JPH0439773A - Electronic book - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a reader to answer a question with a display picture while having a conversation by providing a storage medium where not only a question sentence and plural answers of the sentence but also a message corresponding to each answer is stored. CONSTITUTION:A first storage medium 5A where information of characters, etc., is stored with one page as the unit and a second storage medium 5B where not only the question sentence and plural answers to the sentence but also a message corresponding to each answers is stored are provided, and stored contents of the storage medium 5A or 5B are displayed on display devices 2 and 3 in accordance with key operation. When the question sentence as contents of the second storage medium 5B is displayed on the display device, the reader can select one of plural displayed answers by answer selecting means 4D and 4E. A second display output control means reads out the message corresponding to the selected answer from the second storage medium 5B to display it on the display device. Thus, the reader answers the question while having a conversation.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) This invention is for storing the contents of books, newspapers, magazines, etc., such as characters, line drawings, and photographs, in electronic, optical, or magnetic storage media. The present invention relates to a device for reading and displaying this information.

(Prior Art) Generally, books, newspapers, and magazines are widely distributed by printing characters, photographs, and line drawings on paper in an easy-to-read format. Printing on paper is very convenient because people can see it directly with the naked eye, and printing technology can print a large number of copies in a short period of time, so books, newspapers, and magazines are used as a means of mass communication. plays an important role.

However, the use of paper requires enormous transportation and storage costs due to its large weight and volume at each stage of raw material procurement, transportation, use, and disposal. Although paper is recycled as a resource, it is currently only being reused as low-quality paper, so vast amounts of forest resources are being consumed to supply high-quality paper that can be printed on.

In order to solve these problems, it has been considered to use electronic, optical, or magnetic storage media as a method for recording information other than paper.

In other words, IC cards (electronic), compact disks (optical), floppy disks (magnetic), magnetic cards (magnetic), digital audio tapes (magnetic), laser cards (optical), etc. Storage media are considered as a means of recording type, photographs, and line drawings. The information stored in these storage media is
As shown in Table 1, each can be read and used by a unique reading device.

(Margins below) Table 1 In addition, in the storage capacity shown in Table 1, one page of a book is 10
00 characters = 2000 bytes.

However, the usage of current storage media with such a configuration is completely different from the conventional usage of reading books, newspapers, and magazines.

In the case of compact disks and floppy disks, the main method is to read them using a personal computer. The readout device and the display device are separated, and the content of the storage medium is searched and used mainly through complicated key operations on the keyboard, so the device is large and has a large storage capacity. It has become. This makes it a completely different format from reading books, newspapers, and magazines.

In the case of IC cards and magnetic cards, since they are storage media the size of a credit card, they are used for small-scale applications. IC cards can be used for purposes similar to credit cards, mainly because they are rewritable.Magnetic cards, like credit cards and telephone cards, were developed for a single purpose and have a relatively small amount of information. It is used as a storage medium. Furthermore, reading devices for laser cards that are larger than those for magnetic cards have been individually developed and used.

In this way, electronic, optical, and magnetic storage media have been developed individually for various uses, but they have not yet been able to provide nearly the same functions as books, newspapers, and magazines as a substitute for paper. However, in Table 1 above, CDs, floppy desks, and laser cards have the capacity of current books, newspapers, and magazines. However, CDs and -ROMs have too large a capacity and exceed the scale that can be handled by current publishing companies, making them likely to be economically unviable (they can only be used for things like encyclopedias). Laser cards are compact but have large reading devices.

Therefore, the inventor proposes an electronic book that functions in much the same way as books, newspapers, and magazines as a substitute for paper. The electronic book referred to here is a device that satisfies the following requirements.

(1) Text (including kanji) or figures can be displayed with the same display capabilities as existing books.

(2) The contents of a book of several hundred pages or more are stored in a small disk (magnetic or optical) or an IC card, and then read out and displayed.

(3) As a portable device, it can be carried around like a book and read anywhere.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) However, with only such functions, there is no difference from conventional books, and new added value is required.

Therefore, the present invention enables the reader to read the text in the same way as reading a book, and also allows the reader to answer each question on the display screen while interacting with the questions in exam question sets, quizzes, psychological tests, etc. The purpose is to provide e-books that can be used.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention was constructed as follows.

That is, the present invention includes: a first storage medium that stores information such as characters divided into pages; a problem sentence and a plurality of answers to the problem sentence;
a second storage medium that stores messages corresponding to each of the answers; a reading device that reads out the contents stored in both of these storage media; a display device that displays the read one page of information; and display contents of the display device. a next page instruction key that instructs the page to be the next page; a previous page instruction key that instructs the display content of the display device to return to the previous page; and when each of the keys is operated, the reading device changes to the first page.
a first display output control means configured to read the stored content from a storage medium or the second storage medium and display it on the display device in a page-turning manner; an answer selection means for selecting one of a plurality of answers while displaying the answer; and a second display output control means for reading a message corresponding to the selected answer from the second storage medium and displaying it on the display device. It is equipped with the following.

(Function) In the present invention configured as described above, when the next page instruction key and the previous page instruction key are operated, the first display output control means responds to the key operation by displaying the first display output control means inserted in the reading device.
The contents stored in the storage medium or the second storage medium are read out and controlled to be displayed on the display device as if turning over the pages of a book. Therefore, the reader can read the stored contents in the same way as reading a book.

Further, when the question text, which is the content of the second storage medium, is displayed on the display device, the reader can select one of the plurality of answers displayed using the answer selection means. The second display output control means reads a message corresponding to the selected answer from the second storage medium and displays it on the display device.

Therefore, when the reader selects the desired answer to the problem text displayed on the display device, an appropriate message regarding the answer is obtained, allowing the reader to solve the problem while interacting, which increases the learning effect. improves.

(Example) Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the electronic book in an open state, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electronic book in a closed state. FIG. 3 shows the electronic book shown in FIG. 2 with a strap attached to make it easier to hold. FIG. 4 shows a partially omitted front view in the open state as in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, only one side of the electronic book or a pair of left and right display devices 2 and 3 are thin devices such as liquid crystal displays, plasma displays, or flat cathode ray tubes.

In FIG. 1, 4A to 4E are input keys as input means, respectively. 4A is a next page instruction key that instructs the display contents of the display device 2゜3 to be the next page. 4B is a previous page instruction key that instructs the display contents to return to the previous page.
4C is a table of contents instruction key for instructing to display a table of contents of information stored in a storage medium, which will be described later. Further, cursor movement key 4D is a cursor movement key 4E that freely moves a cursor that indicates a specific position on the display screen of the display devices 2, 3, and cursor confirmation key 4E is a cursor confirmation key that fixes the position of the cursor specified by cursor movement key 4D.

By the way, instead of the cursor movement key 4D, the display device 2
, 3, a touch sensor or a touch panel may be used that allows the reader to input the location of the touch when the reader touches the display screen with his or her hand.

In this embodiment, a floppy disk is used as a storage medium for storing contents such as books of several hundred pages or more, and two types of floppy disks are prepared depending on the stored contents.

That is, the first floppy disk 5A, which is the first storage medium, stores the contents of books such as novels, in addition to specialized books and magazines on science and economics, divided into pages.

Also, a second floppy disk 5B, which is a second storage medium,
stores problem texts for examination question books, quizzes, psychological tests, etc. and multiple answers corresponding to the questions, and also stores appropriate messages for each answer. For example, the second
As shown in Figure 6, the floppy disk 5B contains one page of text (main text) for each member, and the answers (
Each message to be displayed when 1), (2), (3), (4)... is selected is stored.

A plurality of such floppy disks 5A and 5B can be stored in the floppy disk stock hole 7 at the same time. Further, the floppy disks 5A and 5B to be displayed are inserted into the floppy disk drive device 6, and the display is started by operating the power switch 8.

When the electronic book 1 is closed, the hook 11 is locked and the electronic book 1 is in the state shown in FIG. 2. In the open state as shown in Figure 1,
Due to the function of the hinge 12 shown in FIG. 4, the display surface becomes horizontally flat. In addition, strap 13 is attached to e-book 1 in Figure 2.
It is possible to provide the state shown in FIG. 3 by providing the following.

Next, an example of the configuration of the electrical system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG.

The CPU 14 of this embodiment includes 8, 16. or 32
Use bits.

A pulse is generated from the clock generator 16 by the action of the crystal oscillator 15, and the execution cycle of the CPU 14 is determined by this pulse.

Further, by operating the various keys 4A to 4E, key signals are taken into the CPU 14 via the I10 interface 17 and the bus 18.

Communication over the telephone line is via converter 19 and serial I10 interface 20 via a modem (not shown).

The memory 21, such as a readable/writable semiconductor memory, temporarily stores information from the floppy disk 5A or 5B as will be described later.

The R,OM (read-only memory) 22 stores in advance a program that makes the electronic book 1 function as described later. It also has a read-only memory 23 for standard kanji fonts prepared in advance. Each of these elements is then connected to a bus 18.

Display devices 2 and 3 consisting of liquid crystal displays are connected to the bus 18 via a liquid crystal control IC 24 and drivers 25 and 25. It should be noted that the display devices 2 and 3, which are liquid crystal displays, may be configured to display like a double-page book as shown in FIG. 1, or may display text on one side and a table of contents on the other side, if necessary.

The liquid crystal control IC 24 has an image display memory (for two screens) for updating each display screen of the display device 2゜3.
Connect 26. The contents of the floppy disks 5A and 5B inserted into the floppy disk drive 6 are read out by the floppy disk drive 6 and processed by the floppy disk controller 27.

Next, the basic functions of the electronic book 1 configured as described above will be explained below.

First, a user inserts a desired floppy disk 5A, 5B into the floppy disk drive 6 before use.

Next, after turning on the power switch 8, when the table of contents instruction key 4C is operated, the floppy disk 5A is displayed.

Or C to read the contents of the table of contents stored in 5B.
The PU 14 instructs the floppy disk controller 27. Then, the floppy disk drive device 6 reads the contents of the specified table of contents from the floppy disk 5A or 5B, and the read contents of the table of contents are transferred to the image display memory 26, so that the display device 2
．． The contents of the table of contents are displayed on each display screen of 3 in the form of a character pattern.

This allows the operator (reader) to select a desired table of contents based on the displayed content, and the selection is made as follows.

That is, by operating the cursor movement key 4D, the cursor on the display screen is moved to the position of the desired table of contents and stopped, and by operating the table of contents instruction key 4C again, the desired table of contents is selected.

Then, the contents of the page corresponding to the selected table of contents are read from the floppy disk 5A or 5B and transferred to the image display memory 26, and the contents of that page are displayed on the display screens of the display devices 2 and 3. The reader can read the displayed content through the display screen.

Next, when the next page instruction key 4A is operated, the contents of the next page following the currently displayed page are transferred to the floppy disk 5A.
, or 5B, and the display contents of the display device 2 or the display device 3 are changed. On the other hand, previous page instruction key 4B
When is operated, the contents of one page before the currently displayed page are read from the floppy disk 5A or 5B, and the display contents of the display device 2 or 3 are changed.

Therefore, the next page instruction key 4A and the previous page instruction key 4B
By this operation, the contents of the floppy disk 5A or 5B, which is a storage medium, are displayed on each display screen of the display devices 2 and 3, like turning the pages of a book.

The above are the basic functions of the embodiment of the present invention, but in addition to these, there is also an interactive function, which will be explained below.

This interactive function allows you to select one of the answers to the problem text displayed on the display screens of the display devices 2 and 3 when solving a problem text such as an examination question book or a quiz using the second floppy disk 5B. When a reader selects one, an appropriate message regarding the selected answer is obtained, and the reader solves the problem while having a dialogue.

Next, an example of the operation of this interactive function will be explained with reference to FIG.

It is now assumed that the question sentences of the designated page are being displayed on each display screen of the display device 2.degree. 3 based on the above-mentioned basic functions (step 81).

At this time, when the reader selects a desired answer from among a plurality of answers to the question sentence being displayed, the reader confirms the answer by operating the following keys.

That is, for example, when the answer to the question you want to confirm is "(3) For Tone" as shown in FIG. 8, the display device 2,
Move the cursor on the display screen in step 3 to r (3) J, the first position of the answer, using the cursor movement key 4D, then operate the cursor confirmation key 4E, and then move the cursor to the last position of the answer, ``. After moving to "River", operate the cursor confirmation key 4E again. This confirms the desired answer.

When the answer to the question is determined (step S2), a message corresponding to the determined answer is searched from the second floppy disk 5B (step 83).

Next, the read message is displayed on a part of the display screen of the display device 2 as shown in FIG. 8 (step 34).
).

Thereafter, when there is a key force from the keys 4A to 4E, a process corresponding to the key force is performed (step S5).

Through such processing, the reader is shown an appropriate message corresponding to the answer, such as whether the answer is correct or not, and hints if the answer is incorrect, so the reader can solve the problem while interacting.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, in the present invention, text information stored in a storage medium is displayed on a display device as if turning the pages of a book, and the displayed content is a collection of test questions, quizzes, etc. When the answer is selected, an appropriate message corresponding to the selected answer can be displayed. Therefore, according to the present invention, in addition to being able to read texts in the same way as conventional books, the reader can solve problem sentences while interacting, which improves the learning effect.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention in an open state;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the embodiment shown in Figure 2 with a strap attached to make it easier to hold, Figure 4 is a partially omitted front view of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a block diagram of the electrical system of the embodiment of the present invention, Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of data storage on the second floppy disk, Figure 7 is a flowchart explaining the interactive function, and Figure 8 is a display example. FIG. 1 is an electronic book, 2 and 3 are display devices, 4A is a next page instruction key, 4B is a previous page instruction key, 4D is a cursor movement key 4
E is the cursor confirmation key, 5A is the first floppy disk, 5B is the second floppy disk, 6 is the floppy disk drive, 14 is the CPU, 21 is the memory, 22 is R
It's OM. District 1 Patent Applicant Tamushishita Sangyo Co., Ltd. (and 1 other person) Agent
Maki Tobe (3 others) Figure 2 Figure Figure Funeral Figure Figure Figure

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] A first storage medium that stores information such as characters divided into pages; a first storage medium that stores a question sentence and a plurality of answers to the question sentence;
a second storage medium that stores messages corresponding to each of the answers; a reading device that reads out the contents stored in both of these storage media; a display device that displays the read one page of information; and display contents of the display device. a next page instruction key that instructs the page to be the next page; a previous page instruction key that instructs the display content of the display device to return to the previous page; and when each of the keys is operated, the reading device changes to the first page.
a first display output control means for controlling the storage medium or the second storage medium to display the stored contents on the display device so as to turn the page; and the display device displays the problem sentences in the second storage medium. an answer selection means for selecting one from a plurality of answers while being displayed on the screen, and a second display output control means for reading a message corresponding to the selected answer from the second storage medium and displaying it on the display device; An e-book with.