JP2001154790A - Character input device and recording medium on which character input program is recorded - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance operation efficiency of a character input device and to simplify the device. SOLUTION: This character input device is provided with an arrow key 4 and a cursor move part 7-1 to move a cursor, a cursor position judging part 7-2 to display a window to select a character to be inputted according to the position of the cursor and the direction of the move operation of the cursor, a character selection window display instruction part 7-3, the arrow key 4 to select the character to be inputted in the window, a decision key 5, a character selection part 7-4 and a central control part 7 to perform input control of the selected character to be inputted on the cursor position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a character input device, and more particularly, to a character input device and a recording medium on which a character input program is recorded, which realizes simplification of the device while improving operability.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, portable information terminals (PDCs: Personal
With the spread of Digital Assistance, characters are input on a display screen such as a liquid crystal display (LCD).

As a known technique related to the present invention, Japanese Patent Laid-Open
Japanese Patent Publication No. 0-207479 discloses a karaoke apparatus. In this karaoke apparatus, when inputting a song title, the cursor is moved on each kana character of the displayed Japanese syllabary table by a cursor movement key of up, down, left and right, and a selection key is pressed on a predetermined kana character. The kana character at which the cursor is currently located can be selected and displayed in the song title input box.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned known technique, 5
Since the zero-tone table is always displayed, the area where input characters can be displayed is narrow, and many characters cannot be input. An object of the present invention is to provide a character input device for inputting characters by appropriately displaying a screen for selecting input characters by using a specific input key, and a recording medium on which a character input program is recorded.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a character input device which automatically displays the selection screen and performs character input by focusing on the relationship between the cursor position and the direction in which the cursor is moved, and a character input device. An object of the present invention is to provide a recording medium on which an input program is recorded. Another object of the present invention is to provide a character input device for automatically displaying the selection screen and inputting characters even when a character is present at a cursor position, and a recording medium storing a character input program. To provide.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, a character input device according to the present invention comprises a cursor moving means for moving a cursor, a position of the cursor, and a direction of a moving operation of the cursor. Window display means for displaying a window for selecting an input character, selection means for selecting the input character in the window, control means for input-controlling the input character selected by the selection means at the cursor position, It is provided with.

The window display means displays the window when the cursor is moved in a direction in which the cursor cannot be moved, so that each of the first line and the last line of the character input area is displayed. You can enter characters at the beginning or end of the line. Further, the window display means displays the window when a cursor movement operation in the opposite direction is performed simultaneously when a character exists at the position of the cursor, thereby displaying the already-input character and the character. You can enter characters in between.

[0008] In another aspect, the present invention provides a computer which controls a computer based on cursor moving means for moving a cursor, and a position of the cursor and a direction of a moving operation of the cursor.
Window display means for displaying a window for selecting an input character, selection means for selecting the input character in the window, and control means for input-controlling the input character selected by the selection means at the cursor position. It is a computer-readable recording medium on which a program for functioning as a character input device provided is recorded.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a character input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The character input device includes a main body cabinet 1 and a display 2
, A lid 3, an arrow key 4, an enter key 5, and a delete key 6.

The main body cabinet unit 1 has a display unit 2, an infrared communication unit, a pen holding unit (not shown), and the like, and supplies power to necessary parts such as a control circuit for controlling the infrared communication unit and an interface circuit. And a power supply unit (not shown). The display unit 2 is provided inside the main body cabinet unit 1. The cover 3 is connected to the back of the main body cabinet 1 by, for example, a hinge, and rotates so as to cover the display unit 2 to protect the display unit 2 when it is carried.

The arrow keys 4 are used to move a cursor on character data displayed on the display unit 2. The cursor can be moved up, down, left, and right by pressing down, up, down, left, and right directions. When the enter key 5 is pressed to move a cursor on the character selection window 13 (see FIG. 3) to select a predetermined character, the selected character is input to the cursor position. The delete key 6 moves the cursor to the position after the character to be deleted and presses it to delete the character. Note that hiragana can be converted to katakana or kanji using a conversion key (not shown).

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the character input device according to the present embodiment. The character input device shown in FIG. 2 includes an arrow key 4, an enter key 5, a delete key 6, a display unit 2, a central control unit 7, an RTC (Real TiC) shown in FIG.
me Clock) 8, body power switch 9, ROM10
And a RAM 11 and a program reader 14. Further, the central control unit 7 includes a cursor moving unit 7
-1, a cursor position determination unit 7-2, a character selection window display instruction unit 7-3, and a character selection unit 7-4.

The central control unit 7 controls input information or output information according to various commands. The RTC 8 measures time based on a clock signal from an oscillator (not shown) and outputs the current date and time. The body power switch 9
Turn ON / OFF the main unit power.

The ROM 10 includes a font information area 10-1 for storing a font of a character to be displayed on the display unit 2, a program area 10-2 for storing a program executed by the central control unit 7, and a character selection window. 13 has an input character information area 10-3 for storing character data to be displayed. The RAM 11 includes a data storage unit 11-1, a program storage unit 11-2, an input data memory 11-3, a cursor position memory 11-4, a selected character memory 11-5, and a character selection cursor position memory 11-. 6.

The data storage unit 11-1 stores various data such as texts and figures input by the user from the display unit 2.
The program storage unit 11-2 stores the program medium 12
Is installed in the main body via the program reading device 14, the program stored therein is stored. The input data memory 11-3 stores data input in the data input mode.

The cursor position memory 11-4 stores the storage address of the character pointed to by the cursor in the input data memory 11-3. Selected character memory 11-5
Stores the character selected by the arrow keys 4 and the enter key 5 in the character selection window 13. The character selection cursor position memory 11-6 stores the character selection window 1
In step 3, the storage address of the character indicated by the cursor in the input character information area 10-3 is stored.

As will be described later, the program medium 12
The information recording medium is configured to be separable from the main body. For example, an IC card, a CD-ROM, a floppy disk, or the like is suitable. A source program and an intermediate program that can construct an executable program are recorded.

If the programs are not installed in the main body cabinet section 1 in advance, the program reading device 14 stores the programs and data necessary for causing the present invention to function based on the instructions of the central control section 7. For example, data is read from the medium 12 and data is stored in the data storage unit 11-1 of the RAM 11, and the program code of the execution program is stored in the program storage unit 1
1-2, respectively.

Next, the operation of the character input device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a display screen diagram illustrating a character input process when the cursor is at the end of a line in the present embodiment.

In the character input mode, the user moves the cursor to the end of the line as shown in FIG. Also, since there is no data in the indicated direction, the cursor cannot be moved. Here, when the right direction key of the arrow keys 4 is pressed, a character selection window 13 is displayed as shown in FIG.

When the character selection window 13 is displayed, the arrow keys 4 function to indicate the characters in the character selection window 13. When the character selection window 13 is displayed, first, as shown in FIG. The character "A" is selected as shown. Here, by pressing the left direction key (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow key 4 five times, the state shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, the character "ha" can be selected, and when the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection window 1
3 is closed, and the selected character "ha" is input at the cursor position (FIG. 3D).

The characters "A", "A", and "1" surrounded by squares on the left side of the character selection window 13 are character type keys, one of which is selected by the arrow key 4 and determined. By pressing the key 5, a character group matching the selected character type is displayed in the character selection window 13. For example, when the character type key “A” is selected, FIG.
When a group of Japanese syllabary characters as shown in (c) is displayed and a character type key "A" is selected, an alphabetic character group (not shown) is displayed. When a character type key "1" is selected,
Numeric character groups (not shown) are displayed in the character selection window 13. These character type keys do not limit the present invention, and the user can provide other character type keys as needed. Further, the user can move the cursor to the position of the character to be deleted and press the delete key 6 to delete the character.

FIG. 4 is a display screen diagram for explaining character input processing when the cursor is at the beginning of a line in this embodiment. In the character input mode, when a kana is input as “Kyoha” and a line feed mark is added, the cursor is positioned at the beginning of the second line as shown in FIG. Furthermore, even if the left direction (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow key 4 is designated, there is no data in the designated direction, so that movement is impossible. here,
When the left arrow key (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow keys 4 is pressed, a character selection window 13 is displayed as shown in FIG.

When the character selection window 13 is displayed, the arrow keys 4 function to indicate the characters in the character selection window 13. When the character selection window 13 is displayed, first, as shown in FIG. The character "A" is selected as shown. Here, by pressing the down key (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow key 4 once, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, the character "i" can be selected. When the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection window 13 is closed, and the selected character "i" is input at the cursor position (FIG. 4 (d)). )).

FIG. 5 is a display screen diagram for explaining character input processing when the cursor is on the first line in the present embodiment. In the character input mode, enter a kana as "Kyo", add a line feed mark, indicate the upward direction of the arrow key 4 (shown by a dotted line), and move the cursor to the beginning of the line as shown in FIG. . Furthermore, even if an upward direction is specified, no movement is possible because there is no data in the specified direction. Here, when the up key of the arrow key 4 is pressed, a character selection window 13 is displayed as shown in FIG.

When the character selection window 13 is displayed, the arrow keys 4 function to indicate the characters in the character selection window 13. When the character selection window 13 is displayed, first, as shown in FIG. The character "A" is selected as shown. Here, by pressing the left direction key (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow key 4 five times and the down direction key once, the character "" can be selected as shown in FIG. Here, when the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection window 13 closes, and the selected character “HI” is input at the cursor position (FIG. 5D).

FIG. 6 is a display screen diagram for explaining the character input processing when the cursor is at the last line in the present embodiment. In the character input mode, when a sentence is input as shown in FIG. 6A, the cursor is positioned at the end of the sentence. Further, even if a downward direction (shown by a dotted line) is specified, no movement is possible because there is no data in the specified direction. Here, when the downward key of the arrow key 4 is pressed, a character selection window 13 is displayed as shown in FIG.

When the character selection window 13 is displayed, the arrow keys 4 function to indicate the characters in the character selection window 13. When the character selection window 13 is displayed, first, as shown in FIG. The character "A" is selected as shown. Here, by pressing the down key (shown by a dotted line) of the arrow key 4 three times and the left key four times, the character "ne" can be selected as shown in FIG. When the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection window 13 closes, and the selected character "ne" is input at the cursor position (FIG. 6D).

FIG. 7 is a display screen diagram for explaining character input processing when the cursor is located at a character existing position in the present embodiment. In the character input mode, a kana is input as "Kyowa", a line feed mark is added, and the cursor is moved between "U" and "Ha" as shown in FIG. When the right and left arrow keys of the arrow keys 4 are simultaneously pressed, a character selection window 13 is displayed as shown in FIG. 7B.

When the character selection window 13 is displayed, the arrow keys 4 function to indicate the characters in the character selection window 13. When the character selection window 13 is displayed, first, as shown in FIG. The character "A" is selected as shown. Here, by pressing the down key of the arrow key 4 four times and the left key six times, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, the character "MO" can be selected. When the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection window 13 is closed, and the selected character "MO" is input at the cursor position (FIG. 7 (d)). )).

Next, the operation of the present embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 to 7 will be described in correspondence with the configuration shown in FIG. When the arrow key 4 is pressed on the data input screen, the cursor position determination unit 7-2 of the central control unit 7 is driven. The cursor position determination unit 7-2 checks the relationship between the cursor position and the input data, and instructs an operation corresponding to the cursor position in the input data based on the direction specified by the arrow keys 4.

When the cursor position determining unit 7-2 determines that the right key of the arrow key 4 has been pressed,
The current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11, the character corresponding to the read cursor position indicating address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character after the cursor position. to decide.

If there is a character after the cursor position, a signal is output to the cursor moving section 7-1 to move the cursor position rightward by one character. If there is no character after the cursor position, a signal is output to the character selection window display instruction section 7-3, and the character selection window 13 is displayed according to the instruction of the character selection window display instruction section 7-3. A signal is output from the character selection window display instruction section 7-3 to the character selection section 7-4, and the character selection section 7-4 performs a character selection operation.

In the character selection section 7-4, the cursor is moved on the character selection window 13 in response to the pressing of each direction key of the arrow keys 4, and the character at the cursor position when the enter key 5 is pressed is displayed. It is displayed at a cursor position that is not on the character selection window 13 of the unit 2. If the cursor position on the character selection window 13 is a character type, a character group corresponding to the character type selected when the enter key 5 is pressed is displayed on the character selection window 13.

When the cursor position determining unit 7-2 determines that the left direction key of the arrow key 4 has been pressed,
The current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11, the character corresponding to the read cursor position indicating address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character after the cursor position. to decide.

If there is a character after the cursor position, a signal is output to the cursor moving unit 7-1 to move the cursor position one character to the left. Also, if there is no character after the cursor position, check whether the cursor position is at the beginning of the line,
If the cursor position is at the beginning of the line, a signal is output to the character selection window display instruction section 7-3, and the character selection window 13 is displayed by the character selection window display instruction section 7-3. If the cursor position is not at the beginning of the line, a signal is output to the cursor moving unit 7-1, and the cursor position is shifted leftward by one.
Move by character.

When the cursor position determining unit 7-2 determines that the up key of the arrow key 4 has been pressed,
The current cursor position designating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11, the character corresponding to the read cursor position designating address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and there is a character in the upper part of the cursor position. Judge whether or not.

If there is a character above the cursor position, a signal is output to the cursor moving section 7-1 to move the cursor position upward. If there is no character above the cursor position, a signal is output to the character selection window display instruction section 7-3, and the character selection window 13 is displayed by the character selection window display instruction section 7-3.

When the cursor position determining unit 7-2 determines that the down key of the arrow key 4 has been pressed,
The current cursor position designating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11, the character corresponding to the read cursor position designating address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and there is a character below the cursor position. Judge whether or not.

If there is a character below the cursor position, a signal is output to the cursor moving section 7-1 to move the cursor position downward. If there is no character below the cursor position, a signal is output to the character selection window display instruction section 7-3, and the character selection window 13 is displayed by the character selection window display instruction section 7-3.

When the cursor position judging section 7-2 judges that the left key and the right key of the arrow keys 4 are simultaneously pressed, the current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11. The character corresponding to the read and read cursor position instruction address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11,
Determines if there is a character at the cursor position.

If there is a character at the cursor position, a signal is output to the character selection window display instructing unit 7-3, and the character selection window 13 is instructed by the character selection window display instructing unit 7-3.
Is displayed. If there is no character at the cursor position, the process ends. Next, the character input processing according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the character input processing in the present embodiment. First, a data input screen is opened (step S1), and data to be input is specified by data specifying means (not shown) (step S1).
2). The input data designated in step S3 is displayed on the display unit 2, and the cursor position is set at the head of the displayed input data (step S4).

Although the process of further inputting characters for already input data is described here, the same process can be performed when characters are input from a state where no data is input. Next, step S5
To determine if any instructions have been given. If the right key is pressed with the arrow key 4, rightward processing is performed (step S6, described later with reference to FIG. 9), and the process returns to step S5. When the left key is pressed with the arrow key 4, left processing is performed (step S7, described later with reference to FIG. 10), and the process returns to step S5.

When the up key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the up processing is performed (step S8, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 11), and the process returns to step S5. When the down key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the down processing is performed (step S9, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 12), and the process returns to step S5. When the left key and the right key are simultaneously pressed by the arrow keys 4, an insertion process is performed (step S10, FIG. 1).
3 will be described later), and the process returns to step S5.

When the delete key 6 is pressed, the current cursor position instruction address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11 (step S11), and the position before the data corresponding to the read cursor position instruction address is read. The character to be deleted is deleted from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11 (step S12), and the process returns to step S5. When an instruction other than the arrow key 4, the delete key 6, and the end instruction is performed, the process returns to step S5 without doing anything. If a data input end instruction (not shown) is issued, the process ends.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the processing at the time of pressing the right direction key in the present embodiment. First,
The current cursor position indication address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11 (step S6-
1) The character corresponding to the read cursor position instruction address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character after the cursor position (step S6-2).

If there is a character after the cursor position, the cursor position is moved rightward by one character (step S6-3),
The process ends. If there is no character after the cursor position, a character selection process is performed (step S6-4), and the process ends. The character selection processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the processing at the time of pressing the left direction key in the present embodiment. First, the current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11 (step S7-).
1) The character corresponding to the read cursor position instruction address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character after the cursor position (step S7-2).

If there is no character after the cursor position, it is checked whether the cursor position is at the beginning of the line (step S7-).
3) If the cursor position is at the beginning of the line, a character selection process is performed (step S7-4), and the process ends. If there is a character after the cursor position, or if the cursor position is not at the beginning of the line, the cursor position is moved leftward by one character (step S7-5), and the process ends. The character selection processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart for explaining the processing at the time of pressing the up key in this embodiment. First, the current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11 (step S8-).
1) The character corresponding to the read cursor position instruction address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character above the cursor position (step S8-2). To check whether there is a character above the cursor position, search for the line feed code from the character corresponding to the current cursor position to the front of the input data.If there is a line feed code, if there is a character above the cursor, I can judge.

If there is a character above the cursor position, the cursor position is moved upward (step S8-3), and the process ends. If there is no character above the cursor position, a character selection process is performed (step S8-4), and the process ends. The character selection processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining the processing at the time of pressing the down direction key in the present embodiment. First, the current cursor position indicating address is read from the cursor position memory 11-4 of the RAM 11 (step S9-).
1) The character corresponding to the read cursor position instruction address is read from the input data memory 11-3 of the RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character below the cursor position (step S9-2). To check whether there is a character below the cursor position, search for the line feed code from the character corresponding to the current cursor position to the end of the input data, and if there is a line feed code, find the character below the cursor. I can judge.

If there is a character below the cursor position, the cursor position is moved downward (step S9-3), and the process ends. If there is no character below the cursor position, a character selection process is performed (step S9-4), and the process ends. The character selection processing will be described later with reference to FIG. FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a process at the time of inserting a character according to the present embodiment.

First, the cursor position memory 1 of the RAM 11
The current cursor position indicating address is read from 1-4 (step S10-1), the character corresponding to the read cursor position indicating address is read from input data memory 11-3 of RAM 11, and it is determined whether or not there is a character at the cursor position. A determination is made (step S10-2).

If there is a character at the cursor position, the process ends. If there is no character at the cursor position, a character selection process is performed (step S10-3), and the process ends. The character selection processing will be described later with reference to FIG.
FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a character selection process using the character selection window according to the present embodiment.

First, the character selection window 13 is displayed (step S20), and it is determined whether or not the arrow key 4 has been pressed (step S21). If the arrow key 4 has not been pressed, the process proceeds to step S27, and if the arrow key 4 has been pressed, it is determined in which direction the key has been pressed (step S22).

If the right key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the cursor position is moved to the right if the cursor position is located at a position other than the rightmost position in the character selection window 13 (step S23). The process proceeds to step S27. If the left direction key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the cursor position is moved to the left when the cursor position is located at a position other than the leftmost in the character selection window 13 (step S24).
Proceed to step S27.

If the up key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the cursor position is moved upward if the cursor position is located at a position other than the top in the character selection window 13 (step S25). The process proceeds to step S27. When the down key is pressed with the arrow key 4, the cursor position is moved downward when the cursor position is located at a position other than the bottom in the character selection window 13 (step S26).
Proceed to step S27.

In step S27, it is determined whether or not the enter key 5 has been pressed. If the enter key 5 has not been pressed, the process returns to step S21. When the enter key 5 is pressed, the character selection cursor position memory 11-6 of the RAM 11 is pressed.
, The current cursor position designating address is read out (step S28), the character corresponding to the read cursor position designating address is read out from the input character information area 10-3 of the ROM 10, and stored in the selected character memory 11-5 of the RAM 11 (step S28). S29).

Next, in step S30, it is determined whether the held selected character is the character itself or a symbol indicating the character type. If the held selected character is a symbol indicating the character type, the selected character is determined as the selected character type. R corresponding character group
It is read from the input character information area 10-3 of the OM 10, displayed on the character selection window 13 (step S31), and returns to step S21.

The selected character memory 11-
If the selected character held in 5 is the character itself,
The character selection window 13 is closed (step S32), the held selected character is displayed at the cursor position (step S33), and the process ends. Here, when a line feed mark at the upper left of the character selection window 13 is selected, it is displayed as a line feed character at the cursor position.

The character input device of the present invention appropriately displays a character selection window for selecting an input character based on the position of the cursor and the direction of the cursor moving operation, and performs character input. The combination of the position of the cursor and the direction of the cursor moving operation is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, in FIG. Alternatively, a character selection window may be displayed when the upward arrow key 4 is pressed. In the present invention, the input keys for moving the cursor are not limited to the up, down, left, and right arrow keys 4. For example, input keys associated with up, down, left, and right may be used.

The character input device described above is also realized by a program for causing this character input device to function. This program is stored in a computer-readable recording medium. In the present invention, the ROM 10 itself shown in FIG. 2 may be a program medium as the recording medium, or the program reading device 1 such as an IC card drive may be used as an external storage device.
4 may be provided, and a program medium 12 such as an IC card which can be read by inserting a recording medium therein may be used. In any case, the stored program may be configured to be accessed and executed by the central control unit 7, or the program may be read in any case, and the read program is not shown. The program may be downloaded to the program storage area and the program may be executed. It is assumed that this download program is stored in the main unit in advance.

Here, the program medium is a recording medium configured to be separable from the main body, such as a tape system such as a magnetic tape or a cassette tape, a magnetic disk such as a floppy disk or a hard disk, a CD-ROM / MO /
Disk system of optical disk such as MD / DVD, card system such as IC card / optical card, mask ROM, EP
It may be a medium that fixedly carries a program, including a semiconductor memory such as a ROM, an EEPROM, and a flash ROM.

Further, the medium may carry the program in a fluid manner such that the program is downloaded from a communication network via a transmission / reception unit (not shown). When the program is downloaded from the communication network, the download program may be stored in the main device in advance, or may be installed from another recording medium.
The content stored in the recording medium is not limited to a program, but may be data.

[0067]

According to the present invention, characters can be input by automatically displaying a character selection window when a direction in which the cursor cannot be moved with respect to the cursor position is designated. In addition, when a character is present at the cursor position, a character selection window is automatically displayed and characters can be input by simultaneously pressing directional keys such as up / down, left / right, and the like.

As described above, the operability can be improved by easily inputting characters without performing a special operation for inputting characters, and there is no need to provide an input device such as a keyboard or a tablet. The desired input can be performed only by providing the key alone, so that the device can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a character input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a character input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a display screen illustrating a character input process when a cursor is at the end of a line in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a display screen illustrating a character input process when a cursor is at the beginning of a line in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a display screen illustrating a character input process when a cursor is on the first line in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a display screen illustrating a character input process when the cursor is at the last line in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a display screen illustrating a character input process when a cursor is located at a character existing position in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a character input process according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing when a rightward key is pressed according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating processing when a left direction key is pressed in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a process performed when an upward key is pressed according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a process when a down key is pressed according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating processing at the time of inserting a character according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a character selection process using a character selection window according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: cabinet unit 2: display unit 3: cover unit 4: arrow key 5: enter key 6: delete key 7: central control unit 7-1: cursor moving unit 7-2: cursor position determining unit 7-3: character Selection window display instruction section 7-4: Character selection section 8: RTC 9: Main body power switch 10: ROM 10-1: Font information area 10-2: Program area 10-3: Input character information area 11: RAM 11-1 : Data storage unit 11-2: Program storage unit 11-3: Input data memory 11-4: Cursor position memory 11-5: Selected character memory 11-6: Character selection cursor position memory 12: Program media 13: Character selection window 14: Program reading device

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. Cursor moving means for moving a cursor; window display means for displaying a window for selecting an input character based on the position of the cursor and the direction of the cursor moving operation; A character input device comprising: a selection unit that selects a character; and a control unit that controls input of the input character selected by the selection unit to the cursor position. 2. The character input device according to claim 1, wherein the window display means displays the window when the cursor is moved in a direction in which the cursor cannot be moved. 3. The window display means according to claim 1, wherein, when a character is present at the position of the cursor, the window is displayed when cursor movement operations in opposite directions are performed simultaneously. A character input device as described. 4. A computer, comprising: cursor moving means for moving a cursor; window display means for displaying a window for selecting an input character based on the position of the cursor and the direction of the moving operation of the cursor; Recording a program for functioning as a character input device comprising: a selection unit for selecting the input character; and a control unit for input-controlling the input character selected by the selection unit at the cursor position. Computer-readable recording medium.