JPS6246890B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention The present invention is useful when a visually impaired person attempts to obtain information from various information processing systems using an input/output terminal or to operate an information processing device in an interactive manner. , which eliminates the need for an assistant. When displaying on a character display device, it is not sufficient to simply express the displayed content by reading it aloud; the display position of the characters and symbols and the number of blank spaces often have important meanings.

Conventional input/output terminals for visually impaired people include those that use auditory or tactile sensations, but these not only require considerable training to use, but also require a lot of information processing on the main body to which the input/output terminal is connected. Many devices require the development of dedicated software for their input/output terminals. Furthermore, since the input/output terminal itself is extremely special, it has the disadvantage that it cannot be used by sighted people. The present invention aims to solve these problems, and an example of implementing the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, 1 is a character display surface, 2 is an input keyboard, 3 is a phonetic cursor control keyboard 3, 4 is a signal transmission cable with other information processing devices, and 5 is a sound generator for phonetic cursor control. Except for the keyboard and sound generator 5, there is no difference in shape or function from a conventional input/output terminal device with character display and keyboard input functions.
The signal transmission means with other information processing devices is exactly the same, and the compatibility between this device and conventional character display devices is extremely high.

FIG. 2 shows in detail an example of the key arrangement of the phonetic cursor control keyboard 3 shown in FIG.
The operator's intention is input into the device.

In other words, when you press the origin position key, the phonetic cursor moves to the origin of the character display surface 1, that is, the leftmost digit of the top row, and the name of the character or symbol at that position changes to the phonetic cursor, regardless of its position. be done.

When the line feed key 32 is pressed, the phonetic cursor moves to the leftmost digit one line below the current position, and the name of the character or symbol at that position is pronounced. If the line feed key 32 is held down, the phonetic cursor moves down one line at regular intervals, for example, at 0.5 second intervals, and the name of the character or symbol at that position is pronounced.

The return key 33 moves the phonetic cursor to the leftmost digit of the same line as the current position, the up key 34 moves the phonetic cursor to the same digit of the line one line above the current position, and the left key 35 moves the phonetic cursor to the current position. The right key 37 moves the phonetic cursor one digit to the right of the current position, and the bottom key 38 moves the phonetic cursor one digit below the current position. At the same time, the name of the character or symbol located at the new position to which the phonetic cursor has been moved is pronounced. When the current position key 36 is pressed, the phonetic cursor does not move and the name of the character or symbol at the current position is pronounced. When these keys are held down, their functions are repeated at intervals of, for example, 0.5 seconds, just as in the case of the line feed key 32 described above.

Furthermore, by repeatedly pressing the line feed key 32 and reaching the bottom line of the display, and when the character display surface 1 is left with only a margin, it is pronounced ``blank below'' for efficient use. Right key 37
The same can be said about.

Each storage element of the memory 9, shown in FIG. The displayed contents are stored.

The scan controller 11 sequentially scans each section of the character display surface 1 and at the same time scans the corresponding storage element of the memory 9 so that the information in the designated storage address of the memory 9 passes through the character pattern generator 10. The character information is displayed on the character display board 1 as visualized character information.

The scan controller 11 continues to repeatedly scan the character display surface 1 at a speed necessary to prevent displayed characters from flickering.

The contents of the memory 9 are rewritten with information input from the input keyboard 2 under the control of the input keyboard controller 8, and are rewritten with information from another information processing device 13 under the control of the communication controller 12. It will be done.

It goes without saying that if the contents of the memory 9 change, the display will immediately correspond to the new memory contents. The above description is the usual system of conventional cathode ray tube type character display.

The present invention produces its effects by adding the elements described below to the cathode ray tube type character display surface.

That is, when any key on the phonetic cursor control keyboard 3 is pressed, the type of the key is determined by the phonetic cursor controller 7, and the phonetic cursor, which is specific address information in the memory 9, is changed. Ru.

At the same time, an activation command is sent to the phonetic controller 6, the content of the address in the memory 9 designated by the phonetic cursor is read, and a voice signal corresponding to the code is generated. The audio signal informs the operator what the character or symbol designated by the phonetic cursor is through a sound generator 5 such as a speaker or earphone.

The phonetic cursor exists only as information within this device, and there is no problem even if it is not perceptible to humans, but it does not matter which character or symbol on the character display surface 1 the phonetic cursor currently specifies. For sighted people, it is desirable to add an underline to the character or symbol specified by the phonetic cursor or to make the character blink for convenience. However, it goes without saying that when a key on the input keyboard 2 is pressed, the symbol indicating the position at which the contents of that key will be input and displayed next, that is, a normal cursor, must be clearly distinguishable.

The system diagram in Figure 3 is based on the premise that the character display panel is a cathode ray tube, but even if this is a plasma display that does not perform television scanning, the essential operation remains the same. .

That is, a character display device has a built-in memory 9 with a storage capacity for one screen of the character display surface 1, and has the function of determining the contents of an address by specifying one of the addresses. Both are applicable.

The phonetic control 6 is capable of generating at least the same number of audio signal patterns as the types of characters or symbols that can be displayed by this character display device, and the patterns are formed by recording human speech in analog or digital format. It may be generated by reproducing something, but if you have a logic program for speech synthesis and a character or symbol to be pronounced is specified, the corresponding logic program is executed to generate a synthesized speech signal. It may be something that generates a pattern.

Furthermore, it is necessary to distinguish between uppercase letters and lowercase letters, or between English letters and kana letters, based on sound quality. Furthermore, when the contents of the memory 9 are updated one section at a time by pressing a key on the input keyboard 2 or by information transmitted from another information processing device 13, there is a function to vocally express the name or message of the character or symbol. The effect is great when combined.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of the invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing only the phonetic cursor control keyboard portion of the invention in detail, and FIG. 3 is similar to FIG. 1. It is a system diagram of one example shown. 1 is a character display board, 2 is an input keyboard, 3 is a phonetic cursor control keyboard, 4 is a communication cable for communicating with other information processing devices, 5 is a sound generator, 6 is a voice controller, and 7 is a phonetic cursor. controller, 8 is an input keyboard controller, 9 is a memory, 10 is a character pattern generator, 1
1 is a scanning controller, 12 is a communication controller, and 13 is another information processing device.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A character display device whose purpose is to display one character or symbol in each section consisting of vertical and horizontal grids on a display screen, which displays character or symbol information for the entire screen. When held, a phonetic cursor for specifying a section on the character display surface and a phonetic cursor control keyboard capable of moving the phonetic cursor in at least the upward, downward, left, and right directions are attached; Move the phonetic cursor one section in the unique direction that each key on the keyboard means, and at the same time display the name of one letter or symbol displayed in the new section to which the phonetic cursor has moved, and the phonetic cursor. , a character display device that has the function of audibly expressing a message expressing that the rightmost digit on the display screen has been reached, the last line has been reached, etc. 2 The phonetic cursor control keyboard includes keys for instructing movement up, down, left, and right, as well as keys for re-indicating the current position, returning to a new line, starting a line, and pressing the key for a short time. The character device according to claim 1, which performs the function only once, but repeatedly performs the function at a cycle that can be changed by the user if the button is held down for a long time.