JPH04347721A - Handwriting character input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To realize natural input in the flow of a sentence without hiding a character which is previously recognized and displayed by providing two input frames and sequentially shifting the character input frames in a character input direction whenever the character is inputted. CONSTITUTION:An input part consists of LCD executing prescribed display and a tablet which detects an input position by a pen and outputs coordinate data corresponding to the input position. A display frame 7a is provided for the character input position and an input frame 7b is provided contiguously to the display frame 7a. Then, the same display frame 8a and input frame 8b are provided in the contiguous character input positions in the character input direction. When the character is written in one input frame, handwriting is displayed in the display frame displayed in the input frame. When input terminates, the character is recognized and displayed, and the input frame and the display frame, which correspond to the inputted character, shift to the character input direction. Since the input frame into which the character is hand-written is shifted and displayed near the recognized character in the input direction at every input, the hand-written character can naturally be inputted.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a handwritten character input device for inputting characters by hand onto a screen, which is suitable for use in electronic notebook devices, for example.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, devices have been proposed for inputting characters by hand on a screen. As shown in FIG. 14, a cursor 11 is displayed at the input position on the display section 10, and the characters themselves are entered in an input frame 12 displayed at a position unrelated to the cursor. When the entry in this frame is completed, the character written in the frame is recognized by pressing the input end button 13, and the recognition result (recognized character) is displayed in front of the cursor 11.

0003

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, since the characters (sentences) that have already been input (cursor 11) are far from the input frame 12 for inputting characters, it may be difficult to understand the connection between the sentences, or the characters that have already been input There was a problem in that it was difficult to confirm the characters, and it was not possible to input handwritten characters efficiently. This becomes more noticeable as the display screen becomes larger and the number of displayed characters increases.

[0004] Furthermore, when displaying an input frame for handwritten characters near the display position of recognized characters, the characters that have been input are hidden under the input frame for handwritten characters, making it difficult to confirm the input characters. It is necessary to move the display position of the input frame for handwritten characters or erase the display of the input frame. For this reason, it is cumbersome and difficult to use, and this becomes especially noticeable when inputting characters on the entire surface of the display screen.

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and provides a handwritten character input device that allows natural input in the flow of text without hiding the recognized characters in the vicinity of the recognized characters. It provides:

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve such problems, the handwritten character input device of the present invention recognizes handwritten characters input by lowering the pen to a predetermined position of a figure displayed on a display screen. In the handwritten character input device, at least two character input frames that are located near a character display position and that are sequentially moved and displayed in the character input direction for each character input;
The present invention is characterized by comprising a character recognition means for recognizing handwritten characters input into a character input frame and displaying them at a character input position.

[0007]

[Operation] In the handwritten character input device configured as described above, the input frame for handwriting inputting characters is displayed close to the recognized character and moved in the input direction each time the character is input, so that handwritten characters in a natural shape are displayed. Input can be performed.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of an embodiment of a handwritten character input device to which the present invention is applied. The input unit 1 includes an LCD 1b that displays a predetermined display, and a tablet 1a that detects the input position of the pen 2 and outputs the corresponding coordinate data. As the tablet 1a, a pressure sensitive type or a capacitive type can be used. This tablet 1a is made of a transparent material, and the display on the LCD 1b arranged on the lower side can be seen from above.

The position detection section 3 reads the coordinate data input from the tablet 1a, and outputs data corresponding to the reading result to the control section 41. For example, the control unit 4 consisting of a CPU etc. receives data input from the position detection unit 3 (
handwriting data) is supplied to the online handwritten character recognition unit 5. The handwritten character recognition unit 5 stores a large amount of character data in advance, and compares the input handwriting data with the previously stored character data to recognize which character it is.

The control section 4 supplies character data obtained as a result of recognition by the handwritten character recognition section 5 to the display control section 6 . The display control section 6 converts this character data into image data and displays it on the LCD 1b. Alternatively, the control unit 4 supplies the handwriting data to the display control unit 6, and displays the handwriting data on the LCD 1b.
The handwriting of the pen 2 on the tablet 1a is displayed as it is.

In this device, the input section 1 is controlled by the display control section 6, so that character input frames 7 and 8 as shown in FIG. 2 are displayed close to each other at the character input position. In the character input frames 7 and 8, display frames 7a and 8a of the same size as the displayed characters are displayed with one side in common in the same direction as the arrangement of characters, and the display frames 7a and 8a are displayed with one side in common in the same direction as the character arrangement. Input frame 7 for inputting characters by hand in an alternate state
b, 8b are provided. Since the input frames 7b and 8b are used to input characters, they are displayed larger than the display frames 7a and 8a to make it easier to enter characters.

[0012] Figure 2 already shows a state in which the characters ``hand'' and ``calligraphy'' have been input by hand from the input frames 7b and 8b, and the characters are recognized and displayed. The character "ki" is written in the input frame 7b of 7 with the input pen 2 of FIG. 1 is supplied. As a result, the character "ki", which is the handwriting input in the display frame 7a and the input frame 7b in FIG. 3, is displayed.

When the input is completed as will be described later, the character input frame 7 moves to the right side of the character input frame 8, as shown in FIG. 4, and the next character can be input. Here, when characters are entered in the character input frame 8 in the same way as in the case described above, Figure 5
As shown in , the input characters (handwriting) are displayed in the display frame 8a.
and is displayed in the input frame 8b.

However, in the state shown in FIG. 2, if a character is input into the character input frame 8 that is later in the input order, the character (handwriting) is transferred to the input frame 8b and the display frame 8a as is, as shown in FIG.
will be displayed. Then, when the input (input of one stroke) is completed, the character input frame 7 moves to the right side of the character input frame 8,
As shown in FIG. 7, characters are displayed with one blank space left. The above operations are repeated to input handwritten characters.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining this operation. First, in step 100, character input frames 7 and 8 are displayed according to the input position instructions, and if handwritten data remains, it is cleared. Step 101
Waits for pen input. If there is a pen down, it is determined in step 102 whether the pen down is in the front input frame, the rear input frame, or a part other than the input frame.

[0016] If the pen down is the input frame in front,
As shown in step 105, the handwriting input into the input frame is recognized and displayed, and the handwritten data is saved. Then, as shown in step 106, obtain the next pen data,
If the pen down is detected, the process returns to step 105 and the above-described operation is performed. If the pen down is not detected, that is, if the pen is up, the process returns to step 101 to wait for pen input. In this way, one stroke of a character is input and displayed. Thereafter, the same process is repeated for the input of the second and subsequent strokes, and the input of one character is completed.

That is, when the pen is moved down to the character input frame 7 in front as shown in FIG.
Handwriting) is displayed and the data is saved.

When it is determined in step 102 that the pen is down within the rear input frame, the process proceeds to step 110.
As shown in step 111, it is determined whether or not there is handwritten data in the input frame in front, and if there is handwritten data, the saved handwritten data is recognized and displayed as shown in step 111, and the handwritten data is is cleared. That is, when input to the rear input frame is started, it is determined that input to the front input frame is finished, character recognition is started, and the recognized characters are displayed.

Then, as shown in step 112, the front character input frame is moved to the next position, the attribute is set to the rear, and the attribute of the current frame is set to the front.

However, as shown in FIG. 6, for example, when handwritten characters are input into the rear character input frame 8 without any handwritten data in the front character input frame 7, there is no need for character recognition, so step Skip 111 and go to Figure 7
As shown in the figure, the character input frame 7 in the front is moved backward, the attribute of the character input frame 7 is changed to the rear, and the attribute of the character input frame 8, which is the current frame, is changed to the front.

[0021] Then, as shown in step 113, handwritten data (handwriting) is displayed in the input frame changed to the front, and the handwritten data is saved. That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the character "NO" (handwriting) input in the input frame 8b and the display frame 8b is displayed.

Next, as shown in step 114, the next pen data (data of the first stroke following the previous data) is obtained, and if it is determined in step 115 that the pen is still down, the process returns to step 113, and the pen data is not down (the pen is not down). up)
If so, the process returns to step 103. This step 11
The processes in steps 3 to 115 are similar to the processes in steps 105 to 107.

In step 102, if it is determined that the pen down is outside the input frames 7b and 8b, step 1
As shown in step 20, it is determined whether or not there is handwritten data in the input frame in front, and if there is handwritten data, the stored handwritten data is recognized and displayed as shown in step 121, and the handwritten data is displayed. Clear handwritten data. Then, as shown in step 122, the front input frame is moved to the next position, the attribute is set to rear, and the attribute of the rear input frame is changed to front, and the process returns to step 101. Step 1
If it is determined in step 20 that there is no data in the rear input frame, there is no need for character recognition, so step 121,
122 is skipped and the process returns to step 101.

[0024] In this way, when a part other than the input frame is touched with the pen 2 (for example, when an icon for the next operation is touched after inputting the last character in order to proceed to an operation other than character input). Character recognition will also begin.

FIG. 9 and subsequent figures are diagrams showing application examples. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 2 to 7, the input frames 7b and 8b are displayed above and below the character input direction (horizontal direction in the figure), but in FIG. (
In this example, two character input frames are provided in the lower direction. FIG. 10 shows some areas 7c and 8c of the character input frame.
This is an example of displaying whether the mode is insert mode or overwrite mode. FIG. 11 is an example in which an input end instruction area is provided in parts 7d and 8d of the input frame (character recognition is started when this input end instruction area is touched). FIG. 12 shows an example of a character input frame in which a display frame 7a (8a) is used also for two input frames 7b and 8b without displaying a leader line. FIG. 13 is an example of vertical writing (character direction is downward in the figure).

[0026]

As described above, according to the handwritten character input device of the present invention, at least two input frames are provided in the character input direction near the character display position, and the input frames are used each time a character is input.
Since the characters move sequentially in the input direction, you can easily determine the connection between the characters that have already been input and are displayed, and the characters that are currently being input, and the characters that have already been input and displayed can be moved by the input frame. This has the effect of preventing characters from being hidden and allowing characters to be entered in a natural manner.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of a device configured by applying the present invention.

[Fig. 2] A diagram showing a state in which input characters are recognized and displayed in the device shown in Fig. 1.

[Fig. 3] A diagram showing a state in which characters are input in the character input frame in front of the device shown in Fig. 1.

[Figure 4] Diagram showing the state after character input is completed in Figure 3

[Figure 5] Diagram showing the state in the middle of inputting characters in the input frame

[Figure 6] Diagram showing a state in which characters are input into the character input box later in the input order

[Figure 7] A diagram showing a state in which character input has been completed and the character input frame has moved in Figure 6.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of an embodiment of the device of the present invention.

[Figure 9] Diagram showing an example of displaying two character input frames on the same side in the character input direction

[Figure 10] Diagram showing an example of displaying input modes

[Figure 11]
Diagram showing an example when a character input end instruction area is provided

[Figure 12] Diagram showing an example of not displaying leader lines

[Figure 13]
Diagram showing an example of vertical writing

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a conventional input image

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Input section 2 Input pen 3 Position detection section 4 Control section 5　Online handwritten character recognition section 6 Display control section 7, 8 Character input box 7a, 7b Display frame 8a, 8b Input frame

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: A handwritten character input device that recognizes handwritten characters input by pen-down at a predetermined location of a figure displayed on a display screen, in which each character is input near the character display position and in the character input direction. A handwritten character input device comprising at least two character input frames that are sequentially moved and displayed, and a character recognition unit that recognizes handwritten characters input into the character input frames and displays them at a character input position. .