Patent ID: 6947028

Claim:
An active keyboard for handheld electronic devices comprising: a housing designed to be gripped by a human hand, having an interior and an exterior surface; a processor disposed within the interior of the housing; a display electronically connected to the processor; a selector disposed on the exterior surface of the housing, and positioned for activation by a thumb of a user; a plurality of keys disposed on the exterior surface of the housing, and positioned for activation by fingers of the user; a motion detector disposed within the interior of the housing; a memory connected to the processor; and a software means for displaying a menu on the display, the software means, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to carry out steps comprising: creating a grid of value boxes organized into a plurality of vertical columns and horizontal rows; enabling a user (1), by using the selector or motion detector, to select a group of value boxes, and (2), by using the plurality of keys, to select a value contained within one value box from the selected group and inputting the value into the memory; processing data from the motion detector caused by a rotational change in position of the housing; moving around the grid of value boxes based on processed data from the motion detector or the selector; and effecting functions of the active keyboard based on assigned values selected by keys, processed data from the motion detector, a state of the selector, or combinations thereof, wherein the active keyboard is configured to be held and operated by a single human hand.