JP2000259535A - Window display controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a window display controller with which the window arrangement of a speaker can be known among plural users in a desktop conference utilizing a network. SOLUTION: When a user is to speak in the desktop conference, the right of operation is acquired by an operation right acquiring means 14. When the instruction of window information transmission is detected by a window information transmission instructing means 15, a window information processing means 11 transmits the current window information on that user to the other user, a window information processing means 11 of the other user, who receives the information, holds the current window information in a window information storage means 12 as previous window information and defines the received window information as current window information and a window display processing means 13 displays the window state of the user having the right of window operation on a display. This display is continued until a display term end instruction detecting means 16 receives an instruction from the user having the right of window operation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a window display control device, and more particularly to an application used for executing a desktop conference in a conference (hereinafter, referred to as a desktop conference) between a plurality of terminals connected via a network. The present invention relates to a window display control device that controls a plurality of windows generated by software and displayed on a display.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the speeding up of computers and the development of networks, it has become possible to easily transmit and receive not only character data and still images, but also moving images and audio information through a network.

Utilizing such an environment, computers connected via a network share and transmit / receive data, and hold a conference with a shared screen on which a plurality of people can write.
Work forms in which remote people perform cooperative work using a so-called desktop conference are also being seen. Note that a desktop meeting in this specification refers to a meeting in which data can be shared and transmitted and received using a shared screen and application software can be shared under an environment connected by a network. Even if it is a concept, it may be referred to as a remote conference, a TV conference, or the like, but such a conference will be generically referred to as a desktop conference in this specification.

A display example of a display displayed when a desktop conference is held is shown below. FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the display state of the display when the application software for the desktop conference is executed for two conference participants. In this figure, two terminals 1 and 2 are connected via a network 3, and various windows when application software for a desktop conference is executed are displayed on the desktops of the displays 1a and 2a of the terminals 1 and 2. Is displayed. In the desktop conference, the same window that appears on the desktop of the display 1a of the terminal 1 also appears on the desktop of the display 2a of the terminal 2.

In the example shown in the figure, windows appearing on the desktops of the displays 1a and 2a are, for example, windows 4a and 4b of a shared screen into which a plurality of conference participants can write, and three windows used as materials for the conference. Windows 5a, 5b, 6a, 6 representing graphs
b, 7a, 7b and windows 8a, 8b representing the face image of the participant are displayed. Here, five types of windows are displayed on the desktops of the displays 1a and 2a, but the arrangement of the windows, the size of the windows, and the overlapping relationship of the windows are different.

In general, moving, deleting, and
Window operations such as changing the size and shape, turning windows into icons, giving window frames, and displaying windows, such as displaying titles, are implemented by software called a window manager, and each terminal has its own window manager. That is common. Therefore, as shown in the example of FIG. 15, even if a window displays the same contents, the size of the window can be enlarged or the window can be arranged in a desired manner. It is possible to change the state.

[0007] However, when a plurality of people cooperate in a desktop conference or the like, the cooperative work may not be performed efficiently unless the display states of the windows are uniform for each desktop.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 8-185302 discloses a "window sharing system" which proposes one solution to such a problem, and discloses a window sharing system between workstations placed in a network environment. On the other hand, when the window size is changed on a workstation having the operation right, the window size is adjusted on other workstations. In this way, when one user changes a window, the corresponding window of another user is changed according to the change. It is possible to prevent the danger that a person who can see the contents of the display and a person who cannot see the display contents may appear or that cooperative work may not be performed smoothly.

[0009]

However, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-1
In the technique described in Japanese Patent No. 85302, when a user having the operation right changes the window size, the window size is changed accordingly. Therefore, when another user has a larger window size from the beginning, However, on the contrary, there is a problem that the window size becomes small and it becomes difficult to see.

When a meeting is held by a plurality of persons, it is preferable that the arrangement of the windows be uniform for all the participants, not just the window size. For example, in FIG. 15, when the user using the terminal 1 wants to give an explanation by pointing to the graph of the window 6a displayed on the desktop of the display 1a, the window arrangement of the conference participants is unified. Can be instructed like "Graph in the upper right corner of the screen", but if the layout of windows is different between conference participants, it takes time and effort to indicate a specific window, There was a problem that the work could not be performed efficiently.

The present invention has been made in view of such a point, and in a form such as a desktop conference in which a plurality of users use a network, each user can set a window to a desired position and size. It is an object of the present invention to provide a window display control device capable of efficiently performing cooperative work while achieving both the arrangement and the size and arrangement of windows among a plurality of users. .

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a window display for controlling a window commonly displayed on each user's display when a plurality of users perform cooperative work via a network. In the control device, an operation right acquisition unit that acquires an operation right of a window by a user's input operation, and a window for transmitting current window information of the user who acquired the operation right of the window in accordance with the input operation of the user to another user A window information transmission instruction unit for issuing an information transmission instruction, and a current window information of a user who has acquired a window operation right according to the window information transmission instruction is transmitted to another user or transmitted from a user who has acquired the window operation right. Window information processing means for receiving window information;
Window display control means for displaying, on the display, information relating to the window displayed on the display of the user who has acquired the right to operate the window based on the transmitted window information. An apparatus is provided.

According to such a window display control device, when a certain user acquires the window operation right by the operation right acquisition means, the user can always display the current window information of the user by the window information transmission instruction means. It can be transmitted to other users through the information processing means. On the other user side to which the window information has been transmitted, the window information processing unit displays the window information on the display of the user who has acquired the window operation right based on the window information transmitted from the user who has acquired the window operation right. Display information about the displayed window on the display. As a result, the window displayed on each user's display is unified with the window displayed on the display of the user who acquired the window operation right, in the arrangement and size thereof, and the collaborative work is efficiently performed. It is possible to do.

The window information may be information relating to all windows displayed on the display of the user who has acquired the window operation right, thereby providing the same display display as that of the user who has acquired the window operation right. Is reproduced.

The window information can be information on a window designated by the user who has acquired the window operation right, whereby the user who has acquired the window operation right is notified of the window of interest to another user. can do.

The window information may be an image representing a display screen of the user who has acquired the window operation right and information on a window for displaying the image. As a result, other users can perform window display of an image representing the display screen of the user who has acquired the window operation right, in addition to the screen displayed in the individual window arrangement and size.

The window information may be information on a window displayed on the display of the user who has acquired the window operation right and information representing the title of the window. As a result, the other users can roughly grasp the arrangement state of the windows displayed on the display of the user who has acquired the window operation right.

Further, after transmitting window information of the user who has acquired the window operation right to another user, a display period end instruction for discarding the window display based on the window information transmitted to the other user is detected. A display period end instruction detecting means for transmitting to other users is provided. Thus, the user who has acquired the window operation right can cancel the display of his / her window state to other users at any time.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a basic configuration of a window display control device according to the present invention. The window display control device includes a window information processing unit 11, a window information management unit 12, and a window display processing unit 1.
3, an operation right acquisition unit 14, a window information transmission instruction unit 15, and a display period end instruction detection unit 16.

The window information processing means 11 has a function of transmitting and receiving window information by being connected to a plurality of other window display control devices via a network. Window display processing means 13 having a function of accumulating window information displayed on a connected display;
Has a function of displaying a window on the display based on the window information accumulated in the window information management means 12, and the operation right acquisition means 14 operates the window based on the input information from the input means by the user. Window information transmission instructing means 15
The display period end instruction detecting unit 16 has a function of transmitting the current window information of the user to another user at any time based on input information from the input unit by the user having the operating right. Has the function of detecting and notifying the end time of the period in which the window information is reflected on a plurality of other window display control devices based on the input information from the input means by the user who has acquired the.

In the above configuration, when a desktop conference is started by connecting with a plurality of other users via a network, the window information processing means 11 displays the current window information accumulated in the window information management means 12 in a window display. The window is passed to the processing means 13, and the window display processing means 13 displays a window on the display based on the current window information. Here, it is assumed that the user has performed an operation right acquisition operation for making a comment from the input unit. Then, the operation right acquisition unit 14 issues an operation right acquisition request to means (not shown) for managing the operation right. When the operation right is given therefrom, the user can transmit his / her current window information to other users using the window information transmission instruction means 15 at any time. When a window information transmission instruction is issued from the window information transmission instruction means 15, the instruction is sent to the window information processing means 11.
, The window information processing unit 11 transmits the current window information stored in the window information management unit 12 to the window display control device of another participant of the desktop conference.

When window information is transmitted from the window display control device of the user who has the window operation right, the window information processing means 11 of the other user who has received the window information firstly receives the window information.
Is stored as the previous window information, and the current window information is rewritten with the window information of the user having the window operation right. The window information processing means 11 passes the window information to the window display processing means 13, and displays a window based on the window information on a display. As a result, the window displayed on the display of the user having the window operation right is also displayed on the display of another participant of the desktop conference in the same manner. This display is continued until the user having the window operation right transmits a display period end instruction to another user through the display period end instruction detecting means 16.

The window information transmitted from the user having the window operation right to other participants in the desktop conference may be information on all windows displayed on the desktop of the user having the window operation right. Yes, so that the exact same window can be reproduced for all other participants. Also,
The window information to be transmitted can be window information specified by a user having the window operation right,
As a result, it is possible to notify all other participants of the window of interest of the user having the window operation right. Further, the window information to be transmitted can be window information of a window for displaying an image representing the desktop screen of the user having the window operation right and an image representing the desktop screen, and thereby, the window operation right can be set. A new window representing the user's window will be displayed on the displays of all other participants.

Next, a first embodiment of the window display control device according to the present invention will be described by taking as an example a case where the window display control device is applied to a desktop conference system. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram for realizing a desktop conference system. The desktop conference system includes a plurality of, here three terminals 21, 22, 23 participating in a desktop conference, and a multipoint control unit (MCU: 25, 2).
6 and a network (internetwork) 28. The multipoint control devices 25 and 26 are dedicated devices for connecting the terminals 21, 22 and 23 participating in the desktop conference. The network 28 includes, for example, a local area network (LAN) and a wide area network (WAN).
rea network), including the Internet. Terminal 2
1, 22, 23 are distributed on the network,
Each terminal 21, 22, 23 has a user participating in the conference. One of the terminals participating in the conference is an administrator terminal that plays the role of the chair of the conference.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a terminal. Each of the terminals 21, 22, and 23 includes a computer main body 31, a display 32, a keyboard 33, and a mouse 34. In the display 32, the display area 35 is an area that can be actually displayed, and is expressed as a desktop in this specification. Windows 36 to 40 show examples of windows displayed on the desktop when a desktop conference is held. For example, window 36 is a so-called whiteboard that realizes a shared screen that can be freely written by participants in the conference. The windows 37 to 39 are graphs used as materials in a conference, and the window 40 is a window in which images of the faces of people who currently have the floor among conference participants are displayed.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration example in each terminal. The terminal has the same configuration as that shown in FIG. 3, and includes a computer main body 31, a display 32, and a keyboard 33.
And a mouse 34. Computer body 3
Reference numeral 1 denotes a conference application software 41 for performing a desktop conference, a conference information management unit 42 storing various data required for the conference, and a display between other conference participating user terminals. A window information processing unit 43 for performing a process of exchanging window information of the window displayed on the display 32, and information necessary for display on the display 32, and in particular, current window information in which current window information is written. A management table 44a,
A window information management unit 44 that manages a previous window information management table 44b in which window information immediately before the current situation is written, and a size of a window that is instructed by the conference application software 41 and displayed on the display 32. And a window manager 45 for controlling arrangement and the like.

The conference application software 41 is an application software that is started to implement a desktop conference.
It transmits a window display command to the window manager 45 and the like. Various data used by the conference application software 41 for holding a conference are held in the conference information management unit 42. The conference information management unit 42 shown in the drawing includes the conference information management unit 42 for realizing the present apparatus. Only the operation right information table 42a which is information of the operation right necessary for the operation is described.

The conference information management section 42 manages data necessary for the conference. The information necessary for the conference includes basic data such as the name of the conference, the conference ID, and information on the terminal participating in the conference, as well as information on the operation right. Operational rights are used to limit the meeting participants who can perform an operation,
This is necessary to obtain special rights when confusion occurs when all conference participants operate with the same rights, such as deleting data referenced in the conference. here,
It is assumed that the function of the present apparatus can be realized by acquiring the operation right of “speaking right”.

The operation right information table 42a holds data such as who currently has the operation right for various operation rights set in the conference, such as the floor right.
It is assumed that data necessary for the conference is once generated at the administrator terminal and transmitted to each terminal, thereby maintaining the data identity between the terminals. In other words, if data related to a conference is changed at a certain terminal, the data is once transmitted to the administrator terminal, the latest data is configured at the administrator terminal, and new information is sent to all terminals. It is assumed that the information can be understood by looking at the data in the conference information management unit 42 of each terminal.

The window information processing unit 43 transmits window information on the desktop displayed on the display 32 to another conference participant when the user participating in the conference using this terminal acquires the operation right, A process is performed to reflect the window information transmitted from the conference participation user having the right to the window on his / her desktop.

The window information management unit 44 manages data used by the window manager 45. Information on the window currently displayed on the display is held in the current window information management table 44a, and the immediately preceding window information management table 44a stores the information on the window. The window state, that is, the content stored in the previous current window information management table 44a is held in the previous window information management table 44b.

The window manager 45 manages a large number of windows, and these operations are performed by the current window information management table 44a stored in the window information management unit 44 via the window information processing unit 43.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the contents of the current window information management table and the previous window information management table. According to this example, the current window information management table 44a and the previous window information management table 44b stored in the window information management unit 44 include the "window ID" for identifying each window and the "start point" indicating the position of the window. Information such as "position" and "end point position", "size" indicating the size of the window, "state" indicating whether it is a window or icon, "superposition relationship" when windows overlap, "color of outer frame", etc. Consists of

Next, the processing flow of the present apparatus will be described. Since the present apparatus is based on an environment in which a desktop conference can be realized, first, a flow of processing until each terminal can perform a desktop conference will be described.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the desktop conference start process. First, each terminal 21, 22,
23, the application software for the conference necessary for the desktop conference is started (step S23).
1). Next, these three terminals 21, 22, and 23 communicate with each other and are connected (step S2). in this case,
When the three terminals 21, 22, 23 are connected, the connection form should not be in a generally ring shape. Further, it is assumed that the three connection forms are hierarchized, and the terminal at the top of the hierarchy is the conference manager terminal. The administrator terminal plays the role of the chair of the meeting, and the administrator terminal can determine who is given the operation right.

Next, information necessary for the desktop conference is organized and stored (step S3). Here, information necessary for the desktop conference includes a conference name, a password, operation right information, and the like. It is assumed that the information necessary for the desktop conference is generated at the administrator terminal and then transmitted to another terminal. Note that the processing in step S3 is performed in step S3.
Although the setting may be made during the execution of the process 2, here, it is assumed that the process of step S 2 and the process of step S 3 are performed separately. And each terminal 21, 22,
The display on the display 32 of the 23 becomes the initial screen of the desktop conference, and necessary windows are displayed. Here, the arrangement state of the windows displayed by the application software for desktop conferencing at each of the terminals 21, 22, and 23 indicates that the arrangement state of the window is the same for any terminal.
Assume the situation represented by Actually, the size and arrangement of the displayed window are managed by the window manager in each terminal, and therefore may be different for each terminal.
It is assumed that the arrangement of windows appearing on the displays 2 and 23 is the same.

In the display 32 of FIG. 3, a window 36 is a shared screen, windows 37 to 39 are graphs used as materials in a conference, and a window 40 is a face of a conference participant who currently has the floor. However, the graphs and the like shown in the windows 37 to 39 may be set in advance by the meeting organizer when the meeting starts, or may be displayed as needed after the meeting starts. . The face image shown in the window 40 may be a face image of an actual conference participant photographed by a camera not shown in FIG. 3 or a face image such as a portrait of the person created in advance by an appropriate method. Alternatively, text data indicating only the name may be used, and any data may be displayed if the person having the current floor has a glance.

In this way, each terminal 21, 22, 23
When the conference application software 41 is started, the user participating in the conference can freely operate the arrangement of the windows on the desktop in a desired state. FIG. 7 shows the result of the operation.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a window state in each terminal. According to FIG. 7, for the three users participating in the conference, a state where no operation is performed is shown on the terminal 21 of the administrator, and two users are displayed on the other terminals 22 and 23. This shows a state in which the arrangement and size of the windows are different because the arrangement of the windows on the desktop is individually operated. When the application software starts up, necessary windows are displayed on the desktop. However, as described above, the arrangement of windows generally depends on the window manager 45, and it is difficult to determine how the windows are arranged. Not consistent among meeting participants. In addition, since the size and position of each window can be freely set by the user participating in the conference, the size and position of each window are not uniform among the participants. For example, terminal 21
In the case of, the windows are arranged so as not to overlap, but in the case of the terminals 22 and 23, the shared screen is enlarged and displayed. The arrangement and size of the shared window, the graph, the face image, and the like are also changed in the case of the terminals 22 and 23.

Here, the conference application software 4
The process performed during the desktop conference will be described on the premise that the environment for performing the desktop conference has been created by performing the startup process of FIG. In the following description, a user having the right to speak is referred to as a “speaking right user”, and other users not having the right to speak are referred to as “other users”.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of the window arrangement unifying process. First, a right to speak, which is necessary for performing the operation of the window arrangement unification process, is acquired (step S11). An application for acquiring the floor is made by applying to the manager terminal. If there is no owner of the floor, the floor is given and the information is transmitted to all users. If the owner of the right to speak already exists, wait for the right to speak and wait for the right to speak. Next, when the speaking right user gives some explanation, the window arrangement unification command is executed, considering that it is more convenient if the arrangement and size of the windows among the conference participants are more convenient (step S12). . The window arrangement unification command is executed, for example, when a selection is made from a button menu appearing on any window generated by the conference application software 41 or when a specific key is input from the keyboard. Next, in response to the window arrangement unification command in step S12, the current window information management table of the floor user is transmitted to another user (step S13).

The subsequent operations are performed on the other user side. First, in order to hold the transmitted current window information, the current window information management table is changed to the previous window management table (step S14). . Next, the information management table transmitted from the floor user is set as the current window information management table (step S1).
5). However, if the format of the transmitted window management table and the currently held window management table are different, or if the window ID numbers are different, conversion processing for ensuring consistency between the window information management tables is performed. Is performed. Then, the window manager 45 displays the window using the current window information management table set in step S15.
To display window information. As a result, the windows on the desktops of the other users have the same layout and size as those of the user having the floor, and the same window state as the base window state of the speaker's explanation becomes the other window state. It is also reproduced by the user, and no inconsistency occurs between the displayed content and the description.

The above operation is an operation until the window state of another user becomes the window state of the user having the right to speak, but the other users set the window state of their own preference and continue forever. If the user is restricted by the window state of the user who has the floor, each individual loses his or her freedom. Therefore, the floor user can control the time during which the window arrangement is adjusted to him / her.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the flow of the window arrangement unification discard process. When the speaking right user who has executed the window arrangement unifying command discards the instruction, first, the user having the speaking right executes the “window arrangement unifying command” (step S2).
1). The window arrangement unification discard command may be selected from a button or a menu as in step S12 of FIG. 8, or may be executed by inputting a special key. Or, while the specific key is pressed, the window arrangement of the floor user is reflected to other users,
When the speaking right user releases the key, the window arrangement unified discard command may be executed. Alternatively, the window arrangement unified discard command may be executed whenever the right to speak is transferred to another user.

Thereafter, the process is performed for each user who has received the command. First, the previous window information management table is set as the current window information management table (step S).
22). Then, the window manager 45 is instructed to display the window using the current window information management table set in step S22, and the window is displayed.

By the above processing, the window state of another user is unified to the window arrangement state of the user having the right to speak for a certain period of time, so that the speaker writes a descriptive word (including an arrow) on the shared screen. In the case of a desktop conference where voice or voice is available, a specific window can be expressed using a directive, so that the desktop conference can be efficiently executed.

However, in this case, if the resolution (size) of the display is different between the user having the floor and the other users, even if the window arrangement state of the speaker is unified, the display on the desktop of the floor user is attempted. May cause the displayed window to be invisible to other users.

FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of window display on displays having different resolutions. In this example, it is assumed that the terminal 21 uses a display with a higher resolution, and the terminals 22 and 23 use a display with a lower resolution. Here, it is assumed that the user of the terminal 21 is a user having the right to speak, and the window arrangement of the display is arranged as shown in the figure. When the user of the terminal 21 executes the window arrangement unifying command, information on the window arrangement is transmitted to other users, and the window arrangement of the terminals 22 and 23 is unified with the terminal arrangement of the terminal 21. However, in the terminal 22 having a low-resolution display, if the transmitted window information is set as it is in the current window information management table, some windows may not be displayed as a whole.

The terminal 23 processes even a low-resolution display so that there is no window that is not displayed and displays the processed window. That is, the terminal 23 performs a process of reducing the size of the window with respect to the transmitted window information so that the entire window of the floor user can be included. First, in step S15 of FIG.
The current window management table is created so as to adapt the window information transmitted from the user having the floor to the size of the display of the terminal 23. In this case, the start point position, the end point position, and the size column in FIG. There is a part called "ratio", but in that part, the position of the start point and end point with respect to the size of the desktop and the ratio of the size of the window are written, so that even if the size of the desktop is different, The window size ratio can be unified. However, also in this case, the screen displayed in the window must be reduced even if the size ratio of the window is the same, but this processing is performed by the conference application software 41 that starts the desktop conference. The size of the display image itself may be changed according to the window size.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment described above, the windows of other users are unified into the window arrangement of the floor user, but it is sufficient if the floor user can instruct other users only a small number of windows. Sometimes it is. In this case, the window designated by the user having the right to speak may be divided into other users. The window designation processing will be described.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing for transmitting the window designated by the floor user to another user. Here, the following processing will be described assuming that the environment shown in FIG. 6 has been performed and a desktop conference can be executed. The description of the same processes as in FIG. 8 is omitted.

In FIG. 11, first, the floor is acquired (step S31). Next, a window designation command is executed (step S32). A window designation command is an operation performed by a speaker to designate a window that the user wants to pay attention to, for example, one or more windows with a mouse after pressing a specific button or menu. And so on, by specifying a window that the speaking right user wants to pay attention to. Next, information on the window designated by the speaking right user is transmitted to another user (step S33).
In the case of the first embodiment, the current window information management table of the floor user has been transmitted to another user.
In this embodiment, the information only needs to be transmitted for the window selected by the floor user. As the information to be transmitted, any operation may be used as long as the information can emphasize the window specified by the floor user, such as unifying the color of the outer frame of the specified window and increasing the size.

The subsequent operations are performed by other users. First, in order to retain the current window information, the current window information management table is copied to create a previous window management table (step S34). In the next step, the current window information management table is overwritten with the transmitted window information. Therefore, in the step S34, it is assumed that the current window information management table and the previous window information management table have the same contents. Next, a new current window information management table is created by overwriting the current window information management table with the information management table transmitted from the user having the floor (step S3).
5). Then, the window manager 45 is instructed to display a window using the current window information management table set in step S35, and the window information is displayed.

According to the above processing, the right-to-speak user can easily designate the window to be emphasized by himself / herself, so that it is easy to explain in the desktop conference and the conference can be efficiently executed. After that, by performing the window designation discarding process in the same process as in FIG. 9, the process caused by the floor right user becomes invalid.

In the second embodiment, if only the color of the outer frame of the window designated by the floor user is changed, the size and arrangement of the window do not change.
It is possible to freely specify the window that the speaking right user wants to pay attention to, and to freely set the arrangement and size of the windows of other users. In addition, it is of course possible to change the size of the window, such as displaying the window specified by the floor user on the desktop of another user.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the first and second embodiments, the arrangement and shape of windows of other users who do not have the floor change. However, an image representing the window arrangement of the desktop of the floor user is replaced with another image. A similar effect can be obtained by displaying on a newly created window on the user's desktop.

In this case, there is no change in the windows of the other users, and one window displaying the state of the desktop of the user having the right to speak is displayed on the desktop of the other user.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a state in which an image representing the window of the floor user has been generated by another user. According to the illustrated example, it is assumed that, for example, the conference participation user of the terminal 21 has acquired the floor, and the window arrangement on the desktop of the floor user at that time is as illustrated. At this time, a window of an appropriate size is newly displayed on the terminals 22 and 23 of the other users, and the window state on the desktop of the floor user can be seen. In the illustrated example, the terminal 22 has a window 22 of an image showing a state of the floor right user on the desktop.
a is displayed large in the center of the desktop, and the terminal 23 displays the window 23a of the image showing the state on the desktop of the speaking right user in a small window in order to give priority to the user's window. Whether each of the image windows is displayed in the center of the desktop in a large or small window may be set in advance by each user.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the flow of the process of transmitting the image of the desktop of the floor user to another user. Here, the following processing will be described on the assumption that the processing shown in FIG.

In FIG. 13, first, the floor is acquired (step S41). Next, the user having the floor executes a desktop drawing command for displaying the state of the desktop on the desktop of another user (step S).
42). This desktop drawing command may be selected from a button or a menu. Next, a window information management table indicating how to display the information / image is sent to another user together with the information / image representing the state of the desktop of the user having the right to speak (step S).
43).

The subsequent operation is performed by another user who does not have the floor. First, in order to retain the current window information, the current window information management table is copied to create the previous window management table. (Step S4
4). In the next step, the transmitted window information is added to the current window information management table. Therefore, in the step S44, it is assumed that the current window information management table and the previous window information management table have the same contents. Next, the information management table transmitted from the user having the floor is added to the current window information management table, and a new current window information management table is created (step S45). Then, the window manager 45 is instructed to display a window using the current window information management table set in step S45, and the window information is displayed (step S46). However, in this case, the displayed data is the transmitted image showing the state of the desktop of the floor user.

As a result, a new window indicating the window arrangement state of the floor user's desktop is displayed on the desktop of another user, so that other users can know the window arrangement state of the desktop of the floor user. In addition, it is possible to confirm to other users what environment the speaking right user is speaking in, and efficient cooperative work can be performed. After that, by performing the process of discarding the desktop drawing in the same process as in FIG. 9, the process caused by the floor user can be invalidated.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIGS. 14A and 14B are diagrams showing a state in which an image representing the window of the floor right user by the title is generated by another user. FIG. 14A shows one of the windows of the floor right user, and FIG. 9 shows a desktop display example on the user side. On the desktop of the display, a plurality of windows relating to the desktop conference are displayed.
The window 50 illustrated in (A) is one of them. This window 50 is provided with a title bar 51 for displaying a title of the display content, in addition to an area for displaying a graph prepared as a conference material. In the fourth embodiment, this title information is used as one of window information indicating the desktop status of the floor user.

When the user having the floor executes the window arrangement unification command, window information is transmitted to other users, and the window information includes title information. On the other user side to which the window information has been transmitted, an image representing the window of the speaking right user is generated based on the information on the arrangement of the windows and the information on the title, and the window 52 shown in FIG. Display a new one. According to the illustrated example, the window 52 includes:
The display position and the relative size of each window displayed on the speaker's desktop are displayed, and information of the corresponding title is displayed in a square representing each window. This allows other users to know the window arrangement on the desktop of the user who has the right to speak, and allows other users to confirm in what environment the right-to-speak user is speaking. Can be performed efficiently. As described above, if the layout state of the window of the floor user can be roughly grasped, the image need not necessarily be the image representing the desktop of the floor user.

[0065]

As described above, according to the present invention, information on a window on the desktop of a user having an operation right can be transmitted to another user at an arbitrary time and at an arbitrary time, and other information without an operation right can be transmitted to another user. Users configured it to replicate on their desktop. As a result, the desktop environment of the user having the operation right can be confirmed on the other user side, so that the communication between the plurality of users is smooth, and the cooperative work can be performed efficiently.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a principle configuration of a window display control device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram for realizing a desktop conference system.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a terminal.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example in each terminal.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing contents of a current window information management table and a previous window information management table.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a desktop conference start process.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a window state in each terminal.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of window arrangement unification processing.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a window arrangement unification discard process.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of window display on displays having different resolutions.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of a process of transmitting a window designated by a speaking right user to another user.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a state in which an image representing a window of the floor user has been generated by another user;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a process of transmitting an image of a desktop of a floor user to another user.

14A and 14B are diagrams illustrating a state in which an image representing a window of a floor right user by a title is generated by another user, and FIG. 14A illustrates one of windows of the floor right user;
(B) shows a desktop display example of another user.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a display state of a display when application software for a desktop conference is executed for two conference participants.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Window information processing means 12 Window information management means 13 Window display processing means 14 Operation right acquisition means 15 Window information transmission instruction means 16 Display period end instruction detection means 21, 22, 23 Terminal 22a Window 23a Window 25, 26 Multipoint control device 28 Network 31 Computer main body 32 Display 33 Keyboard 34 Mouse 35 Display area 36-40 Window 41 Conference application software 42 Conference information management unit 42a Operation right information table 43 Window information processing unit 44 Window information management unit 44a Current window information management table 44b Previous window information management table 45 Window manager 50 Window 51 Title bar 52 Window

Continued on the front page F-term (reference) 5B085 BE07 BG07 CE07 5B089 GA21 HA06 HA10 JA16 JB01 JB03 JB10 KA03 LB01 LB14 5C082 AA01 BA27 BB01 CA62 CB01 CB06 DA87 MM09 5E501 AA01 AB20 BA05 CB02 CB09 DA05 EB09 FA05 FB28 FB44

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A window display control device for controlling a window commonly displayed on each user's display when a plurality of users perform cooperative work via a network, wherein a window operation right is acquired by a user's input operation. Window information transmission instruction means for issuing a window information transmission instruction for transmitting the current window information of a user who has acquired a window operation right in accordance with a user's input operation to another user, and window information transmission Window information processing means for transmitting the current window information of the user who has acquired the right to operate the window to another user or receiving the window information transmitted from the user who has acquired the right to operate the window according to the instruction; and the transmitted window information. User who has acquired window operating rights based on Window display control device, characterized in that the information about the window that is displayed on the display comprises a window display processing means for displaying on the display, the. 2. The window display control device according to claim 1, wherein the window information is information on all windows displayed on a display of a user who has acquired a window operation right. 3. The window display control device according to claim 1, wherein the window information is information on a window designated by a user who has acquired a window operation right. 4. The window information includes an image representing a display screen of a user who has acquired a window operation right;
The window display control device according to claim 1, further comprising information on a window for displaying the image. 5. The window information according to claim 1, wherein the window information includes information on a window displayed on a display of a user who has acquired a window operation right, and information indicating a title of the window. Window display control device. 6. The window information includes information for identifying each window on a display screen of a user who has acquired a window operation right, information indicating a display position and a size of each window, and a superimposition relationship of each window. The window display control device according to claim 1, wherein the window display control device includes information. 7. The window information includes information for identifying each window on a display screen of a user who has acquired a window operation right, information indicating a display position and a size ratio of each window, and a superimposition relation of each window. 2. The window display control device according to claim 1, further comprising information indicating 8. After transmitting window information of a user who has acquired the window operation right to another user, a display period end instruction for discarding a window display based on the window information transmitted to the other user is detected. 2. The window display control device according to claim 1, further comprising a display period end instruction detecting means for transmitting the display period end instruction to the other user. 9. Window information storage means for receiving window information from a user who has acquired the window operation right to save information on a currently displayed window, and storing and transmitting the transmitted window information. 9. The window display control device according to claim 8, further comprising a window information management means having a current window information storage means for storing information of said previous window information storage means in response to said display period end instruction.