Program, image processing method, and image processing apparatus.

Abstract

To reduce time for magnifying or reducing an image.SOLUTION: A program causes a computer to function as: an image data identification unit 141 for identifying target image data on the basis of an operation for specifying the target image data to be displayed in a paste region on a screen; an image data selection unit 142 for selecting one item of level-classified image data, on the basis of the relationship between the size of the level-classified image data and the size of the paste region, from the target image data or from multiple items of level-classified image data, which are stored in a storage unit 13 in association with the paste region and include multiple items of partial image data and a division number, which is the number of items of partial image data included in the level-classified image data; and a display processing unit 144 for displaying, in the paste region, at least one of the multiple items of partial image data included in selected level-classified image data, which is the one item of level-classified image data selected by the image data selection unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a program, an image processing method, and an image processing apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, image layout devices are known that paste images selected by the user onto a background image and display them on a display device (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2018-55533 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0004] Conventional image layout devices allow users to place images on a base image at positions they select, and then display these images on a display device. However, when a user attempts to enlarge or reduce the displayed image, the time required to enlarge or reduce the image increases as the image size increases. This results in a problem where the time between the user's operation and the image being displayed on the display device becomes longer.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these points, and aims to shorten the time required to enlarge or reduce an image. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A program according to a first aspect of the present invention causes a computer to function as: an image data identification unit that identifies target image data based on an operation to specify target image data to be displayed in a pasting area on a screen; an image data selection unit that selects one level-specific image data from a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data created by dividing the target image data and stored in a storage unit associated with the target image data or the pasting area, based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area; and a display processing unit that displays one or more part image data from the plurality of part image data included in the selected level-specific image data, which is the one level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit, in the pasting area.

[0007] The computer may further function as a region identification unit that identifies a display target region from the target image data to be displayed in the pasting area, and the display processing unit may display one or more part image data corresponding to the display target region from among the plurality of part image data included in the selected level image data in the pasting area.

[0008] The level-specific image data further includes pixel count data indicating the number of pixels in the level-specific image data, and the image data selection unit may select one of the level-specific image data from among the one or more level-specific image data, where the number of pixels indicated by the pixel count data is greater than the number of pixels in the pasting area, and the ratio of the number of pixels indicated by the pixel count data to the number of pixels in the pasting area is within a predetermined range.

[0009] The image data identification unit may store an image object containing the plurality of level-specific image data in the storage unit in association with the pasting area.

[0010] The display processing unit may, after displaying the first selected level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit in the first pasting area based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the first pasting area for displaying the target image data, then display the second selected level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit in the second pasting area based on the relationship between the size of the second pasting area included in the first pasting area and the size of the level-specific image data.

[0011] The display processing unit may, if the magnification ratio of the one or more part image data displayed in the pasting area with respect to the target image data is within a predetermined range, overlay and display the image data associated with the one or more part image data onto the one or more part image data.

[0012] The image data identification unit identifies the plurality of target image data based on an operation to specify the plurality of target image data to be displayed in the pasting area, and the display processing unit, after displaying one or more part image data included in the first selection level image data of a predetermined level associated with the first target image data among the plurality of target image data, may display in the pasting area one or more part image data included in the second selection level image data, which includes a number of divisions different from the number of divisions included in the first selection level image data, and which corresponds to the second target image data associated with the first target image data among the plurality of target image data.

[0013] The computer may further function as a creation unit that creates the plurality of level-specific image data associated with the target image data when such data is not stored in the storage unit, based on an operation to specify the target image data.

[0014] The creation unit determines the number of pixels in the vertical direction and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction of the target image data. j If (j is a natural number), then the target image data is 4k (where k is a natural number) and create a plurality of level-specific image data with different values of k for each.

[0015] When either the number of pixels in the vertical direction or the number of pixels in the horizontal direction of the target image data is not 2 j (where j is a natural number), the number of pixels in the vertical direction becomes 2 m (where m is a natural number), and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction becomes 2 n (where n is a natural number), and create a plurality of level-specific image data with different values of k for each by dividing the image data with pixels added so as to be 4 k pieces.

[0016] The creation unit may create the plurality of part image data included in the plurality of level-specific image data by dividing the image data excluding the region within a predetermined range from the outer periphery in the target image data.

[0017] The creation unit may convert the pasting area on which the one or more part image data are displayed into target image data of the same size as the pasting area, and create an image object including the plurality of level-specific image data corresponding to the target image data.

[0018] The creation unit may determine the maximum value of the number of divisions based on the number of pixels of the target image data, and create the plurality of part image data included in the plurality of level-specific image data corresponding to the plurality of numbers of divisions by dividing the target image data with a plurality of numbers of divisions not exceeding the maximum value of the number of divisions.

[0019] The image processing method according to the second aspect of the present invention includes: a step of specifying target image data to be displayed in a pasting area on a screen, based on an operation of specifying the target image data; a step of identifying the target image data; a step of selecting one level-specific image data from a plurality of level-specific image data including the target image data or a plurality of part image data created by dividing the target image data, which is associated with the pasting area, based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area, the plurality of level-specific image data including the number of divided parts, which is the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data; and a step of displaying one or more part image data among the plurality of part image data included in the selected level-specific image data, which is the one level-specific image data, in the pasting area.

[0020] The image processing apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention includes: an image data specifying unit that specifies the target image data based on an operation of specifying the target image data to be displayed in a pasting area on a screen; an image data selecting unit that selects one level-specific image data from a plurality of level-specific image data including the target image data or a plurality of part image data created by dividing the target image data, which is stored in a storage unit in association with the pasting area, based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area, the plurality of level-specific image data including the number of divided parts, which is the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data; and a display processing unit that displays one or more part image data among the plurality of part image data included in the selected level-specific image data, which is the one level-specific image data selected by the image data selecting unit, in the pasting area.

Advantages of the Invention

[0021] According to the present invention, there is an effect of shortening the time for enlarging or reducing an image.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0022] [Figure 1]This is a diagram illustrating the overview of the image processing device 1 according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image processing device 1 in displaying an image. [Figure 3] This is a diagram showing the configuration of the image processing device 1. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of a parts image database stored in the memory unit 13. [Figure 5] This is a diagram to explain the image area of ​​the parts. [Figure 6] This is a diagram illustrating the process of displaying an enlarged image. [Figure 7] This diagram illustrates the operation of displaying the first and second application areas. [Figure 8] This diagram illustrates the operation of displaying related image data. [Figure 9] This diagram illustrates the operation of displaying image data for each of the second selection levels. [Figure 10] This is information about the number of divisions used to determine the maximum number of divisions. [Figure 11] This is a flowchart showing the processing flow in the image processing device 1. [Figure 12] This is a diagram illustrating the outline of the image processing device 1 according to the third modified example. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0023] <Overview of Image Processing Device 1> Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the overview of the image processing device 1 according to this embodiment. The image processing device 1 is a terminal having a display for displaying images, such as a smartphone, tablet, or personal computer. The image processing device 1 may be connected to an external display device (not shown) having a display via a digital interface such as HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) (registered trademark).

[0024] The image processing device 1 has a dedicated application program (hereinafter referred to as "dedicated app") installed for displaying images on the display. Through the dedicated app, the user can select images to be overlaid on a background on the display, specify the area in which to display images, and specify the size of the images to be displayed on the display.

[0025] As shown in Figure 1, the image processing device 1 stores an image object database and a background database. The image object database includes multiple image objects D (D1 to D3 in Figure 1), and each of the multiple image objects D includes original image data, image information, and a part image database.

[0026] The original image data is the image data from the image object database that has not been downsampled or compressed, and represents the pixel value of each individual pixel. The image information includes, for example, the file name of the original image data and information about the size of the original image data (e.g., the number of pixels).

[0027] The part image database contains multiple level-level image data corresponding to the original image data. While multiple level-level image data corresponding to a single original image data are created based on that single original image data, each has a different number of pixels. Each level-level image data contains multiple part image data created by dividing the original image data. Each level-level image data includes the number of divisions (the number of part image data points it contains) and the multiple part image data points themselves. Furthermore, each level-level image data may also include pixel count data indicating the number of pixels in the part image data points contained within it. Details of the part image database, level-level image data, and part image data will be explained later using Figure 4.

[0028] The backing card database contains multiple backing card image data B (backing card image data B1, B2 in Figure 1) for pasting image data onto. Pasting image data onto backing card image data means associating the image data with the backing card image database. The display window is a window that displays the image data pasted onto the backing card image data on the display, overlaid on top of the backing card image data.

[0029] The image processing device 1 identifies level-specific image data corresponding to an image selected by the user to be overlaid on a background on the display screen. If level-specific image data corresponding to the selected image is not included in the parts image database, the image processing device 1 creates level-specific image data based on the original image data of the selected image.

[0030] When the image processing device 1 receives a request from the user to attach image data to a background image file and display it, it overlays the part image data contained in the corresponding image object D onto the background image data and displays it on the display. In Figure 1, the image processing device 1 overlays the part image data contained in image object D1 and image object D2 onto the background image data B1 and displays the part image data contained in image object D3 onto the background image data B2. Details of the above attachment and display processes will be described later.

[0031] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the image processing device 1 in displaying an image. The background space is the area on which part image data is pasted within the background image data. The display space is the display area on the display screen, for example, the area of ​​a window set by the user via a dedicated application.

[0032] The image processing device 1 accepts an operation to specify the source image data to be pasted onto the background image data (hereinafter referred to as "target image data"), the background image data to which the target image data will be pasted, and the area in the display area to which the target image data will be pasted onto the background image data (hereinafter referred to as "pasting area"). The image processing device 1 identifies the image object D corresponding to the target image data specified by the user by referring to the image object database shown in Figure 1. The image processing device 1 identifies the background image data B specified by the user by referring to the background database shown in Figure 1.

[0033] Next, the image processing device 1 identifies an area in the base space of the identified base image data B to display the target image data, based on the attachment area specified by the user in the display area. The image processing device 1 selects level-specific image data corresponding to the number of pixels in the identified area by referring to the part image database. The image processing device 1 overlays the part image data included in the selected level-specific image data onto the base image data and displays it (as shown in Figure 2 (1)).

[0034] The image processing device 1 displays the part image data superimposed on the backing image data in the attachment area specified by the user in the display space (attachment areas C1 and C2 in Figure 2) (as shown in (2) in Figure 2). By operating in this manner, the image processing device 1 can display the part image data corresponding to the size of the attachment area on the display. As a result, the image processing device 1 can display the target image data in the attachment area without performing any processing to enlarge or reduce the target image data to the size specified by the user, thus reducing the time it takes to display the target image data on the display. The configuration and operation of the image processing device 1 will be described in detail below.

[0035] <Configuration of Image Processing Device 1> Figure 3 shows the configuration of the image processing device 1. The image processing device 1 includes an input unit 11, a display unit 12, a storage unit 13, and a control unit 14.

[0036] The input unit 11 is an input device for receiving input operations from the user of the image processing device 1, and is, for example, a keyboard, touch panel, mouse, joystick, or microphone. The input unit 11 receives input operations from the user, such as registering multiple source image data in an image object database, pasting a source image data selected by the user from among multiple source image data (i.e., target image data) onto a background image data sheet, and enlarging or reducing the size of the target image data. The display unit 12 is a display device for displaying image data, and is, for example, a display.

[0037] The storage unit 13 has a storage medium such as ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or SSD (Solid State Drive). The storage unit 13 stores the program executed by the control unit 14. The storage unit 13 also stores image data, background image data, and data used to perform various processes based on the image data or background image data.

[0038] The storage unit 13 stores various types of information in a database that are used to display the target image data attached to the base sheet image data. For example, the storage unit 13 stores the base sheet image data B in the base sheet database. For example, the storage unit 13 stores an image object D in the image object database, which includes the original image data (i.e., the target image data) or the attachment area, the image information of the original image data, and a parts image database containing multiple level-specific image data corresponding to the original image data.

[0039] Figure 4 shows an example of a parts image database stored in the memory unit 13. In the parts image database shown in Figure 4, the original image data name, level-specific image data ID (which is level-specific image data identification information for identifying level-specific image data), number of divisions, number of pixels, part image data name, and part image region are associated with each other.

[0040] The original image data name is the file name of the original image data, and the control unit 14 can access the original image data stored in the storage unit 13 by specifying the original image data name. The number of divisions is the number of part image data that constitute each of the multiple level-specific image data. The number of pixels is the number of pixels in the level-specific image data. The part image data name is the file name of the part image data, and the control unit 14 can access the part image data by specifying the part image data name. The part image region is information indicating the region of each part image data in the original image data.

[0041] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating the part image region. Figure 5(a) shows the part image regions of four part image data "P102" (P102-1 to P102-4) generated by dividing the level-specific image data "L102" corresponding to the original image data "S100" shown in Figure 4. Figure 5(b) shows the part image regions of 16 part image data "P103" (P103-1 to P103-16) generated by dividing the level-specific image data "L103" corresponding to the original image data "S100" shown in Figure 4.

[0042] As shown in Figure 5(a), each of the four part image data "P102" parts has an image region represented by a combination of horizontal addresses x1~x2 and vertical addresses y1~y2. Each of the four part image data "P102" parts has the same number of pixels, which is 250,000 pixels obtained by dividing the 1 million pixels of the level-specific image data "L102" shown in Figure 4 into four parts. As shown in Figure 5(b), each of the sixteen part image data "P103" parts has an image region represented by a combination of horizontal addresses x1~x4 and vertical addresses y1~y4. Each of the sixteen part image data "P103" parts has the same number of pixels, which is 250,000 pixels obtained by dividing the 4 million pixels of the level-specific image data "L103" shown in Figure 4 into 16 parts.

[0043] The control unit 14 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphical Processing Unit). By executing a program stored in the storage unit 13, the control unit 14 functions as at least one of the following: an image data identification unit 141, an image data selection unit 142, a region identification unit 143, a display processing unit 144, and a creation unit 145. The control unit 14 may perform the functions of all of these components, or it may perform the functions of some of these components.

[0044] The configuration of each part realized by the control unit 14 will be described below. The image data identification unit 141 identifies target image data based on an operation to specify target image data to be displayed in the attachment area on the display screen. The image data identification unit 141 may also identify multiple target image data based on an operation to specify multiple target image data to be displayed in the attachment area. The attachment area is the area of ​​the backing sheet image, the area of ​​the backing sheet image displayed on the display, or the area of ​​the backing sheet image selected by the user. The target image data is the original image data selected by the user from among multiple original image data.

[0045] The image data identification unit 141 identifies the source image data (i.e., target image data) corresponding to the image in question, for example, when it receives an operation from the input unit 11, such as when the user selects the file name of an image to be pasted onto a background image or pastes an image onto a background image. The image data identification unit 141 identifies the target image data associated with the file name of the image selected by the user, for example, by referring to a plurality of source image data stored in the storage unit 13.

[0046] The image data identification unit 141 stores an image object D containing multiple levels of image data in the storage unit 13, for example, in association with the attachment area. The image data identification unit 141 stores in the storage unit 13, for example, information indicating the area selected by the user within the attachment area (for example, coordinate information indicating the area selected by the user) and the image object D corresponding to the target image data selected by the user, in association with each other.

[0047] The image data selection unit 142 selects one level-specific image data (i.e., selected level-specific image data) from among multiple level-specific image data contained in the image object D stored in the storage unit 13 in association with the pasting area, based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area. The size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area are information represented, for example, by the number of pixels or data encoded from the number of pixels. The image data selection unit 142 may also select one level-specific image data from among multiple level-specific image data contained in the image object D stored in the storage unit 13 in association with the target image data, based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the pasting area.

[0048] The image data selection unit 142 identifies, for example, one or more level-specific image data in which the number of pixels indicated by the pixel count data of the level-specific image data is greater than the number of pixels in the pasting area. From the one or more level-specific image data identified, the image data selection unit 142 selects one level-specific image data as the selected level-specific image data in which the ratio of the number of pixels indicated by the pixel count data to the number of pixels in the pasting area is within a predetermined range. The predetermined range is, for example, a range in which the ratio of the number of pixels indicated by the pixel count data to the number of pixels in the pasting area is less than 1 to 4.

[0049] As an example, suppose the image data selection unit 142, which receives an operation to display part or all of the target image data in the mounting area in the mounting area, determines that the number of pixels in the mounting area is 500,000 pixels. In this case, the image data selection unit 142 refers to the "number of pixels" shown in Figure 4 and identifies level-specific image data "L102", "L103", and "L104" which have a number of pixels greater than 500,000 pixels.

[0050] Next, the image data selection unit 142 selects "L102" as the selected level-specific image data from among the identified multiple level-specific image data, which is a level-specific image data in a range where the number of pixels in the level-specific image data relative to the number of pixels in the pasting area (500,000 pixels) is less than 1:4 (i.e., level-specific image data showing a number of pixels less than 2 million pixels).

[0051] By operating in this manner, the image data selection unit 142 can select level-specific image data according to the size of the pasting area. Furthermore, it can select level-specific image data that uses four or fewer part image data from among multiple part image data to display the pasting area. As a result, the image data selection unit 142 can reduce the amount of data of the image data that the display processing unit 144 acquires for display on the pasting area to less than the amount of data of the target image data, thereby increasing the display speed.

[0052] Furthermore, if the image data selection unit 142 does not have level-specific image data associated with the target image data stored in the storage unit 13, it will cause the creation unit 145 to create the level-specific image data. Details of the process by which the creation unit 145 creates the level-specific image data will be described later.

[0053] The area identification unit 143 identifies the area in which to display an image based on part image data included in the level-specific image data. The area identification unit 143 obtains from the input unit 11 the details of the operation to specify the pasting area selected by the user in the display space shown in Figure 2, and identifies the area corresponding to the pasting area in the base sheet space shown in Figure 2. The area identification unit 143 identifies the identified area among the target image data displayed overlaid on the base sheet image data as the display target area. The area identification unit 143 notifies the display processing unit 144 of the identified display target area. Once the area identification unit 143 identifies the display target area, the display processing unit 144 can select part image data corresponding to the display target area from among multiple part image data associated with the target image data.

[0054] Users may want to enlarge and display a portion of the target image data. In this case, the user can enlarge the image by, for example, selecting a portion of the displayed target image data, enlarging the paste area, or inputting a magnification ratio. When an enlargement operation is performed, the area identification unit 143 identifies the display target area of ​​the target image data that will be displayed in the paste area in an enlarged state. For example, the area identification unit 143 identifies the area of ​​the image indicated by the target image data identified by the image data identification unit 141 that will be included in the paste area after enlargement.

[0055] The display processing unit 144 displays one or more part image data from among the multiple part image data included in the selected level-specific image data, which is a single level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit 142, in the pasting area. The display processing unit 144 identifies one or more part image data included in the selected level-specific image data by, for example, referring to the "part image data name" shown in Figure 4, and displays it in the pasting area.

[0056] Because the display processing unit 144 operates in this manner, it can display part image data corresponding to the size of the pasting area. Therefore, the display processing unit 144 can acquire image data with a smaller data volume than the target image data and display it in the pasting area without performing any scaling or resizing at that time. As a result, the display processing unit 144 can shorten the time from when the user specifies the pasting area until the image is displayed in the pasting area. This operation of the display processing unit 144 is suitable when the size of the pasting area is small compared to the size of the target image data (i.e., the magnification ratio when displaying the target image data is large).

[0057] For example, when a user performs an operation to enlarge an image, the display processing unit 144 displays one or more part image data corresponding to the display target area identified by the area identification unit 143 from among the multiple part image data included in the selected level image data in the pasting area. The display processing unit 144 identifies one or more part image data included in the display target area by referring to the "part image area" shown in Figure 4, for example, and displays it in the pasting area.

[0058] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the operation of displaying an enlarged image. Figure 6(a) shows the screen displaying the image before enlargement, and Figure 6(b) shows the screen displaying the enlarged image. In Figure 6(a), the four part image data "P102" included in the level-specific image data "L102" shown in Figure 5 are displayed in paste area C. Area A is the area specified by the user during the image enlargement operation, and corresponds to one of the four areas obtained by dividing the part image data "P102-2" shown in Figure 5. In Figure 6(b), the enlarged image of area A shown in Figure 6(a) is displayed in paste area C.

[0059] First, as shown in Figure 6(a), the display processing unit 144 displays the four part image data "P102" included in the level-specific image data "L102" selected by the image data selection unit 142 based on the size of the pasting area C in the pasting area C.

[0060] Next, when the user performs an operation to enlarge and display area A, the image data selection unit 142 selects the level-specific image data "L103" based on the size of the pasting area C and the size of area A in the backing image data. The area identification unit 143 refers to the "part image area" shown in Figure 5 and identifies the part image data "P103-8" corresponding to area A from among the multiple part image data included in the selected level-specific image data "L103". The display processing unit 144 displays the part image data "P103-8" in the pasting area C, as shown in Figure 6(b).

[0061] With the display processing unit 144 operating in this manner, when the user performs an operation to enlarge or reduce a part of an image, the display processing unit 144 can quickly display part image data corresponding to the size and area specified by the user in the pasting area. As a result, the time from when the user performs an operation to specify a part of an image to when the display processing unit 144 displays the area specified by the user in the pasting area can be made shorter than when the target image data is enlarged or reduced and displayed.

[0062] Incidentally, users may want to display both a selected image and a magnified image of a portion of that image on the same screen. Specifically, this is the case when viewing a map image displayed in the pasting area and then zooming in on a portion of that map image. Therefore, the display processing unit 144 may display the image displayed in the first pasting area (for example, the map image) and the image displayed in the second pasting area included in the first pasting area (for example, a portion of the map image) on the same screen.

[0063] The display processing unit 144 displays the first selected level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit 142 in the first paste area based on the relationship between the size of the level-specific image data and the size of the first paste area for displaying the target image data. Subsequently, the display processing unit 144 displays the second selected level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit 142 in the second paste area based on the relationship between the size of the second paste area included in the first paste area and the size of the level-specific image data.

[0064] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of displaying the first and second application areas. Figure 7(a) shows the first selection level image data displayed in the first application area C1. Figure 7(b) shows the first selection level image data displayed in the first application area C1 and the second selection level image data displayed in the second application area C2. The second selection level image data shown in Figure 7(b) is an enlarged image of area A shown in Figure 7(a).

[0065] As shown in Figure 7(a), the display processing unit 144 displays the first selection level image data selected by the image data selection unit 142 in the first pasting area C1. Subsequently, as shown in Figure 7(b), the display processing unit 144 displays the second selection level image data selected by the image data selection unit 142 based on the size of the second pasting area C2 and the size of area A in the second pasting area C2.

[0066] For example, if the first selected level-specific image data is the level-specific image data "L102" shown in Figure 4, then the second selected level-specific image data is either the level-specific image data "L103" or "L104" shown in Figure 4. The display processing unit 144 displays the part image data corresponding to the display target area identified by the area identification unit 143 from among the multiple part image data included in the second selected level-specific image data in the pasting area C2.

[0067] By operating in this manner, the display processing unit 144 can display image data of different division levels associated with the same target image data in each of the multiple pasting areas. As a result, the user can view the original image data and quickly begin to view a portion of the original image data in detail.

[0068] Users may want to overlay other information different from the target image data when the magnification of the target image data displayed on the display is within a predetermined range. Specifically, this might be the case when displaying a group photograph taken in a place where many people are gathered, at a magnification that allows people's faces to be identified, and the user wants to overlay the nameplates of the people shown. Therefore, the display processing unit 144 overlays image data associated with one or more part image data (hereinafter referred to as "related image data") onto one or more part image data when the magnification of one or more part image data displayed in the pasting area relative to the target image data is within a predetermined range. The magnification is, for example, the value obtained by dividing the number of pixels of the target image data (i.e., the number of pixels of part image data with a division count of 1) by the number of pixels of the pasting area.

[0069] The display processing unit 144 receives from the user, for example, an area for displaying related image data and a range of magnification for part image data when displaying related image data, and associates them with the target image data. The related image data is stored in the storage unit 13, and the user can associate it with part image data by operating the image processing device 1. The related image data may be original image data registered in the image object database, or it may be image data not registered in the image object database.

[0070] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating the operation of displaying related image data. Figure 8(a) shows the pasting area C without overlaid related image data, and Figure 8(b) shows the pasting area C with overlaid related image data. The image of pasting area C shown in Figure 8(b) is an enlarged view of area A shown in Figure 8(a). Images N1 and N2 shown in Figure 8(b) are related image data associated with part image data representing people P1 and P2.

[0071] In Figure 8(a), the display processing unit 144 determines the magnification ratio of the part image data displayed in the attachment area C by dividing the number of pixels of the part image data with a division count of 1 by the number of pixels of the attachment area C. If the display processing unit 144 determines that the determined magnification ratio is not within a predetermined range set by the user, it displays the image data on the display without displaying the related image data.

[0072] Meanwhile, in Figure 8(b), the display processing unit 144 determines that the magnification of the part image data displayed in the attachment area C is within a predetermined range. The display processing unit 144 overlays images N1 and N2, which are related image data associated with the part image data displayed in the attachment area C, onto the part image data.

[0073] By operating in this manner, the display processing unit 144 can overlay part image data within a predetermined magnification range with image data associated with that part image data. As a result, the display processing unit 144 can overlay other image data set by the user according to the magnification of the target image data.

[0074] Furthermore, when the magnification of the target image data displayed on the screen is at a predetermined magnification, users may want to display other target image data in the pasting area that is different from the target image data displayed. One example is when magnifying an image of an animal to display images of the animal's skeleton, muscles, or internal organs.

[0075] Therefore, after the display processing unit 144 displays the part image data obtained by dividing the first target image data, if it receives an operation to change the magnification ratio of the first target image data to a predetermined magnification ratio, it displays the part image data obtained by dividing the second target image data associated with the first target image data. The second target image data is the original image data associated with the first target image data by the user operating the image processing device 1, and is stored in the image object database in association with the image information of the second target image data and the part image database.

[0076] The display processing unit 144, for example, displays one or more part image data included in a first selection level image data of a predetermined level associated with the first target image data among a plurality of target image data, and then accepts a predetermined operation to change the magnification when displaying. In this case, the display processing unit 144 displays one or more part image data included in a second selection level image data that contains a different number of divisions than the number of divisions included in the first selection level image data, and which corresponds to the second target image data associated with the first target image data among a plurality of target image data, in the pasting area. The user can specify a first selection level image data of a predetermined level or set a predetermined operation to change the magnification by operating the image processing device 1.

[0077] Figure 9 is a diagram illustrating the operation of displaying image data categorized by the second selection level. Figure 9(a) shows first target image data Q1 showing the appearance of an animal and second target image data Q2 showing the skeleton of an animal. The storage unit 13 stores the first target image data Q1 and the second target image data Q2. Figure 9(b) is a diagram showing part image data included in the first selection level image data. Figure 9(c) is a diagram showing the second selection level image data.

[0078] First, as shown in Figure 9(b), the display processing unit 144 displays the part image data included in the first selection level-specific image data associated with the first target image data Q1 in the pasting area C. Subsequently, when an operation is received to change the magnification ratio when displaying the pasting area C to a magnification ratio within a predetermined range, the display processing unit 144 displays the part image data included in the second selection level-specific image data corresponding to the second target image data in the pasting area C, as shown in Figure 9(c).

[0079] By operating in this manner, the display processing unit 144 can display other target image data associated with the target image data when displaying the pasting area at a magnification specified by the user. As a result, the user can, for example, create image content that combines images of the outside of the subject with images of the inside of the subject.

[0080] [Creating image data by level] The creation unit 145 creates multiple level-specific image data associated with the target image data if those data are not stored in the storage unit 13, based on an operation to specify the target image data. The creation unit 145 creates level-specific image data if it determines, for example, that multiple level-specific image data associated with the target image data are not stored in the storage unit 13 by referring to the image object database shown in Figure 1. The creation unit 145 creates multiple level-specific image data by dividing the target image data into multiple part image data and storing them in the storage unit 13.

[0081] The creation unit 145, for example, determines the maximum number of divisions based on the number of pixels in the target image data, and divides the target image data into multiple divisions less than or equal to the maximum number of divisions, thereby creating multiple part image data included in multiple level-specific image data corresponding to multiple divisions.

[0082] Figure 10 shows the division number information for determining the maximum number of divisions. The division number information shown in Figure 10 is stored in the storage unit 13 and is associated with the number of levels, the number of divisions, and the number of pixels in the target image data. The number of divisions is the number of part image data created by dividing the target image data. The number of levels is the number of image data for each level and is determined by the size of the target image data (e.g., the number of pixels).

[0083] Specifically, when the number of pixels of the target image data is 12 million pixels, the creation unit 145 refers to the "number of pixels of the target image data" and the "number of levels" shown in FIG. 10 to identify that four level-specific image data should be created. The creation unit 145 refers to the "number of divisions" shown in FIG. 10 to identify that the maximum value of the number of divisions of the target image data is 64. The creation unit 145 creates level-specific image data corresponding to level 4, including 64 part image data generated by dividing the target image data into 64 parts and information indicating that the number of divisions is 64.

[0084] Subsequently, the creation unit 145 creates level-specific image data corresponding to level 3, including 16 part image data generated by dividing the first reduced image data generated by reducing the target image data into 16 parts and information indicating that the number of divisions is 16. The first reduced image data is, for example, image data created by thinning out some pixels so that the number of pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions of the target image data becomes half the number of pixels respectively.

[0085] Furthermore, the creation unit 145 creates level-specific image data corresponding to level 2, including 4 part image data generated by dividing the second reduced image data generated by further reducing the first reduced image data into 4 parts and information indicating that the number of divisions is 4. Similarly, the creation unit 145 creates level-specific image data corresponding to level 1. By creating part image data in this way, the creation unit 145 can create a plurality of level-specific image data suitable for the number of pixels of the target image data.

[0086] The creation unit 145, for example, when the number of pixels in the vertical direction and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction of the target image data are 2 j (j is a natural number), the target image data is divided into 4 k (k is a natural number) parts, and creates a plurality of level-specific image data with different values of k respectively. Specifically, the creation unit 145 determines that the number of pixels in the vertical direction of the target image data identified by the image data identification unit 141 is 2048 (that is, 2 11) and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction is 4096 (i.e., 2 12 It identifies that the target image data is divided into 4, 16, and 64 parts, respectively. By creating the level-specific image data in this way, the creation unit 145 can make the number of pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions equal for each of the multiple part image data.

[0087] The creation unit 145 determines that either the number of pixels in the vertical direction or the number of pixels in the horizontal direction of the target image data is 2. j If j is not a natural number, the number of pixels in the vertical direction is 2 m (m is a natural number) and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction is 2 n Image data is created by adding pixels so that (n is a natural number). The creation unit 145 processes the created image data into 4 k By dividing it into individual parts, multiple level-specific image data are created, each with a different k value. The creation unit 145, for example, determines that at least one of the vertical pixel count or horizontal pixel count of the target image data identified by the image data identification unit 141 is 2 j If it is determined that (j is not a natural number), then the outer edge of the target image data has 2 pixels in the vertical direction. m (m is a natural number) and the number of pixels in the horizontal direction is 2 n Image data with pixels added so that (n is a natural number) is 4 k Divide into individual parts.

[0088] The pixels that the creation unit 145 adds to the outer periphery of the target image data are, for example, pixels on the outer periphery of the target image data, monochrome pixels such as white or black, or pixels included in the area surrounding the region where the target image data is superimposed on the background image data. By creating the image data in this way, the creation unit 145 can create multiple part image data with the same number of pixels in both the vertical and horizontal directions, regardless of the size of the target image data.

[0089] When the image data generated by the camera is the target image data, peripheral vignetting may cause the brightness near the outer edge of the target image data to be lower than the brightness near the center of the target image data. In such cases, the user may not want to display the area near the outer edge of the target image data. To address this, the creation unit 145 may create multiple part image data included in multiple level-specific image data by dividing the image data, excluding an area within a predetermined range from the outer edge of the target image data. The area within the predetermined range is, for example, an area of ​​10% of the number of pixels in the vertical and horizontal directions, and can be set by the user by operating the image processing device 1.

[0090] By operating in this manner, the creation unit 145 can create multiple part image data by excluding areas that have become darker than the central area due to peripheral vignetting, when the captured image data generated by the camera is the target image data.

[0091] Incidentally, users may want to display the image data of the backing sheet displayed in the pasting area as the target image data on other backing sheet image data. In response to this, the creation unit 145 converts the pasting area on which one or more part image data are displayed into target image data of the same size as the pasting area (i.e., the same number of pixels as the vertical and horizontal number of pixels in the pasting area), and creates an image object D that includes multiple level-specific image data corresponding to the target image data. For example, when the creation unit 145 receives an operation from the user to specify the backing sheet image data as the target image data, it creates an image object D with the backing sheet image data as the target image data.

[0092] Because the creation unit 145 operates in this manner, the display processing unit 144 can display image data at levels appropriate to the size it is displaying, even when enlarging or reducing image data that is larger than conventional image data. As a result, the display processing unit 144 can shorten the time it takes to display an image, even if the target image data is large.

[0093] <Processing flow in image processing device 1> Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the processing flow in the image processing device 1. The flowchart in Figure 11 shows the operation from when the image processing device 1 receives the specification of the target image data and the pasting area to when it displays the target image data in the pasting area.

[0094] The image data identification unit 141 receives the specification of the target image data and the pasting area from the input unit 11 (S1). The image data identification unit 141 identifies the target image data received from the input unit 11 by referring to the image object database shown in Figure 1 (S2).

[0095] If level-specific image data associated with the identified target image data cannot be identified (NO in S3), that is, if the level-specific image data is not stored in the storage unit 13, the creation unit 145 creates multiple level-specific image data (S4). If level-specific image data associated with the identified target image data can be identified (YES in S3), that is, if the level-specific image data associated with the target image data is stored in the storage unit 13, the creation unit 145 does not create level-specific image data.

[0096] The image data selection unit 142 identifies the number of pixels in the pasting area received from the input unit 11 by the image data identification unit 141 (S5). Based on the identified number of pixels in the pasting area and the number of pixels in the level-specific image data associated with the target image data, the image data selection unit 142 selects one level-specific image data (i.e., selected level-specific image data) (S6).

[0097] The area identification unit 143 identifies the display target area from the target image data to be displayed in the pasting area (S7). The display processing unit 144 identifies the part image data to be displayed in the pasting area from among the multiple part image data included in the selected level image data, based on the display target area identified by the area identification unit 143 and the "part image area" shown in Figure 4 (S8). The display processing unit 144 displays the identified part image data in the pasting area (S9).

[0098] If no operation to terminate processing is performed (NO in S10), the image processing device 1 repeats the processes from S1 to S9. If an operation to terminate processing is performed (YES in S10), the image processing device 1 terminates the process.

[0099] <First variation> In the above description, the image processing device 1 has shown the operation of displaying the target image data in the attachment area of ​​the backing image data, but it is not limited to this. The image processing device 1 may also display other backing image data specified by the user in the attachment area of ​​the backing image data. The other backing image data may display one or more target image data.

[0100] <Second variation> In the above description, the image processing device 1 has shown the operation of displaying the attachment area on a display unit 12 such as a display, but it is not limited to this. The image processing device 1 may store the part image data displayed in the attachment area as an image file in the storage unit 13, or it may send it to a printing device such as a printer for printing.

[0101] <Third variation> In the above description, the image processing device 1 identifies an area in the background space of the background image data B where the target image data is to be displayed, and overlays part image data corresponding to the number of pixels in the identified area onto the background image data B, thereby displaying the part image data overlaid on the background image data B in the display window. However, the device is not limited to this. The image processing device 1 may also create a background object by overlaying part image data onto the background image data B, and then create a paper object containing display image data generated by scaling the background object, and display the display image data in the display window.

[0102] Figure 12 is a diagram illustrating the outline of the image processing device 1 according to the third modified example. The image processing device 1 identifies an area in the base image data B1 where the target image data will be displayed, based on the attachment area specified by the user in the display area. The image processing device 1 creates a base image object by overlaying the part image data included in the level-specific image data corresponding to the number of pixels in the identified area onto the base image data B1 (shown in Figure 12 (1)).

[0103] The image processing device 1 creates a display image data of a reduced version of the created background object, which is the background paper (shown in Figure 12 (2)). The image processing device 1 creates a display image data of a partially enlarged version of the background object (area A1 in Figure 12), which is the partially enlarged version (shown in Figure 12 (3)). The image processing device 1 displays the background paper in the area specified by the user in the display window (i.e., the display area) (shown in Figure 12 (4)). The image processing device 1 displays the partially enlarged version in the area specified by the user in the display area (shown in Figure 12 (5)).

[0104] The image processing device 1 may also use display image data such as a backing paper or a partially enlarged paper included in the paper object to create an image object D4 that includes multiple level-specific image data corresponding to the display image data (as shown in Figure 12 (6)).

[0105] <Effects of Image Processing Device 1> As described above, the image processing device 1 includes an image data identification unit 141 that identifies target image data based on an operation to specify target image data to be displayed in the pasting area by executing a program stored in the storage unit 13, and an image data selection unit 142 that selects one level-specific image data from a plurality of level-specific image data associated with the target image data based on the size of the pasting area.

[0106] Then, the display processing unit 144 displays one or more part image data from among the multiple part image data included in the level-specific image data selected by the image data selection unit 142 in the pasting area. By operating in this manner, the image processing device 1 can display part image data corresponding to the size of the pasting area specified by the user, and can display using an image with a smaller data size than the data size of the target image data. Furthermore, it can display the target image data without performing any processing to enlarge or reduce it to the size of the pasting area specified by the user. As a result, the image processing device 1 can reduce the time required to display the target image data.

[0107] Although the present invention has been described above using embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of its gist. For example, all or part of the apparatus can be configured by functionally or physically distributing and integrating in any unit. Furthermore, new embodiments resulting from any combination of multiple embodiments are also included in the embodiments of the present invention. The effects of the new embodiments resulting from the combinations are combined with the effects of the original embodiments. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0108] 1 Image processing device 11 Input section 12 Display section 13 Storage section 14 Control Unit 141 Image data identification section 142 Image Data Selection Section 143 Area identification part 144 Display Processing Unit 145 Creation Section

Claims

1. Computers, An image data identification unit that receives an operation to specify the target image data, A creation unit that creates a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the number of divisions being the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data, A display processing unit that displays the aforementioned part image data on a display unit, It is a program designed to function as such. The creation unit converts the attachment area of ​​the display unit on which the display processing unit has displayed the part image data into target image data of the same size as the attachment area, and creates an image object that includes the plurality of level-specific image data corresponding to the target image data. program.

2. Computers, An image data identification unit that receives an operation to specify the target image data, A creation unit that creates a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the number of divisions being the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data, It is a program designed to function as such. The creation unit creates the multiple level-specific image data associated with the target image data if the multiple level-specific image data associated with the target image data is not stored in the storage unit. program.

3. Computers, An image data identification unit that receives an operation to specify the target image data, A creation unit that creates a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the number of divisions being the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data, It is a program designed to function as such. The creation unit creates multiple level-specific image data, each with a different value of k, by dividing the target image data into 4k (where k is a natural number) parts, where the target image data is divided into 2j (where k is a natural number) parts, where either the vertical or horizontal number of pixels in the target image data is not 2j (where j is a natural number), and by dividing the image data into 4k parts, each with a different value of k, after adding pixels such that the vertical number of pixels becomes 2m (where m is a natural number) and the horizontal number of pixels becomes 2n (where n is a natural number). program.

4. Computers, An image data identification unit that receives an operation to specify the target image data, A creation unit that creates a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the number of divisions being the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data, It is a program designed to function as such. The creation unit creates the multiple part image data included in the multiple level-specific image data by dividing the image data obtained by excluding the area within a predetermined range from the outer edge of the target image data. program.

5. The creation unit determines the maximum number of divisions based on the number of pixels in the target image data, and creates the multiple part image data included in the multiple level-specific image data corresponding to the multiple divisions by dividing the target image data into multiple divisions less than or equal to the maximum number of divisions. The program according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. A computer executes A step in which the target image data is specified, A step of creating a plurality of level-specific image data, each level-specific image data associated with the target image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the plurality of part image data, and the plurality of part image data. The steps include: displaying the aforementioned part image data on the display unit; It has, In the above creation step, the attachment area of ​​the display unit on which the part image data is displayed is converted into the target image data of the same size as the attachment area, and an image object is created that includes the multiple level-specific image data corresponding to the target image data. Image processing methods.

7. An image data identification unit that receives an operation to specify the target image data, A creation unit that creates a plurality of level-specific image data, which includes a plurality of part image data obtained by dividing the target image data, the number of divisions being the number of part image data included in the level-specific image data, and the plurality of part image data, A display processing unit that displays the aforementioned part image data on a display unit, It has, The creation unit converts the attachment area of ​​the display unit on which the display processing unit has displayed the part image data into target image data of the same size as the attachment area, and creates an image object that includes the plurality of level-specific image data corresponding to the target image data. Image processing device.

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