JP2007213184A - Retrieval device, retrieval method, and retrieval program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and quickly input retrieval conditions to a retrieving device for retrieving a desired data group from among a data group where digital image data such as electronic photographs are classified based on attributes. <P>SOLUTION: An image data retrieval device 1 is provided with a data input means 50 for inputting a plurality of data groups; a period designating means 62 for designating one or more periods whose dates are the same, and whose years and months are continuously different when the start year, the end year, the start month, the end month, the start date and the end date are input among information relating to dates to designate periods; a region designating means 64 for, when a region on the map is designated, designating information showing the position corresponding to the region on the map; an image manager designating means 66 for designating a person who manages the data group; and a retrieval result display means 56 for displaying an image shown by the digital image data of the retrieved data group. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a search device, a search method, and a search program for searching for a desired data group from a data group in which digital image data such as an electronic photograph is classified by attributes.

  As a method for searching for a desired image from a large number of digital images taken by a digital camera or the like, as described in Patent Document 1 below, date information added to each image or individual A character string was input using the above information as a search condition, and a digital image satisfying the input search condition was searched.

JP 11-66089 A

  However, since the input of such search conditions is performed by inputting the search conditions as a character string, when inputting a modified date, or when inputting the place where the image was taken, the data input becomes complicated, and the data It took time to input.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the search device according to the present invention is classified by metadata having information on at least the date and time when the image was taken, the place where the image was taken, and the manager of the taken data, and one or more digital images. Among the data input means for inputting a plurality of data groups including data and the information on the date specifying the period, the start year, end year, start month, end month, start date and end date are respectively input. By specifying the period designation means for designating one or more periods having the same date and different years and months, and the area on the map, the area on the map is designated. Search area designating means for designating information indicating the corresponding position, administrator designating means for designating a person managing the data group, date and time of shooting and location of the metadata Is included in the designated period and the designated area, and a data group in which the administrator included in the metadata matches the designated person is included in the plurality of data groups. Search means, and display means for displaying an image indicated by the digital image data included in the searched data group.

  According to the present invention, when the search condition is input, the start year, the end year, the start month, the end month, the start date, and the end date are input, so that the dates are the same, and the year and month are continuous. In addition to being able to specify a modified period such as specifying one or more different periods, it is also possible to specify a position corresponding to the indicated area by specifying an area on the map, so that the desired data Search conditions for searching for groups can be input easily and quickly.

  In the present invention, the period specifying means includes a first input field for inputting a start year and an end year, a second input field for inputting a start month and an end month, a start date and an end date. A calendar list indicated on a calendar, and the period is designated from the start date to the end date of each month from the start month to the end month from the start year to the end year It is preferable.

  According to the present invention, since the schedule for designating the period is input in the field or calendar list, necessary information can be visually input.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the search area designating unit indicates an area on the map included in the frame by indicating an area on the map with a frame having a variable size.

  According to the present invention, designation of a search area can be visually input by designating a map on a frame.

  In the present invention, the display means may display the image and the location where the image was taken in association with each other.

  The present invention further includes keyword specifying means for specifying a keyword that characterizes the data group, and the search means further includes the data group including the keyword in the metadata from the searched data group. It is preferable to search.

  According to the present invention, a keyword search is further added as a search condition, so that the search accuracy can be improved.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a search method of the present invention is a method for executing a search for digital image data using a computer, and at least the date and time when the image was taken, the place where the image was taken, and the management of the taken data Data entry process in which a plurality of data groups including one or more digital image data are input, and information on the date specifying the period, start date, end year , A start month, an end month, a start date and an end date, respectively, so that the date is the same and the year and month are continuously different from each other, and a period specifying step for specifying one or more periods By specifying the upper area, a search area designating process for designating information indicating a position corresponding to the area on the map, and a person managing the data group Information on the date and place where the metadata was taken and the specified area and the specified area, and the administrator included in the metadata; and A search step for searching a data group that matches the specified person from the plurality of data groups; and a display step for displaying an image indicated by the digital image data included in the searched data group. It is characterized by providing.

  According to the present invention, when the search condition is input, the start year, the end year, the start month, the end month, the start date, and the end date are input, so that the dates are the same, and the year and month are continuous. In addition to being able to specify a modified period such as specifying one or more different periods, it is also possible to specify a position corresponding to the indicated area by specifying an area on the map, so that the desired data Search conditions for searching for groups can be input easily and quickly.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the search program of the present invention is classified by metadata having information on at least the date and time of shooting, the shooting location and the manager of the shot data, and one or more digital images Among the data input procedure for inputting multiple data groups including data and the information on the date specifying the period, the start year, end year, start month, end month, start date and end date are input respectively. By specifying the period designation procedure for designating one or more periods having the same date and different years and months, and the area on the map, the area on the map is designated. A search area designating procedure for designating information indicating the corresponding position, an administrator designating procedure for designating a person managing the data group, and the date and time of photographing that the metadata has. And the location information is included in the designated period and the designated area, and the data group in which the administrator included in the metadata matches the designated person is the plurality of data groups. And a display procedure for displaying an image indicated by digital image data included in the retrieved data group.

  According to the present invention, when the search condition is input, the start year, the end year, the start month, the end month, the start date, and the end date are input, so that the dates are the same, and the year and month are continuous. In addition to being able to specify a modified period such as specifying one or more different periods, it is also possible to specify a position corresponding to the indicated area by specifying an area on the map, so that the desired data Search conditions for searching for groups can be input easily and quickly.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described using an image data search apparatus 1 that searches for a desired data group from a plurality of data groups including a plurality of digital image data.
(Embodiment)

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of an image data search apparatus 1 for digital image data indicating electrophotographic data. This image data search device 1 is classified by metadata having information on the date and time when the image was taken, and is input from among a plurality of data groups including one or more digital image data. It has a function of searching a corresponding data group using personal information or the like as a search condition and displaying an image indicated by the digital image data of the searched data group. The hardware configuration of the image data search apparatus 1 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 12, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 16, a storage device 18, an input I / F (Interface). ) 14 and a graphics subsystem 20. These hardwares are connected by a bus 30 so that each signal can be transmitted and received. Furthermore, these hardware are managed by the basic software BIOS (Basic Input Output System) and an operating system (OS), and under these management, various hardware including drivers stored in the ROM 16 and the storage device 18 are included. A predetermined function is executed by software.

  The CPU 10 reads various programs such as basic software and device drivers of each device connected to the input I / F 14, application software, and various data from the ROM 16 and the storage device 18, and these are main memories provided in the RAM 12. Deploy to the area and execute. The storage device 18 is a device that stores information in a readable and writable manner, and for example, a hard disk drive or a flash memory can be adopted.

  A memory card reader 24, a cradle 22 and an operation input device 26 are connected to the input I / F 14 in accordance with a predetermined standard. The memory card reader 24 can read various data stored in the memory card 38 by mounting a memory card 38 having a flash memory therein, such as an SD memory card (registered trademark). For example, the memory card 38 stores a data group in which a plurality of digital image data photographed by the digital camera 36 or the like is classified by metadata, and the memory card 38 is attached to the memory card reader 24. Thus, a data group including digital image data can be read. The cradle 22 is a stand-type connection device. In the present embodiment, the digital camera 36 is installed at a predetermined position on the cradle 22, so that the cradle 22 is electrically connected to the digital camera 36, and the digital camera 36 takes a picture. Then, a data group including digital image data classified by the metadata and stored in the digital camera 36 can be read. The operation input device 26 is a device for instructing the operation of the image data search device 1, and specifically, a mouse, a wireless remote controller, or the like can be employed.

  The graphics subsystem 20 includes a graphics chip, a graphics memory, and the like, and outputs an image signal to the image display device 28. The image display device 28 is a display device such as a liquid crystal panel, and displays an image indicated by an image signal output from the graphics subsystem 20. The image display device 28 is not limited to a display device such as a liquid crystal panel, and can be applied to a front projector, a rear projection television, or the like.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the image data search apparatus 1. The image data search apparatus 1 includes a data input unit 50, a search unit 54, a search result display unit 56, and a search condition input unit 60. The search condition input unit 60 includes a period specifying unit 62, an area specifying unit 64, an image manager specifying unit 66, and a keyword specifying unit 68.

  The data input unit 50 receives a data group of digital image data of a plurality of electrophotographic images taken by an electronic photographing device such as the digital camera 36. This data group has metadata indicating attribute information, is classified in advance by the metadata, and is input via the memory card 38 or the cradle 22. Note that this metadata includes at least information on the date and time of shooting, location data such as latitude and longitude, and information on the manager of the shot image data. Information and information about the subject are included as necessary. The data group input here is sent to the search means 54.

  The period designating unit 62 designates a search condition related to the date of shooting when searching for a data group. Specifically, by entering the start date, end year, start month, end month, start date, and end date for the period that includes the date and time of shooting, the dates are the same, and the year and month Different periods are designated in succession. This period specifying means 62 is displayed on the image display device 28 as a search condition input screen 160 (FIG. 4) having a function as a window-type GUI (Graphical User Interface), and the user visually selects the date. Can be entered. The input by the period specifying means 62 will be described later.

  The area designating unit 64 designates a search condition related to the place where the image was taken when searching for a data group. Specifically, information indicating the position corresponding to the region on the map is designated by designating the region on the map. The area specifying means 64 is displayed on the image display device 28 as a search area specifying screen 80 (FIG. 5) having a function as a window-type GUI, and the user can visually specify the search area. The designation by the area designation unit 64 will be described later.

  When searching for a data group, the image manager specifying means 66 specifies a search condition related to the manager who manages the data group. The image manager specifying means 66 is displayed on the image display device 28 as a search condition input screen 160 (FIG. 4), and the user can select a person to search as an administrator from selectable items. This selection by the image manager specifying means 66 will be described later.

  When searching for a data group, the keyword specifying means 68 specifies a search condition related to a predetermined keyword such as an event name or a subject included in the data group. The keyword specifying means 68 is displayed on the image display device 28 as a search condition input screen 160 (FIG. 4), and the user can select a keyword to be searched from items that can be selected with respect to the event name and the photographing target. The selection by the keyword specifying means 68 will be described later.

  The search means 54 extracts a data group satisfying various search conditions input by the search condition input means 60 from the data group sent from the data input means 50 by, for example, full text search. Specifically, the date is taken on the date included in the search condition designated by the period designating means 62, and is photographed at a point included in the search condition designated by the area designating means 64. When the administrator matches the person specified by the image manager specifying means 66 and a keyword is specified, a data group including the keyword in the metadata of the data group is input from the data input means 50. Is extracted from the collected data group. Information relating to the data group extracted by the search means 54 is sent to the search result display means 56.

  The search result display means 56 displays the image indicated by the digital image data included in this data group on the image display device 28 in accordance with the information regarding the data group sent from the search means 54. As shown in the search result display screen 200 (FIG. 6), the image to be displayed is displayed in a window showing the location where the data group was photographed on the map. Details regarding this display will be described later.

  The functional units of the image data search apparatus 1 for digital image data have been described above. These functions are realized by organic cooperation between the hardware resources and software described above.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of image data search processing in the image data search apparatus 1, and will be described according to this flowchart. In order to facilitate the explanation and understanding of this process, FIG. 4 showing the search condition input screen 160, FIG. 5 showing the search area designation screen 80, and FIG. 6 showing the search result display screen 200 are also referred to.

  First, when the process is started, a data input step is executed, and a data group of digital image data is input to the data input means 50 (step S100).

  Subsequently, a period specifying step is executed, and a first dialog box for specifying a period for searching, that is, the search condition input screen 160 of FIG. 4 is displayed on the image display device 28 (step S102). Subsequently, the user designates a search period by date from the search condition input screen 160 of the first dialog box (step S104).

Here, the period specifying means 62 on the search condition input screen 160 will be described with reference to FIG. The period specifying means 62 includes a first input field 162 for inputting a start year and an end year, a second input field 164 for inputting a start month and an end month, and a calendar list 165. . Here, the first input field 162 and the second input field 164 are configured by a list box having a pull-down menu, and the user can select a desired start year and end year from the selections displayed in the list box. You can select the start month and end month. The calendar list 165 displays a list of dates, and the user selects a start date and an end date so that the date period 166 sandwiched between them is displayed in gray. Note that the period input here is a period with the same date and different years and months. Specifically, it is designated from the start date to the end date of each month from the start month to the end month from the start year to the end year. For example, the start year is “1990”, the end year is “1992”, the start month is “12” and the end month is “2”, the start date is “8”, and the end date is “14” In this case, the period designating unit 62 designates the period to be searched as follows.
January 8, 1990-January 14, 1990 February 8, 1990-February 14, 1990 December 8, 1990-December 14, 1990 January 8, 1991-January 1991 14th February 1991-February 14, 1991 December 8, 1991-December 14, 1991 January 8, 1992-January 14, 1992 February 8, 1992-1992 February 14, December 1992-December 14, 1992

  Next, the user presses a map button 176 that is arranged on the search condition input screen 160 and calls a map (step S106). As a result, the search area designating step is executed, and the second dialog box for designating the search area on the map, that is, the search area designating screen 80 of FIG. 5 is displayed on the image display device 28 (step S108).

  Here, the user selects and determines a prefecture to be searched from the search area designation screen 80 of the second dialog box (step S110). The search area designation screen 80 includes a prefecture selecting unit 82 for selecting a prefecture and a region selecting unit 84 for selecting a region of the selected prefecture. First, the user moves a predetermined prefecture instruction frame 86 to a desired prefecture from the Japan map 85 displayed in the prefecture selection unit 82, and presses one of the decision buttons 88, thereby A prefecture is selected.

  Next, the user selects and determines an area to be searched from the search area designation screen 80 of the second dialog box (step S112). That is, the area selection unit 84 displays the prefecture name 90 selected by the prefecture selection unit 82 and the outline map 91 of the selected prefecture. The user moves a predetermined area instruction frame 92 to designate a desired area from the schematic map 91 displayed on the area selection unit 84, and changes the size of the area instruction frame 92 to change the area. A range can be specified. As described above, when the user designates a region to be searched by the region selection unit 84 and presses the other determination button 94, the region to be searched is determined, and the search region specifying screen 80 is displayed. Is terminated.

  Subsequently, the user returns to the search condition input screen 160, which is the first dialog box of FIG. 4, and the user performs the administrator designation process and the keyword designation process, and the manager of the image to be searched, the event name, and the subject of the photograph. Is designated (step S114). Here, first, a method for designating an image manager via the image manager designation unit 66 will be described. The image manager specifying means 66 is displayed on the search condition input screen 160 and has a third input field 172 for selecting the manager name. The third input field 172 includes a list box having a pull-down menu, and the name of the administrator displayed so as to be selectable in the list box is stored in a predetermined area of the storage device 18 in advance. From this third input field 172, the user selects and designates a manager of photographing data to be searched.

  Next, a method for specifying the event name and the subject of the photograph via the keyword specifying means 68 will be described. The keyword specifying means 68 is displayed on the search condition input screen 160 and has a fourth input field 170 for selecting an event and a fifth input field 174 for specifying a subject object of a photograph. The fourth input field 170 and the fifth input field 174 are configured by a list box having a pull-down menu, and an event name and a subject object name displayed in a selectable manner in the list box are stored in a predetermined area of the storage device 18 in advance. Is remembered. The user selects and designates an event name or subject object to be searched from the fourth input field 170 and the fifth input field 174. In the present embodiment, the event name and the subject object are not necessary conditions for the search, and can be searched without being specified.

  On the search condition input screen 160, a sixth input field 168 for displaying the name of the prefecture determined on the search area designation screen 80 is displayed. The sixth input field 168 includes a list box having a pull-down menu, and the prefecture name is displayed in the list box so that it can be selected. Instead of pressing the map button 176 to display the search area designation screen 80, the user may designate a search area in units of prefectures by selecting a prefecture name in this list box.

  After inputting the search conditions described above, the user presses the search execution button 178 on the search condition input screen 160 (step S116). When the search execution button 178 is pressed, it is determined whether or not at least a period to be searched, an area to be searched, and an administrator to be searched are input from the input search conditions. (Step S118). Here, if at least one of the period to be searched, the area to be searched, and the administrator to be searched has not been input (No in step S118), an error message is displayed as a search condition to prompt the user to input information that has not been input. Displayed on the input screen 160 (step S120), the process returns to the step (step S102) in which the search condition input screen 160 is displayed on the image display device 28.

  On the other hand, if both the period to be searched and the area to be searched are input (Yes in step S118), the display of the search condition input screen 160 is terminated, the search process is executed, and the search means 54 Thus, a data group that matches the input search condition is searched (step S122).

  Subsequently, a display process is executed, and a representative image of the data group searched by the search means 54 is displayed on the search result display screen 200 of FIG. 6 to indicate the selected area, and from the data group. A selection unit 212 capable of selecting a desired image is displayed on the search result display screen 200 (step S124). The search result display screen 200 displays a schematic map 91 of the selected prefecture, and the images (202, 206) of each searched data group indicate the location where the photograph was taken. It is displayed as shown in the schematic map 91. In addition, information (204, 208) indicating the date and time when the image was taken, the location, the manager name, and the like are displayed in the vicinity of the images (202, 206) of the respective data groups. Furthermore, by selecting the data group and the digital image data by the selection unit 212, the selection image 210 indicated by the selected digital image data is enlarged and displayed. For example, the image 202 of one (photo group 1) data group is composed of 35 photographs, and a selection image 210 indicating the eighth of them is displayed independently. The selection unit 212 displays the total number of 35 images and the 8th independent display so that the user can understand, and in order to allow the user to specify the photos to be displayed independently, triangular buttons for specifying the front and rear two directions are provided. Is displayed. Here, when the user clicks the triangle button on the right side, the ninth photograph is independently displayed as the selected image 210, and when the user clicks the button on the left triangle, the seventh photograph is selected as the selected image 210. Displayed independently.

  Through the above process, the data group of digital image data satisfying the search conditions including the date taken, the place taken, the shooting data manager, and keywords such as event name and subject, etc. You can search from inside.

According to the embodiment described above, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) The period designation means 62 makes it possible to easily specify periods with the same date and different years and months. For example, the date range can be specified and the year and month are ambiguous. Search conditions can be easily entered.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on embodiment shown in figure, this invention is not limited to this embodiment, The modification as described below can also be assumed.
(1) The search conditions are input in the order of period designation, area designation, image manager designation, and keyword designation. However, the search conditions are not limited to this order, and may be entered in any order.
(2) The manager of the image data, the event name, and the subject target name are not limited to the method of selecting from items pre-arranged in the list box, and may be directly input by a combo box having a text input function. .

The figure which shows the hardware constitutions of the image data search device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the function structure of the image data search device which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 5 is a flowchart showing a flow of image data search processing in the image data search apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows a search condition input screen. The figure which shows a search area designation | designated screen. The figure which shows a search result display screen.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image data search device, 10 ... CPU, 12 ... RAM, 14 ... Input I / F, 16 ... ROM, 18 ... Storage device, 20 ... Graphics subsystem, 22 ... Cradle, 24 ... Memory card reader, 26 ... Operation input device, 28 ... Image display device, 30 ... Bus, 36 ... Digital camera, 38 ... Memory card, 50 ... Data input means, 54 ... Search means, 56 ... Search result display means, 60 ... Search condition input means, 62 ... period designation means, 64 ... area designation means, 66 ... image manager designation means, 68 ... keyword designation means, 80 ... search area designation screen, 82 ... prefecture selection section, 84 ... area selection section, 85 ... Japan map, 86 ... Prefecture instruction frame, 88 ... One decision button, 90 ... Prefecture name, 91 ... Outline map, 92 ... Region designation frame, 94 ... Other decision button, 160 ... Search condition Input screen 162 ... 1st input field, 164 ... 2nd input field, 165 ... Calendar list, 166 ... Date period, 168 ... 6th input field, 170 ... 4th input field, 172 ... 3rd 174 ... fifth input field, 176 ... map button, 178 ... search execution button, 200 ... search result display screen, 210 ... selected image, 212 ... selection means.

Claims (7)

A data input means for inputting a plurality of data groups including one or more digital image data classified by metadata having information on at least the date and time of shooting, the shooting location and the manager of the shot data;
By entering the start year, end year, start month, end month, start date, and end date, the date is the same, and the year and month are each specified. A period specifying means for specifying one or more consecutive different periods;
A search area designating unit for designating information indicating a position corresponding to the area on the map by designating an area on the map;
An administrator specifying means for specifying a person who manages the data group;
Information regarding the date and time of shooting and the location of the metadata are included in the specified period and the specified area, and the administrator of the metadata matches the specified person. Search means for searching a data group to be searched from among the plurality of data groups;
Display means for displaying an image indicated by the digital image data included in the retrieved data group;
A search device comprising: The search device according to claim 1,
The period designating means is:
A first input field in which a start year and an end year are input, a second field in which a start month and an end month are input, and a calendar list in which start and end dates are indicated on the calendar Prepared,
The search apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the period is specified from the start date to the end date of each month from the start month to the end month from the start year to the end year. The search device according to claim 1,
The search area specifying means includes:
By indicating the area on the map with a variable size frame,
A search device characterized in that an area on the map included in the frame is designated. The search device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The display means includes
A search apparatus, wherein the image and a place where the image is taken are displayed in association with each other. The search device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A keyword designating unit for designating a keyword characterizing the data group;
The search means includes
An apparatus for searching digital image data, wherein the data group including the keyword in the metadata is further searched from the searched data group. A method for executing a search for digital image data using a computer,
A data input process in which a plurality of data groups including at least one digital image data classified by metadata having information on at least the date and time of shooting, the location of the shooting and the manager of the shot data are input;
By entering the start year, end year, start month, end month, start date, and end date, the date is the same, and the year and month are each specified. A period designating step for designating one or more consecutive periods,
A search area designating step for designating information indicating a position corresponding to an area on the map by designating an area on the map;
An administrator designating step of designating a person who manages the data group;
Information regarding the date and time of shooting and the location of the metadata are included in the specified period and the specified area, and the administrator of the metadata matches the specified person. A search step of searching for a data group to be performed from the plurality of data groups;
A display step of displaying an image indicated by the digital image data included in the retrieved data group;
A search method comprising: A data input procedure in which a plurality of data groups including one or more digital image data are input that are classified by metadata having information on at least the date and time of shooting, the shooting location and the manager of the shot data;
By entering the start year, end year, start month, end month, start date, and end date, the date is the same, and the year and month are each specified. A period specifying procedure for specifying one or more consecutive different periods;
A search area designation procedure for designating information indicating a position corresponding to an area on the map by designating an area on the map;
An administrator specifying procedure for specifying a person who manages the data group;
Information regarding the date and time of shooting and the location of the metadata are included in the specified period and the specified area, and the administrator of the metadata matches the specified person. A search procedure for searching a data group to be searched from among the plurality of data groups;
A display procedure for displaying an image indicated by the digital image data included in the retrieved data group;
A search program characterized by causing a computer to execute.

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