JPS6236582B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an image information file device, and particularly to a device that facilitates search operations.

Organizing and filing documents, etc. is the most basic part of information management, and it is a simple method to save image information as you see it, without having to rewrite the contents of documents, encode them, and input them. It is generally widely practiced to file files as For example, the most basic method is to bind documents into binders for each category, but if a large number of documents and high-speed searching are required,
For example, by using an image information storage means such as a micro film, storing it at an appropriate address of the image storage means according to a predetermined classification method, and specifying the address as necessary. A method such as mechanically extracting an image of a document is used.

As seen in these examples, in order to file image information, in addition to storing the image information, a classification table or index is required to facilitate later retrieval, and it also requires the address and address of the image. are associated with each other. That is, when searching for a necessary document, the user first looks up an index and then specifies the relevant item in the index to retrieve the desired image.
Therefore, the efficiency of searching is influenced by the contents of the classification table and index, and at the same time, the complexity of the operation influences the ease of use of the file device.

As an example of using a classification table or index, in the former case of the above example, the problem is that the classification is fixed. It often becomes necessary to create separate volumes as the amount of storage increases, or to add new items in response to changes in social conditions. Recombination becomes a huge amount of work. In the latter method, the image storage and index are physically separated, so it is possible to change only the index. Searching by keywords is a well-known example of advanced methods. In other words, for some attributes of the document,
Appropriate predetermined keywords are selected and a set of keywords is recorded in an index table for each document. In this way, by specifying the required attributes when searching, it is possible to automatically search for a corresponding document.

However, when this is actually used, there are the following problems. First, in order to automatically search, it is necessary to encode all the keywords and register them in the file device, which requires an extremely large amount of work. Second, it is difficult for general users who are inexperienced in using machines to find and key in keywords when searching. Thirdly, adding new keywords is a big task, similar to the first problem. Taking all of this into account, the former method has the advantage of being intuitive and can be used even without mechanical training, but it lacks flexibility when changing the file system. Although the latter method is flexible, it has the disadvantage that it is difficult to use unless you have a high level of specialized knowledge.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image information file device that facilitates index creation and search operations.

FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of an image information file device according to the present invention.

The procedure for filing using this device is as follows.

First, a file classification table that has been printed or written in advance is set on the image input device 1, which is configured similarly to a facsimile transmitter. When the code for the classification table input mode is keyed in from the keyboard 2, the control device 3 activates the image input device 1, the image of the classification table is scanned, and image information for one screen is temporarily stored in the one frame memory 4. Image input device 1
In response to the completion signal from the control device 3, the control device 3 sends classification table input mode information to the address control device 5 and the image storage device 6, and starts the image storage device 6 in a recording mode. In response to this mode, the address control device 5 sends an address of a specific memory area in the image storage device 6 to the image storage device 6, and the image of the classification table is stored at that address in the image storage device 6. be done.

Next, when an edit mode code is keyed in from the keyboard 2, the control device 3 sends edit mode information to the address control device 5 and the image storage device 6, and activates the edit mode by setting the edit mode to the playback mode. In response to this, the address control device 5 sends the address where the classification table is recorded to the image storage device, and the image of the classification table is reproduced and stored in the one-frame memory 4. The contents of one frame memory are scanned by a CRT display device 7 and an image of the classification table is displayed. When the operator looks at the displayed classification table, searches for an item related to a certain attribute, instructs it with the light pen 10, and presses the record switch, a mask signal that turns on only when scanning a grid area that includes the coordinates is masked. A signal is generated from a signal generator 11 and sent to a gate circuit 12. The signal passed through the gate circuit 12 is stored at the first address of the buffer memory 8. Further, the coordinate information is code-converted by a code converter 50 and given as address information in an association table 51, and a code indicating the attribute and a code indicating the address of the buffer memory are recorded at the address. When this operation is completed, the address will be 1
Added. Similarly, by specifying another item related to that attribute with the light pen, partial images in which items related to that attribute are written one after another are written to the buffer memory, and when all items related to that attribute have been transferred, exit from the keyboard. key in. The control device 3 thereby issues a command to connect the buffer memory 8 and the one-frame memory 4, and the contents of the buffer memory are transferred to the one-frame memory and displayed.

Next, if there is an item to be added regarding that attribute, key in that character from the keyboard. The control device 3 generates a corresponding character pattern string from the pattern generator 100, writes the pattern into the remaining addresses of the buffer memory 8, and displays it through the one-frame memory 4. When the end of all operations is instructed from the keyboard, the control device 3 sends an edit image recording mode code to the address control device 5 and image storage device 6, and the address control device receives this signal and stores the address in the classification table. Instructs the image storage device 6 to specify another address within the same area as the specific address area. The image storage device enters recording mode and the contents of one frame memory 4 are recorded at that address.

By performing the above operations for several attributes, the specific area of the image storage device contains images of the initially given classification table and several edited images of only one attribute item based on the images. images are recorded and stored.

Next, in an image accumulation mode in which general images are accumulated, an image is first set on the image input device 1, and a code for that mode is keyed in using the keyboard 2. As a result, the control device 3 sends a code indicating that it is in the image accumulation mode to the address control device 5, and the address control device 5 controls the addresses other than the specific area by incrementing them by 1 each time an image is recorded. In this mode, images are stored in the image storage device 6 by controlling the equipment in the same way as in the classification table input mode.

Next, when the index creation mode is instructed from the keyboard 2, the control device 3 sends a code indicating the index creation mode to the address control device 5 and the image storage device 6, and activates each. The address control device 5 decodes this code and sends the first address of the attribute table to the image storage device 6, and the image storage device 6 enters the playback mode, and the image of the first attribute table is played back to the memory 4 for one frame, and the display is displayed. displayed on device 7. When the operator points out an appropriate item among the items with the light pen 10, the code converter 20 converts the coordinates into a code indicating that item, and the coordinates are converted into the address of the area assigned to each image in the index table 21. recorded in In the same way, by playing back and displaying the following attribute table and specifying the relevant item, you can record the code at the next address of the area allocated to that image. A code representing all attributes for the item will be recorded. In this way,
Index codes can be attached to all stored images.

To perform a search, you can choose one of two methods: One method uses a classification table, which is convenient for searching for images with relatively familiar content. When the search mode using the classification table is keyed in using the keyboard 2, the control device controls each device in the same way as controlling the recording and playback to the image storage device 6 described above, and the image of the classification table is stored in one frame memory 4. is played on
It is displayed on the CRT display device 7. The operator looks at this and selects the relevant item using the light pen 1.
If 0 is specified, the address of the association table 51 is given through the code converter 50, and the contents of that address are output according to an instruction from the control device 3. This output is given to the search control device 52, which reads out the contents of the index table 21 one after another and outputs the ID code of the corresponding image. This code is sent to the address control device 5, the address of the image storage device 6 is changed to the address of the image, and the image is outputted to the one-frame memory 4 and displayed on the CRT display device 7. It goes without saying that the contents of one frame memory can be sent to a hard copy device, a transmission circuit, etc. in addition to the CRT display.

The second method of searching is to use an attribute table, and is effective when searching using a classification table is difficult to specify the relevant item, i.e. when you are not familiar with the content but know some of the attributes. This is a great method. First, when an instruction to search by attribute is given using the keyboard, the attribute table is first displayed in this case, using the same procedure as for the classification table. When the operator indicates an appropriate item with the light pen 10, the coordinates are converted by the code converter 20 and stored in the first address of the buffer memory 60. Similarly, by reproducing and displaying the next attribute table and instructing it with the light pen 10, the code of the item corresponding to that attribute is stored at the next address in the buffer memory. When the operations for all attributes are completed and the end is instructed using the keyboard, the contents of the buffer memory are sent to the search control device 53, and the search control device 52 reads out the contents of the index table 21 one after another and outputs the corresponding ID code. do. In the following, the corresponding images are displayed on the CRT display 7 in the same manner as the search using the classification table.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily create an attribute table using an existing classification table, and when searching, users can refer to images of this classification table or attribute table and specify the corresponding item. Just that is enough. Therefore,
Firstly, it is easy to register keywords, etc. for searching, and secondly, no special specialized knowledge is required for searching. Thirdly, when adding a new keyword, there is no need for special work to change the file system. Furthermore, the index table stores coded information for the same number of items that appear in the classification table or attribute table, and the meanings are stored in the image storage device in the form of images, so the index table The capacity of the index table, which requires high speed and reliability, is extremely small, and the information that is slow and has a large lack of meaning is stored in a relatively safe image storage device, so the total cost is reduced. This has the effect of making it cheaper.

As can be understood from the above description of the embodiments, the display device is a CRT display and a light pen is used to indicate coordinates, but the present invention is not limited to this. The display device may be a panel-type display such as a plasma display, LCD, LED, or EL, and it is obvious that a track ball, a jog display, various taglets, etc. can be used for inputting coordinates.

In addition, in the embodiment, an example was shown in which images of the classification table and attribute table are recorded in the same image storage device as general images. The information and attribute table may be stored in separate dedicated image files, or two image displays may be installed, one for searching and one for output.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, a method was shown in which the image information on one frame memory is recorded and played back as is in the image storage device, but it is also possible to perform code conversion such as band compression on the image on one frame memory. It is clear that it may be accumulated. In particular, if the classification table or attribute table is band-compressed, it has the advantage of speeding up reading for searching.

When reproducing the attribute tables, it is also possible to separately provide a plurality of 1-frame memories and to reproduce all the attribute tables from the image storage device one after another into the memories of the plurality of units. This is because large-capacity memories generally used in image storage devices often use a mechanical scanning mechanism, and it is often faster to read out all the necessary attribute tables continuously.

In the embodiment, only the case where an attribute table is used for index coding has been described, but it is clear that coding using a classification table is also possible. However, in that case, the following modification is required. In other words, if the classification table that has already been created may be incomplete as a whole file system, or if it is necessary to add a new attribute item, the advantage of using a classification table (intuition) is to correct the entire classification table. In this embodiment, the attribute table is added to the attribute table. However, when you don't have the time and effort to assign index codes, you can temporarily assign index codes using just the classification table, and then arrange the attribute table later. In that case, a flag indicating that the index code is coded using a classification table may be added to the index code. It would be convenient for file management if the machine could monitor this and output a list of flagged images.

In the embodiment, a case has been described in which the conversion from a partial image to an index code is uniquely determined from the coordinate values indicated by the light pen. This is sufficient if the classification table is created in a certain format, but the following method can also be used to deal with cases where the format is different. That is, using a pattern generator that generates a mesh pattern with variable vertical and horizontal spacing in synchronization with the scanning of the display, the pattern is superimposed on the image on the display and displayed.
Adjust the spacing so that each item in the displayed classification table and attribute table can be separated, and use the vertical and horizontal coordinate values of the mesh boundary line as input to the mask pattern generator. be.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. 1... Image input device, 2... Keyboard, 4...
...1 frame memory, 5...address control device,
6... Image storage device, 7... CRT display device, 8... Buffer memory, 21... Index table, 51... Association table.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In an image file device that stores or searches image file information by referring to index information displayed on a screen, means for inputting arbitrary image information; and image information input by this means. means for displaying the image information accumulated by this means on a screen; coordinate indicating means for indicating a partial area on the screen of the image information displayed by this means; means for cutting out the specified partial area; means for combining and editing the partial areas cut out by this means to create new index information; and means for storing new index information created by this means. An image information file device comprising: storing or searching the image information using new index information stored in the means.