JPH023592B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an image output device that outputs image information using a recording medium on which a plurality of still images are recorded.

Record multiple (for example, about 100) still images as digital information on a disk-shaped recording medium,
A device for reproducing these and displaying them on a monitor has been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 58435/1983).
In such an image output device, as stated in the specification of the same publication, digital still image information is recorded by time expansion, so it takes approximately 0.4 seconds to reproduce one field's worth of still images. 4
1.6 for a color image with a field as one unit
It takes seconds. Therefore, it takes an extremely large amount of time to search for the necessary pictures in order. It is conceivable to add a text index to select the necessary image information, but it is not possible to completely express the content of the picture with text, and the most you can do is add an index in the form of a title. It requires a lot of time to manufacture. Furthermore, when searching using a text index, it is difficult to create a distinguishable index when there are many similar still images, and the reality is that the content of the image cannot be determined until it is actually played back. It was hot.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and includes:
To obtain a desired still image display by specifying one still image to be reproduced from a recording medium in which a plurality of still images are recorded in the form of digital information having a time axis expanded from a regular video signal. In order to display a plurality of still images on a single index screen divided into segments, in an image output device equipped with the above-mentioned recording method, reduced still image information corresponding to each still image is recorded in a specific recording area. a medium, a playback device for playing still image information and reduced still image information from the recording medium, and writing the playback output of the reduced still image information and reading it out at a normal time axis speed to form the index screen. An index memory that obtains a video signal, an image memory that obtains a still image video signal by writing the playback output of the above still image information, and reading it out at a normal time axis speed, and an image memory that obtains a still image video signal, and display each segment division of the above index screen on the screen. a selection means for making a selection, and by specifying with the selection means an area of each segment of the index screen displayed based on the output of the index memory,
The present invention is characterized in that still image information corresponding to the selected reduced still image is reproduced from the recording medium, written to and read from the image memory, and a desired still image display is obtained.

According to this configuration, the recorded contents in the recording medium can be searched in an extremely short time, and since still images are recorded using digital signals, the time required to reproduce one still image is long. Even if a short search is difficult, the index screen allows a list of recorded contents to be displayed, greatly reducing the time it takes to find and display a desired still image.

Furthermore, since a still image is selected by specifying each segment area of the index screen on the screen, the operation is easy and the selection can be made quickly without erroneous selection.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an image output device according to the present invention.

An input video signal a is converted into a digital signal by an A/D converter 1, and still image information for one frame is written into an image memory 2. The read output of the memory 2 is supplied to a disk recording/reproducing device 3 and recorded. By repeating this recording operation,
A plurality of pieces of still image information are recorded on the disk.
Note that the read speed of the image memory 2 is changed to match the rotation speed of the disk.

The output of the image memory 2 is also given to the reduction device 4. This reduction device 4 has a function of reducing the image to 1/4, and for example, thins out 3 out of 4 scanning lines and 3 out of 4 sampling points during A/D conversion on the scanning line. It is configured to thin out the The output of the reduction device 4 is sent to the disk recording/reproducing device 3 and recorded in a predetermined portion thereof, that is, an area for index recording.

At the time of reproduction, the reproduction output of the index recording area of the disk recording/reproducing device 3 is first sent to the index memory 5, and one index screen information is stored therein. The output of the index memory 5 is sent via a switch 6 to a D/A converter 7, where it is converted into an analog video signal and then sent to a monitor TV.

As a result, on the screen 9 of the monitor TV, as shown in the front view of the screen in FIG. 2, a still image is displayed as an index, which is divided into a plurality of segments (for example, 16) and reduced to segments 1 to 16. Further, in each segment area, reference numbers 1 to 16 are displayed superimposed on the video or written on a transparent plate on the screen.

In this way, by looking at the index screen 9 of FIG. 2, necessary information can be selected. Necessary still image information is reproduced by instructing the disk recording/reproducing device 3 with an index reference number and stored in the image memory 8.

Index reference numbers can also be automatically detected with a light pen. That is, by applying the light pen 10 to the target reduced image plane as shown in FIG. 2, the information of the corresponding index number is transmitted to the index reference number detection circuit 11 of FIG.
Detected in In the index reference number detection circuit 11, the detected index reference numbers 1 to 16 are combined with screen symbols A to G corresponding to a plurality of index screens obtained from the index memory 5. For example, 16 x 7 Image selection information s indicating one of the still images is formed.

This image selection information s is given to the disk recording/reproducing device 3, and the selected still image information is reproduced and stored in the image memory. The output of the image memory 8 is monitored via the switch 6 and the D/A converter 7.
The selected still image is displayed on the TV.

Note that an X-Y coordinate input device can be used in addition to the light pen 10. This input device may be a well-known device in which a matrix of key switch arrays as shown in FIG. 2 is formed using a transparent conductive film or the like. By placing this coordinate input device closely in front of a monitor screen and operating coordinate keys corresponding to reduced index images on the monitor screen, a desired image can be selected.

As described above, the present invention is capable of searching for a desired still image in an extremely short time when a recording medium on which still images are recorded as digital information is played back using a playback device with a slow relative speed between the head and the medium. In order to display the reduced still image, it is recorded on the recording medium and displayed on the index screen divided into segments, and the still image can be selected by specifying the segment on the screen. be. Therefore, by reproducing the index image and displaying it on the screen, it is possible to view the contents of a plurality of still images, quickly search for the desired one, and select it with a simple operation without making any mistakes. Therefore, the desired still image can be reproduced and displayed in a short time.
Moreover, since it is a reduced image, it almost faithfully represents the original image, and even if the image content is complex, it can be searched accurately. Therefore, the digital still image search and display system can be made inexpensive and practical.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an image display device showing one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view of an index screen. The symbols used in the drawings are 3...disk recording/reproducing machine, 4...reducing device, 5...index memory, 8...image memory, 9...index screen, 10...light pen.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method for specifying a desired still image to be reproduced from a recording medium in which a plurality of still images are recorded in the form of digital information having a time axis expanded from a regular video signal. In an image output device configured to display still images, reduced still image information corresponding to each still image is stored in a specific record in order to display a plurality of still images on a single segmented index screen. the recording medium recorded in the area; a player for reproducing still image information and reduced still image information from the recording medium; and writing the reproduction output of the reduced still image information and reading it at a normal time axis speed. an image memory for obtaining a still image video signal by writing the playback output of the still image information and reading it at a normal time axis speed; a selection means for selecting each segment of the screen on the screen, and by specifying an area of each segment of the index screen displayed based on the output of the index memory with the selection means, the selected reduced still image can be selected. An image output device characterized in that still image information corresponding to an image is reproduced from the recording medium, written into and read from the image memory, and a desired still image display is obtained.