Communication terminal providing user communication of high comprehension

Data communications apparatus comprising

• A. a display device capable of displaying only a limited number of alphanumeric characters simultaneously on a single display line, said number being less than forty,
• B. associated with and interconnected to said display device, display register means for holding data defining the characters which are being displayed, the character positions being individually and randomly addressable through said register means for entering a new character in a chosen location in said display without disturbing existing characters in other positions,
• C. coupler means for direct electric connection of the apparatus to a telephone line, said coupler means including frequency selective filter means,
• D. a digital processor,
• E. serial/parallel converter means interconnecting said processor and said coupler means,
• F. a keyboard providing for alphanumeric character entry, said keyboard being interconnected with said processor,
• G. means for signalling that a sequence of characters to be displayed is one of a first sequence or a second sequence,
• H. read-only memory means associated with said processor and containing an operating system, said processor being interconnected with said coupler means for effecting dialing under control of said operating system in accordance with telephone protocols, said operating system further providing
• I. means responsive to a first sequence of characters for entering the first character in the new sequence into the leftmost display position of said single display line, for entering successively subsequent characters in successive positions to the right along said single display line until display line is filled, and then entering further characters in that same sequence into the rightmost display position of said single display line with earlier characters being scrolled to the left,
• J. means responsive to a new second sequence of characters for entering successive characters in that sequence into the rightmost display position of said single display line with earlier characters in the same sequence being scrolled to the left along said single line and replacing the display of characters of any previously entered first sequence, and
• K. means, including a buffer register which initially receives characters from said coupler, for limiting the speed of scrolling of characters across said single display line to a rate level which is operator selectable and is independent of the rate at which characters are received,
• L. said apparatus including also a pocket-sized case containing said display device, said keyboard, said coupler means, said processor and said memory means.

Communications apparatus adapted for use by a lay consumer, said apparatus comprising

• A. a display device capable of displaying only a limited number of alphanumeric characters simultaneously in a single display line, said number being not more than thirty-two,
• B. associated with and interconnected to said display device, display register means for holding data defining the characters which are being displayed, the character positions being individually and randomly addressable through said register means for entering a new character in a location in said display without disturbing existing characters in other positions,
• C. a keyboard providing for alphanumeric character entry,
• D. coupler means for direct electric connection of the apparatus to telephone lines, said coupler means including frequency selective filter means,
• E. a digital processor,
• F. read-only memory means associated with said processor and containing an operating system, said processor being interconnected with said coupler means for effecting dialing under control of said operating system in accordance with telephone protocols, said operating system including also encoding means for transmitting data from either said keyboard or said memory over telephone lines using said coupler means;
• G. buffer storage means for holding receiving data prior to display thereof on the display device,
• H. means responsive to a control character of a first type for causing a subsequently received alphanumeric characters to be entered into successive locations in said single display line starting with the leftmost location, said means being also responsive to a control character of a second type for causing subsequently received alphanumeric characters to be entered into the rightmost location of said single display line, and, as successive characters following the control character are received, for causing previously received characters in the sequence to be scrolled to the left along said display line, and
• I. a pocket-sized case containing said display device with display register, said keyboard, said coupler means, said processor, and said memory means.

A keyboard and display terminal for communication with a data processing host and having character-entering keys and having a display element with plural character-display locations arrayed in a line for displaying at least one line of characters, and further having the improvement comprising

• A. means for selectively controlling the character display in said one display line of said display element to display a sequence of one or more characters associated with a second control identification beginning at a second end of the display line and to scroll the display thereof toward the opposite first end of the display line to display further characters of that sequence, and to scroll the concurrent display of characters associated with a first control identification, during said scroll of characters associated with said second identification, with the scroll of the latter characters toward and successively off the first end of the display line,
• B. means for providing a user stimulus in a form selected from audible form and visible form in said one display line,
• C. register means for storing the identification of characters for display on said display means, and
• D. means responsive to the identification in said register means of selected punctuation characters for actuating said stimulus means for providing a user stimulus coincident with the display of selected sets of one or more characters.

A keyboard and display terminal for communication with a data processing host and having character-entering keys and a character-display element having a lineal array of multiple character display locations, and further having the improvement comprising

• A. means for selectively controlling the character display in said one display line of said display element to display characters of a message identified from a second source, which includes the keys of the terminal, beginning at a second end of the display line and to scroll the display thereof toward the opposite first end of the display line to display further characters of said second-source message, and to scroll the concurrent display of characters of a message identified from a first source, during said scroll of characters of said second-source message, with the scroll of characters of said second-source message toward and successively off the first end of the display line, and
• B. means including separate function keys on the keyboard for user communication at the terminal of an affirmative response, a negative response, a "don't know" response, an instruction for deleting the last displayed character of a second-source message, an instruction for deleting a displayed second-source message, an instruction for repeating the currently-displayed message identified from said first source, and an instruction for repeating the previously-displayed message identified from said first source.