JP7106822B2 - Image retrieval method, server, and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an image search method, server, and program.

2. Description of the Related Art A service is provided in which a customer uploads an image taken with a digital camera, a smart phone, or the like to a print ordering system and orders a photo print (see, for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-100003).

Also, there is known a service that sells photographs taken by professional photographers at events such as concerts and sports competitions (see, for example, Patent Document 2). Image data taken by a professional photographer is uploaded to the photo sales system via a network. Customers can browse the uploaded images and select and purchase their favorite photos. The purchased images are printed at the print shop and the prints are delivered to the customer.

Customers need to find images of their favorite singers and athletes, images of themselves and their families, etc. from among the large number of images posted on the photo sales system, which takes time and effort to place orders. was

By narrowing down images by image search using tags (keywords), it becomes easier to find the desired image, so tags are added to sales images registered in the photo sales system. In the past, image analysis was used to recognize characters in images, detect objects in images, analyze facial expressions of people in images, and attach the extracted information as tags to sales images. . However, information obtained from image analysis alone is insufficient as tags for retrieval.

JP 2014-142711 A Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-325082

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an image search method, a server, and a program for attaching tags to images that cannot be obtained from the analysis of objects appearing in the images. and

An image retrieval method according to the present invention comprises the steps of accepting registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event; accepting registration of a plurality of images generated by a photographing process; a step of assigning an event corresponding to a tag as a tag; a step of transmitting data of an image browsing page including the plurality of images and the tag to a user terminal; and a step of retrieving an image to which the specified tag is attached.

In the image search method according to one aspect of the present invention, when a keyword is input via the image browsing page, images tagged with tags that match the input keyword are retrieved.

In the image search method according to an aspect of the present invention, the image browsing page displays images in order of shooting date and time, and includes a scroll bar for changing the shooting date and time of the displayed image.

A server according to the present invention includes: a communication unit that receives registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event; a registration of a plurality of images generated by shooting processing; as a tag, and a generation unit that generates an image browsing page including the plurality of images and the tag, wherein the generation unit generates when the tag in the image browsing page is selected , to search for images to which the tag has been assigned, and to generate an image browsing page including the extracted images.

A program according to the present invention comprises steps of accepting registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event; accepting registration of a plurality of images generated by a photographing process; transmitting the plurality of images and data of an image browsing page including the tag to a user terminal; and if the tag in the image browsing page is selected, the selected and retrieving tagged images.

According to the present invention, it is possible to attach a tag to an image that cannot be obtained from analysis of an object appearing in the image.

1 is a schematic diagram of an image vending system according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. It is a schematic block diagram of the server which concerns on the same embodiment. 3 is a functional block diagram realized by executing an image processing program; FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a timetable. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of tags attached to images; 4 is a flowchart for explaining an image search method according to the same embodiment; FIG. 10 is an external view of an image printing device according to another embodiment;

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image sales system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The image sales system includes a server 1 that distributes a sales image viewing page to a customer's user terminal 4, a registration terminal 2 that a right holder uses to register the sales image, and an analysis that analyzes the sales image and assigns keywords. It has a terminal 3 and the like. Images to be sold are images of sports games, concerts, etc., taken by professional photographers.

Using a user terminal 4 such as a smartphone or a PC, the customer selects a desired image from the browsing page, performs payment processing, and then downloads the image data of the sales image or places an order for printed matter. can be done. The server 1 transmits the image data to the factory 5 when receiving the print order. A printed matter 6 manufactured at a factory 5 is delivered to a customer. The printed matter 6 is, for example, a photograph, a poster, a photo book, a mug, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, the server 1 is a computer having a CPU 10 (central processing unit), a storage unit 11, a communication unit 12, and the like. The server 1 may further have a display unit 13 such as a liquid crystal display, and an operation unit 14 such as a keyboard and a mouse.

The communication unit 12 performs communication processing with the registration terminal 2, the analysis terminal 3, the user terminal 4, and the like, and transmits and receives data. The communication unit 12 receives image data to be sold from the registration terminal 2 and stores the data in the storage unit 11 . Further, the communication unit 12 receives from the registration terminal 2 registration of an event related to the image to be sold and the time (date and time) when the event was performed. Events will be discussed later.

The communication unit 12 transmits image data of sales images to the analysis terminal 3 , receives tag information (keyword information) associated with each image from the analysis terminal 3 , and stores the information in the storage unit 11 . The analysis terminal 3 performs image recognition by a known method and assigns tags related to the image. For example, the analysis terminal 3 detects objects included in images, classifies them from many categories such as flowers, animals, and vehicles, and assigns them as tags. Also, the analysis terminal 3 recognizes and extracts the text included in the image by OCR (optical character recognition), and assigns it as a tag.

The communication unit 12 transmits the viewing page of the sales image to the user terminal 4 . The communication unit 12 also receives selection of a purchased image and payment information from the user terminal 4 .

The storage unit 11 is a combination of flash memory, ROM (Read-only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), hard disk, etc., and stores image data of sales images, tag information attached to each image, timetable information described later, and image processing programs.

By executing the image processing program by the CPU 10, a timetable creating unit 16, a tagging unit 17, and a browsing page creating unit 18 are realized as shown in FIG.

The timetable creation unit 16 creates a timetable (time schedule) using the events and event times registered by the registration terminal 2 . For example, when a right holder sells an image taken at a baseball game, the events include pre-match practice, top of the first inning, bottom of the first inning, top of the second inning, bottom of the second inning, . Rounds, hero interviews, etc. are registered, and a timetable is created using the start time, end time, etc. of each inning.

For memorable events such as home runs, the name of the batter is registered by the registration terminal 2 in addition to the time. Also, the time is registered with a certain range. The timetable creation unit 16 creates a timetable by incorporating the time of occurrence of the home run and the name of the player. As a result, the timetable creating unit 16 creates a timetable as shown in FIG. The timetable associates tags such as "practice", "first inning", "hero interview", and "home run" with times. In the example shown in FIG. 4, #1 is a scheduled event, and #2 is an unscheduled, unexpected event.

When selling images of horse racing, the first race, second race, . When the registration terminal 2 registers the name of the winning horse in each race, the timetable creation unit 16 creates a timetable incorporating the name of the winning horse.

When selling images of sumo wrestling, events such as introductory bouts, jonidan bouts, ..., makuuchi wrestling, yokozuna wrestling, ... makuuchi wrestling, archery ceremony, etc. are registered as events, and the start time of each wrestling is used. timetable is created. When the registration terminal 2 registers a rare winning move, winning sumo wrestler's shikona and its occurrence time, the timetable creation unit 16 creates a timetable incorporating the winning move's name and shikona.

When selling an image of an artist's concert, a greeting, the name of the first song, the name of the second song, .

When an image is registered from the registration terminal 2, the tagging unit 17 extracts the shooting date and time recorded in the image data. The tag assigning unit 17 refers to the timetable and assigns an event corresponding to the shooting date and time as a tag.

For example, the tags attached to the image 50 shown in FIG. 5 by the analysis terminal 3 that performs image analysis are about "baseball" and "batter." On the other hand, the tag assigning unit 17 refers to the timetable as shown in FIG. 4 and assigns tags such as "top of the fourth inning" and "home run" that cannot be determined from the image analysis based on the shooting date and time of the image 50. FIG.

The browsing page generating unit 18 generates a browsing page of sales images using tags. The browse page displays the registered sales images and the tags attached to the images. If there are many sales images, the page may be switched.

Next, the image search method according to this embodiment will be described along the flowchart shown in FIG.

A right holder of an image uses the registration terminal 2 to register a plurality of events (contents) in an image sales event and the date and time of each event (step S1). Scheduled events can be registered in advance, and the time of each event and the time of an event that suddenly occurred can be registered as the event progresses, or the dates and times of all events can be registered after the event is over. .

The timetable creating unit 16 of the server 1 creates a timetable using the registered events and dates (step S2).

The right holder of the image registers the sales image in the server 1 using the registration terminal 2 (step S3). Sales image data is stored in the storage unit 11 of the server 1 .

The tagging unit 17 of the server 1 selects a sales image (step S4), extracts the shooting time of the image (step S5), refers to the timetable, and tags the event corresponding to the shooting date and time (step S6). ). This tagging process is performed for all sales images (steps S4 to S7).

The server 1 may transmit the image data of the sales image to the analysis terminal 3 before or after the tagging process by the tagging unit 17, and the information detected by the analysis terminal 3 after image analysis may be given as a tag.

The browsing page generating unit 18 uses the tag to generate a browsing page for selling the image (step S8). The browse page displays sales images individually and also displays representative tags attached to the images. In addition, the browsing page is provided with a keyword input field. When the customer operates the user terminal 4 to select a tag, the browsing page generation unit 18 searches and extracts images to which the selected tag is assigned, and generates a browsing page including the extracted images. Also, when the customer operates the user terminal 4 to input a keyword, the browsing page generator 18 retrieves, extracts, and displays images having the input keyword as a tag.

The customer searches for a desired image using a keyword search or the like, and selects an image to purchase (step S9). If only information obtained from image analysis by the analysis terminal 3 is attached as a tag, it is difficult to find an image 50 of batter A hitting a home run as shown in FIG. 5 by keyword search. However, in the present embodiment, since tags based on the timetable are added, the image 50 can be easily found by entering keywords such as "top of the fourth inning" and "home run".

The browsing page generation unit 18 may display the sales images arranged in order of shooting time and generate a browsing page including a shooting time scroll bar. If you slide the scroll bar to change the time, the images taken at that time will be displayed. By retrieving the photos from the photographing time, it is possible to find out the images with no tags attached or with a small number of tags attached.

After the customer finishes selecting the image, the settlement process is performed (step S10). After the settlement process, the server 1 transmits the image data to the user terminal 4 and transfers the print order details to the factory 5 .

As described above, according to the present embodiment, a timetable created from events and their dates and times is referred to, and events corresponding to image shooting times are added as tags. Such a tag is a tag that cannot be obtained from the analysis of the object shown in the image, and can make it easier to find the image. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the customer's trouble of searching for a desired image from among a large number of images.

In the above embodiment, the tagging unit 17 may add a tag related to the anniversary to the image. For example, since August 9th is baseball day, the tagging unit 17 gives a tag of "baseball day" to images shot on August 9th among the registered sales images. .

For example, an anniversary tag list such as Table 1 below is prepared and registered in the server 1 . When registering sales images, it is possible to set whether or not they are used for each anniversary. For example, if the sales image is baseball, baseball-related anniversaries are used and non-baseball-related anniversaries are not used. The tag assigning unit 17 attaches an anniversary tag to an image whose shooting date is the same as the anniversary (month and day) set to “use”.

In the above-described embodiment, an example of sending a page to be browsed to the user terminal 4 and delivering printed matter manufactured at the factory 5 when a print order is received has been described. A sales image may be registered in the printing device 7 and the printed matter may be sold.

Touch panels 70A and 70B are provided on a top plate 71A portion and an upper portion of a housing 71 of the image printing device 7, respectively. A high-resolution color printer such as a sublimation type or ink jet type is accommodated in the housing 71 . A transparent opening/closing door 73 is provided on the front side of the housing 71 so as to be freely opened and closed. A stacking unit (not shown) is provided on the back side of the opening/closing door 73 for stacking the printed matter printed out by the printer. It has become.

The image printing device 7 also includes a charging section including a coin slot 72A, a banknote slot 72B, and a change return slot 72C provided on the front side of the housing 71. The received money is identified and counted, and the change is discharged from the change return port 72C.

The image printing device 7 is communicably connected to the server 1 and receives image data tagged by the tagging unit 17 from the server 1 . The image printing device 7 generates a browsing page and displays it on the touch panel 10A (or 10B).

The customer operates the touch panel 10A, inputs a keyword or selects a tag, performs a search, and selects a desired image. The image printing device 7 performs billing processing when a purchased image is selected. After the billing process, the image printing device 7 prints the selected image on photographic paper and outputs it. The customer can receive the printed matter on the spot.

The image processing program described in the above embodiments may be stored in a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and read and executed by a computer. The recording medium is not limited to a detachable one such as a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and may be a fixed recording medium such as a hard disk device or memory. Also, the image processing program may be distributed via a communication line (including wireless communication) such as the Internet. Furthermore, the program may be encrypted, modulated, or compressed and distributed via a wired line or wireless line such as the Internet, or stored in a recording medium and distributed.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by modifying constituent elements without departing from the scope of the present invention at the implementation stage. Further, various inventions can be formed by appropriate combinations of the plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments. For example, some components may be omitted from all components shown in the embodiments. Furthermore, components across different embodiments may be combined as appropriate.

1 server 2 registration terminal 3 analysis terminal 4 user terminal 5 factory 6 printed matter 7 image printing device

Claims (5)

receiving registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event;
a step of receiving registration of a plurality of images generated by the imaging process;
a step of tagging each of the plurality of images with an event corresponding to a shooting date and time;
transmitting data of an image viewing page including the plurality of images and the tags to a user terminal;
when a tag in the image browsing page is selected, searching for images tagged with the selected tag;
is an image search method executed by a server,
Pre-registration of a first event scheduled at an event for selling images is accepted in advance, registration of a second event that has suddenly occurred in the event and is not scheduled , and the first event and the second event. Accept the registration of the date and time of the event while the event is in progress ,
An image search method , wherein the first event and the second event corresponding to the shooting date and time of the image are added as the tag to each of the plurality of images . 2. The image retrieval method according to claim 1, wherein, when a keyword is input via said image browsing page, an image tagged with a tag matching the input keyword is retrieved. 3. The image retrieval method according to claim 1, wherein the image browsing page displays the images in order of shooting date and time, and includes a scroll bar for changing the shooting date and time of the displayed image. a communication unit that receives registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event, and registration of a plurality of images generated by the imaging process;
a tagging unit that adds an event corresponding to a shooting date and time as a tag to each of the plurality of images;
a generation unit that generates an image browsing page including the plurality of images and the tags;
with
The communication unit accepts in advance registration of a first event scheduled at an event for image sales, registers an unexpected second event that occurs unexpectedly in the event, and registers the first event. and accepting registration of the date and time of the second event during the event,
The tagging unit adds to each of the plurality of images the first event and the second event corresponding to shooting dates and times of the images as the tags;
The server according to claim 1, wherein, when the tag in the image browsing page is selected, the generating unit searches for images to which the tag is assigned, and generates an image browsing page including the extracted image. receiving registration of a plurality of events and the date and time of each event;
a step of receiving registration of a plurality of images generated by the imaging process;
a step of tagging each of the plurality of images with an event corresponding to a shooting date and time;
transmitting data of an image viewing page including the plurality of images and the tags to a user terminal;
when a tag in the image browsing page is selected, searching for images tagged with the selected tag;
A program that causes a computer to execute
Pre-registration of a first event scheduled at an event for selling images is accepted in advance, registration of a second event that has suddenly occurred in the event and is not scheduled , and the first event and the second event. date and time registration during the event, and assigning the first event and the second event corresponding to the shooting date and time of the image to each of the plurality of images as the tags. A program that controls the

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