WO1994006090A1

WO1994006090A1 - Graphic editor and processing method

Info

Publication number: WO1994006090A1
Application number: PCT/JP1993/001303
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yasunari Itoh; Taiji Okamoto; Satoshi Kikuchi; Masahiro Suzuki; Atsuko Kasai
Original assignee: Fujitsu Limited; Pfu Limited
Priority date: 1992-09-10
Filing date: 1993-09-10
Publication date: 1994-03-17
Also published as: GB2277661A; GB9409280D0; GB2277661B

Abstract

An editor by which figures whose positions, configurations, and states are varied with the change of time and attribute values are displayed on the screen of a display. The graphic editor comprises display processing units (17 and 18) for displaying the figures and times on a graphic area (24) and a time area (25), respectively; a processing unit (19) which sets the correspondence between the points on a variation reference figure (27) and the points on a time figure (28) in the graphic information; and an updating unit (20) for the edition and graphic display which calculates by interpolation the corresponding positions on the variation reference (figure 27) in correspondence with the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time (figure 28) and with the elapse of time, and which moves and transforms the figure in accordance with the corresponding positions. Further, this graphic editor is capable of processing an attribute value indication figure and a time-varying figure, setting binding points, displaying grips, effecting edition of relating figures, and synchronously editing figures.

Description

Description Graphic editing device and processing method Reference to related application

This application was filed on September 10, 1999, filed in Japan under application numbers Νοι 4-241 113, Να 4 — 241 114, Να 4 — 241 115, and Να 4 — 241 116. It is a continuation of each of the subject matter disclosed in the application. Background of the Invention

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a graphic editing device and a processing method, and particularly to a device that creates and edits a graphic on a display device by a computer, and displays the position, shape, or state of the graphic on the screen of the display device with a change in time or attribute value. The present invention relates to a graphic editing device and a processing method that can be easily changed and drawn.

2. Background of the Prior Art

Conventionally, in a graphic processing system using a computer, when a moving graphic such as an animation is handled, the position of the graphic on a display device corresponding to each time is determined by a predetermined screen. A method of describing using a script and a method of completely specifying the position and shape of a figure at each time were used.

In the former method, it is necessary to specify position change information by expressing the relationship between the position of the figure and each time by using an expression, etc., so it is difficult to determine the relation between the time and the position of the figure when creating and editing. It was difficult, especially when dealing with multiple changing figures. In addition, It has been difficult to specify a state that changes. In particular, when a plurality of figures are to be changed synchronously, the time required to separate each change must be adjusted for each figure, which complicates the editing operation.

In addition, in the method of designating all the figures that change at each time, the position and shape of the figure must be drawn on the surface that is sent according to the time (hereinafter referred to as the piece). Therefore, there was a problem that the amount of work of creation and editing became enormous. Also, (1) If you try to move the figure faster or conversely after the Z edit, you need to re-edit all the pieces, which is difficult to correct. (2) In addition, when correcting the change time of a figure that changes synchronously, it is necessary to re-edit all the figures of the related pieces, and it becomes difficult to correct the figure.

In addition to figures that change according to time, figures that change according to a certain attribute value also have a problem that it is similarly difficult to edit according to the conventional method. For example, when water is poured into a gourd-shaped container, the water level in the container rises according to the amount of water, but the rate at which the water level rises depends on the cross-sectional area of the container and increases. Even if the amount of water is constant, the speed at which the water level rises will not be constant. Conventionally, when editing a figure that changes depending on attribute values such as the amount of water in this case, the height of the water surface is described using a complicated formula, or a figure that changes the height of the water surface for each piece is created. I had to.

For example, consider editing a landscape image when the sun sets. In this case, the color of mountains and trees changes before and after sunset. It is necessary to synchronize the changes of these figures. Also, if the time of sunset changes, it will be necessary to re-edit so that the color of each figure changes according to the new time. In the prior art, Editing work related to the synchronous time change of a shape was very complicated. In addition, a graphic processing system using a computer displays a graphic created on a display device, and moves the graphic to another position, expands / contracts in a specific direction, enlarges / reduces, rotates, etc. Editing functions are provided.

Conventionally, when using such editing function, a what kind of editing operations editing advance, switching the editing mode by selecting the icon menu Ya commands like, thereafter, the editing operation All necessary points had to be specified.

For example, when rotating a figure, it was necessary to first select the “Rotate” operation, then specify a point to be the center of rotation, and then input the rotation angle. Also, when transforming a square shape into a rectangle, delete the square and create a new rectangle, or select the “scaling and deformation” operation to determine which part is stretched in which direction and how much. An operation such as specification was required.

Furthermore, if you rotate the shape once and try to execute the same rotation again after the editing operation is completed, repeat the same operation as the previous operation, such as specifying the center point. I had to.

In conventional figure editing operations, the type of various editing operations must be specified in advance, and then the shape to be deformed and the amount of deformation must be instructed. C).

Furthermore, in a graphic processing system using a computer, it is often necessary to associate a plurality of figures individually created on a display device and treat them as one figure. For example, a bicycle handle In this case, the shape, the shape of the vehicle frame, the shape of the saddle, the shape of the front wheel, the shape of the rear wheel, etc. are individually created and then combined to form the shape of a bicycle. Also, in some cases, it is necessary to configure the shapes of the handles and the parts of the vehicle body frame by a combination of the shapes of the components.

In the conventional technology, when a plurality of figures are used as parts including positional relations, the positions of the figure groups at the time of the parts are stored and grouped, and the entire group is regarded as one figure. Deformation, rotation and movement as a whole were realized.

However, in the conventional method, once a specific figure in the group of figures is to be deformed, the group of figures must be solved and a deformation operation must be performed. However, since all the positional relationships with other shapes disappear, there is a problem that the editor must deform or move other shapes in accordance with the deformation.

For example, if the shapes of the bicycle handle and the body frame are related and grouped, they are treated as an integrated shape, so make the handle only larger or smaller. It was not possible, and it had to be enlarged or reduced, including the body frame. In other words, when only the handle is expanded, the grouping of the handle and the body frame is temporarily canceled, and after only the handle is expanded, the enlarged handle and the original body frame are aligned. And again had to be grouped. Summary of the Invention

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a means for easily creating and editing a figure that changes according to time and attribute values. ing.

In particular, define the relationship between the time axis and attribute values on the axis where the position, shape, shape, color, and brightness of the shape changes with the passage of time and changes in attribute values. The purpose of this is to make it possible to automatically move, deform, and change the state of a figure by using.

Another object of the present invention is to edit a plurality of figures whose positions, shapes, and states change synchronously, to maintain a synchronous relationship while treating each time change independently, and to change synchronously. It provides an editing device that can easily edit a plurality of figures to be edited.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus capable of directly instructing various types of editing operations to a figure without switching an editing mode.

Another object of the present invention is to enable a group of figures having a certain relation, including their positional relation, to be handled collectively as a part, and to perform an editing operation on each of the related figure elements. The goal is to ensure that related figures are automatically edited consistently according to the type of association.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a graphic editing apparatus including a display device for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device for creating and editing the graphic. A graphic display processing means for providing a graphic display area on a screen of the display device and displaying a graphic in the area; a time display area provided on a surface of the display device along a time axis. Time display processing means for displaying the displayed time display figure,

As the time elapses, the change that becomes the basis for moving or deforming the figure Creates a modified reference graphic on the graphic display area by inputting from the position specifying device.Z-edits the correspondence between the positions of some points on the change reference graphic and the positions of some points on the time display graphic. Change information setting processing means for setting information in graphic information;

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic or the elapse of the designated time, the position of the corresponding point on the change reference graphic is obtained by interpolation calculation, and based on the position of the point, A display update processing means for performing editing for moving or deforming the figure and updating the display of the figure,

An editing device for a figure which changes with time, characterized by having

In the invention according to claim 1, a time display graphic indicating a time for changing a position of the graphic in the graphic display area is displayed in a time display area provided separately from the graphic display area. Thus, the change in the position of the figure can be easily controlled by the time display figure via the change reference figure. In other words, by moving the time cursor indicating the current time in the time display area, the position cursor on the change reference figure in the figure display area can be moved.

Since the locus of movement of the position cursor is determined by the change reference figure, there is no need to edit the figure at each time. Also, the moving speed of the position cursor can be controlled by the moving speed of the time cursor in the time display graphic or the interval between points in the time display graphic corresponding to each point on the change reference graphic.

After the correspondence information between the time display area and the change reference graphic is set in the graphic information storage unit by the change information setting processing means, there is no need to display the change reference graphic and the time display area. By the time indication or the current time indication from the application program, In a state where the change reference graphic and the time display area are not displayed, only the graphic corresponding to the time can be displayed.

According to another feature of the present invention, a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position determining device (12) for specifying a position on a display surface, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing a graphic. A graphic editing device provided with a graphic display processing means (17) for providing a graphic display area (24) on a screen of the display device (11) and displaying a graphic in the area;

Attribute value display processing means for providing an attribute value display area on the screen in (11) and displaying the attribute value display figure along the axis of the predetermined attribute value in the area, and displaying the figure according to the change of the attribute value A change reference figure (27) serving as a reference to be moved or deformed is created on the figure display area (24) by inputting the position designation device (12), and Z-edited, and some of the change reference figures (27) are Change information setting processing means for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between the positions of the points and the positions of some points in the attribute value display graphic,

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current attribute value on the attribute value display graphic or the change of the designated attribute value, the position of the corresponding point on the change reference graphic (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation. The display updating processing means (20), which updates the display of the figure by performing editing for moving or deforming the figure based on the position of the point,

An editing device for a graphic which changes according to an attribute value, characterized by comprising:

According to still another feature of the present invention, a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and Z-editing a graphic A graphic editing apparatus comprising: a graphic display area (24) provided on a screen of the display device (11); and a graphic and a reference for changing the position or shape of the graphic in the area. A graphic display processing means (17) for displaying a change reference graphic (27), and a time display area (25) provided on a screen of the display device (11), along the time axis. A time display processing means (18) for displaying a time display graphic (28) in correspondence with the change reference graphic (27); a point representing time on the time display graphic (28); ) A graphic information storage unit (13) that stores information that associates a point representing a position on the figure, a point on a change reference figure (27) that serves as a reference for changing the position or shape of the figure over time. The graphic display area

(24) input by the position specifying device (12) above, and the positions of some points on the change reference diagram (27) and the positions of some points on the time display graphic (28) The change information setting processing means (19) for setting the corresponding information in the graphic information, the change information setting processing means (19), the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic (28) or the elapse of the designated time, The position of each point on the time reference figure (28) corresponding to the point indicating the current time is obtained by interpolation calculation, and the change in the position or shape of each figure is calculated based on the position of each point. A display update processing means (20) that processes synchronously and updates the display of a figure, a number of points in one time display figure (28) and some points in another time display figure (28). Points associated with the movement of one point As moving, time display editing processing means for performing editing of the time display graphic (28) (21),

A synchronous editing device for figures, comprising:

Is provided.

According to another feature of the present invention, a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and Z-editing the graphic In a figure editing device equipped with, one or more points in a figure represented by a set of several points A graphic information storage unit (13) that stores in the graphic information, and one or more points in the graphic to be edited as binding points, and a binding point setting processing means (16) that sets them in the graphic information In the editing operation of the figure, the deformation operation of the figure is determined by the positional relationship between the point on the figure specified by the position specifying device (12) and the binding point defined in the figure in advance, and the determination is made. A graphic operation processing means (17) for updating a graphic based on the deformed operation thus performed;

Is provided.

According to another feature of the present invention, there are provided a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing a graphic. In the figure editing processing method in the figure editing apparatus provided with the method, one or more points in the figure to be edited are defined as binding points and set in the figure information. The process of holding the point on the figure specified by the position specification device (12) and moving the point to the specified position, and when the specified point is a binding point, When the specified point is on the specified side of the figure, the figure is rotated around the binding point in the direction of the specified point, and even if the specified point is on the specified side, If not, that point and the binding point Depending on the positional relationship, bound-point type graphic editing processing method according to Toku徵 further comprising a process for performing editing of deforming in the direction of movement of the specified point to figures, a,

Is provided.

According to still another feature of the present invention, a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing the graphic. In a figure editing device equipped with In the collection processing method, the position specifying device (12) inputs instruction information for associating a reference with a reference between a shape determination point for determining a shape of a figure and an arbitrary point on another figure. A processing step of setting the relation information between the reference point (21) and the referenced point (22) in the graphic information by inputting the association instruction information; and a processing step including the referenced point (22).

When (20 A) is moved or deformed, the reference point (21) referring to the referenced point (22) is moved in coordination with the referenced point (22) to have the reference point (21). A processing step of performing an editing for moving or deforming the figure (20B), and a figure-related editing processing method characterized by having:

According to still another feature of the present invention, a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position determining device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating a graphic and for Z-editing A graphic information storage unit for storing information on a shape determination point for determining the shape of a figure and a referenced point (22) referred to from another point in the figure.

By inputting a reference Z reference relationship between (13) and a shape determination point for determining the shape of the figure and an arbitrary point on another figure from the position specifying device (12), the reference point ( The association processing means (17) for setting the relationship information between the 21) and the referenced point (22) in the figure information, and the movement or deformation of the figure (20A) including the referenced point (22) The reference point (21) referring to the referenced point (22) is moved in coordination with the referenced point (22), and editing is performed to move or deform the figure (20B) having the reference point (21). Graphic operation processing means (18);

Is provided.

The present invention contemplates other objects, features and advantages as will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description taken with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the operation principle of the first embodiment of the present invention.

2A and 2B are explanatory diagrams of a specific embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 3 to 6 are diagrams showing a process of an editing example according to the first embodiment.

3A to 3D show the change reference figure 27 and the position cursor 29 in the figure display area, and the right side shows the movement of the time display figure 28 and the time cursor 30 in the time display area 25.

FIGS. 4A to 4D show editing examples in which the graphic 26 is moved according to the movement of the position cursor 29 by relating the graphic 26 to the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27.

5A to 5H in FIG. 5 show editing examples in which the graphic 26 is deformed and rotated according to the movement of the position cursor 29 by associating the graphic 26 with the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27.

6A to 6E in FIG. 6 show editing examples for setting a change in the state of the figure 26 with time.

Fig. 7 shows an example of editing a Gantt in 7A to 7D. Movement of the time display figure 28 in the time display area 25 (7B), and movement of the area by single-point dragging in the time display figure 28 (7 C), and an example (7 D) of expanding and contracting the range by dragging the end point.

FIG. 8 shows an example of the basic data structure of the graphic information set in the graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG. 8A shows the correspondence between the figure header information and the point information, and 8B shows the extension information and the point information using the binding points.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the data interrelationship in the first embodiment. It shows the relationship between the shape header information and the position cursor information.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a data structure indicating a state for managing information relating to a state change as shown in the example of FIG.

In FIG. 11, 11A is a step explanatory diagram of the process of creating the change reference figure 27 and the time display figure 28 according to the first embodiment, and 11B relates an arbitrary figure 26 to the change reference figure 27 as shown in FIG. Fig. 12 is an explanatory diagram of a process for attaching a shape, Fig. 12 is a process explanatory diagram of changing a figure 26 over time <Fig. 13 similarly shows a process of changing a state of the diagram 26 over time ing. Unlike FIG. 12, the relationship between the Gantt 45 and the current time position or the specified state value indicating the disappearance of the appearance is such that the figure 26 disappears and is erased from the area, and the figure is redrawn.

14A to 14F in FIG. 14 show a specific application example of the present invention in consideration of creation of a moving image related to a human figure.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a hardware configuration used in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a functional diagram illustrating the operation principle of the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 17 to FIG. 19 are diagrams showing examples of editing figures according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 17 creates a change reference figure 27-1 that is a trajectory to move the figure, and executes the Gantt creation command in the time display area 25 by clicking the menu 44 with this figure selected. By doing this, the time display figure 45-1 is created, and the position cursor 29-1 is created on the change reference figure 27-1.

FIG. 18 and FIG. 19 are editing examples according to the second embodiment.

20A to 20D in FIG. 20 show operation examples of the figures created as shown in FIGS.

21A to 21E in FIG. 21 are views showing an example of editing a state according to the second embodiment. O

22A to 22D in FIG. 22 are views showing an example of editing a Gantt according to the second embodiment.

23A to 23H in Fig. 23 are explanatory diagrams of the relationship for multiple Gantts.

FIG. 24 shows a data correlation diagram according to the second embodiment, which is described in the same manner as FIG.

FIG. 25 is a diagram for explaining the operation principle of the third embodiment according to the present invention. <FIG. 25A is a functional diagram between the main components, and FIG. 25B is a diagram showing the binding point, the relative position of the cursor and the figure. FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of graphic information according to the third embodiment, and FIG. 26A is a diagram illustrating a relationship between graphic header information and point information. FIG. 26B illustrates the extent information in the figure header information 114 in the case of a polygonal figure.

FIG. 27 shows an example of a graphic operation according to the third embodiment. In particular, the relations between the binding point, the operation start point, and the operation end point of the two-dimensional and three-dimensional figures are shown in (a) to (j). Indicated by.

FIG. 28 is an explanatory view of a grip display according to the third embodiment. The grip type (FIG. 28A), the grip non-display mode (FIG. 28B), and the grip display mode (FIG. 28 C) is explained.

FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram of a process according to the third embodiment. FIG. 29A shows an example of a binding point setting process, FIG. 29B shows an example of a grip display mode setting process, and FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a process related to a graphic editing operation.

FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram of the operation processing of a three-dimensional figure according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 29C is described in further detail.

FIG. 31 is a functional diagram illustrating the operation principle of the fourth embodiment of the present invention in 31 A to 31 C. FIG. 32 is a view for explaining an example of the data structure of graphic information according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIGS. 32A to 32C.

FIGS. 33A to 33G show examples of modification reference according to the fourth embodiment using cursors, icons, and display screens.

FIG. 34 is a diagram showing an example of rotation reference according to the fourth embodiment, in which a mouse is used as a position designation device, an icon for instructing rotation reference operation is selected by a cursor, and a figure to be related is further selected. It is shown in 34E.

FIG. 35 is a diagram showing an example of the similarity modification reference according to the fourth embodiment, which is shown in 35A and 35B.

FIG. 36 also shows an example of the movement reference, which is shown in 36A and 36B. FIG. 37 shows the same examples 37A to 37J as in FIG. 27, each showing an example of the deformation operation by the binding point according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 38 is an explanatory view of a grip display according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the case of a reference point and a non-reference point of various grips (38A), the grip non-display mode is used.

(38B) and the grip display mode (38C).

FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram of the associating process according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 40 is an explanatory diagram of the graphic operation processing according to the embodiment of the present invention. Description of the preferred embodiment

The present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the operation principle of the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 10 is a processing unit including a CPU and a memory, 11 is a display device for displaying a figure to be created and edited, 12 is a position specifying device for specifying a position on a display screen such as a mouse and a keyboard, 13 Is the figure information storage unit, 14 is general figure information on ordinary figures, and 15 is figure changes Change reference graphic information related to a figure representing a locus to be moved, etc., 16 is time display graphic information indicating a time on the time axis corresponding to a normal figure or the change reference graphic, 17 is a display processing of a normal figure and a change reference graphic Graphic display processing means, 18 is time display processing means for performing display processing of a time display figure, 19 is change information setting processing means for setting change information according to time or attribute value, and 20 is for time or attribute value change. Display update processing means for updating the display of the figures, 21 is a current time indicating unit for indicating the current time, 22 is a binding relation setting processing means for inputting and setting information on the binding relation between figures, and 23 is time. Represents time editing processing means for editing display graphics.

24 is a graphic display area on the screen for displaying normal figures and change reference figures, 25 is a time display area on the screen for displaying time display figures, 26 is a normal figure, 27 is a change reference figure, 28 Denotes a time display graphic, 29 denotes a position cursor indicating a position that changes with time, and 30 denotes a time cursor indicating the current time in the time display area 25.

In the case of the invention described in claim 1, the following processing means are provided.

The graphic display processing means 17 is a processing means for providing a graphic display area 24 on the screen of the display device 11 and displaying the graphic 26 and the change reference graphic 27 in the area. The time display processing means 18 includes a time display area 25 provided on the screen of the display device 11, and a time display graphic 28 indicating a time represented by a line or a predetermined graphic along the time axis in the area. Is a processing means for displaying.

The change information setting processing means 19 creates a change reference figure 27 as a reference for moving or deforming (including rotation) the figure with the passage of time in the figure display area 24 by inputting the position designation device 12 and editing The position of some points on the change reference figure 27 and the same on the time display figure 28 This is processing means for setting information corresponding to the positions of the number points in the related graphic information in the graphic information storage unit 13.

The display update processing means 20 moves the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic 28 (movement of the time cursor 30), or in response to the elapse of the designated time, the corresponding point on the change reference graphic 27, That is, the processing means obtains the position of the position cursor 29 by interpolation calculation, performs editing for moving or deforming the figure based on the position of the point, and updates the display of the figure.

The invention described in claim 1 deals with a graphic that changes with the passage of time, whereas the invention described in claim 2 handles a graphic that changes with a change in a certain attribute value. Therefore, an attribute value display processing means (not shown) is provided instead of the time display processing means 18 in addition to or in addition to the time display processing means 18 in the invention described in claim 1. Displays the attribute value display figure in the attribute value display area similar to the time display area 25.

The processing of the change information setting processing means 19 and the display update processing means 20 is the same as that for the time change, and performs the processing according to the change of the attribute value instead of the time change.

In the case of the invention described in claim 3, the change information setting processing means 19 displays a change reference graphic 27 which is a reference for moving or deforming the graphic as time passes by inputting the position determining device 12. It is created and edited on the graphic display area 24 on the display screen of the device 11 1, and information about the time corresponding to the positions of some points on the change reference graphic 27 is set in the graphic information. Further, a binding relation setting processing means 22 is provided, and the binding relation setting processing means 22 is provided between the point in the graphic 26 to be edited and the position cursor 29 indicating the current time position on the change reference pattern 27. The binding relation is input from the position specifying device 12 and its definition information is stored in the graphic information storage unit 13. Set in the corresponding general graphic information 14 and change reference graphic information 15. The display update processing means 20 obtains the position of the point corresponding to the current time on the change reference graphic 27 by interpolation calculation in accordance with the elapse of the time designated by the current time indicating unit 21 and the like, and calculates the position of the point Based on the binding relationship set in the figure information, the movement Z deformation operation of the figure is determined, and the display of the figure is updated.

The invention described in claim 3 deals with a figure that changes with the passage of time, whereas the invention described in claim 4 deals with a figure that changes with a change in a certain attribute value. The processing of the change information setting processing means 19 and the binding relation setting processing means 22 in the invention described in Item 4 is the same as that for the time change, and follows the change of the attribute value instead of the time change. To perform the processing.

The configurations of the graphic display processing means 17 and the time display processing means 18 in the invention described in claim 5 are the same as those of the invention described in claim 1. In the invention described in Item 5, instead of moving or deforming the graphic 26 with the passage of time, the graphic 26 appears or disappears with time, or changes its state such as color or luminance. Make

Therefore, the change information setting processing means 19 sets, in the graphic information of the graphic information storage unit 13, the correspondence information between some states of the specified graphic 26 and the positions of the same number of points in the time display graphic 28. In response to the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic 28 or the elapse of the designated time, the display update processing means 20 changes the state of the graphic 26 to be displayed to the previous and next points. It is configured to obtain a figure based on the obtained state by interpolation calculation from the state.

The time editing processing means 23, based on the input by the position specifying device 12, stores the position of the point on the time display 6090 This is processing means for changing independently of the state information of the corresponding figure. Thus, the figure 26 can be made to appear or disappear at an arbitrary time, and the speed at which the state changes can be changed only by editing the time display figure 28 in the time display area 25.

The invention described in claim 5 deals with a graphic whose state changes with the passage of time, while the invention described in claim 6 handles a graphic whose state changes with a change in a certain attribute value. The processing of the change information setting processing means 19 and the display update processing means 20 in the invention described in Item 6 is the same as the processing relating to the time change, and performs the processing according to the attribute value change instead of the time change. Perform.

Further, the attribute value editing processing means (not shown) inputs the position of the point associated with the state of the figure on the attribute value display figure by the input from the position designation device 12 and the state information of the corresponding figure. Performs the process of changing independently.

In the invention described in the first aspect, the time display graphic 28 indicating the time for changing the position of the graphic 26 in the graphic display area 24 is displayed in the time display area 25 provided separately from the graphic display area 24. As a result, the position change of the graphic 26 can be easily controlled by the time display graphic 28 via the change reference graphic 27. That is, by moving the time cursor 30 indicating the current time in the time display area 25, the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27 in the graphic display area 24 can be moved. Since the moving trajectory of the position cursor 29 can be determined by the change reference graphic 27, it is not necessary to edit the graphic 26 at each time. In addition, the moving speed of the position cursor 29 can be controlled by the moving speed of the time cursor 30 in the time display graphic 28 or the interval between the points in the time display graphic 28 corresponding to each point on the change reference graphic 27. it can.

By the change information setting processing means 19, the time display area 25 and the change reference figure After setting the correspondence information with the graphic information storage unit 13, it is not necessary to display the change reference graphic 27 and the time display area 25, and the current time instruction from the position determination device 12 or from the application program. According to the instruction of the current time, it is possible to display only the graphic 26 corresponding to the time without displaying the change reference graphic 27 and the time display area 25.

Similarly, in the invention described in Item 2, the figure can be moved or deformed in response to a change in an arbitrary attribute value, not limited to time. Therefore, for example, it is possible to easily realize the display of a graphic such as a bar graph which dynamically changes depending on the value.

In the invention described in the third aspect, the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27 is moved according to the time, and the binding relationship between the position cursor 29 and the graphic 26 (also referred to as a reference relationship) is defined. Can be set in the graphic information storage unit 13. Therefore, in addition to simply moving the figure 26 according to time, the figure 26 can be rotated, enlarged, or reduced in accordance with the type of the binding relationship with the movement of the position cursor 29. become able to. Thus, for example, the moving trajectory of the sun is defined by the change reference graphic 27, and the moving surface can be easily edited so that the sunflowers always face the sun.

Similarly, in the invention described in the fourth aspect, the graphic 26 can be changed according to the binding relationship with the position cursor 29 in response to a change in an arbitrary attribute value, not limited to time.

In the invention described in Item 5, for example, at the time T1 on the time display graphic 28, the color of the graphic 26 is defined as blue, and at the time T2 on the time display graphic 28, the color of the graphic 26 is yellow. By definition, the color of the graphic 26 can be continuously changed from blue to yellow with the time change between the time T1 and the time T2. Also, on the time display shape 28 By changing the distance between the time T1 and the point indicating the time Τ2, the speed of the color change can be changed by a simple operation.

Similarly, in the invention described in Item 6, the state of the graphic 26 is continuously changed, and the graphic 26 is caused to appear or disappear in response to a change in an arbitrary attribute value regardless of time. Will be able to For example, by using a temperature value as an attribute value, an image in which the color of a figure changes according to a temperature change can be easily generated by specifying an attribute value by a program or by specifying an attribute value from a position specifying device 12. 7 as you can.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams showing a specific embodiment of the present invention. 2A shows an example of the graphic display area 24, and FIG. 2B shows an example of the time display area 25. The figure display area 24 and the time display area 25 are provided on separate windows, respectively, and correspond to the figure display area 24. A mode designation Z display section 36 is provided. Similarly, a command menu display section 37 for editing operation corresponding to the time is provided corresponding to the time display area 25.

Now, it is assumed that a human figure 26 moving with time is created and edited on the figure display area 24. Create the moving path of Figure 26 as shown in Change Reference Figure 27. The creation of the change reference figure 27 is performed in the same manner as in the conventional figure creation operation by designating the mode designation Z display unit 36 and the like.

The time display figure 28-1 is created automatically on the time display area 25 by the creation of the change reference figure 27 or by the creation command. The horizontal axis of the time display area 25 indicates time, and the time cursor 30 indicates the current time. Corresponding to the representative points P 0, P 1,… on the change reference figure 27, the points T 0, T l,… in the time display figure 28-1 are displayed automatically or as specified. Is done. The time cursor 30 is a cursor that moves to the right over time. Further, the time designation cursor 12 can be moved to a position at an arbitrary time by the position designation device 12. When the time cursor 30 moves, the position cursor 29 also moves on the change reference graphic 27. At time TO, position cursor 29 is at point P0, at time T1, position cursor 29 is at point P1, and similarly at time T2, position cursor 29 is at point P2. . When the time cursor 30 is located between the times T1 and T2, the position cursor 29 is positioned between the points P1 and P2 according to the value of the division.

Once you have created figure 26 that you want to move over time, associate figure 26 with the position cursor 29. That is, the position specifying device 12 performs an operation for associating the figure 26 with the position cursor 29. As a result of this association operation, when the position cursor 29 moves, the figure 26 also moves. That is, by moving the time cursor 30, the graphic 26 also moves.

There are several types of this relationship, such as deformation, rotation, similar deformation (enlargement Z reduction), and depending on the type of the relationship, the shape 26 changes as the position cursor 29 moves and the shape 26 changes. Operated.

In addition, a time display graphic 28-2 is provided for the graphic 26 so that a time display graphic 28-1 is provided for the change reference graphic 27. With the time cursor 30, a point on the time display figure 28-2 can be designated, and the state of the figure 26 at that time, such as color and brightness, can be defined. Outside the range where the time display graphic 28-2 is displayed, the display of the graphic 26 is suppressed. Therefore, by editing the time display graphic 28-2, it is possible to start displaying the graphic 26 at a certain time T10 and automatically delete the graphic 26 from the screen at a certain time T13. it can.

Also, for example, by simply defining the state of the figure 26 at the time T11 and the state of the figure 26 at the time T12, the continuous state between the time T11 and the time T12 is defined. Dynamic state change can be realized by interpolation calculation.

The movement of the time cursor 30 on the time display area 25 can be designated by the position designation device 12, and can also be designated from the application program. After setting the necessary information in the graphic information storage unit 13, by specifying not to display the change reference graphic 27 and the time display area 25 on the actual display screen, only the graphic 26 moves with time. Or appear to change.

Instead of changing over time, by providing a display and operation target as shown in Fig. 2B for an arbitrary attribute value change, a figure that changes with the attribute value is created and edited in the same way _c FIGS. 3 to 6 that can show the process of editing example according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

First, the editing of a figure whose position changes with time will be described with reference to FIG. On the figure display area 24 shown in FIG. 3A, a change reference figure 27 to be a path is created. Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, a Gantt creation command is executed in the time display area 25 with the change reference pattern 27 selected. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3C, a time display graphic 28 is created in the time display area 25, and a position cursor 29 is created on the change reference graphic 27 in the graphic display area 24.

Correspondence information between the point on the change reference graphic 27 and the point on the time display graphic 28 is set in the graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG. 1, and thereafter, when the time cursor 30 is moved, the position cursor 29 is moved. Is controlled. That is, as shown in FIG. 3D, when the time cursor 30 moves, the position force solver 29 moves along the change reference figure 27.

Figure 4 shows that the figure 26 is moved according to the movement of the position cursor 29 by associating the figure 26 with the position cursor 29 on the change reference figure 27. An editing example is shown.

After the change reference graphic 27 and the time display graphic 28 are created by the editing process shown in FIG. 3, the graphic 26 is created as shown in FIG. 7A. Note that the figure 26 may be created first.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4B, a reference Z reference relationship is defined between the graphic 26 and the position cursor 29. In addition, a command related to this is prepared. Here, the binding point 40 defined in advance at the center of the figure 26 and the position cursor 29 are linked by the designation by the position designation device 12.

The definition information relating to the above-described association is set in the graphic information storage unit 13. Thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 4C and 4D, when the time cursor 30 moves on the time display area 25, the graphic display area The position cursor 29 moves at 24, and the figure 26 moves accordingly.

FIG. 5 shows an example of editing in which the graphic 26 is deformed and rotated according to the movement of the position cursor 29 by associating the graphic 26 with the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27. The illustration of the time display area 25 is omitted.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5A, a figure 26 is created on the figure display area 24. If necessary, the binding point 40 on the graphic 26 is designated by the position designation device 12 such as a mouse. The binding point 40 is automatically set at a predetermined position when the figure 26 is created, but the position can be changed by the position specifying device 12.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5B, a point to be related on the shape 26 (this is referred to as a reference point) and a position cursor 29 (this is referred to as a referred point) are designated by a mouse cursor, and a transformation is performed between these points. Establish a reference relationship. In this operation, after setting the deformation reference mode by the mode designation Z display section 36 shown in Fig. 2, select the figure 26 and the change reference figure 27, and This is performed by dragging the upper reference point with the mouse cursor and positioning the reference point on the position cursor 29 which is the referenced point.

By this association, the figure 26 is transformed as shown in FIG. 5C. Information on the reference / reference relationship between the reference point and the position cursor 29 is stored in the graphic information storage unit 13. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5D, when the position cursor 29 moves, the reference point on the graphic 26 moves accordingly, and the graphic 26 is deformed. In this case, since the position of the binding point 40 does not change, the figure 26 expands and contracts in the vertical direction as the position cursor 29 moves.

FIGS. 5E to 5H show examples of editing a rotation reference. Create Figure 26, as shown in Figure 5E. Figure 26 is an arrow figure in this example. Binding point 40 is set at the beginning of the arrow. If the tip of the arrow of this figure 26 is always pointing in the direction of the position cursor 29, after setting the rotation reference mode, as shown in Fig. Drag the tip to position cursor 29.

Thereby, as shown in FIG. 5G, the arrow of FIG. 26 is displayed so as to face the position cursor 29, and the setting information related to the rotation reference is stored in the graphic information storage unit 13. Thereafter, as shown in Fig. 5H, when the position cursor 29 moves on the change reference figure 27 according to the change of time, the operation of rotating the arrow of figure 26 so that the tip of the arrow points in the direction of the position force solver 29 Is done automatically.

FIG. 6 shows an editing example for setting a state change of the figure 26 with a change in time.

As shown in FIG. 6A, a figure 26 whose state is changed is created on the figure display area 24, and a time display figure corresponding to the figure 26 is created on the time display area 25. This figure on the time display area 25 is hereinafter referred to as Gantt. The Gantt 28-2 is automatically or automatically assigned to the shape 26, just as the time display shape 28-1 is provided for the change reference shape 27. Provided.

When setting a state such as a color for the figure 26, the position specifying device 12 moves the time cursor 30 to the time T2 at which the state is to be set. Then, as shown in FIG. 6B, the state division command is executed. This provides a state set point on Gantt 28-2.

Here, as shown in FIG. 6C, necessary states such as the color and brightness of the graphic 26 are specified. As a result, the correspondence information between the state of the graphic 26 and the time T2 in the Gantt 28-2 is stored in the graphic information storage unit 13. The initial state at the time T 1 is also stored in the graphic information storage unit 13 when the Gantt 28-2 is created.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 6D, when the time cursor 30 is moved, the state of the figure 26 (here, the color) is automatically changed and displayed. FIG. 6E shows the relationship between the position of the time cursor 30 and the state of FIG. When the time cursor 30 is between the time before T1 and the start time T1 of the Gantt 28-2, the graphic 26 is in a non-display state and is not displayed in the graphic display area 24. At time T1, figure 26 is displayed in the initial color. While the time cursor 30 moves from the time T1 to the time T2, the graphic 26 is displayed in an intermediate state between the state at the time T1 and the state at the time T2 according to the position.

From time T2 to time T3 at the end of Gantt 28-2, the state of FIG. 26 at time T2 is maintained. At time T3, if a new state is set, the figure 26 is displayed in an interpolated state on the way. After time T3, the figure 26 is erased and disappears from the figure display area 24.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of editing a gantt in the first embodiment of the present invention.

The time display figure 28—1 on the time display area 25 (normal figure 26 The same applies to Gantt 28-2), which can be edited by the time editing processing means 23 shown in FIG. This editing is basically performed by the same operation as normal figure editing.

For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, when the time cursor 30 moves on the time display area 25, the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27 moves. The movement of the time cursor 30 moves at a constant speed according to a normal operation instruction. Therefore, the moving speed of the position cursor 29 in the change reference graphic 27 can be changed by changing the interval between the points on the time display graphic 28-1. In other words, the operation of the graphic 26 and the like can be specified only by editing the time display graphic 28-1 without editing the change reference graphic 27.

FIG. 7B is an example of moving the time display shape 28 in the time display area 25. The time display shape 28 is moved from the time display shape 28a to the time display shape 28b by dragging with the mouse cursor. I have.

Fig. 7C shows the movement of a specific range in the time display graphic 28-1. With the start and end of the time display graphic 28a fixed, one of the points (for example, the point at time T2) is shown. ) Drag to display the time display

As in 28b, the other point T 1 moves in proportion to the distance from the fixed point.

Fig. 7D shows the state of time T1 fixed at the point of time T1 by dragging the end of time display figure 28-1 to the time display figure 28a to time display figure 28b. This shows an example in which the whole from the end to the end is enlarged. These editing types can be selected using menu commands.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a basic data structure of graphic information set in the graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8A, the figure information basically includes a group of figure header information 50 and point information 51-1, 51-2,... Which determine the shape of the figure. The figure header information 50 has information on a range of a rectangle occupied by the figure (this is called an extent), information on the number of points, a pointer to the first point information 51, and the like. In addition, it has pointer information to the point defined as binding point 40.

If the figure is a polygon, for example, as shown in FIG. 8B, the rectangle is an area in the range shown by the dotted rectangle. The extent information in the figure header information 50 is information such as the coordinates of the point at the upper left corner of the extent-(X0, y0), the width w of the extent, and the height h of the extent. Point information 51 is position information on the vertices of the polygon.

(X 1, 1), (x 2, y 2), ... and pointer information to the next point. In addition, the graphic header information 50 and the point information 51 can have other various attribute information as needed.

In the example shown in FIG. 8, the point (X 2, y 2) indicated by the point information 51-2 is defined as the binding point 40. The binding point 40 is a point determined as one of the attributes of the graphic information in order to determine the deformation operation in the editing of the graphic.

FIG. 9 shows a data correlation diagram in the first embodiment of the present invention.

Graphic header information 50-1, 50-2, 50-3 is provided for each of the general graphic information 14, the change reference graphic information 15, and the time display graphic information 16. In the graphic header information of FIG. 9, the extension information and the like described in FIG. 8 are not shown.

The change reference graphic information 15 has, in particular, position cursor information 52, which includes the coordinates (x, y) of the position cursor 29, the pointer 情報 for the point information on the left and right, and the position between the two points. Percentage of cursor 29 position The ratio information is stored. Point information 51-3, 51-4, and 51-5 connected to the figure header information 50-2 are information relating to points P0, PI, and P2 in the example shown in FIG.

The time display graphic information 16 is information relating to the time display graphic 28-1 shown in FIG. 2B, and also includes the graphic header information 50-3 and the point information 51-6, 51-7,... Although not shown, time cursor information is provided in the same format as the position cursor information 52. In the example of FIG. 2, the point information 51—6, 51—1, 7,... Are information indicating the positions of TO, T1,, and the point information 51—3, 51—4, ... respectively.

Further, the figure header information 50-3 points to the current time indicating unit 21 to manage the current time.

As mentioned earlier, points on Figure 26 can be related to other points, such as position force sol 29. In the example of the data relationship shown in FIG. 9, the point of the point information 51-1 is associated with the position cursor 29, and pointers are provided between the point information 51-1 and the position cursor information 52. Note that information (not shown) related to the type of relationship, such as deformation reference and rotation reference, is also set in the point information 51-1.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a data structure indicating a state for managing information on a state change as described in the example of FIG.

Point information 51-1, 51-2,... Indicating the time at which the state of the figure 26 is defined is pointed out from the figure header information 50-2 of the Gantt 45 shown in FIG. Point information 51-1 corresponds to time T1, and point information 51-2 corresponds to time T2. Assuming that the time cursor 30 is located between the time T1 and the time T2, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, pointer information to the point information 511-1 and 51-2 is set in the time cursor information 61. You.

From the figure header information 50-1 of figure 26, at each time T 1, T 2,… State information 60-1, 60-2, ... indicating the state of the current state is pointed out. The state information 60-1, 60-2, ... is also pointed from the point information 51-1, 51-2, ... indicating time. In this example, the state information 60 — then 60 — 2,..., Have information on whether the figure should appear or disappear, color information, luminance information, information on transparency, etc. . In addition, information on various forms such as a line width and a size of a figure may be provided.

When the position of the time cursor 30 is given by the time cursor information 61, the point information 51-1 and 51-2 are referred to, and the ratio of the position between two points is calculated from the position. According to this ratio, the specified state value obtained from the state information 60-1 and the specified state value obtained from the state information 60-2 are interpolated to determine the current state.

When the time cursor 30 moves, refer to the data shown in FIG. 10 every unit time. Ζ By updating, the state of the displayed graphic 26 is determined, and the state of the graphic 26 is changed.

FIG. 11D is an explanatory step view of a process of creating the change reference graphic 27 and the time display graphic 28 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. First, it enters the start stage with S0. Then

S 1 With the command to create the change reference figure 27 or the normal figure creation command and the figure creation mode selected, position information about the start, end, and other major points of the change reference figure 27 Input from the designated device 12.

S 2 When the change reference graphic 27 is created, the information of the time display graphic 28 corresponding to the change reference graphic 27 is generated automatically or by an explicit measure. That is, time display graphic information 16 as shown in FIG. 9 is created.

S 3 In addition, the time display diagram Shape information 16 Create 6 point information. Unless otherwise specified, the points at each time are equally spaced.

S 4 The change reference graphic 27 is displayed in the graphic display area 24.

S 5 Also, a time display figure 28 is displayed in the time display area 25. Note that the order of these processes is not necessarily the order of S1 to S5.

As shown in FIG. 4, when associating an arbitrary graphic 26 with the change reference graphic 27, the processing shown in FIG. 11B is executed.

S 11 1 The figure creation information is inputted by the position designation device 12.

S 12 Generates the time display graphic information 16 of the corresponding Gantt and displays it in the time display area 25.

S 13 Enter the type of reference, such as deformation, movement, rotation, etc., using the relational operation described in FIG. 4, and refer to the point on figure 26 and the position cursor 29 on the change reference figure 27. input. The input information is reflected in the data structure shown in FIG.

S14 Calculate the position and shape of the graphic 26 to be displayed so that the specified reference relationship is maintained in accordance with the position cursor 29.

S 15 Redisplay the figure 26 after the association.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of a process of changing the graphic 26 over time. Time progress can be designated by the position designation device 12 or an application program.

After the process enters the start step (S20), the following steps are entered.

5 21 Determines the position of the time cursor 30 according to the specified current time or the automatically advanced current time.

5 22 Calculates the internal division value S between the point T 1 immediately before the time cursor 30 and the point T 2 immediately after. That is, point information 51-1 and 51-2 shown in Fig. 9 Calculate the ratio ratio between the two points at the position of the time cursor 30 based on the S23 The points on the change reference figure 27 corresponding to the points Tl and T2 at the time

The position of the position cursor 29 is determined from P 1 and P 2 and the internal division value S.

S24 The position cursor information 52 shown in FIG. 9 is updated, and the position cursor 29 is moved to a new position on the change reference graphic 27.

S25 It is determined whether there is a point related to the position cursor 29, and if there is a point referring to the position cursor 29, the process S26 is executed.

S26 According to the relationship between the position cursor 29 and the reference point, move the figure 26 having the reference point. This process is repeated for all figures associated with the position force sol 29. Thus, the processing process ends (S27).

FIG. 13 shows a process for changing the state of FIG. 26 over time.

The process enters a start step (S30). Next, the process is performed in the following steps.

531 Determines the position of the time cursor 30 according to the specified current time or the automatically advanced current time.

532 Calculates the internal division value S between the point T 1 immediately before the time cursor 30 and the point T 2 immediately after. In other words, the ratio ratio between the two points at the position of the time cursor 30 is calculated based on the point information 51-1 and 51-2 shown in FIG. 10 <S33 The figure corresponding to the time points Tl and T2 at the time From the state information of 26 and the internal value S, the interpolated value of each state specified value is calculated, and the state of the figure 26 is determined.

534 It is determined from the relationship between the Gantt 45 and the current time position, or the state specification value for the appearance Z disappearance, whether or not the figure 26 is to disappear.

535 If the figure 26 is not erased, redraw the figure 26 according to the state obtained in S33. S 36 When the figure 26 is erased, the figure 26 is erased from the figure display area 24.

Thus, the processing process ends (S37).

FIG. 14 shows a specific application example of the present invention.

For example, it is assumed that a moving surface relating to a human figure including a head A, a body B, and legs C and D as shown in FIG. 14A is created.

As shown in Figure 14B, the parts of the figure are related. That is, the binding point defined on the head A is related to the binding point defined on the body B. The binding points of the legs C and D are related to the points on the lower side of the body B, respectively. In addition, a figure E is created along the body B as a change reference figure, and the position cursor 29-1 is associated with the lower part of the body B. Similarly, a figure F is created along the leg D, and the position cursor 29-2 is associated with the tip of the legs C and D.

As shown in FIG. 14C, a gantt of each of the figures A to F is created and displayed in the time display area 25. As the time cursor 30 moves in the time display area 25, the position cursors 29-1 and 29-2 move.

As shown in FIGS. 14D to 14F, when the time cursor 30 moves over time, the position cursors 29-and 29-2 move on the shapes E and F, and accordingly, the position cursor 29- The reference point associated with 1, 29—2 moves. In other words, it is easy to edit a figure with a series of changes such that the head A does not grow, the body B grows first, and the legs C and D grow large later.

Since the joint relationship between the head A, the body B, and the legs C and D is maintained by the association, the shapes A to D of the parts that make up the human figure irrespective of the deformation (growth) of each part It won't fall apart.

The time can be updated in the following way.

(a) In the time display area 25 by the position specifying device 12 such as a mouse Move the time cursor 30 to any position.

(b) Enter a numerical value indicating an arbitrary time in the time specification dialog window (not shown).

(c) Select “Continuous progress” from the menu. As a result, the time is advanced by a fixed amount for each predetermined unit time.

(d) The interface is realized from the application program by calling the time setting function prepared in the system in advance. This relationship takes the following form, for example.

• When specifying continuous execution

SeUime (start time, end time, update speed or interval) • When continuous execution is not specified

Set Time

When continuous execution is specified, the start time, end time, and how fast the time is updated are specified by parameters. If continuous execution is not specified, specify the update time using parameters.

In the above description of the embodiment, an example in which a figure is changed according to a change in time has been described. However, a figure can be similarly changed not by time but by an arbitrary attribute value. In the description of the above embodiment, the implementation method will be clear by replacing “time” with “attribute value”.

The interface to the application program that updates the current value for any attribute value is realized by a function call in the following format.

Se t A t tr i bu t e Va l ue name, (new val ue)

Here, name is an attribute name indicating the type of attribute, and new value is a new attribute value.

The graphic information edited by the present invention is transferred to an application program. When using from a system, the operation of the figure included in the figure information is exchanged with the figure display processing means through an arbitrary attribute value, thereby improving the flexibility of the application program. The simplification of the application program can be realized.

In other words, in the prior art, the change in the dynamic position of a figure had to be determined by a calculation formula or built-in data in an application program. It was necessary to re-edit and recompile the section program. The graphic information created by the editing device of the present invention is managed independently of the application program, and a change in the trajectory of the graphic change reference graphic does not affect the application program.

Further, in the prior art, when dynamically changing the position of a figure from an application program, two-dimensional X and Y coordinates had to be calculated and calculated. When the position of a graphic created by the editing apparatus of the present invention is dynamically changed, the application program only needs to operate the time or attribute value, and does not need to be aware of the coordinates on the screen.

The graphic display area 24, the time display area 25, or the attribute value display area may be assigned to a different display device 11 screen, or in a system having a well-known window control mechanism, one-to-one for each window. May be assigned.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration used in the embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention can be implemented by a well-known hardware mechanism as shown in FIG. 15, for example. To the system bus 107, a display dub 103, a random access memory (RAM) 105, a CPU 106, and a disk adapter 108 are connected. Display adapter 103 A graphics display 100, a keyboard 101, a mouse 102, and a video memory (VRAM) 104 are connected to the computer, and the contents of the VRAM 104 are connected to a graphics display 100 via a display adapter 103. Is displayed. A disk storage device 109 such as a magnetic disk is connected to the disk adapter 108, and the disk adapter 108 controls data transfer between the RAM 105 and the disk storage device 109 according to an input / output instruction of the CPU 106.

The graphic display 100, the keyboard 101, the mouse 102, and the display adapter 103 correspond to the display device 11 and the position designation device 12 shown in FIG. The graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG. 1 is provided in the RAM 105 or the disk storage device 109.

Of course, the present embodiment is not limited to the system shown in FIG. 15, and can be implemented by a general-purpose computer, a workstation 'type computer, or a general personal computer. As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to easily edit a figure that changes with a change in time or attribute value and draw it on the screen of the display device. . In addition, when changing the form of the edited figure, it can be operated not only by the position designation device 12 but also by a simple interface from an application program, thereby improving and simplifying the flexibility of the application program. It contributes to.

Next, as a second embodiment, a synchronous editing apparatus for graphics will be described. This is so that when editing multiple shapes whose positions, shapes, and states change synchronously, it is possible to maintain a synchronous relationship while treating each time change independently. It is intended to be a synchronous editing apparatus for figures that can be easily edited. FIG. 16 is a functional diagram illustrating the operation principle of the second embodiment. The device of the present invention comprises a processing device and a display device.

In FIG. 16, reference numeral 10 denotes a processing device including a CPU and a memory, 11 denotes a display device for displaying a figure to be created / edited, and 12 denotes a position on a display surface such as a mouse or a keyboard. A position specifying device, 13 is a graphic information storage unit, 14 is general graphic information on a normal figure, 15 is change reference figure information on a figure representing a trajectory that changes a figure, and 16 is a normal figure or a change reference figure. Time display graphic information indicating the time on the corresponding time axis, 17 is a graphic display processing means for displaying a normal graphic and a change reference graphic, 18 is a time display processing means for performing a display processing of a time display graphic, and 19 is a time display processing means. Change information setting processing means for setting change information according to time, 20 is a display update processing means for updating the display of a figure according to a change in time, and 21 A is a time display for synchronously editing a time display figure. Representing a collection processing means.

In the case of the invention described in claim 7, the following processing means are provided.

The graphic display processing means 17 is a processing means for providing a graphic display area 24 on the screen of the display device 11 and displaying the graphic 26 and the change reference graphic 27 in the area. The time display processing means 18 includes a time display area 25 provided on the screen of the display device 11, and a time display graphic 28 indicating a time represented by a line or a predetermined graphic along the time axis in the area. Is a processing means for displaying. The graphic information storage unit 13 stores general graphic information for determining the shape of each graphic, and also associates a point representing a time on the time display graphic 28 with a point representing a position on the change reference graphic 27. This is a means of storing information to be added.

The change information setting processing means 19 inputs a point on the change reference figure 27, which is a reference for changing the position or shape of the figure with the passage of time, on the figure display area 24 by the position specifying device 12. The correspondence information between the positions of some points on the change reference graphic 27 and the positions of some points on the time display graphic 28 is stored in the relevant graphic information in the graphic information storage unit 13.

Three

This is a processing means for setting. 7

The display update processing means 20 responds to the movement of the point indicating the current time on each time display graphic 28 (movement of the time cursor 30), or the current time in each time display graphic 28 in response to the elapse of the prescribed time. The position of each point on each change reference figure 27 corresponding to the point indicating is calculated by interpolation, and the position or shape change of each figure is processed synchronously based on the position of each point, and the display of the figure is updated. Processing means.

The time display editing processing means 21A associates some points in one time display figure 28 with some points in another time display figure 28, and This is processing means for editing the time display graphic 28 so that the attached point moves.

The graphic display processing means 17, the time display processing means 18, and the time display editing processing means 21A in the invention described in claim 8 have substantially the same configuration as in the case described in claim 7. The graphic information storage unit 13 stores information that associates a point representing a time on the time display graphic 28 with a state of one or more graphics displayed in the graphic display area 24 that changes with time. .

The change information setting processing means 19 includes several states of the designated figure, A process of setting information corresponding to the positions of some points in the time display graphic 28 in the graphic information is performed. The display update processing means 20 responds to the movement of the point indicating the current time on each time display graphic 28 or the elapse of the designated time, by the display of each figure corresponding to the current time point in each time display graphic 28. By calculating the state, the state change of a plurality of figures including appearance and disappearance of the figure is processed synchronously, and processing for updating the display of the figure is performed.

For example, in the figure display area 24, the circle figure 26a is moved with the passage of time along the change reference figure 271-1, and when the point P1 is reached, a circle figure 26b and a triangle figure 26c are formed. Divide and move further along the change reference graphic 27-1 and the change reference graphic 27-2, respectively. In the second embodiment of the present invention, this is realized as follows.

On the graphic display area 24, a change reference graphic 27-1 is created as a locus for moving the graphics 26a and 26b, and a change reference graphic 27-2 is created as a locus for moving the graphic 26c. In correspondence with the change reference figures 27-1 and 27-2, time display figures 28-1-a and 28-1-1 b are created on the time display area 25. The point P 1 in the change reference graphic 27-1 corresponds to the time T 1 in the time display graphic 28-11a. The change information setting processing means 19 sets the corresponding information in the graphic information storage unit 13.

In addition, figures 26a, 26b, and 26c that move with time are created, and are associated with the position cursor 29 that moves on the transformation reference figures 27-1 and 27-2. A linking command is provided for that purpose. The time display figures 28-2-a, 28-2-b, 28-2-c are time display figures created corresponding to the figures 26a, 26b, and 26c.

For example, the following times are related to the time T1 corresponding to the point P1 by using a relation command. ① Time display figure 28-1 Start time of b

② Time display figure 28— 2 — End time of a

③ Time display figure 28-2-b Start time

④ Time display shape 28-2-c Start time

After this association operation is performed, if the position at time T1 changes due to editing, the positions are automatically adjusted so that ① to になる have the same time.

When the time cursor 30 indicating the current time is moved from the left end to the right end on the time display area 25, each figure in the figure display area 24 operates as follows. <The time cursor 30 is moved to the time display figure 28-1 a. In response to moving up, the position cursor 29 moves on the change reference figure 27-1, and the figure 26a associated with the position cursor 29 also moves. When the time cursor 30 comes to the point at the time T1, the position cursor 29 reaches the point P1, and the figure 26a disappears at the end of the time display figure 28-2-1a.

Instead, the figure 26b and the figure 26c appear from the position of the point P1 and start moving. By associating figure 26c with the position cursor on change reference figure 27-2, time display figure 28-2-c will move to the left on change reference figure 27-2. Since the end time of the time display graphic 28c is earlier than that of the time display graphic 28-2-b, the graphic 26c disappears before the graphic 26b.

The time display figure can be edited in the time display area 25, and the moving speed of each figure and the time of appearance or disappearance can be changed. However, since the figures 26a, 26b, and 26c are synchronized by the above-described association operation, the disappearance of the figure 26a and the appearance of the figures 26b and 26c occur simultaneously, and the figure 26a and the figures 26b and 26c are There is no duplicate display.

FIGS. 17 to 19 show an example of editing a figure according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

As shown in FIG.17A, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with an example of a figure editing in which a circle A moves to the right and changes to a square B and a triangle C on the way, as shown in FIG. Reference numeral 40 denotes a mode designation display unit using icons; 42, a command menu display unit for creating a figure; Z editing; and 43, a command menu display unit for editing operations relating to time. First, on the figure display area 24, a change reference figure 27-1, which is a gauge for moving the figure, is created. The creation / editing of the change reference figure 27-1 is performed in the same manner as the conventional figure creation / editing operation by designating the mode designation display section 40 and the like.

Next, with the change reference figure 27-1 selected, the menu 44 is clicked to execute a Gantt creation command in the time display area 25. As a result, as shown in FIG. 17D, a time display figure (hereinafter, the time display figure is referred to as “Gantt”) 28—a is created in the time display area 25, and the change of the figure display area 24 is performed. The position cursor 29-1 is created on the reference figure 27-1.

Corresponding to the representative points P 0, P 1, ... on the change reference figure 27-1, points T 0, T 1, ... indicating the time are provided on the Gantt 28-1-a. The correspondence information is set in the graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 18A, a change reference figure 27-2 is created in the figure display area 24, and a Gantt 28-1-b is created by a Gantt creation command. A position cursor 29-2 is provided on the change reference graphic 27-2. Here, the point T2 on the Gantt 28-1-1a and the start point T12 on the Gantt 28-1-1b are related by the above-described associating operation. This association operation is performed, for example, by inputting an association command, and then dragging the point T12 to the position of the point T2 with the mouse. The information for this association is also the graphic information shown in Figure 16. Stored in the storage unit 13.

Thereafter, based on the graphic information in the graphic information storage unit 13, as shown in FIG. 18B, when the time cursor 30 moves, the positional forces 29-1 and 29-2 move, and in particular, the time cursor 30 moves to the point T12. Moving to the left of the time, the position cursor 29-2 disappears.

As shown in FIG. 18C, a figure 26a is created on the figure display area 24, and a Gantt 28-2-a is created on the time display area 25 correspondingly. As shown in FIG. 18D, the graphic 26a is related to the position cursor 29-1 by a relational operation so that the graphic 26a moves with the movement of the time cursor 30. Here, the center of the circle of the figure 26a is defined as the binding point 46a, and the binding point 46a is dragged to the position of the position cursor 29-1 to obtain the relation between the figure 26a and the position cursor 29-1. I am doing the association. Also, the point T22 at the end time of Gantt 28-2-a is related to the point T2 on Gantt 28-1-a.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 19A, a figure 26b is created, and a Gantt 28-2-b corresponding to the figure 26b is created. Further, as shown in FIG. 19B, the operation of relating the shape 26b to the position cursor 29-2, the point T32 of the start time of the gantt 28-2-2b, and the point on the gant 28-1-a Perform an association operation with T 2.

As shown in FIG. 19C, a figure 26c is created, a gantt 28—2—c is created, the binding point 46c of the figure 26c is associated with the position cursor 29—2, and a gant 28-1— The point 42 at the start time of 1) is related to the point T12 at the start time of Gantt 28-11b.

As a result, as shown in FIG. 19D, the graphic 26b and the graphic 26c are displayed at the position of the position cursor 29-1 and the position cursor 29-2, respectively. G 28-2-The circle shape 26a is not displayed because it is outside of a. FIG. 20 shows an operation example of the graphic created as shown in FIG. 17 to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 20A, when the time cursor 30 moves from the point T 0 indicating the time to the point T 2 on the time display area 25, the position force sol 29— 1 becomes the change reference figure. 27—1 Move left to right on top. The movement of the time cursor 30 can be instructed by the position specifying device 12 or by designation from an abbreviated program or the like. <As shown in FIG. 20B, the time cursor 30 moves the time of the point T2. Beyond, figure 26 a disappears, figure 26 b, figure 26 c each change reference graphic 27 - 1, 27 - the position cursor 29-teeth on 2 29 - 2 and _c is displayed at a position, time cursor When the point 30 moves and passes the time of the point T43, the figure 26c disappears as shown in FIG. 20C, and after the time of the point T33, the figure 26c disappears as shown in FIG. 20D. 26 b also disappears.

In the above figure operation, the disappearance of the figure 26a and the appearance of the figures 26b and 26c are performed simultaneously. This is because the start and end of each gantt are related at the same time.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of editing a state according to the embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 21A, a figure 26 whose state is changed is created on the figure display area 24, and a time display figure Gantt 28-2 corresponding to the figure 26 is created on the time display area 25.

When setting a state such as a color for the figure 26, the position specifying device 12 moves the time cursor 30 to the time T2 at which the state is to be set. Then, as shown in FIG. 21B, the state division command is executed. This provides a state set point on Gantt 28-2.

Here, as shown in FIG. 21C, necessary states such as the color and luminance of the graphic 26 are designated. As a result, the state of the graphic 26, the time T 2 in the Gantt 28-2, and the corresponding information are stored in the graphic information storage unit 13. What The initial state at time T1 is also stored in the graphic information storage unit 13 when the Gantt 28-2 is created.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 21D, when the time cursor 30 is moved, the state of the figure 26 (here, the color) is automatically changed and displayed. FIG. 21E shows the relationship between the position of the time cursor 30 and the state of FIG. When the time cursor 30 is between the time before Τ 1 and the start time Τ 1 of the Gantt 28-2, the graphic 26 is in a non-display state and is not displayed in the graphic display area 24. At time T1, a pattern 26 is displayed in the initial color. While the time cursor 30 moves from the time Τ 1 to the time Τ 2, the graphic 26 is displayed in an intermediate state between the time Τ 1 state and the time Τ 2 state according to the position.

From time Τ2 to time Τ3 at the end of Gantt 28-2, the state of figure 26 at time Τ2 is maintained. Note that, even at time 3, if a new state is set, the figure 26 is displayed in an interpolated state in the middle. After time # 3, the figure 26 is erased and disappears from the figure display area 24.

FIGS. 21 (1) to 21 (2) show an example of editing the state of one figure 26, but this is done for a plurality of figures and by associating arbitrary points of those Gantts, each figure State changes can occur synchronously.

FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of editing a Gantt according to the second embodiment of the present invention. A Gantt 28 in the time display area 25 can be edited by the time display edit processing means 21A shown in FIG. it can. This editing is basically performed by the same operation as ordinary figure editing, as shown in FIG.

For example, as shown in Figure 22Α, the time cursor When 30 moves, the position cursor 29 in the change reference graphic 27 moves. The movement of the time cursor 30 moves at a constant speed according to a normal operation instruction. Therefore, by changing the interval between the points on the time display graphic 28, the moving speed of the position cursor 29 on the change reference graphic 27 can be changed. In other words, the operation of the graphic 26 and the like can be defined only by editing the time display graphic 28 without editing the change reference graphic 27.

FIG. 22B shows an example in which the gantry 28 is moved within the time display area 25, and the gantry 28a is moved to the position of the gant 28b by dragging with the mouse cursor.

FIG. 22C shows the movement of a specific area in the Gantt 28. When a start point and an end point of the Gantt 28a are fixed, dragging one of the points (for example, the point at the time T2). As in Gantt 28b, the other point T1 moves in proportion to the distance from the fixed point.

Figure 22D shows the state from time T1 to the end, such as Gantt 28a to Gantt 28b, by dragging the end of Gantt 28 with the point at time T1 fixed. This shows an example in which the whole is enlarged. These editing types can be selected using menu commands.

FIG. 23 is an explanatory diagram for relating a plurality of gantts.

Assume that a point T3 of the gantt 28a as shown in FIG. 23A is related to a point T4 of the gantt 28b. With the two Gantts 28—a and 28—b selected by clicking the mouse, move the mouse cursor to the point T4 and press the mouse button. Then, as shown in FIG. 23B, in a state where the mouse button is pressed, the mouse cursor is moved to T3 to be related, and the pressing of the mouse button is stopped. This operation is called "drag". As a result, as shown in FIG. 23C, the point T4 is related to the point T3, and is adjusted to the position at the same time. In this case, point T4 is referred to as a reference point, and point T3 is referred to as a referenced point. The information related to this association is stored in the graphic information storage unit 13, and this reference-referenced relationship is maintained until an operation of canceling the association is performed.

For example, as shown in FIG. 23D, suppose that point T4 of Gantt 28b is related to Point T2 of Gantt 28a. Here, it is assumed that the operation of moving the entire Gantt 28a to the right by dragging the point T2 of the Gantt 28a with the mouse is performed. Since point T4 of Gantt 28b is related to point T2 of Gantt 28a, Gantt 28b also moves to the right as shown in FIG. 23E.

Also, as shown in Figure 23F, point T4 of Gantt 28b is related to point T2 of Gantt 28a, and point T6 of Gantt 28b is related to point T7 of Gantt 28c. Suppose that it had been.

Here, it is assumed that an operation of moving the Gantt 28a by dragging the point T2 of the Gantt 28a to the right is performed. Movement of point T2 also moves point T4 to the right, but point T6 of Gantt 28b is

Because it is related to T7, point T6 does not move and the distance between them is reduced, as shown in Figure 23G. When the point T2 further moves to the right, the points T4, T5, and T6 overlap at the gantt 28b, as shown in FIG. 23H.

An example of the basic data structure of the graphic information set in the graphic information storage unit 13 shown in FIG.

FIG. 24 shows a data correlation diagram according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and is described in the same manner as FIG.

Figure header information 50-1, 1, 50-2, 50-3 is provided for each of general figure information 14, change reference figure information 15, and time display figure information 16. It is. In the graphic header information of FIG. 24, the extension information and the like described in FIG. 8 are not shown.

The change reference graphic information 15 has, in particular, position cursor information 52, which includes the coordinates (X, y) of the position cursor 29, a pointer to point information on the left and right, and a position cursor between the two points. Information on the ratio of the 29 positions ratio is stored. Point information 51-3, 51-4, and 51-5 connected to the figure header information 50-2 are information relating to points P0, P1,... Described in the example shown in FIG. 17D.

The time display graphic information 16 is information relating to the Gantt 45-1 shown in FIG. 17D, and also includes the graphic header information 50-3 and the point information 51-6, 51-7,... Although not shown, time cursor information is provided in the same format as the position cursor information 52. In the example of FIG. 17D, the point information 51—6, 51—7,... Are the information indicating the positions of TO, T1,, and the point information 51—3, 51—4, ... respectively.

Further, the figure header information 50-3 points to the current time indicating section 53 to manage the current time.

As described above, points on the graphic 26 can be associated with other points, such as the position cursor 29. In the example of the data relationship shown in FIG. 24, the point of the point information 51-1 is associated with the position cursor 29, and pointers are mutually set between the point information 51-1 and the position cursor information 52. Note that information (not shown) related to the type of relationship, such as deformation reference and rotation reference, is also set in the point information 51-1.

Fig. 24 shows the relationship information of one piece of general figure information 14, change reference figure information 15, and time display figure information 16, which are figure 26, change reference figure 27, and time display figure, respectively. It is provided for every 28, and generally a plurality is provided. In Figure 24, the general figure information 14 and the change reference figure Although a reference / reference relationship is defined with information 15, in the example of a Gantt relationship shown in FIG. 23, a reference-reference relationship is defined between a plurality of time display graphic information 16. The information to be set is the same pointer information as the relation information between the general graphic information 14 and the change reference graphic information 15 shown in FIG.

A data structure indicating a state for managing information on a state change is described with reference to FIG.

The process of creating the change reference graphic 27 and the Gantt 45 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in the same manner as FIGS. UA and 11B. The Gantt 45 corresponds to the time display pattern 28 (Figures U A and B).

As described in the editing examples of FIGS. 17 to 19, when associating any graphic 26 with the change reference graphic 27, the processing shown in FIG. 11B is executed. The operation of associating a plurality of gantts 45 is also realized by a similar process. The _t (a) position designation device 12 inputs figure creation information.

(b) Create the time display graphic information 16 of the corresponding Gantt and display it in the time display area 25.

(c) Enter the type of reference, such as deformation Z movement Z rotation, by the relation operation shown in Fig. 4, and refer to the point on figure 26 and the position cursor 29 on the change reference figure 27. . The input information is reflected in the data structure shown in FIG. The type of reference such as deformation, movement, and rotation specifies the type of how to change the figure including the reference point with respect to the movement of the referenced point. Since this is not the gist of the second embodiment, further detailed description is omitted.

(d) The designated position and shape of the figure 26 to be displayed are calculated so that the designated reference relationship is maintained in accordance with the position cursor 29.

The process of changing the figure 26 over time is described in the same manner as in FIG. With the position designation device 12 or the announcement program To specify the time progress.

521 Determines the position of the time cursor 30 according to the specified current time or the automatically advanced current time.

522 Calculates the internal division value S between the point T 1 immediately before the time cursor 30 and the point T 2 immediately after. That is, the ratio ratio between the two points at the position of the time cursor 30 is calculated based on the point information 51-1 and 51-2 shown in FIG.

523 The position of the position cursor 29 is determined from the points P 1, P 2 on the change reference graphic 27 corresponding to the time points T l, T 2 and the internal division value S.

S24 The position cursor information 52 shown in FIG. 24 is updated, and the position cursor 29 is moved to a new position on the change reference graphic 27.

S25 Determine whether there is a point related to the position cursor 29, and if any point refers to the position cursor 29, execute the processing (f). <S26 According to the relation between the position cursor 29 and the reference point. Move to figure 26 with reference point. Perform Z rotation Z transformation operation. This process is repeated for all figures associated with the position force sol 29.

FIG. 13 explains how to change the state of FIG. 26 over time.

S 31 The position of the time cursor 30 is determined according to the specified current time or the automatically advanced current time.

S32 Calculates the internal division value S between the point T1 immediately before the time cursor 30 and the point T2 immediately after. That is, the ratio ratio between the two points at the position of the time cursor 30 is calculated based on the point information 51-1 and 51-2 shown in FIG. 24. _c S33 The figure corresponding to the time points Tl and T2 at the time From the state information of 26 and the internal value S, the interpolated value of each state specified value is calculated, and the state of the figure 26 is determined.

S34 Whether or not the figure 26 is to be erased is determined from the relationship between the position of the Gantt 45 and the current time or the state designation value indicating the appearance Z disappearance. 5 35 If the figure 26 is not erased, the figure 26 is redrawn according to the state obtained in S33.

5 36 To erase figure 26, erase figure 26 from figure display area 24.

The time can be updated in the following way.

(1) The time cursor 30 is moved to an arbitrary position on the time display area 25 by the position specifying device 12 such as a mouse.

(2) Input a numerical value indicating an arbitrary time in the time specification dialog window (not shown).

(3) Select "Continuous execution" from the menu. As a result, the time is advanced by a fixed amount for each predetermined unit time.

(4) Call the time setting number prepared in the system in advance from the application program. This function has the following form, for example:

• When specifying continuous execution

Set_Tinie (start time, end time, update speed or interval) • When continuous execution is not specified

Setjime (set time)

When continuous execution is specified, the start time, end time, and how fast the time is updated are specified by parameters. If continuous execution is not specified, specify the update time using a parameter.

As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, on the time display area provided separately from the graphic display area, the times at which the plurality of graphics change are edited in association with each other, and the plurality of graphics are edited. It is possible to change the time of each figure without losing the synchronizing relationship by synchronizing and coordinating Z with the time. Therefore, it is possible to easily edit a plurality of figures that change in time in synchronization.

4 Θ Next, a third embodiment will be described.

In the conventional figure editing operation, the type of various editing operations is specified in advance. After that, it is necessary to specify the shape to be deformed and to specify the amount of deformation. Also took a long time. In a third embodiment devised to solve the above problem, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device capable of directly instructing various types of editing operations on a figure without switching an editing mode.

FIG. 25 is a functional diagram illustrating the operation principle of the third embodiment according to the present invention.

In FIG. 25, 110 is a processing device including a CPU and a memory, 111 is a display device for displaying a figure to be created and Z-edited, and 112 is a position designation device for designating a position on a display screen such as a mouse keyboard. , 113 is a graphic information storage unit, 114 is graphic header information having management information on the graphic, 115 is point information of a point that determines the shape of the graphic, 116 is a binding point setting processing means, 117 is a graphic operation processing means, and 118 is a graphic operation processing means. A grip display mode setting processing means, 119 is a grip display processing means, 120 is a binding point, and 121 is a cursor indicating an operation position on the display screen.

The graphic information of each graphic displayed on the display device 111 is composed of graphic header information 114 and point information 115 constituting the graphic. In the present invention, one or more points in the figure can be defined as binding points, and information on the binding points is stored in the figure information storage unit 113 as attributes of the figure or the point.

The binding point setting processing means 116 defines one or more points in the figure to be edited as binding points based on the setting at the time of creating the figure or the instruction input by the position specification device 112, and sets it in the figure information. Processing means 0

The graphic operation processing means 117 is a position specifying device in the graphic editing operation. 1 Based on the positional relationship between the point on the figure specified by 12 and the binding point defined in the figure in advance, the deformation operation of the figure is determined. The process of updating the figure based on the determined deformation operation Means.

The grip display mode setting processing means 118 sets a mode as to whether or not to display a point as a designated climbing candidate in a figure editing operation in a specific mode that can be distinguished from other normal points. This is a processing means to be set. When the grip display mode is set, the grip display processing means 119 displays, in a first specific mode, a binding point among the points to be designated as the candidate to be designated, This is processing means for displaying points to be designated target candidates other than the binding points in a second specific mode different from the first specific mode. If the grip display mode is not set, only the original figure is displayed.

When editing a figure, the figure operation processing means 117

1 Holds the point on the figure specified by 12 and moves that point to the specified position. At that time, the deformation operation is determined by referring to the graphic information storage unit 113 and the positional relationship between the designated point and the binding point. In other words, if the specified point is a binding point, edit to move the figure with the specified point. If the specified point is not a binding point but on a predetermined side of the figure, edit the figure by rotating the figure around the binding point in the direction of the specified point. If the specified point is neither the bound point nor the specified side, edit to deform the figure in the moving direction of the specified point according to the positional relationship between the point and the bound point.

When the grip display mode is set by the grip display mode setting processing means 118, the figure is specified by the grip display processing means 119 to facilitate the operation. The target points are indicated by specific marks that are easy to see. In particular, the binding points and the candidate points to be specified are displayed with different marks. Binding points can be defined for each figure in advance. For example, assume that the upper left vertex of the rectangular shape is defined as a binding point 120 as shown in FIG. 25B.

In the figure editing operation, as shown in (a), when the binding point 120 is designated by the cursor 121 and moved while holding it, the entire rectangular shape is moved together with the binding point 120 to the destination of the cursor 121. Moved to Further, as shown in (b), when a point on the side is designated by the cursor 121 and moved, the rectangular shape is rotated in the moving direction of the cursor 121 around the binding point 120. As shown in (c). When the lower right vertex of the binding point 120 is indicated by the cursor 121 and is moved, the rectangular shape is enlarged (or reduced) so that the lower right vertex is located at the destination. You. In addition, for operations on other points, the deformation operation of the rectangular shape is performed depending on the positional relationship with the binding point 120. <According to the conventional technology, the type of editing operation such as movement or rotation is determined in advance. Although the reference point of the deformation and the amount of the deformation had to be sequentially specified, according to the present invention, the editing operation is performed by the position relation between the specified point on the figure and the binding point 120. Since the type is automatically selected, there is no need to specify the type of editing operation each time, and various editing operations can be performed directly on the figure. That is, various deformation operations can be performed only by dragging a point with a mouse cursor or the like.

Since the binding point 120 is defined not as an attribute of the operation but as an attribute of the shape itself, it is not necessary to specify the binding point for each operation, and the shape can be freely deformed only by operating one point in the shape. And operability is good. In particular, because a figure can be moved, rotated, or deformed simply by pulling one point of the figure with a mouse cursor or the like, humans can perform intuitively natural operations. O

FIG. 26 is a diagram showing an example of a data structure of graphic information according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 26A, the figure information includes a group of figure header information 114 and point information 115-1, 115-2,... Which determine the shape of the figure. The figure header information 114 has information on the range of a rectangle occupied by a figure (this is called an “extent”), information on the number of points, a pointer to the first point information 115, and the like. In addition, it has pointer information to the point defined as binding point 120.

If the figure is a polygon, for example, as shown in FIG. 26B, the rectangle is an area in the range shown by the dotted rectangle. The extension information in the graphic header information 114 is information such as the coordinates (X 0, y 0) of the point at the upper left corner of the extent, the width w of the extent, and the height h of the extent. The point information 115 has position information (xl, y1), (x2, y2),... About the vertices of the polygon, pointer information to the next point, and the like. The graphic header information 114 and the point information 115 can have various other attribute information as needed.

In the example shown in FIG. 26, the point (x 2, y 2) indicated by the point information 115-2 is defined as the binding point 120.

FIG. 27 shows an example of a graphic operation according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 130a represents the operation start point, and 130b represents the operation end point.

For a two-dimensional figure as shown in (a) of Fig. 27, a binding point 120 is defined at the upper left point, and the next point on the same side as the binding point 120 is defined as the operation start point 130a. Assume that the user has dragged to the operation end point 130b by the position specifying device 112 shown in FIG. Based on the positional relationship between the binding point 120 and the operation start point 130a, the figure operation processing means 117 performs uniaxial deformation on the original rectangle, and stretches the rectangle as shown by the dotted line in (a). I will.

If the operation start point 130a coincides with the binding point 120, the whole figure is translated so that the binding point 120 comes to the operation end point 130b as shown by the dotted line in (b).

When the operation start point 130a is not a vertex but a point on the side, the figure is rotated around the binding point 120 in the direction of the operation end point 130b as shown in (c).

Further, when the operation start point 130a is located diagonally to the binding point 120, the rectangle is biaxially deformed as shown in (d), and the figure is similarly deformed to the position of the operation end point 130b (enlargement). Z reduction).

Even when the figure is a three-dimensional figure, similarly, the deformation operation is determined in the following manner according to the positional relationship between the binding point 120 and the operation start point 130a.

(E) of FIG. 27 shows an example of uniaxial deformation. When the operation start point 130a is the next point on the same side as the binding point 120, the rectangular shape is stretched in the direction of the operation end point 130b.

If the operation starting point 130a is a diagonal point that is not on the same plane as the binding point 20, a three-dimensional similarity transformation is performed on the three-dimensional figure, as shown in (ί), and the entire figure is Zoom in or out.

If the operation start point 130a is on a diagonal point on the same plane as the binding point 120, as shown in (g), two-axis deformation is performed up to the operation end point 130b and the length and width are expanded and contracted. Let it.

(H) in Fig. 27 is an example of single-axis rotation. In this example, two binding points, 120-1 and 120-2, are defined as binding points. When the point on the side of this figure is dragged as the operation start point 130a to the operation end point 130b, the three-dimensional figure is rotated about the axes of the binding points 120-1 and 120-2 as indicated by the dotted lines. . Figure 27 (i) and (j) show an example of editing operation on a continuous line. For example, as shown in (i), if a vertex different from the binding point 120 is dragged as the operation start point 130a, one point deformation occurs. The shape is deformed up to the operation end point 130b. When the operation start point 130a is the binding point 120, the whole figure is translated as shown in (j).

FIG. 28 is an explanatory view of grip display according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In the case of the present invention, the deformation of the figure is determined by the positional relationship between the binding point and the operation start point 130a as described with reference to FIG. 27. It is necessary to be able to immediately identify which point is the binding point and which point of the figure can be the target of the operation on the surface of the display device 111.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, a point that is a candidate for specification in the figure editing operation is set as “grip J, and the grip can be displayed with a specific mark. <A grip has a binding point grip indicating a binding point. And regular grips other than binding points.

When a point is not selected as an operation target by the position specifying device 112 shown in FIG. 25, the normal grip is displayed as a square mark as shown in (a) of FIG. 28A. On the other hand, the binding points are displayed as diamonds, as shown in (b). When those points are selected as operation targets by the position specifying device 112, the marks are enlarged and displayed as shown in (c) and (d), respectively. For example, the binding point grip may be displayed as a circle, or each mark may be displayed so that it can be identified by color.

These marks are generally unnecessary after // the creation of the figure is completed. Therefore, in this embodiment, when a graphic to be operated is selected, a grip is automatically displayed. Either the grip non-display mode or the grip display mode can be selected by menu or command. In non-grip mode, if a shape is rectangular, only its shape is displayed, as shown in Figure 28B. When the grip display mode is selected, as shown in FIG. 28C, the binding point 120 and other operation specification target points are displayed in the form of a grip shown in FIG. 28A.

In this example, nine grips are provided for a rectangular figure. Although not shown, if the figure is, for example, a circle, nine grids are provided similarly to the circumscribed rectangle.

FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram of a process according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 29A shows an example of a binding point setting process. When a figure is created (step S41), one point on the figure predetermined by the system according to the figure is defined as a binding point as a system default, and the figure shown in FIG. It is set in the header information 114 (step S42).

This binding point can be added or changed by an operation. For example, when a change in the binding point is detected in step S43, the binding point information in the figure header information 114 is changed in step S44. .

FIG. 29B shows an example of the setting processing of the grip display mode. The grip display (non-display) mode can be set by operating menus and the like. In step S51, the designated grip display (non-display) mode is set. The grip display / non-display is switched according to the determination in step S52, and if the mode is the grip display mode, the grip as shown in FIG. 28C is displayed in step S53.

FIG. 29C shows an example of processing relating to a figure editing operation. In step S61, a specified operation target figure is selected. Next, in step S62, hold the point in the specified shape and start dragging. You. Dragging is an operation that holds a point on the mouse cursor when a mouse button or the like is pressed, and moves that point when the mouse cursor moves with the mouse button pressed. In step S63, the positional relationship between the binding point and the operation start point is analyzed with respect to the drag, and processing such as movement S64, rotation S65, and various types of deformation S66 for the figure is executed based on the positional relationship. The figure resulting from the operation processing is redrawn on the screen of the display device 111 by the processing in step S67.

FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram of the operation processing of a three-dimensional figure according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The processing shown in FIG. 29C is executed in more detail as shown in FIG. Note that a predetermined deformation operation is similarly performed on a graphic other than the three-dimensional graphic, depending on the operation start point, that is, the positional relationship between the drag start position and the binding point.

(a) If the grip on the figure on the display screen is designated by the mouse button, it is detected and set as the drag start position.

(S71).

(b) By referring to the graphic information storage unit 113, it is determined whether or not the drag start position is a binding point (S72). If the drag start position is the binding point, the whole figure is translated to the drag end point. Let

(S73) Performs editing, and then proceeds to processing S81.

(c) If the drag start position is not at the binding point, determine whether it is on the side of the solid figure (S74), and if it is on the side of the solid figure, rotate the figure around the binding point. (S75) Edit. Thereafter, the process proceeds to processing (S81).

(d) If the drag start position is on the next point on the same side as the binding point, rotate around the binding point (S76), and see 1 from the binding point along the extension of the side to that point. Perform axial deformation (S77). Then processing

Proceed to (S81). (e) If the drag start position is not on the same side but at a diagonal point on the same plane (S78), biaxial deformation is performed on the extension of the plane (S79). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S81.

(f) In other cases, the 3-axis similar deformation is performed (S80), and editing is performed to enlarge or reduce the figure while keeping the same shape. Thereafter, the process proceeds to the process (S81), and the process is completed (S82).

(g) Redraw the figure on the surface based on the deformation result (S81). Of course, the present invention is not limited to the system shown in FIG. 15, and can be implemented by a general-purpose computer, a workstation 'type computer, or a general personal computer.

As described above, according to the third embodiment of the present invention, various editing operations can be performed by directly instructing a figure without switching between editing modes such as rotation, movement, and deformation. Editing can be performed quickly with simple operations. In particular, various editing operations can be realized simply by pointing and moving one point of a figure, and it is possible to provide users with an intuitively natural editing function.

Next, as a fourth embodiment, a description will be given of a diagram relating editing processing method and an editing apparatus, which are capable of associating and editing graphic elements when a plurality of figures are created and edited.

The fourth embodiment of the present invention enables a group of figures having a certain relation to be handled as a part together including their positional relations, and also edits each of the related figure elements. The purpose is to automatically edit related figures according to the type of association by operation.

FIGS. 31A, 31B and 31C are functional diagrams for explaining the operation principle of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The device of the fourth embodiment is a processing device, a display device and a position It is composed of a position designation device.

In FIG. 31, reference numeral 210 denotes a processing device including a CPU and a memory, 211 denotes a display device for displaying a figure to be created and edited, and 212 denotes a position on a display surface such as a mouse or a keyboard. Position specifying device, 213 is a figure information storage unit, 214A and 214B are figure header information having management information about the figure, 215A and 215B are shape determination point information about points that determine the shape of the figure, 216 is reference point information relating to a point related to the shape determination point of another figure, 217 is a relation processing means, 218 is a figure operation processing means, 220 A and 220 B are figures to be edited, 221 Represents a reference point, 222 represents a referenced point defined in relation to the reference point 221, and 223 represents a binding point defined in the figure in advance.

The graphic information of each graphic displayed on the display device 211 includes graphic header information 214 and shape determining point information 215 for determining the shape of the graphic. Further, in the embodiment, when a point in a figure is related to a shape determining point of another figure, the information is stored in the figure information storage unit 213 as referenced point information 216. The shape determination point of another figure related to the referenced point is called a reference point.

The associating processing means 217 inputs the reference Z reference relationship between the shape determination point for determining the shape of the figure and an arbitrary point on another figure from the position specifying device 212, thereby obtaining the reference point information. This is a processing means for creating 216 and setting the information on the reference point information 216 in the corresponding shape decision point information 215.

When the referenced point moves due to the movement or deformation of the figure including the referenced point, the figure operation processing means 218 moves the reference point referring to it in cooperation with the referenced point, and moves the figure having the reference point. Alternatively, it is a processing means for performing editing for deformation.

Process in the fourth embodiment of the present invention is performed as follows _n For example, the associating processing means 217 transmits, to the position between the reference point 221 in the graphic 220B and the referenced point 222 in the graphic 220A shown in FIG. Input from the designated device 212. If the association instruction information is input, the referenced point information 216 having the position information of the referenced point 222 and the like is created, and the referenced point information 216 is derived from the shape decision point information 215 indicating the reference point 221. Point.

When the figure 220A is moved by the editing operation on the figure 220A, for example, as shown in FIG. 31C, the referenced point 222 also moves. When detecting the movement of the referenced point 222, the figure operation processing means 218 examines the referenced point information 216, obtains the shape decision point information 215 of the reference point 221 that references the referenced point 222, and refers to it. The coordinate 220 is moved to the point 222, and the figure 220B having the reference point 221 is moved or deformed. In the example of FIG. 31C, as the referenced point 222 moves upward, the reference point 221 also moves upward, and the figure 220B is deformed. In this example, since the right-hand corner of the bottom of figure 220B is predefined as binding point 223, binding point 223 is kept stationary and figure 220B is deformed to extend vertically.

The relationship of reference Z reference includes at least the types of rotation, deformation, and similar deformation to enlarge or reduce. This type is determined by inputting the linking instruction information or the positional relationship between the binding point 223 and the reference point 221 in the same figure. Note that the binding point 223 is a point or a plurality of points that can be set in advance for each figure, and this information is stored in the figure information storage unit 213.

When the reference point 221 is in a rotational reference relationship with respect to the referenced point 222, the figure 220B having the reference point 221 rotates around the binding point 223, for example, with the movement of the referenced point 222. Reference point 221 is the referenced point

If there is a deformed reference to 222, move the referenced point 222 Accordingly, the figure 220B having the reference point 221 is deformed, for example, as shown in FIG. 31C. If the reference point 221 is in a similar deformation reference relationship with respect to the referenced point 222, the figure 220B having the reference point 221 is deformed so as to be enlarged or reduced with the movement of the referenced point 222. .

In the present invention, the point that determines the shape of the figure 220B is set as the reference point 221 and is related to the referenced point 222 on the other figure 220A, and the related information is stored in the figure information storage unit 213, thereby obtaining the figure 220B. Even when A is deformed or moved by the editing operation of the position specification device 212, the figure 220B having the reference point 221 can be deformed and moved so that the relationship specified in advance is maintained.

Also, when another shape determining point of the figure 220B having the reference point 221 such as the binding point 223 is moved downward by the position determining device 212, the relationship between the reference point 221 and the referenced point 222 is maintained. Therefore, the figure 220B can be deformed so as to extend downward long.

FIG. 32 is a diagram showing an example of a data structure of graphic information according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

For example, the reference Z reference relationship between the graphic 220A and the graphic 220B shown in FIG. 32A is managed by a data structure as shown in FIG. 32B.

Graphic header information 214A, 214B is provided for each graphic. The figure header information 214A and 214B (similarly for 214B etc.) include information on the range of the rectangle occupied by the figure (this is called an extension), the number of shape determination points, and It has information such as evening c. It also has pointer information to the shape decision point information defined as the binding point in the figure.

The extent of the figure 220A shown in FIG. 32A is an area in the range illustrated by the dotted rectangle, and the extent information in the figure header information 14A is represented by the coordinates (xO, y) of the upper left corner of the extent. 0) and the extension And information such as the width w of the extension and the height h of the extension. The shape determination point information 215A has position information (x1, y1) related to the vertex of the figure 220A, pointer information to the next point, and the like. If the shape determination point is a reference point associated with a point in another figure, a field for binding the referenced information and a field indicating the type of reference are the shape determination point information 215A. It is provided inside.

The shape decision point information 215B shown in FIG. 32B is information on the shape decision point regarding the reference point 221 in FIG. 32A, and the referenced point information 216 is information on the referenced point 222. The referenced point 222 does not need to be a shape determining point, but is any point that depends on the shape determining point of the figure 220A. Here, assuming that the position of the referenced point 222 depends on the three shape determination points a, b, and c, the referenced point information 216 includes a pointer to those points and a degree of dependence k, , K _b and k _e are set.

As shown in Figure 32C, the coordinates of each point a, b, and c are

(X,, y,), (x b, y b), and (x _{_c,} y _c), the coordinates of the referenced point 222 (X p, yp). Dependencies k,, k _b , k _c from three points are

x β k »+ X bkb + X ckc ⁼ xp

y »k. + y _b k _b + y _c k _c = y _P

k. + k _b + kc = 1

Is the value obtained as the solution of the simultaneous equations.

The referenced point information 216 is dynamically created by the association processing means 217, and has mutual pointer information with the shape determining point information 215B as the reference point 221. If there is more than one referenced point in figure 220A, it has pointer information to the next referenced point information.

Figure 33 during _c Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of deformation reference according to an embodiment of the present invention, 230 a cursor indicating the operating position on the surface plane, 231 various operations An icon 232, which is an area for designation, represents a display screen.

A mouse is used as the position specifying device 212 shown in FIG. 31, and the position of the cursor 230 changes according to the operation of the mouse. As shown in FIG. 33A, an icon 231 for instructing an operation of deformation reference is selected by a cursor 230, and further, figures 220A and 220B to be related are selected.

Here, when associating the shape determination point on the upper right of figure 220B with one point on the lower side of figure 220A, move cursor 230 to the upper right point of figure 220B as shown in FIG. Press the button. Then, with the mouse button held down, the cursor 230 is moved as shown in FIG. 33C. The operation of moving the force sol 230 while holding down the mouse button in this way is called dragging.

As shown in FIG. 33D, when the cursor 230 is moved to a point to be related to the shape 220A and the drag is completed, the end point of the drag is recognized as the reference point 222 as shown in FIG. The figure 220B is deformed so that the reference point 221 which is the drag start point of the object coincides with the position of the referenced point 222.

The associating processing means 217 shown in FIG. 31 performs the following processing for the associating operation, and stores the reference relationship between the reference point 221 and the referenced point 222 in the graphic information storage unit 213 and the related information. Set information that the relationship is a deformed reference.

After such a relationship between the figures is performed, for example, as shown in FIG. 33F, if an operation of moving the figure 220A to the left is performed, the referenced point 222 also moves to the left. The reference point 221 is moved, and the graphic 220B is automatically edited so that the width of the graphic 220B is reduced. Further, as shown in FIG. 33G, when the figure 220A moves to the right, the reference point 221 also moves to the right, and the figure 220B is deformed long. The above graphic operation processing is performed by the graphic operation processing means 218 shown in FIG. Is executed based on the related information of the reference to the graphic information storage unit 213

FIG. 34 is a diagram showing an example of rotation reference according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. As in the example shown in FIG. 33, a mouse is used as the position designation device 212, and the force sol 230 is The position shall change.

As shown in FIG. 34A, an icon 231 for instructing a rotation reference operation is selected by a cursor 230, and further, figures 220A and 220B to be related are selected.

Here, when associating the shape decision point at the tip of the arrow of FIG. 220B so that it always points to a point on the left side of FIG. 220A, the cursor 230 is moved to the shape 220B as shown in FIG. 34B. To the tip of the arrow and press the mouse button. Then, with the mouse button pressed,

Drag as shown in 34C. By dragging, the shape 220B is rotated, and a rubber band as shown by a dotted line is displayed.

When dragging is completed at the relevant point on the shape 220A, the shape 220B faces the drag end point (reference point 222) on the shape 220A with the binding point 223 as the center, as shown in FIG. 34D. The image is rotated and displayed again.

In order to maintain this relationship, the association processing means 217 shown in FIG. 31 stores in the graphic information storage unit 213 a reference between the reference point 221 and the referenced point 222, a referenced relationship, and information indicating that the relationship is a rotation reference. Set.

After such a relationship between the figures is performed, for example, as shown in FIG. 34E, when an operation of moving the figure 220A downward is performed, the processing of the figure operation processing means 218 based on the rotation reference relation information is performed. Thus, the referenced point 222 and the reference point 221 cooperate, and the rotation operation of the figure 220B is performed so that the reference point 221 at the tip of the arrow of the figure 220B faces the direction of the referenced point 222. Will be FIG. 35 is a diagram showing an example of similarity transformation reference according to the embodiment of the present invention. The similarity transformation is to enlarge or reduce a figure 220 B having a reference point 221 according to the movement of the referenced point 222. Operation. After selecting the similar deformation operation, as shown in Figure 35A, the reference point 221 on Figure 220B is related to the referenced point 222 on Figure 220A by the same operation as Figure 33 or Figure 34. . The associating processing means 217 sets, in the graphic information storage unit 213, the reference relation between the reference point 221 and the reference point 222 and information indicating that the relation is a similar deformation reference.

After such figure association is performed, for example, as shown in FIG. 35B, when an operation of moving the figure 220A is performed, the processing by the figure operation processing means 218 based on the similarity deformation reference relation information is performed. The reference point 221 is operated so as to operate in coordination with the referenced point 222, a new position of the reference point 221 is calculated, and the figure 220B is enlarged or reduced.

FIG. 36 is a diagram illustrating an example of movement reference according to the embodiment of the present invention.

A moving reference is a type of deformed reference. As shown in FIG. 36A, when the binding point 223 of the figure 220B is selected as the reference point 221 in the deformation reference operation, that is, when the binding point 223 and the reference point 221 match, the moving reference is performed.

In the case of moving reference, as shown in FIG. 36B, when the figure 220A having the referenced point 222 moves, the figure 220B is also moved as it is due to the relationship between the reference point 221 and the referenced point 222. .

FIG. 37 is a diagram illustrating an example of a deformation operation using a binding point according to the embodiment of the present invention.

As described in the examples such as Fig. 33, the type of reference can be specified by the icon 231 to determine the rotation or deformation operation.

Depending on the positional relationship between 223 and reference point 221, the deformation operation can be determined. W 4/06 0 In FIG. 37, the position of the reference point 221a is the position of the reference point before the reference point moves, and the position of the reference point 221b is the position of the reference point along with the movement of the reference point. This represents a virtual position in the dragging direction.

Assume that the binding point 223 is defined at the upper left point in the two-dimensional figure as shown in FIG. 37A, and the next point on the same side as the binding point 223 is the reference point 221a. . Assuming that the reference point 221a is pulled to the position of the reference point 221b by the movement of the referenced point (not shown), the graphic operation processing means 218 determines that the binding point 223 and the reference point 221a have a positional relationship. It recognizes that uniaxial deformation is necessary, and performs deformation that stretches the rectangle as shown by the dotted line in Fig. 37A.

If the reference point 221a coincides with the binding point 223, the whole figure is translated along with the binding point 223 (reference point) as the referenced point moves, as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 37B.

When reference point 221a is not a vertex but a point on the side, as shown in Figure 37C, the figure is rotated around constraint point 223 in the direction of reference point 221b, which is the direction of the referenced point. Let it.

Further, as shown in FIG. 37D, when the reference point 221a is at a position diagonal to the binding point 223, the rectangle is biaxially deformed, and the figure is similarly deformed to the position of the reference point 221b (enlargement Z reduction). )

Even when the figure is a three-dimensional figure, similarly, the deformation operation is determined as follows, for example, according to the positional relationship between the binding point 223 and the reference point 221a.

Fig. 37E shows an example of uniaxial deformation. When the reference point 221a is the same point on the same side as the binding point 223, the rectangle is stretched in the direction of the reference point 221b.

If the reference point 221a is a diagonal point that is not on the same plane as the binding point 223, a three-dimensional similarity transformation is applied to the three-dimensional figure as shown in Figure 37F. To enlarge or reduce the entire shape.

When reference point 221a is on a diagonal point on the same plane as binding point 223. As shown in Fig. 37G, biaxial deformation is applied up to reference point 221b, and the length and width are reduced. Expand and contract.

FIG. 37H shows an example of uniaxial rotation. In this example, two binding points 223-1 and 223-2 are defined as binding points. The point on the side of this figure is the reference point 221a, and if this is pulled to the reference point 212b with the movement of the referenced point, the binding points 223-1 and 223-1

The three-dimensional figure is rotated around the 223-2 axis as shown by the dotted line.

FIGS. 37 1 and 37 J are examples of reference editing operations on a continuous line. For example, as shown in FIG. 37I, if a vertex different from the binding point 223 is set to the reference point 221 a, the reference point moves along with the movement of the referenced point. The figure is deformed up to the reference point 221b by one point deformation. When the reference point 221a is the binding point 223, the whole figure is translated as shown in FIG. 37J. Although the example shown in FIG. 37 is an example of a deformation operation of a figure referring to a referenced point, in the present embodiment, instead of moving the referenced point, the position of the reference point 221a is directly moved by a mouse or the like. Even when the shape decision point is dragged to the position of the reference point 221b, the figure is edited by confirming the same deformation operation.

FIG. 38 is an explanatory diagram of a grip display according to the embodiment of the present invention.

In the case of the present invention, when selecting a point to have a reference Z reference relationship, it is necessary to determine which point is a shape determination point, and in particular, which point is a binding point, on the surface of the display device 21 1. Need to be able to identify them in terms of size. It is also necessary to be able to quickly distinguish between points defined as reference points and points that are not reference points.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, points that are candidates for designation A "grip" is used to indicate a grip with a specific mark. There are two types of grips: a grip point indicating a binding point and a normal grip other than a binding point.

In the case of a point that is not selected as an operation target, the normal grip is displayed as a square mark as shown in (a) of Fig. 38A. On the other hand, the binding points are displayed in a diamond shape as shown in (b). When those points are selected as operation targets by the position specification device 212 shown in FIG. The image is enlarged and displayed as shown in (c) or (d). In addition, these grips are displayed as marks in the upper row of (a) if they are not reference points, and are displayed as white marks in the lower row of (a) if they are reference points. . For example, the binding point grip may be displayed in another shape such as a circle, or each mark may be displayed so that each mark can be identified by color.

These marks are generally unnecessary after the creation and editing of a figure has been completed. Therefore, in this embodiment, the mode is switched between the grip non-display mode and the grip display mode automatically when a figure is selected or by a display mode selection designation operation.

In non-grip mode, if a shape is rectangular, only its shape is displayed, as shown in Figure 38B. When the grip display mode is selected, the grip is displayed according to the type of each shape determination point as shown in FIG. 38C. In this example, nine grips are provided for a rectangular figure. Although not shown, if the figure is a circle, for example, a rectangular figure surrounding the circle is assumed, and nine grips are automatically provided at positions corresponding to the grip positions.

FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram of the associating process according to the embodiment of the present invention. The association processing means 217 shown in FIG. 31 associates a plurality of figures by steps S91 to S97 of the processing shown in FIG. S91 Enter the specification of figure reference specification mode such as deformation reference, rotation reference, and similar deformation reference. This processing may be executed after the figure selection in the next S92.

S92 Input selection instructions by mouse operation for multiple figures to be related, and recognize the objects to be related.

S 93 For the selected figure, a grip as shown in Fig. 38 is displayed for easy operation.

S94 If the grip on the selected figure is dragged by operating the mouse button, the shape decision point of the drag start point is recognized as the reference point.

S 95 The drag end point on another selected figure is set as the referenced point. If the drag end point is not on another selected figure, the association operation is invalidated.

S 96 Once the referenced point is determined, the dependent point is determined from the positional relationship between the shape determining point in the figure and the referenced point, the dependency is calculated, and the referenced point information 216 is created, and the graphic information is created. It is stored in the storage unit 213. In the referenced point information 216, position information, a dependent point, a degree of dependence, a type of reference, and the like of the referenced point are set, and a pointer to the shape determination point information 215 of the reference point is set. On the other hand, a pointer to the referenced point information 216 is set in the shape determination point information 215 of the reference point.

S 97 Updates the figure with the reference point to match the referenced point and redisplays it. One

FIG. 40 is an explanatory diagram of the graphic operation processing according to the embodiment of the present invention. The graphic operation processing means 218 shown in FIG. 31 executes the editing operation on the graphic having the associated points by the processing steps S101 to S107 shown in FIG. This process is called when a point on the figure is operated with the mouse and when the related referenced point is moved by some operation.

6 Θ It is run out.

First, the figure operation processing is started (S100). Then

S 101 Receive notification of point movement on figure.

S 102 Rotate / Transform Determines the edit mode of the figure to which the point moves, based on the edit mode such as similar deformation, the type of reference, or the positional relationship between the moving point and the binding point, and moves, rotates, Z, and similar deformation. Perform the figure editing process.

S103 Redraws the updated figure on the display device 211.

S104 Searches the graphic information storage unit 213 to check whether the updated graphic has the referenced point information 216. If there is no referenced point information 216, the process ends (S108).

If there is reference point information 216 in S 105, a new position of the reference point is calculated from the dependence on other points. Assuming that the referenced point depends on three points a, b, and c, and the degrees of dependence on each point are k,, k „, and kc, the new coordinates (x _P , yp) of the referenced point are

X p ⁼ X β k »" h X bkb + X cke

yp = y. k. + y _b k _b + yck _c

Is calculated. Incidentally, (X,, y.) , (X b, y b), (xc, yc) is the point a, b, the coordinates of c after graphics update.

S 106 Based on the difference between the old coordinate and the new coordinate of the referenced point, the movement amount of the reference point corresponding to the type of reference is calculated, and the movement of the point is notified. That is, the editing operation of the figure having the reference point that refers to the referenced point is recursively executed.

S 107 If there is a next reference point, steps S 105 and S 106 of the processing are repeated in the same manner.

As is clear from the description of the fourth embodiment, the present system can be realized by a processing mechanism using ordinary sequential processing. The information 215 and the like can be configured as an object consisting of an operation procedure and an internal state value, and can be realized by an object-oriented processing mechanism that performs processing by message'passing. In this case, it is possible to simplify the processing configuration especially for the reference Z reference relationship and the like. References between figures Z-referenced relations can be resolved by a relation release operation. When the relation release operation is performed, the referenced point information 216 is deleted, and each point is treated as an independent figure.

As described above, according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, a group of figures having a certain relation, including their positional relations, can be collectively handled as a part, and By performing an editing operation on each of the figure elements, the associated figures can be automatically edited without contradiction according to the type of association. In particular, in the case of animation editing such as animation, grouping multiple figures by the conventional method would fix the whole figure, but according to the relation of figures according to the present invention, Since the graphic element can be deformed and the part affected by the deformation can be automatically followed, the editing operation becomes extremely easy.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. A figure editing apparatus including a display device (11) for displaying a figure, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing the figure.

Graphic display processing means (17) for providing a graphic display area (24) on the screen of the display device (11) and displaying a graphic in the area;

Time display processing means (18) for providing a time display area (25) on the surface of the display device (11) and displaying a time display graphic (28) along a time axis in the area;

A change reference figure (27) serving as a reference for moving or deforming the figure over time is created and edited on the figure display area (24) by inputting the position designation device (12), and the change is made. Change information setting processing means (19) for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between the positions of some points on the reference graphic (27) and the positions of some points in the time display graphic (28);

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic (28) or the passage of the designated time, the position of the corresponding point on the change reference graphic (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation, Based on the position of the point, edits are made to move or deform the figure and update the display of the figure.

A graphic editing device that changes with time, characterized by comprising:

2. A graphic display processing means (17) for providing a graphic display area (24) on the screen of the display device (11) and displaying a graphic in the area; Attribute value display processing means for providing an attribute value display area and displaying an attribute value display graphic along an axis of a predetermined attribute value in the area; A change reference figure (27) serving as a reference for moving or deforming the figure according to the change of the attribute value is created on the figure display area (24) by inputting the position designation device (12). A change information setting processing means (19) for setting correspondence information between the positions of some points on the graphic (27) and the positions of some points in the attribute value display graphic in the digging information (19);

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current attribute value on the attribute value display graphic or the change of the designated attribute value, the position of the corresponding point on the change reference graphic (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation. A display update processing means (20) for performing editing for moving or deforming the figure based on the position of the point and updating the display of the figure;

Figure editing device _{c that} changes according to attribute values characterized by having

3. A change reference figure (27) serving as a reference for moving or deforming the figure with the passage of time is input to the position specifying device (12), and a graphic display area on the display screen of the display device (11) is inputted. (24) Create on Z edit, and change information setting processing means (19) for setting information on time corresponding to the positions of some points on the change reference figure (27) in the figure information;

Binding relationship setting means (22) for defining a binding relationship between a point in the graphic to be edited and a point indicating the current time position on the change reference graphic (27), and setting the binding relationship in the graphic information; ,

According to the elapse of the designated time, the position of the point corresponding to the current time on the change reference figure (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation, and the position of the point and the binding relation set in the figure information are obtained. Display update processing means (20) for determining the Z-deformation movement of the figure based on

Item 2. The graphic editing device according to Item 1, comprising:

4. Binding relation setting processing means for defining a binding relation between a point in the graphic to be edited and a point indicating the current attribute value on the change reference graphic (27), and setting it in the graphic information (22) When,

In accordance with the change of the designated attribute value, the position of the point corresponding to the current attribute value on the change reference graphic (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation, and the position of the point and the constraint set in the graphic information are obtained. A display update processing means (20) for determining the movement of the shape based on the relationship, determining the deformation operation, and updating the shape display,

3. The figure editing apparatus according to paragraph 2, comprising:

5. Change information setting processing means (19) for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between some states of the designated graphic and the positions of some points in the time display graphic (28);

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic (28) or the elapse of the designated time, the state of the graphic to be displayed is obtained by interpolation calculation, and the display update for displaying the graphic based on the obtained state is performed. Processing means (20);

The time display figure is input by the position specifying device (12).

(28) The graphic editing apparatus according to (1), further comprising: time editing processing means (23) for changing the position of a point associated with the state of the figure above independently of the state information of the corresponding figure. .

6. Change information setting processing means (19) for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between some states of the designated graphic and the positions of some points in the attribute value display graphic;

In accordance with the movement of the point indicating the current attribute value on the attribute value display graphic or the progress of the designated attribute value, the state of the figure to be displayed is obtained by interpolation calculation, and the display based on the obtained state is displayed. Update processing means (20); Attribute value editing processing means for changing the position of a point associated with the state of a graphic on the attribute value display graphic independently of the state information of the corresponding graphic by inputting by the position specifying device (12);

3. The figure editing apparatus according to paragraph 2, comprising:

7. A graphic editing apparatus including a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing the graphic.

A graphic display area (24) is provided on a surface of the display device (11), and a graphic and a change reference graphic (27) serving as a reference for changing the position or shape of the graphic are displayed in the graphic display area (24). A processing means (17) and a time display area (25) provided on a surface of the display device (11), and a time display figure (28) along a time axis in the area, and the change reference figure (28). 27) The time display processing means (18) displayed in correspondence with (27), a point representing a time on the time display graphic (28), and a point representing a position on the change reference graphic (27) are associated with each other. A graphic information storage unit (13) for storing information;

A point on the change reference figure (27) serving as a reference for changing the position or shape of the figure with the passage of time is input by the position specifying device (12) on the figure display area (24), and the change is made. Change information setting processing means (19) for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between the positions of some points on the reference graphic (27) and the positions of some points in the time display graphic (28);

With respect to the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic (28) or the elapse of the designated time, each change corresponding to the point indicating the current time in the time display graphic (28) The position of a point on the reference figure (27) is obtained by interpolation calculation, the position or shape of each figure is synchronously processed based on the position of each point, and the display of the figure is updated. Processing means (20);

Some points in one time display figure (28) are related to some points in another time display figure (28), and points related to the movement of one point Time display editing processing means (21) for editing the time display figure (28) so that

Synchronous editing apparatus for graphics, characterized by comprising:

8. Stores information that associates a point representing time on the time display graphic (28) with a state of one or more graphics displayed in the graphic display area (24) that changes with time. A graphic information storage unit (13)

Change information setting processing means (19) for setting, in the graphic information, correspondence information between some states of the designated graphic and the positions of some points in the time display graphic (28);

With respect to the movement of the point indicating the current time on the time display graphic (28) or the elapse of the designated time, each figure corresponding to the point indicating the current time in the time display graphic (28) Display update processing means (20) for synchronously processing state changes of a plurality of figures, including appearance and disappearance of figures, and updating the display of figures by calculating the state of

Some points in one time display figure (28) are related to some points in another time display figure (28), and points related to the movement of one point Time display editing processing means (21) for editing a plurality of time display figures (28) so that

The synchronous editing apparatus for figures according to claim 7, comprising:

9. A figure editing apparatus having a display device (11) for displaying a figure, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating / editing a figure. ,

Bind one or more points in a figure represented by a set of points A graphic information storage unit (13) for storing as points in the graphic information;

A binding point setting processing means (16) for defining one or more points in the figure to be edited as binding points and setting them in the figure information;

In the editing operation of the figure, the deformation operation of the figure is determined by the positional relationship between the point on the figure specified by the position specifying device (12) and a binding point defined in the figure in advance, and the determined Figure operation processing means (17) for updating figures based on deformation

A binding point type figure editing apparatus characterized by comprising:

10. A grip display mode setting processing means for setting a mode for displaying or not displaying a point to be a candidate for specification in a figure editing operation in a specific mode that can be distinguished from other normal points (18) When,

When the grip display mode is set, of the points to be designated, among the points to be designated, the binding points are displayed in a first specific mode, and points to be designated other than the binding points. And a grip display processing means (19) for displaying in a second specific mode different from the first specific mode.

Item 10. The graphic editing device according to Item 9, comprising:

11. A figure editing apparatus having a display device (11) for displaying a figure, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing the figure. In the editing processing method,

A process in which one or more points in the figure to be edited are defined as binding points and set in the figure information;

A process of holding a point on the figure specified by the position specifying device (12) in the figure editing operation and moving the point to the specified position;

When the specified point is a binding point, move the figure with the specified point, and when the specified point is on a predetermined side of the figure, A figure is rotated around the binding point in the direction of the specified point, and if the specified point is neither the binding point nor the specified side, the figure is specified according to the positional relationship between that point and the binding point The process of editing to deform in the direction of movement of the point

Binding point type figure editing processing method characterized by having:

12. A graphic editing device having a display device (11) for displaying a graphic, a position specifying device (12) for specifying a position on a display screen, and a processing device (10) for creating and editing the graphic. In the editing processing method,

A process of inputting instruction information for associating a reference Z with a reference between a shape determination point for determining a shape of a figure and an arbitrary point on another figure by the position specifying device (12); ,

A process of setting relation information between the reference point (21) and the referenced point (22) in the graphic information by inputting the relation instruction information;

When the figure (20A) including the referenced point (22) is moved or deformed, the reference point (21) referring to the referenced point (22) is moved in cooperation with the referenced point (22). A process of performing an edit to move or deform a figure (20B) having a reference point (21).

A graphic association editing processing method characterized by having

13. The relationship of the reference Z reference includes at least the types of rotation, deformation, and similar deformation to enlarge or reduce,

In response to the movement or deformation of the figure (20A) including the referenced point (22), the reference point (21) referring to the referenced point (22) is moved in cooperation with the referenced point (22), 13. The edit processing method according to claim 12, wherein the graphic (20B) having the reference point (21) is edited to be rotated, deformed, or analogously deformed according to the type of the reference.

14. Display device for displaying figures (11), position specifying device for specifying positions on the display screen (12), and processing unit for creating and editing figures (10) In a graphic editing device having

A graphic information storage unit (13) for storing information on a shape determination point for determining the shape of the figure and a referenced point (22) referred to from other points in the figure;

The reference point (21) and the referenced point are input by inputting the reference Z reference relationship between the shape determination point for determining the shape of the figure and an arbitrary point on another figure from the position specifying device (12). Associating processing means (17) for setting information related to the point (22) in the graphic information;

In response to the movement or deformation of the figure (20A) including the referenced point (22), the reference point (21) referring to the referenced point (22) is moved in cooperation with the referenced point (22). A figure operation processing means (18) for editing a figure (20B) having a reference point (21) to move or deform it;

A graphic associating and editing apparatus characterized in that the graphic associating apparatus is provided.

7 g