Image displaying apparatus and image displaying method and program medium

• US 6,973,628 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2001
• Issued: 12/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Asami, Akiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Sax, Steven P
• Assistant Examiner(s): PESIN, BORIS M
• Application Number:
  US09/942,165
• Publication Number:
  US 20020054158A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,560 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/592, 345/639, 345/764, 345/768, 345/779, 345/838, 345/839, 345/848, 345/853, 345/854, 345/863, 345/866, 715/514, 715/526, 715/782, 715/850
• US Class Current: 715/838
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04802 3D-info-object: information is displayed on the internal or external surface of a three dimensional manipulable object, e.g. on the faces of a cube that can be rotated by the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04804 Transparency, e.g. transparent or translucent windows
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/206 Drawing of charts or graphs
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/14 Solving problems related to the presentation of information to be displayed

Abstract

An information-processing apparatus, an information-processing method and a data recording medium which allow a display to be presented to the user. The apparatus, method, and medium allow the display of a cyclical time concept which includes nature, creatures and integration of pictures and comments and is based on a predetermined cycle typically including a sequence of transitions among the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, or of a day consisting of morning, afternoon, and night, or a cycle can also be a temperature or humidity cycle.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a storage unit for storing raw data and time axis data related to said raw data and stored in said storage unit by association with said raw data;

a thumbnail icon generating unit for generating a thumbnail icon representing said raw data read from said storage means;

a spiral period setting unit for setting a spiral period of a virtual spiral based upon a unit of time selected from a plurality of units of time, each of said plurality being repeated in accordance with a predetermined pattern;

a spiral axis setting unit for setting a spiral axis of said virtual spiral that represents a change of said unit of time; and

a thumbnail icon array displaying unit for displaying said thumbnail icon in an array on said virtual spiral based upon said time axis data associated with said raw data represented by said thumbnail icon,

wherein said spiral axis setting unit sets a direction in XYZ space and a slope of said spiral aixs.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, said information processing apparatus further comprising:

a representative thumbnail selecting unit for selecting one of a plurality of thumbnail icons displayed in said array on said virtual spiral as a representative thumbnail icon; and

a representative thumbnail icon array displaying unit for displaying said representative thumbnail icon selected by said representative thumbnail selecting unit in an array on said virtual spiral.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, said information processing apparatus further comprising:

a spiral layer synthesizing unit for synthesizing a plurality of spiral layers each comprising said virtual spiral, said spiral axis, and said thumbnail icons; and

a synthesized layer displaying unit for displaying a synthesized layer produced by said spiral layer synthesizing unit.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a thumbnail icon extracting unit for extracting a specific thumbnail icon from a plurality of thumbnail icons displayed as said array based on said time axis data based upon attribute data of said raw data; and

a data outputting unit for outputting said raw data represented by said specific thumbnail icon extracted by said thumbnail icon extracting.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said unit time corresponding to said spiral period set by said spiral period setting unit is one of a month unit and a one year unit including a spring, a summer, an autumn and a winter.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said representative thumbnail icon array displaying unit displays said thumbnail icon as a semitransparent display.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a visual point moving unit for moving a visual point of said spiral layer displaying said virtual spiral, said spiral axis, and said thumbnail icons.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said visual point moving unit automatically moves said visual point of said spiral layer along a time axis.

9. A computer graphic display program storage method comprising the steps of:

storing raw data and time axis data related to said raw data in said storage unit by associated with said raw data and reading said raw data;

generating a thumbnail icon representing said raw data read in said storage step;

setting a spiral period of a virtual spiral based upon a unit of time selected from a plurality of unit of time, each of said plurality being repeated in accordance with a predetermined pattern;

setting a spiral axis of said virtual spiral that represent a change of said unit of time; and

displaying said thumbnail icon in an array on said virtual spiral based upon said time axis data associated with said raw data represented by said thumbnail icon,

wherein said spiral axis setting step sets a direction in XYZ space and a slope of said spiral axis.

10. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 9, further comprising the steps of:

selecting a specific thumbnail icon of a plurality of thumbnail icons displayed in said array on said virtual spiral as a representative thumbnail icon; and

displaying said representative thumbnail icon selected in said representative thumbnail icon selecting step in said array on said virtual spiral.

11. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 9, further comprising the steps of:

synthesizing a plurality of spiral layers each including said virtual spiral, said spiral axis, and said thumbnail icon; and

displaying one of said plurality of synthesized layers produced in said spiral layer synthesizing step.

12. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 9, further comprising the steps of:

extracting a specific thumbnail icon from a plurality of thumbnail icons displayed in said array based on said time axis data basedupon attribute data of said raw data; and

outputting said raw data represented by said specific thumbnail icon selected in said thumbnail icon extracting step.

13. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 9, wherein said unit time corresponding to said spiral period set by said spiral period-setting step is one of a month unit and a one year unit including a spring, a summer, an autumn, and a winter.

14. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 10, wherein in said representative thumbnail icon array displaying step said representative thumbnail icon is displayed as a semitransparent display.

15. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 11, further comprising a step of moving a visual point of said spiral layer displaying said virtual spiral, said spiral axis, and said thumbnail icon.

16. The computer graphic display program storage method according to claim 15, wherein said visual point moving step automatically moves said visual point of said spiral layer along a time axis.