Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
2001-06-15
2004-09-07
Cabeca, John (Department: 2173)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06788319
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image display apparatus for displaying menu images used for control of the apparatus itself, a menu display method therefor, an image display system, and a storage medium storing a program for executing the menu display method.
2. Prior Art
Conventionally, it is a generally known method to use a pull-down menu or a popup menu when a user gives instructions concerning changes of a channel, a sound, an input source, and the like, to an image display apparatus, such as a multi-screen television receiver.
FIGS. 37A and 37B
illustrate an example of a method of this kind. When the user desires to change an input source of a display screen shown in
FIG. 37A
, first, he operates a menu key, and calls an operation menu
951
at a first hierarchical level, as shown in FIG.
37
B. Here, the user employs an up arrow key and a down arrow key as dedicated keys to select a desired option (SCREEN
3
, in this example) and operate a determination key. In response to the operation, an operation menu
952
at a second hierarchical level is displayed, and the user selects an option “INPUT SOUCE”, for instance. Then, similarly, operation menus
953
and
954
at third and fourth hierarchical levels are displayed sequentially, for instance, and the user selects and determines options “IS SWITCHED TO INTERNET” and “TO SELECT CANON INC”, whereby the input source is changed.
At this time, when the user views a television program by using a television receiver, or enjoys a movie or the like reproduced by a video cassette recorder, the user normally views the same at a certain distance from the body of the television receiver. Therefore, generally, large font characters are used to display operation menus so as to allow the user to view and understand details of the menu easily.
Also, conventionally, the operation or function of DTV (Digital Television) equipment is controlled in various ways. For instance, there have been proposed, Method (1) in which similarly to conventional TV devices, as shown in
FIG. 38
, a remote controller is provided with keypad buttons corresponding to the respective functions of the DTV device, Method (2) in which pointing devices or keypad buttons for moving a cursor are employed, and as shown in
FIG. 39
, options are sequentially selected from a multistage hierarchical menu for finally selecting a desired final function, Method (3) in which a function is selected by using a plurality of tabs, as shown in
FIG. 40
, for making various settings of a computer and options shown together with descriptions on respective function-configuration screens under the tabs.
However, the above conventional examples suffer from the following problems:
(1) Recent digitalization of a television receiver has led to an increased number of functions of the receiver, which in turn leads to increased numbers of hierarchies of the menu and menu options. In accordance with such an increase in the number of functions of the television receiver, it is required to display menu options in more detail so as to permit even a beginner to understand the contents of the menu with ease, which results in an increase in the contents and the number of characters of each menu option. Under these circumstances, it is sometimes impossible for the conventional operation menu system to display all the operation menus to be displayed on the screen of a television receiver.
To overcome such problems, it is contemplated that as shown in
FIG. 37B
, when a menu at a lower level in hierarchy cannot be displayed on the screen, the menu at the lower level is superimposed on a menu at a higher level in hierarchy which is already displayed. In this case, the menu positioned at the higher level in hierarchy is deleted, and it becomes impossible for the user to view all the menus on the screen. This makes it difficult to confirm menu options displayed at the lowest level in hierarchy at the this time. Further, if the user recognizes that a selected menu option is not a desired one, it is difficult to determine to which hierarchical level he should return.
(2) In controlling a DTV device, if Method (1) is employed which provides a remote controller with the
FIG. 38
keypad buttons corresponding to the functions of the DTV device, the keypad buttons are increased in number, which tends to bring about erroneous depression of the keypad buttons, and further makes it impossible to perform comfortable operation of the remote controller while viewing the screen of the DTV device, since it is required to watch a remote controller on hand, when a keypad button corresponding to a desired function is looked for.
Further, if Method (2) is employed which causes the user to select a desired function from the multistage menu shown in
FIG. 39
, as the hierarchy of the menu becomes deeper or increased, the number of menus displayed on the screen becomes extremely larger. At the same time, since menu options as to other functions continue to be displayed in intermediate stages of the selection operation, the menus are displayed in a confusing manner, so that the operator is liable to forget his original intention or object while shifting from one hierarchical menu to another to search for the object. Further, in Method (3) which employs a configuration screen having a plurality of tabs as shown in
FIG. 40
, there is no menu list provided, and hence it takes time to find the item if it is not clear under which tab is provided a function setting option desired by the user.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide an image display apparatus and method which are always capable of displaying the whole of menus at a plurality of hierarchical levels and realize a user-friendly interface, a menu display system including at least one menu display apparatus of the above type, and a storage medium storing a program for executing the menu display method.
To attain the above object, according to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an image display apparatus having menus of a plurality of hierarchical levels, the image display apparatus including menu display means for displaying menu data set to each hierarchical level of the menus in a screen display area, wherein the menu display means displays the menu data such that a plurality of items of the menu data are displayed for at least one hierarchical level, and wherein the menu display means comprises individual display width detection means for detecting a display width of each item of the menu data, total display width detection means for detecting a total display width required for displaying menu data to be displayed in the screen display area, comparison means for comparing the total display width with an area width of the screen display area, and display control means that, when new menu data at another hierarchical level are to be displayed in addition to menu data at at least one hierarchical level already displayed, detects the total display width of the menu data to be displayed including the new menu data, and if the detected total display width is larger than the area width of the screen display area, carries out a replacement process for replacing a plurality of items of the menu data at one of the at least one hierarchical level already displayed, with other menu data set to the one of the hierarchical levels, and then displays all the resulting menu data in the screen display area.
Preferably, the replacement process is repeatedly carried out at each hierarchical level until the total display width becomes smaller than the area width of the screen display area.
More preferably, the image display apparatus includes storage control means for carrying out, at each of a plurality of hierarchical levels already displayed, a process for storing a value of the total display width and a combination of items of the menu data at the plurality of hierarchical levels already displayed, whenever the total display width has become smaller than the area width of the screen di
Matsumoto Yuichi
Mori Shigeki
Cabeca John
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Rossi & Associates
Thai Cuong T.
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