JP2005294893A - Image distribution system - Google Patents

Abstract

To realize a system capable of easily and timely distributing an image existing on a route to a destination.
A large number of image files and position information transmitted from a mobile phone 14 of a user having a photographing function and a GPS function are stored in a storage unit 36 of a server 12. When a route search request is transmitted from the mobile phone 14, the route search unit 34 of the server 12 calculates the optimum route, the image information extraction unit 32 extracts the image file arranged on the route, and the position information is carried by the mobile phone. Send to phone 14. When the current position approaches the image position, the mobile phone 14 requests the server 12 to distribute the corresponding image file. When the image file is transmitted from the server 12, it is displayed on the display 26 of the mobile phone 14.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an image distribution technique, and in particular, a large number of landscape images to which position information is assigned are stored on the server side, and a portable terminal moving on a route connecting a starting point and a destination is provided on the route. The present invention relates to a system for delivering images arranged in a timely manner.

Recently, mobile phones equipped with a GPS (Global Positioning System) function have become widespread, and as shown in Non-Patent Document 1, users can be guided by maps and voices along the optimal route to the destination as in car navigation systems. Service to guide has appeared.
In addition, as shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2, an image taken using a mobile phone having a digital camera function and a GPS function is transmitted together with position information (latitude / longitude) and stored in the center. There has also been proposed a system in which a symbol indicating the presence is displayed on a map to deliver the image to a mobile phone in response to a request from another user.
(Not published for violation of public order and morals) [Search February 9, 2004] Internet URL: http://www.au.kddi.com/ezweb/au_dakara/ez_naviwalk/ JP 2002-323881 A JP 2003-204297 A

Certainly, the navigation system as shown in Non-Patent Document 1 can guide the user from the departure place to the destination.
However, with conventional navigation systems, roads, buildings, and characters are condensed and displayed on a narrow screen of a mobile phone, so the visibility is extremely poor and it is difficult to imagine the route to reach the destination. It was. Specifically, there are many cases where the scenery in front of the eyes and the map on the screen are not linked, and it is anxious whether the person is walking on the right road.
Further, according to the technique of Patent Document 1 or 2, it is possible to specify a specific point and obtain an image of the place, but specify an image existing on the route to the destination individually for distribution. It is too complicated to receive.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described conventional problems, and realizes a system capable of easily and timely distributing an image existing on a route to a destination to a user. It is aimed.

In order to achieve the above object, an image distribution system according to claim 1 is an image distribution system including a mobile terminal operated by a user and a server connected to the mobile terminal via a network including a wireless communication network. The portable terminal captures an image, a means for acquiring position information of the portable terminal, a display, an input means, a means for transmitting the captured image file and its position information to a server, and a display. A means for displaying a screen for inputting a departure point and a destination on the top, and transmitting the input departure point and destination to the server, and searching for an image arranged on a route connecting the departure point and the destination. And the storage means for storing the position information of the image transmitted from the server, the current position information and the position information of each image are compared, and both are within a predetermined distance. A means for requesting the server to distribute the image, and a means for displaying the image distributed from the server on the display, wherein the server receives the position information of the image file transmitted from the portable terminal. Means for storing in association with the storage means, means for searching for a route connecting the departure point and the destination transmitted from the mobile terminal, means for extracting an image located within a predetermined distance with respect to the route, Means for transmitting the position information of each image to the mobile terminal, and means for extracting the image file and distributing it to the mobile terminal when an image distribution request at a specific position is transmitted from the mobile terminal It is characterized by.
The image distribution system according to claim 2 is an image distribution system including a server connected to a portable terminal operated by a user via a network including a wireless communication network, wherein the server is the portable terminal. When the image file and its position information are transmitted from the device, the image file is associated with the position information and stored in the storage means, and the mobile terminal transmits information specifying the departure place and the destination. Means for searching for a route connecting the starting point and the destination, means for extracting an image located within a predetermined distance with respect to the route, means for transmitting position information of each image to the portable terminal, And a means for extracting a corresponding image file and distributing it to a portable terminal when a request for distribution of an image at a specific position is transmitted from the terminal.

  According to this image delivery system, an image file existing on the route from the departure place to the destination is automatically delivered to the mobile terminal as the user moves, and is displayed on the display. The user can intuitively recognize that the road is correct by comparing the image in front of the eyes with the image.

The image distribution system according to claim 3 is based on the system according to claim 1 or 2, and the server further includes means for associating the date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal and storing the information in the storage means; When there are a plurality of image files at a position, the image file is extracted when a request for distributing images of a specific order at the position is transmitted from the portable terminal and means for arranging the image files in order of date and time. And a means for delivering to a mobile terminal.
As described above, when a plurality of image files are registered at the same location, it is possible to confirm the change of the cityscape by providing a mechanism for distributing the image files in time series.

An image distribution system according to a fourth aspect is based on the system according to the first to third aspects, wherein the server further associates date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal and stores the information in the storage means; Based on the date and time information of the file, when a request for searching for an image specifying the season is transmitted from the portable terminal and a means for adding information specifying the season to the image file, an image file matching the season is extracted. And a means for transmitting the position information of each image to the portable terminal.
In heavy snowfall areas and the like, the scenery varies greatly depending on the season, so it is effective to screen the image files distributed to the mobile terminal according to the season.

An image distribution system according to claim 5 is based on the system according to claims 1 to 4, and further, the server associates the date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal, and stores the information in the storage unit; Based on the date and time information of the file, an image file matching the time zone when a means for adding information specifying the time zone to the image file and a distribution request for an image specifying the time zone are transmitted from the portable terminal And a means for transmitting the position information of each image to the portable terminal.
Even in the same place, since the appearance of the scenery varies depending on the time zone, it is effective to screen the image files to be distributed to the mobile terminal according to the time zone.

An image distribution system according to a sixth aspect is based on the system according to the first and third to fifth aspects, wherein the portable terminal further transmits information for identifying the user together with the image file to the server, and relates to the specific user. Means for transmitting an image distribution request to a server and means for displaying an image relating to a specific user distributed from the server on a display, wherein the server displays information specifying the user transmitted from the mobile terminal. Means for storing in association with the file in the storage means, and means for extracting the image file associated with the user and distributing to the portable terminal when a distribution request for the image file relating to the specific user is transmitted from the portable terminal It is characterized by having.
As a result, the user can browse only the image that he / she photographed and transmitted to the server on the portable terminal, and can use this system as his / her action record.

  The image distribution system according to claim 7 is based on the system according to claims 1 and 3 to 6, and the server further calculates a distance between images arranged on the route, Means for transmitting the distance information to the portable terminal, and the portable terminal is provided with means for displaying a distance to an image displayed next to the currently displayed image on a display.

  An image distribution system according to an eighth aspect is based on the systems of the first and third to seventh aspects, and further, between the images in which the mobile terminal is arranged on the route based on the position information of the image file transmitted from the server. And a means for displaying on the display the distance to the image displayed next to the image currently being displayed.

As shown in FIG. 1, an image distribution system 10 according to the present invention includes a server 12 and a large number of mobile phones 14.
Each mobile phone 14 includes a control unit 16, a communication processing unit 18, a position information acquisition unit 20, a photographing unit 22, an input unit 24, and a display (LCD) 26.
The control unit 16 is realized by the CPU of the mobile phone 14 executing necessary processing according to a dedicated application program.
The position information acquisition unit 20 includes a GPS receiving unit, for example, and has a function of receiving a signal from a GPS satellite and extracting latitude / longitude information of the current location.
The photographing unit 22 includes a CCD or a CMOS sensor and has a function of capturing image data.
The input unit 24 includes a keyboard and a touch panel for inputting text data and selection commands.

The server 12 includes an image information registration unit 30, an image information extraction unit 32, a route search unit 34, a user database 35, and an image information storage unit 36.
The image information registration unit 30, the image information extraction unit 32, and the route search unit 34 are realized by the CPU of the server 12 executing necessary processes according to the OS and a dedicated application program.
Further, the user database 35 and the image information storage unit 36 are provided in the hard disk of the server 12.
The image information storage unit 36 includes an attribute information database 38 and an image file storage unit 40.

In the case of this image distribution system 10, it is assumed that a large number of landscape images are stored in the server 12 through the mobile phone 14 of each user and distributed to the mobile phone 14 of another user.
Hereinafter, a procedure for accumulating landscape images will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, the user activates a dedicated application program set up in the mobile phone 14 (S10), and selects “2. Take / post image” from the service menu screen 42 shown in FIG. 3 (S12).
As a result, the camera function of the mobile phone 14 is activated, and the user takes a picture of a place that is closely related to or impressed by the photographing unit 22 (S14).
On the other hand, the control unit 16 receives position information (latitude / longitude) at the time of photographing from the position information acquisition unit 20 and also acquires current date and time information from a clock circuit (not shown) (S16), as shown in FIG. A confirmation screen 44 is displayed on the display 26 (S18).

On the display 26, as shown in the figure, the position information 48, the shooting date / time information 50, the photographer information 52, and the processing menu 54 are displayed together with the taken landscape image 46.
In “Photographer”, the name of the user set in advance in the application program is displayed.
On the other hand, when the user selects “1. Register with this content” in the menu (S20), the control unit 16 attaches necessary attribute information to the captured image file and outputs it to the communication processing unit 18.
The attribute information attached to the image file includes a user ID, name, position information, date information, and the like.
The communication processing unit 18 transmits these pieces of information to the server 12 through the communication network 42 including the wireless packet network of the communication carrier and the Internet (S22).

In response to this, the image information registration unit 30 of the server 12 checks and authenticates the user database 35 (S24), then saves the image file in the image file storage unit 40 (S26), and stores its attribute information. Register in the attribute information database 38 (S28).
FIG. 5 shows an example of data items in the attribute information database 38. The user ID, the photographer name, the shooting date, the shooting position, the image title, the memo information, the season, the time zone, the image file, with the image ID at the top. A storage location (path) is set.
In the “season” item, the image information registration unit 30 records the season (spring, summer, autumn, winter, etc.) to which the shooting date belongs.
In the item “time zone”, the image information registration unit 30 records the time zone (daytime, evening, nighttime, etc.) to which the shooting date belongs.
Note that since the clock of the mobile phone 14 may be out of order, the shooting date and time can be corrected on the server 12 side.
Since the image title and memo information are not indispensable data items, they remain blank when the user does not set them with the mobile phone 14.

When the user selects “3. Input memo information” on the confirmation screen of FIG. 4A, a memo input screen 56 is displayed as shown in FIG. 4B.
On the other hand, when the user inputs memo information via the input unit 24 and selects the “register” button 58, the memo information is transmitted to the server 12 as part of the attribute information, and the image information registration unit 30 sets the attribute information. Stored in database 38.
When the user selects “2. Enter title” on the confirmation screen of FIG. 4A, a title input field is displayed on the screen (not shown).
On the other hand, when the user inputs a title via the input unit 24 and selects the “Register” button, the title is transmitted to the server 12 as part of the attribute information, and is stored in the attribute information database 38 by the image information registration unit 30. Stored.

Next, a procedure for distributing image data to the user will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 6 and 7.
First, the user activates a dedicated application program on the mobile phone 14 (S30), and selects “3. Use of navigation” in the service menu of FIG. 3 (S32).
As a result, as shown in FIG. 8A, a route setting screen 60 for inputting “starting place” and “destination” is displayed on the display 26 (S34).
By default, the current location is set as the “departure”, the home of the user registered in advance as the “destination”, or the last input destination is set.

On the other hand, the user can change the starting point and the destination by selecting the respective “change” buttons 61 and 62.
For example, when the user selects the “change” button 61 for the destination (S36), a transmission request for the destination change screen is transmitted from the control unit 16 to the server 12 (S40).
In response to this, the route search unit 34 of the server 12 transmits a screen for changing the destination (S72). Although not shown in the figure, on the display 26 "select by address", "select by phone number", Selection buttons such as “Public facilities”, “Transport facilities”, “Hotels”, “Amusement facilities” are displayed.
If you select “Hotel” from these, the “Prefecture” selection screen is displayed. If you select “Tokyo” from the listed prefectures, the hotel names are listed in alphabetical order. The
When the user selects “Tokyo Hotel” from among these, the Tokyo hotel is displayed in the destination column (S44).

The user who has completed the setting of the starting point and the destination selects the “search start” button 63.
As a result, the control unit 16 generates a route search request for specifying the departure point and the destination, and transmits the route search request to the server 12 via the communication processing unit 18 (S46).
In response to this, the route search unit 34 of the server 12 calculates the optimum route from the departure point to the destination according to a predetermined algorithm (S48), and outputs the coordinate data to the image information extraction unit 32.
On the other hand, the image information extraction unit 32 extracts image information (image information having position information within a predetermined distance with respect to the coordinates of the optimum route) from the attribute information database 38 on the optimum route (S50). The result is transmitted to the mobile phone 14 (S52).

In response to this, a search result screen 64 is displayed on the display 26 of the mobile phone 14 as shown in FIG. 8B (S54).
When the user selects the “start guidance” button 65, a guidance start request is transmitted from the control unit 16 to the server 12 (S56).
Receiving this, the image information extraction unit 32 transmits the position information associated with each image to the mobile phone 14 (S58).

The control unit 16 of the mobile phone 14 stores the transmitted position information of each image in the memory (S60).
Further, the control unit 16 periodically acquires the current position information output from the position information acquisition unit 20 (S62).
Then, the control unit 16 monitors the transition of the current position information, and requests the server 12 to distribute the image when the position information of the image approaches a certain distance or less (S66). ).

Receiving this, the image information extraction unit 32 of the server 12 extracts the image file and its attribute information and transmits them to the mobile phone 14 (S68).
As a result, as shown in FIG. 9A, the display screen 66 of the landscape image to be targeted next is displayed on the display 26 of the mobile phone 14 (S70).
For this reason, the user can intuitively confirm whether or not his / her walking path is correct by comparing the landscape image delivered in a timely manner with movement and the landscape in front of him / her. it can.
The landscape image distribution request processing (S66), distribution processing (S68), and display processing (S70) are continued until the user arrives at the destination (S72).

When the user selects the “next” button 67 at a certain point, a distribution request for the image is transmitted from the control unit 16 to the server 12, and a landscape image to be displayed next is distributed from the image information extraction unit 32. .
For this reason, the user can confirm the landscape image set on the route in advance by selecting the “next” button 67 one after another, and can recognize the traveling direction at the branch point.
Further, the distance 68 to the point where the next image is displayed is displayed on the screen. The distance between the images is calculated by the control unit 16 of the mobile phone 14 based on the position information of each image. Alternatively, the image information extraction unit 32 of the server 12 can calculate the distance between the images in advance and transmit the data to the mobile phone 14.
When the user selects the “detail” button 69 in a state where a specific image is displayed on the display 26, as shown in FIG. 9B, a detail screen 70 describing the photographer and memo information is displayed as an image information extraction unit. 32, and displayed on the display 26.

When a plurality of image files are registered at the same point, the image information extraction unit 32, in principle, distributes the image file with the newest shooting date preferentially.
On the other hand, the user can request the server 12 to distribute the previous image file by selecting the “past” button 71 in a state where a specific image is displayed on the display 26.
Receiving this, the image information extraction unit 32 extracts the corresponding image file from the image file storage unit 40 and distributes it to the mobile phone 14.
Therefore, the user can browse the scenery in this area retrospectively by selecting the “past” button 71 one after another at the same point, and can use the cityscape as a fixed point observation.
In order to return to the latest scenery, the “latest” button 72 may be selected.

The user can also display on the display 26 only landscape images of an arbitrary season or time zone.
That is, when the user selects the “set season / time zone” button 73 on the route setting screen 60 in FIG. 8A, the season is transferred from the image information extraction unit 32 to the mobile phone 14 as shown in FIG. 8C. A time zone setting screen 74 is transmitted and displayed on the display 26.
By default, “autumn”, which is the current season, is set as “season”, and “daytime”, which is the current time zone, is set as “time zone”.
On the other hand, the user can change the season and time zone by selecting the respective “change” buttons 75 and 76 and calling a change screen (not shown).

The user who has completed the setting of the season and the time zone selects the “setting” button 77, returns to the route setting screen 60, and selects the “search start” button 63.
As a result, a route search request for specifying the departure place, destination, season, and time zone is generated by the control unit 16 and transmitted to the server 12 via the communication processing unit 18.
Receiving this, the route search unit 34 of the server 12 calculates the optimum route from the departure point to the destination, and outputs the coordinate data to the image information extraction unit 32.
On the other hand, the image information extraction unit 32 extracts, from the attribute information database 38, image information that matches the designated season and time zone from the image information existing on the optimum route, and the result is the mobile phone 14 Send to.
As a result, only the landscape image in the season and time zone specified by the user is displayed on the display 26 of the mobile phone 14, and the night view of the date course can be confirmed during the daytime, or the winter season of the tourist spot before the season It is possible to enjoy the scenery.

This image distribution system 10 can naturally be used in combination with the navigation system disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1 described above.
That is, this navigation system realizes the setting of the optimum route from the departure point to the destination, the distribution of map data, the distribution of narration information, and the like, and the distribution of image information by the image distribution system 10 is executed in parallel with this. Thus, the user confirms the route and the current position on the map displayed on the display 26, and when the user approaches the place where the image information is arranged, the local landscape image is displayed on the display 26. You will be able to confirm this intuitively.

In the case of the image distribution system 10, it is important to store landscape images relating to all points in the image information storage unit 36.
To this end, the system administrator can collect many landmark and building images and store them in the image information storage unit 36 in advance, but some incentive is provided for the image provider. By doing so, it is effective to have as many landscape images as possible posted from general users.

For example, when the user selects “4. View own action record” on the service menu screen 42 of FIG. 3, a distribution request for image information taken by the user is output from the control unit 16 to the server 12.
Upon receiving this, the image information extraction unit 32 of the server 12 refers to the attribute information database 38, extracts the image file associated with the user from the image file storage unit 40, and transmits it to the mobile phone 14.
As a result, on the display 26 of the mobile phone 14, as shown in FIG. 10, display screens 78 of landscape images taken by the user so far are displayed in chronological order.
That is, the user can use the system 10 as his / her own action record, and it can be expected that the user will actively post a landscape image as an encouragement.

  In the above, the mobile phone 14 is exemplified as the user terminal. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a personal digital assistant function (PDA) having a digital camera function, a GPS function, and a wireless Internet connection function. It is also possible to adopt a device equipped with a dedicated application program as a user terminal.

It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of the image delivery system which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence when a user accumulate | stores a landscape image in an image information storage part. It is a layout figure which shows a service menu screen. It is a layout figure which shows a confirmation screen and a memo input screen. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of a data item of an attribute information database. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence at the time of delivering image data with respect to a user. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence at the time of delivering image data with respect to a user. FIG. 5 is a layout diagram showing a route setting screen, a search result screen, and a season / time zone setting screen. It is a layout diagram showing a landscape image display screen and a detail screen. It is a layout figure which shows the example of a display of an own action record.

Explanation of symbols

10 Image distribution system
12 servers
14 Mobile phone
16 Control unit
18 Communication processor
20 Shooting section
24 Input section
26 display
30 Image information registration section
32 Image information extraction unit
34 Route search part
35 User database
36 Image information storage
38 Attribute information database
40 Image file storage
42 Service menu
44 Confirmation screen
46 Landscape image
48 Location information
50 Date and time information
52 Photographer information
54 Processing menu
56 Memo input screen
58 Register button
60 Route setting screen
61 "Change" button for departure location
62 Destination "Change" button
63 “Search” button
64 Search result screen
65 “Guidance start” button
66 Landscape image display screen
67 “Next” button
68 Distance to the point where the next image is displayed
69 Details button
70 Detailed screen
71 Past button
72 "Latest" button
73 “Set Season / Time” button
74 Season / Time Zone Settings Screen
75 Seasonal Change button
76 Change button for time zone
77 Settings button
78 Display screen of landscape images related to own action records

Claims (8)

An image distribution system comprising a mobile terminal operated by a user and a server connected to the mobile terminal via a network including a wireless communication network,
The mobile device
Means for taking an image;
Means for obtaining location information of the mobile terminal;
Display,
Input means;
Means for transmitting the captured image file and its position information to the server;
Means for displaying a screen for inputting a starting point and a destination on the display;
Means for transmitting the input starting point and destination to the server and requesting a search for an image arranged on a route connecting the starting point and the destination;
Storage means for storing image position information transmitted from the server;
Means for comparing the current position information with the position information of each image, and requesting the server to deliver the image when both approaches within a predetermined distance;
Means for displaying the image distributed from the server on the display,
The server
Means for associating the image file transmitted from the portable terminal with the location information and storing it in the storage means;
Means for searching for a route connecting the starting point and the destination transmitted from the mobile terminal;
Means for extracting an image located within a predetermined distance with respect to the route;
Means for transmitting the position information of each image to the mobile terminal;
An image distribution system comprising: means for extracting a corresponding image file and distributing the image file to a portable terminal when a distribution request for the image at a specific position is transmitted from the portable terminal. An image distribution system including a server connected to a mobile terminal operated by a user via a network including a wireless communication network,
The server
Means for storing the image file in the storage means in association with the position information when the image file and its position information are transmitted from the portable terminal;
Means for searching for a route connecting the departure point and the destination when the information specifying the departure point and the destination is transmitted from the mobile terminal;
Means for extracting an image located within a predetermined distance with respect to the route;
Means for transmitting the position information of each image to the mobile terminal;
An image distribution system comprising: means for extracting a corresponding image file and distributing the image file to a portable terminal when a distribution request for the image at a specific position is transmitted from the portable terminal. The server
Means for associating the date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal and storing it in the storage means;
Means for arranging each image file in chronological order when there are a plurality of image files at a specific position;
The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a unit that extracts a corresponding image file and distributes the image file to a portable terminal when a distribution request for the image of a specific order at the position is transmitted from the portable terminal. Image distribution system. The server
Means for associating the date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal and storing it in the storage means;
Means for adding information identifying seasons to the image file based on the date and time information of the image file;
When a search request for an image specifying a season is transmitted from a mobile terminal, the image processing apparatus includes means for extracting an image file that matches the season and transmitting position information of each image to the mobile terminal. The image delivery system in any one of Claims 1-3. The server
Means for associating the date and time information with the image file transmitted from the portable terminal and storing it in the storage means;
Means for adding information specifying a time zone to the image file based on the date and time information of the image file;
And a means for extracting an image file matching the time zone and transmitting the position information of each image to the mobile device when a delivery request for an image specifying the time zone is transmitted from the portable terminal. The image delivery system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The mobile device
Means for transmitting information identifying the user together with the image file to the server;
Means for transmitting an image distribution request for a specific user to a server;
Means for displaying on the display an image relating to a specific user distributed from the server,
The server
Means for associating information identifying the user transmitted from the portable terminal with the image file and storing in the storage means;
2. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for extracting an image file associated with the user and distributing the image file to the portable terminal when a distribution request for the image file relating to the specific user is transmitted from the portable terminal. The image delivery system according to any one of 3 to 5. The server
Means for calculating a distance between images arranged on the route;
Means for transmitting the calculated distance information between the images to the mobile terminal,
The mobile device
7. The image distribution system according to claim 1, further comprising means for displaying on a display a distance to an image displayed next to an image currently being displayed. The mobile device
Means for calculating a distance between images arranged on the route based on position information of the image file transmitted from the server;
8. The image distribution system according to claim 1, further comprising means for displaying a distance to an image displayed next to an image currently displayed on a display.

Images