CN114356113A

CN114356113A - Input method and input device

Info

Publication number: CN114356113A
Application number: CN202111619008.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李培文
Original assignee: Vivo Mobile Communication Co Ltd
Current assignee: Vivo Mobile Communication Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-12-27
Filing date: 2021-12-27
Publication date: 2022-04-15
Also published as: WO2023125155A1

Abstract

The application discloses an input method and an input device, and belongs to the technical field of communication. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a first input aiming at a first area under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, wherein the first area is an area except a keyboard area of the input method interface; responding to a first input, displaying N candidate input objects in a candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in an input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is larger than or equal to M; receiving a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects; in response to the second input, the first candidate input object is displayed in the input box.

Description

Input method and input device

Technical Field

The present application belongs to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, relates to an input method and an input apparatus.

Background

With the wide application of electronic devices, the input method has also been developed rapidly. The user can input characters and various symbols in the electronic equipment by operating the virtual keyboard of the input method.

Currently, when a user operates a virtual keyboard, the user needs to operate at a display position of a virtual key, so that an input mode in an electronic device is single.

Disclosure of Invention

An object of the embodiments of the present application is to provide an input method and an input device, which can solve the problem of single input mode.

In order to solve the technical problem, the present application is implemented as follows:

in a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an input method, where the method includes: receiving a first input aiming at a first area under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, wherein the first area is an area except a keyboard area of the input method interface; responding to a first input, displaying N candidate input objects in a candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in an input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is larger than or equal to M; receiving a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects; in response to a second input, the first candidate input object is displayed in an input box.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an input device, which includes a receiving module and a display module. The receiving module is used for receiving a first input aiming at a first area under the condition that the electronic equipment displays the input method interface, wherein the first area is an area except a keyboard area of the input interface. The display module is used for responding to the first input and displaying N candidate input objects in the candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in the input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is larger than or equal to M. The receiving module is further configured to receive a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects. The display module is further used for responding to the second input and displaying the first candidate input object in the input box.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an electronic device, which includes a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored on the memory and executable on the processor, and when executed by the processor, the program or instructions implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a readable storage medium, on which a program or instructions are stored, which when executed by a processor implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, where the chip includes a processor and a communication interface, where the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute a program or instructions to implement the method according to the first aspect.

In the embodiment of the application, under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, receiving first input aiming at a first area; responding to the first input, and displaying N candidate input objects in a candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in an input method interface; receiving a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects; in response to the second input, the first candidate input object is displayed in the input box. By receiving a first input for the first region, the electronic device displays N candidate input objects corresponding to the M virtual keys in the candidate region, and thus, the electronic device may display a candidate input object in the input box in response to an input to the candidate input object. In this way, when a user needs to input contents in the input box, the user can operate in the display positions of the virtual keys and can also operate in the areas except the keyboard area of the input method interface, and therefore the problem that the input method is single in operation mode is solved.

Drawings

Fig. 1(a) is a schematic view of a display interface of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 1(b) is one of schematic diagrams of an input method interface provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 1(c) is a second schematic diagram of an input method interface provided in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic flow chart of an input method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 is one of schematic interfaces of an input method application provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4(a) is a second schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4(b) is a third schematic interface diagram of an application of the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4(c) is a fourth schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a fifth schematic view of an interface of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

fig. 6 is a second schematic flowchart of an input method according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a sixth schematic view of an interface of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a seventh schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

fig. 9(a) is an eighth schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9(b) is a ninth schematic view of an interface of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 10(a) is a tenth schematic diagram of an interface of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 10(b) is an eleventh schematic diagram of an interface of an input method application provided in the embodiments of the present application;

fig. 11(a) is a twelfth schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11(b) is a thirteen schematic interface diagram of an input method application provided in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of an input device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is a hardware schematic diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are some, but not all, embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments that can be derived by one of ordinary skill in the art from the embodiments given herein are intended to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

The terms first, second and the like in the description and in the claims of the present application are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It will be appreciated that the data so used may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances such that embodiments of the application may be practiced in sequences other than those illustrated or described herein, and that the terms "first," "second," and the like are generally used herein in a generic sense and do not limit the number of terms, e.g., the first term can be one or more than one. In addition, "and/or" in the specification and claims means at least one of connected objects, a character "/" generally means that a preceding and succeeding related objects are in an "or" relationship.

The input method provided by the embodiment of the present application is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings through specific embodiments and application scenarios thereof.

For ease of understanding, first, an input method interface of an electronic device will be described with reference to fig. 1(a) to 1 (c).

Fig. 1(a) shows a display interface of an electronic device. As shown in fig. 1(a), the display interface of the electronic device includes an input box 10, and after a user inputs (for example, clicks on the input box 10) on the input box 10, the electronic device can detect an input operation performed on the input box 10 by the user, and enter an input state. In the input state, the electronic device will display an editing interface of the input method editor, i.e. the input method interface 20, as shown in fig. 1 (b). As shown in fig. 1(B), prior to a user entering an input into the input interface 20, the input method interface 20 may include a toolbar area 20A and a keyboard area 20B. The keyboard area 20B may include various virtual keys, such as punctuation keys 201, number keys 204, letter keys 202, function keys 203, and the like. The toolbar area 20A may include a number of tool buttons, such as an emoticon button 205, an input method switch button 206, a setup button 207, a voice button 208, and the like. As shown in fig. 1(C), after the user inputs into the input interface 20, the toolbar region 20A in the input method interface 20 is replaced with candidate regions, which may include a pinyin bar region 20C and a candidate bar region 20D. The pinyin-bar area 20C is used to show the character strings (e.g., pinyin sequences, letter sequences, numbers) input by the user. The candidate bar area 20D is used to present candidate input objects (such as chinese characters, english words, numbers, etc.) that match the character string entered by the user. The user may operate the input method interface 20 to enter content in the input box 10. For example, the user may click on the emoji button 205 in the toolbar area 20A, causing the electronic device to present the emoji, and then click on the emoji to enter the emoji in the input box 10. As another example, the user may press a virtual key in the keyboard region 20B to input corresponding text content in the input box 10. For example, after the user presses the key "WXYZ" and the key "MNO" in the keyboard area 20B, the corresponding character string "wo" will be displayed in the pinyin bar area 20C, while several candidate input objects "i", "C", "wo", "pit", etc. corresponding to the character string will be displayed in the candidate bar area 20D. After the user clicks on one of the candidate input objects (e.g., "I"), the electronic device displays "I" in the input box 10.

It should be noted that the input method interface shown in fig. 1(b) and fig. 1(c) is only an example provided in the embodiment of the present application and does not constitute a limitation to the embodiment of the present application. It is understood that in practical applications, the positions and functions of the virtual keys in the input method interface may be slightly different from those of the input method interfaces shown in fig. 1(B) and fig. 1(c), for example, the emoji key 205 may also be located in the keyboard region 20B, and the keyboard region 20B may not include the re-input key. In addition, the keyboard area 40 in the input method interface shown in fig. 1(b) and 1(c) is a virtual keyboard in the 9-key format, and in practical applications, the keyboard area 40 may also be a virtual keyboard in the 26-key format.

For clarity and conciseness of description, the input method provided by the embodiment of the present application is mainly described by taking a virtual keyboard in the form of 9 keys as an example in the embodiment of the present application. For the 26-key virtual keyboard, the specific display method is similar to that of the 9-key virtual keyboard, and in order to avoid repetition, this is not described in detail in the embodiments of the present application.

As shown in fig. 2, an embodiment of the present application provides an input method, which may include S201 to S204 described below.

It should be noted that the execution main body of the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application may be an input device, or a control module for executing the input method in the input device, and may also be an electronic device. The input method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be exemplarily described below by taking an electronic device as an example.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, when an execution main body of the input method provided in this embodiment of the application is an electronic device, the electronic device may include the input device provided in this embodiment of the application, or be externally connected to the input device. The method can be determined according to actual use requirements, and the embodiment of the application is not limited.

S201, under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, the electronic equipment receives first input aiming at a first area.

The first area may be an area of the input method interface other than the keyboard area 20B, for example, the first area may be a candidate bar area of the input method interface, and for example, the first area may also be a toolbar area of the input method interface. The first input may be a gesture input by the user in the first region, for example, the first input may be a swipe operation, a double-click operation, a long-press operation, or the like.

Illustratively, as shown in FIG. 3, the first input may be a rightward slide input within the candidate bar area 20D. In the prior art, no corresponding function is defined for the rightward sliding input in the candidate bar area, so that the control on the input method interface is triggered by taking the operation gesture as the first input, and the control does not conflict with the conventional operation on the input method interface. That is to say, in the embodiment of the present application, the operation mode of the input method interface does not conflict with the conventional operation of the electronic device. Illustratively, the first input may also be a double-click input within 20C.

S202, responding to the first input, the electronic equipment displays N candidate input objects in the candidate area.

The candidate area may be a candidate bar area in the input method interface, or may be another area for displaying candidate input items in the display interface of the electronic device, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. In the examples of the present application, the candidate area is taken as an example of a candidate bar area in the input method interface.

In addition, the N candidate input objects may be candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in the input interface, where N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M. That is, one virtual key may correspond to one or more candidate input objects.

The M virtual keys may be virtual keys determined by the electronic device according to default settings of the input method application, may also be virtual keys determined by the electronic device according to settings of the user, and may also be virtual keys determined by the electronic device according to input parameters of the first input. Here, how to determine the M virtual keys according to the input parameters of the first input will be described in detail in the following embodiments, and will not be described here.

In addition, the M virtual keys may include virtual keys in any area of the input method interface. For example, referring to fig. 1(B), the M virtual keys may include virtual keys (e.g., emoji key 205) in the toolbar area 20A and may also include virtual keys (e.g., punctuation key 201, number key 204, etc.) in the keyboard area 20B. In other embodiments, the M virtual keys may further include function keys (e.g., a delete key, a re-enter key, an enter key, etc.).

In the embodiment of the present application, the candidate input object corresponding to a virtual key may be a symbol, a letter, a number, a character string, a chinese character, a word, a phrase, or a phrase corresponding to the virtual key. For example, in the case that the virtual key is the punctuation key 201, the corresponding candidate input object may be a punctuation symbol corresponding to the punctuation key; in the case where the virtual key is the emoji key 205, the corresponding candidate input object may be one or more emoji; in the case where the virtual key is a number key 204, the corresponding candidate input object may be one or more numbers; in the case where the virtual key is an alphabetic key in a 9-key form of a virtual keyboard (such as the alphabetic key "DEF" in fig. 1 (b)), the corresponding candidate input object may be a single letter (such as the letter "D", the letter "E", and the letter "F"), a character string (such as "DEF"), a chinese character (such as "of", "get", "ground", "hungry", "child", "hair", and the like), a phrase (such as "and the like", "get", "has", "son", "found", "law", and the like), or a phrase (such as "has a stroke", "has been hungry", "has been sent to me", and the like). For another example, in the case that the virtual key is an alphabetic key (for example, the alphabetic key "f") in a 26-key virtual keyboard, and the input method is in an english input mode, the corresponding candidate input object may be an english word (for example, "for", "feel", "from", "fast", and the like). In the case that the virtual key is a function key, the corresponding candidate input object may be a default character, such as a symbol, a phrase, etc. set by the user. For example, in the case where the virtual key is a delete key, the corresponding candidate input object may be "delete"; for another example, in the case where the virtual key is an enter key, the corresponding candidate input object may be "confirm".

Of course, the above is only a simple example provided for the convenience of understanding of the embodiments of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation to the present application. The method can be set according to actual conditions in specific implementation, and is not limited in the embodiment of the application. For example, the candidate input object corresponding to the virtual key may be a candidate input object determined by the electronic device according to the setting of the user. For another example, the candidate input object corresponding to the virtual key may also be a candidate input object determined by the electronic device according to the user common words recorded by the input method editor.

For example, referring to fig. 4(a), assuming that the M virtual keys include 3 punctuation keys (punctuation key a1, punctuation key a2, and punctuation key A3) in a symbol region (hereinafter referred to as region a), the N candidate input objects may be 3 punctuation symbols (i.e., punctuation symbol ", punctuation symbol"?) corresponding to the 3 punctuation keys. As such, after the electronic device receives the first input by the user, the electronic device may display the 3 punctuation marks within a candidate bar area of the input method interface, as shown in fig. 4 (b).

Further illustratively, assuming that the M virtual keys include emoji keys 205 in the toolbar area 20A, the N candidate input objects may be emoji (e.g., smiley emoji, depressed emoji, angry emoji) corresponding to the emoji key 205. Referring to fig. 4(a), after the user performs a first input of a right swipe within a candidate bar area of the input method interface, the electronic device may display a smiley emoticon 205A, a frustrated emoticon 205B, and a angry emoticon 205C within the candidate bar area in response to the first input, as shown in fig. 5.

S203, the electronic device receives a second input of a first candidate input object in the N candidate input objects.

The second input may be a click operation or other feasible gesture operations. Of course, in actual implementation, any other possible input may be further provided, which may be determined according to actual use requirements, and this is not limited in this application embodiment.

Illustratively, taking fig. 4(b) as an example, the N candidate input objects are punctuation marks ", punctuation marks". "and punctuation"? "the first candidate input object may be any one of the 3 punctuations, for example, a punctuation", ", and then the second input may be a click operation on the punctuation", "b".

And S204, responding to the second input, and displaying the first candidate input object in the input box by the electronic equipment.

For example, the electronic device may display the first candidate input object as input content in the input box. It should be noted that the operation of the electronic device displaying the selected candidate input object in the candidate area in the input box may be generally referred to as "screen-up".

Illustratively, continuing with the example of fig. 4(b), assuming that the second input is an input to the punctuation mark "" in the candidate bar region (i.e., the first candidate input object is the punctuation mark ","), the electronic device may display the punctuation mark ", in the input box after the electronic device receives the second input, as shown in fig. 4 (c).

According to the input method provided by the embodiment of the application, the electronic device displays N candidate input objects corresponding to the M virtual keys in the candidate area by receiving the first input aiming at the first area, so that the electronic device can respond to the input of a certain candidate input object and display the candidate input object in the input box. In this way, when a user needs to input contents in the input box, the user can operate in the display positions of the virtual keys and can also operate in the areas except the keyboard area of the input method interface, and therefore the problem that the input method is single in operation mode is solved.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 6, after S204 described above, the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application may further include S205 described below.

S205, the electronic equipment keeps displaying N candidate input objects in the candidate area.

That is, the electronic device always displays the N candidate input objects in the candidate region before the user does not trigger the electronic device to cancel displaying the N candidate input objects.

Exemplarily, referring to fig. 4(a), 4(b), 4(c), and 7, fig. 4(a) shows an input method interface before the electronic device receives the first input, fig. 4(b) shows an input method interface after the electronic device receives the first input, fig. 4(c) shows an input method interface after the electronic device receives the second input, and fig. 7 shows an input method interface in which N candidate input objects are kept displayed within the candidate bar region. When the user clicks a candidate input object, such as a punctuation mark ", ', in the candidate bar region of fig. 4(b), the electronic device may display the punctuation mark",' in the input box, so that the contents in the input box become "good". Meanwhile, as shown in fig. 7, the electronic device does not cancel the 3 candidate input objects displayed in the candidate bar region (i.e., punctuation marks ","; ", punctuation marks". ", and punctuation marks".

Based on the scheme, the electronic equipment can keep displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area, so that the user can be prevented from frequently triggering the electronic equipment to display the M candidate input objects in the candidate area under the condition that the user needs to frequently operate M virtual keys in the input method interface, repeated operation of the user in the electronic equipment can be avoided, and the operation process is simplified. Therefore, the convenience of input of the electronic equipment can be further improved.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, the M virtual keys may be at least part of virtual keys on the input method interface near the target side of the electronic device.

The target side of the electronic device may be a left side or a right side of the electronic device.

In some embodiments, the electronic device may determine the target side according to a preset setting of a user. For example, the electronic device may provide a setting interface for the input method to the user, the setting interface may include an option for the user to set a dominant hand, and the electronic device may determine the target side according to the setting of the option by the user. For example, when the user sets his dominant hand to the right hand, the electronic device may determine that the target side is the left side. Conversely, when the user sets his dominant hand to the left hand, the electronic device may determine that the target side is the right side.

In other embodiments, the electronic device may determine the target side based on a first input for the first region. For example, the electronic device may determine the target side based on the input direction of the first input. For example, when the first input is a swipe up, the electronic device may determine that the target side is a right side of the electronic device; when the first input is a swipe down, the electronic device may determine that the target side is a left side of the electronic device.

At present, in order to bring better use experience to users, the screen size of the electronic device is also getting larger and larger. Taking a mobile phone as an example, the screen size of most mobile phones can reach 6 inches or more than 6 inches. Although the large-size screen can improve the use experience of the user, the difficulty of one-hand operation of the user is increased. When a user holds the mobile phone with one hand, due to the fact that the size of the screen is large, fingers of the user can hardly touch virtual keys close to the left side edge of the mobile phone in the virtual keyboard, and therefore the single-hand operation mode of the electronic equipment is not convenient enough.

Based on the above scheme of the embodiment of the application, since the candidate area is located at a position that can be touched by a user with a single hand in the input method interface, after the electronic device displays the candidate input objects corresponding to the virtual keys close to the side edge in the candidate area, the user can operate the candidate input objects displayed in the candidate area with a single hand, so that the selected candidate input objects are displayed in the input frame by the electronic device, and thus, the user can indirectly operate the virtual keys close to the side edge of the electronic device in the input method interface with a single hand, and the single-hand operation mode of the electronic device is relatively convenient.

Optionally, the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application further includes S206 described below.

S206, the electronic equipment responds to the first input, and the M virtual keys are cancelled to be displayed at the first display position.

The first display position may be a display position of the M virtual keys before the electronic device receives the first input.

Illustratively, referring to fig. 4(a) and 8, fig. 4(a) shows an input method interface before the electronic device receives the first input. As shown in fig. 8, after the electronic device receives the first input, the electronic device may display punctuation marks corresponding to punctuation keys a1, a2, and A3 in the candidate bar region and cancel displaying punctuation keys a1, a2, and A3 in region a.

Optionally, after S206 described above, the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application further includes S207 and S208 described below.

And S207, the electronic equipment receives a third input.

Alternatively, the third input may be an input to a candidate input object in the candidate region, or the third input may be an input to a virtual key in the input method interface. It will be appreciated that where the third input is an input to a candidate input object in the candidate region, the corresponding user action may be to select the candidate input object in the candidate region.

In some embodiments, the third input may also be a specific gesture input and the corresponding user action may be a re-typing. In this case, the corresponding user action may be to perform a preset gesture operation. The preset gesture operation may be sliding downwards in the input method interface, sliding upwards in the input method interface, or double-clicking a certain virtual key of the input method interface. The method can be determined according to actual use requirements, and the embodiment of the application is not limited.

S208, the electronic equipment responds to the third input, the N candidate input objects are canceled from being displayed in the candidate area, and M virtual keys are displayed at the first display position.

Illustratively, as shown in fig. 9(a), after the user selects the candidate input object "me" in the candidate bar region, the input method display interface may be updated to the interface shown in fig. 9 (b). As shown in fig. 9(b), the electronic device may display the input content "i" in the input box and cancel the display of punctuation "," punctuation "in the candidate bar area. "and punctuation"? ", and resume displaying the corresponding virtual key in region a.

As another example, as shown in fig. 10(a), after the user inputs a virtual key in the input method interface, the input method display interface may be updated to the interface shown in fig. 10 (b). As shown in fig. 10(b), the electronic device may display a character string (e.g., pinyin) corresponding to the virtual key in the pinyin bar area, display a candidate input object corresponding to the character string in the candidate bar area, and cancel to display punctuation "," punctuation "in the candidate bar area. "and punctuation"? ", and resumes displaying punctuation symbols", punctuation symbols "within region a. "and punctuation"? "corresponding virtual key.

As another example, as shown in fig. 11(a), after the user performs the preset gesture operation of sliding down, the input method display interface may be updated to the interface shown in fig. 11 (b). As shown in fig. 11(b), the electronic device may dismiss the displayed punctuation ", punctuation" within the candidate bar region. "and punctuation"? ", and resumes displaying the corresponding virtual key in the area a.

In the above scheme, the electronic device can restore and display the virtual key to the original display position according to the input of the user, that is, the user can trigger the electronic device to restore the input method interface to the original interface of the input method through the input, so that the input mode is more flexible.

Optionally, before the above S202, the input method provided in the embodiment of the present application may further include the following S209.

S209, the electronic equipment determines M virtual keys according to the first input parameters.

That is, the electronic device may determine which candidate input object corresponding to the virtual key is displayed in the candidate area according to the input parameter of the first input.

For example, in a case where the first input is a gesture operation, the input parameter of the first input may be an operation parameter of the gesture operation. For example, when the first input is a sliding operation, the input parameter of the first input may be a sliding distance of the sliding operation. For another example, when the first input is a click operation, the input parameter of the first input may be the number of clicks of the click operation. For another example, when the first input is a long press operation, the input parameter of the first input may be a press time of the long press operation.

The following description will take the first input as an example of a sliding operation, to illustrate how the electronic device determines the M virtual keys according to the input parameters of the first input.

1. The electronic device detects the sliding distance of the sliding operation, and may express the sliding distance in units of pixels, for example.

2. The electronic device determines the number M of candidate input objects to be displayed within the candidate bar region according to the sliding distance. For example, when the sliding distance is less than 5 pixels (pixels), the number of candidate input objects is 0. Every time the sliding distance is increased by 5 pixels, the number of corresponding candidate input objects is increased by 1.

3. The electronic device takes the punctuation marks at the first M positions in the symbol area as punctuation marks displayed within the candidate bar area. Referring to table 1, punctuation marks in the symbol list in table 1 correspond to punctuation marks displayed in the symbol area of the input method interface; the punctuation marks in the temporary list in table 1 correspond to punctuation marks displayed in the candidate bar region. As shown in table 1, when the sliding distance does not exceed 5 pixels, the number of candidate input objects is 0, and correspondingly, the temporary list is empty; when the sliding distance is between 5 pixels and 10 pixels, the number of candidate input objects is 1, and accordingly, a punctuation mark (i.e., comma ",") is included in the temporary list, the punctuation mark being a punctuation mark at the 1 st position of the symbol area, which is to be displayed in the candidate bar area. At this time, the symbol list includes punctuation symbols, and the four punctuation symbols after the punctuation symbols are respectively punctuation symbols "," ", and punctuation symbols". ", punctuation"? "and punctuation"! ", the symbol area will display the four punctuation marks described above.

TABLE 1

Sliding distance	Symbol list	Temporary list
			(0,5)	[“，”，“。”，“？”，“！”]	[]
[5,10)	[“。”，“？”，“！”，“…”]	[“，”]
			[10,15)	[“？”，“！”，“…”，“：”]	[“，”，“。”]
[15,20)	[“！”，“…”，“：”，“；”]	[“，”，“。”，“？”]

The input device provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described below by taking as an example the input method executed by the input method device.

As shown in fig. 12, an input device 1100 is provided in an embodiment of the present application, where the input device 1100 includes a receiving module 1101 and a display module 1102. The receiving module 1101 is configured to receive a first input for a first area in a case where the electronic device displays an input method interface, where the first area is an area other than a keyboard area of the input method interface. The display module 1102 is configured to display, in response to a first input, N candidate input objects in a candidate area, where the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in an input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M. The receiving module 1101 is further configured to receive a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects. The display module 1102 is further configured to display the first candidate input object in the input box in response to the second input.

Optionally, the display module 1102 is further configured to keep displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area after displaying the first candidate input object in the input box.

Optionally, the M virtual keys may be at least part of the virtual keys near the target side of the electronic device in the input method interface.

Optionally, the display module 1102 is further configured to cancel, in response to the first input, displaying the M virtual keys at a first display position, where the first display position is a display position of the M virtual keys before the first input is received.

Optionally, the receiving module 1101 is further configured to receive a third input after the M virtual keys are cancelled to be displayed at the first display position; the display module 1102 is further configured to cancel displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area in response to the third input, and display the M virtual keys at the first display position.

Optionally, the third input is an input to a candidate input object in the candidate area, or the third input is an input to a virtual key in the input method interface.

Optionally, the input device 1100 provided in this embodiment of the application may further include a determining module 1103. A determining module 1103, configured to determine, before displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area, M virtual keys according to the input parameter of the first input.

According to the input device provided by the embodiment of the application, since the input device displays N candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in the candidate area by receiving the first input for the first area, the input device can display a candidate input object in the input box in response to an input for the candidate input object. In this way, when a user needs to input contents in the input box, the user can operate in the display positions of the virtual keys and can also operate in the areas except the keyboard area of the input method interface, and therefore the problem that the input method is single in operation mode is solved.

The input device in the embodiment of the present application may be a device, or may be a component, an integrated circuit, or a chip in a terminal. The device can be mobile electronic equipment or non-mobile electronic equipment. By way of example, the mobile electronic device may be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a palm top computer, a vehicle-mounted electronic device, a wearable device, an ultra-mobile personal computer (UMPC), a netbook or a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), and the like, and the non-mobile electronic device may be a server, a Network Attached Storage (NAS), a Personal Computer (PC), a Television (TV), a teller machine or a self-service machine, and the like, and the embodiments of the present application are not particularly limited.

The input device in the embodiment of the present application may be a device having an operating system. The operating system may be an Android (Android) operating system, an ios operating system, or other possible operating systems, and embodiments of the present application are not limited specifically.

The input device provided by the embodiment of the application can realize each process realized by the method embodiment and achieve the same technical effect, and is not repeated here to avoid repetition.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 13, an electronic device 1200 is further provided in an embodiment of the present application, and includes a processor 1201, a memory 1202, and a program or an instruction stored in the memory 1202 and executable on the processor 1201, where the program or the instruction is executed by the processor 1201 to implement each process of the input method embodiment, and can achieve the same technical effect, and no further description is provided here to avoid repetition.

It should be noted that the electronic device in the embodiment of the present application includes the mobile electronic device and the non-mobile electronic device described above.

Fig. 14 is a schematic hardware structure diagram of an electronic device implementing an embodiment of the present application.

The electronic device 1300 includes, but is not limited to: a radio frequency unit 1301, a network module 1302, an audio output unit 1303, an input unit 1304, a sensor 1305, a display unit 1306, a user input unit 1307, an interface unit 1308, a memory 1309, a processor 1310, and the like.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the electronic device 1300 may further comprise a power source (e.g., a battery) for supplying power to the various components, and the power source may be logically connected to the processor 1310 via a power management system, so as to manage charging, discharging, and power consumption management functions via the power management system. The electronic device structure shown in fig. 14 does not constitute a limitation of the electronic device, and the electronic device may include more or less components than those shown, or combine some components, or arrange different components, and thus, the description is not repeated here.

The input unit 1304 is configured to receive a first input for a first area in a case that the electronic device 1300 displays an input method interface, where the first area is an area other than a keyboard area of the input method interface; a display unit 1306, configured to display, in response to a first input, N candidate input objects in a candidate area, where the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in an input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M; an input unit 1304 for receiving a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects; the display unit 1306 is further configured to display the first candidate input object in the input box in response to the second input.

According to the electronic device provided by the embodiment of the application, by receiving the first input aiming at the first area, the electronic device displays N candidate input objects corresponding to the M virtual keys in the candidate area, so that the electronic device can respond to the input of a certain candidate input object and display the candidate input object in the input box. In this way, when a user needs to input contents in the input box, the user can operate in the display positions of the virtual keys and can also operate in the areas except the keyboard area of the input method interface, and therefore the problem that the input method is single in operation mode is solved.

Optionally, the display unit 1306 is further configured to keep displaying N candidate input objects in the candidate area after displaying the first candidate input object in the input box.

Optionally, the display unit 1306 is further configured to cancel, in response to the first input, displaying the M virtual keys at a first display position, where the first display position is a display position of the M virtual keys before the first input is received.

Optionally, the input unit 1304 is further configured to receive a third input after the M virtual keys are cancelled to be displayed at the first display position; the display unit 1306 is further configured to cancel displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area and display the M virtual keys at the first display position in response to the third input.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 14, an electronic device 1300 provided in an embodiment of the present application further includes a processor 1310. A processor 1310 configured to determine M virtual keys according to an input parameter of a first input before displaying N candidate input objects in the candidate area.

It should be understood that in the embodiment of the present application, the input Unit 1304 may include a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) 13041 and a microphone 13042, and the Graphics processor 13041 processes image data of still pictures or videos obtained by an image capturing apparatus (such as a camera) in a video capturing mode or an image capturing mode. The display unit 1306 may include a display panel 13061, and the display panel 13061 may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting diode, or the like. The user input unit 1307 includes a touch panel 13071 and other input devices 13072. A touch panel 13071, also referred to as a touch screen. The touch panel 13071 may include two parts, a touch detection device and a touch controller. Other input devices 13072 may include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (e.g., volume control keys, switch keys, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, and a joystick, which are not described in detail herein. Memory 1309 may be used to store software programs as well as various data, including but not limited to application programs and operating systems. The processor 1310 may integrate an application processor, which mainly handles operating systems, user interfaces, application programs, etc., and a modem processor, which mainly handles wireless communications. It will be appreciated that the modem processor described above may not be integrated into processor 1310.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a readable storage medium, where a program or an instruction is stored on the readable storage medium, and when the program or the instruction is executed by a processor, the program or the instruction implements the processes of the above-mentioned embodiment of the input method, and can achieve the same technical effect, and in order to avoid repetition, details are not repeated here.

The processor is the processor in the electronic device described in the above embodiment. The readable storage medium includes a computer readable storage medium, such as a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and so on.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, where the chip includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to run a program or an instruction to implement each process of the above input method embodiment, and can achieve the same technical effect, and the details are not repeated here to avoid repetition.

It should be understood that the chips mentioned in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as system-on-chip, system-on-chip or system-on-chip, etc.

It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising an … …" does not exclude the presence of other like elements in a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element. Further, it should be noted that the scope of the methods and apparatus of the embodiments of the present application is not limited to performing the functions in the order illustrated or discussed, but may include performing the functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in a reverse order based on the functions involved, e.g., the methods described may be performed in an order different than that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art will clearly understand that the method of the above embodiments can be implemented by software plus a necessary general hardware platform, and certainly can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases, the former is a better implementation manner. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application may be embodied in the form of a computer software product, which is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM/RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk) and includes instructions for enabling a terminal (such as a mobile phone, a computer, a server, or a network device) to execute the method according to the embodiments of the present application.

While the present embodiments have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise embodiments described above, which are meant to be illustrative and not restrictive, and that various changes may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An input method, comprising:

receiving a first input aiming at a first area under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, wherein the first area is an area except a keyboard area of the input method interface;

responding to the first input, displaying N candidate input objects in a candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in the input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is larger than or equal to M;

receiving a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects;

in response to the second input, displaying the first candidate input object in an input box.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein after displaying the first candidate input object in the input box, the method further comprises:

the N candidate input objects are kept displayed in the candidate area.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the M virtual keys are: at least part of the virtual keys on the input method interface close to the target side of the electronic equipment.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

and responding to the first input, and canceling the display of the M virtual keys at a first display position, wherein the first display position is the display position of the M virtual keys before the first input is received.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein after the displaying the M virtual keys is canceled in the first display position, the method further comprises:

receiving a third input;

and responding to the third input, canceling to display the N candidate input objects in the candidate area, and displaying the M virtual keys at the first display position.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the third input is an input to a candidate input object in the candidate region; or, the third input is input to a virtual key in the input method interface.

7. An input device, the device comprising: the device comprises a receiving module and a display module;

the receiving module is used for receiving a first input aiming at a first area under the condition that the electronic equipment displays an input method interface, wherein the first area is an area except a keyboard area of the input interface;

the display module is used for responding to the first input and displaying N candidate input objects in a candidate area, wherein the N candidate input objects are candidate input objects corresponding to M virtual keys in the input method interface, N and M are positive integers, and N is larger than or equal to M;

the receiving module is further configured to receive a second input to a first candidate input object of the N candidate input objects;

the display module is further configured to display the first candidate input object in an input box in response to the second input.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the display module is further configured to keep displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate region after displaying the first candidate input object in the input box.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the M virtual keys are: at least part of the virtual keys on the input method interface close to the target side of the electronic equipment.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the display module is further configured to, in response to the first input, cancel display of the M virtual keys at a first display location, the first display location being a display location of the M virtual keys prior to receiving the first input.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the receiving module is further configured to receive a third input after the first display position cancels the display of the M virtual keys;

the display module is further configured to cancel displaying the N candidate input objects in the candidate area in response to the third input, and display the M virtual keys at the first display position.

12. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the third input is an input to a candidate input object in the candidate region; or, the third input is input to a virtual key in the input method interface.

13. An electronic device comprising a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored on the memory and executable on the processor, the program or instructions when executed by the processor implementing the steps of the input method of any one of claims 1-6.

14. A readable storage medium, characterized in that it stores thereon a program or instructions which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the input method according to any one of claims 1-6.