CN1454342A - Method for encoding and inputting Chinese characters for the electronic apparatuses - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of coding and inputtingChinese characters for electronic apparatuses, which is applicable to various mobile phones whose buttons (keys) are limited in number as various electronic equipments such as a personal computer become smaller. According to the method, minimal and sufficient basic figures are used to conveniently input Chinese characters with the same order as a handwriting order. As a result, countries using Chinese characters can enhance interchange of electronic information based on Chinese characters and Chinese characters can be inputted to small-sized and multi-functional electronic equipments such as a mobile phone.

Description

Method for encoding and inputting Chinese characters for electronic devices

technical field

The present invention relates to a kind of Chinese character input and coding method, more specifically, the present invention is aimed at the Chinese character input of electronic device and coding method, can be used for various mobile phones, and these mobile phones are like personal computer The number of buttons (keys) is limited as the size of various electronic devices such as electronic devices becomes smaller.

Background technique

The character systems of Korean, English, French, German, and Japanese, except for Chinese characters, are relatively simple and clearly defined. Chinese characters, on the other hand, are basically not limited by their shape and number of strokes. Therefore, it is difficult to digitize Chinese characters.

For the past few decades, Chinese computer users have been plagued by alphabetic keyboards trying to cram Chinese characters onto their computer screens. In conventional methods, various methods have been adopted to input Chinese characters by using a computer keyboard. Especially, commonly used " phonetic borrowing method " and " taxonomy " in the prior art. In the "phonetic borrowing method", the tone of a desired Chinese character is input by using phonetic symbols such as English, Korean, or Japanese. A set of Chinese characters corresponding to the tone is then displayed. Designate the Chinese characters you want to input from the displayed group of Chinese characters and input them. In the "classification method", a classification number is given to each Chinese character according to the shape characteristics and radicals of the Chinese characters. Input the required Chinese characters by referring to the manual where the classification numbers are entered.

In mainland China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan, the "phonetic borrowing method" is widely used to input the tones of Chinese characters in English or native language. However, although the user clearly knows the desired Chinese character, he/she can also input the tone of the Chinese character through other languages and select the desired Chinese character from a group of Chinese characters with the same pronunciation. This brings inconvenience to the user. Furthermore, even Chinese characters with the same shape have different pronunciations in different countries, so different systems are adopted in different countries for the Chinese character input method using the "phonetic borrowing method". In areas where only Chinese characters are used (such as Mainland China, Taiwan, etc.), their native language must be entered through foreign languages.

"Classification" is disclosed in US Patent No. 4,684,926 published on August 4, 1978, US Patent No. 5,970,926 published on August 4, 1998, and Korean Patent No. 00-6943 published on February 7, 2000 .

In US Pat. No. 4,684,926, the invention relates to a method of encoding Chinese characters by giving each Chinese character 8 digits based on its 5 basic strokes and topological figures. These 5 basic strokes constitute the most commonly used basic radicals. In U.S. Patent No. 5,970,926, the invention relates to a method of encoding Chinese characters by giving each Chinese character 8 digits, wherein the 8 digits are composed of 4 "ID" codes, and the code is obtained by It is classified by the four-corner shape in the shape of Chinese characters. In Korean Laid-Open Patent 00-6943, the invention relates to a method of inputting Chinese characters by encoding the basic forms of the first two strokes and the last two strokes. These basic forms are extracted from the strokes of Chinese characters.

Unfortunately, the Chinese character input method using the "category method" is not very convenient for users, because multiple Chinese characters with the same code number must be handled by exception, and if the code is not memorized It is impossible to input Chinese characters with numbers or without referring to the list of code numbers. In particular, Chinese character input methods employing "categorization" are seldom used in, for example, mobile phones.

As an improved taxonomy, Tegic Communications Corporation of the United States has developed and utilized a system called "T9 Text Input System". In this "T9 text input system", the strokes constituting each Chinese character are divided into 8 symbols. If the user presses a key printed with strokes according to a sequence of strokes, a set of corresponding Chinese characters will be displayed. After that, the user clicks a shift key to select a desired Chinese character from the group. However, since each of the 8 symbols represents 2-11 actual strokes, this "T9 text input system" cannot fully reflect the stroke shapes actually used. Therefore, when inputting Chinese characters using keys employing the "T9 text input system", the user must perform a step of determining symbols corresponding to each stroke in the Chinese character. In this step, the gap between sensory (imagining the shape of Chinese characters) and visual (shape of symbols printed on the key) will confuse the user.

The present invention is realized and improved on the basis of the contents of "PCT/KR00/01142" filed by the inventor of the present invention.

Contents of the invention

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of inputting Chinese characters using a smaller number of input keys in the same way as handwriting and without conscious memory.

The present invention to achieve this object relates to a method for encoding Chinese characters so that the encoded Chinese characters can be input into an electronic device.

In this Chinese character encoding method, the most basic is to extract at least 8 basic symbols by analyzing the shape of the Chinese character, arrange the various parts of the Chinese character according to the stroke order of the Chinese character, and combine the extracted 8 A permutation formed by corresponding basic symbols is determined as the code of Chinese characters.

If Chinese characters are encoded according to the Chinese character encoding method of the present invention, since there are many codes not only corresponding to one Chinese character, one Chinese character preferably has multiple codes within the allowed range of code redundancy. For example, if a Chinese character "A" is determined to have a specific arrangement of 9-digit codes, and there is a corresponding Chinese character starting from a 6-digit code, specific arrangements of 7 and 8-digit codes can also be becomes the code number used to encode the Chinese character "A".

According to the existing physical key set (such as mobile phone, computer keyboard, numeric keypad, etc., hereinafter referred to as "key type" electronic device) and various input keys of a touch screen that exist as icons on a screen (such as a public telephone booth) , PDA, etc., hereinafter referred to as "touch-type" electronic devices), the present invention provides different Chinese input methods.

A method for inputting Chinese characters to a "button-type" electronic device comprises the following steps: (A) receiving a key signal from a Chinese character stroke input key comprising at least 8 basic stroke keys and a key, wherein at least the The 8 basic symbols extracted from the analysis of the shape are assigned to the 8 basic stroke buttons respectively, and a symbol notifying the end of the Chinese character input is assigned to the one button; and (B) temporarily storing the inputted The basic stroke key input signal arrangement is searched in the database stored with the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method described in claims 1-3, and the Chinese characters corresponding to the code containing the input signal arrangement (code) are extracted The Chinese characters with the least number of strokes in front are displayed, and when a complete key signal is input, the displayed Chinese characters are selected and added to the text, and the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement is deleted. (Type (I) method).

Another method for inputting Chinese characters to a "button type" electronic device includes the following steps: (A) receiving a basic stroke key signal from a Chinese character stroke input key comprising at least 8 basic stroke keys and a key, wherein at least the The 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of the Chinese character are assigned to the 8 basic stroke keys respectively, and a symbol notifying the end of the Chinese character input is assigned to the key; (B) temporarily storing the input basic strokes Key input signal arrangement, search in the database that stores the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method, to extract the Chinese characters containing the temporary storage signal arrangement and display the predetermined Chinese character number, and place the cursor on the displayed On the Chinese character; and (C) return to step (B) when the basic stroke key signal is input, and move the cursor according to the direction key signal when the direction key signal is input, and select the Chinese character where the cursor is at when the completion key signal is input And add it to the text, and delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement and a group of displayed Chinese characters ((II) type method).

A method for inputting Chinese characters into a "touch-type" electronic device includes the following steps: (A) receiving basic stroke key signals by touching 8 basic stroke key icons, wherein at least the 8 basic stroke key icons extracted by analyzing the shapes of Chinese characters Two basic symbols are assigned to these basic stroke button icons respectively; (B) temporarily store an input basic stroke key input signal arrangement, store the database that has adopted the information of the Chinese character encoding method coding described in claim 1-3 Search in order to extract and display the Chinese character with the least number of strokes in front of the code corresponding to the Chinese character containing the input signal arrangement (code), and when a touch signal is input to the displayed Chinese character, select Displayed Chinese characters and add them to the text, and delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement ((I) type method).

Another method for inputting Chinese characters to a "touch-type" electronic device includes the following steps: A method for inputting Chinese characters to an electronic device includes:

(A) receive basic stroke key signals by touching 8 basic stroke key icons, wherein at least 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of Chinese characters are assigned to the 8 basic stroke key icons; (B) Temporarily storing an input signal arrangement of basic stroke keys, searching in a database storing information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method, to extract Chinese characters containing the temporarily stored signal arrangement and displaying a predetermined number of these Chinese characters, And place the cursor on the displayed Chinese character; and (C) return to step (B) when the basic stroke key signal is input, and when a touch signal is input to one of the displayed Chinese characters, select the Touched Chinese characters and add them to the text, and delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement and a set of displayed Chinese characters ((II) type method).

The description of "Chinese characters having a temporarily stored signal arrangement before the code" indicates a Chinese character that is consistent with the signal arrangement and has a continuous numerical code appended after the signal arrangement. Preferably, the order of display is such that the Chinese characters with less number of strokes (the lower digits in the numbers of the code) are placed on the left. Further, the description of "added to the text" indicates that Chinese characters selected by handling the direction key and the completion key or touching the screen are written (input) into a word or phrase desired by the user.

Although the number of displayed Chinese characters can be randomly determined, it is preferably 5-10 in order to enhance the readability of small personal portable communication devices such as liquid crystals.

In the case of inputting Chinese characters into the key-type electronic device, the direction key may include a key that can be clicked continuously to move the cursor in one direction and return from the last Chinese character to the first Chinese character. As an option, the direction key can also include two keys representing opposite directions, and a desired Chinese character can be designated by clicking them appropriately.

Since the number of strokes for Chinese characters is not limited, a signal is required to determine a Chinese character or a desired Chinese character from a set of displayed Chinese characters. Therefore, the completion key for notifying the end of the input of a Chinese character is indispensable for the device adopting the Chinese character input method of the present invention.

The cursor may initially be positioned on a Chinese character corresponding to the code closest to the stored signal arrangement or at the center of a group of displayed Chinese characters.

The present invention provides two methods (I) and (II) to input desired Chinese characters. In method (I), the basic stroke button is clicked continuously according to the number of strokes for the desired Chinese character. When the desired Chinese character is displayed, select it and input it. In method (II), the basic stroke buttons are clicked consecutively according to the number of strokes for the desired Chinese character. When a desired Chinese character exists among the displayed Chinese characters, it is selected and input. Since the number of button clicks in method (I) is generally lower than the number of button clicks in method (II), method (I) is more effective.

或

以及。虽然在下文中只参照8个基本符号对构成中文字符的基本符号进行描述，但是还有一少部分的基本符号也可以加到其中来。The basic symbols that make up Chinese characters can vary from viewpoint to viewpoint. Due to the in-depth study of Chinese characters, the inventor of the present invention has found the following: all Chinese characters can be represented by 8 basic symbols, , -, |, one,

or

and . Although only 8 basic symbols are used to describe the basic symbols constituting Chinese characters in the following, a small number of basic symbols can also be added thereto.

The characters of the topology are listed in "Table 1" below, along with the random numbers of the selected base symbols.

<table 1>

Topological properties of basic symbols

或 表示左钩或右钩，例如永、九、力、刑、旭等等。由于包含有钩的中文字符的数量较少，因此尽管省略了钩之前的笔划，用于当作对中文字符的编码的集合仍然有很大的空间。According to the present invention, at least 8 basic symbols are extracted by analyzing the shape of Chinese characters. Some Chinese characters are arranged according to stroke numbers for each Chinese character. An arrangement is generated by making respective parts correspond to the extracted basic symbols. This arrangement is determined as a code for a Chinese character. That is to say, a specific Chinese character is encoded according to the number of strokes of the Chinese character and the basic symbols corresponding to each stroke. In the present invention, the symbol

or Indicates left hook or right hook, such as Yong, Jiu, Li, Xing, Xu and so on. Due to the small number of Chinese characters that contain hooks, there is still a lot of room for a collection of encodings for Chinese characters despite omitting the strokes before the hook.

The following "Table 2" illustrates examples of Chinese characters encoded by 8 basic symbols and their ordering. If the number of digits in a code (that is, the stroke digits used for Chinese characters) is large, it is likely to share - and one, and it is possible that the last one or two digits of the code are unique to Chinese characters, And there is room to omit the stroke preceding the hook. Therefore, a specific Chinese character can correspond to multiple Chinese characters (code redundancy). An example of this fact is also illustrated in "Table 2" below. For additional information, code numbers converted to provisional numbers given in "Table 2" are also illustrated.

<Table 2>

Relationship Between Typical Chinese Characters and Input Codes Determined According to the Encoding Method of the Present Invention

In the above table, symbols in square brackets can be omitted.

和-”，因此该信息被转换为上述代码数字。毫无疑问的是，若一个希望的中文字符在任何阶段进行显示，则用户可以很快并且很方便地输入所希望的中文字符而不需要输入所有的笔划。In the above table, each symbol in the parenthesis () can be interchanged with the symbol before the parenthesis. According to the present invention, if all the Chinese characters are set like the codes of "Table 2", the user only needs to look at the keys to input all the Chinese characters without memorizing the codes or looking up the code list. For example, since the Chinese character "ji" can be encoded as "—| |--- -| and —” or “—| |--- - and |" or "—||---

 and -", so the information is converted into the above-mentioned code numbers. There is no doubt that if a desired Chinese character is displayed at any stage, the user can quickly and easily input the desired Chinese character without All strokes need to be entered.

For better understanding, "Table 3" below illustrates the process of inputting the Chinese character "龙" and a set of Chinese characters displayed whenever a key is input. Two cases are described here, that is, only displaying a Chinese character in front that contains a stroke consistent with the input basic stroke key, and displaying a group of ten or less Chinese characters.

<Table 3> input order Basic stroke keys for input Chinese characters displayed A set of displayed Chinese characters 1 , host The death of the Lord is also handed over to Haiheng Jingxiang Pavilion 2 - early At the beginning of Haihai, whoever is effective keeps the enemy in hope 3 | what Which one should urge the enemy to hope forever and argue 4 | enemy Yan Yunneng 5 — and Yan Yunlong 6 | color Rhyme Dragon 7 - dragon dragon

As shown in FIG. 3, the user clicks the basic stroke button according to a series of strokes for the Chinese character "龙". If a desired Chinese character is displayed when the 7th stroke is input, the user selects the displayed Chinese character. Alternatively, the user can also select the desired Chinese character "dragon" from a group of displayed Chinese characters by inputting the fourth stroke and operating the direction keys.

Brief description of the drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of setting keys using the Chinese character input method according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a Chinese input device using the Chinese character input method according to the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a flow chart of the steps of inputting Chinese characters according to the Chinese character inputting method of the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a flow chart (button type) of the steps of inputting Chinese characters according to the Chinese character input method of the present invention.

FIG. 3C is a flowchart of the steps of inputting Chinese characters according to the Chinese character input method of the present invention (touch type).

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. In order to facilitate the description of the present invention, it is assumed that the keys using the Chinese character input method have the same arrangement as shown in FIG. 1 . Arrow keys are provided in the key layout shown in FIG. 1 . If the above-mentioned (I) type method is adopted, then there is no need for arrow keys. This key layout can be used in key-type electronic devices. On the other hand, in the touch-type electronic device, the completion key and the direction key may not be required, and the key positions may be randomly arranged. Further, it can also be assumed that all Chinese characters can be encoded by the encoding method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a key-type input device using the Chinese character input method according to the present invention. The device includes: a Chinese character input unit, which is composed of 8 basic keys and one or more direction keys, wherein 8 basic symbols are assigned to the above-mentioned 8 basic keys respectively; a database unit, which contains 8 keys The information of each Chinese character coded by a basic symbol; and a Chinese character determination unit, which is used to extract the Chinese characters containing the signal arrangement by receiving the basic stroke key signal from the Chinese character input unit, temporarily store a signal arrangement, and store a signal arrangement temporarily. Search in the database, and determine a specified Chinese character according to the signal of the arrow key and the completion key. The device further includes a display device for displaying a Chinese character determination process.

The components of the alphabet input device are only functionally divided, so they may not be physically independent from each other. For example, it is readily understood that the database unit and the letter determination unit may be constituted by a single-chip program or part.

Further, those skilled in the art can easily add input buttons or individual functions, so that special characters such as quotation marks, rests, periods, etc. can be input, Korean-English-number input can be switched, and uppercase letters can be switched to lowercase letters. , enter a space and change to a German umlaut.

Although not shown in the drawings, it can be easily understood that at least 8 basic stroke keys are arranged on the screen of the touch-type input device.

An alarm system can be added in order to cope with abnormal situations such as failure to determine a Chinese character due to input of a completion key signal while inputting a signal combination that does not correspond to a Chinese character. When an abnormal situation occurs, the alarm system will prompt the user to use the letter input device correctly.

Fig. 3 is a flow chart of the steps of inputting Chinese characters according to the Chinese character inputting method of the present invention. Figure 3A illustrates the type (I) method described above. FIG. 3B and FIG. 3C respectively illustrate the cases of the button type and the touch type in the above-mentioned type (II) method. In FIG. 3, a thick-line frame represents a signal input by a user, and a thin-line frame represents a process of inputting a signal in a Chinese character input device employing a Chinese character input method.

For the convenience of describing the present invention, it is assumed that there is no abnormal input and an initial input signal is generated from a basic stroke key. Obviously, the Chinese input device is only used for inputting Chinese characters, or it may be changed into a Korean input mode so as to start inputting Chinese characters.

Although described in detail only with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B , FIG. 3 is readily understood from the detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3A is described below.

When signals are generated from key presses, these input signals are sequentially temporarily stored and it is determined whether the penultimate signal is a key press done signal. If not, these input signals are temporarily stored sequentially and the database is searched so as to extract the Chinese character with the least number of strokes from the front of the Chinese character corresponding to the code that contains the input signal sorting (code) and display . When the completion button signal is input, select the displayed Chinese character, confirm it, and input it into the text, and delete the temporarily stored input signal. Then, when the input key signal is generated, it is temporarily stored sequentially so as to determine the (N+1)th Chinese character.

Repeat the above steps to generate words and phrases in Chinese characters.

FIG. 3B is described below.

If signals are generated from basic stroke keys, these input signals are sequentially temporarily stored. Further, the Chinese characters including the arrangement of the stored signals are searched and a predetermined Chinese character is extracted for display. After that, place the cursor on the displayed Chinese characters.

Then, when inputting a basic stroke button, repeat the above-mentioned steps. When a direction key signal is input, the cursor is moved according to the input direction key signal. When a completion key signal is input, the Chinese character on which the cursor is placed is selected and added to the text. At the same time, delete the temporarily stored basic stroke key signal arrangement and a group of output Chinese characters, so as to reserve space for the next Chinese character to be input.

Repeat the above steps to generate words and phrases in Chinese characters.

Industrial applicability

According to the method of inputting Chinese characters, the minimum amount of basic symbols sufficient enough is used to conveniently input Chinese characters in the same order as the handwriting order. As a result, regions using Chinese characters can enhance the exchange of electronic information based on Chinese characters, and Chinese characters can be input into small and multifunctional electronic devices such as mobile phones.

Claims (8)

1. A method for encoding Chinese characters, so that the encoded Chinese characters are input into an electronic device, the method comprises the following steps: analyzing the shapes of Chinese characters to extract at least 8 basic symbols; and Parts of each Chinese character are arranged according to a series of strokes corresponding to the extracted basic symbols to obtain an arrangement, and a Chinese character code is determined based on the arrangement. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein one Chinese character of said Chinese character code has a plurality of codes within the range allowed by code redundancy. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the basic symbols are , -, |, one,

or

, and , or similar symbols consistent with the corresponding parts of all Chinese characters. 4. A method for inputting Chinese characters to an electronic device, comprising: (A) receiving a key signal from a Chinese character stroke input key including at least 8 basic stroke keys and a key, wherein at least 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of the Chinese character are respectively assigned to the 8 Basic stroke keys, and a symbol notifying the end of input of the Chinese character is assigned to said one key; and (B) Temporarily store the input signal arrangement of the basic stroke keys that have been input, search in the database that has adopted the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method described in claim 1-3, extract and contain the input signal arrangement ( code) and display the Chinese characters with the least number of strokes in front of the corresponding Chinese characters, select the displayed Chinese characters and add them to the text when a complete key signal is input, and delete the stored basic stroke keys signal permutation. 5. A method for inputting Chinese characters to an electronic device, comprising the steps of: (A) receiving a basic stroke key signal from a Chinese character stroke input key comprising at least 8 basic stroke keys and a key, wherein at least 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of the Chinese character are respectively assigned to the 8 basic stroke keys, and a symbol notifying the end of the Chinese character input is assigned to the one key; (B) Temporarily store the input signal arrangement of the basic stroke keys that have been input, search in the database that stores the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method, to extract the Chinese characters containing the temporarily stored signal arrangement and display a predetermined number of these Chinese characters, and placing the cursor on the displayed Chinese characters; and (C) Return to step (B) when the basic stroke key signal is input, and move the cursor according to the direction key signal when the direction key signal is input, select the Chinese character at the cursor position when the completion key signal is input, and add it to the text, and delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement and a set of displayed Chinese characters. 6. A method for inputting Chinese characters to an electronic device, comprising: (A) receiving basic stroke key signals by touching 8 basic stroke key icons, wherein at least 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of Chinese characters are respectively assigned to the 8 basic stroke key icons; (B) Temporarily store a basic stroke key input signal arrangement that has been input, and search in the database that has adopted the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method described in claims 1-3, so as to extract and contain the input signal Arrange (code) Chinese characters with the least number of strokes in front of the corresponding Chinese characters and display them. When a touch signal is input to the displayed Chinese characters, select the displayed Chinese characters and add them to a text , and delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement. 7. A method for inputting Chinese characters to an electronic device, comprising: (A) receiving basic stroke key signals by touching 8 basic stroke key icons, wherein at least 8 basic symbols extracted by analyzing the shape of Chinese characters are respectively assigned to the 8 basic stroke key icons; (B) Temporarily store an inputted basic stroke key input signal arrangement, search in the database that stores the information encoded by the Chinese character encoding method, to extract the Chinese characters containing the temporary storage signal arrangement and display a predetermined number of these Chinese characters and place the cursor on the displayed Chinese characters; and (C) return to step (B) when the basic stroke key signal is input, and when a touch signal is input to one of a set of displayed Chinese characters, select the touched Chinese character and add it to the text, And delete the stored basic stroke key signal arrangement and a group of displayed Chinese characters. 8. The method according to claims 4-7, wherein the basic symbols are , -, |, one, and , or similar symbols that correspond to the corresponding parts of all Chinese characters.

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