JPH08241299A - Data editing and presenting device and data editing and presenting method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To easily perform the edition for presenting data based on the scenario in which plural stories are extended by a branching and to execute a general purpose external program as it is when a data presentation is performed. CONSTITUTION: This device is provided with a scenario data base 101 making a component scenario contain the corresponding information on the execution procedure of an external program and the execution result and other component scenario names related to the component scenario and storing the component scenario, a media data base 102 storing media data, an external program storage part 103 storing the external program, an external program execution means 104 executing the external program based on an execution procedure and an external program execution result judging means 105 establishing a component scenario to be presented next based on the external program execution result and the corresponding information on the component scenario.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for editing and presenting multimedia data such as cartoons and animations, and particularly for presenting multimedia data based on a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of stories by branching. The present invention relates to a data edit presentation method and apparatus for easily realizing the editing of the multimedia data.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, due to the dramatic improvement in computer technology, electronic publishing and CAI (ComputerAided Instructio)
n, computer-aided education), presentation, etc.
Software that makes full use of various media data such as still images and moving images has been developed. In order to efficiently create complex multimedia software that makes use of the data processing capabilities of such computers, how to present multimedia data such as text, audio, still images, and moving images used in multimedia software It is important to be able to easily describe and correct the information about whether to erase or erase. This technique is a multimedia data edit / presentation technique, and the following methods are available to realize it.

The most commonly known method is to prepare a timetable for presenting each piece of media data in advance and sequentially present the data by referring to this timetable. This will be referred to as method 1 hereinafter. There is also a method of monitoring the user's input while presenting the data and adaptively determining the data to be presented next according to the input content. More specifically, the method presents the user with, for example, an interactive button to interactively present the data. When an input is made by the user while presenting the button,
Depending on the input content, the external program is started or the data of the link destination is presented. Hereinafter, this is referred to as method 2. The method 1 is described in, for example, JP-A 1-2
No. 33489, “Data presentation method and apparatus”,
The method 2 is described in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-204576, "Dynamic scenario presentation method".

[0004]

However, in the above method 1, one time axis is divided according to which media data is presented at which time, and media data is allocated to each divided time (this Is called a timetable) to edit the data presentation.
Therefore, if there is a plurality of media data that can be presented at a certain time, such as a scenario in which a story develops into multiple branches, and you want to perform data presentation that adaptively determines one of them, Adapting Method 1 becomes difficult.

The above method 2 was invented to solve the problem of the above method 1, and by using the method 2,
By branching, a scenario in which multiple stories develop can be basically presented.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing a scenario in which a story is developed into a plurality of stories by branching. In the example of FIG. 7, “title”, “scenario 1”, ..., “Scenario 7”, “ending 1”, ..., “Ending 4” are elements that constitute a scenario (hereinafter referred to as a part scenario). Each of the component scenarios includes an identifier of media data representing its content. Further, an arrow connecting each part scenario like "scenario 1" indicates how the media data included in each part scenario is presented. When an arrow is divided into a plurality of component scenarios from a certain component scenario, it means that there are a plurality of stories following the component scenario.

Therefore, in the example of FIG. 7, the part scenario that starts any story is a "title", and the following four stories are developed by branching from the part scenario.・ Title → Scenario 1 → Scenario 2 → Scenario 5
→ Ending 2 ・ Title → Scenario 1 → Scenario 3 → Ending 1 ・ Title → Scenario 1 → Scenario 4 → Scenario 6
→ Ending 3 ・ Title → Scenario 1 → Scenario 4 → Scenario 7
→ Ending 4 By the way, in order to present the media data representing the contents of the above four stories, in the parts scenarios where the story branches, namely “scenario 1” and “scenario 4”,
Some means must be taken to determine one of the branches during or after the presentation of the media data.

In the method 2, the procedure for adaptively presenting the media data according to the input from the user is described in advance according to some script, and the media data is presented according to the script. Based on this method, an example in which the reproduction procedure of the scenario used in the example of FIG. 7 is described by a simple script is shown below. play (title) play (scenario 1) if (bunki-program1 () == "play (scenario 2)") play (scenario 2) play (scenario 5) play (ending 2) else if (bunki-program1 () = = "play (scenario 3)") play (scenario 3) play (ending 1) else if (bunki-program1 () == "play (scenario 4)") play (scenario 4) if (bunki-program2 () = = "play (scenario 6)") play (scenario 6) play (ending 3) else if (bunki-program2 () == "play (scenario 7)") play (scenario 7) play (ending 4) , Describe the program to be executed at the time of story presentation or story branching, branching conditions, etc. In the above example, “play (X)” indicates that media data indicating the content of the part scenario is presented.

In addition, "if (bunki-programX () ==" Y ")
Means that "if the condition that" the result of executing the external program bunki-programX () is the character string Y "" is satisfied ". The program corrects the return value of its execution according to the story that follows. When presenting media data included in a scenario in which a story develops into multiple stories by branching based on such a script, the following two problems occur.

The first problem is that, in the conventional data edit presentation method, in order to present each part scenario created as a part, the presentation procedure must be described in advance according to some script. .
In the scenario of the example in FIG. 7, since the story branching by branching is not complicated, the contents of the scenario can be described relatively easily as described above even if a script is used. However, as the number of branches increases, the scenario becomes more complicated, and the amount of script description increases. In addition, the contents of the description become complicated, and the outlook of the entire scenario deteriorates. The same is true for script modifications.

The second problem is that it is necessary to change the external program to be used according to the contents of the scenario. In the above method 2, the external program needs to output the media data or scenario to be presented next as the execution result. Usually, the external program is provided in a general-purpose form called a library and is used based on the specifications of the external program. Therefore,
It is not desirable to change the contents of the program each time according to the contents of the scenario, in the sense of maintaining the versatility of the external program.

However, in the above method 2, since the output media data or the scenario changes according to the contents of the scenario, even if the external program has the same effect, the contents of the program are changed for each scenario in which the external program is used. You need to make changes. Therefore, the versatility of the external program cannot be maintained.

From the above, it is a problem with the conventional method that a general-purpose external program can be used as it is and the contents of the scenario can be presented without using a script.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems and facilitates editing for presenting data based on a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of stories by branching, and a general-purpose external program is used for presenting the data. An object is to provide a data edit presentation device and a data edit presentation method that can be executed as they are.

[0015]

In order to achieve the above object, in a data edit / presentation apparatus of the present invention, a part scenario is an execution procedure of an external program, an execution result of the external program, and other parts related to the part scenario. A scenario database that stores at least association information with a scenario name, stores the part scenario, a media database that stores media data, and an external program storage unit that stores at least an external program that presents the media data, External program execution means for executing the external program based on the execution procedure of the external program, and an external program execution result for determining the parts scenario to be presented next based on the external program execution result and the correspondence information of the parts scenario It has a structure including a judgment means.

The data editing and presenting method according to the present invention is
The media database stores media data representing the contents of the scenario, the scenario database stores part scenarios as elements constituting the scenario, the external program storage unit stores at least an external program that presents the media data, and ) A step of executing the external program based on the execution procedure, (b) a step of determining whether or not the story ends based on the association information, (c) an execution result of the step of (a) and Deciding a parts scenario to be presented next based on the association information.

[0017]

In the data presentation method according to the present invention, a part scenario group to be presented following the part scenario, at least media data presentation and an external program for allowing the user to select one of the part scenario groups, Information that associates the execution result of the external program with the parts scenario group is described in advance in the parts scenario.

In the data presentation method according to the present invention, by using the information described in the part scenario, the process necessary for presenting the scenario in which the story develops into a plurality of parts by branching, that is, the part scenario is stored. The external program is executed in a predetermined procedure including the external program that presents the media data being displayed, and further, the return value obtained by the input of the user during the execution and the result are compared with the association information, The part scenario itself autonomously performs the process of determining the part scenario related to the story following.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a data edit / presentation apparatus according to the present invention. The configuration of the data edit / presentation apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The data editing / presenting apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a scenario database 101 for storing a part scenario, a media database 102 for storing media data, an external program storage unit 103 for storing an external program, and an external program execution for executing an external program. Means 104, external program execution result judging means 105 for deciding a component scenario to be presented next based on the external program execution result and the component scenario associating means, and the external program execution Inside, input monitor means 106 for monitoring and inputting data from the user, presenting means 107 for presenting media data, and external program execution procedure analyzing means 108 for analyzing the execution procedure of the external program of the part scenario. , External program execution procedure analysis means 10 The external program execution procedure storage means 109 for storing the analysis result in 8 is provided. The input monitor means 106 is, for example, a conventional keyboard, mouse device, etc.
A conventional display device or the like is used for 107.

The part scenario includes the execution procedure of the external program and the correspondence information between the execution result of the external program and the name of another part scenario related to the part scenario.

2 (a) to 2 (c) are conceptual diagrams showing examples of the contents of the parts scenario, and the details will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 (a) to 2 (c). In the examples of FIGS. 2 (a) to 2 (c), for the sake of convenience of explanation, the names of the component scenarios are distinguished in order to distinguish the component scenarios.
The part describing 201 is added.

"Media data name 202" of the parts scenario
Is a description of the name of media data representing the content of the part scenario. In addition, the media data includes moving images, still images, audio data, etc. to be displayed. Therefore, in the present invention, it is assumed that the external program for presenting the single media data is stored in the external program storage unit 103 in advance. In the following, pl is an external program play for presenting the media data.
Described as ay (data) (where data represents the media data name). Regarding the method of presenting the media data, for example, there are already disclosed methods such as "Annual Meeting of the 1991 IEICE Spring National Convention" A-273 "Multimedia Synchronous Playback Method", which may be used.

The "external program execution procedure and correspondence information 203" of the parts scenario is: -Execution procedure of the external program stored in the external program storage section 103-Execution result of the external program and processing contents after execution. It is a description.

First, a description example of a parts scenario when only media data is presented is shown in FIG.
Details will be described using "e". In the example of the part scenario “title”, • play (title.data) is described as an external program to be executed. Further, the following correspondence information is added to this external program.

Play (title.data): *: scenario1 This is in any case where the execution result of the external program play (title.data) is (in this embodiment, "*" is used as such a case). In the above, also, it is shown that the part scenario including the media data presented next is scenario1.

Next, a description example of a parts scenario when a story branches according to the execution result of an external program will be described using the parts scenario "scenario1" in FIG. 2B.

In the example of the part scenario "scenario1", there are two external programs to be executed: play (scenario1.data) and bunki-program1 (), and it is described that they are executed in this order. Of these, bunki-program1 () is additionally described as further detailed information: 1: scenario2: 2: scenario3: 3: scenario4. This information is one example of "correspondence information between the execution result of the external program and the name of another component scenario related to the component scenario" in the component scenario according to the present invention. In this example, bunki-progra
It is assumed that a value of 1, 2 or 3 will be returned as the execution result of m1 (). And the external program bun
If ki-program1 () is executed and the return value is 1, then the scenario of the parts including the media data to be presented next is scenario2: If the scenario of the parts including the media data to be presented next is scenario3, 3: It shows that the parts scenario including the media data presented in Section 4 is scenario4. Since the return value of the execution result is generally known in advance in the external program, as described above, by describing in advance the correspondence relationship between the execution result and the content to be processed thereafter, , It is possible to use the external program as it is without changing the content.

Next, a description example of a part scenario when the story ends will be described using the part scenario "Ending 1" in FIG. 2 (c).

In the example of the part scenario "Ending 1", play (scenario8.data) is described as an external program to be executed. Further, the following correspondence information is added to this external program.

Play (title.data): *: END This is to end the presentation of data after executing the external program play (scenario8.data) regardless of the execution result of the external program. In the example, “END” is used when the presentation of media data is finished).

The first feature of the data presentation method according to the present invention is that the parts scenario itself autonomously presents a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of stories by branching by using the information described in the parts scenario. This is the point to do. FIG. 3 shows the procedure of the data presentation method according to the present invention in the form of a flow chart, and the procedure of the data presentation method according to the present invention will be described based on FIG.

<(301) Reading of the part scenario that starts the story> For the part scenario that starts the story, the part scenario is stored in the scenario database.
Read from 101. For the part scenario that starts the story, a dummy part scenario that starts the story is created in advance, and the dummy part scenario is always read first, or is given from the input monitor means 106 or the like. It is possible to decide by the method of.

<(302, 303) External Program Execution Procedure Analysis> The external program execution procedure analysis means 108 analyzes the execution procedure analysis of the external program described in the part scenario. Further, the analysis result is stored in the external program execution procedure storage means 109.

<(304) Execution of External Program> According to the stored contents of the external program execution procedure storage means 109, the external program execution means 104 calls and executes the external program from the external program storage means. The result is passed to the external program execution result judging means 105. When the external program is executed, input from the user is also performed by the input monitor means 106 as necessary. The presentation of the media data representing the content of the part scenario is also performed by executing the external program in this process. A specific example will be described at the end of this embodiment.

<(305,306) Judgment of External Program Execution Result> Referring to the result of the external program executed in the process of (304) above and the correspondence information with other parts scenario names related to the parts scenario, Confirm the parts scenario to be presented to. However, if the part scenario is the end of the story, the presentation is ended (308). (307) The component scenario to be presented next, which is determined in the processes of (305) and (306), is read from the scenario database 101, the process returns to the process (302) and the process is repeated again.

In the series of processes described above, in the process of (304), the part scenario refers to the execution procedure of the external program described in itself and autonomously executes the external program,
Judge the result. Also, when the process returns from (307) to (302), the component scenario that is the main body that executes the external program is replaced. In the data presentation method according to the present invention, the mechanism for autonomously presenting data by the component scenario itself is realized by such a processing flow.

Another feature of the data presentation method according to the present invention is a method of realizing the external program executed when the story branches into a plurality of parts.

In the following, examples of the methods of realizing three types of external programs will be described in the following (a) and (b) respectively.
This will be described in detail in (c). (A) “Method of repeatedly presenting images in a fixed order and determining the return value of the external program according to the result of the input performed during the presentation” FIG. 4 is an external program of the present invention (claim 3). The processing contents of the above are shown in the form of a flow chart, and the processing procedure of the external program according to the present method will be described with reference to FIG.

In this method, images to be repeatedly presented in a fixed order are stored in the media database 102 in advance. The order of presenting the images is described in the external program in advance. For convenience of explanation, in this embodiment, 1, 2, or 3 is set as the return value as the execution result of the external program. (401) Set i to 0 and the number of images to present N. The image number Q1, which is the end of the program execution
Q2 and Q3 are set in advance in a range satisfying the conditions 0 ≤ Q1, Q2, Q3 <N and Q1 ≠ Q2 ≠ Q3. (402) Present the i-th image. (403) Input data and monitor the input.
If there is an input (405) and if there is no input (406), the process jumps. (404) Check if i matches any of Q1, Q2, and Q3. If either of them matches, the return value is 1 for Q1, 2 for Q2, and 3 for Q3 (409), and this external program is terminated (410). i is Q1, Q2, Q3
If it does not match any of the above, the subroutine prepared by the external program is executed according to the value of i (405). For example, a method of preliminarily storing a plurality of images used in the case in the media database 102, selecting one from the images according to the value of i, and presenting the selected images for a certain period of time Should be used. (406) i = i + 1 (407) It is checked whether i = N. When i = N, set i = 0 and return to (402) to continue the processing. If i <N, set i = i + 1, return to (408) (402), and continue processing. (B) “Method of randomly presenting an image according to the value of a random number and determining the return value of the external program according to the result of the input performed during the presentation” FIG. 5 shows the present invention (claim 4). The processing contents of the external program are shown in the form of a flow chart, and the processing procedure of the external program according to the present method will be described with reference to FIG.

Also in this method, an image to be presented is stored in the media database 102 in advance as in the above method (a). However, instead of describing the order in which the images are presented in the external program in advance, a subroutine for generating a random number is prepared and determined by the value of the random number. In addition,
For convenience of explanation, in this embodiment as well, the return value is 1, 2, or 3 as the execution result of the external program. (501) Set N to the number of images to be presented, and number each image from 0 to N-1. Also, the image numbers Q1, Q2, and Q3 at the end of program execution
Is set in advance in a range satisfying the conditions 0 ≤ Q1, Q2, Q3 <N and Q1 ≠ Q2 ≠ Q3. (502,503) A random number having a value of 0 to N or more is generated, the number corresponding to the remainder obtained by dividing the number by N is i, and the i-th image is presented. (504) Input data and monitor the input.
Jumps when there is input (505) and when there is no input (502). (505) Check whether i matches any of Q1, Q2, and Q3. If either of them matches, the return value is 1 for Q1, 2 for Q2, and 3 for Q3 (507), and this external program is terminated (508). (506) If i does not match any of Q1, Q2, and Q3, the subroutine prepared by the external program is executed according to the value of i. For example, a method of preliminarily storing a plurality of images used in the case in the media database 102, selecting one from the images according to the value of i, and presenting the selected images for a certain period of time Should be used. After executing the subroutine, return to (502) and continue processing. (C) “Method of determining return value of program by game that outputs one of a plurality of determined values” This method is a method of determining a return value according to the result of the game. FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing an execution screen of an external program of the present invention (claim 5). As an example of a game,
It shows one scene of a fighting game in which two players fight.
In a two-person fighting game, the user operates one of the two using the input monitor means 106. On the other hand, in the program, the return value of the program is determined in advance, such as 1 if the user operates wins and 2 if the user loses it. Then, the value is returned according to the operation result of the user.

Finally, the procedure of presenting data by the data presenting method of the present invention will be specifically described based on the scenario of FIG. The contents of the scenario shown in FIG. 8 are the same as the conceptual diagram used in FIG. 7, and each part scenario constituting the scenario shown in FIG. 8 has information according to the contents described in FIGS. 2 (a) to 2 (c) described above. Have been added. Therefore, each item of the part scenario in FIG. 8 is, in order from the top, the name of the part scenario, the name of the media data, the external program execution procedure, and the association information. For convenience of explanation, in the scenario of FIG. 8, the bunki-program1 () of the component scenario "scenario1" and the bunki-program2 () of the component scenario "scenario2" realize the above method (a) and method (c), respectively. It is assumed that the program

First, the part scenario “title” which is the beginning of the story is read from the scenario database 101. The external program execution procedure analysis means 108 analyzes the execution procedure analysis of the external program described in the part scenario “title”. In the part scenario "title", the only program to be executed is play (title.data).
Present le.data.

Next, since the part scenario read after the execution of this program is written as play (title.data): *: scenario1, the part scenario "scenario1" is read from the scenario database 101. Parts scenario "t
As with "itle", the parts scenario "scenario1"
Analyze the execution procedure analysis of the external program described in. In the part scenario "title" Is described. First, play (scenario1.data) is executed to present the media data scenario1.data.
Then run bunki-program1 (). For example bunki-p
If the execution result of rogram1 () is 3, the component scenario to be read next is scenario4. Thus, if the external program described in the part scenario is executed in the order of “scenario 4” and “scenario 7”, the part scenario “ending 4” is finally reached.

In the parts scenario "ending4", play (scenario5.data): *: END is described as the execution procedure of the external program. Therefore, play (scenario5.data) is executed and the media data scenario5.data is written. After presentation, all presentations are completed.

In this embodiment, among the stories included in the scenario shown in FIG. 8 ,: title → scenario1 → scenario4 → scenario7
→ I explained the data presentation for ending4 as an example.
Other stories included in enario, namely: title → scenario1 → scenario2 → scenario5
→ ending2 ・ title → scenario1 → scenario3 → ending1 ・ title → scenario1 → scenario4 → scenario6
→ To further present ending3, it is sufficient to return to the part scenario "title" again and execute the presenting process again.

[0047]

According to the data presentation method of the present invention, a part scenario group presented after a part scenario, at least,
An external program for presenting media data and allowing the user to select one of the parts scenarios, and information for associating the execution result of the external program with the parts scenario group are described in advance in the parts scenario.

In the data presentation method according to the present invention, each piece of information described in the part scenario is used to perform a process necessary for presenting a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of branches, that is, the part scenario. The external program including the presentation of the media data stored in is executed by a predetermined procedure, and further, the return value obtained by the input of the user during the execution is compared with the result, and then the correspondence information is obtained. The component scenario itself can autonomously perform the process of determining the component scenario regarding the subsequent story, and the script description is not required.

Therefore, when the contents of the scenario are changed, such as the correction of the procedure for presenting the scenario, only the parts of the parts scenario that need to be modified need to be modified.
Since the modification of the whole scenario is completed, the modification is easier than the conventional case of modifying the entire script.

Further, in the data presentation method according to the present invention,
By describing the association information in each part scenario in advance, the external program can be used as it is without changing the specification of the execution result of the external program.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a data edit presentation device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of contents of a parts scenario according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a data presentation method according to this embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of an external program of the present invention (claim 3).

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of an external program of the present invention (claim 4).

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing an execution screen of an external program of the present invention (claim 5).

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing a scenario in which a story develops into multiple stories by branching.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing a scenario in which a story develops into multiple stories by branching.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 scenario database 102 media database 103 external program storage unit 104 external program execution unit 105 external program execution result determination unit 106 input monitor unit 107 presentation unit 108 external program execution procedure analysis unit 109 external program execution procedure storage unit 201 Description part 202 Description part of name of media data 203 Description part of external program execution procedure and association information

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An apparatus for presenting multimedia data based on a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of stories by branching, wherein a part scenario relates to an execution procedure of an external program, an execution result of the external program, and the part scenario. Which includes at least the association information with other component scenario names, the apparatus stores a scenario database for storing the component scenario, a media database for storing media data, and an external program for presenting at least the media data. Based on the external program storage unit to store and the execution procedure of the external program,
External program executing means for executing an external program,
A data edit / presentation apparatus comprising: an external program execution result judging means for determining a parts scenario to be presented next based on the external program execution result and the correspondence information of the parts scenario. 2. A method for presenting multimedia data based on a scenario in which a story develops into a plurality of stories by branching, wherein a media database stores media data representing the contents of the scenario, and the scenario database is an element constituting the scenario. The external program storage unit stores at least an external program for presenting the media data, and the external component storage program is associated with the external program execution procedure, the external program execution result, and the external component scenario. The method includes at least association information with another part scenario name, and the method includes (a) a step of executing the external program based on the execution procedure, and (b) a story based on the association information. The step of determining whether or not it has ended, and (c)
And a step of deciding a parts scenario to be presented next based on the execution result of the step (a) and the association information. 3. The media database further stores a plurality of images, and the external program storage unit has at least (c1
1) inputting data and monitoring the input, (c12) repeatedly presenting the plurality of images in a fixed order, (c13) when there is an input in the step (c11), The external program including a step of switching the screen for a certain period of time and determining the next processing content according to the image presented in the step (c12) at the time of the input is stored. How to edit and present data described. 4. The media database further stores a plurality of images, and the external program storage unit stores at least (c2
1) inputting data and monitoring the input, (c22) generating a random number, (c23) one of the plurality of images, the random number generated in the step (c22) Based on, the step of presenting the determined image, and (c24) when there is an input in the step of (c21), depending on the image presented by the image presenting means at the time of the input, 3. The data editing and presenting method according to claim 2, wherein an external program including a step of switching the screen for a certain period of time and determining the next processing content is stored. 5. The data editing / presenting method according to claim 2, wherein the external program storage unit stores at least an external program of the game that outputs one of a plurality of determined values as a result. .