JP2012256153A - Character input device and portable terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a character input device and a portable terminal that can present a software keyboard with high operability without executing a procedure for a position designation by a user.SOLUTION: A character input device 100 comprises: an inclination detection section 107 for acquiring inclination information about a housing when detecting a display event on a character input screen displayed on a touch panel; a display direction discrimination section 121 for determining a display direction of the character input screen from the inclination information; a first holding hand discrimination section 120 for generating first holding hand information about a hand for holding the housing from the display direction of the character input screen and the inclination information; a layout table 114 for storing character input region information; and a display control section 105 for acquiring the character input region information from the layout table 114 on the basis of the display direction of the character input screen and the first holding hand information generated in the first holding hand discrimination section 120 and displaying the character input region on the character input screen.

Description

  The present invention relates to a character input device and a portable terminal, and more particularly to a character input device and a portable terminal that can provide a software keyboard with high operability.

  In recent mobile terminals and the like, a method of realizing character input by a user by displaying a character input function such as a software keyboard on a touch panel liquid crystal without mounting a hardware keyboard is used.

  In a character input mechanism that combines a software keyboard with a touch panel LCD, the size and position of the software keyboard affects the operability of the user when inputting characters, so a method has been proposed that can display an appropriate size and position. Yes.

  According to a conventional method, for example, in a terminal holding a touch panel type liquid crystal display, the size and display position of a character input area (software keyboard) are calculated by a user's two touch operations and stored in advance. An appropriate one is selected from a software keyboard having a size of 2 and placed at the calculated position (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2009-122890 A

  However, according to the conventional technique, the size and position are calculated based on the information touched by the user at two locations and the software keyboard is presented. Therefore, when the user inputs characters, the position / size is determined. It is necessary to implement the procedure to specify.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional circumstances, and when displaying a software keyboard, by guessing a handle by tilting the terminal and presenting an area that is easy to input according to the handle. An object of the present invention is to provide a character input device and a portable terminal that can present a software keyboard with high operability without performing a position designation procedure by a user.

  In addition, by providing a mechanism to determine the handle based on the history of touch input on the touch panel LCD until the software keyboard is displayed, it is possible to determine the handle with higher accuracy than guessing the handle by tilt. It is an object of the present invention to provide a character input device and a portable terminal that can realize an appropriate software keyboard.

  The character input device of the present invention is a character input device having a touch panel and including a flat housing of a size that can be held with one hand, and when a display event of a character input screen displayed on the touch panel is detected In addition, from the tilt detection unit that acquires the tilt information of the housing, the display direction determination unit that determines the display direction of the character input screen from the tilt information, the display direction of the character input screen and the tilt information, A first hand determination unit that generates first handle information relating to a hand holding the housing, and a right hand corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the housing is held by the right hand and input by the right thumb Layout, left-hand layout corresponding to key arrangement suitable for when the case is held with the left hand and input with the left thumb, and the case is held with the right or left hand and input with the left or right hand A layout table for storing character input area information including a layout for both hands corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the display is performed, the display direction of the character input screen, and the first handle generated by the first handle determination unit A display control unit configured to acquire the character input area information from the layout table based on the handle information and to display the character input area on the character input screen.

  According to the above configuration, when the character input area is displayed on the character input screen of the touch panel, the handle is estimated based on the inclination of the housing, and the character input area that is easy to input according to the handle is presented. A character input area with high operability can be presented without performing the position specifying procedure.

  In the character input device according to the aspect of the invention, the tilt detection unit may include an acceleration sensor that detects the tilt of the housing, and the first handle determination unit may have an upper right end of the housing from an upper left end. The case is determined to be in a state in which the case is held with a right hand and input with a right thumb, and the upper left end of the case is above the upper right end. When the left upper thumb and the upper right edge of the casing are substantially horizontal, the casing is held with the right hand or the left hand and is input with the left hand or the right hand. It is characterized by determining that it is in a state.

  According to the above configuration, the acceleration sensor automatically detects the tilt of the housing to estimate the handle, and displays a character input area that is easy to input according to the handle. The burden can be reduced.

  The character input device according to the present invention further includes: an input history management unit that acquires a touch input history to the touch panel; and a second handle information that relates to a hand holding the housing from the touch input history. The display control unit displays the character input area with reference to the second handle information.

  According to the above configuration, by combining the handle determination based on the input history for the touch panel until the character input area is displayed, the handle determination with higher accuracy than the case of only the handle determination based on the tilt is realized, An appropriate character input area can be presented.

  Further, in the character input device according to the present invention, the touch input history includes a scroll history, and the second handle determination unit draws an arc centered on a lower right side of the touch panel. When it is determined that the casing is held by the right hand and is input by the right thumb, and the scroll history draws an arc centered on the lower left of the touch panel, the casing is held by the left hand and the left hand It is determined that the state is input with a thumb, and when the scroll history does not draw an arc, it is determined that the housing is held with a right hand or a left hand and is input with a left hand or a right hand. And

  According to the above configuration, when the case is held with one hand and the scroll operation is performed with the thumb of the hand, the input locus draws an arc with the base of the thumb as an axis, so the hand is accurately determined based on the scroll history. be able to.

  In the character input device of the present invention, the first holding hand determination unit determines that the casing is held by a right hand or a left hand and is input with a right hand or a left hand, and the second holding hand is used. The display control unit displays the character input area in the two-hand layout when it is determined by the hand determination unit that the casing is held by the left hand or the right hand and is input by the left hand or the right hand. It is characterized by doing.

  According to the above configuration, the character input area is displayed in the two-hand layout when the determinations of the first and second hand determining units are different from each other, so that the inconvenience to the user can be reduced.

  The character input device according to the present invention includes a touch event detection unit that detects an input of a line drawn horizontally during character input to the touch panel, and the layout based on the content of the input of the line drawn horizontally. A layout updating unit for updating the table.

  According to the above configuration, input by touch or flick is the main during character input, so the input of the line drawn horizontally is recognized as a separate event from the character input, and the character display area is based on the line drawn horizontally Can be confirmed.

  In the character input device of the present invention, the touch event detection unit detects a left limit, a right limit, and an upper limit of the horizontally drawn line, and the layout update unit detects the left limit, the right limit, and the upper limit. The layout is updated so that the limit and the area surrounded by the lower end of the touch panel are the character input area.

  According to the above configuration, the input reachable range of the horizontally drawn line changes depending on the size of the hand, so the size and position of the character display area can be customized according to the characteristics of each user.

  Moreover, the portable terminal of this invention is provided with the said character input device, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to the above configuration, the hand is estimated based on the inclination of the housing, and the character input area that is easy to input according to the hand is presented. Therefore, it is possible to provide a mobile terminal having a character input area with high operability. .

  As described above, according to the character input device and the portable terminal according to the present invention, when displaying the software keyboard, the hand is estimated based on the tilt of the terminal, and an area that is easy to input according to the hand is presented. Thus, it is possible to present a software keyboard with high operability without performing a position designation procedure by the user.

  In addition, by combining a mechanism that determines the handle based on the history of touch input to the touch panel LCD until the software keyboard is displayed, it is possible to determine the handle with higher accuracy than in the case of only the guess of the handle based on the tilt. And an appropriate software keyboard can be presented.

The block diagram for demonstrating schematic structure of the character input device 100 concerning embodiment of this invention. The flowchart for demonstrating the handle determination method by the inclination of a housing | casing in embodiment of this invention. The figure for demonstrating the handle determination by the inclination performed in the handle determination part 120 by an inclination. The figure for demonstrating the determination method performed in the handle determination part 120 by an inclination. The figure for demonstrating the method of providing the optimal key arrangement | positioning according to how to hold when a terminal is vertical. The figure for demonstrating the method of providing the optimal key arrangement | positioning according to how to hold, when a terminal is sideways. The flowchart for demonstrating the handle determination method by input log | history in embodiment of this invention. The figure for demonstrating possession discrimination | determination by an input history. The figure which shows the method of improving a precision by adding the handle determination by an input history in addition to the handle determination by an inclination. The flowchart for demonstrating the procedure which customizes the display position of a character input area. The figure for demonstrating the method of performing the input of the line drawn with the finger | toe horizontally and updating a character input area layout, when a housing | casing is vertical. The figure for demonstrating the method of performing the input of the line pulled with the finger | toe horizontally and updating the character input area layout when the housing is in the landscape orientation.

  Hereinafter, a character input device and a mobile terminal according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining a schematic configuration of a character input device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. A character input device 100 according to the present embodiment has a flat housing that can be held with one hand, a display 101 including a liquid crystal panel 102 and a touch sensor 103 (hereinafter referred to as a touch panel), and a liquid crystal panel 102. Displayed on the touch panel, a display control unit 105 including a character input area display control unit 106 for setting a character input area, a touch event detection unit 104 for detecting input of a line drawn horizontally during character input to the touch panel A tilt detection unit 107 including a tilt information generation unit 110 that acquires tilt information of the housing by the geomagnetic sensor 108 and the acceleration sensor 109 when a display event of the character input screen is detected, a touch event detection unit 104, and a tilt detection unit And a character input area management unit 111 that manages the character input area based on information from 107.

  The character input area management unit 111 includes a display direction determination unit 121 that determines the display direction of the character input screen on the touch panel based on the tilt information of the casing generated by the tilt information generation unit 110, the display direction of the character input screen, and From the tilt information, the case is in a state where the case is held with the right hand and input with the right thumb, the case is held with the left hand and is input with the left thumb, or the case is in the right hand or left hand A holding hand discriminating unit 120 that determines whether the input is held with the left hand or the right hand, an input history management unit 118 that manages an input history 119 that stores a touch input history to the touch panel, and touch input From the history, the case is held by the right hand and input with the right thumb, the case is held by the left hand and input by the left thumb, or the case is in the right hand Other comprises a handle discrimination unit 116 and a handle discrimination unit 117 according to the input history to determine whether a state that is entered in the left hand or right hand is held with the left hand.

  In addition, the character input area management unit 111 has a right hand layout corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the case is held with the right hand and input with the right hand thumb, and the case is held with the left hand and input with the left hand thumb. Character input area information including a left-hand layout corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the keyboard is held and a two-hand layout corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the case is held with the right hand or the left hand and input with the left hand or the right hand A layout table 114 that stores information, a layout update unit 115 that updates the layout table 114 based on the input content of the line drawn horizontally supplied from the touch event detection unit 104, and the display direction of the character input screen on the touch panel , Stored in the layout table 114 based on the handle determination information based on the tilt and the handle determination information based on the input history Is provided with a layout manager 112 and a layout selection unit 113 for selecting a layout of the character input area is.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining a method of determining a handle based on the inclination of the housing in the embodiment of the present invention. When detecting the display event of the character input screen displayed on the touch panel (step S201), the tilt detection unit 107 acquires the tilt information of the housing from the geomagnetic sensor 108 and the acceleration sensor 109 (step S202).

  Next, the display direction determination unit 121 determines the display direction of the character input screen displayed on the touch panel from the tilt information of the housing (step S203). Then, based on the display direction and the tilt information of the character input screen, the handle determining unit 120 based on the tilt is in a state where the housing is held with the right hand and input with the right thumb, or the housing is held with the left hand and the left hand. It is determined whether the input is performed with the thumb or whether the casing is held with the right hand or the left hand and is input with the left hand or the right hand (step S204).

  Next, the display control unit 105 acquires character input area information from the layout table 114 based on the handle information generated by the handle determination unit 120 based on the display direction and inclination of the character input screen (step S205). The character input area is displayed on the character input screen of the touch panel (step S206).

  The layout table 114 holds, as character input area information, a right hand layout (pattern 1) corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for a case where the case is held with the right hand and input with the right hand thumb, and the case is held with the left hand. Corresponds to the layout for the left hand (Pattern 2) corresponding to the key arrangement suitable for input with the left thumb and the key arrangement suitable for the case where the case is held with the right / left hand and input with the left / right hand. A two-hand layout (pattern 3) to be stored is stored.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the holding hand discrimination based on the tilting performed by the tilting handle determination unit 120. FIG. 3A is a diagram in which the housing 301 is held by the right hand 302 and input by the right thumb. In this case, FIG. 3B illustrates a case where the housing 304 is held by the left hand 305 and input is performed with the left thumb.

  The background of the discrimination criterion based on the inclination depends on the habit of the individual and the environment at the time of operation. When the terminal 301 is held with the right hand 302, the upper right end of the terminal 301 is above the upper left end, and the terminal 304 is moved with the left hand 305. When it is held, the upper left end of the terminal 304 is above the upper right end, and when holding the terminal with one hand and inputting with the other hand, it is a fact that the upper end of the terminal often keeps the horizontal direction. In addition, although it may not tilt in the case of one hand holding, it does not tilt so much in the opposite direction to the above.

  In this case, the information necessary for determining the handle by tilt is (1) information regarding whether the terminal is tilted to the left or right, and (2) information on the display direction of the screen. (2) can be determined by applying an existing algorithm to the inclination of the terminal.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a determination method performed in the handle determination unit 120 by tilt. FIG. 4A shows a case where the portable terminal 401 is held in a vertical direction in a three-dimensional space in which the XY plane is a horizontal plane and the Z axis is a vertical direction, and the upper left corner of the terminal 401 is represented by coordinates A (X _A , Y _A , Z _A ), and the upper right end of the terminal 401 is a coordinate B (X _B , Y _B , Z _B ). In this case, if Z _A > Z _B , the casing is held with the left hand and input with the left thumb, and if Z _A <Z _B , the casing is held with the right hand and with the right thumb. If it is an input state and Z _A ≈Z _B, it is determined that the terminal is held with one hand and the input is performed with the other hand.

FIG. 4B shows a case where the portable terminal 403 is held in the horizontal direction in a three-dimensional space, the upper left corner of the terminal 403 is the coordinates C (X _C , Y _C , Z _C ), and the upper right corner of the terminal 403 Let the end be the coordinates D (X _D , Y _D , Z _D ). In this case, if Z _C > Z _D , the housing is held with the left hand and input with the left thumb, and if Z _C <Z _D , the housing is held with the right hand and with the right thumb. If it is an input state and Z _C ≈Z _D, it is determined that the terminal is held with one hand and the input is performed with the other hand.

  Further, the inclination of the terminal is also determined by the direction of acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor 109. That is, when the handle is the right hand, the direction of acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor 109 (for example, the direction in which the ball rolls when a small ball is placed on the display surface of the terminal) is determined from the upper right end of the terminal housing. It is detected in the direction toward the lower left corner (that is, the tilt of the display surface of the terminal is also tilted so that the ball rolls in the direction from the upper right end of the terminal casing toward the lower left end). On the other hand, when the handle is the left hand, the direction of acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor 109 (= direction in which the ball rolls) is detected in a direction from the upper left end of the terminal housing to the lower right end. Therefore, the handle can be determined by detecting the direction of acceleration.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a method for providing an optimal key arrangement according to how the terminal is held when the terminal is in a vertical orientation. FIG. 5A shows the position (pattern 2) of the character input area 503 when it is determined that the terminal 501 is held with the left hand 502 and input with the left thumb, and FIG. 5B shows the terminal 504 with the right hand 505. The position (pattern 1) of the character input area 506 when it is determined that it is held and input with the thumb of the right hand is shown.

  In this case, no input area is assigned to the base of the thumb when one-handed input is performed. In addition, the area size per key may be equalized, but the area size per key may be changed according to the distance from the thumb.

  FIG. 5C shows the position (pattern 3) of the character input area 510 when it is determined that the terminal 507 is held by one hand 508 and input by the other hand 509. In this case, the character input area 510 is arranged in the center of the display screen, and the input area size per key is uniform.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a method for providing an optimal key arrangement depending on how to hold the terminal when the terminal is in the horizontal direction. 6A shows the position of the character input area 603 when it is determined that the terminal 601 is held by the left hand 602 and input by the left thumb (pattern 2), and FIG. 6B shows the terminal 605 by the right hand 606. The position (pattern 1) of the character input area 607 when it is determined that the character is held and input with the thumb of the right hand is shown.

  When the terminal is in landscape orientation, no input area is assigned to the base of the thumb, and no character input area is assigned to the part where the thumb does not reach.

  FIG. 6C shows the position (pattern 3) of the character input area 612 when it is determined that the terminal 609 is held by one hand 610 and input by the other hand 611. In this case, the character input area 612 is arranged at the center of the display screen, and the input area size per key is uniform.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a holding hand discrimination method based on an input history in the embodiment of the present invention. The input history management unit 118 acquires the touch input history including the scroll history to the touch panel from the touch event detection unit 104 (step S701), and stores it in the input history database 119. The handle determination unit 117 based on the input history determines a handle from the touch input history stored in the input history database 119 (step S702).

  Next, the display control unit 105 acquires character input area information from the layout table 114 based on the handle information generated by the handle determination unit 117 based on the display direction of the character input screen and the input history (step S703). ), A character input area is displayed on the character input screen of the touch panel (step S704).

  FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the holding hand discrimination based on the input history. FIG. 8A shows a case where the case 801 is held by the right hand 802 and input is performed with the right thumb, and FIG. A case where 806 is held by the left hand 807 and input with the thumb of the left hand is shown.

  The background of the discrimination criterion based on the input history depends on the habit of the individual and the environment at the time of operation, but when an operation such as scrolling is performed, the input loci 804, 805, 809, and 810 are centered on the thumb bases 803 and 808. The fact that it draws an arc. This tendency becomes more prominent as the length of the scroll track becomes longer.

  That is, when the housing 801 is held with the right hand 802, the scroll operation is shifted from the upper right of the housing 801 to the lower left direction, and when the housing 806 is held with the left hand 807, the scroll operation is moved from the upper left of the housing 806 to the lower right. Deviate. Note that when the case is held with one hand and the other hand is used for input, this tendency is unlikely to occur because the case is not tied to the base of the thumb.

  Information necessary for this determination is information of scroll input by the user, and the determination accuracy increases if there are a plurality of histories.

  The method for realizing this determination is that the scroll input information is held as the terminal history, and when the scroll history has a large amount of input information from the upper right to the lower left, or from the lower left to the upper right, it is determined that the input is right hand, and the scroll history is determined from the upper left to the right. When there is a lot of input information from the lower or upper right to the upper left, it is determined that the input is left hand. In addition, when the determination is mixed, the determination is performed with priority on the one having a long trajectory. On the other hand, when the holding hand cannot be determined, it is determined that the case is held with one hand and input is performed with the other hand (two-hand input).

  FIG. 9 shows a method for improving accuracy by adding a handle determination based on an input history in addition to a handle determination based on an inclination. Based on the handle information obtained by the two determination criteria of the inclination of the housing and the input history, the determination as shown in the figure is performed to determine the handle.

  That is, when the discrimination based on the tilt matches the discrimination based on the touch panel input history, a matching handle is estimated. Further, when one of the determinations is established and the other determination is performed by holding the casing with both hands, that is, one hand and inputting with the other hand. If both determinations are reversed, it is estimated that the case is in a state where the case is held with one hand and the other hand is used for input.

  Note that pattern 1 in the figure is the arrangement of the character input area when it is determined that the terminal is held with the right hand and input with the right hand thumb (FIG. 5B), and pattern 2 holds the terminal with the left hand. The arrangement of the character input area when it is determined that the input is performed with the left thumb (FIG. 5A), and the pattern 3 is determined when the terminal is held with one hand and input with the other hand. This is the arrangement of the character input area (FIG. 5C).

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the procedure for customizing the display position of the character input area. The touch event detection unit 104 detects the occurrence of a line drawn horizontally during character input (step S1001), and the layout update unit 115 updates the corresponding layout table 114 based on the content of the line drawn horizontally. (Step S1002).

  The background of this procedure is the fact that input by touch or flick is the main during character input, so that the input of a line drawn horizontally is easily recognized as an event different from character input. Since the input range of the line drawn horizontally changes depending on the hand size and the like, the size and position of the display area can be matched to the characteristics of each user.

  The information necessary for this procedure is touch panel input event information. Also, in the method of realizing this procedure, when the input of a line drawn horizontally is detected during character input, the layout (size, position) information of the character input area is updated based on the contents of the drawn line.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a method of updating a character input area layout by inputting a line drawn horizontally by a finger when the casing is in a vertical orientation, and FIG. FIG. 11B shows an example in which the body 1101 is held with the right hand 1102, FIG. 11B shows an example in which the casing 1111 is held with the left hand 1112, and FIG. An example of input at 1123 is shown.

  In FIG. 11A, a line (horizontal bar) 1103 is input from a far position to a near position with the thumb of the right hand 1102 (the direction may be either). It is preferable that the vertical position of the horizontal bar 1103 is as high as possible within the reachable range. The position close to the thumb is input as close as possible within the range that can be easily operated. Based on the drawn line 1103, the left limit 1106, the right limit 1107, and the upper limit 1108 are detected, and the character input area 1110 can be determined.

  In FIG. 11B, a line (horizontal bar) 1113 is input from a far position to a near position with the thumb of the left hand 1112. Based on the drawn line 1113, the left limit 1116, the right limit 1117, and the upper limit 1118 are detected, and the character input area 1120 can be determined.

  In FIG. 11C, a line (horizontal bar) 1124 is input from a far position to a near position with the index finger of the right hand 1123. Based on the drawn line 1124, the left limit 1127, the right limit 1128, and the upper limit 1129 are detected, and the character input area 1131 can be determined.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining a method of updating a character input area layout by inputting a line drawn horizontally by a finger when the casing is in the horizontal direction. Also in this case, the horizontal bar 1202 is input from the far side of the thumb to the front of the thumb (either direction may be used). It is preferable that the vertical position of the line (horizontal bar) 1202 is as high as possible within a range that can be easily reached. It is preferable that the position in front of the thumb is as close as possible as long as it can be easily operated.

  Based on the drawn line 1202, the left limit 1205, the right limit 1206, and the upper limit 1207 are detected, and the character input area 1209 can be determined. Note that it is not preferable to place the character input area 1209 on the upper side because an area other than the character input cannot be seen. Also, the right part of the right limit 1206 is not used for input.

  As described above, according to the character input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, when displaying the character input area, a hand is estimated based on the tilt of the terminal, and an area that is easy to input according to the hand is provided. By presenting, it is possible to present a character input area with high operability without performing a position designation procedure by the user.

  In addition, by combining a mechanism for determining the handle based on the touch input history to the touch panel until the character input area is displayed, the determination of the handle is more accurate than when the handle is estimated only by tilt. And an appropriate character input area can be presented.

  The character input device according to the present invention has an effect that a software keyboard with high operability can be provided, and can be used as a character input device of a portable terminal.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Character input device 101 Display 102 Liquid crystal panel 103 Touch sensor 104 Touch event detection part 105 Display control part 106 Character input area display control part 107 Inclination detection part 108 Geomagnetic sensor 109 Acceleration sensor 110 Inclination information generation part 111 Character input area management part 112 Layout management unit 113 Layout selection unit 114 Layout table 115 Layout update unit 116 Hand discriminating unit 117 Hand discriminating unit based on input history 118 Input history managing unit 119 Input history database 120 Hand discriminating unit based on tilt 121 Display direction discriminating unit 301 Body 302 Right hand 303 Character input area 305 Left hand 804, 805 Input locus 803 Thumb base 1106 Left limit 1107 Right limit 1108 Upper limit

Claims (8)

A character input device including a flat housing having a touch panel and a size that can be held with one hand,
A tilt detection unit that acquires tilt information of the housing when a display event of a character input screen displayed on the touch panel is detected;
A display direction determination unit that determines a display direction of the character input screen from the tilt information;
A first handle determination unit that generates first handle information related to a hand holding the housing from the display direction of the character input screen and the tilt information;
A right-hand layout corresponding to a key arrangement suitable for the case where the casing is held with the right hand and input with the right thumb, and a key arrangement suitable for the case where the casing is held with the left hand and input with the left thumb. A layout table for storing character input area information including a corresponding left-hand layout, and a two-hand layout corresponding to a key arrangement suitable when the casing is held with a right hand or a left hand and input with a left hand or a right hand;
Based on the display direction of the character input screen and the first handle information generated by the first handle determination unit, the character input area information is acquired from the layout table, and the character input screen is displayed. A character input device comprising: a display control unit that displays a character input area. The character input device according to claim 1,
The tilt detection unit includes an acceleration sensor that detects the tilt of the housing,
The first handle determination unit determines that the casing is held by a right hand and is input by a right thumb when the upper right end of the casing is above the upper left end;
When the upper left end of the casing is above the upper right end, it is determined that the casing is in a state of being held with a left hand and being input with a left thumb,
A character input device, wherein when the upper left end and upper right end of the casing are substantially horizontal, it is determined that the casing is in a state of being held with a right hand or a left hand and being input with a left hand or a right hand. The character input device according to claim 1,
An input history management unit for acquiring a touch input history to the touch panel;
A second handle determination unit that generates second handle information related to the hand holding the housing from the touch input history,
The display control unit displays the character input area with reference to the second handle information. The character input device according to claim 3,
The touch input history includes a scroll history,
The second handle determination unit determines that the casing is held by a right hand and input by a right thumb when the scroll history draws an arc centered on a lower right side of the touch panel. ,
When the scroll history draws an arc centered on the lower left of the touch panel, it is determined that the housing is in a state of being held with the left hand and being input with the left thumb,
When the scroll history does not draw an arc, the character input device determines that the casing is in a state of being held with a right hand or a left hand and being input with a left hand or a right hand. The character input device according to claim 4,
The first handle determination unit determines that the housing is in a state of being held with a right hand or a left hand and being input with a right hand or a left hand,
When it is determined by the second handle determining unit that the casing is held by the left hand or the right hand and is input by the left hand or the right hand,
The display control unit displays the character input area in the two-hand layout. The character input device according to claim 1,
A touch event detection unit that detects input of a line drawn horizontally during character input to the touch panel;
A character input device, comprising: a layout update unit that updates the layout table based on input contents of the line drawn horizontally. The character input device according to claim 6,
The touch event detection unit detects a left limit, a right limit, and an upper limit of the line drawn horizontally,
The layout update unit updates a layout so that a region surrounded by the left limit, right limit and upper limit, and a lower end of the touch panel is the character input region.   A portable terminal comprising the character input device according to claim 1.

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