INFORMATION PRESENTING APPARATUS, INFORMATION PRESENTING METHOD, AND COMPUTER PROGRAM

• US 20080256450A1
• Filed: 04/01/2008
• Published: 10/16/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Masuda, Hiroki, Kurata, Masatomo, Tanaka, Yoshiki, Takakura, Hiroki, Kojima, Yuji, Hayashi, Masakazu
• Granted Patent: US 8,386,934 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/721
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/447 Temporal browsing, e.g. timeline
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/745 the internal structure of a single video sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/329 on a disc [VTOC]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D

Abstract

In an information presenting apparatus, information associated with each of one or more motion images stored in a storage apparatus is displayed at a location corresponding to a file production time in the form of a calendar view. A plurality of frames of representative images are extracted from each motion image in accordance with a specified frame extraction method. Thumbnail images of the respective extracted representative images are produced, and each thumbnail image is related to a playback position in the motion image. The resultant thumbnail images are managed as a set of motion image thumbnail images in accordance with a production time of the motion image. Information associated with each motion image is displayed at a location corresponding to the production time of the motion image in the form of the calendar view. Thumbnail images associated with each motion image are displayed in an expanded form in the order of time.

Claims

1. An information presenting apparatus adapted to present, to a user, information associated with each of one or more motion images stored in a storage apparatus by displaying the information at a location corresponding to a file production time on a background image in the form of a calendar view, comprising:

frame extraction means for extracting a plurality of frames serving as representative images from a motion image in accordance with a specified frame extraction method;

motion image thumbnail image management means for producing thumbnail images of the respective extracted representative images, relating each thumbnail image to a playback position in the motion image, and managing the thumbnail images as a set of motion image thumbnail images in accordance with a production time of the motion image; and

image drawing means for drawing information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus, at a location corresponding to the production time of the motion image, on the background image in the form of the calendar with a calendar continuing across boundaries of years, months, and days,

wherein when the image drawing means presents the information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus on the background image in the form of the calendar view, the image drawing means draws thumbnail images belonging to the set of motion image thumbnail images associated with each motion image in an expanded form in which the thumbnail images are located in the order of time.

2. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising frame extraction method specifying means for specifying a method of extracting frames of representative images from a motion image,

wherein the frame extraction means extracts a plurality of frames of representative images from the motion image in accordance with the specified extraction method.

3. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the frame extraction method specifying means is adapted to specify at least one of methods including a method of extracting frames of representative images at regular intervals from a motion image, and a method of extracting frames of highlight scenes from the motion image.

4. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising operation accepting means for accepting an operation performed by a user.

5. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising motion image playback means for, in response to selecting one of displayed thumbnail images by a user via the operation accepting means, playing back a motion image starting from a playback position corresponding to the selected thumbnail image.

6. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image drawing means draws thumbnail images such that when the information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus is presented on the background image in the form of the calendar view, the image drawing means draws thumbnail image such that a single thumbnail image associated with a motion image is expanded into a plurality of thumbnail images included in a set of motion image thumbnail images associated with the motion image or such that a plurality of expanded motion image thumbnail images are collapsed into a single thumbnail image, depending on a thumbnail image display mode specified by a user via the operation accepting means.

7. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 6, wherein when the image drawing means draws thumbnail images included in a set of motion image of thumbnail images in the expanded manner in the order of time, the image drawing means draws the thumbnail images in the form of a film roll along which the thumbnail images included in the set of motion image thumbnail images are expanded in the order of time.

8. The information presenting apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the image drawing means expands motion image thumbnail images in the form of an animation indicating a manner in which the film roll expands, so that a user can easily understand the progress of the expansion process.

9. An information presenting method of presenting, to a user, information associated with each of one or more motion images stored in a storage apparatus by displaying the information at a location corresponding to a file production time on a background image in the form of a calendar view, comprising the steps of:

extracting a plurality of frames serving as representative images from a motion image in accordance with a specified frame extraction method;

managing motion image thumbnail images, by producing thumbnail images of the respective extracted representative images, relating each thumbnail image to a playback position in the motion image, and managing the thumbnail images as a set of motion image thumbnail images in accordance with a production time of the motion image; and

drawing an image of information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus, at a location corresponding to the production time of the motion image, on the background image in the form of the calendar with a calendar continuing across boundaries of years, months, and days,

wherein in the image drawing step, when the information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus is presented on the background image in the form of the calendar view, the thumbnail images belonging to the set of motion image thumbnail images associated with the motion image are expanded in the order of time.

10. A computer program executable by a computer to perform a process of presenting, to a user, information associated with each of one or more motion images stored in a storage apparatus by displaying the information at a location corresponding to a file production time on a background image in the form of a calendar view, the process comprising the steps of:

extracting a plurality of frames serving as representative images from a motion image in accordance with a specified frame extraction method;

managing motion image thumbnail images, by producing thumbnail images of the respective extracted representative images, relating each thumbnail image to a playback position in the motion image, and managing the thumbnail images as a set of motion image thumbnail images in accordance with a production time of the motion image; and

drawing an image of information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus, at a location corresponding to the production time of the motion image, on the background image in the form of the calendar with a calendar continuing across boundaries of years, months, and days,

wherein in the image drawing step, when the information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus is presented on the background image in the form of the calendar view, the thumbnail images belonging to the set of motion image thumbnail images associated with the motion image are expanded in the order of time.

11. An information presenting apparatus adapted to present, to a user, information associated with each of one or more motion images stored in a storage apparatus by displaying the information at a location corresponding to a file production time on a background image in the form of a calendar view, comprising:

a frame extraction unit adapted to extract a plurality of frames serving as representative images from a motion image in accordance with a specified frame extraction method;

a motion image thumbnail image management unit adapted to produce thumbnail images of the respective extracted representative images, relate each thumbnail image to a playback position in the motion image, and manage the thumbnail images as a set of motion image thumbnail images in accordance with a production time of the motion image; and

an image drawing unit adapted to draw information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus, at a location corresponding to the production time of the motion image, on the background image in the form of the calendar with a calendar continuing across boundaries of years, months, and days,

wherein when the image drawing unit presents the information associated with each motion image stored in the storage apparatus on the background image in the form of the calendar view, the image drawing unit draws thumbnail images belonging to the set of motion image thumbnail images associated with each motion image in an expanded form in which the thumbnail images are located in the order of time.