JP2002262072A - Network system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a client server system where a storing device of image data and a device using the image data are interconnected, that processes the image data to indicate the data with various resolutions without increasing the storage capacity of an entire device. SOLUTION: A server is provided with a resolution conversion section 7 that conducts processing of converting image data into image data with a resolution in response to a request from a client, and when a magnification display request is made by e.g. the client, the resolution of the image data with a original resolution is dynamically converted on the server and the resulting image data are transferred to the client so as to be compatible with the image with each resolution.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a network system, and more particularly to a network system, which is suitably used for a client server system in which a storage device for image data and a device to be used are connected.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, many apparatuses have been used in which digital image data is stored in a memory or the like and can be read out and displayed. The image data to be stored is input using an image input device such as an image scanner or a video camera using a CCD, for example, and is often configured to be able to store a plurality of image data. .

[0003] Basically, each image data is stored as an image file. When storing an image file having a large data amount, for example, a large-capacity magneto-optical disk (MO) or hard disk (HDD) is used as a file storage device. When a magneto-optical disk is used, image data for one file is usually recorded on one magneto-optical disk. However, if the amount of image data constituting one image file exceeds the capacity of one magneto-optical disk, it is divided and stored on a plurality of magneto-optical disks.

[0004] When the size of each image file is very large or the number of image files to be stored is very large as described above, storage, reading, and display of image files are performed by a plurality of image files via a network. Of the client-server system performed by the other device. That is, a plurality of image files are stored in the server, the image file specified by the client is read out at appropriate times, and the read image file is displayed on the display screen of the client.

Here, when a large-scale image file device is constructed on the server side by using the above-mentioned magneto-optical disk, for example, a disk such as a jukebox in which a plurality of magneto-optical disks can be replaced by an auto-change mechanism. A library device is used. In this disk library device, a disk is exchanged in response to an instruction from a client, and a corresponding image file is read.

[0006]

In this type of system, since the size of each image file stored in the server is very large, the entire image is displayed as it is due to the limitation of the display screen of the client. Can not do it. Therefore, conventionally, the image data stored in the server is reduced and displayed so that the entire image data is displayed. Therefore, the image cannot be viewed on the display screen with the original accuracy.

However, for example, there are cases where it is desired to check a fine part in a photographic image or to refer to a specific part part in a drawing image in detail. However, such a request cannot be satisfied with a reduced whole image. Therefore, it is required that a part of the image can be enlarged and displayed on the entire screen with the original accuracy. According to this, for example, when it is desired to see the entire image, it is possible to display the entire image in a reduced size, and when it is desired to see the details in detail, it is possible to display the enlarged image.

However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, one image data is stored as one or a plurality of image files, so that the reading of the image data is also performed in file units. Therefore, even when a part of the image is enlarged and displayed, the entire image file is transferred from the server to the client.

As described above, since each image file has a very large amount of image data, it takes a lot of time to transfer the file. As a result, it takes a lot of time from issuing the enlargement / reduction instruction on the client to actually displaying the image. It takes a lot of time especially when the network connecting the server and the client is thin (when using a personal computer as a client machine, the network supported by the personal computer in many cases is thin). .

It is also required that one image data can be displayed at various resolutions. For example, in addition to displaying the entire image in a reduced size as described above, the original image data is also supported so that a desired image file can be easily searched from a plurality of image files stored in the server. It is required to simultaneously display a plurality of low-resolution reduced image information as list icons, and to display a rough layout image in order to cope with work in the design industry or the like.

However, in order to be able to display one image data at various resolutions, it is necessary to create image data of each resolution in advance and store it separately from the original image file. However, such a method has a problem that the amount of image data stored in the server becomes enormous, and the storage capacity of the entire apparatus increases.

In order to speed up the process of enlarging and displaying the details of an image as described above, it is conceivable to prepare image files in which image data of the details are stored in advance and prepare them separately. However, it is conceivable that the user requires an enlarged display in an infinite number of parts, and it is impractical to store the image file assuming all of them. Therefore, the portion that can be enlarged and displayed is fixed due to the limitation of the storage capacity.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a first object of the present invention is to store large-scale image data in a server and correspond to an instruction from a client. An object of the present invention is to enable a process of displaying one image data at various resolutions to be performed without increasing the storage capacity of the entire apparatus in a client server system that transfers and uses image data.

A second object of the present invention is to increase the storage capacity of a process for enlarging and displaying an arbitrary portion of an entire image with the original accuracy in the client server system as described above. It is to be able to perform at high speed.

[0015]

A network system according to the present invention is a network system in which a storage device for image data and a device to be used are connected, wherein the device to be used is
Resolution designating means for designating an image to be displayed at a desired resolution; requesting means for transferring the content designated by the resolution designating means as a request signal to the storage device via a network; By performing digital signal processing on the image data already stored in the used device while the reading / transfer of is performed, the currently displayed image is generated while changing the zoom magnification stepwise. Image zooming means for sequentially displaying a plurality of stages of zoom images, wherein the storage device interprets a request signal sent from the device in use, and interprets image data stored in the storage device. At the time of reading, it is converted into image data of the resolution according to the request from the device in use, according to the result of interpretation by the interpretation means Image reading means for transferring the image data stored in the storage device to the storage device after the zooming of the image data already stored in the storage device is completed. The display is switched to the image data transferred by the reading means.

Another aspect of the network system according to the present invention is a network system in which a storage device for image data and a device to be used are connected, wherein the device to be used includes an image data display device that covers the entire range of the image displayed on the screen. Area specifying means for specifying an arbitrary partial area from among them, resolution specifying means for specifying an image to be displayed at a desired resolution, and partial area specified by the area specifying means or the resolution specifying means Request means for transferring the specified content as a request signal to the storage device via a network, and the image data already stored in the device in use while the image data is being read and transferred by the storage device By applying digital signal processing to image data, a multi-step image generated while changing the zoom magnification step by step for the currently displayed image Image storage means for sequentially displaying the zoom images, wherein the storage device reads the image data stored in the storage device by interpreting the request signal sent from the device in use. To
According to the result of the interpretation by the interpreting means, the image data corresponding to the partial area corresponding to the request from the device to be used is cut out or converted into image data having the resolution corresponding to the request from the device to be used, and the network is connected. Image reading means for transferring the image data to the use device through the use device, after the zooming of the image data already stored in the use device is completed, the image reading means of the storage device The display is switched to the transferred image data.

Since the present invention comprises the above technical means, when there is a request to display an image at a certain resolution in a device using the image data, the image data of the original resolution stored in the storage device is deleted. After the resolution is dynamically converted on the storage device, it is transferred to the device to be used.
As a result, it is possible to correspond to an image of each resolution only by storing the image data of the original resolution without having to separately create and store image data of various resolutions in advance.

According to another aspect of the present invention, when a request is made for use of a partial area in a device that uses image data, the entire image data is not transferred as a file, but is transmitted as a request. Only the image data of the existing partial area is dynamically cut out on the image data storage device and transferred to the device in use, thereby making it possible to reduce the amount of data to be transferred. Further, since a partial area of the image data is dynamically cut out, it is not necessary to create and store the image data assuming all the partial areas to be used in advance.

Further, by providing the image zooming means in the device using the image data, for example, between the time when the enlarged display of the image is instructed in the device using the image data and the time when the enlarged image is displayed at the correct resolution, Then, a state in which the image is gradually zoomed is displayed.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are block diagrams illustrating a configuration example of the network system according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the present embodiment, a server that stores large-scale image data (here, one that has a large number of image files and a large data amount of each image file), 1 shows a client-server system including a client that displays image data read from a client.

As shown in FIG. 1, the server machine includes a system control unit 1, a communication interface 2, an image input unit 3,
It includes a data interpretation unit 4, a data storage unit 5, a data cutout unit 6, a resolution conversion unit 7, a disk control unit 8, a hard disk (HDD) 9, and a disk library device (juke box) 10.

Here, the jukebox 10 includes a storage 13 for storing a plurality of magneto-optical disks (MO) 14, a plurality of optical disk drives 11, and an automatic change mechanism 12. The optical disk drive 11 writes and reads image data to and from the MO 14 stored in the storage 13.

The auto change mechanism 12 performs an exchange process of the MO 14 under the control of the disk control unit 8.
That is, the MO 14 specified by the disk control unit 8
From the storage 13 to load it into the corresponding optical disk drive 11 or to store the MO 14 loaded in the optical disk drive 11 specified by the disk control unit 8 in the storage 13.

Normally, each image data is composed of one MO
14 is stored as an image file. However, the amount of image data constituting one image file is one MO14
If the storage capacity exceeds the storage capacity of the MOs, the MOs are divided and stored. In the jukebox 10 configured as described above, the disk is exchanged in response to an instruction from the client, and the corresponding image file is read out via the disk control unit 8.

The system control unit 1 controls the entire server system.
It is stored in DD9. The communication interface 2 communicates image data and request signals with the client machine shown in FIG. 2 via a network. The image input unit 3 is for inputting image data to be stored in the jukebox 10, and for example, an image input device such as an image scanner or a video camera using a CCD is used.

The data interpreter 4 interprets the request signal sent from the client machine. The request signal includes, for example, a signal indicating a partial area designated as a part to be enlarged and displayed on an image currently displayed on the display screen of the client side. vice versa,
In some cases, the signal requests that the entire image be reduced and displayed in order to display the entire range of one image data. Also,
It may be a signal requesting that image data be displayed at a certain resolution. The data interpretation unit 4 interprets these request signals and transmits the result to the system control unit 1.

The data storage unit 5 stores the jukebox 10
And temporarily stores the image data read from the disk controller 8 via the disk controller 8. The data storage unit 5 may be shared by the HDD 9. The image data stored in the data storage unit 5 is used when processing is performed by the data cutout unit 6 and the resolution conversion unit 7. That is, the data storage unit 5 functions as a work memory for processing in the data cutout unit 6 and the resolution conversion unit 7.

The data cutout unit 6 converts the image data of a partial area interpreted by the data interpretation unit 4 from the entire range of image data read from the jukebox 10 and stored in the data storage unit 5. Perform cutout processing. Then, only the image data of the partial area thus cut out is supplied to the communication interface 2 and transferred to the client machine via the network.

The resolution converter 7 converts the image data read from the jukebox 10 and stored in the data storage 5 into image data having the resolution interpreted by the data interpreter 4. For example, when a request to display an image icon for searching for an image file, a coarse image for layout, or the like is made, a process of lowering the original resolution of the image data stored in the data storage unit 5, for example, a thinning process is performed. Then, the image data whose resolution has been converted in this way is supplied to the communication interface 2 and transferred to the client machine via the network.

Here, the process of lowering the resolution means lowering the DPI of the image data itself without changing the DPI (dots per inch) on the display. To tell. Similarly, the process of increasing the resolution means to enlarge and show an image.

The image data reading device of the present invention is included in the server machine in the case of the present embodiment, and mainly includes a system control unit 1, a communication interface 2, a data interpretation unit 4, a data extraction unit 6, It is composed of a resolution converter 7 and a disk controller 8.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, the client machine comprises a system control unit 15, a communication interface 1
6, image display unit 17, data storage unit 18, cut-out area designating unit 19, resolution designating unit 20, image zooming unit 2
1 and the HDD 22.

Here, the system control unit 15 controls the entire client system, and a program for that is stored in the HDD 22. The communication interface 16 communicates image data and request signals with the server machine shown in FIG. 1 via a network. The image display unit 17 is for displaying image data, and for example, a display device such as a CRT, an LCD, and a plasma display is used.

The data storage section 18 is for temporarily storing the image data currently displayed on the image display section 17. Note that the image data stored in the data storage unit 18 is used when the image zooming unit 21 performs a zoom process. The cutout area designating section 19 is for designating an arbitrary partial area from the entire range of the image displayed on the image display section 17.

As described above, for example, when there is a request to check a fine part in a photographic image or to refer to a specific part part in a drawing image in detail, a detailed image is displayed on the screen with the original accuracy. In order to enlarge and display the whole,
A desired area is specified using the cut-out area specifying unit 19. When a desired enlarged area is designated by the cut-out area designation unit 19, it is transferred as a request signal by the communication interface 16 to the server of FIG. 1 via the network.

The enlargement area can be specified, for example, by clicking the mouse at the center point of a desired rectangular area (similar to the display screen, and the similarity ratio is predetermined) or at a position at any one point. An operation may be performed, or a region having an arbitrary shape may be freely designated by a mouse drag operation or the like as a partial region to be enlarged.
The method of specifying the cutout area is not particularly limited here.

Further, the resolution designating section 20 includes the image display section 1
In step 7, the user designates an image to be displayed at a desired resolution. For example, when there is a request to display images at various resolutions, such as a low-resolution image such as an image icon for searching for an image file or a coarse image for layout, or a medium-resolution image representing the entire image, the resolution specifying unit 2
0 is used.

The resolution can be specified by directly specifying a plurality of resolutions (for example, high resolution, medium resolution, and low resolution) which are divided stepwise. Alternatively, a menu or an icon for instructing display of a message or the like may be designated by clicking the mouse. How to specify the resolution is not particularly limited here. When a desired resolution is designated by the resolution designation unit 20, the resolution is transferred as a request signal by the communication interface 16 to the server in FIG. 1 via the network.

The image zooming section 21 digitally converts an image of a partial area designated as an area to be enlarged and displayed by the cutout area designating section 19 based on the image data stored in the data storage section 18. A plurality of zoom images generated while changing the zoom magnification stepwise by signal processing are sequentially displayed. The details will be described later.

Next, the operation of the network system of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. First,
In the state where certain image data is displayed on the image display unit 17 on the client side in FIG.
When an area for enlarging and displaying details is designated, the area is transferred as a request signal to the server in FIG. 1 via the network.

On the server side, the transmitted request signal is interpreted by the data interpretation unit 4 and the result is transmitted to the system control unit 1. The system control unit 1 controls the data cutout unit 6 according to the result of the interpretation, and performs an image cutout process. At this time, the data cutout unit 6 selects, from the image data stored in the data storage unit 5, a partial area (the area specified by the cutout area specifying unit 19 of the client) interpreted by the data interpreting unit 4. A process of cutting out only image data is performed.

The image data of the partial area cut out in this way is supplied to the communication interface 2 and transferred to the client via the network. The image data of the partial area transferred from the server to the client is enlarged and displayed on the entire display screen of the image display unit 17. If it is desired to enlarge the image further, an enlarged area may be designated in the same manner. As a result, the user can check a detailed portion in the photographic image or refer to a specific component portion in the drawing image in detail.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when a request for enlarging and displaying a partial area is made on the client, the entirety of the corresponding image data is not transferred to a file, but
Only the image data of the requested partial area is dynamically cut out and transferred on the server. This allows
The amount of data to be transferred can be reduced, and the time required for transfer can be significantly reduced. As a result, it is possible to reduce the time from when the instruction for enlarged display is issued on the client to when the image is actually displayed. In particular, when the network connecting the server and the client is thin, the time can be greatly reduced.

Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, since a partial area of the image data is dynamically cut out, the image data is created by assuming all the partial areas to be enlarged and displayed in advance. It is not necessary to prepare an image file storing the detailed image data separately from the entire range of image files. Therefore, an arbitrary area can be freely enlarged and displayed without increasing the storage capacity on the server.

Next, the operation when one image is displayed at various resolutions will be described. First, when an image is designated to be displayed at a certain resolution by the resolution designation unit 20 on the client side in FIG. 2, it is transferred as a request signal to the server in FIG. 1 via a network.

On the server side, the transmitted request signal is interpreted by the data interpretation unit 4 and the result is transmitted to the system control unit 1. The system control unit 1 controls the resolution conversion unit 7 according to the result of the interpretation to convert the resolution of the image. At this time, the resolution conversion unit 7 performs a process of lowering the resolution using the image data of the original resolution stored in the data storage unit 5 so that the image has the required resolution.
For example, when displaying an image icon for searching for an image file or a coarse layout image, the resolution is reduced by performing a process such as thinning to form reduced image information.

The image data whose resolution has been converted in this way is supplied to the communication interface 2 and transferred to the client via the network. The image data transferred from the server to the client is displayed on the display screen of the image display unit 17.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when there is a request to display an image at various resolutions on the client, the resolution is dynamically changed on the server so that the image of the requested resolution is obtained. Conversion is performed and transferred. Accordingly, it is possible to deal with images of each resolution only by storing image data of the original resolution without separately creating and storing image data of various resolutions in advance. Therefore, images of various resolutions can be displayed as required without increasing the storage capacity on the server.

In the above embodiment, the image data cutout processing and the resolution conversion processing on the server are performed using the image data read from the jukebox 10 and stored in the data storage unit 5. But
A similar function is realized by reading out only necessary parts when reading image data from the jukebox 10 by cooperating the data cutout unit 6 and the disk control unit 8 and the resolution conversion unit 7 and the disk control unit 8. It is also possible.

As described above, the image data transferred from the server to the client is a part of the image file regardless of whether the details in the image are enlarged or displayed at various resolutions. Therefore, the transfer time can be shortened as compared with the related art, and the time from issuing an instruction on the client to actually displaying an image can be shortened. However, since a certain amount of processing time is still required, in addition to the above operations, in the present embodiment, the image zooming unit 21 is provided on the client side, and the following measures are taken.

That is, the image zooming section 21 performs image data (enlargement) stored in the data storage section 18 while reading and transferring the image data of the partial area designated as described above. By performing digital signal processing on the currently displayed image data in which the area to be displayed is specified, and generating a plurality of images generated while changing the zoom magnification stepwise for the currently displayed image of the partial area. Stepwise zoom images are sequentially displayed.

This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 (a)
Indicates an original image before image enlargement, and a rectangular frame A
Indicates a display window displayed on the entire display screen on which an image is displayed on the image display unit 17 or on a part of the screen (hereinafter, referred to as a display frame A). Note that FIG.
The characters of “Aioe ...” shown in (a)
Image data.

When an area to be enlarged and displayed is specified on the display image of FIG. 3A, the image in the specified area is subjected to digital signal processing.
(B) → (c) → (d), the image is gradually zoomed in and displayed. The image in FIG. 3D is the same as the image in FIG.
Since the image is generated by digital signal processing using the image itself, the resolution is coarse.

Thereafter, when zooming is completed as shown in FIG. 3D, the image shown in FIG. 3D is converted into an image having the correct resolution as shown in FIG. It is replaced and displayed. Note that, as shown in FIG. 3D, if the image has not been completely extracted from the server at the time when the zooming is completed, the image of FIG.

In this way, the image of the designated area is gradually zoomed between the time when the enlarged display is instructed on the client and the time when the zoom image is displayed at the correct resolution. Become like Therefore, the user can clearly grasp the target portion even after instructing the image enlargement, and can increase the bodily sensation speed of the image retrieval waiting time from the server,
The user's stress due to the processing waiting time can be reduced.

[0056]

As described above, the present invention converts image data stored in an image data storage device into image data having a resolution required by the device in use, and then converts the image data to the device in use via a network. I decided to transfer it,
Image data of the original resolution stored in the image data storage device is dynamically converted in resolution on the storage device in response to a request from the device in use, and is transferred to the device to be used. As a result, without having to separately create and store image data of various resolutions in advance, it is possible to deal with images of each resolution only by storing image data of the original resolution. Processing for displaying image data at various resolutions can be performed at high speed without increasing the storage capacity of the entire apparatus.

Further, from the entire range of one image data stored in the image data storage device, only data of an arbitrary partial area requested by the device to be used is cut out.
In the case where the image data is transferred to the device to be used via the network, only the image data of a partial area requested by the device using the image data is dynamically cut out on the storage device and transferred to the device to be used. Become like As a result, the amount of data to be transferred can be reduced, and the time required for transfer can be significantly reduced. Further, since a partial area of the image data is dynamically cut out, there is no need to create and store the image data assuming all the partial areas to be used in advance. Therefore, the process of enlarging and displaying an arbitrary part in the entire image with the original accuracy,
It can be performed at high speed without increasing the storage capacity.

Further, since an image zooming means for performing a zooming process while reading / transferring the image data is provided in a device which uses the image data, for example, after an enlarged image display is instructed, the image is enlarged. By the time the image is displayed at the correct resolution, it is possible to display a state in which the image is gradually zoomed in, the speed of waiting for image retrieval from the storage device can be increased, and the processing speed can be improved. The user's stress due to the waiting time can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a server machine that configures a network system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a client machine configuring a network system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a display example for explaining an operation of an enlarged image display.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 System control part 2 Communication interface 3 Image input part 4 Data interpretation part 5 Data storage part 6 Data extraction part 7 Resolution conversion part 8 Disk control part 9 HDD (hard disk) 10 Jukebox 11 Optical disk drive 12 Auto change mechanism 13 Storage 14 MO (Magneto-optical disk) 15 System control unit 16 Communication interface 17 Image display unit 18 Data storage unit 19 Cut-out area designation unit 20 Resolution designation unit 21 Image zooming unit 22 HDD (hard disk)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page F term (reference) 5B057 AA20 CD05 CH01 CH12 CH14 CH16 5B069 AA01 AA02 BA00 CA06 DB17 5C076 AA02 AA21 AA22 BB06 CA02 CB01 CB05

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A network system in which an image data storage device and a device to be used are connected, wherein the device to be used is a resolution specifying means for specifying an image to be displayed at a desired resolution, and the resolution specifying means. Requesting means for transferring the content specified by the above as a request signal to the storage device via a network; and while the image data is being read and transferred by the storage device, the content is already stored in the device in use. Image zooming means for sequentially displaying a plurality of zoom images generated while changing the zoom magnification stepwise for the currently displayed image by performing digital signal processing on the image data that is present, and the storage device, Interpreting means for interpreting the request signal sent from the device to be used, and image data stored in the storage device Image reading means for converting the image data into image data having a resolution in accordance with a request from the used device and transferring the image data to the used device via a network when reading out the image data. Wherein, after the zooming of the image data already stored in the used device is completed, the display is switched to the image data transferred by the image reading means of the storage device. Network system. 2. A network system in which an image data storage device and a device for use are connected, wherein the device for use specifies an arbitrary partial area from the entire range of an image displayed on a screen. An area specifying means for specifying an image to be displayed at a desired resolution; and a partial area specified by the area specifying means, or a content specified by the resolution specifying means as a request signal. Request means for transferring the image data to the storage device via the storage device, and performing digital signal processing on the image data already stored in the device for use while the image data is being read and transferred by the storage device. Image zooming that sequentially displays multiple stages of zoom images generated while changing the zoom magnification of the currently displayed image step by step And a storage device, wherein the storage device interprets the request signal sent from the device in use, and reads out the image data stored in the storage device, Accordingly, image data corresponding to a partial area according to the request from the used device is cut out or converted into image data having a resolution corresponding to the request from the used device, and transferred to the used device via a network. Image reading means for performing the processing, wherein the used device displays the image data transferred by the image reading means of the storage device after zooming of the image data already stored in the used device is completed. A network system characterized by switching.