U.S. patent application number 14/309360 was filed with the patent office on 2014-10-09 for handheld electronic device and associated method enabling text input in a language employing non-roman characters.
The applicant listed for this patent is BlackBerry Limited. Invention is credited to Vadim Fux, Parul Nanda Gilani, Timothy Koo, Dan Rubanovich, Aleksej Trefilov.
Application Number | 20140300553 14/309360 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41266456 |
Filed Date | 2014-10-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140300553 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Rubanovich; Dan ; et
al. |
October 9, 2014 |
HANDHELD ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND ASSOCIATED METHOD ENABLING TEXT
INPUT IN A LANGUAGE EMPLOYING NON-ROMAN CHARACTERS
Abstract
A handheld device includes a plurality of input members, a first
set of which each have a Roman character assigned thereto, a least
some of which have a first non-Roman and a second non-Roman
character assigned thereto. In response to an actuation of a first
one of the input members, a first one of the non-Roman characters
that is assigned to the first one of the input members is
displayed. Based on one or more rules which govern permissible
character sequences in the subject language, the display of a
second one of the non-Roman characters in response to an actuation
of a second one of the input members having the second one of the
non-Roman characters assigned thereto immediately following the
actuation of said first one of the input members is prevented.
Inventors: |
Rubanovich; Dan; (Waterloo,
CA) ; Fux; Vadim; (Waterloo, CA) ; Trefilov;
Aleksej; (Waterloo, CA) ; Gilani; Parul Nanda;
(Waterloo, CA) ; Koo; Timothy; (Waterloo,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
BlackBerry Limited |
Waterloo |
|
CA |
|
|
Family ID: |
41266456 |
Appl. No.: |
14/309360 |
Filed: |
June 19, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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13770672 |
Feb 19, 2013 |
8786552 |
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14309360 |
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12391571 |
Feb 24, 2009 |
8400405 |
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13770672 |
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61051835 |
May 9, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
345/169 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 3/0237 20130101;
G06F 3/018 20130101; G06F 40/274 20200101; G06F 40/53 20200101 |
Class at
Publication: |
345/169 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/01 20060101
G06F003/01; G06F 17/28 20060101 G06F017/28; G06F 17/27 20060101
G06F017/27; G06F 3/023 20060101 G06F003/023 |
Claims
1.-12. (canceled)
13. A handheld electronic device comprising: a processor; a memory;
a plurality of selectable keys, at least some of the keys having
more than one non-Roman character assigned thereto, said non-Roman
characters being associated with a first language having rules that
govern proper sequencing of non-Roman characters in the first
language; and a display structured to display character sequences,
wherein the memory has stored therein routines that, when executed
by the processor, cause the processor to: detect selection of one
of the non-Roman characters assigned to a first one of the keys
having more than one non-Roman character assigned thereto; and
apply one or more of said rules to prevent display of the selected
non-Roman character and selectively display a different character
assigned to the first one of the keys having more than one
non-Roman character assigned thereto.
14. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the keys having more than one non-Roman character assigned thereto
each also has at least one Roman character assigned thereto.
15. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the selected non-Roman character is a Thai character.
16. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the memory having stored therein routines that, when executed by
the processor, further cause the processor to be selectively
switchable between a Roman character input mode and a non-Roman
character input mode.
17. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the selection of the one of the non-Roman characters is for
beginning a new word.
18. The handheld electronic device according to claim 17, wherein
the memory having stored therein routines that, when executed by
the processor, further cause the processor to determine that the
selected non-Roman character is not permissible for beginning said
new word.
19. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the selection of the one of the non-Roman characters immediately
follows a selection of one of the non-Roman characters assigned to
a second one of the keys having more than one non-Roman character
assigned thereto.
20. The handheld electronic device according to claim 13, wherein
the handheld electronic device includes a shift mode that causes a
particular linguistic element to be input when each of the keys is
selected, and wherein the selection of the one of the non-Roman
characters comprises a single selection of the first one of the
keys when the handheld electronic device is in the shift mode.
21. An input method for a handheld electronic device having a
memory structured to store executable instructions, a processor
structured to execute the stored executable instructions, a display
structured to display character sequences, and a plurality of
selectable keys, at least some of the keys having more than one
non-Roman character assigned thereto, said non-Roman characters
being associated with a first language having rules that govern
proper sequencing of non-Roman characters in the first language,
the input method comprising: detecting an input requesting entry of
a non-Roman character assigned to a first one of the keys having
more than one non-Roman character assigned thereto; determining,
using an immediately preceding and entered non-Roman character,
whether the requested entry of the non-Roman character assigned to
the first one of the keys having more than one non-Roman character
assigned thereto is permissible based on rules that govern proper
sequencing of non-Roman characters in a first language; and based
on the determination, (i) preventing entry of the non-Roman
character associated with the detected input, and (ii) inputting
and displaying another non-Roman character assigned to a first one
of the keys having more than one non-Roman character assigned
thereto.
22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the keys having more
than one non-Roman character assigned thereto each also has a Roman
character assigned thereto.
23. The method according to claim 21, wherein the requested entry
of the non-Roman character is a Thai character.
24. The method according to claim 21, wherein the processor is
structured to execute the stored executable instructions to cause
handheld electronic device selectively switchable between a Roman
character input mode and a non-Roman character input mode.
25. The method according to claim 21, wherein the handheld
electronic device includes a shift mode that causes a particular
linguistic element to be input when each of the keys is selected,
and wherein the input requesting entry of the non-Roman character
comprises a single selection of the first one of the keys when the
handheld electronic device is in the shift mode.
26. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising
instructions for a handheld electronic device comprising a display
structured to display character sequences and a plurality of
selectable keys, at least some of the keys having more than one
non-Roman character assigned thereto, said non-Roman characters
being associated with a first language having rules that govern
proper sequencing of non-Roman characters in the first language,
the instructions being executable by a processor of the handheld
electronic device for causing the handheld electronic device to
perform operations comprising: detecting selection of one of the
non-Roman characters assigned to a first one of the keys having
more than one non-Roman character assigned thereto; and applying
one or more of said rules to prevent display of the selected
non-Roman character and selectively displaying a different
character assigned to the first one of the keys having more than
one non-Roman character assigned thereto.
27. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the keys having more than one non-Roman character assigned
thereto each also has at least one Roman character assigned
thereto.
28. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the selected non-Roman character is a Thai character.
29. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the instructions are executable by the processor of the
handheld electronic device for causing the processor to be
selectively switchable between a Roman character input mode and a
non-Roman character input mode.
30. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the selection of the one of the non-Roman characters is for
beginning a new word.
31. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 30,
wherein the instructions are executable by the processor of the
handheld electronic device for causing the processor to determine
that the selected non-Roman character is not permissible for
beginning said new word.
32. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the selection of the one of the non-Roman characters
immediately follows a selection of one of the non-Roman characters
assigned to a second one of the keys having more than one non-Roman
character assigned thereto.
33. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26,
wherein the handheld electronic device includes a shift mode that
causes a particular linguistic element to be input when each of the
keys is selected, and wherein the selection of the one of the
non-Roman characters comprises a single selection of the first one
of the keys when the handheld electronic device is in the shift
mode.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCED TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of U.S.
Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/051,835, entitled
"HANDHELD ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND ASSOCIATED METHOD ENABLING TEXT
INPUT IN A LANGUAGE EMPLOYING NON-ROMAN CHARACTERS" filed May 9,
2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The disclosed and claimed concept relates generally to
handheld electronic devices and, more particularly, to a handheld
electronic device and method that enable the input of text in a
language, such as the Thai language, that employs characters other
than Roman characters.
[0004] 2. Background Information
[0005] Numerous types of handheld electronic devices are known.
Examples of such handheld electronic devices include, for instance,
personal data assistants (PDAs), handheld computers, two-way
pagers, cellular telephones, and the like. Many handheld electronic
devices also feature wireless communication capability, although
many such handheld electronic devices are stand-alone devices that
are functional without communication with other devices.
[0006] Such handheld devices are often used by people that speak
multiple languages. Many languages, including the English language,
use Roman characters (sometimes also referred to as Latin
characters), and thus when a user wishes to input text into a
handheld electronic device in such a language, a keyboard including
Roman characters, such as a standard QWERTY keyboard, provided as
part of the device may be used. However, some languages employ,
either partially or entirely, a set of non-Roman characters. One
such language is the Thai language. In particular, the Thai
alphabet employs 71 non-Roman characters including consonants,
vowels, tones and diacritics. It would be desirable for a keyboard
on a handheld electronic device to provide the ability to enter
text using these 71 characters. However, a typical QWERTY keyboard
employed on a handheld electronic device has 28 character keys
corresponding to the Roman characters. Therefore, a regular QWERTY
keyboard cannot accommodate all 71 characters used in Thai script.
It thus would be desirable to provide an improved method and
handheld electronic device that facilitate the input of text in a
language, such as the Thai language, that employs characters other
than Roman characters.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] A full understanding of the disclosed and claimed concept
can be gained from the following Description when read in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of an improved handheld
electronic device according to an embodiment of the disclosed and
claimed concept;
[0009] FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of an embodiment of a
keyboard forming a part of the exemplary handheld electronic device
shown in FIG. 1;
[0010] FIG. 3 is a schematic representation of a symbol screen of
the exemplary handheld electronic device shown in FIG. 1;
[0011] FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C are flowcharts illustrating various aspects
of a method for facilitating the entry of text having non-Roman
characters using the exemplary handheld electronic device shown in
FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the disclosed and claimed
concept;
[0012] FIGS. 5-15 illustrate an example input sequence performed on
the exemplary handheld electronic device shown in FIG. 1; and
[0013] FIG. 16 is a schematic representation of an alternate
embodiment of a keyboard forming a part of the exemplary handheld
electronic device shown in FIG. 1.
[0014] Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the
specification.
DESCRIPTION
[0015] An improved handheld electronic device 4 is depicted
schematically in FIG. 1. The exemplary handheld electronic device 4
includes a housing (not shown), an input apparatus 8, an output
apparatus 12, and a processor apparatus 16. The input apparatus 8
is structured to provide input to the processor apparatus 16, and
the output apparatus 12 is structured to receive output signals
from the processor apparatus 16. The output apparatus 12 comprises
a display, such as an LCD or a touchscreen, that is structured to
provide visual output, although other output devices such as
speakers, LEDs, tactile output devices, and so forth can be
additionally or alternatively used.
[0016] As can be seen in FIG. 1, the processor apparatus 16
comprises a processor 36 and a memory 40. The processor 36 may be,
for instance and without limitation, a microprocessor (.mu.P) that
is responsive to inputs from the input apparatus 8 and that
provides output signals to the output apparatus 12. The processor
36 interfaces with the memory 40.
[0017] The memory 40 can be said to constitute a machine-readable
medium and can be any one or more of a variety of types of internal
and/or external storage media such as, without limitation, RAM,
ROM, EPROM(s), EEPROM(s), FLASH, and the like that provide a
storage register for data storage such as in the fashion of an
internal storage area of a computer, and can be volatile memory or
nonvolatile memory. The memory 40 has stored therein a number of
routines 44 which are executable on the processor 36. As employed
herein, the expression "a number of" and variations thereof shall
refer broadly to any non-zero quantity, including a quantity of
one. The routines 44 can be in any of a variety of forms such as,
without limitation, software, firmware, and the like. As will be
explained in greater detail below, the routines 44 include one or
more routines that implement a method of facilitating the input of
text into the handheld electronic device 4 in a language, such as
the Thai language, that employs characters other than Roman
characters, as well as other routines. It is noted that the Thai
language is used as an exemplary language herein, and it is further
understood that other languages that employ characters other than
Roman characters, such as, without limitation, Chinese, Japanese
and Korean, for example, could similarly be input on the handheld
electronic device 4 using the method described herein without
departing from the present concept. That is, the handheld
electronic device 4 is described herein in an exemplary fashion as
being configured for the inputting of Thai script, and it is
understood that in other embodiments the handheld electronic device
could be configured to input, for instance, Chinese, Japanese or
Korean text or text in another language employing non-Roman
characters without departing from the present concept.
[0018] The input apparatus 8 is shown schematically in FIG. 2 and
includes a keyboard 24 and a multiple-axis input device which, in
the exemplary embodiment depicted herein, is a track ball 32 that
will be described in greater detail below. The keyboard 24
comprises a plurality of keys 28 arranged in the exemplary form of
a QWERTY keyboard, meaning that at least some of the keys 28 each
have a plurality of linguistic elements assigned thereto, with at
least some of the linguistic elements being Roman characters
arranged generally in a QWERTY configuration and some of the
linguistic elements being Thai characters. In particular, as seen
in FIG. 2, each key 28 having a Roman character thereon also has up
to three Thai characters also provided thereon. Up to two
characters may be provided below the Roman character on the key 28,
and one Thai character may be provided adjacent to the Roman
character on the key 28. The keys 28 or the track ball 32 serve as
input members that are actuatable to provide input to the processor
apparatus 16. The particular operation of the keyboard 24 to
facilitate the input of text in the Thai language according to the
disclosed and claimed concept is described in greater detail below.
The keyboard 24 and the track ball 32 are advantageously disposed
adjacent one another on a front face of the housing of the handheld
electronic device 4. This enables a user to operate the track ball
32 substantially without moving the user's hands away from the
keyboard 24 during a text entry operation or other operation.
[0019] One of the keys 28 is an <ESCAPE> key 31 which, when
actuated, provides to the processor apparatus 16 an input that
undoes the action which resulted from the immediately preceding
input and/or moves the user to a logically higher position within a
logical menu tree managed by a graphical user interface (GUI)
routine 44. The <ESCAPE> key 31 is advantageously disposed
adjacent the track ball 32 thereby enabling, for example, an
unintended or incorrect input from the track ball 32 to be quickly
undone, i.e., reversed, by an actuation of the adjacent
<ESCAPE> key 31. Another of the keys 28 is a <MENU> key
33 which, when actuated, provides to the processor apparatus 16 an
input that causes the GUI 44 to generate and output on the output
apparatus 12 a menu for selecting operations and operational modes
of the handheld electronic device 4.
[0020] While in the depicted exemplary embodiment the multiple-axis
input device is the track ball 32, it is noted that multiple-axis
input devices other than the track ball 32 can be employed without
departing from the present concept. For instance, other appropriate
multiple-axis input devices could include mechanical devices such
as joysticks and the like and/or non-mechanical devices such as
touch pads, track pads and the like and/or other devices which
detect motion or input in other fashions, such as through the use
of optical sensors or piezoelectric crystals. Likewise, in other
exemplary embodiments, the keyboard 24 can be a virtual keyboard on
the output apparatus 12.
[0021] The track ball 32 is freely rotatable in all directions with
respect to the housing of the handheld electronic device 4. A
rotation of the track ball 32 a predetermined rotational distance
with respect to the housing provides an input to the processor
apparatus 16, and such inputs can be employed by the routines 44,
for example, as navigational inputs, scrolling inputs, selection
inputs, and other inputs. The track ball 32 additionally is
translatable toward the housing to provide additional inputs. The
track ball 32 could be translated in such a fashion by, for
example, a user applying an actuating force to the track ball 32 by
pressing on the track ball 32. The inputs that are provided to the
processor apparatus 16 as a result of a translation of the track
ball 32 in the indicated fashion can be employed by the routines
44, for example, as selection inputs, delimiter inputs, or other
inputs.
[0022] In accordance with the disclosed and claimed concept, the
handheld electronic device 4 through cooperation between the
routines 44 and the keyboard 24 advantageously enables text input
in the Thai language using the Thai characters provided on the keys
28. In particular, in the exemplary embodiment, the handheld
electronic device 4 may be toggled between a Roman character input
mode, in which the Roman characters provided on the keys 28 may be
selectively input through actuation of the keys in a conventional
manner, and a Thai character input mode, in which the Thai
characters provided on the keys 28 may be selectively input through
actuation of the keys 28 in the manner described herein. Such
toggling may be achieved by, for example, making an appropriate
selection from a menu accessed through actuation of the menu key
33.
[0023] In the exemplary embodiment, when the handheld electronic
device 4 is in the Thai character input mode, one or more Thai
characters provided below the Roman character on each key 28 may be
selected and input using a multi-tap scheme. Specifically, the
first (left-most) Thai character provided below the Roman character
on each key 28 may be selected and input by pressing the
corresponding key 28 once, and the second (right-most) Thai
character provided below the Roman character on each key 28 may be
selected and input by pressing the corresponding key 28 twice
within a predetermined time frame. Preferably, when the
corresponding key 28 is pressed once, the first Thai character
provided below the Roman character on the key 28 will be entered
and displayed, and will be highlighted or underlined until the
predetermined time frame elapses or until a different key 28 is
pressed to indicate the possibility that the key 28 could be
pressed again to get the second Thai character provided below the
Roman character on the key 28. If the same key 28 is pressed twice
with more than the predetermined time frame elapsing between each
press, the first Thai character provided below the Roman character
on the key 28 will input twice. The Thai character, if any,
provided adjacent to the Roman character on each key 28 is provided
on the SHIFT layer of the keyboard 24 and may be selected and input
by pressing one of the <SHIFT> keys 35 and then pressing the
key 28 having the desired Thai character.
[0024] FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts illustrating the method of
entering Thai characters in the exemplary embodiment described
above. Beginning at step 50, a determination is made as to whether
the processor 36 has received an input indicating a switch to the
Thai character input mode. If the answer is no, then the method
returns to step 50. If, however, the answer is yes, then, at step
52, a determination is made as to whether an actuation of a key 28
has been detected. If the answer is no, then, at step 54, a
determination is made as to whether the processor 36 has received
an input indicating a switch to the Roman character input mode. If
the answer is yes, then method ends. If the answer is no, then the
method returns to step 52.
[0025] If the answer at step 52 is yes, meaning that an actuation
of a key 28 has been detected, then, at step 56, a determination is
made as to whether the processor 36 is currently in a shift mode.
If the answer is yes, then, at step 58, the Thai character on the
shift layer of the actuated key 28 is input and displayed on the
output apparatus 12. Then, at step 60, a determination is made as
to whether the processor 36 has received an input indicating a
switch to the Roman character input mode. If the answer is yes,
then the method ends. If, however, the answer is no, then the
method returns to step 52.
[0026] If the answer at step 56 is no, meaning that the processor
36 is not currently in the shift mode, then at step 62, the first
Thai character below the Roman character of the actuated key 28 is
input into the processor 36 and displayed and highlighted on the
output apparatus 12. The method then proceeds to FIG. 4B.
[0027] Referring to FIG. 4B, at step 64, a timer having a duration
equal to the pre-determined timeframe for multi-tap entry described
above is started. Next, at step 66, a determination is made as to
whether the processor 36 has detected the actuation of one of the
keys 28. If the answer is no, then, at step 68, a determination is
made as to whether the timer has elapsed. If the answer is no, then
the method returns to step 66. If the answer is yes, then, at step
70, the highlighting applied in step 62 is removed and the method
returns to step 52 of FIG. 4A. If the answer at step 66 is yes,
meaning that a key 28 has been actuated, then, at step 72, a
determination is made as to whether it is the same key that was
actuated in step 52. If the answer is no, then the method returns
to step 56 in FIG. 4A. If the answer, however, at step 72 is yes,
meaning that the same key 28 has been actuated, then, at step 74,
the first Thai character currently displayed on the output
apparatus 12 is replaced with the second Thai character below the
Roman character on the key 28 that has been actuated (for the
second time). Then, the method returns to step 52 of FIG. 4A.
[0028] In the exemplary embodiment, seldom used Thai characters are
provided on a symbol screen 37 shown in FIG. 3 that may be accessed
and displayed on the output apparatus 12 by pressing the
<SYMBOL> key 37 of the keyboard 24. A desired Thai character
may then be selected and input by pressing the key 28 shown to
correspond to the desired Thai character on the symbol screen
37.
[0029] Moreover, Thai script is written left to right and consists
of three levels, meaning that the individual characters may be
positioned in one of three locations (levels): a base level, an
above level (above the base level), and a below level (below the
base level). The base level is where consonants, leading and
following vowels, special characters and non-Thai characters are
positioned. The above level is where above vowels, tones and above
diactrics are positioned. The below level is where below vowels and
below diactrics are positioned. In addition, the Thai language
includes certain rules that prohibit certain character
combinations, such as certain character appearing in sequence. For
example, two "sara i" characters are not permitted to appear
sequentially. In addition, "sara e"(), representing a leading
vowel, cannot be followed by "sara a" (), representing a following
vowel, without at least a consonant between them. Certain following
vowels may follow other following vowels, such as "sara o" () The
Thai language also includes certain rules that prohibit word from
starting with certain vowels. Those vowels include the "maiyamok"
character, the "sara am" character, the "sara a" character, the
"sara u" character, the "mai han-akat" character, the "sara ue"
character, the "sara uu" character, the "sara ii" character, the
"mai tho" character, the "mai ek" character, the "mai tri"
character, the "sara aa" character, the "mai chattawa" character,
the "sara i" character, the "sara uee" character, the "phintu"
character, and the "thanthakhat" character. Other prohibitions are
also possible either within the Thai language if applicable, or
another language employing non-Roman characters, as appropriate.
Thus, according to an aspect of the disclosed and claimed concept,
the routines 44 that implement the method described herein prevent
the user of the handheld electronic device 4 from entering
illegal/non-permitted character sequences, and in certain
circumstances will automatically input another character on the
pressed key 28 that includes the non-permitted character in the
place of the non-permitted character. In effect, by doing so, the
routines in certain situations temporarily "convert" a multi-tap
key into a single character key. It is noted that the foregoing
input entry method routines 44 are not limited to Thai script, and
can also be adapted for other languages to prevent the user from
inputting a non-permissible sequence of characters.
[0030] FIG. 4C is a flowchart illustrating the method just
described. The method begins at step 76, wherein the processor 36
receives an input requesting the entry of a Thai character (this
may be any of the key actuations described in connection with FIGS.
4A and 4B). Then, at step 78, the processor 36 determines the
immediately preceding Thai character that was input and displayed.
It should be noted that in step 78, in the case of a new word, the
processor 36 will determine that there is no immediately preceding
character (instead, the immediately preceding input will have been
a space). Thus, the immediately preceding character in the method
of FIG. 4C may be "none." At step 80, a determination is made as to
whether the proposed sequence is permissible based upon the
applicable language rules as described above. If the answer is yes,
then, at step 82, the requested Thai character is input and
displayed on the output apparatus 12. If the answer at step 80 is
no, then, at step 84, the processor 36 prevents the input and
display of the requested Thai character. Then, at step 86,
according to one particular embodiment of the disclosed and claimed
concept, the processor 36 will then input and display on the output
apparatus 12 another (different) Thai character provided on the key
that includes the requested Thai character. An example of this type
of automatic substitution is shown in connection with FIGS. 5
through 15. Step 86 may, alternatively, be omitted, in which case
the processor 36 would simply prevent the input and display of the
requested Thai character. In this embodiment, a message may be
displayed to the user on the output apparatus 12 indicating that
the proposed sequence is not permissible and instructing the user
to make another character selection.
[0031] FIGS. 5-15 illustrate an example input sequence wherein the
user types a greeting in Thai script by pressing certain of the
keys 28 when the handheld electronic device 4 is in the Thai
character input mode. Specifically, FIGS. 5-15 show a screen 40
displayed on the output apparatus 12 having a text portion 42
resulting from the pressing of a number of the keys 28 when the
handheld electronic device 4 is in the Thai character input
mode.
[0032] Referring to FIG. 5, the user in this example has initially
pressed the <J> key 28 once and then pressed the <K>
key 28 once. This results in the entry of the "so suea" character
followed by the "wo waen" character, which are displayed in the
text portion 42 as seen in FIG. 5. In addition, the predetermined
time frame for multi-tap input described above has passed, and thus
the "wo waen" character is not highlighted and the cursor 44 is
positioned adjacent thereto. Next, referring to FIG. 6, the
<T> key 28 is pressed once, which results in the entry of the
"mai han-akat" character. The "mai han-akat" character is an above
vowel, and thus, as seen in FIG. 6, it is positioned in the above
level above the previous character (the "wo waen" character). In
addition, in the case of FIG. 6, the predetermined time frame for
multi-tap input described above has not yet passed, and thus the
"wo waen" and "mai han-akat" characters are highlighted in the text
portion 42, indicating that multi-tap entry is still available (to
get the "sara ue" character which is the second Thai character
appearing below the "T" on the <T> key 28). If the
predetermined time frame for multi-tap input elapses without
further input form the user or if the user presses the
<SPACE> key 39, the "mai han-akat" character will be
confirmed in the text portion 42 as shown in FIG. 7 and the cursor
44 will appear adjacent thereto.
[0033] Next, referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, the user presses the
<J> key 28 once and then the <S> key 28 once, which
results in the entry of the "so suea" character followed by the "ko
kai" character in the text portion 42 shown in FIG. 8. The user
then, before the predetermined time frame for multi-tap input has
elapsed, again presses the <S> key 28, which results in the
"ko kai" character being replaced by the "do dek" character in the
text portion 42 as shown in FIG. 9. The user then presses the
<Y> key once, which results in the entry of the "sara i"
character in the text portion 42 as shown in FIG. 10. The user then
waits for the predetermined time frame for multi-tap input to
elapse, which results in the text portion 42 shown in FIG. 11 (the
cursor 44 is positioned adjacent to the last Thai character). The
user then presses the <Y> key again with a single press.
However, in Thai script, two sequential "sara i" characters are not
permitted. As discussed elsewhere herein, the routines 44,
according to an aspect of the disclosed and claimed concept, are
programmed with the sequential character rules of Thai script. As a
result, the routines 44 automatically cause the other character
provided below the "Y" on the <Y> key 28, which is the "do
dek" character, to be entered in the text portion 42 as shown in
FIG. 12 instead of the "sara i" character. Finally, the user
presses the <U> key 28 once followed by the <T> key 28
once followed by the <P> key 28 once, which results in the
entry of the "ro mea", "mai han-akat" and "bo baimai" characters,
respectively, into the text portion 42 as shown in FIGS. 13-15
(each those characters is the first multi-tap choice on their
respective keys 28).
[0034] FIG. 16 is a schematic representation of alternate
embodiment of an input apparatus 8' having an alternative keyboard
24'. As seen in FIG. 16, keyboard 24' includes: a first key 28
having a Roman "Q" character, a Thai sara ai maimalai character and
a Thai maiyamok character thereon; a second key 28 having a Roman
"W" character, a Thai sara am character, a Thai tho nangmontho
character, and a Thai pho samphao character thereon; a third key 28
having a Roman "E" character, a Thai pho phan character, a Thai tho
thong character and a Thai do chada character thereon; a fourth key
28 having a Roman "R" character, a Thai sara a character, a Thai
sara u character and a Thai tho thong character thereon; a fifth
key 28 having a Roman "T" character, a Thai mai han-akat character,
a Thai sara ue character and a Thai sara uu character thereon; a
sixth key 28 having a Roman "Y" character, a Thai kho khwai
character, and a Thai sara ii character thereon; a seventh key 28
having a Roman "U" character, a Thai ro rua character, a Thai to
tao character and a Thai no nen character thereon; an eighth key 28
having a Roman "I" character, a Thai no nu character, a Thai cho
chan character and a Thai paiyannoi character thereon; a ninth key
28 having a Roman "O" character, a Thai yo yak character, a Thai
kho khai character and a Thai yo ying character thereon; a tenth
key 28 having a Roman "P" character, a Thai bo baimai character, a
Thai cho chang character and a Thai tho than character thereon; an
eleventh key 28 having a Roman "A" character, a Thai fo fan
character, a Thai ho hip character and a Thai ru character thereon;
a twelfth key 28 having a Roman "S" character, a Thai ko kai
character, a Thai do dek character and a Thai to patak character
thereon; a thirteenth key 28 having a Roman "D" character, a Thai
sara e character, and a Thai sara o character thereon; a fourteenth
key 28 having a Roman "F" character, a Thai mai tho character, and
a Thai maitaikhu character thereon; a fifteenth key 28 having a
Roman "G" character, a Thai mai ek character, and a Thai mai
chattawa character thereon; a sixteenth key 28 having a Roman "H"
character, a Thai sara aa character, and a Thai mai tri character
thereon; a seventeenth key 28 having a Roman "J" character, a Thai
so sua character, and a Thai so rusi character thereon; an
eighteenth key 28 having a Roman "K" character, a Thai wo waen
character, and a Thai so sala character thereon; a nineteenth key
28 having a Roman "L" character, a Thai ngo ngu character, and a
Thai so so character thereon; a twentieth key 28 having a Roman "Z"
character, a Thai pho phung character, and a Thai kho rakhang
character thereon; a twenty-first key 28 having a Roman "X"
character, a Thai sara ae character, and a Thai cho choe character
thereon; a twenty-second key 28 having a Roman "C" character, a
Thai o ang character, and a Thai cho ching character thereon; a
twenty-third key 28 having a Roman "V" character, a Thai sara i
character, and a Thai ho nokhuk character thereon; a twenty-fourth
key 28 having a Roman "B" character, a Thai sara uee character, and
a Thai phintu character thereon; a twenty-fifth key 28 having a
Roman "N" character, a Thai tho thahan character, a Thai mo ma
character, and a Thai thanthakhat character thereon; a twenty-sixth
key 28 having a Roman "M" character, a Thai sara ai maimuan
character, a Thai lo chula character, and a Thai tho phuthao
character thereon; a twenty-seventh key 28 having a Thai lo ling
character, a Thai fo fa character and a Thai baht character
thereon; and a twenty-eighth key 28 having a Thai po pla character
thereon.
[0035] Thus, the disclosed and claimed concept provides a keyboard
layout and a methodology that facilitates the entry of text in a
language that employs non-Roman characters while at the same time
still providing a standard QWERTY or similar keyboard adapted for
the entry of text using Roman characters in a conventional
manner.
[0036] While specific embodiments of the disclosed and claimed
concept have been described in detail, it will be appreciated by
those skilled in the art that various modifications and
alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the
overall teachings of the disclosure. For example, while a physical
keyboard 24 is described herein, it will be appreciated that the
disclosed and claimed concept may be implemented in the form of
virtual keyboard provided on a touch screen. Accordingly, the
particular arrangements disclosed are meant to be illustrative only
and not limiting as to the scope of the disclosed and claimed
concept which is to be given the full breadth of the claims
appended and any and all equivalents thereof
* * * * *