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Data entry for personal computing devicesData entry for personal computing devices description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20080088599, Data entry for personal computing devices. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
[0001] This application is a continuation of International Application No. PCT/CA00/00285 filed Mar. 15, 2000, which is designated, for the purposes of the United States of America, a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/272,700 filed Mar. 18, 1999. This application claims the benefit of the aforementioned International Application No. PCT/CA00/00285 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/272,700. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to computer-assisted data entry and more particularly to a method, system, and apparatus for computer-assisted text generation and entry using a pointing device with a personal computing device, and to computer-readable media having executable instructions for supporting text generation and entry using a pointing device. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] The wide-spread adoption of miniaturized personal computing devices, such as hand-held devices and personal digital assistants (PDAs), has led to an increasing use of devices to send and receive text and data. One example of this trend is pen-based computing, wherein users enter text and commands into hand-held personal computers via a touch-sensitive screen. While such pen-based computing is popular, especially with the increasing power of miniature computing devices, it does present challenges to a user entering data in an application running on the hand-held device. For instance, many hand-held computers and personal digital assistants require that the user enter data according to a predetermined scripting style, such as with the PalmPilot.TM. series of PDAs. Other hand-held devices provide a handwriting recognition system which requires that the computer learn the user's handwriting style. While such data entry mechanisms are useful, they are relatively difficult to use and complex to learn and can be prone to error in the event the user deviates from the predetermined scripting style or the user's traditional handwriting style. [0004] Many pen-based computing systems, both large and small, offer the user the option to enter text using an on-screen digital keyboard. On-screen digital keyboards are typically miniaturized replica of conventional full-sized physical keyboards, such as QWERTY keyboards. Many on-screen keyboards have shown themselves to be less than efficient for entering text. When using a pointing device such as a pen, a user is typically required to enter text one character at a time by tapping out individual character selections from the on-screen keyboard. This "hunt-and-peck" method of typing with a single pointing device is time-consuming, especially when a user is entering large amounts of data. [0005] Another common challenge when entering data into a personal computing device with a single pointing device such as a pen or stylus, and in particular when entering text, is that each letter making up the word or phrase must be entered manually. The longer the word or phrase, the greater the amount of manual entry required. [0006] Text completion systems have been developed in an effort to assist users with text entry. In general, these systems predict and suggest a complete word completion based on a partial text entry entered by a user. These systems allow a user to type in the partial text entry and then accept a predicted text completion for the partial text entry. This avoids the keystrokes that would otherwise be required to type the complete text desired by a user. While such text completion systems provide some basic assistance for users to more rapidly enter text than would be required if every character of the desired text had to be typed in independently, there remains a need in the art for a more flexible text completion system for use with a single pointing device. It would also be desirable for such a text completion system to employ a convenient selection technique which would reduce the amount of movement of the pointing device required to enter text into a computer. It would further be desirable if such a system were applicable to both large and small personal computing devices. [0007] Another problem in the art is that soft, or digital, keyboards have tended to be continually displayed so as to permanently consume screen space or have needed to be manually invoked and dismissed by the user. It would be desirable if a digital keyboard could automatically appear and disappear as required. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] The above and related desires are addressed in the present invention by providing a novel and non-obvious method, system and computer-readable instructions for computer-assisted text generation and entry using a pointing device with a personal computing device. [0009] In one aspect of the present invention the user can rapidly enter and search for text using a data entry system through a combination of entering one or more characters on a digitally displayed keyboard with a pointing device and using a search list to obtain a list of completion candidates. The user can activate the search list to obtain a list of completion candidates at any time while entering a partial text entry with the data entry system. When the search list is active, a list of completion candidates is displayed on a graphical user interface for the user to select from and the user can perform one of several actions. The user can deactivate the search list and return to modifying the current partial text entry and other text. The user can select one of the completion candidates in the search list and use the selected completion candidate to replace the partial text entry which the user is currently entering. When the user deactivates the interactive search list, the user can immediately continue adding to or modifying the current partial text entry being entered, and may re-invoke the search list to further search for completion candidates based on the modified partial text entry. In the second case, the selected completion candidate is used to replace the partial text entry that the user is currently entering, and the data entry system begins monitoring for a new partial text entry from the user. [0010] In one embodiment, when the search list is active the user may use one of the completion candidates in the search list to initiate a further automated search to obtain a more refined list of completion candidates. In this embodiment, multi-level search lists and searching are available to help accelerate completion of a partial text entry. As a result, the user can automatically initiate an iterative search wherein a completion candidate listed in the search list is used as the new partial text entry to dynamically obtain a new list of completion candidates, which is then displayed in the search list. The automated ability to use the search list to obtain a refined list of completion candidates allows the user to quickly make good use of search results that are only partially successful. When the search list is revised with a new list of completion candidates, the user can then choose one of the completion candidates in the new list, or the user can repeat the iterative search process once again by choosing one of the completion candidates in the new list and activating a further iterative search. In addition, the user may return to keyboard entry with the last completion candidate selected by the user in the previous iteration of the search list. This latter feature provides the user with the convenience of being able to automatically and seamlessly continue entering the desired word, phrase, or character sequence using the last completion candidate selected by the user in the previous iteration of the interactive search list. Thus, the user can quickly and easily replace the user's current partial text entry with a partially successful completion candidate and continue building upon or modifying this partial completion candidate using the keyboard while at the same time allowing the user the flexibility to re-enter the search list at any time. [0011] In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of processing text entered into a personal computing device with a pointing device. With this method, a partial text entry is received and used to obtain a dynamically generated list of completion candidates. The list of completion candidates is displayed in a search list within a graphical user interface. A user input signal associated with the pointing device is received. If the user input signal corresponds to a first type of user selection with the pointing device, then the search list is deactivated. If the user input signal corresponds to a second type of user selection with the pointing device, then the partial text entry is replaced with a completion candidate from the search list. [0012] In one embodiment, if the user input signal corresponds to a third type of user selection with the pointing device, then a refined list of completion candidates is dynamically obtained based on one of the completion candidates from the search list. The refined list is displayed in the search list for further user selection. [0013] In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of processing an input string at least partially entered into a personal computing device with a pointing device. This aspect includes performing a search of a set of completion candidates to locate a plurality of possible completion candidates for completing the input string in response to a prior located possible completion candidate or a character selectable by a user. At least one of the plurality of possible completion candidates and characters selectable by the user are displayed. [0014] In another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided of user-based text entry. With this aspect, a set of position coordinates for a pointing device is monitored relative to a user interface and a digital keyboard is displayed on the user interface at a last known set of coordinates for the pointing device whenever the digital keyboard is activated for user input. [0015] In another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for interchanging the display of a digital keyboard and a search list. The digital keyboard is displayed on a user interface when a user is entering text a keystroke at a time. As the digital keyboard is displayed, user input is monitored. If the user input corresponds to activating the search list, then the digital keyboard is replaced with the search list. If the user input corresponds to terminating use of the search list once activated, then the search list is replaced with the digital keyboard. [0016] In another aspect of the present invention, a digital keyboard is configured to include a plurality of characters assigned to predetermined locations within a layout for the digital keyboard according to a predetermined frequency distribution associated with the plurality of characters. The plurality of characters includes less commonly used characters and more commonly used characters based on the predetermined frequency distribution. The digital keyboard is displayed on a graphical user interface with the less commonly used characters displayed substantially further from a center of the digital keyboard than the more commonly used characters. [0017] In another aspect of the present invention there is provided a system for computer-assisted text generation and entry. The system includes an input interface, a processing unit and a computer-readable medium. The input interface receives user input signals based on actions with a pointing device. The computer-readable medium contains computer-readable instructions for directing the processing unit to assist with text generation and entry based on user input received via the input interface with the pointing device. The computer-readable medium includes instructions for receiving a partial text entry; for obtaining a dynamically generated list of completion candidates based on the partial text entry; for displaying the list of completion candidates in a search list on a display device; and for receiving a user input signal associated with the pointing device from the input interface. If the user input signal corresponds to a first type of user selection with the pointing device, the computer-readable instructions are programmed to deactivate the search list. If the user input signal corresponds to a second type of user selection with the pointing device, the computer-readable instructions are programmed to replace the partial text entry with a completion candidate from the search list. Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0018] In the accompanying drawings which illustrate embodiments of the invention, [0019] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a personal computing device loaded with a data entry system, according to a first embodiment of the invention; [0020] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the data entry system of the first embodiment; Continue reading about Data entry for personal computing devices... 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