Information processing apparatus and information processing method

• US 10,028,007 B2
• Filed: 10/30/2013
• Issued: 07/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Arriola, George, Bagu Casas, Anahi, Kimura, Shinji, Enomoto, Shigeru, Yamanaka, Yasuhiro, Kobayashi, Motoki, Hiramatsu, Shuji, Tanaka, Yumiko, Sugawara, Taku
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Ricky
• Application Number:
  US14/437,150
• Publication Number:
  US 20150271556A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,721 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/40 Processing input control signals of video game devices, e.g. signals generated by the player or derived from the environment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/904 Browsing; Visualisation therefor for navigating the web G06F16/954; browsing optimisation for the web G06F16/957
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42209 for displaying non-command information, e.g. electronic program guide [EPG], e-mail, messages or a second television channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43072 of multiple content streams on the same device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/431 Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4781 Games
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence

Abstract

A home screen display unit arranges and displays a plurality of content icons indicating a plurality of pieces of content in a first area in a content zone screen. If a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor and if a preset determination operation is performed, a content playback unit starts playback of the content indicated by the focused icon. If a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, a related information acquiring unit acquires related information relating to the content that is indicated by the focused icon that is registered in an external device from the external device without starting playback of the content. A home screen display unit displays the acquired related information in a second area of the content zone screen and displays, if related information is updated, the updated related information in the second area so as to replace the related information displayed until that moment.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a content icon display unit configured to produce data for arranging and displaying a plurality of content icons indicating a plurality of pieces of content in a first array extending substantially horizontally in a first area in a content selection screen;

a display control unit configured to produce data for displaying a cursor for focusing on one of the plurality of content icons;

a content playback unit configured, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, and if a preset determination operation is performed, to start playback of the content indicated by the focused icon;

a related information acquiring unit configured, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, to acquire a plurality of related information relating to the content that is indicated by the focused icon that is registered in an external device from the external device without starting playback of the content; and

a related information display unit configured to display the related information acquired by the related information acquiring unit as respective plurality of related information icons in a second array extending substantially horizontally in a second area of the content selection screen, and configured to display, if related information is updated, the updated related information in the second area so as to replace the related information displayed until that moment,

wherein, when an operation input by a user in either direction along a predetermined axis, substantially parallel to the first array, for changing content to be focused on is received, the display control unit does not change a position for displaying the cursor, and does change a position for displaying the plurality of content icons into and out of the cursor via movement of the plurality of content icons parallel to the predetermined axis,

wherein, when operation input by the user in either direction along a different axis, transverse to the predetermined axis, is received, the display control unit moves the cursor from the first area into the second area or from the second area into the first area,

wherein, when the cursor is in the second area and an operation input by the user in either direction along the predetermined axis is received, the display control unit changes position for displaying the cursor at least parallel to the predetermined axis to move substantially horizontally and focus among the plurality of related information icons,

wherein the related information acquiring unit acquires from the external device a plurality of types of related information of content indicated by the focused icon, and

wherein the related information display unit displays the plurality of types of related information by superimposing a display region of one piece of related information on a portion of a display region of another piece of related information, and

wherein the related information display unit displays a predetermined number of types of related information, which is included in the plurality of types of related information, in front of the second area, and concurrently displays the rest of the related information in the back of the related information displayed in the front.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the related information acquiring unit acquires from the external device a plurality of types of related information of content indicated by the focused icon, and

wherein the related information display unit displays a predetermined number of types of related information, which is included in the plurality of types of related information, in front of the second area, and switches the display of the related information that has not been displayed in the front to be displayed in the front if a predetermined switch condition is satisfied.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the related information acquiring unit acquires from the external device a plurality of types of related information of content indicated by the focused icon, and

wherein the related information display unit allocates each type of related information to one of a plurality of sets by allocating one or more types of related information to one set, and switches, on a set by set basis, related information to be displayed in front of the second area.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if an operation requesting to display related information as a list is received while displaying a predetermined number of types of related information in front of the second area, the related information display unit displays both the related information having been displayed in front of the second area and the related information that has not been displayed in front of the second area across the first area.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a common menu display unit configured to display, at a same position both in a screen on an upper layer with respect to a screen transition leading to the content selection screen and in the content selection screen, a common menu for specifying an operation that is independent of layers of the screen transition.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the content icon display unit arranges and displays, in a display area of one content icon, both an image of the content and an image of a user associated with the content.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of related information relating to the content includes at least three items of related information, and the at least three items of related information are displayed as respective at least three related information icons in the second array extending substantially horizontally in a second area of the content selection screen.

8. An information processing method comprising:

producing information for arranging and displaying a plurality of content icons indicating a plurality of pieces of content in a first array extending substantially horizontally in a first area in a content selection screen;

producing information for displaying a cursor for focusing on one of the plurality of content icons;

starting, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, and if a preset determination operation is performed, playback of the content indicated by the focused icon

acquiring, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, a plurality of related information relating to the content that is indicated by the focused icon that is registered in an external device from the external device without starting playback of the content; and

displaying the related information acquired as respective plurality of related information icons in a second array extending substantially horizontally in a second area of the content selection screen, and displaying, if related information is updated, the updated related information in the second area so as to replace the related information displayed until that moment,

wherein, when an operation input by a user in either direction along a predetermined axis, substantially parallel to the first array, for changing content to be focused on is received, the display control unit does not change a position for displaying the cursor, and does change a position for displaying the plurality of content icons into and out of the cursor via movement of the plurality of content icons parallel to the predetermined axis,

wherein, when operation input by the user in either direction along a different axis, transverse to the predetermined axis, is received, the display control unit moves the cursor from the first area into the second area or from the second area into the first area,

wherein, when the cursor is in the second area and an operation input by the user in either direction along the predetermined axis is received, the display control unit changes position for displaying the cursor at least parallel to the predetermined axis to move substantially horizontally and focus among the plurality of related information icons,

wherein the acquiring includes acquiring from the external device a plurality of types of related information of content indicated by the focused icon,

wherein the displaying includes displaying the plurality of types of related information by superimposing a display region of one piece of related information on a portion of a display region of another piece of related information, and

wherein displaying includes displaying a predetermined number of types of related information, which is included in the plurality of types of related information, in front of the second area, and concurrently displays the rest of the related information in the back of the related information displayed in the front.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium containing a computer program, which when executed by a computer causes the computer to carry out actions, comprising:

producing information for arranging and displaying a plurality of content icons indicating a plurality of pieces of content in a first array extending substantially horizontally in a first area in a content selection screen;

producing information for displaying a cursor for focusing on one of the plurality of content icons;

starting, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, and if a preset determination operation is performed, playback of the content indicated by the focused icon

acquiring, if a specific content icon is focused on by the cursor, a plurality of related information relating to the content that is indicated by the focused icon that is registered in an external device from the external device without starting playback of the content; and

displaying the related information acquired as respective plurality of related information icons in a second array extending substantially horizontally in a second area of the content selection screen, and displaying, if related information is updated, the updated related information in the second area so as to replace the related information displayed until that moment,

wherein, when an operation input by a user in either direction along a predetermined axis, substantially parallel to the first array, for changing content to be focused on is received, the display control unit does not change a position for displaying the cursor, and does change a position for displaying the plurality of content icons into and out of the cursor via movement of the plurality of content icons parallel to the predetermined axis,

wherein, when operation input by the user in either direction along a different axis, transverse to the predetermined axis, is received, the display control unit moves the cursor from the first area into the second area or from the second area into the first area,

wherein, when the cursor is in the second area and an operation input by the user in either direction along the predetermined axis is received, the display control unit changes position for displaying the cursor at least parallel to the predetermined axis to move substantially horizontally and focus among the plurality of related information icons,

wherein the acquiring includes acquiring from the external device a plurality of types of related information of content indicated by the focused icon,

wherein the displaying includes displaying the plurality of types of related information by superimposing a display region of one piece of related information on a portion of a display region of another piece of related information, and

wherein displaying includes displaying a predetermined number of types of related information, which is included in the plurality of types of related information, in front of the second area, and concurrently displays the rest of the related information in the back of the related information displayed in the front.