KR20090010447U - Key board panel for portable computing device and portable computing device comprising the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A first keyboard portion comprising a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns; A second keyboard part including a plurality of input keys having the same size and arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard part, and arranged symmetrically with the first keyboard part about a display screen part; A hot key input unit disposed below the first keyboard unit; And a touch pad part disposed below the second keyboard part.

The height and width of each of the hotkey input unit and the touchpad unit are not greater than the height and width of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit, respectively.

Keyboard Layout, Keyboard Layout, Hotkey Input, Portable Computing Devices

Description

KEY BOARD PANEL FOR PORTABLE COMPUTING DEVICE AND PORTABLE COMPUTING DEVICE COMPRISING THE SAME

The present invention relates to a keyboard panel structure used in a portable computer device, in particular, in a keyboard panel having a structure divided into left and right around a display screen portion, a key arrangement in which a hotkey input unit is disposed below the divided keyboard panel, and It is related with the portable computer apparatus provided.

Keyboards are used in many portable devices, including telephones and mobile communication devices, as well as desktop and notebook computers.

Recently, with the development of electronic technologies, portable computing devices are being developed, and the size of the keyboard is also getting smaller. In addition to the miniaturization of the size, various functions are assigned to each input key or a unique key arrangement is made.

However, such a portable computing device has a small space for data input since portability is emphasized. Unlike notebook computers, portable small computing devices, such as PDAs and PMPs, for this reason, do not have a keyboard themselves, but use a scrolling device or mouse pad to input.

On the other hand, portable computing devices of a size that fit into a hand having almost the same functions as notebook computers have recently been developed. For example, computing devices such as the Ultra Mobile PC (UMPC) and the Mobile Internet Device (MID) are not just phone calls, emails, music and video playback, but also surfing the Internet, editing documents and office programs in the Windows environment. Support.

However, in such portable computing devices, the power on / off key, the Internet access key, the page up / down key, the directional key, the right / left click function key, the Fn key, the volume key, as in the keyboard of a typical desktop computer or a notebook computer. Hotkeys with specific functions are provided. These hotkeys are numbered, functioned and placed according to the manufacturer's design.

However, since the size of the device is small, when the keyboard panel is placed under the display screen as in a conventional notebook, it is difficult to achieve miniaturization of the device, and it is very inconvenient to input data while holding the device with one hand. .

In general, a user familiar with a desktop computer or a notebook computer remembers the keyboard input with his left and right hands in his head and speeds up the input operation. In the above-mentioned portable computing device, the keyboard panel is placed in a narrow space under the display screen. This makes it very difficult to enter data by pressing the keyboard with your finger while holding the device with one hand.

The present invention has been made to solve the data input problem of the conventional portable computing device mentioned above, and an object thereof is to provide a keyboard panel for a portable computing device that can easily input while overcoming the space limitation problem of the portable computing device. .

Specifically, the present invention provides a portable computing device having a keyboard panel structure divided into left and right sides of a display screen, and providing a portable computing device including a key arrangement in which a hotkey input unit is disposed below the keyboard panel structure and a key arrangement. The purpose.

According to the present invention, the first keyboard portion consisting of a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns,

A second keyboard part including a plurality of input keys having the same size and arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard part, and arranged symmetrically with the first keyboard part about a display screen part;

A hot key input unit disposed below the first keyboard unit,

A touch pad unit disposed below the second keyboard unit,

The height and width of each of the hotkey input unit and the touchpad unit are not greater than the height and width of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit, respectively.

In addition, the portable computing device of the present invention includes a housing body and a keyboard panel provided on an upper surface of the housing body,

The keyboard panel,

A display screen unit provided at the center of the upper surface of the housing body;

A first keyboard portion comprising a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns;

A second keyboard part including a plurality of input keys having the same size and arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard part, and arranged symmetrically with the first keyboard part about the display screen part;

A hot key input unit disposed below the first keyboard unit,

A touch pad unit disposed below the second keyboard unit,

The height and width of each of the hotkey input unit and the touchpad unit are not greater than the height and width of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit, respectively.

According to the present invention, when the input key is arranged, the keyboard is arranged to the left and right of the display screen, and the hotkey input part is arranged at the lower part of the keyboard to be ergonomically excellent. That is, the present invention has an advantage that the input convenience is good and thus the user's convenience, so that the user can input data without great inconvenience even though it is a portable computing device.

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the present invention are described by way of example only.

First, referring to FIG. 1, a portable computing device 100 according to the present invention is shown. As can be seen through FIG. 1, the portable computing device 100 has a display screen unit 130 disposed at a center thereof, and has a first keyboard unit 110 symmetrically with respect to the display screen unit 130. The second keyboard portion 120 is disposed. The hot key input unit 140 is disposed below the first keyboard unit 110, and the touch pad unit 150 is disposed below the second keyboard unit 120. As used herein, a hotkey input unit is a term widely used in the art of a computing device, such as a power on / off key, an Internet access key, a page up / down key, an arrow key, a right / left click function key, a Fn key, a volume key. Shortcuts with specific functions, such as. Meanwhile, the touch pad unit is also a term widely used in the art of a computing device, and means a component that allows a user to move a mouse pointer like a mouse while touching a pad with a finger and perform a left click function and a right click function. do.

On the other hand, as a component provided in the portable computing device 100 according to the present invention, an input signal processing unit for processing an input signal from the keyboard panel, a central operation processing unit for calculating and outputting the input signal, the input signal And / or a memory unit configured of a RAM and / or a ROM for storing a signal that is processed and output, an output signal processor for outputting a signal that has been processed and output to the display screen, and an I / O interface for controlling the input / output of the signal. Components and the like are general ones known in the art and are not essential elements of the present invention, and thus detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Next, FIG. 2 illustrates only the first keyboard portion 110 and the second keyboard portion 120 of the portable computing device 100 as shown in FIG. 1.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the first keyboard unit 110 includes a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns. In addition, the second keyboard unit 120 is also composed of a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard unit 110.

As mentioned above, the function, number, shape, etc. of the input keys of the keyboard are matters that are appropriately determined according to the manufacturer's intention. Therefore, those skilled in the art will fully understand that each input key of the first and second keyboard parts 110 and 120 shown in FIG. 2 is merely one example, and the shape and number thereof may be modified.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 2, the function keys Fn 111 and 121 may be symmetrically disposed on the first and second keyboard parts 110 and 120, respectively. By arranging the function keys 111 and 121 on the left and right keyboard portions, the user can easily use the function keys during data input regardless of whether the user uses the left or right hand well.

Next, referring to FIG. 3, one of the features of the present invention is illustrated in more detail.

As mentioned above, in a typical keyboard layout, hot keys having a specific function may be arranged in an appropriate combination of numbers or functions according to a manufacturer's intention.

In the key arrangement according to the present invention, the hot key input unit 140 is disposed below the keyboard unit, and preferably, as shown in FIG. 2, below the first keyboard unit 110.

On the other hand, the hot key input unit 140, a four-way key portion consisting of four input keys of the up direction key 143, the right direction key 144, the down direction key 145, and the left direction key 146, page up (page up) Left and right mouse buttons composed of two input keys, a page up / down section composed of two input keys of a key 141 and a page down key 142, a left mouse button 147, and a right mouse button 148. The volume up / down section preferably comprises two input keys: a / right button section, a volume down key 149a, and a volume up key 149b.

On the other hand, the four-way key portion occupies a predetermined area of the hot key input unit 140, it is preferable that the page up / down and the mouse left / right button portion is regularly arranged around the area where the four direction key portion is arranged. . For example, as shown in FIG. 3, four keys are arranged in the center portion of the hotkey input unit in the form of point symmetry with four keys centered around each other, and the page up / down unit and the mouse left / right button unit are respectively. It is preferable to be arranged side by side up and down on the left and right of the four direction key portion. The volume up / down part is preferably disposed below the four direction key parts.

Next, referring to FIG. 4, an example of a function of each input key constituting the hot key input unit 140 is illustrated.

The present invention can be applied to key arrangement of various electronic devices for miniaturization of the device, and in particular, to key arrangement of portable computing devices such as UMPC and MID.

Although the present invention has been described as a suitable embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the contents described herein. Those skilled in the art will fully appreciate that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the scope of the appended utility model claims.

1 is a plan view of a portable computing device of the present invention including a keyboard panel divided into left and right centered around a display screen unit.

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged plan view of first and second keyboard portions of the portable computing device illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged plan view of a hotkey input unit disposed below the first left keyboard unit of the portable computing device illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a table for explaining a function of the hotkey input unit shown in FIG. 3.

Claims (10)

A first keyboard portion comprising a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns; A second keyboard part including a plurality of input keys having the same size and arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard part, and arranged symmetrically with the first keyboard part about a display screen part; A hot key input unit disposed below the first keyboard unit, A touch pad unit disposed below the second keyboard unit, And a height and a width of each of the hot key input unit and the touch pad unit are not greater than both the height and the width of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit, respectively. The method according to claim 1, The first keyboard unit is a keyboard panel for a portable computing device, characterized in that disposed on the left side of the display screen. The method according to claim 1, And a function key (Fn) is arranged symmetrically about the display screen unit in the last row of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, The hotkey input unit, 4-way key part consisting of four input keys, A page up / down section composed of two input keys, Mouse left / right button part composed of two input keys, Keyboard panel for a portable computing device, characterized in that the volume up / down consisting of two input keys. The method according to claim 4, The four direction key portion occupies a predetermined area and each has the same shape, The page up / down part and the mouse left / right button part are regularly arranged around the area where the four direction keys are arranged. The method according to claim 4, The input keys constituting the hot key input unit are not the same shape as the input keys constituting the first and second keyboard units. The method according to claim 5, And the page up / down part and the mouse left / right button part are arranged symmetrically from side to side with respect to the area where the four direction keys are arranged. The method according to claim 7, The volume up / down part is a keyboard panel for a portable computing device, characterized in that disposed below the area where the four direction keys are arranged. A portable computing device comprising a housing body and a keyboard panel provided on an upper surface of the housing body. The keyboard panel, A display screen unit provided at the center of the upper surface of the housing body; A first keyboard portion comprising a plurality of input keys of the same size arranged in a pattern having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns; A second keyboard part including a plurality of input keys having the same size and arranged in the same pattern as the first keyboard part, and arranged symmetrically with the first keyboard part about the display screen part; A hot key input unit disposed below the first keyboard unit, A touch pad unit disposed below the second keyboard unit, And a height and a width of each of the hotkey input unit and the touchpad unit are not greater than both the height and the width of each of the first keyboard unit and the second keyboard unit, respectively. The method according to claim 9, The hotkey input unit, 4-way key part consisting of four input keys, A page up / down section composed of two input keys, Mouse left / right button part composed of two input keys, A portable computing device comprising a volume up / down section comprising two input keys.

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