JP2010117827A - Information processing apparatus and information processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem of difficulty in displaying advanced information while maintaining the ease of display device operations. <P>SOLUTION: A user of an information processing apparatus 500 selects the hierarchical data of a plurality of individual images for which he desires to create indexes with respect to an input device 520. Then a setting information registering unit 508 creates index image data 566 in which individual images of appropriate resolution, such as the images of the lowest resolution in the hierarchical data selected, are embedded as the indexes, and stores the index image data in a main memory 560. At a position where the individual images are embedded in the hierarchical data of the index images created, the setting information registering unit 508 further creates a link setting file 562 setting links to the hierarchical data of each individual image, and stores the link setting file in the main memory 560. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing technique for controlling image processing for enlarging / reducing an image displayed on a display or moving the image vertically and horizontally.

Home entertainment systems have been proposed that not only execute game programs, but also play video. In this home entertainment system, the GPU generates a three-dimensional image using polygons (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

On the other hand, a technique for enlarging / reducing a display image and moving up / down / left / right using a plurality of resolution tile images generated from a digital image such as a high-definition photograph has been proposed. In this image processing technique, an original image size is reduced in a plurality of stages to generate images with different resolutions, and images in each layer are divided into one or a plurality of tile images to represent the original image in a hierarchical structure. Usually, the image with the lowest resolution is composed of one tile image, and the original image with the highest resolution is composed of the largest number of tile images. The image processing apparatus quickly performs enlarged display or reduced display by switching the tile image being used to a tile image of a different hierarchy at the time of enlargement processing or reduction processing of the display image.
US Pat. No. 6,563,999

  On the other hand, in recent years, the size of the display screen has been expanded even in portable terminals and the like, and it has become possible to display high-definition images regardless of the type of information processing apparatus. Therefore, various contents appealing to the sight became more familiar. However, as the information to be displayed becomes complex and sophisticated, various knowledge is required to make full use of it. For this reason, the quality of information and the ease of operation often have a trade-off relationship. In addition, more specialized knowledge is required to create complex contents including images.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of easily displaying desired information while maintaining the quality of information.

  One embodiment of the present invention relates to an information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus includes an input information acquisition unit that receives input for selecting a plurality of individual images from a user, a setting information registration unit that generates index image data in which the selected plurality of individual images are arranged in a predetermined format, The plurality of individual images has a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution, and the setting information registration unit includes an area in which the individual images are arranged in the index image, and the area The link setting file for switching the data used for rendering the display image from the index image to the individual image is generated and output to the memory by associating with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in .

  Another aspect of the present invention relates to an information processing method. In this information processing method, a step of receiving an input for selecting a plurality of individual images from a user, reading the selected plurality of individual images from a storage device, generating index image data arranged in a predetermined format, and storing them in a memory A plurality of individual images having a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution, and the step of outputting includes an area in which the individual images are arranged in the index image And a link setting file for switching the data used for rendering the display image from the index image to the individual image, and further outputting the link setting file. Features.

  Another aspect of the invention relates to a data structure. This data structure includes a plurality of individual image data having a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution, index image data in which individual images are arranged in a predetermined format, and an index image A link setting file for associating the area where the individual image is arranged with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area and switching the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image, Characterized by association.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements and a representation of the present invention converted between a method, an apparatus, a system, a computer program, etc. are also effective as an aspect of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, information can be displayed by an easy operation even when information is advanced.

  FIG. 1 shows a use environment of an image processing system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image processing system 1 includes an image processing device 10 that executes image processing software, and a display device 12 that outputs a processing result by the image processing device 10. The display device 12 may be a television having a display that outputs an image and a speaker that outputs sound. The display device 12 may be connected to the image processing device 10 by a wired cable, or may be wirelessly connected by a wireless local area network (LAN) or the like. In the image processing system 1, the image processing apparatus 10 may be connected to an external network such as the Internet via the cable 14 to download and acquire hierarchical compressed image data. The image processing apparatus 10 may be connected to an external network by wireless communication.

  The image processing device 10 may be a game device, for example, and may implement an image processing function by loading an application program for image processing. The image processing apparatus 10 may be a personal computer, and may implement an image processing function by loading an image processing application program.

  The image processing apparatus 10 performs enlargement / reduction processing of an image displayed on the display of the display device 12, movement processing in the up / down / left / right directions, and the like according to a request from the user. Hereinafter, these processes are collectively referred to as “display image moving process”. When the user operates the input device while viewing the image displayed on the display, the input device transmits a movement request signal for the display image to the image processing device 10.

  FIG. 2 shows an external configuration of the input device 20. The input device 20 includes a cross key 21, analog sticks 27a and 27b, and four types of operation buttons 26 as operation means that can be operated by the user. The four types of operation buttons 26 include a circle button 22, a x button 23, a square button 24, and a triangle button 25.

  In the image processing system 1, a function for inputting a display image enlargement / reduction request and a vertical / left / right scroll request is assigned to the operation unit of the input device 20. For example, the input function of the display image enlargement / reduction request is assigned to the right analog stick 27b. The user can input a display image reduction request by pulling the analog stick 27b forward, and can input a display image enlargement request by pressing the analog stick 27b from the front. The input function of the display area movement request is assigned to the cross key 21. The user can input a movement request in the direction in which the cross key 21 is pressed by pressing the cross key 21. Note that the image movement request input function may be assigned to another operation means, for example, the scroll request input function may be assigned to the analog stick 27a.

  The input device 20 has a function of transmitting the input image movement request signal to the image processing device 10 and is configured to be able to perform wireless communication with the image processing device 10 in the present embodiment. The input device 20 and the image processing device 10 may establish a wireless connection using a Bluetooth (registered trademark) protocol, an IEEE802.11 protocol, or the like. Note that the input device 20 may be connected to the image processing device 10 via a cable and transmit an image movement request signal to the image processing device 10.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of a hierarchical structure of image data used in the present embodiment. The image data has a hierarchical structure including a 0th hierarchy 30, a first hierarchy 32, a second hierarchy 34, and a third hierarchy 36 in the depth (Z-axis) direction. Although only four layers are shown in the figure, the number of layers is not limited to this. Hereinafter, image data having such a hierarchical structure is referred to as “hierarchical data”.

  The hierarchical data shown in FIG. 3 has a hierarchical structure of a quadtree, and each hierarchy is composed of one or more tile images 38. All the tile images 38 are formed in the same size having the same number of pixels, and have, for example, 256 × 256 pixels. The image data of each layer expresses one image at different resolutions, and the original image of the third layer 36 having the highest resolution is reduced in a plurality of stages to obtain the second layer 34, the first layer 32, the 0th layer. Image data of the hierarchy 30 is generated. For example, the resolution of the Nth layer (N is an integer greater than or equal to 0) may be ½ of the resolution of the (N + 1) th layer in both the left and right (X axis) direction and the up and down (Y axis) direction.

  In the image processing apparatus 10, the hierarchical data is held in the storage device in a compressed state in a predetermined compression format, and is read from the storage device and decoded before being displayed on the display. The image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment has a decoding function corresponding to a plurality of types of compression formats, and can decode, for example, compressed data in the S3TC format, JPEG format, and JPEG2000 format. In the hierarchical data, the compression processing may be performed in units of tile images, or may be performed in units of a plurality of tile images included in the same layer or a plurality of layers.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the hierarchical structure of the hierarchical data is set with the horizontal direction as the X axis, the vertical direction as the Y axis, and the depth direction as the Z axis, thereby constructing a virtual three-dimensional space. When the movement amount of the display image is derived from the image movement request signal supplied from the input device 20, the image processing apparatus 10 derives coordinates (frame coordinates) of the four corners of the frame in the virtual space using the movement amount. The frame coordinates in the virtual space are used for display image generation processing to be described later. Instead of the frame coordinates in the virtual space, the image processing apparatus 10 may derive information for specifying the hierarchy and texture coordinates (UV coordinates) in the hierarchy. Hereinafter, the combination of the hierarchy specifying information and the texture coordinates is also referred to as frame coordinates.

  FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the image processing apparatus 10. The image processing apparatus 10 includes a wireless interface 40, a switch 42, a display processing unit 44, a hard disk drive 50, a recording medium mounting unit 52, a disk drive 54, a main memory 60, a buffer memory 70, and a control unit 100. . The display processing unit 44 has a frame memory that buffers data to be displayed on the display of the display device 12.

  The switch 42 is an Ethernet switch (Ethernet is a registered trademark), and is a device that transmits and receives data by connecting to an external device in a wired or wireless manner. The switch 42 may be connected to an external network via the cable 14 and receive the compressed image data layered from the image server. The switch 42 is connected to the wireless interface 40, and the wireless interface 40 is connected to the input device 20 using a predetermined wireless communication protocol. The image movement request signal input from the user by the input device 20 is supplied to the control unit 100 via the wireless interface 40 and the switch 42.

  The hard disk drive 50 functions as a storage device that stores data. The compressed image data received via the switch 42 is stored in the hard disk drive 50. When a removable recording medium such as a memory card is mounted, the recording medium mounting unit 52 reads data from the removable recording medium. When a read-only ROM disk is loaded, the disk drive 54 drives and recognizes the ROM disk to read data. The ROM disk may be an optical disk or a magneto-optical disk. The compressed image data may be stored in these recording media.

  The control unit 100 includes a multi-core CPU, and includes one general-purpose processor core and a plurality of simple processor cores in one CPU. The general-purpose processor core is called a PPU (Power Processing Unit), and the remaining processor cores are called a SPU (Synergistic-Processing Unit).

  The control unit 100 includes a memory controller connected to the main memory 60 and the buffer memory 70. The PPU has a register, has a main processor as an operation execution subject, and efficiently assigns a task as a basic processing unit in an application to be executed to each SPU. Note that the PPU itself may execute the task. The SPU has a register, and includes a sub-processor as an operation execution subject and a local memory as a local storage area. The local memory may be used as the buffer memory 70.

  The main memory 60 and the buffer memory 70 are storage devices and are configured as a RAM (Random Access Memory). The SPU has a dedicated DMA (Direct Memory Access) controller as a control unit, can transfer data between the main memory 60 and the buffer memory 70 at high speed, and the frame memory and the buffer memory 70 in the display processing unit 44 can be transferred. High-speed data transfer can be realized. The control unit 100 according to the present embodiment realizes a high-speed image processing function by operating a plurality of SPUs in parallel. The display processing unit 44 is connected to the display device 12 and outputs an image processing result according to a request from the user.

  The image processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment uses a part of compressed image data determined according to a rule described later in order to smoothly change a display image when performing a display image enlargement / reduction process or a display area movement process. Is loaded from the hard disk drive 50 into the main memory 60. Further, an image to be displayed in the future is predicted based on an image movement request from the user, and a part of the compressed image data loaded in the main memory 60 is decoded and stored in the buffer memory 70. This makes it possible to instantaneously switch an image used for generating a display image at a necessary later timing. Hereinafter, a process of predicting a tile image to be displayed in the future and developing it in advance in the buffer memory 70 is referred to as a “prefetching process”.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the prefetch process. FIG. 5 shows the structure of hierarchical data, and each hierarchy is expressed as L0 (0th hierarchy), L1 (1st hierarchy), L2 (2nd hierarchy), and L3 (3rd hierarchy). In the hierarchical data structure shown in FIG. 5, the position in the depth (Z-axis) direction indicates the resolution. The position closer to L0 has a lower resolution, and the position closer to L3 has a higher resolution. When attention is paid to the size of the image displayed on the display, the position in the depth direction corresponds to the scale ratio, and when the scale ratio of the display image of L3 is 1, the scale ratio in L2 is 1/4, and in L1 The scale factor is 1/16, and the scale factor at L0 is 1/64.

  Therefore, in the depth direction, when the display image changes from the L0 side to the L3 side, the display image enlarges. When the display image changes from the L3 side to the L0 side, the display image is reduced. Go. An arrow 80 indicates that the image movement request signal from the user requests reduction of the display image, and crosses the reduction ratio 1/4 (L2). In the image processing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, when the position in the depth direction of L1 and L2 prepared as the tile image 38 is set as a prefetch boundary in the depth direction, and the image change request signal crosses the prefetch boundary, The prefetch process is started.

  When the scale factor of the display image is in the vicinity of L2, the display image is created using a tile image of L2 (second layer). Specifically, the L2 tile image is used when the scale ratio of the image to be displayed is between the switching boundary 82 between the L1 tile image and the L2 tile image and the switching boundary 84 between the L2 tile image and the L3 tile image. The Therefore, when the image reduction processing is requested as indicated by the arrow 80, the L2 tile image is converted from the enlarged image to the reduced image and displayed. The image processing apparatus 10 performs a convolution operation on the image movement request signal from the input device 20 and a transfer function, delays generation of a display image requested by the image movement request signal, and is predicted from the image movement request signal in the meantime. A tile image 38 required in the future is specified and pre-read from the main memory 60. In the example of FIG. 5, when the required scale ratio according to the image movement request signal crosses L2, the image processing apparatus 10 pre-reads and decodes the corresponding tile image 38 of L1 in the reduction direction from the main memory 60, Write to the buffer memory 70.

  Although the prefetch processing in the depth direction has been described above, the prefetch processing in the up, down, left, and right directions is similarly processed. Specifically, a prefetch boundary is set for the image data developed in the buffer memory 70, and the prefetch process is started when the display position by the image change request signal crosses the prefetch boundary.

  FIG. 6 schematically shows the flow of image data in the present embodiment. First, the hierarchical data is stored in the hard disk drive 50. Instead of the hard disk drive 50, a recording medium mounted on the recording medium mounting unit 52 or the disk drive 54 may be held. Alternatively, the hierarchical data may be downloaded from an image server connected by the image processing apparatus 10 via a network. As described above, the hierarchical data here is subjected to fixed length compression in the S3TC format or the like, or variable length compression in the JPEG format or the like.

  Among the hierarchical data, a part of the image data is loaded into the main memory 60 in a compressed state (S10). The area to be loaded here is a predetermined rule such as the vicinity of the current display image in the virtual space, the area of the image, the area where a display request is predicted to be frequently made based on the user's browsing history, etc. Determined by. The loading is performed not only when an image change request is made, but also at any given time interval, for example. This prevents the load process from being concentrated at one time.

  The compressed image data to be loaded is a block unit having a substantially constant size. Therefore, the hierarchical data held by the hard disk drive 50 is divided into blocks according to a predetermined rule. By doing so, data management in the main memory 60 can be performed efficiently. That is, even if the compressed image data is variable-length compressed, the data size to be loaded is almost equal in units of blocks (hereinafter referred to as “image blocks”). A new load is completed by overwriting any of the stored blocks. As a result, fragmentation is unlikely to occur, the memory can be used efficiently, and address management is facilitated.

  Next, among the compressed image data stored in the main memory 60, the image data of the region necessary for display or the image of the region predicted to be necessary is decoded and stored in the buffer memory 70 (S12). The buffer memory 70 includes at least two buffer areas 72 and 74. The size of each of the buffer areas 72 and 74 is set larger than the size of the frame memory 90. When an image movement request signal is input from the input device 20, the buffer area 72 is used for a certain amount of change request. , 74, the display image can be generated.

  One of the buffer areas 72 and 74 is a display buffer that is used to hold an image used to generate a display image, and the other is a decoding that is used to prepare an image predicted to be necessary thereafter. Buffer. In the example of FIG. 6, it is assumed that the buffer area 72 is a display buffer, the buffer area 74 is a decoding buffer, and the display area 68 is displayed. The image stored in the decoding buffer by the prefetching process may be an image in the same hierarchy as the image stored in the display buffer, or may be an image in a different hierarchy having a different scale.

  Next, the image in the display area 68 among the images stored in the buffer area 72, which is a display buffer, is drawn in the frame memory 90 (S14). During this time, the image in the new area is decoded as necessary and stored in the buffer area 74. The display buffer and the decoding buffer are switched according to the timing of completion of storage, the amount of movement of the display area 68, and the like (S16). Thereby, a display image can be smoothly switched with respect to a movement of a display area, a change of a scale ratio, or the like.

  In the processing described so far, in order to move and enlarge / reduce the display area of a certain image, the frame coordinates according to the image movement request from the user in the virtual space constituted by one hierarchical data as shown in FIG. It was the aspect which moves. In the present embodiment, a plurality of hierarchical data is prepared as a display target, and a display image can be transferred between the hierarchical data. FIG. 7 schematically shows the relationship between a plurality of hierarchical data to be displayed in such an aspect.

  In the figure, two triangles indicate different hierarchical data 150 and 152. Each of the hierarchical data 150 and 152 actually has a configuration in which a plurality of image data having different resolutions are discretely present in the Z-axis direction in the figure as shown in FIG. In the same manner as described with reference to FIG. 5, when the user instructs enlargement / reduction of the display image by the image movement request signal, the display image moves in the Z-axis direction in the figure. On the other hand, when moving the display area up, down, left, and right, the horizontal plane in the figure is moved. In the present embodiment, in such a virtual space, a state in which the two hierarchical data 150 and 152 overlap as shown in the figure is generated.

  In this state, when the user issues an enlargement instruction while displaying the image of the hierarchical data 150 and the display image moves as indicated by the arrow a, the display image enters the area of the hierarchical data 152, that is, between the hierarchical data Will be moved. By including the movement in the virtual space in the hierarchical data display procedure described so far, it is possible to perform display in which images of different hierarchical data are seamlessly connected. The images of the hierarchical data 150 and 152 may be data representing the same object in different resolution ranges or data representing completely different objects. For example, if the hierarchical data 150 is world map data and the hierarchical data 152 is Japan map data, a transition from the hierarchical data 150 to the hierarchical data 152 occurs when the user expands the Japanese region of the world map. A more detailed display of the map of Japan is possible. Further, when the hierarchical data 150 is data on the menu screen and the hierarchical data 152 is manual data describing each icon displayed on the menu screen, the user can expand the desired icon on the menu screen to cope with the icon. It is possible to switch to a manual image explaining the function to be performed.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the hierarchical data used for drawing is switched in response to the input of the display image movement request including the movement of the display image in the virtual space, that is, enlargement and reduction. Since such switching can be performed only with basic operations on the currently displayed image, a user interface with good operability is provided without the need to display or select a menu screen for switching. it can. For example, when creating content that can be expanded continuously from a world map image to a high-resolution image that allows you to see buildings and roads, you can keep the hierarchical data separately according to the resolution range, etc. Data in an area that does not need to be expanded can be omitted, and the data size can be significantly reduced rather than constructing one huge hierarchical data. In addition, it is easy to continuously display completely different images, and application to various image representations and creation of contents are facilitated.

  Which region of the image being displayed and which resolution is to be switched to another hierarchical data is set in advance as “link information” represented by a line 154 in FIG. In the example of the figure, switching from the hierarchical data 150 to the hierarchical data 152 is performed at a position where the Z-axis is z1 and the position on the horizontal plane (see FIG. 3) represented by the line 154. Hereinafter, such switching between hierarchical data is referred to as “link”.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of a display image when a link is set between hierarchical data. In the figure, three hierarchical data of images 156, 158 and 160 are displayed. Assume that a link is set to the area 162 of the image 156 and the area 163 of the image 158, and a link is set to the area 164 of the image 156 and the area 165 of the image 160. Such an area is hereinafter referred to as a “link area”. The link area corresponds to the line 154 in FIG. When the display image is generated using the hierarchical data of the image 156 and the display image overlaps the link area 162 due to the user's display image movement request, the hierarchical data used for display is switched from the image 156 to the image 158, and the link in the image 158 is displayed. A region 163 becomes a display image (arrow A).

  In the example of FIG. 8, an image whose resolution is further increased for an area mainly centered on a pentagon of the image 156 is held in the hard disk drive 50 as hierarchical data of another image 158. The link area 162 and the link area 163 are set to have the same viewing angle. Then, a higher resolution image than the highest resolution image in the hierarchical data of the image 156 can be continuously displayed using the hierarchical data of the image 158. At this time, since the appearance is simply zoomed in to the pentagon and the transition of the arrow a in FIG. 7 occurs, the user is not aware that the hierarchical data has been switched.

  In the link area 162 and the link area 163, a link in the direction opposite to the arrow A and an arrow B are also set as shown in the figure. In this case, after the transition of the arrow A, when the user who enlarged and displayed a desired area of the image 158 reduces the display image and the display image overlaps the link area 163 again, the display from the image 158 to the image 156 is performed. The hierarchical data to be used is switched, and the link area 162 in the image 156 becomes a display image (arrow B). Also in this case, it is possible to continuously reduce the display image in the image 158 only by reducing the display data without being aware of the switching of the hierarchical data.

  Similarly, the transition from the link area 164 to the link area 165 (arrow C) also zooms in on the ellipse while displaying the image 156, and when the display image overlaps the link area 164, the hierarchical data is switched and the image 160 is switched. The link area 165 becomes a display image. Thereby, an image display with a higher resolution than the image 156 can be performed. It should be noted that the state that the display image “overlaps” the link area does not have to overlap exactly, so a rule is set in advance that the display image is considered to have overlapped when entering the predetermined range from the link area. Just keep it.

  FIG. 9 shows the configuration of the control unit 100 in detail. The control unit 100 includes an input information acquisition unit 102 that acquires information input by the user from the input device 20, a compressed data division unit 104 that divides hierarchical data into image blocks, and a load block determination unit that determines an image block to be newly loaded. 106 includes a load unit 108 for loading necessary image blocks from the hard disk drive 50. The control unit 100 further includes a prefetch processing unit 110 that performs prefetch processing, a link determination unit 116 that determines whether data to be loaded or data to be decoded is included in the link destination hierarchical data, and decodes the compressed image data And a display image processing unit 114 for rendering a display image. The control unit 100 further includes a scenario interpretation unit 117 that interprets the set scenario information and controls the link determination unit 116, the load unit 108, and the display image processing unit 114.

  In FIG. 9, each element described as a functional block for performing various processes can be configured by a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, and other LSIs in terms of hardware. This is realized by a program loaded on the computer. As described above, the control unit 100 includes one PPU and a plurality of SPUs, and each functional block can be configured by the PPU and the SPU individually or in cooperation. Therefore, it is understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by hardware only, software only, or a combination thereof, and is not limited to any one.

  First, the hard disk drive 50 stores a plurality of hierarchical data 101 to which links are set. In addition to the area 120 for storing the image block loaded from the hard disk drive 50, the main memory 60 stores a link setting file 118 in advance. The link setting file 118 is a file in which the set link information is recorded, and what is added to the hierarchical data 101 main body may be loaded from the hard disk drive 50. The scenario setting file 119 stored in the main memory 60 will be described later.

  The input information acquisition unit 102 acquires instruction information such as start / end of image display, movement of a display area, enlargement / reduction of a display image, and the like input by the user to the input device 20. The input information acquisition unit 102 may further delay the image movement request signal based on a preset maximum value for moving the display image, a transfer function that performs a convolution operation with the image movement request signal, and the like. The transfer function may be a Gaussian function, for example. The image processing apparatus 10 uses this delay time to secure the time required for the prefetch processing of the image data, the time required for the reproduction of the linked image and the moving image, which will be described later, and the activation of the application. Thereby, smooth image display corresponding to a user's request | requirement is attained.

  The compressed data dividing unit 104 reads hierarchical data from the hard disk drive 50 and the like, divides the data according to a predetermined rule, generates image blocks, and stores them in the hard disk drive 50. For example, when the user selects any one of the hierarchical data stored in the hard disk drive 50 with respect to the input device 20, the information is acquired from the input information acquisition unit 102, and the division process is started. Alternatively, hierarchical data that is originally divided into image blocks may be stored in the hard disk drive 50. When such hierarchical data is to be displayed, the compressed data dividing unit 104 does not have to operate.

  The load block determination unit 106 checks whether there is an image block to be newly loaded from the hard disk drive 50 to the main memory 60 and determines the next image block to be loaded, and issues a load request to the load unit 108. At that time, the load block determination unit 106 inquires of the link determination unit 116 whether the image block to be loaded contains an image block of another hierarchical data to be linked. The load block determination unit 106 performs the above confirmation and determination processing at a predetermined time interval, for example, when the load unit 108 is not performing the load process, for example, when a user makes an image movement request. . The load unit 108 performs actual load processing in accordance with a request from the load block determination unit 106.

  When the user requests to move the display image, if the image block including the destination image area is not stored in the main memory 60, the image block is loaded from the hard disk drive 50, the necessary area is decoded, and the display image is displayed. It is necessary to perform processing such as drawing at once. In this case, it is conceivable that the load process becomes a bottleneck, and the responsiveness to the user request is impaired. In this embodiment, (1) image blocks are loaded so as to cover regions that are likely to be displayed in the future, and (2) loading is performed as needed so that the loading process is not concentrated at one time. Load under policy. As a result, the load process is less likely to interfere with the display image changing process.

  The prefetch processing unit 110 predicts an image area that will be required for drawing a display image in the future according to the frame coordinates of the current display image and the display image movement request information input by the user, and decodes the information. 112. However, immediately after the start of image display, or when the image to be changed cannot be drawn with the image already stored in the buffer memory 70, information on a predetermined area including an image necessary for drawing the display image at that time is not predicted. Is supplied to the decoding unit 112. In addition, the prefetch processing unit 110 inquires of the link determination unit 116 whether the predicted image region or the image region necessary for drawing the currently displayed image is included in another hierarchical data of the link destination.

  The link determination unit refers to the link setting file 118 stored in the main memory 60 in advance, and in response to an inquiry from the load block determination unit 106, whether the image block to be loaded includes the image block of the link destination hierarchical data. Determine whether or not. If included, the coordinates of the point to be loaded in the currently displayed hierarchical data are converted to the coordinates in the linked hierarchical data, and the load block is determined together with the coordinates before conversion and the file name of the linked hierarchical data Return to section 106. Further, in response to an inquiry from the prefetch processing unit 110, it is determined whether or not the area of the linked hierarchical data is included in the area necessary for drawing. If it is included, information related to the coordinates of the linked link area is returned. An example of setting a link will be shown later.

  Based on the image area information acquired from the prefetch processing unit 110, the decoding unit 112 reads and decodes a part of the compressed image data from the main memory 60, and stores the decoded data in the decoding buffer or the display buffer. The display image processing unit 114 determines the frame coordinates of a new display image according to the display image movement request input by the user, reads the corresponding image data from the display buffer of the buffer memory 70, and the frame memory 90 of the display processing unit 44. To draw. The scenario interpretation unit 117 interprets the scenario setting file 119 stored in the main memory 60 and controls the display image in order to continuously guide the display image. Details will be described later.

  Next, a link setting example will be described. 10 to 13 are diagrams for explaining a method of defining an area (frame) in an image. FIG. 10 shows the positional relationship between a reference frame and an image. In FIG. 10, the reference frame 264 for the image 156 is a rectangle having the same center as the center of the image 156 and circumscribing the image 156 and having a predetermined aspect ratio. Here, the aspect ratio may be a predetermined value, for example, the same as the aspect ratio of the display to be displayed or the display area on the display. Even if the display image is enlarged or reduced, the frame always maintains the ratio. When such a frame is used as a reference, a frame is designated by four parameters of a horizontal direction offset, a vertical direction offset, an enlargement ratio, and a rotation angle. The reference frame 264 is (lateral offset, vertical offset, enlargement ratio, rotation angle) = (0, 0, 1.0, 0).

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the definition of the frame when the reference frame is translated. In this case, values are substituted into the parameters of the vertical offset and the horizontal offset. Specifically, the horizontal component offset_x and the vertical component offset_y of the distance from the center 272 of the frame to the center of the image 156, that is, the center 270 of the reference frame are values of the horizontal offset and the vertical offset. Therefore, the frame 262 is expressed as (offset_x, offset_y, 1.0, 0).

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the definition of a frame when the enlargement ratio is changed without moving the reference frame in parallel. In this case, the ratio of the frame 266 to the reference frame is substituted into the enlargement ratio parameter. If the frame 266 of FIG. 12 is 0.5 times the reference frame of FIG. 10, the frame 266 is expressed as (0, 0, 0.5, 0).

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the definition of a frame when the reference frame is rotated without being translated. In this case, the rotation angle 282 of the frame 280 from the reference frame is substituted into the rotation angle parameter. For example, if the rotation angle 282 is 0.25p, the frame 280 is expressed as (0, 0, 1.0, 0.25). By combining the offsets, magnifications, and rotation angles of FIGS. 11 to 13, any frame of the display image can be expressed by four parameters. Hereinafter, these four parameter sets are referred to as “frame definition parameters”.

  FIG. 14 shows an example of the data structure of the link setting file 118. The link setting file 118 corresponds to one link, that is, a description of switching from one hierarchical data to another hierarchical data, and includes a link source image frame field 302, an effective scale range field 304, a link destination file field 306, and The link destination image frame field 308 is composed of four types of fields. The link source image frame field 302 designates the display image when the hierarchical data is switched in the image being displayed, that is, the frame of the link area by the above-described frame definition parameter. The frame corresponds to, for example, the frame of the link area 163 in the link indicated by the arrow B in FIG.

  The effective scale range field 304 designates the width of the enlargement ratio at which the link is effective, starting from the enlargement ratio in the link source image frame field 302. In the first line of FIG. 14, the enlargement ratio of the link area indicated in the link source image frame field 302 is “2.0”, and the value of the effective scale range field 304 is “98.0”. If the display image has a rate of 2.0 to 100.0, the link is valid and the hierarchical data is switched.

  For example, the link indicated by the arrow B in FIG. 8 zooms out the display image, that is, increases the frame enlargement ratio from a frame smaller than the link area 163 of the image 158, and switches to the image 156 when it overlaps the link area 163. . Therefore, the value of the effective scale range field 304 is set to a positive value in order to make the link effective when the enlargement ratio becomes “2.0” or more. As a result, the link can be made effective even when the magnification is sufficiently increased in the display of the image 158 and then moved to the vicinity of the link area 163.

  On the other hand, the link indicated by the arrow A in FIG. 8 zooms in on the display image, that is, lowers the enlargement ratio of the frame from a frame larger than the link area 162 of the image 156 and switches to the image 158 when it overlaps the link area 162. . Therefore, as shown in the second row of FIG. 14, the effective scale range field 304 is set to a negative value such as “−1.0”. The link destination file field 306 designates the file name of the link destination hierarchical data. In the example of the link indicated by the arrow B in FIG. 8, this corresponds to the file name of the hierarchical data of the image 156. The link destination image frame field 308 specifies a frame definition parameter of a display image after switching of hierarchical data, that is, a frame of a link area of a link destination.

  A link setting file is created for each hierarchical data of the link source. That is, the link information of arrows A and C in FIG. 8 is described in the link setting file of the hierarchical data of the image 156, and the link information of arrow B is described in the link setting file of the hierarchical data of the image 158. Each file is stored in association with the corresponding hierarchical data. In this way, even if a link is set in both directions, the movement can be made independent. For example, in FIG. 8, the link areas A and B in the transition of the arrow A and the link areas A and B in the transition of the arrow B can have different areas and resolutions. In the example of FIG. 8, since the link setting file is not added to the image 160, after transitioning to the image 160, the user can enjoy image display and the like.

  By creating such a link setting file in advance, the link determination unit 116, in response to the inquiry from the prefetch processing unit 110, the area predicted by the prefetch processing is the link area set in the link setting file. Is included. If included, the file name of the link destination hierarchical data and the frame definition parameter of the link area of the link destination are returned. The prefetch processing unit 110 passes the information to the decoding unit 112 as in the case where the link area is not included. The decoding unit 112 reads the data of the link area of the link destination from the main memory 60 and decodes it.

  Similarly, the link determination unit 116 confirms whether or not the point to be loaded is included in the link area in response to an inquiry from the load block determination unit 106. If included, the file name of the linked hierarchical data is returned. At this time, the coordinates in the link source image of the point to be loaded are converted into the coordinates in the link destination image, and the information is also returned. The load block determination unit 106 loads, from the hard disk drive 50 to the main memory 60, the image block including the coordinate-converted point in the hierarchical data of the link destination image.

  Here, an image block loading process performed by the load block determination unit 106 and the link determination unit 116 will be described. FIG. 15 schematically shows points to be loaded when links are set in two hierarchical data. It is desirable that the main memory 60 is basically loaded with compressed data of an image around the currently displayed display image. Here, the “periphery” may include the periphery in the vertical and horizontal (X-axis, Y-axis) directions and the depth (Z-axis) direction of the hierarchical structure in an image of the same hierarchy. The periphery in the Z-axis direction means a display image and an enlarged image and a reduced image including the vicinity thereof.

  In FIG. 15, two triangles represent the hierarchical data 184 and 186, as in FIG. In addition, a link such as a line 188 is set in these hierarchical data 184 and 186. Assuming that the current display image is a line 190, for example, an image block including points of white circles 192 and black circles 194 in the figure is loaded into the main memory 60. In other words, in a predetermined number of layers above and below the layer being displayed, several points within a predetermined range from the area of the current display image are determined as points to be loaded.

  In the example of FIG. 15, five points in the same hierarchy as the display image, three points in the hierarchy above or below, one point in the hierarchy two, two above, or two below are white circles 192 and black circles. It is represented by 194. Actually, there are more points on the horizontal plane of the figure. Here, when the link is set by the line 188 as shown in the figure, even if the current display image is of the hierarchical data 184, the point determined in the next lower hierarchy is included in the link area. Among the data 186, an image block including a point corresponding to the point of the hierarchical data 184 is loaded. The same applies to points to be loaded in the next lower hierarchy. In the figure, points to be loaded in the currently displayed hierarchical data 184 are indicated by white circles 192, and points converted to the coordinates of the linked hierarchical data 186 as described above are indicated by black circles 194.

  The determination of the point to be loaded and the loading of the image block including the point may be performed as needed at predetermined time intervals. When an image block is stored in the hard disk drive 50 in order to load data in a necessary area, information that associates the image area of each image block with the image block storage area is also stored in the hard disk drive 50. deep. Similarly, for the loaded image block, information in which the area on the image of each image block is associated with the storage area of the image block is stored in the main memory 60. The load block determination unit 106 periodically checks whether or not an image block including a point to be loaded is stored in the main memory 60, and if not, determines the image block as a load target. Thus, by performing loading in units of image blocks as needed, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of display wait time due to the loading process.

  As shown in FIG. 15, when the point to be loaded is newly included in the hierarchical data 186 of the linked image, the linked data is loaded with priority over the data of the currently displayed hierarchical data 184. You may do it. Thereby, even if the transition to the link destination occurs immediately, a new image of the link destination can be displayed smoothly.

  Next, a method for converting the coordinates of a point to be loaded in the hierarchical data of the link source into coordinates in the hierarchical data of the link destination will be described. FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining a method of converting XY coordinates from a link source image to a link destination image. In the figure, it is assumed that the link is set so that the link area 200 of the image 156 is switched to the link area 204 of the image 158, and the point 196 of the image 156 corresponds to the point 198 of the image 158. Here, the coordinates of the point 196 are (Pa_x, Pa_y), the side length of the link area 200 is (La_sx, La_sy), the center coordinates of the area are (La_x, La_y), and the coordinates of the point 198 are (Pb_x, Pb_y). ), The length of the side of the link area 204 is (Lb_sx, Lb_sy), and the center coordinates of the area are (Lb_x, Lb_y).

La_sx: (Pa_x−La_x) = Lb_sx: (Pb_x−Lb_x) (Formula 1)
La_sy: (Pa_y−La_y) = Lb_sy: (Pb_y−Lb_y) (Formula 2)
Therefore, the coordinates of the point 198 are obtained as follows.
Pb_x = (Lb_sx / La_sx) × (Pa_x−La_x) + Lb_x (Formula 3)
Pb_y = (Lb_sy / La_sy) × (Pa_y−La_y) + Lb_y (Formula 4)

FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining a Z coordinate conversion method from a link source image to a link destination image. Assume that the hierarchical data 184 and the hierarchical data 186 are linked in a line 208. That is, the position of the line 208 indicates the link area of the hierarchical data 184 and the link area of the hierarchical data 186. Here, the variable “lod” is defined as follows.
lod = log ₂ Np
Here, Np is the number of pixels of the lowest layer image, that is, the image with the highest resolution, in each hierarchical data included in the width of one pixel of the target resolution image. Therefore, the variable “lod” is an index representing the distance from the base in the triangle representing the hierarchical data, and has a common axis in the Z-axis direction that does not depend on the number of hierarchical levels included in each hierarchical data.

On the other hand, the distance from the enlargement / reduction ratio of the link area represented by the line 208 to the enlargement / reduction ratio of the point to be converted does not depend on the hierarchical data. Here, the load value of the link area is assumed to be when the area is displayed on the entire screen. In FIG. 17, assuming that the values of the link area load in both the hierarchical data 184 and 186 are La_lod and Lb_lod, and the lod value of the point 210 to be converted is Pa_lod and Pb_lod, the following equation is established according to the above properties.
Pa_lod-La_lod = Pb_lod-Lb_lod (Formula 5)
Therefore,
Pb_lod = Lb_lod + (Pa_lod−La_lod) (Formula 6)
It becomes.

  By the expressions 3, 4, and 6, the coordinates of the point to be loaded in the hierarchical data of the currently displayed image can be replaced with the coordinates in the hierarchical data of the link destination. However, since the obtained Pb_lod is not necessarily on the hierarchy having the image data in the hierarchy data 186, the data of the hierarchy closest to the position obtained from Pb_lod is actually loaded.

  In the examples described so far, the images are handled as two hierarchical data display targets, and when the display image reaches a predetermined area and enlargement ratio in one image, the other image is displayed. That is, it is possible to further enlarge the object displayed by the other image, or to display completely different content, using the display image movement instruction input as a trigger. Here, the number of hierarchical data to be displayed at the same time may be three or more, and the link may be set so as to circulate such that the original image is returned when the enlargement ratio is changed. In this case, a display such as returning to the original hierarchical data when sequentially expanding a plurality of hierarchical data to which links are set, or returning to a reduced image of the hierarchical data when enlarged with certain hierarchical data. it can. In the latter case, it is only necessary to specify the name of the file in the link destination file field of the link setting file.

For example, the following display can be performed using such a mechanism.
1. 1. Continuous transition of images of the same object but with significantly different scales, such as shifting the display to Japan, prefectures, cities, towns, buildings, etc. by expanding the world map. 2. When an icon as an option displayed on a menu screen of an information processing device, a game device, or the like is enlarged, a display shifts to information display related to the icon such as a manual. 3. If you expand the cover from the cover list screen of the book, such as the back number of the magazine, the display shifts to the content display of the book. When an object in the image, such as a person's pupil, is magnified, the display shifts to the object or in the landscape, and when the image at the transition destination is reduced, an image different from the original image is displayed. And migration

  In the present embodiment, it is predicted that the display image is changed to the link area by the above-described prefetching process. Further, the periphery of the current display image in the virtual space is loaded into the memory regardless of the hierarchical data. With these mechanisms, even when the display is shifted to an image of different hierarchical data, a delay in display due to the load process and the decode process is unlikely to occur, and a continuous shift is possible.

  In addition, when the generation of a display image is delayed by performing a convolution operation on the image change request signal from the user and the transfer function as described above, the image is switched more smoothly by adjusting the transfer function. be able to. In addition, especially when the link source image and the link destination image have different contents, such as manual display, these images are commonly used for video switchers such as cross-fade, dissolve, wipe, and page turning expression using polygon mesh. Smooth switching may be expressed by applying one of the effects used in the above.

  Moreover, you may set moving image data as a link destination. In this case, the link destination can be regarded as hierarchical data composed of moving picture data of one hierarchy. For example, a link to moving image data is set in one area of a still image. The link setting file can use the data structure shown in FIG. In the link destination file field 306, the file name of the moving image file is designated. The link destination image frame field 308 may be invalidated when the resolution or display area of the moving image is fixed. In this way, the link is set, and when the display image is predicted to move to the link area of the image being displayed by the above-described prefetching process, encoding of the designated moving image file is started. Alternatively, only the encoding process may be continued regardless of the prediction.

  For example, it is possible to produce effects such as displaying several still images such as gravure photographs on the screen and moving an animal in the image as the still image is zoomed in. Similarly, an application file may be designated in the link destination file field 306 of the link information, and the application may be activated when a certain area in the image is zoomed in.

  FIG. 18 shows an example of an image in which a link area is set. In the image 350, a plurality of link areas such as link areas 352a, 352b, and 352c are set. For example, when zooming in on the link area 352a, more detailed images and related information in the area, moving image reproduction, and application activation are performed by the mechanism described above. When the link area is limited as in the image 350, the movement of the display image may be guided in order to reduce the user's trouble of alignment. This function is effective when the display image is intentionally guided even when the link area is not limited.

  In order to provide this guidance function, the frame definition parameters used in the above link information are used. That is, for each area to be guided (hereinafter referred to as a guiding area), a frame definition parameter represented by (horizontal offset, vertical offset, enlargement ratio, rotation angle) is created as a file in the same way as link information. . The file is stored as the scenario setting file 119 in the main memory 60 of FIG. When the display area falls within a predetermined range in the virtual space with respect to the frame set in the scenario setting file, the display image is guided to the guidance area. This process can be realized by the same process as described above if an image movement request signal to the guidance area is virtually generated. The “predetermined range” is also defined in the scenario setting file using the frame definition parameter.

  As a result, the display image is guided to the link area only by the user bringing the display image close to the vicinity of the link area 352a. As a result, the user can easily move to the set link destination, and the operability is improved. In this embodiment, the movement of the display image in the virtual space is used as a trigger to move to another image that is a link destination, play a movie, start an application, and the like. The user's intention can be predicted in advance. Therefore, it is possible to speculatively execute decoding of another image data, decoding of moving image data, and application activation processing before actually switching the display to the link destination. As a result, compared with the conventional method of starting processing after selecting an icon with a pointer or the like, the time required from an actual image switching instruction to output can be significantly reduced.

  The above example detects the user's intention to move to the link destination and guides the display image to the link area. On the other hand, a display image may be guided by a similar mechanism regardless of whether or not it is a link area. FIG. 19 shows a state in which the display layer is shifted while guiding the display image in one layer data. In the figure, hierarchical data 360 corresponds to an image 362. The guidance areas 374 and 376 represented by the lines 368 and 370 are set in the scenario setting file 119 by the above-described frame definition parameters, and the currently displayed area 372 corresponds to the line 366.

  When the user enlarges the display image from the area 372 and the display image enters the predetermined range from the guidance area 374, the display image is guided to the guidance area 374 (arrow D). Further, when the display image enters a predetermined range from the guidance area 376, the display image is guided to the guidance area 376 (arrow E). This aspect can be used for various purposes depending on the content of the image to be displayed.

  For example, in a landscape photograph or a boat rate, there are many cases where the area that the user wants to enlarge is limited. However, in the conventional technique for enlarging / reducing the screen, there is a case where the display image is shifted when the desired area is enlarged, and it is sometimes difficult to search for the desired area with the enlargement ratio at that time. If the area that is predicted to be enlarged in this embodiment is registered in the scenario setting file in advance, the user can move the display image to the area and input an enlargement instruction to accurately enlarge the area. can do. The display image is guided to the guide area not only when the display image is in the vicinity of the guide area, but, for example, when a predetermined button is pressed, the display image moves to the guide area regardless of the current position of the display image. Good.

  The above-described guidance does not necessarily have to be guided to a different hierarchy, and for example, the display order can be guided within the same hierarchy. FIG. 20 shows how the display image is transferred when the guidance to a different hierarchy and the guidance to another area in the same hierarchy are combined. For example, consider a case where one page such as a newspaper article or magazine is displayed using the hierarchical data 380. At this time, the area of the character that will be enlarged and read is set as a guidance area for each article. In this figure, the guiding area 392 represented by the line 386 corresponds to this. Further, a plurality of guidance areas are set so as to follow from the beginning to the end of the article in a lower layer, that is, a layer having a resolution that can read the characters. This corresponds to a guidance area 394 represented by a line 388 and a guidance area 396 represented by a line 390.

  The user first displays the area 382 of the entire page represented by the line 384, and then enlarges the display image close to the desired article. Then, it is guided to the guide area 392 of the article (arrow F). Therefore, when the image is further enlarged, the information is guided to the guidance area 394 at the beginning of the article (arrow G). When the user who has read the text in the guidance area 394 performs a direction instruction or an input to press a predetermined button, the user is guided to a guidance area 396 in which a subsequent text is described (arrow H).

  When shifting the display area within the same hierarchy, the display order is set together with the frame definition parameter. As described above, operation keys for instructing movement of the display area are also defined. For example, sentences written in columns such as newspaper articles need to be moved from right to left again after the display area is moved from right to left. In such a case, if the display area and the order are set in advance, the user does not need to search to which position the display image should be moved next in the enlarged image. Further, even if the movement is within the same hierarchy, it may be guided when the current display image enters a predetermined range of the guidance area as described above.

  19 and 20 show the transition of the display image in one hierarchical data for the sake of simplicity. However, if a link to another hierarchical data is set during the transition, the other hierarchical data is naturally set. The display may be shifted to. In the above example, the display image is guided when the user makes an image movement request including enlargement / reduction. In the present embodiment, a function of transferring a display image to a guide area registered in advance every predetermined time is further provided. In this case, the user only needs to input an instruction to execute such a mode. With this function, it is possible to provide a new expression technique close to a moving image using a material composed of still images, such as magazine sales promotion images and continuous browsing of photographs.

  When the display image is automatically transferred in this way, the frame definition parameter, the display order, the display time of each image, and the like are created as the scenario setting file 119. In this case, the scenario setting file 119 may describe processing for controlling image migration more finely in a markup language such as XML. At this time, the scenario interpretation unit 117 reads out and interprets the description from the main memory 60, and controls the display image by appropriately making processing requests to the display image processing unit 114, the link determination unit 116, and the load unit 108. FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing described at this time.

  First, hierarchical data is designated (S20). The hierarchical data specified here may be one hierarchical data representing one image, or a group of a plurality of hierarchical data to which links are set. Next, the image to be displayed is designated by the frame definition parameter (S22). Further, effect processing for displaying the image is appropriately designated (S24). If another image is displayed before that, for example, a crossfade process is designated, or a process of enlarging the current image while gradually reducing the previous image is designated. Then, the time until the display shifts to the next image, and the complementary processing of the current image and the next image at that time are designated (S26). Here, the “next image” may be, for example, an enlarged image or a reduced image of the current image, an image having a different hierarchy in the same hierarchical data, an image of a link destination, or an image in different hierarchical data.

  As a method for complementing an image, a method generally used in an animation technique or the like when the current image and the next image are used as key frames can be applied. The processing from S20 to S26 is taken as a unit, and if there is an image that is to be continuously displayed with different hierarchical data, it is described so as to be repeated. When the prefetch processing unit 110 reads the scenario setting file 119 described in this way, a virtual image movement request is generated in the same way as when the user inputs an image movement request, and the decoding unit 112 is requested to perform decoding processing. As a result, it is possible to easily realize a mode in which the designated image changes one after another as a display image. In addition, in the scenario setting file at this time, the number of layers of layer data used for image drawing may be specified separately from the frame definition parameter.

An example of the scenario setting file 119 described in XML is shown below.
(1) <? Xml version = "1.0" encoding = "utf-8"?>
(2) <Viewer>
(3) <FileList>
(4) <File name = "INDEX"/>
(5) <File name = "hyoshi"/>
(6) <File name = "ichiran"/>
(7) </ FileList>
(8) <InitCameraPosition x = "-0.219" y = "0.32" scale = "0.28"/>
(9) <Section>
(10) <Event type = "change" name = "INDEX" wait = "0.0">
(11) <CameraPosition x = "-0.219" y = "0.32" scale = "0.28"/>
(12) </ Event>
(13) </ Section>
(14) <Section>
(15) <Event type = "camera" name = "camera1" wait = "0.0">
(16) <Interpolator
(17) duration = '4.0'
(18) type = 'linear'
(19) key = '0 0.5 1.0'
(20) keyValue = '
(21) -0.219 0.32 0.28
(22) -0.115955 0.29424 0.2
(23) -0.115955 0.29424 0.155553
(24) '/>
(25) </ Event>
(26) </ Section>
(27) <Section>
(28) <Event type = "change" name = "hyoshi" wait = "0.0">
(29) <CameraPosition x = "0.01257207987839" y = "-0.00214762229374"
scale = "0.94793879664622"/>
(30) </ Event>
(31) </ Section>
(32) <Section>
(33) <Event type = "change" name = "09france-ichiran" wait = "2.0">
(34) <CameraPosition x = "-0.007705" y = "-0.008650" scale = "0.508980"/>
(35) <VideoPosition name = "video: sample.m2v" x = "0.135605" y = "-0.035605"
scale = "0.061268"/>
(36) <Effect type = "fade0"/>
(37) </ Event>
(38) </ Section>
(39) <Section>
(40) <Event type = "image" name = "tbs01.png" wait = "0.0">
(41) <Position x = "0.971875" y = "-0.95" alpha = "0.0" layer = "1003"
cardinal = "rightbottom"/>
(42) </ Event>
(43) </ Section>
(44) </ Story>
(45) </ Viewer>

  In the above description, (3) to (7) designate hierarchical data used in the content. (8) designates the initial position of the image. (9) to (13) are images of hierarchical data in which the first image to be used is displayed as an index, and designate the hierarchical data image to be displayed and its display position. In (14) to (31), zooming is performed while the camera animation is applied to the hierarchical data image of the book cover, and the data is changed. Among them, (14) to (26) designate camera animation in key frame notation. In (27) to (31), an image of the hierarchical data to be displayed and its display position are designated, and a link is established using the display position. In (32) to (38), the image is switched to a hierarchical data image including a link to the moving image, and the moving image is copied up. Among them, (32) to (35) have links to moving images as well as links to images of hierarchical data. (36) designates a drawing effect at the time of screen switching. In (39) to (43), a copyright display image of a moving image is displayed during moving image display. Of these, (40) to (41) designate display of an ordinary image having no hierarchical structure.

  In the present embodiment, by creating the link setting file and the scenario setting file as described above, various image expressions can be easily realized using a plurality of hierarchical data as materials. Therefore, it can be considered that a general user creates original content using hierarchical data provided as content on a network or a recording medium. In addition, the content itself created in this way may be distributed.

  FIG. 22 schematically shows an example of a data distribution mode when the present embodiment is realized. In this example, servers 400, 402, and 404 are connected via a network 420. Each server may be a content producer's server or an information terminal of a general user. Further, a recording medium such as a CD-ROM or a DVD may be used instead of the server. The server 400 provides content including the hierarchical data 406a and the attribute file 408a added thereto. The attribute file 408a will be described later. The server 402 provides content to which hierarchical data 406b composed of a plurality of hierarchical data and link setting files 410b and 410c, scenario setting file 412b, and attribute file 408b in which the link information is set are added.

  As shown in the figure, when a link is set in the hierarchical data 406b, the link setting files 410b and 410c are added for each hierarchical data as described above. On the other hand, since the scenario setting file can be set across hierarchical data on the assumption of the link, the scenario setting file is added to the entire hierarchical data for which the link is set.

  The server 404 provides only the scenario setting file 412c. The data structure shown in the figure is merely an example. For example, a scenario setting file may be added to single hierarchical data to which no link is set. Conversely, the link setting file is not added to the scenario setting file. It may be added. The content held by the server 400 or the server 402 can be displayed by itself, but if included in the setting in the scenario setting file 412c of the server 404, the scenario setting file 412c and the hierarchy specified thereby By obtaining the data 406a and 406b, one content is generated. Therefore, any of the data structures shown in FIG. 22 can be a unit of distribution as one content.

  Considering such a case, an attribute file is added to the hierarchical data. Information to be recorded in the attribute file includes, for example, information relating to the contents of the content, for example, basic information such as content name, author, publisher, sponsor, creation date, modification date, edition, description language, content and material data Right holders, information for returning charges, information for control during secondary use, ownership / copyright information such as expiration date, number of copies allowed, number of transfers, etc., ratings and the like.

  In addition, the control attributes of the content, for example, permission of connection and data use, encryption method, authentication control information such as signature, whether or not the usage fee is charged, whether an upper limit is set, whether it is free, whether it is virtual currency Adds information related to billing, such as payment method such as charge, debit or check method, operating environment such as platform, OS, recommended resources, access control information such as target user, valid area, country, etc. May be. Furthermore, attribute information area and hierarchical data area, content structure such as external reference link information, content name, representative image, billing information, thumbnail information indicating attribute summary, frame information storage location information, Such data structure information may be added.

  By adding these attributes to individual hierarchical data, for example, when creating and displaying content consisting of multiple hierarchical data with the hierarchical data as the link destination, appropriate measures should be taken for each link destination. Can do. For example, when content that is the subject of copyright is transferred as a link destination, a message to that effect is always displayed, or for content for which authentication is required, a dialog for authentication is first displayed. Further, whether or not display is possible is determined based on the rating and the profile of the viewer, and if it is not possible, the image may not be displayed. In the case where the display is disabled, even if there is a display image in the link area, the transition to the link destination is not performed and the image of the original hierarchical data may be simply enlarged or reduced. Various processes according to the attribute information can be performed by the same mechanism as the process for displaying general contents.

  Since a plurality of hierarchical data set with links form one content as a whole, the attribute file is added to each of the hierarchical data in addition to the individual hierarchical data.

  Next, assistive technology for a user to create content using hierarchical data, including the embodiments described so far, will be described. FIG. 23 shows a configuration of an image processing apparatus having a content production support function in the present embodiment. Note that the image processing apparatus 500 shown in the figure may actually have the same configuration as the image processing apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 4, but here only functional blocks provided for realizing the present embodiment are included. Show. 21 may be realized by the same processor as the control unit 100 shown in FIG. Or it is good also as a separate apparatus.

The image processing apparatus 500 has any one or combination of functions described below.
1. 1. Accept the guidance area settings and generate and update the scenario setting file. 2. Accept link area settings and generate and update link setting files Accepts multiple image selections and generates an index image that can be selected by setting links

  The image processing apparatus 500 includes an input device 520, a control unit 502, a hard disk drive 550, and a main memory 560. The hard disk drive 550 stores existing hierarchical data 551. A link may be set between the hierarchical data. The input device 520 is an interface for the user to input the above-described function selection, image area selection, and various setting instructions, and may have the appearance configuration shown in FIG. 2, for example. The control unit 502 includes an input information acquisition unit 504, a setting image display unit 506, and a setting information registration unit 508. The input information acquisition unit 504 acquires information input to the input device 520 by the user, and appropriately makes a processing request to the setting image display unit 506 and the setting information registration unit 508 according to the content.

  The setting image display unit 506 reads the hierarchical data of the image selected by the user from the hard disk drive 550 and displays it when the user inputs that he wants to set a guidance area or a link area. Further, the display image is moved according to a screen movement request from the user, or a rectangle for designating an area is displayed in accordance with the position information of the pointer. When the user designates an area in the image and instructs the setting of the link area or the guidance area, the setting information registration unit 508 acquires the frame definition parameter of the area, and obtains the link setting file 562 or the scenario setting file 564. And stored in the main memory 560.

  When the user selects a plurality of images, the setting information registration unit 508 also generates index image data 566 arranged in a predetermined format by appropriately selecting the resolution of the images, for example, as hierarchical data, and stores it in the main memory 560. Store. At this time, a link setting file 562 in which a link is set between the generated hierarchical data of the index image and the hierarchical data of individual images (hereinafter referred to as “individual images”) included therein is also generated at the same time. To store. As described above, the link setting file 562, the scenario setting file 564, and the index image data 566 are not only stored in the main memory 560 and used for image display, but also recorded on the hard disk drive 550 or another recording medium. Good. At this time, the content may be combined with the hierarchical data body to be set as one content.

  The setting information registration unit 508 includes any one or combination of the generated scenario setting file, link setting file, and index image data, and the target hierarchical data itself or information related to the storage area of the hierarchical data in one package. May be generated and stored in the hard disk drive 550. The attribute information described above may be further added to the package. Further, when image processing or image viewing is performed using the package, information on an initial screen that is displayed first may be further added to the package. For example, when the index image data, the individual image data, the link setting file, and the like are used as a package, the index image is set as the initial screen in the information related to the initial screen. In the information relating to the initial screen, which region of the image set as the initial screen is to be displayed may be set. As a result, for example, it is possible to realize a mode in which the title area of the index image is displayed first and the entire index image is displayed according to a user instruction.

  The setting image display unit 506 may display various switching images as registration results by using the scenario setting file, the link setting file, the index image data, and the hierarchy data that are once set and generated by the user. At this time, the user can confirm the image and perform setting again. Further, any of the generated scenario setting file, link setting file, and index image data may be transmitted to an image processing apparatus connected to the image processing apparatus 500 via a network. Then, when the user confirms the result displayed on the image processing apparatus and returns information such as a correction location to the image processing apparatus 500, the setting information registration unit 508 interprets the information, and the scenario setting file, the link setting file, and The index image data may be corrected.

  FIG. 24 is a diagram for explaining a procedure example of the above-described processing for receiving the setting of the guidance area and generating and updating the scenario setting file. First, the user selects hierarchical data of a target image with respect to the input device 520. The setting image display unit 506 that has obtained the information from the input information acquisition unit 504 reads the hierarchical data from the hard disk drive 550 and displays it. An image 570 in FIG. 24 represents the entire selected image. The user makes an image movement request to the input device 520 while confirming the display of the setting image display unit 506, and for example, after a region 572 to be set as a guidance region is displayed on the entire screen, a predetermined setting button is pressed. Press. Instead of this processing, a rectangle surrounding the area may be drawn by a pointer operation, and the setting button may be pressed.

  Then, the setting information registration unit 508 acquires the frame definition parameter of the area and records it in the scenario setting file 564. The user selects another area 574 as necessary and presses the setting button. Then, the setting information registration unit 508 adds the frame definition parameter of the area to the next line of the scenario setting file 564. By repeating this, all desired areas are recorded in the scenario setting file 564. As described above, the scenario setting file 564 generated in this way can sequentially display the areas to be displayed in the order of the areas 572, 574,.

  In addition, as described above, a markup language describing processing for controlling display such as display time of each region, animation processing for interpolating an image, and effect processing may be generated. For this purpose, variations of image processing using sample images may be displayed in advance so that a user can select a desired process. The selected process is recorded in the scenario setting file 564 together with the frame definition parameter of the guidance area. Furthermore, a scenario setting file may be set for a plurality of hierarchical data to which links are set in the link setting file described below, or for the entire index image data and individual image data. At this time, the setting image display unit 506 switches and displays the images of the plurality of hierarchical data according to the set link, but otherwise, the scenario setting file can be generated by the same processing.

  FIG. 25 is a diagram for explaining a procedure example of the above-described processing of accepting the setting of the link area and generating and updating the link setting file. First, the user inputs to the input device 520 to select two hierarchical data of two images to be linked. The setting image display unit 506 that has obtained the information from the input information acquisition unit 504 reads the hierarchical data from the hard disk drive 550 and displays it on two screens. An image 582 and an image 584 in FIG. 25 represent the selected image. The user makes an image movement request for the image 582 to the input device 520 while confirming the display of the setting image display unit 506, and displays an image including the region 586 to be set as the link region. A region is selected by drawing a rectangle surrounding the region by operating the pointer. Similarly, the area 588 is selected for the image 584. Thereafter, a predetermined setting button is pressed.

  Then, the setting information registration unit 508 acquires the frame definition parameters of the areas 586 and 588 and records them in the link setting file 562 with a data structure as shown in FIG. For example, a rule is set so that the link source image is displayed on the left side of the setting image display unit 506 and the link destination image is displayed on the right side of the setting image display unit 506, and the user selects whether the link is in the enlargement or reduction direction of the image. As a result, the information designated in the effective scale range field 304 and the link destination file field 306 is also acquired and recorded. When a link is set between the image 582 and the image 584 by the link setting file 562 generated in this way, and the area 586 is zoomed in as described above, the data used for image display is added to the hierarchical data of the image 584. It is possible to shift and display an image with a further enlargement ratio.

  Although the above example shows a case where a link is set between image data, the link destination is not limited to an image, and may be data such as a moving image, an application, sound, music, text, or the like. In this case, the link source image may be displayed as an image 582, and an icon representing data that can be a link destination may be displayed instead of the image 584 to allow the user to select. At this time, as described above, the file name of the data corresponding to the selected icon is recorded in the link destination file field 306 in the link setting file 562, and the link destination image frame field 308 may be invalid.

  When the areas 586 and 588 are selected by the user, the feature points of the objects displayed in each area are extracted and matched, so that the frame definition parameter is set so that the objects completely overlap in the two images. May be finely adjusted in the virtual space. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the object from being shifted during the image transfer by the link, and the switching process from becoming clear. This process is effective not only when the objects of the two images are the same, but also when connecting the two images by cross-fading so that a certain object changes. In FIG. 25, one area is selected from each of the two images and links are set. However, the number of images may be three or more, and a plurality of link areas may be set in one image. Good. This case can also be realized by repeating the above processing.

  Furthermore, when the attribute information is added to the link setting target hierarchical data as described above, a dialog for allowing the user to input information such as where to display necessary information among the information is displayed. It may be. When the information is input by the user, this information may also be recorded in the link setting file 562 and appropriately displayed when the display image is transferred to the link destination.

  FIG. 26 is a diagram for explaining a processing mode of generating an index image that accepts a plurality of image selections and can select those images after setting a link. At this time, the user selects hierarchical data of a plurality of individual images for which an index is to be generated with respect to the input device 520. Then, the setting information registration unit 508 converts an index image in which an individual image having an appropriate resolution as an index, such as an image having the lowest resolution of the selected hierarchical data, for example, an image such as the image 350 shown in FIG. Data 566 is generated and stored in the main memory 560. In the figure, areas 352a, 352b, 352c, etc. are individual images selected by the user.

  The hierarchical data 590 may be selected by the user. For example, if an image of a museum wall is selected as the hierarchical data 590 and an individual image is arranged within the frame of the wall, an image in which the individual image is decorated on the wall of the museum is generated. Information such as where the individual images are arranged in the index image and the size of each image may also be received from the user. In this case, the setting information registration unit 508 generates index image data in which the individual image is embedded at the position and size according to the user's designation.

  The setting information registration unit 508 further sets a link setting file 562 in which links to the hierarchical data 592a, 592b,..., 592n of the individual images are set at positions where the individual images are embedded in the generated hierarchical data 590 of the index image. And stored in the main memory 560. When the index image data 566 and the link setting file 562 generated in this way are used to zoom in on an individual image in the index image, the display shifts to the hierarchical data 592a of the individual image, and a further enlargement ratio is obtained. You can display images and play videos. The index image data 566, the link setting file 562, and the hierarchical data of individual images may be stored in the hard disk drive 550 as one content.

  It is also possible to generate hierarchical data of an index image including all of the hierarchical data of the individual image without setting a link between the hierarchical data 592a of the individual image and the hierarchical data 590 of the index image. Also, an index image in which a plurality of existing index images are embedded may be generated. The processing in this case can be similarly realized by making it possible to select an index image instead of an individual image.

  According to the present embodiment described above, a link is set to the hierarchical data of two images, and the hierarchical data used for drawing the display image is transferred only by inputting parallel movement, enlargement, and reduction instructions. By doing so, extra data such as a high-resolution image in a region that becomes meaningless when enlarged can be omitted, and the data size can be reduced. In addition, by using images with remarkably different scales, such as a world map and a map around a building, as separate hierarchical data, it is possible to reset the numerical values for controlling the position of the display image for each hierarchical level. Easy to hold.

  On the other hand, when a link is set to a completely different image such as a menu image and a manual for each icon on the menu, it is possible to realize mutual transition of images by only enlargement and reduction operations. Another image can be viewed with the location information in mind. For example, in order to investigate the function of an icon, a conventional method, such as displaying a help screen, searching for a description that seems to be related to the icon display, and displaying the description in the help is displayed. The process to be performed is complicated, and the user's thinking is easily interrupted. As a result, you may eventually forget what you originally intended. However, in the present embodiment, since the icon and the manual are directly connected, an intuitive grasp is possible and work efficiency is improved.

  Furthermore, since user operations such as enlargement, reduction, and parallel movement can predict subsequent movements, in this embodiment, the linked image is decoded in advance by prefetching it. As a result, when the image switching is actually instructed, the linked image can be drawn smoothly, and the decoding processing waiting time can be reduced. This is also effective when the link destination is a moving image reproduction or application activation. That is, by performing the moving image reproduction and application activation in advance by the prefetching process, it is possible to output smoothly when the user actually gives an instruction to move to the link destination. This has the effect of significantly reducing the processing waiting time and reducing the user's stress as compared with the conventional method of starting by clicking an icon.

  In addition, images can be switched smoothly by performing appropriate image effect processing at the time of switching, such as by delaying the time from the input of the display image change request signal of the user to displaying the image by convolution calculation or crossfading. You can produce as if. As a result, it is possible to provide a new input tool that uses a moving operation of a display image regardless of whether it is a still image or a moving image, or not only an image but also music or text data.

  Link settings are made by defining the link area in the link source and link destination hierarchical data in the virtual space, so even a seemingly complex link structure can be set easily, and content can be easily accessed by general users. Can be produced. By using the definition and storing several areas in the hierarchical data, the display image can be guided to the area. For example, since the display image can be guided to the set link area only by aligning the display image, the image can be switched to the link destination in a short time. In addition, by creating a scenario setting file in which a plurality of portions to be shown in the image are recorded, such portions can be continuously displayed, and effective contents for promotion and presentation can be produced. Alternatively, it is possible to move to the next area while enlarging the characters so that they can be read in a columned article or a magazine page whose reading order is determined.

  The hierarchical data with link settings and the hierarchical data with guidance areas set, such as scenario setting files, produced in this way can be distributed as a single package. On the other hand, it is also possible to distribute in units of modules such as only hierarchical data or only scenario setting files. In the hierarchical data and content, attribute information such as information on contents, information on control, and data structure information is added for each unit. Thereby, when the hierarchical data and content by another author are contained in the content, it is possible to restrict or charge the transition to the link destination. In addition, by determining a uniform attribute information format for each unit, it is possible to efficiently create secondary content using the format.

  Further, in order to support content production, a link area and a guidance area can be selected after displaying an actual screen, and a link setting file and a scenario setting file are generated in a predetermined format by the selection. In this way, the user can easily make settings after inflating the image while confirming the actual image. In setting the link area, the position of the link area between the two images is finely adjusted by extracting feature points and matching processing. As a result, it is possible to make a continuous transition without causing a position shift or the like when switching images, and the viewer is less likely to notice the switching of images.

  Also, an index image in which a plurality of individual images selected by the user are embedded is generated. Then, a link setting file between the index image and the individual image is generated. As a result, the contents to select a desired book while checking the contents of the magazine's back number, various applications, contents with a menu screen that can start a movie, paintings, novels, portraits, etc. Various contents such as contents to be switched can be easily produced simply by selecting an image.

  The present invention has been described based on the embodiments. Those skilled in the art will understand that the above-described embodiment is an exemplification, and that various modifications can be made to combinations of the respective constituent elements and processing processes, and such modifications are also within the scope of the present invention. is there.

It is a figure which shows the use environment of the image processing system concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the external appearance structure of the input device applicable to the image processing system of FIG. It is a figure which shows the hierarchical structure example of the image data used in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the image processing apparatus in this Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the prefetch process in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows typically the flow of the image data in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows typically the relationship of the several hierarchy data used as display object in this Embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the mode of a display image when a link is set between hierarchy data in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the control part in this Embodiment in detail. It is a figure which shows the positional relationship of the flame | frame used as the reference | standard in this Embodiment, and an image. It is a figure explaining the definition of a frame when a reference frame is translated in this embodiment. It is a figure explaining the definition of a frame at the time of changing a magnification without changing a reference frame in this embodiment. It is a figure explaining the definition of a frame at the time of rotating a reference frame, without moving in parallel in this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of a data structure of the link setting file in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows typically the point which should be loaded when the link is set to two hierarchy data in this Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the conversion method of the XY coordinate from a link original image to a link destination image in this Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the conversion method of the Z coordinate from a link original image to a link destination image in this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the image in which the link area | region is set in this Embodiment. In this Embodiment, it is a figure which shows a mode that the hierarchy which displays is guided, guiding a display image in one hierarchy data. In this Embodiment, it is a figure which shows the mode of the transfer of a display image at the time of combining the guidance to a different hierarchy and the guidance to another area in the same hierarchy. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process when the process which controls the transfer of an image in detail is described in the scenario setting file of this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows typically the example of the distribution mode of the data at the time of implement | achieving this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the image processing apparatus which has a content production assistance function in this Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the example of a procedure of the process which receives the setting of a guidance area | region in this Embodiment, and produces | generates and updates a scenario setting file. It is a figure explaining the example of a procedure of the process which receives the setting of a link area | region in this Embodiment, and produces | generates and updates a link setting file. It is a figure explaining the processing mode which accepts a plurality of image selection in this embodiment, and generates an index image which can select those images after setting a link.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image processing system, 10 Image processing apparatus, 12 Display apparatus, 20 Input apparatus, 30 0th hierarchy, 32 1st hierarchy, 34 2nd hierarchy, 36 3rd hierarchy, 38 tile image, 44 Display processing part, 50 Hard disk drive , 60 main memory, 70 buffer memory, 90 frame memory, 100 control unit, 102 input information acquisition unit, 104 compressed data division unit, 106 load block determination unit, 108 load unit, 110 prefetch processing unit, 112 decoding unit, 114 display Image processing unit, 116 link determination unit, 117 scenario interpretation unit, 118 link setting file, 119 scenario setting file, 408a attribute file, 500 image processing device, 502 control unit, 504 input information acquisition unit, 506 Constant image display unit, 508 setting information registration unit, 520 input device, 550 hard disk drive, 560 main memory, 562 link configuration file 564 scenario setting file 566 index image data.

Claims (13)

An input information acquisition unit that receives input for selecting a plurality of individual images from the user;
A setting information registration unit that generates index image data in which a plurality of selected individual images are arranged in a predetermined format,
The plurality of individual images have a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution,
The setting information registration unit associates the area where the individual image is arranged in the index image with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area, and stores the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image. An information processing apparatus that generates a link setting file for switching and outputs the file to a memory.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting information registration unit generates the index image data as the hierarchical data.   2. The information processing according to claim 1, wherein the setting information registration unit generates the index image data by embedding the individual image at a predetermined resolution in a predetermined area of the hierarchical data generated in advance. apparatus.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the individual image includes a moving image.   The setting information registration unit receives input for selecting a plurality of areas from the user for the image data including the index image and the individual images, and the selected plurality of areas are determined by an image plane and a resolution axis. 2. The information processing according to claim 1, further comprising: generating a scenario setting file that is referred to for switching a display image between the plurality of areas by specifying and recording coordinates in a defined virtual space. apparatus.   A file including the index image data and the individual image data, or information related to a storage area of the image data, the link setting file, and the scenario setting file is further generated. Item 6. The information processing device according to Item 5.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising attribute information for controlling viewing of hierarchical data in the file.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the index image is an initial display screen when viewing or processing content configured by the file in an image processing apparatus. Receiving an input for selecting a plurality of individual images from a user;
Reading a plurality of selected individual images from a storage device, generating index image data arranged in a predetermined format and outputting the data to a memory, and
The plurality of individual images have a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution,
The outputting step associates the area where the individual image is arranged in the index image with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area, and switches the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image. An information processing method comprising: generating and further outputting a link setting file for performing A function of accepting input for selecting a plurality of individual images from the user;
A computer program for causing a computer to realize a function of reading out a plurality of selected individual images from a storage device, generating index image data arranged in a predetermined format, and outputting the data to a memory,
The plurality of individual images have a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution,
The output function associates the area where the individual image is arranged in the index image with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area, and switches the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image. A computer program for generating and further outputting a link setting file for performing A function of accepting input for selecting a plurality of individual images from the user;
A recording of a computer program characterized by causing a computer to realize a function of reading out a plurality of selected individual images from a storage device, generating index image data arranged in a predetermined format, and outputting the data to a memory. A medium,
The plurality of individual images have a hierarchical data structure formed by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution,
The output function associates the area where the individual image is arranged in the index image with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area, and switches the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image. A recording medium on which a computer program is recorded, wherein a link setting file is generated and further output. A plurality of individual image data having a hierarchical data structure configured by layering image data of different resolutions in the order of resolution;
Index image data in which the individual images are arranged in a predetermined format;
Link setting for associating the area where the individual image is arranged in the index image with the hierarchical data of the individual image arranged in the area, and switching the data used for drawing the display image from the index image to the individual image Files and
Content data structure characterized by associating.   The recording medium which recorded the data structure of the content of Claim 12.

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