JP4410916B2 - Key input device and mobile phone - Google Patents

Description

【００５４】
これらのかな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａ、英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂ、記号入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｃおよび数字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｄの相対位置は、前記各メインキー２１〜３２に表記された文字、記号、数字の相対位置に対応して設定されている。
すなわち、前記各メインキー２１〜３２において記号は、数字よりは右側でかつ文字よりは上側に表記されている。これに対応し、記号入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｃは、数字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｄよりは右側でかつ文字入力用キースイッチ部であるかな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａおよび英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂよりは上側に配置されている。
【００５５】
同様に、前記各メインキー２１〜３２において数字は、文字および記号よりも左側に表記されており、これに対応し、数字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｄは、記号入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｃおよび文字入力用キースイッチ部であるかな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａおよび英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂよりも左側に配置されている。
【００５６】
さらに、前記各メインキー２１〜３２において文字は、数字よりは右側でかつ記号よりは下側に表記されており、これに対応し、文字入力用キースイッチ部であるかな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａおよび英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂは、数字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｄよりは右側で、かつ記号入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｃよりは下側に配置されている。
【００５７】
また、モード切替キー５４の各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの表面には、前記各入力モードを表す文字に隣接して、カーソルの移動方向を示す記号「▲」がそれぞれ表記されており、モード切替キー５４はカーソルキーとしての機能も設けられている。
具体的には、モードキー５５を押さずに、かな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａを単独で押すとカーソルが下へ、英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂを単独で押すとカーソルが右へ、記号入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｃを単独で押すとカーソルが上へ、数字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｄを単独で押すとカーソルが左へ、それぞれ移動されるようになっている。
【００５８】
従って、キー入力装置５は、１つのモード切替キー（カーソルモード切替キー）５４と、このモード切替キー５４の各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの入力をカーソル移動モードおよび入力モード設定モードに切り替えるモードキー５５とを備え、前記モード切替キー５４の４つのキースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄは、カーソル移動モード（モード切替キー５４の単独入力時）の際には、カーソルを左、右、上および下に移動指令する機能に設定され、モードキー５５を押した後にモード切替キー５４を押した際には、メインキー２１〜３２の入力モードを、異なる４種類の入力モードに切り替え指令する機能に設定されていることになる。
【００５９】
さらに、モードキー５５には、かな入力モード時や英字入力モード時に利用される下記の３つの機能も設定されている。
第１の機能は、小文字や句読点のワンタイム入力機能である。すなわち、かな入力モードにおいて、モードキー５５を押して離した後に、文字キー２１〜３２を押すと、かなの小文字や句読点を簡単に入力できるようにされている。
【００６０】
すなわち、モードキー５５を押して離してからキー２１を１回押すと小母音「ぁ」が入力される。同様に、それぞれモードキー５５を押して離してから、キー２２〜２５をそれぞれ１回押すと小母音「ぃ、ぅ、ぇ、ぉ」が入力される。さらに、モードキー５５を押した後に、「や＝ＹＡ（キー２６＋キー２１）」を押してかな文字を１文字入力すると、その文字の小文字「ゃ」が入力される。同様にして、モードキー５５を押した後に、文字「ゆ、よ、か、け、つ、わ」を入力すると小文字「ゅ、ょ、ヵ、ヶ、っ、わ」が入力される。
また、モードキー５５を押した後に、キー３０〜３２を押すと、それらのキー３０〜３２の記号に設定されている中点「・」、読点「、」、句点「。」が入力される。
【００６１】
これらのワンタイム入力の操作をまとめると表２に示すようになる。なお、表２においては、各キーをそのキーに設定された数字で表している。
【００６２】
【表２】

【００６３】
なお、ワンタイム入力機能とは、モードキー５５を押した後に、小文字や句読点が１つ入力されると、元のかなモードに自動的に戻る機能である。
【００６４】
第２の機能は、かな、英字、数字モード時に、英大文字を入力する英大文字のシフト入力機能である。
すなわち、かなモードや数字モードの入力時に一時的に英字を入力したい場合や、英小文字モード時に、文頭や名詞など、１文字のみ大文字で入力したい場合があり、英大文字シフト入力機能は、このような場合に、英大文字を直接入力する機能である。
【００６５】
このシフト入力機能は、かなモード、数字モード、英小文字モード時に、モードキー５５を押しながら各キー２１〜３２を１〜３回押すと、その打鍵回数に応じて対応する英大文字が直接入力される。モードキー５５を離すと、元のモードに戻る。
また、英大文字モード時に、モードキー５５を押しながら各キー２１〜３２を１〜３回押すと、その打鍵回数に応じて対応する英小文字が直接入力される。
【００６６】
第３の機能は、英字や記号の区切り機能と、同一文字、記号のリピート機能である。
すなわち、１つのキーに複数の英字や記号が設定されている場合、同じキーに設定されている英字、記号を続けて入力することがある。この場合、キー入力を一度確定する必要がある。このため、メインキー２１〜３２を所定回数打鍵した後に、モードキー５５を１回押した場合には、そのメインキーの打鍵回数を確定して対応する文字、記号を出力し、次に同じキーを所定回数押すことで、同じキーに設定されている文字、記号を続けて入力できるようにされている。例えば、「ＴＤ」を続けて入力する場合には、キー２９を１回打鍵した後、モードキー５５を１回押して「Ｔ」を確定した後、再度キー２９を２回打鍵して「Ｄ」を入力すればよい。
【００６７】
また、前記モードキー５５を押した直後に、再度モードキーを１回以上続けて打鍵した場合には、前記確定された文字、記号をモードキーの打鍵回数分、繰り返して入力するリピート入力が機能するように設定されている。
例えば、「ｗｗｗ」を入力する場合、キー２６を２回押した後、モードキー５５を１回押すと「ｗ」が確定されるが、さらにモードキー５５を１回押す（計２回押す）と「ｗｗ」となり、２回の押す（計３回押す）と「ｗｗｗ」が入力される。つまり、［６］［６］［モード］［モード］と入力すると「ｗｗ」が入力され、［６］［６］［モード］［モード］［モード］と入力すると「ｗｗｗ」が入力される。
このため、文字を入力後に、同じ文字を続けて入力する場合には、モードキー５５を繰り返す回数分、押すことで入力できる。
【００６８】
また、モードキー５５には、メールボタン機能も設定されており、例えばモードキー５５を単独で連続して２回打鍵するなどしてメールボタン機能を実行すると、画面にメールメニューが表示されてメールの受信、送信などを行うことができるようにされている。このメールボタン機能を示すため、モードキー５５に隣接してメールをイメージした記号が表記されている。
【００６９】
モード切替キー５４の右下には、そのキートップに「マナー」と表記された機能キー５６が配置されており、マナーボタン５６を押すと通常モードからマナーモードに切り替わるように設定されている。
また、この機能キー５６には、例えば機能キー５６を２回連続して打鍵した際などに実行される電話帳機能も設定されており、この電話帳機能を示す記号が機能キー５６に隣接して表記されている。
【００７０】
モード切替キー５４の左上には、そのキートップに記号が「！」表記された機能キー５７が配置されている。この機能キー５７を押すと、インターネットのホームページを閲覧するブラウザ閲覧機能が働くように設定されている。
モード切替キー５４の右上には、そのキートップに「メニュー」と表記された機能キー５８が配置されている。この機能キー５８を押すと、画面４に各種メニューが表示されるように設定されている。
モード切替キー５４の上側には、そのキートップに黒丸「●」をイメージした記号が表記された機能キー５９が配置されている。この機能キー５９は表示されたメニューの選択項目をモード切替キー（カーソルキー）５４で選択した際の決定ボタンとして設定されている。
【００７１】
なお、本実施形態では、モード切替キー５４のキースイッチ部５４Ａには、かな入力モード時に入力された未確定文字を漢字に変換するかな漢字変換機能も設定されている。
【００７２】
（キー入力処理）
前述のキー配列のキー入力装置５における入力処理機能について、図３に示すブロック図を参照して説明する。
まず、各キー２１〜３２、５１〜５９が打鍵されたか否かをキー入力検出手段１０１で検出する。例えば、一定サイクル（例えば１〜１０ｍｓ）でタイマ割込を行い、各キー２１〜３２、５１〜５９に割り当てられたＩ／Ｏポート等をチェックしてキー入力があるか否かをチェックする。
【００７３】
キー入力無しと判断されたら、タイマ割込を一定サイクルで繰り返してキー入力を待つ。一方、キー入力有りと判断されれば、キー入力処理手段１０２において入力処理が行われる。
なお、モード切替キー５４を打鍵して入力モードの切替操作が行われた場合には、モード切替手段１０３が作動され、キー入力処理手段１０２の入力モードが適宜切り替えられて設定される。
【００７４】
キー入力処理手段１０２では、設定された入力モードと入力されたキーに応じて所定の文字や数字等が出力されるように処理する。
そして、出力された文字や数字は、画面制御手段１０４を介して液晶画面４に表示される。
【００７５】
（文字・数字・記号の入力）
このキー入力装置５における文字、数字、記号の入力を、図４を参照しながら説明する。
i)かな／カナモード
ひらがなモード時に、メインキー２１〜３２を押すと、ローマ字入力によりひらがなが入力される。すなわち、母音キー２１〜２５を１回押せば母音が入力され、子音キー２６〜３２と母音キー２１〜２５とを押せば「子音＋母音」でローマ字入力によるひらがなが入力される。
カタカナモード時に、メインキー２１〜３２を押すと、ひらがなモードと同様に、ローマ字入力によりカタカナが入力される。
【００７６】
また、母音キー（Ｉ，Ｕ，Ｏ）２２，２３，２５を２回以上連続して押すと、そのアルファベット（母音）が続けて入力される。
一方、長音設定母音キー２１および促音設定母音キー２４を２回以上続けて押した場合には、条件に応じて長音、促音が入力される。
【００７７】
すなわち、母音キー（Ｉ，Ｕ，Ｅ，Ｏ）２２〜２５や、機能キー（後退キー）５１、カーソル左キー（キースイッチ部５４Ａ）、カーソル右キー（キースイッチ部５４Ｂ）が押された後に（図４の▲１▼の場合）、長音設定母音キー２１を２回以上連続して押すと、次のように入力される。
長音設定母音キー２１を、他の母音等の後に２回連続して押すと長音「ー」が入力され、３回連続して押すと「母音＋長音」つまり「ａー」が入力される。さらに、４回連続して押すと「長音＋母音（ーａ）」が入力され、５回連続して押すと「長音＋母音＋長音（ーａー）」が入力される。また、６回連続して押すと、１回押された状態に戻る。
【００７８】
一方、それ以外の場合（図４の▲２▼の場合）において、長音設定母音キー２１を２回連続して押すと、次のように入力される。
長音設定母音キー２１を、２回連続して押すと「母音＋母音（ａａ）」が入力され、３回連続して押すと「母音＋長音（ａー）」が入力され、４回連続して押すと「母音＋長音＋母音（ａーａ）」が入力される。また、５回連続して押すと、１回押された状態に戻る。
【００７９】
また、母音キー（Ｉ，Ｕ，Ｅ，Ｏ）２２〜２５や、機能キー（後退キー）５１、カーソル左キー（キースイッチ部５４Ａ）、カーソル右キー（キースイッチ部５４Ｂ）が押された後に（図４の▲１▼の場合）、促音設定母音キー２４を２回連続して押すと「っ」が入力され、３回連続して押すと「ｅっ」が入力され、４回連続して押すと１回押された状態に戻る。
【００８０】
一方、それ以外の場合（図４の▲２▼の場合）において、促音設定母音キー２４を２回連続して押すと「ee（「ｅえ」に変換される）」が入力され、３回連続して押すと「ｅっ」が入力され、４回連続して押すと「eeっ（「ｅえっ」に変換される）」が入力される。また、５回連続して押すと、１回押された状態に戻る。
【００８１】
また、各子音キー２６〜３２には、第１文字〜第３文字の３つの子音がそれぞれ設定されているが、各キー２６〜３２を１〜３回押すことで選択して入力できるようにされている。すなわち、１回押すと各キートップの左側の文字が、２回押すと中央の文字が、３回押すと右側の文字がそれぞれ入力される。さらに、４回押した場合には、１回押した状態（左側の文字入力）に戻る。
【００８２】
但し、かなモードにおいて、「Ｎ」が設定された子音キー３０は、２回、３回押しても「Ｃ、Ｑ」は入力されず、１回打鍵されることで「ｎ」が入力され、２回打鍵されることで「ｎｎ」が入力されて「ん」に変換され、３回打鍵されることで「ｎｎｎ」が入力されて「ん＋ｎ」に変換される。なお、キー３０も連続して４回打鍵されると、メインキー３０が１回打鍵された状態に戻る。
また、メインキー３０が１回打鍵された場合には、基本的に「ｎ」が入力されるが、そのメインキー３０の後に母音以外のメインキーが打鍵された場合には、「ん」に変換される。
【００８３】
また、ひらがなモードおよびカタカナモードで、前述のモードキー５５を押した後に、各母音キー２１〜２５を押したり、「や、ゆ、よ、か、け、つ、わ」を入力すると、ワンタイム入力が働いて、その文字の小文字が入力される。また、前述のモードキー５５を押した後に、キー３０〜３２を押すと、ワンタイム入力が働いて、中点「・」、読点「、」、句点「。」が入力される。小文字や句読点が１つ入力されると、元のかなモードに戻る。
【００８４】
さらに、モードキー５５を押しながら、各メインキー２１〜３２を１〜３回押すと、シフト入力機能が働いて、対応する英大文字が直接入力される。モードキー５５を離せば元のモードに戻る。
【００８５】
ii)英字モード
英字モード時に、メインキー２１〜３２を押すと、各アルファベットが入力される。この際、母音キー２１〜２５を連続して２回以上押すと、そのアルファベットが繰り返し入力される。
一方、各子音キー２６〜３２は、１回押すと各キートップの左側の文字が、２回押すと中央の文字が、３回押すと右側の文字がそれぞれ入力される。また、４回押すと、１回押された状態に戻る。
なお、英小文字と英大文字は、先に入力モードを切り替えて入力するが、前述のモードキー５５を押しながら各キー２１〜３２を押してシフト入力機能を働かせると、英小文字モードの場合には英大文字が入力され、英大文字モードの場合には英小文字が入力される。
【００８６】
iii)数字モード
数字モード時に、メインキー２１〜３２を押すと、各キー２１〜３２表面の左側に書かれた数字「１」「２」「３」「４」「５」「６」「７」「８」「９」「０」および「＊」、「＃」が入力される。複数回押された場合には、各数字、「＊」、「＃」が押された回数分入力される。この数字モードにおいても、モードキー５５を押しながら、各メインキー２１〜３２を１〜３回押すと、シフト入力機能が働いて、対応する英大文字が直接入力される。
【００８７】
iv)記号モード
記号モード時に、メインキー２１〜３２を押すと、各キー２１〜３２のキートップ上側左に表記された記号「（」、「｛」、「「」、「＜」、「［」、［／」、「−」、「＠」、「￥」、「・」、「、」「。」がそれぞれ入力される。
２回続けて押すと、メインキー２１〜３２のキートップ上側中央に表記された記号「）」、「｝」、「」」、「＞」、「］」、「％」、「＋」、「＊」、「＆」、「：」、「＿」、「！」がそれぞれ入力される。
３回続けて押すと、メインキー２１〜３２のキートップ上側右に表記された記号「’」、「”」、「＾」、「｀」、「チルダ記号」、「│」、「＝」、「＃」、「＄」、「；」、「〜」、「？」がそれぞれ入力される。
【００８８】
なお、同じキー２１〜３２に設定されている英字、記号を続けて入力する場合には、前述の通り、メインキー２１〜３２を所定回数打鍵した後に、モードキー５５を１回押して入力を区切り、そのメインキー２１〜３２の打鍵回数を確定して対応する文字、記号を出力し、次に同じキー２１〜３２を所定回数押せばよい。
【００８９】
また、メインキー２１〜３２を入力してモードキー５５を押した直後に、再度モードキーを１回以上続けて打鍵した場合には、前述の通り、入力された文字、記号をモードキーの打鍵回数分、繰り返して入力するリピート入力が機能する。このため、文字を入力後に、同じ文字を続けて入力する場合には、モードキー５５を繰り返す回数分押すことで入力できる。
【００９０】
（実施形態の効果）
(1) キー入力装置５では、各メインキー２１〜３２に、文字、数字の他に、記号も設定表記し、このメインキー２１〜３２の入力をモード切替キー５４のキースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの入力によって切り替えているので、文字、数字、記号を切り替えて容易に入力できる。従って、キー数が少なくても、各キー２１〜３２に記号を設定できるため、多くの記号も容易に入力することができる。
特に、本実施形態では、日本語の入力にローマ字入力を採用したため、メインキー２１〜３２の表面に、従来の携帯電話のように、かな、英字、数字の３種類を表記する必要が無く、「かな」および「英字」の代わりに英字のみを表記すればよい。このため、各メインキー２１〜３２のキートップに、数字、英字の他に、記号を追加表記することができ、本実施形態のように、各メインキー２１〜３２のキートップに３個ずつの記号を設定すれば、３６個もの記号を簡単に入力することができる。
その上、文字や記号を、３列４段の１２個のメインキー２１〜３２に設定しており、このキーの数や配列は１２個の数字キーで構成される通常の携帯電話のキーと一致しているため、キー配列が大変に分かりやすくなり、スピーディーな文字入力を簡単に行うことができる。
【００９１】
(2) モード切替キー５４の各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの相対位置は、各メインキー２１〜３２の表面に表記された文字、数字、記号の相対位置に対応しているので、モード切替キー５４による切り替え操作を直感的にかつ容易に把握でき、切り替え操作性も向上することができる。
【００９２】
(3) モード切替キー５４は、菱形形状の１つのキーによって構成されているから、各モード切替用のキーを個別に設ける場合に比べて、全体としてキーの数を少なくできる。よって、各キーの大きさを変えることなく、小型化がはかれる。つまり、操作性を維持しつつ、小型化が達成できる。
その上、菱形に形成されたモード切替キー５４の４つの角部に各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄを設定しているので、キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの位置を容易に把握でき、操作し易くできる。また、モード切替キー５４の入力操作性を維持しながら、その大きさを比較的小さくでき、携帯電話１のような小型の機器にも容易に組み込むことができる。
【００９３】
(4) モード切替キー５４に、入力モード切替機能だけでなく、カーソル移動機能も組み込んでおり、モード切替キー５４をカーソルキーと兼用しているので、別途、カーソルキーを設ける場合に比べてキー数を少なくでき、携帯電話１のような小型の機器により一層容易に組み込むことができる。このため、従来の携帯電話のキー数を増やすことなく、パソコンのキーボードと同等の数の文字、数字、記号を分かりやすく簡単に入力することができる。
このため、キー数が少なくても、キーボードと同様の入力が行え、フルキーボードと同等の機能を有することができる。従って、各文字や数字、記号を確実にかつ容易に入力することができ、携帯電話やＰＤＡ等で電子メールを入力したり、インターネットのホームページを閲覧するためのアドレスを入力したり、ホームページ上で各種情報の検索、商品やサービスの購入等、文字や記号等の入力が必要な場合でも、確実に対応することができる。
【００９４】
(5) ４つのキースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄを備えているので、「かな（カナ）モード」、「英字（英小／英大）モード」、「数字モード」および「記号モード」を直接かつ簡単に切り替えることができ、従来の携帯電話のように特定のキーを数回押して画面のモード表示を見ながら切り替える方法に比べて、モード切替操作が非常に簡単になって入力操作性をより一層向上することができる。
その上、ひらがなモードおよびカタカナモードと、英小文字モードおよび英大文字モードとは、キースイッチ部５４Ａ、５４Ｂを押す回数を変えるだけで切り替えることができるため、モード切替操作をより一層簡単にできる。
【００９５】
(6) 複数の機能キー５１〜５９が、メインキーエリア２０の上側に配置されているから、打鍵頻度の高いメインキー２１〜３２を親指で押しやすい下側のエリアに配置でき、入力操作性を向上できる。その上、各機能キー５１〜５９とメインキーエリア２０とを上下位置に配置しているので、キー全体としては縦長のエリアを形成し、縦長形状のものが殆どである携帯電話１に組み込むのに適したキー配列を実現できる。
【００９６】
(7) モードキー５５に、小文字や句読点のワンタイム入力機能を設け、モードキー５５を押して離した後に、所定の文字を入力したり、キー３０〜３２を押すだけで、かなの小文字や句読点を簡単に入力できる。その上、小文字や句読点は、２つ以上続けて入力されることが殆ど無い点に着目し、ワンタイム入力機能により、小文字や句読点が１つ入力されると自動的に元のかなモードに戻るようにされているので、入力操作性をより一層向上できる。
【００９７】
(8) モードキー５５に、かなモードや数字モード時に他のメインキー２１〜３２と同時に入力することで英文字を直接入力する英文字シフト入力機能を設けたので、日本語の文章入力中に一時的に英文字を入力する場合も簡単な操作で良く、操作性を向上できる。
さらに、英大文字モード時または英小文字モード時には、モードキー５５を名にキー２１〜３２と同時入力することで、英小文字または英大文字を簡単に入力でき、英文入力中に１文字のみ大文字を入力する場合等の操作性を向上できる。
【００９８】
(9) モードキー５５に、英字や記号の区切り入力機能を設けたので、同一キーに設定された文字や記号も容易にかつ連続して入力できる。また、モードキー５５に、同じ文字、記号を続けて入力するリピート機能を設けたので、同じ文字や記号を続けて入力する際の入力操作性を非常に向上することができる。
【００９９】
(10)日本語でも英語でも最も使用頻度の高い母音つまり「Ａ」、「Ｉ」、「Ｕ」、「Ｅ」、「Ｏ」を独立したキー２１〜２５に設定したため、これらの文字はキーを１回押すだけで入力できる。このため、使用頻度の高い母音入力時の打鍵回数を少なくできる。このため、入力操作性を向上できて高速入力を行うことができる。
さらに、母音「Ａ」、「Ｉ」、「Ｕ」、「Ｅ」、「Ｏ」が、第１段目から第２段目に向かってかつ左から右に向かって配置されているため、各母音のキー位置を覚えやすく、より操作性を向上できる。
【０１００】
(11)また、アルファベットの他の２１個の文字を、７個のキー２６〜３２に３個ずつ配列しているので、１２個と非常に少ないキー数でアルファベット２６文字を入力することができ、小型で携帯性に優れたキー入力装置５を形成できる。さらに、子音キーが設定された７個のキーには、各々３個ずつ文字を配置しているので、各文字の入力を各キーを押す回数で分けている場合に、各キーを最大３回押せばどの文字でも入力できて操作性を向上でき、かつ各子音が各キーに均等に配列されているので、キー打鍵操作のバランスをよくでき、操作性をより一層向上できる。
【０１０１】
(12)また、子音「Ｋ」〜「Ｗ」が設定されたキー２６〜３２と、母音「Ａ」〜「Ｏ」が設定されたメインキー２１〜２５とに分けてキーを設定したので、「子音＋母音」のローマ字入力で日本語を入力することができる。このため、日本語を入力する場合、平均して２回キーを押す操作を行えば入力することができ、例えば１０個のキーに「あ」行〜「わ」行を設定し、各キーを１〜５回押して各文字を入力する５０音配列に比べて入力操作性を向上でき、高速入力を行うことができる。
【０１０２】
(13)母音キー２１に、長音「ー」を入力する第２の文字キーを設定し、キー２４に促音「っ」を入力する第２の文字キーを設定し、このキー２１、２４を２〜５回連続して打鍵すると、キー入力処理手段１０２によって長音「ー」および促音「っ」を含む文字列を出力できるようにしたので、日本語入力において使用頻度が高い長音「ー」および促音「っ」の入力を容易にでき、文字入力効率を向上できる。
特に、これらの長音設定母音キー２１や促音設定母音キー２４は、他の母音キー等の後に入力されるのか、あるいは子音キーなどの後に入力されるのかによって、つまり日本語入力における文字列の並びを考慮してその出力文字列の組み合わせを変更しているので、文字入力効率をより向上できる。
【０１０３】
(14) 「Ｇ」、「Ｚ」、「Ｄ」、「Ｂ」を用いて濁音を入力したり、「Ｎ」を２回押すことで撥音「ん」を入力したり、「子音＋Ｙ＋母音」で拗音を入力しており、従来の一般的なキーボードにおけるローマ字入力に準じた文字の組み合わせで濁音等を入力しているので、キー操作を迅速に習得することができ、操作性も向上できて高速に入力することができる。
【０１０４】
(15)さらに、ローマ字入力において、「カ」行を入力する「Ｋ」と「ガ」行を入力する「Ｇ」とをメインキー２６に、「サ」行を入力する「Ｓ」と「ザ」行を入力する「Ｚ」とをメインキー２７に、タ行を入力する「Ｔ」とダ行を入力する「Ｄ」とをメインキー２８に、ハ行を入力する「Ｈ」とバ行を入力する「Ｂ」とをキー３０にそれぞれ設定したので、関連する清音と濁音を同じキーを用い、メインキーを押す回数を変えることで入力することができる。このため、濁音用のキー位置を簡単に把握でき、入力操作も覚えやすくなり、高速に入力することができる。
【０１０５】
(16)複数の文字や記号が設定されたキー２１〜３２は、そのキー表面にその文字や記号が表記されており、そのキー２１〜３２を１〜３回押すことで所望の文字や記号を容易に入力することができる。このため、入力キーが把握し易くなり、入力操作性をより向上することができる。特に、各記号は、各キー２１〜３２に各々３個ずつ配置しているので、子音と同様に、キー打鍵操作のバランスをよくでき、操作性をより一層向上できる。
さらに、横長のメインキー２１〜３２の表面の左側に数字を表記し、上側に記号を表記し、下側に文字を表記しているので、数字を比較的大きく表すことができ、通常の使用では数字入力の割合が多い携帯電話１に適したキーに設定できる。
【０１０６】
(17)携帯電話機などで電話利用時に使用する「＊」、「＃」が設定されたキー３０，３２に、文字の他に「，（カンマ）」、「．（ピリオド）」を入力可能としているので、文字入力モード時において「，」、「．」を簡単に入力でき、その分、入力時の操作性を向上でき、少ないキー配列でフルキーボードと同等の機能を備えることができる。
【０１０７】
(18)従来のキーボードに比べて大幅に少ない１２個のメインキー２１〜３２を用いてローマ字入力や英語入力を行うことができるため、キー入力装置５の小型化が図れ、携帯電話１、腕時計等の非常に小型の機器などにも容易に適用することができるとともに、キーの位置も覚えやすく、片手でも操作できて初心者でも容易に習熟することができる。
【０１０８】
（変形例）
なお、本発明は前記実施形態に限定されるものではなく、本発明の目的を達成できる他の構成等を含み、以下に示すような変形等も本発明に含まれる。
例えば、本発明が適用されるキー入力装置としては、前記実施形態の構成に限らず、機能キー５１〜５９や文字キー２１〜３２のキー配列も、各キーエリア２０，５０内で変えてもよい。例えば、前記実施形態では、母音「Ａ，Ｉ，Ｕ，Ｅ，Ｏ」をメインキーエリア２０の上２段のキー２１〜２５に設定していたが、中２段のキーや、下２段のキーに配置し、残りにキーに各子音を設定してもよい。さらに、母音「Ａ，Ｉ，Ｕ，Ｅ，Ｏ」をメインキーエリア２０の左列のキー２１，２４，２７，３０と中央列のキーに設定するなどして、左列および中央列のキーや、中央列および右列のキーや、左右列のキーに設定してもよい。
【０１０９】
また、図５に示すように、キー３０，３２に「，」、「．」を設定せず、これらのカンマ、ピリオドを、キー３１，３２に設定された記号「、」、「。」を利用して入力するようにしてもよい。
【０１１０】
また、機能キー５１〜５９の数、形状、設定される機能も前記実施形態に限らず、本発明のキー入力装置５を組み込む機器に応じて適宜設定すればよい。
【０１１１】
さらに、モード切替キー５４の形状は、菱形に限らず、円形、楕円形、長方形、矩形、三角形、５角形などでもよく、実施にあたって適宜設定すればよい。
また、前記実施形態では、一体のモード切替キー５４を用いていたが、例えば、図６に示すように、各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄが物理的に独立した４つのキーで構成されたモード切替キーを用いてもよい。
【０１１２】
また、前記実施形態では、モード切替キー５４にかな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａと英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂとの２つの文字入力用キースイッチ部を設けていたが、例えば、英字入力専用のキー入力装置５とした場合や、かな入力専用のキー入力装置５とした場合等では１つの文字入力用キースイッチ部のみを設けてもよい。要するに、本発明においては、モード切替キー５４は、少なくとも、文字入力用キースイッチ部と、数字入力用キースイッチ部と、記号入力用キースイッチ部との３つのキースイッチ部を備えていればよい。
【０１１３】
また、モード切替キー５４における各キースイッチ部５４Ａ〜５４Ｄの配置位置は前記実施形態に配列に限らず、メインキー２１〜３２に表記される文字、数字、記号の位置関係に応じて設定すればよい。
さらに、メインキー２１〜３２のキートップ表記が前記実施形態の場合であっても、かな入力用キースイッチ部５４Ａと英字入力用キースイッチ部５４Ｂの位置は逆にしてもよい。
【０１１４】
前記実施形態では、モード切替キー５４にカーソル移動機能を組み込んでいたが、このカーソル移動機能を無くしてもよいし、モード切替キー５４とは別のカーソルキーを設けてもそのキーにカーソル移動機能を組み込んでもよい。この際、カーソルキーとしては、モード切替キー５４と同様に平面菱形、円形等で形成されて４つのキースイッチ部を備えるものでもよいし、４つの異なるキーで構成されるものでもよい。この場合、モードキー５５は必ずしも必要ないが、小文字等のワンタイム入力機能などを実現させるために残してもよい。
【０１１５】
メインキーエリア２０と機能キーエリア５０の位置関係は、前記実施形態に限らず、キー入力装置５が組み込まれる機器に応じて適宜設定すればよい。例えば、モード切替キー５４等が配置された機能キーエリア５０をメインキーエリア２０の下側に配置してもよいし、横長の機器に組み込む場合等では、メインキーエリア２０の左右何れかに機能キーエリア５０つまりモード切替キー５４が設定されていてもよい。
【０１１６】
前記実施形態では、モードキー５５に、モード切替キー５４を入力モード設定機能とカーソルキー機能とに切り替える機能の他に、小文字等のワンタイム入力機能、英文字のシフト入力機能、英字、記号の区切り機能、同一文字、記号のリピート機能等を設定していたが、これらの機能は必ずしもすべてを設ける必要はなく、実施にあたって適宜選択して設定してもよい。
また、モードキー５５による各機能の入力方法は、前記実施形態に限らず、適宜交換してもよい。例えば、モード切替キー５４を単独で押すと入力モードの切替機能が働き、モードキー５５と共に押すと、カーソルキー機能が働くように設定してもよい。
さらに、モードキー５５を押しながら文字キー２１〜３２を押すと、小文字や句読点入力となり、モードキー５５を押して離した後にキー２１〜３２を押すと英文字入力になるように、ワンタイム入力時とシフト入力時の機能を入れ替えてもよい。要するに、(a)モードキー５５を１回押した後にキー２１〜３２を押した際のワンタイム入力時、(b)モードキー５５と同時にキー２１〜３２を押した際のシフト入力時、(c)モードキー５５の単独入力時に働く各機能は、実施にあたって適宜設定すればよい。
【０１１７】
また、長音「ー」や促音「っ」が設定されるキーは、「Ａ」、「Ｅ」が設定された母音キー２１、２４に限らず、例えば、「Ｉ」、「Ｕ」、「Ｏ」が設定された他の母音キー２２、２３、２５のいずれかでもよい。但し、長音「ー」や促音「っ」は、日本語のローマ字入力において、連続して打鍵されることが少ない「Ａ」や「Ｅ」のキーに設定した方が、入力操作性を向上できる点で好ましい。
【０１１８】
さらに、前記実施形態では、母音キー２１〜２５の第２の文字キーとして、長音「ー」および促音「っ」の両方を設定していたが、母音キー２１〜２５の第２の文字キーとしてはどちらか１つのみを設定してもよい。
【０１１９】
さらに、撥音「ん」を入力するキーとしてキー３０が設定されていたが、これに限らず、例えば、キー３０以外のキー２１〜２９、３１、３２のいずれかのキーを撥音「ん」を入力するキーとして設定してもよい。また、「ん」や「んＮ」を出力する際の打鍵回数は適宜設定してもよい。
但し、「Ｎ」が設定されているキー３０を２回打鍵して撥音「ん」を入力するのは、従来の一般的なキーボードにおけるローマ字入力に準じているので、ローマ字入力において、キー３０に設定されていた方が、入力操作性を向上できる点で好ましい。
【０１２０】
また、キー２１〜３２における各文字、数字、記号の配列は前記実施形態に限らない。例えば、テンキーボードに本発明のキー入力装置を組み込む場合には、数字は下段のキーから「０，１，２，３…」の順序に並ぶように設定すればよい。また、文字配列も、母音および子音を区分けしたものに限らず、従来の携帯電話のように「ＡＢＣ、ＤＥＦ…」などと設定してもよい。さらに、記号の組み合わせ配列も前記実施形態のものに限らず、矢印や、省略文字、単位記号、学術記号、絵文字等を適宜配置してもよく、これらも本発明のキー入力装置の用途等に応じて適宜設定すればよい。
【０１２１】
本発明のキー入力装置が利用される機種や用途については、携帯電話に限らず、携帯情報端末（ＰＤＡ）、パソコン用の入力装置、ノートブック型パソコン、モバイルパソコン、ＰＨＳ、電子手帳、電卓、およびペンタッチ式のキーボードなどの情報処理機器のキー入力装置への利用や、計測機器や制御機器に組み込まれたキー入力装置、さらにはインターネットテレビリモコンなどの家電用機器などに利用してもよい。
なお、キー入力装置としては、前記実施形態のように、物理的なキーが実際に設けられた通常のキー入力装置に限らず、液晶画面に表示されたキー部分をペンや指等でタッチして入力する画面タッチ式入力装置でもよい。
【０１２２】
例えば、図７に示す携帯電話１００のように、液晶画面４に各キー２１〜３２等を表示し、これらのキー２１〜３２を指やペン等でタッチして入力する画面タッチ式のキーを含むキー入力装置６にも本発明を適用できる。
なお、この携帯電話１００では、モード切替キー５４、モードキー５５、機能キー５６、機能キー５７等は、液晶画面４の下側に配置された物理的なキーで構成されているが、これらの各キー５４〜５７も液晶画面４に表示して構成してもよい。なお、これらの各キー５４〜５７は必ずしもすべてを設ける必要はなく、少なくともモード切替キー５４が物理キーあるいは画面表示キーとして設けられていればよい。
【０１２３】
また、本発明は、１２個のメインキーを備えるキー入力装置に限らず、１１個以下のメインキーを備えるものや、１３個以上のメインキーを備えるキー入力装置にも広く適用できる。要するに、少なくとも、１つのメインキーに、文字、数字、記号が設定されているキー入力装置であれば適用できる。
従って、本発明のキー入力装置としては、必ずしも母音が単独で設定された５つの母音キーを備えるものに限らず、母音と子音とが混在して設定されていたり、母音が１〜４つのキーに設定されているものなど、各種のキー入力装置に適用できる。
【０１２４】
【発明の効果】
本発明のキー入力装置によれば、次のような効果を奏することができる。
請求項１に記載のキー入力装置によれば、各メインキーに、文字、数字の他に、記号も設定表記し、このメインキーの入力をモード切替キーのキースイッチ部の入力によって切り替えているから、文字、数字、記号を切り替えて容易に入力できる。従って、キー数が少なくても、各キーに記号を設定できるため、多くの記号も容易に入力することができる。
その上、モード切替キーの各キースイッチ部の相対位置は、各メインキーの表面に表記された文字、数字、記号の相対位置に対応しているので、モード切替キーによる切り替え操作を直感的にかつ容易に把握でき、切り替え操作性も向上することができる。
さらに、このキー入力装置によれば、モード切替キーが１つのキーによって構成されているから、各モード切替用のキーを個別に設ける場合に比べて、キーの数を少なくできる。よって、各キーの大きさを変えることなく、小型化が図れる。つまり、操作性を維持しつつ、小型化が達成できる。
【０１２５】
請求項２に記載のキー入力装置によれば、文字入力用キースイッチ部として、かな入力用キースイッチ部と、英字入力用キースイッチ部とが独立して設けられているから、各キースイッチ部を直接入力することで、かな入力および英字入力を容易に切り替えることができ、入力操作性をより一層向上することができる。
【０１２６】
請求項３に記載のキー入力装置によれば、モード切替キーにおいて、４つのキースイッチ部がモード切替キーの中心に対する角度が９０度毎異なる４つの位置に設定されているので、各キースイッチ部を容易に入力し分けることができ、モード切替操作を容易に行うことができる。
【０１２７】
請求項４に記載のキー入力装置によれば、モード切替キー５４が菱形に形成され、かつ、その４つの角部に前記かな入力用キースイッチ部、英字入力用キースイッチ部、記号入力用キースイッチ部および数字入力用キースイッチ部がそれぞれ設定されているから、キースイッチ部の位置を容易に把握でき、操作し易くできる。また、モード切替キーの入力操作性を維持しながら、その大きさを比較的小さくでき、携帯電話のような小型の機器にも容易に組み込むことができる。
【０１２８】
請求項５に記載のキー入力装置によれば、メインキーの表面の左側には数字が表記され、上側には記号が表記され、下側には文字が表記されているので、横長のメインキーにおいては、数字を比較的大きく表すことができ、通常の使用では数字入力の割合が多い携帯電話等に適したキーに設定できる。
【０１２９】
請求項６に記載のキー入力装置によれば、モード切替キーにカーソルキー機能も組み込んでいるので、文字入力中でも容易にカーソル機能を働かせることができて操作性を向上できる上、キー数の増加を抑えることができ、キー配置スペースを小さくできる。このため、携帯電話のように、小型の機器にも容易に組み込むことができる。
【０１３０】
請求項７に記載のキー入力装置によれば、かな文字の小文字を容易に入力できるとともに、小文字入力モード用の独立したキーを配置する必要もなく、キー数の増加を抑えることができるので、特に携帯電話のような小型の機器に適している。
【０１３１】
請求項８に記載のキー入力装置によれば、かな入力や数字入力を行っている際に、一時的に英文字を入力する際等に、モードを切り替える必要が無く、簡単な操作で英文字を入力することができる。
【０１３２】
請求項９に記載のキー入力装置によれば、同じキーに設定された文字や記号を容易に続けて入力できるとともに、例えば、「ｗｗｗ」のように同じ文字を続けて入力する際に、モードキーを繰り返す回数分押すだけでよく、非常に入力効率を向上することができる。
【０１３３】
請求項１０に記載のキー入力装置によれば、日本語でも英語でも最も使用頻度の高い母音つまり「Ａ」、「Ｉ」、「Ｕ」、「Ｅ」、「Ｏ」を独立したキーに設定したため、これらの文字はキーを１回押すだけで入力できる。このため、母音入力時の打鍵回数を少なくでき、操作性が向上し、高速入力も可能となる。
また、アルファベットの他の２１個の文字を、７個のキーに３個ずつ配列しているので、１２個と非常に少ないキー数でアルファベット２６文字を入力することができ、小型で携帯性に優れたキー入力装置５を形成できる。さらに、子音キーが設定された７個のキーには、各々３個ずつ文字を配置しているので、各文字の入力を各キーを押す回数で分けている場合に、各キーを最大３回押せばどの文字でも入力できて操作性を向上でき、かつ各子音が各キーに均等に配列されているので、キー打鍵操作のバランスをよくでき、操作性をより一層向上できる。
【０１３４】
請求項１１に記載のキー入力装置によれば、１２個のメインキー２１〜３２の各キー毎に、３種の記号が設定されているから、少ない数のキーで多くの記号を入力することができ、僅か１２個のキーであっても、通常のパソコンで使用されるフルキーボードで入力可能な記号を殆どすべて入力することができ、フルキーボードと同様に使用することができる。
【０１３５】
請求項１２に記載の携帯電話機によれば、少ないキー数でありながら、フルキーボードと同様の機能を有することができ、携帯電話機で住所等を入力する場合や、メールやアドレスなどを入力する場合に、通常のフルキーボードと同様の各文字、数字、記号を入力でき、同様の操作を実現できる。
【０１３６】
請求項１３に記載の携帯電話機によれば、「＊」や「＃」を入力するキーで、「，」、「．」を入力できるため、文字入力操作性を向上できる。
【図面の簡単な説明】
【図１】本発明に係る実施形態のキー入力装置を使った携帯電話を示す平面図である。
【図２】同上実施形態のキー入力装置の要部を示す平面図である。
【図３】同上実施形態におけるキー入力装置の内部構成を示すブロック図である。
【図４】同上実施形態におけるメインキーの働きを示す図である。
【図５】本発明の変形例における携帯電話を示す平面図である。
【図６】本発明の変形例における携帯電話を示す平面図である。
【図７】本発明の他の変形例における携帯電話を示す平面図である。
【符号の説明】
１，１００ 携帯電話
５，６ キー入力装置
２０ メインキーエリア
２１〜３２ メインキー
５０ 機能キーエリア
５１〜５９ 機能キー
５４ モード切替キー
５４Ａ かな入力用キースイッチ部
５４Ｂ 英字入力用キースイッチ部
５４Ｃ 記号入力用キースイッチ部
５４Ｄ 数字入力用キースイッチ部
１０１ キー入力検出手段
１０２ キー入力処理手段
１０３ モード切替手段
１０４ 画面制御手段[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a key input device and a mobile phone for inputting Japanese or English. More specifically, a key input device capable of performing an input operation with a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a PHS, an electronic notebook, a wristwatch, a small word processor (word processor), a personal computer (personal computer), and the like, and the key input device The present invention relates to a mobile phone having
[0002]
[Background]
When inputting characters with an information device such as a normal personal computer, a keyboard is usually used. This conventional keyboard has more than 80 keys. For this reason, numbers, letters, symbols, etc. can be set separately for each key, and input with a mixture of numbers, letters, symbols, etc., such as e-mail input and address input when browsing the Internet homepage, is performed. Even in this case, input can be made relatively easily by pressing each key.
[0003]
By the way, in recent years, even in a small information device such as a mobile phone, an e-mail transmission / reception function, an Internet homepage browsing function, and the like have been incorporated.
In a small device such as a cellular phone, as many as 80 keys cannot be arranged like a keyboard. For this reason, for example, in a mobile phone, numbers, kana, and alphabets are set to about 12 keys provided for inputting a telephone number, and a switching key for switching an input mode is sequentially pressed while watching a mode display on the screen. The number input mode, the kana input mode, and the alphabet input mode are switched to input numbers and characters.
[0004]
For this reason, on a mobile phone, the numbers (kana) on the surface (key top) of each key (the “a”, “ka”, “ta”, “h”, “h”, “h… ) And alphabets (ABCD...).
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the symbols are such that some symbols, for example, the punctuation mark “.” And the punctuation mark “,” are set as keys, and many other symbols must be selected from a menu displayed on the screen. It was not possible to input easily. In particular, when a mobile phone is used for a call, these symbols are not required to be input. However, when inputting an e-mail or entering an address when browsing a homepage with a mobile phone, these symbols must be input. When the symbol input is difficult, there is a problem that the operability is lowered.
For this reason, there has been a demand for a key input device that can easily input not only characters and numbers but also symbols in devices with a small number of keys, such as mobile phones.
[0006]
An object of the present invention is to provide a key input device and a mobile phone that can easily input symbols, characters, and numbers in a key input device and a mobile phone with a small number of keys.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  The key input device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.4A mode switching key 54 having a key switch portion at each location, and on the surface of each of the main keys 21 to 32, there are three types of symbols, letters, numbers and symbols inputted when the key is pressed. Of the mode switching key 544The two key switch sections change the main key input mode.A kana input key switch unit 54A for setting the kana input mode, an alphabet input key switch unit 54B for setting the alphabet input mode,A number input key switch unit 54D set in the number input mode, and a symbol input key switch unit 54C set in the symbol input mode, andKana input key switch unit 54A, English character input key switch unit 54B, numeric input key switch unit 54D, symbol input key switch unit 54CThe relative position is set according to the relative position of the letters, numbers and symbols written on the main key.The four key switches 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54 are each set with a cursor key function for moving the cursor up, down, left, and right, and the mode switching key functions as an input mode setting function and a cursor. A mode key 55 is provided for switching to one of the key functions.It is characterized by.
[0008]
According to this key input device 5, in addition to letters and numbers, symbols are also set on the main keys 21 to 32, and the main key input mode is switched by the input of the key switch section of the mode switching key 54. Therefore, you can easily switch between letters, numbers, and symbols. Therefore, even if the number of keys is small, symbols can be set for each key, so that many symbols can be easily input.
In addition, the relative position of each key switch portion of the mode switching key 54 corresponds to the relative position of the letters, numbers, and symbols written on the surface of each main key, so that the switching operation by the mode switching key is intuitive. Can be easily grasped and the switching operability can be improved.
Furthermore, since each input mode is set to each key switch unit that can be input independently, and each input mode is set to be directly switchable, one key is set a predetermined number of times as in a conventional mobile phone. Compared with the operation of pressing and checking the mode display displayed on the screen to set the input mode, the switching operation is simplified and the operability can be improved because it is not necessary to check the screen display.
[0009]
In the present invention, the relative position of each key switch unit corresponds to the relative position of the letters, numbers, and symbols on the surface of each main key. It is sufficient that the user 5 can grasp the notation on the main keys 21 to 32 and the position of the key switch portion of the mode switching key 54 in correspondence with each other. For example, in the main key, when the character is arranged on the right side of the number and directly below the symbol, the character input key switch unit is on the right side of the number input key switch unit and is used for symbol input. It suffices if it is below the key switch portion, and it is not always necessary to be arranged directly below the symbol input key switch portion.
[0010]
  AlsoAs a key switch for character input, a key switch for Kana input and a key switch for alphabet input are provided independently.BecauseBy directly inputting each key switch unit, it is possible to easily switch between kana input and alphabetic input, and it is possible to further improve the input operability.
  Further, the four key switches 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54 are respectively set with a cursor key function for moving the cursor up, down, left and right, and the function of the mode switching key is changed to an input mode setting function and A mode key 55 for switching to one of the cursor key functions is provided. At this time, for example, when the mode key is pressed (pressed and released) and then the mode switching key is pressed once or twice, each input mode is selected and locked. In other cases, the cursor key function is activated. It should be set as follows.
In a conventional mobile phone, the cursor key is usually set to a character key, and it is troublesome to activate the cursor function while inputting characters. On the other hand, when the cursor key function is also incorporated in the mode switching key 54 as in the present invention, the cursor function can be easily operated even during character input, and the operability can be improved. Furthermore, by incorporating a cursor key function into the mode switching key, an increase in the number of keys can be suppressed. For example, a key arrangement space can be reduced as compared with a case where a single cursor key is provided separately from the mode switching key. Therefore, in the present invention, in particular, it can be easily incorporated into a small device such as a mobile phone.
[0011]
The mode switching key 54 has the kana input key switch portion 54A, the alphabet input key switch portion 54B, and the symbol input key switch portion 54C at four positions whose angles with respect to the center of the mode switching key differ by 90 degrees. In addition, it is preferable that the numeric input key switch unit 54D is set.
Here, various modes such as a circle, an ellipse, a diamond, and a rectangle can be used as the mode switching key. In such a mode switching key, the four key switch portions are arranged at four positions different from each other by 90 degrees with respect to the center of the mode switching key, for example, above the center of the mode switching key (at 12 o'clock in the watch). Direction), right side (3 o'clock direction), lower side (6 o'clock direction), left side (9 o'clock direction), and so on. Each key switch section can be easily input and separated, and the mode switching operation can be easily performed.
[0012]
The mode switching key 54 is formed in a diamond shape, and the kana input key switch unit, the alphabet input key switch unit, the symbol input key switch unit, and the numeric input key switch unit are provided at the four corners thereof, respectively. It is preferable that it is set.
As described above, the mode switching key may be circular or oval, but if it is formed in a diamond shape and each key switch is set at its four corners, the position of the key switch can be easily grasped. Easy to operate. Further, while maintaining the input operability of the mode switching key, the size of the mode switching key can be made relatively small, and it can be easily incorporated into a small device such as a mobile phone.
Further, as the mode switching key, each key switch unit may be composed of a physically independent key, that is, a plurality of three or more keys. However, as long as the mode switching key 54 is composed of one key. The number of keys can be reduced as compared with the case where each mode switching key is provided individually. Therefore, the size can be reduced without changing the size of each key. That is, downsizing can be achieved while maintaining operability.
[0013]
Here, numbers are written on the left side of the front surfaces (key tops) of the main keys 21 to 32, symbols are written on the upper side, characters are written on the lower side, and the mode switching key 54 is on the left end side. The numeric key switch 54D is set on the upper side, the symbol input key switch 54C is set on the upper side, and one of the key switch 54A and the letter input key switch 54B is on the lower side. Preferably, the other key switch part of the kana input key switch part and the alphabet input key switch part is set on the right side.
When twelve main keys are provided in four rows and four columns on the upper and lower sides as in a mobile phone, each main key can be compactly formed if it is formed in a horizontally long shape. In such a horizontally long main key, if a number is written on the left side, the number can be expressed relatively large, and can be set as a key suitable for a cellular phone or the like that has a high ratio of number input under normal use.
[0016]
Also, when the input mode of the main key is set to “kana input mode”, when one kana character having a lower case letter is input after the mode key 55 is pressed and released, the kana character is input. It is preferable that the setting is such that lowercase letters are input.
For example, when the user presses the main key 21 after pressing the mode key 55, the lower case letter “A” is input instead of the usual “A”. The same applies to the other small letters “i, ぅ, é, ぉ, nya, yu, tsu, ka, ga, wa”. At this time, when one lowercase character is input, the one-time input method is employed so that the mode automatically returns to the original kana input mode, that is, the lowercase character input function works only on the kana character input after the mode key 55. If it is adopted, the operation to return to the original mode becomes unnecessary and the operability can be improved.
[0017]
If the mode key 55 is also provided with a function for inputting an input kana character as a lowercase letter, it is possible to easily input a lowercase letter, and there is no need to provide an independent key for the lowercase input mode. Since the increase in the number of keys can be suppressed, it is particularly suitable for small devices such as mobile phones.
[0018]
Further, when the main key input mode is set to either the kana input mode or the numeric input mode, pressing each main key while pressing the mode key 55 corresponds to the number of keystrokes. It is preferable that the English character set for the main key is set to be input.
[0019]
With this setting, there is no need to switch the input mode using the mode switching key 54 when inputting English characters temporarily, etc., when performing kana input or numeric input, and it is simple. English characters can be input by operation. In this case, whether an uppercase letter or a lowercase letter is input may be set as appropriate in the initial setting or the like, but it is usually sufficient to input an uppercase letter.
[0020]
Furthermore, when the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed while pressing the mode key 55 in the alphabet input mode, upper case letters are input in the lower case mode, and lower case letters are input in the upper case mode. You may set as follows. With this setting, it is possible to improve the input operability when inputting only one uppercase letter or lowercase letter.
[0021]
When the mode key 55 is pressed once after the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed, the number of times the main key is pressed is determined and the corresponding characters and symbols are output. If the mode key is pressed again more than once immediately after the key is pressed, the repeat input for repeatedly inputting the determined characters and symbols by the number of times the mode key is pressed is set to function. Preferably it is.
In this case, the characters and symbols set to the same key can be easily input continuously. For example, when inputting the same character continuously like “www”, the mode key can be repeatedly pressed as many times as necessary. Well, the input efficiency can be greatly improved.
[0022]
The mode switching key 54 is preferably arranged above the main key area 20. With such an arrangement, the main keys 21 to 32 and the mode switching key 54 can be easily arranged in a vertically long device like the mobile phone 1, and each key can also be set relatively large. Can be improved.
[0023]
The key input device includes at least twelve main keys 21 to 32, and among these twelve main keys 21 to 32, five keys 21 to 25 are alphabets that represent vowels “A”, Character keys input in the character input mode of “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are individually set, and the other seven consonants of the alphabet are stored in the other seven keys 26 to 32. It is preferable that three characters are set for each key.
At this time, the twelve keys 21 to 32 are arranged in four rows and four columns on the upper and lower sides, and “A”, “I”, and “U” are input to the top three keys 21 to 23 sequentially from the left side. It is preferable that character keys for inputting “E” and “O” in order from the left side are set in the two keys 24 and 25 from the left in the second row from the top. If the vowels are arranged in this order, the key positions can be easily remembered and the operability can be improved.
[0024]
According to this key input device, the most frequently used vowels in Japanese and English, that is, “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are set as independent keys. Can be entered with a single key press. For this reason, the number of keystrokes during vowel input can be reduced, operability is improved, and high-speed input is possible.
In addition, since the other 21 letters of the alphabet are arranged three by 7 on the seven keys 26 to 32, the alphabet 26 letters can be input with a very small number of keys, ie, 12 keys. The key input device 5 excellent in portability can be formed. In addition, since seven keys with consonant keys are set with three characters each, when each character input is divided by the number of times each key is pressed, each key is pressed a maximum of three times. If pressed, any character can be input and the operability can be improved, and since each consonant is evenly arranged on each key, the balance of keystroke operations can be improved and the operability can be further improved.
[0025]
The seven keys to which the consonant is set are respectively input in character input modes of “KGF”, “SZJ”, “TDV”, “NCQ”, “HBP”, “RML”, “YWX”. It is preferable that a combination of character keys is set.
According to this key input device, consonants “K”, “S”, “T”, “N”, “H”, “M”, “Y”, “R”, and “K” are input in combination with the vowel keys in Roman alphabet input. Since “W” can be set to the first or second character key of each key, a clear consonant having the highest input frequency after the vowel can be input by a simple operation, and the operability can be further improved.
Furthermore, the “G” key for inputting the “Ga” line of muddy sound is input to the “K” key for inputting the “K” line, and the “Z” line is input to the “S” key for inputting the “S” line “Z”. ”Key,“ T ”key for inputting“ Ta ”line,“ D ”key for inputting“ da ”line,“ B ”line for inputting“ H ”key for inputting“ C ”line,“ B ” ”Keys are set, so the related clear and muddy sounds can be entered using the same key (by changing the number of times the key is pressed, etc.). For this reason, it becomes easy to remember the input operation of muddy sound, and can be input at high speed.
[0026]
The 12 main keys in the upper and lower 4 steps left and right 3 rows include “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, “5”, “6”, “7”, “8”, “9”. It is preferable that numbers and symbols input in the number input mode of “,” “*,” “0,” and “#” are set. According to this key input device, numeric keys from “0” to “9” and symbols “*” and “#” are provided, so that numeric data can be input, mobile phones, watches, electronic An operation of inputting a telephone number in a telephone book such as a notebook or the like and an operation of making a call can be easily performed.
In particular, since the main keys are arranged in four columns on the upper and lower sides and three columns on the left and right, “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, If you set numbers such as “5”, “6”, “7”, “8”, “9”, “*”, “0”, “#”, etc., push on various phones including mobile phones It has the same arrangement as buttons and can be easily applied to telephones and faxes.
[0027]
Further, it is preferable that three symbols to be input in the symbol input mode are set in each main key 21 to 32.
For example, the 12 main keys in the upper and lower four-stage left and right three columns include “() ′”, “{}”, ““ ^ ”,“ <> ｀ ”,“ [] tilde symbol ”,“ /% | ”,“ It is preferable that three symbols to be input in the symbol input mode of “+ =”, “@ * #”, “¥ & $”, “• :;”, “, _˜”, “. ??” are set.
According to such a key input device, since three types of symbols are set for each of the 12 main keys 21 to 32, for example, if each key 21 to 32 is pressed once, the left symbol However, if the key is pressed twice, the central symbol is input and if the key is pressed three times, the right symbol is input, and a total of 36 symbols can be input with 12 keys.
[0028]
Therefore, a large number of symbols can be input with a small number of keys, and almost all symbols that can be input with a full keyboard used in a normal personal computer can be input with only 12 keys.
In the key input device of the present invention, in addition to symbols, numbers and characters (alphabet) of “0-9” can be input, so even if there are only 12 keys, they are used in the same way as a full keyboard. be able to.
[0029]
The mobile phone of the present invention is characterized by having the key input device.
In mobile phones, the number of keys is set to be small in order to improve portability and operability. If the key input device of the present invention is incorporated in such a cellular phone, the number of keys can be reduced and functions similar to those of a full keyboard can be provided. For this reason, when inputting an address or the like with a mobile phone, or when inputting an email or an address in a mobile phone having an Internet browser function or an e-mail function, each character, number, Symbols can be entered and the same operation is possible.
[0030]
At this time, among the main keys, one of a key 30 marked with “*” and a key 32 marked with “#” inputted in the numeric input mode can be inputted in the character input mode. “,” Is set, and the other key is preferably set to “.” Which can be input in the character input mode.
[0031]
In a mobile phone, it is necessary to be able to input “*” and “#” in addition to 10 numbers from 0 to 9. However, these “*” and “#” are not so frequent when inputting characters. Therefore, if characters, “, (comma)” and “. (Period)” can be input to the keys 30, 32 set with “*” and “#” at the time of character input, the characters can be input. The operability is improved, and a function equivalent to that of a full keyboard can be provided with a small key arrangement.
When inputting kana, a punctuation mark “,” and a punctuation mark “.” May be input instead of “, (comma)” and “. (Period)”.
[0032]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
(overall structure)
As shown in FIG. 1, the present embodiment is used as a key input device 5 of a mobile phone 1.
The mobile phone 1 is provided with a microphone 2, a speaker 3, and a liquid crystal display 4, and a key input device (key input unit) 5 in which a plurality of keys are arranged.
[0033]
The key input device 5 includes a main key area 20 provided on the lower side of the mobile phone 1 and a function key area 50 provided on the upper side of the main key area 20.
In the main key area 20, as shown in FIG. 2, 12 main keys 21 to 32 in four rows and four columns are arranged.
In the function key area 50, nine function keys 51 to 59 are arranged.
[0034]
(Configuration of main keys 21 to 32)
The main keys 21 to 32 are formed in a horizontally long substantially oval shape, and are set with letters, numbers, and symbols. That is, on the key surface (key top) of each of the main keys 21 to 32, there are character keys such as alphabets that are input when each key 21 to 32 is pressed alone and are used for Roman input or English input. Is set.
[0035]
Here, the arrangement of the character keys in the main keys 21 to 32 is such that a vowel key is set on the upper side, and a lower side thereof is combined with the vowel key in Roman character input, so A consonant key for inputting "line" is arranged.
In this embodiment, Romaji input is adopted as Japanese input. Romaji input has fewer characters than 50 Kana characters, so the key input device 5 with a small number of keys is easier to operate than when 50 Kana characters are set for each key. With the spread of personal computers, the majority of users who input Japanese input using Roman characters, so there is an advantage that it is easy to work on.
[0036]
Further, in Roman character input, the appearance frequency of each character is regular, the frequency of vowels is the highest, and the consonant appears next in the order of 50 tones of “K, S, T, N.
Therefore, in this embodiment, the vowel keys are collectively set to the upper main keys 21 to 25, and the consonant keys are arranged in the descending order of the keys 26 to 32. And it is said that it is easy to hit.
[0037]
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, and “O” representing vowels as character arrays are assigned to the keys 21 to 25, respectively. It is arranged as a first character key that is input when the key is pressed once.
This arrangement takes into account the ease of remembering letters so that they become “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” as they go from left to right and from the first level to the second level. Is set.
[0038]
For each of the other keys 27 to 32, “K”, “S”, “T”, “N” representing Japanese consonants are used as the first character key input when the key is pressed once. , “H”, and “R” consonant keys are arranged, and on the key 26, a consonant key “Y” is arranged. These arrays are designed so that the consonants in the “ka”, “sa”, “ta”, “na”, “ha”, “ra”, and “ya” lines are arranged in almost Akasatana order. Is set.
The keys 32 and 26 are arranged with consonant keys “M” and “W” as second character keys that are input when the keys are pressed twice in succession. In this arrangement, the remaining “ma” and “wa” rows are arranged.
[0039]
The keys 27 to 29 and 31 each include “G”, “Z”, “D”, and “B” as second character keys that are input when the key is pressed twice in succession. Consonant keys are arranged. That is, the consonants “G”, “Z”, “D”, and “B” that input the “GA”, “ZA”, “DA”, and “BA” lines are the clear sound “KA”, “SA” ”,“ Ta ”, and“ Ha ”lines are input corresponding to“ K ”,“ S ”,“ T ”,“ H ”, and arranged so that clear sound and muddy sound correspond to each other. .
[0040]
In addition, “P” for inputting the “PA” line is set as the third character key in the key 31 in which “H” and “B” for inputting the “HA” line and “BA” line are set. In addition, the “Pa” line can be easily input and operated with good operability.
Further, the key 30 to which “N” for inputting the “na” line is set is also used as a key for inputting the sound repellent “n” in the Roman character input.
[0041]
Furthermore, the vowel keys 21 and 24 to which “A” and “E” are set are a long sound setting vowel key, a prompt sound setting vowel key, and a long sound “−” and a prompt sound “tsu” as the second character key, Has been.
Also, “X”, “F”, “J”, and “V” are set as the third character keys that are input when the keys 26 to 29 are pressed three times in succession, respectively. Yes.
Furthermore, in the key 30, “C” is set as the second character key in the English input mode, and “Q” is set as the third character key.
Further, “L” is set as the third character key in the key 32.
[0042]
Therefore, for the 26 letters of the alphabet, the vowels “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are independent on the five keys 21-25 out of the 12 main keys 21-32. The other 21 characters are set for each of the other keys 26 to 32. Specifically, the key 26 is “YWX”, the key 27 is “KGF”, the key 28 is “SZJ”, the key 29 is “TDV”, the key 30 is “NCQ”, the key 31 is “HBP”, and the key 32 is “RML” is set.
[0043]
Various symbols that are input according to the number of times of pressing in the symbol mode described later are set on the upper side of the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32 (above the symbols indicating the characters or the like at the time of single input). .
Specifically, the key 21 is “() ′”, the key 22 is “{}”, the key 23 is ““ ”^”, the key 24 is “<> ｀”, and the key 25 is “[] tilde symbol”. , “/% |” For the key 26, “− + =” for the key 27, “@ * #” for the key 28, “¥ & $” for the key 29, “• :;” for the key 30, “ , _˜ ”and the key 32 are set to“. ?? ”.
[0044]
Also, various numbers and symbols inputted in the number input mode are set on the left side of the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32 (the left position of the characters and numbers). Specifically, the numbers “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, “5”, “6”, “7”, “8” are on the left side of the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32. , “9”, “*”, “0”, “#”, numbers and symbols used in the telephone are set. These numbers and symbols are set to be input when the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed once in the number input mode.
[0045]
Furthermore, “,” and “.” Input in the character input mode (Kana and English characters) are set below the “*” and “#” symbols of the main keys 30 and 32, respectively.
The input operation of “,” and “.” May be set as appropriate for implementation. For example, since three consonants (characters) are set for each key 30, 32, normally, “,” and “.” Are input when the key is pressed four times in succession. It should be set as follows.
Further, in the Kana input mode, considering the characteristics of Japanese Romaji input, for example, when the conversion key is pressed immediately after the key 30 or 32 is pressed, each key is set to “,” or “.”. The input may be determined.
[0046]
(Configuration of function keys 51-59)
In the function keys 51 to 59, various functions used when switching the input mode or inputting characters are set.
That is, the key tops of the function keys 51 to 59 are marked with symbols indicating functions that are input when those keys are pressed alone. Specifically, it is as follows.
[0047]
The function keys 51 to 53 that are arranged on the upper side of the main keys 21 to 32 and have the same shape and size as the main keys 21 to 32 are set with functions used by the mobile phone. Specifically, the function key 51 has a function of placing and receiving a call with a symbol showing the state where the handset is removed by telephone on the surface.
In addition, the function key 52 has a function of clearing the input characters and the like sequentially when a number, a character, a symbol, or the like is input. Further, the function key 53 is set with a function for hanging up the telephone by displaying a symbol showing a state where the handset is hung on the surface of the function key 53.
[0048]
Above each of the function keys 51 to 53, a mode switching key 54 formed in a plane rhombus shape and five function keys 55 to 59 disposed around the mode switch key 54 are provided. Of these function keys 55 to 59, a mode key 55 that is used for switching the input mode together with the mode switching key 54 is configured by a key 55 that is labeled “mode” on the key top.
[0049]
(Details of mode switching key 54)
As shown in FIG. 2, the mode switching key 54 is formed in a diamond shape, and has key switch portions 54 </ b> A to 54 </ b> D at four corners on the lower, right, upper, and left sides thereof. Characters such as “Kana”, “English letters”, “symbols”, and “numeric characters” are written on the surface of each of the key switch portions 54A to 54D.
[0050]
A function for switching the input mode to kana input is set in the kana input key switch portion 54A in which “Kana” is written. Similarly, a function for switching to the alphabet input mode is provided for the letter input key switch portion 54B in which “English” is written, and a function for switching to the symbol input mode is provided in the key input key switch portion 54C for which “symbol” is written. , A function for switching to the numeric input mode is set in the numeric input key switch portion 54D on which “numeric” is written.
[0051]
Specifically, each input mode (fixed mode) can be switched by the following operation.
i) Kana input mode
When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the kana input key switch 54A is pressed once, the mode is switched to the “kana (hirakana) mode”. When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the kana input key switch 54A is pressed twice, the mode is switched to the “kana (katakana) mode”.
In a state where the mode is already in the “hidden mode”, the mode can be switched to the “kana (katakana) mode” by pressing the mode key 55 and then pressing the key input key switch 54A once.
ii) Alphabet input mode
When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the letter input key switch 54B is pressed once, the mode is switched to the “lowercase mode”. When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the English character input key switch unit 54B is pressed twice, the mode is switched to "English capital letter mode".
When the mode is already in the “lowercase mode”, the mode can be switched to the “uppercase mode” by pressing the mode key 55 and then pressing the alphabet input key switch 54B once.
iii) Number input mode
When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the number input key switch portion 54D is pressed once, the mode is switched to the “number input mode”.
iv) Symbol input mode
When the mode key 55 is pressed and then the symbol input key switch 54C is pressed once, the mode is switched to the “symbol input mode”.
[0052]
The above operations are summarized as shown in Table 1.
[0053]
[Table 1]

[0054]
The relative positions of the kana input key switch unit 54A, the alphabet input key switch unit 54B, the symbol input key switch unit 54C, and the numeric input key switch unit 54D are the characters described in the main keys 21 to 32. , Symbols and numbers are set corresponding to the relative positions.
That is, in each of the main keys 21 to 32, the symbols are written on the right side of the numbers and on the upper side of the characters. Correspondingly, the symbol input key switch unit 54C is on the right side of the number input key switch unit 54D and from the Kana input key switch unit 54A and the English character input key switch unit 54B which are character input key switch units. Is arranged on the upper side.
[0055]
Similarly, in each of the main keys 21 to 32, the numbers are written on the left side of the characters and symbols. Correspondingly, the number input key switch unit 54D includes the symbol input key switch unit 54C and the character input. The Kana input key switch portion 54A and the English character input key switch portion 54B are arranged on the left side of the key switch portion.
[0056]
Further, in each of the main keys 21 to 32, characters are written on the right side of the numbers and below the symbols, and correspondingly, the Kana input key switch unit 54A which is a character input key switch unit. The letter input key switch section 54B is arranged on the right side of the numeric input key switch section 54D and on the lower side of the symbol input key switch section 54C.
[0057]
Further, on the surface of each of the key switch portions 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54, a symbol “▲” indicating the moving direction of the cursor is written adjacent to the characters representing the respective input modes. The key 54 is also provided with a function as a cursor key.
Specifically, without pressing the mode key 55, if the Kana input key switch 54A is pressed alone, the cursor is moved downward, and if the alphabet input key switch 54B is pressed alone, the cursor is moved to the right. When the key switch portion 54C is pressed alone, the cursor is moved up, and when the number input key switch portion 54D is pressed alone, the cursor is moved left.
[0058]
Accordingly, the key input device 5 is a mode key for switching one mode switching key (cursor mode switching key) 54 and the input of each of the key switch portions 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54 to the cursor movement mode and the input mode setting mode. And the four key switch portions 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54 move the cursor to the left, right, up and down in the cursor movement mode (when the mode switching key 54 is individually input). When the mode switch key 54 is pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed, the input mode of the main keys 21 to 32 is set to a function for switching to four different input modes. Will be.
[0059]
Further, the mode key 55 is also set with the following three functions used in the kana input mode and the alphabet input mode.
The first function is a one-time input function for lowercase letters and punctuation marks. That is, in the kana input mode, when the character keys 21 to 32 are pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed and released, kana lowercase letters and punctuation marks can be easily input.
[0060]
That is, when the mode key 55 is pressed and released and then the key 21 is pressed once, the small vowel “A” is input. Similarly, when each of the keys 22 to 25 is pressed once after the mode key 55 is pressed and released, the small vowels “I, ぅ, ぉ, ぉ” are input. Further, after the mode key 55 is pressed, when “Ya = YA (key 26 + key 21)” is pressed and one kana character is input, the lowercase letter “nya” of the character is input. Similarly, after the mode key 55 is pressed and the characters “yu, yo, ka, ke, tsu, wa” are entered, the lowercase letters “yu, yo, ka, ka, tsu, wa” are entered.
When the keys 30 to 32 are pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed, the middle point “·”, the punctuation mark “,” and the punctuation mark “.” Set in the symbols of the keys 30 to 32 are input. .
[0061]
Table 2 summarizes these one-time input operations. In Table 2, each key is represented by a number set for that key.
[0062]
[Table 2]

[0063]
The one-time input function is a function that automatically returns to the original kana mode when one lowercase letter or punctuation mark is input after the mode key 55 is pressed.
[0064]
The second function is a capital letter shift input function for inputting upper case letters in the kana, alphabet, number mode.
In other words, there are cases where you want to temporarily enter English characters when entering Kana mode or number mode, or when you want to enter only one uppercase letter such as the beginning of a sentence or noun in English lowercase mode. In this case, it is a function to input English capital letters directly.
[0065]
In this shift input function, when the keys 21 to 32 are pressed 1 to 3 times while pressing the mode key 55 in the kana mode, the number mode, or the lower case mode, the corresponding upper case letters are directly input according to the number of times the key is pressed. The When the mode key 55 is released, the original mode is restored.
In the upper case mode, when the keys 21 to 32 are pressed 1 to 3 times while the mode key 55 is being pressed, the corresponding lower case letters are directly input according to the number of times the key is pressed.
[0066]
The third function is a function of separating letters and symbols, and a function of repeating the same characters and symbols.
That is, when a plurality of letters and symbols are set for one key, the letters and symbols set for the same key may be continuously input. In this case, it is necessary to confirm the key input once. For this reason, when the mode key 55 is pressed once after the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed a predetermined number of times, the number of times the main key is pressed is fixed and the corresponding characters and symbols are output, and then the same key By pressing a predetermined number of times, characters and symbols set to the same key can be input continuously. For example, when “TD” is continuously input, after the key 29 is pressed once, the mode key 55 is pressed once to confirm “T”, and then the key 29 is pressed twice again to “D”. You can enter.
[0067]
In addition, when the mode key is pressed again one or more times immediately after the mode key 55 is pressed, a repeat input for repeatedly inputting the determined characters and symbols by the number of times the mode key is pressed functions. It is set to be.
For example, when inputting “www”, pressing the key 26 twice and then pressing the mode key 55 once confirms “w”, but further pressing the mode key 55 once (pressing twice in total). “Ww” and “ww” are input when pressed twice (pressed a total of three times). That is, when [6] [6] [Mode] [Mode] is input, “ww” is input, and when [6] [6] [Mode] [Mode] [Mode] is input, “www” is input.
For this reason, when inputting the same character continuously after inputting the character, it can be input by pressing the mode key 55 as many times as necessary.
[0068]
The mode key 55 is also set with a mail button function. For example, when the mail button function is executed by pressing the mode key 55 twice in succession, a mail menu is displayed on the screen. You can receive, send, etc. In order to show this mail button function, a symbol representing the mail is displayed adjacent to the mode key 55.
[0069]
At the lower right of the mode switching key 54, a function key 56 labeled “Manner” is arranged at the top of the key, and when the manner button 56 is pressed, it is set to switch from the normal mode to the manner mode.
The function key 56 is also set with a telephone book function that is executed, for example, when the function key 56 is pressed twice in succession, and a symbol indicating the telephone book function is adjacent to the function key 56. It is indicated.
[0070]
At the upper left of the mode switching key 54, a function key 57 having a symbol “!” On the key top is arranged. When the function key 57 is pressed, the browser browsing function for browsing the Internet homepage is set to work.
On the upper right of the mode switching key 54, a function key 58 labeled “Menu” is arranged on the key top. When this function key 58 is pressed, various menus are displayed on the screen 4.
On the upper side of the mode switching key 54, a function key 59 having a symbol representing a black circle “●” on the key top is arranged. The function key 59 is set as a determination button when a selection item of the displayed menu is selected with a mode switching key (cursor key) 54.
[0071]
In the present embodiment, the key switch unit 54A of the mode switching key 54 is also set with a kana-kanji conversion function for converting unconfirmed characters input in the kana input mode into kanji.
[0072]
(Key input process)
The input processing function in the key input device 5 having the key arrangement described above will be described with reference to the block diagram shown in FIG.
First, the key input detecting means 101 detects whether or not the keys 21 to 32 and 51 to 59 have been pressed. For example, a timer interrupt is performed at a fixed cycle (for example, 1 to 10 ms), and I / O ports assigned to the keys 21 to 32 and 51 to 59 are checked to check whether there is a key input.
[0073]
If it is determined that there is no key input, the timer interrupt is repeated in a certain cycle and the key input is waited. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is a key input, the key input processing means 102 performs input processing.
When the input mode switching operation is performed by pressing the mode switching key 54, the mode switching unit 103 is operated, and the input mode of the key input processing unit 102 is appropriately switched and set.
[0074]
The key input processing means 102 performs processing so that predetermined characters, numbers, and the like are output according to the set input mode and the input key.
Then, the output characters and numbers are displayed on the liquid crystal screen 4 via the screen control means 104.
[0075]
(Entering letters, numbers and symbols)
Input of characters, numbers and symbols in the key input device 5 will be described with reference to FIG.
i) Kana / Kana mode
When the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed in the hiragana mode, the hiragana is input by romaji input. That is, if the vowel keys 21 to 25 are pressed once, a vowel is input, and if the consonant keys 26 to 32 and the vowel keys 21 to 25 are pressed, a hiragana is input as a “consonant + vowel” by romaji input.
When the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed in the katakana mode, katakana is input by romaji input as in the hiragana mode.
[0076]
When the vowel key (I, U, O) 22, 23, 25 is continuously pressed twice or more, the alphabet (vowel) is continuously input.
On the other hand, when the long sound setting vowel key 21 and the prompt sound setting vowel key 24 are continuously pressed twice or more, a long sound and a prompt sound are input according to conditions.
[0077]
That is, after the vowel keys (I, U, E, O) 22 to 25, the function key (backward key) 51, the cursor left key (key switch portion 54A), and the cursor right key (key switch portion 54B) are pressed. (In the case of (1) in FIG. 4), when the long sound setting vowel key 21 is continuously pressed twice or more, the following input is made.
When the long sound setting vowel key 21 is pressed twice after another vowel, etc., a long sound “-” is input, and when it is pressed three times continuously, “vowel + long sound”, that is, “a-” is input. Further, when the button is pressed four times continuously, “long sound + vowel (−a)” is input, and when the button is pressed five times continuously, “long sound + vowel + long sound (−a−)” is input. In addition, when it is continuously pressed six times, it returns to the state of being pressed once.
[0078]
On the other hand, when the long sound setting vowel key 21 is continuously pressed twice in other cases (in the case of (2) in FIG. 4), the following input is made.
Pressing the vowel setting vowel key 21 twice in succession will input "vowel + vowel (aa)", and pressing it three times in succession will input "vowel + long sound (aa)" and will continue four times. Press to enter "vowel + long sound + vowel (aa)". In addition, when it is continuously pressed five times, it returns to the state of being pressed once.
[0079]
In addition, after the vowel keys (I, U, E, O) 22 to 25, the function key (backward key) 51, the cursor left key (key switch portion 54A), and the cursor right key (key switch portion 54B) are pressed. (In the case of (1) in FIG. 4), when the vowel setting vowel key 24 is pressed twice in succession, “tsu” is input, and when it is pressed three times in succession, “e” is input, and four consecutive times. Press to return to the pressed state.
[0080]
On the other hand, in other cases (in the case of (2) in FIG. 4), when the prompt sound setting vowel key 24 is pressed twice in succession, “ee (converted to“ e ”)” is input and three times “E” is input when pressed continuously, and “ee” (converted to “e”) is input when pressed continuously four times. In addition, when it is continuously pressed five times, it returns to the state of being pressed once.
[0081]
Each consonant key 26 to 32 is set with three consonants of the first character to the third character, so that each key 26 to 32 can be selected and input by pressing the key 26 to 32 once. Has been. That is, when the key is pressed once, the character on the left side of each key top is input twice, when the key is pressed twice, the character on the right side is input when the key is pressed three times. Further, when the button is pressed four times, the state returns to the state where the button is pressed once (left side character input).
[0082]
However, in the kana mode, the consonant key 30 to which “N” is set is not input “C, Q” even if it is pressed twice or three times, and “n” is input when the key is pressed once. When the key is pressed twice, “nn” is input and converted into “n”, and when the key is pressed three times, “nnn” is input and converted into “n + n”. If the key 30 is also pressed four times in succession, the state returns to the state where the main key 30 is pressed once.
When the main key 30 is pressed once, “n” is basically input, but when a main key other than the vowel is pressed after the main key 30, “n” is entered. Converted.
[0083]
In Hiragana mode and Katakana mode, after pressing the above-mentioned mode key 55, pressing each vowel key 21-25, or entering "Ya, Yu, Yo, Ka, Ke, Tsu, Wa" The input works and the lower case letter is entered. If the keys 30 to 32 are pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed, the one-time input is activated, and the middle point “·”, the reading “,”, and the phrase “.” Are input. When one lowercase letter or one punctuation mark is entered, the original kana mode is restored.
[0084]
Further, when each of the main keys 21 to 32 is pressed 1 to 3 times while the mode key 55 is being pressed, the shift input function is activated and the corresponding uppercase letter is directly input. Release the mode key 55 to return to the original mode.
[0085]
ii) Alphabet mode
When the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed in the alphabet mode, each alphabet is input. At this time, if the vowel keys 21 to 25 are continuously pressed twice or more, the alphabet is repeatedly input.
On the other hand, when each consonant key 26-32 is pressed once, the character on the left side of each key top is input twice, when the key is pressed twice, the character on the right side is input when pressed three times. When pressed four times, it returns to the pressed state.
Note that lowercase letters and uppercase letters are input by switching the input mode first. However, if the shift input function is activated by pressing the keys 21 to 32 while pressing the mode key 55, the lowercase mode is set to English. Uppercase letters are entered, and lowercase letters are entered in uppercase mode.
[0086]
iii) Number mode
When the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed in the number mode, the numbers “1” “2” “3” “4” “5” “6” “7” “8” written on the left side of the keys 21 to 32 are displayed. “9”, “0”, “*”, and “#” are input. When the key is pressed a plurality of times, each number, “*” and “#” are input as many times as they are pressed. Also in this number mode, when each of the main keys 21 to 32 is pressed 1 to 3 times while pressing the mode key 55, the shift input function works and the corresponding upper case letter is directly input.
[0087]
iv) Symbol mode
When the main keys 21 to 32 are pressed in the symbol mode, the symbols “(”, “{”, ““ ”,“ <”,“ [”, [/ ”,“ − ”,“ @ ”,“ ¥ ”,“ • ”,“, ”“. ”.
When pressed twice, the symbols “)”, “}”, “” ”,“> ”,“] ”,“% ”,“ + ”,“ + ”, “*”, “&”, “:”, “_”, “!” Are respectively input.
When pressed three times in succession, the symbols “'”, “” ”,“ ^ ”,“ ｀ ”,“ tilde symbol ”,“ | ”,“ = ”written on the upper right of the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32 , “#”, “$”, “;”, “˜”, “?”, Respectively.
[0088]
In addition, when inputting letters and symbols set to the same keys 21 to 32 continuously, as described above, after pressing the main keys 21 to 32 a predetermined number of times, the mode key 55 is pressed once to separate the input. Then, the number of keystrokes of the main keys 21 to 32 is determined, the corresponding characters and symbols are output, and then the same keys 21 to 32 are pressed a predetermined number of times.
[0089]
In addition, when the mode key is pressed again one or more times immediately after the main keys 21 to 32 are input and the mode key 55 is pressed, as described above, the input characters and symbols are input to the mode key. Repeat input to input repeatedly for the number of times works. For this reason, when inputting the same character continuously after inputting the character, it can be input by pressing the mode key 55 as many times as necessary.
[0090]
(Effect of embodiment)
(1) In the key input device 5, in addition to letters and numbers, symbols are also set for the main keys 21 to 32, and the inputs of the main keys 21 to 32 are input to the key switch portions 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54. Since it is switched by inputting, it is possible to easily input by switching letters, numbers and symbols. Therefore, even if the number of keys is small, symbols can be set for the keys 21 to 32. Therefore, many symbols can be easily input.
In particular, in this embodiment, since Roman input is used for Japanese input, there is no need to write three types of kana, alphabetic characters, and numbers on the surface of the main keys 21 to 32 as in the conventional mobile phone. Instead of “Kana” and “English letters”, only English letters should be written. For this reason, in addition to numerals and letters, symbols can be additionally written on the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32. Three symbols are provided on the key tops of the main keys 21 to 32 as in this embodiment. If 36 symbols are set, 36 symbols can be easily input.
In addition, characters and symbols are set in 12 main keys 21 to 32 in 3 rows and 4 rows, and the number and arrangement of the keys are the same as those of a normal mobile phone composed of 12 numeric keys. Since they match, the key layout is very easy to understand, and speedy character input can be performed easily.
[0091]
(2) Since the relative positions of the key switch portions 54A to 54D of the mode switching key 54 correspond to the relative positions of characters, numbers, and symbols written on the surfaces of the main keys 21 to 32, the mode switching key The switching operation by 54 can be grasped intuitively and easily, and the switching operability can be improved.
[0092]
(3) Since the mode switching key 54 is composed of one diamond-shaped key, the number of keys as a whole can be reduced as compared with the case where each mode switching key is provided individually. Therefore, the size can be reduced without changing the size of each key. That is, downsizing can be achieved while maintaining operability.
In addition, since the key switch portions 54A to 54D are set at the four corners of the mode switching key 54 formed in a diamond shape, the positions of the key switch portions 54A to 54D can be easily grasped and operated easily. . Further, while maintaining the input operability of the mode switching key 54, the size of the mode switching key 54 can be made relatively small, and it can be easily incorporated into a small device such as the mobile phone 1.
[0093]
(4) The mode switching key 54 incorporates not only the input mode switching function but also the cursor movement function, and the mode switching key 54 is also used as a cursor key. The number can be reduced, and it can be incorporated more easily by a small device such as the mobile phone 1. For this reason, it is possible to easily and easily input the same number of letters, numbers, and symbols as the keyboard of a personal computer without increasing the number of keys of the conventional mobile phone.
For this reason, even if the number of keys is small, the same input as a keyboard can be performed, and the same function as a full keyboard can be provided. Therefore, it is possible to input each letter, number and symbol surely and easily. Enter an e-mail with a mobile phone or PDA, enter an address for browsing the Internet homepage, Even when it is necessary to input characters, symbols, etc., such as retrieval of various information, purchase of goods and services, etc., it can be dealt with reliably.
[0094]
(5) Since there are four key switches 54A to 54D, "Kana (Kana) mode", "English (small / English) mode", "Numeric mode" and "Symbol mode" can be directly and easily Compared with the method of switching while watching the mode display on the screen by pressing a specific key several times like a conventional mobile phone, the mode switching operation is much easier and the input operability is further improved can do.
In addition, the hiragana mode and the katakana mode, and the lowercase letter mode and the uppercase letter mode can be switched only by changing the number of times the key switch portions 54A and 54B are pressed, so that the mode switching operation can be further simplified.
[0095]
(6) Since the plurality of function keys 51 to 59 are arranged on the upper side of the main key area 20, the main keys 21 to 32 having a high keystroke frequency can be arranged in the lower area where it is easy to press with the thumb, and the input operability is improved. Can be improved. In addition, since the function keys 51 to 59 and the main key area 20 are arranged at the top and bottom positions, a vertically long area is formed as a whole key, and the function keys 51 to 59 are incorporated in the cellular phone 1 that is mostly vertically long. A key layout suitable for the above can be realized.
[0096]
(7) The mode key 55 has a one-time input function for lowercase letters and punctuation marks. After pressing and releasing the mode key 55, you can enter a predetermined character or press the keys 30 to 32 to enter lowercase letters or punctuation marks. Can be entered easily. In addition, paying attention to the fact that two or more lowercase letters and punctuation marks are rarely input in succession, the original mode is automatically restored when one lowercase letter or punctuation mark is input by the one-time input function. Thus, the input operability can be further improved.
[0097]
(8) The mode key 55 is provided with an English character shift input function to input English characters directly by inputting simultaneously with the other main keys 21 to 32 in the kana mode or number mode, so that Japanese text can be input When English characters are temporarily input, simple operation is sufficient, and operability can be improved.
Furthermore, in English uppercase mode or lowercase mode, you can easily enter lowercase letters or uppercase letters by entering the mode key 55 simultaneously with the keys 21 to 32, and enter only one uppercase letter during English entry. It is possible to improve the operability in the case where
[0098]
(9) Since the mode key 55 is provided with an alphabet and symbol delimiter input function, characters and symbols set to the same key can be input easily and continuously. Further, since the mode key 55 is provided with a repeat function for continuously inputting the same characters and symbols, the input operability when the same characters and symbols are continuously input can be greatly improved.
[0099]
(10) Since the most frequently used vowels in both Japanese and English, that is, “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are set to independent keys 21 to 25, these characters are the keys. Just press once to enter. For this reason, it is possible to reduce the number of keystrokes when inputting a frequently used vowel. For this reason, input operability can be improved and high-speed input can be performed.
Furthermore, since the vowels “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are arranged from the first stage to the second stage and from left to right, The key position of the vowel is easy to remember and the operability can be improved.
[0100]
(11) In addition, since the other 21 letters of the alphabet are arranged three by seven on the seven keys 26 to 32, it is possible to input 26 letters of the alphabet with 12 keys and a very small number of keys. Thus, it is possible to form a key input device 5 that is small and excellent in portability. In addition, since seven keys with consonant keys are set with three characters each, when each character input is divided by the number of times each key is pressed, each key is pressed a maximum of three times. If pressed, any character can be input and the operability can be improved, and since each consonant is evenly arranged on each key, the balance of keystroke operations can be improved and the operability can be further improved.
[0101]
(12) Since the keys are divided into the keys 26 to 32 set with the consonants “K” to “W” and the main keys 21 to 25 set with the vowels “A” to “O”, the keys are set. You can input Japanese by entering the consonant + vowel romaji. For this reason, when inputting Japanese, it is possible to input by pressing the key twice on average. For example, “A” line to “WA” line is set to 10 keys, and each key is set. The input operability can be improved and high-speed input can be performed as compared with the 50-tone arrangement in which each character is input by pressing 1 to 5 times.
[0102]
(13) A second character key for inputting the long sound “-” is set in the vowel key 21, and a second character key for inputting the prompt sound “tsu” is set in the key 24. Since the key input processing means 102 can output a character string including a long sound “-” and a prompt sound “tsu” when the key is continuously hit five times, the long sound “-” and the prompt sound that are frequently used in Japanese input. It is possible to easily input “t” and improve the character input efficiency.
In particular, the long sound setting vowel key 21 and the prompt sound setting vowel key 24 are input after other vowel keys or after consonant keys, that is, the arrangement of character strings in Japanese input. Since the combination of the output character strings is changed in consideration of the above, character input efficiency can be further improved.
[0103]
(14) Use “G”, “Z”, “D”, “B” to input muddy sound, press “N” twice to input repellent “n”, or “consonant + Y + vowel” The sound is input with a combination of characters in accordance with the Roman character input on the conventional general keyboard, so that the muddy sound is input quickly, and the key operation can be quickly learned and the operability can be improved. It is possible to input at high speed.
[0104]
(15) Further, in Roman character input, “K” for inputting the “K” line and “G” for inputting the “Ga” line to the main key 26, and “S” and “Z” for inputting the “S” line. "Z" for inputting a line to the main key 27, "T" for inputting a line and "D" for inputting a double line to the main key 28, "H" for inputting a line "B" Since “B” is input to the key 30, the related clear sound and muddy sound can be input by using the same key and changing the number of times the main key is pressed. Therefore, the key position for the muddy sound can be easily grasped, the input operation can be easily learned, and the input can be performed at high speed.
[0105]
(16) The keys 21 to 32 on which a plurality of characters and symbols are set have the characters and symbols on the surface of the keys, and the desired characters and symbols can be obtained by pressing the keys 21 to 32 one to three times. Can be input easily. For this reason, the input keys can be easily grasped, and the input operability can be further improved. In particular, since three symbols are arranged for each of the keys 21 to 32, the balance of keystroke operations can be improved as in the case of consonants, and the operability can be further improved.
Furthermore, numbers are written on the left side of the surface of the horizontally long main keys 21 to 32, symbols are written on the upper side, and letters are written on the lower side. Then, it can be set to a key suitable for the cellular phone 1 having a large number of numbers input.
[0106]
(17) In addition to characters, “, (comma)” and “. (Period)” can be input to the keys 30 and 32 set with “*” and “#” used when using a mobile phone or the like. Therefore, in the character input mode, “,” and “.” Can be easily input, and the operability at the time of input can be improved accordingly, and functions equivalent to a full keyboard can be provided with a small key arrangement.
[0107]
(18) Romaji input and English input can be performed using twelve main keys 21 to 32, which are significantly fewer than conventional keyboards, so that the key input device 5 can be downsized, and the cellular phone 1 and wristwatch. It can be easily applied to a very small device such as the above, and the position of the key is easy to remember, and can be operated with one hand, so that even a beginner can easily master it.
[0108]
(Modification)
In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, Other modifications etc. which can achieve the objective of this invention are included, The deformation | transformation etc. which are shown below are also contained in this invention.
For example, the key input device to which the present invention is applied is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and the key layout of the function keys 51 to 59 and the character keys 21 to 32 may be changed in the key areas 20 and 50. Good. For example, in the above embodiment, the vowel “A, I, U, E, O” is set to the upper two keys 21 to 25 of the main key area 20, but the middle two keys or the lower two keys. The consonants may be set for the remaining keys. Further, by setting the vowels “A, I, U, E, O” to the keys 21, 24, 27, 30 in the left column of the main key area 20 and the keys in the center column, etc. Alternatively, it may be set to a key in the center column and the right column, or a key in the left and right columns.
[0109]
Further, as shown in FIG. 5, “,” and “.” Are not set in the keys 30 and 32, and these commas and periods are replaced with the symbols “,” and “.” Set in the keys 31 and 32. You may make it input using.
[0110]
Further, the number, shape, and functions to be set of the function keys 51 to 59 are not limited to those in the above embodiment, and may be set as appropriate according to the device in which the key input device 5 of the present invention is incorporated.
[0111]
Furthermore, the shape of the mode switching key 54 is not limited to a rhombus, but may be a circle, an ellipse, a rectangle, a rectangle, a triangle, a pentagon, or the like, and may be set as appropriate for implementation.
In the above embodiment, the integrated mode switching key 54 is used. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, each key switch unit 54A to 54D is configured by four physically independent keys. A key may be used.
[0112]
In the above-described embodiment, the mode switching key 54 is provided with two character input key switch portions, ie, a kana input key switch portion 54A and an English character input key switch portion 54B. In the case of the input device 5 or the key input device 5 dedicated to kana input, only one character input key switch unit may be provided. In short, in the present invention, the mode switching key 54 only needs to include at least three key switch parts including a character input key switch part, a numeric input key switch part, and a symbol input key switch part. .
[0113]
In addition, the arrangement positions of the key switch portions 54A to 54D in the mode switching key 54 are not limited to the arrangement in the above embodiment, and may be set according to the positional relationship of characters, numbers, and symbols written on the main keys 21 to 32. Good.
Further, even if the key top notation of the main keys 21 to 32 is the case of the above embodiment, the positions of the kana input key switch portion 54A and the alphabet input key switch portion 54B may be reversed.
[0114]
In the above-described embodiment, the cursor moving function is incorporated in the mode switching key 54. However, the cursor moving function may be eliminated, or even if a cursor key different from the mode switching key 54 is provided, the cursor moving function is provided for the key. May be incorporated. In this case, the cursor key may be formed as a flat rhombus, a circle, etc., as in the mode switching key 54, and may be provided with four key switch sections, or may be configured with four different keys. In this case, the mode key 55 is not necessarily required, but may be left to realize a one-time input function such as a small letter.
[0115]
The positional relationship between the main key area 20 and the function key area 50 is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be set as appropriate according to the device in which the key input device 5 is incorporated. For example, the function key area 50 in which the mode switching key 54 and the like are arranged may be arranged below the main key area 20, or when incorporated in a horizontally long device, the function key area 50 functions on either the left or right side of the main key area 20. A key area 50, that is, a mode switching key 54 may be set.
[0116]
In the embodiment, in addition to the function of switching the mode switching key 54 between the input mode setting function and the cursor key function in the mode key 55, the one-time input function such as lowercase letters, the shift input function of English letters, the letters and symbols The delimiter function, the same character, the symbol repeat function, and the like have been set. However, all of these functions are not necessarily provided, and may be appropriately selected and set in the implementation.
Moreover, the input method of each function by the mode key 55 is not restricted to the said embodiment, You may exchange suitably. For example, an input mode switching function may be activated when the mode switching key 54 is pressed alone, and a cursor key function may be activated when pressed together with the mode key 55.
When the character keys 21 to 32 are pressed while the mode key 55 is being pressed, lower case characters and punctuation marks are input. When the keys 21 to 32 are pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed and released, English characters are input. And the function at the time of shift input may be interchanged. In short, (a) one-time input when the keys 21 to 32 are pressed after the mode key 55 is pressed once, (b) shift input when the keys 21 to 32 are pressed simultaneously with the mode key 55 ( c) Each function that works when the mode key 55 is input alone may be set as appropriate.
[0117]
Further, the keys for which the long sound “-” and the prompt sound “tsu” are set are not limited to the vowel keys 21 and 24 in which “A” and “E” are set, but for example, “I”, “U”, “O” Any of the other vowel keys 22, 23, and 25 for which “is set” may be used. However, the input operability can be improved if the long sound “-” or the prompt sound “tsu” is set to the “A” or “E” key, which is less likely to be struck continuously in Japanese romaji input. This is preferable.
[0118]
Further, in the above embodiment, both the long sound “−” and the prompt sound “tsu” are set as the second character keys of the vowel keys 21 to 25. However, as the second character keys of the vowel keys 21 to 25, Only one of them may be set.
[0119]
Further, the key 30 is set as a key for inputting the sound repellent “n”. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, any of the keys 21 to 29, 31, 32 other than the key 30 is changed to the sound repellent “n”. You may set as a key to input. The number of keystrokes when outputting “n” or “n N” may be set as appropriate.
However, inputting the sound repellent “n” by pressing the key 30 with “N” set twice is in accordance with the Roman character input on the conventional general keyboard. The setting is preferable in that the input operability can be improved.
[0120]
Further, the arrangement of the letters, numbers, and symbols in the keys 21 to 32 is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, when the key input device of the present invention is incorporated in a numeric keyboard, the numbers may be set so as to be arranged in the order of “0, 1, 2, 3,. Further, the character arrangement is not limited to the one in which vowels and consonants are separated, but may be set as “ABC, DEF...” As in a conventional mobile phone. Furthermore, the combination arrangement of symbols is not limited to that of the above embodiment, and an arrow, an abbreviated character, a unit symbol, an academic symbol, a pictogram, and the like may be appropriately disposed. What is necessary is just to set suitably according to.
[0121]
The models and applications in which the key input device of the present invention is used are not limited to mobile phones, but include personal digital assistants (PDAs), personal computer input devices, notebook personal computers, mobile personal computers, PHS, electronic notebooks, calculators, In addition, it may be used for a key input device of an information processing device such as a pen touch type keyboard, a key input device incorporated in a measurement device or a control device, or a home appliance such as an Internet TV remote control.
Note that the key input device is not limited to a normal key input device in which physical keys are actually provided as in the above-described embodiment, and a key portion displayed on the liquid crystal screen is touched with a pen, a finger, or the like. It is also possible to use a screen touch type input device for inputting data.
[0122]
For example, like the cellular phone 100 shown in FIG. 7, the keys 21 to 32 are displayed on the liquid crystal screen 4 and screen touch type keys for inputting by touching these keys 21 to 32 with a finger or a pen or the like. The present invention can also be applied to the key input device 6 including it.
In the cellular phone 100, the mode switching key 54, the mode key 55, the function key 56, the function key 57, and the like are composed of physical keys arranged on the lower side of the liquid crystal screen 4. The keys 54 to 57 may also be configured to be displayed on the liquid crystal screen 4. Note that it is not always necessary to provide all of these keys 54 to 57. It is sufficient that at least the mode switching key 54 is provided as a physical key or a screen display key.
[0123]
The present invention is not limited to a key input device having 12 main keys, and can be widely applied to a device having 11 or less main keys and a key input device having 13 or more main keys. In short, the present invention can be applied to at least a key input device in which letters, numbers, and symbols are set in one main key.
Therefore, the key input device of the present invention is not necessarily provided with five vowel keys in which vowels are set singly, but vowels and consonants are mixedly set, or vowels have one to four keys. It can be applied to various key input devices such as those set to.
[0124]
【The invention's effect】
According to the key input device of the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.
According to the key input device of the first aspect, in addition to letters and numbers, symbols are set and indicated for each main key, and the input of the main key is switched by the input of the key switch portion of the mode switching key. From there, you can easily switch between letters, numbers and symbols. Therefore, even if the number of keys is small, symbols can be set for each key, so that many symbols can be easily input.
In addition, the relative position of each key switch part of the mode switching key corresponds to the relative position of the letters, numbers, and symbols printed on the surface of each main key. Moreover, it can be easily grasped and the switching operability can be improved.
Furthermore, according to this key input device, since the mode switching key is composed of one key, the number of keys can be reduced as compared with the case where each mode switching key is provided individually. Therefore, the size can be reduced without changing the size of each key. That is, downsizing can be achieved while maintaining operability.
[0125]
According to the key input device of the second aspect, since the kana input key switch unit and the English character input key switch unit are provided independently as the character input key switch units, each key switch unit Can be easily switched between kana input and alphabetic input, and the input operability can be further improved.
[0126]
According to the key input device of the third aspect, in the mode switching key, the four key switch units are set at four positions whose angles with respect to the center of the mode switching key are different by 90 degrees. Can be easily input and separated, and the mode switching operation can be easily performed.
[0127]
According to the key input device of claim 4, the mode switching key 54 is formed in a diamond shape, and the kana input key switch portion, the alphabet input key switch portion, and the symbol input key are formed at four corners thereof. Since the switch part and the numeric key switch part are set, the position of the key switch part can be easily grasped and operated easily. Further, while maintaining the input operability of the mode switching key, the size of the mode switching key can be made relatively small, and it can be easily incorporated into a small device such as a mobile phone.
[0128]
According to the key input device according to claim 5, numbers are written on the left side of the front surface of the main key, symbols are written on the upper side, and characters are written on the lower side. Can represent a relatively large number, and can be set to a key suitable for a mobile phone or the like that has a high ratio of number input in normal use.
[0129]
According to the key input device of the sixth aspect, since the cursor key function is also incorporated in the mode switching key, the cursor function can be easily operated even during character input, and the operability can be improved and the number of keys can be increased. The key arrangement space can be reduced. For this reason, it can be easily incorporated into a small device such as a mobile phone.
[0130]
According to the key input device according to claim 7, since it is possible to easily input the lower case of the kana characters, it is not necessary to arrange an independent key for the lower case input mode, and the increase in the number of keys can be suppressed. It is particularly suitable for small devices such as mobile phones.
[0131]
According to the key input device of claim 8, there is no need to switch the mode when inputting English characters temporarily when performing kana input or numeric input, and English characters can be easily operated. Can be entered.
[0132]
According to the key input device of claim 9, the characters and symbols set to the same key can be easily and continuously input. For example, when the same character such as “www” is continuously input, It is only necessary to press the key as many times as necessary, and the input efficiency can be greatly improved.
[0133]
According to the key input device of claim 10, the most frequently used vowels in Japanese and English, that is, “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are set as independent keys. Therefore, these characters can be entered with a single key press. For this reason, the number of keystrokes during vowel input can be reduced, operability is improved, and high-speed input is possible.
In addition, since the other 21 letters of the alphabet are arranged 3 by 7 on the 7 keys, 26 letters of the alphabet can be entered with 12 keys, which is very small and portable. An excellent key input device 5 can be formed. In addition, since seven keys with consonant keys are set with three characters each, when each character input is divided by the number of times each key is pressed, each key is pressed a maximum of three times. If pressed, any character can be input and the operability can be improved, and since each consonant is evenly arranged on each key, the balance of keystroke operations can be improved and the operability can be further improved.
[0134]
According to the key input device of the eleventh aspect, since three types of symbols are set for each of the 12 main keys 21 to 32, a large number of symbols can be input with a small number of keys. Even with only 12 keys, almost all symbols that can be input with a full keyboard used in a normal personal computer can be input, and can be used in the same manner as a full keyboard.
[0135]
According to the mobile phone of claim 12, although it has a small number of keys, it can have the same function as a full keyboard, and when inputting an address, etc. with a mobile phone, or inputting an e-mail, an address, etc. In addition, it is possible to input the same characters, numbers and symbols as in a normal full keyboard, and the same operation can be realized.
[0136]
According to the mobile phone of the thirteenth aspect, since “,” and “.” Can be input with the keys for inputting “*” and “#”, the character input operability can be improved.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a mobile phone using a key input device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a main part of the key input device according to the embodiment;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the key input device according to the embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a function of a main key in the embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a mobile phone according to a modification of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a mobile phone according to a modification of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a mobile phone according to another modification of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1,100 mobile phone
5,6 Key input device
20 Main key area
21-32 Main key
50 Function key area
51-59 Function keys
54 Mode switch key
54A Kana input key switch
54B Key switch for English input
54C Key switch for symbol input
54D Number input key switch
101 Key input detection means
102 Key input processing means
103 Mode switching means
104 Screen control means

Claims (10)

A plurality of main keys, and a mode switching key having four key switches,
On the surface of each main key, three types of symbols, letters, numbers, and symbols that are input when the key is pressed, are described.
The four key switch parts of the mode switching key are respectively a kana input key switch part for setting the main key input mode to the kana input mode, an alphabet input key switch part for setting the alphabet input mode, and a numeric input. It consists of a key switch unit for numeric input to be set to the mode and a key switch unit for symbol input to be set to the symbol input mode. The key switch unit for kana input and the key switch unit for alphabet input and the key for numeric input The relative position between the switch part and the key input part for symbol input is set corresponding to the relative position of the letters, numbers and symbols written on the main key ,
Each of the four key switches of the mode switching key has a cursor key function for moving the cursor up, down, left and right, respectively.
A key input device comprising a mode key for switching the function of the mode switching key to one of an input mode setting function and a cursor key function . The key input device according to claim 1,
The mode switching key has the kana input key switch unit, the alphabet input key switch unit, the numeric input key switch unit, and the symbol input key switch at four positions whose angles with respect to the center of the mode switching key differ by 90 degrees. A key input device, wherein each part is set. The key input device according to claim 2,
The mode switching key is formed in a diamond shape, and the kana input key switch unit, the alphabet input key switch unit, the numeric input key switch unit, and the symbol input key switch unit are respectively set at four corners thereof. The key input device characterized by being made. The key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Numbers are written on the left side of the surface of the main key, symbols are written on the upper side, characters are written on the lower side,
The mode switching key has a numeric input key switch on the left side, a symbol input key switch on the upper side, and one of the kana input key switch and the alphabet input key switch on the lower side. A key input device in which a key switch portion is set, and the other key switch portion of a kana input key switch portion and an English character input key switch portion is set on the right side. The key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
When the input mode of the main key is set to Kana input mode, when Kana characters with lowercase letters are entered after the mode key is pressed and released, Kana lowercase letters are entered. The key input device characterized by being made. In the key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
When the main key input mode is set to either the kana input mode or the numeric input mode, pressing each main key while pressing the mode key causes the main key to correspond to the number of times the key is pressed. A key input device configured to input set English characters. The key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
When the mode key is pressed once after pressing the main key, the number of keystrokes of the main key is fixed and the corresponding characters and symbols are output,
When the mode key is pressed again once or more immediately after the mode key is pressed, repeat input for repeatedly inputting the determined characters and symbols by the number of times the mode key is pressed functions. A key input device that is set to In the key input device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
At least twelve main keys are provided, and five of these twelve main keys have alphabets “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” representing alphabets. Character keys input in the character input mode are individually set, and the other seven keys are set with three letters representing the other 21 consonants of the alphabet for each key. Key input device.   A mobile phone comprising the key input device according to claim 1. The mobile phone according to claim 9, wherein
Among the main keys, one of the key marked with “*” and the key marked with “#” entered in the numeric input mode is set with “,” that can be entered in the character entry mode. And the other key is set to “.” That can be input in the character input mode.

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