Display controlling apparatus, display controlling method, and recording medium

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a display control device, a display control method, and a recording medium for displaying at least one icon on a screen.

2. Description of the Related Art Nowadays, personal computers and household appliances that process digital data have been widely recognized. The popularity of these digital devices makes it easy for the public to record television broadcasts on hard disks or other media, and store still or moving images captured by users in memory cards or other appropriate storage devices.

Therefore, the recorded still images and other forms of content can be very large. Then, the corresponding thumbnail icon can be used to search and retrieve the stored content items. These tasks are performed by, for example, an information processing device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-74322. This public device is based on time series and displays a list of thumbnail icons representing content items in a spiral manner.

However, with these information processing devices, content items corresponding to displayed thumbnail icons are not structured hierarchically. This means to retrieve all thumbnail icons. If there are a large number of thumbnail icons to be displayed, it takes a long time to check an icon when searching for the desired content item. This is a frustratingly inefficient operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and the present invention provides the following display control device, display control method, and recording medium, which are designed in a manner that allows a user to easily understand where any given icon is located in the entire hierarchical structure Display icons representing hierarchical data.

When carrying out the present invention, and according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display control device that displays icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control device includes: an operation part, the operation part at least obtains how to display on the screen based on the operation performed by the user

200510056371. 2 An instruction to display the icons at the top; a storage part for storing at least the data constituting the icons in the layer; a control part, the control part generating a graph for displaying the icons in the layer on the icon arrangement axis Image data; and a display output portion that outputs image data generated by the control portion to the display device; wherein, when the operating portion obtains an instruction from the user, the control portion generates image data in the following manner in accordance with the instruction, Wherein, the method is: each icon arrangement axis moves to different directions together with the icons arranged and displayed on each axis.

By using the display control device according to the first aspect of the present invention, on the screen, based on a user instruction, each icon arrangement axis moves to a different direction together with the icons arranged thereon, and the icon exists on the icon arrangement axis. The layer has nothing to do. This structure allows the icons of different layers on the designated icon arrangement axis to move together, so that the user can clearly see the trajectory of the icon movement and understand the layer where these icons exist. This makes it possible to shorten the time required to search for the desired icon layer by layer.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display control device that displays icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control device includes: an operation part that at least obtains an instruction on how to display icons on the screen based on an operation performed by a user; a storage part that is used to store at least the data constituting the icons in the layer; The control section, the control section generates image data for displaying the icons in the layer in the following manner: the icons in one layer are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the first direction on the screen, and the icons in one layer are arranged in the first direction on the screen. The icons under the icon at the intersection of one direction and the second direction are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, and the icons under any icon arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction are arranged in the third direction. On the arrangement axis, where the third direction intersects the plane formed by the first direction and the second direction; and a display output section that outputs the image data generated by the control section to the display device; wherein, when the operation When partly obtaining an instruction from the user for selecting any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, the control part generates image data in the following manner according to the instruction, wherein the manner is: the icon arrangement in the second direction The axis moves from the second direction to the first direction, the icon arrangement axis of the third direction moves from the third direction to the second direction, and the selected icon moves to the intersection of the first direction and the second direction. If the icons in the second direction are arranged on the axis

200510056371.2 There are more icons under any icon in the first column, and these other icons can be displayed in the third direction.

By using the display control device according to the second aspect of the present invention, starting from the icons in the specified layer arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the first direction, the icons on the screen are arranged in the first, second, and third directions. On the axis. The icons arranged in the second direction are formed by the icons displayed below the icons displayed at the intersection of the first and second directions in the first direction. The icons arranged in the third direction are below the icons arranged in the second direction. Compared with the icons in the layer above or below the icons at the intersection, this structure makes it particularly easy for the user to visually recognize the layer of the icon displayed at the intersection.

Preferably, the image data has a first direction area formed in the first direction, a second direction area formed in the second direction, and a divided space bounded by the first and second direction areas; when the operating part is obtained from the user When an instruction is used to select any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, the control part moves the icon arrangement axis in the first direction to the divided space according to the instruction. In contrast to the icons in the layer above or below the icons at the intersection, this structure allows the user to visually recognize the layer of the icon displayed at the intersection.

Preferably, the icon arrangement axis in the first direction is a horizontal axis, the icon arrangement axis in the second direction is a vertical axis, and the icon arrangement axis in the third direction is a depth axis.

Preferably, when the operating part obtains an instruction from the user for selecting any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, the control part moves the icon arrangement axis in the third direction to the second in the following manner according to the instruction. Direction, the method is: a plurality of icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the third direction in an overlapping manner are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction in a non-overlapping manner. This structure makes the icons arranged in the third direction under the selected icon move from the third direction to the second direction together with the icon arrangement axis, and draw their tracks on the screen at the same time, so that the icons in the same layer are arranged in In the second direction, in order to display at a glance. In contrast to the icons in the upper and lower layers, this display allows the user to clearly see the icons in the currently selected layer. With the help of the icons displayed at a glance, the user can effectively search for the desired icon. Alternatively, the icons in the layer above the selected icon can be moved to the divided space for display along with their icon arrangement axis, and their trajectories can be drawn at the same time. The icons moved to the upper level of the divided space are then displayed in a slightly overlapping manner.

200510056371. 2 First, to minimize the display space they occupy on the screen.

The icon displayed at the intersection is preferably highlighted. This structure makes it possible for the user to visually recognize the currently selected layer.

The selected icon is preferably highlighted. This structure enables the user to visually recognize the selected icon, thereby reliably selecting any desired icon.

Preferably, the icon in the highest layer in the icon group may be at least one of image, text, and sound buttons representing the type of content to which the icon group belongs. At least layer the icons by category or by type.

Preferably, the icon group includes thumbnails corresponding to the type group of the content.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display control method for displaying icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control method includes the steps of: obtaining at least instructions on how to display icons on the screen based on operations performed by the user; generating image data for displaying the icons in the layer on the icon arrangement axis; and outputting the generated image data ; Wherein, if an instruction is obtained from the user, the image data generation step generates image data in the following manner in accordance with the instruction, wherein the manner is: each icon arrangement axis moves together with the icons arranged and displayed on each axis to Different directions.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display control method for displaying icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control method includes the following steps: obtaining at least instructions on how to display icons on the screen based on operations performed by the user; generating image data for displaying the icons in the layer in the following manner, the manner being: on the screen The icons in one layer are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the first direction, and the icons under the icons at the intersection of the first direction and the second direction are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, and the icons arranged in the second direction The icons under any one of the icons on the arrangement axis are arranged on the icon arrangement axis of the third direction, where the third direction intersects the plane formed by the first direction and the second direction; and output the generated image data; wherein, If an instruction for selecting any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction is obtained from the user, the image data generation step generates image data in the following manner according to the instruction, wherein the manner is: the second direction The icon arrangement axis of the icon moves from the second direction to the first direction, the icon arrangement axis of the third direction moves from the third direction to the second direction, and the selected icon moves to the intersection of the first direction and the second direction.

200510056371.2 The fork.

Preferably, the image data has a first direction area formed in the first direction, a second direction area formed on the second direction, and a divided space bounded by the first and second direction areas; if the user instruction is obtained When an instruction for selecting any icon arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction is obtained in the step, the image data generation step moves the icon arrangement axis in the first direction to the divided space according to the instruction.

Preferably, if an instruction for selecting any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction is obtained in the step of obtaining the user instruction, the image data generation step will follow the instruction to place the icon arrangement axis in the third direction below the axis. The method moves to the second direction, and the method is: a plurality of icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the third direction in an overlapping manner are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction in a non-overlapping manner.

Preferably, the icon displayed at the intersection or any selected icon is highlighted.

The icons in each layer preferably include an icon group represented by folder icons, or an icon group displaying icons in a stacked manner.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium recording a computer program in a computer-readable manner, wherein the computer program causes a computer to execute a display control method for displaying icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control method includes the following steps: obtaining at least instructions on how to display icons on the screen based on operations performed by the user; generating image data for displaying the icons in the layer in the following manner, the manner being: on the screen The icons in one layer are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the first direction, and the icons under the icons at the intersection of the first direction and the second direction are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction, and the icons arranged in the second direction The icons under any one of the icons on the arrangement axis are arranged on the icon arrangement axis of the third direction, where the third direction intersects the plane formed by the first direction and the second direction; and output the generated image data; wherein, If an instruction for selecting any one of the icons arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the second direction is obtained from the user, the image data generation step generates image data in the following manner according to the instruction, wherein the manner is: the second direction The icon arrangement axis of moves from the second direction to the first direction, the icon arrangement axis of the third direction moves from the third direction to the second direction, and the selected icon moves to the intersection of the first direction and the second direction.

200510056371. 2 According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display control device that displays icons representing data in each layer on a screen. The display control device includes: an operation part that at least obtains an instruction on how to display icons on the screen based on an operation performed by a user; a storage part that is used to store at least the data constituting the icons in the layer; A control section, the control section generates image data for displaying at least one icon in the layer on a screen; and a display output section, the display output section outputs the image data generated by the control section to a display device; Wherein, the image data has a first direction area formed in the first direction of the screen, a second direction area in the second direction of the screen, and a divided space on the screen divided by the first direction area and the second direction area , Wherein the second direction intersects the first direction; and wherein, the control part generates image data in the following manner: the icons in one layer are arranged on the icon arrangement axis and displayed in the first direction area , The icons in the lower layer of the icons displayed at the intersection of the first direction area and the second direction area are arranged on the icon arrangement axis and displayed in the second direction area, and the icons in the upper layer at the intersection are included in the The icons in the first layer are arranged on the icon arrangement axis and displayed in the divided space. If there is no icon in the layer above the icon displayed at the intersection, the icon will not be displayed in the divided space; if there is no icon in the layer below the icon at the intersection. Icon, the icon is not displayed in the second direction area.

By using the display control device according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the icons are arranged on the icon arrangement axis in the first direction and the second direction. The icons arranged in the second direction are the icons in the layer below the icons displayed at the intersection in the first direction. The icons in the layer above the icons displayed at the intersection are displayed in the divided space. Compared with the icons in the layer above or below the icon layer at the intersection, this structure makes it easy for the user to visually recognize the icon displayed at the intersection.

Preferably, if the operating part obtains an instruction for scrolling the icon in the first direction area based on the operation performed by the user, the control part generates image data in the following manner: The icon scrolls in the first direction, and the icons in the lower layer of the icon displayed at the intersection of the first and second direction areas are arranged on the icon arrangement axis and displayed in the second direction area; if the operation is partly based on the operation performed by the user While obtaining an instruction for scrolling the icon in the second direction area, the control part generates image data in the following manner: the icon in the second direction area is scrolled in the second direction. this

200510056371. The second structure makes it possible to display the icons in the layer below each icon arranged in the first direction.

Preferably, if the operation part obtains an instruction for selecting an icon in the second direction area based on the operation performed by the user, the control part generates image data in the following manner, in the manner: displaying in the first direction area The icons of are moved to the division space together with the icon arrangement axis on which these icons are arranged, and the icon selected at the intersection of the first and second direction areas, and the icons in the second direction area are moved together with the icon arrangement axis on which these icons are arranged Move to the first direction area, and the icons in the layer below the selected icon are arranged on the icon arrangement axis of the second direction and displayed in the second direction area. For this structure, the icons in the layer above the selected icon move to the division space together with their icon arrangement axis, and are displayed in the division space, and their trajectory is drawn on the screen; in the layer below the selected icon The icons of, along with their icon arrangement axis, move from the second direction area to the first direction area, and are displayed in the first direction area while drawing their trajectory on the screen. Compared with the layers above and below the icon, this structure makes it easy for users to clearly understand the currently selected layer. This allows the user to efficiently search for the desired icon with the help of hierarchical icons.

The icon displayed at the intersection is preferably highlighted. This structure makes it possible for the user to visually recognize the currently selected layer.

The selected icon is preferably highlighted. This structure enables the user to visually recognize the selected icon, thereby reliably selecting any desired icon.

The icons in each layer preferably include an icon group each represented by a folder icon, or an icon group displaying icons in a stacked manner. In the case where there are multiple icons, for the icons displayed in the group, this structure allows the user to easily understand their existence.

Preferably, the icon in the highest layer in the icon group may be at least one of image, text, and sound buttons representing the type of content to which the icon group belongs. At least layer the icons by category or by type.

Preferably, the icon group includes thumbnails corresponding to the type group of the content.

According to the present invention, as outlined above, the icons are layered, so that any selected icon displayed on the screen is diametrically opposite to the icon in the layer above or below the currently selected layer. This makes it possible to improve the efficiency of searching for desired content items.

200510056371.2 In the following description and drawings, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more clear.

Brief Description of the Drawings Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the basic configuration of a multimedia reproduction system embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a functional block diagram showing the basic structure of a multimedia reproduction system embodying the present invention; Fig. 3 is an overview of multimedia reproduction embodying the present invention A flowchart of the steps of how the system generally works; Fig. 4 is a flowchart summarizing the steps of performing display processing based on the direction command of the present invention; Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram depicting the basic structure of the menu screen according to the present invention; Fig. 6 is A flowchart of the steps constituting the display processing of the present invention, the processing including the movement of the display axis; FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the display processing according to the present invention, the processing including the movement of the display axis; FIG. 8 is the display processing according to the present invention Another explanatory diagram, the processing includes the movement of the display axis; FIG. 9 is another explanatory diagram of the display processing according to the present invention, the processing includes the movement of the display axis; FIG. 10 is another display processing according to the present invention Fig. 11 is another explanatory diagram of the display process according to the present invention, which includes the movement of the display shaft; Fig. 12 is another explanatory diagram of the display process according to the present invention, The processing includes the movement of the display axis; FIG. 13 is another explanatory diagram of the display processing according to the present invention, which includes the movement of the display axis; FIG. 14 is the change of the display screen shown in FIG. 13; and

200510056371.2 Figure 15 is another variation of the display screen shown in Figure 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description and in the drawings, components that have substantially the same function and structure are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their repeated description is omitted.

(Components of Multimedia Reproduction Device) The basic configuration of the multimedia reproduction system 100 embodying the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 1. The multimedia reproduction system 100 has a multimedia reproduction device (display control device) 200 at its core, and the multimedia reproduction device 200 is connected to an external television (display device) 110 via a connection cable 112, for example. The television 110 has, for example, the ability to display or output images and sounds output by the multimedia reproduction device 200.

The operation section 210 is connected to the multimedia reproduction apparatus 200 through a connection cable 212, for example. The operation section 210 obtains an instruction for how to reproduce content based on a user's operation. The operating portion 210 generally doubles as a video game controller or remote controller that controls various functions of the multimedia reproduction device 200.

Various forms of information (such as broadcast content, network content) are output to and input to the multimedia reproduction device 200 through various media. For example, broadcast content is input to the multimedia reproduction device 200 through the television cable 130 as data representing images and sounds in the broadcast program. The broadcast content may be recorded into the multimedia reproducing device 200, or may be reproduced from the multimedia reproducing device 200 through decoding and other processing, and output to the television 110.

The network content of the website is input into the multimedia reproduction device 200 via a network 140 such as the Internet, for example. The network content may be stored in the multimedia reproduction device 200 or used according to its video game function or other functions.

The multimedia reproduction device 200 has the ability to write data on and/or read data from the optical disc 150 or the memory card 160 such as a DVD or CD or a removable memory card 160. For example, the data constituting a movie or a music album is read from the optical disc 150 into the multimedia reproduction device 200, and the data constituting the still or moving image captured by the user is read from the memory card 160.

200510056371.2 In the reading device 200.

Now, a multimedia reproduction device embodying the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a schematic functional block diagram showing the basic structure of the multimedia reproduction device 200. As shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the multimedia reproducing device 200 includes the above-mentioned operation part 210, a data input/output part 220, a display output part 230, a control part 240, a storage part 250, and a content execution part 260. The multimedia reproduction device 200 may be composed of hardware or software, or a combination of both. In terms of hardware, the multimedia reproduction device 200 may be implemented by, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) of a computer, a hard disk drive, a memory, and a rendering circuit. In terms of software, the multimedia-dependent reproduction device 200 can be implemented by, for example, a program that constitutes the following functions: data input, data retention, image processing, and rendering. As described above, the functional components shown in FIG. 2 can be implemented in different forms using hardware, software, or a combination thereof.

The operation part 210 generally has a direction determination unit 214 and an instruction determination unit 216. The direction determination unit 214 obtains an instruction related to one of the four directions (up, down, left, and right) based on a user operation. The instruction determination unit 216 obtains instructions for content reproduction, stop, menu screen call, and other actions based on user operations. The direction determining unit 214 and the instruction determining unit 216 are composed of, for example, a combination of a plurality of buttons, circuits, and programs, and the circuits and programs are used to detect and recognize operations performed on the buttons, respectively. The button connected to the direction determining unit 214 may take the form of a lateral key or a joystick. The information obtained by the operation section 210 is forwarded to the display output section 230, the control section 240, and the content execution section 260.

The data input/output section 220 includes, for example, a broadcast input unit 222 that receives broadcast content through the TV cable 130; a network communication unit 224 that inputs and outputs data such as network content through the Internet connection 140; and a disk reader that reads data from an optical disc 150 such as a DVD Unit 226; and the memory card reading unit 22 that writes data to the memory card 160 and reads data from the memory card 160 & the data input to the data input/output section 220 is forwarded to the display output section 230, the control section 240, and the storage section 250 And the content execution part 260.

The storage part 250 stores broadcast content input through the TV cable 130, network content input through the Internet cable 140, content such as music and movies read from the optical disc 150, and still and moving images read from the memory card reading unit 228 . Storage part 250 also

200510056371.2 contains data constituting various icons, where the icons are, for example, a plurality of media icons (also called function icons) representing media types, and a plurality of content icons representing content items, where the media can be downloaded from the media Reproduce the data. Furthermore, the storage part 250 can store the data that constitutes a folder icon and a thumbnail icon, where the folder icon represents a folder, and the thumbnails labeled thumbnails represent photos. These icons are displayed on the menu screen for content selection.

For this embodiment, the content item corresponding to the thumbnail icon can be formed by any combination of still images, moving images, and/or sounds. For example, television programs, movies, music, radio programs, and/or photos are provided in a desired combination.

The display output section 230 includes, for example, a decoding unit 232 for decoding encoded data; an output buffer 236 for temporarily storing reproduced data to be output to the television 110; and an output buffer 236 for temporarily storing the reproduced data to be output to the television 110 for screen The screen buffer 23& of the image data directly displayed and the combination processing unit 234 for combining the reproduction data and the image data. Consistent with the user instruction obtained by the operating section 210, the decoding unit 232 decodes the encoded reproduction data such as broadcast content, movies, or music received from the data input/output section 220 or the storage section 250, and places the decoded data into the output bufferDevice236in. The screen buffer 238 contains, for example, menu screen image data generated by the control section 240 as image data for direct display on the screen. The combination processing unit 234 combines the reproduced data in the output buffer 236 and the menu screen image data in the screen buffer 238, converts them into analog signals, and outputs them to the television 110.

The control section 240 includes, for example, a menu management unit 242 for managing menu items, where the menu items are the type of media represented by the media icon and the functions provided by the media; content control for controlling various contents during reproduction or execution Unit 244; an effect processing unit 248 for processing icon movement on the menu screen; and an image generating unit 246 for generating image data constituting the menu screen.

The menu management unit 242 stores content items saved in the storage part 250, content items input through the data input/output part 220, and currently selected media and content items. The content control unit 244 provides control of reproducing content from a medium, inputting data through the data input/output part 220, inputting data from the storage part 250, and performing processing by the content execution part 260 according to a user instruction obtained by the operation part 210.

200510056371.2 The first image generating unit 246 generates, for example, a menu screen composed of a plurality of horizontally arranged media icons and a plurality of vertically arranged content icons. The two arrangements cross approximately in the middle of the screen. The media icons and content items displayed at or near the intersection are highlighted to create a clear contrast with the rest of the icons.

The effect processing unit 248 scrolls and displays the arranged media icons and content icons, and highlights the media icons and content icons of interest. For example, the target icon is highlighted in color and shape to distinguish it from other icons; the chromaticity of the icon is changed, or switched to a different color, or enlarged and displayed in the final shape together with the transfer movement.

The content execution part 260 executes a content program such as a video game program retrieved from the storage part 250 or read from the optical disc 150 by the disc reading unit 226. Based on the user instruction obtained by the operation section 210, the content execution section 260 executes the operation of the content program (ie, the video game program in this case), and outputs the image and sound of the video game to the display output section 230.

(Operation steps of multimedia reproduction device) The following describes the sequence of operation steps of the multimedia reproduction device embodying the present invention with reference to FIG. 3. Fig. 3 is a flowchart of the basic steps constituting the overall processing performed by the multimedia reproduction device of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the user first powers on the multimedia reproduction device 200, and the multimedia reproduction device 200 proceeds to step S110. In step S110, the image generation unit 246 retrieves data such as media icons and thumbnail icons from the storage section 250. , And produce the menu screen. The display output part 230 causes the television 110 to display the menu screen thus generated.

In step S120, a check is made to determine whether the operation section 210 obtains an instruction related to any one of the up, down, left, and right directions from the user. If the instruction is found to be obtained, it proceeds to step S130. In step S130, the effect processing unit 248 executes display processing based on the obtained direction instruction.

The display processing based on the direction instruction that occurs in this embodiment will now be described with reference to FIG. 4. Fig. 4 is a flowchart outlining the steps of a display process performed based on a direction command according to the present invention.

200510056371.2 As shown in FIG. 4, when the display processing based on the direction instruction is started, the effect processing unit 248 first checks the operation part 210 in step S210 to determine whether the user's instruction is related to the horizontal direction.

If the instruction is found to be related to the horizontal direction in step S210, the media icons arranged on the horizontal axis are moved horizontally in step S220. In step S230, among the horizontally moving media icons, the icon located at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical axes is highlighted to indicate that the icon has been selected.

In addition to displaying the frame of the media icon with a thick line, the highlighting in this embodiment may also include changing at least one of brightness, chroma, and color saturation; bracketing or marking the media icon from the outside; 3D display.

In step S420, at least one set of thumbnail icons contained under the selected medium icon is displayed on the vertical axis. The thumbnail icon group is a combination of at least one thumbnail icon belonging to one of different types such as sports and music. The thumbnail icon at the top of a given thumbnail icon group is a representative icon that represents the type or category of the icons in the group.

The representative thumbnail icon is similar to the folder containing the icons in the thumbnail icon group. If no thumbnail icon is located under the representative icon, only the representative thumbnail icon is displayed to indicate the applicable type, or all can be omitted.

Thumbnail icons are images that point to content items such as broadcast programs and movies. The thumbnail icon corresponds to the content item --. That is, the thumbnail icon plays a role of expressing meta-information related to the corresponding content item.

If the instruction is found to be related to the vertical direction in step S250, the thumbnail icons arranged on the vertical axis corresponding to the selected medium icon are moved vertically in step S260.

In step S270, among the thumbnail icon groups that move vertically, the group immediately below the selected medium icon is highlighted. This means that the thumbnail group has been selected.

In step S280, for example, the attributes of the thumbnail group, such as its type name, are displayed on the right hand side of the group. The display attribute allows the user to more accurately identify the thumbnail icon. This ends the sequence of steps constituting the display process executed based on the direction instruction in the present embodiment.

In the following, in conjunction with FIG. 5, the above-mentioned display processing executed based on the direction command is further explained through the initial menu screen that appears when power is turned on. Figure 5 is a diagram depicting the Lays provided by this embodiment

200510056371.2 The illustration of the basic structure of the first single screen.

As shown in FIG. 5, the menu screen that appears when the TV 110 is turned on displays at least one media icon arranged on the horizontal axis and at least one set of thumbnail icons on the vertical axis. Although the horizontal and vertical axes are actually shown on the screen of FIG. 5, this is not intended to limit the present invention. Alternatively, the axis is provided in a virtual manner and thus hidden from the screen.

In Figure 5, the horizontal and vertical axes shown intersect at right angles. Alternatively, the two shafts are 60 with each other. The corners intersect. As another alternative, the horizontal and vertical axes may not be straight, but curved.

The thumbnail label group arranged on the vertical axis is located in a layer below the media icon arranged on the horizontal axis. For example, under the "musical note" medium icon are representative thumbnail icons representing piano, violin, etc. at the top of each thumbnail group.

For example, each thumbnail group is composed of one or more content items belonging to a corresponding category such as piano or violin. If there is no thumbnail icon corresponding to any content item, only the top thumbnail icon (ie, representative thumbnail icon) is displayed or all of them may be omitted.

Select it by displaying the desired media icon at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical axes. As shown in Figure 5, the selected media icon is highlighted in gray or some other appropriate color.

When the media icon is selected, the thumbnail group contained under the selected icon is displayed. If the designated thumbnail icon group contains multiple thumbnail icons, they are displayed in overlapping tiles as shown in FIG. 5. For a thumbnail icon group with the attribute "Piano" in FIG. 5, four thumbnail icons are displayed in a stacked manner, and a representative thumbnail icon A1 is at the top. If there is no thumbnail icon under the representative thumbnail icon, only the representative thumbnail icon is displayed or can be hidden on the screen. Alternatively, each representative thumbnail icon may be replaced by a folder icon or the like.

If the direction determining unit 214 finds in step S210 that an instruction related to the horizontal direction is received from the user, it proceeds to step S220. In step S220, the effect processing unit 248 moves the media icons arranged on the horizontal axis in the horizontal direction, as shown by the hollow arrow in FIG. 5.

If the direction determining unit 214 finds in step S250 that it has received an instruction related to the vertical direction from the user, it proceeds to step S260. In step S260, the effect processing unit 248 moves the thumbnail icons arranged on the vertical axis in the vertical direction , As shown in the hollow of Figure 5

200510056371.2 as shown by the arrow.

In Figure 5, the thumbnail group with the attribute "Piano" is displayed in a thick frame, which means that this icon group has been selected. If the user issues another instruction to make a decision on the selected thumbnail icon group, multiple thumbnail icons belonging to this group are displayed on the screen. This feature is discussed in detail later.

When the display processing based on the obtained direction instruction is ended in step S130, a check is made in step S140 to determine whether an instruction for selecting a thumbnail group is received through the operation section 210. If the selection instruction is found to be received in step S140, display processing including the movement of the display axis is executed in step S150. The subroutines constituting this display processing are discussed in detail below. The display axis refers to, for example, a horizontal axis, a vertical axis, and a depth axis.

Now, how to perform the display processing including the movement of the display axis in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 6. Fig. 6 is a flowchart outlining the steps of the display processing according to the present invention, which requires moving the display axis.

As shown in FIG. 6, the effect processing unit 248 first moves the current horizontal axis to the storage area (that is, the divided space) in step S310. One or more media icons are arranged on the horizontal axis used as the display axis (or the icon arrangement axis of the F column icons on it). These media icons are moved to the save area and displayed in stacked tiles. Alternatively, the horizontal axis may be a virtual axis that does not appear on the screen.

When the media icons arranged on the horizontal axis in a non-overlapping manner are moved to the storage area, they are arranged in overlapping tiles. This arrangement saves the area where the media icon is displayed.

In step S320, the medium icon containing the selected thumbnail group is highlighted on the screen. For example, the icon can be highlighted by displaying the icon frame with a thick line, changing the icon color, or making the icon flash.

In step S330, the current vertical axis is moved to the position of the horizontal axis. The vertical axis refers to the display axis (that is, the icon arrangement axis on which the icons are arranged). When the media icon is moved to the storage area, the vertical axis and the thumbnail group arranged on it move to the position where the media icon is displayed on the horizontal axis.

The thumbnail groups arranged on the horizontal axis belong to the layer below the media icon moved to the storage area after being moved. On the screen, display the thumbnails contained under the selected media icon

200510056371.2 The icon group. The thumbnail group under the designated medium icon indicates the type or kind of content related to the medium represented by the medium icon in question.

When a media icon moved to the save area is highlighted on the screen, it is possible to indicate on the screen the position of the currently selected layer in the entire hierarchical icon structure, wherein the hierarchical icon structure includes a plurality of media and Content type layer.

In step S340, one or more thumbnail icons included in the highlighted (ie, selected) thumbnail icon group are arranged on the vertical axis, wherein the thumbnail icon group is the thumbnail icon group arranged on the horizontal axis. One of the slightly icon groups.

In step S340, one or more thumbnail icons to which the selected group belongs are extracted and arranged on the vertical axis. The thumbnail icons arranged vertically are displayed on the screen of the television 110.

At the intersection of the horizontal and vertical axes, the thumbnail icon at the top of the selected thumbnail icon group is displayed. Below the thumbnail icon at the top are other icons displayed in sequence along the vertical axis. The top thumbnail icon of the group remains highlighted to indicate the history of user selections.

In step S350, the thumbnail icon immediately below the thumbnail icon located at the intersection of the vertical axis is highlighted. This highlighting indicates a target thumbnail icon selected from a plurality of thumbnail icons contained in the thumbnail icon group. By default (ie, before user operation), the icon immediately below the thumbnail icon displayed at the intersection is highlighted. This ends the sequence of steps constituting the display processing performed by this embodiment, which includes the movement of the display axis.

After terminating the display process including the movement of the display axis in step S150, the direction determining unit 214 may accept an operation for vertical scrolling from the user. In this case, the effect processing unit 248 scrolls the thumbnail icon or cursor vertically on the screen.

In step S160, a check is made to determine whether the instruction determining unit 214 receives a user instruction for selecting a thumbnail icon. If the selection instruction is found to be received, the content control unit 244 instructs the display output section 230 to start processing of the content corresponding to the selected thumbnail, such as reproducing the corresponding content item.

If an instruction is obtained in step S170, the display output part 230 obtains the content item related to the thumbnail icon by accessing the storage part 250 or the data input/output part 220. The obtained content item is decoded by the decoding unit 232 into a data format suitable for display on the television 110, thereby displaying the content on the television screen.

200510056371.2 First, check in step S180 to see if the user has issued an instruction to display the menu screen. If an instruction is found to be issued, the menu screen is displayed on the screen again in step S110. If an instruction to terminate the processing is detected in step S190, the sequence of steps executed by the multimedia reproduction device embodying the present invention is ended.

(Screen display) The display processing including the movement of the display axis executed by this embodiment is further explained below in conjunction with Figs. 7-13. 7-13 are explanatory diagrams showing typical display screens related to display processing.

As shown in FIG. 7, the media icons are arranged on the horizontal axis, and the thumbnail label group is arranged on the vertical axis. Some of the display screens discussed below are related to applications that perform display processing including display axis movement to search for recorded television programs. However, these examples are not intended to limit the invention.

The media icons on the horizontal axis in FIG. 7 represent the functions provided by the multimedia reproduction device. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the "musical note" medium icon indicates that this icon contains content items for music reproduction.

On the screen of FIG. 7, the thumbnail icons shown represent the content items contained under the designated media icon. One or more content items in each category of the different categories are represented by thumbnail icons displayed on the depth axis in a stacked manner. Although the depth axis is a display axis (ie, an icon arrangement axis on which icons are arranged), alternatively, the axis may be a virtual axis hidden on the screen.

For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the thumbnail icon group with the attribute "sports" includes a representative thumbnail icon A1 and thumbnail icons A2, A3, and A4. The representative thumbnail icon A1 is an image representing the "sports" attribute, and is at the top of the thumbnail icon group.

The user performs an operation to select any one of the thumbnail icons displayed in each category. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, a user operation for selecting a representative thumbnail icon A1 having the attribute of "sports" is accepted through the instruction determination unit 216.

When the desired thumbnail icon is selected, the horizontal axis on which the media icons are arranged moves in the direction shown by the hollow arrow in FIG. 7 (ie, toward the upper left corner of the screen). In this example,

200510056371.2 The media icon is moved to the save area in the upper left corner of the screen. However, this does not limit the invention. Alternatively, the media icon can be moved to the save area located in the upper right corner, lower right corner, or lower left corner of the screen.

As shown in Figure 8, the media icons arranged on the horizontal axis are now arranged in a slightly overlapping manner, and at the same time, the horizontal axis is hidden. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the media icon located on the vertical axis moves toward the upper left corner of the screen.

As shown in FIG. 9, after the media icons are rearranged to the save area in the upper left corner of the screen, the vertical axis on which one or more thumbnail label groups are arranged rotates counterclockwise, as shown in FIG. 10. Although the vertical axis rotates counterclockwise in this example, this is not a limitation of the present invention. Alternatively, the vertical axis may rotate clockwise. Optionally, the depth axis shown in this example can be hidden.

As shown in FIG. 11, when the vertical axis rotates to the position where the media icons are arranged on the horizontal axis, the selected thumbnail icon group is displayed at the leftmost position of the horizontal axis, and then other thumbnail icon groups are sequentially arranged to the right.

The selected thumbnail group is displayed at the intersection of the horizontal, vertical, and depth axes. The top thumbnail icon of the selected icon group is highlighted.

When the depth axis shown in Figure 11 starts to rotate clockwise, one or more thumbnail icons contained in the selected thumbnail group (consisting of A1-A4) slide on the rotated depth axis to a non-overlapping position, such as Shown in Figure 12.

After the depth axis is rotated to the position where the thumbnail icon group is displayed as shown in FIG. 13, the grouped thumbnail icons are arranged on the vertical axis and displayed. The representative thumbnail icon A1 at the top of the thumbnail icon group is displayed at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical axes. The thumbnail icon A2 just below the representative thumbnail icon A1 is highlighted. The highlighting of the thumbnail icon A2 is performed by default; if desired, the icon to be highlighted can be changed by the user.

When the screen of FIG. 13 appears, the user can operate the direction determining unit 214 in the vertical direction₀This provides scrolling for desired thumbnail icons among the thumbnail icons displayed on the vertical axis.

On the horizontal axis, as shown in Figure 13, thumbnail groups are displayed by type or by some appropriate grouping. On the vertical axis, the thumbnail icons contained in the thumbnail icon group selected on the horizontal axis are displayed.

200510056371.2 The first user also operates the direction determining unit 214 in the horizontal direction. This causes the thumbnail icon group to move in the horizontal direction, and thus, the grouping of the thumbnail icon displayed on the vertical axis can be changed.

The user further operates the direction determining unit 214 upward or downward. This causes the thumbnail icons arranged on the vertical axis to move up or down, so that a desired thumbnail icon can be selected. After selecting the desired thumbnail icon, the user presses a button or the like on the instruction determination unit 216 to select the content item corresponding to the selected thumbnail icon.

When the highlighted state of the media icon displayed in the save area in the upper left corner of the screen in FIG. 13 is verified, it is easy to determine the currently selected function, such as recording or reproduction.

The changes of the display screen of this embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15. These changes describe instances where more layers of thumbnail icons are located below each thumbnail icon arranged on the vertical axis. The display screens of FIGS. 14 and 15 are from the screen of FIG. 13.

As shown in FIG. 14, on the screen of the television 110, the screen generated after the display process of step S150, which includes the movement of the display axis, appears.

The thumbnail groups arranged on the vertical axis of Figure 14 have been displayed on the screen as follows: First, select the thumbnail group just above the current layer, and then, the thumbnail group contained under this thumbnail group Arranged on the vertical axis for screen display.

The thumbnail icon A2-1 displayed just below the representative thumbnail icon A1 is highlighted by default. As shown in Fig. 14, the thumbnail icon group with the attribute "soccer" includes representative thumbnail icon A2·l, thumbnail icon A2-2, thumbnail icon A2-3, and/or thumbnail icon A2-4» For example, in a group with the attribute "soccer", the thumbnail icon A2-2 may represent content related to the European football live, and the thumbnail icon A2-3 may represent content related to a Japanese middle school football match.

As described above, when the thumbnail group is selected in the vertical direction, the following operations occur: The thumbnail group displayed on the horizontal axis is first moved to the save area. Next, the vertical axis rotates to the position of the horizontal axis. The thumbnail icon group selected on the vertical axis has its partial thumbnail icons (A1A4) arranged on the vertical axis. Next, the thumbnail icons contained in the selected group (consisting of A1-A4) are displayed along the vertical axis of the screen shown in Figure 15.

On the vertical axis of Fig. 15, there is no thumbnail group containing one or more thumbnail icons. Alternatively, the thumbnails each containing at least one thumbnail icon may be displayed on the vertical axis.

200510056371.2 The abbreviated icon group. As described above, when any one of these thumbnail groups is selected, the icon on the horizontal axis is moved to the save area, the vertical axis is rotated to the position of the horizontal axis, and other operations are performed, thereby performing the display process of step S150. This display process is repeated as many times as necessary, which allows any content item in any layer to be searched and executed by using the simple structure operation section 210 formed by lateral keys and buttons.

In the save area in the upper left corner of the screen in Figure 15, one or more media icons or thumbnail icons are displayed in different layers. This display makes it easy for the user to verify that the layer currently displayed on the screen is the user's selection history. Although the media icon or other icons displayed in the save area do not display an axis, this is not restrictive to the present invention. Alternatively, these icons may be arranged and displayed on an appropriate display axis.

The media icons or other icons move synchronously on the screen with the vertical, horizontal or depth axis rearranged at the same time, wherein the icons are arranged on the vertical, horizontal or depth axis. This allows the user to easily and clearly recognize the final arrangement icon after the movement.

The above examples are used to explain the display processing including the movement of the display axis according to the embodiment of the present invention. The examples are: the icon is moved to the save area, the vertical axis is rotated to the position of the horizontal axis, and the depth axis is rotated to the position of the vertical axis. However, this is not restrictive to the present invention. Alternatively, the display processing includes icon movement and axis rotation processing performed in parallel. For example, the icons can be moved to the save area at the same time as the vertical axis and the depth axis rotated to their respective destinations.

As described above, if a list of thumbnail target groups each having one or more thumbnail targets in the depth direction is obtained, it is easy for the user to understand the content items existing in each category and how they are organized.

Select the thumbnail icon of the specified category to display the thumbnail icon contained in the group on the screen. This allows users to find and obtain desired content items. Since the save area shows media icons or other icons, where the icons are arranged above the thumbnail icons on the horizontal or vertical axis, it is easy for the user to verify the current position on the screen, thereby improving the efficiency of the overall search process .

A conventional display technology is known to include displaying hierarchical content items in a tree structure on a screen. For this technology, users are difficult to track when searching for hierarchical content items

200510056371.2 The current position. Compared with the solution of the present invention, this technology is difficult to maintain a comprehensive understanding of the search process.

In the above example, the horizontal, vertical, and depth axes shown on the screen intersect each other at right angles. However, this is not restrictive to the present invention. Alternatively, the horizontal, vertical, and depth axes can also intersect at any angle.

The present invention is applied to at least a display control device, a display control method, and a recording medium that display icons on a screen.

It should be understood that although the present invention is described in conjunction with specific embodiments and the accompanying drawings, it is obvious that, based on the foregoing description, those skilled in the art can easily understand many alternatives, changes and changes. Accordingly, as long as it does not deviate from the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the present invention includes all these alternatives, changes and changes.

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