Machine translation method and apparatus

Claim 3

The method of claim 1, wherein proceeding and succeeding parts of the original texts being referred to are also displayed so that an entire area of the original text display region is filled out.

Claim 4

The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of selectively executing, in response to issuance of a scroll instruction and an operator's instruction issued in advance, any one of the following scroll operations: (a) a non-synchronous scroll operation for sequentially shifting and displaying proceeding or succeeding parts of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region; (b) a synchronous scroll operation for sequentially shifting and displaying the proceeding or succeeding parts of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region and also for sequentially shifting and displaying within the original text display region the proceeding or succeeding parts of the corresponding original texts displayed in synchronism with the shifting and displaying of the translated texts; and (c) a non-synchronous scroll operation for sequentially shifting and displaying within the secured region the proceeding or succeeding parts of the original texts displayed on the original text display region.

Claim 5

The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of highlighting, among the original texts displayed on the original text display region, the part of the original texts whose identification number corresponds with the specified part of the translated texts so as to distinguish over the proceeding and succeeding parts thereof.

Claim 6

The method of claim 4, wherein the step of highlighting includes the step of brightening the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts.

Claim 7

The method of claim 4, wherein the step of highlighting includes the step of underlining the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts.

Claim 8

The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of further displaying, in a further region on the display section, all retrieval translated words corresponding to a specified word or a specified idiom in the displayed original texts on the original text display region in response to a dictionary referring request for the specified word or idiom.

Claim 9

The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of replacing, in response to an operator's selection of one of the displayed retrieval translated words, a translated word in the translated texts corresponding to the specified word or idiom in the original texts with the selected one of the translated words.

Claim 10

A machine translation apparatus having a first memory for storing original texts as units, a translation dictionary for obtaining translated sentences of the original texts, a second memory for storing translated texts as units, a display section for displaying the texts stored in the first and second memories and an input section for inputting various editing commands or various character information with respect to the texts to be displayed, comprising: input control means for dividing original texts input through the input section or input as a file under a given condition on the basis of their descriptions and writing into the first memory the original texts with identification numbers assigned for each of the divided texts; translation means for reading the original texts written in the first memory and translating, by referring to the translation dictionary, the original texts divided into the units in accordance with the identification numbers to obtain translated texts; first editing control means for writing into the second memory the obtained translated texts with identification numbers assigned in correspondence with each of the divided units of the original texts; first display control means for displaying the translated texts written in the second memory on an entire area of a translated text display region in the display section; table means for registering a relationship between a display position of each unit of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region and respective identification numbers of each unit of the original texts corresponding to the translated texts; second editing control means for specifying a part of the translated texts being displayed and acquiring, in response to issuance of a demand for referring to a corresponding part of the original texts, information on the display position in the translated text display region of the specified part of the translated texts from the table means; and second display control means for securing an original text display region for displaying a part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts, for determining an identification number of the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts from the table, retrieving from the first memory the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts on the basis of the determined identification number of the part of the original texts, and displaying the retrieved part of the original texts on the original text display region.

Claim 11

A machine translation apparatus having a first memory for storing original texts as units, a translation dictionary for obtaining translated sentences of the original texts, a second memory for storing translated texts as units, a display section for displaying the texts stored in the first and second memories and an input section for inputting various editing commands or various character information with respect to the texts to be displayed, comprising: input control means for dividing original texts input through the input section or input as a file under a given condition on the basis of their descriptions and writing into the first memory the original texts with identification numbers assigned for each of the divided texts; translation means for reading the original texts written in the first memory and translating, by referring to the translation dictionary, the original texts divided into the units in accordance with the identification numbers to obtain translated texts; first editing control means for writing into the second memory the obtained translated texts with identification numbers assigned in correspondence with each of the divided units of the original texts; first display control means for displaying the translated texts written in the second memory on an entire area of a translated text display region in the display section; table means for registering a relationship between a display position of each unit of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region and respective identification numbers of each unit of the original texts corresponding to the translated texts; second editing control means for specifying a part of the translated texts being displayed and acquiring, in response to issuance of a demand for referring to a corresponding part of the original texts, information on the display position in the translated text display region of the specified part of the translated texts from the table means; and second display control means for securing an original text display region for displaying a part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts, for determining an identification number of the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts from the table, retrieving from the first memory the part of the original texts corresponding to the specified part of the translated texts on the basis of the determined identification number of the part of the original texts, and displaying the retrieved part of the original texts on the original text display region.

Claim 12

The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the second display control means displays, when the original text display region is not filled out by the found part of the original texts, proceeding and succeeding texts of the found part of the original texts until the original text display region is filled out.

Claim 13

The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the second display control means further comprises highlight display means for highlighting the part of the original texts found by retrieval of the original texts displayed on the original text display region to distinguish over the proceeding and succeeding texts thereof.

Claim 14

The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the highlight display means brightens the found part of the original texts.

Claim 15

The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the highlight display means underlines the found part of the original texts.

Claim 16

The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising third display control means for sequentially shifting and displaying proceeding or succeeding parts of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region by the second display control means in response to a scroll instruction issued through the input section.

Claim 17

The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising third display control means for sequentially shifting and displaying proceeding or succeeding parts of the translated texts displayed on the translated text display region in response to a scroll instruction issued through the input section and also for sequentially shifting and displaying proceeding or succeeding parts of the original texts displayed on the original text display region in synchronism with the shifting display of the translated texts.

Claim 18

The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising third display control means for sequentially shifting and displaying, within the original text display region, proceeding or succeeding parts of the original texts in response to a scroll instruction issued through the input section.

Claim 19

The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising third editing control means for retrieving all translated words registered in the translation dictionary for a specified word or a specified idiom in the original texts displayed on the original text display region in response to issuance of a dictionary referring demand with respect to the specified word or idiom, and third display control means for displaying the retrieved translated words on the translated text display region.

Claim 20

The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising fourth editing control means for replacing, in response to an operator's selection of one of the displayed translated words, a translated word in the translated texts corresponding to the specified word or idiom in the original texts with the selected one of the translated words.

Claim 21

The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the first memory stores the original texts in units of character strings divided by the identification numbers and the second memory stores the translated texts in units of character strings divided by the identification numbers.