IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS, IMAGE DISPLAYING METHOD, AND IMAGE DISPLAYING PROGRAM

• US 20100134415A1
• Filed: 10/28/2009
• Published: 06/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: TARAYAMA, Akiko, WANG, Qihong, IWASE, Ayako, OZAWA, Hiroyuki
• Granted Patent: US 8,988,347 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/158
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/532 Query formulation, e.g. graphical querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1636 Sensing arrangement for detection of a tap gesture on the housing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00411 the display also being used for user input, e.g. touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00453 arranged in a two dimensional array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00461 marking or otherwise tagging one or more displayed image, e.g. for selective reproduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2166 for mass storage, e.g. in document filing systems information retrieval G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces

Abstract

An image processing apparatus includes an instructed-position detecting unit configured to receive an instruction operation by a user on a display screen of a display device and detect and output a position where the instruction operation is performed; a storing unit configured to store multiple image data items each including information corresponding to a search key; a search-key display controlling unit configured to cause at least one search key to be selectively displayed on the display screen of the display device; a searching unit configured to, if the search key displayed on the display screen is instructed by the search-key display controlling unit through the instructed-position detecting unit, search the storing unit for the image data corresponding to the search key to extract the image data; and a display controlling unit configured to collectively display images corresponding to the image data in a certain part on the display screen.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:

instructed-position detecting means for receiving an instruction operation by a user on a display screen of a display device, detecting a position where the instruction operation is performed, and outputting the detected position;

storing means for storing a plurality of image data items each including information corresponding to a search key;

search-key display controlling means for causing at least one search key to be selectively displayed on the display screen of the display device;

searching means for, if the search key displayed on the display screen of the display device is instructed by the search-key display controlling means through the instructed-position detecting means, searching the storing means for the image data corresponding to the instructed search key to extract the image data; and

display controlling means for collectively displaying images corresponding to the image data extracted by the searching means in a certain part on the display screen.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the instructed-position detecting means receives an instruction operation by the user on its operation panel corresponding to the display screen of the display device, detects a position where the instruction operation is performed on the operation panel, and outputs the detected position.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

search determining means for, if an instruction operation to determine the result of the search is received within a predetermined time since the images corresponding to the image data extracted by the searching means have been collectively displayed in a certain part on the display screen under the control of the display controlling means, determining the result of the search which is being displayed.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is a dragging operation to surround the images collectively displayed on the display screen of the display device on the operation panel of the instructed-position detecting means.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an instruction operation to keep contact with a certain position on the operation panel of the instructed-position detecting means for a predetermined time period or longer.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an operation to instruct a certain position on the operation panel of the instructed-position detecting means twice.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an operation to store the images collectively displayed on the display screen of the display device in a desired folder through the instructed-position detecting means.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising;

motion detecting means for detecting a motion of the image processing apparatus,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an operation to tilt the image processing apparatus, the operation being detected by the motion detecting means.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:

motion detecting means for detecting a motion of the image processing apparatus,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an operation to shake the image processing apparatus, the operation being detected by the motion detecting means.

10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising:

tap-operation detecting means for detecting an operation to tap the image processing apparatus,

wherein the instruction operation to determine the result of the search is an operation to tap the image processing apparatus, the operation being detected by the tap-operation detecting means.

11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

search clearing means for, if no instruction operation is received within a predetermined time since the images corresponding to the image data extracted by the searching means have been collectively displayed in a certain part on the display screen under the control of the display controlling means, clearing the result of the search and returning the display to an original state.

12. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein, if a plurality of search keys is displayed on the display screen of the display device by the search-key display controlling means, an instruction operation is performed on a plurality of positions on the operation panel of the instructed-position detecting means, and the plurality of search keys are determined to be the search keys used in the image search, the searching means searches for image data by using the instructed plurality of search keys.

13. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the search keys include at least one of text data, position information, and image data.

14. The image processing apparatus according to claim 13,

wherein, if the image data is used as the search key, one or more parts of the image corresponding to the image data are instructed as the search keys with an instruction operation on the operation panel of the instructed-position detecting means.

15. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

display moving means for, if an instruction operation at the position on the operation panel corresponding to the position where the instructed search key is displayed is continued to move the instructed position, moving the position where the search key is displayed in accordance with the instructed position,

wherein the display controlling means moves the image corresponding to the image data extracted by the searching means in accordance with the movement of the position where the search key is displayed.

16. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

display moving means for, if an instruction operation at the position on the operation panel corresponding to the position where the instructed search key is displayed is continued to move the instructed position, moving the position where the search key is displayed in accordance with the instructed position,

wherein, if the image corresponding to the image data that is not matched with the instructed search key is displayed, the display controlling means moves the image to a position away from the position where the search key is displayed in accordance with the movement of the position where the search key is displayed.

17. An image displaying method comprising the steps of:

causing at least one search key to be selectively displayed on a display screen of a display device by search-key display controlling means;

receiving an instruction operation by a user through instructed-position detecting means for receiving an instruction operation by the user on the display screen of the display device, detecting a position where the instruction operation is performed, and outputting the detected position;

searching, if the displayed search key is instructed in the instruction operation receiving step, storing means in which a plurality of image data items each including information corresponding to the search key is stored for the image data corresponding to the instructed search key to extract the image data by searching means; and

collectively displaying images corresponding to the image data extracted in the searching step in a certain part on the display screen by display controlling means.

18. An image displaying program executed by a computer in an image displaying apparatus, the program comprising the steps of:

causing at least one search key to be selectively displayed on a display screen of a display device by search-key display controlling means;

receiving an instruction operation by a user through instructed-position detecting means for receiving an instruction operation by the user on the display screen of the display device, detecting a position where the instruction operation is performed, and outputting the detected position;

searching, if the displayed search key is instructed in the instruction operation receiving step, storing means in which a plurality of image data items each including information corresponding to the search key is stored for the image data corresponding to the instructed search key to extract the image data by searching means; and

collectively displaying images corresponding to the image data extracted in the searching step in a certain part on the display screen by display controlling means.

19. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an instructed-position detecting unit configured to receive an instruction operation by a user on a display screen of a display device, detect a position where the instruction operation is performed, and output the detected position;

a storing unit configured to store a plurality of image data items each including information corresponding to a search key;

a search-key display controlling unit configured to cause at least one search key to be selectively displayed on the display screen of the display device;

a searching unit configured to, if the search key displayed on the display screen of the display device is instructed by the search-key display controlling unit through the instructed-position detecting unit, search the storing unit for the image data corresponding to the instructed search key to extract the image data; and

a display controlling unit configured to collectively display images corresponding to the image data extracted by the searching unit in a certain part on the display screen.