Image display method, image display apparatus and camera

• US 20080059903A1
• Filed: 08/29/2007
• Published: 03/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corporation (Olympus Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corporation (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Kaminaga, Tomomi, Nonaka, Osamu
• Application Number:
  US11/897,324
• Publication Number:
  US 20080059903A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/797
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/61 based on recognised objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/673 based on contrast or high frequency components of image signals, e.g. hill climbing method

Abstract

Disclosed are an image display method, an image display apparatus and a camera, which display a list of a plurality of images arranged in such a way that individual images at least partially overlie one another, sequentially enlarge and display the images in the displayed list, and cause the enlarged and displayed images to disappear from a screen. In displaying a list of images, the images can be arranged in such a way that an important portion of each image is not hid by another image. Schemes of causing an image to disappear from the screen include fade-out of an image and movement of an image out of the screen.

Claims

1. An image display method for displaying a plurality of input images on a display part, comprising:

selecting and sequentially inputting a plurality of images to be displayed;

displaying a list of the sequentially input plurality of images on the display part in such a way that the displayed images at least partially overlap one another; and

sequentially enlarging and displaying individual images in the displayed list, and then causing the enlarged and displayed images to disappear from a screen of the display part.

2. The image display method according to claim 1, wherein at sequentially enlarging and displaying the individual images in the displayed list, the individual images are sequentially enlarged to a screen-full size and are displayed, then at disappearing of the individual images, the enlarged and displayed individual images are caused to fade out.

3. The image display method according to claim 1, wherein at sequentially enlarging and displaying the individual images in the displayed list, the individual images are enlarged to a predetermined size, and are displayed, then at disappearing of the individual images, the enlarged and displayed individual images are caused to move out of the screen.

4. The image display method according to claim 1, further comprising detecting an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

5. The image display method according to claim 1, wherein there are two ways of sequentially enlarging, displaying and causing to disappear the individual images in the displayed list, and the method further includes selecting a way from the two ways,

in one way, the individual images are sequentially enlarged to a screen-full size, are displayed, and are caused to fade out,

in the other way, the individual images are enlarged to a predetermined size, are displayed, and are caused to move out of the screen.

6. The image display method according to claim 5, further comprising detecting an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

7. The image display method according to claim 6, wherein the selecting a way is executed based on the detected important portion.

8. The image display method according to claim 4, wherein at a time of displaying the list of images, sequentially overlaying the images one on another, the images are arranged in such a way that the important portion of each of the images is not hid by another image.

9. The image display method according to claim 1, wherein a time needed for displaying the list of images is constant regardless of a quantity of the images input.

10. An image display apparatus comprising:

a display part that displays a group of images comprised of a plurality of captured images; and

a display control part that performs enlargement and display of selecting and sequentially inputting the images to be displayed, arranging the plurality of images sequentially input on the display part in such a way that displayed images at least partially overlie one another, sequentially enlarging and displaying individual images in the displayed list, and then causing the enlarged and displayed images to disappear from a screen of the display part.

11. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the enlargement and display is of sequentially enlarging individual images in the displayed list to a screen-full size, and displaying the images, then causing the enlarged and displayed images to fade out.

12. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the enlargement and display is of enlarging each image in the displayed list to a predetermined size, and displaying that image, then moving the enlarged and displayed image out of the screen.

13. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising an important-portion detecting part that detects an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

14. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the display control part at least has a first enlarge and display mode in which a list of a plurality of images sequentially input is displayed on the display part in such a way that the images at least partially overlie one another, individual images are sequentially enlarged and then the enlarged and displayed images are caused to fade out of the screen of the display part, and a second enlarge and display mode in which individual images in the displayed list are sequentially enlarged to a predetermined size and then the enlarged and displayed images are moved out of the screen, and

the display control part selects either the first enlarge and display mode or the second enlarge and display mode, and enlarges and displays each image according to the selected enlarge and display mode.

15. The image display apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising an important-portion detecting part that detects an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

16. The image display apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the display control part selects the enlarged display mode based on the detected important portion.

17. The image display apparatus according to claim 13, wherein at a time of displaying the list of images, sequentially overlaying the images one on another, the images are arranged in such a way that the important portion of each of the images is not hid by another image.

18. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a time needed for displaying the list of images is constant regardless of a quantity of the images input.

19. A camera comprising:

an imaging part that images a subject to acquire an imaging signal;

a recording part that can record a plurality of captured images of the subject based on the imaging signals acquired by the imaging part;

a display part that displays a group of images comprised of a plurality of captured images recorded in the recording part; and

a display control part that performs display control of selecting and sequentially inputting the images to be displayed, arranging a plurality of images sequentially input on the display part in such a way that displayed images at least partially overlie one another, sequentially enlarging and displaying individual images in the displayed list, and then causing the enlarged and displayed images to disappear from a screen of the display part.

20. The camera according to claim 19, wherein the display control part performs display control in such a way as to sequentially enlarge individual images in the displayed list to a screen-full size, and display the images on the display part, then cause the enlarged and displayed images to fade out.

21. The camera according to claim 19, wherein the display control part enlarges each image in the list displayed on the display part to a predetermined size, and displays that image, then moves the enlarged and displayed image out of the screen.

22. The camera according to claim 19, further comprising an important-portion detecting part that detects an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

23. The camera according to claim 22, further comprising a storage part that stores facial similarity patterns of different sizes for detecting the presence or absence of a face, and

wherein in detecting an important portion in each image based on at least the presence or absence of a face, the important-portion detecting part detects the important portion based on the facial similarity patterns of different sizes stored in the storage part.

24. The camera according to claim 19, wherein a time needed for displaying the list of images is constant regardless of a quantity of the images input.

25. The camera according to claim 19, wherein the display control part at least has a first enlarge and display mode in which individual images are sequentially enlarged and then the enlarged and displayed images are caused to fade out of the screen of the display part, and a second enlarge and display mode in which individual images in the displayed list are sequentially enlarged to a predetermined size and then the enlarged and displayed images are moved out of the screen, and

the display control part selects either the first enlarge and display mode or the second enlarge and display mode, and enlarges and displays each image according to the selected enlarge and display mode.

26. The camera according to claim 25, further comprising an important-portion detecting part that detects an important portion in each image based on at least one of contrast of each image, chroma thereof, and presence or absence of a face therein.

27. The camera according to claim 26, further comprising a storage part that stores facial similarity patterns of different sizes for detecting the presence or absence of a face, and

wherein in detecting an important portion in each image based on at least the presence or absence of a face, the important-portion detecting part detects the important portion based on the facial similarity patterns of different sizes stored in the storage part.

28. The camera according to claim 26, wherein the display control part selects the enlarged display mode based on the detected important portion.

29. The camera according to claim 22, wherein at a time of displaying the list of images on the display part, sequentially overlaying the images one on another, the display control part arranges the images in such a way that the important portion of each of the images is not hid by another image.