Multi-Touch Virtual Keyboard for Compact Touchscreen Text Input
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable devices with touch screens face challenges in efficiently inputting text due to restricted key map sizes, limiting the rapid and convenient entry of characters.
Innovation Solution
A text input method that utilizes multi-touch events to combine key icons on a touch screen, allowing users to input specific texts by detecting and controlling touch events on a display unit, enabling the creation of larger virtual keypads for more efficient text entry.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a touch screen is mounted in a portable device, then the device provides mobility and various functions, but the size of the key map is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a traditional two-dimensional key map layout to a three-dimensional virtual keyboard structure. By stacking multiple key layers vertically (consonant layer, vowel layer, and combined character layer), the system expands the key map into the third dimension, allowing more keys to be arranged without increasing the horizontal or vertical screen area. This dimensional transformation resolves the contradiction by providing comprehensive text input functionality while maintaining a compact screen footprint.
2Ease of operation
If the number of key icons is increased to improve text input capability, then text input convenience is improved, but the key map size becomes larger
Solution Approach 1:
The patent stacks multiple key layers vertically to create a three-dimensional virtual keyboard. The consonant layer, vowel layer, and combined character layer are arranged in the vertical dimension, allowing numerous key icons to be organized without expanding the horizontal screen area. This enables comprehensive text input capability while maintaining a compact key map footprint.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested structure where multiple key layers are contained within a single screen area. The consonant keys, vowel keys, and combined character keys are nested in vertical layers, with each layer accessible through multi-touch operations. This nesting approach allows numerous functional keys to coexist within a limited screen space, improving text input convenience without increasing key map size.
3Productivity
If multi-touch events are implemented to combine key icons, then text input speed is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically detects and processes multi-touch events without requiring manual intervention. When users simultaneously touch multiple key icons, the control unit autonomously identifies the touched keys, retrieves corresponding character data, combines them according to the language system rules, and displays the result. This self-service approach enables rapid text input while keeping the user interface simple, as the complexity is handled automatically by the system.
Data Source
AI summary
A text input method in a portable device and a portable device supporting the same are provided. The portable device includes, a touch screen including a display unit for displaying a text input area and a text display area including at least one consonant and vowel, and a touch panel provided at an upper side of the display unit for generating a touch event, and a control unit for controlling text displayed according to a touch event generated from the touch screen, in which the control unit detects multi-touch events for at least two key icons output on the text input area, and controls the display of a specific text composed of a combination of the multi-touched key icons based on the detected multi-touch events.