JP4577144B2 - Kana character input device, kana character input method, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a kana character input device, a kana character input method, and a program. More specifically, the present invention is suitable for a small terminal device such as a portable terminal device, and can input kana characters with a small number of key inputs. The present invention relates to a character input device, a kana character input method, and a program.

  Conventionally, in a small terminal device in which an input keyboard is small and 50 kana characters must be assigned to less than 50 keys, a plurality of characters are assigned to one key, and one key is pressed continuously. By switching the character each time the key is pressed, it is possible to input 50 kana characters. Such an input method will be described by taking as an example a mobile phone that inputs kana characters using 12 dial keys.

  In a mobile phone, “Akasana Hamayawa” and the first character of the 50-note table are assigned to 12 input keys. For example, if the key assigned to the first character “A” is pressed continuously, “A The input characters "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" are switched in the order of the characters in the line, thereby enabling the input of a plurality of characters with one key. However, for example, when “O” is input, it is necessary to press the key in the row five times in succession, and it is necessary to input the key many times. For example, an average of three key presses is required to input one kana character.

  Patent Document 1 describes a kana character input method that can input kana characters with a smaller number of times using keys arranged in three rows and three rows. In the method described in this document, in the initial state, as shown in FIG. 6A, the first character of each line of the 50-note table is assigned to the key. Note that only the “WA” line is arranged in the remaining other stages. When the key of the first character in any line is pressed, the key assignment is changed from the initial state to the five kana characters in the line including the first character, as shown in FIG. By pressing one key, the desired kana character can be pressed. In this example, the “A” row is selected.

  Patent Document 2 has 15 keys arranged in 5 rows x 3 rows, assigns the first character of the 50-sound table to the keys in the order of the rows, and if there is a first key input, the key assignment is changed, The whole key of the first line is assigned the five kana characters of the line including the first character keyed in the first time, and the whole key of the second line is assigned to the key of the first line. The kana character's muffled sound is assigned, and the entire key in the third row is the same as the kana character assigned to the key in the first row, the kana character's semi-voiced sound, or the lower case letter of the kana character (sounding sound) Is assigned.

JP 2002-123360 A (FIGS. 1 and 2) JP 2004-21434 A JP 2004-220386 A

  In the kana character input methods described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, after pressing a key assigned to a line head character, it is essential to select a kana character on that line. Therefore, for example, even when “a” level kana characters continue, at least two key inputs are required, and there is a problem that the number of key inputs is not sufficiently reduced.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a kana character input device, a kana character input method, and a program capable of further reducing the number of key inputs.

In order to achieve the above object, a kana character input device of the present invention includes a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows × 3 columns, and a key assignment control unit that controls key assignment of the keyboard, A kana character input device that accepts key input of sound kana characters,
The key assignment control unit
In the initial state, a function for assigning the first character of each line to the key in the 50-note table;
When a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any one of the line head characters is generated from the initial state, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is displayed on the line head in the 50-note table. possess the function assigned respectively to a subsequent 4 Tsunokana characters in the character,
The assigning function is such that when the keys of the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table after the first key input, the four kana characters that follow the first character of the line are assigned. This is a function of assigning characters from the top key to the bottom, and assigning the remaining characters from the top to the bottom .

The kana character input method of the present invention is a kana character input method that accepts key input of 50 kana characters by controlling key assignment of a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows × 3 columns. And
Assigning the first character of each line to the key in a 50-note table in an initial state;
Receiving key input in the initial state;
In the step of receiving a key input in the initial state, when a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any one of the line head characters is received, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is changed to 50. possess and assigning each of the 4 Tsunokana character subsequent to the line head character sound table,
In the assigning step, after the first key input, when the keys in the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table, the four kana characters that follow the first character in the row are assigned. Characters are assigned from the key pressed by the first key input to the bottom, and the rest are assigned from the top to the bottom .

Furthermore, the program of the present invention is a program for a computer that accepts key input of 50 kana characters by controlling key assignment of a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows × 3 columns, In the computer,
In the initial state, the process of assigning the first character of each line in the 50-note table to the key;
Processing to accept key input in the initial state;
In the process of accepting a key input in the initial state, when a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any of the line head characters is accepted, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is changed to 50. A process of assigning each of the four kana characters following the first character of the line in the phonetic table ,
In the assigning process, after the first key input, when the keys of the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table, the four kana characters that follow the first character of the line are assigned. Characters are assigned from the key pressed in the first key input to the bottom, and the rest are assigned from the top to the bottom .

  According to the kana character input device, the kana character input method, and the program of the present invention, there is a first key input for the key assigned to the first character in the 50-sound table when assigning keys in the initial state. Then, the key of the column in which the key is input is assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table. For this reason, when it is desired to confirm with the input first character of the line, another column may be input by key, and subsequent key input becomes unnecessary, and a kana character can be input by one key input. In addition, since the input of Kana characters other than the first character in the row can be confirmed by pressing the key of the column whose assignment has been changed by the second key input, it is possible to input the Kana character by performing the key input twice. Therefore, the input of kana characters can be confirmed by one or two key inputs, except for muddy and semi-voiced sounds, and the number of key inputs can be reduced as compared with the prior art.

  The above-described kana character input device and method can be realized, for example, by configuring the key assignment control unit with a computer. In this case, this is preferably realized by a program for controlling the computer. To transition from the initial state, or from the key assignment state when the first key input, the second key input, and the subsequent key input are made to the next key assignment state, for example, all cases assumed Can be realized by storing them in a storage device.

In a preferred aspect of the kana character input device of the present invention, the key assignment control unit includes:
If the second key input subsequent to the first key input is a key press in the same column as the first key input, the input of the kana character corresponding to the pressed key is confirmed and the key assignment is performed. A function of returning to the initial state,
When the second key input is a key input in a column different from the first key input, the input of the line head character assigned to the key pressed in the first key input is confirmed, and The key of the column pressed by the first key input is restored to the initial state, and the key of the column pressed by the second key input is pressed by the second key input in a 50-note table. And a function of assigning to the four kana characters following the first character. As a result, except for muddy sounds and semi-voiced sounds, kana characters that are sequentially input can be determined by one or two key inputs.

The key assignment control unit
If the key input generated when the key assignment is not in the initial state is a key press in the same column as the previous key input, the character assigned to the key pressed by the generated key input is confirmed and the key assignment is confirmed. A function of returning to the initial state,
When the generated key input is a key press in a column different from the previous key input, the input of the first character assigned to the key pressed in the previous key input is confirmed and the previous key input The key of the column that was pressed in step 1 is returned to the initial state, and the key of the column that was pressed by the generated key input is changed to the first character of the line that was pressed by the generated key input in the 50-note table. It is a preferable aspect of the kana character input device of the present invention to further have a function of assigning to the following four kana characters. By sequentially inputting kana characters, kana characters are determined sequentially.

  It is also a preferred aspect of the present invention that the key assignment control unit assigns two keys other than the ten keys assigned to the line head character in the initial state to a muddy point and a semi-voiced point. Kana characters having a muddy sound and a semi-muddy sound can be input. In this case, the input of a kana character having a muddy sound or a semi-turbid sound requires three or less key inputs.

  In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the key assignment control unit displays characters assigned to each key on a key top, and when the key assignment is changed, the key top display is changed in accordance with the change. is there. For example, the technique described in Patent Document 3 can be used to change the key top display.

  When the keys of the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table after the first key input, respectively, according to the order of the four kana characters that follow the first character. A mode in which keys are assigned from the top to the bottom is possible, or alternatively, four kana characters following the first character in the line are set with the key pressed by the first key input as the first. It is also possible to assign from the top level to the bottom level.

  The kana character input device of the present invention is preferably applied to a mobile terminal device such as a mobile phone having a small keyboard. In this case, the key assignment control unit further has a function of assigning the keys to at least numerals 0-9.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a kana character input device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The kana character input device 10 receives a keyboard 11 used for key input, a control device 12 having a key assignment control unit 14 and a character conversion unit 15, and outputs from the control device 12. And a display device 13 for displaying the converted kanji and the like.

  The key assignment control unit 14 selects a numeric input mode, a hiragana kana character input mode, a katakana kana character input mode (kana character input mode), or an alphabetic character input mode as an input mode, and a kana character input. In the mode (including Kana character input mode), in the initial state, a function for assigning each key of the keyboard 11 to the first character of the line of the 50-note table, a function for recognizing the input key, and a corresponding key are input. It has a function of changing the key assignment of the keyboard, a function of displaying the kana characters assigned to each key on the key top, and a function of determining an input character by pressing the key. When the conversion key is pressed while the kana character is displayed, the character conversion unit outputs a candidate for kana / kanji conversion, and when the confirmation key is pressed while the candidate is output, the candidate And a function for determining

  An input mode conversion key (character switching key) (not shown) is provided separately from the keyboard 11, and when pressed without any character input, the key assignment control unit 14 inputs the next input mode after the current input mode. Select. In addition, when the input mode conversion key is pressed in a state where the input of kana characters has been made, the input kana characters are converted into lower case letters (promotion sounds).

  On the keyboard, input keys (keys) 21 are arranged over 4 rows × 3 columns. When a kana character input mode (or kana character input mode) is selected by an input mode conversion key, each key is in an initial state. Is assigned. FIG. 2 shows the key assignment of each key in both the numeric input mode and the kana character input mode. In the numeric input mode, the numbers 1 to 9 are assigned to the top three keys from the top left to the bottom right, and *, 0, and # are assigned to the bottom key.

  In the initial state in the kana character input mode, the first three rows of keys in the upper row are sequentially assigned the first characters “a” to “ra” of the 50-note table from the upper left to the lower right. In addition, a muddy point, “wa”, and semi-turbid point are assigned to the keys in the bottom row sequentially from the left. When there is a key input from the initial state, the key in that column is assigned to the kana character following the first character on the line assigned to the pressed key. This will be described in detail below.

  FIG. 3 shows the key assignment after the key assigned to the first character “ka” in the first input is pressed. When “ka” is pressed by the first key input, the control device 12 (key assignment control unit 14) displays “ka” on the display device 13 as the input candidate character. At the same time, the control device 12 converts the four keys arranged in the corresponding column of the pressed first character to “ki”, “ku”, “ke” following the first character “ka” in the 50-note table. , “K” is assigned to the four kana characters sequentially from the top. Subsequently, when “ku” in the second line from the top is pressed, the control device 12 determines the key input character as “ku” and changes the character displayed on the display device 13 from “ka”. Switch to “ku”.

  When inputting the first character of the line of the 50-sound table, after pressing the first character of the line, pressing a key other than the column to which the key corresponding to the pressed character belongs will confirm the input of the first character pressed first. To do. Alternatively, the first character of the line can be confirmed by pressing the confirmation key. In this case, the key assignment returns to the initial state. If the columns are counted as one column, two columns, and three columns from the left, and the rows are counted as one row, two rows, three rows, and four rows from the top, for example, when inputting “a” in the initial state, Press the key in the first column / first row assigned to “a”. The control device 12 determines “A” as an input character candidate, and displays the determined “A” on the display device 13. Next, the control device 12 changes the key assignment in the first column as shown in FIG. Other columns remain in the initial state. Next, when a key other than the first column, for example, “NA” is pressed, the control device 12 determines “A” input previously. Here, for example, when inputting “Kamoi”, it is expressed as “27 * 11” when expressed by a numeric key in FIG.

  The input of muddy sound or semi-muddy sound is performed as follows. In the initial mode, either the lowest cloud point or the half cloud point can be used. Therefore, when the input of the kana character other than the first character of the line of the 50-sound table is finished, the muddy character or the semi-turbid character is added to the kana character by pressing the key to which the makuten or semi-turbid character is assigned. When the cloud or semi-cloudy point is pressed in the initial state, the key assignment remains in the initial state, and if the cloud or semi-cloudy point is pressed in a state other than the initial state, the initial state is transitioned to. When adding a cloud or semi-cloudy point to the first character of the line, the key is pressed in the initial state, and once confirmed with the confirm key, the cloud or half-cloudy point is pressed. For example, in order to input “Pa”, after “ha” is once confirmed with the confirm key, the half-dakuten key is pressed. In this case, the number of key inputs is three. On the other hand, when inputting “ba” or “ga”, the key of the cloud point can be pressed immediately after pressing “ha” or “ka”. In this case, the number of times of key input may be two. .

  FIG. 5 shows the state of key assignment state transition. This state transition diagram is stored in the nonvolatile memory device as a transition table. With reference to the state transition diagram of FIG. 5, key input in the case of inputting “Kamoi” will be described. In the initial state in the kana character input mode, the key assignment a1 shown in the center of FIG. 5 is performed. In the initial state shown in a1, a total of 12 characters including the first 10 characters of the line of the 50-sound table and the dakuten and semi-dakuten are assigned to the input keys. When the key assigned with “ka” is pressed in the state a1, “ka” is selected as an input candidate character, and the state transitions to the state a5, where the key in the second column assigned to “Kana Yawa” is selected. Assigned to “Kikukeko”.

  Next, when “MA” is pressed, the previous input candidate character “KA” is confirmed as the input character, and “MA” becomes an input candidate and shifts to the state a4. At this time, the key in the second column assigned to “Kikukeko” returns to the initial state of “Kana Yawa”, and “Atama” and muddy point in the first column follow “M” in the 50-note table. Assigned to “Mimume”. Next, when the key to which “M” is assigned is pressed, the previous input candidate character “MA” is replaced with “MO”, and “MO” is determined as the input character. At the same time, the key assignment shifts to the initial state a1, and the key assigned to “Mimume” in the first row is replaced with “Atama” and a cloud point assignment. Next, when “A” is pressed, “A” is selected as an input candidate character, and “Atama” in the first column and a key assigned with a dakuten are assigned to “IUEO”. Next, when the key to which “I” is assigned is pressed, the input candidate character “A” is replaced with “I”, and “I” is confirmed as the input character. At the same time, the key assignment shifts to the initial state a1, and “I” The key that was assigned “Ueo” is assigned to “Atama” and the dakuten.

  For example, in the method generally used in the conventional mobile phone, it is necessary to press a key three times on average to input one character, and the technique shown in FIG. Met. However, in the kana character input device according to the above-described embodiment, one character can be input by pressing the key twice or less. For example, in the case of inputting “Kamoi”, in the conventional mobile phone, it is necessary to press the key eight times as “27777711” as indicated by the numeric keys. Further, in the method shown in FIG. 6, if expressed in the same way, “217512” and six key inputs are required. However, in the Kana character input device of the above-described embodiment, it is possible to input “27 * 11” by pressing the key five times in the same manner.

  The key assignment transition diagram shown in FIG. 5 describes, for example, the current assignment state, the generated key input, and the assignment state after the key input, in association with each other in the table. By storing such a transition table in a nonvolatile storage device or the like, the key assignment control device 14 can change the key assignment promptly.

  In the above description, the function of the key assignment control unit 14 as a kana character input device has been described. However, the same input is possible even for kana characters (kana characters) of katakana. In addition to the key assignment control unit 14, the control device 12 includes a character conversion unit 15 that also has a kana / kanji conversion function by pressing a conversion key following input of a kana character. Can be converted to Kanji.

  In the above embodiment, an example has been shown in which four kana characters following the first character in the 50-note table are sequentially assigned from the uppermost key to the lowermost key. The four kana characters may be assigned from the key assigned to the first character of the line to the bottom and then assigned to the bottom, and the remaining characters may be assigned sequentially from the top to the bottom. For example, if you press the second “NA” from the top of the row that is lined with “Kana Yawa”, the assignment of the Kana character in the row that was pressed will be the row that is lined with “Ninane” in order from the top. It may be replaced, or may be replaced with “Noninune”.

  Although the present invention has been described based on the preferred embodiment, the kana character input device, the kana character method, and the program of the present invention are not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and What carried out various correction | amendment and change from the structure of an aspect is also contained in the scope of the present invention. In addition, each configuration described as a preferred aspect of the present invention or each configuration described in the embodiment is preferably used together with the essential configuration of the present invention, but about a configuration that exhibits a beneficial effect even when used alone. However, it is not always necessary to use all the configurations described as the essential configurations of the present invention.

  The kana character input device, method, and program of the present invention are preferably used for a mobile terminal device such as a mobile phone.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the kana character input device which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The top view of the keyboard which shows the key of the initial state in the kana character input device of FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a keyboard showing key assignment after a key assigned to “ka” from the key assignment in FIG. 2 is pressed. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a keyboard showing key assignment after a key assigned to “A” from the key assignment in FIG. 2 is pressed. A diagram showing a transition of key assignment. (A) And (b) is a table | surface which shows the key assignment described in patent document 1. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

10: Kana character input device 11: Keyboard 12: Control device 13: Display device 14: Key assignment control unit 15: Character conversion unit

Claims (10)

A kana character input device that includes a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows and 3 columns, and a key assignment control unit that controls key assignment of the keyboard, and accepts key input of 50 kana characters,
The key assignment control unit
In the initial state, a function for assigning the first character of each line to the key in the 50-note table;
When a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any one of the line head characters is generated from the initial state, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is displayed on the line head in the 50-note table. possess the function assigned respectively to a subsequent 4 Tsunokana characters in the character,
The assigning function is such that when the keys of the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table after the first key input, the four kana characters that follow the first character of the line are assigned. A kana character input device having a function of assigning characters from the key pressed in the first key entry to the bottom, and assigning the rest from the top to the bottom . The key assignment control unit
If the second key input subsequent to the first key input is a key press in the same column as the first key input, the input of the kana character corresponding to the pressed key is confirmed and the key assignment is performed. A function of returning to the initial state,
When the second key input is a key input in a column different from the first key input, the input of the line head character assigned to the key pressed in the first key input is confirmed, and The key of the column pressed by the first key input is restored to the initial state, and the key of the column pressed by the second key input is pressed by the second key input in a 50-note table. The kana character input device according to claim 1, further comprising a function of assigning to the four kana characters that follow the line start character. The key assignment control unit
When the key input generated when the key assignment is not in the initial state is a key press in the same column as the previous key input, the input of the character assigned to the key pressed by the generated key input is confirmed, and A function for returning the key assignment to the initial state;
When the generated key input is a key press in a column different from the previous key input, the input of the first character assigned to the key pressed in the previous key input is confirmed and the previous key input The key of the column that was pressed in step 5 returns to the initial state, and the key of the column that was pressed by the generated key input becomes the first character of the line of the 50-sound table pressed by the generated key input. The kana character input device according to claim 2, further comprising a function of assigning to the subsequent four kana characters.   4. The kana character input device according to claim 2, wherein the key assignment control unit assigns two keys other than the ten keys assigned to the first character in the line in the initial state to a dakuten or a semi-dakuten. 5.   The key assignment control unit has a function of displaying characters assigned to each key on a key top, and changing the key top display in accordance with the change when the key assignment is changed. 4. The kana character input device according to any one of 4. A mobile phone comprising the kana character input device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the key assignment control unit further has a function of assigning the keys to at least numerals 0 to 9. A kana character input method for accepting key input of 50 kana characters by controlling key assignment of a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows and 3 columns,
Assigning the first character of each line to the key in a 50-note table in an initial state;
Receiving key input in the initial state;
In the step of receiving a key input in the initial state, when a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any one of the line head characters is received, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is changed to 50. possess and assigning each of the 4 Tsunokana characters subsequent to the line head character sound table,
In the assigning step, after the first key input, when the keys in the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table, the four kana characters that follow the first character in the row are assigned. A kana character input method, wherein a character is assigned from the key pressed in the first key entry toward the bottom, and the rest is assigned from the top to the bottom . Receiving a second key input subsequent to the first key input;
In the step of accepting the second key input, when a key press in the same column as the first key input is accepted, a kana character corresponding to the pressed key is output and the key assignment is returned to the initial state. And steps to
In the step of accepting the second key input, if a key press in a column different from the first key input is accepted, the input of the line head character assigned to the key pressed in the first key input is determined. At the same time, the key of the column pressed by the first key input is returned to the initial state, and the key of the column pressed by the second key input is changed to the second key in the 50-note table. The kana character input method according to claim 7 , further comprising a step of assigning to four kana characters following the first character pressed in the input. Receiving a key input generated when the key assignment is not in an initial state;
If the generated key input is a key press in the same column as the previous key input, the input of the character assigned to the key pressed by the generated key input is confirmed and the key assignment is set to the initial state. Step to return,
When the generated key input is a key press in a column different from the previous key input, the input of the first character assigned to the key pressed in the previous key input is confirmed and the previous key input The key of the column that was pressed in step 1 is returned to the initial state, and the key of the column that was pressed by the generated key input is changed to the first character of the line that was pressed by the generated key input in the 50-note table. The kana character input method according to claim 8 , further comprising a step of assigning to the subsequent four kana characters. A program for a computer that accepts key input of 50 kana characters by controlling key assignment of a keyboard having keys arranged in at least 4 rows and 3 columns, the computer comprising:
In the initial state, the process of assigning the first character of each line in the 50-note table to the key;
Processing to accept key input in the initial state;
In the process of accepting a key input in the initial state, when a first key input for pressing a key assigned to any of the line head characters is accepted, the key of the column in which the first key input is generated is changed to 50. A process of assigning each of the four kana characters following the first character of the line in the phonetic table ,
In the assigning process, after the first key input, when the keys of the column are assigned to the four kana characters that follow the first character in the 50-note table, the four kana characters that follow the first character of the line are assigned. A program which is a process of assigning characters from the key pressed in the first key entry toward the bottom and assigning the rest from the top to the bottom .

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