JP2002196853A - Portable electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To save the labor of an operation, and to display the picture of an easily readable text. SOLUTION: Texts in three lines are displayed at a display part 1. The character strings of the texts are moved to a direction opposite to the reading direction by dot units, and so called, dot scroll is operated. The character strings in the state of a figure (a) are changed to the character strings in the state of a figure (b) with the leading character 'A (the square form of Japanese syllabary)' disappearing according as one dot advances, and with the leading character 'SA' in the second line starting to move to the first line, and with the leading character 'TU' in the third line starting to move to the second line, and with the next character 'MA' starting to appear from the right corner of the third line. Also, the characters in the specific line (in this case, the second line) are enlargement-displayed. Therefore, the texts are continuously smoothly moved and changed by the dot scroll so that the texts can be extremely easily readable. Also, this movement is automatically performed so that any operation can not be required. Thus, it is possible to make the characters easily readable by enlargement-displaying the characters, and to make the contents of the read part easily understandable by arranging the pre-and-post texts.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a portable electronic device capable of displaying a text such as a novel on a display surface.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Floppy (registered trademark) disks and ICs
With the spread of large-capacity storage media such as cards, systems for providing information using such storage media have become conceivable. Examples of such systems include a system in which personal computer software is stored on a floppy disk and sold by a vending machine, and a system in which learning software for students or English conversation software is stored in an IC card and sold. According to such a system, the software shop only has to obtain software from a bank every time a user places an order and store it on a floppy disk or an IC card.

[0003] An I that stores learning software, English conversation software, etc.
The device using the C card is a small device that is convenient for carrying, and has a liquid crystal display surface for displaying learning contents and sentences of English conversation. In addition, a keyboard is also provided, turning on and off the power, changing the display contents,
Operations such as selection and scrolling can be performed. Furthermore, it is also possible to listen to the voice at the same time.

[0004]

By the way, in the learning device using the above-mentioned learning software or English conversation software, it is necessary to operate a keyboard in order to change the screen.
Even scrolling is performed only by keyboard operation.

On the other hand, when a long sentence such as a novel or a magazine article is stored on a recording medium and the sentence is displayed on a display surface so as to be readable, the sentence displayed on the display surface is at most several lines. Therefore, if you continue reading, you need to operate the keyboard to display the next sentence every time you finish reading the displayed sentence, and the number of operations is enormous, which is troublesome. Become.

In addition, there are cases where a sentence is displayed from the middle of a phrase to the middle of another phrase. When such a text is switched at once on the display surface, the connection with the previous text is discomfort. May occur, making it very difficult to read.

[0007] Even if a sentence is displayed on the display screen for only a few lines at most, such a portable learning device is small and has a small display screen as described above. Characters are small and difficult to read.

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable electronic device which solves such a problem, saves the trouble of operation, and makes the displayed text easier to read.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a portable electronic device in which text information is displayed in a plurality of lines on a display surface, wherein the text information is displayed on the display surface. A configuration is provided in which means for displaying a character string of a specific one of the plurality of lines in a larger size than other lines is provided.

[0010] With this configuration, a character on a specific one line on the display surface is enlarged and displayed, so that the text is easy to see and read.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of a portable electronic device according to the present invention, wherein 1 is a display unit, 2 is an operation unit, 3 is a step display area, 4 to 12 are function items, 13 is a power key, 14 is a function key, 15 is a start key, 1
6, 17 are selection / screen switching keys, and 18 is a selection key.

In FIG. 1, a display unit 1 for displaying an image and an operation unit 2 for operating the apparatus are provided on the front surface. A sentence is displayed on the display unit 1, and a stage display area 3 representing stages 0 to 10 is displayed above the sentence.
, And a menu of function items 4 to 12 representing different functions is displayed below. Also, the operation unit 2
It comprises a power key 13, a function key 14, a start key 15, selection / screen switching keys 16, 17 and a selection key 18.

For such a device, for example, a memory card in which a long sentence such as a novel is stored is used. The memory card can store the contents of several books. Therefore, a memory card storing one novel is equivalent to a book. The memory card stores not only the contents of the novel, but also the title, synopsis, and characters of the novel, and also stores page information indicating each page of the novel.

When such a memory card (not shown) is inserted in the direction of the arrow and the power is turned on by operating the power key 13, first, the title of the novel is displayed on the display unit 1, and the start key of the operation unit 2 is displayed. By operating No. 15, the contents of the novel are displayed in a predetermined line from the first sentence of the first page.

FIG. 1 shows a state in which the contents of the novel are displayed. Here, three lines are displayed on the display unit 1, but any number of lines may be used as long as the lines are plural.
In the first line at the top, a sentence starting with "A" and ending with "Ko" is displayed. With this, a sentence beginning with "sa" is displayed on the second line, and a sentence starting with "tsu" is displayed on the third line. Is displayed in. In this case, the direction of reading the text is from the upper left corner to the lower right corner along each line.

A character string with a sentence, as described later,
It moves in dot units in the direction opposite to the direction in which this sentence is read. When the character on the first line moves to the left and comes to the left corner, it disappears every dot, and when it comes to the left corner, the character on the second line moves to the right corner of the first line one dot at a time. To go. Similarly, the characters on the third line are shifted one dot at a time to the right corner of the second line. At the same time, on the third line, a new character appears one dot at a time from the right corner. Such movement of the text will be hereinafter referred to as dot scroll. The state of the dot scroll is shown in FIG. 2 and the dot scroll progresses in the order of FIGS. 2 (a), 2 (b) and 2 (c). In this case, the character strings on each line are moved to the left. In FIG. (B), the character “sa” on the second line is placed at the right corner of the first line,
The character "tsu" on the line has moved to the right corner of the second line, and the character "ma" has appeared from the right corner of the third line.

According to such dot scrolling, the character string appears to be moving smoothly and continuously, and the sentence advances smoothly. Therefore, reading is performed in accordance with the progress of the sentence, and natural reading can be performed without any operation.

Further, in this embodiment, the character string of one specific line displayed on the display unit 1 is displayed larger than other lines, so that the characters on that line are easy to read. For example, the characters to be enlarged and displayed are full-width characters, and the other characters are quarter-width characters. In this embodiment, the character string in the middle line (second line) is displayed in an enlarged manner. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and character strings in other lines may be enlarged. Further, the display is not limited to the enlarged display, and may be made easier to see by another method such as increasing the contrast as compared with the other rows or coloring with a desired color.

Although the text is made easier to read in this way, in this embodiment, at least the next line to the more easily read line is also displayed at the same time, so that the context of the text can be understood and only one line can be understood. It is easier to read while understanding the sentence than displaying the sentence.

In this embodiment, various functions are further provided. Hereinafter, this point will be described.

When the memory card is inserted in the direction of the arrow and the power key 13 is operated to turn on the power, the title is displayed as described above, and then the start key 15 is operated to display the contents of the novel in order. However, in this state, the step display area 3 is displayed above the display unit 1. Then, when the function key 14 is operated next time, the display unit 1 displays the function items 4 to 12 further below. When the function key 14 is operated, the "position" function item 4 is valid, and this item is blinking, for example. here,
Such an instruction blink will be called a cursor. The step display area 3 is associated with the “position” function item 4. That is, in this case, the “position” is displayed on the display unit 1.
Is a function for indicating which part of the whole novel is the sentence displayed in the step 3. This is a ratio of the sentence amount up to the displayed sentence to the entire sentence amount of the novel in the step display area 3. It is represented by For example, if the displayed text is 50% of the novel from the beginning,
In the stage display area 3, the portion "5" blinks, for example, by a cursor. As will be described later, the sentence displayed on the display unit 1 changes, but at the same time, the display position of the cursor in the step display area 3 moves rightward in the drawing.

Selection of a menu other than the "position" function item 4 is performed by the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17 after the function key 14 is operated in this manner. When the function key 14 is operated as described above, selection of other function items 5 to 10 is also possible. It can also be moved to the right by operation.

First, when the function key 14 is operated as described above in a state where the text is being scrolled by dots, the dot scrolling is stopped and a pause state is set, and the text at that time is kept stopped and displayed. Next, start key 15
By operating, dot scrolling starts again.

When the selection / screen switching key 16 or 17 is operated in the pause state as described above, the cursor moves from the "position" function item 4 and any one of the other function items 5 to 10 can be designated. . The designated function item is displayed blinking with the cursor.

To change the dot scroll speed, the "speed" function item 6 is designated. This allows
In the step display area 3, a number indicating the current speed of dot scrolling is displayed blinking with the cursor. The speed of the dot scroll is divided into ten stages, and the numeral “1” in the stage display area 3 represents the minimum speed, and the numeral “10” represents the maximum speed. After specifying “Speed” function item 6, select key 1
When the user operates the button 8, the speed can be specified in the step display area 3, and the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17 are operated.
The cursor moves in the stage display area 3 to set the dot scroll speed arbitrarily. After a while, start key 1
When the user operates No. 5, dot scrolling is restarted at the set speed.

When the start key 15 is operated by designating the "return" function item 5, while the start key 15 is operated, the text is displayed on the display unit 1 at the dot scroll speed set at that time. The dot scrolls in the opposite direction. As a result, the sentence read before can be confirmed.

When the text is to be fast-forwarded or fast-returned, the "fast-forward" function item 7 is designated. After this instruction, when the start key 15 is operated and the selection / screen switching key 16 is operated, the text is quickly rewinded while the key is operated, and the selection / screen switching is performed instead of the selection / screen switching key 16. When the key 17 is operated, the text is fast-forwarded during that time.
The fast-forward and fast-reverse speeds are the speeds corresponding to the numeral "10" in the step display area 3, and are the highest speeds in this device.

When the start key 15 is operated instructing the "person" function item 8, the column of the characters on the memory card is read out, and the main characters of the novel and the brief introduction thereof are displayed on the display unit 1. Is displayed. If the introductory text cannot be displayed on one screen, the screen for the next text or the screen for the previous text can be switched by the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17. By switching the screen, not only the character column but also the synopsis column can be displayed.

The vertical or horizontal writing of the text displayed on the display unit 1 can be selected by designating the “vertical and horizontal” function item 9. The illustrated text display is horizontal writing, and the vertical writing here means vertical writing when viewed in the direction of the arrow.
When the "vertical / horizontal" function item 9 is designated, the step display area 3 is enabled. When the numeral "1" is designated by operating the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17, for example, horizontal writing is designated, and the numeral "2" is designated. Then, for example, vertical writing is specified. When the start key 15 is operated after the designation,
The text is written horizontally or vertically.

By the way, in this embodiment, voice information is also stored in the memory card. This sound information is sound information of the back music (BG) or the text of the novel for the title. When the title is displayed on the display unit 1, the BG can be heard through a speaker or an earphone. The voice of the text is generated in synchronization with the text displayed on the display unit 1 and can be heard through a speaker or an earphone. More specifically, a synthesized voice when a character at a specific position on the display unit 1 is read is generated, and the character at this position is changed by dot scrolling. Is obtained. This allows you to read the text with your eyes,
Reading by listening to your ears is also possible.

Since the speed of the sound is synchronized with the dot scroll speed of the sentence on the display unit 1, the speed increases as the dot scroll speed increases, and decreases as the dot scroll speed decreases.

The sound volume can be adjusted by designating the "sound" function item 10. After such an instruction, the step display area 3 becomes effective. The volume can be switched in ten steps from the numeral “1” to the numeral “10” by operating the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17. When the start key 15 is operated after setting the volume, the dot scrolling of the text is resumed, and the voice of the set volume is obtained. Note that the voice can also be cut by specifying the number “0”.

In this embodiment, as described above,
The entire contents of the novel are divided into ten stages, and the stage displayed in the display unit 1 is indicated by one of the numbers “1” to “10” in the stage display area 3. However, it also has a double-page spread function that allows you to start reading at any stage. In order to execute this function, first, as described above, the function key 14 is operated to enter the pause state, and then the selection key 18 is operated to activate the step display area 3. Then, the selection / screen switching keys 16 and 17 are operated to select one of the numbers “1” to “10”, and the start key 15 is operated. As a result, the first sentence at the stage represented by the selected number is displayed on the display unit 1 by dot scrolling.

This embodiment also has a resume function so that the novel can be read halfway and read later at a later time. To stop reading, the power key 13 may be operated again to turn off the power. When the power is turned off, information on the page displayed in the function item 11 and information indicating the memory card at this time are displayed. (For example, title information) are stored in a built-in memory. When the memory card is re-inserted at this time, the power is turned on, and the start key 15 is operated at the time of title display, the display unit 1 displays a dot scroll display from the top of the page based on the information of the page stored in the memory. Is done. However, when it is found from the information representing the memory card stored in the memory that the newly inserted memory card is different from the previous memory card, the above information stored in the memory is cleared and the novel The text is displayed as a dot scroll from the top of the first page of the content.

When the dot scroll is restarted by operating the start key 15 after setting the above functions, the function items 4 to 12 disappear from the display section 1.

The functions of the "return" function item 5, the "fast forward return" function item 7, and the "person" function item 8 are cleared.
In order to restart the dot scroll display of the text, the function key 14 may be operated again to put the text in a pause state, and the start key 15 may be operated.

The dot scroll speed may be fixed at a set speed at all times, but may be gradually fluctuated around the set speed, thereby reducing the burden on the eyes. Can be reduced.

Further, "Return" function item 5, "Fast forward return"
When the function item 7 is executed and when in the pause state, the sound is cut.

Further, each time each stage of the sentence represented by the stage display area 3 is read, for example, a recording sound of about 2 seconds and 1
About zero illustrations can be sequentially output. As a result, it is possible to interrupt reading and allow the user to relax, thereby eliminating the feeling of fatigue.

The above operation is controlled by a program stored in the internal memory of the portable electronic device, and its functions are shown in FIG. However, the “initial setting” refers to the step display area 3 for the “position” function item 4.
Is the number “0”, the same step for the “speed” function item 6 is the lowest dot scrolling number “1”, and the same step for the “sound” function item 10 is the lowest volume number “1”. Further, for the “vertical and horizontal” function item 9, as the numeral “1” in the step display area 3,
The text is displayed horizontally.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the flow of information in this embodiment. A portion surrounded by a chain line is this embodiment. The memory card stores the novel desired by the user selected by the selection input by the communication network terminal. This memory card is used in this embodiment.

In a portion surrounded by a dashed line, a keyboard and a display unit are the operation unit 2 and the display unit 1 in FIG.
The synchronizing unit is for synchronizing the display text and the voice as described above. A program for controlling the operation of the portable electronic device and information indicating pages and memory cards required for the resume function are stored in an internal memory.
Of course, in this case, even if the power is turned off, the internal memory is backed up. The information of a plurality of memory cards can be stored in the external memory. Even if the memory card is not inserted, by connecting the external memory, the information can be read out from the memory and the same display as described above can be performed.

The embodiment of the present invention has been described above.
The present invention is not limited to only this embodiment.
For example, in the above embodiment, the target is a novel, but other documents such as periodicals and academic books may be used. It goes without saying that the information stored in the memory card differs according to this. Further, the recording medium is not limited to a memory card.

[0044]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since a specific one-line character string displayed on the display surface is displayed larger than characters on other lines, the displayed text is easier to read. In addition, since the characters on all the lines are not enlarged and displayed on the display surface, the number of lines to be displayed on the display surface can be increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of a portable electronic device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state of dot scrolling of a display sentence in the embodiment shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation for executing each function of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a flow of information in the embodiment shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 display unit 2 operation unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kimitaka Koseki 1-88 Ushitora, Ibaraki-shi, Osaka F-term within Hitachi Maxell Co., Ltd. 5B069 BA04 DC03 5E501 AA04 AA12 BA03 BA05 CA04 FB04 FB32 FB44

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A portable electronic device in which text information is displayed in a plurality of lines on a display surface, wherein a character string of a specific one of the plurality of lines displayed on the display surface is replaced with another line. A portable electronic device having means for displaying an enlarged image.