Soft Keyboard Selection via Spatial Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional user interfaces in portable devices, such as mobile phones, often become complex with increased button density and menu hierarchies, making it difficult for users to efficiently select the required soft keyboard from multiple options, leading to time-consuming character input processes.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that displays a single soft keyboard in a first area and a window in a second area on a portable electronic device's display, allowing users to select from a plurality of soft keyboards by displaying corresponding objects in response to user input, and making only the selected soft keyboard operational.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple soft keyboards are provided for different character input needs, then the versatility of character input is improved, but the complexity of selecting the appropriate keyboard increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the keyboard selection process by displaying multiple soft keyboards in separate, distinct areas on the display screen. Each keyboard is spatially separated and visually distinguished, allowing users to easily identify and select among different keyboard layouts (e.g., QWERTY, Dvorak, numeric) without confusion. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by maintaining versatility while reducing selection complexity through clear visual organization.
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes the two-dimensional display screen to arrange multiple soft keyboards simultaneously in different spatial locations rather than requiring sequential navigation through menus. By leveraging the spatial dimension of the display, users can access multiple keyboard options at once, transforming the selection process from a hierarchical navigation task into a direct visual selection task, thereby maintaining versatility while simplifying the selection interface.
2Adaptability or versatility
If users can access multiple soft keyboards, then the adaptability for different character sets is improved, but the time required to locate and select the needed keyboard increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-arranging and displaying all available soft keyboards simultaneously on the screen before the user needs to select one. The keyboards are organized in predetermined spatial locations with clear visual indicators, so when character input is needed, the user can immediately see all options and select the appropriate keyboard without time-consuming navigation or searching, thus maintaining adaptability while minimizing selection time.
Solution Approach 2:
The display screen acts as an intermediary that presents multiple keyboard options in a visually organized manner between the user's input need and the actual keyboard selection. By mediating the selection process through a visual display of all available keyboards with clear spatial arrangement and indicators, the system allows users to quickly identify and select the needed keyboard layout, maintaining versatility while reducing the time required for selection.
3Ease of operation
If a touch-sensitive display with multiple soft keyboards is used, then the ease of operation for character input is improved, but the difficulty of detecting which keyboard is active increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system utilizes visual differentiation techniques where the active soft keyboard is distinguished from inactive keyboards through color changes or visual highlighting. When a keyboard is selected for use, it displays with enhanced visual properties (such as brighter color, different shading, or border highlighting) that make it immediately identifiable as the active input interface. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining ease of operation while solving the detection difficulty through clear visual feedback.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates visual equipotentiality by ensuring that all soft keyboards are displayed with equal visual weight and clarity in their respective areas, but the active keyboard is distinguished through consistent visual indicators. This approach maintains ease of operation by presenting all options equally while solving the detection problem through uniform visual signaling that clearly indicates which keyboard is currently active without creating confusion among the multiple keyboard options.
Data Source
AI summary
A portable electronic device may display one of a plurality of soft keyboards in a first display area and input characters in a second display area. The user may select a key on the soft keyboard, causing a plurality of objects corresponding to the plurality of soft keyboards to be displayed. The user may then select one of the objects, and the soft keyboard corresponding to the selected object is displayed and made operational. The soft keyboards corresponding to the objects not selected are not made operational.