JP2000259859A - Device for displaying information on three-dimensional merchandise and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display an optional state on a screen as a three-dimensional image despite a small quantity of information by instructing a desired merchandise, accessing a data base to extract the three-dimensional information on the merchandise, plotting the three-dimensional image of the merchandise according to the extracted information on the merchandise and displaying the plotted three-dimensional image. SOLUTION: An extraction means (screen state control part) 12 inputs a material information list necessary for displaying a screen in a starting mode from an initial state setting file 28. A screen state setting part 12 extracts the necessary information from a data base part 10 and a text information processing part 14 according to the inputted material information. Each of drawing/reproducing parts 16-24 is instructed to perform a plotting operation on a screen. Thus, every screen plotting part plots an initial screen on the screen. If the text information must be processed, this information is sent to the part 12 after an arithmetic operation is carried out at the part 14. Meanwhile, the data which are inputted from the part 10 and has not to undergo any arithmetic operation are sent to the part 12 as they are.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is applied to a three-dimensional product information display device, particularly to a product simulation system such as an electronic catalog for digitizing various product information and simulating on a computer for product introduction and sales promotion support. And a suitable three-dimensional product information display device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a product simulation system such as an electronic catalog used for product introduction and sales promotion support, text information on a product, image information of a still image of a photographed product, video information of a moving image, and product A product information database storing voice information to be introduced is used to extract information required by a user from the database, display the information on a screen, or output a sound to introduce a product.

[0003]

However, in the above-described conventional electronic catalogs and the like, however, the user needs to determine the three-dimensional shape of the product, the overall shape when the product is arranged in combination with other products, the arrangement balance, and the like. In such a case, image information and video information of all predicted patterns must be actually photographed and created in advance, and stored in a database.

[0004] Therefore, if it is intended to cover all situations required by the user, such as the position at which the product is viewed, the form of the product (for example, the lid is open / closed, etc.), the combination state of a plurality of products, etc. It is necessary to create a large amount of image information and video information, and many storage means such as disks are required to store the image information and video information.

[0005] Further, as a practical problem, it is impossible to produce all situations demanded by the user as image information and video information. Therefore, even if as much image information and video information as possible are stored, There has been a problem that users cannot be sufficiently satisfied.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and displays a desired product on a screen as a three-dimensional image in an arbitrary state despite a small amount of information. It is an object of the present invention to provide a three-dimensional product information display device capable of performing the above-mentioned operations.

[0007]

According to the present invention, in a three-dimensional product information display device, product information usable for indicating a product and at least a three-dimensional shape of the product associated with the product information for each product are displayed. A database in which prescribed three-dimensional information is stored; instruction means having a function of designating a desired product; and extraction means having a function of accessing the database to extract three-dimensional information of the designated product. A three-dimensional image drawing unit having a function of drawing a three-dimensional image of a product based on the extracted three-dimensional information, and a display unit having a function of displaying a three-dimensional image of the drawn product. Thus, the above problem has been solved.

[0008] That is, in the present invention, a database of product information that can be used for indicating a product and three-dimensional information that defines at least the shape of the product and that is associated with the product information for each product is used in the apparatus. When a user designates and selects a product, the user extracts three-dimensional information that defines the shape of the product, and can draw a three-dimensional video in any state in real time based on the extracted information. By combining the function of drawing a three-dimensional image with a database of product information, a desired product form can be three-dimensionally displayed on the screen according to a user's instruction.

[0009] Accordingly, since the position at which a product is viewed, the form of the product, the combination of a plurality of products, and the like can be rendered on the spot as a three-dimensional image, the user can be sufficiently satisfied. Further, since the three-dimensional video is created on the spot, it is not necessary to previously store a huge amount of image information and video information in the database, so that a large storage capacity (for example, a disk capacity) can be saved.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a three-dimensional product information display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

The display device (product simulation system) according to the present embodiment includes a database unit 10, a screen condition control unit 12, a text information processing unit 14, a text information drawing unit 16, an image information drawing unit 18, and a video information drawing unit 20. , An audio information reproducing unit 22, a three-dimensional video drawing unit 24, an instruction input unit 26, and an initial state setting file 28.

The display device of this embodiment will be described in detail. The disk of the database unit 10 includes text information on the product name, introduction description, price, size, etc. Stores image information such as images such as menu screens used by the user to give instructions, video information related to videos composed of live-action videos used for product introduction, and audio information such as product introductions and back music. 3 for any product that has been
Dimension information and the like are stored.

The three-dimensional information includes CAD data that defines the three-dimensional shape of the product, as well as colors (R, G,
B), mapping information (pasting position, pasting image), light information (position, direction, strength, color), camera information (position, direction, angle of view), shape movement information (door open, etc.), etc. All information necessary to create a two-dimensional image is stored.

The drawing situation control unit (extraction means) 12
Various information is read (extracted) from the database, and based on the information, control is performed to give instructions to the information drawing / reproducing units 16 to 24. That is, at the time of start-up, the initial state is read from the initial state setting file (setting information) 28, data is read from the database unit 10 based on the initial state, and the information drawing / reproducing units 16 to 24 draw on the screen, Instructs playback. After that, in accordance with an instruction from the instruction input unit 26 by the user, data reading from the database unit 10 and drawing instructions to the various drawing / reproducing units 16 to 24 are performed.
It performs control such as voice reproduction instructions.

The text information processing unit 14 calculates the price of each product including the parts stored in the database unit 10,
A calculation for calculating the total price and the total size is performed based on the text information such as the size, and the calculation result is sent to the text information drawing unit 16 via the screen status control unit 12, and the screen (display means) of a personal computer or the like is displayed. Draw on top.

The text information drawing section 16 uses the text information from the screen state control section 12 to draw the text information on a screen of a personal computer or the like. Further, the image information drawing section 18 draws an image (still image) on a screen of a personal computer or the like based on the image information for product introduction and the image for menu from the screen state control section 12. Further, the video information drawing section 20 draws a video (moving image) on a screen of a personal computer or the like based on the video information for product introduction from the screen status control section 12. Further, the audio information reproducing unit 22 reproduces audio based on the product introduction audio from the screen status control unit 12 or the back music.

The three-dimensional image drawing part 24 includes a three-dimensional shape of the product described by the CAD data similarly input from the screen condition control part 12, corresponding color information, mapping information, light information, camera information, and motion. Based on information, 3
Dimensional image information is drawn on a screen of a personal computer or the like. This 3
The three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 uses the technology described in, for example, “Applied Graphics (ASCII Learning System Application Course)” (published by ASCII Corporation) (authored by Masataka Ota, Akira Takeuchi, and Takayuki Oguchi) to obtain a 3D image.
A two-dimensional image can be drawn.

The instruction input section 26 is used by a user to input menu buttons and an instruction input form displayed on the screen, and is composed of input devices such as a keyboard and a mouse. The initial state setting file is a file for setting contents to be performed at the time of startup (display contents of a screen, information in a database to be used, and the like).

Next, the flow of processing executed in the three-dimensional product information display device (simulation system) of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, when the present system is started, the screen status control unit 12 reads the material information list (text information, image information, video information, audio information, etc.) necessary for displaying the screen from the initial state setting file 28 based on the initial state setting file 28. , Three-dimensional information) (step 1).

Next, the screen condition control unit 12 extracts necessary information from the database unit 10 and the text information processing unit 14 based on the material information input in step 1 and then draws / reproduces each of the drawing / reproduction units 16 to 24. Is instructed to draw on the screen. As a result, each screen drawing unit draws an initial screen (described later) on the screen (step 2). At that time, if the text information requires processing (operation, etc.),
After the text information processing unit 14 performs the calculation, the text information processing unit 14 passes the calculation to the screen situation control unit 12. If the calculation is unnecessary, the data input from the database unit 10 is passed to the screen situation control unit 12 as it is.

Next, the apparatus enters a state of waiting for an input instruction, and waits for an input from the user (step 3). Then, when there is an input from the user (step 4), the instruction input unit 26 passes the input contents to the screen situation control unit 12. As a result, the screen status control unit 12 executes one of the following three processes (1) to (3) according to the input instruction from the user (step 5).

(1) When the user's instruction is "end",
Shut down the system. (2) 3D image drawing unit 2 according to user's instruction
4 is instructed to draw. Upon receiving this instruction, the three-dimensional video drawing unit 24 draws three-dimensional information. (3) After extracting the material information from the database unit 10 in accordance with the user's instruction content, the rendering unit and the audio reproduction unit are instructed to draw and reproduce. The drawing units 16, 18, 20, and 24 that have received the drawing instruction perform drawing of text information, image information, video information, and three-dimensional information, respectively. Reproduction is performed (step 6). Thereafter, the processes and operations of the above steps 3 to 6 are repeated as necessary.

Next, the present embodiment will be further described with reference to a specific example of a screen (display means) on which images and videos drawn by the respective drawing units are displayed.

FIG. 3 is an example of the initial screen displayed at the time of startup and drawn in step 2 described above. On the left side of this screen, there are four buttons used to move to each displayed screen.
Buttons ("product introduction audio / video", "product search",
“Product list image” and “Product simulation” are displayed.

The user can move to the next screen by pressing (clicking) this button with a mouse or the like (instruction input unit 26). Here, the bottom 3
A case will be described in which a “product simulation” button for performing three-dimensional image drawing is selected (shown with diagonal lines).

When the "product simulation" button is selected, the screen moves to a product simulation screen shown in FIG. FIG. 5 also shows the product content used for the simulation and the type of background. Here, the product is deformed and displayed, but can be displayed with the same definition as the real product.

The product simulation screen shown in FIG. 4 includes a product selection button, a line-of-sight direction button, a viewpoint position button, an object rotation button, a light ON / OFF button,
Buttons such as a product color change button, a background change button, and a motion button, an information display area, and a three-dimensional video display area of a product are displayed. Hereinafter, each of these functions will be described in detail.

A product selection button displayed as "product list" on the upper left of the screen is a button for selecting a product to be simulated and an option of the product, and a hatched portion is a selected product. In this example, product 1 body (winning cup), option A for this product 1, product 2
The option B for the main body (table clock) and the product 2 is selected. Here, as the button, in addition to presenting the product name in text as shown in FIG. 4, the image of the product itself can be displayed.

An estimate display area (information display area) at the lower left of the screen displays estimate information relating to the product selected by the above product selection button. The text information is displayed by drawing by the text information drawing unit 16 based on the text information on the product stored in the database unit 10 and the result calculated by the text information processing unit 14.

The product 3D image display area at the upper right of the screen is
This is an area for displaying a three-dimensional image of the product selected by the product selection button. The screen status control unit 12 reads the three-dimensional information of the product from the database unit 10 and displays the three-dimensional information based on the read three-dimensional information based on the read three-dimensional information. In the first video displayed here, all three-dimensional information such as the direction and color is drawn with default values.

The line-of-sight direction button is used to move the direction of the camera when rendering a reproduced image. The camera moves in the direction in which the arrow is pressed. When this button is pressed, the screen situation control unit 12 instructs the three-dimensional video drawing unit 24 to change the camera orientation information and redraw. The three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 draws a three-dimensional image of the product based on the instruction.

The viewpoint position button changes the position of the camera when drawing a three-dimensional image. Pressing the up arrow moves the camera forward, and pressing the down arrow moves the camera backward. When this button is pressed, the screen situation control unit 12 changes the camera position information and instructs the three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 to redraw based on the information. The three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 draws a three-dimensional image of the product based on the instruction.

The object (product) rotation button has a function of changing the direction of the product when drawing a three-dimensional image. The product rotates in the direction of the arrow. When you press this button,
The screen situation control unit 12 rotates the three-dimensional shape of the product,
It instructs the three-dimensional video drawing unit 24 to redraw. The three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 draws a three-dimensional image of the product based on the instruction.

The light ON / OFF button is used to turn on a light used to illuminate a product when drawing a three-dimensional image.
Used when performing / OFF. Here, since the first light and the third light with diagonal lines are ON, the image situation control unit 12 instructs the three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 to turn on these two lights and redraw. The three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 draws a three-dimensional image of the product based on the instruction.

The product color change button is used to change the color of a product when drawing a three-dimensional image. In this example,
Since "color 3" is designated as the color of the product, the color of the color pattern No. 3 is added to the product. When this button is pressed, the screen situation control unit 12 causes the actual color information corresponding to the color pattern No. 3 (R, G, B: there may be a plurality of color information).
Is read from the database unit 10 and the 3D video drawing unit 24 is instructed to redraw the image in the color. In the three-dimensional image drawing unit 24, based on this instruction, the 3D
Draws a two-dimensional image.

Although the product color change button is displayed in text in this example, a method of displaying a still image of a color-changed product here and designating and selecting the image may be adopted. Further, some products have color information in which various colors are combined, such as red at the top and blue at the bottom. Therefore, a plurality of colors can be registered in one color pattern.

The background change button has a function of changing the background when drawing a three-dimensional image. In this example, since "background 2" is specified as the background, the background pattern No. 2, for example, a blue background is drawn. When this button is pressed, the screen status control unit 12 displays the background pattern 2
Is read from the database unit 10. Then, the three-dimensional image drawing unit 24 replaces the currently used background pattern with the selected background pattern 2.
Is redrawn using the three-dimensional information of. In this case, the three-dimensional information of the product is drawn as it is.

The motion button is a button for generating a motion for an object when drawing a three-dimensional image. In this example, when the button is pressed, the hands of the watch (the main product 2) can be rotated. That is, when this button is pressed, the screen situation control unit 12 outputs three-dimensional information (motion information) of the product 2.
Is read from the database unit 10 and the 3D image drawing unit 24 is instructed to redraw based on the motion information. The three-dimensional video drawing unit 24 gives a motion to the three-dimensional video by repeating redrawing a plurality of times based on the motion information.

Each function of the above-described simulation system is executed by a programmed computer. That is, by creating a recording medium such as a CD-ROM in which a program for realizing each of the above functions is stored and installing this program in the computer, the computer can be easily used as the system.

According to the present embodiment described in detail above, the three-dimensional video of the product is extracted from the CAD extracted from the database 10.
Since data is drawn in real time using data, less product information needs to be created in advance than before, and at the finer level desired by the user (approach, rotate, install It is possible to confirm the product until the background of the place is changed. Therefore, (1) the disk capacity for storing the product information is small, (2) the production cost of the product information can be reduced, and (3) the user can obtain sufficient information on the product. The effect can be obtained.

Next, a second embodiment according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 is a block diagram corresponding to FIG. 1 showing a main configuration of the three-dimensional product information display device of the present embodiment.

The display device (commodity simulation system) of the present embodiment stores exclusive processing information on a combination of commodities required for exclusive processing control in the database unit 10 and inputs this information to the screen status control unit 12. The configuration is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment except that an exclusive processing control unit 30 for performing exclusive control is mounted.

That is, in the present embodiment, in addition to the simulation function of the display device of the first embodiment, the exclusive processing control unit 30 checks the combination configuration of products for which an instruction has been given from the instruction input unit 26 in the database unit. It is determined from the information stored in 10 whether the combination is possible or not.
The screen situation control unit 12 is controlled so that products that cannot be selected cannot be visually recognized or cannot be selected.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart corresponding to FIG. 2 showing the flow of the processing procedure according to this embodiment.

In the present embodiment, as in the case of the first embodiment, processing is performed according to the procedure of steps 1 to 6, but in step 5, the processing by the exclusive processing control unit 30 is additionally performed.

That is, in this step 5, in addition to the processing executed in the first embodiment, the screen condition control unit 12
The exclusive process is instructed to the exclusive process control unit 30 in accordance with the instruction content of the user. Upon receiving this instruction, the exclusion process control unit 30 executes the exclusion process and returns the result to the screen status control unit 12.
The rendering instruction is issued to the three-dimensional video rendering unit 24 in accordance with the instruction content of the user. Upon receiving this, the three-dimensional video drawing unit 24 draws three-dimensional information. The result of the exclusive control process is reflected in the three-dimensional video of the product drawn in this manner.

Next, in the next step 6, text information, image information, video information, and three-dimensional video information are rendered by the rendering units 16, 18, 20, and 24 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. The reproduction unit 22 reproduces the sound, but in each of these drawing units, information reflecting the result of the execution of the exclusive control process is drawn.

FIG. 8 shows a product simulation screen corresponding to FIG. 4, and FIG. 9 shows a product content and a background type corresponding to FIG. In the present embodiment, the product main bodies 1 and 2 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the ribbons attached to them are different colors and options A and B for the product 1 as shown in FIG. And it is not possible to select both. There are also options F and D having different shapes as medals to be put on the ribbon, and only one of the options can be selected.

Therefore, on the screen shown in FIG. 8, the product 1 main body, the product 1 option A, the product 2 main body, and the product 2 option B are selected in the upper left product selection button in the same manner as in the first embodiment. However, the display shows that the options E and G for the main body of the product 1 cannot be selected in the hatched portions in the opposite directions. That is, the same option A has already been selected for the option E, and the same option F has already been selected for the option G, so that the option G cannot be selected by exclusive control. As exclusive control,
In addition to being displayed on the screen so that it can be identified in this way, it can be deleted from the list.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, by performing exclusive processing control,
More accurate product information can be transmitted to users.

Although the present invention has been specifically described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified without departing from the gist thereof.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the database unit is installed in the same system together with each drawing unit and reproduction unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the database unit may be constructed on a network. . In this case, when the product information is updated, unified management can be performed, and there is an advantage that the latest information can always be accessed.

In the above embodiment, the winning cup and the clock are shown as commodities. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it goes without saying that they are optional.

[0056]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Regarding a product desired by the user, an arbitrary state can be displayed on the screen as a three-dimensional image regardless of a small amount of information.

[Brief description of the drawings]

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

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an image of an initial screen at the time of startup in the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an image of a simulation screen according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the content and background of a product used in a simulation.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of a display device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure in the second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an image of a simulation screen according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the content and background of a product used in a simulation of the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Database part 12 ... Screen status control part 14 ... Text information processing part 16 ... Text information drawing part 18 ... Image information drawing part 20 ... Video information drawing part 22 ... Audio information drawing part 24 ... Three-dimensional information drawing part 26 ... Instruction Input unit 28: Initial state setting file 30: Exclusive processing control unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G06F 15/403 310B 380Z F-term (Reference) 5B050 AA10 BA09 BA10 CA07 DA04 EA09 EA27 FA02 FA06 FA09 FA10 FA13 5B075 PP02 PP03 PP13 PQ02 PQ12 PQ70 UU38 5C082 AA03 AA14 AA22 AA24 AA31 AA37 BA02 BA12 BA27 BA41 CA62 CB01 CB06 DA87 DA89 MM05 MM09 MM10

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A database in which merchandise information usable for instructing merchandise and at least three-dimensional information defining a three-dimensional shape of the merchandise associated with the merchandise information for each merchandise is stored. Instruction means having a function of instructing a product; extracting means having a function of accessing the database to extract three-dimensional information of the specified product; and a three-dimensional video of the product based on the extracted three-dimensional information. A three-dimensional product information display device comprising: three-dimensional video drawing means having a drawing function; and display means having a function of displaying a three-dimensional video of a drawn product. 2. The three-dimensional product information display device according to claim 1, wherein the three-dimensional information includes color information, mapping information, light information, camera information, and shape movement information. 3. The database according to claim 1, wherein the database stores, as the product information, at least one of text information, image information, video information, and audio information related to the product, and the extracting unit stores the product information from the database. At least one of a text information drawing unit, an image information drawing unit, a video information drawing unit, and a sound information reproduction unit having a reproduction function, which has a function of extracting the extracted product information and has a function of reproducing, A three-dimensional product information display device, wherein information drawn by each drawing means is displayed on the display means. 4. The three-dimensional product information display device according to claim 1, wherein the extracting means has a function of extracting information from the database based on an instruction of setting information created in advance. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the extracting means changes the three-dimensional information based on a user's instruction, and causes the three-dimensional image drawing means to redraw based on the changed three-dimensional information. A three-dimensional product information display device having a function of performing control. 6. The text information processing means according to claim 3, wherein the text information includes a price in addition to the description of the feature of the product, and has a function of calculating an estimate of a plurality of products drawn. A three-dimensional product information display device. 7. The three-dimensional product information display according to claim 3, further comprising a function of drawing text information, image information, and video information of the product corresponding to the drawn three-dimensional video information. apparatus. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein when two or more commodities are specified in the database, exclusive processing information relating to commodities that cannot be combined due to the composition of the commodities is stored, and based on the exclusive processing information extracted from the database. A three-dimensional product information display device, comprising an exclusive processing control means for performing exclusive processing control. 9. A recording medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute any of the functions according to claim 1. Description: