Information processing device, control method, program, and storage medium

Abstract

To make a content of a selected range easy to understand even if the selected range does not fit on a screen.SOLUTION: An information processing device capable of displaying a content includes: receiving means for receiving an instruction that designates a selection range for a part of the content; determining means for determining, when an end point of the selection range is outside a display area for displaying the content, first information based on information relating to a first end point that is the end point outside the display area; and display control means for controlling in such a manner that the first information is superimposed and displayed in the display area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, a control method, a program, and a storage medium. [Background technology]

[0002] In a communication terminal or an e-book terminal equipped with a web browser, it is possible to select a part of the content consisting of characters, images, etc. displayed on the screen. There is also a technique for displaying the contents of the selected range when the selected range is too large to fit on the screen. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for reducing the selected range so that it is displayed in its entirety, and for displaying thumbnails of multiple pages that include the selected range when the selected range spans multiple pages. Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for changing the display layout, such as the character size and line spacing of the text, so that the characters of the selection start line and the selection end line are displayed when text is selected. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-86621 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2013-8201 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in conventional techniques including those described in the above-mentioned patent documents, the character size is reduced and the display layout is changed, which makes it difficult to read the contents of the selected range.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to make it easier to understand the contents of a selected range even when the selected range does not fit on the screen. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, an information processing device according to the present invention is an information processing device capable of displaying content, comprising: a receiving means for receiving an instruction to designate a selection range for a part of the content; a determining means for determining first information based on information relating to a first end point, which is the end point outside a display area in which the content is displayed, when the end point of the selection range is outside the display area; and a display control means for controlling the first information to be displayed in a superimposed manner within the display area. A touch panel and Have The receiving means receives the instruction by operating the touch panel. It is characterized by the above. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, even if a selected range does not fit on the screen, the contents of the selected range can be made easy to understand. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of an information processing device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a display example of presentation information. [Figure 4] 13 is a flowchart showing a presentation information display process. [Diagram 5] 5 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S406 in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a display example of presentation information. [Figure 7] 5 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S407 in FIG. 4. [Figure 8] 13 is a flowchart showing a display area changing process. [Figure 9] 13A and 13B are diagrams for explaining an operation of expanding or contracting a selection range. [Figure 10] 5 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S407 in FIG. 4. [Figure 11] 5 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S406 in FIG. 4. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a display example of presentation information. [Figure 13] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a display example of presentation information. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] <Embodiment 1> In this embodiment, the information processing device 100 is, for example, a portable device such as a smartphone that is browsed and operated by a user, and is capable of displaying content including characters, images, etc., in a web browser (hereinafter, referred to as browser). Note that the information processing device 100 is not limited to the portable device described above, and may be a general-purpose computer such as a PC (personal computer), or an MFP (multifunction peripheral), etc., as long as it is a device capable of displaying content.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device 100 according to the present embodiment. The information processing device 100 includes a CPU 101, a ROM 102, a RAM 103, a touch panel display 104, and a storage device 105, which are connected to each other via a bus 106. The CPU 101 controls the entire information processing device 100. The CPU 101 loads a program stored in the ROM 102 or the like into the RAM 103 and executes it, whereby the information processing device 100 controls each component means to realize processing of a flowchart described later. The ROM 102 stores various programs including a browser application program, and data required when the CPU 101 executes processing based on the program. Note that the application is not limited to a browser application, and various applications in practical use can be used as long as they are capable of displaying content. The RAM 103 temporarily stores programs and data read out from the ROM 102 by the CPU 101.

[0012] The touch panel display 104 is integrally configured with a touch panel as an input device and a display as a display device. For example, the touch panel is configured so that the light transmittance does not interfere with the display of the display, and is attached to the upper layer of the display surface of the display. By associating position coordinates on the touch panel with display coordinates on the display screen of the display, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) is provided as if the screen displayed on the display can be directly operated. The touch panel display 104 provides the CPU 101 with operation information operated by the user. The operation information is, for example, position coordinates touched with a finger or a pen, and time information of the touch. The touch panel display 104 may be configured with an input device such as a keyboard or a mouse, and a display device such as a liquid crystal panel, separately. The storage device 105 is an auxiliary storage device such as a HDD, and stores content data acquired from a content server on a network via a network interface (not shown), content data acquired from an external storage device, and the like.

[0013] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment. The information processing device 100 functions as a reception unit 200 that receives instructions by user operations, a presentation information determination unit 201, and a display control unit 202, by the CPU 101 expanding a program stored in the ROM 102 into the RAM 103 and executing it. Each functional unit will be described below.

[0014] The reception unit 200 receives an instruction according to a user's operation. To be more specific, the reception unit 200 first determines the type of touch operation input based on operation information provided from the touch panel display 104. The touch operation includes, for example, a tap operation in which a finger or a pen touches the touch panel and is then removed from the touch panel, and a drag operation in which a finger or a pen touches the touch panel and the finger or pen is moved without being removed from the touch panel and then released. Another example is a swipe operation in which a finger or a pen is slid while touching the touch panel. When the reception unit 200 detects a swipe operation, it recognizes it as an instruction to scroll the screen in the direction in which the finger or pen is moved.

[0015] The reception unit 200 manages the position coordinates of the touch panel display 104 and the display coordinates of the components of the content, such as characters and images, in association with each other, based on the display layout information of the content calculated by the display control unit 202. Therefore, when the reception unit 200 detects a tap operation or a drag operation, it can recognize the character or image at the touched position as an instruction to specify the start point or end point of a selection range. That is, the reception unit 200 receives an instruction to specify a selection range for a part of the content by operating the touch panel display 104. The reception unit 200 stores information about the specified selection range in the RAM 103. The reception unit 200 updates the information stored in the RAM 103 every time the start point or end point of the selection range is changed.

[0016] When an end point of the selection range is outside the display area of ​​the content, the presentation information determination unit 201 determines the presentation information to be presented to the user based on information on the end point outside the display area. The end points of the selection range here are the start point and end point of the selection range. Specifically, the presentation information determination unit 201 first reads information on the selection range from the RAM 103, obtains position information on the end points of the selection range, and determines whether the end points are inside or outside the display area. When it is determined that any one of the end points is outside the display area, the presentation information determination unit 201 determines the presentation information based on the information on the selection range, position information on components such as characters and images of the content in the display area, and content data to be displayed. Furthermore, the presentation information determination unit 201 determines information specifying the display mode when the determined presentation information is displayed.

[0017] The display control unit 202 controls the display contents to be displayed on the touch panel display 104. Specifically, the display control unit 202 reads out content data to be displayed from the storage device 105, calculates display layout information for the read out content data, and displays the content on the touch panel display 104 in a layout according to the calculation result. When a selection range is specified by the reception unit 200, the display control unit 202 changes and displays the background of characters, images, etc. within the specified selection range. When the reception unit 200 instructs scrolling of the screen, the display control unit 202 moves the position of the display area by the instructed movement amount in the instructed direction. The display control unit 202 displays the presentation information determined by the presentation information determination unit 201 in a specified display mode, superimposed on the content in the display area.

[0018] Next, a presentation information display process for displaying presentation information will be described with reference to Fig. 3 and Fig. 4. Fig. 3(A) is a diagram showing a display example when a part of a content is range-selected. First, the range of a display area 301 surrounded by a solid line is displayed on the touch panel display 104 with respect to the entire range of the content 300 surrounded by a dotted line. When a part of the content 300 is range-selected, the background of the selected range 303 is changed. A coordinate system 302 used in the following description is defined by coordinate axes with the upper left corner of the display area 301 as the origin. The horizontal axis is positive in the rightward direction, and the vertical axis is positive in the downward direction.

[0019] FIG. 3B is a diagram showing a display example when scrolling is performed in the direction of the arrow 310 in the state of FIG. 3A. When a user performs a user operation to change the display area, such as scrolling or zooming the screen, as shown in FIG. 3B while a part of the content 300 is selected, a part of the selected range 303 may go outside the display area 301. In such a case, the user cannot properly grasp the contents of the selected range. Therefore, when an end point of the selected range goes outside the display area, the information processing device 100 determines presentation information based on information about the end point outside the display area, and controls so that the determined presentation information is displayed superimposed in the display area. In the example of FIG. 3B, in response to a scroll operation in the direction of the arrow 310, the fifth character "na" in the fourth line from the top of the content 300, which is the start point of the selected range 303, goes outside the display area 301, and therefore presentation information 304 for the start point is displayed in the display area 301.

[0020] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the presentation information display process. In this embodiment, CPU 101 periodically executes the process of the flowchart in FIG. 4 from when CPU 101 starts the browser application until it is terminated. Note that the process may be executed non-periodically at the timing of a user operation or the like. CPU 101 may also accept various other instructions (e.g., an instruction to change the display layout of content, an instruction to specify a selection range, an instruction to scroll) while the browser application is being executed, and execute the appropriate process. In that case, CPU 101 may execute the process in parallel with the process of the flowchart in FIG. 4. Below, each step of the flowchart will be explained with an S added to the beginning of the reference numeral.

[0021] In S400, CPU 101 obtains information about the specified selection range from RAM 103. In the example of Fig. 3(B), since selection range 303 is specified, the fifth character "na" on the fourth line from the top of content 300 is obtained as information indicating the start point of selection range 303, and the eighth character "wo" on the sixth line is obtained as information indicating the end point of selection range 303. Next, in S401, CPU 101 determines whether or not a part of the content is in a range-selected state based on the information acquired in S400. If CPU 101 determines that a range is selected (Yes in S401), the process proceeds to S402. If CPU 101 determines that a range is not selected (No in S401), the process of this flowchart ends.

[0022] In S402, CPU 101 acquires position information of the start point of the selection range (hereinafter, referred to as the start position). In the example of Fig. 3B, the center coordinates of the bounding box of "na" at the start point of selection range 303 are acquired as start position 305. Next, in S403, CPU 101 acquires position information of the end point of the selection range (hereinafter, referred to as end position). In the example of FIG. 3B, the center coordinates of the bounding box of “” at the end point of selection range 303 are acquired as end position 306. In this embodiment, the position coordinates of the end points of the selection range are determined as the center coordinates of the bounding box of the character at the end point, but the method of determining the position coordinates of the end points of the selection range is not limited to this. For example, the CPU 101 may determine them as the end point coordinates of the bounding box. Furthermore, if the end points of the selection range are images, the CPU 101 may determine them as the center coordinates, center of gravity coordinates, end point coordinates, etc. of the image.

[0023] Next, in S404, CPU 101 acquires position information indicating the range of the display area. In this embodiment, CPU 101 acquires position information indicating the range of the display area based on display layout information of the content data to be displayed. Next, in S405, CPU 101 determines whether or not both the start point and the end point of the selection range are inside the display area. Here, CPU 101 makes the determination based on the position information acquired in S402, S403, and S404. If it is determined that both the start point and the end point of the selection range are inside the display area (Yes in S405), the processing of this flowchart ends. If it is determined that either one of the start point and the end point of the selection range is outside the display area (No in S405), the processing proceeds to S406.

[0024] In the example of Fig. 3(B), the four characters from the start point "na" of the selection range 303 are not displayed because they are outside the display area 301. If part of the selection range 303 is not displayed in this way, the user may miss a mistake in the selection of the range, or may not know from where or to what extent the range is selected. Therefore, in S406, CPU 101 determines the presentation information based on information about the end point that is outside the display area. Details of the process executed in S406 will be described later with reference to Fig. 5.

[0025] Next, in S407, CPU 101 determines information for designating a display mode when displaying the presentation information determined in S406. Details of the process executed in S407 will be described later with reference to FIG. Next, in S408, the CPU 101 displays the presentation information determined in S406 in the display mode specified in S407, superimposed within the display area. In the example of Fig. 3(B), "What is tsute to naninu" is displayed as the presentation information 304 determined in S406, superimposed on the content 300. Then, the processing of this flowchart ends.

[0026] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S406 in FIG. In S500, CPU 101 determines whether an image is specified at an end point outside the display area. Here, CPU 101 makes the determination based on the information on the selection range acquired in S400 and the position information acquired in S402, S403, and S404. If it is determined that an image is specified at an end point outside the display area (Yes in S500), the process proceeds to S511. If it is determined that an image is not specified at an end point outside the display area (No in S500), it is determined that a character is specified at an end point outside the display area, and the process proceeds to S501.

[0027] In S501, CPU 101 determines whether an end point outside the display area is the start point of the selection range. Here, CPU 101 makes the determination based on the position information acquired in S402, S403, and S404. If it is determined that an end point outside the display area is the start point of the selection range (Yes in S501), the process proceeds to S502. If it is determined that an end point outside the display area is not the start point of the selection range (No in S501), the process proceeds to S506.

[0028] In S502, CPU 101 determines the presentation information based on information about the start point of the selection range. In this embodiment, CPU 101 determines the presentation information based on a character string that includes the character at the start point of the selection range and is within the selection range. Specifically, a character string of a predetermined number of characters starting from the character at the start point is determined as the presentation information. In the example of FIG. 3(B), "naninu", which is a three-character character string starting from the start point "na", is determined. Note that the method of determining the presentation information is not limited to a method using a character string of a predetermined number of characters starting from a character at an end point, and may be a method using a word or phrase including the character at the end point. In the following S503 to S505, the presentation information determined in S502 is called end point information.

[0029] In the example of FIG. 3B, the character string "What is it?" exists in four places in the content 300 as the end point information. In this way, when the content contains a part that is the same as or similar to the part indicated by the end point information, the user may not be able to correctly recognize where in the content the end point information indicates, even if only the end point information is displayed. Therefore, the CPU 101 determines information for identifying the start point of the selected range as additional information, and displays the determined additional information together with the end point information. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 determines the additional information based on a character string that includes a character adjacent to the end point character that is outside the display area and that is outside the selected range.

[0030] First, in S503, CPU 101 determines whether or not a character string identical to or similar to the character string indicated by the endpoint information exists in the content. In the example of Fig. 3B, it determines whether or not "naninu", which is the same character string as the character string indicated by the endpoint information, exists in content 300. If it is determined that an identical or similar character string exists (Yes in S503), the process proceeds to S504. If it is determined that an identical or similar character string does not exist (No in S503), the process proceeds to S506.

[0031] In S504, CPU 101 determines information for identifying the start point of the selection range as additional information. In this embodiment, CPU 101 determines a character string of a predetermined number of characters preceding the character at the start point as additional information. In the example of FIG. 3B, CPU 101 determines "tsuteto", which is a three-character character string preceding the start point "na". The method of determining additional information may be a method using character strings in lines before and after the line where the endpoint exists, the line number or page number where the endpoint exists, or a character string indicating the chapter title of the chapter where the endpoint exists.

[0032] Next, in S505, the CPU 101 determines new presentation information by combining the endpoint information and the additional information determined in S504. In this embodiment, "tsute to naninu" is determined as new presentation information by combining "naninu" as the endpoint information and "tsute to" as the additional information.

[0033] Next, in S506, CPU 101 determines whether the end point outside the display area is the end point of the selected range. Here, CPU 101 makes the determination based on the position information acquired in S402, S403, and S404. If it is determined that the end point outside the display area is the end point of the selected range (Yes in S506), the process proceeds to S507. If it is determined that the end point outside the display area is not the end point of the selected range (No in S506), the process proceeds to S407 in FIG. 4.

[0034] The following description of the processes in S507 to S510 will be simplified because the description is similar to that of the processes in S502 to S505 except that the start points are replaced with end points. In S507, CPU 101 determines presentation information based on information about the end point of the selection range. Specifically, a character string of a predetermined number of characters up to the character at the end point is determined as presentation information. In the following S508 to S510, the presentation information determined in S507 is referred to as end point information.

[0035] Next, in S508, CPU 101 determines whether or not a character string identical to or similar to the character string indicated by the endpoint information exists in the content. If it is determined that an identical or similar character string exists (Yes in S508), the process proceeds to S509. If it is determined that an identical or similar character string does not exist (No in S508), the process proceeds to S407 in FIG. In S509, the CPU 101 determines information for identifying the end point of the selected range as the additional information. In this embodiment, a character string of a predetermined number of characters beginning with the character next to the end point is determined as the additional information. Next, in S510, the CPU 101 combines the end point information with the additional information determined in S509 to determine new presentation information. After that, the process proceeds to S407 in FIG.

[0036] Next, the process to be performed when the determination in S500 is Yes will be described. In S511, the CPU 101 acquires character information about an image that is specified at an end point outside the display area from the content data to be displayed. The character information here is, for example, the title, file name, and caption of the image. Next, in S512, CPU 101 determines presentation information based on the character information acquired in S511. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a display example of presentation information when an end point outside the display area is an image. In Fig. 6, the end point of selection range 303 is outside display area 301, and image 307 is specified as the end point. In this case, CPU 101 acquires the title name "Vehicle" of image 307 at the end point of selection range 303, and determines "Image: Vehicle" using this as presentation information 304. Thereafter, processing proceeds to S407 in Fig. 4.

[0037] In S512, CPU 101 determines the presentation information based on character information related to the image, but may determine the presentation information based on reduced image data, partial image data, etc. If a character string identical to or similar to the character string indicated by the presentation information determined in S512 exists in the content, CPU 101 may additionally obtain character information related to the image, determine additional information using the obtained information, and combine it with the presentation information determined in S512.

[0038] According to the above-mentioned flowchart of Fig. 5, it is possible to present to the user a character string near the start point outside the display area. Furthermore, if a character string similar to the character string near the start point exists in the content, additional information for identifying the start point is also presented, so that the user can correctly recognize where in the content the start point is. The same effect can be obtained for the end point.

[0039] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing details of the process of S407 in FIG. In S700, CPU 101 determines whether or not additional information is included in the presentation information determined in S406. If it is determined that additional information is not included (No in S700), the normal display mode is determined, and the process proceeds to S408 in Fig. 4. If it is determined that additional information is included (Yes in S700), the process proceeds to S701.

[0040] In S701, the CPU 101 specifies different display modes for the end point information and the additional information included in the presentation information. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 assigns display flags instructing the display modes to the portions of the presentation information corresponding to the end point information and the portions corresponding to the additional information. For example, a flag for displaying characters in an emphasized manner is specified as the display flag assigned to the portion corresponding to the end point information. Also, a flag for displaying characters in a small size is specified as the display flag assigned to the portion corresponding to the additional information. In the display example of FIG. 3(B), a flag for displaying characters in bold is specified for the end point information "nani nu", and a flag for displaying characters in a small size is specified for the additional information "tsu te to". The CPU 101 may use character colors, highlights, or the like to make the display modes different. After that, the process proceeds to S408 in FIG. 4. In S408, the CPU 101 displays the end point information and the additional information in different display modes according to the display flag.

[0041] According to the flowchart of Figure 7 as described above, the user can distinguish at a glance between the end point information and the additional information contained in the presented information, making it easier for the user to understand where in the content the start and end points of the selected range indicate.

[0042] According to the present embodiment as described above, even if the selected range does not fit in the display area, it is possible to grasp the start and end of the selected range. In addition, since the character size and display layout are not changed, the contents of the middle part of the selected range are easy to read. Therefore, the effect of presenting the contents of the selected range to the user in an easy-to-understand manner is obtained.

[0043] <Embodiment 2> In the second embodiment, a process for preventing the presentation information from overlapping the end points of the selection range in the display area will be described with reference to Figs. 8 to 10. The hardware configuration of the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 1, and therefore will not be described again. The functional configuration of the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2, except for the following differences. The first difference is that the reception unit 200 further receives an instruction to select the presentation information on the screen. The second difference is that the display control unit 202 changes the position of the display area of ​​the content so that the end points corresponding to the selected presentation information are displayed in the display area. The third difference is that the presentation information determination unit 201 determines the display mode of the presentation information so that the presentation information does not overlap the end points in the display area. The following description will focus on the differences from the first embodiment.

[0044] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing a process of changing the display area. The flowchart in Fig. 8 is executed in parallel with the flowchart in Fig. 4. However, in this embodiment, the process of determining the display mode of the presented information, which is executed in S407 in Fig. 4, is different from that in the first embodiment. The flowchart in Fig. 8 is started when the flowchart in Fig. 4 is executed and the presented information is displayed. First, in S800, CPU 101 determines whether or not an instruction to select presented information has been given based on operation information from touch panel display 104. In this embodiment, it is determined that an instruction to select presented information has been given when the touched position coordinates are within a coordinate range in which the presented information is displayed. The process of S800 is repeated until an instruction to select is given, and when an instruction to select is given (Yes in S800), the process proceeds to S801.

[0045] FIG. 9(A) is a diagram showing a state in which the user has selected presentation information 304. In the example of FIG. 9(A), the start point "na" of the selected range 303 is outside the display area 301. When the user tries to extend or resize the selected range in this manner with the end points of the selected range outside the display area, it is necessary to adjust the display area by screen scrolling or the like so that the end points of the selected range to be extended or resized are displayed. The longer the selected range, the greater the effort required. Therefore, when presentation information is selected, CPU 101 changes the position of the display area so that the end points of the selected range corresponding to the selected presentation information are located within the display area.

[0046] In S801, the CPU 101 acquires position information of the end points of the selection range corresponding to the presentation information selected by the user. In the example of Fig. 9A, since the presentation information 304 is selected, the CPU 101 acquires the center coordinates of the bounding box of "na" at the start point of the selection range 303 as the start position 305. Next, in S802, CPU 101 calculates the amount of change of the display area to display the endpoints of the selection range within the display area. In this embodiment, to display the endpoints of the selection range at the vertical center of the display area, CPU 101 calculates the amount of vertical movement of the display area based on the vertical center position of the display area and the position information of the endpoints of the selection range (start position 305 of selected range 303 in FIG. 9(A)). Note that the position at which the endpoints are displayed is not limited to the center of the display area, and may be, for example, the beginning of the display area. CPU 101 may also calculate the zoom factor of the display area as the amount of change of the display area.

[0047] Next, in S803, the CPU 101 changes the display area based on the change amount calculated in S803. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 moves the position of the display area of ​​the content by the movement amount calculated in S803. Then, the process of this flowchart ends. Fig. 9(B) is a diagram showing a state after a process for changing display area 301 from the state of Fig. 9(A) has been executed. As shown in Fig. 9(B), the start point "Na" of selection range 303 is displayed within display area 301. Meanwhile, the end point "K" of selection range 303 that was displayed within display area 301 has moved outside display area 301, so "IJK" is displayed within display area 301 as presentation information 304 for the end point "K".

[0048] According to the flowchart in Figure 8, the start point or end point that was outside the display area is automatically scrolled so that it is displayed within the display area with a single operation, making it easy to extend or resize a long selection range later.

[0049] FIG. 9(C) is a diagram showing a state in which an operation is performed to change the start position 305 of the selection range 303 from the state of FIG. 9(B). In this embodiment, an operation to change the end point of the selection range by the user is performed by a drag operation on the end point of the selection range. Based on operation information from the touch panel display 104, the CPU 101 designates the text, image, etc. of the content located closest to the drag end coordinate as the end point of the new selection range. Note that it is not necessary to wait until the operation to change the position of the end point of the new selection range is completed (in the case of a drag operation, the user's finger or pen is removed from the touch panel display 104). The detection of the drag end position is performed periodically at short intervals or irregularly (such as when the user's finger or pen touching the touch panel display 104 moves), and each time, the CPU 101 updates the information on the selection range stored in the RAM 103.

[0050] Next, the details of the process of S407 in FIG. 4 in this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. In S1000, CPU 101 determines whether or not the selection range is being extended or retracted. In this embodiment, it determines whether or not a drag operation is being performed on an end point of the selection range. If it is determined that the selection range is not being extended or retracted (No in S1000), the process proceeds to S408 in FIG. 4. If it is determined that the selection range is being extended or retracted (Yes in S1000), the process proceeds to S1001.

[0051] In S1001, CPU 101 acquires position information indicating an area where the presentation information should be displayed based on the presentation information determined in S406. For example, CPU 101 acquires coordinates of the area where the presentation information should be displayed based on the content amount of the presentation information, position information of an end point corresponding to the presentation information, etc. The coordinates acquired here are, for example, center coordinates, center of gravity coordinates, end point coordinates, etc. of the area where the presentation information should be displayed. Next, in S1002, CPU 101 determines whether or not the presentation information overlaps an end point of the selection range based on the position information acquired in S1001. In this embodiment, CPU 101 compares the touched position on touch panel display 104 (end point of the newly specified selection range) with the coordinates acquired in S1001, and determines whether or not the distance between the two points is within a predetermined value. If it is determined that the presentation information does not overlap an end point of the selection range, the process proceeds to S408 in FIG. 4. If it is determined that the presentation information overlaps an end point of the selection range, the process proceeds to S1003.

[0052] In S1003, CPU 101 determines the display mode of the presented information so that the presented information does not overlap the end points of the selection range. In this embodiment, CPU 101 assigns a display flag to the presented information to hide it. As a result, the presented information is not displayed in S408. Note that CPU 101 is not limited to hiding the display mode of the presented information, and may shift the display position of the presented information or reduce the character size of the presented information, as long as the presented information does not overlap the end points of the selection range. Furthermore, if the presented information includes additional information, only the display mode of the additional information may be hidden.

[0053] Fig. 9(D) is a diagram showing a display example in the state of Fig. 9(C) when the start position 305 of the selection range 303 is changed in the direction of the arrow, thereby shrinking the selection range 303, and it is determined that the changed start position 305 overlaps with the presented information 304. As shown in Fig. 9(D), as the start position 305 approaches the presented information 304, the presented information 304 is hidden.

[0054] According to the above-described flowchart of FIG. 10, the presented information does not cover the end points of the selected range, so that it is possible to easily extend or retract the selected range.

[0055] As a modification of the second embodiment, the presentation information determination unit 201 may determine the presentation information so that the presentation information does not overlap with an end point in the display area. For example, the presentation information determination unit 201 may reduce the content amount of the presentation information to a reference value or less so that the area in which the presentation information should be displayed becomes smaller. Even in this case, the same effect as when the display mode of the presentation information is changed as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10 can be obtained.

[0056] <Embodiment 3> In the third embodiment, a process for preventing the presentation information from hiding the selected range will be described with reference to Figs. 11 and 12. The hardware configuration of the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 1, and therefore will not be described again. The functional configuration of the information processing device 100 according to this embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 2, except for the following differences. The difference is that the presentation information determination unit 201 adjusts the content amount of the presentation information based on the degree to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selected range in the display area. The following description will focus on the differences from the first embodiment.

[0057] In this embodiment, the flowchart in Fig. 4 is also executed. However, in this embodiment, the process of determining presentation information executed in S406 in Fig. 4 is different from that in embodiment 1. The details of the process in S406 in Fig. 4 in this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart in Fig. 11. First, in S1100, the CPU 101 executes the same processes as those in S500 to S512 in Fig. 5. As a result, presentation information is determined in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Next, in S1101, the CPU 101 acquires the display range of the presentation information based on the presentation information determined in S1100. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 calculates the coordinate range of the area in which the presentation information should be displayed.

[0058] Next, in S1102, CPU 101 acquires the area of ​​the selection range within the display area based on position information indicating the range of the display area and position information of the endpoints of the selection range, etc. In this embodiment, CPU 101 calculates a coordinate range indicating the area of ​​the selection range within the display area. Next, in S1103, CPU 101 determines whether the display range of the presentation information overlaps the selection range in the display area to a large extent. In this embodiment, CPU 101 uses the coordinate information calculated in S1101 and S1102 to calculate the ratio of the size of the display range of the presentation information to the size of the selection range in the display area, and determines whether the ratio is equal to or greater than a first threshold value (for example, 1 / 4). If it is determined that the display range of the presentation information overlaps the selection range in the display area to a large extent (Yes in S1103), it is determined that the presentation information covers most of the selection range in the display area, and the process proceeds to S1104. If it is determined that the display range of the presentation information does not overlap the selection range in the display area to a large extent (No in S1103), the process proceeds to S1105. Note that the index representing the degree to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps the selection range in the display area is not limited to the ratio of the size of the display range of the presentation information to the size of the selection range in the display area. For example, the ratio of the number of characters included in the display range of the presented information to the number of characters included in the selection range in the display area may be used.

[0059] In S1104, the CPU 101 changes the content amount of the presentation information. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 determines new presentation information by reducing the number of characters of the presentation information determined in S1100 by a predetermined number of characters (for example, one character). Then, the process proceeds to S407 in FIG. 4. Fig. 12(A) is a diagram showing a display example in which the presented information "What is it?" is determined in the process of S1100, and the content amount is reduced in the process of S1104. In Fig. 12(A), the last character of the presented information is reduced, and "What is it?" is displayed as presented information 304. This reduces the extent to which the selected range in the display area is hidden by the presented information, making both the presented information and the selected range easier to read.

[0060] In S1105, CPU 101 determines whether the extent to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selection range in the display area is sufficiently small. In this embodiment, CPU 101 determines whether the ratio of the size of the display range of the presentation information to the size of the selection range in the display area calculated in S1103 is smaller than a second threshold (e.g., 1 / 6). The second threshold is smaller than the first threshold used in S1103. If it is determined that the extent to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selection range in the display area is sufficiently small (Yes in S1105), the process proceeds to S1106. If it is determined that the extent to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selection range in the display area is not sufficiently small (No in S1105), the process proceeds to S407 in FIG. 4.

[0061] In S1106, the CPU 101 changes the content amount of the presentation information. In this embodiment, the CPU 101 increases the number of characters of the presentation information by a predetermined number of characters (for example, two characters) and determines new presentation information. After that, the process proceeds to S407 in FIG. Fig. 12(B) is a diagram showing a display example in which the presented information "What is it?" is determined in the process of S1100, and the amount of content is increased in the process of S1106. In Fig. 12(B), the number of characters in the presented information is increased by two, and "What is it?" is displayed as presented information 304. This makes it possible to increase the amount of information in the presented information while only slightly hiding the selected range in the display area, making the content of the selected range easier to understand.

[0062] According to the present embodiment as described above, it is possible to adjust the display of the presented information so as not to cover the selected range in the display area, and therefore it is possible to present the contents of the selected range in an even easier-to-understand manner.

[0063] As a modification of the third embodiment, the presentation information determination unit 201 may determine the display mode of the presentation information based on the degree to which the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selection range in the display area. Specifically, when the display range of the presentation information overlaps with the selection range in the display area to a large extent, the CPU 101 may make the background of the presentation information 304 semi-transparent as shown in Fig. 13(A) so that the content of the selection range overlapping with the presentation information 304 can be visually recognized. As another example, the CPU 101 may move the display position of the presentation information 304 to a position that does not overlap with the selection range as shown in Fig. 13(B). As another example, the CPU 101 may hide the presentation information 304 as shown in Fig. 13(C).

[0064] For example, when the display range of the presentation information overlaps the selection range in the display area to a large extent and the presentation information includes additional information, CPU 101 may hide only the portion corresponding to the additional information. For example, when the display range of the presentation information overlaps the selection range in the display area to a sufficiently small extent and the presentation information does not include additional information, CPU 101 may determine the additional information and display it together with the presentation information to increase the amount of information in the presentation information.

[0065] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments, the above embodiments are merely illustrative of the specific examples of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited by these embodiments. In other words, the present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from its technical concept or main features.

[0066] (Other embodiments) The present invention can also be realized by a process in which a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or device read and execute the program. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0067] 100: information processing device, 104: touch panel display, 200: reception unit, 201: presentation information determination unit, 202: display control unit

Claims

1. An information processing device capable of displaying content, a receiving means for receiving an instruction to designate a selection range for a part of the content; a determination means for determining, when an end point of the selection range is outside a display area displaying the content, first information based on information on a first end point that is the end point outside the display area; a display control means for controlling the display of the first information in a manner superimposed on the display area; A touch panel and having The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the receiving means receives the instruction by operating the touch panel.

2. the receiving means further receives an instruction to change at least one of a size and a position of the display area in which the content is displayed; The information processing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the display control means controls so as to display the first information determined by the determination means when an end point of the selected range goes outside the display area in response to a change in the display area.

3. The determining means further determines second information for identifying the first endpoint when a portion identical or similar to the portion indicated by the first information is present in the content; and 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control means controls so that the second information is added to the first information and then displayed.

4. 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the display control means controls the display of the first information and the second information so as to differ in display mode.

5. The receiving means further receives an instruction to select the first information to be displayed, The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that when the display control means accepts a selection of the first information by the accepting means, it changes at least one of the size and position of the display area in which the content is displayed so that the first endpoint is displayed within the display area.

6. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that when a change to the second endpoint is accepted by the accepting means while a second endpoint which is an endpoint of the selection range different from the first endpoint and the first information are displayed in the display area, the display control means changes the display mode of the first information so that the first information does not overlap the second endpoint.

7. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the determination means calculates a ratio of the display range of the first information to the selection range within the display area, and adjusts the content amount of the first information based on the ratio.

8. The information processing device according to claim 7, characterized in that, when the ratio is greater than a first threshold value, the determination means determines new first information by reducing the content amount of the first information used in calculating the ratio.

9. The information processing device according to claim 8, characterized in that, when the ratio is smaller than a second threshold value which is smaller than the first threshold value, the determination means determines new first information by increasing the content amount of the first information used when calculating the ratio.

10. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the display control means calculates a ratio of the display range of the first information to the selection range within the display area, and determines the display mode of the first information based on the ratio.

11. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that, when a character contained in the content is specified at the first endpoint, the determination means determines the first information based on a character string that includes the character specified at the first endpoint and is within the selection range.

12. The information processing device according to claim 11, characterized in that the first information is a string of a predetermined number of characters starting from the first endpoint when the first endpoint is the start point of the selection range, and is a string of a predetermined number of characters up to the end point when the first endpoint is the end point of the selection range.

13. An information processing device as described in any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that when an image included in the content is specified at the first endpoint, the determination means determines the first information based on at least one of the title, file name, and caption of the image specified at the first endpoint.

14. The information processing device according to claim 3, characterized in that, when a character contained in the content is specified at the first endpoint, the determination means determines the second information based on a character string that includes a character adjacent to the character specified at the first endpoint and is outside the selection range.

15. The information processing device according to claim 3, characterized in that the determination means determines the second information based on at least one of the line number on which the first endpoint exists, the page number on which the first endpoint exists, and the chapter title of the chapter on which the first endpoint exists.

16. A method for controlling an information processing device capable of displaying content, comprising: a receiving step of receiving an instruction to designate a selection range for a portion of the content; a determination step of determining, when an end point of the selection range is outside a display area displaying the content, first information based on information about a first end point that is the end point outside the display area; a display control step of controlling the first information to be displayed in a superimposed manner within the display area; Including, The information processing device includes a touch panel, The method for controlling an information processing device, wherein the receiving step receives the instruction by operating the touch panel.

17. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

18. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

Images