JP2000339302A - Method and device for inputting character and recording medium with program for executing method recorded thereon - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the efficiency of character inputting processing. SOLUTION: When an input character string is segmented and divided in each clause and an uncertain conversion character string is generated, clause information obtained by integrating the input character string and the conversion character string in a clause unit is sorted in order of clause arrangement and stored in a buffer 9 for storing clause processing information. When a cut operation is performed to a prescribed clause in an uncertain conversion character string, a character string in a designated clause is cut off from the uncertain conversion character string by transferring the corresponding clause information in the buffer 9 to a buffer 10 for storing processing information. When the break of a prescribed clause is designated on the uncertain conversion character string and a paste operation is performed, the clause information stored in the buffer 10 is inserted into between clause information corresponding a designated position to realize the paste processing of a character string to the conversion character string.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention belongs to the technical field of character string conversion processing. In particular, a character string for a plurality of phrases is divided into phrases, and conversion candidates are extracted for each phrase. After generating a confirmed conversion character string, each conversion candidate is determined according to the user's reconversion operation or confirmation operation, and the finally determined conversion character string is sent to the application side such as a word processor or spreadsheet. The present invention relates to a method for delivering, a recording medium on which a program for performing the method is recorded, and a character input device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a computer in which an operation system (hereinafter abbreviated as "OS") such as Windows (registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation) is incorporated, a plurality of applications can be started simultaneously to perform work. is there. In addition, the data extracted by a certain application is stored in a temporary storage area called “clipboard”, and this data is pasted to another location. Can be performed much more efficiently than the conventional device.

[0003] In order to input characters that involve conversion processing such as Japanese kana-kanji conversion to an application using this type of computer, a program for a character input system called "IME" is required. The IME receives a character string input by the user from the OS, performs processing such as segmenting the character string for each clause, searching for conversion candidates, and then passing the processing result to the OS side. ing. By this series of processing, when the user performs a conversion operation by inputting a character string in "kana", the character string is cut out in units of phrases, further replaced by predetermined conversion candidates for each phrase and displayed on the monitor screen Indeterminate display. After the user corrects a break in the paragraph or re-selects a suggestion as needed,
In this case, the conversion operation is performed, and the converted character string at the time of this operation is transferred from the IME to the application to be input via the OS.

[0004]

However, in the above-described character input processing, when it is necessary to delete some phrases or words in the course of character input, the character string to be deleted is replaced with a character string to be deleted.
You need to delete them one by one in order. If it is necessary to replace a word with another word or change the context of a phrase, it is necessary to delete the target character string character by character and re-enter the character string. Processing becomes very complicated.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a character input process involving this kind of correction work, and shows a change in the display state of a character string on a monitor screen in association with the operation content. In the figure, undetermined character strings are indicated by dotted lines, and phrases that are being selected for reconversion processing or correction processing are indicated by frames.

FIG. 1 shows a kana character string input first. Is an unconfirmed converted character string obtained by dividing the kana character string in units of phrases and performing a conversion process, and the target phrase to be processed is initially set to the first phrase. Under the condition that this unconfirmed converted character string is displayed, the user can freely select a phrase using the arrow keys and the like, and can change the displayed candidate to another candidate as necessary It is. If the input character string needs to be corrected, the phrase selection mode can be canceled and the input character string can be re-edited.

The illustrated example shows a procedure for changing "computer" in the character string converted as the second phrase to "personal computer". The user first selects the second phrase to be corrected. Is selected (), and the phrase selection mode is released by a predetermined operation. As shown by this operation, when the converted character string in the noticed phrase returns to the initial kana character string state (in the figure, the kana character string is shown with a solid line), the user can use the delayed key or the like. Delete each character of "COMPITA" in order, and enter the character string to be corrected, "POKON" ().

Thereafter, the conversion operation is performed again to generate a converted character string in which "computer" in the second phrase is replaced with "personal computer", as shown in FIG. If a confirmation operation is performed at this point, the unconfirmed display of the converted character string is switched to the confirmed display, and the input processing is completed ().

When the character string “computer” of the second phrase is replaced with the character string “well” of the third phrase in the above-mentioned converted character string, the user must follow the same procedure as above- After deleting each character of "comport", the deleted characters are re-entered after a new second phrase "well", and then the conversion operation and the confirmation operation are performed.

According to the "cut and paste" function described above, a character string frequently used during document creation can be saved on a clipboard, and paste processing can be performed as necessary. However, conventionally, this kind of function can be performed only when the character input is completed. Therefore, the user
Even if you want to paste a word saved in the character string during character input work, once convert the character string and perform the finalization process, move the cursor to the target position and paste Processing has to be performed, and no attempt has been made to improve the efficiency of character input processing at the undetermined stage.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems. Even if the converted character string is undetermined during the character input processing, the converted character string for each phrase can be freely cut and pasted, By copying to the location of
An object of the present invention is to eliminate a complicated operation for correcting an input character string and to realize an efficient character input process.

[0012]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, an input of a character string for a plurality of phrases is received, the character string is divided into phrases and converted, and the determined converted character string is being executed. When inputting to an application, when reading processing is instructed for an arbitrary phrase in a state where an unconfirmed conversion character string is generated by the conversion candidate extracted for each phrase, the conversion in that phrase is performed. The character string is read and stored in the memory, and when a break of an arbitrary phrase on the undetermined converted character string is specified and the paste processing is instructed, the converted character string stored in the memory is read. ,
It is characterized in that it is inserted at the break of the specified phrase.

[0013] In the second aspect of the present invention, when a phrase cut process is instructed at the same time as the reading process, the same character string as the character string stored in the memory is deleted from the undetermined converted character string. .

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in order to carry out the method of the first aspect, in a state where an unconfirmed converted character string is generated by a conversion process on an input character string for a plurality of phrases,
When a reading process for an arbitrary phrase is instructed, a first step of reading a converted character string in the phrase and storing it in a memory, a break of an arbitrary phrase on the undetermined converted character string is designated. When the paste process is instructed,
A second step of reading the converted character string in the memory and inserting the converted character string into the break of the designated phrase; a program for character input in which a program for executing each step is recorded on a recording medium. It consists of

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, when a program for executing the first step is instructed to cut out a phrase at the same time as the reading process, the same character string as the character string stored in the memory is used. Is included in the program to delete from the undetermined conversion character string.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a character input device for performing the method of the first aspect, wherein an undetermined conversion character string is generated by conversion candidates extracted for each phrase. An input unit for performing an operation relating to position designation and processing instruction in the converted character string, a memory for storing a converted character string corresponding to a predetermined phrase, and a position designation and instruction by the input unit. A phrase information processing means for accessing the memory based on the content and reconstructing the unconfirmed converted character string. The phrase information processing means, when a reading process for an arbitrary phrase on the unconfirmed converted character string is instructed by the input means, reads a converted character string in the phrase and saves the converted character string in the memory. When the input means specifies a break in an arbitrary phrase on the undetermined converted character string and instructs paste processing, reads the converted character string stored in the memory, and reads the specified character string. Means for inserting a break in a phrase.

In the invention according to claim 6, when the phrase information processing means is instructed to cut the phrase simultaneously with the reading process, the same character string as the character string stored in the memory is converted into an undetermined converted character. Means for deleting from the column are provided.

[0018]

According to the first, third, and fifth aspects of the present invention, when an operation for instructing a reading process is performed on any of the phrases on an undetermined converted character string, the converted character string in that phrase is read. And stored in memory. When an operation for designating a break in any of the unconfirmed conversion character strings and instructing the paste processing is performed, the conversion character string stored in the memory is read out by the above-described reading processing. Inserted at the end of the specified phrase. Therefore, in the state where the character string to be input is not fixed, it is possible to copy the character string in any clause to another place or paste the converted character string saved in the previous processing, The efficiency of the character input processing can be greatly improved.

According to the second, fourth, and sixth aspects of the present invention, when any one of the phrases on the undetermined converted character string is instructed to be cut and processed at the same time as the reading process, the conversion within the phrase is performed. At the same time as the character string is saved in the memory, the same character string as the saved character string is deleted from the unconfirmed converted character string, so it is possible to delete the character string relating to any phrase with a simple operation Becomes In addition, by using this in conjunction with the above-described pasting process, the work of exchanging phrases in the converted character string can be easily performed.

[0020]

FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a character input system to which the present invention is applied. The character input system 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as "IME1") is for inputting a character string in Kana-Kanji into an application (also not shown) such as word processing software under the control of an OS (not shown). 2, Roman kana conversion unit 3, Kana-Kanji conversion unit 4, phrase setting / selection unit 5, decision processing unit 6, phrase information processing unit 7, output processing unit 8, processing information storage buffer 9,
It is composed of a phrase information storage buffer 10 and the like.

The above system configuration is specifically described in FIG.
This is realized by installing an OS and various program files and data files for constructing the IME 1 in a hard disk device 14 of a personal computer mainly controlled by a CPU 11, a ROM 12, and a RAM 13 as shown in FIG. The function of each processing unit is given to the CPU 11, and each of the buffers 9 and 10
It is set in AM13.

In FIG. 2, an input unit 16 is composed of a keyboard for inputting characters, a mouse for selecting and confirming operations, and a monitor 17 is composed of a display device such as a CRT and a liquid crystal panel. You. In the hard disk device 14, not only the OS and IME but also programs and data files for various applications are installed. The CD-ROM drive 15 records the programs and data files at the time of the installation. CD-ROM is set. In addition, various peripheral devices such as a printer and a modem are connected to the CPU 11 as necessary.

Returning to FIG. 1, the input processing unit 2 has a function of receiving various operation signals from the input unit 16 via the OS, confirming the contents of the operation, and then transferring the signals to another processing unit. . The processing information storage buffer 9 is an area for storing work data generated when the character string input from the input unit 16 is segmented into units of phrase and subjected to conversion processing. The buffer 9 is accessed in accordance with the operation signal given from the processing unit 2, and the processing corresponding to each function is executed.

The Romaji-Kana conversion unit 3 receives a Romaji character string input from the input unit 16 and converts it into Hiragana. The kana-segment setting / selection unit 5 is in charge of processing to divide a kana-converted input character string into phrases and to set a target phrase.
For each phrase separated by the phrase setting / selection unit 5,
A kana character string included in the phrase is used as a key to search an internal dictionary, and a predetermined number of conversion candidates that make the kana character string “read” are extracted.

The processing information storage buffer 9 stores information obtained by summarizing the result of the conversion process for each segment separated by the processing of the romaji kana conversion unit 3, the phrase setting / selection unit 5, and the kana-kanji conversion unit 4. Hereinafter, this is referred to as “phrase information”) and stored in association with the arrangement order of the phrases.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the data structure in the processing information storage buffer 9. In this example, the input character string “I will improve ぱ ぱ” is divided into four phrases, “I”, ぱ よ く ”, よ く” and “R”. This indicates a state in which each piece of phrase information has been generated. For each phrase, phrase information is generated in which a set of input character strings of Roman characters and kana and a converted character string composed of kana and kanji are generated.

Each piece of clause information is sorted and stored in the order in which the clauses are arranged. The output processing unit 8 takes out the converted character strings in order from each piece of the clause information and outputs a parameter indicating that the character string is an undetermined converted character string. Is output to the OS side. OS
Receives the data output, controls the display operation of the monitor 17, and displays the converted character string in an undetermined state on the monitor screen.

The decision processing section 6 sets the undecided phrase information to a decision state in response to the decision operation signal from the input processing section 2. The output processing unit 8 sequentially takes out the converted character strings in the determined phrase information, sends the converted character strings to the OS side with a parameter indicating that they are the determined character strings, and displays the display on the monitor 17 again on the OS side. By controlling the operation, the undetermined state of the character string on the screen is switched to the confirmed display.

Further, in this embodiment, while the unconfirmed converted character string is displayed, cut, copy, and paste operations from the input unit 16 are received, and the phrase information A process of copying or cutting a character string in units of phrases from the converted character string of, and a process of pasting a character string cut at the break of any phrase (hereinafter, referred to as
Each process is called copy, cut, and paste processes).

The phrase information storage buffer 10 is for temporarily storing phrase information of a phrase specified by a copy or cut operation. The phrase information processing unit 7
Each phrase information in the processing information storage buffer 9 is reconstructed while reading / writing from / to the phrase information storage buffer 10 according to the operation content. The output processing unit 8 reads the converted character string of each piece of clause information in sequence and sends it to the OS every time this restructuring process is performed. As a result, the converted character string changed according to the user operation is displayed on the monitor screen. The column will be displayed indefinitely.

Each operation of copy, cut, and paste is performed by a predetermined key operation such as simultaneously pressing a control key and a predetermined alphabet key (keys such as "C", "X", and "V"). In addition to this, it is also possible to perform the operation by mouse operation. Alternatively, a button switch for each operation may be set on the monitor screen, and a switch corresponding to a target operation may be pressed by a mouse.

FIG. 4 shows a specific procedure by the phrase information processing section 7. Now, by converting the input character string,
It is assumed that one of the phrases has been selected and a cut operation has been performed while an undetermined converted character string is displayed on the monitor screen. In response to this operation, the phrase information processing unit 7
Proceeds from ST1 to ST4, reads the phrase information of the selected phrase from the processing information storage buffer 9,
This is transferred to the phrase information storage buffer 10. In the subsequent ST5, the order of the phrase information set in the processing information storage buffer 9 after the transferred phrase information is moved up, and the phrase information is reconstructed.

On the other hand, if a copy operation is performed on the selected phrase, ST2 becomes "YES" and the process proceeds to ST6, where the phrase information of the selected phrase in the processing information storage buffer 9 is Copied to the phrase information storage buffer 10. In this case, each piece of clause information in the processing information storage buffer 9 is maintained in its original state.

If a break in any of the phrases is specified on the undetermined converted character string and a paste operation is performed, ST3 becomes "YES". At this time, if the phrase information stored by the cut operation or the copy operation is present in the phrase information storage buffer 10, ST7 to ST8,
Proceeding to ST9, the stored phrase information is read out and inserted between the phrase information corresponding to the break of the specified phrase in the processing information storage buffer 9, and at the same time, after the insertion position. The order of each clause information is reset. If the phrase information is not stored in the phrase information storage buffer 10, ST7 becomes "NO" and the paste operation is invalidated.

In addition to the processing of FIG. 4, an operation of simply deleting a character string for one phrase (eg, operation of a delay key)
, And the specified character string can be cut from the converted character string. In this case, only the data in the processing information storage buffer 9 is updated, and no information is written into the phrase information storage buffer 10 at all.

FIG. 5 shows a procedure for correcting a part of a character string by executing the above-described cut processing and paste processing on the converted character string generated from each piece of phrase information shown in FIG.
Indicates the data configuration in each buffer at the time of cut processing and paste processing.

FIG. 5 shows the display state of the character string on the monitor screen in association with the operation content, as in FIG. 7 described above. FIG. Indicates the generated conversion string. The illustrated example shows a process of exchanging the undecided character string “PC” of the second phrase with the undecided character string “well” of the third phrase, as shown in FIG. 5 (2). After selecting the second phrase to be moved, a cut operation is performed on the second phrase.

When the phrase information processing section 7 performs the processing of ST4 and ST5 of FIG. 4 in response to this operation, as shown in FIG. 6A, the second phrase information in the processing information storage buffer 9 is processed. Is transferred to the phrase information storage buffer 10, and the third and fourth phrases are moved up to the second and third phrases, respectively. The converted character string based on the reconstructed phrase information is output from the output processing unit 8 to the monitor 17 via the OS, so that the monitor screen displays, as shown in FIG. A converted character string in which the character string “PC” of the second phrase in the converted character string is cut off is displayed.

Next, the user operates a predetermined key such as a backspace key to set a cursor at a break between the second and third phrases as shown in FIG. Perform a paste operation. In response to this operation, the phrase information processing unit 7 executes the processing of ST7 to ST9 in FIG. 4 described above, and the phrase information stored in the phrase information storage buffer 10 is processed as shown in FIG. The information is transferred to the information storage buffer 9 and the second phrase information and the third
And the inserted phrase information is reset to the third phrase information, and the phrase information set as the third phrase information is reset to the fourth phrase information.
Further, in conjunction with this processing, the converted character string on the monitor screen is also converted into the characters that have been cut first between the words “Good” and “Use” as shown in FIG. 5 (5). The column "PC" is modified to the inserted form.

The paste operation is not necessarily performed as shown in FIG.
It is not necessary to specify the paste position exactly as in. For example, by performing a paste operation with a phrase selected, the saved character string is pasted before or after the selected phrase May be set as follows.

In the illustrated example, an example is shown in which cut processing and paste processing are performed on a character string which is not determined by the first conversion operation. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Any one of copy, cut, and paste can be executed as many times as possible. In addition, since the breaks in the phrase can be changed as appropriate, copy processing and cut processing can be performed by specifying only the necessary character strings, or paste processing after setting the breaks in the desired position on the converted character string. It is also possible to do.

As described above, in the conversion character string that has not been determined,
Copy, cut, and paste processing of the converted character string in phrase units has been enabled, so the converted character string can be returned to the kana character string and deleted one character at a time, the kana character string can be re-input, It is not necessary to perform a complicated operation such as performing a conversion process, and the input character string can be easily and accurately corrected. Moreover, since the phrase information stored in the phrase information storage buffer 10 is retained until the next information is transferred, a converted character string for a predetermined phrase on the previously input character string is stored by copy processing. In addition, it is also possible to paste the converted character string saved when the next character string is input, and to further improve the efficiency of the character input process.

The programs and data files for realizing all the configurations shown in FIG. 1 are stored on one or a plurality of CD-ROMs together with a dictionary file for conversion, and are provided as package software for a single IME. It is possible to provide. However, for a device in which an existing IME is already installed, package software for an additional function incorporating only a program or data file for setting the phrase information processing unit 7 and the phrase information storage buffer 10 is used. If created, the conventional device can be upgraded to a model that can execute copy, cut, and paste processing for an undetermined converted character string.

[0044]

According to the first, third, and fifth aspects of the present invention, an arbitrary character string on an unconfirmed converted character string is read, or the read character string is read at an arbitrary segment break in accordance with a user's designation operation. Since it is possible to insert the converted character string
Even if the character string to be input is not finalized,
It is possible to copy the character string in the desired phrase to another location or paste the converted character string saved in the previous processing, greatly improving the efficiency of the character input processing. it can.

Further, according to the second, fourth and sixth aspects of the present invention,
Any character string in the unconfirmed converted character string can be cut and saved in the memory, so even if the character string to be input is not fixed, delete the character string with one operation By using this in conjunction with the pasting process, it is possible to easily perform the task of exchanging phrases in the converted character string. Therefore, when correcting the converted character string in the undetermined state, there is no need to perform a complicated operation, and the efficiency of the character input processing is further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a document input system to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a specific device configuration for realizing the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a data configuration in a processing information storage buffer.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of copy, cut, and paste processing by a document information processing unit.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a procedure for correcting a part of an input character string by cut processing and paste processing;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a data configuration in a buffer when the cut processing and the paste processing in FIG. 5 are performed.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a conventional input character string correction procedure.

[Description of Signs] 1 IME 4 Kana-Kanji conversion unit 5 Clause setting / selection processing unit 6 Confirmation processing unit 7 Clause information processing unit 10 Clause information storage buffer 11 CPU 14 Hard disk device 17 Monitor

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A method for receiving input of a character string for a plurality of phrases, dividing the character string into phrases, performing a conversion process, and inputting the determined converted character string to an application being executed. Under the condition that an unconfirmed conversion character string is generated by the conversion candidate extracted in the above, when a reading process for an arbitrary phrase is instructed, the conversion character string in the phrase is read and stored in the memory, When a break of an arbitrary phrase on the unconfirmed conversion character string is specified and the paste processing is instructed, the conversion character string stored in the memory is read and inserted into the break of the specified phrase. Character input method characterized by the following. 2. The character input method according to claim 1, wherein the same character string as the character string stored in the memory is undecided when an instruction to cut out a phrase is given at the same time as the reading processing. 2. The character input method according to claim 1, wherein said character is deleted from said character. 3. A program interlocking with a process of receiving input of a character string for a plurality of phrases, dividing the character string into units of a phrase, performing conversion processing, and inputting the determined converted character string to an application being executed. When a reading process is instructed for an arbitrary phrase in a state where an unconfirmed conversion character string is generated by the conversion candidates extracted for each phrase, the conversion character string in the phrase is read. A first step of storing in a memory, when a break in an arbitrary phrase on the undetermined converted character string is specified and paste processing is instructed, the converted character string in the memory is read and specified; A recording medium for a character input program in which a program for executing each step of the second step to be inserted at a break between phrases is recorded. 4. The recording medium for a program for character input according to claim 3, wherein the program for executing the first step is instructed to cut out a phrase at the same time as the reading process. A recording medium for a program for character input including a program for deleting the same character string as the character string stored in the memory from the undetermined converted character string. 5. An apparatus which receives input of a character string for a plurality of phrases, divides the character string into units of a phrase, performs a conversion process, and outputs the determined converted character string as a character string to be input. An input unit for performing an operation related to position designation and processing instruction in the converted character string in a state where an unconfirmed converted character string is generated by the conversion candidates extracted for each clause; And a phrase information processing unit for accessing the memory based on the position designation and the content of the instruction by the input unit and reconstructing the unconfirmed converted character string. The phrase information processing means reads a converted character string in a phrase when a reading process for an arbitrary phrase on the undetermined converted character string is instructed by the input means. A conversion character string stored in the memory, when the paste processing is instructed by designating an arbitrary segment break on the undetermined conversion character string by the input means; Means for reading out the specified phrase and inserting the same at the break of the designated phrase. 6. The phrase information processing means further comprising: when a phrase cutout process is instructed simultaneously with the reading process,
6. The character input device according to claim 5, further comprising means for deleting a character string identical to the character string stored in the memory from the undetermined converted character string.