JP2000341761A - Portable telephone set and method for controlling input of portable telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the operability of inputting Japanese while satisfying, original requests, i.e., the compact and lightweight structure of a portable telephone set, by making it possible to input a required KANA (Japanese syllabary) character by the depression of an operation key based on a Roman character input method. SOLUTION: Characters 'A', 'I', 'U', 'E', and 'O' constituting vowels are successively allocated to operation keys arranged on the leftmost column (1st column) out of plural operation keys 12. Consonants 'K', 'S', 'T', and 'N' are successively arranged to operation keys arranged on a medium column (2nd column) and consonants 'H', 'M', 'R', and 'W' are similarly successively allocated to the rightmost column (3rd column). Although KANA input requires thirteen times of key depression in order to input a Japanese character string for instance, 'KONNICHIWA', ten times of key depression 'KO', 'NN', 'NI', 'TI', 'WA' in all are sufficient for Roman character input.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a small electronic device such as a portable telephone or a remote controller of a television, and more particularly to a Japanese input in such a portable telephone.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, mobile phones have rapidly spread, and additional functions of the mobile phones have been advanced. For example, recent mobile phones have functions such as telephone directory registration and mail communication in addition to the original function of making a telephone call, and can input Japanese. For example, in a conventional mobile phone, when a user inputs Japanese characters such as hiragana, katakana, and kanji when performing e-mail communication or the like, after setting the Japanese input mode, "0-9" By pressing the numeric key (button) and the symbol keys of “*” and “#”, a desired kana character has been selected. More specifically, a mobile phone capable of inputting Japanese typically has an input mode switching key for setting a mode for inputting Japanese or English characters, and this input mode switching key is pressed. Every time, "Japanese input mode" →
The input mode was sequentially switched from “alphabet input mode” to “numeric input mode”. As for the numeric key of the mobile phone, for example, each line in Japanese is assigned to the “1” key, for example, “Aio”, and each time this key is pressed, “A → I →
The input characters were changed sequentially, such as "U → E → O". For example, “D” is selected by pressing the “1” key four times. In such a mobile phone, a user first presses an input mode switching key to select a Japanese input mode, and then changes a key to which a desired “kana character” is assigned to the “kana character”. The character string was selected by pressing it multiple times until is displayed.

As described above, in a conventional portable telephone, each row of the Japanese syllabary is assigned to each key. For this reason, the user can use kana characters such as “Adan (column)” and “Idan” in the Japanese syllabary table (for example, “KA”
When inputting desired kana characters with a relatively small number of presses, kana characters such as "edan" and "odan" (for example, "ke") can be input. And "ko" etc.), a greater number of presses (number of strokes) is required. Therefore, in such a Japanese input of the mobile phone, the number of presses inevitably increases, and the operation is complicated. On the other hand, mobile phones are inherently required to have portability, and therefore are required to be smaller and lighter. For this reason,
Unnecessarily increasing the number of keys, focusing only on the operability of Japanese input, would be contrary to the demand for miniaturization and weight reduction, and reducing the size of each key would increase operability. It will be spoiled and not valid. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone that is excellent in operability of Japanese input while satisfying the original requirements of a mobile phone (electronic device) that is small and lightweight. Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone which is excellent in operability of Japanese input on the premise of the number and arrangement of operation keys of an existing mobile phone.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is specified as follows. That is, the present invention is a mobile phone in which alphabet letters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of a plurality of operation keys. A mobile phone characterized in that input can be performed by operating (typically, pressing) the operation keys according to a Roman alphabet input method. here,
It is preferable that the plurality of operation keys are at least numeric keys of “0 to 9”, symbol keys of “*” and “#”, and predetermined function keys. Further, it is preferable that the plurality of operation keys are arranged in a substantially matrix shape, and alphabetic characters for expressing the vowels are respectively assigned to operation keys arranged in either a row or a column direction. In addition, it is preferable that desired characters can be input by operating the operation keys adjacent to each other among the operation keys to which the alphabet characters for expressing the consonants are assigned. In this case, the desired character is a character such as a punctuation mark or a long sound symbol, and it is preferable that the desired character is input by a combination of two or three operation keys. Further, the present invention provides a plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary, and a buffer for storing input characters based on operations on the operation keys, A conversion unit that converts the input characters stored in the buffer into a specific kana character based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method,
Display means for displaying the content stored in the buffer;
A mobile phone comprising: here,
The mobile phone stores the content stored in the buffer,
Preferably, it can be converted into a predetermined kanji based on a Japanese dictionary. Further, the present invention is a method for controlling Japanese input of a mobile phone, wherein alphabetic characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of a plurality of operation keys, A Japanese input control method for a mobile phone, characterized in that input characters based on operations on operation keys are controlled to be converted to specific kana characters based on a conversion rule according to a Roman character input method. Further, the present invention specifies an input character based on an operation on any one of a plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing a Japanese syllabary or a consonant are composed. Input means, a buffer for storing the input characters specified by the input means, the input characters stored in the buffer, based on a conversion rule according to the Roman alphabet input method,
Conversion means for converting to a specific kana character, display means for controlling to display the content stored in the buffer,
And a control circuit for a mobile phone or a small electronic device.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an appearance of a mobile phone according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of operation keys 12 (surrounded by a dotted frame in the figure) and a display panel 13 are formed on the front side (operation surface side) of a housing 11 of the mobile phone 1. I have. In addition, the mobile phone 1 is provided with a receiving unit and a transmitting unit for talking, and further, a telescopic antenna is provided so as to protrude. The housing 11 stores therein a circuit board, a speaker, a microphone, a battery, and the like. The operation key 12 is typically “0
Numeric keys (sometimes called "dial keys") 12a, symbol keys "*" and "#"
b, It is preferable to have an on-hook / off-hook key 12c for "call" and "off", and further to have various function keys 12d for telephone directory registration and Japanese input. Symbols and characters are printed on and around these keys,
Users can be distinguished. In the mobile phone 1 according to the present embodiment, each of the operation keys 12 is provided with either a vowel or a consonant constituting the Japanese syllabary so that a Japanese character string can be input in a Roman alphabet input method. It is preferable that the keys be assigned (details will be described later). More specifically, it is preferable that the number of operation keys for assigning vowels and consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary is 14 or more, and 15 or more. More preferred. The display panel 13 displays characters (including numbers, symbols, pictograms, and the like) input by operating the operation keys 12.
And information on the state of the mobile phone 1 and is typically realized by a liquid crystal display. In the present embodiment, a vowel and / or a consonant that constitutes the Japanese syllabary is assigned to each of the existing numeric keys and various function keys provided on the mobile phone, and a Japanese character string is input using a Roman character input method using the keys. It is characterized in that it can be input with. Next, an example of assigning vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary to each of the operation keys 12 of the mobile phone 1 will be described. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, among the operation keys 12 arranged in a matrix of three columns and five rows, the operation key arranged in the leftmost column (first column) includes “A” that constitutes a vowel. , "I", "U",
“E” and “O” are sequentially assigned. The mobile phone typically has a number key 12a and a symbol key 1
When 2b is combined, there are only 12 operation keys, which is insufficient for one line. However, it is preferable to compensate for this shortage by using, for example, various function keys 12d. Examples of the various function keys 12d include a manner key for switching the vibrator mode on and off, a history key for calling outgoing or incoming call history, and a memo key for recording and reproducing voice and the like during a call. The function key is used in a broad sense including an operation key for a user to perform an operation other than the input of a telephone number using a numeric key. Among the operation keys 12, the operation keys arranged in the fourth row of the middle column (second column) include the consonants “K”, “S”, and “S” of the Japanese syllabary from “ka row” to “na row”. "T" and "N" are sequentially assigned, and similarly, the operation keys arranged in the rightmost column (third column) include the consonants "H" from the Japanese syllabary "ha row" to "wa row". , “M”, “Y”, “R”, and “W” are assigned in order. In this example, the function key 12d arranged in the fifth row of the middle column is assigned a "special" key to be used for inputting punctuation marks, long vowels, and the like. The other function keys 12d include:
It is preferable that an input mode switching key (displayed as "Kana / alphanumeric" in the figure) for switching between the Japanese input mode and the alphanumeric input mode is assigned. In this example, the input mode switching key is assigned so as to function as a conversion key for converting a kana character input by the operation key into a kanji-kana mixed sentence according to the execution state. . FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone 1 includes a main control unit 21, a key input unit 22, a display unit 23, and a storage unit 2 as function realizing means.
4 and a call control unit 25, a voice input unit 26, a voice output unit 27, and a transmission / reception unit 28. The main control unit 21 controls the overall operation of the mobile phone 1 and is realized by a microcomputer and its peripheral circuits. The microcomputer realizes a predetermined function by interpreting and executing the control program stored in the storage unit 24. The key input unit 22 is a main control unit that outputs information on the operation keys of the operation keys 12 that are pressed by the user.
Notify. The main control unit 21 specifies input information (characters) corresponding to the pressed operation key based on the notification according to the current execution state. Such a process related to key input is performed by scanning a key matrix circuit with a scan signal and detecting which operation key is pressed based on the scan result. The display unit 23 is controlled by the key input unit 21 under the control of the main control unit 21.
And information on the state of the mobile phone 1 are displayed. Here, the information on the state of the mobile phone 1 includes, for example, a current input mode, a radio wave reception state, presence / absence of an answering machine, and the like. The storage unit 24 includes a control program, a program work area, key conversion information, telephone directory information,
It stores a Japanese conversion dictionary and the like. Storage unit 24
Is realized by a ROM, a RAM, an EEPROM, or the like. Call control unit 25, voice input unit 26, voice output unit 27
The transmission / reception unit 28 is for realizing a function as a mobile phone. In other words, these function realizing means perform predetermined processing such as modulation on the voice or the like input from the voice input unit 26, transmit this as radio waves to the other party (for example, a base station or the like), and By performing a predetermined process such as demodulation on the received radio wave and sending it to the audio output unit 27 so as to output this as a voice, a wireless communication is realized. FIG. 3 is a state transition diagram for explaining the execution state of the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. That is, when the user presses the power key from the power-off state, the mobile phone 1 is turned on and shifts to the “telephone number input mode”. In this mode, when the user presses the input mode switching key, the mode shifts to the “Japanese input mode”, and the Japanese character string can be input in the Roman character input method. In this mode, when the user presses the input mode switching key, the mode shifts to the "alphanumeric character input mode". When the user further presses the input mode switching key, the mode returns to the initial "telephone number input mode".
When the power key is pressed in each of the power-on modes, the power is turned off. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a function realizing unit that realizes a Japanese input mode in the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. In this Japanese input mode, the main control unit 21 and the key input unit 2 shown in FIG.
2. It is realized by the display unit 23 and the storage unit 24 working together. In the figure, when receiving the input information from the key input unit 21, the determination unit 41 determines the content (the type of the input character), and notifies the input control unit 42 of the determination result. The input control unit 42 activates the kana conversion unit 43 or the kanji conversion unit 44 according to the determination result, or reads out the content stored in the temporary input buffer 45,
Write to the confirmation buffer 46. Specifically, when the input information is a vowel or a consonant, the input control unit 42 activates the kana conversion unit 43. When the input information is a conversion instruction, the input control unit 42 activates the kanji conversion unit 44. When the input information is a confirmation instruction, the input control unit 42 reads a character string held in the temporary input buffer 45, and Is written to the determination buffer 46. The kana conversion unit 43 includes the temporary input buffer 4
5 according to the contents held in the key conversion table 4
7 to convert to a predetermined kana character. Here, an operation example of the kana conversion unit 43 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the temporary input buffer 45. First, the key input unit 22
, And “TO” is held in the temporary input buffer 45 (FIG. 7A). It should be noted that the inverted triangle shown in the figure is the temporary input buffer 4
5 is a pointer indicating the address in 5. Alphabetic characters representing vowels or consonants are represented by half-width characters (1 byte), and kana characters are represented by full-width characters (2 bytes). The kana conversion unit 43 refers to the key conversion table 47 and converts the combination of “TO” into “to” (FIG. 13B). Next, it is assumed that "KK" is input and held in the temporary input buffer 45 (FIG. 3C). The kana conversion unit 43 refers to the key conversion table 47 and converts the same consonant into a prompting sound “tsu” because the same consonant is continuous (FIG. 4D). FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the key conversion table 47. The key conversion table 47 stores rules for kana conversion in the Roman alphabet input method. The kana conversion unit 43 specifies a predetermined kana character from the characters or a combination thereof held in the temporary input buffer 45 according to the conversion rule, and replaces the contents of the temporary input buffer 45. When a conversion instruction is given from the key input unit 22, the kanji conversion unit 44 refers to the Japanese dictionary 48 and performs kana-kanji conversion on the content held in the temporary input buffer 45. For example, as shown in FIGS. 5E and 5F, it is assumed that the character "TOKYO" is held in the temporary input buffer 45. In this state, when a conversion instruction is given by pressing the conversion key, the kanji conversion unit 44
With reference to the Japanese dictionary 48, the character of "patent" is specified,
The contents of the temporary input buffer 45 are replaced (FIG. 9 (g)).
As described above, the input information input from the key input unit 22 is temporarily held in the temporary input buffer 45, and is subjected to appropriate kana conversion and kanji conversion. When a confirmation instruction is given, the input control unit 42 Is written to the determination buffer 46 via The display control unit 49 includes a temporary input buffer 45.
The contents of the tentative input state held in the memory or the contents of the confirmed state held in the confirmation buffer 46 are read out at a predetermined timing to generate display data, and this is displayed on the display unit 2.
Output to 3. That is, in the case of the provisional input state before the determination instruction is given, the display control unit 49 reads out the contents held in the provisional input buffer 45 and displays the contents in the display form indicating the provisional input state. Generate display data. Further, in the case of the finalized state in which the finalizing instruction is given, the display control unit 49 reads out the contents held in the finalizing buffer 46 and generates display data so as to be displayed in a display form indicating the finalized state. I do. As a result, the contents held in the temporary input buffer 45 or the determination buffer 46 are displayed on the display unit 23 in a display form according to the input state. FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining an operation in the Japanese input mode of the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. In the Japanese input mode, the mobile phone 1
Until a specific operation key is pressed, an input wait state is set (STEP 701). When the operation key is pressed by the user, the mobile phone 1 determines whether the operation key is an operation key to which a consonant is assigned (STEP 70).
2) If the operation key is assigned to a consonant, consonant input processing is performed according to the operation key (STE).
P703). That is, in the consonant input processing, the content held in the temporary input buffer 45 is appropriately replaced based on the key conversion table 47 and displayed on the display unit 23. If “No” is determined in STEP 702, the mobile phone 1 next determines whether or not the operation key is an operation key to which a vowel is assigned (S10).
(Step 704) When it is determined that the vowel is an operation key to which a vowel is assigned, vowel input processing is performed according to the operation key (STEP 705). If “No” is determined in STEP 704, the mobile phone 1 next determines whether the operation key is a special key,
(STEP 704), when it is determined that the key is a special operation key, a special character input process is performed according to the special key (STEP 705). Hereinafter, similarly, the mobile phone 1
If it is determined that the operation key is a conversion key, a kanji conversion process is performed based on the content held in the temporary input buffer 45 (STEPs 708 and 709). The contents of the input buffer 45 are read out and written in the confirmation buffer 46 (STEP
710 and 711). If the mobile phone 1 determines that the key is the clear key, the content of the temporary input buffer 45 is deleted by one character (STEPs 712 and 71).
3). Then, the above processing is repeated until the power key is pressed (STEP 714). As described above, according to the present embodiment, the Japanese character string is assigned by assigning the vowels and / or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary to each of the existing numeric keys and various function keys provided on the mobile phone. Can be input in the Roman alphabet input method using the key. As a result, it is possible to input a desired Japanese character string with a small number of presses, while satisfying the original requirement of a small and lightweight portable telephone. For example, when a Japanese character string "konnichiwa" is input, the mobile phone according to the present embodiment is compared with a conventional mobile phone. That is, in a conventional mobile phone,
To enter a Japanese character string "Konichiwa", "Kakakaka" (5 times), "Wawawa" (3 times),
“Nana” (twice), “ta” (twice) and “ha” (1
Times), a total of 13 times of pressing (number of strokes) is required. Note that "heavy" means that the operation key to which "he line" is assigned is pressed by the number of characters. On the other hand, in the mobile phone according to the present embodiment,
For example, "KO", "NN", "NI", "TI", "WA", etc., a total of 10 times of pressing is sufficient. In addition, in Japanese input using the Roman alphabet input method, two or more presses are required except for "A line". However, when the entire Japanese character string is considered, such as "Hello", The number of presses can be sufficiently reduced as compared with a conventional mobile phone. [Second Embodiment] The present embodiment is characterized in that characters such as punctuation marks and long symbols can be input in a combination of consonants. Preferably, a character having a high frequency of appearance is input with two to three times of pressing by a combination of consonants. That is, FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of character assignment to operation keys of the mobile phone 1 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example (only a part) of the key conversion table 47. In the present embodiment,
Characters such as punctuation marks and symbols can be input using either special key combinations or consonant combinations. Thus, for example, in the case of the long sound symbol "-", the input can be made by pressing adjacent consonants "K" and "S" as an arrangement of operation keys. Also, in the case of the reading point “,”, the consonants “T” and “N” can be input by pressing adjacent consonants “T” and “N” as an arrangement of operation keys,
In the case of a period ".", It becomes possible to input by pressing the adjacent "H" and "M" or any combination of "M" and "R" as an array of operation keys. [Other Embodiments] The above embodiments are exemplifications for describing the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention only to these embodiments. The present invention
The present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the invention. For example, the arrangement of vowels and consonants for the operation keys described above is not limited to this.
For example, in the above embodiment, the voiced sound and the semi-voiced sound are input using the special keys, but the consonants constituting these may be assigned to predetermined operation keys.
In this case, it is preferable to assign a vowel or a consonant according to the frequency of appearance in the Japanese character string. Also, the kana conversion rule shown in FIG. 6 is not limited to this,
These can also be set appropriately. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the operation of the function realizing means has been described sequentially, but the present invention is not limited to this. Therefore, as long as no inconsistency occurs in the operation, the order of processing may be changed or the operation may be performed in parallel. The present invention can be applied not only to mobile phones, but also to electronic devices that require Japanese input while being small and lightweight. For example, there is a remote controller for home electric appliances such as a television.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a portable telephone excellent in the operability of Japanese input while satisfying the original requirement of a small and lightweight portable telephone. Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a mobile phone having excellent operability of Japanese input, based on the number of operation keys of the existing mobile phone.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing an appearance of a mobile phone according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a state transition diagram for explaining an execution state of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of a function realizing unit for realizing a Japanese input mode in the mobile phone according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a temporary input buffer 47;

FIG. 6 shows an example of a key conversion table 47.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining the operation of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment in the Japanese input mode;

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of character assignment to operation keys of the mobile phone according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a key conversion table 47;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Mobile telephone 11 ... Housing 12 ... Operation button 13 ... Display panel 21 ... Main control part 22 ... Key input part 23 ... Display part 24 ... Storage part 25 ... Call control part 26 ... Voice input part 27 ... Voice output part 28 ... Transceiver

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] April 17, 2000 (2004.1.
7)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Full text

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[Document Name] Statement

Patent application title: Mobile phone, input control method for mobile phone

[Claims]

5. A portable telephone, the contents stored in the buffer, based on the Japanese dictionary, a mobile phone according to claim 4, wherein the conversion to a predetermined kanji.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a small electronic device such as a portable telephone or a remote controller of a television, and more particularly to a Japanese input in such a portable telephone.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, mobile phones have rapidly spread, and additional functions of the mobile phones have been advanced. For example, recent mobile phones have functions such as telephone directory registration and mail communication in addition to the original function of making a telephone call, and can input Japanese.

For example, in a conventional mobile phone, when a user inputs Japanese characters such as hiragana, katakana, and kanji when performing e-mail communication or the like, after setting a Japanese input mode, the user sets “0”. By pressing the numerical keys (buttons) of ".about.9" and the symbol keys of "*" and "#", a desired kana character has been selected.

More specifically, a portable telephone capable of inputting Japanese language typically has an input mode switching key for setting a mode for inputting Japanese or English characters. Each time a key is pressed, "Japanese input mode" → "English character input mode" → "Numeric input mode"
Thus, the input mode is sequentially switched. Also, the numeric keys of the mobile phone are, for example,
Each line of Japanese is assigned to the "1" key, such as "aiueo", and each time this key is pressed, the input characters change sequentially, such as "a → i → u → e → o". Had become. For example, "e" becomes "1"
Selection is made by pressing the key four times. In such a mobile phone, a user first presses an input mode switching key to select a Japanese input mode, and then changes a key to which a desired “kana character” is assigned to the “kana character”. The character string was selected by pressing it multiple times until is displayed.

[0005]

As described above, in a conventional portable telephone, each row of the Japanese syllabary is assigned to each key. For this reason, the user can use kana characters such as “Adan (column)” and “Idan” in the Japanese syllabary table (for example, “KA”
When inputting desired kana characters with a relatively small number of presses, kana characters such as "edan" and "odan" (for example, "ke") can be input. And "ko" etc.), a greater number of presses (number of strokes) is required. Therefore, in such a Japanese input of the mobile phone, the number of presses inevitably increases, and the operation is complicated.

[0006] On the other hand, portable telephones are inherently required to be portable, and therefore are required to be reduced in size and weight. For this reason, increasing the number of keys without prioritizing only the operability of Japanese input would be contrary to the demand for miniaturization and weight reduction, and if the size of each key was reduced, Operability is impaired, which is not appropriate.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable telephone which satisfies the original requirement of a portable telephone (electronic device) of small size and light weight and which is excellent in operability of Japanese input.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone which is excellent in operability of Japanese input on the premise of the number and arrangement of operation keys of an existing mobile phone.

[0009]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is specified as follows. That is, the present invention is a mobile phone in which alphabet letters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of a plurality of operation keys. A mobile phone characterized in that input can be performed by operating (typically, pressing) the operation keys according to a Roman alphabet input method.

Here, it is preferable that the plurality of operation keys are at least numeric keys of "0 to 9", symbol keys of "*" and "#", and predetermined function keys.

Further, the plurality of operation keys are arranged in a substantially matrix shape, and alphabetic characters for expressing the vowels are respectively assigned to operation keys arranged in either a row or a column direction. preferable.

It is preferable that a desired symbol character can be input by operating the operation keys adjacent to each other among the operation keys to which the alphabet characters for expressing the consonants are assigned. In this case, the desired character is a character such as a punctuation mark or a long sound symbol, and it is preferable that the desired character is input by a combination of two or three operation keys.

Further, the present invention stores a plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned, and input characters based on operations on the operation keys. A buffer, a conversion unit that converts the input characters stored in the buffer into a specific kana character based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method, and a display unit that displays the content stored in the buffer. A mobile phone comprising:

Here, it is preferable that the portable telephone can convert the contents stored in the buffer into predetermined kanji based on a Japanese dictionary.

Further, the present invention is a method for controlling Japanese input of a portable telephone, in which alphabetical characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of a plurality of operation keys. Controlling input characters based on an operation on the operation keys to specific kana characters based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method. is there.

Further, the present invention provides a method for inputting characters based on an operation on any one of a plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned. Input means for specifying the input character, a buffer for storing the input character specified by the input means, and converting the input character stored in the buffer to a specific kana character based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method. And control means for controlling display of the contents stored in the buffer.

[0017]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an appearance of a mobile phone according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of operation keys 12 (surrounded by a dotted frame in the figure) and a display panel 13 are formed on the front side (operation surface side) of a housing 11 of the mobile phone 1. I have. In addition, the mobile phone 1 is provided with a receiving unit and a transmitting unit for talking, and further, a telescopic antenna is provided so as to protrude. The housing 11 stores therein a circuit board, a speaker, a microphone, a battery, and the like. The operation key 12 is typically “0
Numeric keys (sometimes called "dial keys") 12a, symbol keys "*" and "#"
b, It is preferable to have an on-hook / off-hook key 12c for "call" and "off", and further to have various function keys 12d for telephone directory registration and Japanese input. Symbols and characters are printed on and around these keys,
Users can be distinguished. In the mobile phone 1 according to the present embodiment, each of the operation keys 12 is provided with either a vowel or a consonant constituting the Japanese syllabary so that a Japanese character string can be input in a Roman alphabet input method. It is preferable that the keys be assigned (details will be described later). More specifically, it is preferable that the number of operation keys for assigning vowels and consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary is 14 or more, and 15 or more. More preferred. The display panel 13 displays characters (including numbers, symbols, pictograms, and the like) input by operating the operation keys 12.
And information on the state of the mobile phone 1 and is typically realized by a liquid crystal display.

In this embodiment, vowels and / or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of the existing numeric keys and various function keys provided on the portable telephone, and a Japanese character string is assigned by the keys. It is characterized in that it can be input by a Roman character input method. Next, an example of assigning vowels or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary to each of the operation keys 12 of the mobile phone 1 will be described.

That is, as shown in FIG. 1, among the operation keys 12 arranged in a matrix of three columns and five rows, the operation keys arranged in the leftmost column (first column) constitute vowels. “A”, “I”, “U”, “E” and “O” are sequentially assigned. Typically, the mobile phone has only 12 operation keys when the number keys 12a and the symbol keys 12b are combined, resulting in a shortage of one line. For this shortage, for example, various function keys 12d are used. It is preferable to supplement them. Examples of the various function keys 12d include a manner key for switching the vibrator mode on and off, a history key for calling outgoing or incoming call history, and a memo key for recording and reproducing voice and the like during a call. The function key is used in a broad sense including an operation key for a user to perform an operation other than the input of a telephone number using a numeric key. Among the operation keys 12, the operation keys arranged in the fourth row of the middle column (second column) include the consonants “K” from the Japanese syllabary “ka row” to “na row”,
"S", "T", and "N" are sequentially assigned, and similarly, the operation keys arranged in the rightmost column (third column) include the Japanese syllabary "ha row" to "wa row". Consonants "H", "M",
“Y”, “R”, and “W” are sequentially assigned. In this example, the function key 12d arranged in the fifth row of the middle column is assigned a "special" key to be used for inputting punctuation marks, long vowels, and the like. The other function keys 12d may be assigned an input mode switching key (displayed as "Kana / alphanumeric" in the figure) for switching between the Japanese input mode and the alphanumeric input mode. preferable. In this example, the input mode switching key is assigned so as to function as a conversion key for converting a kana character input by the operation key into a kanji-kana mixed sentence according to the execution state. .

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone 1 includes a main control unit 21, a key input unit 22, a display unit 23, a storage unit 24, and a call control unit 2 as function realizing means.
5. Voice input unit 26, voice output unit 27, and transmission / reception unit 2
8 is provided.

The main controller 21 controls the overall operation of the mobile phone 1, and is realized by a microcomputer and its peripheral circuits. The microcomputer realizes a predetermined function by interpreting and executing the control program stored in the storage unit 24. Key input unit 2
2 notifies the main control unit 21 of information regarding the operation keys of the operation keys 12 pressed by the user. The main control unit 21 specifies input information (characters) corresponding to the pressed operation key based on the notification according to the current execution state. Such a process related to key input is performed by scanning a key matrix circuit with a scan signal and detecting which operation key is pressed based on the scan result. The display unit 23 displays input information from the key input unit 21 and information on the state of the mobile phone 1 under the control of the main control unit 21. Here, the information on the state of the mobile phone 1 includes, for example, a current input mode, a radio wave reception state, presence / absence of an answering machine, and the like. The storage unit 24 stores a control program, a program work area, key conversion information, telephone directory information, a Japanese conversion dictionary, and the like. The storage unit 24 includes a ROM, a RAM, an E
This is realized by an EPROM or the like. The call control unit 25, the voice input unit 26, the voice output unit 27, and the transmission / reception unit 28 are for realizing functions as a mobile phone. In other words, these function realizing means perform predetermined processing such as modulation on the voice and the like input from the voice input unit 26,
This is transmitted to the other party (for example, a base station or the like) as a radio wave, and a predetermined process such as demodulation is performed on the radio wave received from the other party, and this is transmitted to the audio output unit 27 so as to be output as a voice. , To realize wireless communication.

FIG. 3 is a state transition diagram for explaining the execution state of the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. That is,
When the user presses the power key from the power-off state, the mobile phone 1 is turned on and shifts to the “telephone number input mode”. In this mode, when the user presses the input mode switching key, the mode shifts to the “Japanese input mode”, and the Japanese character string can be input in the Roman character input method. In this mode, when the user presses the input mode switching key, the mode shifts to the "alphanumeric character input mode". When the user further presses the input mode switching key, the mode returns to the initial "telephone number input mode". When the power key is pressed in each of the power-on modes, the power is turned off.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of a function realizing means for realizing a Japanese input mode in the mobile phone according to the present embodiment. This Japanese input mode is realized by the main control unit 21, the key input unit 22, the display unit 23, and the storage unit 24 shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, upon receiving input information from the key input unit 21, the determination unit 41 determines the content (the type of input character) and notifies the input control unit 42 of the determination result. The input control unit 42 activates the kana conversion unit 43 or the kanji conversion unit 44 according to the determination result, or reads out the content stored in the temporary input buffer 45,
Write to the confirmation buffer 46. Specifically, when the input information is a vowel or a consonant, the input control unit 42 activates the kana conversion unit 43. When the input information is a conversion instruction, the input control unit 42 activates the kanji conversion unit 44. When the input information is a confirmation instruction, the input control unit 42 reads a character string held in the temporary input buffer 45, and Is written to the determination buffer 46. The kana conversion unit 43 includes the temporary input buffer 4
5 according to the contents held in the key conversion table 4
7 to convert to a predetermined kana character.

Here, an operation example of the kana conversion unit 43 will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the temporary input buffer 45. First, it is assumed that a character is input from the key input unit 22 and "TO" is held in the temporary input buffer 45 (FIG. 7A). The inverted triangle shown is a kana conversion unit 4
Reference numeral 3 denotes a pointer indicating an address in the temporary input buffer 45 of interest. Alphabetic characters representing vowels or consonants are half-width (1 byte), and kana characters are full-width (2 bytes).
Byte). The kana conversion unit 43
The combination of “TO” is converted to “to” by referring to the key conversion table 47 (FIG. 13B). Next, "KK"
Is input, and this is held in the temporary input buffer 45 (FIG. 9C). The kana conversion unit 43 refers to the key conversion table 47 and converts the same consonant into a prompting sound “tsu” because the same consonant is continuous (FIG. 4D).

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the key conversion table 47. The key conversion table 47 stores rules for kana conversion in the Roman alphabet input method. The kana conversion unit 43 specifies a predetermined kana character from the characters or a combination thereof held in the temporary input buffer 45 according to the conversion rule, and replaces the contents of the temporary input buffer 45.

When a conversion instruction is given from the key input unit 22, the kanji conversion unit 44 performs kana-kanji conversion on the contents held in the temporary input buffer 45 with reference to the Japanese dictionary 48. For example, as shown in FIGS. 5E and 5F, it is assumed that the character "TOKYO" is held in the temporary input buffer 45. In this state, when the conversion instruction is given by pressing the conversion key, the kanji conversion unit 44
Refers to the Japanese dictionary 48, specifies the character of "patent", and replaces the contents of the temporary input buffer 45 (FIG. 9 (g)). As described above, the input information input from the key input unit 22 is temporarily held in the temporary input buffer 45, and is subjected to appropriate kana conversion and kanji conversion. When a confirmation instruction is given, the input control unit 42 Is written to the determination buffer 46 via

The display control section 49 stores the contents of the provisional input state held in the provisional input buffer 45 or the determination buffer 4.
6 is read out at predetermined timing to generate display data, and this is displayed on the display unit 23.
Output to That is, in the case of the provisional input state before the determination instruction is given, the display control unit 49 reads out the contents held in the provisional input buffer 45 and displays the contents in the display form indicating the provisional input state. Generate display data. Further, in the case of the finalized state in which the finalizing instruction is given, the display control unit 49 reads out the contents held in the finalizing buffer 46 and generates display data so as to be displayed in a display form indicating the finalized state. I do. As a result, the contents held in the temporary input buffer 45 or the determination buffer 46 are displayed on the display unit 23 in a display form according to the input state.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the portable telephone according to the present embodiment in the Japanese input mode. In the Japanese input mode, the mobile phone 1 waits for an input until a specific operation key is pressed (STEP 11).
701). When the user presses an operation key, the mobile phone 1 determines whether the operation key is an operation key to which a consonant is assigned (STEP 702), and if the operation key is an operation key to which a consonant is assigned. Performs a consonant input process according to the operation key (STEP 70).
3). That is, in the consonant input processing, the content held in the temporary input buffer 45 is appropriately replaced based on the key conversion table 47 and displayed on the display unit 23. S
If it is determined “No” in STEP 702, the mobile phone 1 next determines whether the operation key is an operation key to which a vowel is assigned (STEP 7).
04) If it is determined that the vowel is an assigned operation key, vowel input processing is performed according to the operation key (STEP 705). In STEP 704, "N
If it is determined as “o”, the mobile phone 1 next determines whether or not the operation key is a special key (STEP 7).
04) If it is determined that the key is a special operation key, special character input processing is performed according to the special key (STEP 7).
05). Similarly, when the mobile phone 1 determines that the operation key is a conversion key, it performs a kanji conversion process based on the contents held in the temporary input buffer 45 (STEPs 708 and 709), and If it is determined that the data is in the temporary input buffer 45, the contents are read out from the temporary input buffer 45 and written in the determination buffer 46 (STEPs 710 and 711). When determining that the key is the clear key, the mobile phone 1 deletes the contents of the temporary input buffer 45 for one character (STEPs 712 and 713). Then, the above processing is repeated until the power key is pressed (STEP 714).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, Japanese vowels and / or consonants constituting the Japanese syllabary are assigned to each of the existing numeric keys and various function keys provided on the portable telephone. The word character string can be input by the Roman key input method using the key. As a result, it is possible to input a desired Japanese character string with a small number of presses, while satisfying the original requirement of a small and lightweight portable telephone.

For example, when a Japanese character string “konnichiwa” is input, the mobile phone according to the present embodiment is compared with a conventional mobile phone. That is, in the conventional mobile phone, in order to input a Japanese character string "konnichiwa", "kakakaka" (5 times)
"Wawawa" (3 times), "Nana" (2 times), "Tata" (2
Times) and “wa” (once), a total of 13 times of pressing (number of strokes) are required. Note that "heavy" means that the operation key to which "he line" is assigned is pressed by the number of characters. On the other hand, in the mobile phone according to the present embodiment, “KO”, “NN”, “NI”,
For example, "TI", "WA", and the like, two times each, a total of ten times of pressing is sufficient. In addition, in Japanese input using the Roman alphabet input method, two or more presses are required except for "A line". However, when the entire Japanese character string is considered, such as "Hello", The number of presses can be sufficiently reduced as compared with a conventional mobile phone.

[Second Embodiment] The second embodiment is characterized in that characters such as punctuation marks and long symbols can be input in a combination of consonants. Preferably, a character having a high frequency of appearance is input with two to three times of pressing by a combination of consonants. That is, FIG.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of character assignment to operation keys of the mobile phone 1 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example (only a part) of a key conversion table 47. In the present embodiment, characters such as punctuation marks and symbols can be input using either a combination of special keys or a combination of consonants.

Thus, for example, in the case of the long sound symbol "-", it can be input by pressing adjacent consonants "K" and "S" as an operation key array. In addition, in the case of a reading point ",", input can be performed by pressing adjacent consonants "T" and "N" as an array of operation keys, and in the case of a period "." By pressing any combination of “H” and “M” or “M” and “R”, input can be performed.

[Other Embodiments] The above embodiments are merely examples for describing the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention only to these embodiments. The present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist thereof.

For example, the arrangement of vowels and consonants for the operation keys described above is not limited to this. For example, in the above embodiment, the voiced sound and the semi-voiced sound are input using the special keys, but the consonants constituting these may be assigned to predetermined operation keys. In this case, it is preferable to assign a vowel or a consonant according to the frequency of appearance in the Japanese character string. Further, the kana conversion rules shown in FIG. 6 are not limited to these, and they can be set as appropriate.

Further, in the above embodiment, the operation of the function realizing means has been described sequentially, but the present invention is not limited to this. Therefore, as long as no inconsistency occurs in the operation, the order of processing may be changed or the operation may be performed in parallel.

The present invention is applicable not only to mobile phones, but also to mobile phones.
Assuming the number of existing operation keys while demanding small size and light weight
It can also be applied to electronic devices that require Japanese input. For example, there is a remote controller for home electric appliances such as a television.

[0038]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a portable telephone excellent in the operability of Japanese input while satisfying the original requirement of a small and lightweight portable telephone.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a mobile phone having excellent operability of Japanese input, based on the number of operation keys of the existing mobile phone.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing an appearance of a mobile phone according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a state transition diagram for explaining an execution state of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of a function realizing unit for realizing a Japanese input mode in the mobile phone according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a temporary input buffer 47;

FIG. 6 shows an example of a key conversion table 47.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining the operation of the mobile phone according to the first embodiment in the Japanese input mode;

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of character assignment to operation keys of the mobile phone according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a key conversion table 47;

[Description of Signs] 1 ... Mobile phone 11 ... Housing 12 ... Operation buttons 13 ... Display panel 21 ... Main control unit 22 ... Key input unit 23 ... Display unit 24 ... Storage unit 25 ... Talk control unit 26 ... Speech input unit 27 ... Sound output unit 28 ... Transceiving unit

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A mobile phone in which each of a plurality of operation keys is assigned an alphabetic character for expressing a vowel or a consonant that constitutes the Japanese syllabary. A mobile phone, wherein input can be performed by operating the operation keys according to an input method. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of operation keys are at least "0 to 0".
The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the mobile phone is a numeral key of "9", a symbol key of "*" and "#", and a predetermined function key. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of operation keys are arranged in a substantially matrix shape, and alphabetic characters for expressing the vowels are respectively assigned to operation keys arranged in either a row or a column direction. The mobile phone according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: 4. A desired character can be input by operating an operation key adjacent to each other among operation keys to which alphabet letters for expressing said consonants are assigned. The described mobile phone. 5. A plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing vowels or consonants constituting Japanese syllabary are assigned; a buffer for storing input characters based on operations on the operation keys; Conversion means for converting the input characters stored in the buffer to specific kana characters based on a conversion rule according to the Roman alphabet input method, and display means for displaying the content stored in the buffer,
A mobile phone comprising: 6. The mobile phone according to claim 4, wherein the content stored in the buffer is converted into a predetermined kanji based on a Japanese dictionary. 7. A method for controlling Japanese input of a mobile phone, wherein each of a plurality of operation keys is assigned an alphabetic character for expressing a vowel or a consonant constituting a Japanese syllabary. A Japanese input control method for a mobile phone, wherein input characters based on an operation on a key are controlled to be converted into specific kana characters based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method. 8. An input for specifying an input character based on an operation on any one of a plurality of operation keys to which alphabetic characters for expressing a vowel or a consonant constituting a Japanese syllabary are assigned. Means, a buffer for storing the input characters specified by the input means, and a conversion means for converting the input characters stored in the buffer to specific kana characters based on a conversion rule according to a Roman alphabet input method. And a display means for controlling so as to display the contents stored in the buffer.