1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus as well as a computer program for handwriting recognition, in particular handwriting recognition in a mobile communication device.
2. Brief Description of Related Developments
Mobile telephones have evolved during the last few years from being simple voice communication devices to present day intelligent communication terminals having processing and communication capabilities that were almost unimaginable not long ago. Needless to say, the use of a mobile telephone now involves such communication intensive activities as sending e-mail messages, browsing the World Wide Web as well as other activities such as managing calendar functions and playing games. A strong driving force during the development of present day communication devices has been that of user demand for miniaturization and reduced weight. This has, however, resulted in manufacturers of devices having been forced to compromise between physical size and usability in terms of providing an easy to use user interface. For example, a typical mobile telephone is equipped with a small keypad, often comprising no more than fifteen small keys that have multiple input functions.
A problem relating to present day communication devices is hence that of providing an easy way of inputting text into a communication device, e.g. text input when recording information in a calendar application or text input when composing an e-mail message or a Short Message Service (SMS) message.
Prior art methods and devices have approached this problem in a number of different ways. One example is that of utilizing a touch sensitive display on which a user enters text and other input information by writing with, e.g., a small stylus as if writing with a pen on paper. The movement of the stylus along a trace over the touch sensitive display generates a trace signal that is digitized and analyzed by handwriting recognition software. One example of such a prior art arrangement is found in US patent application publication 2003/0223640 A1, in which apparatus and methods, computer program products for editing handwritten symbols using alternative known symbols are described. In US 2003/0223640 A1 a symbol provided by a user is sensed and compared with a set of known symbols. A first symbol among the known symbols is displayed and if the user finds that the shown symbol does not correspond to the symbol provided by the user, an alternative second known symbol or a number of other known symbols are displayed for selection by the user.
A drawback with the method disclosed in US 2003/0223640 A1 is that the process of inputting symbols to the apparatus is slow because the user is forced to interrupt the input of handwritten symbols and select among different known candidate symbols when the comparison result is ambiguous.