JPH06303603A - Video telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the operability of the video telephone set and to allow the video telephone set to cope with multi-point conversation such as a tripartite conference or a quadripartite conference in future by displaying plural different video images on each of display screens of a picture display means so as to display plural video images without losing their quality. CONSTITUTION:A 1st picture display means 2 is integrated by arranging six sets of color liquid crystal display modules whose screen size is, e.g. a type 5. A conventional television video image is displayed on display screens 21-26 of each module. Furthermore, the interval of the modules is made narrower to the utmost and the entire screen is used for a large sized display device whose screen size is 1type 10 or over, A video image outputted from a video signal output terminal 41 is displayed on a screen 31 of a cathode ray tube of a 2nd picture display means 3. For example, a frame memory is provided to the means 3 and a video image of a frame is always displayed on the display screen 31. Thus, plural video images such as sent document picture or its own picture are independently displayed without deteriorating the quality.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a videophone for communicating using video and audio, and more particularly to a videophone having a plurality of display screens.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, color moving picture video telephones have become compact, and small video telephones in which an image input section (camera), an image display section (display) and an image coding / communication control section are integrated have been put into practical use. ing. For example, the videophone described in Hitachi Review Vol. 74, No. 9, pp. 9-14 has a built-in CCD camera, liquid crystal display, image codec (image encoding / decoding unit), etc. In addition to the function of displaying the image taken by the self-camera on the entire screen of the liquid crystal display, it also has the function of displaying the image in the corner of the screen (P-in-P function). In addition, it is equipped with a document transmission function that sends pictures and simple documents to the other party, so that users can talk while showing documents.

On the other hand, a device having an image information display function is also becoming thinner and lighter, and a display device in which two displays are integrated and made compact has been devised. As an example thereof, FIG. 7 schematically shows a display device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-118186. The display device 90 includes a liquid crystal display section 93, an inner surface of a main body 91 and a lid 92, which are folded in half, respectively.
94 is provided to read information from the built-in external storage medium reproducing device 96 and display it by operating the external input key 95. In particular, a photoelectric conversion device 97 is provided outside the lid 92 and is used as an auxiliary power source.

[0004]

In the conventional videophone as described above, when the P-in-P function is used, the small screen is displayed in the corner of the main screen. Has the drawback of not being visible. Further, in the sub-screen, details cannot be clearly displayed due to lack of resolution, and there is a problem in that characters and the like cannot be identified and read. On the other hand, the conventional example of FIG. 7 has an advantage that different images can be displayed on each of the two liquid crystal display sections, but has a problem that it does not have the function of a videophone.

An object of the present invention is to improve the usability of a videophone by displaying a plurality of images without degrading the quality of each, and to support multipoint dialogues such as three-way talks and four-way talks in the future. It is to provide a videophone that can.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention selects an image display means having a plurality of display screens and a partner image or an image taken by a self camera for each of the display screens. A video telephone is provided with video signal output means for displaying, and the video telephone is configured so that a part of a plurality of display screens can be folded.

[0007]

The image display means serves to display a plurality of different images on each of its display screens. The video signal output means has a function of selecting and processing a partner video received by the videophone or a video taken by the self camera, and switching to a plurality of display screens or combining and displaying. Due to these effects, a plurality of images are displayed on the video telephone of the present invention without degrading the quality. Further, since a part of the display screen is configured to be foldable, the videophone can be made compact when the screen display is not necessary.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a schematic structure of a video telephone according to an embodiment of the present invention. The videophone 1 of this embodiment includes the first image display means 2 having a plurality of display screens 21 to 26, and is connected to the second image display means 3 via the video signal output terminal 41 for use. It is configured in.

The first image display means 2 comprises six color liquid crystal modules each having a screen size of 5 arranged and integrated. Normal TV images can be displayed on the display screens 21 to 26 of each module. Although not shown in FIG. 1 for simplification, the intervals between the modules are configured to be as narrow as possible. As a result, it can be used as a large screen display with a screen size of 10 inches or more as a whole. In this embodiment, the image display means is composed of the liquid crystal display, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a plasma display or another flat panel display may be used.

The second image display means 3 displays the image output from the image signal output terminal 41 on the screen 31 of the cathode ray tube. The image display means 3 does not have to be a special display, and may be any one capable of displaying a normal TV image.

The video telephone 1 has a function of digitally encoding a color moving image and voice and communicating with the other party through a communication line such as ISDN. The image display means 2 is attached to the upper part of the telephone through a pan / tilt mechanism, and a small camera 6 is further installed. Further, a small microphone 7, speakers 71, 72, operation buttons 73, etc. are provided on the front surface of the telephone. Although not explicitly shown in FIG.
Inside the telephone, there is provided a video signal output means 4 for selecting and processing the video of the other party or the video taken by the small camera 6 and simultaneously outputting as different video signals. The plurality of video signals output from the video signal output means 4 are internally supplied to the image display means 2 and can be further output from the video signal output terminal 41. The videophone 1 is provided with an external input terminal so that a video signal from an image input means other than the small camera 6 or a video reproduction means such as a video tape recorder can be transmitted to the other party.

The conversation handset 8 has a receiver 81, a transmitter 82, an operation button 83, etc., and transmits and receives voice to and from the videophone 1 by radio waves as in a general cordless telephone. Since the videophone 1 according to the present embodiment has the small microphone 7 and the speakers 71 and 72 built therein, the handset 8 may not be used and may be combined with a general corded type. .

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the flow of video signals in the embodiment of FIG. Here, an example in which the external camera 61 is connected to the external input terminal will be described.
The video signals of the small camera 6 and the external camera 61 are first input to the video signal output means 4, and the video signal to be transmitted to the other party is selected and output to the image codec 5. The image codec 5 highly efficiently codes the video signal to be transmitted and sends it to the communication control unit 51.

The communication control unit 51 has a function of communicating digitally encoded video and audio with a communication partner by a predetermined protocol. The video code transmitted from the other party is sent from the communication control unit 51 to the image codec 5, is decoded into a digital video signal, and is input to the video signal output means 4. Information such as the communication partner and the display mode is also converted into a video signal by the character information generation unit 52 and input to the video signal output means 4. The video signal output means 4 selects a video signal input from the small camera 6, the image codec 5 or the like, corrects the screen size, the frequency band characteristic or the like as necessary, and displays the plurality of display screens 21 to 26 and 31. Outputs each video signal to be displayed. Which image is displayed on which screen can be selected by the operation button 73 or 83.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a circuit block configuration of the video signal output means 4 in the embodiment of FIG. For three systems of analog video signal input from the small camera 6, the external camera 61, and the character information generation unit 52, two of those systems are selected by the analog switch 42, and the image codec 5 and the display screens 25 and 26 are displayed. Output. The digital video signal from the image codec 5 is selected by the adaptive selector 43 in each of the five frame memories 441 to 445 and the data is recorded. Each of the frame memories 441 to 445 has a recording capacity of two frames, and is capable of reading data of another one frame while recording one frame. Frame memory 441 to
The data 445 is read by the video signal generation units 451 to 455, converted into a video signal by applying an appropriate band-pass filter processing, and then output to the display screens 21 to 24 and 31.

FIG. 4 shows an example of screen display in the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 4A shows an example in which the image of the communication partner is displayed on one display screen, and FIG. 4B shows the image of the communication partner.
FIG. 4C shows an example in which images are enlarged and displayed on one display screen, and images of the other party at four different points are displayed on four display screens.

The display example of FIG. 4A shows an image codec 5
The digital video signal decoded in (4) is recorded in, for example, the frame memory 441 and output from the video signal generation unit 451. By switching the frame memories 442 to 444 to be recorded by the adaptive selector 43, the partner video can be displayed on the display screens 22 to 24, respectively. Only the image of the self-portrait is selected by the analog switch 42, and the selected image is displayed on the display screen 25. Further, by recording / saving the designated one frame data of the partner video in, for example, the frame memory 445, the video of the frame can be always displayed on the display screen 31. In the example of this figure, a case is shown in which a document image recorded / saved is displayed while the other party is transmitting a document image.

The display example of FIG. 4B shows an image codec 5
The video frames decoded by 1. are recorded in the frame memories 441 to 444 one by one, and the video signal generation unit 4
51 to 454. As described above, in this embodiment, the partner image can be enlarged and displayed on four screens. The analog switch 42 selects the image of the self-portrait and the communication information, and the display screens 25 and 26 are respectively selected.
Is displayed in.

In the display example of FIG. 4 (c), when there are four communication partners, the decoded digital video signals are recorded in the frame memories 441 to 444 for each of the partner videos, and the video signal generators 451 to 454 are used. It is output. As described above, in the present embodiment, not only the input video signal can be switched and output, but also a preset video can be processed and combined. In order to perform such a multipoint dialogue, there are a method using an image codec having a plurality of decoders, a method using a multipoint control device, and the like.
The present invention can support any method.

As described above, according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, it is possible to independently display a plurality of videos such as a conversation partner, a calligraphy and a self-portrait transmitted from the partner on a plurality of screens without lowering the video quality. Since it is possible, it becomes extremely easy to grasp all the images at the same time and identify the details of the images. Moreover, it is possible to easily select a desired image from a plurality of images and display it on the designated screen, which greatly improves usability. In particular, even in a multipoint dialogue such as a four-way talk, each partner video can be displayed on an independent screen, which has the advantage of enabling a more realistic dialogue.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the image display means in which six screens are integrated is used. However, the number of screens may be any number, and the input / output of the video signal output means may be changed according to the number of screens. You can increase or decrease the number. Further, the sizes of the screens do not have to be equal, and various sizes of screens may be combined. The circuit configuration of the video signal output means is not limited to the example of FIG. 3, and the essence does not change even if the number and size of frame memories, the function of the adaptive selector, etc. are adjusted as necessary.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 5A is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a video telephone which is an embodiment of the present invention. The videophone 10 includes an image display unit 20 having a plurality of display screens 201 to 203, and has a function of digitally encoding a color moving image and voice and communicating with a partner through a communication line such as ISDN. . A small microphone 7 and speakers 71, 72 are provided on the front surface of the telephone. Inside the telephone, there is provided a video signal output means 40 for selecting and processing the video of the other party or the video taken by the small camera 6 and simultaneously outputting as different video signals. The operation of the video signal output means 40 is almost the same as that of the video signal output means 4 in the embodiment of FIG.

5 (b) and 5 (c) show the features of the image display means 20. As shown in FIG. This image display means 20
Is configured to be folded one by one, and when it is opened once, it has a two-screen configuration as shown in FIG. 5B, and when it is opened once again, it has a three-screen configuration as shown in FIG. 5C. As described above, in the embodiment of FIG. 5, the number of screens to be displayed can be increased or decreased depending on the number of required images, so that the image display means does not occupy a space, and the videophone becomes compact. Further, even if the display screen is folded, at least one screen can be used, so that it is possible to always display a necessary image.

FIG. 6 (a) is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a video telephone which is an embodiment of the present invention. This video telephone 11 is provided with an image display means 29 having two display screens 27 and 28 and an image display means 30 having a single display screen 301, and digitally encodes a color moving image and voice to obtain ISDN or the like. It has a function of communicating with the other party through a communication line. The image display unit 29 has a structure in which the two display screens 27 and 28 are folded so that they are inside each other, and FIG. 6A shows the folded state. The small camera 60 is provided on the back surface of the one display screen 27 of the image display means 29. A small microphone 7 and speakers 71, 72 are provided on the front of the telephone,
Further, inside the telephone, there is provided a video signal output means for selecting and processing the other party's video and the video taken by the small camera 60 and simultaneously outputting them as different video signals. As a result, the same function as that of the embodiment of FIG. 1 or 5 can be used.

FIG. 6B is a diagram showing a state in which the display screens 27 and 28 of the image display means 29 are opened. In this embodiment, the display screens 27 and 28 can be used by opening the front part of the image display means 29 180 degrees upward. At this time, the small camera 60 takes a picture of the back of the videophone 11 as opposed to the state shown in FIG. 6A. For example, by arranging the picture 9 as shown in the figure, it can be used for taking a picture. You can As described above, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the self-portrait and the document image can be input with one camera, which is economical and has a good usability.

Although an example of connecting to a digital line such as ISDN has been shown in the embodiment of the present invention, the same applies to a videophone using an analog line regardless of public network or private network. Further, the present invention can be applied not only to videophones but also to desk-top video conference systems and the like.

[0028]

According to the present invention, a plurality of videos such as a partner video and a self-portrait can be displayed at the same time without deteriorating the quality, so that all the videos can be easily grasped and the details can be clearly identified. It becomes possible to do. Further, not only one-on-one dialogue but also multipoint dialogue can be supported, so that the usability of the videophone is improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a video phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a block diagram of a function showing a flow of a video signal in the embodiment of FIG.

3 is a block diagram showing an example of a circuit configuration of a video signal output means in the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a screen display example in the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a configuration and features of a video phone according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the configuration and characteristics of a video phone according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an outline of a conventional display device.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Video telephone, 2 ... Image display means having a plurality of display screens, 3 ... Second image display means, 4 ... Video signal output means, 5 ... Image codec, 6 ... Small camera.

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A video telephone comprising an image display means having a plurality of display screens. 2. A video telephone which is used by using a plurality of image display means. 3. A video telephone comprising a video signal output means capable of simultaneously outputting a plurality of different videos. 4. The video signal output means according to claim 3, wherein a plurality of different video signals can be input, and a preset signal is selected from the input signals and processed.
A videophone that has the function of switching to multiple output destinations for output. 5. A video telephone according to claim 1, wherein a part of the plurality of display screens is folded. 6. The video telephone according to claim 5, wherein at least one display screen is usable in a state where a part of the display screen is folded. 7. A video telephone according to claim 5, wherein image input means is provided on the back side of at least one display screen. 8. In an image display device having a plurality of display screens and configured to fold a part of the display screen, at least one display screen can be used with the part of the display screen folded. An image display device characterized by: 9. An image display device having a plurality of display screens, wherein part of the display screens is folded, and image input means is provided on the back side of at least one display screen. Image display device.