JP4286108B2 - Character search method and apparatus, and portable terminal device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a character search method and apparatus suitable for application to a small device such as a mobile phone terminal, and a mobile terminal device that processes information input by performing character search.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, character input is generally performed in a small information terminal device such as a mobile phone terminal due to the spread of e-mail and the like. In this case, since this type of small terminal device has a limited number of keys such as a numeric keypad, some processing is necessary to allow the user to easily input arbitrary characters. is required.

  For example, in the case of a mobile phone terminal, several characters are assigned to numeric keys 0, 1, 2,... 9 prepared as a numeric keypad, and any of the assigned characters is determined by the number of times the key is pressed. Or one character can be entered. Therefore, even if only one character is input, a plurality of key operations may be required, and there is a problem that a large number of key operations are required when inputting a long mail text or the like. .

  As one of the techniques developed for this purpose, for example, a frequently input word is converted into a database, and when a certain character is input, the list is stored in the database and the character is placed at the top. Some characters are displayed as a list of frequently input words, and the user is allowed to select from the list. By applying such a method, for words with high input frequency, the input of the first character and the subsequent selection operation can be performed without inputting the characters constituting the word one by one. It has the effect that the required words can be input relatively easily.

In Patent Document 1, when one character is input by the user operation in this way, a list of characters or words that are likely to be input frequently among the characters or words having the same pronunciation as the first character is displayed. There is disclosure about selecting input characters or words from the list.
JP 2001-325252 A

  However, simply displaying a list of words that are frequently input does not mean that the user can sufficiently search for a word or character string that the user wants to input. Specifically, for example, even when a character such as one or two characters is input and a word starting from the character string is listed and displayed, a small input device such as a mobile phone terminal is used. The number of characters that can be displayed on the display panel provided is limited, and even if a word with a high input frequency is displayed, there is a limit to increasing the possibility that the word to be input exists in the display list.

  In addition, when the input characters and the pronunciation of the first character match are listed, for example, when the word is a user-registered word, if the word reading is not registered correctly, It will not be listed and will not be searchable. On the other hand, even if it is correctly listed, if the user remembers the pronunciation of the word by mistake, the necessary words will not be displayed in the list indefinitely even if the first character of the wrong pronunciation is entered. , You will not be able to search for the necessary words.

  The present invention has been made in view of this point, and an object of the present invention is to make it easier to search for characters such as words to be input.

The present invention displays a character designated by a predetermined operation, displays one or a plurality of first candidate characters as characters related to a position accumulated in association with the displayed character, When any one of the first candidate characters is selected , a second candidate character indicating a place name indicating the current position or the vicinity thereof is displayed in relation to the selected candidate character, and the second candidate is displayed. When a specific character is selected from the above, the selected candidate character is determined as an input character.

In this way, for example, the first candidate character group is set as a word as a character related to the position having the character designated by the first operation as the first character, and the second candidate character group is set as the word. As a word indicating a place name indicating the current position or its vicinity associated with the character, list candidate characters based on factors other than the first character and their pronunciation, and search among the candidate characters listed By doing so, it becomes possible to search for a word of a place name indicating the current position to be input or its vicinity .

  According to the present invention, it is possible to search for a character such as a word to be input based on a plurality of factors as well as one factor such as a coincidence of pronunciation of the first character. You can search for the character string you want to enter.

In particular, according to the present invention, the first candidate character is a character related to the position, and the place name indicating the current position or the vicinity thereof is displayed as the second candidate character, whereby the place name of the current position or the vicinity thereof is displayed. Can be entered easily.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
This example is an example applied to a mobile phone terminal. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the mobile phone terminal of this example. Hereinafter, the configuration will be described. As a configuration of the receiving system, a signal received by the antenna 11 is supplied to the receiving unit 13 via the antenna switch 12, and a signal of a predetermined transmission channel (frequency) is an intermediate frequency signal. Receive processing to convert to. The intermediate frequency signal obtained by reception is supplied to the modem unit 15 to perform demodulation processing from the transmission signal, and the received data obtained by demodulation is supplied to the data processing unit 16. The data processing unit 16 discriminates various data such as voice data and control data included in the received data, and supplies each data to a corresponding circuit. The audio data included in the received data is supplied to the audio processing unit 17. The audio processing unit 17 converts the audio data into an analog audio signal, performs analog processing such as amplification, and then supplies the audio data to the speaker 18 for output.

  Data other than voice data such as control data and mail data included in the received data is supplied to a central control unit (CPU) 20 that controls the operation of each part of the cellular phone terminal, and is necessary for the control of the CPU 20. Perform proper processing.

  As a configuration of the transmission system, an audio signal picked up by the microphone 19 is supplied to the audio processing unit 17 and converted into digital audio data, and the converted audio data is supplied to the data processing unit 16. The data processing unit 16 performs processing such as addition of control data to configure transmission data, supplies the obtained transmission data to the modem unit 15 and performs modulation processing for transmission. The modulated transmission signal is supplied to the transmission processing unit 14, performs transmission processing such as frequency conversion to a transmission frequency, is supplied to the antenna 11 via the antenna switch 12, and is wirelessly transmitted.

  The reception and transmission processing described so far is an example in the case of performing a voice call. For example, when receiving or transmitting an e-mail, the voice processing unit 17 is not used, and basically the CPU 20 side. The received data and transmitted data are processed. The memory 21 is connected to the CPU 20, and programs and the like necessary for the operation of the telephone terminal are stored in advance, and phone book data, outgoing and incoming call records, incoming mail data, and the like are stored. It is like that. The dictionary memory 22 is also connected to store dictionary data necessary for character input at this terminal. The dictionary data includes not only data prepared in advance at the time of manufacturing the terminal but also data updated by use. The dictionary memory 22 may be configured using a partial storage area of the same memory as the memory 21. Further, these memories 21 and 22 may be constituted by read-only memories for programs and dictionary data prepared in advance, and may be constituted by rewritable memories for data updated by use.

  It should be noted that link data is added to each word data as dictionary data stored in the dictionary memory 22. That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the dictionary data includes words that are converted when a character is input as a normal character input mode (kana input mode) and a conversion operation is performed on this terminal. They are stored in numerical order. Here, for a specific word, the address number of the word displayed in association with the word is stored in the link field, and the launcher is displayed using the word of the address number stored in the link field. To do. One or more addresses are stored in the link column. In the example of FIG. 3, the kanji of “time” is stored corresponding to the input character of “jikoku”, and “1 o'clock”, “2 o'clock”... The address where the word is stored is stored. The address stored in this link field is used for launcher display described later. In addition, in the link column of the address where the word “location” is stored, an address indicating a special process (here, address “AAAAAAA”) is stored instead of a specific word, and the special column is stored. The launcher is displayed in the process. The launcher display process using the data in these link fields will be described later. Note that the data of the data in the link column may be added by user input as well as data prepared in advance.

  Further, although not shown in the dictionary data of FIG. 3, for each input character composed of one or more examples of hiragana characters, it is used (input) in a word having the same pronunciation and the first pronunciation. Words that appear to have a high frequency are listed and stored in the memory 21 or the like. The word data that seems to be frequently used may be updated by the CPU 20 in accordance with the actual usage status, or may be added by user input. These listed words are used for candidate character list display in a display example to be described later.

  The operation unit included in the mobile phone terminal of this example includes a key operation unit 23 on which a plurality of keys such as numeric keys, on-hook keys, off-hook keys, and various function keys are arranged, and a jog dial 24. A plurality of characters are assigned to each numeric key in the key operation unit 23. In the character input mode, one of the assigned characters (Hiragana, alphabet, etc.) is input by the number of times the key is pressed. Can be done. The jog dial 24 is an operation means capable of arbitrary rotation operation and push-down operation of the operation unit. A selection operation or the like is performed by rotating the jog dial 24 configured as described above, and an operation for confirming the selected item is performed by a pressing operation. Instead of the jog dial 24, for example, a combination of a key for instructing a direction such as up / down / left / right and a key for confirming an input may be used. Alternatively, the jog dial 24 may be rotated to instruct the up / down direction, and the other two keys may be used to instruct the left / right direction. The operation of the key operation unit 23 and the jog dial 24 is detected by the CPU 20.

  In addition, the mobile phone terminal of this example includes a GPS processing unit 26 that performs GPS (Global Positioning System) positioning processing that receives a signal from an artificial satellite and measures the current position. A GPS antenna 27 is connected to the GPS processing unit 26, receives signals from a plurality of GPS satellites, performs arithmetic processing based on the reception status in the GPS processing unit 26, and determines the current position. Positioning. The measured current position information is sent to the CPU 20. Note that, when positioning the current position, the position data may be obtained by calculation only in the GPS processing unit 26 in the mobile phone terminal, but communication using the radio telephone function of this mobile phone terminal Thus, data exchange with a predetermined center may be performed, and a part of processing necessary for positioning may be performed on the center side, thereby reducing the burden of calculation processing necessary for positioning within the terminal. Further, it is not an absolute positioning means such as GPS, but may be a positioning means that measures (determines) the approximate current position based on the determination of the base station that is the source of the signal that can be received by the mobile phone terminal, for example. .

  In addition, the mobile phone terminal of this example includes a display unit 30 that displays numbers, characters, figures, and the like under the control of the CPU 20, and includes data such as communication status, registered phone numbers and names, entered emails, The received mail is displayed. The display unit 30 includes, for example, display means such as a liquid crystal display panel and a drive circuit thereof.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the shape of the mobile phone terminal of this example. In the mobile phone terminal of this example, the housing divided into two is joined so that it can be rotated by the hinge portion, the display unit 30 is arranged in one housing, and the key operation is performed in the other housing. Various keys constituting the unit 23 and a jog dial 24 are arranged. In the case of this example, character input is performed using the numeric keys (keys corresponding to 0, 1, 2,..., *, #) Prepared as the key operation unit 23 and the jog dial 24. Further, it is assumed that a clear key for clearing an input is prepared among the function keys prepared as the key operation unit 23.

  Next, an example of processing for inputting characters for inputting a mail text or the like using the mobile phone terminal of this example will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 4 and 5 and display examples of FIG. To do. First, the operation mode of the terminal is set as the character input mode, and characters are input one by one using the numeric keys prepared as the key operation unit 23 (step S11). When one character is input, the input character is additionally displayed at the end of the input character string that has been confirmed and displayed on the display unit 30 (step S12). Here, the CPU 20 reads candidate words having the same pronunciation as the first character in the input character string from the data stored in the dictionary memory 22, and selects words that are likely to be used frequently from the candidate words. A list is displayed on the display unit 30 (step S13).

  For example, as shown in FIG. 6, when “ji” is input by the numeric keypad operation and “ji” is displayed as the input character display 31, the first pronunciation is “ji” and the input frequency is considered to be high. The candidate word to be displayed is displayed on the candidate character list display 32.

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not there is a numeric keypad operation (step S14). If there is a numeric keypad operation, the CPU 20 determines that the next character input has been performed and returns to the character input in step S11. If it is determined in step S14 that there is no operation on the numeric keypad, it is determined whether there is an operation for rotating the jog dial 24 (step S15). If there is an operation for rotating, the candidate character list display 32 is displayed. A candidate selection process is performed for selecting an input word using the candidate words displayed in (Step S16). Details of the candidate selection process of this example are shown in the flowchart of FIG. When the candidate selection process is finished, the CPU 20 determines whether or not the character input is finished (step S17). When the character input is not finished (that is, when the character input mode continues), the CPU 20 returns to the next step S11. Perform character input processing.

  If it is determined in step S15 that the jog dial 24 is not operated, it is determined whether there is a clear key operation (step S18). If there is a clear key operation, the input character string is used. One character such as the end is deleted, and the deleted character string is set as an input confirmed character string (step S19), and the process returns to step S13. Further, if it is determined in step S18 that the clear key is not operated, the process returns to the determination in step S14 and waits until any operation is performed.

  Next, details of the candidate selection process in step S16 of the flowchart of FIG. 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. When the rotation of the jog dial 24 is determined (step S21), the cursor position in the candidate character list display 32 is moved by one word unit according to the rotation amount (step S22). In the initial state, for example, the upper left word (the position where “ji” is displayed in the example of FIG. 6A) is set as the cursor position. In the state shown in FIG. 6A, two cursor positions are moved from the initial position, and the cursor 32a is displayed on the word “time”. For example, the word on which the cursor 32a is displayed is displayed in a color or brightness different from those of other characters in the candidate character list display 32.

  When the cursor moves in this way, it is determined whether or not there is link data for launcher display in the candidate word at the current cursor position (step S23). Here, when there is link data for launcher display, launcher display using the word indicated by the link data is performed (step S24). For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, when a word displayed as “time” in the candidate character list display 32 is selected, the dictionary data of this “time” includes link data as shown in FIG. A list of candidate words at the address position indicated by the link data is displayed as the launcher display 33 as shown in FIG. 6B. In the initial state, the cursor display 33a in the launcher display 33 is also set at the center of the display. It should be noted that the launcher display 33 may be displayed by a subsequent pressing operation of the jog dial 24 so that it is not displayed simply by moving the cursor position to that position.

  It is determined whether or not the jog dial 24 has been pressed with the launcher displayed in this manner (step S25). If the jog dial 24 has been pressed, the launcher display 33 is activated (step S26). At this time, for example, as shown in FIG. 6B, the cursor display 33 a is performed at a specific position such as the center in the launcher display 33. In a state where the launcher display 33 is active, it is determined whether or not the jog dial 24 has been further rotated (step S27). If the jog dial 24 has been rotated, the launcher display corresponding to the amount of rotation is performed. The word on which the cursor display 33a in 33 is performed is changed (step S28). Since the range that can be displayed as the launcher display 33 is limited, for example, the cursor display 33a is always performed at substantially the same position at the center of the launcher display 33, so that the display position of the word in the launcher display 33 moves up and down. Anyway.

  Then, after the jog dial 24 is rotated in step S28 and the cursor display position is changed, or when the jog dial 24 is not rotated in step S27, it is determined whether or not the jog dial 24 is pressed (step S29). When the jog dial 24 is pressed, the candidate character indicated by the cursor display 33a at that time is determined as the input character (step S30).

  If the candidate word (character) selected at that time in the candidate character list display 32 in step S23 has no launcher display data, it is determined whether or not the jog dial 24 has been pressed (step S31). When the jog dial 24 is pressed, the process proceeds to step S30, where the candidate character indicated by the cursor display 32a in the candidate character list display 32 is determined as the input character.

  If it is determined in step S31 that the jog dial 24 is not pressed, it is determined whether or not the clear key is operated (step S32). If the clear key is operated, the input character display 31 is displayed. The area is activated, and a character can be input by operating the numeric keypad (step S33). If the clear key is not operated in step S32, the process returns to the determination of the rotation of the jog dial 24 in step S21.

  If it is determined that the jog dial 24 is not pressed even in the state of step S25 displayed on the launcher, it is determined whether or not the clear key is operated (step S34), and the clear key is operated. In addition, the area of the input character display 31 is made active so that characters can be input by operating the numeric keypad (step S35). If the clear key is not operated in step S34, the process returns to the determination of the rotation of the jog dial 24 in step S21.

  Further, if it is determined in step S29 that the launcher display is activated that the jog dial 24 is not pressed, it is determined whether or not the clear key is operated (step S36), and the clear key is operated. In step S35, the input character display 31 area is activated, and a character can be input by operating the numeric keypad. If the clear key is not operated in step S36, the process returns to the determination of the rotation of the jog dial 24 in step S27.

  When the input word (character) is determined in step S30 and when the area of the input character display 31 is activated in steps S33 and S35, the candidate selection in step S16 in the flowchart of FIG. Return to Judgment.

  In this way, an example of display that is actually performed when inputting characters will be described. As already described in the description of the flowcharts of FIGS. 4 and 5, in the example of FIG. When “ji” is displayed on the input character display 31, candidate words that are thought to be frequently input with the first pronunciation as “ji” are displayed as the candidate character list display 32.

  When the cursor display 32a in the candidate character list display 32 is performed and the character for which the launcher display is performed is selected, as shown in FIG. 6B, the launcher display 33 is displayed in a column immediately above the character. Done. The launcher display 33 is based on the link data in the dictionary data, and in the example of FIG. 6, the time is indicated as a number in units of 30 minutes as the launcher display 33. In this case, the number of the time closest to the current time is shown as the center of the launcher display 33, and several candidate numbers before and after the time at the center are shown. By changing the display range, 30 minutes Arbitrary time in units can be specified as input characters. Here, with the time close to the current time as the center, the past is shown upward, and the future is shown downward. Alternatively, candidate characters other than numbers in units of 30 minutes may be displayed by sequentially changing candidate words in the launcher display 33. For example, characters such as “1 o'clock” and “2 o'clock” may be displayed as candidate characters, or words, characters, and numbers related to other times may be displayed as candidate characters. In addition, when the candidate time is indicated by a number, not only the hour / minute in units of 30 minutes but also a number indicating the current time in an accurate hour / minute may be displayed as candidate characters. Further, not only the time but also the date and day of the week may be displayed. When displaying the date or day of the week, “date”, “day of the week” or the like may be used as the original candidate character. When performing launcher display of these “date” and “day of the week”, launcher display centering on the current date and day of the week may be performed.

  FIG. 7 shows another display example. In this example, when “ka” is input by operating the numeric keypad and “ka” is displayed on the input character display 41, a candidate word that seems to have a high input frequency is “ka” at the beginning of the pronunciation. The candidate character list display 42 is displayed.

  It is assumed that the cursor display 42a in the candidate character list display 42 is performed, and here, the cursor display 42a is performed on the “emoticon”. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7B, a launcher display 43 by a character string related to the “emoticon” is performed. As a character string in the launcher display 43 at this time, a plurality of so-called emoticon candidates imitating a face by a combination of symbols are displayed. Also in this case, when the launcher display 43 is active, the cursor display 43a is displayed on one of them, and a specific emoticon in the launcher display 43 can be selected. In this case, the display order of the emoticons in the launcher display 43 may be set in the order of emoticon input frequencies. In addition to such emoticon display, for example, when a candidate character of “pictogram” is selected, a list of characters (characters) prepared as pictograms may be displayed as a launcher display.

  FIG. 8 shows another display example. In this example, when “BA” is input by the numeric keypad operation and “BA” is displayed on the input character display 51, a candidate word that seems to have a high input frequency is “BA” at the beginning of the pronunciation. The candidate character list display 52 is displayed.

  It is assumed that the cursor display 52a in the candidate character list display 52 is performed, and here, the cursor display 52a is performed at the “place”. At this time, as shown in FIG. 8B, a launcher display 53 by a character string related to the “place” is performed. When “location” is selected in this example, the address of the current position is determined based on the data of the current position obtained by the current position measurement in the GPS processing unit 26 in the terminal, and the determined address Words such as prefecture names, city names, and town names are used as character strings in the launcher display 53. The processing for determining address data from the absolute current position measured by the GPS processing unit 26 may be obtained by communication with a predetermined center using a wireless telephone line.

  FIG. 9 shows still another display example. In this example, when “Ji” is input by the numeric keypad operation and “Ji” is displayed on the input character display 61, a candidate word that seems to have a high frequency of input is “Ji” at the beginning. The candidate character list display 62 is displayed. 6 is the same as the example of FIG. 6, but in the example of FIG. 9A, the character displayed in the launcher is displayed separately from the normal candidate character as the candidate character displayed in the candidate character list display 62. is there. Specifically, as one of the normal candidate characters, a “time” display 62b is displayed at a predetermined position, and a “time” display 62a as a launcher display candidate is displayed at a predetermined position. I'm allowed. The launcher display candidate characters are displayed in a manner different from the normal display characters (for example, a change in display color) so that the launcher display candidate characters can be identified.

When the display 62b is selected by rotating the jog dial, the character “time” itself becomes the input character. On the other hand, when the display 62b is selected by rotating the jog dial, when the jog dial is pressed while the character display 62b is selected, as shown in FIG. A launcher display 63 displaying the time in units of 30 minutes is displayed. In this state, when the jog dial is pressed after a specific time display 63a in the launcher display 63 is selected by rotating the jog dial, the time display 63a is displayed on the input character display 61. If the clear key is pressed while the launcher is displayed, the display returns to the previous display, that is, the display without the launcher display.

  As described above, according to the terminal device of this example, the character information that can be displayed on the display unit is displayed as link information or the like including information related to other characters as the link information. Candidate characters that are stored to be related based on characters and pronunciation are displayed as a candidate character list, and when any one of them is selected, it is further related from the candidate character and meaning, etc. When another character list stored in the storage data such as dictionary data is displayed as a launcher display, and a specific character is selected from the candidate characters displayed in the launcher, the selected character string is selected. By determining the character as an input character, the types of character strings such as words that can be selected from the input characters are increased, and input operations of various character strings can be performed more easily.

  Note that the specific example of performing the launcher display described so far is a preferable example, and other launcher displays may be performed as long as the character string has some relation to the candidate character. Of course.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where character input is performed in a mobile phone terminal has been described. However, the present invention can also be applied to various mobile terminal devices that require other character input. For example, the present invention can also be applied to portable information processing terminals such as PDA (Personal Digital Assistants).

It is the block diagram which showed the structural example by one embodiment of this invention. It is the perspective view which showed the example of the shape of the apparatus by one embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of the dictionary memory by one embodiment of this invention. It is the flowchart which showed the example of a character input process by one embodiment of this invention. It is the flowchart which showed the example of candidate selection processing by one embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of a display by one embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of a display by one embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of a display by one embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of a display by one embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Antenna, 12 ... Switch, 13 ... Receiver, 14 ... Transmitter, 15 ... Modulator / Demodulator, 16 ... Data processor, 17 ... Audio processor, 18 ... Speaker, 19 ... Microphone, 20 ... Central control unit ( CPU), 21 ... Memory, 22 ... Dictionary memory, 23 ... Key operation unit, 24 ... Jog dial, 26 ... GPS processing unit, 27 ... GPS antenna, 30 ... Display unit, 31 ... Input character display, 32 ... Candidate character list Display 33 ... Launcher display 41 ... Input character display 42 ... Candidate character list display 43 ... Launcher display 51 ... Input character display 52 ... Candidate character list display 53 ... Launcher display 61 ... Input character display 62 ... candidate character list display, 63 ... launcher display

Claims (3)

A first display step for displaying characters instructed by a predetermined operation;
A second display step of displaying one or a plurality of first candidate characters as characters related to a position accumulated in association with the characters displayed in the first display step;
When any one of the candidate characters displayed in the second display step is selected , a second candidate character indicating a place name indicating the current position or its vicinity is displayed in relation to the selected candidate character. A third display step,
A character search method comprising: an input confirmation step of confirming a selected candidate character as an input character when a specific character is selected from the second candidates displayed in the third display step. An operation means for performing character input operation;
Display means for displaying characters by operation of the operation means;
Storage means for storing character information that can be displayed by the display means, including information related to other characters;
Means for determining the current position;
One or a plurality of first candidates as a character related to a position, which is stored in the storage means to display a character instructed by the operation means on the display means, and to be associated with the displayed character When any one of the first candidate characters is selected by the operation of the operation means, the storage means stores information related to the first candidate character, and displays the current position. When the second candidate character consisting of the place name indicating the current position or its vicinity determined by the determination means is displayed, and the specific character is selected from the displayed as the second candidate character, the selected character A character search device comprising control means for confirming as an input character. An operation means for performing character input operation;
Display means for displaying characters by operation of the operation means;
Storage means for storing character information that can be displayed by the display means, including information related to other characters;
Means for determining the current position;
One or a plurality of first candidates as a character related to a position, which is stored in the storage means to display a character instructed by the operation means on the display means, and to be associated with the displayed character When any one of the first candidate characters is selected by the operation of the operation means, the storage means stores information related to the first candidate character, and displays the current position. When the second candidate character consisting of the place name indicating the current position determined by the determining means or the vicinity thereof is displayed, and the specific character is selected from the displayed as the second candidate character, the selected character Control means for confirming as an input character;
An information processing means for processing a character string determined by the control of the control means.

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