Virtual Keyboard Display Maintenance During Document Switching

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Solution Overview

Problem

Devices with touch-screen displays incur processing load and reduce user operability by repeatedly displaying and hiding virtual keyboards when switching between documents, requiring users to change input character types each time.

Innovation Solution

A device and method that maintain the display of a virtual keyboard while switching between documents, allowing continuous character input without changing the input type, reducing processing load and improving user experience.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the virtual keyboard is temporarily cancelled and re-displayed each time a new document is opened, then the document switching operation is completed, but the processing load increases and user operability deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument switching speedVSAvoidprocessing load

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The virtual keyboard is maintained in a ready state before document switching occurs, so that when the user switches documents, the keyboard is already prepared and immediately available for input without needing to be re-displayed or re-initialized

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The virtual keyboard display is maintained continuously across document switches rather than being terminated and re-displayed, ensuring uninterrupted input capability and reducing the repeated processing overhead of keyboard initialization

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

2Productivity

If the virtual keyboard is temporarily cancelled and re-displayed each time a new document is opened, then the document switching operation is completed, but user operability deteriorates due to requiring frequent input type changes

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedocument switching speedVSAvoidinput operation convenience

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The input type settings are maintained in memory before document switching, so the keyboard preserves the previously selected input type (e.g., English, Japanese, numeric) and users do not need to re-select input types when switching between documents

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The keyboard's input type state is maintained continuously across document switches, allowing users to input characters in the same language or character type without interruption or reconfiguration, thereby improving operational ease

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

Data Source

PatentUS9454517B2Device, method, and computer-readable recording medium

Publication Date: 2016.09.27 KYOCERA CORP

AI summary

An object of the present invention is to provide a device, a method, and a computer-readable recording medium, all of which reduce the processing load when a document is opened, and improve the operability for editing a document. A smartphone includes a touch-screen display and a controller. The controller displays a virtual keyboard and a document area which displayed an editing document inputted via the virtual keyboard, on the touch-screen display. The controller maintains displaying of the virtual keyboard while switching the editing document over from a first document to the second document, in a case in which a touch operation to switch the editing document over from the first document to the second document is performed.