JP4496274B2 - Image search device and recording medium readable by image search device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image search device and a recording medium readable by the image search device. More specifically, the present invention relates to an image search device for easily searching for a desired image from a plurality of stored images, and a recording medium readable by the image search device.

  Conventionally, many commercially available image search applications display a scroll bar on a screen and display an image corresponding to the position of the slider by moving the slider on the scroll bar.

  However, in the conventional image search application, one image that is noticed by the user is not highlighted on the screen. For this reason, it is inconvenient to distinguish one image that the user wants to see from a plurality of images displayed on the screen.

  In the conventional image search application, the image to be displayed is determined by the position of the slider on the scroll bar. In many cases, the length of the scroll bar and the length of the slider are fixed, so the slider is moved quickly to make the displayed image coarser, and the slider is moved slowly to make the displayed image finer. It was common to move. It is not convenient to manually adjust the interval between images to be displayed. Some applications allow the user to set the display interval, but it is very cumbersome to set a numerical value each time the display interval is changed.

  Thus, there exists a subject which provides the image search apparatus which displays the image which a user wants to see easily and is easy to select visually.

  Further, there is a problem of providing an image search device that allows a user to freely and easily specify the interval between reference images when displaying a reference image for selection.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image search apparatus that easily displays a desired image that the user wants to view. .

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an image search device that allows a user to freely and easily specify the interval between reference images when displaying a reference image for selecting an image.

  An image search apparatus according to the present invention is an image search apparatus including a storage unit, a display unit, a position input unit, and a control unit that controls the storage unit, the display unit, and the position input unit. The position input unit detects input information from the user and gives a control signal to the control unit according to the input information, and includes a plurality of images assigned labels ordered according to a predetermined rule. Displays a scroll bar in a predetermined area of the display unit, determines the position of the slider on the scroll bar based on the control signal, displays the slider at the position of the display unit, and corresponds to the position among a plurality of labels A label to be determined is determined as a first label, an image having the first label is specified as an attention image, an image having a second label different from the first label is specified as a reference image, and the reference image is displayed on the display unit , Featured picture Displayed on the display unit in a display mode different from the reference image, an image retrieval apparatus, the objects can be achieved.

  The control unit further determines the size of the slider based on the control signal from the position input unit, displays the slider on the display unit at the size at the position, and determines the second label based on the size. Also good.

  The control unit further determines the size of the slider based on the control signal from the position input unit, displays the slider on the display unit with the size at the position, and determines the second label based on the size of the slider. Then, a third label different from the second label may be determined based on the size, an image having the third label may be specified as the second reference image, and the second reference image may be further displayed on the display unit. .

  The reference image and the second reference image may be displayed side by side on the display unit, and the attention image may be further displayed between the reference image and the second reference image in the same display manner as the reference image.

  The controller is secondly ordered with the first ordered label among the first label corresponding to the target image, the second label corresponding to the reference image, and the third label corresponding to the second reference image. An image having a fourth label ordered between the second label and the third ordered label is identified as an image having a fourth label ordered between the second label and the third ordered label. It is also possible to specify the image having the fourth reference image as the fourth reference image and further display the third reference image and the fourth reference image on the display unit.

  The predetermined rule for ordering the labels may be a function of time.

  The predetermined rule for ordering the labels may be a function of spatial position.

  The aspect in which the target image is displayed differently from the reference image may include displaying the target image using a display area larger than that of the reference image.

  Another image search apparatus according to the present invention is an image search apparatus including a storage unit, a display unit, and a control unit that controls the storage unit and the display unit. The storage unit is ordered according to a predetermined rule. A plurality of images with a given label, each image having a value for each image, and the control unit determines the value of the image displayed on the display unit according to a predetermined function. , An image search device that gives priority to each of a plurality of images stored in the storage unit based on the magnitude of the value, thereby achieving the above object.

  The predetermined function for determining the value may include increasing the value depending on the time and / or number of times that the image is displayed on the display.

  The display unit has an attention image display area, and the predetermined function for determining the value includes increasing the value according to the time and / or the number of times that the image is displayed in the attention image display area. Good.

  When the display time in one display of an image exceeds a certain upper limit value, the display time at that time may be regarded as the upper limit value.

  The predetermined function for determining the value may further include changing the value according to a display area when the image is displayed on the display unit.

  The priority order of images may be determined using the standard deviation of the frequency distribution of image values.

  An image having a priority order equal to or lower than a predetermined value may be stored in a predetermined storage position.

  A storage medium according to the present invention includes a storage unit, a display unit, a position input unit, and a control unit that controls the storage unit, the display unit, and the position input unit, and the storage unit is ordered according to a certain rule. A recording medium readable by the image search device, which has a plurality of images to which a label is attached, the position input unit detects input information from the user, and gives a control signal to the control unit according to the input information A step of displaying a scroll bar in a predetermined area of the display unit; a step of determining a position of the slider on the scroll bar based on the control signal; a step of displaying the slider at the position of the display unit; Determining a label corresponding to the position of the first label as a first label, specifying an image having the first label as a target image, and a second label different from the first label A recording medium storing a program including a step of specifying an image having a reference as a reference image, a step of displaying a reference image on a display unit, and a step of displaying a target image in a display mode different from the reference image This achieves the above object.

  Another recording medium according to the present invention includes a storage unit, a display unit, and a control unit that controls the storage unit and the display unit, and the storage unit is provided with a plurality of sheets assigned labels ordered according to a predetermined rule. Each image is a recording medium that can be read by the image search device, and each image has a certain value. The value of the image displayed on the display unit is determined according to a predetermined function. A recording medium storing a program including a step and a step of giving priority to each of a plurality of images accumulated in the accumulation unit based on the magnitude of the value, thereby achieving the above object. The

  According to the present invention, the user can change the target image and the reference image while moving the slider on the scroll bar, and the user wants to see the target image displayed in a display mode different from the reference image. It is possible to provide an image search apparatus capable of searching an image visually and intuitively.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an image search device capable of visually and intuitively searching for an image preferred by the user by automatically prioritizing the image preferred by the user.

It is a figure which shows the display screen in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the some image accumulate | stored in the accumulation | storage part. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of the aspect of FIG. (A) (b) is a figure which shows the scroll bar in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the display screen in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a figure which shows the display screen in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image search process of embodiment of FIG. It is a figure which shows the hardware constitutions of the image search device of this invention.

  FIG. 13 shows a hardware configuration of the image search apparatus 100 according to the present invention. The image search device 100 includes a storage unit 110, a display unit 120, a position input unit 130, and a control unit 140. The storage unit 110, the display unit 120, and the position input unit 130 are each connected to the control unit 140.

  The accumulating unit 110 has a plurality of images assigned labels that are ordered according to a predetermined rule. The label is preferably a numerical value. More preferably, the first label is zero. More preferably, the labels are all natural numbers. The label may be a function of time or a function of space. The function of time is a function that increases according to a time series, for example. The spatial function is, for example, a function that associates map index numbers. The label may be a character string other than numerals, for example, Latin characters.

  The display unit 120 displays an image based on a command from the control unit 140.

  The position input unit 130 detects input information from the user, and gives a control signal corresponding to the input information to the control unit 140. The position input unit 130 is typically a mouse, but may be a pen-type input device or a keyboard, for example.

  The control unit 140 controls to read an image stored in the storage unit 110, receives a control signal from the position input unit 130, and controls to display a screen on the display unit 120.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows an example of the display screen 10 displayed on the display unit 120.

  In FIG. 1, the scroll bar 20 extends along the lower end of the display screen 10.

  There is a slider 30 on the scroll bar 20. The center position of the slider 30 is p1, the left end is p2, and the right end is p2 '. The slider 30 can freely move on the scroll bar 20 by an input from the user.

  The position pa indicates the left end of the scroll bar 20, and the position pb indicates the right end of the scroll bar 20. Here, “left end” or “right end” means “left end” or “right end” in a range in which the center position p1 of the slider 30 can move.

  At the center of the display screen 10 is an attention image display area 50 for displaying an attention image. In the upper left corner of the display screen 10, there is a reference image display area 60 for displaying a reference image.

  FIG. 2 shows a plurality of images stored in the storage unit 110. However, images other than those necessary for explanation are omitted.

  PICTa is an image having a label La that is ordered first. PICTb is an image having a label Lb ordered last. PICT0 is an image of interest having a first label L1 corresponding to the position p1 of the slider 30. PICT1 is a reference image having a second label L2 corresponding to the position p2 (or p2 ') of the slider 30.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of image search processing executed by the control unit 140.

  When the image search process is started, the control unit 140 performs a screen display process in step 310. When the control unit 140 receives a control signal from the position input unit 130 in step 320, the control returns to step 310, and the screen display is updated based on the received control signal.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the screen display process 330.

  The control unit 140 determines the position p1 of the slider 30 on the scroll bar 20 based on the control signal from the input position unit 130 (step 340). The position p1 of the slider 30 is, for example, a point on the scroll bar designated by the user using the position input unit 130. Note that the initial value of the slider position p1 may be a value at the end of the previous time, or a value such that the left end p2 of the slider coincides with the left end pa of the scroll bar.

  When the position p1 of the slider 30 is determined, the control unit 140 displays the slider 30 at the position p1 (step 350). At this time, the slider 30 is typically displayed with a predetermined width around the position p1.

  Next, the control unit 140 determines a label corresponding to the position p1 among the plurality of labels of the image stored in the storage unit 110 as the first label L1 (step 360). The image having the first label L1 is specified as the attention image PICT0. How to associate the position p1 with the first label L1 will be described later.

  Next, the control unit 140 specifies an image PICT1 having a second label L2 different from the first label L1 as a reference image (step 370). The second label L2 preferably corresponds to the position p2 at the left end of the slider. Or you may make it respond | correspond to the position p2 'of the right end of a slider. How to associate the position p2 with the second label L2 will be described later.

  Finally, the control unit 140 displays the reference image PICT1 specified as described above in the reference image display area 60 and the attention image PICT0 in the attention image display area 50 (step 380). At this time, the attention image PICT0 is displayed in a display mode different from that of the reference image PICT1.

  The different display mode is, for example, changing the display size. In FIG. 1, the attention image display area 50 is given a considerably larger area than the reference image display area 60.

  In another example of the aspect in which the attention image PICT0 is displayed differently from the reference image PICT1, for example, the attention image PICT0 is displayed brighter than the reference image PICT1, in which the attention image PICT0 is surrounded by a black or other color frame. and so on.

  Below, how to make the position on the scroll bar 20 correspond to the label will be described taking the position p1 and the first label L1 as an example.

  The first label L1 corresponds to a relative position with respect to the entire length of the scroll bar 20 at the position p1. For example, assume that there are 100 images in total and the labels are integers starting from 0. At this time, the label La corresponding to the left end pa of the scroll bar is “0”, and the label Lb corresponding to the right end pb is “99”. If the position p1 of the slider is 40% from the left end pa with respect to the entire length of the scroll bar, the label L1 corresponding to the position p1 is “39”.

  The correspondence between the position p2 and the second label L2 is the same.

  In the present embodiment, the left end pa is associated with the first ordered label La. Conversely, the left end pa may be associated with the last ordered label Lb.

  As described above, for example, when the user moves the slider on the scroll bar with the mouse, for example, the attention image PICT0 and the reference image PICT1 that typically correspond to the center point p1 and the position of the left end p2 or the right end p2 ′. Can be displayed in the attention image display area 50 and the reference image display area 60, respectively. The attention image PICT0 is highlighted more than the reference image PICT1 due to the difference in size, brightness, or frame, thereby enabling the user to more easily and visually search for an image desired by the user. .

(Embodiment 2)
FIGS. 5A and 5B show scroll bars 20 a and 20 b displayed on the display unit 120. Each of the scroll bars 20a and 20b is the same as the scroll bar 20 shown in FIG. 1 except that the sliders are different.

  The scroll bar 20a has a slider 30a. The slider 30 a includes a position movement instruction unit 34 and an expansion / contraction instruction unit 36. In the slider 30a, the expansion / contraction instruction portion 36 has a predetermined width and is on the left end p2 side of the slider. The width of the expansion / contraction instruction unit 36 may be determined by a ratio with respect to the entire slider, or may be determined by a fixed number of pixels. In the example shown in FIG. 5A, the expansion / contraction instruction section 36 has a width of one third of the entire slider.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the scroll bar 20b has a slider 30b. The slider 30 b includes a position movement instruction unit 34 and an expansion / contraction instruction unit 36.
In the slider 30b, the expansion / contraction instruction section 36 has a predetermined width and is on the right end p2 ′ side of the slider.

  Since the scroll bars 20a and 20b differ only in whether the position of the slider expansion / contraction instruction section 36 is on the left end p2 side or the right end p2 ′ side of the slider, the following mainly describes the scroll shown in FIG. A description will be given based on the bar 20a. About FIG.5 (b), what is necessary is just to change the right and left of a slider suitably.

  Hereinafter, an operation of changing the size of the slider 30a by the user and a change in the reference image accompanying the change operation will be described.

  The control unit 140 determines the size of the slider 30 a based on the control signal from the position input unit 130. The size of the slider 30a is, for example, the width of the slider 30a. The user typically operates the position input unit 130 to drag, for example, the expansion / contraction instruction unit 36 to the left or right. The control unit 140 receives a control signal corresponding to the drag amount from the position input unit 130, and increases or decreases the width of the slider based on the control signal. At this time, the position p1 of the slider does not move. Preferably, when the user drags the expansion / contraction instruction section 36 to the outside (left side) of the slider using a mouse or the like, the width of the slider 30a increases in both the left and right directions around the position p1, and drags to the inside (right side) of the slider. Then, the width of the slider 30a decreases in both the left and right directions around the position p1.

  When the user drags the position movement instruction section 34 instead of the expansion / contraction instruction section 36 of the slider 30a, the position of the slider 30a moves and the width of the slider 30a does not change.

  The controller 140 further determines the second label L2 based on the size of the slider 30a.

  That is, for example, if the second label L2 is determined corresponding to the left end p2 of the slider 30a, the left end p2 moves relative to the scroll bar 20 in accordance with the change in the size (width) of the slider. Accordingly, the reference image PICT1 having the second label L2 also changes.

  As described above, the user can freely select the reference image PICT1 for a certain target image PICT0 by changing the width of the slider while the position p1 of the slider 30a remains constant. That is, when searching for images at coarse intervals, the slider width is increased to display an image away from the target image PICT0 as a reference image. Conversely, when searching for images at fine intervals, the slider width is decreased. Thus, an image close to the target image PICT0 can be displayed as a reference image. As a result, the user can freely narrow the search range when performing an image search, and can perform a more intuitive image search.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 6 shows an example of the display screen 10 c displayed on the display unit 120.

  The display screen 10c preferably has five image display areas along the upper side of the screen. From the left, there are a reference image display area 60, a reference image display area 64, an attention image display area 55, a reference image display area 66, and a reference image display area 62. Also, there is an attention image display area 50 in the center of the screen.

  The reference image display area 60 displays the first reference image PICT1. The reference image display area 62 displays the second reference image PICT2. The reference image display area 64 displays the third reference image PICT3. The reference image display area 66 displays the fourth reference image PICT4.

  The attention image PICT0 is displayed in the two attention image display areas 50 and 55. The attention image PICT0 is displayed in a different display manner from the reference image in the attention image display area 50, and is displayed in the same display manner as the reference image in the attention image display area 55. The different display mode is, for example, changing the display size. In FIG. 6, the attention image display area 50 is given a larger area than the reference image display area 60 or the like. Other examples of different display modes include, for example, surrounding with black or other colored frames, or displaying brighter than other images.

  Of the two attention image display areas 50 and 55, the attention image display area 55 may be omitted.

  A scroll bar 20c extends along the lower end of the display screen 10c. The scroll bar 20c has a slider 30c. The slider 30c has five positions p1 to p5 corresponding to the five image display areas. The position p1 corresponds to the target image PICT0. The position p2 corresponds to the first reference image PICT1. The position p3 corresponds to the second reference image PICT2. The position p4 corresponds to the third reference image PICT3. The position p5 corresponds to the fourth reference image PICT4.

  Preferably, p1 is the center position of the slider 30c, p2 is the left end of the slider 30c, and p3 is the right end of the slider 30c. Preferably, p4 is an intermediate position between the left end p2 and the center position p1, and p5 is an intermediate position between the right end p3 and the center position p1.

  The slider 30c includes a position movement instruction unit 34c for designating the position of the slider and two expansion / contraction instruction units 36c and 36d for increasing / decreasing the width of the slider. The position movement instructing unit 34c is within a predetermined width including the position p1 of the slider 30c. The position movement instructing unit 34c preferably has a width of one third of the slider 30c with the position p1 as the center. The expansion / contraction instruction part 36c is on the left side of the position movement instruction part 34c, and preferably has a width of one third of the slider 30c. The expansion / contraction instruction unit 36d is on the right side of the position movement instruction unit 34c, and preferably has a width of one third of the slider 30c.

  As in the second embodiment, the user can drag the position movement instruction unit 34c using the position input unit 130 such as a mouse, thereby moving the position p1 of the slider 30c. Similarly to the second embodiment, the user can drag the expansion / contraction instruction section 36c or 36d to the left and right using the position input section 130, thereby increasing or decreasing the width of the slider 30c. At this time, the position p1 of the slider 30c does not move, and only the width of the slider 30c expands and contracts to the left and right according to the drag amount with the position p1 as the center. Typically, as in the second embodiment, dragging the expansion / contraction instruction section 36c or 36d to the outside of the slider 30c (left side in the case of 36c, right side in the case of 36d) increases the width, and the expansion / contraction instruction section 36c or 36d. Drag the slider to the inside of the slider 30c (the right side for 36c and the left side for 36d) to reduce the width.

  That is, by increasing or decreasing the width of the slider 30c, the four positions p2 to p5 of the slider 30c move.

  As in the previous embodiments, five labels L1 to L5 correspond to five positions p1 to p5. Further, five images PICT0 to PICT4 having respective labels correspond to the five labels L1 to L5.

  Finally, the control unit 140 displays the attention image PICT0 in the attention image display area 50 and the attention image area 55 on the display screen 10c, and displays the four reference images PICT1 to PICT4 in the four reference image display areas 60, 62, and 64. , 66 respectively. As described above, the target image PICT0 is displayed in a display mode different from the reference image in the target image display area 50, and is displayed in the same display mode as the reference image in the target image display area 55.

  As a result, when the width of the slider 30c is increased or decreased, the four positions p2 to p4 other than the center position p1 move, and the corresponding labels L2 to L5 change accordingly. When the labels L2 to L4 change, the four reference images PICT1 to PICT4 change correspondingly.

  FIG. 7 shows a procedure of image search processing executed by the control unit 140. The following processing is executed according to the control of the control unit 140.

  When the image search process is started, an image display process is first performed (step 710). Next, when a control signal is received from the position input unit 130 (step 720), it is determined whether or not the position of the slider 30c has moved (step 730). If the position of the slider 30c has moved, the process proceeds to step 760 and screen display processing is performed. If it is determined in step 730 that the position of the slider 30c has not been moved, the process proceeds to step 740 to determine whether or not the slider width has been changed.

  If it is determined in step 740 that the slider width has not changed, neither the slider position nor the width has changed. Therefore, the screen display 10c remains as it is. If it is determined in step 740 that the slider width has changed, the reference image interval is then calculated (step 750). The interval between reference images is the interval between reference images displayed adjacent to each other, and how many images are interposed between the reference images. In other words, it is a value obtained by dividing the number of images corresponding to the length of the slider by the number of reference images to be displayed. For example, suppose that the number of images corresponding to the length of the slider is 100, and that four reference images are displayed. At this time, the interval between adjacent reference images is 25.

  When the reference image interval is determined in step 750, screen display processing is performed (step 760).

  FIG. 8 shows a procedure of image display processing executed by the control unit 140. The following processes are all executed under the control of the control unit 140.

  When the image display process is started, the work variable “count” is first cleared to 0 (step 810). Next, an image to be displayed is determined and displayed (step 820). Specifically, the image corresponding to the “reference image interval * count value” number of images is selected from the image corresponding to the start position (left end) of the slider, and is displayed on the display screen 10c.

  Next, the variable count is incremented (step 830), and if the count value is larger than the reference image display number, the screen display process is terminated. Otherwise, the process returns to step 820 and the above process is repeated (step 830). 840).

  As described above, it is possible to search a desired image more intuitively by displaying a large number of reference images and allowing the interval between the reference images to be freely changed.

  In the present embodiment, the reference image display number is four and the four reference images PICT0 to PICT4 are displayed. However, the reference image display number may be two and the reference images PICT3 and PICT4 may be omitted. On the contrary, instead of the intermediate positions p4 and p5, a trisection position may be defined and six reference images may be displayed.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 9 shows a display screen 15 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  The display screen 15 includes an attention image display area 50 and a priority image presentation area 70.

  In the present embodiment, each image stored in the storage unit 110 has a certain value. The control unit 140 determines the value of the image displayed on the display screen 10 according to a predetermined function.

  The predetermined function is, for example, a function of time displayed on the display screen 15. Preferably, the time function is an accumulation of time displayed on the display screen 15. More preferably, the display time is accumulated only for the target image displayed in the target image display area 50. More preferably, when a display time of one time exceeds a certain upper limit value, the display time of that time is regarded as the upper limit value. Further, the predetermined function may be accumulation of the number of display times instead of accumulation of the display time. Preferably, it is a function of both display time and display count. More preferably, the standard deviation is calculated using both the display time and the display count. Details will be described later.

  An image in which the value calculated as described above exceeds a certain value is preferably reduced and displayed in the priority image presentation area 70 on the display screen 15. Alternatively, priority may be given to each image based on the magnitude of the value, and an image having a priority lower than a predetermined value may be displayed in the priority image presentation area 70.

  As a result, it is possible to preferentially present an image that the user preferably refers to in a specific area.

  FIG. 10 shows the procedure of the image search process. The image search process is executed by the control unit 140.

  When the image search process is started, an image display process is first performed (step 1010). Next, when a new attention image is selected (step 1020), an image display process is performed on the attention image (step 1030). When a process end request is finally input, the process ends (step 1040).

  FIG. 11 shows the procedure of image display processing in step 1010. The image display process is executed by the control unit 140.

  First, it is checked whether or not the target image has changed (step 1110). This can be seen, for example, by checking whether the label of the image of interest has changed. If the target image has changed, the process proceeds to the target image update process (step 1120). If the image of interest has not changed, the process ends as it is. When the attention image update process is completed, a presentation image display process is performed (step 1130). In the presentation image display process, the image determined to be added to the presentation image in the attention image update process is displayed in the priority image presentation area. Finally, an attention image is displayed (step 1140).

  FIG. 12 shows the procedure of the attention image update process in step 1120. The attention image update process is executed by the control unit 140.

  First, it is checked whether or not the display time of the image of interest is longer than a specified value (step 1210). The specified value is preferably 5 minutes to 20 minutes, more preferably 10 minutes. If the display time of the image of interest is less than the specified value, the process proceeds to the next step 1230. If the display time of the attention image is larger than the specified value, the display time is set to the specified value (step 1220). When the display time is set, the display time is then added to the image attention time. The image attention time is a value given to each image, and is obtained by integrating the display time. Next, the target image is displayed in the target image display area (step 1240). The display time is reset to 0 and the display time is calculated (step 1250). Next, standard deviations are calculated for all image attention times (step 1260). Next, it is checked whether or not the image attention time of an image is longer than “standard deviation * 2 + average of image attention times of all images” (step 1270). If the image attention time is larger than the above value, the image is added to the priority image presentation area (step 1280). Next, it is determined whether all images have been compared (step 1290). If the comparison has been completed for all the images, the attention image update process ends. Otherwise, the process returns to step 1270 to compare the images that have not been compared. If it is determined in step 1270 that the image attention time is equal to or less than “standard deviation * 2 + average image attention time of all images”, the comparison in step 1270 is performed for the next image as it is.

  By the above processing, the image that the user likes is automatically selected based on the time and the number of times displayed in the attention image display area, and the user wants to see by presenting the image in a special area. It is possible to easily search for a desired image.

  In the field of an image search device for easily searching for a desired image from a plurality of stored images and a recording medium readable by the image search device, the present invention provides a visual representation of an image desired by a user. Thus, it is possible to obtain an image search device that can be easily selected, or an image search device that allows the user to freely and easily specify the interval between reference images when displaying a reference image for selecting an image.

10, 10c Display screen 20, 20a, 20b, 20c Scroll bar 30, 30a, 30b, 30c Slider 50, 55 Attention image display area 60, 62, 64, 66 Reference image display area 70 Priority image presentation area 110 Storage unit 120 Display Unit 130 position input unit 140 control unit

Claims (6)

A storage unit that stores a plurality of images, a display unit that displays the images stored in the storage unit, and the plurality of units that are stored in the storage unit based on input information according to user operations. An image search apparatus including a control unit that selects a predetermined image from the images and controls the display unit so that the selected image is displayed on the display unit,
The control unit
A slider display processing unit that displays a scroll bar on the display unit so that the length of the slider can be changed according to the input information.
Each of the plurality of images stored in the storage unit, together with the associated at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction of the position of the scroll bar, depending on the number of irradiation image San along its length to said slider An image display processing unit configured to display, as the reference image, a plurality of images corresponding to the positions on the scroll bar that match each of the set plurality of setting positions;
The slider display processing unit performs increase / decrease in the length of the slider so that the ratio of the spacing distance between the plurality of setting positions on the slider does not change, and the number of the reference images is not changed, Between adjacent positions on the scroll bar that coincide with adjacent setting positions of the slider so that the interval at which the reference image is sampled from the plurality of images stored in the storage unit is changed. Change the number of assigned images,
Image search device. The image search device according to claim 1,
The slider includes an expansion / contraction instruction section for increasing / decreasing the length of the slider, and a movement position instruction section for moving the slider on the scroll bar,
When the control unit receives input information according to the operation of the expansion / contraction instruction unit by the user, the length of the slider changes and receives input information according to the operation of the movement position instruction unit by the user An image search device for controlling the display unit so that the position of the slider on the scroll bar changes. The image search apparatus according to claim 2,
The slider is
A reference position is set along the length direction of the slider together with a reference position that is the plurality of setting positions ,
When the length of the slider is changed, the ratio of the distance between each of the plurality of reference positions of the slider and the reference position of the slider is held constant.
The plurality of reference images are determined according to a position where each of the plurality of reference positions of the slider is located on the scroll bar.
Image search device. The image search apparatus according to claim 3,
The display unit
An attention image display area for displaying an image corresponding to a position where the reference position of the slider is located on the scroll bar as an attention image;
An image search device comprising: a reference image display area for displaying a plurality of images corresponding to positions where a plurality of reference positions of the slider are located on the scroll bar as the reference images. The image search device according to claim 4,
Each of the plurality of images stored in the storage unit has a label for a position that divides the entire length of the scroll bar at equal intervals according to the total number of the plurality of images. Is an image search device associated with the position on the scroll bar by the label. A storage unit that stores a plurality of images, a display unit that displays the images stored in the storage unit, and the plurality of units that are stored in the storage unit based on input information according to user operations. A recording medium storing a program readable by an image search device including a control unit that selects a predetermined image from among the images and controls the display unit so that the selected image is displayed on the display unit Because
The program
A slider display processing step in which the control unit displays on the display unit a scroll bar together with a scroll bar so that the length of the slider can be changed by the input information;
The control unit, each of the plurality of images stored in the storage unit, together with the associated at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction of the position of the scroll bar, the irradiation image San along its length to said slider An image display processing step for displaying, as the reference image, a plurality of images corresponding to the positions on the scroll bar, which match each of the plurality of setting positions set according to the number of
In the slider display processing step, the length of the slider is increased / decreased so that the ratio of the spacing distance between the plurality of setting positions on the slider does not change, and the number of the reference images is not changed, as the reference image interval is sampled a plurality of images stored in the storage unit is changed, to match the adjacent set position of the slider allocated between adjacent positions on the scroll bar Change the number of images that are
recoding media.

Images