JP7337520B2 - Information processing device, information processing device control method, program, and storage medium - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, a control method for an information processing device, a program, and a storage medium.

Conventionally, as a method of creating an electronic album on a PC, there is known a technique of automatically arranging images in an optimal layout on an electronic album (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-074592 A

However, in the conventional technology, even if the user wishes to manually arrange some of all the images arranged in the electronic album, all the images have to be arranged manually. Alternatively, after automatically arranging all the images, it is necessary to manually replace the automatically arranged images with the partial images.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a technique for easily generating an electronic album desired by a user by reducing the trouble of operation.

One aspect of the present invention is
Designating means for designating at least a part of a plurality of frame areas provided within a screen in which an image can be arranged;
a first determining means for determining an image to be arranged in the frame area according to a user's operation;
acquisition means for acquiring a frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition from among the designated frame regions;
a second determining means for automatically determining an image to be arranged in the frame region that satisfies the predetermined condition;
display control means for arranging and displaying the image determined by the second determination means in the frame area satisfying the predetermined condition;
has
The frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition is a frame area in which the image determined by the first determining means is not arranged.
An information processing apparatus characterized by:

One aspect of the present invention is
a receiving step of receiving designation of at least a part of a plurality of frame areas provided in a screen in which an image can be arranged;
a first determination step of determining an image to be arranged in the frame area according to a user's operation;
an acquiring step of acquiring a frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition from among the designated frame regions;
a second determination step of automatically determining an image to be arranged in the frame region that satisfies the predetermined condition;
a display control step of arranging and displaying the image determined in the second determination step in the frame area satisfying the predetermined condition;
has
The frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition is a frame area in which the image determined in the first determination step is not arranged.
A control method for an information processing apparatus characterized by:

One aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to function as each means of the above information processing apparatus.

One aspect of the present invention is a computer-readable storage medium that stores the above program.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily generate an electronic album desired by a user by reducing the trouble of operation.

A diagram showing an example of the configuration of the electronic album creation device according to the first embodiment. Functional block diagram of the electronic album creation device according to the first embodiment FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the first embodiment; Flowchart showing an example of processing according to the first embodiment Flowchart showing an example of processing according to the first embodiment FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a display image according to the second embodiment; Flowchart showing an example of processing according to the second embodiment

(Embodiment 1)
<Overview>
The electronic album creating apparatus according to this embodiment will be described below. The electronic album creation device according to the present embodiment is, for example, a personal computer (PC) or the like, and is a device that performs various controls on the electronic album displayed on the screen. The electronic album of this embodiment is electronic photo album data including image data.

An electronic album creation application program is installed in the electronic album creation device. The electronic album creation application program provides a function of arranging and displaying images taken by a digital camera or the like on a screen, and of saving information about the images and the layout of the images as electronic album data. The electronic album creation application program is provided with a function of manually selecting and arranging images or automatically selecting and arranging images according to the user's preference. In addition to images, moving images, sounds, etc. can be added and stored in the electronic album. A plurality of pages are provided in the electronic album according to the present embodiment, and a frame area in which an image can be arranged is provided in advance for each page. Note that the layout of the frame area may be changeable.

In the case of automatically selecting and arranging images, the electronic album creation apparatus arranges the frame areas within a rectangular area indicating a page and displays them on the screen, and the user designates a part of the frame areas. accept. Then, the electronic album creating apparatus automatically arranges the image in the frame area that satisfies a predetermined condition among the designated frame areas. A frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition includes, for example, a frame region in which no image is arranged. The overall structure and processing contents of the electronic album creating apparatus according to this embodiment will be described below.

<Overall composition>
1A and 1B are diagrams showing the configuration of an electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to this embodiment, respectively. FIG. 1A is a configuration diagram of an electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to this embodiment. The electronic album creating device 100 is, for example, an information processing device (electronic device) such as a personal computer (PC) or a tablet terminal. 1A, CPU 101, memory 102, nonvolatile memory 103, image processing unit 104, display unit 105, input unit 106, display control unit 107, recording medium I/F 108, external I/F 109, communication An I/F 110 and the like are connected. Each unit connected to the internal bus 150 is capable of exchanging data with each other via the internal bus 150 .

The CPU 101 uses the memory 102 as a work memory to control each part of the electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to a program stored in the nonvolatile memory 103, for example. The memory 102 is, for example, a RAM (such as a volatile memory using a semiconductor element). The nonvolatile memory 103 stores image data, other data, various programs for the CPU 101 to operate, and the like. The nonvolatile memory 103 is composed of, for example, a hard disk (HD) or ROM. The functions and processes of the electronic album creating apparatus 100, which will be described later, are realized by the CPU 101 reading a program stored in the nonvolatile memory 103 and executing the program.

Under the control of the CPU 101, the image processing unit 104 acquires image data stored in the nonvolatile memory 103 or a recording medium (for example, the external storage medium 112), or through the external I/F 109 and the communication I/F 110. Various image processing is applied to image data and the like. The image processing performed by the image processing unit 104 includes A/D conversion processing, D/A conversion processing, image data encoding processing, compression processing, decoding processing, enlargement/reduction processing (resize), noise reduction processing, color conversion, and so on. processing, etc. are included.

The display unit 105 displays an image, a GUI screen constituting a GUI (Graphical User Interface), and the like, under the control of the display control unit 107 . CPU 101 controls each section of electronic album creating apparatus 100 to generate a display control signal according to a program, generate a video signal to be displayed on display section 105 , and output the video signal to display section 105 . The electronic album creating apparatus 100 has an interface for outputting a video signal to be displayed on the display unit 105, and outputs the video signal to a display (television, etc.) separate from the electronic album creating apparatus 100. may

The input unit 106 receives operation input (character input, etc.) performed on an operation unit such as a keyboard, mouse, microphone, touch panel, or the like. For example, the input unit 106 accepts various instructions such as input of letters and numbers by the user's keyboard operation. The input unit 106 may accept movement of a cursor displayed on the display unit 105 and selection/movement of items displayed on the display unit 105 by user's mouse operation. Note that the input unit 106 may receive an audio signal or the like output by a microphone.

The display control unit 107 controls images (including still images and moving images) to be displayed on the display unit 105 in accordance with user operations and the like. A recording medium I/F 108 can be loaded with a recording medium such as a memory card, CD, or DVD, and reads data from or writes data to the loaded recording medium under the control of the CPU 101 . The external I/F 109 is an interface for connecting to an external device via a wired cable or wirelessly and inputting/outputting signals. The communication I/F 110 is an interface for communicating with an external device, the Internet (NET 111), etc., and transmitting and receiving various data such as files and commands.

Here, an example in which a touch panel (touch detection surface) is used as the operation unit will be described. The touch panel detects contact with the display unit 105 . The touch panel and the display unit 105 can be configured integrally. For example, the touch panel is configured so that the light transmittance does not interfere with the display of the display unit 105 and attached to the upper layer of the display surface of the display unit 105 . Then, the input coordinates on the touch panel are associated with the display coordinates on the display unit 105 . This makes it possible to configure a GUI (graphical user interface) as if the user could directly operate the screen displayed on the display unit 105 . The CPU 101 can detect the following operations or states on the touch panel.
- A finger or pen that was not touching the touch panel newly touched the touch panel. That is, the start of touch (hereinafter referred to as Touch-Down). - The touch panel is being touched with a finger or pen (hereinafter referred to as Touch-On).
- Moving while touching the touch panel with a finger or pen (hereinafter referred to as touch-move).
- Removing the finger or pen that was touching the touch panel. That is, the end of the touch (hereinafter referred to as Touch-Up).
A state in which nothing is touched on the touch panel (hereinafter referred to as Touch-Off).

When touchdown is detected, touchon is also detected at the same time. After touchdown, touchon continues to be detected unless touchup is detected. A touch-move is also detected when a touch-on is detected. Even if touch-on is detected, touch-move is not detected if the touch position does not move. After it is detected that all the fingers and pens that have touched have touched up, the touch is turned off.

The CPU 101 is notified of these operations/states and the coordinates of the position where the finger or pen touches the touch panel through an internal bus. to judge whether As for the touch move, the moving direction of the finger or pen moving on the touch panel can also be determined for each vertical component and horizontal component on the touch panel based on the change in the position coordinates. Also, when touch-up on the touch panel is performed after a certain touch-move from touch-down, the CPU 101 determines that a stroke has been drawn.

A flick is an operation in which a finger is touched on the touch panel, moved quickly by a certain distance, and then released. In other words, it is an operation of quickly tracing the touch panel as if flicking it with a finger. It can be determined that a flick has been performed when it is detected that a touch-move is performed over a predetermined distance at a predetermined speed or more, and a touch-up is detected as it is. Further, when it is detected that the touch-move is performed over the predetermined distance at a speed lower than the predetermined speed, the CPU 101 determines that the drag is performed.

Any of various types of touch panels such as a resistive film type, a capacitance type, a surface acoustic wave type, an infrared type, an electromagnetic induction type, an image recognition type, an optical sensor type, etc. may be used as the touch panel. . Depending on the method, there is a method of detecting that there is a touch when there is contact with the touch panel, and a method of detecting that there is a touch when there is an approach of a finger or pen to the touch panel.

FIG. 1B is a functional block diagram of the electronic album creation device 100 according to this embodiment. Electronic album creating apparatus 100 executes the program stored in nonvolatile memory 103 to provide the functions of receiving section 151, acquiring section 152, deciding section 153, placing section 154, and the like of electronic album creating apparatus 100. FIG. Some or all of those functions may be realized by dedicated logic circuits such as ASIC and FPGA.

The accepting unit 151 is a functional unit that accepts an operation to designate a part of the frame areas provided in the electronic album. The frame area can be specified by, for example, "overlapping the frame area on the page of the electronic album with a predetermined area" or by "directly specifying the frame area on the page of the electronic album". A method of designating a frame area and the like can be mentioned.

"Overlapping the frame area on the page of the electronic album with a predetermined area" means that when the page of the electronic album is movable, the frame area of the page of the electronic album is moved to a predetermined area (candidate image area) by a slide operation. ). Also, the frame area on the electronic album and the area designated by using an operation unit such as a mouse may be overlapped. "Directly specifying the frame area on the page of the electronic album" includes a method of specifying the frame area on the page of the electronic album by operating or touching an operating unit such as a mouse or keyboard. In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which a frame area is specified by overlapping a frame area of a page on the electronic album displayed on the display unit 105 by a slide operation with a predetermined area.

The acquisition unit 152 is a functional unit that determines a frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition from among the specified frame regions. In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which a frame area satisfying a predetermined condition is a frame area in which no image is arranged.

Note that the frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition is not limited to the above. For example, the frame area that satisfies a predetermined condition may be the frame area in which the image is arranged. Further, among the frame areas in which the images are arranged, the date and time when the images are arranged may be before (or after) a predetermined date and time. Furthermore, the frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition may be a frame area in which the number of times the images have been replaced is less than (or more than) the predetermined number of times among the frame areas in which the images are arranged. The predetermined date and time or the predetermined number of times includes, for example, a date and time (number of times) specified by the user, and a system-specific date and time (number of times) held in association with the electronic album. In addition, the frame areas that satisfy the predetermined conditions are the top several tens of percent of the frame areas in which the images are arranged, when sorted in ascending order (or descending order) by the date and time when the images are arranged or the number of times the images are replaced. frame area. Note that the above may be combined. For example, a frame area in which no image is arranged, and a frame area in which an image is arranged and whose date and time the image is exchanged is before a predetermined date and time, may be set as frame areas satisfying the above-described predetermined condition. .

The determining unit 153 is a functional unit that determines an image to be laid out in the frame area that satisfies the above predetermined conditions. In the present embodiment, an example in which an image is randomly determined from images displayed in a predetermined frame area will be described, but the image determination method is not particularly limited. For example, an image that satisfies a predetermined condition (an image that is similar to the feature amount of the subject of the images manually arranged on the same page, an image that was shot on a close date and time, etc.) may be selected.

The arrangement unit 154 is a functional unit that arranges the image determined by the determination unit 153 in the frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition. That is, the image is not arranged (updated) for the frame regions that do not satisfy the predetermined conditions among the designated frame regions.

<Image display example>
2A to 2E are diagrams showing an example of frame area selection and image arrangement in the electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to this embodiment.

FIG. 2A is a diagram showing an electronic album page 200, an image tray 300, and the like displayed on the display unit 105. FIG. In FIG. 2A, when the electronic album is opened, left and right pages (spread pages) that form a pair are displayed on the display unit 105 . The electronic album includes a plurality of pages, and each page is provided with a plurality of areas (for example, frame areas 201a to 201j) for arranging images. The frame regions 201a to 201j are simply referred to as the frame region 201 when there is no need to distinguish between them. In FIG. 2A, no image is arranged in the frame regions 201a to 201i, and an image (one of the images 301 described later) is arranged in the frame region 201j. The image tray 300 is an area in which a part (or all) of an image 301, which is one or more images to be arranged in the frame area 201, is displayed (for example, displayed as a thumbnail). The image 301 is an image stored in an internal or external storage medium of the electronic album creating apparatus 100 . When only part of the images are displayed in the image tray 300, the images displayed in the image tray 300 can be changed according to the user's scrolling operation to the image tray 300 or the like. An image 302 is an image that was originally provided in the image tray 300 and that has been moved out of the image tray 300 by a user operation or the like.
Of the plurality of pages included in the electronic album, the page displayed on the display unit 105 is selected according to the user's input operation of the page number or the user's operation of giving a page switching instruction.

In this embodiment, the user can move/rotate the page 200 of the electronic album by operating the touch panel or the operation unit. Along with this, a plurality of frame areas 201 provided in the page 200 are also collectively moved and rotated in display position within the screen. When automatically selecting and arranging an image in the frame area 201, the user moves/rotates the page 200 of the electronic album and superimposes the frame area 201 near the image tray 300, thereby automatically selecting and arranging the image. Specify the target area. When manually selecting and arranging an image in the frame area 201 , the user touches down one of the images 301 to perform a slide operation, and touches up on the frame area 201 to select and arrange the image as desired by the user. The image 301 can be arranged with respect to the desired frame area 201 . Also, the image 301 may be arranged in an area other than the page 200 and the image tray 300 of the electronic album by touching up other than on the frame area 201 . The image 302 arranged in this way can be used as a candidate for the image to be arranged in the frame area 201 . Also, the image or the image 302 already arranged in the frame area 201 can be moved again by the above-described touch operation, and can be returned to the image tray 300, for example. When manually selecting and arranging an image, the image may be selected and arranged by operating an operation unit such as a mouse or a keyboard in addition to the operation on the touch panel.

FIG. 2B is a diagram showing a display example when the right end, which is the end of the page 200 of the electronic album, is touched down. In this embodiment, a frame 210 is displayed around the page 200 of the electronic album to indicate that the touch-move operation has started.

FIG. 2C is a diagram showing a state in which a portion of the electronic album page 200 overlaps the image tray 300 . When the edge of the page 200 of the electronic album (part of the right edge in FIG. 2C) reaches the vicinity of (overlaps) the image tray 300, the display area of the image tray 300 is enlarged. Then, the enlarged image tray 300 is displayed so as to overlap the frame area 201 on the page 200 of the electronic album. Then, the electronic album creating apparatus 100 recognizes the area overlapping the image tray 300 (predetermined area) in the frame area 201 in the page 200 of the electronic album as the designated area. In the present embodiment, the frame area 201 specified by overlapping the image tray 300 is displayed in a different color from the other frame areas in order to distinguish it from the other frame areas 201 . Here, in the present embodiment, an example will be described in which the electronic album creating apparatus 100 determines that the image tray 300 "overlaps" when the entire frame area 201 is included in the image tray 300, but the determination criteria are not particularly limited. For example, electronic album creating apparatus 100 may determine that "overlapping" occurs when image tray 300 includes a predetermined percentage or more of the entire frame area 201 . Also, in this embodiment, the case where the pages 200 of the electronic album are tilted and stacked on the image tray 300 will be described, but the pages 200 of the electronic album may be moved downward and stacked without being tilted.

FIG. 2D is a diagram showing a display example when the user continues to touch the page 200 of the electronic album overlaid on the image tray 300 for a while. In this embodiment, the upper edge of the image tray 300 is displayed in a wavy manner, and an animation is displayed in which some of the images are bursting in the image tray 300 . This animation is for showing the user that the process of selecting (determining) an image to be laid out in the frame area 201 is being executed. Electronic album creating apparatus 100 performs frame area 201 (specified frame area 201) overlapping image tray 300 for which no image has been placed (frame area 201 satisfying a predetermined condition). , the automatically selected image 301 is arranged.

FIG. 2E is a diagram showing a display example when the user finishes touching the page 200 of the electronic album and performs a touch-up operation. In this case, the electronic album page 200 is displayed in its original position. At this time, the image 301 in the image tray 300 is automatically arranged in the frame area 201 overlapping the image tray 300 in FIG. 2C. As a result, the automatically selected image 301 is displayed in the frame region 201 (the frame region 201 that satisfies a predetermined condition) in which no image is arranged among the frame regions 201 specified by the user. Note that images that have been moved out of the image tray 300 (for example, the image 302), images already arranged on the page 200 of the electronic album (for example, the image arranged in the frame area 201j) or other pages, etc. It may be excluded from the images to be automatically selected and arranged.

<Process content>
3A and 3B are flowcharts showing processing according to this embodiment. The processing of steps S301 to S320 is shown in FIG. 3A, and the processing of steps S321 to S328 is shown in FIG. 3B.

In S301, the CPU 101 determines whether or not the user has performed a touchdown operation. If the touchdown operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S302, and if not, the determination of S301 is repeated.

In S302, the CPU 101 determines whether or not an operation to move the touch point (touched position) (touch-move operation) has been performed. The CPU 101 proceeds to S303 if the touch point movement operation has been performed, and otherwise proceeds to S320. In S320, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touch-up operation has been performed. If the touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S301; otherwise, the process proceeds to S302.

In S303, the CPU 101 determines whether or not the position where the touchdown operation is performed by the user is on the page 200 of the electronic album. If it is on page 200 of the electronic album, the process proceeds to step S304; otherwise, the process proceeds to S321.

In S304, the CPU 101 determines whether the position of the touch point is near the right edge or the left edge of the page 200 of the electronic album. The vicinity of the right end and the left end is a range within a predetermined distance from the right end and the left end, respectively. If the touch point is near the right edge, the process proceeds to S305, and if the touch point is near the left edge, the process proceeds to S306. In S305, the CPU 101 tilts and displays the electronic album page 200 according to the movement of the touch point so that the center of the left edge of the electronic album page 200 becomes the fulcrum. In S306, the CPU 101 tilts and displays the electronic album page 200 according to the movement of the touch point so that the center of the right edge of the electronic album page 200 becomes the fulcrum. In steps S304 to S306, the process of tilting and displaying (rotating) the page 200 of the electronic album has been described, but the page 200 of the electronic album may be moved downward without being tilted. In this case, for example, when it is determined in S304 that the position of the touch point is near the center of the bottom edge of the page 200 of the electronic album, or when it is determined in S301 that the touchdown operation has been performed with two fingers, the electronic album It is preferable to move the page 200 downward without tilting it.

In S<b>307 , the CPU 101 determines whether or not the edge of the electronic album page 200 has reached the image tray 300 . If the edge of the page 200 of the electronic album has reached the image tray 300, the process proceeds to S309; otherwise, the process proceeds to S308. In this embodiment, it is determined that the end has been reached when even a part of the page 200 of the electronic album overlaps the image tray 300, but the determination method is not particularly limited. For example, it may be determined that the edge has been reached when the top or center of the right edge of the electronic album page 200 fits within the image tray 300 . In step S308, the CPU 101 determines whether or not touch-up has been performed. If touched up, proceed to S318; otherwise, proceed to S307.

In S309, the CPU 101 enlarges the area of the image tray 300 and displays it so as to overlap the frame area 201 on the page 200 of the electronic album. Here, the receiving unit 151 receives the overlapping frame region 201 as the frame region 201 designated by the user. Then, in S<b>310 , the CPU 101 displays the frame area 201 overlapping the image tray 300 in a manner different from the other frame areas 201 . For example, the CPU 101 displays the frame area 201 that overlaps the image tray 300 in a different color from the frame area 201 that does not overlap.

In S311, the CPU 101 determines whether or not an operation to move the touch point (touched position) (touch-move operation) has been performed. The CPU 101 proceeds to S312 if the operation to move the touch point has been performed, and otherwise proceeds to S313.

In S312, the CPU 101 changes and displays the position of the page 200 of the electronic album according to the touch point movement operation. That is, the user can change the frame area 201 overlapping the image tray 300 among the frame areas 201 of the electronic album page 200 by changing the position where the electronic album page 200 is displayed by the touch-move operation. . Then, the process returns to step S310.

In S313, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touch-up operation has been performed. If a touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S318; otherwise, the process proceeds to S314.

In S<b>314 , the CPU 101 displays an animation indicating that the automatic image layout processing is being executed. Specifically, the upper side of the image tray 300 is changed from a straight line to a wavy line, and an animation in which the upper side undulates is displayed. Also, the CPU 101 displays an animation in which the images pop by moving some of the images in the image tray 300 in random directions within the image tray 300 .

In S315, the CPU 101 acquires the target frame area 201 for automatically arranging the image. Specifically, the acquisition unit 152 acquires a frame area 201 in which no image is arranged (also referred to as an arrangement target area) from among the frame areas 201 overlapping the image tray 300 .

In S316, the CPU 101 determines an image to be laid out in the layout target area. Specifically, the determination unit 153 randomly determines an image to be laid out in the layout target area from among the images 301 . Here, it is assumed that the number of images determined by the determination unit 153 is the same as the number of the placement target regions described above. If the number of images 301 in the image tray 300 is less than the number of placement target areas, a plurality of identical images may be included in the determined images. The determined number of images may remain small.

In S317, the CPU 101 arranges and displays the determined image in the arrangement target area. Specifically, the placement unit 154 enlarges/reduces the determined image as necessary for each frame area 201 and places the image in the placement target area.

In S318, the CPU 101 moves the page 200 of the electronic album to its original position and displays it. In S319, the CPU 101 determines whether or not the termination condition is satisfied. A case where the end condition is satisfied is, for example, a case where an instruction to end the electronic album creation application program is received, or a case where a predetermined operation such as turning off the power of the electronic album creation apparatus 100 is received. If the termination condition is satisfied, the process is terminated; otherwise, the process proceeds to S301.

If the position of the touchdown operation by the user is not on the page 200 of the electronic album (No in S303), in S321 the CPU 101 determines whether the position of the touchdown operation is on the image of the image tray 300. do. If the image is on the image tray 300, the process proceeds to S322; otherwise, the process proceeds to S327.

In S322, the CPU 101 displays the image on which the touchdown operation has been performed (hereinafter referred to as the selected image) following the touch point. This is to make it easier for the user to understand which image is the selected image. The display method of the selected image is not particularly limited, and for example, the selected image may be translucent and displayed so as to follow the touch point. Also, apart from the selected image in the image tray 300, the duplicated selected image may be displayed following the touch point.

In S323, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touch-up operation has been performed. If a touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S324; otherwise, the process proceeds to S322. In S324, the CPU 101 terminates the moving display of the selected image (display indicating that the selected image is being moved). This corresponds to the operation of manually selecting an image and determining the frame area 201 in which the selected image is arranged.

In S325, CPU 101 determines whether the position where the touch-up operation is performed is on the area of page 200 of the electronic album. If it is on page 200 of the electronic album, proceed to S326; otherwise, proceed to S301. In S<b>326 , the CPU 101 arranges and displays the selected image that has been moved and displayed in the frame area 201 at the position where the touch-up operation was performed. Also, the images arranged outside the page 200 of the electronic album are displayed as described for the image 302 above, and may be used as image candidates when manually arranging them in the frame area 201 .

In S327, the CPU 101 performs processing according to the position where the touchdown operation is performed. The processing corresponding to the position where the touchdown operation is performed includes, for example, processing of moving the image 302 or the like arranged in an area other than the page 200 and the image tray 300 of the electronic album. Then, in S328, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touch-up operation has been performed. If a touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S301; otherwise, the process proceeds to S327. That is, the process corresponding to the position where the touchdown operation is performed is executed until the touchup operation is performed.

<Advantageous effects of the present embodiment>
As described above, when the user manually designates an image and an area, the electronic album creating apparatus according to the present embodiment arranges (displays) the image in the area. In addition, the electronic album creating apparatus automatically selects an image for an area where no image is arranged (for example, other than the frame area where the image is manually arranged by the user) from the partial area specified by the user. and place it. As a result, it is possible to save labor and increase the efficiency of user operations for creating an electronic album.

In addition, in the process of selecting and arranging images by the electronic album creating apparatus 100, the image tray 300 is displayed in a wavy manner, and an animation is displayed in which some of the images appear to pop in the image tray 300. do. This makes it possible for the user to feel as if the electronic album creating apparatus 100 is performing the work of selecting and arranging images as if it were a living creature.

(Embodiment 2)
In the electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, an example in which an icon (hereinafter also referred to as a search condition icon) for specifying image search conditions is provided on the display unit 105 will be described. In this embodiment, the electronic album creating apparatus 100 determines search conditions for selecting images to be arranged in frame areas on the page 200 of the electronic album according to the search condition icons. Note that functional units and the like having functions similar to those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof are omitted.

<Screen display example>
4A to 4D are diagrams showing an example of frame area selection and image arrangement in the electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. In this embodiment, the electronic album creating apparatus 100 creates an image that satisfies the search condition specified by the search condition icon for a frame area that satisfies a predetermined condition among the plurality of frame areas on the page 200 of the electronic album. Deploy. The display of the electronic album page 200 and the image tray 300 and the display when the electronic album page 200 is touched down are the same as those shown in FIGS.

FIG. 4A is a diagram showing a state in which a portion of the page 200 of the electronic album overlaps the image tray 300. FIG. When the edge of the electronic album page 200 (the right edge in FIG. 4A) reaches the image tray 300, the display area of the image tray 300 expands. Then, the enlarged image tray 300 is displayed so as to overlap the frame area on the page 200 of the electronic album. Further, the electronic album creating apparatus 100 according to this embodiment displays search condition icons 401 to 410 on the upper part of the display unit 105 when a part of the page 200 of the electronic album overlaps the image tray 300 . The timing of displaying the search condition icon is not limited to the above case, and may be displayed all the time, for example, while the page 200 of the electronic album is being displayed.

Search condition icons 401 to 410 will be described. Search condition icons 401 to 404 are icons indicating specific people or animals such as dogs. The images displayed on these icons are images of a specific person or the like extracted from a plurality of images in the image tray 300 in advance. A method for extracting a specific person or the like from a plurality of images is not particularly limited, and it is preferable to recognize the specific person or the like in advance using existing pattern recognition technology and extract the recognized range. The search condition icons 405 to 410 are icons representing the color tone of the image. Specifically, the search condition icons 405 to 410 are, in order, "Simple (low saturation)", "Warm (warm colors)", "Cool (cool colors)", "Modern (high contrast)", "Funny ( These icons represent "high brightness" and "rich (high saturation)". It is assumed that the color tone of the image is extracted in advance for each image in the same manner as described above. Note that the number and types of search condition icons are not limited to those described above.

FIG. 4B is a diagram showing a display example when the search condition icon 409 (Funny) is touched down and moved (touch moved) by the user. The search condition icon 409 is displayed so as to follow the touch point while being touch-moved by the user. This is to make it easier for the user to understand which search condition icon the icon being selected is identifiable. The icon display method is not particularly limited, and for example, the icon may be translucent and displayed so as to follow the touch point. Also, apart from the search condition icon at the original position, the duplicated icon may be displayed following the touch point.

FIG. 4C is a diagram showing a display example when the search condition icon 409 is moved to the image tray 300 by a user's touch-move operation and a touch-up operation is performed. In this embodiment, the search condition icon 409 is displayed so as to float on the image tray 300 in accordance with the animation in which the upper end of the image tray 300 is displayed to undulate. This is to show the user that the images determined by the electronic album creating apparatus 100 are being searched according to the search condition indicated by the search condition icon 409 (“Funny” in the example of FIG. 4C).

FIG. 4D is an image showing a display example when the user finishes touching the page 200 of the electronic album and performs a touch-up operation. In this case, the electronic album page 200 is displayed in its original position. At this time, the images searched according to the search condition corresponding to the search condition icon 409 are arranged in the frame areas 201e to 201i overlapping the image tray 300 in FIG. 4A. As a result, an image is automatically selected and arranged in the partial frame area 201 designated by the user.

<Process content>
In this embodiment, the CPU 101 executes the processes of steps S301 to S313 and S320 of FIG. 3A, and executes the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5 after the process of S313.

Note that in this embodiment, the CPU 101 displays the search condition icons 401 to 410 on the display unit 105 in advance.

In this embodiment, when the CPU 101 determines in S313 that a touch-up operation has been performed, in S501 the CPU 101 determines whether or not the user has performed a touch-down operation again. If the touchdown operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S502, and if not, the determination of S501 is repeated. Note that in the present embodiment, the process of S313 is repeatedly performed until it is determined that a touch-up operation has been performed.

In S502, the CPU 101 determines whether or not an operation to move the touch point (touch-move operation) has been performed. If an operation to move the touch point has been performed, the process proceeds to S504; otherwise, the process proceeds to S503.

In S503, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touch-up operation has been performed. If a touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S512; otherwise, the process proceeds to S502. In S512, the CPU 101 moves the page 200 of the electronic album to its original position and displays it.

In S504, the CPU 101 determines whether the touched-down position is on the search condition icon. If the touched-down position is on the search condition icon, the process proceeds to S505; otherwise, the process proceeds to S512.

In S505, the CPU 101 displays the touched-down search condition icon (hereinafter referred to as a selection icon) following the touch point. This is to make it easier for the user to understand which search condition icon is the selected icon. Note that the display method of the selection icon is not particularly limited. For example, the selected icon may be translucent and displayed so as to follow the touch point. Also, apart from the search condition icon at the top of the display screen, a duplicated selection icon may be displayed following the touch point.

In S506, the CPU 101 determines whether or not a touchup operation has been performed. If the touch-up operation has been performed, the process proceeds to S507; otherwise, the process of S505 is repeated.

In S<b>507 , the CPU 101 determines whether or not the touchup position is on the image tray 300 . If the touch-up position is on the image tray 300, the processes of S508 and S509 are executed; otherwise, the process proceeds to S512. Since the processes of S508 and S509 are the same as the processes of S314 and S315 described above, the description thereof is omitted.

In S510, the CPU 101 adds the content corresponding to the selected search condition icon to the image search conditions, searches for images, and determines images to be arranged in the arrangement target area. Specifically, when a search condition is specified by the user moving a search condition icon to image tray 300, determination unit 153 determines an image that satisfies the search condition as an image to be arranged in the placement target area. do. In this embodiment, the image tray 300 displays the search condition icon and the image satisfying the search condition while the search condition is specified.

Note that in the present embodiment, the CPU 101 acquires only images that match the content indicated by the selection icon, but may preferentially acquire images that match the content indicated by the selection icon. That is, an image other than the matching image may be obtained. This is effective when the number of images satisfying the above search conditions is less than the number of placement target areas. In step S510, the CPU 101 performs only the process of adding the content indicated by the selected search condition icon to the image search condition, displays the image search result, and selects an image that is arranged in the arrangement target area from the search result. The process of determining the image to be used may be performed separately. Also,

In S511, the CPU 101 arranges the determined image in the arrangement target area. Since this process is the same as the process in step S317, the description is omitted.

In S512, the CPU 101 terminates the moving display of the selected icon (display indicating that the selected icon is being moved). That is, the selection icon is arranged at the touched-up position.

In S513, the CPU 101 ends the process if the termination condition is satisfied, and proceeds to S301 if the termination condition is not satisfied. Since this process is the same process as that of S319 described above, the description thereof will be omitted.

<Advantageous effects of the present embodiment>
As described above, when automatically selecting and arranging an image in a part of the frame area specified by the user, the image searched by the search condition specified by the user is selected and arranged in the frame area. An electronic album more suitable for the user can be created.

(Modification)
Although the present invention has been described in detail based on its preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments, and various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention can be applied to the present invention. included. Furthermore, each embodiment described above merely shows one embodiment of the present invention, and it is also possible to combine each embodiment as appropriate.

In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which frame areas in which images are to be arranged are automatically specified in units of frame areas in an electronic album, but may be specified in units of pages of an electronic album. In this case, the electronic album creating apparatus automatically selects and arranges the image in the frame area that satisfies the above-described predetermined condition among the frame areas included in the specified page.

In the above-described embodiment, the electronic album creating apparatus of the present invention is applied to a personal computer. That is, the present invention can be applied to PDAs, mobile phone terminals, portable image viewers, printers equipped with displays, digital photo frames, music players, game machines, and electronic book readers. In addition, the present invention can be applied to tablet terminals, smart phones, home appliances equipped with displays, vehicle-mounted devices, and the like.

In the above-described second embodiment, a case has been described in which the search condition is set by moving the search condition icon after placing the page 200 of the electronic album on the image tray 300, but the order of operations is not limited to this. For example, first, when the user moves a search condition icon to the image tray 300 by a touch-move operation, the determination unit 153 acquires an image that matches the conditions of the search condition icon from among the images in the image tray 300 . At this time, only images that meet the above conditions are displayed in the image tray. Next, the page 200 of the electronic album is overlapped on the image tray 300 in this state. Then, the placement unit 154 may place the image that meets the above conditions in the placement target area.

(others)
The present invention supplies a program that implements one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or apparatus reads and executes the program. It can also be realized by processing to It can also be implemented by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that implements one or more functions.

100: Electronic album creation device 101: CPU 151: Reception unit 152: Acquisition unit 153: Determination unit 154: Arrangement unit 200: Electronic album 201a to 201j: Area 301: Image

Claims (13)

Designating means for designating at least a part of a plurality of frame areas provided in a screen in which an image can be arranged;
a first determining means for determining an image to be arranged in the frame area according to a user's operation;
acquisition means for acquiring a frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition from among the designated frame regions;
a second determining means for automatically determining an image to be arranged in the frame region that satisfies the predetermined condition;
display control means for arranging and displaying the image determined by the second determination means in the frame area satisfying the predetermined condition;
has
The frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition is a frame area in which the image determined by the first determining means is not arranged.
An information processing device characterized by: The frame area satisfying the predetermined condition is a frame area in which the image determined by the first determination means has already been placed, and the date and time when the already placed image has been placed in the frame area. is before a given date and time;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , characterized by: The frame region that satisfies the predetermined condition is a frame region in which the image determined by the first determining means has already been arranged, and the number of times the images have been replaced is a frame region that has been replaced a predetermined number of times or less.
3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein: The display control means displays the plurality of frame areas and a predetermined area on the screen, and displays the frame area by moving a position within the screen according to a user's operation,
The specifying means specifies a frame area displayed at a position that overlaps with the predetermined area.
4. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , characterized by: The display control means arranges and displays the plurality of frame areas within a rectangular area on the screen, and collectively moves positions within the screen according to a user's operation on the rectangular area to display the plurality of frame areas. to display the
5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4 , characterized by: The display control means displays the screen on the touch detection surface,
further comprising touch detection means for detecting a touch operation on the touch detection surface;
The user's operation for moving the position of the frame area within the screen is an operation of moving the touched position after touching down on the touch sensing surface.
6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein: The display control means displays candidate images that can be placed in the frame area in the predetermined area.
7. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 6 , characterized by: further comprising setting means for setting search conditions;
The second determining means determines an image that satisfies the search condition as an image to be arranged in the frame area.
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , characterized by: The display control means displays an icon corresponding to the search condition on the screen,
The setting means sets the search condition according to an icon selected by a user's operation.
9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8 , characterized by: The display control means identifiably displays the icon being selected and an image satisfying a search condition corresponding to the icon being selected according to the user's operation.
10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9 , characterized by: a receiving step of receiving designation of at least a part of a plurality of frame areas provided in a screen in which an image can be arranged;
a first determination step of determining an image to be arranged in the frame area according to a user's operation;
an acquiring step of acquiring a frame region that satisfies a predetermined condition from among the designated frame regions;
a second determination step of automatically determining an image to be arranged in the frame region that satisfies the predetermined condition;
a display control step of arranging and displaying the image determined in the second determination step in the frame area satisfying the predetermined condition;
has
The frame area that satisfies the predetermined condition is a frame area in which the image determined in the first determination step is not arranged.
A control method for an information processing device, characterized by: A program for causing a computer to function as each means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to claim 12 .

Images