JPH0241031A - Character input coding system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To quickly input and encode a character with a few key group by assigning a shape or stroke of a character to the relation of position of keys, comparing a character string being the series of position number of keys with a reference table and applying coding processing. CONSTITUTION:A number is read sequentially from a memory area by a CPU (not shown). Whether or not the read number is a character string is decided by referencing a reference table to read a short character string. Then whether or not the string is a complement string is discriminated and in the case of a complement string the string is a long character string and the string is subjected to character coding processing by referencing the reference table. In the case of not being a complement string, the string is a short character string and the string is subjected to character coding processing by referencing the reference table. Moreover, in the discrimination of whether or not the string is a short character string, when the string is not a short character string, the string is subjected to character coding processing by referencing the refer ence table.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a character input method for word processors, personal computers, etc.

[Conventional technology]

BACKGROUND ART Conventional character input methods in character and information processing devices such as word processors and personal computers use input methods such as kana input using a keyboard, Roman alphabet input, and handwritten input using ○LCR (online character recognition).

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Kana input has a large number of keys, and the keyboard has a JIS layout, which makes it difficult to remember, and the 50-syllabary layout has problems with ease of use.

In addition, although the number of keys for Romaji input is smaller than that for Kana input, it is time-consuming because the input must be converted into Romaji.

- LCR takes time to input each character, has uneven recognition rate, and is expensive.

Note that devices used for inputting these characters include alphabetic/kana keyboards and 0LCR touch panels.

Alphabetic and kana keyboards have a large number of keys, and the visual burden of searching for the letters on the key tops is heavy.

Additionally, 0LCR touch panels have a low penetration rate and require a special pen.

This invention was made in view of the above points, and provides an inexpensive method that allows input with a small group of about 9 keys such as a numeric keypad, and allows characters to be input and coded quickly with the feeling of kana writing. The purpose is to

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, when entering characters using a group of keys such as a numeric keypad, the present invention inputs each character by matching the shape or stroke order of the character to the positional relationship of the keys. In this system, the input characters are encoded while referring to a correspondence table for a character string consisting of the number of positions of the characters.

[For production]

According to this character input encoding method, the shape or stroke order of one character is applied to the positional relationship of keys, and when each character is input using a small group of about 9 to 10 keys such as a numeric keypad, the position of the input key A string of characters containing numbers is compared with a correspondence table and encoded.

[Example] Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be specifically described based on the drawings.

First, the terms used in this example will be explained.

(1) About the key group for inputting characters Figure 1 (a)
) The key group shown in FIG. 1(b) is a key group 10 of 3×3 keys, usually called a numeric keypad, used in this embodiment, and the key group of FIG. 1(b) is a key group 11 of 3×3+1 keys.
You can apply a character shape to each of these keys.

Each of these keys is used for positional purposes.

The number of positions assigned to each key for the purpose of identifying the position is displayed as a number from 1 to 9 in the key group 10 of FIG. 1(a),
In the key group 11 of FIG. 1(b), numbers 0 to 9 are displayed, and the position of each key is assigned.

(2) About characters to input The characters to be input are katakana and hiragana.

All or part of alphanumeric characters, kanji, and marks.

However, in this embodiment, the following explanation will be given using katakana as an example.

(3) Regarding the positional relationship of the input keys, depending on the number of positions indicated by 10 numbers from O to 9 determined in (1) and (2) above, and the character to be input, as shown in Figure 1 (a) (b
) represents the positional relationship of input keys such as position 7, position 9, position 1, position 3, etc.

(4) Regarding applying the shape and stroke order of characters to the positional relationship of keys: The shapes of characters that can be handled easily can be easily applied to the position of keys intuitively.

Here, an example will be described in which the 3×3 key group 10 shown in FIG. 1(a) is used as the key group, and katakana is used as the character.

For example, if a character is divided into strokes and each corner point E and corner point C are used as push-down points, the result will be as shown in FIG.

FIG. 2(a) shows the katakana "mo" as an example. Figures (b), (c), and (d) are broken down according to the ``mo'' brush strokes, and the end points E and E of the upper horizontal line are connected.

Next, connect the end points E and E of the lower horizontal line, and then connect the upper end point E of the vertical line, the lower end point C, and the end point E on the right side of the vertical line.

It should be noted that all "." indicating each end point E and corner point C are also press points.

Next, if there is a stroke that includes a roundness, such as the katakana "su", several key manual methods can be considered, as shown in FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b).

In Figure 3 (a), the break point C is entered at the rounded position between the end points E and E of "su", and in Figure 3 (b), the broken point at the rounded position is omitted. The two end points E are directly connected.

It is also conceivable to extract only a characteristic image and express it only by its shape.

For example, the katakana ``Yu'' shown in Figure 4(a) is shown in Figure 4(a).
It can be expressed only with characteristic images like b).

Stroke order of characters The stroke order of characters is the order in which the strokes of characters are drawn, and when inputting in the stroke order of characters, the following two methods can be considered.

There are two methods: one that targets only the standard stroke order, and one that targets multiple stroke orders, including individual differences.

For example, if the stroke order is applied to the positional relationship of the keys using the katakana "mo" shown in FIG. 2 as an example, the result will be as shown in FIG. 5(a).

Figure 5 (,) shows the order of pressing the keys for the katakana "mo", that is, the order of strokes. The key is pressed, and FIG. 5(b) shows the string of characters pressed.

r7946823J and each key of the key group 10 in FIG. 1(a) is pressed in order from number 0 in FIG. 5(a) to number 0 in stroke order.

(5) Regarding input The katakana character "mo" shown in Figure 5 above is input by pressing the keys at that position in this order, but when entering a sentence There are two possible methods: one in which characters are divided into characters, and one in which characters are made consecutive.

(b) Method of dividing into characters Enter a separator key for each character you enter.

Wait a certain amount of time before entering each character.

(b) A method for continuously inputting characters without requiring an operation for each character input.

(6) About the character string The character string is the string of characters obtained when the number of pressed keys is replaced according to the order of the pressed keys, and this character string is the example of the katakana “mo” shown in Figure 5 So r7
It is 946823J. Also, in the example of "F" shown in Fig. 6, it is r791J, and in the example of "S" shown in Fig. 7, it is r791J.
79153J.

In addition, as in the example shown in Figure 7, when adding a particular sequence of remainders to the rear of a certain character sequence results in another character sequence, as shown in Figure 6 (b). , a character sequence that does not include a remainder sequence is called a short character sequence. As shown in FIG. 7(b), a character sequence including a remainder sequence is called a long character sequence.

(7) About sentence number sequence A sentence number sequence is a number sequence formed by a series of character number sequences obtained when a sentence is input.

(b) In the case of a system that divides into character units, for example, as shown in Figure 11 (c) and (d), it is easy to do this by including a signal (indicated by "1") between character strings to divide into character strings. can be separated into strings of characters.

(b) In the case of a system in which characters are consecutively displayed, for example, as shown in FIG. 12 CQ) (d), a signal indicating the unit of the character sequence is not included.

(8) Regarding the correspondence table, as shown in Figure 8, the characters manually entered by the keys are indicated by the pressed points, and the string of character numbers indicating the number of positions in the order of pressing, and the hexadecimal number h.
This is a correspondence table that associates character codes expressed in (hex).

In this embodiment, a microcomputer (C
PU) performs encoding processing of input characters while referring to this correspondence table according to a flowchart (program) to be described later.

In this case, the character string in the correspondence table and the hexadecimal character code have a one-to-one correspondence, but a many-to-one correspondence is also possible. Furthermore, if the mode is set depending on the type of character or how the string of characters is determined, multiple correspondence tables must be prepared.

(9) Regarding encoding processing of input characters, refer to the above correspondence table and convert each string of characters into hexadecimal character codes. The processing flow differs between methods (a) and (b) below.

(b) Sentence string input using a method of separating characters. The flowchart in FIG. 9 shows the flow of character encoding processing in this case. Read and code in strings of characters. Repeat this operation to obtain a string of character codes (refer to the correspondence table).

(b) Sentence sequence input using a method of consecutive characters The flow of character encoding processing in this case is shown in the flowchart of FIG. Read in one number unit and encode it by dividing it into strings of characters.

In addition, in the case of a short character sequence, there is a possibility that it will become a long character sequence, so it is determined whether the following sequence is a remainder sequence,
Distinguish between short and long character sequences.

Repeat this operation to obtain a string of character codes (refer to the correspondence table).

(c) In other cases Regarding the processing when there is an erroneous input, in the case of (b) above, it is detected as an error during the processing of (A) in FIG.

In the case of (b) above, an error detection routine (see correspondence table) is inserted in (B) of FIG.

To continue the process, remove the first number in the number sequence at the time the error was detected as an incorrect number, as shown in Figure 13.
Effective methods include a method of continuing the process to encode by excluding erroneous number sequences, and a method of character encoding from the rear as shown in FIG. 14.

Next, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 9, a description will be given of the flow of character encoding processing in which characters are divided into characters.

First, a CPU (not shown) reads a string of characters from a storage area. Then, it is converted into a character code by referring to a correspondence table in a dictionary (not shown). Then, it is determined whether the sentence has ended or not, and this process is repeated until the sentence in the storage area ends.

The flow of character encoding processing using the method of consecutive characters will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

Similarly to FIG. 9, the CPU (not shown) sequentially reads the numbers from the storage area. Then, it is determined whether or not the read number is a string of characters by referring to the correspondence table.

If it is not a string of characters, the numbers are read sequentially from the storage area. If it is a string of characters, it is determined whether it is a short string of characters by referring to the correspondence table.

As a result, if it is a short character sequence, the number sequence for the extra number sequence is read. Then judge whether it is a remainder sequence or not.

If it is a remainder sequence, it is a long sequence, and the character encoding process is performed by referring to the correspondence table.

If it is not a remainder sequence, it is a short sentence sequence, and the character encoding process is performed by referring to the correspondence table.

Furthermore, if it is determined whether or not it is a short character sequence, if it is not a short character sequence, character encoding processing is performed with reference to the correspondence table.

Then, these processes are performed until the sentence in the storage area ends.

For reference, the flow of information in case (a) mentioned above is shown in FIG. 11.

The sentence "Harugakita" shown in Figure 11(a) is translated into Figure 1(a).
When inputting with the 3×3 key group 10 shown in Fig. 11 (
Input the key shown in b) as the press point.

As a result, a character string r7193J corresponding to "c" shown in FIG. 2(C) is input.

Below, "r71826J of ru J," 4638 of rga
2J and r99J, r794682J of “r”
848625J is inputted in the j sequence, and the 11th
They correspond in sequence to the string of characters in the correspondence table shown in Figure (d).

As a result, as shown in FIG. 11(e), the character sequence r7193J corresponding to "c" becomes the hex character code "CAh" as shown in FIG. 11(f).

The next "ru" r71826J becomes "D9h-" as shown in the same figure (g), and is converted sequentially, and the same figure (h)
As shown in °CAh” “D9h” “B6h”,
It is converted into each character code of "DEh""B7h-"COh".

Next, FIG. 12 shows the flow of information in the case of (mouth) described above.

Similarly to FIG. 11(a), if the sentence "Harugakita" shown in FIG. 12(a) is entered using the 3X3 key group 10 shown in FIG. 1(a), the result will be as shown in FIG. 12(b). Input a key as a press point. As a result, a character string r7193J corresponding to "c" shown in FIG. 2(c) is input.

Hereinafter, r71826J of "ru", "46382 of rga"
” and r99J, r794682J of “rki”.

Since r848625J for "ri" is input sequentially and no delimiter signal is included, the CPU sequentially responds according to the string of characters in the correspondence table shown in FIG. 12(d) and the number of the pressed key.

As a result, as shown in FIG. 12(e), 7193...
are sequentially determined, and are converted to the character code of °CAh° as shown in (f) of the same figure, and then the next "71826" is converted to the character code of "D9h" as shown in (g) of the same figure. .

Thereafter, the same process is performed, and as shown in FIG. 12(j), C
Ah”, “D9h” “B6h”, “DEh”
"B7h""Coh" are converted into hexadecimal character codes in sequence.

Next, processing in the case of incorrect input will be explained with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 13(a), the sentence "Haru..." is input. At this time, as shown in FIG. 5B, it is assumed that the user incorrectly inputs "c" and then "ru".

As a result, as shown in Figure 13(C), the character sequence is r7
193"r712" r71826J... is input, and "712" is an incorrect number sequence. In this case, if no delimiter signal is included, the result will be a series of character numbers as shown in FIG.

This is sequentially converted into a hex character code as shown in Figure 13(e), and converted to "CAh" as shown in Figure 13(f).The next character string r712J is not shown in the correspondence table. Therefore, the CPU (not shown) detects the erroneous number "7" and processes up to r712J as erroneous numbers as shown in (f) to (h) of the figure.

Then, the next r71826J is determined as shown in (i) of the same figure, and as shown in (j) of the same figure, °CAh""D9h"
...and convert it into a hex character code.

Next, a method of character encoding starting from the end of a sentence will be explained with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 14(a), the sentence "...Kita" is input. In this case, when the key at the pressed point position as shown in (b) of the same figure is input, the string of characters shown in (Q) of the same figure is input, and the string of characters of the correspondence table as shown in (d) of the same figure is input.
As shown in FIG. 14(e), the input string of characters is compared from the rear, and as shown in FIG. 14(f), the character code is first coded as "°coh".

Next, the long character sequence of the number r794682J in front of it is encoded as B7h= as shown in FIG.

In this case, "79" in r794682J is the complete number sequence, and r4682J is the short character number sequence.

Next, the overall configuration will be explained with reference to the conceptual diagrams shown in FIGS. 15 and 16.

(B) - Structure of time memory format The structure of temporary memory format is to enter characters in sentence units.As shown in Fig. 15(a), when a character is input using the key group 10 of the numeric keypad, the right As shown, a sentence is input as a sequence of characters.

The input method of this input means 12 is divided into a character fitting method and a sentence input method, as shown in FIG. be.

FIG. 15(c) separately shows what is stored in the storage area 13 of the memory in a system in which characters are separated and what is stored in a system in which characters are consecutively stored.

FIG. 15(d) shows that the character encoding processing method by the encoding processing means 14 has different processing flows in the above two methods, and is processed using the correspondence table stored in the dictionary 15 of the memory, Ce") in the figure indicates one day of memory in which a character code string resulting from character encoding processing is stored.

(b) Configuration of input character encoding process continuous type The configuration of input character encoding process continuous type is different from the examples explained so far. Processing is performed character by character as shown on the right.

FIG. 16(b) shows two types of input methods using this input means 22, namely, a method of dividing by character, and
This indicates that there is a method that does not use separation.

FIG. 16(c) shows that the encoding process by the encoding processing means 23 is performed in different flows in the two methods shown in FIG. 16(b) using the correspondence table stored in the dictionary 15 of the memory. There is.

Then, the character code obtained in FIG. 16(d) is stored in the memory 25, and the character code obtained in FIG. 16(8) is displayed on the display 2, and the character code obtained by repeating the above process is This shows that the column is stored in the memory 27 in FIG.

In addition, use the following correspondence table using a simplified character sequence to perform character encoding processing, and display the result to notify the user that the process has started for the next character. This allows high-speed input.

FIG. 17 shows a partial example of a correspondence table using abbreviated character strings.

In this method, as shown in the figure, the next character input is started when it can be determined that the character corresponds to the character before all the pressed points have been pressed.

Other cases will be explained.

For example, for characters whose shapes are difficult to apply, such as the katakana ``Ne'' shown in Figures 18 and 19, or when there are differences in stroke order, it is recommended to set specific rules or have multiple character sequences. , or to match the keys to the characters.

18(a), (b), and (c) show the character "ne" whose character code is "°C8h" in different stroke orders using the 3×3 key group 10.

In addition, in Fig. 19, using the 3X3+1 key group 11,
It shows the same character "ne".

For example, the first 9 strokes of ``Tsu'' and rne J are expressed by the number of positions, and in terms of position, they are interpreted as if they were on the top row or above.

Further, when shortening a character string, the above-mentioned example of "Yu" in FIG. 4 and the following example can be considered.

For example, the two strokes of two horizontal lines of "ki" and "mo" are number sequence 7.
, 6. Also, ``Tono is represented by the numerical sequence 5°6, etc.''

To summarize the above description, according to the character input encoding method of this embodiment, the shape of one character can be applied using a 3×3 key group or a 3×3+1 key group.

It can be used in whole or in part for katakana, hiragana, alphanumeric characters, kanji, and marks.

Since the number of positions is determined for each key in the key group, the shape can be easily applied intuitively.As for the stroke order, there are two methods: one that handles only the standard stroke order, and the other that handles multiple stroke orders.

To divide into character units, it is possible to input a signal indicating character units, or to divide into character units after a certain period of time has elapsed.

The method of consecutive characters does not require any operations between character units.

The number sequence obtained when the pressed point is replaced with a position number according to the stroke order can be speeded up by an input method that obtains only a number sequence sufficient for one character encoding process.

Numerical sequences based on a series of character sequences differ depending on the method of dividing into characters and the method of making single characters consecutive.

The correspondence table shows the correspondence between character strings and character codes.

These relationships are one-to-one or many-to-one. It is possible to have multiple correspondence tables depending on how character sequences are determined based on character shapes and stroke order.

There are two ways to code a sentence sequence as a unit of one line: one is to code each separated character sequence, the other is to code the sentence sequence by dividing it into character sequences. There are methods of encoding and methods of encoding backwards.

There are two methods of encoding a string of characters as a unit of one line: a method of encoding each separated string of characters, and a method of coding a string of sentences by dividing them into strings of characters.

In this case, the process moves to the next character input while displaying the result. Furthermore, the speed can be increased by using a correspondence table of simplified character strings.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the number of keys is small and the highly popular numeric keypad can be used, so the device can be downsized, allows one-handed input, and is inexpensive.

In addition, it has a wide range of applications because it does not select the type of key, it reduces the visual burden because it does not require searching for the text on the key top, and it is easy to remember and use because it allows you to input as if you were writing.

In addition, it is easy to process numerical sequences, and by setting each mode using a correspondence table, it is possible to handle specifications and character types tailored to the user.

Furthermore, it can handle continuous input of one character, and can be coded quickly using an abbreviation.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a numeric keypad as a key group for carrying out the invention. Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the key presses for the katakana character "mo" to be input, Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the key presses for the katakana character "su", and Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the key presses for the katakana character "su". Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the key press types; Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the order in which the keys shown in Figure 1 are pressed and the relationship between the character strings; Figures 6 and 7 are similar to Figure 5; An explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the order in which groups are pressed and the character sequence for short character sequences, long character sequences, and all number sequences. Figure 8 shows the 2-character sequence at which key presses are entered. A correspondence table showing the relationship between character codes. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the flow of character encoding processing using a method in which input characters are separated into character units; FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of character encoding processing using a method in which input characters are continuous; Figures 11 to 14 are explanatory diagrams of the conversion process showing specific examples of sentences written manually, Figures 15 and 16 are conceptual diagrams showing the overall structure of the character input encoding process, and Figure 17 is a simplified diagram. Figures 18 and 19, which are diagrams showing part of a correspondence table using character strings of shapes, are explanatory diagrams for inputting characters whose shapes are difficult to apply or characters whose stroke order is different. 10...3×3 key group 11...3×3+1 key group 12.22...Input means 13...Memory storage area 14.24...Encoding processing means 15...Memory Dictionary 1B, 25, 27...Memory 26...Display E...End point C...Break point D...Pressed point Figure 1 Figure 2 s3 Figure 4 (Q) Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 (b) Figure 8 Figure 9 Figure 10 Figure 10 7193/No. 71826 (α) 11th Prisoner Ro\Kapa Kita” (9) CAh D9h... ○ Number Convex (Ri CAh D9h E] 6h DEh Bah ↓ ↓ ◆ Convex (j), shi crazy Ju Nagi DEh B7h COh (α) F hull ・ °°" lAa column convex convex ilI number number remainder sequence short character - da j 1---E37h C0h 1113 Convex (j) and Δ Upper Dan and Yu Figure 15 Figure 16 Figure 18 Figure 19 Procedural amendment (voluntary) 1. Display of case Patent Application No. 1983-1983 2. Input the name of the invention character Coding method 3, relationship with the person making the amendment Patent applicant 1-3-6 Nakamagome, Ota-ku, Tokyo (674) Rico 4 Co., Ltd., Agent 170 (Telephone 986-2380) Tokyo, Japan 1-20-5-6, Higashiikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Contents of the amendment (1) Corresponding to ``corresponding to the rCPU'' on page 13, lines 17 to 19 of the specification shall be amended as follows. ``The obtained string of character numbers shown in Figure 11(d) is sequentially matched by the CPU to the string of character numbers in the correspondence table for each string of character numbers.'' The signal is...
" in the correspondence table shown in ...... shall be corrected as follows. ``The obtained string of characters shown in Figure 12(d) that does not include the delimiter signal is processed by the CPU as J(3) in the correspondence table, Ibid.
Lines 16-18 of page ``As shown in Figure (d)...''
``...has been done,'' should be corrected as follows. ``The resulting string of characters shown in (d) of the same figure is compared backwards with the string of characters in the correspondence table as shown in (e) of the same figure.'' (4) ``Coding Processing means 23
” should be corrected as “encoding processing means 24j.” is expressed by the number of positions 8 and corrected as J.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 When entering characters using keys such as a numeric keypad,
Apply the shape or stroke order of the characters to be input to the positional relationship of the keys, input each character, and then refer to the correspondence table for the character string that is the number of character positions obtained at this time.The code of the input character A character input encoding method characterized by performing conversion processing.