JP2022132335A - Information processing device, content display method and content display program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processing device, a content display method, and a content display program, which enable more various expressions for a content displayed on a screen.

SOLUTION: A comics display processing displays comics 50 formed by a plurality of consecutive still images 52 on a screen of a portable terminal. The comics display processing displays the comics 50 including the still image 52 of which length in at least one of a vertical direction or a horizontal direction is larger than the length of the screen, and scrolls the comics 50 displayed on the screen in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction according to the length of the still image 52 in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

COPYRIGHT: (C)2022,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, a content display method, and a content display program.

In recent years, online services such as websites (web pages, web services), online games, and application software (hereinafter referred to as "apps") delivered to information processing devices such as mobile terminals via computer networks have become widespread. there is

In Patent Document 1, in order to display on the screen a manga in which one page is composed of a plurality of panels, while switching a specified range in the page (for example, one panel drawn in the page), An image display device that enlarges and displays an image on a display screen is disclosed. For this reason, the image display device disclosed in Patent Document 1 generates a display range switching list in which various parameters for sequentially switching the range to be displayed on the display screen are set, and associates the list with the display order. , the frame to be displayed, the coordinates of the display center, and the display magnification are set. As a result, the Web page is displayed on the display screen while sequentially switching the display range according to the generated display range switching list.

Therefore, with the image display device disclosed in Patent Document 1, even if the web page is large, the user does not need to perform complicated controller operations such as scrolling up, down, left, or right, or enlarging or reducing the image. It becomes possible to browse comfortably to every corner.

JP 2010-164862 A

In recent years, manga that can be viewed on an information processing device is not limited to those that have been captured as image data from paper media, but there are also cases where manga is created as image data on the assumption that it will be distributed to an information processing device from the beginning. be. Manga created on the assumption that it will be distributed to such an information processing apparatus is expected to be able to express various expressions that could not be expressed on paper media.

Here, the image display device disclosed in Patent Document 1 scrolls up, down, left, and right. The purpose of this is to allow the user to comfortably read comics in which paper media are captured as image data on a page-by-page basis and divided into frames, but not to diversify the expressions of comics. Therefore, there is a demand for technological development that enables more diverse expressions for contents such as comics displayed on information processing apparatuses.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides an information processing device, a content display method, and a content display program that enable more diverse expressions for content displayed on a screen. for the purpose.

In order to solve the above problems, the information processing apparatus, content display method, and content display program of the present invention employ the following means.

In order to solve the above problems, an "information processing apparatus" according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus that displays on a screen content formed by a plurality of continuous still images, and is arranged in vertical and horizontal directions. display control means for displaying, on the screen, the content including the still image, at least one of which is longer than the length of the screen; and scroll control means for scrolling the displayed content vertically or horizontally.

In order to solve the above problems, a ``content display method'' according to one aspect of the present invention is a content display method for displaying on a screen content formed of a plurality of continuous still images, wherein a first step of displaying on the screen the content including the still image, at least one of which is longer than the length of the screen; and a second step of vertically or horizontally scrolling the displayed content.

In order to solve the above problems, a ``content display program'' according to one aspect of the present invention provides a computer provided in an information processing device for displaying on a screen content formed by a plurality of continuous still images. display control means for displaying on the screen the content including the still image, at least one of which is longer than the length of the screen; and a scroll control means for scrolling the content displayed in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

Various technical limitations may be added to the above "information processing apparatus" as exemplified below. Also, technical limitations to the same effect may be added to the processing steps executed by the "content display method" and the functions of the "content display program."

The scroll control means vertically scrolls the vertically elongated still image and horizontally scrolls the horizontally elongated still image.

The scroll control means scrolls the content according to a user's operation using an indicator on the screen, controls the amount of movement of the still image according to an inertial force based on the moving speed of the indicator, and Even if the scrolling direction of the content changes, the scrolling of the content is continued according to the inertial force.

The scroll control means scrolls the content according to a user's operation using an indicator on the screen, controls the amount of movement of the still image according to an inertial force based on the moving speed of the indicator, and At the timing when the scrolling direction of the content changes, the scrolling of the content is stopped regardless of the magnitude of the inertial force.

The scroll control means scrolls the still image at a predetermined speed.

The speed varies depending on the still image.

The scroll control means determines at a predetermined timing whether or not a predetermined condition for scrolling the content is satisfied, and scrolls the content when the condition is satisfied.

The content is a manga having branching progress, the still image before the branching progress is set in a plurality of scroll directions, and the scroll control means selects one scroll direction from among the plurality of scroll directions. Scroll the content in the scroll direction.

A progress branch control means is provided for determining one of the plurality of scroll directions based on information acquired by the information processing apparatus.

The scroll control means, when scrolling the manga in one selected scroll direction, prohibits scrolling of the manga in other unselected scroll directions.

When a predetermined condition is satisfied, the number of progress branches of the manga increases or decreases compared to before the condition is satisfied.

Content information indicating the content displayed on the screen includes a plurality of the still images arranged two-dimensionally so as to correspond to the scroll direction.

The content information indicating the content to be displayed on the screen includes the plurality of still images associated with order information indicating the order to be displayed on the screen and the scroll direction.

The content information is associated with scroll information indicating the scroll direction of the content, and the scroll control means scrolls the content displayed on the screen vertically or horizontally according to the scroll information.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it has the effect of enabling more various expressions with respect to the content displayed on a screen.

1 is a configuration diagram of a manga distribution system according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the server according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a mobile terminal according to a first embodiment of the invention; FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the concept of manga according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a display state of a screen by multi-scrolling according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an image at a timing when the scroll direction changes according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing manga progression branching according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram relating to a manga display function of the mobile terminal according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 4 is a flow chart showing the flow of manga display processing of the portable terminal according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of manga data according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing another structure of manga data according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

An embodiment of an information processing apparatus, a content display method, and a content display program according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[1. First Embodiment]
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

[1-1. Configuration of manga distribution system]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a manga distribution system 1 according to this embodiment. A manga distribution system 1 includes a communication line 2 , a plurality of mobile terminals 3 and a server 4 .

The communication line 2 forms a computer network, and is, for example, a wide area communication line provided by an electric power company.

The mobile terminal 3 is, for example, an information processing terminal such as a smart phone, a tablet terminal, or a notebook computer, and is used by the user to use online services distributed via the communication line 2 . The mobile terminal 3 includes a touch panel display 3a for displaying images, a speaker 3b for outputting sound, a microphone 3c for inputting sound, a camera 3d for capturing an image of an object, and the like. Here, the touch panel display 3a includes, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and a touch sensor. The LCD displays various images, and the touch sensor receives various input operations performed using an indicator such as a finger, stylus, or pen. Note that the touch panel display 3a is also referred to as the screen 3a in the following description.

The server 4 is an information processing device that delivers online services to the mobile terminal 3 via the communication line 2 .

A manga distribution system 1 according to the present embodiment distributes manga in the form of digital data from a server 4 to a mobile terminal 3 via a communication line 2 as one of online services. A manga here is an example of content formed by a plurality of continuous still images, and the plurality of still images are composed of pictures and have a story as a whole. The user browses the manga delivered to the mobile terminal 3 using dedicated application software (hereinafter referred to as "manga browsing application"). The manga viewing application is pre-installed in the mobile terminal 3 . Note that the manga viewing application functions even when the mobile terminal 3 and the server 4 are not communicating with each other (offline state) as long as the manga data has been downloaded from the server 4 to the mobile terminal 3 .

[1-2. Server configuration]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the server 4 according to this embodiment.

The server 4 according to the present embodiment includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 20 which is a main control unit that controls the operation of the entire server 4, a ROM in which various programs and various data are stored in advance.
(Read Only Memory) 22, RAM (Random Access Memory) 24 used as a work area or the like when various programs are executed by the CPU 20, and HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 26 as storage means for storing various programs and various data. ing.

The HDD 26 stores manga data representing manga to be distributed to the mobile terminal 3 . Note that the storage means is not limited to the HDD 26, and may be other storage media such as semiconductor memory such as flash memory.

Further, the server 4 includes an operation input unit 28 configured with a keyboard, a mouse, etc., for receiving input of various operations, a monitor 30 such as a liquid crystal display device for displaying various images, and a mobile terminal 3 or the like via the communication line 2. It is provided with an external interface 32 that is connected to other information processing devices or the like and performs transmission/reception of various data with the other information processing devices or the like.

The CPU 20 , ROM 22 , RAM 24 , HDD 26 , operation input section 28 , monitor 30 and external interface 32 are electrically connected to each other via a system bus 34 . Therefore, the CPU 20 accesses the ROM 22, the RAM 24, and the HDD 26, grasps the operation state of the operation input unit 28, displays images on the monitor 30, and exchanges various data with other information processing devices or the like via the external interface 32. Transmission and reception can be performed.

[1-3. Electrical Configuration of Mobile Terminal]
FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the mobile terminal 3. As shown in FIG.

The mobile terminal 3 includes a main control section 40, a main storage section 42, an auxiliary storage section 44, a communication section 46, and operation buttons 48 in addition to the configuration shown in FIG.

The main control unit 40 is, for example, a CPU, a microprocessor, a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), etc., and controls the overall operation of the mobile terminal 3 .

The main storage unit 42 is composed of, for example, a RAM or a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory), and is used as a work area or the like when the main control unit 40 executes processing based on various programs.

The auxiliary storage unit 44 is, for example, a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory, and stores various data such as images, programs used for processing by the main control unit 40, and the like. The programs stored in the auxiliary storage unit 44 include, for example, an OS (Operating System) for realizing the basic functions of the mobile terminal 3, drivers for controlling various hardware, e-mail and web browsing, and various other programs. It is a program or the like for realizing a function. Further, the auxiliary storage unit 44 stores in advance a manga viewing application for displaying the manga distributed from the server 4 on the touch panel display 3a.

The communication unit 46 is, for example, a NIC (Network Interface Controller) and has a function of connecting to the communication line 2 . Note that the communication unit 46 has a function of connecting to a wireless LAN (Local Area Network), a function of connecting to a wireless WAN (Wide Area Network), a function of connecting to a wireless LAN (Local Area Network), a function of connecting to a wireless WAN (Wide Area Network), or a short-range communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), instead of or together with the NIC. It may have a function of enabling wireless communication, infrared communication, and the like.

The operation button 48 is provided on the side surface of the mobile terminal 3, and includes a power button for starting or stopping the mobile terminal 3, a volume adjustment button for sound output by the speaker 3b, and the like.

These main control unit 40, main storage unit 42, auxiliary storage unit 44, communication unit 46, touch panel display 3a, speaker 3b, microphone 3c, camera 3d, and operation button 48 are electrically connected to each other via system bus 49. It is connected. Therefore, the main control unit 40 accesses the main storage unit 42 and the auxiliary storage unit 44, displays an image on the touch panel display 3a, grasps the operating state of the touch panel display 3a and the operation buttons 48 by the user, and transmits sound to the microphone 3c. Input, sound output from the speaker 3b, control of the camera 3d, access to various communication networks and other information processing devices via the communication unit 46, and the like can be performed.

[1-4. Manga display function on mobile devices]
The portable terminal 3 displays the manga distributed from the server 4 on the screen 3a using the function of the manga viewing application (hereinafter referred to as "manga display function"), thereby enabling the user to view the manga. The manga according to the present embodiment is formed including a still image in which at least one of the vertical and horizontal lengths (hereinafter also referred to as “vertical and horizontal lengths”) is greater than the length of the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3. . In other words, the manga according to the present embodiment includes a mixture of still images that are long in the vertical direction and still images that are long in the horizontal direction.

The configuration of the manga 50 according to the present embodiment will be specifically described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of a manga 50 delivered to the mobile terminal 3 by the manga delivery system. In the example of FIG. 4, the manga 50 includes still images 52A and 52B. A still image 52A is a scene in which two people are having a conversation, and is a vertically long still image 52 . A still image 52B is a scene in which a character throws out a punch, and is a horizontally long still image 52 . As an example, the manga 50 according to the present embodiment has no concept of pages or frames, and even in the example of FIG. 4, there are no clear page breaks or frame breaks.

The horizontal length x shown in FIG. 4 is equivalent to the horizontal length of the screen 3a, and the vertical length y is equivalent to the vertical length of the screen 3a. That is, the horizontal length of the still image 52A is equal to the horizontal length of the screen 3a, while the vertical length of the still image 52A is longer than the vertical length of the screen 3a. The horizontal length of the still image 52B is longer than the horizontal length of the screen 3a, while the vertical length of the still image 52B is equal to the vertical length of the screen 3a.

Note that the manga 50 may include a still image 52 whose length and width are both longer than the length and breadth of the screen 3a. The vertical and horizontal lengths of the still image 52 are arbitrarily determined according to the scene of the manga 50 by the author who creates the manga.

[1-4-1. Multiscroll]
The manga display function scrolls the manga 50 in the vertical or horizontal direction (up, down, left, or right) of the mobile terminal 3 according to the vertical or horizontal length of the still image 52 and displays it on the screen 3a. multi-scroll. More specifically, in the multi-scrolling, for example, the vertically long still image 52 is scrolled vertically (vertical direction, which is the long axis direction of the screen 3a), and the horizontally long still image 52 is scrolled horizontally ( The screen 3a is scrolled in the horizontal direction, which is the short axis direction of the screen 3a.

In this way, in the multi-scrolling, the manga 50 is not scrolled vertically (vertically) or horizontally (horizontally), but scrolled vertically or horizontally according to the scene of the manga 50. It is a change. The timing at which the scroll direction changes in the manga 50 is also the timing at which the scene of the manga 50 changes, for example.

In the following description, scrolling in the vertical direction is called vertical scrolling, and scrolling in the horizontal direction is called horizontal scrolling. When the vertical and horizontal lengths of the still image 52 are both longer than the vertical and horizontal lengths of the screen 3a, the manga 50 can be scrolled in a preset direction.

The arrow S in FIG. 4 indicates the scrolling direction of the manga 50, and the still image 52A is vertically scrolled because its length in the vertical direction is longer than the vertical direction of the screen 3a. Further, since the still image 52B is longer in the horizontal direction than the horizontal direction of the screen 3a, it is horizontally scrolled.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a display state of the screen 3a by multi-scrolling, and shows a case where still images 52A and 52B in FIG. 4 are displayed on the screen 3a.

5A to 5F show image changes displayed on the screen 3a of the portable terminal 3 in this order, that is, scrolling states. FIGS. 5A to 5C show a state in which the manga 50 is vertically scrolled from top to bottom. On the other hand, when the still image 52 displayed on the screen 3a changes from the still image 52A to the still image 52B as shown in FIGS. 5(C) and (D), the manga 50 changes as shown in FIGS. Changes to horizontal scrolling from left to right.

Here, when the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3 is always scrolled in one direction, the image displayed on the screen 3a may not change appropriately for each scene. For example, when the scroll direction is only the vertical direction, in a scene where punches are thrown out in the horizontal direction like the still image 52B, the still image 52B is displayed on the screen so that the horizontal length matches the horizontal length of the screen 3a. It has to be created and displayed in accordance with the horizontal length of 3a, and lacks presence and expressiveness.

On the other hand, in the manga display function according to the present embodiment, the manga 50 is scrolled according to the vertical and horizontal lengths of the still image 52 and displayed on the screen 3a. Then, the fist is gradually displayed on the screen 3a from the arm. As a result, the manga display function can enhance the realism and expressiveness of the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a.

In this way, the multi-scrolling by the manga display function according to this embodiment enables more diverse expressions for the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a.

[1-4-2. scroll operation]
The manga display function scrolls the manga 50 according to the user's operation using the pointer on the screen 3a. Note that the indicator according to the present embodiment is a user's finger as an example.

When scrolling the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a, the user, for example, moves (swipes or flicks) his or her finger touching the screen 3a in the scroll direction. The manga display function scrolls the manga 50 when the screen 3a detects a swipe or flick (hereinafter referred to as "scroll operation") while the manga 50 is displayed on the screen 3a.

As an example, the manga display function according to the present embodiment scrolls the manga 50 displayed on the mobile terminal 3 when the moving direction of the finger of the user performing the scrolling operation coincides with a predetermined scrolling direction. . Note that the manga display function is not limited to this, and when a scroll operation is performed, the manga 50 may be scrolled in a predetermined direction regardless of the moving direction of the user's finger. Further, instead of swiping or flicking the user's finger, the scrolling operation may be, for example, a tap on the screen 3a, and the manga 50 may be scrolled in a predetermined direction when the tap is performed.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the still image 52C at the timing when the scroll direction changes. As an example, the manga display function according to the present embodiment changes the scroll direction horizontally when the lower end of the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a and the scroll cannot be scrolled further downward.

In addition, the scroll direction may be changed when the center area of the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a without being limited to this. In this case, coordinates indicating the center area of the still image 52C at which the scroll direction changes are set in advance in the manga.

Further, the manga display function according to the present embodiment may display an arrow image 54 indicating the scroll direction on the screen 3a. This arrow image 54 is displayed, for example, at the edge of the screen 3a so as not to interfere with the manga displayed on the screen 3a. As a result, the user can grasp the scrolling direction of the manga displayed on the screen 3a, so that the user can perform the scrolling operation without making a mistake.

In addition, the manga display function changes the scroll speed of the manga 50 according to the finger movement speed of the user performing the scroll operation. That is, the faster the finger movement speed, the greater the amount of scrolling of the still image 52 of the manga 50 .

[1-4-3. inertia scroll]
The manga display function according to the present embodiment changes the amount of scrolling of the still images 52 forming the manga 50 according to the inertial force based on the moving speed of the finger of the user performing the scrolling operation. Specifically, the faster the moving speed of the user's finger, the more the manga 50 continues to be scrolled even when the finger moves away from the screen 3a. Note that the inertia force here is a pseudo inertia force that is predetermined according to the moving speed of the user's finger. Become. Further, in the following description, scrolling by inertial force is referred to as inertial scrolling.

Here, when the manga 50 displayed on the mobile terminal 3 is inertially scrolled and the timing (scene) at which the scrolling direction changes, the manga display function performs first inertia scroll control or second inertia scroll control as scroll control. I do.

The first inertia scroll control is control for continuing the scrolling of the manga 50 according to the force of inertia even if the scroll direction of the manga 50 changes at the timing when the scroll direction of the manga 50 changes.

On the other hand, the second inertial scrolling control is control to stop scrolling the manga 50 at the timing when the direction of scrolling the manga 50 changes, regardless of the magnitude of the inertial force. That is, the second inertia scroll control temporarily stops the scrolling of the manga 50 before the scrolling direction of the manga 50 changes.

The first inertia scroll control and the second inertia scroll control will be specifically described with reference to FIG.

In the first inertial scrolling control, when the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3 by inertial scrolling, scrolling does not stop at the timing when the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a. change the scroll direction to continue inertial scrolling. Therefore, the first inertial scroll control enables smooth scrolling according to the user's scrolling operation.

On the other hand, in the second inertial scroll control, when the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3 by inertial scrolling, scrolling is stopped at the timing when the still image 52C is displayed on the screen 3a. Then, when the scrolling operation is performed by the user, the scrolling of the manga 50 is restarted and the manga 50 is scrolled in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the second inertial scroll control can prevent the user from overlooking scene changes in the manga 50 .

As an example, which one of the first inertia scroll control and the second inertia scroll control is used may be determined by the user's setting, or may be set in advance according to the wishes of the manga 50 author. Also, in one manga 50, the first inertia scroll control and the second inertia scroll control may coexist. For example, if still image 52C contains important dialogue for the story of manga 50, second inertial scrolling control is performed to stop scrolling. On the other hand, in a scene where it is desired to express the sense of speed of the manga 50, the first inertial scrolling control is performed to advance the manga 50 without stopping scrolling.

[1-4-4. Conditional scroll]
The manga display function according to the present embodiment determines at a predetermined timing (hereinafter referred to as "condition detection timing") whether or not a predetermined condition for scrolling the manga 50 (hereinafter referred to as "scrolling condition") is satisfied. Then, the manga 50 may be scrolled (progressed) when the scroll condition is satisfied. Note that the manga display function does not scroll the manga 50 if the scroll condition is not satisfied at the condition detection timing.

The manga display function scrolls the manga 50 when, for example, an instruction is given to the user from the portable terminal 3 as a scroll condition and an input is made to the portable terminal 3 in accordance with the instruction. Instructions to the user from the mobile terminal 3 are displayed on the screen 3a, for example. That is, the condition detection timing is after the instruction is displayed on the screen 3a. In addition, along with the instruction, the timing of the condition detection timing may be displayed on the screen 3a.

As an example, the instruction to the user from the mobile terminal 3 is associated with the story of the manga 50. FIG. For example, a scene in which the main character of manga 50 turns his back is set at a predetermined timing, and in this scene, when the user actually carries the mobile terminal 3 and turns back together with the mobile terminal 3, Manga 50 is scrolled. The scrolling condition in this case is that the acceleration sensor provided in the mobile terminal 3 detects acceleration equal to or greater than a predetermined value. That is, the comic 50 is scrolled when the user turns his back with the portable terminal 3 in his possession at the condition detection timing and the acceleration sensor provided in the portable terminal 3 detects an acceleration equal to or greater than a predetermined value that satisfies the scroll condition.

In addition, in a form in which the mobile terminal 3 is a head mounted display (HMD) and the manga 50 is displayed on the display, it is determined that the scroll condition is satisfied and the manga is displayed when the user turns back at the condition detection timing. A feature may scroll the manga 50 .

In this way, the manga display function that performs conditional scrolling requires a new user operation or the like to scroll the manga 50, so that the manga 50 can be expressed with high interactivity for the user.

[1-4-5. progress divergence]
The manga 50 according to the present embodiment may have branches (hereinafter referred to as "progress branches") in its progress. In the manga 50 having progress branching, a plurality of scroll directions are set for a still image before the progress branching (hereinafter referred to as "pre-branching still image"). Then, the manga display function scrolls the manga 50 in one scroll direction selected from the plurality of scroll directions. In other words, the progress branching is a branching of the story, but the final ending may be the same or the final ending may be changed only by branching a part of the story of the manga. .

FIG. 7 is an example of a pre-branch still image 52D displayed on the mobile terminal 3, and left and right scroll directions are set for the pre-branch still image 52D. That is, when the pre-branch still image 52D is displayed on the mobile terminal 3, the user selects the scroll direction by performing a scroll operation in either the left or right direction.

Note that the pre-branch still image 52D shown in FIG. 7 is shown in a simplified manner. Information prompting you to do so is displayed. Further, the plurality of scroll directions may be not only left and right, but also up and down, left and down, or right and down, and the number of selectable scroll directions may be three.

As described above, the manga display function according to the present embodiment determines one of a plurality of scroll directions based on information obtained by the mobile terminal 3, such as the scroll operation on the screen 3a.

Further, the manga display function may determine the scroll direction based on not only the information about the user's scrolling operation acquired on the screen 3a, but also the information and the time acquired by other sensors included in the portable terminal 3. More specifically, for example, when an acceleration sensor included in the mobile terminal 3 acquires a predetermined value, the scroll direction may be determined according to the acquired value. Further, when a position information acquisition sensor provided in the mobile terminal 3, a so-called GPS (Global Positioning System), acquires predetermined position information, a new comic 50 is acquired, and the acquired comic 50 can be browsed by the user. A scroll direction may be determined. Further, when the time measured by the portable terminal 3 reaches a predetermined time, a new manga 50 may be obtained, and the scroll direction may be determined so that the user can view the obtained manga 50 .

Further, when scrolling the manga in one selected scroll direction, the manga display function may prohibit scrolling of the manga in other unselected scroll directions. For example, even if the user selects progression A shown in FIG. 7, scrolls the manga in this direction, and then returns the manga to the pre-branch still image 52D, the user is prohibited from selecting progression B ( hereinafter referred to as “lock”).

This lock may be released when a predetermined unlock condition is met. The unlocking conditions are, for example, the case where the user has read the manga to the end, the case where the user has made a payment, the case where the user has posted an impression of the manga, and the like.

The manga display function can prompt the user to view the manga multiple times by having such progress branch locks.

In this way, the manga display function of branching progress can give a plurality of stories to one manga 50, so that the manga 50 can be expressed in various ways.

Further, when a predetermined progress branch increase condition is satisfied, the number of progress branches of the manga may be increased compared to before the condition is satisfied. For example, the pre-branching still image 52D having two progress branches as shown in FIG. This is the occurrence of a new progress branch.

The progress branch increase condition is, for example, the number of times the user has viewed the manga, a predetermined elapsed time since the manga was published, a predetermined time period, execution of other associated services (e.g., predetermined quests for online games, etc.), or billing, etc. Further, as the progression branch increase condition, by returning to a predetermined portion read before after reading the manga, a progression branch that has not been displayed so far may be displayed in the predetermined portion.

Note that the above-described unlocking may be performed when the progress branch increase condition is satisfied. Further, a predetermined progression branch reduction condition may be set, and when the condition is satisfied, the number of progression branches of the manga may be reduced compared to before the condition is satisfied. The progress branch reduction condition is, for example, a predetermined elapsed period from the publication of the manga, a predetermined time zone, or the like.

Further, the user may be allowed to view only the manga of a predetermined scroll amount after the progress branching, and the trial reading of the story after the progress branching may be possible. More specifically, when the progress of the manga is divided into two by progress branching, the user can view one progress without restriction, but the other progress can be viewed only when predetermined conditions are met. Set a limit such as In this case, with respect to the other progress, the user is allowed to view only a predetermined scroll amount even if the predetermined condition is not satisfied, and if the predetermined condition is satisfied, the user is allowed to browse the predetermined scroll amount or more. . It should be noted that the predetermined condition is, for example, the same condition as the advancing branch increase condition.

Furthermore, when the user browses a progress branch with viewing restrictions, the display of the screen 3a may return to the progress branch when the scrolling finger touches off the screen 3a. In other words, a user who does not satisfy a predetermined condition and can browse only a predetermined amount of scrolling is given a pseudo inertial force to return to the progress branch when the finger touches off the screen 3a.

[1-4-6. effect]
Various effects (image effects) may be given to the manga 50 according to the present embodiment. An effect is given to a part of the manga 50, and for example, a part of the scene of the manga 50 (a part of the still images 52 forming the manga 50) dynamically changes due to the effect.

The scene (still image 52) to which the effect is applied is set in advance together with the details of the effect. The manga display function executes the effect set for the scene at the timing when the scene for which the effect is set is displayed on the screen 3a.

More specifically, some of the images that make up the manga 50 are moving images, and the manga display function, as an effect, starts playing back the moving images when the moving images are displayed by scrolling. When finished, it may be scrolled to the next still image 52 . That is, the manga 50 may include moving images between the still images 52 .

As an effect, the manga display function may enlarge or reduce the predetermined still image 52, cause it to vibrate vertically or horizontally, or rotate it. As an effect, the manga display function may fade out a predetermined still image 52 displayed on the screen 3a and fade in the next still image 52 to display the still image on the screen 3a.

Further, the manga display function may display another still image superimposed on the predetermined still image 52 as an effect. For example, after the still image 52 including a person is displayed, a still image showing a speech balloon superimposed on the still image 52 may be displayed, or a still image showing another person may be displayed.

In addition, a still image 52 that is different in the depth direction (or the front direction) from the screen 3a is arranged in a part of the still image 52 that constitutes the manga 50. A plurality of still images 52 arranged in a pseudo manner may be sequentially displayed on the screen 3a. This effect, in other words, is to display a plurality of still images 52 in sequence on the screen 3a as if it were a picture-story show.

In this way, the manga display function that performs effects enables more diverse expressions for the manga 50 .

[1-5. Functional block of manga display function]
FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram relating to the manga display function of the manga viewing application installed in the mobile terminal 3 according to this embodiment. The main controller 40 included in the mobile terminal 3 includes a manga display controller 60 , a scroll controller 62 , a progress branch controller 64 , and an effect controller 66 . The processing executed by each function provided in the main control unit 40 is implemented by a program stored in the auxiliary storage unit 44 .

The manga display control unit 60 displays on the screen 3a a manga 50 including a still image 52 whose length in at least one of the vertical direction and the horizontal direction is longer than the length of the screen 3a.

The scroll control unit 62 scrolls the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a vertically or horizontally according to the length of the still image 52 in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. More specifically, the scroll control unit 62 vertically scrolls the vertically long still image 52 and horizontally scrolls the horizontally long still image 52 . The scroll control unit 62 also performs first inertia scroll control and second inertia scroll control.

The progress branching control unit 64 sets a plurality of scroll directions for the manga 50 having progress branches by setting a plurality of scroll directions to the pre-branching still image 52</b>D, based on the information acquired by the mobile terminal 3 . Determines the scroll direction of one of them.

When a scene (still image 52) for which an effect is set is displayed on the screen 3a, the effect control section 66 executes the effect on the scene.

[1-6. Flowchart of manga display processing]
FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing the flow of manga display processing executed by the main control unit 40 provided in the mobile terminal 3. As shown in FIG. A program (manga viewing application) for executing the manga display process is stored in advance in a predetermined area of the auxiliary storage unit 44 .

First, at step 100, the manga display control section 60 displays the manga 50 distributed from the server 4 on the screen 3a.

In the next step 102, the scroll control unit 62 detects whether or not the user has performed a scroll operation on the screen 3a.

At step 104, the scroll control unit 62 determines whether or not the direction of the scroll operation is the same as the scroll direction of the manga 50. If the determination is affirmative, the process proceeds to step 106, and if the determination is negative, the process returns to step 102. .

At step 106, the scroll controller 62 scrolls the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a.

In the next step 108, the progress branch control unit 64 determines whether or not the still image 52 displayed on the screen 3a is the pre-branch still image 52D. If so, go to step 112 .

In step 110, based on the information acquired by the mobile terminal 3, the progress branch control unit 64 determines one of the plurality of scroll directions set in the pre-branch still image 52D, and the determined scroll direction is determined. A scroll control unit 62 scrolls the manga 50 .

In the next step 112, the effect control section 66 determines whether or not an effect is set for the scene of the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a. goes to step 116.

At step 114, the effect control unit 66 executes the effect set for the scene of the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a.

At step 116, the manga display control section 60 determines whether or not the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a has ended. Transition to continue displaying manga 50 . As an example, the manga display control unit 60 determines that the manga 50 has ended when the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a cannot be scrolled any further.

As described above, the manga display process according to the present embodiment displays the manga 50 formed by a plurality of consecutive still images 52 on the screen 3 a of the mobile terminal 3 . Then, in the manga display process, the manga 50 including the still image 52 whose at least one of the lengths in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction is longer than the length of the screen 3a is displayed on the screen 3a. Depending on the length, the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a is scrolled vertically or horizontally (multi-scroll). As a result, the manga display processing according to the present embodiment enables more diverse expressions for the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a.

[1-7. Manga data structure]
Next, the structure (also referred to as format or authoring) of the manga data representing the manga 50 displayed on the mobile terminal 3 will be described.

In this embodiment, the manga data representing the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3 includes a plurality of still images (still image data) that are two-dimensionally arranged so as to correspond to the scroll direction. be done.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of manga data 70 according to this embodiment. Manga data 70 according to the present embodiment is formed, for example, using a data format 74 in which a plurality of squares 72 (regions indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 10) are arranged in a grid. The squares 72 forming the data format 74 have, for example, one side approximately corresponding to the horizontal length of the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3, and two continuous sides approximately corresponding to the horizontal length of the screen 3a. is doing.

The manga data 70 is formed by arranging (writing) the still images 52 in consecutive squares 72 having a common side. As an example, the area indicated by solid lines and hatching in FIG. 10 is the manga data 70 configured by arranging the still images 52 .

Therefore, the author who creates the manga 50 using the data format 74 shown in FIG. 10 can create the manga 50 while directly perceiving (imagining) the display state of the manga 50 on the screen 3a. Become.

The manga data 70 is associated with scroll information indicating the scroll direction of the manga 50, and the scroll control unit 62 scrolls the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a vertically or horizontally according to the scroll information. As an example, the scroll information is associated with each square 72 , but the scroll information is not limited to this, and may be for each group consisting of a plurality of continuous squares 72 , for each still image 52 , or for a plurality of continuous still images 52 . Each group may be associated.

Since the scroll information is associated with the manga data 70 in this manner, the manga display function can easily determine the scroll direction of the manga 50, and display the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a in the direction intended by the author of the manga 50. can be scrolled to

Furthermore, an effect may be set for each still image 52 or each square 72, and a plurality of still images 52 are arranged in squares 72 corresponding to scenes in which the still images 52 are superimposed.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of manga data 70. As shown in FIG.

The manga data 70 shown in FIG. 11 is a data table 76 including a plurality of still images 52 associated with order information indicating the order (scrolling order) to be displayed on the screen 3a of the mobile terminal 3 and the scrolling direction. be. The scroll direction described in the data table 76 includes the scroll start position and scroll end position for each still image 52 .

The still image 52 included in the data table 76 may include the still image data itself, or may describe the link destination of the still image data. Note that the data table 76 according to the present embodiment is, as an example, a CSV (Comma-Separated Values) file, in which link destinations of still image data are described.

Therefore, by using the data table 76 shown in FIG. 11, the manga data 70 that enables multi-scrolling can be easily created without newly creating the data format 74 described above.

By reading the data table 76, the scroll control unit 62 displays the still images 52 on the screen 3a for each scroll order, and scrolls the manga 50 in the scroll direction associated with the still images 52. FIG. In the data table shown in FIG. 11, the scroll direction is associated with each piece of still image data, but the scroll direction may be associated with each group of continuous still image data. In addition, the scroll control unit 62 performs various processes related to scrolling the manga displayed on the screen 3a.

When distributing manga, the server 4 distributes the manga data 70 (data table 76) to the portable terminal 3 by streaming distribution, for example.

[2. Second Embodiment]
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

The configurations of the manga distribution system 1, the server 4, and the mobile terminal 3 according to the present embodiment are the same as the configurations of the manga distribution system 1, the server 4, and the mobile terminal 3 according to the first embodiment, so the description thereof will be omitted. .

The manga display function according to the present embodiment scrolls the still image 52 at a predetermined speed (hereinafter referred to as "scroll speed"). That is, the manga display function according to the present embodiment automatically scrolls the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a based on the scroll speed (hereinafter referred to as "automatic scrolling"). Note that the scroll speed is set for each still image 52 in the manga data 70, for example. Then, the scroll control unit 62 reads the scroll speed set in the manga data 70, and scrolls the still image 52 displayed on the screen 3a at the read scroll speed.

The scroll speed may vary depending on the scene (still image 52) of the manga 50. FIG. For example, the scroll speed is relatively fast for a scene that expresses a sense of speed, and the scroll speed is relatively slow for a scene that expresses magnificent nature.

Further, the manga display function according to the present embodiment automatically scrolls some scenes (still images 52), and scrolls other scenes by the user's scrolling operation (hereinafter referred to as "manual scrolling"). good. In this case, the manga display function includes, for example, displaying the timing of automatic scrolling or the timing of manual scrolling on the screen 3a as a countdown, or indicating that the scrolling state of the manga 50 displayed on the screen 3a is automatic scrolling or manual scrolling. may be displayed on the screen 3a.

[3. Other embodiments]
As described above, the present invention has been described using each of the above-described embodiments, but the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above-described embodiments. Various modifications or improvements can be made to each of the embodiments described above without departing from the gist of the invention, and forms with such modifications or improvements are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. Also, the above embodiments may be combined as appropriate.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the content is manga 50, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the still image 52 that constitutes the content may be a novel or the like composed of sentences.

In addition, in the above embodiment, multi-scrolling, scrolling operation, inertia scrolling, conditional scrolling, progress branching, and effect functions have been described as manga display functions, but the manga display function has multi-scrolling and scrolling operation functions. If so, it may have no other functions, or may have only a part of the other functions.

Further, the flow of the manga display processing described in the above embodiment is also an example, and unnecessary steps may be deleted, new steps added, or the processing order changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention. may

3 Mobile terminal (information processing device)
3a Screen 50 Manga (Content)
52 Still image 60 Manga display control unit (display control means)
62 scroll control unit (scroll control means)
64 Advance branch control unit (advance branch control means)
70 Manga data (content information)

Claims (16)

An information processing device that displays content formed by a plurality of continuous still images on a screen,
display control means for displaying, on the screen, the content including the still image having at least one of lengths in the vertical direction and the length in the horizontal direction greater than the length of the screen;
and scroll control means for scrolling the content displayed on the screen vertically or horizontally according to the length of the still image in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the scroll control means vertically scrolls the vertically elongated still image and horizontally scrolls the horizontally elongated still image. The scroll control means scrolls the content according to a user's operation using an indicator on the screen, controls the amount of movement of the still image according to an inertial force based on the moving speed of the indicator, and 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the scrolling of the content is continued according to the inertial force even if the scrolling direction of the content changes. The scroll control means scrolls the content according to a user's operation using an indicator on the screen, controls the amount of movement of the still image according to an inertial force based on the moving speed of the indicator, and 4. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the scrolling of the content is stopped regardless of the magnitude of the inertial force at the timing when the scrolling direction of the content changes. 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said scroll control means scrolls said still image at a predetermined speed. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said speed differs according to said still image. 7. The scroll control means determines at a predetermined timing whether or not a predetermined condition for scrolling the content is satisfied, and scrolls the content when the condition is satisfied. The information processing device according to item 1. The content is a manga having branches in progress,
a plurality of scroll directions are set for the still image before the progress branch,
8. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein said scroll control means scrolls said content in one scroll direction selected from said plurality of scroll directions. 9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising progress branch control means for determining one of said plurality of scroll directions based on information acquired by said information processing apparatus. 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein, when scrolling the manga in one selected scroll direction, the scroll control means prohibits scrolling of the manga in other unselected scroll directions. . 11. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the number of progress branches of the manga is increased or decreased compared to before the condition is satisfied. 12. The content information indicating the content displayed on the screen includes a plurality of the still images arranged two-dimensionally so as to correspond to the scroll direction. The information processing device according to item 1. 12. The content information indicating the content to be displayed on the screen includes order information indicating an order to be displayed on the screen and a plurality of the still images associated with a scroll direction. or 1. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1. the content information is associated with scroll information indicating the scroll direction of the content;
14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said scroll control means scrolls said content displayed on said screen vertically or horizontally according to said scroll information. A content display method for displaying content formed by a plurality of continuous still images on a screen, comprising:
a first step of displaying on the screen the content including the still image having at least one of lengths in the vertical direction and the length in the horizontal direction greater than the length of the screen;
and a second step of vertically or horizontally scrolling the content displayed on the screen according to the vertical or horizontal length of the still image. A computer included in an information processing device that displays content formed by a plurality of continuous still images on a screen,
display control means for displaying, on the screen, the content including the still image having at least one of lengths in the vertical direction and the length in the horizontal direction greater than the length of the screen;
A content display program for functioning as scroll control means for scrolling the content displayed on the screen in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction according to the length of the still image in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction.

Images