Information processing device, window display control method, and program

Abstract

To improve a user's experience when working in a multi-window.SOLUTION: An information processing device 10 includes: a window display control unit 21 for displaying a window on a display screen; a position acquisition unit 22 for acquiring, as a reference position, a position of a mouse cursor in the window when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window occurs; and a superimposition determination unit 23 for determining whether or not another window is superimposed on a part of the window according to whether or not the reference position is positioned on a window frame of the window. The window display control unit 21 controls the arrangement of the window in a depth direction of the display screen based on the reference position and a moving locus of the mouse cursor when it is determined that the other window is superimposed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a window display control method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] In information processing apparatuses such as desktop PCs and notebook PCs, it is common to work by displaying a plurality of windows on a display screen or the like.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] For example, as shown in FIG. 12, when window Wn1 is behind window Wn2 and a part of the area is hidden, in order to move window Wn1 to the front and check the whole of it, it is necessary to move the mouse cursor onto window Wn1 and click. Further, after thus displaying window Wn1 in front of window Wn2, in order to check the whole of window Wn2 again, as shown in FIG. 13, it is necessary to move the mouse cursor to window Wn2 again and click. As described above, conventionally, in a state where a plurality of windows are superimposed and displayed, in order to switch the window to be displayed in the frontmost position, it has been necessary to move the mouse cursor significantly, leading to a deterioration in the user experience.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an information processing apparatus, a window display control method, and a program capable of improving the user experience when working with multiple windows.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0006] One aspect of the present invention includes a window display control unit that displays a window on a display screen, a position acquisition unit that acquires, as a reference position, the position of a mouse cursor in the window when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window occurs, and a superimposition determination unit that determines whether another window is superimposed on a part of the window according to whether the reference position is located on the window frame of the window. When it is determined that another window is superimposed, the window display control unit is an information processing apparatus that controls the arrangement of the window in the depth direction of the display screen based on the reference position and the movement locus of the mouse cursor.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a window display control method in which a computer executes a process of displaying a window on a display screen, a process of acquiring, as a reference position, the position of a mouse cursor in the window when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window occurs, a process of determining whether another window is superimposed on a part of the window according to whether the reference position is located on the window frame of the window, and a process of controlling the arrangement of the window in the depth direction of the display screen based on the reference position and the movement locus of the mouse cursor when it is determined that another window is superimposed.

[0008] One aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to function as the information processing apparatus described above.

Advantages of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, the user experience when working with multiple windows can be improved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] 〔First Embodiment〕 Hereinafter, an information processing apparatus, a window display control method, and a program according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, a desktop PC will be described as an example of the information processing apparatus 10.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a schematic external view of a computer system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the computer system includes an information processing apparatus 10, a display 15, an input device 16, and the like. The display 15 has a display screen composed of, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an organic EL (Electro Luminescence), or the like, and displays the results of application software programs executed by the information processing apparatus 10.

[0013] The input device 16 is a user interface for a user to give instructions to the information processing apparatus 10. Examples of the input device 16 include pointing devices such as a mouse and a touch pad, and a keyboard.

[0014] FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the information processing apparatus 10 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit: processor) 11, a main memory device (Main Memory) 12, a secondary storage device (Secondary storage: memory) 13, a communication interface 14, an external interface 18, and the like. These components are directly or indirectly connected to each other via a bus 19 and cooperate with each other to execute various processes.

[0015] The CPU 11 controls the entire information processing apparatus 10 by an OS (Operating System) stored in the secondary storage device 13 connected via the bus 19, and executes various processes by executing various programs stored in the secondary storage device 13. One or more CPUs 11 may be provided and cooperate with each other to realize processing.

[0016] The main memory device 12 is composed of a writable memory such as a cache memory, a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc., and is used as a working area for reading the execution program of the CPU 11, writing processing data by the execution program, and the like.

[0017] The secondary storage device 13 is a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The secondary storage device 13 is, for example, a magnetic disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a semiconductor memory, etc. Examples of the secondary storage device 13 include a ROM (Read Only Memory), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive) flash memory, etc. The secondary storage device 13 stores, for example, an OS for controlling the entire information processing device such as Windows (registered trademark), iOS (registered trademark), Android (registered trademark), a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System), various device drivers for hardware operation of peripheral devices, various application softwares, and various data and files. Further, the secondary storage device 13 stores a program for realizing various processes and various data required for realizing various processes. A plurality of secondary storage devices 13 may be provided, and the programs and data as described above may be divided and stored in each secondary storage device 13.

[0018] The communication interface 14 functions as an interface for connecting to a network, communicating with other devices, and transmitting and receiving information. For example, the communication interface 14 communicates with other devices via wired or wireless means. Examples of wireless communication include communication via lines such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi, mobile communication systems (3G, 4G, 5G, 6G, LTE, etc.), and wireless LAN. An example of wired communication includes communication via a line such as wired LAN (Local Area Network).

[0019] The external interface 18 is an interface for connecting to external devices. The display 15 and the input device 16 are connected via the external interface 18. The external interface 18 is provided with appropriate input / output terminals and interfaces according to the connected devices, for example.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a functional configuration diagram showing an example of the functions provided in the information processing apparatus 10. As shown in FIG. 3, the information processing apparatus 10 includes a window display control unit 21, a position acquisition unit 22, a superimposition determination unit 23, a determination area setting unit 24, and the like.

[0021] A series of processes for realizing the various functions described below are stored, as an example, in the secondary storage device 13 or the like in the form of application software (program). The CPU (processor) 11 reads this program into the main storage device 12 and executes information processing and arithmetic operations, thereby realizing the various functions. Note that the program may be in a form pre-installed in the secondary storage device 13, a form provided in a state stored in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, a form distributed via wired or wireless communication means, or the like. Examples of non-transitory computer-readable storage media include magnetic disks, magneto-optical disks, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, and semiconductor memories.

[0022] As an example of application software, for example, application software such as a widget where a window is displayed at a determined location on the display screen can be cited. Also, as a specific example, an Infoboard application provided by the applicant can be cited.

[0023] The window display control unit 21 displays its own window (for example, the window related to the application A, hereinafter referred to as "window WnA") on the display screen of the display 15. For example, when the application A is a widget application, the window WnA means the window of the widget. When a predetermined event (for example, when the information processing apparatus 10 is started up) occurs, the window display control unit 21 causes the window WnA to be displayed at a predetermined position on the display screen. Further, when the superimposition determination unit 23 described later determines that another window WnB is being superimposed, the window display control unit 21 controls the arrangement of the window WnA in the depth direction of the display screen, in other words, the Z order, based on the reference position and the movement locus of the mouse cursor described later. Details will be described later.

[0024] When an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window WnA occurs, the position acquisition unit 22 acquires the position of the mouse cursor in the window WnA as a reference position P0 (see FIGS. 4 and 5).

[0025] The overlapping determination unit 23 determines whether or not another window is overlappingly displayed in a part of its own window WnA according to whether or not the reference position P0 is located on the window frame of the window WnA. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, when the window WnA is displayed behind another window WnB, when the mouse cursor moves from the window WnB to the window WnA, the reference position P0 will not be located on the frame of the window WnA. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, when no other window overlaps the window WnA, when the mouse cursor moves to the window WnA, the reference position P0 will be located on the frame of the window WnA. Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is determined whether or not there is another window WnB overlapping the window WnA based on whether or not the reference position P0 is on the frame of the window WnA.

[0026] When it is determined that another window WnB is overlappingly displayed, the determination area setting unit 24 virtually sets a plurality of determination areas based on a predetermined arrangement rule with the reference position P0 as a reference. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a plurality of determination areas according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, the plurality of determination areas include, for example, a provisional front determination area A1 for temporarily displaying the window WnA in front of another window WnB, a confirmed front determination area A2 for confirming the state of displaying the window WnA in front of another window WnB, and a return determination area A3 for returning the window WnA temporarily displayed in front of another window WnB to behind the other window WnB. The plurality of determination areas may also include an insensitive area A0.

[0027] For example, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the determination area setting unit 24 sets the return determination area A3 in a predetermined area specified from the display position of the window WnA on the display screen 15a and the reference position P0 with the reference position P0 as a reference. The predetermined area is an overlapping area with another window WnB. For example, when the default display position of window WnA is the upper right of the display screen, assuming that another window WnB is overlappingly displayed, the overlapping area will necessarily include the lower left area of the reference position P0 (the third quadrant in FIG. 6). Thus, the overlapping area can be specified based on the default display position of window WnA on the display screen, and the return determination area A3 is set in this overlapping area. In addition, the determination area setting unit 24 sets a provisional front determination area A1 in an area (the first to third quadrants in FIG. 6) other than the return determination area A3 and at a predetermined distance from the reference position P0, and sets a confirmed front determination area A2 outside the provisional front determination area A1. Also, the determination area setting unit 24 may set a dead zone area A0 around the reference position P0 and set the provisional front determination area A1 outside the dead zone area A0. By setting the dead zone area A0, it becomes possible to avoid switching control of the Z-order of window WnA for a slight movement of the mouse cursor that is not intended by the user.

[0028] For example, the determination area setting unit 24 has a determination area filter as illustrated in FIG. 6, and when it is determined by the overlapping determination unit 23 that another window WnB is overlappingly displayed, it may be possible to virtually set a preset determination area filter based on the reference position P0 of window WnA.

[0029] In addition, the determination area setting unit 24 has a determination area filter for each of the default display positions of window WnA (for example, the upper right, upper left, lower left, and lower right on the display screen), obtains the determination area filter corresponding to the default display position, and may virtually set the obtained determination area filter based on the reference position. This makes it possible to easily handle the case where the default display position of window WnA is changed by the user.

[0030] When the determination regions A0 to A3 are set by the determination region setting unit 24, the window display control unit 21 controls the arrangement of the window WnA in the depth direction of the display screen according to the determination regions A0 to A3 in which the mouse cursor has moved and their order.

[0031] Next, a window display control method executed by the application A included in the information processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIGS. 7 and 8 are flowcharts showing an example of the processing procedure of the window display control method according to the present embodiment. Here, for the sake of convenience of explanation, a case where the default display position of the window WnA is the upper right of the display screen will be exemplified and described. The window display control process described below is repeatedly executed, for example, during the period when the window WnA is displayed.

[0032] First, the information processing apparatus 10 determines whether an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window WnA of the application A has occurred (SA1). As a result, if the event has not occurred (SA1: NO), this process ends. On the other hand, if the event has occurred (SA1: YES), the position of the mouse cursor in the window WnA is acquired as the reference position P0 (SA2). Subsequently, it is determined whether there is a window WnB superimposed on the window WnA (SA3). Specifically, it is determined whether the reference position P0 is located on the window frame of the window WnA. As a result, when the reference position P0 is located on the frame of the window WnA, it is determined that no other window WnB is superimposed on the window WnA (SA3: NO), and this process ends.

[0033] On the other hand, when the reference position P0 is not on the window frame of the window WnA, it is determined that there is another window WnB superimposed on the window WnA (SA3: YES), and a plurality of determination regions A0 to A3 are virtually set with the reference position P0 as a reference (SA4). Subsequently, it is determined whether the mouse cursor has moved to the provisional front determination area A1 (SA5). As a result, if the mouse cursor has not moved to the provisional front determination area A1 (SA5: NO), it is determined whether the mouse cursor has moved to the return determination area A3 (SA6). As a result, if the mouse cursor has not moved to the return determination area A3 (SA6: NO), the process returns to step SA5.

[0034] In step SA5, if the mouse cursor has moved to the provisional front determination area A1 (SA5: YES), the window WnA is moved to the front (SA7 in FIG. 8). As a result, the window WnA that was displayed behind the window WnB will move to the front of the window WnB. Subsequently, it is determined whether the mouse cursor has moved to the confirmed front determination area A2 (SA8). As a result, if the mouse cursor has moved to the confirmed front determination area A2 (SA8: YES), the state in which the window WnA is moved to the front is confirmed (SA9), and this process ends.

[0035] On the other hand, if the mouse cursor has not moved to the confirmed front determination area A2 (SA8: NO), it is determined whether a click operation has been performed (SA10). If a click operation has been performed (SA10: YES), the state in which the window WnA is moved to the front is confirmed (SA9), and this process ends. On the other hand, if no click operation has been performed (SA10: NO), it is determined whether the mouse cursor has moved to the return determination area A3 (SA11). As a result, if the mouse cursor has not moved to the return determination area A3 (SA11: NO), the process returns to step SA8. On the other hand, if the mouse cursor has moved to the return determination area A3 without a click operation (SA11: YES), the window WnA is moved to the back (SA12), and the process ends.

[0036] As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, there are provided a window display control unit 21 that displays a window WnA on the display screen 15a, and a position acquisition unit 22 that acquires, as a reference position P0, the position of the mouse cursor in the window WnA when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window WnA occurs. Further, there is provided a superimposition determination unit 23 that determines whether or not another window WnB is superimposed on a part of the window WnA according to whether or not the reference position P0 is located on the window frame of the window WnA. Then, when it is determined that another window WnB is superimposed, the window display control unit 21 controls the arrangement of the window WnA in the depth direction of the display screen, in other words, the Z order, based on the reference position P0 and the movement locus of the mouse cursor.

[0037] As a result, when another window WnB is superimposed on the window WnA, the user can move the window WnA to the front by moving the mouse cursor into the area of the window WnA, and can move the window WnA back to the back and return to the original state by moving the mouse cursor back to the area of another window WnB from this state. Thereby, it is possible to easily switch the front and back (Z order) between the window WnA and the window WnB without largely moving the mouse cursor. As a result, the user experience when working with multiple windows can be improved.

[0038] 〔Second Embodiment〕 Hereinafter, an information processing apparatus, a window display control method, and a program according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the above-described first embodiment, the case where the default display position of the window WnA on the display screen 15a is determined has been exemplified and described. However, in the present embodiment, it can be applied even when the default display position is not determined, and the shape and arrangement of the determination area are different. Hereinafter, points common to the first embodiment will be denoted by common reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted, and different points will be mainly described.

[0039] FIG. 9 is a functional configuration diagram showing an example of functions provided in the information processing apparatus 10'. As shown in FIG. 9, the information processing apparatus 10' includes a window display control unit 21, a position acquisition unit 22, an overlap determination unit 23, a determination area setting unit 24', and the like. When the overlap determination unit 23 determines that another window WnB is being displayed in an overlapping manner, the determination area setting unit 24' virtually sets a determination area. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a determination area when another window is displayed in an overlapping manner at the lower left of window WnA and the mouse cursor moves from the right side of the other window WnB to window WnA. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a determination area when another window is displayed in an overlapping manner at the lower left of window WnA and the mouse cursor moves from the upper part of the other window WnB to window WnA.

[0040] The determination area setting unit 24' acquires position information of the windows displayed on the display screen from the OS. The position information is, for example, the coordinates and size of each window in the screen coordinate system. Subsequently, the determination area setting unit 24' specifies an overlapping area with another window WnB that is displayed in an overlapping manner on window WnA using the acquired position information of the window. Then, a return determination area A3 is set in the overlapping area with the other window WnB.

[0041] Further, the determination area setting unit 24' specifies a corner position P1 of the other window WnB in the overlapping area based on the position information of the window acquired from the OS, and sets a provisional front determination area A1 at a position away from the reference line L1 by a predetermined distance in the area on the opposite side of the return determination area A3 across the reference line L1, with the straight line connecting the corner position P1 and the reference position P0 as the reference line L1. Specifically, the determination area setting unit 24' sets a dead zone area A0 within a predetermined distance range across the reference line L1, and sets the provisional front determination area A1 outside thereof. Further, the determination area setting unit 24' sets a confirmed front determination area A2 outside the provisional front determination area A1.

[0042] Then, the window display control unit 21 controls the Z-order of the window WnA according to the movement locus of the mouse cursor in the determination regions A0 to A3. Since the display control of the window WnA using the determination regions A0 to A3 is the same as that in the first embodiment, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

[0043] As described above, according to the information processing apparatus 10' according to the present embodiment, the determination region is set based on the position information of another window WnB superimposed and displayed on the window WnA by using the position information of each window acquired from the OS. Thereby, even when the window WnA is displayed at an arbitrary position on the display screen, it is possible to set the determination region. Thereby, the window display control method according to the present embodiment can be generally applied to a window whose default display position is not determined.

[0044] As described above, the present invention has been described using embodiments. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. Various changes or improvements can be made to the above embodiments without departing from the gist of the present invention, and the forms with such changes or improvements are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0045] Also, the processing procedures described in the above embodiments are merely examples, and unnecessary steps may be deleted, new steps may be added, or the processing order may be changed within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0046] For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, when the mouse cursor moves from the provisional front determination region A1 to the confirmed front determination region A2, the window display control unit 21 determines the front display of the window WnA. For example, in a state where this front display is confirmed, when a pointing device such as a mouse is long-pressed within the region of the window WnA, the window WnA may be moved behind another window WnB. Even after the state in which the window WnA is displayed in the front has been once determined, the user can move the window WnA to the back and move another window WnB to the front again simply by performing a long-press operation within the area of the window WnA.

[0047] Also, in each of the above-described embodiments, the desktop PC has been described as an example of the information processing apparatus 10, but it is not limited thereto. The information processing apparatus 10 may be a notebook PC or a tablet-type information terminal. Further, the display 15 and the input device 16 may be mounted as components of the information processing apparatus.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0048] 10: Information processing apparatus 10´: Information processing apparatus 11: CPU 12: Main memory device 13: Secondary storage device 14: Communication interface 15: Display 15a: Display screen 16: Input device 18: External interface 19: Bus 21: Window display control unit 22: Position acquisition unit 23: Overlay determination unit 24: Determination area setting unit 24´: Determination area setting unit

Claims

1. A window display control unit that displays a window on a display screen, a position acquisition unit that acquires, as a reference position, the position of a mouse cursor in the window when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window occurs, and a superimposition determination unit that determines whether another window is superimposed on a part of the window according to whether the reference position is located on the window frame of the window, wherein the window display control unit controls the arrangement of the window in the depth direction of the display screen based on the reference position and the movement locus of the mouse cursor when it is determined that another window is superimposed. An information processing apparatus.

2. Comprising a determination area setting unit that, when it is determined that another window is superimposed, virtually sets a plurality of determination areas based on a predetermined arrangement rule with the reference position as a reference, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the window display control unit controls the arrangement of the window in the depth direction of the display screen according to the determination area in which the mouse cursor has moved and the order thereof.

3. The plurality of determination areas include a provisional front determination area for temporarily displaying the window in front of another window, a definite front determination area for determining the state of displaying the window in front of another window, and a return determination area for returning the window temporarily displayed in front of another window to the back of another window. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The determination area setting unit sets the return determination area in a predetermined area specified from the display position of the window and the reference position in the display screen with the reference position as a reference, and sets the provisional front determination area in an area other than the return determination area and at a predetermined distance from the reference position, and sets the definite front determination area outside the provisional front determination area. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3.

5. The determination area setting unit holds a determination area filter associated with the default display position of the window in the display screen, The determination area filter includes a provisional front determination area for provisionally displaying the window in front of the other windows, a confirmation front determination area for confirming the state of displaying the window in front of the other windows, and a return determination area for returning the window provisionally displayed in front of the other windows to the back of the other windows. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the determination area setting unit virtually sets the determination area filter with reference to the reference position when it is determined that the other windows are superimposed.

6. The determination area setting unit identifies the overlapping area between the window and the other windows, sets the return determination area in the identified overlapping area, sets the provisional front determination area in the area on the opposite side of the return determination area across the reference line, with the straight line connecting the corner position of the other window overlapping with the window and the reference position as the reference line, The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the confirmation front determination area is set outside the provisional front determination area.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the determination area setting unit sets a dead zone between the return determination area and the provisional front determination area.

8. After the front display of the window is confirmed when the mouse cursor moves to the confirmation front determination area, when a long-press operation is performed within the area of the window, the window display control unit moves the window to the back of the other windows. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3.

9. Processing for displaying a window on the display screen, Processing for acquiring, as a reference position, the position of the mouse cursor in the window when an event notifying that the mouse cursor has moved to the window occurs, Processing for determining whether or not another window is superimposed on a part of the window according to whether or not the reference position is located on the window frame of the window, Processing for controlling the arrangement of the window in the depth direction of the display screen based on the reference position and the movement trajectory of the mouse cursor when it is determined that another window is superimposed A window display control method executed by a computer.

10. A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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