FR2587815A1 - KEYBOARD DATA ACQUISITION SYSTEM FOR Typing - Google Patents

Abstract

KEYBOARD DATA ACQUISITION SYSTEM FOR COMPUTER OR TYPEWRITER COMPRISING IN ASSOCIATION: -A KEYPAD CONSISTS IN PART OF KEYS 1 TO 22 WITH MULTIPLE ASSIGNMENTS ERGONOMICALLY ARRANGED IN THE SURFACE CORRESPONDING TO THE TOUCH AREA; -A DEVICE 34, 35 ALLOWING TO CHANGE THE ASSIGNMENTS OF THE MULTI-ASSIGNMENT KEYS; -A SCREEN PERMANENTLY DISPLAYING THE RELATIVE POSITIONS AND CHARACTERS ATTRIBUTED TO MULTIPLE-ASSIGNMENT KEYS, THE NUMBER OF THESE KEYS IS RESTRICTED, THE DATA ON THIS SCREEN CAN BE CLEARLY INTERPRETED BY THE COERMURATOR OF HIM KEYS LOCATED UNDER HIS FINGERS WITHOUT REACHING HANDS OR LOOKING AT THE KEYBOARD.

Description

 Universal keyboard data acquisition system for computer or typewriter and for computer and telematics to # inals.

 The present invention relates to data acquisition systems for personal computers, computer and telematic terminals, typewriters.

 Most keyboards currently in use have four rows of alphanumeric keys; two or three characters being assigned to each key, the possibilities of these keyboards are limited to about one hundred and fifty characters. The large number of keys makes learning difficult, a user who has not followed a specific training does not spontaneously acquire mastery of the use of the keyboard with his ten fingers. The change of language requires a complete change of the keyboard when the alphabet differs. The positioning of the hands on the keyboard makes it difficult to read the inscriptions on the keys.

 The user's eye must move back and forth between the keyboard and the control screen, causing fatigue due to the movement of the eye and the different accommodation.

 A device for acquiring data with one hand is known, in which the different characters are obtained by combinations of some of the six keys that the device comprises.

 This device requires special training and does not generate a very large number of characters since all the combinations must be memorized.

 The data acquisition device which is the subject of the patent does not have the same drawbacks: it makes it possible to produce an unlimited number of characters, learning is simple and results from use, (self-learning) the typing is rapid and the user fatigue is lower than with other systems. The same keyboard-screen assembly can be used for languages using different alphabets.

 The proposed data acquisition system includes an integrated displacement and shape data sensor.

The above results are obtained by the combination of the following elements
- a keyboard, the center of which consists of ergonomically arranged multiple allocation keys in the surface corresponding to the tactile area, preferably the number of keys is reduced and less than all the characters required for writing of a Latin language, so that frequent letters like E and S are obtained by pressing a single key and infrequent letters like
K or Z require the switching of a control device,
- at least one device for changing the assignments of multiple keys, this device can be actuated by keys, joysticks, pedals or by a voice-activated system,
- a screen permanently displaying the relative positions and the characters assigned to the keys, multiple; the number of multiple keys being limited, the data carried on this screen can be clearly interpreted by the operator, allowing him to know the meaning of the keys located under his fingers without having to raise his hands or to look at the keyboard.

 This data acquisition system therefore makes it possible by -l & commutation- control device to obtain a large number of characters and different signs in particular it allows with the same machine to write in languages using types of alphabets different.

 Other advantages of the invention will be highlighted in the description which follows. FIG. T represents an example of a keyboard according to the invention; FIG. 2 represents a screen associated with the keyboard.

 The keyboard shown in FIG. T comprises keys with multiple attributions placed under the fingers and bearing the marks (1) to (22), keys with fixed assignments bearing the marks (23) to (33), keys for controlling the temporary change. assignment placed under the palms (34) and (35), and directional controls (36) and (37).

 According to a preferred arrangement, two multiple keys are assigned to each finger, except the index to which three keys are assigned; in the right hand the keys (8) and (I6) are actuated by the little finger, the keys (7) and (I5) by the ring finger, (6) and (I4) by the middle finger, (2I) and (22 ) by the thumb, (5) (I3) and (I8) by the index finger; the layout of the keys with multiple attributions of the left hand is symmetrical with that of the right hand. The fact of assigning two keys to the ring finger and the middle finger corresponds to their limited natural motor possibilities: the keys (6) and (7 ) are actuated by a simple pressure of the fingers, the keys (I4) and (I5) by a contraction; to facilitate these movements, the keys (5), (6), (7), (8) should preferably be tilted slightly towards the user's hand and the keys (I3) (I4), (15), (I6 ) in the opposite direction so that the passage from one key to another is done directly without tactile search. We can replace each pair of keys such as (6) and (I4) by a single concave key resulting in a device having two possible movements from the equilibrium position, corresponding to the actions of pressure and contraction of the fingers; similarly a key with three possible movements can replace the keys (5), (I3) and (I8).

 The distribution of the keys having fixed assignments can give rise to multiple variants, the example which follows, is given only by way of illustration; the space key (23) is actuated by the right thumb, (25) and (26) are the commands for "capital letters", the key (24) locks the capital letters position, the key (27) causes the line change , the key (28) actuated by the left thumb 'allows the erasure of the last character, the key (29) ensures the tabulation, the key (30) allows to exit a program in oncEs. Bes keys (31), (32), (33) control changes of assignments of the keys (j) to (22), the joysticks (35) and (36), pressure sensitive, placed under the palms ensure the changes in temporary assignments of the keys (1) to (22), these joysticks can be controlled simultaneously with the keys (O to (22), without gene for the manipulator.

 The directional and shape acquisition controls (36) and (37) preferably consist of sensitive surfaces in contact with the fingers, such as capacitors integrated in a charge transfer matrix; on the surface are delimited sensitive zones noted a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, 1, m, n, o, p.

 Said sensitive surfaces are preferably placed under the hands, in the space between the keys of the palms and the keys of the fingers, in accordance with FIG.

 A characteristic of the invention is to propose with different programming several uses for these sensitive surfaces: the movements of the cursor can be caused either by pressing one of the keys a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, .... p, thus pressing one of the zones e or i causes the cursor to rise on the computer screen, either by the friction of a finger passing from one zone to a other, for example a movement from b to a, or from g to f, causes the cursor to rise, thus simulating a ball movement data acquisition system, in which the movements of the cursor are controlled by rotation of a ball that you direct with your fingertips.

 In word processing software, the page change can be obtained by moving your finger from one area to another, thus reproducing the familiar movement that is made when turning the page of a book.

 It is also possible to use such a matrix organization surface to transmit drawings or characters to a computer. The location of sensitive surfaces under the hands allows them to be controlled without moving the hands. The arrangement of the zones on the sensitive surfaces are susceptible of variants, as well as the means used to produce these surfaces.

FIG. 2 represents a screen conforming to the data acquisition system according to the invention. Table 2a shows the assignments of multiple keys when the joysticks (35) and (34) are at rest; by comparing figure {and table 2a, it is understood that the letters N and P are struck by the right little finger and correspond to the keys (8) and - (I6) of figure #, the letters S and M are assigned to ring finger, letters
R and D are assigned to the major, the letters T and X and the decimal point are actuated by the right index, the letters
G and C by the thumb.

The assignments of the keys of the left hand are understood in the same way. The most frequent letters are placed on the first row where the fingers rest, the frequent vowels: U, I, A, E, 0 are placed on the left and the frequent consonants: T, R, S, N, L, D, M, P, C,
G, are in the right hand to allow alternation of the hands favorable for a rapid typing, other less frequent consonants H, B, F, V, Q, are on the left, the most frequent letters are attributed to the most agile fingers ; the characters in table 2a are obtained by direct typing; they represent 80% of the frequencies of French characters.

 The left thumb rests on the V, the Q is obtained by its contraction. The period and the comma, more frequent than certain letters are in direct strike. The characters assigned to the middle finger are surrounded by a rectangle which the 8n finds, reproduced in relief on the corresponding keys of figure #, thus the user establishes a relation between the signs of the table and the marks in relief engraved on the keys .

 Table 2b shows the characters assigned to the multiple keys when the button (35) is pressed.

In the left hand, the accented vowels are found in the same positions as the vowels in Table 2a, these accented vowels being relatively frequent, the left hand is available to strike the keys while the right hand presses the joystick (35).

 In the right hand, we find infrequent consonants.

Table 2c shows the characters assigned to the multiple keys when the joystick (34) is pressed. These characters relate to numeric expressions; the right hand striking the number keys is free, while the left hand presses the lever (34).

 The number is obtained by pressing the thumb, the 2 the index, the 3 the middle finger, the 4 the ring finger, the 5 the little finger, thus following a familiar mnemonic. The operators, less frequent than the figures, are located in the left hand. The arrows written on the keys (34) and (35) indicate that these joysticks make it possible to obtain the characters from the tables (2c) and (2b) placed on the right and on the left, respectively. According to a variant, the keys (34) and (35) make it possible to obtain the capitals of the frequent letters when they are pressed simultaneously.

 The tables in Figure 2 are advantageously placed near the print control screen, which avoids fatigue due to eye movement and different accommodation; one can use the technique of "windows" to display one of the tables in a part of the screen managed by a computer, so the number of tables that can be put into service is not limited.

 To ensure the portability of the keyboard, we can incorporate the display screen of the keys with multiple assignments in the keyboard cover, so the screen folds down on the keyboard during transport. One can use a liquid crystal screen for example.

 The keys (31), (32), (33) of FIG. T make it possible to choose other programming of the central keyboard, that is to say other assignments for the multiple keys.

 We can thus switch from Latin characters to Greek characters for example. You can also set up language instruction tables like "basic", which can be obtained by pressing a single key.

 This property of the data acquisition system can be used to choose by pressing a finger from a list of products or instructions in the form of a table similar to that of FIG. 2, for greater clarity on may reduce the number of elements represented, to ten for example (one per finger).

 The change of the assignments of the programmable keys can be produced by programming, for example after a basic language instruction, the return to the numeric or alphabetical keyboard will be controlled according to the type of instruction.

For languages with a very large number of characters such as Chinese or Japanese, it is difficult to obtain a character by a combination of keys, so we offer another method: it is to group the characters by families, each family being represented phonetically by a character, it is then possible to call a family via a voice recognition device, which causes the family table to be displayed on a screen, the operator can select the chosen character by pressing a key, and switching a control device; by
example with two hundred families of sixty six characters, one can have access to more than thirteen thousand characters.

 The data acquisition system, subject of the patent applies more particularly to computer terminals and telematic systems, to screen keyboard systems of microcomputers but it also relates to typewriters. One can indeed design a mechanical or electric typewriter meeting the characteristics of the patent. the language can be changed in ball or daisy typewriters by simultaneously changing the ball (or the daisy) and the table indicating to the operator the characters assigned to the programmable keys, this table then consisting of a printed, an indicator light indicates the part of the switchboard in service.

Claims (9)

 REVElnDICAT IONS  - a screen permanently displaying the relative positions and the characters assigned to the keys with multiple assignments, the number of these keys is limited) thus, the data carried on this screen can be clearly interpreted by the operator, allowing him to know the current meaning of the keys located under his fingers without having to raise his hands or look at the keyboard.  - a device for changing the assignments of keys with multiple assignments,  - a keyboard made up in part of keys with multiple assignments arranged ergonomically, in the surface corresponding to the tactile area,  1.- Keyboard data acquisition system for typing characterized in that it comprises in association  2. A talent acquisition system according to claim 1 characterized in that the said device for changing the assignments of the keys with multiple assignments is actuated by keys (34, 35), placed under the palms, so that the operator can simultaneously press the multi-assignment keys, without moving the hands.  3.- Data acquisition system according to any one of claims I and 2, characterized in that frequent letters like E and S are obtained by pressing a single key and infrequent letters like the K or the Z require the switching of a device for changing the assignment of multiple keys.  4. A data acquisition system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that two multiple keys are assigned to each annular finger.  5. A data acquisition system according to claim 4, characterized in that said keys are combined into a device which can take two positions from the rest position, one of the positions corresponding to a finger pressure. , the other position corresponding to a contraction.  6.- data acquisition system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it comprises a surface, sensitive to the contact of the fingers (37), organized in a matrix, making it possible to enter data of displacements or forms.  7. Data acquisition system according to claim 6, characterized in that said sensitive surface (37) is placed in the space between the keys of the palms and the keys of the fingers, so that said sensitive surface can - be ordered without moving your hands.  8.- data acquisition system according to any one of claims @ to 7, characterized in that  the screen on which the assignments of the  keys, is secured to the keyboard cover so that the assembly is easily transportable.  9.- data acquisition system according to any one of claims {to 8, characterized in that some of the multiple assignment keys (3, {t, 6, # 4) carry raised marks whose shapes are reproduced in the corresponding locations of the tables indicating the assignments of the keys.  IO.- Data acquisition system according to any of claims I to 9, characterized in that the letters U, I, E, A, N, T, R, S, s1 are obtained by direct typing and are placed on the first line of the multi-assignment keys.