KR101132112B1 - Wireless telecommunication terminal and method for managing photo album according to subject - Google Patents

Abstract

1. Technical field to which the invention described in the claims belongs

The present invention relates to a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album and a method thereof.

2. Technical Challenges to be Solved by the Invention

The present invention extracts and stores characteristic information (e.g., edge, texture, color) for each representative photograph using the MPEG-7 (MPEG-7) after creating a theme album, A wireless communication terminal having a theme album management function for providing a theme album management function by allowing an image to be automatically classified through a similarity check on characteristic information with respect to each representative photo, The purpose is to provide the method.

3. The point of the solution of the invention

The present invention provides a wireless communication terminal, comprising: wireless transmitting / receiving means for transmitting / receiving a wireless signal to / from an external device; Input means for receiving a signal related to album creation and a signal related to representative image registration; Storage means for storing a plurality of albums and images, and characteristic information about a representative image of each subject album; And a control unit for generating a plurality of album information for each of the plurality of subjects by receiving a signal related to the album creation through the input unit, And stores the matching information corresponding to the corresponding album in the storage means. The characteristic information of the storage target image is extracted at the time of storing the image and is compared with the characteristic information of each representative image to store the characteristic information in the corresponding album of the representative image having the maximum similarity. .

4. Important Uses of the Invention

The present invention is used in a wireless communication terminal or the like.

MPEG-7, characteristic information, maximum similarity, album by subject, representative photograph, wireless communication terminal

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a wireless communication terminal and a method thereof,

1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for creating a theme album and a representative picture in a wireless communication terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of classifying images according to a theme in a wireless communication terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Description of the Related Art [0002]

11: wireless transmitting / receiving unit 12:

13: input unit (keypad) 14: display unit (LCD)

15: control unit 16: codec (CODEC)

17: audio output unit (speaker) 18: audio input unit (microphone)

19: Image acquisition unit (camera)

[0001] The present invention relates to a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album, and a method thereof, and more particularly, to a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album by using attribute information (e.g., edge, texture, color) (E.g., an acquired image and a received image), and the image classification is performed automatically by checking the similarity with the representative photographs of the respective albums. By doing so, And a management method thereof, and a method thereof.

In the present invention, a wireless communication terminal is a portable communication terminal such as a mobile communication terminal, a personal digital assistant (PCS), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, a next generation mobile communication terminal (IMT- Refers to a terminal capable of wireless communication.

Nowadays, wireless communication terminals (e.g., aka camera phones) having an image acquisition function are being introduced with various additional functions added to wireless communication terminals. The image acquisition function is a technology for acquiring still images (photographs) and moving images using an internal / external camera module. The images acquired by the respective terminals are transmitted and received between users in the form of multimedia messages (MMS) .

There has been a need for an album management function that allows various images to be classified by albums and managed more systematically.

However, in the related art, most of the albums in the wireless communication terminal have been classified according to their types, such as still image albums, moving image albums, and the like, so that there is a limitation in classifying and managing images in more detail. For example, even if a separate album is created and stored for each person or by the same kind of object, there is a problem that it can not be done.

In addition, even if a new album can be added in addition to the basic album, there is a problem in that the user has to designate the album individually for each of the pictures. That is, since the photographs are stored in the primary album in the first place, there is a problem in that the management of each photograph must be manually performed in order to move the album to another album.

The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the above problems and it is an object of the present invention to extract and transmit characteristic information (e.g., edge, texture, color) for each representative picture using an MPEG-7 (For example, an acquired image and a received image) are automatically classified into images through a similarity check on the characteristic information with respect to each representative photograph, thereby providing a theme album management function, And an object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto. It will also be readily apparent that the objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: wireless transmitting / receiving means for transmitting / receiving a wireless signal to / from an external device; Input means for receiving a signal related to album creation and a signal related to representative image registration; Storage means for storing a plurality of albums and images, and characteristic information about a representative image of each subject album; And a control unit for generating a plurality of album information for each of the plurality of subjects by receiving a signal related to the album creation through the input unit, And stores the matching information corresponding to the corresponding album in the storage means. The characteristic information of the storage target image is extracted at the time of storing the image and is compared with the characteristic information of each representative image to store the characteristic information in the corresponding album of the representative image having the maximum similarity. .

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of providing a theme album management function in a wireless communication terminal, the method comprising: a first input step of receiving a signal related to album creation; A theme album generation step of generating respective theme album; A second input step of receiving a signal related to representative image registration for each subject album; A first extracting step of extracting characteristic information of the selected representative image; A representative image registration step of matching and storing characteristic information of each extracted representative image corresponding to the album; A second extracting step of extracting characteristic information about a storage target image when storing an image; A similarity measuring step of comparing characteristic information of the storage target image with characteristic information of each representative image; And an image classification step of storing the storage target image in a corresponding album of the representative image having the maximum similarity.

The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: There will be. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail. Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The present invention extracts and stores characteristic information about a representative photograph of each album and automatically classifies the received or acquired image as an album having the highest similarity through checking the similarity with each representative photograph, Ensure that theme album management is done automatically. At this time, the characteristic information (data on various items such as edges, textures, colors, etc.) of each image can be extracted using MPEG-7. Further, in the present invention, each album is generated for each theme such as a person, a type of object (e.g., a building), and the like.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication terminal having a function for managing a theme album according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a wireless communication terminal having a function of managing a theme album according to the present invention includes a wireless transceiver 11 for transmitting / receiving a wireless signal to / from an external device, a basic album, A storage 12 for storing representative photograph registration tables in which a plurality of images (including a representative photograph) classified by album, characteristic information (e.g., edge, texture, color) An input unit (keypad) 13 for receiving various signals related to album creation, various signals related to representative photo registration, etc., a display unit (LCD) 14 for outputting a screen under the control of the control unit 15, (For example, a character) album according to the input of various signals related to album creation through an input unit (keypad) 13 and stores the album in a storage unit 12, and the input unit (keypad) For each theme album. (Eg, edge, texture, color) of the selected photo (stored in the base album) upon receiving various signals related to the table photo registration, extracts matching information corresponding to the album and stores it in the storage unit 12 ), Sequentially compares the characteristic information of the representative photograph with the characteristic information of each representative photograph at the time of storing the photograph, and classifies the storage target photograph into the corresponding album of the representative photograph having the maximum similarity, The control unit 15 controls the control unit 15 to convert the signal received from the wireless transmitting and receiving unit 11 into voice and output the voice to the voice output unit 17, A CODEC 16 for converting the voice received from the CODEC 18 into a signal and transmitting the converted signal to the control unit 15 and sending the signal through the wireless transmitting and receiving unit 11, A voice input unit (microphone) 18 for receiving voice and transmitting the voice to the CODEC 16, a control unit 15 for controlling the control unit 15, (Camera) 19 for acquiring an image of an object.

In this case, the controller 15 controls the overall operation of the wireless communication terminal and provides the album management function for the theme according to the present invention. That is, each picture is classified and stored in the corresponding album of the representative picture having the maximum similarity with the picture, so that each picture is automatically classified into the respective themes.

To this end, the control unit 15 extracts representative photographs of respective albums and characteristic information of respective photographs to be stored using the MPEG-7, and performs similarity check (similarity check between the storage target photograph and each representative photograph) do. Here, the characteristic information refers to MPEG-7 descriptor as data (numerical value) for various items such as edge, texture, color, and the like. Here, the characteristic information for an arbitrary photograph may be data for one item (for example, data for an edge), data for two or more items (for example, edge, texture, Data).

The control unit 15 generates a plurality of themed albums according to the received various signals related to the album creation through the input unit (keypad) 13, (12). For example, if the subject is a person, a separate album can be created for each person.

The control unit 15 receives various signals related to the representative photograph registration for each album through the input unit (keypad) 13, and selects the photographs stored in the default album of the storage unit 12 And registers the extracted characteristic information in the representative photograph registration table of the storage unit 12 in correspondence with the corresponding album. That is, characteristic information of each album and corresponding photographs selected as representative photographs of the respective albums are correspondingly matched and stored in the representative photograph registration table.

Thereafter, when there is a picture to be stored, for example, when the controller 15 receives the picture through the multimedia message (MMS) or controls the image acquiring unit (camera) 19 to acquire a new picture, And extracts characteristic information about the object. In other words, the MPEG-7 is used to extract numerical values for each item such as edge, texture, and color. Then, the extracted characteristic information is sequentially compared with the characteristic information of the representative photograph of each theme album. At this time, representative picture registration tables of the storage unit 12 are sequentially searched. As the comparison process is completed for each representative picture, the controller 15 selects a representative picture having the maximum similarity with the picture to be stored. If the similarity degree with the selected representative photograph exceeds a predetermined threshold value, the storage target photograph is stored in the album (the album in which the representative photograph having the maximum similarity is stored), and if the similarity degree does not exceed the predetermined threshold value And stores the storage target picture in the default album of the storage unit 12. [

On the other hand, the operation program and the system program of the control unit 15 are stored in the storage unit 12, and the operation program and the system program are stored in a normal ROM area and can be erased if necessary. The storage unit 12 includes a RAM for temporarily storing data generated during the execution of various operation programs.

In addition, the storage unit 12 stores a plurality of themed albums generated according to a request from the user together with the base album. Here, each of the basic album and the theme album may include a plurality of photographs (still images). In addition, the storage unit 12 may include a representative photograph registration table (which may be implemented as a separate database) in which characteristic information on a representative photograph of each theme album is stored, and a representative photograph registration table For example. At this time, the characteristic information for each representative picture is a numerical value for at least one of edge, texture, and color as data for MPEG-7 descriptor. In addition, the storage unit 12 temporarily stores characteristic information on a storage target photograph in a buffer.

The input unit 13 includes a plurality of numeric keys (character keys), a menu key, and function keys for performing various functions. The input unit 13 outputs the key data to the control unit 15 according to an external operation. Also, the input unit 13 receives various signals related to album creation, and various signals related to representative photo registration.

The display unit 14 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or the like, under the control of the control unit 15, and displays the status of the wireless communication terminal and the progress of the program. That is, it displays the overall state of the wireless communication terminal and the content of the input.

The image acquisition unit 19 is a camera module including a lens and the like, and acquires a still image, a moving image, and the like of a subject under the control of the control unit 15. [

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method of creating a theme album and a representative picture in a wireless communication terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Here, a basic album is stored in the storage unit 12 in advance. In addition, the base album may have a photograph obtained as a result of controlling the image acquiring unit (camera) 19, and a photograph received through an external multimedia message or the like.

First, the control unit 15 receives a variety of signals related to album creation through an input unit (keypad) 13, and adds (201) a plurality of thematic albums to the storage unit (202). That is, a plurality of albums other than the basic album are generated according to the input from the user.

The control unit 15 receives various signals related to the registration of the representative photographs for each theme album through the input unit (keypad) 203 (203), and stores a plurality of photographs The characteristic information of the selected photograph is extracted (204).

At this time, the control unit 15 extracts numerical values for each of the edges, textures, and colors of the corresponding photo selected as the representative picture of each album by using the MPEG-7. Of course, it is also possible to extract numerical values for one or two items (for example, in the case of a person-by-person album, numerical values for edge items can be extracted from each photograph selected as a representative photograph, You can also extract numerical values for each of width, height, 45 degrees, 135 degrees, and no edges).

Then, the control unit 15 matches the extracted characteristic information of each photograph corresponding to the corresponding album to the representative photograph registration table of the storage unit 12 (205). That is, the respective numerical values for the MPEG-7 descriptor of each representative photograph are stored in the representative photograph registration table.

3 is a flowchart illustrating an automatic image classification method according to the present invention in a wireless communication terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, when the controller 15 has stored a certain photograph, for example, has received a photograph through a multimedia message, e-mail or the like, or has obtained a photograph as a result of controlling the image acquiring unit (camera) 19, Characteristic information on a storage target photograph is extracted (301). At this time, the extracted characteristic information is temporarily stored in the buffer.

Then, the control unit 15 sequentially compares the extracted characteristic information of the storage target photograph with characteristic information of each representative picture registered in the representative picture registration table of the storage unit 12 to measure the similarity (302). That is, the control unit 15 performs a similarity check with respect to each representative photograph with respect to the storage target photograph.

For example, if a plurality of person-by-person albums are stored in the storage unit 12 and the characteristic information for each representative photograph is numerical values for the edge items, The numerical values of the edge items for representative photographs can be compared with each other.

Upon completion of the similarity check process with each representative photograph, the control unit 15 selects a representative photograph having the maximum similarity with the storage target photograph (303). Then, it is determined whether the maximum similarity exceeds a preset threshold (304). In this case, the threshold value is a final judgment criterion for classifying the storage target picture into the corresponding album of the selected representative picture.

If the threshold value is not exceeded (304), the storage target photo is stored in the base album of the storage unit (305).

Meanwhile, if the threshold value is exceeded (304), the storage target picture is classified into the corresponding album of the selected representative picture (306). That is, the selected representative picture is stored in the corresponding album.

The present invention as described above is implemented as a sub menu (e.g., album management menu) of a general menu related to image acquisition, so that it is possible to create a theme album according to a request of a user and freely select a representative photo of each album Do.

In addition, the present invention extracts descriptors defined in MPEG-7, that is, edges, textures, and color descriptors from each photograph and uses them to compare the similarities among the photographs, To be classified. At this time, by diversifying the items of characteristic information (for example, by extracting all the numerical values of the edge, texture, and color items instead of extracting only the numerical values of the edge items) .

The method of the present invention as described above may be embodied as a program and stored in a computer-readable recording medium (such as a CD-ROM, a RAM, a ROM, a floppy disk, a hard disk, or a magneto-optical disk). Such a process can be easily carried out by those skilled in the art and will not be described in detail.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. The present invention is not limited to the drawings.

In the present invention as described above, the feature information of each photograph is extracted using the MPEG-7, and pictures having similar characteristics are classified into albums of the same theme through the similarity measurement between the photographs, thereby providing the album management There is an effect that can be.

In addition, the present invention allows an album to be managed without directly managing the album manually by allowing the user to directly store the album as a corresponding album of the representative photograph having the maximum similarity through measurement of similarity with each representative photograph have.

Claims (10)

In a wireless communication terminal, A wireless transmitting / receiving means for transmitting / receiving a wireless signal to / from an external device; Input means for receiving a signal related to album creation and a signal related to representative image registration; Storage means for storing a plurality of albums and images, and characteristic information about a representative image of each subject album; And And a signal related to the album creation is input through the input means, the album of each theme is generated. Upon receiving the signal related to the representative image registration for the album of each theme, the characteristic information of the selected representative image is extracted Matching information corresponding to the album and storing the matching information in the storage means, extracting characteristic information of the storage target image at the time of storing the image, comparing the characteristic information with the characteristic information of each representative image, and storing the characteristic information in the corresponding album of the representative image having the maximum similarity The control means And an album management function for managing a theme of the album. The method according to claim 1, Wherein, And selecting the representative image having the maximum similarity with the storage object image and storing the storage object image in the corresponding album of the selected representative image as the maximum similarity degree exceeds the preset threshold value A wireless communication terminal having a theme album management function. 3. The method of claim 2, Wherein, And the storage object image is stored in the primary album of the storage means as the maximum similarity does not exceed the preset threshold value. delete 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, Wherein, And extracting a numerical value of at least one of an edge, a texture, and a color for each image at the time of extracting the characteristic information. A method of providing a theme album management function in a wireless communication terminal, A first input step of receiving a signal related to album generation; A theme album generation step of generating respective theme album; A second input step of receiving a signal related to representative image registration for each subject album; A first extracting step of extracting characteristic information of the selected representative image; A representative image registration step of matching and storing characteristic information of each extracted representative image corresponding to the album; A second extracting step of extracting characteristic information about a storage target image when storing an image; A similarity measuring step of comparing characteristic information of the storage target image with characteristic information of each representative image; And An image classification step of storing the storage target image in an album of a representative image having a maximum similarity degree The method comprising the steps of: The method according to claim 6, Wherein the image classification step comprises: And storing the storage target image in a corresponding album of the representative image having the maximum similarity as the maximum similarity exceeds a preset threshold value. 8. The method of claim 7, Wherein the image classification step comprises: And storing the storage target image in the base album as the maximum similarity does not exceed the preset threshold value. delete The method according to claim 6, Wherein the first and second extraction steps comprise: And extracting a numerical value for at least one of edge, texture, and color for each image.

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