via the first user input device; and outputting the selected character responsive to second user input.
Some exemplary methods may further comprise displaying the selected row of said character array on a display responsive to said first user input.
Some exemplary methods may further comprise changing an appearance of the selected character on said display responsive to said second user input to indicate the user selection of a character.
In some exemplary methods, changing an appearance of the selected character on said display comprises highlighting the selected character.
In some exemplary methods, changing an appearance of the selected character on said display comprises changing the size of the selected character.
In some exemplary methods, the display comprises a touch screen display and receiving a second user input indicating user selection of an alphanumeric character comprises receiving a touch input via said touch screen display.
In some exemplary methods, the first and second user inputs are received via one of an input key, a wheel, a pointing device, a touch-sensitive input, and an optical input.
Referring now to the drawings, a mobile communication device 100 with dual input text entry is shown. During a text entry mode, the user selects alphanumeric characters using first and second input devices. The user selects a row in an alphanumeric array using the first input device and selects a character in the selected row using the second input device. A processor receives the first and second inputs and outputs a corresponding character to a display and/or to memory.
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The virtual QWERTY keyboard may be implemented as a character array that is stored in memory 130 or implemented through programming logic. The character array includes a plurality of rows and columns wherein each row corresponds to one row of a QWERTY keyboard. Alphanumeric characters and other non-character typing functions are mapped to corresponding positions in the character array. Preferably, the mapping of characters to positions within the character array is made in a manner that resembles the layout of a QWERTY keypad.
When the mobile communication device 100 is in a text entry mode, the user selects a row of the character array using the first input device 152 by turning the jog dial or wheel. When the wheel is turned, a new row of the character array is displayed. For example, when the wheel is turned in a first direction, the next higher row of the character array may be displayed. Conversely, when the wheel is turned in a second direction, the next lower row may be displayed. Wrapping from the highest row to the lowest row, and vice versa, may be used.
When a row is selected by the user, the user may enter text by selecting a character using one of the twelve keys of the second user input device 154. Selection of a character is done by pressing the key adjacent to the desired character on the display 156. The visual appearance of the selected character may be changed for a brief period of time to provide visual feedback to the user indicating that a character has been selected. Such visual feedback may be provided by changing the color or size of the selected character.
When entering text, consecutive characters may sometimes appear in the same row of the character array. In this case, the user may select the row and then press two or more keys of the second user input device 154 in sequence to select the characters. That is, pressing two different keys of the second user input device consecutively without changing the row will enter two different characters in the same row of the character array.
The illustrative embodiments described herein illustrate only a few of the possible combinations of user input devices that may be used to implement the present invention. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that many other combinations of user input devices are possible.
