JP2001337766A - Character input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a character input device which elderly people and visionary handicapped people are able to input characters easily and surely on personal computers and word processors. SOLUTION: A character input device (18) is equipped with a display means which displays multiple characters and a selection means which chooses one character out of multiple characters displayed by the display means. The selection means is able to be configured to have character display keys (l-5) to select one character by pressing down one of the characters display keys (1-5) which display these characters, characters in the same line to the selected character are displayed on the character display keys (1-5), so that users can input characters easily and surely.

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 used for a personal computer, a word processor or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Elderly people, people with hand or fingertip disabilities,
When a conventional keyboard is used, it is difficult for a person or the like who has weak vision to search for characters on the keyboard, and it is difficult to input characters because the number of keys is large.

To solve such a problem, for example,
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-295216 discloses a keyboard.
Of the JIS keyboards, the kana character display and the kana symbol display are deleted, a specific English character key or the like in the keyboard is given a color distinguishable from other keys, or the specific key and the specific hiragana are displayed. It is constituted by making the display larger than other characters.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional character input device, the keys are colored so that the arrangement of the keys can be easily understood. However, there is a problem that characters printed on the keys are still hard to see.

Further, in the conventional character input device, characters printed on a specific key are printed larger than normal characters. There is a problem in that the size of characters is limited as long as it is used, and the number of keys does not change, so that the key arrangement must be memorized.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems in the conventional character input device, and when the elderly or a person with low visual acuity inputs characters using a personal computer or a word processor, character input is performed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a character input device that can be performed more easily and reliably.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a character input device, comprising a display means for displaying a plurality of characters, and a plurality of characters displayed by the display means. Selecting means for selecting one character from the characters.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the number of keys is small and there is no need to memorize the key arrangement, even elderly people or people with weak vision can input characters easily. .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the selecting means includes:
2. The character input device according to claim 1, further comprising a character display key for selecting one character by pressing a display part of a plurality of characters displayed by said display means.

[0010] According to the second aspect of the present invention, one character can be selected by pressing the display portion of a plurality of displayed characters, so that characters can be input more easily and reliably. it can.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the character input device according to the second aspect, the character display keys include "a",
Initially display "ka", "sa", "ta", "na", and press any character display key that displays these characters, the characters belonging to the selected character line are displayed in the character display It is characterized by being displayed on a key.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the selected character is a hiragana, the search for the input character is performed by "a", "ka",
Since "sa", "ta", "na", etc. are used, character input can be performed while being conscious of the character string of the Japanese syllabary. be able to.

The invention according to claim 4 is the first or second invention.
The character input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a switching unit configured to switch a type of a plurality of characters displayed on the display unit.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, characters can be easily and reliably input for hiragana, katakana, romaji, numerals, symbols, and the like without having to remember the key layout.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the character input device according to the second aspect, the plurality of display units are configured by any one of a liquid crystal display device, an LED display device, and a plasma display device. And

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, for example, a character to be input can be selected using a large-sized LED display device, so that even a person with low visual acuity can easily input characters. it can.

[0017]

Next, a specific example of an embodiment of a character input device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a character input device according to the present invention. The character input device 18 includes display keys 1 to 5 for selecting displayed characters and a character type selection switch 1.
0 and various keys 6 to 7, 12 to 15, and the like.

For the display keys 1 to 5, a large LED display device or the like is used for easy viewing. Each of the display keys 1 to 5 has a key function. By pressing a displayed character, the character can be selected.

The character type selection switch 10 is provided for selecting the type of input characters (hiragana, katakana, romaji, numerals, symbols, etc.) displayed on the character type display board 11.

Up key 12 and down key 1
Reference numeral 3 is provided for scrolling displayed characters.

The Enter key 9 determines a character and moves the cursor, and the Space / Shift key 15 functions in the same manner as the space and shift keys of a normal keyboard.

The conversion key 14 is used to convert the input hiragana into kanji, and the back key 6 is used to back the cursor on the character displayed on the display 16a of the personal computer 19. , Ins key 7 is provided for setting an insert mode in character input, and Del key 8 is provided for deleting a character displayed on display 16a.

As shown in FIG. 2, the character input device 18 is connected to a keyboard 17 connected to the personal computer 16 and connected to the personal computer 1.
Characters may be input to the personal computer 16 or characters may be input to the personal computer 16 by directly connecting to the personal computer 16 as shown in FIG.

Next, the character input device 18 having the above configuration
Will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the character type selection switch 10 is operated to select the character type to be input. For example, when "Hiragana" is selected by the character type selection switch 10,
The characters displayed on the display keys 1 to 5 as the initial display are “A”, “KA”, “SA”, “TA”, and “NA”.
By pressing either the upward movement key 12 or the downward movement key 13 in this state, “ha”, “ma”, “ya”,
"La" and "Wa" can be displayed.

In each of the above display states, for example, “A”, “KA”, “SA”, “TA”,
By pressing any character of "na", the characters under that (characters belonging to the line) are displayed, and the display keys 1 to 5 displaying the required characters are further pressed. To select a character to be input, and display 16a of personal computer 16 (FIGS. 2 and 3).
Can be displayed above. When all the necessary characters are arranged on the display 16a, the conversion key 14 of the character input device 18 is operated to convert the characters into kanji. Until the target kanji is selected, the conversion key 14 is operated, and when the target kanji is selected, the enter key 9 is operated to determine the kanji.

As described above, the person who operates the character input device 18 can easily input characters without having to memorize a large number of key arrangements as in the prior art. Character input becomes possible.

The shape of each of the above keys is triangular for the up-moving key 12 and the down-moving key 13, and the Back key 6, Ins key 7, and Del key 8 are circular. Since the function of the key can be grasped only by looking, the key can be easily selected.

In the above embodiment, the case of inputting a kana character has been described. However, the input operation can be similarly performed when the type of the input character is katakana, romaji, numeral, symbol, or the like.

In the above embodiment, the display key 1
5 to 5 of "a", "ka", "sa", "ta", "na"
The case of displaying characters at once has been described, but by providing ten display keys, "a", "ka",
“Sa”, “ta”, “na”, “ha”, “ma”, “ya”,
It is also possible to display all of “ra” and “wa”.

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide a character input device capable of easily and reliably inputting characters when an elderly person or a person with low visual acuity inputs characters using a personal computer or a word processor.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing one embodiment of a character input device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a connection state between the character input device of FIG. 1 and another device.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing another example of a connection state between the character input device of FIG. 1 and another device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1-5 Display key 6 Back key 7 Ins key 8 Del key 9 Enter key 10 Character type selection switch 11 Character type display board 12 Upward movement key 13 Downward movement key 14 Conversion key 15 Space / Shift key 16 Personal computer 16a Display 17 Keyboard 18 Character input device

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A character input device comprising: display means for displaying a plurality of characters; and selection means for selecting one character from the plurality of characters displayed by the display means. 2. The character according to claim 1, wherein said selection means includes a character display key for selecting one character by pressing a display part of a plurality of characters displayed by said display means. Input device. 3. The character display keys include “A”,
Initially display "ka", "sa", "ta", "na", and press any character display key that displays these characters, the characters belonging to the selected character line are displayed in the character display 3. The character input device according to claim 2, wherein the character input device is displayed on a key. 4. The character input device according to claim 1, further comprising a switching unit that switches a type of a plurality of characters displayed on the display unit. 5. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of display units include:
3. The character input device according to claim 2, wherein the character input device is constituted by one of an ED display device and a plasma display device.