JP2896149B2 - Computer graphics processing system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a computer graphic processing system for performing graphic processing by a personal computer having a color display device using a CRT display.

(Prior Art) In recent years, with the spread of graphic processing systems using personal computers (hereinafter referred to as CAD systems), in addition to the improvement of graphic processing capabilities such as drawing and graphic editing, more sophisticated display functions and rich There is a demand for improved practicality, such as ease of recognizing figures by color expression.

A major feature of a CAD system using a personal computer is that it is less expensive than a CAD system using a minicomputer class computer. In order to realize such inexpensiveness, it is common to use an inexpensive type display such as displaying 8 to 16 colors by combining three primary colors as a color CRT display to be equipped. In such a color CRT display, usually, for each dot, one of three primary colors of red (R), green (G), and blue (B), or any two of these, or A combination of three colors can be displayed. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the relationship between the combination of these colors and the colors expressed thereby. In the figure, 1 indicates blue, 2 indicates green, and 4 indicates red. In this case, the combination of blue 1 and green 2 is cyan 3 (= 1 + 2), the combination of blue 1 and red 4 is purple 5 (= 1 + 4), and the combination of green 2 and red 4 is yellow 6 (= 2 + 4). ), And all three primary colors of blue 1, green 2, and red 4 are combined to form white 7 (= 1 + 2).
+4). That is, in FIG. 1, the numbers obtained by adding the color numbers of the three primary colors 1, 2, and 4 to be used are the color numbers 3, 5, 6, and 7 that are generated by the combination. Also, this 7
Since black can be displayed in addition to color, a total of eight colors can be generated. Normally, in a CRT display having three primary colors of RGB, it is impossible to display the above-described intermediate colors other than the eight colors by one dot, and to change the brightness for each dot. Therefore, in a CAD system using such a color CRT display, there is a great limitation in terms of hardware for displaying a figure in high detail and for expressing a kind of a color, a shade of a color, and the like.

On the other hand, the display function of CAD software is mainly used for displaying line drawings such as straight lines and arc shapes, and the database that holds these graphic information is also able to efficiently convert geometric information such as coordinate values and angles of line drawing figures. It is designed primarily for handling. For this reason, it is possible to perform processing for enlarging / reducing a line drawing figure having an arbitrary size, but it is inferior in a paint (color coating) function for storing and displaying color image information.

On the other hand, the display function of image editing software mainly consists of a paint function that generates colors in dot units.
It is designed to save the state of the T display display memory. In this case, since the state of the display memory differs for each computer model, one image data cannot be used by different computers.

Therefore, in a conventional CAD system using a personal computer, it has been difficult to hold color image information together with line drawing information and to edit such data by partially enlarging or reducing the data.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) The present invention has been proposed to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and a first object of the present invention is to provide a color which is not originally supported in hardware. By realizing an inexpensive color display device that can display (hereinafter, referred to as an intermediate color) and has a simple configuration, graphics can be displayed with high definition, and in particular, the types of colors and the shading of colors can be expressed. Another object of the present invention is to provide a computer graphic processing system which is highly practical and inexpensive.

A second object is to store color image information such as color combinations, display positions, and display ranges in a database together with line drawing information, and to store them in a database together with line drawing information so that graphic processing using both information can be performed simultaneously. A computer graphics processing system is provided.

[Constitution of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention regards a plurality of dots on a CRT display as one pixel, and a color image and a line image displayed by a paint unit composed of a plurality of pixels. In a computer graphic processing system for displaying on a CRT display, the color information of a pixel that determines the color of each pixel is displayed by the color of the dots in each pixel and the number of dots of each color, and information of a paint unit is displayed. Is displayed by the color information of the pixel, the shape of the paint unit, and the information on the position and size of the paint unit. The line drawing information is displayed by the data of the position, font and color of the line segment. Means for storing information, information of a paint unit, and line drawing information in a database.

(Operation) In the present invention having the above configuration, first,
By selecting the color of the dots in each pixel and the number of dots of each color, the color of one pixel can be developed to an intermediate color. That is, when the color of each dot and the number of dots of each color are selected in this way, a color mixing effect of mixing the dyes of each color at a fixed ratio in one pixel can be obtained.
Note that one pixel can be made to look like a single point to human vision by making it sufficiently small on the display.

Further, the size and shape of the color image on the display can be freely determined by selecting the coloring and the display range of each pixel constituting the color image.

Furthermore, the position (coordinates) of the color image may be expressed by a coordinate system in the line drawing information, for example, in the same manner as expressing a straight line by the coordinate values of (start point, end point).

That is, in the present invention, since the color image information based on the data of the color development, position, and display range of each pixel constituting the color image can be stored in the database together with the line drawing information, the color image can be displayed together with the line drawing figure. Further, the position relative to other line drawing information is also stored.

(Embodiment) An embodiment of a computer graphic processing system according to the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. In addition,
In this embodiment, a color CRT display of a type that displays any one of the three primary colors or a combination thereof for each dot as shown in FIG. 8 is used.

Intermediate color generating means In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes a color CRT display. In this embodiment, 640 dots in the horizontal direction and 4 dots in the vertical direction used for a normal personal computer are used.
Use a CRT display with a resolution of 00 dots. Reference numeral 12 denotes a group of pixels of 4 × 4 dots. The pixel 12 is always displayed at an arbitrary position on the CRT display in units of 4 × 4 dots. In this case, the CRT display 11 of the present embodiment having the above resolution is used.
Above, one pixel 12 is displayed in a size of about 1.5 mm × 1.5 mm, so that it looks almost as a “point” to human eyes. By arranging several pixels 12, significant pixels can be represented on the CRT.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 13 denotes dots emitting both red and blue. These dots appear purple on the CRT display 11 due to the combination of red and blue. 1
Reference numeral 4 denotes a non-colored dot, that is, a dot of a background color. 15 is red, 1
Reference numeral 6 denotes a dot colored in blue. That is, in FIG. 1, two dots each of purple, red, and blue are colored, and the remaining ten dots are background colors that are not colored. When the background color is black, the pixels can be rendered somewhat dark purple. By increasing the number of dots emitting red and blue, the pixel 12 can be expressed in bright purple.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining in more detail the method of combining the coloring of the dots in the pixel 12. It should be noted that the same reference numerals are given to the dots which are colored in the same color as in FIG.

First, in FIG. 2 (A), two dots each of red and blue are colored as indicated by 15 and 16, and the remaining 12 dots are non-colored as indicated by 14. Background color. In this case, pixel 12 appears purple overall. In this way, if each dot is colored in one of the three primary colors of red, green, and blue, and no other color mixture is used, the pixel 12 as a whole is formed by dividing the three primary colors by the ratio of the dots of each color. It looks like a combination of colors. Then, if the number of dots to be colored with a specific primary color is increased, an effect of adding the colors in a coordinated manner can be obtained. For example, in FIG. 3 (A), if the number of dots 15 for coloring red is further increased, the pixel 12 as a whole looks more reddish purple.

Next, in FIG. 2 (B), four dots are colored in a mixed color of red and blue, that is, purple, as shown as 13, and as shown in FIG. It has no background color. Also in this case, the pixel 12 looks purple as in FIG. 2A. in this case,
Increasing the number of dots to be colored purple can increase the brightness of the color of the pixel 12. If the color of the non-colored dots 14 in FIG. 2B is white, the effect of diminishing the color of the pixels 12 can be obtained.

As described above, in the present embodiment, it is possible to generate intermediate colors that cannot be obtained only by mixing the three primary colors and the combination of the three primary colors.

When displaying one meaningful color image by arranging several pixels 12, by gradually changing the number of colors of the dots in the pixels, the brightness and shade of the color of one image are gradually increased. Can be changed.

Furthermore, by leaving the non-colored dots in the pixels as the background color, if any figure is drawn on the background, the original figure can be superimposed and displayed behind the color image. .

Pixel arrangement means As a means for drawing (painting) a color image, a pixel arrangement method and the number of arrangements are determined in advance.

FIG. 3 shows a basic example of an array of pixels. In FIG. 3, FIG.
FIG. 3 (B) shows four pixels, and FIG. 3 (C) shows one unit (hereinafter referred to as a paint unit) 22 for painting a color image by arranging 16 pixels 21 in a square. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 23 denotes the center position of the paint unit 22.

FIG. 4 shows a modification of the arrangement of FIG. 3 by displaying the dots in each pixel 21 so that the outline draws an arc. Thus, defining the arrangement of pixels is
This corresponds to selecting the shape and size of the paint unit 22.

FIG. 5 shows the concept of a roller for painting by changing the arrangement of pixels. In FIG. 5 (A), 31 is a conceptual paint roller, 32, 33
Indicates the starting point coordinates (xs, ys) and the ending point coordinates (xe, ye) of the center of the paint in the width direction by the paint roller 31, and 34 indicates the paint width. FIG. 5 (B) shows a paint roller 31.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of display dots painted by the printer, wherein 35 indicates a non-colored dot, and 36 indicates a colored dot. In this case, the order of coloring and non-coloring of the display dots in one row in the paint width direction is determined, and the different direction (the direction of the arrow in the drawing) of the paint roller 31 is determined. , Vertical, diagonal, or intersecting color development examples.

Means for Saving to Database FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a figure composed of a line drawing and an image. In the figure, 41 is a paint unit consisting of a group of four pixels, 42 is a pixel, 43 is the center coordinate of the paint unit 41, 44 is a line segment, and 45 and 46 are the starting point coordinates (xs, y) of the line segment 44.
s), representing the end point coordinates (xe, ye). The position of the paint unit 41 is represented by (xb, y) on the same xy coordinate system scale as the line segment.
b).

FIG. 7 shows a case where the line segment 44 and the paint unit 41 shown in FIG. 6 are displayed on the color CRT display 47. FIG. 7 (A) shows the entire graphic on the CRT display 47, and FIG. 7 (B) enlarges the entire graphic as compared with FIG. 7 (A) and displays a part of the graphic on the CRT display 47. It shows the case where it is done.

Here, the graphic data shown in FIG. 6 can be expressed as follows.

(1) Coloring information of one pixel 42: represented by the following parameters.

PIXEL = (PRED, PGREEN, PBLUE, PTYPE) PIXEL: Pixel color information PRED: Number of dots (0-16) to be colored red (RED) among pixels PGREEN: Color green (GREEN) among pixels Number of dots (0 to 16) PBLUE: Number of dots (0 to 16) to be colored in blue (BLUE) among pixels (2) Position and size of paint unit 41: represented by the following eight parameters.

BLUSH = (XB, YB, PIXL, TYPE, SIZE) BLUSH: Paint unit information PIXEL: Pixel color information TYPE: Paint unit information (circular or rectangular) XB, YB: Coordinate of center point of paint unit SIZE: Paint unit size (3) Data of line segment 44: Expressed by the following parameters.

LINE = (XS, YS, XE, YE, LFONT, LCOLOR) LINE: Line segment information XS, YS: Line segment start point coordinates XE, YE: Line segment end point coordinates LFONT: Line segment font (solid line, dotted line, etc.) As described above, by storing information corresponding to one unit when drawing a color image in a database, these data can be subjected to coordinate movement / rotation or scaling in the same manner as line drawing information. , Can be reproduced on a color CRT display.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, a group of dots of a CRT display is defined as one pixel,
By defining the color of the dots in each pixel and the number of colored dots, the color development of one pixel is defined, and the collection of these pixels is displayed as an image on the CRT, so that only the combination of the three primary colors Can express colors that cannot be obtained.

By expressing the color information and the information such as the position of the color point in the above-described manner, it can be stored in the database in the same manner as the parameters of the line drawing figure. Can be moved, rotated, or scaled and reproduced on a CRT.

Furthermore, since the image data conventionally stored in the state of the CRT display memory can be expressed as a set of pixels determined by several numerical parameters, it is different from a general data file including a line drawing figure. It can also be used with a model computer.

In particular, in the present invention, since a color image is handled as a collection of pixels having a position and a size, a line drawing figure is handled as a collection of individual line segments and arc figures by a conventional CAD method. A CAD system that can handle image data in the same manner can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 to 7 are views showing an embodiment of a CAD system according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a color CRT display and pixels of 4.times.4 dots used in the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a plan view showing pixels of different colors, and FIG.
FIG. 4B shows a state in which dots formed only in primary colors are used, and FIG. 4B shows a state in which dots formed in mixed colors are used. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a basic example of an array of pixels. FIG. 3A shows one pixel, FIG. 3B shows four pixels, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an arrangement in which the outline of FIG. 3 is transformed into an arc, and FIGS. 4A to 4C are plan views showing the arrangement as one unit for painting. C) respectively. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a modification of the arrangement of pixels.
FIG. 2A is a perspective view showing a conceptual paint roller and a range of coordinates of paint, and FIG. 2B is a plan view showing an example of display dots painted by the paint roller. FIG. 6 is a coordinate plan view showing a graphic example composed of a line drawing and an image,
FIG. 7 shows the line segment and the paint unit shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a case where the image is displayed on a T display,
(A) shows the case where the whole figure is displayed, and (B) shows the case where a part of the enlarged figure is displayed. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a relationship between a combination of three primary colors of a CRT display and colors represented thereby. 11,47 …… CRT display, 12,21,42 …… Pixel, 13
…… Purple colored dots, 14,35 …… No colored dots, 15 …… Red colored dots, 16 …… Blue colored dots, 22,41 …… Paint units, 31 ……
Paint roller, 36 ... Colored dots, 44 ... Line segments.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A computer graphic processing system for displaying a plurality of dots on a CRT display as one pixel, a color image displayed by a paint unit composed of a plurality of pixels, and a line image on the CRT display. The color information of the pixel that determines the color of each pixel is displayed by the color of the dot in each pixel and the number of dots of each color, and the information of the paint unit is expressed by the color information of the pixel and the shape of the paint unit. And the position and size information of the paint unit, and the line drawing information is displayed by the line position, font and color data, and the coloring information of the pixel, the information of the paint unit and the line drawing information are stored in a database. Computer graphic processing system comprising: