Image display apparatus, camera with the image display apparatus, image display control method, and recording medium on which image display control programs are recorded

• US 7,339,622 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2004
• Issued: 03/04/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Yokokawa, Koh
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Ngoc-Yen
• Assistant Examiner(s): HENDERSON, ADAM
• Application Number:
  US10/796,668
• Publication Number:
  US 20040227834A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,457 Days
• Field of Search: 348/333.01, 348/333.05, 348/333.11
• US Class Current: 348/333.01
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00442 Simultaneous viewing of a plurality of images, e.g. using a mosaic display arrangement of thumbnails
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00453 arranged in a two dimensional array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0097 Storage of instructions or parameters, e.g. customised instructions or different parameters for different user IDs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3226 of identification information or the like, e.g. ID code, index, title, part of an image, reduced-size image

Abstract

An image display apparatus has an image-processing unit, an image display unit, and a jump-instructing unit. The image-processing unit generates data representing images having frame numbers. The image display unit displays the images represented by the data. The jump-instructing unit generates an instruction to cause the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed by the image display unit. In response to the instruction, the image-processing unit generates data representing a multi-image consisting of images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number. The image display unit first displays the multi-image and then the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

Claims

1. An image display apparatus comprising:

an image-processing unit which generates data representing images to be displayed;

an image display unit which displays images represented by the data generated by the image-processing unit; and

a display control unit which controls the image-processing unit and the image display unit; and

a jump-instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed by the image display unit,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the jump-instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image-processing unit to generate data representing a multi-image consisting of images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

2. The image display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit causes the image display unit to display the images constituting the multi-image, one after another, as intervening images.

3. The image display apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the display control unit causes the image-processing unit to generate data representing a plurality of multi-images used as intervening images, the multi-images including at least one intervening images having a different number of small images the other intervening images, and causes the image display unit to display the multi-image consisting of the intervening frames.

4. The image display apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a display-stop instructing unit which instruct the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-stop instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

5. The image display apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a display-continuation instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to display the intervening images continuously,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-continuation instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to display at least one of the images constituting the multi-image continuously.

6. The image display apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a display-stop instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-stop instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

7. The image display apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a display-continuation instructing unit which instruct the image display unit to display the intervening images continuously,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-continuation instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to display at least one of the images constituting the multi-image continuously.

8. The image display apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display-continuation instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to display the intervening images continuously,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-continuation instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to display at least one of the images constituting the multi-image continuously.

9. A camera comprising an image display apparatus of the type described in claim 1.

10. An image display apparatus comprising:

an image display unit which displays images;

a display control unit which controls the image display unit; and

a jump-instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed by the image display unit,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the jump-instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to display images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, each for a different period, and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

11. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the display control unit causes the image display unit to display the first several intervening images and the hast several intervening images, each for a period longer than each of the intermediate intervening images.

12. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the display control unit changes the period for which each intervening image is displayed, in accordance with data and time of photographing the intervening image.

13. The image display apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the display control unit changes the period for which each intervening image is displayed, in accordance with a time gap between the photographing of the image and the photographing of an immediately preceding frame.

14. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a display-stop instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-stop instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to stop displaying the intervening images and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

15. The image display apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a display-continuation instructing unit which instructs the image display unit to the intervening images continuously,

wherein, in response to an instruction from the display-continuation instructing unit, the display control unit causes the image display unit to display the intervening images continuously.

16. A camera comprising an image display apparatus of the type described in claim 10.

17. A method of controlling an image display apparatus, in which the image display unit of the apparatus displays images in the order of the serial numbers of the images, in response to an instruction, said method comprising steps of:

instructing the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed;

generating data representing a multi-image consisting of images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number; and

displaying the intervening images and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

18. A method of controlling an image display apparatus, in which the image display unit of the apparatus displays images in the order of the serial numbers of the images, said method comprising steps of:

instructing the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed; and

causing the image display unit to display images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, each for a different period, and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, when the image display unit is instructed, in the instructing step, to display the image whose serial number differs.

19. A computer-readable medium storing an image display control program that is executed by a computer to cause an image display unit to display images in the order of the serial numbers of the images, in response to an instruction, said program describing the steps of:

instructing the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed;

generating data representing a multi-image consisting of images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, when the image display unit is instructed to display the image whose serial number differs; and

causing the image display unit to display the intervening images represented by the data generated, and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number.

20. A computer-readable medium storing an image display control program that is executed by a computer to cause an image display unit to display images in the order of the serial numbers of the images, in response to an instruction, said program describing the steps of:

instructing the image display unit to display an image whose serial number differs, by a predetermined number, from that of the image being displayed; and

causing the image display unit to display images intervening between the image being displayed and the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, each for a different period, and then to display the image whose serial number differs by the predetermined number, when the image display unit is instructed to display the image whose serial number differs.