Information Processing Apparatus, Display Control Method, and Program

Abstract

To provide a technology of realizing easier-to-see display of a PUW.SOLUTION: An information processor superposes a PUW on a translucent shade image, which brings a GUI screen image to a gray-out, and outputs a resultant image to a display unit which displays the GUI screen image. The information processor acquires PU information which is displayed within the PUW, acquires color information representing a background color of the GUI screen image, selects a color of the shade image on the basis of the acquired color information, superposes the PUW, which contains the PU information, on the shade image of the selected color, and outputs a resultant image to the GUI screen.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a display control method, and a program, and particularly relates to display control of a popup (also referred to as a "dialog") in a GUI (Graphical User Interface).

Background Art

[0002] A GUI is a user interface that displays a GUI screen composed of information such as images and characters on a display unit such as a display, and accepts operations on the GUI screen from a user. GUIs are used in various information processing apparatuses such as portable information terminals such as smartphones, computers, peripheral devices such as copiers, in-vehicle devices mounted on vehicles, and control devices for manufacturing apparatuses.

[0003] A popup is a mechanism that outputs information at a predetermined timing in a predetermined display area of a GUI screen. Generally, a popup outputs by superimposing (also referred to as "overlaying") another window on the GUI screen and displays information to be notified to the user in the window. Hereinafter, the window of the popup is simply referred to as "PUW", and the information displayed on the PUW is simply referred to as "PU information".

[0004] In FIGS. 3 and 4 of Patent Document 1 below, a GUI screen is displayed on a display unit for controlling an air conditioner, and in order to prompt the user to perform an operation, a PUW with narrowed buttons to be operated is superimposed on the GUI screen and output. The GUI screen behind the PUW output by the display unit performs a display process of covering it with a semi-transparent shade image to make it unclear in order to indicate that an operation on the GUI screen is impossible. This display process of making it unclear is generally called "graying out".

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED BY THE INVENTION

[0006] By the way, depending on the information processing apparatus, the background color of the GUI screen to be displayed may differ depending on the application program being executed (hereinafter abbreviated as "app") or the time zone. For example, in the case of a smartphone, the user can set a favorite wallpaper as the background of the GUI screen or change the background color of the home screen depending on the time zone. Also, it is assumed that the background color of the app being executed also differs for each app.

[0007] In this case, when the GUI screen is grayed out and the PUW is output, the background color of the GUI screen and the background color of the pop-up window may become the same color system, making it difficult to distinguish the PUW from the GUI screen and making the PUW difficult to visually recognize.

[0008] As one aspect, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for realizing a more visible display of the PUW.

MEANS FOR SOLVING THE PROBLEMS

[0009] (1) An information processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing apparatus that superimposes and outputs a semi-transparent shade image that grays out a GUI screen and a pop-up window on the GUI screen to a display unit that displays the GUI screen. The information processing apparatus includes a PU information acquisition unit, a color information acquisition unit, a selection unit, and a display control unit. The PU information acquisition unit acquires pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window. The color information acquisition unit acquires color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen. The selection unit selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information. The display control unit superimposes and outputs the shade image of the color selected by the selection unit and the pop-up window including the pop-up information on the GUI screen.

[0010] (2) The selection unit in (1) above may select a color that is the same color system as the color indicated by the acquired color information as the color of the shade image.

[0011] (3) The display control method which is one aspect of the present disclosure is a display control method for superimposing and outputting a semi-transparent shade image that grays out the GUI screen and a pop-up window on a display unit that displays the GUI screen. The display control method acquires the pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window, acquires the color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen, selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information, and superimposes and outputs the shade image of the selected color and the pop-up window including the pop-up information on the GUI screen.

[0012] (4) The program which is one aspect of the present disclosure is a program for causing a computer to execute a display control process for superimposing and outputting a semi-transparent shade image that grays out the GUI screen and a pop-up window on a display unit that displays the GUI screen. The display control process includes steps of acquiring the pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window, acquiring the color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen, selecting the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information, and superimposing and outputting the shade image of the selected color and the pop-up window including the pop-up information on the GUI screen.

Effect of the Invention

[0013] By using the present invention, it is possible to realize a more visible display of the PUW.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014]

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[0015] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] [First Embodiment] The first embodiment according to the present invention is an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an information processing apparatus 1 such as a smartphone.

[0017] [Configuration] As shown in FIG. 1, the information processing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment includes a communication unit 2, an application unit 3, a storage unit 4, a PU center 5, a display control unit 9, and a touch panel display 10. The PU center 5 includes a PU information acquisition unit 6, a color information acquisition unit 7, and a selection unit 8. The touch panel display 10 includes a display unit 11, an input unit 12, and a color information storage unit 13.

[0018] Although not shown in the figure, the information processing apparatus 1 is a computer equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) as hardware. The storage unit 4 stores various programs for causing the CPU to execute applications and the display control processing described later. By executing the various programs stored in the storage unit 4, the CPU operates as the application unit 3, the PU center 5, and the display control unit 9 shown in FIG. 1.

[0019] The communication unit 2 has a function of connecting to the Internet and receiving information that is the source of PU information from an external server. Examples of the source information received from the external server include, for example, update information of the OS or applications of the information processing apparatus 1, mail or message information, emergency information, and the like.

[0020] The application unit 3 realizes various functions by the CPU executing the OS (Operating System) and applications stored in the storage unit 4. The application unit 3 includes, for example, a browser application for browsing websites, a mail application having functions of sending and receiving mails, creating mails, and displaying mail contents, a game application, a navigation application, a music playback application, a video playback application, and a setting application that accepts from the user settings such as setting the brightness of the display screen and setting the background image, and executes them on the OS.

[0021] The application unit 3 can execute a plurality of applications on the OS and simultaneously realize a plurality of functions. For example, while executing a music playback application to play music, a setting application can be executed to set the brightness of the screen.

[0022] When the application unit 3 executes an application, it generates a GUI screen and PU information. For example, when the application unit 3 executes a mail application, it generates a GUI screen for viewing mails, and when it receives a mail, it generates PU information indicating that a mail has been received. For example, when it receives a notification of an application update from an external server, it generates PU information indicating the start of the application update.

[0023] The application unit 3 registers the color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen displayed on the display unit 11 in the color information storage unit 13. For example, when the user performs an operation to stop the running application and the home screen is displayed, the color information indicating the background color of the home screen is registered in the color information storage unit 13.

[0024] The PU center 5 has a function of acquiring PU information from the application unit 3 and generating a PUW including the PU information. The PU information acquisition unit 6 acquires the PU information generated by the application unit 3. The color information acquisition unit 7 acquires the color information from the color information storage unit 13. The color information is 3-byte information expressed in RGB color. The selection unit 8 has a function of selecting the color of a semi-transparent shade image that grays out the currently displayed GUI screen based on the color information acquired by the color information acquisition unit 7.

[0025] The display control unit 9 has a function of superimposing the PUW generated by the PU center 5 on the GUI screen generated by the application unit 3 and outputting it to the display unit 11.

[0026] The touch panel display 10 displays the GUI screen generated by the application unit 3, and when the user's finger touches the GUI screen, it has a function of detecting the touched position and receiving the user's instruction. The touch panel display 10 is composed of a display unit 11 and an input unit 12. The display unit 11 outputs information to the screen based on the control of the display control unit 9. The input unit 11, when the user performs a touch operation on the screen output by the display unit 10, receives it as an instruction input to the information corresponding to the detected position.

[0027] [Operation of the information processing apparatus 1] The display control processing flow shown in FIG. 2 will be described. Note that the symbol "S" shown in FIG. 2 means a step.

[0028] When the PU information acquisition unit 6 acquires the PU information from the application unit 3 upon the application unit 3 generating the PU information (S1: Yes), the color information acquisition unit 7 acquires the color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen being displayed on the display unit 11 from the color information storage unit 13 (S2).

[0029] The selection unit 8 selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information (S3).

[0030] The display control unit 9 superimposes the PUW including the acquired PU information and the shade image on the GUI screen and outputs the result to the display unit 11 (S4). After the process of S4, the process returns to the process of S1.

[0031] [Specific Example of the First PUW] Using FIGS. 3 to 9, a specific example of the PUW (hereinafter referred to as the "first PUW") output in the display control process of the first embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the first GUI screen 50 is output to the display unit 11.

[0032] The first GUI screen 50 is a home screen. The first GUI screen 50 includes a map application icon 51, a settings application icon 52, a phone application icon 53, a calendar application icon 54, a music playback application icon 55, a weather forecast application icon 56, a video playback application icon 57, and a mail application icon 58 installed by the user. The background color of the home screen is black.

[0033] Here, when the communication unit 2 receives a notification of an update of the map application from an external server, the application unit 3 generates PU information regarding the notification of the update of the map application. When the PU information acquisition unit 6 acquires the generated PU information, the color information acquisition unit 7 acquires the color information of the first GUI screen 50 being displayed from the color information storage unit 13.

[0034] Since the background color of the first GUI screen 50 is black, the color information acquired by the color information acquisition unit 7 is (0:0:0) indicating black in RGB color. The selection unit 8 selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information. In this case, since the color is black, black is selected as the color of the shade image. FIG. 4 is an example in which the first PUW 70 is superimposed on the black semi-transparent first shade image 60 and displayed.

[0035] FIG. 5 shows an example in which the first shade image 60 and the first PUW 70 shown in FIG. 4 are superimposed on the first GUI screen 50 shown in FIG. 3 and output to the display unit 11. Due to the first shade image 60, the color tone of the first GUI screen 50 serving as the background becomes darker, making the display of each icon unclear. On the other hand, as the blackness of the first GUI screen 50 increases, the first PUW 70 has a clear contrast and is easy to view.

[0036] Next, as shown in FIG. 6, a case where the first PUW 70 is superimposed and output on the second GUI screen 80 which is a home screen with a white background will be described. When the black first shade image 60 and the first PUW 70 shown in FIG. 4 are superimposed on the second GUI screen 80 with a white background, the color tone display of the second GUI screen 80 shown in FIG. 7 is obtained.

[0037] The color tone of the second GUI screen 80 shown in FIG. 7 becomes a gray color tone because the white background color and the semi-transparent black color of the first shade image 60 are mixed. As a result, the gray background color of the first PUW 70 and the background color of the second GUI screen 80 are close in color, so the first PUW 70 is not prominent and the display is hard to view.

[0038] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, when the second shade image 90 with the same white background color as the second GUI screen 80 in FIG. 6 is used and superimposed on the second GUI screen 80, the color tone display of the second GUI screen 80 shown in FIG. 9 is obtained. Since the first PUW 70 shown in FIG. 9 has a clearer contrast with the background color than the first PUW 70 shown in FIG. 7, a more easily viewable display of the first PUW 70 can be realized.

[0039] [Second Embodiment] The second embodiment according to the present invention is an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle. Since the configuration of the in-vehicle device is the same as that of the information processing device 1 described in the first embodiment, and the display control processing flow is also the same, the description thereof is omitted.

[0040] Conventionally, the information processing device 1, which is an in-vehicle device, outputs a map indicating the position of the vehicle as a GUI screen, displays the map in white-based colors during the day, and displays the map in black-based colors at night or when the vehicle enters a tunnel. Then, while the map is being displayed, when the information processing device 1 receives traffic jam information on the road being traveled or emergency information such as an earthquake or a tsunami, it superimposes the PUW on the GUI screen (map) and outputs it to notify the user of this information. Hereinafter, a specific example of the PUW (hereinafter referred to as the "second PUW") of the second embodiment will be described.

[0041] [Specific Example of the Second PUW] Using FIGS. 10 to 15, a specific example of the second PUW 120 output in the display control processing of the second embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 10, the third GUI screen 100 is output to the display unit 11.

[0042] On the third GUI screen 100, a map around the current location and a selection button icon 131 for selecting map zooming, traffic jam information notification, etc. are displayed. The color of the map is white-based.

[0043] Here, when the communication unit 2 receives a notification of emergency information from an external server, the app unit 3 generates PU information regarding the notification of emergency information. When the generated PU information is acquired by the PU information acquisition unit 6, the color information acquisition unit 7 acquires the color information of the third GUI screen 100 being displayed from the color information storage unit 13.

[0044] Since the background color of the third GUI screen 100 is a white-based color, the color information acquired by the color information acquisition unit 7 indicates white in RGB color (255:255:255). The selection unit 8 selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information. In this case, since the color is white, white is selected as the color of the shade image. FIG. 11 is an example in which the second PUW 120 is superimposed on the white semi-transparent third shade image 110 and displayed.

[0045] FIG. 12 shows an example in which the third shade image 110 and the second PUW 120 shown in FIG. 11 are superimposed on the third GUI screen 100 shown in FIG. 10 and output to the display unit 11. The color tone of the third GUI screen 100 serving as the background becomes darker in white due to the third shade image 110, and the display of each icon becomes unclear.

[0046] On the other hand, the second PUW 120 has a clear contrast and is easy to view as the degree of white of the third GUI screen 100 increases.

[0047] Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 13, when the color of the map is inverted to a black-based color as the vehicle enters the tunnel, the color information acquisition unit 7 acquires the color information of the fourth GUI screen 130 being displayed from the color information storage unit 13.

[0048] Since the background color of the fourth GUI screen 130 is black, the color information acquired by the color information acquisition unit 7 indicates black in RGB color (0:0:0). The selection unit 8 selects the color of the shade image based on the acquired color information. In this case, since the color is black, black is selected as the color of the shade image. FIG. 14 is an example in which the second PUW 120 is superimposed on the black semi-transparent fourth shade image 140 and displayed.

[0049] FIG. 15 shows an example in which the fourth shade image 140 and the second PUW 120 shown in FIG. 14 are superimposed on the fourth GUI screen 130 shown in FIG. 13 and output to the display unit 11. Due to the fourth shade image 140, the color tone of the background fourth GUI screen 130 becomes darker, and the display of each icon becomes unclear. On the other hand, the second PUW 120 provides a clear and easy-to-see display with enhanced contrast as the blackness of the fourth GUI screen 130 increases.

[0050] Thus, by applying the present invention, even when the background color of the background GUI screen changes, a more easily visible display of the second PUW 120 can be achieved by selecting a shade image of a color corresponding to the background color.

[0051] As described above, each embodiment has been explained. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and should be understood to include various modifications and alternative forms of the above embodiments. For example, embodiments in which components are modified and embodied without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, embodiments in which a plurality of components disclosed in the above embodiments are appropriately combined, and embodiments in which some components are deleted from all the components shown in the embodiments or some components are added to the components shown in the embodiments are also included.

[0052] In each of the above embodiments, the background color of the GUI screen has been described for the cases of black and white. However, the present invention can be applied to various colors such as blue and red to make the PUW easier to see. The color of the shade image is selected based on the background color of the background GUI screen, but it is also possible to select a color that makes the PUW easier to see than analogous colors.

[0053] The color information may include luminance. When the luminance of the background color of the background GUI screen is high, the transparency of the shade image may be decreased to reduce the luminance. When the background color is a pattern image, a gradient image, or a photographic image, a means for determining the color with the highest proportion among the colors included in the image as the background color may be provided.

[0054] The present invention can also be applied to display control of a display unit provided in a device or system, such as, for example, a management system for a facility or the like, an elevator, a remote operation system (for example, a remote operation system for a drone, etc.).

[0055] In addition to being realized as the information processing apparatus 1, the present invention may also be a method for controlling the display of pop-up information, or a program for causing a computer to execute display control processing of pop-up information, or a storage medium storing such a program.

Explanation of Signs

[0056] 1 Information processing apparatus 2 Communication unit 3 Application unit 4 Storage unit 5 PU center 6 PU information acquisition unit 7 Color information acquisition unit 8 Selection unit 9 Display control unit 10 Touch panel display 11 Display unit 12 Input unit 50 First GUI screen 60 First shade image 70 First PUW

Claims

1. In an information processing apparatus that superimposes and outputs, on a display unit that displays a GUI screen, a translucent shade image that grays out the GUI screen and a pop-up window on the GUI screen, a PU information acquisition unit that acquires pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window; a color information acquisition unit that acquires color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen; a selection unit that selects, as the color of the shade image, a color of the same color system as the color indicated by the acquired color information so that the display on the display unit becomes unclear; a display control unit that superimposes and outputs on the GUI screen the shade image of the color selected by the selection unit and the pop-up window including the pop-up information. An information processing apparatus.

2. In a display control method for superimposing and outputting, on a display unit that displays a GUI screen, a translucent shade image that grays out the GUI screen and a pop-up window, acquire pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window, acquire color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen, select, as the color of the shade image, a color of the same color system as the color indicated by the acquired color information so that the display on the display unit becomes unclear, superimpose and output on the GUI screen the shade image of the selected color and the pop-up window including the pop-up information. A display control method.

3. A program for causing a computer to execute a display control process for superimposing and outputting, on a display unit that displays a GUI screen, a translucent shade image that grays out the GUI screen and a pop-up window, wherein the display control process includes steps of acquiring pop-up information to be displayed in the pop-up window, acquiring color information indicating the background color of the GUI screen, selecting, as the shade image, a color of the same color system as the color indicated by the acquired color information so that the display on the display unit becomes unclear, and superimposing and outputting on the GUI screen the shade image of the selected color and the pop-up window including the pop-up information. A program.

Images