Patent ID: 7117144

Claim:
A method for spell checking an intended word entered using a reduced keypad, where each of one or more input keys of the reduced keypad is mapped to a plurality of letters, the method comprising: for an entered key input corresponding to an entered misspelled word and at least one of a left context and a right context, finding one or more potential non-corresponding words from a dictionary of words based on a cost, where each potential non-corresponding word has a key input that does not match the key input of the entered misspelled word, and wherein the cost between the key input of the entered misspelled word and the non-corresponding potential word is less than or equal to a maximum cost; and determining a probability for the one or more potential non-corresponding words based on the at least one of a left context and a right context using a language model comprising probability values corresponding to sequences of word N-grams of a natural language, the language model trained in part using words previously entered in a cache; updating the language model using words entered into the cache; and presenting at least one of the one or more potential non-corresponding words as the intended word based on probability.