JP7378751B1 - Information processing method, information processing system, and information processing program - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a more useful information processing method regarding drawing data. In information processing executed by an information processing apparatus, first drawing data is acquired as an acquisition step in an activity A101. In the first drawing data, a plurality of objects including a first object and a second object other than the first object are arranged. The first object constitutes an image to be submitted in a predetermined procedure, and the second object includes annotations to the image or information that supports creation of the image. In activity A108, as a conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into second drawing data having a different file format from the first drawing data while making the second object invisible. [Selection diagram] Figure 3

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing method, an information processing system, and an information processing program.

BACKGROUND ART In various situations, drawings are created using drawing creation software and the like. As an example, Patent Document 1 discloses a drawing creation support device. This drawing creation support device includes a knowledge input unit that receives presentation conditions and matching conditions from a knowledge source example, converts the matching conditions into knowledge rules expressed in a directed graph, and a knowledge rule memory that stores the converted knowledge rules. Knowledge rule matching that calculates a digraph with the same structure as the knowledge rule from the document or drawing content being created using a document or drawing creation application, and outputs a signal when the matching score calculated according to the state of the digraph is greater than or equal to a threshold. and a guidance generation section that generates and presents guidance information based on the output signal.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-193500

The present invention provides a more useful information processing method regarding drawing data.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an information processing method is provided. This information processing method includes the following steps. In the acquisition step, first drawing data is acquired. In the first drawing data, a plurality of objects including a first object and a second object other than the first object are arranged. The first object constitutes an image to be submitted in a predetermined procedure, and the second object includes annotations to the image or information that supports creation of the image. In the conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into second drawing data having a different file format from the first drawing data with the second object rendered invisible.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a more useful information processing method can be provided.

1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an information processing device 1. FIG. 2 is an image diagram showing an example of a user interface 2 displayed on a display unit 14. FIG. 2 is an activity diagram showing an example of the flow of information processing executed by the information processing device 1. FIG. 2 is an image diagram showing an example of a user interface 2 displayed on a display unit 14. FIG. 3 is an image diagram showing an example of a screen 3 displayed on the information processing device 1. FIG. 2 is an image diagram showing an example of a screen 4 displayed on a display unit 14 of the information processing device 1. FIG. FIG. 7 is an image diagram for explaining the inclusion value f of the outer edge of the object Ob. 3 is an activity diagram showing another example of information processing by the information processing device 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is an image diagram showing an example of a user interface 2 including two closed areas.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Various features shown in the embodiments described below can be combined with each other.

Incidentally, the program for realizing the software appearing in this embodiment may be provided as a computer-readable non-transitory recording medium (Non-Transitory Computer-ReaDable Medium), or may be downloaded from an external server. The program may be provided in a manner that allows the program to be started on an external computer and the function thereof is realized on the client terminal (so-called cloud computing).

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the term "unit" may include, for example, a combination of hardware resources implemented by circuits in a broad sense and software information processing that can be concretely implemented by these hardware resources. . In addition, various types of information are handled in this embodiment, and these information include, for example, the physical value of a signal value representing voltage and current, and the signal value as a binary bit collection consisting of 0 or 1. It is expressed by high and low levels or quantum superposition (so-called quantum bits), and communication and calculations can be performed on circuits in a broad sense.

Further, a circuit in a broad sense is a circuit realized by at least appropriately combining a circuit, a circuit, a processor, a memory, and the like. That is, application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logic devices (for example, simple programmable logic devices (SPLD), complex programmable logic devices (COMPLEX), etc. Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), and field This includes a programmable gate array (Field Programmable Gate Array: FPGA) and the like.

1. Hardware configuration This section explains the hardware configuration.

<Information processing device 1>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the information processing device 1. As shown in FIG. The information processing device 1 includes a communication section 11 , a storage section 12 , a control section 13 , a display section 14 , and an input section 15 , and these components are connected inside the information processing device 1 via a communication bus 10 . electrically connected. Each component will be further explained.

Although the communication unit 11 is preferably a wired communication means such as USB, IEEE1394, Thunderbolt (registered trademark), wired LAN network communication, etc., it is also suitable for wireless LAN network communication, mobile communication such as 3G/LTE/5G, and BLUETOOTH (registered trademark). Communication etc. may be included as necessary. That is, it is more preferable to implement it as a set of these plurality of communication means. That is, the information processing device 1 may communicate various information from the outside via the communication unit 11 and the network.

The storage unit 12 stores various information necessary for the operation of the information processing device 1. The storage unit 12 may be used, for example, as a storage device such as a solid state drive (SSD) that stores various programs related to the information processing device 1 executed by the control unit 13, or as a storage device related to program calculations. It can be implemented as a memory such as a random access memory (RAM) that temporarily stores necessary information (arguments, arrays, etc.). The storage unit 12 stores various programs, variables, etc. related to the information processing device 1 executed by the control unit 13. Alternatively, a combination of these may be used.

The control unit 13 processes and controls overall operations related to the information processing device 1 . The control unit 13 is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) not shown. The control unit 13 implements various functions related to the information processing device 1 by reading predetermined programs stored in the storage unit 12. That is, information processing by software stored in the storage unit 12 is specifically implemented by the control unit 13, which is an example of hardware, and can be executed as each functional unit included in the control unit 13. These will be explained in more detail in the next section. Note that the control section 13 is not limited to a single control section, and may be implemented so as to have a plurality of control sections 13 for each function. It may also be a combination thereof.

The display unit 14 may be included in the casing of the information processing device 1 or may be attached externally. The display unit 14 displays a graphical user interface (GUI) screen that can be operated by a user. This is preferably carried out by using display devices such as a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and a plasma display depending on the type of information processing apparatus 1, for example.

The input unit 15 may be included in the casing of the information processing device 1 or may be externally attached. For example, the input unit 15 may be integrated with the display unit 14 and implemented as a touch panel. With a touch panel, the user can input tap operations, swipe operations, and the like. Of course, a switch button, a mouse, a QWERTY keyboard, etc. may be used instead of the touch panel. That is, the input unit 15 accepts operation inputs made by the user. The input is transferred as a command signal to the control unit 13 via the communication bus 10, and the control unit 13 can execute predetermined control or calculation as necessary.

2. Functional Configuration of Information Processing Device 1 In the present embodiment, information processing by software stored in the storage unit 12 is concretely realized by hardware (specifically, the control unit 13), so that each step is exemplified. The functions to be implemented are realized. In other words, an information processing system including at least one device includes at least one processor capable of executing a program to perform each step of the information processing method. An example of a processor is the control unit 13.

Specifically, the control unit 13 of the information processing device 1 is configured to execute an acquisition step, a conversion step, an extraction step, a change step, a display control step, and a selection reception step.

As an acquisition step, the control unit 13 reads various information stored in a storage area that is at least a part of the storage unit 12 and writes the read information to a work area that is at least a part of the storage unit 12. The system is configured to acquire various information by doing so. The storage area is, for example, an area of the storage unit 12 that is implemented as a storage device such as an SSD. The work area is, for example, an area implemented as a memory such as a RAM. As an example, the control unit 13 acquires first drawing data as an acquisition step. Details will be described later.

The control unit 13 is configured to convert various information acquired in the acquisition step as a conversion step. As an example, the control unit 13 converts first drawing data into second drawing data as a conversion step. Details will be described later.

The control unit 13 is configured to extract various information as an extraction step. As an example, the control unit 13 extracts an object Ob that meets a predetermined condition from the first drawing data acquired in the acquisition step. Details will be described later.

The control unit 13 is configured to change various information as a change step. As an example, the control unit 13 changes the display mode of the information extracted in the extraction step as the changing step. Details will be described later.

As a display control step, the control unit 13 is configured to generate various display information and control display contents that can be visually recognized by the user. Display information may be visual information itself such as a screen, image, icon, text, etc. that is generated in a form that is visible to the user, or, for example, information for displaying a screen, image, icon, text, etc. on the display unit 14. It may also be rendering information. For example, the control unit 13 causes the display unit 14 to display the user interface 2 of the first drawing data in a manner that is visible to the user. As an example, as a display control step, the control unit 13 causes the display unit 14 to display the object so that the user can see that it is the second object extracted from among the objects Ob. Details will be described later.

The control unit 13 is configured to receive the selected information via the communication unit 11 or the storage unit 12 as a selection acceptance step, and to be able to read this information into the working memory. In particular, the control unit 13 accepts various selections made by the user via the input unit 15. As an example, the control unit 13 receives a selection of a command by the user as a selection reception step. Details will be described later.

3. Flow of Information Processing This section provides an overview of the flow of the information processing method executed by the information processing device 1. As shown below, the information processing method includes the following steps (activities). Note that the order of the processes can be changed as appropriate, a plurality of processes may be executed simultaneously, or some processes may be omitted.

3.1 Condition Example As an example, assume that the first drawing data is a VISIO (registered trademark) file from Microsoft (registered trademark). Hereinafter, a description will be given using the VISIO file D1 as an example of the first drawing data. The content of the VISIO file D1 is a draft of a drawing for a patent application to be submitted to the Japan Patent Office. The VISIO file D1 has a plurality of pages, and each drawing for submission is arranged on each page. Editing of the VISIO file D1 is performed via the user interface 2. VISIO includes objects Ob that are mainly vector data in various preset formats, and drawings for patent applications are created by arbitrarily combining the objects Ob. Such work is performed, for example, by a patent attorney belonging to a patent office.

FIG. 2 is an image diagram showing an example of the user interface 2 displayed on the display unit 14. The user interface 2 displays one page out of a plurality of pages included in the VISIO file D1.

The user interface 2 of the VISIO file D1 includes an out-of-frame area 21 and a predetermined closed area 22. The out-of-frame area 21 is an area outside the closed area 22 in the user interface 2. The closed area 22 is a preset area based on the size of the submitted drawing specified by the Japan Patent Office.

The user interface 2 includes objects 24 to 27 as objects Ob. Each of the objects 24 to 27 has a center 241, a center 251, a center 261, and a center 271 as their respective centers C. The center 241 is the center C of the object 24, the center 251 is the center C of the object 25, the center 261 is the center C of the object 26, and the center 271 is the center C of the object 27.

When creating a drawing to be submitted to the Japan Patent Office, the user can create the drawing by placing the object Ob on the user interface 2. At the stage of creating a drawing, the user creates a drawing element Ob1 (an example of a first object) that constitutes an image to be submitted to the Japan Patent Office, and a comment Ob2 (an example of a second object) that includes annotations for the image. Place it on the user interface 2. Here, the annotation for the image is, for example, an annotation related to the image written by the user for himself or the person checking the image. In other words, a plurality of objects Ob are arranged in the user interface 2, including a first object exemplified by the drawing element Ob1 and a second object other than the first object exemplified by the comment Ob2. The drawing element Ob1 constitutes an image submitted in a predetermined procedure, and the comment Ob2 includes annotations for the image.

3.2 Outline of Flow FIG. 3 is an activity diagram showing an example of the flow of information processing executed by the information processing device 1. Each activity in this activity diagram will be explained below.

First, in activity A101, as an acquisition step, the control unit 13 acquires first drawing data exemplified in the VISIO file D1. That is, the control unit 13 reads the VISIO file D1 stored in the storage unit 12. Thereby, the control unit 13 may display the user interface 2 on the display unit 14. Here, the VISIO file D1 may be a file edited after being read from the storage unit 12, or may be a newly created file instead of a file read from the storage unit 12. .

Next, in activity A102, the control unit 13 acquires one (in this case, the first page) of the one or more pages constituting the VISIO file D1, and acquires the closed area 22 of the acquired page. . Specifically, the control unit 13 selects the first page and acquires information on the range of the closed area 22 set in the user interface 2 of the selected page.

Next, in activity A103, the control unit 13 acquires one of the one or more objects Ob placed on the user interface 2 of the acquired page. For example, the control unit 13 selects the object 24 displayed at the top left of the plurality of objects Ob arranged on the user interface 2, and acquires data related to the object 24.

Next, in activity A104, the control unit 13 compares the data related to the object Ob acquired in activity A103 with the information on the range of the closed area 22 stored in the storage unit 12, and determines that the acquired object Ob is in the closed area. 22. If it is determined that the object Ob is located inside the closed area 22, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to A105. When it is determined that the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to activity A106.

Further preferably, in the first extraction step, when a representative position predetermined as indicating the position of the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the control unit 13 adds the object Ob to the comment Ob2. It may be extracted as the second example object.

Here, a case where the predetermined representative position is the center C of the object Ob will be described. In activity A104, the control unit 13 determines whether the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22 based on the position of the center C. If it is determined that the center C of the object Ob is inside the closed area 22, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to A105, and the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as the drawing element Ob1. If it is determined that the center C of the object Ob is outside the closed area 22, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to activity A106, and the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as a comment Ob2. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the center 241 of the object 24 is determined to be outside the closed area 22, and is extracted as a comment Ob2. In other words, the first drawing data includes a predetermined closed area, and in the first extraction step, when at least a part of the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the object Ob is added to the comment Ob2 (second An example of an object).

Next, the control unit 13 determines whether there is a next object Ob placed on the user interface 2, and if there is a next object Ob, repeats the processing of activities A103 to A106. The center 251 and center 271 of the object 25 and the object 27 are determined to be inside the closed region 22, and both are extracted as the drawing element Ob1. The center 261 of the object 26 is determined to be outside the closed area 22, and is extracted as a comment Ob2. When the control unit 13 completes processing for all objects Ob, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to activity A107.

Next, in activity A107, the control unit 13 deletes the object Ob extracted as the comment Ob2 from among the objects Ob arranged in the user interface 2. In other words, the control unit 13 makes the comment Ob2 (second object) included in the VISIO file D1 (first drawing data) invisible. Here, deletion is one aspect of not being visible. In other words, the control unit 13 makes the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2 invisible by deleting it from the VISIO file D1 (first drawing data).

Next, in activity A108, the control unit 13 converts the drawing element Ob1 left on the user interface 2 into one image file D2a (an example of second drawing data). For example, in FIG. 2, the control unit 13 converts a figure etc. made up of an object 25 and an object 27 extracted as a drawing element Ob1 into one piece of JPEG data. In other words, as a conversion step, the control unit 13 converts the VISIO file D1 into an image file D2a having an image file format. That is, the control unit 13 converts the VISIO file D1 having the file format of software for drawing into an image file D2a having the image file format specified by the Japan Patent Office. The format of the image file D2a may be PNG data, GIF data, BMP data, etc. In other words, as a conversion step, the control unit 13 converts the first drawing data into second drawing data having a different file format from the first drawing data.

Next, if there are multiple pages in the VISIO file D1, the control unit 13 executes the information processing of activities A102 to A108 for the next page, and completes the process by repeating it until the last page. . According to such a configuration, in an appropriate situation, the VISIO file D1 can be converted into the image file D2a in which comments Ob2 other than the drawing element Ob1 scheduled to be submitted as a predetermined submission document are made invisible.

To summarize the above, this information processing method includes the following steps. The acquisition step acquires first drawing data. A plurality of objects including a first object and a second object other than the first object are arranged in the user interface 2 of the first drawing data. The first object constitutes an image to be submitted in a predetermined procedure, and the second object includes annotations to the image or information that supports creation of the image. In the conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into second drawing data having a different file format from the first drawing data with the second object rendered invisible.

When creating drawing data including images to be submitted in a predetermined procedure, a user edits the data using drawing software such as VISIO. At this time, a comment Ob2 is placed in the VISIO file D1 at the drawing creation stage together with the drawing element Ob1 submitted in a predetermined procedure. On the other hand, the image file D2a to be submitted to the Japan Patent Office is required to include drawing element Ob1 but not comment Ob2. According to the aspect described above, the VISIO file D1 (first drawing data) is converted into an image in which the comment Ob2 (second object) whose predetermined representative position is located outside the closed area 22 is rendered invisible. It can be converted to file D2a (second drawing data).

In this embodiment, it is determined whether the object is a drawing element Ob1 or a comment Ob2 based on the relationship between the position of the closed area 22 and the position of the object Ob. That is, it is preferable that the user knows the position of the closed area 22 when drawing. That is, it is preferable that at least the vicinity of the boundary of the closed area 22 is configured to be visible. According to this aspect, since the user knows the boundaries of the closed area 22, the user can place the first object to be submitted as a predetermined submission document within the closed area 22. In other words, the object placed outside the closed area 22 by the user when drawing is extracted as the second object. Therefore, when drawing, the user can place the drawing element Ob1 inside the closed area 22 and place the comment Ob2 including the annotation for the image outside the closed area 22.

In this embodiment, in the activity A104, the center C of the object Ob is set as the representative position predetermined to indicate the position of the object Ob, but the representative position may be the entire object Ob. In other words, in the first extraction step, if the entire object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the object Ob may be extracted as the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2. According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which the object Ob located entirely outside the closed area 22 is made invisible.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the technical idea of the invention.

4. Modifications Regarding the information processing device 1 according to the embodiment described above, the following aspects may be adopted.

The control unit 13 may display the object Ob extracted as the comment Ob2 so that the user can check it before making the comment Ob2 invisible. FIG. 4 is an image diagram showing an example of the user interface 2 displayed on the display unit 14. The control unit 13 causes the user interface 2 to display the object 24 and the object 26 among the objects 24 to 27 in a manner that emphasizes them with a thick frame. In other words, as a display control step, the control unit 13 extracts the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2, and then displays it so that the user can see that it is the comment Ob2 extracted from the object Ob. Good too. With this aspect, the user can understand that the object 24 and the object 26 have been extracted as the comment Ob2.

FIG. 5 is an image diagram showing an example of the screen 3 displayed on the information processing device 1. Screen 3 includes an area 31 that says "Can I delete the object extracted as a comment?", a button 32 that says "Yes", and a button 33 that says "No". including. When the button 32 is pressed, the extracted comment Ob2 is deleted, and then processing for converting the VISIO file D1 into an image file D2a is executed. On the other hand, if the button 33 is pressed, the process ends without deleting the extracted comment Ob2. Preferably, screen 3 shown in FIG. 5 is displayed following the mode shown in FIG. 4.

In other words, the control unit 13 receives a command from the user as a selection reception step, and when the command from the user is received, converts the VISIO file D1 into an image file D2a or the like as a conversion step. According to such a configuration, when making objects other than the first object invisible, it is possible to reduce the risk of making the first object erroneously determined to be the second object invisible.

In the embodiment described above, comment Ob2 is displayed in an emphasized manner so that the user can recognize the existence of comment Ob2, but the user may be able to recognize the page that includes comment Ob2. For example, the information processing device 1 includes a check button (not shown). When the user presses the check button, the control unit 13 executes the information processing of activities A101 to A106 and determines whether there is a page including the comment Ob2 in the VISIO file D1. The control unit 13 causes the display unit 14 to display the screen 4 in a manner that is visible to the user. FIG. 6 is an image diagram showing an example of the screen 4 displayed on the display unit 14 of the information processing device 1. Screen 4 includes an area 41 in which "Objects may exist outside the frame in the following drawings" and an area 42 in which "Figures 1 and 3" are written. Here, in the area 42, an identification code of the page including the comment Ob2 is written. The identification code includes a page number, page name, figure number, etc. In other words, as a display control step, the control unit 13 displays the identification code of the page including the second object exemplified in comment Ob2 in a manner that is visible to the user. With such a configuration, the user can know which page includes the comment Ob2.

In the above embodiment, when the representative position predetermined as indicating the position of the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as the comment Ob2. As a first extraction step, when the inclusion value f of the outer edge of the object Ob exceeds a predetermined threshold value X, the object Ob may be extracted as the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2. Here, the inclusion value f is a value indicating how much of the outer edge of the object Ob is included in the closed region 22. According to such a configuration, when the inclusion value f of the outer edge of the object Ob exceeds the predetermined threshold value X, the object Ob is extracted as a comment Ob2, and the comment Ob2 is made invisible to the second drawing data. can be converted.

FIG. 7 is an image diagram for explaining the inclusion value f of the outer edge of the object Ob. For example, if the horizontal length of the object 27 is a and the vertical length is b, the outer edge of the object 27 is 2a+2b. Here, if the length of the portion outside the closed area 22 of the horizontal length is a1, then the outer edge of the object 27 included in the closed area 22 is 2a1+b. In this case, the inclusion value f is a value calculated by (2a1+b)/(2a+2b). The predetermined threshold value X is set to an arbitrary value between 0 and 1. The predetermined threshold value X is preferably 0.5 or less. That is, in the first extraction step, when the object Ob is a two-dimensional object, the control unit 13 extracts the information based on the length of the line that constitutes the outer edge of the object Ob and the length of the portion of the outer edge that is included in the closed area 22. , the object Ob may be extracted as the second object exemplified by comment Ob2. According to such a configuration, the inclusion value f of the outer edge of the object Ob is set to the predetermined threshold value It is possible to convert the first drawing data into second drawing data in which the object Ob beyond the object Ob is made invisible.

In the embodiment described above, comment Ob2, which is an annotation regarding an image, is cited as an example of the second object, but if the object Ob does not constitute an image submitted to the patent office, it may be used for purposes other than annotation. Good too. Although not shown, for example, information that supports creation of an image to be submitted to the Japan Patent Office, such as auxiliary lines and reference figures, may be included.

For example, in VISIO, straight or curved objects Ob can be drawn in colors other than black. At least in the patent application, since the images used in the drawings are monochrome images, the object Ob drawn in a color other than black may be extracted as the second object. In other words, as the third extraction step, the control unit 13 may extract the object Ob as the second object when the object Ob has a display mode other than the predetermined display mode. According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which an object with a display mode different from that of the first object is made invisible. As a result, it is possible to both improve usability during drawing and to eliminate the need for visual recognition of unnecessary second objects.

In the above embodiment, when at least a part of the object Ob is located outside the closed area 22, the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as the comment Ob2, but the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as the comment Ob2. You may also extract it as In other words, in the second extraction step, the control unit 13 may extract the object Ob as the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2 when the object Ob includes a predetermined identifier. According to such a configuration, the user can intentionally place the second object using a predetermined identifier.

Furthermore, depending on the situation, a mode may be adopted in which the comment Ob2 is displayed in an emphasized manner instead of being made invisible. For example, when drawings are delivered from a patent attorney to an applicant before being submitted to the Patent Office, it may be assumed that the applicant would like to have the applicant easily refer to annotations regarding the drawings. Such a situation will be explained using FIG. 8, taking as an example a case where the above-mentioned identifier is included. FIG. 8 is an activity diagram showing another example of information processing by the information processing device 1. As shown in FIG.

First, in activity A201, the control unit 13 reads first drawing data exemplified in the VISIO file D1.

Next, in activity A202, the control unit 13 acquires one (in this case, the first page) out of one or more pages configuring the VISIO file D1.

Next, in activity A203, the control unit 13 acquires one of the one or more objects Ob placed on the user interface 2 of the acquired page.

Next, in activity A204, the control unit 13 determines whether the object Ob acquired in activity A203 has an identifier. In this determination, if the control unit 13 determines that the object Ob does not include the predetermined identifier, the process proceeds to activity A205, and the control unit 13 converts the object Ob into the first object exemplified in the drawing element Ob1. Extract as. In this determination, if the control unit 13 determines that the object Ob includes the predetermined identifier, the process proceeds to activity A206, and the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob as the second object exemplified in the comment Ob2. do. Here, the predetermined identifier is preferably selected from symbols and special characters that are not used in normal sentences. Particularly preferably, a character string object Ob surrounded by predetermined identifiers is determined as the comment Ob2.

Further, when the object Ob is extracted as the comment Ob2 in the activity A206, the control unit 13 subsequently changes the display mode of the character string included in the object Ob in the activity A207. For example, the control unit 13 changes the font color to red and changes the font style to bold. In other words, as a change step, when the second object exemplified in comment Ob2 is extracted, the control unit 13 changes the text information included in the second object exemplified in comment Ob2 to a predetermined display mode. do.

Next, the control unit 13 determines whether there is a next object Ob placed on the user interface 2, and if there is a next object Ob, repeats the processing of activities A203 to A207. When the control unit 13 completes processing for all objects Ob, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to the next step.

Next, the control unit 13 determines whether or not there is a next page in the VISIO file D1, and if there is a next page, repeats the processing of activities A202 to A207. When the control unit 13 completes processing for all pages, the information processing by the control unit 13 proceeds to activity A208.

Finally, in activity A208, the control unit 13 converts the VISIO file D1 into a PDF file D2b having a PDF format. Such a PDF file D2b is delivered from the patent attorney to the applicant as a draft drawing before filing. That is, the applicant can examine the image to be submitted composed of the drawing element Ob1, that is, the draft of the drawing, while checking the comment Ob2 that can be easily distinguished from the drawing element Ob1 by changing the display mode. .

Furthermore, even in situations where comment Ob2 should be made invisible, such as when the drawing is subsequently submitted to the Patent Office as an application document, comment Ob2 is prominently placed due to the information processing described above, so When checking, it is difficult for the user to overlook comment Ob2. That is, it may be provided in the following manner. The information processing method includes the following steps, and in the acquisition step, first drawing data is acquired. Here, in the first drawing data, a plurality of objects including a first object and a second object other than the first object are arranged, and the first object is an image submitted in a predetermined procedure. , the second object includes annotations for the image or information that supports the creation of the image, and in the conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into a display mode that increases the visibility of the second object, The drawing data may be converted into second drawing data having a file format different from that of the drawing data.

In the above embodiment, the PDF file D2b is converted into a PDF file in which the highlighted comment Ob2 is written, but depending on the situation, the font of the comment Ob2 may be changed to the same color as the background color, such as white. A configuration may be adopted in which the file is converted into a PDF file D2b. For example, when multiple people create VISIO file D1, the confirmation is made with comment Ob2 written in a visible manner for confirmation within the office, and when submitted by the customer, comment Ob2 is made invisible. It is assumed that the VISIO file D1 is converted into a PDF file D2b and then submitted.

Furthermore, the second drawing data may be output in a format printed on paper. In this case, the second object is not limited to being deleted, and the second object may be rendered invisible by making the second object the same color as the background color.

Here, after the PDF file D2b is converted into the PDF file D2b in which the emphasized comment Ob2 is written, the image file D2a may be further converted into an image file D2a in which the comment Ob2 is made invisible. In other words, as a first conversion step, the control unit 13 converts the first drawing data into second drawing data exemplified by the PDF file D2b in which the second object is emphasized, and As the second conversion step, the second drawing data may be converted into third drawing data, exemplified by the image file D2a, in which the second object is made invisible. According to such a configuration, the user can confirm the comment Ob2 in the PDF file D2b and then submit the image file D2a that does not include the comment Ob2.

Furthermore, the user interface 2 may include a print area as the second closed area. The print area is an area that is set according to the size of the paper surface when printing. For example, if A4 size is specified, the print area becomes an area where A4 size printing is possible. For example, when at least a portion of the object Ob is located outside the print area, the control unit 13 may extract the object Ob as the second object exemplified by the comment Ob2. With this configuration, the object Ob placed outside the print area by the user during drawing is extracted as a comment Ob2, and can be made invisible when converting to the image file D2a or PDF file D2b. .

Furthermore, the user interface 2 may include two closed areas. FIG. 9 is an image diagram showing an example of the user interface 2 including two closed areas. The user interface 2 displays one page out of a plurality of pages included in the VISIO file D1. The user interface 2 includes an out-of-frame area 51, a print area 52, a submission area 53, and a margin area 54. The user interface 2 includes objects 55 to 58 as objects Ob.

The out-of-frame area 51 is an area inside the user interface 2 and outside the print area 52. Both the print area 52 and the submission area 53 are closed areas. The print area 52 is set to be an area that can be printed in A4 size. The print area 52 includes a predetermined submission area 53 and a margin area 54 . The submission area 53 is a preset area based on the size of the submitted drawing designated by the Japan Patent Office. The margin area 54 is an area that is inside the print area 52 and outside the submission area 53. Objects 55 to 58 are objects Ob placed by the user via the user interface 2.

The control unit 13 determines whether the objects 55 to 58 are located outside the submission area 53. If it is determined that the object 55 is located outside the submission area 53, the control unit 13 proceeds to the next determination. Next, the control unit 13 determines whether the object 55 is located outside the print area 52. When it is determined that the object 55 is located outside the print area 52, the control unit 13 extracts the object 55 as a memo Ob3. Next, a determination is made regarding the object 56. If it is determined that the object 56 is located outside the submission area 53, the control unit 13 proceeds to the next determination. Next, the control unit 13 determines whether the object 56 is located outside the print area 52. When it is determined that the object 56 is located inside the print area 52, the control unit 13 extracts the object 56 as a comment Ob2. Next, a determination is made regarding the object 57. When it is determined that the object 57 is located inside the submission area 53, the control unit 13 extracts the object 57 as the drawing element Ob1. Object 58 is similarly extracted as drawing element Ob1. In other words, the control unit 13 extracts the object Ob inside the submission area 53 as the drawing element Ob1 (first object), and extracts the object Ob inside the margin area 54 as the comment Ob2 (second object). , the object Ob in the out-of-frame area 51 may be extracted as a memo Ob3 (third object). Here, the memo Ob3 is a memo or a reference image used when the user draws a diagram.

In FIG. 9, upon receiving a conversion instruction to PDF from the user, the control unit 13 may convert the VISIO file D1 to a PDF file D2b. Here, among the objects 55 to 58 arranged in the VISIO file D1, the PDF file D2b does not include the object 55 extracted as the memo Ob3, but includes the drawing element Ob1 and the comment Ob2. In the PDF file D2b, the object 56 extracted as the comment Ob2 may be changed to a display mode with high visibility. In other words, upon receiving a PDF conversion instruction from the user, the control unit 13 converts the VISIO file D1 into a PDF file D2b in which the third object is made invisible. Here, preferably the second object may be changed to a display mode with high visibility.

In FIG. 9, the control unit 13 may convert the VISIO file D1 to the image file D2a upon receiving an instruction to convert the image file D2a for submission from the user. When converting to the image file D2a, the control unit 13 deletes the object 55 extracted as the memo Ob3 and the object 56 extracted as the comment Ob2, and deletes the object 57 and the object 58 extracted as the drawing element Ob1. Converts figures and the like made up of the following into one image file D2a. In other words, upon receiving an instruction from the user to convert the image file D2a for submission, the control unit 13 converts the VISIO file D1 into an image file D2a in which the second object and the third object are made invisible. Good too.

In the above embodiment, the file format is converted while making the second object invisible. However, the control unit 13 selects the object 57 and the object 58 extracted as the drawing element Ob1, and configures the file format by the selected objects. Graphics etc. may be converted into one image file.

In the above embodiment, the first drawing data is the VISIO file D1, but the first drawing data is not limited to drawing data drawn by two-dimensional drawing software such as VISIO, but may be data drawn by three-dimensional drawing software such as CAD. It may be applied to drawing data drawn by.

In the embodiments described above, the second drawing data is in the image file format or PDF format, but is not limited to these. The second drawing data may be in any format suitable for the procedure. Preferably, editable objects Ob (for example, drawing element Ob1, comment Ob2) in the first drawing data are in a format that cannot be edited as objects. The non-editable format is, for example, raster format data. In other words, first drawing data in vector format is converted into second drawing data in raster format. With such a configuration, the drawing data drawn by the user can be converted into data in a format suitable for the submitted drawing.

In the above embodiment, various functions are described as being realized by the control unit 13 of the information processing device 1, but an information processing system can be realized by implementing at least a part of these functions in another device. You may. That is, the information processing system may be in an on-premises form or may be in a cloud form. As a cloud-based information processing system, the above-mentioned functions and processing may be provided, for example, in the form of SaaS (Software as a Service) or cloud computing.

Another aspect of the embodiment may be a program. This information processing program causes a computer to execute each step of the information processing method.

It may be provided in each of the following embodiments.

(1) An information processing method, including the following steps, in which the acquisition step acquires first drawing data, wherein the first drawing data includes a first object and the first object. A plurality of objects are arranged, the first object forming an image to be submitted in a predetermined procedure, and the second object forming an annotation for the image or a second object for the image. In the conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into second drawing data having a different file format from the first drawing data, with the second object being made invisible. Method.

According to such a configuration, in an appropriate situation, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects other than the first object scheduled to be submitted as a predetermined submission document are made invisible. can.

(2) In the information processing method described in (1) above, the first drawing data includes a predetermined closed area, and further, in the first extraction step, at least a part of the object is in the closed area. A method of extracting the object as the second object when the object is located outside.

According to such a configuration, an object placed outside the closed area by the user is extracted as a second object. Therefore, when drawing, the user can place the comment Ob2 including the annotation for the image outside the closed area.

(3) In the information processing method according to (2) above, in the first extraction step, if the inclusion value of the outer edge of the object exceeds a predetermined threshold, the object is extracted as the second object. and here, the inclusion value is a value indicating how much of the outer edge of the object is included in the closed area.

According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects whose inclusion value of the outer edge of the object exceeds a predetermined threshold value are rendered invisible.

(4) In the information processing method described in (3) above, in the first extraction step, when the object is a two-dimensional object, the length of the line constituting the outer edge of the object and the closed area of the outer edge are determined. A method for extracting the object as the second object based on the length of a portion included in the region.

According to such a configuration, an object whose inclusion value of the outer edge of the object exceeds a predetermined threshold value is visually recognized based on the length of the line that constitutes the outer edge of the object and the length of the portion of the outer edge that is included in the closed area. The first drawing data can be converted into the disabled second drawing data.

(5) In the information processing method described in (2) above, in the first extraction step, if a representative position predetermined as indicating the position of the object is located outside the closed area, the object A method for extracting a second object as the second object.

According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects whose predetermined representative positions are located outside the closed area are rendered invisible.

(6) In the information processing method according to (2) above, in the first extraction step, if the entire object is located outside the closed area, the object is extracted as the second object. Method.

According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects located entirely outside the closed area are made invisible.

(7) The information processing method according to any one of (2) to (6) above, wherein at least the vicinity of the boundary of the closed area is configured to be visible.

According to such a configuration, the user can visually grasp the vicinity of the boundary of the closed area, thereby providing an information processing method that makes it easier for the user to place the first object in the closed area more intuitively. can do.

(8) In the information processing method according to any one of (1) to (7) above, further, in the second extraction step, if the object includes a predetermined identifier, the object is extracted from the second extraction step. How to extract as an object.

According to such a configuration, the user can intentionally place the second object using a predetermined identifier.

(9) In the information processing method according to (8) above, further, in the changing step, when the second object is extracted, the text information included in the second object is changed to a predetermined display mode. ,Method.

According to such a configuration, since the second object including the predetermined identifier is displayed prominently, the user can easily understand the annotation and the like written as the second object.

(10) In the information processing method according to any one of (1) to (9) above, further, in the third extraction step, the object has a display mode other than a predetermined display mode. A method for extracting the object as the second object if the object is the second object.

According to such a configuration, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which an object with a display mode different from that of the first object is made invisible.

(11) In the information processing method according to any one of (1) to (10) above, further, in the display control step, the second object is displayed in a way that the user can understand, and in the selection reception step, The method includes receiving a command from the user, and converting the first drawing data into the second drawing data when the command is received in the converting step.

According to such a configuration, when making objects other than the first object invisible, it is possible to reduce the risk of accidentally making the first object invisible.

(12) In the information processing method according to any one of (1) to (11) above, in the converting step, the second object is made invisible by deleting it from the first drawing data. how to.

According to such a configuration, in an appropriate situation, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects other than the first object scheduled to be submitted as a predetermined submission document are deleted.

(13) The information processing method according to any one of (1) to (12) above, wherein the second drawing data has a PDF format or an image file format.

According to such a configuration, it is possible to convert the second drawing data into PDF format or image file format.

(14) An information processing system comprising at least one device capable of executing a program such that each step of the information processing method according to any one of (1) to (13) above is performed. A system with one processor.

According to such a configuration, in an appropriate situation, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects other than the first object scheduled to be submitted as a predetermined submission document are made invisible. can.

(15) An information processing program that causes a computer to execute each step of the information processing method described in any one of (1) to (13) above.

According to such a configuration, in an appropriate situation, the first drawing data can be converted into the second drawing data in which objects other than the first object scheduled to be submitted as a predetermined submission document are made invisible. can.
Of course, this is not the case.

1: Information processing device 10: Communication bus 11: Communication unit 12: Storage unit 13: Control unit 14: Display unit 15: Input unit 2: User interface 21: Outside frame area 22: Closed area 24: Object 241: Center 25: Object 251 : Center 26 : Object 261 : Center 27 : Object 271 : Center 3 : Screen 31 : Area 32 : Button 33 : Button 4 : Screen 41 : Area 42 : Area 51 : Outside frame area 52 : Print area 53 : Submission area 54 : Margin area 55: Object 56: Object 57: Object 58: Object C: Center Ob1: Drawing element Ob2: Comment Ob3: Memo

Claims (8)

An information processing method,
Includes the following steps:
In the acquisition step, first drawing data is acquired, where the first drawing data includes a plurality of objects arranged;
In the first extraction step, if at least a part of the object is located outside a predetermined closed area set in the first drawing data, and the inclusion value of the outer edge of the object exceeds a predetermined threshold; the object is extracted as a second object that is not the first object , where the inclusion value is a value indicating how much of the outer edge of the object is included in the closed region;
In the conversion step, the first drawing data is converted into second drawing data that has a different file format from the first drawing data, in which only the first object is visible and the second object is not visible. how to. In the information processing method according to claim 1 ,
In the first extraction step, when the object is a two-dimensional object, the object is extracted based on the length of the line forming the outer edge of the object and the length of the portion of the outer edge included in the closed area. A method of extracting the second object. In the information processing method according to claim 1,
A method, wherein at least a boundary of the closed area is configured to be visible. In the information processing method according to claim 1,
moreover,
In the display control step, displaying the second object in a way that the user can understand;
In the selection acceptance step, an instruction from the user is accepted;
In the converting step, the first drawing data is converted into the second drawing data when the command is received. In the information processing method according to claim 1,
In the converting step, the second object is made invisible by deleting it from the first drawing data. In the information processing method according to claim 1,
The method, wherein the second drawing data has a PDF format or an image file format. An information processing system comprising at least one device,
A system comprising at least one processor capable of executing a program such that each step of the information processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is performed. An information processing program,
A program that causes a computer to execute each step of the information processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 .