JPH04214595A - Item selecting device of three-dimensional display system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To allow the easy selection of many items by efficiently displaying these items on a screen of a width which is not sufficient. CONSTITUTION:A three-dimensionally displayed rectangular parallelpiped 1a appears on the screen when the one item is selected from a main menu 2 by a cursor 4. A sub-menu is displayed on the surface of the rectangular parallelpiped 1a. The rectangular parallelpiped 1a rotates at arbitrary periods as shown by an arrow A. The item selection is executed by moving the cursor 4 on the desired item when this item is in a visible state. The view point is changeable toward a visual point changeover mark 5. The display of the items in the complete form is not made on the screen but the number of the items which can be selected increases substantially and the screen on a lower side is hardly concealed.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a three-dimensional display type item selection device, which is used as an interface between a computer and an operator.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the spread of computer-based office automation equipment, improvements in man-machine interfaces have been required. For example, in order to select a desired item from multiple items, VDT (Video Disc
A menu display type item selection device is used in which a list of a plurality of items is displayed in a menu format on the screen of a play terminal, and an item designated by a cursor is selected. In addition, when displaying a large number of items when the screen is not large enough, menus called pull-down menus or pop-up menus can be temporarily arranged on the screen to display the items. A method was adopted to display the

0003

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] With conventional menu-type item selection devices, when displaying a large amount of information on a screen that is not large enough, if it is text information, the length of the text string and the total number of menus are There were restrictions on the display area, and it was sometimes not possible to secure a sufficient display area. Therefore, submenus were further displayed in the form of a pull-down menu or a pop-up menu, but this sometimes obscured the lower screen, and this was not a fundamental solution.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of these points, and its purpose is to efficiently display a large number of items on a screen that is not large enough, and to make it easy to select the items. It is an object of the present invention to provide a three-dimensional display type item selection device that allows selection of items.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the three-dimensional display type item selection device according to the present invention displays a plurality of items on the surface as shown in FIG. a three-dimensional object display means 11 for displaying a three-dimensional object 1 on a two-dimensional screen 10; a cursor display means 12 for movably displaying a cursor 4 on the two-dimensional screen 10;
This device is characterized by comprising an operation means 13 for specifying the display position of the item, and a selection means 14 for selecting the item specified by the cursor 4.

[0006] Here, the three-dimensional object display means 11 is preferably a means for rotating and displaying the three-dimensional object 1 at a predetermined period. In addition, 3 displayed by the 3-dimensional body display means 11
It is more preferable to add a viewpoint switching means for switching between a visible part and an invisible part of the dimensional body 1 in response to an operation from the outside.

[0007]

[Operation] In the item selection device of the present invention, the three-dimensional display means 1
1, the three-dimensional body 1 is displayed on the two-dimensional screen 10. 3
A plurality of items are displayed on the surface of the dimensional body 1, and the three-dimensional body 1 is displayed while rotating at a predetermined period so that each item becomes visible in sequence. When any part of each item is visible, it becomes active and can be selected. A cursor 4 is movably displayed on the two-dimensional screen 10 by a cursor display means 12, and the display position of this cursor 4 can be specified by an operation means 13. A desired item can be selected from a large number of items by moving the cursor 4 to the position where the desired item is displayed and selecting the item using the selection means 14.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a menu display method of a computer system equipped with a mouse, a keyboard, and a VDT. In this embodiment, the submenu of menu 2 displayed on the two-dimensional screen of VDT 3 is arranged in a rectangular parallelepiped 1a.
displayed on the surface. This rectangular parallelepiped 1a is displayed while rotating as shown by arrow A. The display position of the cursor 4 on the screen can be specified using the mouse. By operating a predetermined key on the keyboard (or a predetermined button on the mouse), the viewpoint switching mark 5
The viewpoint switches 180 degrees in the direction shown by , and the visible and invisible surfaces of the rectangular parallelepiped 1a are reversed. Note that it is preferable to learn so that frequently used items are displayed on the screen for a longer period of time.

According to this embodiment, in order to select a desired item, move the cursor 4 with the mouse to select one item from the menu 2 displayed in a horizontal strip at the top of the screen. Press the item selection button. This selects one item in menu 2,
A three-dimensionally displayed rectangular parallelepiped 1a appears on the screen. 1 selected from main menu 2 is displayed on the surface of this rectangular parallelepiped 1a.
A submenu for two items is displayed. This rectangular parallelepiped 1a rotates at an arbitrary period as shown by arrow A, and can display more items than are actually visible. When the desired item is visible, move the mouse cursor 4 over the item and release the mouse button for selecting the item. As a result, the desired item is selected.

[0010] Here, the menu displayed on each side of the rectangular parallelepiped 1a may be text, or may be a graphic whose contents can be visually understood. These are displayed so as to provide a three-dimensional effect by employing a display method that projects three dimensions onto two dimensions.

Note that the three-dimensional body is not limited to the rectangular parallelepiped 1a, and various three-dimensional bodies can be used as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5. In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the cylindrical body 1b is displayed while being rotated at an arbitrary period as shown by arrow A around the central axis. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the endless belt body 1c is moved along the longitudinal direction of the belt by the arrow A
It is displayed while being rotated as shown in . Furthermore, in the embodiment of FIG. 5, the sphere 1d is displayed while being rotated as shown by arrow A. Although not particularly shown, any other polyhedron may be used.

Furthermore, the viewpoint switching means is not limited to keyboard operation keys or mouse buttons; for example, means for switching the viewpoint by placing the mouse cursor 4 on the viewpoint switching mark 5. I don't mind if it is.

[0013]

Effects of the Invention According to the invention as claimed in claim 1, since a three-dimensional object on which a plurality of items are displayed on the surface is projected onto a two-dimensional screen using a three-dimensional display means, a complete object can be displayed on the screen. Although the items are not displayed visually, the number of items that can be selected increases and the lower screen is less likely to be hidden.

[0014] In the invention as claimed in claim 2, the parts that are invisible due to the projection of the three-dimensional body onto the two-dimensional screen become visible at a predetermined period, so that one period actually passes. This has the effect of being able to display all items in between.

[0015] In the invention as set forth in claim 3, by switching the viewpoint when projecting a three-dimensional object two-dimensionally by the viewpoint switching means, blind spots in the three-dimensional object display can be eliminated,
This has the effect of allowing prompt selection of items.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of essential parts of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of main parts of another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. Three-dimensional object display means for displaying a three-dimensional object on a surface of which a plurality of items are displayed on a two-dimensional screen;
A three-dimensional device characterized by comprising a cursor display means for movably displaying a cursor on a dimensional screen, an operation means for specifying a display position of the cursor, and a selection means for selecting an item specified by the cursor. Display-type item selection device. 2. The three-dimensional display type item selection device according to claim 1, wherein the three-dimensional object display means is means for rotating and displaying the three-dimensional object at a predetermined period. [Claim 3] 3 displayed by the three-dimensional object display means
3. The three-dimensional display type item selection device according to claim 1, further comprising viewpoint switching means for switching between a visible portion and an invisible portion of the dimensional object in response to an external operation.