JP3015754U - Key input device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a key input device that can be downsized, can be operated with one hand, and that can enter keys quickly, easily, and quickly without deteriorating operability of character input. [Constitution] The key input device comprises a main key area 3A composed of 15 main keys arranged in three rows of upper and lower rows and five columns of left and right rows, and one of the left and right sides thereof is a reference side. The key groups in the two rows on the reference side of the main key area 3A are set in the vowel area 3D, and the key groups in the remaining three rows are set in the consonant area 3E. Since it is composed of 15 keys, the key input device is downsized, and all key inputs are covered with one hand, so that the keys can be quickly and easily typed.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention relates to a key input device used in the field of a character input device or an input method, and more specifically, as a keyboard used in a small electronic notebook, a small word processor (word processor), a personal computer (personal computer), or the like. , The present invention relates to a key input device capable of performing an input operation.

[0002]

[Background technology]

 Word processors and PCs have excellent functions such as "Kanji and Kana mixed sentences" and various characters, symbols, figures, etc. can be freely input, edited, printed, and saved. It is an indispensable tool ("writing instrument").

[0003]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 However, at present, this “writing instrument” is too large in shape, heavy, and inconvenient to carry around easily. In addition, it does not fit in a pocket, cannot be handled with one hand, and is difficult to operate. It depends on the mechanism of the contents of the word processor or personal computer, but it is largely due to the keyboard on the surface, and even if it is a portable type, there are more than 80 keys, so there is a limit to downsizing. That is, if the 80 keys are downsized without reducing the number of keys, the keys will be dense and hard to hit. On the other hand, simply reducing the number of keys will only reduce the essential functions, and will have no meaning at all.

The object of the present invention is to reduce the number of keys to a size as small as a “calculator” and to operate it with one hand. It is to provide a key input device that can be quickly and quickly typed.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 The key input device of the present invention comprises a main key area having 15 main keys arranged in three rows of upper and lower rows and five rows of left and right sides, and one of the left and right sides of the main key area serves as a reference side. The area consisting of the key groups is set as a vowel area for inputting vowels, and the area consisting of the remaining three rows of key groups of the main key area is set as a consonant area for inputting consonants. .

[0006] Here, the specific allocation of vowels and consonants to each key in the main key area can be set as appropriate, but in particular, the ease of tapping each key with each finger and the Japanese (romaji) ) It is desirable to set it in consideration of the appearance frequency of each character in input and English input.

[0007] Specifically, as an allocation particularly suitable for inputting Roman characters, the keys "I" and "A" are arranged in the middle row of the vowel area in order from the reference side, and the upper row of the first row is The “E” and “U” keys are arranged in order from the reference side, and the “n” and “O” keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower row, and the middle row of the consonant area is arranged. The keys "K", "S", and "T" are arranged in order from the reference side, and the keys "N", "H", and "M" are arranged in order from the reference side in the first row. In addition, the keys "Y", "R", "W" are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower one row, and "K", "S", "T", " The shift states of the N, “H”, “M”, “Y”, “R” and “W” keys are “G”, “Z”, “D”, “P” and “B”. , A consonant “”, a punctuation “,”, a reading “.”, And a long consonant “-” are preferably set.

Further, as an allocation particularly suitable for inputting English characters, the keys “I” and “A” are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the vowel area, and the reference row is arranged in the upper row. The keys “E” and “U” are arranged in order from the side, the keys “X” and “O” are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower row, and the reference is set in the middle row in the consonant area. The keys "C", "S", and "T" are arranged in order from the side, and the keys "N", "H", and "M" are arranged in order from the reference side in the upper row, and the lower row. Keys “Y”, “R”, and “W” are arranged in order from the reference side in one row, and “I”, “A”, “E”, and “U” of the vowel area are arranged. , "X", "O" keys are shifted to ".", Comma ",", hyphen "-", apostrophe "'", "J". , "Q" are set, and "C", "S", "T", "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", "W" of the consonant area are set. "G", "Z", "D", "P", "B", "L", "F", "V", "K" are set for the shift state of each key. It is preferable.

Further, as an assignment applicable to both Roman character input and English character input, the keys “I” and “A” are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the vowel area described above, and the upper row. The “E” and “U” keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the first row, and the “X / N” and “O” keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower row. A. The keys "C / K", "S", and "T" are arranged in the middle row in the first row in order from the reference side, and the "N", "H", " The "M" key is arranged, and the "Y", "R", and "W" keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower row, and the "I" and "I" of the vowel area are arranged. The shift state of each of the A, E, U, X / N, and O keys is a period “.”, A comma “,”, and a high key. Hun "-", apostrophe "'", "J", "Q" are set, and "C / K", "S", "T", "N", "H", "M" of the consonant area are set. , "Y", "R", and "W" key shift states are "G", "Z", "D", "P", "B", "L /", and "F". "/,", "V /.", "K /-" are set, and further, there is a switching means for switching between the Japanese input mode by the Roman character input and the English character mode by the alphabet input, and the "X The keys "/ n", "C / K", "L / t", "F /,", "V /.", And "K /-" are used for Japanese input mode. ”, Consonant“ ”, punctuation“, ”, punctuation“. ”, And long consonant“-”. In English mode,“ X ”,“ C ”,“ L ”,“ F ”,“ V ”,“ Each is set to "K" It is preferred.

As for the arrangement of the keys themselves, at least one row of the main keys is arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key row is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the other key rows. preferable. At this time, the keys in the two rows on the reference side of the main key area are arranged in the vertical direction, and the keys in the remaining three rows in the main key area have the keys in the two rows in the arrangement direction of the keys. It is preferable that they are arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the line-up direction. Further, it is preferable that the one row of key groups arranged at a position farthest from the reference side of the main key area be displaced from the adjacent key group in the arrangement direction of the key rows.

In addition to the main key, the key input device has three sub-keys arranged in a row on the reference side of the main key area and one row on the lower side of the main key area. It is preferable to have four control keys arranged. At this time, it is preferable that the sub-keys are arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of one row on the reference side of the main key area.

Further, the three keys from the reference side of the control keys are set to “conversion”, “non-conversion”, and “space” keys in order from the reference side, and the fourth key is another control key. It is preferable that an “L shift” key for inputting a small letter having a larger width dimension than that of “L” is set. Further, it is preferable that the control key is arranged at a position where the thumb can be struck when the index finger, the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger are in the home position where the index finger, the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger are on standby in the middle row of the main key area. .

Further, in each of the key input devices, the reference side may be on the left side of the key input device and may be particularly suitable for operation with the right hand, or the reference side may be on the right side of the key input device, particularly with the left hand. It may be suitable for the operation.

[0014]

[Operation] The operation of the present invention will be described below. According to the invention as set forth in claim 1, the key input device includes a main key area in which at least 15 keys in 3 rows and 5 columns in the left and right direction, and one of the left and right sides thereof serves as a reference side, and the main key area is provided. Of the areas, the area consisting of the two rows of keys on the reference side was set as the vowel area for inputting vowels, and the area consisting of the remaining three rows of the main key area was set as the consonant area for inputting consonants. Since the structure is a basic feature, if you put your hand on the keys in the 3 rows and 5 columns at the time of key input, the vowel area becomes the position of the index finger and the consonant area becomes the position of the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger. Inputting a vowel with a high frequency of occurrence is performed by a large index finger, and operability is improved.

According to the invention as defined in claims 2 to 4, the vowel sounds are assigned to the keys of the vowel area and the consonant area based on the order of ease of tapping which is predetermined in the Roman character input or the English character input, respectively. And consonants are arranged in descending order of frequency of use, and the ease of hitting is in the order of the reference side of the middle row to the opposite side, the reference side of the upper row to the opposite side, and the reference side of the lower row to the opposite side. Therefore, the most frequent letter is placed on the index finger, which has the best unique function and vitality in the fingers, and the letters of the alphabet are placed in order of the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. , The operability of key input is improved.

Further, according to the invention as set forth in claims 5 to 16, instead of arranging all the key rows in parallel, some of the rows are inclined with respect to the other rows. Therefore, the keys are arranged according to the index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky finger, which have different lengths, and the key positions are ergonomically considered, further improving the operability of key input. Particularly, according to the invention as set forth in claims 10, 13 and 16, the key row arranged at the position farthest from the reference side is arranged so as to be displaced from other key rows. Even when a little finger, which is shorter than other fingers, is used, the key row can be easily shifted by shifting the key row to the front side, and the operability of key input is further improved.

Further, in the key input device according to claim 17, a plurality of sub keys arranged on the reference side of the main key area, and a plurality of control keys arranged on the lower side of the main key area. Since these are provided, various functions and various character input can be easily realized by pressing these sub-keys and control keys individually or simultaneously with other keys.

Further, in the key input device according to claim 18, since the arrangement direction of the key rows of the sub-keys is arranged to be inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of one row on the reference side of the main key area, one When the main key is typed with one hand and the sub key is typed with the other hand, the sub key can be easily input.

Further, in the key input device according to the nineteenth aspect, among the control keys, the fourth key from the reference side, which is hard to type, has a larger width dimension than other control keys. Therefore, it becomes possible to type the keys more easily.

Further, in the key input device according to claim 20, when the control key is at a home position in which a forefinger, a middle finger, a ring finger, and a little finger are made to stand by in a middle row of the main key area, Since it is placed at a position where you can hit it with your thumb, you can easily hit each key by natural finger operation, which improves the key input operation.

[0021]

【Example】

 Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, before describing specific examples, points to be considered in allocating each character to 15 keys in 3 rows and 5 columns, which is the basis of the present invention, will be described.

FIG. 1 shows the position of the finger of the right hand when using 15 keys in three rows of up and down and five rows of right and left hands (numeral 7 in circle, numeral 8 in circle, numeral 9 in circle, numeral in circle) The position indicated by 10) is shown. The 15 keys in 3 rows up and down and 5 rows in left and right are within the range where the finger can be easily moved by blind touch of only the right or left hand excluding the thumb. As the arrangement of the right finger in this key arrangement, the left two rows are handled by the index finger and the right three rows are handled by the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger respectively, and the middle circled number 7, circled number 8, circled number 9, circle It is empirically known that the key with the numeral 10 is the home position in which four fingers are kept on standby, and can be hit most efficiently.

FIG. 2 shows the "easy-to-hit order" for each of the 15 keys in the upper, lower, third row, and the fifth row. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, in the area of the index finger and the area including the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger, the position of the middle finger is the easiest to place, and the upper and lower positions are in order. In each row, as shown in the order of the numbers in the figure, the index finger area is 1, 2 from the right side of the figure, and the area including the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger is 1, 2, 3 from the left side of the figure. It is easy to type in order. Furthermore, if you add 4 keys to the lower row (bottom row) of 15 keys in 3 rows of 5 rows and 5 rows of right and left rows and hit them with your thumb, in the area of the thumb area Now you can use your thumb. Note that the key (4) at the right end of the bottom row may be difficult to hit with the thumb, and may be pressed with the little finger.

[0024] Using the 19 keys, which are the upper and lower 3 rows, the left and right 5 rows, and the bottom row, 4 keys, the 19 keys are used to protect the position of each finger while striking independently or using several fingers. Simultaneously hitting multiple keys in combination is an operation that can be performed relatively easily with a blind touch without breaking the natural shape of the hands and fingers. Therefore, by arranging all necessary letters, numbers, symbols, functions, and modes in this key input device in a composite manner, and by striking a plurality of keys separately, various inputs can be easily performed. In consideration of such a point, the inventor of the present invention has devised a layout of characters in the key input device of this embodiment.

It is necessary to consider the following points when allocating characters to such a key input device. In other words, the most important factor in designing a keyboard is how to make an arrangement that is easy to remember and easy to type in accordance with the appearance frequency of the characters used. More specifically, the following points 1 to 4 are required. 1. Make the arrangement of letters as regular as possible to make it easier to remember. 2. Place frequently appearing characters at key positions that are easy to type. 3. Increase the frequency of active use by placing a wide range of active fingers such as the index finger and thumb. 4. The activity of the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger decreases in that order, so use them in that order as well. Conveniently, there is some regularity in the frequency of appearance of Japanese. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the frequency of occurrence of alphabets in Romaji input. Since each syllabary is always accompanied by a vowel, as shown in Fig. 3, the "Romaji input" has the highest frequency of vowels. Next, the consonants appear in almost the order of the Japanese syllabary "K (or line), S (sa line), T (ta line), N (na line) ...". It should be noted that FIG. 3 is quoted from the presentation material of “SKY sequence”.

Therefore, the vowels are defined as “vowel areas” in the position of the index finger in the order of the Japanese syllabary according to the “order of ease of hitting” in FIG. 2, and then the consonants are “consonant areas” in the positions of the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. Then, it is possible to create an "array by area" that is easy to remember and easy to hit, depending on the appearance frequency to some extent. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the basic configuration of the present invention. Explaining in correspondence with FIG. 2, in the present invention, a key group consisting of 15 keys in 3 rows of upper and lower rows and 5 columns of left and right rows is arranged on either the left or right side. One side is the main key area, and the area consisting of the two key rows on the reference side (two rows on the right side in the illustrated example) of the main key area is the vowel area for inputting vowels and the remaining three rows. Set the areas consisting of the key groups of (the left side in the example shown in the figure) to the consonant areas for inputting consonants (in the example of the right hand in Fig. 4, the right side 2 rows are set as vowel areas and the left side 3 rows are set as consonant areas). In addition, "I" and "A" keys are arranged in the middle row of the vowel area, "E" and "U" keys are arranged in the upper row, and "O" is arranged in the lower row. The key is placed.

The keys “K”, “S”, and “T” are arranged in the middle row of the consonant area, and the “N”, “H”, and “M” keys are arranged in the upper row. The keys "Y", "R", and "W" are arranged in the lower one row. Then, among the keys in the consonant area, the shift states of “K”, “S”, “T”, “N”, and “H” (the shift key for switching each key to the shift state or the non-shift state (see the figure 4 Press the key labeled "Shift" at the bottom) to shift to the state), and combine it with vowels "A", "I", "U", "E", and "O" "G", "Z", "D", "P", and "B" for inputting sounds and semi-voiced sounds are arranged.

The inventors of the present invention examined not only the easy-to-type arrangement for Japanese language but also the easy-to-type arrangement for English, and considered the common easy-to-type arrangement for Japanese and English. The supplementary explanation of this point is as follows. In other words, if you look at the sequence of characters in a traditional English mechanical typewriter, you will find the following order. 1QA 2ZWS 3XE 4DCRF 5VTG 6BYHN 7UJ 8 MIK 9, OL 0.P A closer examination of this sequence reveals that the numbers are not contiguous. I also notice that the spellings that are next to each other, such as "the, you, she, they, it, for, and, to", which are often used in English, are not consecutive. This is because, in the old days, typebars with typefaces were intertwined, which was a problem, so we separated the characters that were likely to be used continuously. In other words, this "array of English typewriters" is not designed for ease of typing.

In order to study an easy-to-type and efficient English input method, the frequency of occurrence of alphabets, spaces, punctuation marks, etc. is examined and arranged in order, as shown in FIG. Note that FIG. 5 is quoted from “English Word Processor Test Textbook” written by Yoshika Hagino (Technical Review Co., Ltd.). Referring to FIG. 5, let us compare the ease of striking between the “QWERTY array” (see FIG. 6A) and the “D vorak array” (see FIG. 6B) shown in FIG. 6. First, in the “QWERTY array”, “FJK”, which has a relatively low frequency of appearance, tightens the forefinger and middle finger of the right and left middle rows, which are the easiest to hit. On the contrary, five vowels, which are quite frequent, are arranged in pieces, and “E” is assigned to the middle finger of the upper left row and to the key that is difficult to hit. Therefore, with this arrangement, “alternating keys” with good balance between the right hand and the left hand cannot be expected.

On the other hand, in the “Dvorak array”, the main consonants are arranged in the right hand around the letters with high frequency such as “T, N, S, H”, and all five vowels are arranged in the middle of the left hand. There is. The reason is that, like consonants and vowels can be played as a pair, consonants with a large number are distributed to the right moving finger, and vowels with a small number and high frequency are concentrated in the center of the left finger, and the right hand is concentrated. This is because it is easier to perform "alternate keystrokes" with the left hand. English and Japanese are not very similar in nature, but one common point is that when they are written in Roman letters, they both have exactly the same five vowels, and consonants and vowels combine to form words. It is the point that is formed. As a proof of the commonality, it is much easier to type in Japanese when using the Dvorak layout, which is easy to type in English, to input Japanese. If the opposite of this fact holds true and the concept of the Japanese standard array is similar to the "Dvorak array", the Japanese array can be directly applied as the English standard array.

When the array shown in FIG. 4 is compared with the “Dvorak array” shown in FIG. 6B, the shapes of the characters and the positions of characters are different, but the concept of the array is similar. This is because the most frequently used consonants are placed in the right three columns, and the five vowels are placed in the left two columns to make it easier to perform "alternate keystroke" or "simultaneous keystroke" with the combination of the middle finger, ring finger, little finger and forefinger. . As described above, according to the present invention, the basic arrangement of keys as shown in FIG. 4 enables a common and easy-to-type arrangement not only in Japanese but also in English.

The present embodiment is made in consideration of the above points. Therefore, the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, an example in which the present invention is applied to a “horizontal type” in which a liquid crystal screen is hinged to a word processor main body will be described as a type of key input device.

7 to 9, reference numeral 1 is a word processor main body, 2 is a lid body rotatably provided on the rear wall portion 1a of the word processor main body 1 via a hinge 1b, and has a liquid crystal screen 2a. The lid 2a is adapted to be locked to the word processor main body 1 by a mouthpiece portion 2b provided on the opening side. The reference numeral 3 as a whole is a key input device according to the present invention. In this embodiment, the key input device 3 is located on the rear wall portion 1a side of the word processor main body 1 and has three rows of upper and lower rows and five rows of five rows. Main key area 3A consisting of individual key groups, and control key area 3B located on the front wall 1c side of the word processor body 1 and having keys arranged in one row (one step) below the main key area 3A. And a sub-key area 3C which is arranged in a position parallel to the main key area 3A and has keys arranged in three rows in one row on the left side of the word processor main body 1.

8 and 9 are diagrams when this word processor is used, and FIG. 8 shows the keys in the main key area 3A and the keys in the control key area 3B with the right hand while holding them with the left hand. While pressing, press the key in the sub key area 3C with the thumb of the left hand at the same time to perform “composite input”. In this case, it is also possible to strike two adjacent subkeys simultaneously with the belly of the left thumb. In addition, FIG. 9 shows a case where the sub-key area 3C is used by placing it on a desk and using the index finger and the middle finger of the left hand to perform various "composite input". When it is placed on a desk and used, the subkey can be hit with the left forefinger and middle finger, and part of the control key can also be hit with the left thumb. In addition, in the examples shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, ergonomics are taken into consideration so that the usage of the hands and fingers is not unnatural whether the keyboard is held or used. That is, in the embodiment, the keys in the sub-key area 3C are arranged diagonally, which allows the user to open both hands in the shape of a figure and hit them, especially when placed and used, like a general keyboard. Has the advantage that it is not cramped. In addition, if the left hand is full and it is difficult to use, all characters, numbers, symbols, functions, and modes can be easily entered by one-handed operation with only the right finger.

FIG. 10 shows 15 keys in the upper and lower 3 rows and 5 columns in the right and left forming the main key area 3A shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, 4 keys in one row forming the control key area 3B, and sub-keys. An example of a "word processor arrangement" is shown in which the input of Japanese characters is the main consideration for the three keys that make up area 3C. In this example, Roman characters are used as input characters, and Japanese and English are used. Consideration is given so that the common array can be entered. Further, in FIG. 10, as is apparent from the drawing, the numbers, symbols, functions, and modes are made to coexist in the main key area 3A with the 15 character keys in the upper, lower, third, left, and right five columns to form the control key area 3B. It is designed to type using 4 keys in 1 row and 3 keys that make up the subkey area 3C, so that these numbers / symbols / functions / modes are not carried to the position away from the user, There is an advantage that you can enter without looking at.

Further, the arrangement of the character keys in the main key area is such that the order of ease of hitting each key in the main key area (see FIG. 1) and the vowels of alpha bets and The consonants are arranged in comparison with the frequency of use (see Fig. 3), and the vowels and consonants are in the order of frequency of use, and are in the order of ease of tapping on this key arrangement. The upper and lower rows are arranged, and the keys in each row are arranged from the reference side to the opposite side.

The three keys 120, 121, 122 of the sub-key area 3C arranged next to the main key area 3A are mainly used for conversion functions (abbreviation conversion, abbreviated conversion, etc.) provided for the word processing function. It is used for inputting functions, common symbols, ten keys, etc. The word processor function is operated by using three keys in combination.

Now, the arrangement of the main key area 3A, which is the characteristic arrangement of keys of the present invention, will be described in more detail. In the illustrated example shown in FIG. 10, the common keys and the characters for the numeric keypad are arranged together with the character keys used for standard input in Japanese and English. In order to explain the arrangement in an easy-to-understand manner, the arrangement is divided into the letters used for the standard input in Japanese, the common symbols, and the characters used for the numeric keypad.

“Regarding Character Key Arrangement for Standard Input in Japanese / English” First, FIG. 11 shows only the arrangement for Japanese romaji input shown in FIG. 10 and appears for romaji input. It is a figure showing a state where letters are arranged in a total of 15 main key areas 3A in three rows of upper and lower rows and five columns of left and right rows. In the main key area 3A of the embodiment, consideration is given so that input can be performed using the right hand. . That is, one side (left side in the illustrated example) of the main key area 3A is the reference side where the index finger is the home position, and the area consisting of the two key rows on the reference side is the vowel input vowel. Area 3D is set, and the area consisting of the remaining three rows of key groups of main key area 3A is set as consonant area 3E for inputting consonants.

The vowel area 3D, which is composed of two rows of keys on the reference side, is provided with six keys 101, 102, 106, 107, 111, 112. These keys 101, 102, 106, 107, 111 and 112 have vowel keys "A", "I", "U", "E", and "O" representing vowels and vowels "n" arranged as follows. That is, among the vowel keys, the middle keys 107 and 106 are arranged with the "A" and "I" strike keys, and the upper keys 102 and 101 are the "U" and "E" strike keys, respectively. And the keys 112 and 111 in the lower row are arranged with an “O” and a sound-repellent “n” strike key.

In this arrangement, when the right index finger is set to the home position of the vowel area, the key “A”, which is frequently used, is arranged on the key 107 at the home position of the index finger, and the key 106 next to it is arranged. The "I" key is arranged in the upper row, and the "U", "E", and "O" keys are arranged in the order of frequency of use in the order from the upper row to the lower row. The arrangement on the vowel area in the illustrated example does not necessarily match the order of frequency of use of the characters shown in FIG. 3 according to the order of ease of hitting the keys. , "A", "I", "U", "E", "O" so that the characters are easy to remember. Further, in the illustrated example, the key 107 is provided with a home position indicating means 130 for indicating a home position. Here, as the home position indicating means 130, a square frame is formed so as to surround the letter A on the key 107, and the inside of the square frame is a convex portion, and when the finger is placed, the key 107 is It is becoming recognizable. However, the present invention is not limited to such an illustrated example, and other means (for example, changing the color of the key 107 or blinking the LED) as long as the key 107 can be recognized. May be

On the other hand, in the consonant areas 3E on the right three columns, “K”, “S”, “T”, “N”, “H”, “M”, “Y”, and “K” representing Japanese consonants are displayed. Consonant keys of "R" and "W" are arranged. More specifically, the middle keys 108, 109, and 110 are “K”, “S”, and “T” keys in order from the left, and the upper keys 103, 104, and 105 are “N” in order from the left. , "H", "M" keys, and the keys 113, 114, 115 in the lower row are "Y", "R", "W" keys in order from the left side. And these arrays are "ka" line, "sa" line, "ta" line, "na" line, "ha" line, "ma" line, "ya" line, "ra" line, "wa" line. The consonants of a line are arranged so that they are arranged in the middle, upper, and lower rows of the keys in the order of Akasana, and from the reference side to the opposite side.

It should be noted that, like the arrangement of vowels, such an arrangement is, of course, set in consideration of the order of ease of tapping and the order of frequency of use of Roman letters, and the right index finger is used as the mother's finger. When the home position in the sound area is set, the key “K”, which is frequently used, is arranged on the key 108 at the position where the home position of the middle finger of the middle row is set. A key 109 provided with "S" is provided beside the key 108 at the middle finger position, and a "T" key is provided as a key 110 beside it. Then, in the order from the reference side to the opposite side, “N” for key 103, “H” for key 104, and “H” for key 104 The key “M” is arranged at 105, the key “Y” is arranged at the key 113, the key “R” is arranged at the key 114, and the key “W” is arranged at the key 115.

On the other hand, in the shift state of the consonant keys (the state in which the shift keys 116 arranged in the control key area 3B and capable of switching each key in the main key area to either the shift state or the non-shift state are operated) , Punctuation ",", Reading ".", Long consonant "-", Consonant "tsu" and vowels are combined to form semi-voiced voiced voiced voice "P", "B", "G", "Z", "D" Is assigned. Specifically, the hit keys 103, 104, and 105 corresponding to “N”, “H”, and “M” in the upper row are arranged with “P”, “B”, and “tsu”, and in the middle row. “G”, “Z”, and “D” are arranged on the hit keys 108, 109, and 110 corresponding to “K”, “S”, and “T”, and further “Y” and “R” in the lower row. The hit keys 113, 114, and 115 corresponding to "W" are arranged with a punctuation mark ",", a reading mark ".", And a long sound "-". In the embodiment, the key arrangement is for the case of operating with the right hand, but it is needless to say that when operating with the left hand, the reference side is the opposite of the illustrated example and is arranged in the left-right direction.

On the other hand, to supplement the explanation of the keys in the control key area 3B, the four keys 116, 117, 118, 119 arranged in the control key area 3B are mainly converted / non-converted. -It has functions such as shift, and is combined with 15 keys arranged in the main key area 3A to operate various functions that are characteristic of the key input device. In the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, a shift key 116 having a function of shifting and kana-kanji conversion from the reference side (left side), an F shift key 117 having a function of F (function) shift and no kana-kanji conversion, and a main It is composed of a function shift key 118 having a function of shifting the function in the key area and a function of space input, and an L shift key 119 having a small kana lowercase input function and a menu calling function. The L shift key 119 has a width approximately twice as large as that of the other keys 116, 117, 118 and the like, so that it is easy to strike.

By the way, the key arrangement shown in FIG. 10 also considers the operability when inputting English as described above, and the explanation of the key arrangement at this point will be supplemented with reference to FIG. . FIG. 12 shows an array for standard input in English by the right hand, and in this example, it is basically the same as the array for standard input in Japanese shown in FIG. Note that the example of FIG. 12 is provided with a switching means for switching between an English input mode (English character mode) and a Japanese input mode (Japanese input mode by Roman character input) so that the mode can be used. This switching means calls, for example, the mode switching provided in the word processing function with the function control key and switches the mode on the screen, or one of the keys in the function control key area has the function of the mode switching. , May be switched by hitting a key. By operating the mode switching means, the Japanese input mode shown in FIG. 11 is arranged in the English input mode shown in FIG. 12, and each key is operated.

More specifically, first, in the English input mode, the character keys are the keys 101, 102, 106, 107 of the vowel area 3D including the two groups of keys on the reference side, as in the Japanese mode. 111 and 112 are arranged with vowel keys "A", "I", "U", "E", and "O" representing vowels, respectively, and consonant areas 3A made up of the remaining three rows of key groups, respectively. It has a basic structure in which consonant keys such as "C", "S", "T", "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", and "W" representing consonants are arranged. ing. The vowel keys "A", "I", "U", "E", and "O" are arranged in the middle keys 107 and 106, respectively, and the strike keys "A" and "I" are arranged, "U" and "E" hit keys are arranged on the upper keys 102 and 101, respectively, and "O" and "X" hit keys are arranged on the lower keys 112 and 111, respectively.

On the other hand, in the consonant areas 3E on the right three columns, in the non-shifted state, “C”, “S”, “T”, “N”, “H”, “M”, “Y”, “R”. ”,“ W ”consonant keys are arranged, and more specifically, the middle keys 108, 109, 110 are“ C ”,“ S ”,“ T ”keys in order from the left side, and The upper keys 103, 104, and 105 are the keys “N”, “H”, and “M” in order from the left side, and the lower keys 113, 114, 115 are “Y” and “R” in order from the left side. , And "W" keys are the basic structure.

In the above description, the key of 108, which is the home position of the middle finger, is the key of “K” in Japanese, but it works as the key of “C” in English mode, and the key of “K” The keys are arranged at the position of the "W" key in the shift state. This is because, in English, the character "C" appears more frequently than "K" (see FIG. 5). Therefore, in the present embodiment, the key 108 of the home position of the middle finger is " It is arranged as a character of "K / C", so that the key of the "K / C" is set to "K" in the Japanese mode and "C" of the alphabet in the alphabet mode character. .

On the other hand, in the shift state of each key in the main key area 3 A, the hyphen symbol “−” is assigned to the key 101, the apostrophe “′” is assigned to the key 102, and the key “P” is assigned to the key 103 in order from the upper reference side. , “B” on the key 104, and “L” on the key 105, and in the middle shift state, the period “.” On the key 106 and the comma on the key 107 in order from the reference side. ",", "G" on the key 108, "Z" on the key 109, and "D" on the key 110 are arranged. Further, in the lower shift state, the keys 111 "J" in order from the reference side. , “Q” on the key 112, “F” on the key 113, “V” on the key 114, and “K” on the key 115. More specifically, the hyphen symbols “101”, “102”, “103”, “104”, and “105” corresponding to “E”, “U”, “N”, “H”, and “M” in the upper row indicate the hyphen symbol “. -", Apostrophes" '"," P "," B "," L "are arranged, and strike keys corresponding to" I "," A "," C "," S "," T "in the middle row. 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 are arranged with periods ".", Commas ",", "G", "Z", "D", and further "X", "O", " The hit keys 111, 112, 113, 114 and 115 corresponding to “Y”, “R” and “W” are arranged with “J”, “Q”, “F”, “V” and “K”. There is.

In the shift state, the keys 105, 111, 113, 114 and 115 having different characters from those in the Japanese shift state are “L / tsu”, “X / n”, “F /,” respectively. , "V /.", "K /-", and the corresponding "L / t", "X / n", "F /,", "V /.", And "K /-" keys are , In the Japanese mode, it becomes "tsu", "n", ",", ".", "-" By the mode switching means, and the alphabetic mode letters are "L", "X", "F", It is set to be "V" and "K".

Next, with reference to FIGS. 13 and 14, a supplementary explanation will be given on the arrangement for selecting the function of the key input device shown in FIG. First, the arrangement of the function keys will be described with reference to FIG. For these function keys, the function shift key 118, which is the key input unit 140, is pressed with a finger or the like, and at the same time, the keys in the main key area 3A are pressed to operate the 15 keys in the main key area 3A. It is a thing. The function key arrangement of the main key area 3A, which is composed of a group of upper and lower three rows and left and right five columns, is as follows. That is, the hit keys 101, 102, 103, 104, and 105 corresponding to the upper “E”, “U”, “N”, “H”, and “M” have a moving function in the sentence beginning direction. "Sentence movement (indicated by an upward white triangle in the drawing)", movement toward the end of the sentence "End of sentence movement (indicated by a downward white triangle in the drawing)", and movement to the page head The cursor keys "upward movement cursor (indicated by the upward thick arrow in the drawing)", backward key "backward", delete key "delete" are arranged, and the middle "I" , “A”, “C”, “S”, and “T”, the hit keys 106, 107, 108, 109, and 110 have “tab” as a tab function and “left” as a cursor movement key. Left move cursor (indicated by a thick left arrow in the drawing) ”, End of page "Move down cursor (indicated by a downward thick arrow in the drawing)" that is the move cursor key, and "Right move cursor (indicated by thick right arrow in the drawing)" that is the right cursor move key. , "Line feed function (indicated by a line feed mark in the example)" that indicates the line feed key is arranged, and the "X", "O", "Y", and The hit keys 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115 corresponding to “R” and “W” have “area” as an area designation key, “move” as a move key, and “copy” as a copy function key. , "Cancel" which is the cancel key, and "Execute" which is the execute key are arranged.

Further, in the example shown in FIG. 13, in the lower part of the main key area 3A and in the lower part of the function control key area 3B, two adjacent keys are sandwiched between "single kanji" and "previous character" respectively. Characters for executing auxiliary functions of word processing such as "Candidate", "By radical", "By field", "Kana conversion", "F display switching", and "Special function" are arranged. By pressing the corresponding two keys at the same time, the auxiliary function on the word processor works on the screen. FIG. 14 shows how to perform a composite input for each of these function keys. By using the 24 ways (A) to (X) shown in FIG. 14, you can use the normal functions assigned to each function key. Is something that can be done. In addition, in order to avoid erroneous input, each deletion of (M) to (U) is confirmed by hitting "execute" after input. In addition, to supplement the method of inputting function keys, press the function shift key with the right thumb to bring the right forefinger, right middle finger, and right little finger toward the hit key corresponding to the function, and press as shown in FIG. For example, the 24 functions (A) to (X) can be used effectively.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the “basic functions” such as “usual functions” and “auxiliary functions” are made to coexist in the 15 main key areas 3A as described above, and the thumb function shift key 118 is used. Since the keys to be used as the cursor keys are arranged on each of the keys 103, 107, 108, and 109 arranged in the center of the right hand, it is possible to hit with a blind touch without moving the arm at all. There are advantages. That is, in a general word processor, independent function keys such as "backward / delete / newline / execute / cancel / tab" are distributed around the character keys, so you can see far away while looking at your hand. You have to extend your finger and hit it, especially because the most frequently used cursor key is pushed to the right corner of the keyboard, you need to move it with your arm and hit it, and in addition, press each independent function key However, according to the present embodiment, as described above, the “basic functions” such as the “regular function” and the “auxiliary function” can be handled by 15 units. They were made to live together in the main key area 3A, and were separated by the function shift key 118 of the thumb. Especially, since the cursor was placed in the center of the right hand, the arm did not move at all and the blind touch In it there is an advantage that the strike comfortably.

By the way, a general word processor or personal computer is provided with function keys such as “F1, F2, F3 ...” at the top of the keyboard in order to select the “function” displayed at the bottom of the screen. However, in the present embodiment, the key numbers of [1] to [15] (indicated by circled numbers in the drawing) are attached to the 15 keys of the main key area 3A along with the display of the regular functions, It is supposed that the function of the "function" key is operated by the simultaneous input of the F shift key (function shift key) 117.

Next, switching of standard modes such as “half-width mode”, “numeric mode”, “symbol mode”, “alphabet mode”, “ruled line mode” and “kana mode” in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 15 shows the layout of the key input device with the standard mode switching function. The upper row of the main key area 3A and the right column (the rightmost column on the opposite side of the reference side) are respectively Characters for executing the standard mode of the word processor, such as "half-width", "number", "symbol", "alphabet", "ruled line", and "kana", are arranged so that two adjacent keys are sandwiched between them. By hitting two keys corresponding to these characters at the same time, it is possible to switch to each mode. FIG. 16 shows how to switch the standard mode, and the standard mode switching assigned to each function key can be mastered by the six ways (A) to (F) shown in FIG. It is a thing. Note that, in FIG. 16, when the operation of "mode switching" is repeated in the "English character mode" of (D), the lowercase character is changed to the uppercase character.

To cancel the “standard mode switching”, the same operation as the “mode switching” may be repeated in principle. That is, the same means as switching to the standard mode, for example, the "half-width" mode can be released by pressing the 101 and 102 keys together with the function shift key 118, and the "numeric" mode can be released by the function shift key 118. At the same time, the keys 102 and 103 may be pressed at the same time. Inputting numbers and English by this "standard mode switching" is effective when many characters are continuously typed.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the two keys described outside the main key area 3A and the function shift key are simultaneously pressed so that “mode switching” including half-width characters can be performed. Therefore, these "mode switching" can be easily performed with a blind touch on the right hand. In other words, since there are various “mode switching” keys on the general keyboard, it is difficult to type. In Japanese sentences, in particular, not only full-width but also half-width numbers, symbols, and ruled lines are frequently used. It is necessary to perform the "mode switching" and its release in detail, and it is necessary to repeat the troublesome operation.However, according to this embodiment, not only "full width" but also various "modes" combined with "half width" are used. You can easily input "Switch" with a single hitting operation using a blind touch with your right hand. Also, you can press the two keys on the outside of the main key area 3A and the function shift key at the same time. Since "mode switching" including half-width is performed, these "mode switching" can be easily performed by blind touch of the right hand.

[Regarding Arrangement of Common Symbols / Arrangement of Ten Keys] Next, with reference to FIG. 17, an arrangement of common symbols of common symbols and how to input them, and an arrangement of ten keys and how to input them will be described. In the embodiment, by using the three sub-keys 120, 121, 122 arranged on the left side of the main key area 3A in combination, common symbols, numeric keys, etc. can be input.

First, the arrangement of common symbols is as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 17, the common symbols are arranged on the right side of the character strings of the above-mentioned vowels, consonants, etc. on each key of the main key area 3A, and the "E", "U", The shift states of the hit keys 101, 102, 103, 104 and 105 corresponding to “N”, “H” and “M” are, in order from the reference side, a bracket symbol “′”, a bracket symbol “′” and a modifier symbol. The keys of “@”, right arrow symbol “→”, and left arrow symbol “←” are arranged, and the strokes corresponding to “I”, “A”, “C”, “S”, and “T” in the middle row are arranged. In the shift state of the keypads 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, parentheses “<”, parentheses “>”, dot “...”, dot “...”, and sign “~” are displayed in order from the reference side. Strokes are arranged respectively, and the strokes corresponding to “X”, “O”, “Y”, “R”, and “W” in the lower row are arranged. In the shift state of the keys 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, the parentheses "[", the parentheses "]", the dollar sign "$", the yen "\", and the modifier "§" are displayed in order from the reference side. The keys of "" are arranged.

On the other hand, the non-shifted state of the hit keys 101, 102, 103, 104, 105 corresponding to “E”, “U”, “N”, “H”, and “M” in the upper row of the common symbols , From the reference side, the bracket symbols ““ ”, the bracket symbols“ ”, the asterisk symbol“ * ”, the decoration symbol“ # ”, and the AND symbol“ & ”are arranged, and the middle“ I ”,“ In the non-shifted state of the hit keys 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 corresponding to "A", "C", "S", and "T", the parenthesized symbols "" "and parenthesized symbols are sequentially entered from the reference side. "" ", Dot symbol" • ", colon symbol": ", semicolon symbol"; "are arranged respectively, and further correspond to" X "," O "," Y "," R "," W "in the lower row. In the non-shifted state of the strike keys 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, is the reference side The parenthesized symbol “(”, parenthesized symbol “)”, question symbol “?”, Modifier symbol “!”, And symbol “/” are arranged in that order.

The common symbols can be input by pressing the sub-I key 120 and pressing the key of the main key area 3A to input the common symbols arranged in the main key area 3A. When the sub II key 121 is also pressed at the same time, a half-width symbol is input. In addition, the shift key 116 may be pressed in the shift state, and by this operation, the symbols arranged in the shift state of the common symbols can be input.

The arrangement of the numeric keypad is as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 17, the ten-key pad is arranged on the left side of the character strings of the above-mentioned vowels, consonants, etc. in the main key area 3A, and the hit keys 103 corresponding to “N” and “H” in the upper row, In the shift state of 104, the keys of the symbols “AM” and “PM” are arranged in order from the reference side, and the shift states of the hit keys 108, 109 corresponding to “C” and “S” in the middle row are arranged. The symbols "%" and "√" are arranged in order from the reference side, and the hit key 111 corresponding to "X", "O", "Y", "R", and "W" in the lower row is arranged. , 112, 113, 114, 115 are shifted in order from the reference side, the symbol "+/-", the symbol "1 / x", the postal code symbol "〒", and the telephone symbol "telephone symbol" , And comma "," keys are arranged.

Further, the non-shifted state of the hit keys 101, 102, 103, 104, 105 corresponding to “E”, “U”, “N”, “H”, and “M” in the upper part of the main key area 3A. In the state, the keys "-", number "7", number "8", number "9", and symbol "÷" are arranged in order from the reference side, and the middle "I" and "A" keys are arranged. , “C”, “S”, “T”, the non-shifted state of the hit keys 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 are the symbols “+”, the symbols “4”, the symbols “in order from the reference side. 5 ”, the symbol“ 6 ”and the symbol“ x ”are arranged respectively, and the hit keys 111, 112 and 113 corresponding to the lower“ X ”,“ O ”,“ Y ”,“ R ”and“ W ”are further arranged. , 114 and 115 in the non-shift state, the numbers “0”, the numbers “1”, the numbers “2”, and the numbers “3” are sequentially arranged from the reference side. Each key of symbol "." Are arranged. For inputting and calculating numbers with the ten-key pad, the function shift keys 118, 102, and 103 may be simultaneously pressed to enter the number mode, and the numbers may be input from the main key area 3A having the ten-key function.

It should be noted that in the present embodiment, the common symbols and ten-key inputs can also be made by the three sub I keys 120, sub II keys 121, and sub III keys 122 arranged in the sub key area 3C. That is, when inputting a common symbol using the sub-key, the sub-I key 120 is pressed with the left finger or the like and the "common symbol" of the above-mentioned arrangement arranged in the main key area is input. At this time, if you also press the “Sub II” key 121 at the same time, you can enter half-width symbols. In addition, the numeric keypad is input by pressing the sub-III key 122 with the left finger and hitting the "numeric keypad" in the above-mentioned arrangement arranged in the main key area. At this time, if the "Sub II" key 121 is also pressed at the same time, a half-width numeric keypad can be input. When inputting the numeric keypad in the shift state, the shift key 116 may be tapped with the thumb and input. When entering uppercase letters, use the "Sub II" key 121, and while pressing this "Sub II" key 121 with your left finger, etc., press the letter keys arranged in the main key area one by one. Hit it and type in an English capital letter.

According to the input of the common symbols, the capital letters, and the ten-keys that combine the three keys in the sub-key area 3C as described above, three sub-keys 120, 121 different from the keys in the main key area 3A, By using 122 in combination, the input of common symbols, the input of uppercase letters, and the input of ten keys can be easily performed by switching the modes. Therefore, even for Japanese sentences such as “Kanji, Kana, full-width numbers, full-width symbols, capitalized letters”, by combining the three keys in the subkey area 3C, the common symbols and English You can easily enter numbers using uppercase letters and numeric keys, and you can easily distinguish between "half-width characters", "half-width characters", and "English capital letters" that have a small number of characters but are frequently used.

Then, “standard mode switching” suitable for continuously inputting a large number of numbers and alphabetic characters described above, and a high-frequency but small number of full-width and half-width numeric keypads, common symbols, full-width English capital letters When inputting, it is possible to perform efficient input by selectively using “simple mode switching” that allows quick and easy “mode switching”.

In the embodiment, when the subkeys 120, 121, 122 are hit, the left thumb is used when hitting the keyboard with the left hand, and the left index finger and the middle finger are used when hitting the keyboard with the left hand. When hitting “Sub I + Sub II” and “Sub II + Sub III” as well, if you want to hold and hit, press the two keys at the same time with the belly of the left thumb to enter. While the sub key is being pressed, that mode is valid until you release your finger. You can also hit the sub key with the right index finger and then hit the main key to enter the time difference using the "prefix". If your left hand is full and you can't use it, hit the subkey with your right finger to “prefix”, then hit the main key and then perform “time difference input” once each with just your right hand operation. It is something to do.

Next, a case of inputting Japanese and English by using the key input device configured as described above will be described.

“Japanese Standard Input” First, a method of standard input of Japanese with the right hand will be described. In the following explanation, it goes without saying that the word processing function is switched to the Japanese input mode using Roman characters by using the switching means. (When inputting characters using one hand or one finger of both hands) When you start up a word processor and enter characters one by one on the input screen, you need to enter the alphabets in the same way as general "Romaji input". Type one character at a time. This input may be made by tapping a key with one index finger, for example. Then, when inputting with the index finger, the consonants of dull / semi-voiced sound are input by pressing the shift key 116 with the thumb or the like, and for example, the index finger is tapped on the key in the main key area. It should be noted that this input is not limited to the index finger, and the key input device can be held with both hands so that it is held above the palm of the hand, and the input can be performed using the thumbs of both hands.

(When Inputting Characters Using All Fingers of One Hand) The key input device 3 of the present embodiment inputs a plurality of keys, for example, vowel and consonant keys at the same time, in addition to inputting one character at a time. This allows you to enter a single syllable character of “consonant + vowel”. When the consonant vowel compound input is performed using all the fingers of the right hand, the index finger of the right hand is placed on the key 107 of the vowel area 3D, and the middle finger, the ring finger and the little finger are respectively placed on the keys 108, 109 and 110 of the consonant area 3E. Put. As a result, the finger of the right hand is placed at the home position of the key input device of this embodiment. Then, from this state, when entering characters using the index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger, proceed as follows. That is, the fingers of the right hand should be positioned in the middle row, and the forefinger should face "A", middle finger to "K", ring finger to "S", and little finger to "T". , Tap the middle and lower keys. Thereby, the consonant is input by tapping the key with the middle finger, the ring finger, or the little finger, and the vowel is simultaneously input by tapping the key with the index finger. The consonants of voiced sound and semi-voiced sound may be input by pressing the shift key with the thumb (hereinafter referred to as thumb shift). Alternatively, each finger may be used to input each character.

(In the case of inputting a Japanese syllabary) In the Chinese syllabary, with each finger placed at the home position, first the consonant is struck, and then the vowel is simultaneously struck with the index finger while hitting the “Y” key 113. , Double input of consonant + "Y + vowel". The voiced sound and the semi-voiced sound can be input by the thumb shift. Needless to say, you can enter each character. (When inputting vowels, consonants, and punctuation marks) The vowel "n" is entered separately, like vowels. To do this, tap the "n" strike key in the vowel area with your index finger. For the consonant “”, long-sound “–”, reading “,” and punctuation “.”, Press the shift key 116 at the bottom of the table with your thumb (shift the thumb), and press each key at the bottom in the consonant area. Press with your finger to enter.

(When inputting kana lower case) For kana lower case "a ・ i ・ u ・ e ・ e ・ ぉ ・ ya ・ ju ・ yo ・ ゎ etc.", in addition to each character key, simultaneously press the L shift key 119 with the thumb or pinky finger. Type while typing. (In the case of inputting kanji / kana) On the other hand, similar to a general word processor, "kanji kana mixed sentence" and katakana are converted from "yomi kana" by hitting the conversion key 116 alone with the thumb. As in a general word processor, this is to hit "kana" in Roman letters and then press the conversion key 116 with a thumb or the like. Katakana can be converted by simultaneously pressing the conversion key 116 and the non-conversion key 117 with the right thumb and forefinger.

“English Standard Input” Basically, English standard input can also be easily input with one hand, as in the case of standard input of Japanese. In the following description, it goes without saying that the word processor function is switched from the Japanese input mode using Roman characters to the English input mode by using the switching means. (When inputting characters using one finger of one hand or both hands) To start a word processor on the input screen and input alphabets on the input screen, in the same way as "QWERTY arrangement", enter the letters on the keys one by one. You can hit it to input. The consonants in the shift state of each key can be input by the thumb shift.

(Composite Input of Consonant Vowels) When inputting characters in the order of “consonant + vowel” in English as well, place the index finger of the right hand on the key 107 of the vowel area 3D, and place the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. Are placed on the keys 108, 109, and 110 of the consonant area 3E, respectively (that is, the finger of the right hand is positioned in the middle row, the index finger is “A”, the middle finger is “K”, and the ring finger is “S”. With the little finger facing the "T", the consonant can be input with the middle finger, the ring finger, or the little finger while striking the vowel with the index finger at the same time. The consonants above each key can be entered with the thumb shift. In addition, even if you make it possible to easily “simultaneously input” two commonly used characters such as “he, me, we, do, so, to” by simultaneously striking two corresponding keys. Good. (When inputting punctuation marks) Further, the comma ",", the period ".", The hyphen "-", and the apostrophe "'" are entered by pressing the corresponding keys with the index finger and shifting the thumb.

According to the present embodiment as described above, various characters, symbols and the like can be input by inputting each key of the key input device 3 individually or by composite input in which a plurality of keys are simultaneously input. it can. At this time, since the input device 3 having a smaller number of keys than that of a normal keyboard is used, the size can be reduced, the operation can be easily performed with one hand, and the position of each key can be easily memorized so that the bride touch can be performed. Can be performed easily and the operability can be improved. In particular, this embodiment has an advantage that it can be installed in a pocketable notebook-type or palmtop-type word processor, personal computer, etc. without reducing usability by reducing the number of keyboards to less than half that of conventional keyboards. is there.

Further, the key input device 3 includes a main key area 3A which is made up of at least 15 keys in three rows of upper and lower rows and five rows of left and right sides, and one of the left and right sides thereof serves as a reference side. Of these, the area consisting of the two groups of keys on the reference side is set as a vowel area 3D for inputting vowels, and the area consisting of the remaining three rows of keys of the main key area 3A is set as a consonant area 3E for inputting consonants. Therefore, if you put your hand on these three-row, five-row keys during key input, the vowel area 3D becomes the position of the index finger, and the consonant area 3E becomes the position of the middle finger, ring finger, and little finger. It is possible to input vowels that appear frequently with a large amount of index fingers. In addition, the layout of each key in each vowel area 3D and consonant area 3E is set in consideration of the frequency of occurrence in Roman letters and English characters and the order of Japanese syllabary, so input operability can be improved and the key layout is also It can be learned easily and the operability can be further improved, and high-speed input can be realized. By setting the middle rows from the second row to the fifth row as the home position where four fingers are on standby, it is possible to hit most efficiently with only the right hand. It's easier to remember "functions / modes" than a general keyboard, and they are arranged in a complex sequence in an easy-to-type sequence. You can combine several keys at the same time and type all at the same time using blind touch.

Further, since the home position indicating means 130 for indicating the home position is formed on the key in the middle row of each row among the key groups arranged in the main key area 3A, there are 15 key groups of three rows vertically and five rows horizontally. The position where the finger is placed in the main key area 3A consisting of can be easily identified.

Furthermore, vowels and consonants are arranged in the keys of the vowel area 3D and the consonant area 3E in order of frequency of use, based on a predetermined order of ease of tapping, respectively, and It is characterized in that the order is from the reference side of the middle row to the opposite side, from the reference side of the upper row to the opposite side, and from the reference side of the lower row to the opposite side. Characters with the highest frequency will be placed on the index finger of the user, and the letters of the alphabet will be placed in order of the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger in order of frequency, improving the operability during key input.

Further, vowel keys for inputting Japanese vowels “A”, “I”, “U”, “E”, “O” are set in the vowel area 3D, and the vowel keys are set in the consonant area 3E. Combined with the Japanese "ka" to "wa" lines, Kiyone "K", "S", "T", "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R" , The consonant key to input "W" is set, so the vowels "A", "I", "U", "E", "O" which are frequently used in Japanese are placed in the area for the index finger. , The middle finger, the ring finger, the index finger, the consonants "K", "S", "T", "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", "W" are arranged. , It is possible to improve the operability of Japanese (Romaji) input in which consonants and vowels appear alternately.

Further, keys “I” and “A” are arranged in the middle row of the vowel area 3D from the reference side in order, and “E” and “U” keys are arranged in the top row from the reference side in order. Is placed, and the "O" key is placed in either of the lower rows, so the letters "I" and "A" with the highest frequency of roman letters appear in the middle row of the home position. Are arranged, and the vowel keys “E”, “U”, and “O” are located in the order of appearance frequency from the upper row to the lower row. The vowels in the vowel area 3D are arranged in the order of key easiness (middle, upper, lower) in the order of "a", "i", "u", "e", "o". Therefore, the position of the key is easy to remember.

Further, keys “K”, “S”, and “T” are arranged in the middle row of the consonant area 3E in order from the reference side, and “N”, “S” in the upper row in order from the reference side. The keys of “H” and “M” are arranged, and further, the keys of “Y”, “R”, and “W” are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower one row, so that the consonant area 3E is arranged in the appearance frequency. In the order of “ka”, “sa”, “ta”, “na”, “ha”, “ma”, “ya”, “ra”, “wa”, the key position of consonant area 3E Will be easier to remember.

Further, while having a shift key 116 for switching each key of the main key area 3A to either a shift state or a non-shift state, the "K", "S", "T", " For each shift state of "N" and "H", input the Japanese voiced and semi-voiced voices in combination with the vowels "A", "I", "U", "E" and "O". , "Z", "D", "P", and "B" are arranged, so that "ga", "za", and "da" correspond to the input positions of "ka", "sa", and "ta". ”Will be arranged with“ pa ”and“ ba ”corresponding to the input positions of“ na ”and“ ha ”, respectively, and it will be easier to remember the key positions of the voiced sound and the semi-voiced sound.

Then, a key for inputting a sound-repellent “n”, a consonant “”, a punctuation “,”, a reading “.”, And a long consonant “-” is arranged in any key of the main key area 3A, and the vowel area The key of the 3D key is that the lower end key is the sound-repellent “n” key, so even with a small number of keys, the sound-repellent “n” and consonant “” that are frequently applied are You can enter the punctuation mark ",", the reading mark ".", And the long sound "-" with a single strike. In particular, the key at the lower end of the vowel area 3D key becomes the sound repellant "n" key. Therefore, it becomes easier to input the sound repellency "n".

In addition, since punctuation marks comma ",", period ".", Hyphen "-", and apostrophe "'" are set in the shift state of the keys in the vowel area 3D, the index finger is used when entering text. Allows you to easily enter punctuation marks ",", periods ".", Hyphens "-", and apostrophes "'".

Further, since it has a switching means for switching between the Japanese input mode by the Roman character input and the English mode by the alphabet input, it is possible to switch the input between Japanese and English, and input the Japanese and English with the same arrangement. Will be possible. Also, since the keys below the vowel area 3D keys are the "O" and "X" keys, the frequency of occurrence as an alphabet is low, and the frequency of use in the Japanese input is almost zero. "Is effectively located in the key layout.

Then, the “K / C” key is placed at the position of the key that will be the home position of the middle finger of the middle row of the consonant area 3E, and the “K / C” key is pressed in the Japanese mode. Is set to be a consonant "K" and the alphabet "C" in the English mode, so it is often used in Japanese, but in English "K" which is infrequent is placed separately when inputting English. The most frequent "C" can be the most convenient position for the index finger.

Further, a hyphen symbol “-”, an apostrophe symbol “′”, “P”, “B”, and “L” are arranged in order from the reference side in the key shift state of the main key area 3A, In the middle shift state, the periods “.”, Commas “,”, “G”, “Z”, and “D” are arranged in order from the reference side, and in the lower shift state, the reference side is sequentially arranged. Since it is characterized by arranging "J", "Q", "F", "V", and "K", a punctuation period ".", A comma ",", a hyphen symbol "-", Apostrophe symbol "'" and consonant "P", "B", "L", "J", "Q", "F", "V", "K" English standard input is also possible by shift operation become.

Further, while having a function control key for switching each key of the main key area 3A from the character key state to the function key state, the function key state of each key of the main key area 3A is "backward, delete, line feed, Functions such as “Execute, Cancel, Tab, Move, Area Setting, Single Kanji, Previous Candidate, By radical, By category” have been set. By operating the function control keys, each key in the main key area 3A can be activated. You can use the 15 keys in 3 rows up and down and 5 columns in left and right to select "backward, delete, line feed, execute, cancel, tab, move, area setting, single kanji, previous candidate, radical , Various fields, etc. can be operated.

When the middle row of the control keys 116 to 119 is set to the home position where the forefinger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger are on standby, the control keys 116 to 119 are arranged at positions where the thumb can be struck. With this, it is possible to further simplify the key operation by combining the five fingers of the index finger, the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger.

Further, since the plurality of sub keys 120 to 122 arranged on the reference side of the main key area 3A are provided, the function operation can be simplified by adding the combination of the plurality of sub keys 120 to 122. It will be possible.

FIG. 18 shows a key input device according to the second embodiment in consideration of application to a keyboard of a personal computer instead of the arrangement of the word processor function described above. This personal computer arrangement is similar to that of the above-described embodiment except that the display characters are in English, and the same operation effect can be obtained. Therefore, the explanation is given with the same reference numerals here. Is omitted.

FIG. 19 shows a third embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a “vertical type” key input device 3 in which a liquid crystal screen is integrated with the word processor main body 1. Like the "horizontal type", this "vertical type" is designed so that when the left hand is used, the subkeys can be simultaneously hit with the left thumb while the main key and control key are hit with the right finger. It is also possible to hit two subkeys simultaneously with the left thumb belly. The third embodiment is basically the same as the first embodiment in terms of configuration and operation and effects, and is given the same reference numeral as that of the first embodiment and its description is omitted here. .

20 and 21 show the fourth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the consonant area 3E of the main key area 3A is arranged in the key row of the vowel area 3D arranged in the vertical direction. The rightmost end (farthest away from the reference side) of the consonant area 3E is arranged to be inclined, and the one row is displaced downward. Strictly speaking, the arrangement of the key rows in the vowel area 3D is slightly tilted to the right from the vertical direction (the direction from the front side to the back side of the key input device 3 on the key surface of the key input device 3). However, in the present invention, the up-down direction includes a small inclination of this degree (for example, 5 degrees or less), and it is sufficient that the up-down direction is substantially along the up-down direction. With this arrangement, it is possible to achieve an ergonomically-considered key layout that takes into account the difference in the length of each finger, and it is possible to always operate in a comfortable posture and improve input operability. it can. Further, since the right side of the sub-keys 120 to 122 and the upper side of each of the keys 101 to 105 of the first stage of the main key area 3A are curved, the key input device 3 can be made excellent in design. Note that, as shown in FIG. 21, if a stowable foot 190 is provided on the bottom surface of the key input device, the key surface can be inclined and the input operability can be further improved.

FIG. 22 shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the word processor main body and the screen are provided separately, and the key input device 3 alone constitutes the whole. A cord 191 is connected to the main body of the word processor so that information can be sent by a so-called remote control operation, and the other configurations, functions and effects are the same as those in the above-described respective embodiments. In addition, the one entirely configured by such a key input device can also be applied to an ordinary desk top type word processor or personal computer.

FIG. 23 shows a sixth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is the same as the fifth embodiment except that the key shape is circular. The design can be improved by using such a circular key.

24 and 25 show the seventh and eighth embodiments of the present invention. In these embodiments, the reference side of the key input device is set to the right end side, and the sub keys 120 to 122 are used as key input devices. The third embodiment is different from the fifth and sixth embodiments in that it is arranged on the right side of 3, and the other keys are also arranged on the basis of the right side, but other functions and effects are the same. According to the key input device 3 of these embodiments, it is possible to make each key particularly suitable for inputting with a left hand, which can improve the operability of a left-handed input person and, even in the case of a right-handed person, use a key with the left hand. It will also be possible to use multiple functions such as writing notes with the right hand while inputting.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and for example, the key input device may be configured only by the keys of the main key area 3A, and can be modified without departing from the scope of the invention. Of course,

[0099]

[Effect of device]

 As described above, according to the key input device of the present invention, the number of keys can be significantly reduced, and the size can be reduced to a size similar to that of a "calculator", which can be operated with one hand, and the operability such as character input is deteriorated. It has the excellent effect of being able to hit quickly, easily, and quickly.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a relationship between a key input device in a three-row, five-row key arrangement according to the present invention and an area in charge of a finger of a right hand.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the key input device showing the order of ease of hitting the keys in the main key area and the control key area.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the frequency of occurrence of Roman characters quoted from published materials of SKY sequences.

FIG. 4 is a plan view in which Roman characters are arranged on the keys of the key input device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the frequency of appearance of alphabets quoted from “English Word Processor Test Textbook” written by Yoshika Hagino.

FIG. 6 is a plan view shown for explaining a QWERTY array and a Dvorak array.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a key input device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a usage state of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a usage state of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a main part of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing an example of character allocation when inputting Roman characters in the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing an example of character allocation in the English mode of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a plan view shown for explaining the allocation of function keys of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing how to strike a composite function of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a plan view showing an example of character allocation when inputting Roman characters in the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining switching of various standard modes of the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a plan view shown for explaining the allocation of symbols in the key input device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a plan view showing the layout of characters of the key input device in the personal computer specification according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a plan view showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a side view showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a view showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a view showing a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a plan view showing a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a plan view showing an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 word processor main unit 3 key input device 3A main key area 3B control key area 3C sub key area 3D vowel area 3E consonant area

Claims (22)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A main key area having fifteen main keys arranged in three rows of upper and lower rows and five rows of left and right sides, and one of the left and right sides of which is a reference side, and a key group of the two rows on the reference side in the main key area. The key input device is characterized in that the area consisting of is set as a vowel area for inputting vowels, and the area consisting of the remaining three columns of keys of the main key area is set as a consonant area for inputting consonants. 2. The key input device according to claim 1, wherein "I" and "A" keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the vowel area, and the reference row is provided in the upper row. The keys "E" and "U" are arranged in order from the side, and the lower row 1
The keys “n” and “O” are arranged in order from the reference side, and the keys “K”, “S”, and “T” are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the consonant area. The keys "N", "H", and "M" are arranged in order from the reference side in the upper row, and "Y", "R", and "W" are arranged in the lower row in order from the reference side. Key is arranged and "K", "S", "T" of the consonant area,
The shift states of the "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", and "W" keys are "G", "Z", "D",
A key input device characterized in that "P", "B", a consonant "t", a punctuation ",", a reading ".", And a long consonant "-" are set. 3. The key input device according to claim 1, wherein "I" and "A" keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the vowel area, and the reference row is provided in the upper row. The keys "E" and "U" are arranged in order from the side, and the lower row 1
The keys "X" and "O" are arranged in order from the reference side, and the keys "C", "S" and "T" are arranged in order from the reference side in the middle row of the consonant area. The keys "N", "H", and "M" are arranged in order from the reference side in the upper row, and "Y", "R", and "W" are arranged in the lower row in order from the reference side. Key is arranged, and "I", "A", "E" of the vowel area,
The shift states of the "U", "X", and "O" keys are set to the period ".", Comma ",", hyphen "-", apostrophe "'", "J", "Q". And the consonant areas “C”, “S”, “T”,
The shift states of the "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", and "W" keys are "G", "Z", "D",
A key input device characterized in that "P", "B", "L", "F", "V", and "K" are set. 4. The key input device according to claim 1, wherein "I" and "A" keys are arranged in the middle row of the vowel area in order from the reference side, and the reference row is arranged in the upper row. The keys "E" and "U" are arranged in order from the side, and the lower row 1
The keys "X / n" and "O" are arranged in order from the reference side, and "C / K", "S", and "T" are arranged in the middle row of the consonant area in order from the reference side. Key is placed,
“N”, “H”, and
The "M" key is arranged, and the "Y", "R", and "W" keys are arranged in order from the reference side in the lower row, and the "I" and "A" of the vowel area are arranged. ",
"E", "U", "X / n", and "O" keys have shift states ".", Comma ",", hyphen "-", apostrophe "'", "J", " “Q” is set, and “C / K”, “S”, “T” in the consonant area,
The shift states of the "N", "H", "M", "Y", "R", and "W" keys are "G", "Z", "D",
"P", "B", "L /", "F /,", "V"
/. , "K /-" is set, and further, there is a switching means for switching between a Japanese input mode by Roman input and an English mode by alphabet input, and the above "X /
"C", "C / K", "L /", "F /,", "V"
/. , And "K /-" keys are set to syllable "n", "K", consonant "tsu", punctuation ",", reading ".", And chorus "-" in Japanese input mode. "X", "C", "L", "F", "V", "K" in English mode
A key input device characterized by being set to each. 5. The key input device according to claim 1, wherein the keys of at least one row of the main keys are arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the other key rows. Key input device characterized by being. 6. The key input device according to claim 5, wherein the two key groups on the reference side of the main key area are arranged in the vertical direction, and the remaining three key groups on the main key area are: A key input device, wherein the arrangement direction of the key rows is arranged to be inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the two key rows. 7. The key input device according to claim 6, wherein the one row of key groups arranged at a position farthest from the reference side of the main key area has a key row of an adjacent key group. A key input device, wherein the key input device is arranged so as to be displaced in the arrangement direction. 8. The key input device according to claim 2, wherein the keys of at least one row of the main keys are arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of other key rows. Key input device characterized by being. 9. The key input device according to claim 8, wherein the key groups in the two rows on the reference side of the main key area are arranged in the vertical direction, and the key groups in the remaining three rows in the main key area are: A key input device, wherein the arrangement direction of the key rows is arranged to be inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the two key rows. 10. The key input device according to claim 9, wherein the one row of key groups arranged at a position farthest from the reference side of the main key area is the key row of the adjacent key group. A key input device, wherein the key input device is arranged so as to be displaced in the arrangement direction. 11. The key input device according to claim 3, wherein the keys of at least one row of the main keys are arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of other key rows. Key input device characterized by being. 12. The key input device according to claim 11, wherein the two key groups on the reference side of the main key area are:
Placed along the vertical direction, the remaining 3 in the main key area
The key input device, wherein the row key group is arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the two key rows. 13. The key input device according to claim 12, wherein the one row of key groups arranged at a position farthest from the reference side of the main key area has a key row of an adjacent key group. A key input device, wherein the key input device is arranged so as to be displaced in the arrangement direction. 14. The key input device according to claim 4, wherein the keys of at least one row of the main keys are arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of other key rows. Key input device characterized by being. 15. The key input device according to claim 14, wherein the two key groups on the reference side of the main key area are:
Placed along the vertical direction, the remaining 3 in the main key area
The key input device, wherein the row key group is arranged such that the arrangement direction of the key rows is inclined with respect to the arrangement direction of the two key rows. 16. The key input device according to claim 15, wherein the one row of key groups arranged at a position farthest from the reference side of the main key area is adjacent to the adjacent key group. A key input device, wherein the key input device is arranged so as to be displaced in the arrangement direction. 17. The key input device according to claim 5, wherein three sub-keys arranged in one row on the reference side of the main key area and a lower side of the main key area are provided. A key input device comprising four control keys arranged in one row. 18. The key input device according to claim 17, wherein the sub-keys are arranged such that a key row of the sub-keys is inclined with respect to a row of one row on a reference side of the main key area. A key input device characterized by the above. 19. The key input device according to claim 17, wherein the three keys from the reference side of the control keys are “conversion”, “non-conversion”, and “conversion” in order from the reference side. Space key is set and 4
The key input device is characterized in that the third key is an "L shift" key for inputting a small letter, which has a larger width dimension than other control keys. 20. The key input device according to claim 17, wherein when the control key is in a home position in which a forefinger, a middle finger, a ring finger, and a little finger are on standby in a middle row of the main key area. , A key input device characterized in that it is arranged at a position where it can be hit with the thumb. 21. The key input device according to claim 5, wherein the reference side is the left side of the key input device. 22. The key input device according to claim 5, wherein the reference side is the right side of the key input device.