Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-06
2003-10-28
Huynh, Ba (Department: 2173)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
C345S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06639608
ABSTRACT:
This application is the national phase of international application PCT/JP97/00125 filed Jan. 22, 1997 which designated the U.S.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an information providing system and method using the Internet or the like, a terminal used in the information providing system, and a program-recording medium. The present invention is related to the below six Japanese patent applications. For those designated countries that permit incorporation of publications by reference, the contents of these six Japanese patent publications are incorporated herein by reference, as a part of the description of the present patent application.
1. Application Ser. No. 8-9521 filed on Jan. 23, 1996.
2. Application Ser. No. 8-41104 filed on Feb. 28, 1996.
3. Application Ser. No. 8-67278 filed on Feb. 28, 1996.
4. Application Ser. No. 8-139689 filed on May 10, 1996.
5. Application Ser. No. 8-139690 filed on May 10, 1996.
6. Application Ser. No. 8-163679 filed on Jun. 5, 1996.
RELATED APPLICATION INFORMATION
This application is related to:
Application Ser. No. 09/125,833 filed Feb. 26, 1997, entitled “Communication System Capable of Providing User with Picture Meeting Characteristics of User and Terminal Equipment and Information Providing Device Used for the Same,” now U.S. Pat. No. 6,157,946, issued Dec. 5, 2000.
Application Ser. No. 09/633,407 filed Aug. 7, 2000, entitled “Advertising Supported Internet Access Service.”
Application Ser. No. 09/125,894 filed Aug. 27, 1998, entitled “Communication System for Distributing Such Message as Advertisement to User of Terminal Equipment.”
Application Ser. No. 09/206,385 filed Dec. 7, 1998, entitled “Information Provider, Terminal And System And Recording Medium For The Terminal.”
Application Ser. No. 09/188,571 filed Nov. 10, 1998, entitled “Message Searching System and Terminal.”
Application Ser. No. 09/276,708 filed Mar. 26, 1999, entitled “Terminal Which Stores Information on Communication Network in Local Memory Automatically.”
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The Internet and other computer networks provide various kinds of information to users. In such kinds of information providing systems, a personal computer (terminal) of the user is normally connected to a host computer of an Internet provider or other network provider through a modem and a public communication network, such as a telephone network and ISDN. When a user accesses the information provider via the terminal, requested information is provided either from the Internet or the computer network or from the information provider. The information provided to the user's terminal is displayed on the terminal display. The user can watch the displayed information (image), scroll the image or switch to a sub-menu by controlling the image.
The image provided from the information provider to the terminal is conventionally displayed in a single display area of the terminal. Newer terminals can display multiple images, such as an image provided from the information provider and terminal file information, to different windows. When the information provider provides images designated by the terminals, passive images such as advertisements are sometimes also provided. Since the images provided to the terminals are conventionally displayed in a single display area (for example, a single window), the passive images are conventionally inserted in the designated images and displayed in the same display area.
When the passive image is inserted in the same display area and the user updates the images in the terminal display by scrolling the screen or clicking a button in the image, the passive image may disappear. Moreover, the passive image may be hidden behind a display of the file information or the other information when the user displays the file information or other information on the terminal. Therefore, with the conventional systems, the display is operated in such a manner that the user does not always see the passive images, such as advertisements. Thus the passive images are not effectively transmitted to the users.
In addition, the passive images are conventionally transmitted to the terminal users randomly. As a result, the passive images could be provided to users who do not want the images or who would not make any response to the passive image. On the World Wide Web (WWW) of the Internet, only the information selected by the user is provided to the user. In other words, information on the WWW is passively transmitted to the user based on the request from the user, and it was not possible for providers, which manage information providing systems, or other host computers to actively provide information to users.
In light of the background described above, it is an object of the present invention to provide an information display system and an information provider which accurately and effectively select and provide passive images, such as advertisements, while also providing the images requested by the user. It is also an object of the present invention to provide an information provider, through which providers on the World Wide Web (WWW) or other host computers can actively provide information while a terminal connected to the information provider selectively receives the passive image.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To achieve these objects, the present information display system has an information provider, a communication line connected to the information provider, a display, and a display controller which receives an active image (specified image) and a passive image (passive image) from the information provider through the communication line. The information display system displays the active image and the passive image in separate areas of the display.
According to the invention, upon a request from the terminal to the information provider for transmitting active images, the specific active images and passive images are sent to the terminal from the information provider. The active images and the passive images received by the terminal are separately and independently displayed in different display areas of the terminal by the display controller.
Therefore, the active images that the terminal user requests are independently displayed in the corresponding display areas on the display of the terminal. Moreover, because the passive images, such as advertisements, are separately displayed in a display area other than that in which the active images are displayed, the passive images are independently displayed in the display area even if the active images requested by the user are changed in the active image display area.
As a result, the passive images, which have not been intentionally requested by a user (passive images) such as advertisements, are effectively provided while the images intentionally requested by a user (active images) are also provided to the user. The passive image or the window of the passive image is displayed in the front of the display area. In addition, the whole passive image is displayed within the display area. As a result passive images such as advertisements, can be effectively transmitted to the user and the user is effectively made aware of them. In addition, such display control can be accomplished through functions of the OS (operating system), such as Windows95™ of Microsoft Corporation™.
By the operation of the user or of a program installed in the terminal, the passive images may be hidden behind other images or may appear outside the display area, independent of the control of the display controller. The information display system has a detector, which detects whether or not the passive image is in the normal position. The normal position is where the whole passive image is displayed in the front of the display area. When the detector detects the passive image not in the normal position, the notifier provides notice of this.
The information display system may further detect the passive image to be not in a normal position where the passive image is hidden behind other images or has been moved outside the display. In either of
Huynh Ba
Sereboff Steven C
SoCal IP Law Group
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