JP2001028621A - Telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce trouble of entry operations in the case of a Kana (Japanese syllabary) entry mode while keeping compactness and portability of a telephone set by which words and a sentence can be sent in a form of an electronic mail. SOLUTION: The telephone set is provided with various pushbuttons 11-31 whose number is at least equal to number of vowels and consonants in Japanese, a signal processing means that has a dial mode to designate a destination and a character entry mode to enter characters, corresponds each dial button to figures in the dial mode and corresponds each dial button to each of the vowels and the consonants respectively in the character entry mode, a mode changeover means that instructs changeover between the dial mode and the character entry mode, a display section that displays characters sequentially entered at least in the character entry mode onto a display screen 3, and a frequency signal transmission section that transmits contents of the characters displayed on the display screen 3 to a destination.

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 a telephone device capable of mainly transmitting characters, texts and the like to a destination in the form of electronic mail.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, mobile phones such as mobile phones and PHS (Personal Handy Phone System) have become more sophisticated and multifunctional, and e-mails have been transmitted to mobile phones of the other party. Mobile phones that can do this have emerged.

In this type of telephone, kana characters and English characters are input using a plurality of push buttons originally provided for inputting a telephone number (hereinafter referred to as "dial").
A function is provided for transmitting characters, text, and the like to the other party in the form of electronic mail.

[0004] In this case, the number of push buttons cannot be increased so much from the viewpoint of downsizing the phone and improving operability. Cannot be assigned one-on-one. Therefore, the above Kana characters and English characters are
For example, the push buttons are assigned as follows.

That is, first, in the kana character, the kana character of the Japanese syllabary is divided into lines such as a line, a line, a line,...
Kana characters are assigned, and the kana character assigned to the push button can be input by the push operation of the push button as in the case of the dial number. In addition, by repeatedly performing a push operation on one push button, kana characters assigned to the button are sequentially displayed on the display screen in ascending order, and the character can be selected. Note that the first character of each line is often described on the push button as a representative of the line.

On the other hand, in the case of English characters, 26 English characters "A" to "Z" are assigned to each of the push buttons in the same manner as in the case of the kana characters, and the push buttons are operated to assign the buttons. It is configured such that the assigned English character can be input. In addition, by repeatedly performing a push operation on one push button, English characters assigned to the button are sequentially displayed on the display screen, and a character can be selected.

In order to input a Kana character using these functions, for example, the mode is first switched between a Kana character input mode for inputting a Kana character and an English character input mode for inputting an English character. Select the kana character input mode by switching the mode switch button provided in
By pushing the push button in which the first character of the line to which the input kana character belongs is written a predetermined number of times, the input character is displayed on the display screen and determined.

[0008]

However, in the case of inputting a kana character in the above-described kana character input mode, as described above, a plurality of characters can be input to one push button so as to be inputtable. Trouble occurs.

That is, in the kana character mode, for example, when the character "ko" is input, the mode is set to the kana character input mode by the mode switching button, and the push button on which "ka" is displayed is pushed five times. It is determined by operating. As described above, particularly when a character whose vowel is “e” or “o” is input, the push operation must be performed relatively many times, and a word or the like in which many such characters exist is input. When inputting text, the number of push operations becomes very large. As a result, when the number of pushes increases, it becomes very troublesome and time-consuming, which may impair the willingness to use e-mail.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a telephone device which solves the above-mentioned problems and reduces the troublesomeness in the kana character input mode while maintaining compactness and portability.

[0011]

That is, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention is characterized by using the following means.

[0012] First, the invention according to claim 1 (hereinafter referred to as "first invention") is a telephone apparatus for transmitting a voice signal to a destination specified by a dial operation using a numeric keypad. Operation keys having at least the number of keys corresponding to the number of Japanese vowels and consonants, a dial mode for specifying a destination, and a character input mode for inputting characters. Signal processing means for making each key correspond to a vowel and a consonant in the character input mode,
A mode switching means including one key of the key group and instructing switching between a dial mode and a character input mode; a display means for displaying at least characters sequentially input in the character input mode on a display unit; Transmission means for transmitting the character content displayed on the means to the other party.

According to the present invention, the Japanese vowel and consonant can be input using the numeric keypad and various other function keys. You will be able to enter. Therefore, when inputting Japanese, it is not necessary to perform the key input operation many times as in the related art, and the number of input operations is greatly reduced as compared with the related art. As a result, the trouble of inputting characters and sentences as in the related art is reduced, and an e-mail or the like is created more quickly.

Further, in configuring the system so that Japanese vowels and consonants can be input, ten keys and other various function keys originally provided in the telephone device are used.
It is not necessary to increase the number of keys, or it is possible to increase the number of keys only by slightly increasing the number of keys.

Further, since the same button is not operated many times as in the prior art, the risk of damage to the keys and the like is reduced.

Next, according to a second aspect of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as a "second aspect"), in the first aspect, the character input mode is a Roman character input mode, and the signal processing means receives the input. It is characterized by having character conversion means for converting the Roman characters into kana characters.

According to the present invention, the Roman alphabet input in the Roman alphabet input mode is configured to be converted into the Kana character by the character conversion means. Is obtained.

The invention according to claim 3 (hereinafter, referred to as "third invention") is characterized in that in the first invention or the second invention, the character input mode is a kana character input mode and / or
Alternatively, the signal processing means may have an English character input mode, and in the Kana character input mode, each key may correspond to a Kana character classified for each line, and / or in the English character input mode, each key may be classified into a group. The mode switching means is configured to switch the mode between a plurality of modes including the kana character input mode and / or the English character input mode in accordance with the selected English characters.

According to the present invention, in the kana character input mode, each key corresponds to a kana character classified for each line, and / or
Or, in a telephone device in which each key corresponds to English characters classified into groups in the English character input mode, each key is configured to correspond to a Japanese consonant and a vowel in the Roman character input mode. It is not necessary to add many new keys for inputting Japanese consonants and vowels. Therefore, the telephone device can be provided with the function of inputting Roman characters without increasing the size of the telephone device main body or reducing the dial operability.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention (hereinafter referred to as a "fourth invention"), in the first to third inventions, the mode switching means sets the dial mode with priority. It is characterized by being.

According to the present invention, since the dial mode is configured to be preferentially set, it is possible to promptly specify a destination which is always performed when making a call or transmitting an e-mail. Therefore, there is no need to bother switching from the character input mode to the dial mode or to confirm whether the mode has been switched to the dial mode, and the operability of the telephone device is further improved.

The invention according to claim 5 (hereinafter referred to as "the invention")
This is referred to as a "fifth invention." ) Is characterized in that in the first to fourth inventions, the mode switching means is a specific one of the keys which are not operated first in the dial mode.

According to the present invention, the mode switching means is a specific one of the keys which are not operated first in the dial mode, so that the operator can switch between the character input mode and the character input mode. It is possible to solve the problem that the operation may be confused with the designation operation of the other party, and the operator can perform the operation while reliably distinguishing the two operations. As a result, the operability of the telephone device is further improved.

[0024]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a portable telephone which is currently widely used as a telephone device capable of transmitting characters and texts in the form of electronic mail.
This mobile phone will be described. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to this portable telephone, and PHS (Personal Handy
The present invention can be applied to other telephones such as a system.

The portable telephone 1 according to the present embodiment has a structure shown in FIG.
, A push button group 2 including a plurality of push buttons 11 to 31 for inputting a telephone number and executing various functions, and a display screen for displaying numbers and the like corresponding to the push buttons when the push buttons are pushed. 3, an antenna 4 for transmitting and receiving radio waves, a mouthpiece 5 for taking in the voice of the operator, and a mouthpiece 6 for discharging the voice of the other party to the outside.

The push button group 2 includes a call enable button 11 for making a call possible by performing a push operation when making and receiving a call, and a clear button 12 for correcting or deleting the contents displayed on the display screen. ,
A call disconnection button 13 for disconnecting the call state by a push operation when ending the call, dial buttons 14 to 28 for inputting telephone numbers and characters, a mode switching button 29 for switching the type of characters to be input, A lower case conversion button 30 for converting characters to lower case, and a memory button 31 for registering the inputted telephone number and name are arranged.

Further, as shown in FIG.
A control unit 40, a frequency signal receiving unit 41 that sequentially converts signals from the push buttons into electric signals of frequencies corresponding to the push buttons, and transmits the electric signals to the control unit 40, and a signal input from the control unit 40. A frequency signal transmitting unit 42 for transmitting the received signal to the line L, a display unit 43 for receiving a frequency signal from the frequency signal receiving unit 41 and displaying the input content on the display screen 3, and the transmission mouth 5. A voice receiving unit 44 for converting the captured voice into an electric signal and transmitting the electric signal to the control unit 40, and a voice transmitting unit 45 for transmitting the electric signal input from the control unit 40 to the line L. I have.

The control unit 40 has a ROM 401 (Read On) in which a basic processing program of the telephone 1 is stored.
LY Memory), a RAM 402 for storing a program to be executed and data to be processed (Random Access)
ss Memory) and ROM 401 and RAM 40
CPU 403 (Central Pr) that reads the program stored in
processing unit), and the CPU 40
3 controls each unit of the telephone 1 as described above while using the RAM 402 as a work memory based on the program stored in the ROM 401,
It is configured to execute basic processing as the telephone 1.

The CPU 403, as shown in FIG.
A mode switching means 403a for switching a mode between a dial mode and a character input mode to be described later, a dial mode priority setting section 403b for setting the telephone 1 to the dial mode preferentially, and when a dial mode is selected. A signal processing unit 403c for associating each push button with a number, or associating each push button with a character when the character input mode is selected, and setting the mode of the telephone 1 set to the normal dial mode as described above. When the mode is switched to the character input mode by the mode switching means 403a,
The signal processing unit 403c is configured to associate each push button with a character.

In addition, the portable telephone 1 is provided with an infrared port (not shown) for performing wireless communication with each device using infrared rays. It is possible to transmit from the infrared emitting unit of the personal computer to the portable telephone 1 via the infrared port.

Words and sentences are input to the mobile phone 1 by using the push buttons 11 to 31 and transmitted to another phone or the like in the form of an e-mail. In addition to the above dial mode, a character input mode for inputting a word or a sentence is provided. As the character input mode, a kana character input mode for inputting a kana character and an English character input mode for inputting an English character are provided, and mode switching for switching the mode between these modes as described above. Button 29 is provided. As shown in FIG. 1, each of the dial buttons 14 to 23 describes a character to be input by a push operation of the button, and a kana character to be input in the kana character input mode is described at the beginning of each line. Is represented on behalf of the line.

In the kana character input mode,
The button 14 of “1” is a kana character on the “a” line, the button 15 of “2” is a kana character on the “ka” line, and the button 1 of “3” is
6 is a kana character on the “sa” line, a button 17 on the “4” is a kana character on the “ta” line, a button 18 on the “5” is a kana character on the “na” line, and a button 19 on the “6” is The button 20 of “7” becomes the kana character of the “ma” line,
The button 21 of “8” becomes the kana character of the “ya” line, the button 22 of “9” becomes the kana character of the “ra” line, and the button 2 of “0”
3 is associated with the kana character and the character “n” in the “wa” line, respectively. Further, the button 28 is provided as a button for inputting a cloud point and a half-voice point (hereinafter, referred to as a “voice-point / semi-voice point button”). When the kana character mode is selected by the mode switching button 29, the setting of the kana character input mode is displayed on the display screen 3 and the button in which the first character of the line to which the character to be input belongs is described. Is repeatedly pushed, the kana characters assigned to the button are sequentially displayed on the display screen 3 in ascending order, and when the character to be input is displayed on the display screen 3, the memory button 3
By pushing the number 1, the kana character is input. As for the voiced sound or semi-voiced sound, after the characters of the Japanese syllabary have been input and before the memory button 31 is pushed, the above-mentioned display screen is displayed by pushing the above-mentioned voiced / semi-voiced button 28. The voiced and semi-voiced dots are displayed in this order on 3 and input by the memory button 31.

In the English character input mode,
The button 15 of “2” changes to “A”, “B”, “C”,
The button 16 of “3” changes to “D”, “E”, “F”,
The button 17 of “4” changes to “G”, “H”, “I”,
The button 18 of “5” changes to “J”, “K”, “L”,
The "6" button 19 changes to "M", "N", "O",
The button 20 of “7” is “P”, “Q”, “R”, “S”
In addition, the button 21 of “8” is changed to “T”, “U”, “V”,
If the button 22 of “9” is “W”, “X”, “Y”, “Z”
Respectively. When the English character input mode is selected by the mode switching button 29,
As in the case of the kana character input mode, the setting of the English character input mode is displayed on the display screen 3, and the button to which the English character to be input is assigned is repeatedly pushed to operate the button. Are displayed in alphabetical order on the display screen 3, and when the English character to be input is displayed on the display screen 3, the memory button 31 is pushed to input the English character. ing.

In addition to the above configuration, the portable telephone 1 is provided with a Roman character input mode in addition to the character input mode, and each of the push buttons 14 to 28 is provided with a Roman character input consonant and a vowel. English letters "K", "S",
"A", "T", "N", "I", "H", "M",
"U", "Y", "R", "E", "W", and "O" are associated with each other as follows. That is,
The button 14 of “1” is “K”, the button 15 of “2” is “S”, the button 16 of “3” is “A”, the button 17 of “4” is “T”, "Button 18 to" N "
The button 19 of “6” is set to “I”, the button 20 of “7” is set to “H”, the button 21 of “8” is set to “M”, the button 22 of “9” is set to “U”, and “0” Button 23 to “R”
A “*” button 24 for performing various services is associated with “Y”, a “♯” button 25 for performing various functions is associated with “E”, and “W” and “O” are independent buttons. 26 and 27 are provided.

Normally, the dial mode is set, and the mode switching button 29 allows the mode to be switched between a plurality of modes including the Roman character input mode. In each of the push buttons 14 to 25, a kana character for inputting a Kana character is described in an upper row, an English character for inputting a Roman character is described in a middle row, and an English character for inputting an English letter is described in a lower row. The switching button 29 switches the three character input modes in the order described above by a push operation.

When the Roman character input character mode is selected by the mode switching button 29, the Roman characters corresponding to each button are displayed on the display screen 3 by pushing the dial buttons. The configuration is such that a Roman character associated with the button that has been pushed is input. When a Roman character is formed, it is converted to a kana character and displayed on the display screen 3. When the character to be input is displayed on the display screen 3, the Roman character is input by pushing the memory button 31. It has become. As for the voiced sound or semi-voiced sound, push the voiced / semi-voiced button 28 after inputting the Roman characters and before pressing the memory button 31 as in the case of inputting the kana character. Thus, the voiced and semi-voiced voices are displayed on the display screen 3 in this order, and the kana character of the voiced voice or the voiced voice is input by the push operation of the memory button 31. As a result, "G", "Z", and "G", which are necessary for inputting kana characters in "ga" line, "za" line, "da" line,
It is not necessary to separately provide “D”, “B” and “P” buttons. As a result, it is possible to avoid an increase in the size of the telephone 1 and a decrease in operability due to an increase in the number of buttons.

Next, the switching operation between the dial mode and the character input mode and the input operation in each mode will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the control unit 40 determines whether or not the call enable button 11 has been turned on by the operator in step S1, and if it has been turned on, the process proceeds to step S2, where the dial mode priority setting unit 403b described above dials. The mode is set, and each dial button is made to correspond to a number by the signal processing unit 403c, and the fact that the dial mode is set is displayed on the display screen 3 via the display unit 43. As a result, when the telephone 1 is in a state in which it can communicate, the dial mode is preferentially set.

Next, when the dial mode is set in step S2, the control unit 40 determines in step S3 whether the mode switching button 29 is ON. If it is determined that the dial button is not turned on, the process proceeds to step S4 in the dial mode, and it is determined whether or not the dial button is operated. On the other hand, when it is determined that the mode switching button 29 is turned on, in step S8, the mode switching unit 403a sets the kana character input mode, and the signal processing unit 403c associates each push button with the kana character. The fact that the mode has been switched to the kana character input mode is displayed on the display screen 3 via the display unit 43.

When it is determined in step S4 that the dial button is operated, the control unit 40 performs a dial mode process such as transmitting a frequency signal corresponding to the dial button input in the dial mode in step S5. Thereafter, in step S6, normal call processing such as calling is performed, and the process ends. On the other hand, if the dial button has not been operated in step S4, the process proceeds to step S7, performs other processing, and ends.

When the kana character input mode is set in step S8, the control unit 40 determines whether or not the mode switching button 29 has been turned on twice in step S9. When it is determined that the mode switching button 29 has been turned on twice, Proceeding to step S13, the mode switching means 403a sets the mode to the Roman character input mode, and the signal processing unit 403c causes the push buttons and the like to correspond to the Roman character, and the display unit 43 indicates that the mode has been switched to the Roman character input mode. The display screen is displayed on the display screen 3 via the display screen. If the mode switching button 29 has not been turned on twice, the process proceeds to step S10, and it is determined whether or not the push button has been operated. If it is determined that the push button has been operated, the process proceeds to step S11 to perform a kana character input mode process such as transmitting a frequency signal corresponding to the push button input in the kana character mode. In the character input mode, it is determined whether all the kana characters to be input have been input. If it is determined that the push button has not been operated, another process is performed in step S7. Then, step S12
If it is determined in step S that the input has been completed, step S
In step S22, it is determined whether or not the button is operated. When it is determined that the button is operated, the process proceeds to step S23, where the input content is transmitted to the other party by the frequency signal transmitting unit 42, and the process is completed. If it is determined that the dial button has not been operated, the process returns to step S10 to determine whether or not the dial button has been operated.

When the Roman character input mode is set in step S13, the mode switching button 29 is set in step S14.
It is determined whether or not is turned on three times. If it is determined that it is turned on three times, the process proceeds to step S18, where the mode switching means 403a sets the character input mode, and the signal processing unit 403c sets The push buttons and the like are made to correspond to English characters, and the fact that the mode has been switched to the English character input mode is displayed on the display screen 3 via the display unit 43. If it is determined that the push button has not been turned on three times, the process proceeds to step S15 to determine whether the push button has been operated. If it is determined that the push button has been operated, step S1
The process proceeds to step 6 to perform a Roman character input mode process such as transmitting a frequency signal corresponding to the push button input in the Roman character input mode. If it is determined that no operation has been performed, another process is performed in step S7. If it is determined in step S17 that the input has been completed, the process proceeds to step S22.
It is determined whether or not the button is operated, and when it is determined that the button is operated, the process proceeds to step S23, where the input content is transmitted by the frequency signal transmitting unit 42 and the processing is terminated.
If it is determined that the input has not been completed, step S15
Then, it is determined whether or not the push button is operated.

When the English character input mode is set in step S18, it is determined in step S19 whether or not the push button has been operated. When the push button is operated, the process proceeds to step S20 to perform an English character input mode process such as transmitting a frequency signal corresponding to the push button input in the English character input mode. It is determined whether all the English characters to be input in the input mode have been input. If it is determined that the push button has not been operated, the process proceeds to step S7 to perform another process. When it is determined in step S21 that the input has been completed, it is determined whether or not the button has been operated in step S22. When it has been determined that the button has been operated, the process proceeds to step S23, where the input content is converted to a frequency signal. When the transmission is completed by the transmission unit 42 and it is not determined that the input is not completed, the process returns to step S19 to determine whether the push button is operated.

As described above, the Roman character input mode is provided in addition to the conventional Kana character input mode and the English character input mode.
Each of the push buttons 14 to 27 corresponds to a Roman character so that a Kana character can be input by a Roman character input method. For example, when a character “ko” is input, “K” is described in a kana character input mode. Button 1
8 must be pushed five times, but in the Roman alphabet input mode, two buttons 14, 2 of "K" and "O"
It is only necessary to push 7 once. Therefore, in the case of the kana character input mode, the trouble of having to push the same button many times is reduced,
Words and sentences can be created more quickly.

Further, since the push buttons 14 to 27 are provided in correspondence with the consonants and vowels for inputting Roman characters, it is not necessary to provide a large number of new buttons for inputting Roman characters. The enlargement of the main body and the decrease in the operability of the telephone 1 are avoided.

Since the mode switching button is different from the dial button, the operation can be performed while reliably distinguishing between the operation of dialing and the operation of switching the mode by the operator. Operability will be improved.

The mobile phone 1 is normally set in the dial mode and can be switched to the character input mode by the mode switching button. It is possible to dial, and there is no need to switch from the character input mode to the dial mode or confirm whether the dial mode is set. This also
The operability of the telephone will be improved.

In the present embodiment, the operation such as mode switching is displayed on the display screen 3 to notify the operator, but in addition, the operator may be notified by voice. The configuration may be any. Further, the kana character, the Roman character, and the English character corresponding to each button are not limited to the above-described arrangement, but may be another arrangement.

Further, in the present embodiment, in a character input mode such as a kana character input mode, after a character is input, a button operation in step S22 is performed to enable communication and the input content is transmitted. However, the present invention can also be applied to a configuration in which characters are input and transmitted after the above-described button operation is performed to enable communication.

[0050]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, Japanese vowels and consonants can be input using the numeric keypad and other various function keys, so that the vowel keys and consonant keys are operated. Then you will be able to enter Japanese. Therefore, when inputting Japanese, it is not necessary to perform the key input operation many times as in the related art, and the number of input operations is greatly reduced as compared with the related art. As a result, the trouble of inputting characters and sentences as in the related art is reduced, and an e-mail or the like is created more quickly.

In configuring the system so that Japanese vowels and consonants can be input, ten keys and other various function keys originally provided in the telephone device are used.
It is not necessary to increase the number of keys, or it is possible to increase the number of keys only by slightly increasing the number of keys.

Further, since the same button is not operated many times as in the prior art, the risk of damage to the keys and the like is reduced.

Next, according to the second aspect of the invention, the Roman alphabet input in the Roman alphabet input mode is configured to be converted into the Kana character by the character conversion means. The operation of the first invention is obtained.

According to the third invention, in the kana character input mode, each key corresponds to a kana character classified for each line, and / or in the English character input mode, each key is classified for each group. In a telephone device compatible with
Since each key is configured to correspond to Japanese consonants and vowels in Roman alphabet input mode, it is necessary to add many new keys for inputting Japanese consonants and vowels in preparation for Roman alphabet input mode. Absent. Therefore, the telephone device can be provided with the function of inputting Roman characters without increasing the size of the telephone device main body or reducing the dial operability.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the dial mode is configured to be preferentially set, so that it is possible to promptly designate a destination which is always performed when making a call or sending an e-mail. Can be. Therefore, the mode is switched from the character input mode to the dial mode,
There is no need to confirm whether the mode has been switched to the dial mode, and the operability of the telephone device is further improved.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the mode switching means is a specific one of the keys which are not operated first in the dial mode, so that the operator can switch the character input mode. It is possible to solve the problem that the switching operation and the designation operation of the other party may be performed in a confused manner, and the operator can perform the operation while reliably distinguishing the two operations. As a result, the operability of the telephone device is further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a telephone according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a system configuration diagram of the telephone.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the CPU.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the telephone.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mobile telephone 3 Display screen 5 Mouthpiece 6 Earpiece 11-31 Push button 40 Control part 401 ROM 402 RAM 403 CPU 403a Mode switching part 403b Dial mode priority setting part 403c Signal processing part 41 Frequency signal receiving part 42 Frequency signal Transmission unit 43 Display unit 44 Audio reception unit 45 Audio transmission unit L line

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A telephone device for transmitting a voice signal to a destination specified by a dial operation using a numeric keypad, comprising: the numeric keypad and various other function keys, wherein at least keys corresponding to the number of Japanese vowels and consonants are provided. A set of operation keys, a dial mode for specifying a destination, and a character input mode for inputting characters are provided. In the dial mode, numeric keys are associated with numbers, and in the character input mode, keys are associated with vowels and consonants, respectively. Signal processing means, mode switching means including one key of the key group, and instructing switching between a dial mode and a character input mode;
A telephone device comprising: a display unit that displays at least characters sequentially input in a character input mode on a display unit; and a transmission unit that transmits the contents of the characters displayed on the display unit to a destination. 2. The telephone device according to claim 1, wherein the character input mode is a Roman character input mode, and wherein the signal processing means has a character converting means for converting the input Roman characters into Kana characters. 3. The character input mode has a kana character input mode and / or an English character input mode. In the kana character input mode, the signal processing means associates each key with a kana character classified for each line, And / or in the English character input mode, each key is made to correspond to the English character classified into each group, and the mode switching means switches the mode between a plurality of modes including the above kana character input mode and / or the English character input mode. The telephone device according to claim 1, wherein the telephone device is configured to perform the following. 4. The telephone device according to claim 1, wherein said mode switching means sets the dial mode with priority. 5. The telephone according to claim 1, wherein the mode switching means is a specific key among the keys that are not operated first in the dial mode. apparatus.