File management device and file management method

Abstract

To enable selection of an image file associated with a specific geographical area with a simple operation.SOLUTION: A file information acquisition unit 51 acquires information on files in which positions on the vehicle's travel route and images captured at those positions are recorded. An area setting unit 52 sets a geographical range designated by a user on a map as an area to be operated. A file selection unit 53 selects, from among the files, files that belong to the area in which the positions have been set.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a file management device and a file management method. [Background technology]

[0002] As a related technique, Patent Document 1 discloses an information processing device that can improve the versatility of a map with a photo attached, that is, a single map image with an embedded photo. The information processing device attaches a captured image onto a map as a photo attachment, and saves image data of the map with the image (photo) attached onto a storage medium as an image file of a single image. The information processing device adds information required for editing the photo-attached map as supplementary information to the saved image file.

[0003] The information processing device displays an edit button on the screen. The user can select the edit button to edit the image data of the photo-added map. Editing the photo-added map includes changing the area of ​​the background map, deleting attached photos, changing the attachment destination, changing the attachment size, adding attached photos, and replacing the background map. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-23098 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In recent years, drive recorders that record images while a vehicle is traveling have become widespread. Regarding the display of images recorded by the drive recorder, a function is known that displays the recorded images while displaying the vehicle's position on a map using a car navigation device, a mobile terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet device, or a personal computer (PC).

[0006] Normally, a continuous recording type drive recorder saves driving images at intervals of a predetermined time, such as one minute. Since the number of files representing driving images increases with an increase in the driving time of the vehicle, a large number of files are recorded in the storage unit of the drive recorder, such as a memory card. When a user wants to play back or delete driving images at a specific location, the user needs to find the driving images at the specific location from among the many recorded files.

[0007] The information processing device described in Patent Document 1 can edit image data of a map with a photo pasted on the map, delete a photo pasted on the map, or add an attached photo. However, the information processing device described in Patent Document 1 does not have a function of collectively selecting photos taken at a specific location from among a large number of photos. Therefore, the information processing device described in Patent Document 1 cannot easily find a photo taken at a specific location from among a large number of photos.

[0008] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a file management device and a file management method that enable selection of image files associated with a specific geographical area with a simple operation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] A file management device according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a file information acquisition unit that acquires information about files that record positions on a vehicle's driving route and images captured at those positions, an area setting unit that sets a geographical range specified by a user on a map as an area to be operated on, and a file selection unit that selects from among the files those whose positions belong to the set area.

[0010] A file management method according to a second aspect of the present invention includes obtaining information about files that record positions on a vehicle's driving route and images captured at those positions, setting a geographical range specified by a user on a map as an area to be operated on, and selecting from among the files those whose positions belong to the set area. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, an image file associated with a specific geographical area can be selected with a simple operation. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a vehicle in which a file management device according to a first embodiment of the present invention is used. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a file management device; [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a specific example of region setting. [Figure 4] 13 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the file management device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following description and drawings are omitted or simplified as appropriate for clarity of explanation. In addition, in each of the following drawings, the same elements and similar elements are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted as necessary.

[0014] FIG. 1 shows a vehicle in which a file management device according to an embodiment of the present invention is used. The vehicle 10 has a camera 20, an image recording device 30, and a navigation device 40. The camera 20 is a camera that captures images of the area in front of the vehicle 10. Although only one camera 20 is illustrated in FIG. 1, the number of cameras 20 mounted on the vehicle 10 is not limited to one. The vehicle 10 may have multiple cameras. For example, the vehicle 10 may have a camera that captures images of the area behind the vehicle. The vehicle 10 may also have a camera that captures images of the area inside the vehicle.

[0015] Image recording device 30 is a device that records images or videos captured by camera 20. Image recording device 30 has a file storage unit 31. File storage unit 31 is configured using a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory. For example, a portable semiconductor memory is used for file storage unit 31. Image recording device 30 records images (including moving images) captured by camera 20 in file storage unit 31. Image recording device 30 may also be called a drive recorder.

[0016] The image recording device 30 measures the position information of the vehicle 10 using a system such as a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The image recording device 30 creates an image file including an image (including a moving image) captured by the camera 20, position information on the travel route of the vehicle 10 at the time of capturing the image, and date and time information at the time of capturing the image. The position information and date and time information are also called metadata. The image recording device 30 creates an image file including travel image data for a certain period of time, for example, every minute. The image recording device 30 may create an image file when the acceleration measured using a sensor such as an acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a certain threshold value. The image recording device 30 records the created image file in the file storage unit 31. When the image is a moving image, the image file includes position information of a plurality of points along the travel route of the vehicle 10 recorded as time-series data.

[0017] The navigation device 40 is a car navigation device mounted on the vehicle 10. The navigation device 40 has, for example, an input unit, a display unit, a GNSS receiver, a map information storage unit, a communication unit, and a control unit. The input unit includes, for example, a touch panel for receiving user operations. The control unit is configured to be able to display a map stored in the map information storage unit on the display unit. The navigation device 40 has one or more memories that store instructions and one or more processors. At least a part of each function in the navigation device 40 can be realized by the one or more processors executing processing according to instructions read from the one or more memories.

[0018] In this embodiment, the navigation device 40 includes a file management device 50. The file management device 50 provides the user with a function of managing image files stored in the file storage unit 31 of the image recording device 30. The navigation device 40 has a communication interface for communicating with the image recording device 30, and the file management device 50 can access the image files recorded in the file storage unit 31 via the communication interface. Alternatively, the file storage unit 31, which is a portable semiconductor memory, may be removed from the image recording device 30 and directly connected to the navigation device 40. In this embodiment, the user is assumed to be able to give desired instructions to the file management device 50 through a touch panel of the navigation device 40.

[0019] 2 shows an example of the configuration of the file management device 50. The file management device 50 has a file information acquisition unit 51, an area setting unit 52, a file selection unit 53, an operation execution unit 54, and a travel information acquisition unit 55. At least a part of the functions of the file management device 50 can be realized by one or more processors of the navigation device 40 executing processes in accordance with programs read from one or more memories.

[0020] The above-mentioned program includes a set of instructions (or software code) for making the computer perform one or more functions described in the embodiment when the program is loaded into the computer. The program may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a tangible storage medium. By way of example and not limitation, the computer-readable medium or the tangible storage medium includes Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), flash memory, Solid State Drive (SSD) or other memory technology, CD-ROM, Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device. The program may be transmitted on a transitory computer-readable medium or a communication medium. By way of example and not limitation, the transitory computer-readable medium or the communication medium includes electrical, optical, acoustic, or other forms of propagating signals.

[0021] 1 shows an example in which the file management device 50 is built into the navigation device 40, the file management device 50 does not necessarily have to be built into the navigation device 40. The file management device 50 may be included in a device different from the navigation device 40. The file management device 50 may be included in an in-vehicle device such as a DA (Display Audio). Alternatively, the file management device 50 may be configured as a device independent of devices such as the navigation device 40.

[0022] In this embodiment, the file management device 50 does not need to be included in an in-vehicle device. The functions of the file management device 50 can be realized, for example, by application software installed in a mobile terminal device such as a smartphone owned by a user. Alternatively, the functions of the file management device 50 can be realized, for example, by application software installed in a computer device such as a PC owned by a user. The file management device 50 does not necessarily need to be configured as a single device. The file management device 50 may be configured using multiple devices that are physically separated.

[0023] The file information acquisition unit 51 acquires information about the image file from the file storage unit 31 (see FIG. 1). The information acquired by the file information acquisition unit 51 includes, for example, vehicle position information at the time of shooting and date and time information at the time of shooting.

[0024] The area setting unit 52 sets a geographical range designated by the user as an area to be operated in response to a user operation. For example, the user operates a touch panel to encircle a desired area with a finger in a loop shape on a map displayed on the screen of the navigation device 40 or a mobile terminal device. The user may operate an input device such as a mouse to encircle a desired area in a loop shape on a map displayed on the screen of a computer device. The area setting unit 52 may accept a user operation when the navigation device 40 mounted on the vehicle or the mobile terminal device carried by the vehicle occupant determines that the vehicle is stopped. Whether the vehicle is stopped can be determined based on, for example, the shift position, the operation status of the parking brake, the vehicle speed pulse (speed information) input from the vehicle, and a value detected by an acceleration sensor mounted on the vehicle.

[0025] Fig. 3 shows a specific example of area setting. The navigation device 40 displays a map on the screen. The user adjusts the scale and position of the map so that a desired range is displayed on the map, and selects range specification from the menu. After area specification is selected, the user traces the outer edge of the geographical range to be specified with a finger, thereby specifying the desired geographical range 60 shown in Fig. 3. The area setting unit 52 sets a position on the map within the geographical range 60, i.e., the latitude and longitude, as the area to be operated.

[0026] For example, the user may encircle a predetermined geographical range centered on the user's home in a loop shape, and set the area near the user's home as the area to be operated. For example, the user may encircle a predetermined geographical range centered on the user's workplace or a specific facility in a loop shape, and set the area near the workplace or facility as the area to be operated. Alternatively, the user may encircle a predetermined geographical range, such as a prefecture or city to which the user's current location or a specified point belongs, in a loop shape, and set the area to be operated. If the geographical range specified by the user is not completely surrounded by a loop shape, the area setting unit 52 may set the area to be operated, which is a range connecting the start point and the end point using a straight line or the like.

[0027] The method of specifying the geographical range in the region setting unit 52 is arbitrary, and the method of specifying the geographical range is not necessarily limited to encircling it in a loop. For example, the user may specify two points, a point at the top left of the region and a point at the bottom right. In this case, the region setting unit 52 may set the geographical range represented by a rectangle with the specified points as vertices as the region to be operated.

[0028] The file selection unit 53 selects one or more files, among the image files recorded in the file storage unit 31, whose position information belongs to the region to be operated set by the region setting unit 52. For example, the file selection unit 53 compares the latitude and longitude indicated by the position information, which is metadata of each image file, with the range of latitude and longitude set as the region to be operated. The file selection unit 53 selects image files whose latitude and longitude indicated by the position information is included in the range of latitude and longitude set as the region to be operated.

[0029] When the location information is recorded as time-series data, the file selection unit 53 may select an image file in which all of the time-series data is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated. Alternatively, the file selection unit 53 may select an image file in which part of the time-series data is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated. It may be possible for the user to set whether to select an image file in which all of the time-series data of the location information is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated, or to select an image file in which part of the time-series data of the location information is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated.

[0030] The operation performing unit 54 performs a predetermined file operation on the image file selected by the file selection unit 53. For example, the operation performing unit 54 deletes the selected image file. Alternatively, the operation performing unit 54 may move the selected file to a predetermined folder such as a folder for storing overwrite-prohibited files or delete-prohibited files. The operation performing unit 54 may change the attributes of the selected file to an overwrite-prohibited file or delete-prohibited file. The operation performing unit 54 may play back the driving image included in the selected image file.

[0031] Alternatively, the operation execution unit 54 may change the file name of the selected file. For example, when the user specifies a geographical range near the home, the operation execution unit 54 may collectively select files whose location information belongs to the geographical range near the home and add a character string "near the home" to the file name of the selected image file. The operation execution unit 54 may display selectable file operations on the screen and allow the user to select the file operation to be performed. For example, when the file management device 50 is included in a device having a communication function such as a smartphone, the operation execution unit 54 may transmit the selected file to an external device such as an external storage or a social networking service (SNS) server. In that case, the operation execution unit 54 may delete the location information from the image file and transmit the image file without the location information to the external device.

[0032] The travel information acquisition unit 55 acquires travel information of the vehicle 10. The travel information includes information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is in a drivable state or not, or information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is traveling or not. Here, the drivable state refers to a state in which the drive system of the vehicle 10, such as an engine or a motor, is activated. The drivable state generally refers to a state in the vehicle 10 between starting the engine and turning off the engine. The drivable state may refer to a state in which the start switch of the vehicle 10 is turned on and off. The travel information acquisition unit 55 acquires, for example, information indicating whether the key switch is in the ON position or the ACC (Accessory) position as information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is in a drivable state or not. The travel information acquisition unit 55 may acquire, for example, information indicating whether the drive system of the vehicle 10 is activated as information indicating whether the vehicle 10 is in a drivable state or not. The information indicating whether the drive system of the vehicle 10 is activated or not is, for example, information indicating that the voltage of the battery of the vehicle is equal to or higher than a preset threshold value. Alternatively, travel information of the vehicle 10 may be obtained by using known techniques such as obtaining measured values ​​from an acceleration sensor or a vehicle speed pulse.

[0033] When the driving information is acquired, the file selection unit 53 may select, from among the image files whose position belongs to the region to be operated, image files recorded after the time when the vehicle 10 last changed to a drivable state. In other words, the file selection unit 53 may select only image files whose date and time are temporally consecutive to the current driving among the image files whose position information belongs to the region to be operated. For example, while the vehicle is stopped, such as waiting at a traffic light, the user may select, for example, that he / she wants to delete the image file of the current driving or to prohibit overwriting. The operation execution unit 54 may execute a predetermined file operation selected by the user, for example, after the position of the key switch changes to OFF and the driving of the vehicle 10 ends.

[0034] In this embodiment, when specifying a geographical range, the user can select whether to specify the geographical range by encircling the desired geographical range once or by encircling the desired geographical range twice. Encircling the desired geographical range twice means that the user encircles the desired geographical range once and then encircles the same desired geographical range again in a loop shape. For example, the user encircles the range to be specified on the touch panel in a loop shape with his / her finger, repeating it twice. The file selection unit 53 may change the file to be selected depending on whether the user specifies the geographical range by encircling the geographical range once or by encircling the geographical range twice. For example, when the user encircles the geographical range once, the file selection unit 53 may select a file whose date and time information satisfies a predetermined time condition from among image files belonging to the region of the operation target for which the location information is set. The predetermined time condition may be, for example, the latest date and time, older than a predetermined time, or earlier than one day ago. When the user encircles the geographical range twice, the file selection unit 53 may select all image files belonging to the region of the operation target for which the location information is set.

[0035] Alternatively, the file selection unit 53 may select an image file in which part of the location information recorded as time-series data is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated, or select an image file in which all of the location information is included in the latitude and longitude range set as the region to be operated, depending on whether the user encircles the geographical range once or twice. When the user specifies a geographical range by encircling a desired geographical range twice, the region setting unit 52 may set the geographical range that is initially enclosed in a loop as the region to be operated. Alternatively, the region setting unit 52 may set the narrower of the two geographical ranges, or the intermediate geographical range between the two geographical ranges, as the region to be operated.

[0036] Next, the operation procedure will be described. Fig. 4 shows the operation procedure of the file management device 50. The user operates the navigation device 40 to display a file management screen of the file storage unit 31 of the image recording device 30 on the display. The user selects "specify area" from the file management screen and specifies a desired geographical range on the map displayed on the display. The area setting unit 52 sets the geographical range specified by the user as the area to be operated (step S1).

[0037] The file information acquisition unit 51 acquires information on each image file from the file storage unit 31 (step S2). In step S2, the file information acquisition unit 51 acquires, for example, location information and date and time information when each image was captured. The file selection unit 53 selects, from the image files stored in the file storage unit 31, files whose location information belongs to the area to be operated set in step S2 (step S3). In step S3, the file selection unit 53 compares the latitude and longitude indicated by the location information with the latitude and longitude range of the area to be operated set, and selects image files whose latitude and longitude indicated by the location information falls within the latitude and longitude range of the area to be operated.

[0038] The operation execution unit 54 executes a predetermined file operation on the image file selected in step S3 (step S4). In step S4, the operation execution unit 54, for example, deletes the selected image file from the file storage unit 31. Alternatively, the operation execution unit 54 may move the selected image file to a folder that is not overwritable.

[0039] In the above description, an example has been described in which the file management device 50 is a device that performs file operations on a desired file. However, this embodiment is not limited to this. The file management device 50 does not necessarily have to have the operation execution unit 54. The file management device 50 may be configured as a device that does not have the operation execution unit 54 and extracts information about a selected file.

[0040] Usually, a large number of image files are stored in the file storage unit 31. In that case, even if the user sees the file name and date and time information of the image file, it is often not immediately clear at which location each image file contains an image taken. On the other hand, it is considered that the user desires to perform file operations such as deletion and overwrite prohibition on images in a desired geographical range. In this embodiment, when the user specifies a geographical range on a map, the area setting unit 52 sets the geographical range as an area to be operated. The file selection unit 53 selects image files belonging to the area to be operated from among the image files stored in the file storage unit 31. The operation execution unit 54 executes a predetermined file operation on the selected image file. Thus, in this embodiment, the user can specify a range on the map to execute operations such as deletion and overwrite prohibition on image files belonging to the range in a lump. The file management device 50 according to this embodiment provides a user-friendly interface, and the user can select image files associated with a specific geographical range with a simple operation.

[0041] In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the image file selected in the file selection unit 53 is changed depending on whether the user surrounds the geographical range once or twice. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In the present invention, the operation performed by the operation execution unit 54 may be changed depending on whether the user surrounds the geographical range once or twice. For example, when the user surrounds the geographical range once, the operation execution unit 54 may delete the image file selected in the file selection unit 53. When the user surrounds the geographical range twice, the operation execution unit 54 may move the image file selected in the file selection unit 53 to a folder that is not overwritable. Furthermore, when the user surrounds the geographical range three or more times, there may be variations in the embodiment, such as how the image file selected in the file selection unit 53 is changed and how the operation performed by the operation execution unit 54 is changed.

[0042] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the present invention also includes changes and modifications to the above-described embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0043] 10: Vehicle 20: Camera 30: Image recording device 31: File storage section 40: Navigation device 50: File management device 51: File information acquisition unit 52: Area setting section 53: File selection section 54: Operation execution department 55: Driving information acquisition unit 60: Geographical range

Claims

1. a file information acquisition unit that acquires information about a file in which a position on a travel route of the vehicle and an image captured at the position are recorded; an area setting unit that sets a geographical range designated by a user on a map as an area to be operated; a file selection unit for selecting, from among the files, a file whose position belongs to the set area; A file management device comprising:

2. 2. The file management device of claim 1, wherein the file selection unit changes whether to select files whose locations belong to the set area and satisfy a predetermined time condition among the files whose locations belong to the set area, or to select all files whose locations belong to the set area, depending on whether the user specifies the geographical range by encircling the geographical range on the map with a single circle or a double circle on the map.

3. an operation execution unit that executes a predetermined file operation on the selected file, 2. The file management device of claim 1, wherein the operation execution unit changes a specified file operation depending on whether the user specifies the geographical range by encircling the geographical range on the map with a single circle or the user specifies the geographical range by encircling the geographical range with a double circle on the map.

4. A driving information acquisition unit that acquires driving information including whether the vehicle is in a drivable state, 3 . The file management device according to claim 1 , wherein the file selection unit selects, from among the files whose positions belong to the set area, files that were recorded after the time when the vehicle last became drivable. 4 .

5. Acquire information about a file in which a position on a travel route of the vehicle and an image captured at the position are recorded; A geographical area designated by the user on the map is set as the area to be operated on; selecting, from among the files, a file whose position belongs to the set area; The file management method includes:

Images