JPH10275208A - Ic memory card and information display device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily display the information on an important file among those files which are recorded on an IC memory card. SOLUTION: A liquid crystal display 4 is provided on an IC memory card 1 and only the index information on the recorded files are displayed in sequence based on the file priority. Otherwise, an IC memory card information display device is prepared independently of the card 1 and displays in sequence only the information on the recorded files based on the file priority. Both the card 1 and the information display device have no other functions than that which records and reads out the index information.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an IC memory card having display means for displaying the contents of recorded data, and an information display device for displaying information relating to data recorded on the IC memory card. In particular, the present invention relates to an IC memory card suitable for a dictation recording device and an information display device for displaying recorded information in the IC memory card.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A technique for displaying various information by providing a display means on an IC memory card is widely known. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-115399 discloses an invention in which a display unit of an IC memory card displays a volume name, remaining memory capacity, and remaining battery capacity.
Japanese Patent No. 3735 discloses an invention for displaying a file name, a revision, and a date on a display unit of an IC memory card.

[0003] In each of these inventions, a display member made of liquid crystal or the like is provided on an IC memory card, and in particular, it is devised to display necessary information by itself without connecting the IC memory card to an information processing apparatus. Have been.

[0004]

However, in the case where the display means is provided on the IC memory card in the prior art, the
The memory card includes a control unit for recording and reading data and a buffer circuit, which is an obstacle to downsizing and reducing power consumption of the IC memory card.

In addition, when a display member is provided on an IC memory card, the display member is provided in a limited small area, so that a small display member must be used, and the amount of information that can be displayed is limited. is there. There is no major inconvenience if only information relating to the entire IC memory card is displayed.
Many files are recorded on the memory card,
When displaying the information one by one, there is a problem that the information of the necessary file cannot be reached unless the information of the irrelevant file is displayed one after another until the necessary information is obtained. In particular, in the dictation recording device, a lot of dictation information is recorded with priorities, and the dictation information is read out in the order of priority during reproduction, whereas the index information is always displayed only in the recording order. Therefore, when confirming the priority of various dictation information recorded on the IC memory card or confirming the order of a plurality of dictation information having the same priority, it is necessary to confirm all index information. There is a problem that it takes time to search for index information to be executed.

Further, in the case of a stamp-sized flash memory card developed in recent years, it is impossible to mount a display unit due to a space problem. The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a small and low power consumption IC memory card capable of displaying file information and an information display device for the IC memory card. It is an object of the present invention to provide an IC memory card and an information display device for an IC memory card which can quickly display information of a file having a high priority.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, an IC memory card according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a connector electrically connected to an information processing apparatus, and a signal line connected to the connector via a signal line. A memory that is directly connected and records data from the information processing device and index information including the priority of the data under the control of the information processing device, a controller that reads the index information recorded in the memory, and a controller that reads the index information. A display unit for displaying the output index information, and an internal power supply unit for driving the memory, the controller, and the display unit are provided.

[0008] An IC memory card according to a second aspect of the present invention records a connector electrically connected to the information processing device, and data from the information processing device via the connector and index information including the priority of the data. Memory, a controller for reading the index information recorded in the memory in order of priority, a display means for displaying the index information in order of priority read by the controller, and driving the memory, the controller, and the display means. And an internal power supply unit.

[0009] The IC memory card according to the third aspect of the present invention is the IC memory card according to the first or second aspect of the present invention.
The information processing apparatus has a function of dictation recording, the index information further includes destination information, and the display unit displays at least priority information and destination information as index information.

An information display device for an IC memory card according to a fourth aspect of the present invention electrically connects the IC memory card having at least a memory for recording data from the information processing device and index information thereof to the IC memory card. A connector, a controller for reading the index information from an IC memory card connected to the connector, display means for displaying the index information read by the controller, a power supply for driving the display means and the controller And

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an information display device for an IC memory card, the IC memory card having a memory for recording at least data from an information processing device and index information including the priority of the data, A connector for electrically connecting the controller, a controller for reading the index information from the IC memory card connected to the connector in order of priority, a display means for displaying the index information in order of priority read by the controller, A power supply unit for driving the controller is provided.

An information display device for an IC memory card according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the information display device for an IC memory card according to the fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention. The dictation information data and index information from the dictation recording device as the device are recorded, the index information further includes destination information, and the display means displays at least priority information and destination information as index information. .

(Operation) In the IC memory card according to the first aspect of the present invention, the writing of data and its index information from the information processing device is controlled by the information processing device, and the display of the index information is built in the IC memory card. Controlled by the controller.

The IC memory card according to the second aspect of the present invention displays the contents of index information in the order of priority. Book 3
According to the IC memory card of the present invention, in addition to the features of the IC memory card of the first or second invention, the destination and priority recorded in the dictation recording are displayed.

The information display device for an IC memory card according to the fourth invention directly reads out and displays the index information from the memory of the connected IC memory card. The information display device for an IC memory card according to the fifth invention displays the index information of the connected IC memory cards in order of their priority.

The information display device for an IC memory card according to the sixth invention has, in addition to the features of the information display device for an IC memory card according to the fourth or fifth invention, a destination recorded in the dictation record. The priority is displayed.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(First Embodiment) A first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an IC memory card will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the IC memory card is used in a dictation recording device as an information processing device. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the IC memory card 1 of the present embodiment. The power supply unit 3 includes the solar cell 2, the terminal of the connector 8,
It is connected to the C memory 5, the control circuit 6, and the liquid crystal display 4. The control circuit 6 is connected to the liquid crystal display 4, the IC memory 5, and the touch switch 7. The IC memory 5 is connected to the connector 8.

When the IC memory card 1 is inserted into a dictation recording device (not shown) and voice data is recorded, the input voice data is digitized and compressed in the dictation recording device, and then the connector is sent from the dictation recording device. 8 via I
The data is output to the C memory 5 and recorded in the audio data area 5b of the IC memory 5, and an audio data file is created. At the same time, index information of the audio data file is created in the index information area 5a. At this time, the priority and destination, which are the accompanying information of the audio data, are also output from the dictation recording device to the IC memory 5 via the connector 8, and are recorded in the index information area 5a as part of the index information of the audio data. .

In the process of creating the audio data file and its index information, the dictation recording device and the IC
All the control related to the data transfer between the memory cards 1 and the creation of the file and the index are performed by the dictation recording device side, and all the necessary control circuits, buffer circuits and the like are provided in the dictation recording device side, and the connector is provided. The IC memory 5 is directly connected to the IC memory 5 by a signal line without a circuit. With such a configuration, the IC
As compared with the case where the memory card 1 controls data transfer and file and index creation, necessary circuits can be greatly saved, and the cost, size, and power consumption of the IC memory card can be reduced. I have.

Here, the contents of the index information area 5a of the IC memory 5 will be described with reference to FIG. The index information includes items of file number, priority, destination, and audio data address. The file numbers are sequentially numbered for each dictation in the order in which they were recorded, and are entered from 1 to 99. The priority is specified by the operator of the dictation recording device on the dictation recording device side in a range from 1 to 15 according to the degree of importance and urgency at the time of dictation recording. In this example, 15
Is the highest priority and 1 is the lowest priority. If no priority is specified, priority 7 is automatically set. The destination is specified by the operator of the dictation recording device on the dictation recording device side during dictation recording, and the person to be dictated is input. As the audio data address, the address of the data pointed to by the corresponding index information is input in hexadecimal.

Audio data is created as a file one by one corresponding to each dictation record, and one record of index information is created corresponding to this audio data file.
When the dictation recording is completed, the IC memory card 1 is removed from the dictation recording device and stored.

When confirming the recorded contents of the IC memory card, the user turns on the touch switch 7 constituting the operation unit arranged on the panel surface of the IC memory card,
The control circuit 6 as a controller is activated. The control circuit 6 reads the contents of the index information area 5a of the IC memory 5, and outputs the contents of the index information to the liquid crystal display 4 constituting the display means in a predetermined procedure. Details of this processing procedure will be described later using a flowchart.
The liquid crystal display 4 displays the contents of the index information sent from the control circuit 6. In this case, the control circuit 6 selects the index information in descending order of priority from the entire index information, and the items are displayed in one line in the order of priority, file number, and destination name from the left of the liquid crystal display unit 4. You. The address of the audio data is not displayed. Since the liquid crystal display unit 4 is small, it can display only one file of index information at a time. However, since the display can be switched one after another in priority order, it is possible to search for file information with high importance in a short time. It is devised. Information is displayed while the touch switch 7 is being pressed or in accordance with the number of times that the touch switch 7 is pressed, and the search results are selected in order of priority and displayed one after another. In the above processing, since the control circuit 6 handles only the index information of the audio data file, the number of data to be processed is smaller than that in the case where the audio data itself is handled, and no complicated processing capability is required. Therefore, it can be configured with a small-sized and low-power-consumption circuit.

The electric power used in the IC memory card 1 is supplied from the solar cell 2 to the power supply unit 3 as an internal power supply. However, when the solar cell 2 alone is not sufficient, the IC memory card 1 is connected to the dictation recording device. Connector 6 from an external power source such as
The power can be supplied to the power supply unit 5 via the. In the power supply unit 3, the power supplied in this manner is once charged and then supplied to each unit.

Next, a procedure in which the control circuit 6 reads out the index information from the IC memory 5 and displays it on the liquid crystal display 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, the process waits until the touch switch 7 is turned on (step S1). The touch switch 7 is turned on, and the numerical value 15 corresponding to the highest priority is assigned to the variable N in preparation for searching the index information of the file from the index information area 5a in order of priority (step S).
2). Next, index information is searched for a file having a priority equal to the numerical value specified in the variable N (step S3). It is determined whether the corresponding file exists (step S4). If it exists, the priority, file number and destination name of the file are read from the index information area 5a and output to the liquid crystal display 4 (step S5).

If the file does not exist in step S4, 1 is subtracted from the variable N to reduce the priority by one (step S9). It is determined in step 10 whether the value of N is equal to or less than 0. If N is greater than 0, the process returns to step S3 to resume the search. If N is equal to or smaller than 0 in step 10, the process proceeds to step S8 described later, and a message indicating that the display is to be ended is displayed.

After the end of step S5, the touch switch 7
Is turned on (step S6). If the touch switch 7 has been turned on, the process returns to step S3, and a search is again performed to determine whether a file having the same priority N exists. If the touch switch 7 is not turned on in step S6, the process waits for three minutes (step S7). If the touch switch 7 is still not turned on, it is determined that no further search is necessary because the target file has been found, and an END indicating that the display is to be ended is displayed (step S8). Thereafter, the process returns to step S1, and waits until the touch switch 7 is turned on again.

FIG. 4 shows the appearance of the IC memory card 1 of the present embodiment. The solar cell 2, the liquid crystal display unit 4, and the touch switch 7 are arranged on the upper surface of the IC memory card, so that operation and display can be confirmed while being placed on a palm or a desk. The connector is disposed on the side surface, but is not shown because it is located at a hidden position when viewed from the direction of the paper.

In the present embodiment, the file index information is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 4 on the IC memory card 1 so that the information of the file recorded on the IC memory card can be directly known without the need for an external device. And the work of organizing the IC memory card 1 is facilitated. In addition, by displaying the index information in order of priority, it is possible to quickly search for information of a file having higher importance, and the work of organizing the IC memory card is further facilitated.

In the present embodiment, only one file of index information is displayed on the liquid crystal display 4 at a time, but a large amount of information may be displayed at a time using a larger liquid crystal as long as space is allowed. Further, although only the touch switch 7 is provided as the operation unit, more switches may be provided such as a power switch and a display switch. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the IC memory card is used for a dictation recording device. However, the present invention can be applied to a case where the IC memory card is used as a recording medium of a computer, and is not limited to the case where it is used for a dictation recording device. Needless to say.

(Second Embodiment) A second embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an information display device for an IC memory card will be described with reference to FIGS.

The information display device for an IC memory card of the present embodiment (hereinafter, referred to as an information display device) is assumed to display information of the IC memory card removed from the dictation recording device. Further, in the present embodiment, as described in the first embodiment, the IC memory card may have a liquid crystal display function so that the index information can be displayed on the IC memory card. It is assumed.

FIG. 5 shows the information display device 14 having the IC memory 12
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a state in which an IC memory card 11 having only the IC card is mounted. The IC memory card 11 is separate from the information display device 14, and the connector 13
The IC memory 12 is electrically connected to the information display device 14 via 15. A control circuit 17 is connected to a connector 15 of the information display device 14 via a signal line. The control circuit 17 is connected to a touch switch 16, a liquid crystal display 20, and a power supply unit 18. The power supply unit 18 is also connected to a solar cell 19, a connector 15, and a liquid crystal display 20.

The information display device 14 of this embodiment reads only index information from the IC memory 12 of the inserted IC memory card 11 and stores the information in the information display device 14.
On the liquid crystal display section 20 of FIG.
As a result, the dictation recording apparatus has functions for recording audio data on the IC memory card 11 and creating an index, as in the first embodiment, and deletes these functions from the information display apparatus 14. be able to. That is, the information display device 14 does not include a buffer circuit used for handling audio data in its configuration.
Has only a function of processing index information and does not include a function of processing audio data. By narrowing down the functions in this way, it is possible to reduce the size and power consumption of the device.

The IC memory card 11 on which voice data is recorded by the dictation recording device as an information processing device connects the connector 13 to the connector 15 of the information display device 14 when it is desired to view the recorded content. By turning on the touch switch 16 in this state, the control circuit 17 as a controller is activated, the control circuit 17 reads out the index information from the index information area 12a of the IC memory 12, and activates the display means according to a predetermined procedure. The information is displayed on the liquid crystal display 20 that is configured. The contents of the index information, the predetermined processing procedure, and the display are the same as those in the above-described first embodiment, and a description thereof will not be repeated.

The electricity used in the information display device 14 is supplied from a solar cell 19 to a power supply 18 as an internal power supply, and is charged once by the power supply 18 and then supplied to each unit. It is also possible to charge the power supply section 18 using an indoor commercial power supply.

FIG. 6 is an external view of the information display device 14. On the upper surface of the main body 14a, a solar cell 19, a liquid crystal display unit 20 constituting a display unit, and a touch switch 16 constituting an operation unit are provided. A card pressing member 21 for holding the mounted IC memory card 11 is rotatably provided on the right side surface of the main body 14a.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the information display device 14.
An eave portion 22 for holding the IC memory card 11 is provided. When the IC memory card is inserted, the tip is engaged with the eave portion 22 while tilting the IC memory card 11. The card pressing member 21 includes a rotating shaft 21a, an urging spring 21b, and an engaging member 21c.
The IC memory card 11 can be mounted by rotating clockwise about 1a to open the insertion slot. After mounting, the card pressing member 21 is urged by an urging member 21b such as a leaf spring.
Is biased in the counterclockwise direction, so that the engaging member 21c automatically returns to the position for holding the card.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, by providing the information display device 14 separately from the IC memory card 11, a larger display can be achieved as compared with the case where the display means and the operation unit are provided on the IC memory card. Since means and more operation switches can be provided, it is more advantageous in visibility, amount of display information, and ease of operation. Also, the information display device only needs to have an information display function and does not need a recording / reproducing function, so that the information display device can be configured in a small size, and it is easy to have sufficient portability, thereby achieving both display capability and portability. You can also. Furthermore, both the IC memory card 11 having a display function and the existing IC memory card without the display function can be used, so that the degree of freedom of use of the IC memory card can be expanded.

In the present embodiment, only one file of index information is displayed on the liquid crystal display 20 at a time, but a larger amount of information may be displayed at a time using a larger liquid crystal as long as space is allowed. Further, although only the touch switch 16 is provided as the operation unit, more switches may be provided such as a power switch and a display switch. In this embodiment, the IC memory card is assumed to be used in a dictation recording device. However, it is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to a case where the IC memory card is used in a recording medium of a computer, and is not limited to a case used in a dictation recording device. No. In addition, since the IC memory card and the information display device are separately configured, the size of the IC memory card can be arbitrarily configured. For example, the present invention can be applied to a stamp size flash memory card. Further, since the apparatus has only the function of displaying index information, the apparatus can be miniaturized, for example, can be configured to be portable.

[0040]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide an IC memory card which is small in size and consumes little electric power and has display means.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to quickly know information of a file having high importance. According to the invention described in claim 3, in addition to the effects of the invention described in claim 1 or 2, information necessary for dictation recording can be displayed.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the recorded contents can be easily confirmed even in an IC memory card on which a display unit cannot be mounted due to a space problem. According to the fifth aspect of the invention, it is possible to display a large amount of information at a time, and to quickly know information of a file having high importance.

According to the invention described in claim 6, according to claim 4,
Alternatively, in addition to the effect of the invention described in claim 5, only information necessary for dictation recording can be displayed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an IC memory card according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an example of information stored in an index information area.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a display processing procedure.

FIG. 4 is an external view of an IC memory card according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an information display device for an IC memory card according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an external view of an information display device for an IC memory card according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of an information display device for an IC memory card according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,11 IC memory card 2,19 solar cell 3,18 power supply unit 4,20 liquid crystal display 5,12 IC memory 6,17 control circuit 7,16 touch switch 8,13,15 connector

Claims (6)

[Claims] A connector electrically connected to the information processing apparatus; a connector directly connected to the connector via a signal line;
A memory for recording data from the information processing device and index information including the priority of the data under the control of the information processing device, a controller for reading the index information recorded in the memory, and an index read by the controller An IC memory card, comprising: display means for displaying information; and an internal power supply for driving the memory, controller, and display means. 2. A connector electrically connected to the information processing device, a memory for recording data from the information processing device via the connector and index information including a priority of the data, and a memory for recording index information including the priority of the data. A controller for reading the index information in order of priority, display means for displaying the index information in order of priority read by the controller, and an internal power supply for driving the memory, controller, and display means. An IC memory card, comprising: 3. The information processing apparatus has a function of dictation recording, the index information further includes destination information,
3. The IC memory card according to claim 1, wherein the display means displays at least priority information and destination information as index information. 4. An IC memory card having a memory for recording at least data from an information processing apparatus and index information of the data; a connector for electrically connecting the IC memory card; and an IC memory connected to the connector. A controller for reading the index information from a card, display means for displaying the index information read by the controller, and a power supply for driving the controller, Information display device for IC memory card. 5. An IC memory card having a memory for recording at least data from an information processing apparatus and index information including the priority of the data, a connector for electrically connecting the IC memory card, and a connection to the connector A controller for reading the index information from the read IC memory card in order of priority, display means for displaying the index information in order of priority read by the controller, and a power supply for driving the display means and the controller. An information display device for an IC memory card, comprising: 6. The dictation information data and index information from an dictation recording device as an information processing device are recorded on the IC memory card. The index information further includes destination information. 6. The information display device for an IC memory card according to claim 4, wherein at least priority information and destination information are displayed.