WO2020053579A1

WO2020053579A1 - An electronic apparatus and method for generating a signal

Info

Publication number: WO2020053579A1
Application number: PCT/GB2019/052529
Authority: WO
Inventors: Matthew Charles Reginald TURNER
Original assignee: Turner Matthew Charles Reginald
Priority date: 2018-09-13
Filing date: 2019-09-11
Publication date: 2020-03-19
Also published as: GB2577087A; GB201814883D0; GB2577087B

Abstract

A user interface (101) of the electronic apparatus (100) comprises a first key (107) and a second key (109). The first key (107) and the second key (109) each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area (111, 113) and a secondary key area (115). The secondary key area (115) of the first key (107) overlaps with the secondary key area (115) of the second key in a first overlapping region (115). A controller (103) of the electronic apparatus is arranged to: generate a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area (111) of the first key (107); generate a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area (113) of the second key (109); and generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region (115). The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

Description

AN ELECTRONIC APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR GENERATING A

SIGNAL

[0001] The present invention is directed towards an electronic apparatus and method for generating a signal, and in particular for generating audio control signals.

[0002] US Patent No. 6,670,535 B2 discloses a musical instrument controller. The controller provides a keyboard with a plurality of keys formed in an array. When triggered each of the keys generate a musical note. The keys are arranged such that most keys form major 3^rd, minor 3^rd, and perfect fifth intervals at line segment boundaries with adjacent keys, and form major and minor triads at vertices where three keys meet. Beneficially, this keyboard arrangement enables the user to play an interval or a triad using a single finger by pressing their finger on the segment line or the vertices between adjacent keys.

[0003] It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved, or at least an alternative, electronic apparatus for generating a signal.

[0004] According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus and method as set forth in the appended claims. Other features of the invention will be apparent from the dependent claims, and the description which follows.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided an electronic apparatus for generating a signal. The electronic apparatus comprises a user interface comprising a first key and a second key. The first key and the second key each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area and a secondary key area. The secondary key area of the first key overlaps with the secondary key area of the second key in a first overlapping region. The electronic apparatus further comprises a controller. The controller is arranged to generate a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the first key. The controller is arranged to generate a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the second key. The controller is arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[0006] Significantly, the electronic apparatus of the present invention provides first and second keys which overlap with one another in a first overlapping region. This means that an area of the first key overlaps with an area of the second key, and as such the first overlapping region is shared by both the first key and the second key. This approach contrasts with US Patent No. 6,670,535 B2 where adjacent keys abut, but do not overlap. In accordance with the present invention, a user is not required to carefully position their finger on the segment line or the vertices between adjacent keys to produce a combined signal. Instead, the present invention provides an easily identifiable overlapping region in which a user input is able to be received to generate the combined signal. Further, rather than provide a separate key to generate the combined signal, a first overlapping region of the existing first and second keys is used. This helps provide a more compact user interface while still providing the same level of functionality. In this way, an improved man-machine interface for generating combined signals is provided. The overlapping region may be visually identifiable as overlapping on the user interface, e.g. the overlapping of the first key and the second key may be visually shown on the user interface.

[0007] The electronic apparatus may be for generating an audio control signal. The first signal, and/or the second signal, and/or the combined signal may be audio control signals. The first audio control signal may be for generating audio having a first pitch, e.g. a first musical note. The second audio control signal may be for generating audio having a second pitch. The combined audio control signal may be for generating audio that comprises both the first pitch and the second pitch.

[0008] The audio control signal may be a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) signal or similar signal format.

[0009] The combined audio control signal may be for generating audio such that, when the audio is output by a speaker, the first pitch and the second pitch are output simultaneously or sequentially.

[0010] The controller may be arranged to control a speaker to output audio according to the generated audio control signal. The speaker may be part of the electronic apparatus. That is, the electronic apparatus may comprise a speaker, and the controller may be arranged to control the speaker to output audio according to the audio control signal. The speaker may be an external speaker, i.e. not part of the electronic apparatus.

[0011] The user interface may comprise a third key. The third key may comprise a primary key area and a secondary key area. That is, the third key may comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into the primary key area and the secondary key area. The secondary key area of the third key may overlap with the secondary key area of the first key in a second overlapping region.

[0012] The controller may be arranged to: generate a third signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the third key. The controller may be arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the second overlapping region. The combined signal may comprise a combination of the first signal and the third signal. [0013] The secondary key area of the third key may overlap with the secondary key area of the second key in a third overlapping region. The controller may be arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the third overlapping region. The combined signal may comprise a combination of the second signal and the third signal.

[0014] The second overlapping region may partially overlap with the first overlapping region. The controller may be arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the region where the second overlapping region overlaps the first overlapping region. The combined signal may comprise a combination of the first signal, the second signal, and the third signal.

[0015] The primary key area of the first key may be a central region of the first key. The secondary key area of the first key may be a peripheral region of the first key.

[0016] The secondary key area of the first key may overlap with 3 or more other keys to define 3 or more overlapping regions. In one example, the secondary key area of the first key may overlap with 6 other keys to define 6 overlapping regions. In some examples, at least one of the overlapping regions may partially overlap with at least one of the other overlapping regions.

[0017] The first key and/or the second key may be an N-sided shape, where N is 3 or more. The secondary key area of the first key may overlap with N other keys to define N overlapping regions. N may be 6. Some or all of the N keys may have the same shape. Moreover, the first key and/or the second key may be round in shape. For example, N may be sufficiently high that the first key and/or the second key appear to be round in shape. The rounded shapes may be irregular or regular. The keys may be in the form of ovals or circles. Moreover, shapes with curved sides may be provided. That is, the first key and/or the second key may be N sided shapes and one or more of these sides may be curved. The first key may have the same shape as the second key or may have a different shape to the second key.

[0018] The first key and/or the second key may be regular hexagons. In other words, the first key may have a regular hexagonal shape, and/or the second key may have a regular hexagonal shape.

[0019] The first key and/or second key may be changeable in size. The size of the first key and/or second key may be changed in response to a user input. The user input may be a user input for selecting a particular size of key. The relative size of the overlapping region to the primary key area may remain unchanged.

[0020] The first overlapping region may be changeable in size. That is, the controller may be arranged to control the user interface to adjust the size of the first overlapping region relative to the primary key area of the first key and/or the primary key area of the second key. The secondary key area of the first key and/or the secondary key area of the second key may be decreased or increased in size so as to change the size of the first overlapping region. An increase in the size of the secondary key area may lead to a decrease in the size of the primary key area of the corresponding key. A decrease in the size of the secondary key area may lead to an increase the size of the primary key area of the corresponding key. That is, the relative size of the secondary key area/first overlapping region to the primary key area may be changeable. The first overlapping region/secondary key area/primary key area may be changed in size in response to a user input. The user input may be a user input to select a particular size of the first overlapping region/secondary key area/primary key area.

[0021] The electronic apparatus may comprise a display for providing the user interface, the display may be a presence-sensitive display. The presence-sensitive display may includes a display component and a presence-sensitive input component. The presence sensitive display may be a touch-screen display arranged to provide the user interface.

[0022] The controller may be arranged to control the display to adjust the size of the first overlapping region, e.g. by changing the size of the primary key area and/or the secondary key area of the first key and/or the second key. In this way, the size of the secondary key area/overlapping region relative to the primary key area may be changed. The controller may be arranged to adjust the size in response to a user input. The user input may be a user input to select a particular size of the first overlapping region/secondary key area/primary key area.

[0023] The controller may be arranged to control the display to change the size of the first key and/or the second key on the display, e.g. to increase or decrease the size of the keys on the display. The user input may be a user input for selecting a particular size of key. The relative size of the overlapping region to the primary key area may remain unchanged.

[0024] The primary key area of first key may be displayed as a first visual representation. The primary key area of the second key may be displayed as a second visual representation. The first and second visual representations may be different. The first overlapping region may be displayed as a combination of the first and second visual representations. The first visual representation may comprise a different colour, and/or texture, and/or pattern to the second visual representation.

[0025] In some examples, the user may be able maintain a continuous user input (e.g. a touch input) with the user interface and slide between adjacent regions of the keys. For example, the user may slide their user input from the primary key area of the first key to first the overlapping region. The controller may generate the first signal and then the combined signal in response to this sliding movement. The user may slide their user input from the first overlapping region to the primary key area of the second key. The controller may generate the combined control signal and then the second signal in response to this sliding movement. Other sliding movements between different/same keys will result in the generation of different signals.

[0026] In some examples, the user interface may be able to sense multiple user inputs simultaneously. The multiple different user inputs may be in different key areas, e.g. in different primary key areas and overlapping regions, and thus may allow for multiple different signals to be generated at the same time or sequentially.

[0027] In some examples, the user interface may be able to sense a force, pressure or velocity of the user input, and may be able to change how the signals are generated based on the force/pressure/velocity of the user input. For example, a user input with a greater force/pressure/velocity may be used to generate a signal having a greater magnitude than a user input with a smaller force/pressure/velocity.

[0028] The first overlapping region may have a width greater than the minimum resolution of the input sensing arrangement of the user interface, e.g. greater than the minimum resolution of the tactile/touch sensors provided to sense the user input. The width may be at least 5 times or 10 times greater than the minimum resolution.

[0029] The secondary key area may occupy between 5 to 90 percent of the first key and/or the second key. That is, 5 to 90 percent of the first key may be shared with the second key. The secondary key area may occupy between 5 to 80 percent, or 5 to 70 percent, or 5 to 60 percent, or 5 to 50 percent, or 5 to 40 percent, or 5 to 30 percent, or 5 to 20 percent, or 5 to 10 percent of the first key and/or the second key. The secondary key area may occupy between 10 to 90 percent, or 20 to 90 percent, or 30 to 90 percent, or 40 to 90 percent, or 50 to 90 percent, or 60 to 90 percent, or 70 to 90 percent, or 80 to 90 percent of the first key and/or the second key.

[0030] According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for generating a signal using an electronic apparatus, the electronic apparatus comprising: a user interface comprising a first key and a second key, wherein the first key and the second key each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area and a secondary key area, and wherein the secondary key area of the first key overlaps with the secondary key area of the second key in a first overlapping region; and a controller. The method comprises generating, by the controller, a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the first key. The method comprises generating, by the controller, a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the second key. The method comprises generating, by the controller, a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[0031] According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the method according to the second aspect of the invention.

[0032] There is also provided a computer readable medium carrying the computer program according to the third aspect of the invention.

[0033] For a better understanding of the invention, and to show how embodiments of the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which:

[0034] Figure 1 shows a diagram of a keyboard arrangement according to a prior art keyboard device;

[0035] Figure 2 shows a simplified schematic diagram of an example electronic apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 3 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0037] Figure 4 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0038] Figure 5 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0039] Figure 6 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0040] Figure 7 shows a diagram of a keyboard arrangement according to a prior art keyboard device;

[0041] Figure 8 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0042] Figure 9 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2; [0043] Figure 10 shows an example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0044] Figure 1 1 shows a flow diagram for an example method according to the second aspect of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 12 shows another example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2;

[0046] Figure 13 shows another example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2; and

[0047] Figure 14 shows another example user interface provided by the electronic apparatus of Figure 2.

[0048] Referring to Figure 1 , there is shown an example keyboard arrangement according to a prior art keyboard device. The keyboard arrangement comprises two regular hexagonal shaped keys 1 , 3 that are positioned adjacent one another. If the first key 1 is pressed, a first signal is generated. If the second key 3 is pressed a second signal is generated. If the keyboard device permits the simultaneous activation of both keys 1 , 3 then pressing both keys 1 , 3 simultaneously will enable both the first signal and the second signal to be generated at the same time.

[0049] Referring to Figure 2, there is shown an electronic apparatus 100 according to aspects of the present invention. The electronic apparatus 100 comprises a user interface 101 , a controller 103, and optionally an output component 105. In some examples, the output component 105 is a speaker 105 as shown in Figure 2. Figure 2 illustrates only one particular example of electronic apparatus 100, and many other examples of electronic apparatus 100 may be used in other instances and may include a subset of the components included in electronic apparatus 100 or may include additional components not shown in Figure 2.

[0050] The electronic apparatus 100 may be a mobile electronic apparatus 100 such as a laptop, tablet personal computer (PC), mobile phone or smart phone. The electronic apparatus 100 may be a projector, e.g. arranged to project the user interface onto a surface. The electronic apparatus 100 may be a desktop PC. The electronic apparatus 100 may be any apparatus that provides a user interface and is able to sense a user input. The electronic apparatus 100 may be an electronic keyboard, and may be an electronic musical keyboard, for example a synthesizer or a digital piano keyboard. The electronic apparatus 100 may be a sequence controller or a standalone MIDI controller. [0051] The user interface 101 provides keys and, potentially in cooperation with the controller 103, is able to sense user inputs on or in relation to the keys. Here, keys do not necessarily refer to physical keys that may be pressed (such as mechanical keyboard keys or piano keys) but rather refer generally to regions of the user interface 101 that may sense a user input. The user interface 101 may comprise tactile sensors for sensing the user inputs. The tactile sensors may be selected as appropriate by the skilled person in the art. The tactile sensors may be touch sensors. The touch sensors could, for example, be capacitive, resistive, optical or piezo-electric touch sensors. The user inputs could be touch inputs provided, e.g. by a finger of the user or a stylus held by the user. It will be appreciated that the touch input is not required to physically touch the user interface 101 in all examples as the skilled person will appreciate that user interfaces 101 are able to detect an approaching finger/stylus without requiring physical contact between the finger/stylus and the touch interface.

[0052] The user interface 101 may have visual markings to show the location of the keys. The visual markings could be printed or otherwise implemented on the user interface 101 . In most preferred embodiments, however, the user interface 101 is a presence-sensitive display 101 that includes a display component and a presence-sensitive input component. The presence- sensitive display may, in particular be a touch screen display that is able to sense user touch inputs (from a finger or a stylus, for example) and display visual indication of keys to the user. The display component of the presence-sensitive display 101 may be a screen which displays a graphical keyboard arrangement. In some examples, the presence-sensitive input component also provides output to a user using tactile, audio, or video stimuli.

[0053] The presence-sensitive display 101 may be external to the electronic apparatus 100. The presence-sensitive display 101 may be communicatively coupled to the electronic apparatus 100. In such examples, the presence-sensitive display 101 may be an external component of the electronic apparatus 100 located outside and physically separated from the packaging or housing of the electronic apparatus 100 (e.g., a monitor, a projector communicatively coupled to the electronic apparatus 100). The presence-sensitive display 101 may be an internal component of the electronic apparatus 100, e.g. located within and physically connected to the external packaging of the electronic apparatus 100 (e.g., a screen on a mobile phone).

[0054] In a particular example, the user interface 101 is a presence-sensitive display 101 arranged to display a graphical user interface. The graphical user interface includes a graphical keyboard includes graphical elements displayed as graphical keys. A user of the device may provide input at the graphical keyboard, and the controller 103 may generate signals in response to the user inputs. [0055] The electronic apparatus 100 may run a keyboard application to control the user interface 101. The keyboard application may represent an application, service, or component executed at or accessible to the electronic apparatus 100 to provide the electronic apparatus 100 with the graphical user interface. The keyboard application may be a stand-alone application, service, or may be module executed by other applications. The keyboard application may be integrated into a music generation application executed by the electronic apparatus 100. As another example, the keyboard application may be a stand-alone application or subroutine that is invoked by an application or operating platform of the electronic apparatus 100. In some examples, the electronic apparatus 100 may download and install the keyboard application from an application repository of a service provider (e.g., an online application store accessible via the Internet). In other examples, the keyboard application may be preloaded during production of the electronic apparatus 100. In other examples, the keyboard application may be a web-based application. That is, the keyboard application does not necessarily need to be installed on the electronic apparatus 100 and instead may be accessed via a web browser.

[0056] The keyboard application may output information to the user interface 101. The information may specify the layout of a graphical keyboard within the graphical user interface. Based on the information received from keyboard application the user interface 101 may be controlled to display the graphical keyboard on the touch screen display of the user interface 101. Each key of the graphical keys may be associated with the generation of a signal. A user of the electronic apparatus 100 may provide inputs at locations on the user interface 101 at which one or more of graphical keys are displayed to control the generation of signals.

[0057] The output component 105 is arranged to generate an output in response to a user input on the graphical user interface. The output component 105 may generate a tactile, audio, and/or video output. In preferred examples, the output component 105 is a speaker or a communication interface for communicating with an external speaker.

[0058] Referring to Figure 3, there is shown an example arrangement of keys 107, 109 on the user interface 101 of the electronic apparatus 100 of Figure 2. In this particular example, the user interface 101 is a presence-sensitive display that visually displays the keys as shown in Figure 3 and is able to sense user inputs within the visual boundaries shown in Figure 3. The user interface 101 comprises a first key 107 and a second key 109 which are both regular hexagons in shape like the prior art arrangement shown in Figure 1. Significantly, however, the first key 107 and the second key 109 overlap one another to define a first overlapping region 115. This means that a region of the first key 107 is shared with a region of the second key [0059] The first key 107 has a primary key area 111. The primary key area 111 does not overlap with the second key 109. The boundaries of the primary key area 111 of the first key 107 are determined by the edges of the first key 107 and the edges of the second key 109 that overlap with the first key 107. If a user input is received in the primary key area 11 1 of the first key 107, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a first signal.

[0060] The second key 109 has a primary key area 113. The primary key area 113 does not overlap with the first key 107. The boundaries of the primary key area 113 of the second key 109 are determined by the edges of the second key 109 and the edges of the first key 107 that overlap with the second key 109. If a user input is received in the primary key area 113 of the second key 109, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a second signal. Generally, the second signal will be different to the first signal.

[0061] As discussed above, the first key 107 and the second key 109 overlap in a first overlapping region 115. In more detail, the first key 107 has a user input sensing region that is divided into the primary key area 11 1 and a secondary key area 115. The secondary key area 115 overlaps with the second key 109. Similarly, the user input sensing region of the second key 109 is divided into the primary key area 113 and a secondary key area 1 15 which overlaps with the first key 107. Consequently, the secondary key area 115 of the first key 107 overlaps with the secondary key area 115 of the second key 109. In other words, a first overlapping region 115 is shared between the first key 107 and the second key 109. If a user input is received in the first overlapping region 115, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a combined signal. The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[0062] Here,“combination” is intended to refer to any reasonable combination of signals. This may mean that the combined signal, when output, would represent the first signal and the second signal being output simultaneously. This may mean that the combined signal, when output, would represent the first signal and the second signal being output sequentially.

[0063] Significantly, and unlike the arrangement shown in Figure 1 , the user is able to generate the combined signal by providing a single input in a single overlapping region 115. The single input could be a single touch input as provided, e.g. by a single finger of the user or a stylus on a touch sensing user interface 101. A benefit of the overlapping region 115 shared by the first key 107 and the second key 109 is that the user does not need to simultaneously press or touch both keys 107, 109 using two separate fingers in two separate regions to generate the combined signal. Further, the user is not required to precisely press or touch the segment between adjacent keys to try and activate them at the same time using a single finger input. Further still, because the overlapping region 115 is shared by the keys 107, 109 and is not a separate distinct key (i.e. a separate key for generating the combined signal), the user interface 101 is able to be more compact and intuitive to use while still providing the same level of functionality. As such, an improved man-machine interface for a user to control the generation of signals is provided due to the presence of the overlapping regions.

[0064] The user interface 101 is, in some arrangements, able to sense multiple user inputs simultaneously. This means that a user is able to provide multiple user inputs at the same time, e.g. by using multiple fingers to interact with the user interface 101 . In this way, the primary key area 1 11 of the first key 107 and/or the primary key area 1 13 of the second key 109 and/or the overlapping region 1 15 could receive user inputs for generating control signals at the same time.

[0065] Referring to Figure 4, there is shown an example arrangement of keys 107, 109, 1 17 on the user interface 101 of the electronic apparatus 100 of Figure 2. The user interface 101 includes an additional third key 1 17 compared to the user interface 101 of Figure 3. In particular, the user interface 101 comprises a first key 107, a second key 109, and a third key 1 17 which are all regular hexagons in shape, and which overlap one another.

[0066] The first key 107 has a primary key area 1 1 1 . The boundaries of the primary key area 1 1 1 of the first key 107 are determined by the edges of the first key 107, the edges of the second key 109 that overlap with the first key 107, and the edges of the third key 1 17 that overlap with the first key 107. If a user input is received in the primary key area 1 1 1 of the first key 107, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a first signal.

[0067] The second key 109 has a primary key area 1 13. The boundaries of the primary key area 1 13 of the second key 109 are determined by the edges of the second key 109, the edges of the first key 107 that overlap with the second key 109, and the edges of the third key 1 17 that overlap with the second key 109. If a user input is received in the primary key area 1 13 of the second key 109, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a second signal.

[0068] The third key 1 17 has a primary key area 1 19. The boundaries of the primary key area 1 19 of the third key 1 17 are determined by the edges of the third key 1 17, the edges of the first key 107 that overlap with the third key 1 17, and the edges of the second key 109 that overlap with the third key 1 17. If a user input is received in the primary key area 1 19 of the third key 1 17, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a third signal.

[0069] The first key 107 has a secondary key area 1 15, 121 , 125. The secondary key area 1 15, 121 , 125 corresponds to the regions where the first key 107 overlaps with the second key 109 and the third key 1 17. In other words, the secondary key area 1 15, 121 , 125 refers to the region of the first key 107 that is shared with the second key 109 and the third key 1 17. [0070] The second key 109 has a secondary key area 1 15, 123, 125 which corresponds to the regions where the second key 109 overlaps with the first key 107 and the third key 1 17. In other words, the secondary key area 1 15, 123, 125 of the second key 109 refers to the region of the second key 109 that is shared with the first key 107 and the third key 1 17.

[0071] The third key 1 17 has a secondary key area 121 , 123, 125 which corresponds to the regions where the third key 1 17 overlaps with the first key 107 and the second key 109. In other words, the secondary key area 121 , 123, 125 of the third key 1 17 refers to the region of the third key 1 17 that is shared with the first key 107 and the second key 109.

[0072] The secondary key area 1 15, 121 , 125 of the first key 107 overlaps with the secondary key area 1 15, 123, 125 of the second key 109 in a first overlapping region 1 15, 125. The secondary key area 1 15, 121 , 125 of the first key 107 overlaps with the secondary key area 121 , 123, 125 of the third key 1 17 in a second overlapping region 121 , 125. The first overlapping region 1 15, 125 partially overlaps with the second overlapping region 121 , 125 in the region 125. In this example, the region 125 is bounded by the vertices of the first key 107, second key 109 and third key 1 17.

[0073] If a user input is received in the region 1 15 of the first overlapping region 1 15, 125, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a combined signal. The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[0074] If a user input is received in the region 121 of the second overlapping region 121 , 125, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a combined signal. The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal and the third signal.

[0075] If a user input is received in the region 125 shared between the first overlapping region 1 15, 125 and the second overlapping region 121 , 125, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a combined signal. The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal, the second signal, and the third signal.

[0076] The secondary key area 1 15, 123, 125 of the second key 109 overlaps with the secondary key area 121 , 123, 125 of the third key 1 17 in a third overlapping region 123, 125. If a user input is received in the region 123 of the third overlapping region 123, 125, the controller 103 (Figure 2) is arranged to generate a combined signal. The combined signal comprises a combination of the second signal and the third signal.

[0077] The arrangement of Figure 4, thus shows how seven different regions 1 1 1 , 1 13, 1 15, 1 19, 121 , 123, 125 are provided within a compact arrangement of three keys 107, 109, 1 17. Each of the regions 1 1 1 , 1 13, 1 15, 1 19, 121 , 123, 125 is used to generate a different signal in response to a user input, and each region requires just a single user input (e.g. a touch input) to generate the signal. As mentioned above in relation to Figure 3, the user interface 101 may be able to sense multiple user inputs simultaneously, and thus multiple of these regions 1 1 1 , 1 13, 1 15, 1 19, 121 , 123, 125 could be activated at the same time.

[0078] Referring to Figure 5, there is shown an example arrangement of keys 107, 109, 1 17, 127, 129, 131 , 133 on the user interface 101 of the electronic apparatus 100 of Figure 2. The user interface 101 comprises a first key 107, second key 109, third key 1 17, fourth key 127, fifth key 129, sixth key 131 , and seventh key 133 all having regular hexagon shapes.

[0079] The primary key area 1 1 1 of the first key 107 is a central region of the first key 107 which is bounded by edges of the second to seventh keys 109, 1 17, 127, 129, 131 , 133. The secondary key area of the first key 107 overlaps with the second to seventh keys 109, 1 17, 127, 129, 131 , 133 to define six overlapping regions. The six overlapping regions each comprise one area where the first key 107 overlaps with only one other key 109, 1 17, 127, 129, 131 , 133. A user input receiving in any of these areas will result in a combined signal comprising the combination of the first signal and one other signal corresponding to the relevant key that the first key 107 overlaps with. The six overlapping regions each comprise two areas where the first key 107 overlaps with two other keys 109, 1 17, 127, 129, 131 , 133. A user input receiving in this area will result in a combined signal comprising the combination of the first signal and two other signals corresponding to the relevant keys that the first key 107 overlaps with.

[0080] It will be appreciated that the arrangement shown in Figure 5 provides a number of distinct user inputs within a compact arrangement of keys, as also discussed above in relation to Figure 4.

[0081] It will be appreciated that the user interface 101 is not required to have only the specific keys shown in Figures 3 to 5. Instead, any number of keys may be provided in any arrangement as preferred by the user, provided that one or more overlapping regions for generating combined signals are provided. The keys could be arranged in a repeating pattern. For example, the arrangement of keys shown in Figure 5 could repeat over a larger area, and a particular example of this is shown in Figure 10.

[0082] In examples of the present invention, the size of the keys may be adjusted. That is, the controller 103 (Figure 2) may be arranged to control a display that provides the user interface 101 to adjust the size of the keys. In addition, the controller 103 may be arranged to control the touch screen display to adjust the size of the overlapping regions relative to the primary key areas. In this way, the size of the keys and/or the relative size of the overlapping regions relative to the primary key areas may be changed, e.g. in response to a user input. This enables the user interface to adapt to different user needs and different applications. [0083] In examples of the present invention, the keys may have different visual representations, e.g. such that adjacent keys are visually distinct from one another. In addition, the overlapping regions may have different visual representations to the primary key areas of the keys that form the overlapping region. Making the overlapping region visually distinct from the primary key areas may be beneficial in enabling a user to easily identify the overlapping region. Referring in particular to the example of Figure 3, the primary key area 111 of first key 107 may be displayed as a first visual representation. The primary key area 113 of the second key 109 may be displayed as a second visual representation. The first overlapping region 115 may be displayed as a combination of the first and second visual representations. The combination of the first and second visual representations may be determined using a blending operation as described in more detail below. The first visual representation may comprise a different colour, and/or texture, and/or pattern to the second visual representation.

[0084] While the above examples all use regular hexagon shaped keys, not all embodiments require this particular arrangement. For example, Figure 6 shows an arrangement of irregular hexagon shaped overlapping keys 107, 109, 117, 127, 129, 131 , 133. Further, the present invention is not limited to six-sided shape keys. Keys with any number N of sides may be provided, where N is three or more. Triangular, quadrilateral, pentagonal, heptagonal, octagonal, and nonagonal shapes (both regular and irregular) are within the scope of the present invention, along with other shapes (e.g. having more than 9 sides). Moreover, shapes with curved sides may be provided. That is, the keys may be N sided shapes and one or more of the sides may be curved. An example of such a shape with curved sides is the Reuleaux triangle. Other Reuleaux polygons are within the scope of the present invention. In addition, other polygons with curved sides are within the scope of the present invention. Moreover, the keys may be round in shape. The rounded shapes may be irregular or regular. The keys may be in the form of ovals or circles. In addition, while the above examples show all of the keys on the user interface having the same shape, this is not required in all arrangements of the present invention. That is, in some examples, the keys of the user interface may have different shapes. For example, a first set of keys on the user interface may have a first shape, and a second set of keys on the user interface may have a second, different, shape. The second, different, shape may have the same number of sides as the first shape, or may have a different number of sides as the first shape. By way of an example, the first set of shapes may be octagons, and the second set of shapes may be squares. In these examples, it will be appreciated that the keys will still overlap in the way described above, and thus achieve the benefits of the present invention.

[0085] It will be appreciated that the signals generated in accordance with the present invention could be used in any application as desired by the skilled person. The generated signals could be control signals for use by the electronic apparatus 100 (Figure 2) to control a function of the electronic apparatus 100 or to control a function of a device external to the electronic apparatus 100. For example, the electronic apparatus 100 could be used to control Internet-connected devices, such as smart home appliances. In a simple example, a first key of the user interface 101 (Figure 2) could be used to control a first function of an appliance, while a second key of the user interface 100 (Figure 2) could be used to control a second function of the appliance. Pressing the overlapping region shared by the first key and the second key could cause the combined performance of both the first function and the second function. For example, in a home automation scenario, multiple sets of lighting may be controlled within a single touch using the user interface of the present invention. It will also be appreciated that the electronic apparatus 100 may be configured to change the particular signals being performed based on a user input or other factor. That is, a user interface with the key arrangement of the present invention may be provided, and the particular type of signals generated by the electronic apparatus 100 may be changed by the user through interaction with a menu interface or similar. This may allow the user interface to be used across multiple different applications or functions.

[0086] In particular preferred examples, the electronic apparatus 100 (Figure 2) in accordance with the present invention is used to generate audio control signals for generating audio. The electronic apparatus 100 in these examples may be a musical instrument or may be simulating the performance of a musical instrument. The audio control signal may be used for generating audio to be output by a speaker, such as the speaker 105 of the electronic apparatus 100. It will be appreciated that audio does not always need to be output by a speaker in response to a user input being sensed, and instead the audio control signal may be saved (e.g. the audio control signal may be recorded) for future output by a speaker or may undergo subsequent audio processing operations before being output by a speaker. The audio control signal could be saved and also output as audio to the user at the same time. In this way, the user may be able to listen to the music they are creating while at the same time recording the audio control signals for future playback or audio processing. The audio control signal may be a Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) signal or similar signal format.

[0087] Referring to the example shown in Figure 3 above, a user input in the primary key area 1 1 1 of the first key 107 may be for generating an audio control signal having a first pitch. Further, a user input in the primary key area 1 13 of the second key 109 may be for generating an audio control signal having a second pitch. Significantly, a user input in the overlapping region 1 15 may be for generating a combined audio signal for generating audio that comprises both the first pitch and the second pitch. In other words, a user input in the overlapping region enables the user to generate a audio signal that combines the first pitch and the second pitch. The combined audio signal may be for generating audio such that, when the audio is output by a speaker, the first pitch and the second pitch are output simultaneously (e.g. as a chord) or sequentially (e.g. as an arpeggio). It will be further appreciated that the example user interfaces 101 shown in Figures 4 and 5 enable a combined audio control signal comprising three different pitches to be output simultaneously or sequentially. This is explained in more detail below.

[0088] To highlight the benefit of the overlapping key arrangement in accordance with the present invention an example keyboard arrangement according to a prior art keyboard device is shown in Figure 7. The example keyboard arrangement comprises seven hexagonal shaped keys 1 , 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 , 13 arranged in an array where a central key 1 is surrounded by six adjacent keys 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 , 13. Each of the keys 1 , 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 , 13 is associated with a musical pitch and are labelled as such in Figure 7 using scientific pitch notation. Scientific pitch notation, as appreciated by the skilled person, uses a letter to denote the musical note, and a number to denote the octave. For example, the first key 1 is labelled‘C5’, which identifies the musical note‘C’ in the fifth octave (one octave above middle C). Pressing the first key 1 may thus result in the musical pitch‘C5’ being produced.

[0089] The keys 1 , 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 , 13 are arranged in a layout known as the Tonnetz layout rather than a more conventional linear layout of keys. In this example Tonnetz layout, each column of keys ascends by an interval of a fifth. For example, the left-most column in Figure 7 ascends from A^k ₄ 7 to E ^k s 9. Similarly, the central-most column ascends from F₄ 5 to Cs 1 to Gs 11. Moreover, the right-most column ascends from A₄ 3 to Es 13. In addition, along the upper right direction (diagonally from left to right) the musical notes ascend in intervals of a major third. Further, along the upper left direction (diagonally from right to left) the musical notes ascend in intervals of minor thirds.

[0090] The Tonnetz layout has advantages in that it enables chords to be played using relatively simple finger patterns, as compared to a conventional linear keyboard layout. The finger patterns are the same whatever key the music is to be played in. For example, the user is able to play the chord C major, in this example, by simultaneously pressing the keys Cs 1 , Gs 11 , and Es 13. As will be appreciated other chords may be played by simultaneously pressing the keys of other adjacent keys.

[0091] Referring to Figure 8, there is shown an example user interface 101 in accordance with the present invention. This example shows a first key 107 surrounded by six keys 109, 117, 127, 129, 131 , and 133 that surround the first key 107. The keys correspond to different musical notes using the same labelling scheme as mentioned above in relation to Figure 7, and are also arranged in the same Tonnetz layout as the existing keyboard arrangement of Figure 7.

[0092] Significantly, however, and unlike the existing arrangement, the keys 107, 109, 117, 127, 129, 131 , and 133 of the user interface 101 of the present invention overlap one another. The particular details of the overlapping regions and how they result in different signal combinations are described above in relations to Figures 3, 4 and 5 in particular and will not be reproduced for the sake of brevity. The benefit of the overlapping regions is that the user does not need to simultaneously press multiple keys to generate a chord. Instead, the user can play a chord by pressing (e.g. using a single finger, that is a single touch input on the display) an overlapping region where adjacent keys overlap. The user is able to play a triad or trichord where three adjacent keys overlap and is able to play a dyad or dichord in a region where two keys overlap. Because the user only needs to provide an input from a single finger (a single key press or touch input, for example) in the overlapping region to play the chord, greater flexibility is provided for the user, as the remaining fingers of the user are made available to simultaneously play other notes/chords. As such, an improved man-machine interface for playing music using keys is provided. In addition, due to the presence of the overlapping regions, the user is not required to precisely position their fingers at vertices or segment boundaries of adjacent keys to play a chord, which reduces the complexity involved in the user interaction with the user interface 101.

[0093] Figure 8 shows all the available trichords that may be played by pressing the overlapping regions that the key 107 shares with the adjacent keys 109, 117, 127, 129, 131 , and 133. The visual names of these trichords may be displayed on the user interface 101 , but this is not required in all examples. Whether or not to display such information may be controlled by the user. Further, the musical pitch notation shown on the keys in Figure 8 is not required in all embodiments. Other musical pitch notation could be used or no musical pitch notation may be provided. The user may control whether to display musical pitch notation or not, and may be able to select the particular pitch notation use as appropriate.

[0094] It will be appreciated that through the user interface 101 the user is still able to play chords/combinations of musical notes by providing an input in the primary key area of multiple keys at the same time. Further, the user is able to combine a trichord and/or dichord generated by pressing an overlapping region with other musical notes or trichords/dichords e.g. by providing inputs to multiple overlapping regions and/or primary key areas at the same time. As such, the user interface 101 enables for complex control operations to be performed in a simple way for the user.

[0095] Figure 8 shows that the keys 107, 109, 117, 127, 131 , 133 and overlapping regions have different shading levels/colours. The different shading levels/ colours may be used to convey contextual information to aid in the use of the user interface 101 , such as by enabling the user to more accurately provide user inputs. Keys may be provided with a vibrant colour and/or a high brightness setting so that they appear highlighted to the user. This may signify to the user that they should provide an input in the key area of the highlighted key. Keys may be provided with a muted colour and/or a low brightness setting so that they appear shaded/darkened to the user. This may signify to the user that they should not provide an input in the key area of the highlighted key. In the particular example of Figure 8, the primary key areas of keys 107, 109, 117, and 133 are highlighted to indicate to the user that the musical pitches associated with these keys are in the musical key that the electronic apparatus 100 is currently operating in. The other keys 127, 129, 131 are not in this particular musical key and have a low brightness setting so that they appear shaded/darkened in Figure 8. It will be appreciated that the musical key or musical mode (e.g. Ionian, Dorian etc.) of the electronic apparatus 100 may be changed (e.g., in response to a user input) and this may change the visual representations of the keys so as to highlight different keys to the user.

[0096] In some examples, while the visual representation of the keys may change as the musical key or mode is changed, the visual representations may be changed in a particular predetermined way. For example, the root note for any particular musical key or mode may always have the same visual representation (e.g. may always be the colour green). Such arrangements may enable a user to quickly identify the root note or other note when the musical key or mode changes.

[0097] The example of Figure 8 also shows that the overlapping regions are visually distinct from the primary key areas. Further, in the example of Figure 8, each of the keys is displayed with a particular colour. The overlapping regions may be displayed as a combination of the colours of the keys that overlap to form the overlapping region. For example, if the key 107 is red and the key 109 is blue, the overlapping region shared by these two keys 107, 109 may be purple. The purpose of displaying the overlapping areas using such blending/colour mixing is to show the overlapped areas are related and have an action that is connected to each of the areas that contribute to the overlap.

[0098] Any appropriate colour blending may be used in the context of the present invention as the skilled person will appreciate. The particular form of colour blending may be selected by the user to produce an aesthetically pleasing result, while still conveying that the overlapping regions have a shared function.

[0099] One particular colour blending operation within the scope of the present invention will now be described. In this example, each colour is set to have a level of transparency. In an overlapping area of two or more keys, the colours are added together to provide a visually brighter result.

[00100] In one particular example, the colours displayed on a display may comprise red (R), green (G), blue (B) and alpha (A) components, where alpha is the transparency level. In this example, a first key may have colour components referred to as R1 G1 B1 A1 whereas a second key may have colour components referred to as R2 G2 B2 A2. The first key and second key may overlap in an overlapping region which is displayed as a resultant colour referred to as Rr Gr Br Ar.

[00101] The resultant colour may be determined by adding the R, G, B, and A colour components together for the first key and the second key. This addition operation may additionally use one or more weightings, otherwise known as blend factors, to indicate the proportion of colour to be used. The blend factors for the first key are referred to as sR sG sB sA in this example while the blend factors for the second key are referred to as dR dG dB dA.

[00102] The resultant colour components may then be determined using the following equations:

Rr = R1 *sR + R2 *dR

Gr = G1 *sG + G2 *dG

Br = B1 *sB + B2 *dB

Ar = A1 *sA + A2 *dA

[00103] Using colour to represent to highlight the overlapping regions is only one possible method. Patterns or textures may also be used, to allow for users with vision limitations, such as colour blindness to obtain greater benefit from the present invention. An example of using patterns/textures is shown in Figure 9. Generally, it will be appreciated that the method and manner of the rendering the overlap may be at the discretion of the person configuring the representation that best suits the given case.

[00104] It will be appreciated that the present invention does not require the keys to be arranged in a Tonnetz layout. This is just one example. Further, the keys do not need to be associated with the particular musical notes/pitches shown and described above. The use of tone/semitone separation between musical pitches is not required, and microtone separation may also be used. It will be appreciated that arrangements of keys as outlined above, may be particularly suited for Western tonal music, but other arrangements of keys and musical notes/pitches may be used as preferred, e.g. based on the type of music which is desired to be played.

[00105] Referring to Figure 10, there is shown a user interface 101 displaying a graphical user interface showing a plurality of keys with overlapping regions in accordance with the present invention and discussed in greater detail above. Figure 10 shows how the arrangement of keys repeats to form an array of keys. Particular keys are highlighted to indicate that they are in the currently selected musical key, while other keys are darkened to indicate that they are out of key. In operation, a user may set through a control window or interface, a musical key to play in, may control the size of the keys, and the size of the overlapping regions. The user may then press different keys to play a desired musical piece. The user may slide their finger.

[00106] Referring to Figure 1 1 , there is shown a method in accordance with the second aspect of the present invention. The method is for generating a signal using an electronic apparatus such as the electronic apparatus described in the above examples.

[00107] Step 201 of the method comprises generating, by the controller of the electronic apparatus, a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the first key.

[00108] Step 202 of the method comprises generating, by the controller, a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the second key.

[00109] Step 203 of the method comprises generating, by the controller, a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[001 10] For completeness, several other examples of key arrangements are provided below in Figures 12 to 14. These examples are intended to show the versatility of the present invention, and to highlight that regular hexagon arrangements are not required in all embodiments.

[00111] Figure 12 shows another example user interface 101 in accordance with the present invention. In this example, the keys are circular in shape. The central key in Figure 12 overlaps with six other keys to define six overlapping regions. Each of these six overlapping regions overlaps with two other overlapping regions as indicated in Figure 12. It will thus be appreciated that the arrangement shown in Figure 12 operates in a similar way to the regular hexagon arrangement shown in Figure 5, for example.

[00112] Figure 13 shows another example user interface 101 in accordance with the present invention. In this example, the keys are irregular curved shapes that represent deformed squares with curved sides. The central key in Figure 13 overlaps with six other keys to define six overlapping regions. Each of these six overlapping regions overlap with two other overlapping regions as indicated in Figure 13. It will thus be appreciated that the arrangement shown in Figure 12 operates in a similar way to the regular hexagon arrangement shown in Figure 5, for example.

[00113] Figure 14 shows another example user interface 101 in accordance with the present invention. In this example, the shapes are star-shaped with six curved arms. The central key in Figure 14 overlaps with six other keys to define six overlapping regions. This arrangement provides gaps between keys where the keys do not overlap. These gaps could also be utilised to perform control operations, e.g. could be able to receive a touch input and perform an operation in response.

[00114] Although a few preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications might be made without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

[00115] In summary, there is provided an electronic apparatus 100 and method for generating a signal. A user interface 101 of the electronic apparatus 100 comprises a first key 107 and a second key 109. The first key 107 and the second key 109 each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area 11 1 , 1 13 and a secondary key area 115. The secondary key area 115 of the first key 107 overlaps with the secondary key area 115 of the second key in a first overlapping region 115. A controller 103 of the electronic apparatus is arranged to: generate a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area 111 of the first key 107; generate a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area 113 of the second key 109; and generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region 115. The combined signal comprises a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

[00116] At least some of the example embodiments described herein may be constructed, partially or wholly, using dedicated special-purpose hardware. Terms such as‘component’, ‘module’ or‘unit’ used herein may include, but are not limited to, a hardware device, such as circuitry in the form of discrete or integrated components, a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), which performs certain tasks or provides the associated functionality. In some embodiments, the described elements may be configured to reside on a tangible, persistent, addressable storage medium and may be configured to execute on one or more processors. These functional elements may in some embodiments include, by way of example, components, such as software components, object- oriented software components, class components and task components, processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and variables. Although the example embodiments have been described with reference to the components, modules and units discussed herein, such functional elements may be combined into fewer elements or separated into additional elements. Various combinations of optional features have been described herein, and it will be appreciated that described features may be combined in any suitable combination. In particular, the features of any one example embodiment may be combined with features of any other embodiment, as appropriate, except where such combinations are mutually exclusive. Throughout this specification, the term“comprising” or “comprises” means including the components) specified but not to the exclusion of the presence of others.

[00117] Attention is directed to all papers and documents which are filed concurrently with or previous to this specification in connection with this application and which are open to public inspection with this specification, and the contents of all such papers and documents are incorporated herein by reference.

[00118] All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive.

[00119] Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

[00120] The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus for generating a signal, the electronic apparatus comprising:

a user interface comprising a first key and a second key, wherein the first key and the second key each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area and a secondary key area, and wherein the secondary key area of the first key overlaps with the secondary key area of the second key in a first overlapping region;

a controller arranged to:

generate a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the first key;

generate a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the second key; and

generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

2. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the electronic apparatus is for generating an audio control signal, and wherein the first signal, second signal, and combined signal are audio control signals, and optionally wherein the first audio control signal is for generating audio having a first pitch, the second audio control signal is for generating audio having a second pitch, and the combined audio signal is for generating audio that comprises both the first pitch and the second pitch.

3. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the combined audio control signal is for generating audio such that, when the audio is output by a speaker, the first pitch and the second pitch are output simultaneously or sequentially.

4. An electronic apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the user interface comprises a third key comprising a primary key area and a secondary key area, and wherein the secondary key area of the third key overlaps with the secondary key area of the first key in a second overlapping region.

5. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the controller is arranged to: generate a third signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the third key; and generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the second overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the third signal.

6. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 4 or 5, wherein the secondary key area of the third key overlaps with the secondary key area of the second key in a third overlapping region, and optionally wherein the controller is arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the third overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the second signal and the third signal.

7. An electronic apparatus as claimed in any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the second overlapping region partially overlaps with the first overlapping region, and wherein the controller is arranged to generate a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the region where the second overlapping region overlaps the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal, the second signal, and the third signal.

8. An electronic apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the primary key area of the first key is a central region of the first key and the secondary key area of the first key is a peripheral region of the first key.

9. An electronic apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the first key is an N-sided shape, where N is 3 or more, and optionally, wherein the secondary key area of the first key overlaps with N other keys to define N overlapping regions.

10. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the first key has a regular hexagonal shape, and optionally wherein the second key has a regular hexagonal shape.

1 1 . An electronic apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the controller is arranged to control the user interface to adjust the size of the first overlapping region relative to the primary key area of the first key and/or the primary key area of the second key.

12. An electronic apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the electronic apparatus comprises a display arranged to provide the user interface, and optionally wherein the display is a presence-sensitive display.

13. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein the primary key area of first key is displayed as a first visual representation, the primary key area of the second key is displayed as a second visual representation, and wherein the first overlapping region is displayed as a combination of the first and second visual representations, and optionally wherein the first visual representation comprises a different colour, and/or texture, and/or pattern to the second visual representation.

14. A method for generating a signal using an electronic apparatus, the electronic apparatus comprising: a user interface comprising a first key and a second key, wherein the first key and the second key each comprise a user input sensing region that is divided into a primary key area and a secondary key area, and wherein the secondary key area of the first key overlaps with the secondary key area of the second key in a first overlapping region; and a controller, the method comprising:

generating, by the controller, a first signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the first key;

generating, by the controller, a second signal in response to receiving a user input in the primary key area of the second key; and

generating, by the controller, a combined signal in response to receiving a user input in the first overlapping region, the combined signal comprising a combination of the first signal and the second signal.

15. A computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the method of claim 14.