Abstract: A manual information entry device comprises a multi-segment face including electrically isolated adjacent surfaces presenting a bounded face within which characters and signs are traced by a human finger. Each of the surfaces or segments has an associated sensor operative to produce a different output state when the surface is touched and when it is not touched. Encoding logic devices are connected to each of the sensors and operate to generate information codes corresponding to the first and last touched segments in a given trace. The device may be worn by the user, and may include calculating and time circuits which make up a wristwatch/calculator. Contact between the watch case, or a part thereon, and the body of the wearer may be utilized as part of the touch sensing circuits.

Abstract: Systems and method are disclosed for guided hand scribing of characters in human readable form, which characters can be simultaneously or subsequently recognized and encoded, processed, etc., by appropriate equipment. Different forms of scribe members and related encoding equipment are also disclosed. These operate on the premise that characters are uniquely defined by the termini of the scribing strokes which make up the character, these termini having predetermined relation to the boundaries of cells in a matrix, in which cells the characters are scribed.