JP2009076988A - Content information display device and display method of content information - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a content information display device capable of easily retrieving desired content information in a short time. <P>SOLUTION: The content information display device 1 relating to this invention includes a recording part 102 for recording content information, a display part 120 for displaying the content information, an input part 130 for inputting operation signals, and a control part 103 for generally controlling them. The control part 103 executes control so as to display all the content information recorded in the recording part 102 in an arranged state all times at the display part 120, display the content information selectably as content images, display a selected content image larger than the other content images and display the selected content image so as not to damage the other content images. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a content information display device and a content information display method capable of easily searching for desired content information in a short time.

  Conventionally, for video content such as a television program, many techniques for selecting and displaying a desired program or a specific scene in the program from the recorded video content have been proposed.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a video recording / reproducing apparatus and a video recording / reproducing method capable of easily selecting a program desired by a viewer from a large number of recorded programs and real-time broadcast programs. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a menu display screen in the genre mode according to Patent Document 1. As shown in FIG. 7, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, a genre / favorite mode selection button and a genre selection button are displayed as a menu screen. When the favorite mode is selected, when a genre is selected, the latest program of the genre is reproduced or selected. On the other hand, when the genre mode is selected, when a genre is selected, a program list of the genre is displayed in order from the newest along with a status indicating the reproduction state. When a program is selected from this list, viewing of the selected program is started. In FIG. 7, a genre mode drama is selected as shown in the upper part of the figure, and a drama list is shown from the center to the lower part of the figure. As information about each drama, date, time, broadcasting station, title, status, and representative image are displayed. In FIG. 7, the first drama is selected.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a video search system and a data structure that can easily search and view a part of a video or video, and a search method using the video search system. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a video browser screen according to Patent Document 2. As shown in FIG. 8, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 2 includes a character screen section, a main scene screen section, and a main screen section. The character screen section displays the characters of the story. The main scene screen section displays the main scene of the scene in which the character selected from the character screen section appears. The main screen section displays one section of the story corresponding to the scene selected by the user input with the play control button and the main scene of the selected scene. FIG. 8 shows a case where main characters are displayed on the character screen section. Character 1 on the main character screen is selected, and scenes related to this are displayed on the main scene screen. A scene 3 is selected from the scenes displayed on the main scene screen section, and the scene 3 is displayed on the main screen section. A scene 3 is displayed on the main screen, and a play control button is arranged below the scene 3.

Patent Document 3 discloses a content information display device that can easily extract desired content information. FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of a content information display device according to Patent Document 3. As shown in FIG. 9, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 3, an information receiving unit that receives content information, a recording unit that records received content information, a display unit that displays content information, and an operation signal Are provided, and a control unit that performs overall control thereof. The control unit controls the display unit to selectively display content information before and after the selected time as a plurality of content images arranged in time series at a predetermined time interval. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining an example in which a selection image in the GUI of the content information display device according to Patent Document 3 is enlarged and displayed. In FIG. 10, when the cursor is moved to 3 pm on channel 2, the content image is enlarged and displayed as a preview video repeated from 3 pm to 4 pm.
JP 2005-05493 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-217058 JP 2006-279410 A

  However, in the prior art, it takes time to select desired content, and it has been impossible to easily select desired content in a short time.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, first, a genre / favorite mode is selected, and a desired genre is selected. Next, a desired program is selected from the program list of the selected genre. At this time, the corresponding programs shown in the program list are displayed as much as possible.

  In the technique described in Patent Document 2, first, a character is selected on the main character screen, and related scenes are displayed on the main scene screen. Next, a desired scene is selected on the main scene screen section. At this time, as many characters and scenes as possible can be displayed on the main character screen and the main scene screen part, respectively.

  Further, in the technique described in Patent Document 3, first, the type of content information such as a channel and a genre is specified, and a desired candidate is selected from the displayed content image. Next, the selected candidate image is enlarged and displayed. At this time, a plurality of content images in a predetermined time range are displayed as much as possible.

  As described above, in the prior arts disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3, after selecting a genre or a character, the corresponding program information is displayed, and a desired program is selected from the displayed program information. Therefore, it takes extra time to select a desired program.

  In addition to the limited number of content (candidates) that can be displayed on the display screen at the same time in the conventional technology, the search condition part such as genre, main character screen, and channel remains on the screen. It is difficult to increase the number of displayable candidates on the display screen. Therefore, when a candidate for a desired program, scene, or content image exists outside the display screen, it is necessary to use means (for example, a scroll bar) that moves the display screen and displays the candidate. That is, in order to select a desired candidate, it is necessary to move the display screen once and grasp the whole, and extra time is required.

  As described above, the conventional technique has a problem that desired content information cannot be easily retrieved in a short time.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a content information display device according to the present invention controls a recording unit that records content information, a display unit that displays the content information, an input unit that inputs an operation signal, and these. A control unit that automatically controls, wherein the control unit displays all the content information recorded in the recording unit on the display unit in a state where they are always arranged, and displays the content information as a content image The selected content image is displayed larger than the other content image, and the other content image is displayed without being damaged.

  With such a configuration, all content information can be grasped at one time, so that desired content information can be easily searched in a short time.

In order to solve the above-described problem, a content information display method according to the present invention includes a step of recording content information, a step of displaying the content information, a step of inputting an operation signal, and these steps. A step of controlling, wherein in the step of controlling, all the recorded content information is always displayed in a lined-up state, and the content information is displayed so as to be selectable as a content image. A content information display method comprising: controlling the displayed content image to be displayed larger than the other content image, and displaying the other content image without being damaged.
It is characterized by that.

  With such a configuration, all content information can be grasped at one time, so that desired content information can be easily searched in a short time.

  According to the content information display device and the content information display method of the present invention, it is possible to easily search for desired content information in a short time.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Hereinafter, specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The content information display device according to the present embodiment displays all the recorded content information in an always arranged state, and displays the content information as selectable content images. The selected content image is displayed larger than the other content images, and the other content images are displayed without being damaged.

  FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a content information display apparatus according to the present embodiment. The content information display device 1 is composed of, for example, a personal computer (PC), a television receiver, and the like, and includes a recording / reproducing device 100 for recording / reproducing content information, a display unit 120 for displaying content information, And an input unit 130 for inputting an operation signal. The recording / reproducing apparatus 100 includes an information receiving unit 101, a recording unit 102, and a control unit 103, and is a characteristic part of the content information display device 1.

  In addition, although illustration is abbreviate | omitted, it can also be comprised as a content information display system provided with the content information display apparatus 1 shown in FIG. The content information display system includes a content information display apparatus 1 for recording and reproducing content information, a content management server that provides various content information such as electronic program guide information (EPG information), and content information such as movies and animations. A WWW server to be provided is configured by being connected via a communication line. The communication line includes the Internet, a public line other than the Internet, and a dedicated line. Furthermore, the content information display device 1 can incorporate a communication unit for providing a communication function with an external device. The recording / reproducing apparatus 100 is connected to a communication line through a communication unit. Various content information such as EPG information can be received from the content management server via the communication line. Further, the content information such as a movie can be received from the WWW server.

  Subsequently, each functional block will be described in detail. The information receiving unit 101 includes a tuner (not shown). The recording / reproducing apparatus 100 can receive terrestrial broadcasts and satellite broadcasts by connecting an antenna to the tuner. In addition, cable television broadcasting can be received by connecting a cable television. Furthermore, the recording / reproducing apparatus 100 has a function corresponding to digital broadcasting, receives various content information such as EPG information in addition to television image information through digital broadcasting, stores these in the recording unit 102, and Various searches can be performed from the content information. Note that EPG information extracts a desired program from a channel number, program broadcast time (start time to end time), program name (title), program content (genre), performers, and a plurality of multiplexed programs. A program ID and a program table necessary for the operation are included.

  The recording unit 102 includes a recording medium such as an HDD or a DVD. The broadcast wave received by the tuner can be stored in the recording unit 102 as content information, and the stored content information can be reproduced. The broadcast wave received by the tuner is separated into video information and EPG information and stored in the recording unit 102. The recording / reproducing apparatus 100 can perform various searches from the search information, the storage time, and the EPG information, and display the content information stored in the recording unit 102 as a content image on the display unit 120 based on the search results. .

  The recording unit 102 stores a content information browsing program 140. The content information browsing program 140 includes a list display unit 141, a multi-level display unit 142, an enlarged display unit 143, and a reduced display unit 144.

  The list display unit 141 displays all the content information recorded in the recording unit 102 on the display unit 120 in a state where the content information is always arranged. That is, all content images are displayed simultaneously on one screen. The content information is displayed as selectable content images.

  The multi-level display unit 142 searches for desired content information based on a predetermined search condition, and classifies and displays the content information based on the search result. A set of a plurality of pieces of content information searched based on a predetermined search condition is classified and displayed as a content group. The multi-level display unit 142 can search the content information based on a plurality of search conditions and display the content information classified hierarchically when the content information is classified and displayed based on the search result. For example, when hierarchically classifying based on two search conditions, first, all content images are classified into a plurality of content groups according to a certain search condition A. Further, in each content group, the content images belonging to the content group are classified into a plurality of content groups according to another search condition B. For example, when the search condition A is a genre and the search condition B is a recording month, the content images are classified into content groups for each genre, and further recorded within the content group of each genre. Each content group is classified and displayed. The search condition is not limited to this, and the content group can be searched in units such as the recording year, the recording date, and the recording time with respect to the recording time. Furthermore, it can search according to the user who performed recording operation, and can classify | categorize based on a search result.

  The enlarged display means 143 displays the selected content image in a larger size than the other content images not selected. For the content group including the selected content image, the content group is displayed on a larger scale than other content groups different from the content group. When the selected content image and content group are expanded, the selected content image and content group can be expanded so as not to overlap with other content images and content groups that have not been selected.

  The reduced display unit 144 displays the content image that has not been selected without being damaged. Further, other content groups different from the content group including the selected content image are displayed without being damaged. When the content image and the content group are displayed without being damaged, the content image and the content group can be reduced and displayed without being damaged.

  The control unit 103 comprehensively controls the content information display device 1 based on an operation signal from the input unit 130. The control unit 103 can be configured by a microcomputer, for example.

  The display unit 120 is configured by, for example, a liquid crystal display device, a CRT display device, or the like, and is connected to the recording / reproducing device 100 via a cord. The display unit 120 displays the content image generated by the recording / reproducing apparatus 100 on the display screen.

  As the input unit 130, for example, a pointing device such as a mouse can be used in the first embodiment. The user can select desired content information by moving the mouse cursor to the content image on the display screen and pressing the mouse button. The content information display device 1 may be operated by a remote controller or the like without being limited to the mouse.

  Next, the operation of the content information display device 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. 2 to 4 are diagrams showing display examples by the content information display device 1 according to the first embodiment. In the following description, the content information recorded in the recording unit 102 is assumed to be a television program, and the search condition is assumed to be program content (genre). That is, the recorded television programs are searched by genre, and displayed in a state of being arranged for each genre.

  FIG. 2 is a display example in which all recorded TV programs are displayed by dividing them into a plurality of content groups by genre. Each content group is divided so that it can be displayed including nine television programs. Television images showing typical scenes of each television program are displayed on the display screen in small screen units. By selecting a television image to be displayed in units of small screens, the user can select a desired television program. Note that the number of television programs included in each content group can be freely specified by the user. Further, the name displayed on each content group corresponds to the genre name. The name may be displayed in a transparent color on the content group or may not be displayed.

  FIG. 3 is a display example when a content image arranged in the central part is selected from the content group of the drama located in the central part in the display example shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, for a drama content group that includes the selected television image (shown by the hatched portion in the figure), the drama content group is expanded more than other content groups different from the drama content group. And display. At the same time, other content groups different from the drama content group are reduced and displayed without being damaged. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3, among the television images belonging to the drama content group, the selected television image (the portion indicated by the hatched lines in the drawing) is displayed in a larger scale than the other television images not selected. In addition, other television images that have not been selected are reduced and displayed without loss.

  FIG. 4 is a display example when the television image located at the upper left in the drama content group in the display example shown in FIG. 3 is selected. Similarly in the case shown in FIG. 4, the content group of the drama including the selected television image (the portion shown by the hatching in the drawing) is enlarged and displayed. Then, other content groups different from the drama content group are reduced and displayed without being damaged. Further, among the TV images belonging to the drama content group, the selected TV image (the portion indicated by the oblique lines in the figure) is enlarged and displayed, and the other TV images are reduced and displayed without being impaired. In the transition from the state shown in FIG. 3 to the state shown in FIG. 4, the content image on the display screen may be enlarged or reduced in accordance with the movement of the mouse cursor by the user operation. That is, as the cursor of the mouse moves, the television image positioned on the cursor may be enlarged and other television images may be reduced.

  As described above, according to the conventional technique, it is troublesome to display a corresponding content after selecting a genre and select a desired content from the genre. According to the content information display device 1 as described above, since all the television images can be grasped at once, a desired television program can be easily searched in a short time.

  Further, in the related art, when the desired content is not displayed on the screen, it is necessary to move and display the candidate in order to search for the corresponding content. According to the content information display device 1, it is necessary to provide a means for moving and displaying the candidates by enlarging the selected television image and reducing the other television images to display all television images. Absent. That is, in order to select a desired television program, it is possible to easily search for a desired television program or scene from a reduced television image on the screen in a short time without moving the candidates and displaying them again.

  Furthermore, in the prior art, it is necessary to display the search condition part on the screen. However, according to the content information display device 1 according to the first embodiment, all the content information recorded in the recording unit 102 is always displayed. By displaying the content information based on one or a plurality of search conditions and displaying the content information classified and displayed on the basis of the search result when displaying in an arranged state, the content information is already displayed for each content group. Can be displayed in a state of being divided into two. For this reason, it is not necessary for the user to specify search conditions a plurality of times to search for candidate images, and desired content can be easily searched in a short time. Further, according to the content information display device 1 according to the first embodiment, since it is not necessary to display the search condition part on the screen, it is possible to secure a larger screen space for displaying an image.

  Further, according to the content information display device 1 according to the first embodiment, the selected television image (and content group) is displayed on a larger scale than the other unselected television images (and content group). . At the same time, the television images (and content groups) that were not selected are reduced and displayed without being damaged. According to the television image enlarged and reduced in this way, the entire television image on the display screen can be easily grasped, and a desired television program can be easily selected in a short time.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment described above, the process of displaying a television program as content information has been described. The present invention is not limited to this, and when scenes in a recorded TV program are used as content information, the scenes can be searched for each character and classified and displayed based on the search results. That is, a desired scene can be easily searched in a short time based on the characters appearing in the program. The configuration of the content information display apparatus according to the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment of the invention described above, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  The operation of the content information display device 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. 5 and 6 are diagrams showing display examples by the content information display device 1 according to the second embodiment. In the following description, the content information recorded in the recording unit 102 is set as a scene in a television program, and the search condition is described as a character appearing in the television program. That is, each scene is displayed in a state where it is arranged for each character. Note that a known method can be used as a method of selecting a character in a television program and determining an appearance scene for each character. A scene image arranged for each TV program character can be produced, for example, by the following procedure. First, the characters appearing for the entire television program are determined. Next, the main scene for the section in which each character appears is determined. Next, representative scene images for the appearance section and main scene are set.

  FIG. 5 is a display example in which recorded TV program scenes are displayed by being divided into a plurality of content groups for each character. Each content group is divided so that it can be displayed including nine appearance scenes. The scene images of each appearance scene are displayed on the display screen in small screen units. By selecting a scene image displayed in units of small screens, the user can select an appearance scene of a desired character. Note that the number of scenes included in each content group can be freely specified by the user. The names displayed on the respective content groups correspond to the names of the characters. The name may be displayed in a transparent color on the content group or may not be displayed.

  FIG. 6 is a display example when the scene image 5 arranged in the central portion is selected from the content group of the character 5 located in the central portion in the display example shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, for the content group of the character 5 including the selected scene image 5 (the portion indicated by the oblique lines in the figure), the content group of the character 5 is different from the content group of the character 5. Display larger than other content groups. At the same time, other content groups different from the content group of the character 5 are reduced and displayed without being damaged. Furthermore, as shown in the figure, among the scene images belonging to the content group of the character 5, the selected scene image 5 (the portion indicated by the diagonal lines in the figure) is enlarged larger than the other scene images not selected. And other scene images that were not selected are reduced and displayed without being damaged.

  When the scene image 5 of the character 5 is selected, the moving image including the scene image 5 can be reproduced by operating the play control button shown below. Furthermore, when reproducing a moving image, it is possible to switch to full screen display.

  As described above, according to the conventional technique, it is troublesome to display a corresponding scene after selecting a character and then select a desired scene from the selected scene. According to the content information display device 1 according to the above, since all scenes can be grasped at once, a desired scene can be easily searched in a short time.

Other embodiments.
In the first and second embodiments described above, the process of displaying a television program and its scene as content information has been described. The present invention is not limited to this. For example, an audio file can be displayed based on various search conditions. That is, a desired audio file can be easily searched in a short time based on various search conditions associated with the audio file. For example, when an audio file recorded on a CD is displayed on the screen, a user can easily search for a desired audio file by displaying a jacket image or the like in units of small screens.

  Moreover, in Embodiment 1 and 2 mentioned above, it demonstrated as what displays the image in the typical scene of content information as a content image. The present invention is not limited to this, and a symbol / character string that can identify content information may be displayed as a content image.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a block diagram which shows the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a display by the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a display by the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a display by the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a display by the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a display by the content information display apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the screen of the menu display in the genre mode which concerns on the conventional video recording / reproducing apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of the screen of the video browser which concerns on the conventional video search system. It is a block diagram of the content information display apparatus which concerns on the conventional content information display apparatus. It is a figure explaining the example by which the selection image in GUI of the content information display apparatus which concerns on the conventional content information display apparatus is expanded and displayed.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Content information display apparatus 100 Recording / reproducing apparatus 101 Information receiving part 102 Recording part 103 Control part 120 Display part 130 Input part 140 Content information browsing program 141 List display means 142 Multilevel display means 143 Enlarged display means 144 Reduced display means

Claims (9)

A recording unit for recording content information;
A display unit for displaying the content information;
An input unit for inputting operation signals;
A control unit that controls these in an integrated manner,
The controller is
In the display section,
All the content information recorded in the recording unit is always displayed in a lined-up state,
And the content information is displayed as selectable as a content image,
And the selected content image is displayed larger than other content images,
In addition, the content information display device is controlled to display the other content image without being damaged. The controller is
In the display section,
When displaying all the content information recorded in the recording unit in a state where they are always arranged, the content information is searched based on a predetermined search condition, and classified and displayed based on a search result. The content information display device according to claim 1. The controller is
In the display section,
When all the content information recorded in the recording unit is displayed in an always arranged state, the content information is searched based on one or a plurality of search conditions, classified based on the search results, and hierarchically The content information display device according to claim 1, wherein the content information display device is displayed. The controller is
In the display section,
When displaying all the content information recorded in the recording unit in an always arranged state, the content information is searched based on a predetermined search condition and classified into a plurality of content groups based on the search result. Display
And the content information is displayed as selectable as a content image,
And about the content group containing the selected content image, this content group is displayed larger than other content groups different from this content group,
4. The content information display device according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so that another content group different from the content group including the selected content image is displayed without being damaged. 5. The content information display device according to claim 2, wherein a genre associated with the content information can be specified as the search condition. 5. The content information display device according to claim 2, wherein a character associated with the content information can be specified as the search condition. The controller is
In the display section,
2. The content information display device according to claim 1, wherein the other content image is reduced and displayed so as not to be damaged. Recording content information;
Displaying the content information;
Inputting an operation signal;
A step of comprehensively controlling these,
In the controlling step,
Display all the recorded content information in an always arranged state,
And the content information is displayed as selectable as a content image,
And the selected content image is displayed larger than other content images,
And the display method of the content information characterized by controlling so that the said other content image may be displayed without being impaired. In the controlling step,
When displaying all the recorded content information in an always arranged state, the content information is searched based on a predetermined search condition, and classified into a plurality of content groups based on the search result, and hierarchically Display
And the content information is displayed as selectable as a content image,
And, for the content group including the selected content image, all content images belonging to the content group are displayed larger than other content groups different from the content group,
9. The content information display method according to claim 8, wherein control is performed so that another content group different from the content group including the selected content image is displayed without being damaged.

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