JP2000089880A - Data display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a data display device capable of displaying text data at a display so as to smoothly and efficiently read them. SOLUTION: An optional marking part of the text data displayed on the screen 291 of a viewer device 11 is specified and displayed in a form identifiable from the other data. The marking part is successively moved by a horizontal direction operation dial 22a and a vertical direction operation dial 22b provided parallelly to respective sides on the outside of the lower side or left side of the screen 291 of the viewer device 11. A user operates a dial type operation part 22 while reading the displayed text data, appropriately moves the marking part and uses it as an index at the time of reading the text data.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a data display device for displaying desired data such as text data.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the advance of information processing technology, CRT (Ca
There is an increasing number of occasions in which desired data is displayed on a display such as a liquid crystal display device or a liquid crystal display device, and desired information is obtained by reading the data. For example, when information is retrieved by searching the WWW (World Wide Web) on the Internet, or when information is exchanged by e-mail via a network, the information and the contents of the e-mail are stored in a browser or viewer. Is displayed on the display. In addition, electronic publishing and CD-R
When reading a publication such as OM publication, a sentence is displayed on a screen of a dedicated viewer device or personal computer in a format similar to that of a normal book or magazine. In any case, as in the case of reading a normal book, magazine, or the like, the user sequentially reads the data such as the displayed text by eye to read and grasp the contents.

[0003]

However, such information display tools and devices such as browsers and viewers simply display the information to be displayed on a display. In some cases, it was not possible to read smoothly when tracing and reading through the eyes.

For example, simply skip lines or words,
Frequent repetition occurs, which is an obstacle to reading smoothly. Also, when a document such as a book consisting of a large number of lines is displayed on the display and read, if for some reason the line of sight is once distracted from the display, the next time the document is read, it immediately goes to the subsequent part. I couldn't turn my gaze back, so I had to figure out where to look and look for the exact continuation of the part while reading part of it. Also, when displaying text on the display, only a part of the text is displayed, and the display part is often shifted sequentially by scrolling, but the operation that was being read was interrupted and the scroll was performed In such a case, it is more difficult to return to the place where the reading was interrupted.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a data display device for displaying desired data on a display so that the data can be read smoothly and efficiently.

[0006]

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data display device for designating an arbitrary portion of a series of data to be displayed. Position designating means for sequentially designating a desired location by continuously moving the display, and display image data for displaying an arbitrary range of data including the designated location in the series of data to be displayed A display image data generating means for generating the display image data in which the data at the specified location is displayed in a predetermined form that can be distinguished from other data, and the generated display image data And display means for displaying the information so as to be visually recognizable.

In the data display device having such a configuration, the display image data generating means is provided so that the data at the position designated by the position designating means is displayed in a predetermined form which can be distinguished from other data. , Display image data is generated, and the display image data is displayed on the display means. The designated part can be continuously moved on the data by operating through the position designation means, and the moved and designated part is displayed on the display means in a form which can be immediately distinguished from other data. Is done.

[0008] More specifically, the series of data to be displayed is data including text data, and the position specifying means includes a range between characters, words, phrases, and punctuation marks;
A range delimited based on a predetermined unit in the structure of text data including a range between commas, colons, semicolons, and periods, lines, sentences, and paragraphs.
Perform the above specification. Preferably, further comprising a text analysis means for analyzing the configuration of the text data, and detecting a boundary for each predetermined unit on the configuration of the text data, the position designation means, based on the boundary, Perform the above specification. Also preferably, a range changing means for changing the range divided based on a predetermined unit in the structure of the text data, which defines the designated portion displayed in the predetermined form, as required, is provided. Have more.

[0009] Specifically, the display image data generating means converts the data at the specified location into a color, a font, a luminance, a line width, a size, a density, and a modification when displaying the data. The display image data for displaying one or more attributes selected from the attributes differently from other data is generated. More specifically, the display image data generating means generates the display image data for displaying the data at the specified location in a form in which a desired marking is applied. More specifically, the display image data generating means generates the display image data for enlarging and displaying the data including the designated portion in comparison with other data.

[0010] Preferably, a moving state detecting means for detecting a moving state of the designated place in the position designating means, and the designated place is sequentially moved in a state similar to the detected moving state, and the designation is sequentially performed. To do it automatically,
The apparatus further includes a position designation unit control unit that controls the position designation unit. Preferably, the apparatus further includes a voice output unit that sequentially reads out data at locations sequentially specified by the position specifying unit by voice. More preferably, when ending the display of the data displayed on the display means, at least, a non-volatile memory means for storing information of the designated portion, and when starting to display new data,
A search unit that searches the nonvolatile memory unit to search for information of a designated portion with respect to the data; and, when the information of the designated portion is searched, a first search unit that starts displaying the data. And an initial setting means for setting the designated portion to the searched designated portion.

Further, another data display device of the present invention comprises: data reproducing means for reading a series of data to be displayed from a recording medium on which arbitrary data including text data is recorded; Means for designating an arbitrary portion of a series of data, wherein the designated portion is successively moved on the series of data to sequentially designate a desired portion; and Display image data for displaying an arbitrary range of data including the designated portion of the series of data, wherein the data at the designated portion is displayed in a predetermined form that can be distinguished from other data. Display image data generating means for generating the display image data to be displayed, and display means for displaying the generated display image data so as to be visually recognizable.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data display device for receiving an arbitrary series of data including text data to be transmitted, and designating an arbitrary portion of the received series of data to be displayed. Means for sequentially specifying a desired location by continuously moving the designated location on the series of data, and including the designated location in the received series of data to be displayed. Display image data for displaying data in an arbitrary range, wherein the data at the specified location is displayed in a predetermined form that can be identified from other data. The image processing apparatus includes image data generating means and display means for displaying the generated display image data so as to be visually recognizable.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the first embodiment, a dedicated viewer for browsing an electronic publication in which desired information is electronically recorded on a recording medium, such as a so-called electronic magazine or CD-ROM book. The present invention will be described by way of an example of a device. And especially this viewer device,
A specified specific range can be displayed in a form different from other parts so that an arbitrary position of the text data displayed on the screen can be directly specified (hereinafter, such a display will be described. Is performed, and the range in which such display is performed is sometimes referred to as a marking range or a marking unit.) Further, the apparatus is capable of performing an operation of continuously moving the designated portion.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the viewer device. The viewer device 11 includes a CD-ROM drive 20, an interface unit (I / F) 21, a dial operation unit 22, an A / D converter 23, and a ROM 2.
4, RAM 25, microprocessor 26, graphic controller 27, video memory 28, display device 2
9 and an operation unit 30.

First, the configuration of each unit of the viewer device 11 will be described. The CD-ROM drive 20 is mounted with a CD-ROM medium on which an electronic publication to be displayed is recorded. The CD-ROM drive 20 reads data from the CD-ROM based on a data read request input from the microprocessor 26 via the interface unit 21. The desired recorded contents are read out and output to the interface unit 21.

The interface unit 21 is an interface between the microprocessor 26 and the CD-ROM drive 20. Under the control of the microprocessor 26, the interface unit 21 requests the CD-ROM drive 20 to actually read data, and The data input from the ROM drive 20 is output to the microprocessor 26.

The dial type operation unit 22 is connected to the display device 2.
9 is an operation unit for moving a designated portion to be marked in the data displayed on the display unit 9, and has two dials: a horizontal operation dial 22a and a vertical operation dial 22b. The horizontal operation dial 22a is provided outside the lower side of the screen 291 of the display device 29 so that the dial rotates in a horizontal direction parallel to the lower side, and is used for an operation when moving the designated portion in the horizontal direction. Can be The vertical operation dial 22b is connected to the display device 2
The dial is provided on the outside of the left side of the screen 291 of No. 9 so as to rotate in the vertical direction parallel to the left side, and is used for an operation for moving the designated portion in the vertical direction. Each of these operation dials 22a and 22b is provided with an encoder, whereby the direction in which the dial is operated and the amount of rotation are detected and output to the A / D converter 23.

The A / D converter 23 performs analog-to-digital conversion of signals indicating the operation direction and the amount of rotation of the dial input from the horizontal operation dial 22a and the vertical operation dial 22b of the dial operation unit 22, respectively. The signal is converted into a digital signal and output to the microprocessor 26.

The ROM 24 is a memory in which a processing program for processing executed by the microprocessor 26, parameters used in the processing, font data, and the like are recorded, and is appropriately referred to by the microprocessor 26.

The RAM 25 is a memory in which various data generated during processing executed by the microprocessor 26 are temporarily recorded. For example, data read from the CD-ROM medium to be displayed on the display device 29 is also temporarily stored in the RAM 25, and then used for processing such as generation of display image data and determination of a marking range. Is done.

The microprocessor 26 controls each part of the viewer device 11 so that the viewer device 11 performs a desired operation. In particular, as processing according to the present invention, the microprocessor 26 reads, for example, data from the CD-ROM drive 20, generates and displays display image data based on the read data, and performs marking on images in a specific range. Processing such as generation of data to be performed, display and movement of the range, and setting of a mode for the processing are performed by the viewer device 11.
Are controlled and executed.

More specifically, first, the microprocessor 26 controls the CD-ROM through the interface unit 21.
Desired data is read from a CD-ROM medium set in the ROM drive 20, image data for displaying the data is generated by referring to font data or the like recorded in the ROM 24, and the image data is displayed via the graphic controller 27. To the video memory 28. This C
The reading of data from the D-ROM drive 20 is appropriately performed based on an operation for requesting display of the next page by the user via the operation unit 30 in units of, for example, pages that can be displayed on the screen of the display device 29 at one time. Do. Then, when the generated image data is recorded in the video memory 28, the microprocessor 26
And causes the display device 29 to display the image data.

The microprocessor 26 has an A / D
Based on the operation direction and operation amount of the horizontal operation dial 22a and the vertical operation dial 22b of the dial type operation unit 22 input from the converter 23 based on the data,
A new marking range is determined by detecting a point indicated by the data read from the CD-ROM drive 20, that is, a moving direction and a moving amount of the marking range. And
The image data for displaying the new marking range is generated, and the corresponding image data recorded in the video memory 28 is updated via the graphic controller 27. At this time, for the range in which the marking process has been performed, image data for normal display is generated, and the corresponding image data recorded in the video memory 28 is updated using the image data. I do.

In order to perform such processing, a mode is set for the viewer device 11 in advance or as appropriate via the operation unit 30. At this time, the microprocessor 26 also accepts the settings of these modes and performs processing for storing the settings in the RAM 25 or the like.

Here, the processing of the microprocessor 26 relating to the determination of the range in which the marking processing is performed when the above-described marking processing is performed will be further described. In the viewer device 11, the method of determining the marking range is set as a part of the mode setting via the operation unit 30. As a method of determining the settable range, for example, for text data that is not separated and written such that characters such as Japanese text are continuously arranged at equal intervals, a predetermined number of characters, words, phrases, predetermined Number clause,
Either a range, a sentence, a line, or a paragraph separated by reading marks. For text data such as English text that is separated by words, it is one of words, multiple words, ranges separated by commas, colons, semicolons, and periods, sentences, lines, and paragraphs. .

Then, based on the set mode, the microprocessor 26 performs a process of determining a range in which the marking process is performed while performing a simple syntax analysis process as necessary. The process of determining the marking range in the microprocessor 26 in each mode for each type of text will be specifically described with reference to Japanese text and English text as examples.

When a predetermined number of characters, a range delimited by punctuation marks, a sentence, and a paragraph are specified for the Japanese text data, a predetermined number of characters, punctuation marks, line feed codes, page break codes, and the like are detected. Thus, the marking range can be determined. When a line is specified, the marking range can be determined based on the format information when the microprocessor 26 creates the display image data.

When a word, a phrase or a predetermined number of phrases are specified for the Japanese text data, the microprocessor 26 performs a syntax analysis process to detect the word and the phrase from the series of text data. Is performed to extract a word, a phrase, or a plurality of phrases including the designated portion, and set the extracted word, phrase, or plurality of phrases as a range of the marking process. The process of detecting words and phrases may use any method. The viewer device 11 classifies each character of the text data into character types such as kanji, English characters, numbers, hiragana, katakana, and symbols, and detects a range in which the same character type is continuous as a word. Also, the end of the continuous range of hiragana is detected as a segment break.

According to this method, in Japanese sentences, so-called words are often represented by kanji or katakana, and words are often added with adjuncts (particles, auxiliary verbs) to form a phrase. Based on the method. Of course, there are many exceptions, but the viewer device 11
Since the detection results of words or phrases are used only to determine the range of the marking process, there is no need to detect words and phrases with high accuracy and rigor. It is tolerable.

Further, since the English text data is divided and written, words can be easily detected by detecting spaces. Therefore, when a word or multiple words are specified, the space separated by commas, colons, semicolons, and periods is detected by detecting a space and extracting the word and multiple words,
When a sentence, line, paragraph, sentence and paragraph are specified, a marking range can be determined by detecting a comma, a colon, a semicolon, a period, a line feed code, a page feed code, a tab, and the like. When a line is designated, the marking range may be determined based on the format information when the microprocessor 26 creates the display image data. By performing such processing, the microprocessor 26 determines a marking range.

The graphic controller 27 controls the display device 29 to display the image data recorded in the video memory 28 on the display device 29. Also,
Based on a control signal from the microprocessor 26, the data in the video memory 28 is updated as appropriate.

The video memory 28 is a frame memory in which image data to be displayed on the display device 29 is recorded.

The display device 29 is a display that displays a desired image under the control of the graphic controller 27. In the present embodiment, the display device 29
Is a small-sized liquid crystal display device integrally provided on a side surface of the liquid crystal display device.

The operation unit 30 allows the user to operate the viewer device 11.
Is a means for inputting various operations and instructions with respect to. For example, the setting of the marking range and the setting of the marking method as described above are performed via the operation unit 30. For the marking area, any of a predetermined number of characters, words, a predetermined number of words, phrases, a predetermined number of phrases, a range delimited by punctuation marks, a range delimited by commas, colons, semicolons, and periods, a sentence, a line, or a paragraph Whether to perform marking as a unit is set via the operation unit 30. Regarding the marking method, the color, font, brightness, line width, size, density,
The designation of which attribute such as decoration is to be changed, how to change it, and whether or not to add some kind of mark other than characters are input via the operation unit 30. Further, a request for displaying data of a different page such as a next page or a previous page is also made via the operation unit 30.

Next, the viewer device 11 having such a configuration will be described.
Will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of the operation of the viewer device 11. First, a CD-ROM medium on which desired data is recorded in the viewer device 11 is set in the CD-ROM drive 20, and an operation is performed via the operation unit 30 so as to display the desired data therein. A series of processes is started in the viewer device 11 (step S100).

When the process is started, first, the CD-ROM
Desired data recorded on the medium is read by the CD-ROM drive 20, transferred to the microprocessor 26 via the interface unit 21, and stored in the RAM 25.
Is stored. The microprocessor 26 has a ROM 24
While referring to font data etc. recorded in
Image data for displaying the read data is generated and recorded in the video memory 28 via the graphic controller 27, and the display is instructed to the graphic controller 27. Based on this,
The graphic controller 27 reads out the image data from the video memory 28 and displays it on the display device 29 (step S101).

When the display of the read data is completed, it is checked whether or not the mode setting required for the marking process has been performed. If not, the process waits until the mode setting has been performed (step S102). Here, the minimum required settings are
As described above, the setting of the marking unit and the setting of the type of the marking are performed.

After the mode setting is performed, a marking process is performed based on the setting. That is, first, the marking range of the first line, word, phrase, etc. is detected by scanning the display target data stored in the RAM 25, and in some cases by performing the simple document structure analysis as described above, For the text data in the range, image data corresponding to the set type of marking is generated, and the data at the corresponding position stored in the video memory 28 is updated with the generated image data. As a result, based on the image data recorded in the video memory 28,
Display device 29 by graphic controller 27
Is updated, and the screen 291 of the display device 29 is updated.
The part with the marking is displayed on the upper part (step S103).

After the marking process is completed, the state is maintained until the dial type operation unit 22 is operated (step S104). When the dial-type operation unit 22 is operated and the direction of the operation is an operation of moving the marking position in the forward direction with respect to the continuity of the text data, the processing of step S105 includes setting the marking position of the text data. In the case of an operation of moving backward for continuity, the process proceeds to step S106.

In step S105, the RAM 25
Scans the data to be displayed stored in and, optionally, performs a simple document structure analysis as described above, e.g., the next line of the currently marked area,
A marking range such as a word or a phrase is detected, and image data corresponding to the set type of marking is generated for text data in the range, and the generated image data is stored in the video memory 28. Update the data at the corresponding location. On the other hand, with respect to the text data which has been the marking range, image data for normal display is generated, and the generated image data is stored in the video memory 28 at the corresponding position. To update. Based on the image data recorded in the video memory 28, the graphic controller 2
By updating the display image of the display device 29 with 7, the display on the screen 291 of the display device 29 is performed as if the marked portion was moved forward.

In step S106, RA
By scanning the display target data stored in M25,
In some cases, a simple document structure analysis as described above is performed to detect a marking range such as a line, a word, and a phrase before the currently marked range. After detecting the previous marking range, the process is the same as the process of step S105. In other words, when image data corresponding to the set marking type is generated for the detected new range of text data, while the text data that was previously the marking range is normally displayed. , And updates the data at the corresponding position stored in the video memory 28 with the generated image data. As a result, the display image of the display device 29 is updated by the graphic controller 27, and a display is made on the screen 291 of the display device 29 as if the marked portion was moved backward.

Step S105 and Step S106
In either case, when the processing is completed, step S104
And waits for the next operation of the dial type operation unit 22. In the course of performing such a process, if an operation for requesting display of the next page or the previous page or an operation of changing the mode is performed via the operation unit 30, Once the process exits from the process flow shown in FIG. 2 and returns to step S10 in a new page and a new mode.
The processing from 0 is repeated.

Next, the display device 2 of the viewer device 11
A specific example of the display of data and the operation via the dial-type operation unit 22 in FIG. 9 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the screen configuration of the viewer device 11 and the operation of the dial-type operation unit 22. FIG. FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating a case where marking is performed on English text in units of lines. 4A and 4B are diagrams for explaining the screen configuration of the viewer device 11 and the operation of the dial-type operation unit 22 subsequent to FIG. 3. FIG. 4A shows a case in which Japanese text is marked in units of phrases. FIG. 4B is a diagram showing a case where marking is performed on English text in units of two words.

When the line is set as the marking unit and the black-and-white inverted display is set as the marking type for the vertically written Japanese text, the screen 29 of the display device 29 is displayed.
1 is displayed as shown in FIG. That is, one page of Japanese text in vertical writing is displayed on screen 29.
No. 1 is displayed, and only a specific line therein is displayed in reverse black and white. In such a state,
When the horizontal operation dial 22a provided in parallel with the lower side of the screen 291 is rotated to the left, the marked lines, that is, the lines displayed in black and white inverted, move one line at a time in the left direction. When the horizontal operation dial 22a is rotated to the right, the marked lines move one line at a time in the right direction.

When English text is set to a line as a marking unit and black and white inverted display is set as a type of marking, a display as shown in FIG. Will be That is, the display is such that one page of English text in horizontal writing is arranged on the screen 291, and only a specific line in the English text is displayed in black and white inverted. In such a state, the vertical operation dial 22 provided in parallel with the left side of the screen 291 is provided.
When b is rotated downward, the marked lines move downward one line at a time. When the vertical operation dial 22b is rotated upward, the marked lines move upward one by one. Note that FIG.
In any of the cases (A) and (B), when the dial-type operation unit parallel to the row direction is operated, no change occurs on the display screen.

When the phrase is set as the marking unit and the black-and-white inverted display is set as the marking type for the vertically written Japanese text, the screen 2 of the display device 29 is displayed.
A display such as that shown in FIG. That is, one page of Japanese text in vertical writing is displayed on screen 2
The display is arranged such that only specific phrases in the text are highlighted in black and white. In such a state, when the vertical operation dial 22b provided in parallel with the left side of the screen 291 is rotated downward, the marked phrases move one by one in the downward direction. When the vertical operation dial 22b is rotated upward, the marked phrases move one by one in the upward direction.

When two words are set as the marking unit and black-and-white inverted display is set as the marking type for the English text, a display as shown in FIG. Done. That is, the display is such that one page of English text in horizontal writing is arranged on the screen 291, and two specific words in the English text are displayed in black and white inverted. In such a state, when the horizontal operation dial 22a provided in parallel with the lower side of the screen 291 is rotated clockwise, the marked portions gradually shift to the right. When the horizontal operation dial 22a is rotated to the left, the marked portions are sequentially shifted to the left. Note that, even in the cases shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, it is assumed that no change occurs on the display screen even when the dial-type operation unit perpendicular to the row direction is operated.

As described above, in the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, the marking process is performed to display desired data on the screen and to display a characteristic display for each desired unit. The part can be easily moved. Therefore, for example, when text data is visually read, if the marking position is moved in accordance with the movement of the line of sight, even if the line of sight is separated from the screen for some reason, the screen is re-displayed. When the user sees the text, he can immediately follow the continuation, and can read the text data smoothly and efficiently.

Second Embodiment A second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Also in the second embodiment, the present invention will be described by exemplifying the same viewer device as in the first embodiment.
The configuration and operation of the viewer device 12 according to the second embodiment are as follows.
It is basically the same as the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, and includes all the functions of the viewer device 11 described above. Therefore, here, the viewer device 12
The illustration and detailed description of the configuration are omitted. But the second
The viewer device according to the present embodiment is a device having a function of separately enlarging and displaying text data for marking in addition to the function of the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment. That is, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the data to be marked is displayed in black and white inverted, for example, and a sub-window is opened, in which the data to be marked, for example, enlarged twice, is displayed. It is displayed.

In order to perform such display, the viewer device 12 sets the marking unit and the marking type when setting the mode via the operation unit 30, and also enables / disables the display of enlarged characters. Set invalid. The microprocessor 26 refers to this setting, and when the display of the enlarged character is enabled, the image data of the sub-window for displaying the enlarged character is generated at the same time when the image data of the marking range is generated. It is generated and recorded on the display device 29 simultaneously with the updating of the marking range. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B,
Apart from the marking location, an enlarged image of the character at the marking location is displayed.

By providing such a function, even a person who is viewing the viewer device 12 from a distance or a presbyopia can clearly read the text data, which is effective. As described above, functions and operations other than displaying enlarged characters are almost the same as those of the viewer device 11.

Third Embodiment A third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Also in the second embodiment, the present invention will be described by exemplifying a viewer device similar to the first embodiment and the second embodiment. The viewer device 13 according to the third embodiment is different from the viewer device 11 according to the first embodiment.
In addition, a component for performing voice synthesis and voice output is provided so that the marked portion can be read out by voice synthesis.

FIG. 6 shows the configuration of the viewer device 13. The viewer device 13 includes a CD-ROM drive 20 to
A viewer device 1 according to the first embodiment, comprising an operation unit 30
This is a configuration in which an audio controller 31, an audio amplifier 32, and a speaker 33 are further provided in the same components as those in FIG. CD-ROM drive 20 to operation unit 3
The function of “0” is basically the same as that of the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, and thus the description is omitted. However, in the microprocessor 26, every time a marking process is performed for a new range, a process of outputting text data in the range to the audio controller 31 and instructing the audio controller 31 to perform speech synthesis is added.

The audio controller 31 performs a voice synthesizing process on the text data based on the text data and the control signal input from the microprocessor 26, and generates a voice signal for reading out the text data. 32.

The audio amplifier 32 converts the audio signal input from the audio controller 31 into the speaker 3.
The signal is amplified to a signal having a power that can be appropriately output as a sound from No. 3.

The speaker 33 is an audio amplifier 32
A desired sound is output based on the input signal.
That is, a voice for reading the text at the newly marked portion is output.

Next, the viewer device 13 having such a configuration will be described.
Will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the flow of the operation of the viewer device 13. Also in the operation of the viewer device 13, steps S200 to S203 and step S20
The operations of Steps 5 to S207 are the same as those of Steps S100 to S106 of the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, but the viewer device 13 immediately executes the audio output process (Step (S204) is different from the viewer device 11.

That is, the CD-RO of the viewer device 13
When a CD-ROM medium is set in the M drive 20 and an operation is performed to display desired data, a series of processes is started (step S200), the desired data is read, and the read data is read. Image data to be displayed is generated and displayed on the display device 29 (step S201). Next, a mode setting is performed (step S202), and a marking process is performed based on the setting (step S203).

When the marking process is completed, the marking area is read aloud. That is, the microprocessor 26 outputs to the audio controller 31 text data in a range in which the marking process is newly performed,
The audio controller 31 performs an audio synthesis process based on the text data to generate an audio signal, and the audio signal is amplified by the audio amplifier 32 and output from the speaker 33 (step S204).

When the voice output process is completed, the state is maintained until the dial type operation unit 22 is operated (step S205).
In accordance with the direction of the operation, the marking position is moved forward or backward with respect to the continuity of the text data (steps S206, S207). When the moving process is completed, the process returns to step S204, and
The text data in the range in which the marking process is newly performed by the moving process is output as an audio signal. If an operation for requesting the display of a new page or an operation for changing the mode is performed while such a process is being performed, the process temporarily exits the process flow illustrated in FIG. In the page and the new mode, step S20 is performed again.
The processing from 0 is repeated.

Next, the state of data display, dial operation, and voice output on the viewer device 13 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 shows the state of the viewer device 13 when the phrase is set as the marking unit, the black-and-white inverted display is set as the marking type, and the audio output is set valid for the vertically written Japanese text. FIG. As shown, the screen 2 of the display device 29
In 91, one page of Japanese text in vertical writing is arranged, and only a specific phrase in the text is displayed in black and white inverted. Further, an audio signal of this phrase is output from the speaker 33. I have. In such a state, the screen 29
When the vertical operation dial 22b provided in parallel with the left side of 1 is rotated downward, the marked phrases move one by one in order in the downward direction, and rotate the vertical operation dial 22b upward. , The marked phrases move upward one by one in order. In each case, the newly marked phrase is read out from the speaker 33.

As described above, according to the viewer device 13 of the third embodiment, since the portion subjected to the marking process is read out by voice, the text data can be read more smoothly and efficiently. In addition, with such a viewer device 13, a visually impaired person can read text data. In particular, for users who can understand the general arrangement of text, such as presbyopia or amblyopia, but cannot see fine characters,
This is preferable because the user can read (hear) any position of the text data by operating the dial operation unit 22 by himself / herself.

Fourth Embodiment A fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the fourth embodiment, a viewer device similar to the first and second embodiments will be exemplified. The viewer device 14 according to the fourth embodiment is configured such that the marking portion can be automatically moved with respect to the viewer device 11 according to the first embodiment.

The structure of the viewer device 14 is the same as that of the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, except for the processing in the microprocessor 26. Therefore, description of the configuration of the viewer device 14 and the function of each unit is omitted,
Only the operation of the viewer device 14 will be described. FIG.
9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the viewer device 14. When a CD-ROM medium is set in the CD-ROM drive 20 of the viewer device 14 and an operation is performed to display desired data, a series of processes is started (step S300), and the desired data is read. Then, image data for displaying the read data is generated and displayed on the display device 29 (Step S).
301).

Next, the mode is set (step S30).
2) A marking process is performed based on the setting (step S303). At the time of this mode setting, it is also set whether or not to enable the function of automatically moving the marking position. In the following description, the operation will be described assuming that the automatic movement function of the marking portion is enabled. When the marking process is completed, the state is maintained until the dial-type operation unit 22 is operated (step S304). When the dial-type operation unit 22 is operated, the marking position is changed to the text data according to the direction of the operation. Is moved forward or backward with respect to the continuity (steps S305, S306). Dial type operation unit 2
If No. 2 has been operated and the marking position has been moved backward, the process returns to step S304 and waits for a new dial operation to be performed (step S304).
304).

When the dial type operation unit 22 is operated to move the marking position forward, the elapsed time from the previous movement of the marking position is measured (step S3).
07), the measured time is stored in the RAM 25 (step S308). Then, it is determined whether or not the automatic movement of the marking position can be performed (step S309). If not, the process returns to step S304 to wait for the operator to operate the dial-type operation unit 22. The determination in step S309 is made based on criteria such as, for example, whether or not data of a predetermined number or more of operation intervals (elapsed time) has been obtained, and whether or not the operation has been performed at a certain constant operation interval. In the present embodiment,
When the marking position is moved in the forward direction more than a predetermined number of times continuously at an operation interval within a predetermined variation, it is determined that the marking position can be automatically moved (step S309), and the process of step S310 is performed. Move on.

If it is determined that automatic movement can be performed,
Statistical processing is performed with reference to the data stored up to that point to determine the optimal movement distance of the marking position (step S310), and until the next marking position movement based on the current time and the previous marking position movement time. Is determined (step S311), and actually waits for that time (step S312). After the determined standby time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S305 in a state where the dial-type operation unit 22 has not been operated, and performs the same process as that in which the dial-type operation unit 22 has moved the marking position forward. . Thereafter, the processing of steps S307 to S312 is repeated, and the marking locations are sequentially moved at predetermined time intervals.

As described above, according to the viewer device 14 of the fourth embodiment, at first, similarly to the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment, the dial-type operation unit 22 is operated to set the marking location. Are sequentially advanced, but if the reading is advanced to some extent at a constant speed to some extent, thereafter, the marking portion is automatically moved. Therefore, the user does not need to perform any operation for moving the marking, and can easily read the text data.

[0069] viewer apparatus 15 of the fifth embodiment The fifth embodiment, the viewer apparatus 11 of the first embodiment, further a non-volatile memory 34
It is a configuration provided with. Then, the nonvolatile memory 34
, Information for specifying the data read out from the microprocessor 26 and displayed on the display device 29, the set mode, and the position of the marking are recorded. The mode and the position of the markings are updated sequentially as they are updated.

When reading new data and displaying it on the display device 29, the microprocessor 26 searches the nonvolatile memory 34 to determine whether the same data has been displayed on the viewer device 15 in the past. To detect.
If the data has been displayed in the past, the setting mode and the last marking position at that time are read, and the data is displayed using these. That is, a page including the marked portion is displayed on the display device 29, and the same portion is subjected to a marking process. Thereafter, based on the set mode, the previous continuation can be sequentially marked in the same state as in the previous display.

As described above, in the viewer device 15 of the fifth embodiment, the display of one data item is completed, and even if the power of the viewer device 15 is turned off, the display state at that time is non-volatile. It is recorded in the memory 34. Therefore, when trying to read the data again, it can be read from the continuation. That is, the marking can be used as if it were a bookmark used in a book or the like, and desired data can be read more efficiently and smoothly.

Sixth Embodiment A sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Although the first to fifth embodiments described above are devices for displaying data recorded on a CD-ROM medium, the present invention is transmitted, for example, via a network. The present invention is also applicable to an information terminal device that displays information. Such an information terminal device will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing components of the information terminal device 16 according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the components of the information terminal device 16 according to the present invention are the CDs of the viewer device 11 of the first embodiment.
A network interface (I / F) 3 instead of the ROM drive 20 and the interface unit 21;
5 is provided. The configurations and functions of the A / D converter 23 to the operation unit 30 are the same as those of the viewer device 11 according to the first embodiment. Network I / F35
Is an interface for communicating with an arbitrary network system. The network I / F 35 makes a data transfer request to any server on the network based on an instruction from the microprocessor 26. Further, it receives the data transferred in response to the request and transfers it to the microprocessor 26.

With the information terminal device 16 having such a configuration, it is possible to display data obtained via a network and to mark the desired position when reading the data, and to read the data while sequentially shifting the marking position. Therefore,
The displayed data can be read smoothly and efficiently. Note that the information terminal device 16 is usually provided with a function (browser) for browsing information obtained via a network. Therefore, the present invention is preferably integrated with such a browser, and may be realized as one function of such a browser.

Other Modifications In the present invention, in addition to the above-described embodiments, various suitable modifications are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, a dial-type operation unit is used as an operation means for moving a marking position. However, the means for instructing this movement may use any input device. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, a track pad 41 may be provided outside the A / D converter screen 291 and the movement of the marking may be instructed by following the track pad 41 with a finger.

Further, the screen 291 of the display device 29 itself may be used as a touch panel, and the movement of the marking may be instructed by manually operating the screen 291 without separately providing operation means outside the screen 291. In this case, as shown in FIG. 13, a scroll bar may be provided on a side portion of the screen 291 and operated to instruct the movement of the marking. In addition, the instruction to move the marking may be given by buttons provided in four directions as shown in FIG. 14A, or may be given by a trackball as shown in FIG. 14B. , FIG.
This may be performed using a mouse with a rotating wheel as shown in FIG. 14C, using a stick pointer as shown in FIG. 14D, or using a normal mouse as shown in FIG. It may be performed.

In the present embodiment, the present invention has been described by exemplifying a dedicated viewer device or terminal device. However, the present invention may be applied to, for example, a general-purpose personal computer. As shown in FIG. 15, a general-purpose television receiver 42, a set-top display controller 43 connected thereto, a remote controller 44 for transmitting a control signal to the display controller, and the like are provided. You may make it.

In the above-described embodiment, C
Although an apparatus for browsing information recorded on a D-ROM has been illustrated, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, DVD-ROM, MD-ROM (HybridM
D), HiFD, FD, MO, MD, etc.
The present invention is applicable as an apparatus for browsing information recorded on any optical recording medium, magnetic recording medium, magneto-optical recording medium, and other arbitrary recording media.

In the microprocessor 26,
Marking range selection method, selection type, detection method,
The present invention is not limited to the contents of the present embodiment, and may be arbitrarily determined. In particular, the method of detecting a word or a phrase is not limited to the method based on the character type as in the present embodiment. A more sophisticated parsing method may be used, or any other method may be used.

[0080]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A data display device capable of reading text data efficiently and smoothly can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a viewer device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the viewer device shown in FIG. 1;

3A and 3B are diagrams for explaining the screen configuration of the viewer device shown in FIG. 1 and the operation of a dial-type operation unit. FIG. 3A shows marking of Japanese text in units of lines. It is a figure which shows the case where it performed, and (B) is a figure which shows the case where marking is performed for English text on a line basis.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the screen configuration of the viewer device and the operation of the dial-type operation unit shown in FIG. 1 subsequent to FIG. 3; It is a figure which shows the case where marking is performed as a unit, and (B) is a figure which shows the case where marking is performed on English text in units of two words.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a screen configuration of a viewer device and an operation of a dial-type operation unit according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a case where marking is performed in units of. FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating a case where marking is performed in units of two words for English text.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a viewer device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the viewer device shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a screen configuration of the viewer device shown in FIG. 6, an operation of the dial-type operation unit, and a sound output state.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the viewer device according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a viewer device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a viewer device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a viewer device using a trackball.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a viewer device using a touch panel.

FIGS. 14A and 14B are diagrams illustrating an example of a device that instructs movement of a marking portion, where FIG. 14A is a diagram illustrating a button, FIG. 14B is a diagram illustrating a trackball, and FIG.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a mouse with a rotating wheel, (D) is a diagram showing a stick pointer, and (E) is a diagram showing a mouse.

FIG. 15 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a data display device of the present invention configured using a television receiver.

[Explanation of symbols]

11-15: Viewer device, 16: Information terminal device, 20
... CD-ROM drive, 21 ... Interface part,
22: dial-type operation unit, 23: A / D converter, 2
4 ROM, 25 RAM, 26 microprocessor, 27 graphic controller, 28 video memory, 29 display device, 30 operation unit, 31 audio controller, 32 audio amplifier, 33
Speaker, 34 Non-volatile memory, 35 Network I / F, 41 Trackpad, 42 Television receiver, 43 Display controller, 44 Remote controller

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. A means for designating an arbitrary portion of a series of data to be displayed, wherein the designated portion is continuously moved on the series of data to sequentially designate a desired portion. A display image data for displaying an arbitrary range of data including the designated portion of the series of data to be displayed, wherein the data at the designated portion is identifiable from other data. A data display device, comprising: display image data generating means for generating the display image data displayed in the form described above; and display means for displaying the generated display image data visually recognizable. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the series of data to be displayed is data including text data, and the position specification unit performs the specification by using a range divided based on a predetermined unit in the configuration of the text data as a unit. The data display device according to claim 1, wherein the data display is performed. 3. A predetermined unit in the structure of the text data is a text data including a range between characters, words, phrases, and punctuation marks, a range between commas, colons, semicolons, and periods, lines, sentences, and paragraphs. 3. The data display device according to claim 2, wherein the data display device is any one unit selected from the structural units. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a text analysis unit configured to analyze a configuration of the text data and detect a boundary of the text data for each predetermined unit in the configuration, 4. The data display device according to claim 3, wherein the designation is performed. 5. A range changing means for changing a range delimited on the basis of a predetermined unit in the structure of the text data, which defines the designated portion displayed in the predetermined form, as required. The data display device according to claim 3, further comprising: 6. The data display device according to claim 1, wherein the display image data generating means generates the display image data for displaying the data at the specified location with an attribute different from other data. 7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the attribute is used when displaying the data.
7. The data display device according to claim 6, wherein the data display device is one or more attributes selected from attributes for displaying the data including color, typeface, luminance, line width, size, density, and modification. 8. The data display according to claim 1, wherein the display image data generating means generates the display image data for displaying the data at the specified location in a form in which a desired marking is given. apparatus. 9. The display image data generating means according to claim 1, wherein the display image data generating means generates the display image data for displaying the data including the designated portion in an enlarged manner in comparison with other data. Data display device. 10. A moving state detecting means for detecting a moving state of the designated place in the position designating means, and the designated place is sequentially moved in a state similar to the detected moving state, and the designation is automatically performed sequentially. 2. The data display device according to claim 1, further comprising: a position designation unit control unit that controls the position designation unit. 11. The data display device according to claim 2, further comprising voice output means for sequentially reading out data at locations sequentially specified by said position specifying means by voice. 12. When ending the display of the data displayed on the display means, at least a nonvolatile memory means for storing information of the designated portion, and when starting display of new data, A search unit that searches a nonvolatile memory unit to search for information of a designated portion with respect to the data; and 2. The data display device according to claim 1, further comprising: an initial setting unit configured to set a designated location to the searched designated location. 13. A data reproducing means for reading a series of data to be displayed from a recording medium on which arbitrary data including text data is recorded, and designating an arbitrary portion of the read series of data to be displayed. Means for successively moving a designated portion on the series of data to sequentially designate a desired portion, and a designated portion of the read series of data to be displayed. Generating display image data for displaying data in an arbitrary range including a location, wherein the data at the designated location is displayed in a predetermined form that can be distinguished from other data. A data display device, comprising: display image data generating means for performing display; and display means for displaying the generated display image data so as to be visually recognizable. 14. A data receiving means for receiving an arbitrary series of data including text data to be transmitted, and a means for designating an arbitrary part of the received series of data to be displayed, wherein Position designation means for sequentially designating a desired location by successively moving the data on a series of data; and displaying an arbitrary range of data including the designated location in the received series of data to be displayed. Display image data generating means for generating the display image data, wherein the display image data is displayed in a predetermined form in which the data at the specified location can be distinguished from other data; and Display means for displaying the display image data visually recognizable.