Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Computer graphic processing system
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-08
2004-01-06
Tung, Kee M. (Department: 2676)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Computer graphic processing system
C345S530000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06674439
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to information terminal devices, and more particularly to small-sized information terminals such as mobile terminals, typically, mobile telephones, or portable information terminals which have a function of obtaining documents or images from servers through the Internet.
2. Description of the Background Art
The recent remarkable advances in information technology are now allowing users to instantaneously obtain various information through the Internet just by entering addresses into personal computers to access to desired locations. The information obtained includes hypertexts in HTML (HyperText Mark-up Language) and mails described in MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions), for example. A user can request acquisition of information from a server or display the information obtained from the server on the screen by using a hypertext display device in which an application called a browser is installed or a mail display device in which an application called a mailer is installed.
Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer are examples of widespread browsers. Such browsers can obtain image information (images) from a server through the Internet, and such images can be utilized as the background (background image) or a screen saver.
The recent developments of downsized equipment are presenting small-sized information terminals such as mobile telephones, portable information terminals, etc. in which a browser or a mailer is installed. Now the users are demanding that such small-sized information terminal devices should be equipped for the function of obtaining an image from a server and setting it as the background image etc., as is possible in personal computers.
When a user uses an image obtained from a server as a background image in a personal computer, it is possible to accumulatively store a plurality of images and select and use one of the images as the background image. Accordingly, users will also demand that such small-sized information terminal devices, too, be equipped with the function of selecting an image, as in the personal computers, in the operation of utilizing an image obtained from a server as the background image.
First Problem
In contrast with personal computers, such small-sized information terminal devices have smaller display screens, and different models of small-sized information terminal devices have display screens of different sizes. Therefore utilizing an image obtained from a server as a background image requires resizing to adjust the image to the display screen.
However, existing browsers are designed to be used in personal computers whose screen size is fixed, so they do not have the function of changing the size of an image before setting it as the background image.
Accordingly, conventional small-sized portable information terminals cannot use an image obtained from a sever as a background image.
It is possible to change the size of an image obtained from a server by using an image processing tool etc. and set it as the background image. However, this method is possible only for information terminal devices which have relatively large storage capacity and have a pointing device etc. for easy entering operation. Particularly, the method using an image processing tool is not practical for mobile telephones, since their storage capacity is severely limited and the entering operation would require extremely complicated operation using ten-keys and buttons.
Second Problem
Information terminal devices having no pointing device, particularly mobile telephones, cannot allow the users to easily select a desired image from among a plurality of images obtained from servers.
The following method is suggested to select a desired image from a plurality of images in an information terminal device having no pointing device, for example. That is to say, a user operates keys to specify one name among names of a plurality of images displayed on the screen to select the image corresponding to that name. This method requires the processing of generating names of the images, but this processing is not easy for the information terminal devices since any image is just a group of pixel data for the devices.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide an information terminal device which can obtain an image from a server and change the size of the image so that it can be used as the background image.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an information terminal device which can obtain and store images from a server and select and display an image that a user desires among the plurality of images stored.
The present invention has the following features to solve the problems explained above.
A first aspect of the invention is directed to an information terminal device which obtains an image from a server and displays the image in a display area of a screen, the information terminal device comprising:
an obtaining unit operable to obtain the image from the server;
an over-size decision unit operable to decide whether the entirety of the image obtained by the obtaining unit can be displayed within the display area of the screen; and
a resizing unit operable to, when the over-size decision unit makes a negative decision, change the size of the image obtained by the obtaining unit so that the image can be displayed within the display area of the screen.
In accordance with the first aspect above, it is possible to obtain an image from a server and change the size of the image to use it as the background image.
According to a second aspect, in the first aspect, the over-size decision unit detects the size of the image obtained by the obtaining unit and compares the size of the image with the size of the display area of the screen to decide whether the entirety of the image can be displayed within the display area of the screen.
In accordance with the second aspect above, it is possible to decide whether the image extends past the display area of the screen.
According to a third aspect, in the first aspect, the display area of the screen is variable in size, and
the over-size decision unit detects the size of the image obtained by the obtaining unit and the size of the display area of the screen and compares the two sizes with each other to decide whether the entirety of the image can be displayed within the display area of the screen.
In accordance with the third aspect above, it is possible to decide whether the image exceeds the size limit of the display area of the screen even when the display area of the screen is variable in size.
According to a fourth aspect, in the third aspect,
the over-size decision unit notifies the resizing unit of the detected two sizes, and
the resizing unit calculates an enlarging/shrinking ratio on the basis of the two sizes notified by the over-size decision unit and changes the size of the image obtained by the obtaining unit by enlarging/shrinking the image at the enlarging/shrinking ratio.
In accordance with the fourth aspect above, an enlarging/shrinking ratio is obtained from the size of the image and the size of the display area of the screen and the size of the image is changed by enlarging/shrinking the image at that ratio. Preferably, the enlarging/shrinking ratio is such a value that the size of the resized image coincides with the size of the display area of the screen, which is obtained by dividing the size of the display area of the screen by the size of the image.
According to a fifth aspect, in the first aspect,
the display area of the screen is variable in size, and
the over-size decision unit detects the lateral size and the longitudinal size of the image obtained by the obtaining unit and the lateral size and the longitudinal size of the display area of the screen and compares the two lateral sizes with each other and the two longitudinal sizes with each other to decide whether the entirety of the image can be displayed within the display area of the screen individually in the la
Kato Atsunobu
Shin Hidehiko
Wada Hiromi
Yoshida Naoya
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Tung Kee M.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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