Communication device, program, and method

Abstract

To provide a communication system, a communication device, and a program that improve visibility of an image displayed on a display device.SOLUTION: A communication device includes: arrangement information setting means for setting arrangement information specifying a display method of an image; and display control means for causing a plurality of display devices to display the image with reference to the arrangement information. The display control means causes a first display device to display captured images of its own site and another site, and causes a second display device to display an image provided by an image providing device in its own site or the other site.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a communication system for performing video and audio communication, and more particularly to a communication system, a communication device, and a program for performing mutual video and audio communication among a plurality of locations. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the spread of networks capable of high-speed data communication such as the Internet, videoconferencing has become more common, in which video and audio are transmitted between a plurality of remote locations to hold a conference or the like.

[0003] As one embodiment of a communication system for realizing such video conferences, Patent Document 1 discloses a content distribution device that displays images captured at other locations on a display device at the own location, as well as displays images of materials used in conferences, etc. on the same display device. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the content distribution device disclosed in Patent Document 1 displays images taken at other locations and document images on the same display device screen, so when the display area of ​​one image is enlarged, the display area of ​​the other image is reduced, resulting in a problem of reduced visibility of these images.

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has an object to provide a communication system, a communication device, and a program that improve the visibility of an image displayed on a display device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The communication device of the present invention includes a layout information setting means for setting layout information that specifies the display method of an image, and a display control means for displaying images on a plurality of display devices by referring to the layout information, and the display control means causes a first display device to display images taken at the local base and other bases, and causes a second display device to display images provided by an image providing device at the local base or other bases. Effect of the Invention

[0007] By employing the above-described configuration, the communication device of the present invention can improve the visibility of an image displayed on the display device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a communication system according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a hardware configuration diagram of a communication device 10a. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the functional configuration of a communication device 10a. [Figure 4] 5 is a flowchart showing a display device detection process executed by the communication device of the present invention at the time of startup. [Diagram 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing an embodiment of a display method and a layout information table when one display device in a powered state is connected to a communication device 10a. [Figure 6] 11 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a display method and a layout information table when two display devices in a powered state are connected to a communication device 10a. FIG. [Figure 7] 7 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a screen of a display device based on the screen layout and arrangement information shown in FIG. 6. [Figure 8] 13 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the display method and the arrangement information table when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a. FIG. [Figure 9] 9 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a screen of a display device based on the screen layout and arrangement information shown in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] 6 is a flowchart showing a display device detection process executed by the communication device of the present invention after startup. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0010] 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a communication system of the present invention. The communication system 100 includes communication devices 10a to 10h, display devices 20a to 20h, 22a to 22h, image providing devices 30a to 30h, and a communication management device .

[0011] The communication devices 10a-10h are devices that mutually communicate images and audio with the communication devices 10a-10h at other bases, and display images and output audio on the display devices 20a-20h, 22a-22h connected to the communication devices 10a-10h. The communication devices 10a-10h transmit images and audio of their own base to the communication management device 40 via the router 50 and the network 60. In addition, the communication devices 10a-10h receive images of the other bases from the communication management device 40, and display images of their own bases and images of the other bases on the display devices 20a-20h, 22a-22h, and output audio of the other bases.

[0012] In this embodiment, the communication devices 10a-10h output images to the display devices 20a-20h, 22a-22h by wired communication, but in other embodiments, the images may be output to the display devices by wireless communication. Also, in this embodiment, two display devices are connected to one communication device, but in other embodiments, three or more display devices may be connected to one communication device. In still other embodiments, one or more display devices may be built into the communication device, and the communication device may be compatible with dual displays.

[0013] The image providing devices 30a to 30h are devices that provide images to the connected communication devices 10a to 10h. The image providing devices 30a to 30h provide images displayed on the display devices of the image providing devices 30a to 30h to the communication devices 10a to 10h. The images provided by the image providing devices 30a to 30h include various images such as document images created using word processing software, spreadsheet software, presentation software, etc., desktop screens of the image providing devices 30a to 30h, and UIs (User Interfaces) of application programs. Note that, in FIG. 1, a desktop personal computer is described as being interconnected with the communication devices 10a to 10h as the image providing devices 30a to 30h, but as the image providing devices 30a to 30h, in addition to desktop PCs, notebook PCs, tablet PCs such as iPad (registered trademark), and smartphones equipped with iPhone (registered trademark) or Android (registered trademark) can also be preferably used.

[0014] The communication management device 40 is a device that manages data communication in the communication system 100. The communication management device 40 establishes sessions between the communication devices 10a to 10h among a plurality of points, and relays images and sounds of the communication devices 10a to 10h.

[0015] Fig. 2 shows an embodiment of a hardware configuration diagram of the communication device 10a. The hardware configuration of the communication device 10a will be described below with reference to Fig. 2. Note that the hardware configurations of the other communication devices 10b to 10h are similar to that of the communication device 10a, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0016] The communication device 10a includes a central processing unit (CPU) 201, a read only memory (ROM) 202, a random access memory (RAM) 203, a solid state drive (SSD) 204, and a media drive 206. These devices are connected via a data bus 209.

[0017] The CPU 201 is a processor that controls the overall operation of the communication device 10a. The ROM 202 is a storage device that stores the program of the present invention. The RAM 203 is a storage device that provides an execution space for the program of the present invention. The communication device 10a develops the program of the present invention, which is written in a program language such as assembler, C, C++, Java, JavaScript, PERL, RUBY, or PYTHON, under the management of an OS such as WINDOWS (registered trademark) series, Mac (registered trademark) OS, UNIX (registered trademark), or LINUX (registered trademark), in the RAM 203 and executes it, thereby realizing each of the functional means described below on the communication device 10a.

[0018] The SSD 204 includes a non-volatile memory (not shown) such as a flash memory or an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM) that stores various data such as images and audio, and controls reading and writing of various data from and to the flash memory. The media drive 206 is a device into which a recording medium 205 such as a flash memory can be inserted, and controls reading and writing of data from and to the recording medium 205.

[0019] The communication device 10a also includes an operation button 207, a power switch 208, a network interface (I / F) 210, an image sensor I / F 212, an audio input / output I / F 215, a display device I / F 216, a display device I / F 217, and an external device I / F 218. These devices are connected via a data bus 209.

[0020] The operation button 207 is an input device for selecting a communication device at another base with which to establish a session and for performing various settings. The power switch 208 is a switch for switching the power of the communication device 10a ON / OFF. The network I / F 210 is an interface for providing a connection to the router 50 and for performing data communication via the network 60.

[0021] The imaging element I / F 212 is an interface that connects a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) 211 that captures an image of a subject and generates an image, and generates an image by controlling the CCD 211. In this embodiment, a CCD is used as the imaging element, but other imaging elements such as a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) may also be used.

[0022] The audio input / output I / F 215 is an interface that connects the microphone 213 and the speaker 214, and inputs and outputs audio signals between the microphone 213 and the speaker 214. The display device I / F 216 is an interface that connects the display device 20a, and outputs images to the display device 20a. The display device I / F 217 is an interface that connects the display device 22a, and outputs images to the display device 22a.

[0023] The display devices 20a and 22a are display devices that display various images output by the communication device 10a. The external device I / F 218 is an interface that connects to the image providing device 30a and receives images from the image providing device 30a.

[0024] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the functional configuration of the communication device 10a. The functional configuration of the communication device 10a will be described below with reference to Fig. 3. Note that the functional configurations of the other communication devices 10b to 10h are similar to that of the communication device 10a, and therefore descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0025] The communication device 10 a includes a control unit 300 , a transmission / reception unit 302 , an operation reception unit 304 , and an imaging unit 306 .

[0026] The control unit 300 is a functional unit that performs overall control of the processes executed by the communication device 10a. The control unit 300 executes various processes using functional units that will be described later.

[0027] The transmission / reception unit 302 is a functional unit that communicates with the communication management device 40 or the image providing device 30 a, and is realized by the network I / F 210 and the external device I / F 218.

[0028] The operation reception unit 304 is a functional means for receiving various operation instructions from the user. For example, when the user turns on the power switch 208, a power-on instruction is issued. When the operation reception unit 304 receives the instruction, it turns on the power of the communication device 10a. When the user changes the display method of the display devices 20a to 20h, 22a to 22h using the operation button 207, an instruction to change the display method is issued. When the operation reception unit 304 receives the instruction, it causes the arrangement information setting unit 314 to store the display method designated by the user (such as "VIEW_MULTI" and "SHARED_MULTI") in the storage unit 310 as setting information for designating the display method of the display device (hereinafter referred to as "display method setting information"). The display method of this embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 5.

[0029] The imaging unit 306 is a functional unit that captures an image of a subject and generates an image, and is realized by the CCD 211 and the image sensor I / F 212. The imaging unit 306 generates a captured image when the communication device 10a is started up.

[0030] The communication device 10 a further includes a memory control unit 308 , a storage unit 310 , a layout information setting unit 314 , a display control unit 316 , a display device detection unit 318 , an audio input unit 320 , and an audio output unit 322 .

[0031] The memory control unit 308 is a unit that controls the storage unit 310. The memory control unit 308 stores various data in the storage unit 310, and also reads out various data stored in the storage unit 310.

[0032] The layout information setting unit 314 is a functional means for setting layout information and display method setting information that specifies the display method of images to be displayed on the display devices 20a-20h, 22a-22h. The layout information setting unit 314 sets the layout information in the layout information table 312 of the storage unit 310. The layout information setting unit 314 also stores the display method setting information in the storage unit 310.

[0033] The display control unit 316 is a functional unit that controls the display devices 20a to 20h, 22a to 22h. The display control unit 316 uses the display method setting information stored in the storage unit 310 and the arrangement information registered in the arrangement information table 312 to specify an image to be displayed on the display device, and displays the image on the display devices 20a, 22a according to a predetermined screen layout.

[0034] The images displayed on the display devices 20a, 22a include images captured by the imaging units 306 of the communication devices 10a to 10h at the same base or other bases (hereinafter referred to as "captured images") and images provided by the image providing devices 30a to 30h at the same base or other bases.

[0035] The voice input unit 320 is a functional means for detecting voice such as a user's speech and generating a voice signal. The voice input unit 320 also converts the user's voice into a voice signal, measures the strength of the voice signal, and detects the user's speech when the strength is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. The voice output unit 322 is a functional means for converting the voice signal into voice and outputting it.

[0036] The display device detection unit 318 is a means for detecting a display device connected to the communication device 10a in a powered state. The display device detection unit 318 detects the powered state of the display devices connected to the display device I / Fs 216 and 217 by a graphic driver, which is a device driver of the display device, and counts the number of powered display devices. In this embodiment, the number of powered display devices is counted by using an API function and a graphic driver provided by the WINDOWS (registered trademark) OS.

[0037] When the communication device 10a is powered on, the control unit 300 executes a display device detection process described below and causes the imaging unit 306 to generate a captured image. When the image providing devices 30a to 30h are connected to the communication devices 10a to 10h, the control unit 300 causes the image providing devices 30a to 30h to display a menu screen, enabling image provision.

[0038] The control unit 300 requests the communication management device 40 to establish a session with a communication device at another base in accordance with an instruction from the user. When the session is established, the control unit 300 transmits the captured image of the own base generated by the imaging unit 306 and the image provided by the image providing device 30a to the communication device at the other base via the communication management device 40. Furthermore, when the control unit 300 receives an image from the communication device at the other base, it displays the image on the display devices 20a and 22a. Furthermore, when the image providing devices 30a to 30h are connected to the communication devices 10a to 10h, when the user selects a share start button on a menu screen displayed on the image providing device, the control unit 300 acquires an image from the image providing device 30a to 30h.

[0039] When the control unit 300 detects the user's speech, it adds information indicating that the user is speaking (hereinafter referred to as "speech information") to the captured image and transmits the image to the communication management device 40. When the control unit 300 receives the captured image with the speech information added from another base, it changes the arrangement information in the arrangement information table 312 so that the captured image is displayed in a predetermined display area of ​​the display devices 20a and 22a.

[0040] 4 is a flowchart showing a display device detection process executed by the communication device of the present invention at the time of startup. Hereinafter, the display device detection process executed when the communication device 10a is powered on will be described with reference to FIG.

[0041] The process in FIG. 4 starts when the communication device 10a is powered on in step S400. In step S401, the display device detection unit 318 initializes a variable (ACTIVE) secured in the RAM 203 to 0. In step S402, the display device detection unit 318 counts the number of powered display devices among the display devices connected to the communication device 10a, and sets this number to the variable (ACTIVE). In step S403, the arrangement information setting unit 314 determines whether the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 0 or not. If the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 0 (yes), the process returns to step S402. On the other hand, if the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is not 0 (no), the process branches to step S404.

[0042] In step S404, the arrangement information setting unit 314 judges the variable (ACTIVE), and when the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 1, that is, when one display device in a powered state is connected, the process branches to step S405. In step S405, the arrangement information setting unit 314 sets the arrangement information when one display device is connected as shown in Fig. 5 in the arrangement information table, and the process ends in step S407.

[0043] On the other hand, when the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 2, that is, when two powered display devices are connected, the process branches to step S406. In step S406, the layout information setting unit 314 sets the layout information when two display devices are connected as shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 8 in the layout information table, and the process ends in step S407.

[0044] 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a display method and a layout information table when one display device in a powered state is connected to the communication device 10a. Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, a screen layout 500 of the display device and a layout information table 502 when one display device in a powered state is connected to the communication device 10a will be described.

[0045] Screen layout 500 shows the screen layout of a display device connected to communication device 10a. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 5, the display area of ​​the display device is divided into four, and the area of ​​display area 1 is larger than the areas of the other display areas 2 to 4.

[0046] In the layout information table 502, the display method of an image to be displayed on the display device and identification information of an image to be displayed in the display area of ​​the display device are registered in association with each other as layout information when a display device in a powered state is connected to the communication device 10a.

[0047] The display methods in this embodiment include "VIEW_MULTI" and "SHARED_MULTI." "VIEW_MULTI" indicates a method in which the communication devices 10a to 10h display images captured at their own base and other bases. "SHARED_MULTI" indicates a method in which images provided by the image providing devices 30a to 30h are displayed in addition to images captured at their own base and other bases. In this embodiment, these display methods are specified by the user and stored in the storage unit 310 as display method setting information.

[0048] 5, when the display method is "VIEW_MULTI", images captured at other locations are displayed in display area 1, and images captured at the user's own location are displayed in display area 2. When the display method is "SHARED_MULTI", document images are displayed in display area 1, images captured at other locations are displayed in display area 2, and images captured at the user's own location are displayed in display area 3.

[0049] In other embodiments, instead of switching between the display modes "VIEW_MULTI" and "SHARED_MULTI" by user command as in the present embodiment, the communication devices 10a to 10h may detect that image provision by the image providing devices 30a to 30h has begun and switch the display mode.

[0050] Specifically, the communication devices 10a to 10h detect an explicit notification from the image providing devices 30a to 30h indicating, for example, the start of communication on a specific application port or the start of image provision, and automatically switch the display method from "VIEW_MULTI" to "SHARED_MULTI." When the image provision from the image providing devices 30a to 30h ends or is interrupted, the communication devices 10a to 10h switch the display method from "SHARED_MULTI" to "VIEW_MULTI." This can eliminate user operations and improve the efficiency of stream processing of provided images.

[0051] More specifically, when the transmitting / receiving unit 302 of the communication devices 10a to 10h receives an image from the image providing device 30a to 30h, the control unit 300 issues an image provision start event notifying that the image providing device has started providing images. When the arrangement information setting unit 314 detects the image provision start event, it sets the display method setting information to "SHARED_MULTI". Then, the display control unit 316 refers to the arrangement information table and displays the document image and the captured image on the display devices 20a, 20b according to the arrangement information associated with the display method setting information "SHARED_MULTI".

[0052] When the image provision by the image providing devices 30a to 30h stops, the control unit 300 issues an image provision stop event notifying that the image provision by the image providing device has stopped. When the arrangement information setting unit 314 detects the image provision stop event, it changes the display method setting information from "SHARED_MULTI" to "VIEW_MULTI". Then, the display control unit 316 refers to the arrangement information table and displays the captured image on the display devices 20a and 20b according to the arrangement information associated with the display method setting information "VIEW_MULTI".

[0053] In this embodiment, the screen of the display device is divided into four display areas, but in other embodiments, it may be divided into three or five or more display areas. Also, the layout information in this embodiment is layout information when an image is shared among two locations, but the present invention can also share an image among three or more locations.

[0054] When sharing images among three or more locations, if the display method “VIEW_MULTI” is specified, the layout information is changed so that images captured at other locations on which the user should pay attention, i.e., images captured at the location where speech is detected, are displayed in display area 1, and the images captured at the location where the user is speaking are displayed in display area 1.

[0055] 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a display mode and a layout information table when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a. Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 6, the screen layouts 600 and 602 of the display devices and the layout information table 604 when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a will be described.

[0056] Screen layout 600 is a screen layout of a first display device connected to communication device 10a. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 6, the display area of ​​the display device is divided into four, and the area of ​​display area 1 is larger than the areas of the other display areas 2 to 4. Screen layout 602 is a screen layout of a second display device connected to communication device 10a, and is composed of one display area.

[0057] In the arrangement information table 604, the display method of the images displayed on the first display device and the second display device and identification information of the images displayed in the display area of ​​the display device are registered in association with each other as arrangement information when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a.

[0058] 6, when the display method is "VIEW_MULTI", an image captured at another location is displayed in display area 1 of the first display device, and an image captured at the own location is displayed in display area 2 of the first display device. On the other hand, no image is displayed in display area 1 of the second display device.

[0059] When the display method is "SHARED_MULTI", an image captured at another location is displayed in the display area 1 of the first display device, and an image captured at the own location is displayed in the display area 2 of the first display device. On the other hand, a document image is displayed in the display area 1 of the second display device.

[0060] In this embodiment, the screen of the display device is divided into four display areas, but in other embodiments, it may be divided into three or five or more display areas. Also, the arrangement information in this embodiment is arrangement information when an image is shared at two locations, but the present invention can also share an image at three or more locations. When sharing an image at three or more locations, the arrangement information is changed so that a captured image of another location that the user should pay attention to, i.e., a captured image of the location where an utterance was detected, is displayed in the display area 1 of the first display device, and the captured image of the location where the user is speaking can be displayed in that display area.

[0061] In this embodiment, images captured at the local location and other locations are displayed on a first display device, and images such as reference images provided by image providing devices 30a to 30h are displayed on a second display device, thereby improving the visibility of these images.

[0062] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the screen of a display device based on the screen layout and arrangement information shown in Fig. 6. Screen 700 and screen 706 are the screens of the first display device and the second display device when the display method "VIEW_MULTI" is selected. A display area 702 of screen 700 displays an image captured at another location, and a display area 704 displays an image captured at the own location. No image is displayed on screen 706.

[0063] Screens 710 and 716 are the screens of the first and second display devices when the display method "SHARED_MULTI" is selected. Images captured at the other location are displayed in a display area 712 of the screen 710, and images captured at the user's own location are displayed in a display area 714. A document image is displayed on the screen 716.

[0064] Fig. 8 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the display method and the arrangement information table when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a. Hereinafter, with reference to Fig. 8, the screen layouts 800 and 802 of the display devices and the arrangement information table 804 when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a will be described.

[0065] Screen layout 800 is the screen layout of a first display device connected to communication device 10a. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the display area of ​​the display device is divided into four equal parts. Screen layout 802 is the screen layout of a second display device connected to communication device 10a, and is composed of one display area. In this embodiment, the screen of the display device is divided into four display areas, but in other embodiments, it may be divided into three or five or more display areas.

[0066] In the arrangement information table 804, the display method of the images displayed on the first display device and the second display device and identification information of the images displayed in the display area of ​​the display device are registered in association with each other as arrangement information when two display devices in a powered state are connected to the communication device 10a.

[0067] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, when the display method is “VIEW_MULTI”, an image taken at the own location is displayed in the display area 1 of the first display device, and an image taken at another location is displayed in the display area 1 of the second display device.

[0068] When the display method is "SHARED_MULTI", an image captured at another location is displayed in display area 1 of the first display device, and an image captured at the own location is displayed in display area 2 of the first display device. On the other hand, a document image is displayed in display area 2 of the second display device.

[0069] The arrangement information in this embodiment is arrangement information when an image is shared among two locations, but the present invention can also share an image among three or more locations. In this case, when the display method "VIEW_MULTI" is specified, the arrangement information is changed so that the captured image of another location that the user should pay attention to, that is, the captured image of the location where the utterance was detected, is displayed on the second display device, and the captured image of the location where the user is speaking is displayed on the second display device, and the captured images of the other locations are displayed on the first display device.

[0070] In this embodiment, the captured image is displayed on the first display device, and the image such as the document image provided by the image providing device is displayed on the second display device, so that the visibility of the image can be improved. Also, the captured image of another site that is of interest is displayed on the display device configured with one display area, so that the visibility of the image can be improved.

[0071] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the screen of a display device based on the screen layout and arrangement information shown in Fig. 8. Screen 900 and screen 906 are the screens of the first display device and the second display device when the display method "VIEW_MULTI" is selected. A display area 902 of screen 900 displays an image captured at the own location, and screen 906 displays an image captured at another location.

[0072] A screen 910 and a screen 916 are the screens of the first display device and the second display device when the display method "SHARED_MULTI" is selected. A display area 912 of the screen 910 displays an image captured at another location, and a display area 914 displays an image captured at the user's own location. A document image is displayed on the screen 916.

[0073] 10 is a flow chart showing a display device detection process executed by the communication device of the present invention after startup. Hereinafter, the display device detection process executed by the communication device 10a after startup will be described with reference to FIG.

[0074] 10 starts from step S1000, and in step S1001, the display device detection unit 318 determines whether or not a power change event issued by the OS of the communication device 10a upon detecting the power states of the display devices 20a-20h, 22a-22h has been received. If a power change event has not been received (no), the process of step S1001 is repeated. On the other hand, if a power change event has been received (yes), the process branches to step S1002.

[0075] In step S1002, the display device detection unit 318 initializes a variable (ACTIVE) secured in the RAM 203 to 0. In step S1003, the display device detection unit 318 counts the number of powered display devices among the display devices connected to the communication device 10a, and sets this number to the variable (ACTIVE). In step S1004, the layout information setting unit 314 determines whether the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 0 or not. If the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 0 (yes), the process returns to step S1003. On the other hand, if the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is not 0 (no), the process branches to step S1005.

[0076] In step S1005, the layout information setting unit 314 judges the value of the variable (ACTIVE), and when the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 1, that is, when one display device in a powered state is connected, the process branches to step S1006. In step S1006, the layout information setting unit 314 sets the layout information when one display device is connected as shown in Fig. 5 in the layout information table, and the process ends in step S1008.

[0077] On the other hand, when the value of the variable (ACTIVE) is 2, that is, when two powered display devices are connected, the process branches to step S1007. In step S1007, the layout information setting unit 314 sets the layout information when two display devices are connected, as shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 8, in the layout information table, and the process ends in step S1008.

[0078] Through the above-described processing, the communication device 10a can detect display devices that have been connected to the communication device 10a after startup, or that have been powered on and can display images on these display devices.

[0079] While the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the components of the present embodiment may be modified or deleted, or other components may be added to the components of the present embodiment, within the scope that can be conceived by a person skilled in the art. As long as the effects of the present invention are achieved in any aspect, it is within the scope of the present invention.

[0080] The program of the present invention which realizes the above-mentioned functional means can be stored on a device-readable recording medium such as a hard disk device, CD-ROM, MO, flexible disk, EEPROM, or EPROM and distributed, and can also be transmitted over a network in a format that can be used by other devices. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 10a to 10h... communication device, 20a to 20h... display device, 22a to 22h... display device, 30a to 30h... image providing device, 40... communication management device, 50... router, 60... network, 100... communication system [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0082] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 6,760,749

Claims

1. A communication device connected to a first display device and a second display device, a receiving means for receiving photographed image data and reference image data provided from another communication device via a network; a display control means for, when data of the document image is received while the photographed image is being displayed on the first display device, displaying the photographed image on the second display device and displaying the document image on the first display device; A communication device comprising:

2. The display control means The communication device according to claim 1, characterized in that, when data of the document image is received while the captured image is being displayed on the first display device, the captured image is not displayed on the first display device.

3. The display control means A communication device as described in claim 1 or 2, wherein when the captured image is displayed on the second display device and the document image is displayed on the first display device, if the provision of data for the document image is terminated or interrupted, the captured image is displayed on the first display device and the document image is not displayed on the first display device.

4. A communication device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the document image is an image of a document created using either word processing software, spreadsheet software, or presentation software.

5. The communication device includes:

2. The communication device of claim 1, further comprising display device detection means for detecting a powered display device.

6. The communication device according to claim 5 , wherein the display device detection means detects a power-on state of the display device at or after startup of the communication device.

7. A program for causing a communication device to execute a method executed by the communication device connected to a first display device and a second display device, the program comprising: a first display step of displaying on the first display device data of a captured image provided from another communication device via a network; a second display step of displaying the photographed image on the second display device and displaying the document image on the first display device when data of a document image is received from the other communication device while the photographed image is being displayed on the first display device; A device-executable program that causes the communication device to execute the above.

8. The program described in claim 7, characterized in that the second display step does not display the captured image on the first display device.

9. A step of displaying the photographed image on the first display device and not displaying the document image on the first display device when provision of the data of the document image is terminated or interrupted while the photographed image is displayed on the second display device and the document image is displayed on the first display device. The program according to claim 7 or 8, further causing the communication device to execute the following:

10. A program described in any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the document image is an image of a document created using either word processing software, spreadsheet software, or presentation software.

11. The computer-readable medium according to claim 7 , further comprising: a step of detecting a display device in a powered state.

12. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 11 , wherein the step of detecting the powered display device is executed at or after startup of the communication device.

13. A method executed by a communication device connected to a first display device and a second display device, comprising: a first display step of displaying on the first display device data of a captured image provided from another communication device via a network; a second display step of displaying the photographed image on the second display device and displaying the document image on the first display device when data of a document image is received from the other communication device while the photographed image is being displayed on the first display device; The method includes:

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