JP2002319998A - Portable telephone set and image browsing system using portable telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a portable telephone set which enables a user to create an arbitrary image. SOLUTION: The portable telephone set 1 has a Internet access function in addition to an ordinary voice calling function. The portable telephone set 1 is equipped with a set body 2, a display part 3 provided to the set body 2, an operation part 4, and an antenna 5. The operation part 4 is equipped with arrow keys 6 to 9, a confirmation button 10, and a tool button 11. The display part 3 is composed of pixels 12. The display part 3 shows a state wherein an image generating application is started. The display part 3 displays a tool box 19 and a drawing area 18 and an image of a 'house' created by the user is displayed in the drawing area 18. Each pixel 12 has color information and the user can change the color information of each pixel 12 in the drawing area 18 by using various tools in the tool box 19.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mobile phone having an image creating function, and more particularly, to a mobile phone having a function that allows a user to create an image as desired.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, personal computers (hereinafter, referred to as personal computers).
Creating an image using a personal computer) is a hobby. A user draws a desired image (illustration, icon, or the like) by drawing a figure or painting a color on a display of a personal computer. Alternatively, the user reads an image captured by a digital camera into a personal computer, and processes the image to create one image. On the display of the personal computer, the color information of each pixel on the display is changed to create one image as a whole. On the other hand, with the spread of the Internet, users have disclosed images created by themselves to third parties on a homepage. The publication of the homepage is a means of self-expression that the user wants other people to view the texts and images created by the user, and the individual makes an appeal by transmitting information. Images on the home page can be browsed by a user of a personal computer that can access the Internet, and the viewer can download a favorite image. In addition, users tend to attach importance to the portability of the device, and therefore, a small notebook computer or a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) is required.
The use of is increasing. The PDA has a function similar to that of a personal computer, has high portability, and can also create an image. Generally, a PDA does not have an Internet access function as a standard, and it is necessary to purchase a communication device separately. To access the Internet,
If the PDA is connected to a telephone line by wire, the portability of the PDA will be significantly reduced.

[0003] On the other hand, a mobile phone is cheaper than a PDA, is small, and is extremely excellent in portability. In recent years, mobile phones having an Internet access function have become popular, and homepages created for mobile phones can be browsed. Furthermore, since the mobile phone is provided with a communication function in advance, the user can access the Internet and browse the homepage anytime and anywhere as long as the radio wave can reach without separately preparing a communication device. In addition, mobile phones can send and receive e-mails. Due to such advantages, the number of users accessing the Internet using a mobile phone is rapidly increasing. With a mobile phone having an Internet access function, character information and images can be browsed, that is, received.
The image is in an image format supported by the mobile phone and can be browsed as long as it fits in the display of the user's mobile phone. On the other hand, by using a bulletin board on a homepage in addition to receiving characters or images, a user can write a sentence on a bulletin board, that is, transmit character information to a server. This allows the user to communicate with other users by writing, and to express himself or appeal.

[0004]

However, in the self-expression described above, only characters are used, and it is difficult to sufficiently express the individuality of the user. Also, since only one type of font is usually used for display on a mobile phone, it is not possible to differentiate from other users and appeal to their presence. Therefore, there is a need to express oneself using a unique image drawn by the user himself. However, a mobile phone cannot create a desired image for the user, and in order for the mobile phone user to view the image, the user must create the image using a personal computer and send the image to a server. There must be. Some conventional mobile phones can create one image by combining parts of images registered in advance, but a user cannot create an arbitrary image. Further, there is a problem that even an image created by combining image parts cannot be transmitted to a server using a mobile phone and made public on a homepage. A first object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone that allows a user to create an arbitrary image. A second object of the present invention is to provide an image browsing system capable of disclosing an image created using a mobile phone to a third party.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a display unit comprising a plurality of pixels, an operation unit for changing display contents of the display unit, The gist of the invention is to provide an image creating means for creating an image by changing color information of pixels of the display unit based on a predetermined key operation of the operation unit. According to the above invention,
The user operates a predetermined key of the operation unit to create an image. The image creating means changes color information of each pixel of the display unit based on a user operation. One image is created on the display unit by the user selecting a pixel at a desired position from the plurality of pixels and sequentially changing the color information of the pixel. According to the invention described in claim 2, the gist of the present invention is that a transmission unit for uploading the created image to a server for image registration via a network is further provided. According to the above invention, the image created by the user of the mobile phone is uploaded to the server via the network by the transmission unit. A third party who can access the server can view the uploaded image. According to the third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image browsing system including a server for receiving an image created and transmitted using a mobile phone, and the server having a storage unit for storing the image. In addition, the gist is that the image is disclosed to an arbitrary mobile phone requesting access. According to the above invention, the server receives the image created and transmitted using the mobile phone, stores the image in the storage unit, and the image stored in the storage unit is disclosed to a third party. You. That is, by accessing the server using the mobile phone, a third party can view the image.

[0006]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a portable telephone with an image forming function embodying the present invention. FIG.
Indicates a mobile phone 1 with an image creation function. The mobile phone 1 has an Internet access function in addition to a normal voice call function. As shown in FIG.
Includes a main body 2, a display unit 3 provided on the main body 2, an operation unit 4, and an antenna 5 constituting transmission means. The operation unit 4 includes arrow keys 6 to 9, a confirmation button 10, and a tool button 11, and is used for changing display contents of the display unit 3. The display unit 3 is a liquid crystal display including a plurality of pixels 12. The display unit 3 shows a state in which an image creation application as image creation means has been activated, and displays an image of a “house” created by a user. Each pixel 12 has color information, and can be arbitrarily set by the user. Next, an internal circuit of the mobile phone 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The mobile phone 1 includes a control unit 13, a communication unit 14, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 15 in addition to the display unit 3 and the operation unit 4 described above.
And a ROM (Read Only Memory) 16. The control unit 13 is connected to the display unit 3, the operation unit 4, the communication unit 14, which constitutes transmission means, the RAM 15, and the ROM 16, and controls these units 3, 4, 14 to 16. The ROM 16 stores an image creation application. In accordance with the key operation of the operation unit 4, the control unit 13 reads out and starts the image creation application stored in the ROM 16. The display unit 3 displays an operation screen of the image creation application. The RAM 15 stores an image created by the user. The communication unit 14 transmits an image created by the user to a server 17 described later (see FIG. 4).
Send to

Next, the operation of the image creation application will be described. When the image creation application is started, a drawing area 18 and a tool box 19 are displayed on the display unit 3 as shown in FIG. Drawing area 18
Represents a number of pixels (for example, 96 pixels in each of vertical and horizontal directions) 12
In the figure, for convenience, eight pixels 12
Is abbreviated. In the drawing area 18, an image of the "house" created by the user is displayed. Each pixel 12 can display eight colors (white, black, blue, red, yellow, purple, green, and orange), and each pixel 12 has color information of any of the eight colors. In an initial state, each pixel 12 is set to white. The user can create an image by selecting a specific pixel 12 and changing the color information. The user can select a specific pixel 12 by operating the arrow keys 6 to 9. In FIG. 1, the uppermost leftmost pixel 12 is selected, and the selected pixel 12 is displayed blinking. In the tool box 19, various functions for creating an image are displayed as icons, and a pencil tool 20, an eraser tool 2
1, a graphic tool 22, a color selection tool 23, a filling tool 24, and a menu tool 25 are displayed.
Each of the tools 20 to 25 in the tool box 19 is
By pressing the tool button 11 of, the items are sequentially selected. In FIG. 1, the figure tool 22 is selected, and the tool 22 is highlighted. When the user presses the tool button 11 in this state, the selection of the graphic tool 22 is released, and the color selection tool 23 is selected.

Next, the functions of the tools 20 to 25 will be described in detail. The pencil tool 20 is used for the drawing area 1
8 is a tool for selecting one pixel 12 and changing the color of the pixel 12. By operating the arrow keys 6 to 9 while the pencil tool 20 is selected, the position of the selected pixel 12 in the drawing area 18 can be moved. When the right arrow key 7 is pressed in the state shown in FIG. 1, the selected pixel 12 moves one pixel to the right. As a result, from the left of the uppermost part of the drawing area 18,
The second pixel 12 is selected. By pressing the confirmation button 10 in this state, the color information of the selected pixel 12 is changed to the color of the color selection tool 23.
That is, this is an operation of painting the selected pixels 12 one by one. In FIG. 1, since the color selection tool 23 is set to black, the color information of the selected pixel 12 is changed to “black”. In this way, the user can operate the arrow keys 6 to 9 to sequentially change the color information of the pixel 12 at an arbitrary position. The eraser tool 21 selects the selected pixel 1
2 is a tool for changing the color information to the initial state (white). That is, the tool is a tool for changing the color information of the pixel 12 to which the color is applied to white, and the user performs an operation of deleting the color of the pixel 12. By operating the arrow keys 6 to 9 and selecting the desired pixel 12 and pressing the confirmation button 10, the color information of the pixel 12 can be changed to the initial state.

Next, the graphic tool 22 moves the drawing area 18
Is a tool that draws figures (rectangles, triangles, circles) on the screen.
In the state of FIG. 1, a tool for drawing a square is displayed as the graphic tool 22. In this state, tool firefly 1
When the graphic tool 22 is selected by operating 1, a circular tool 27 and a triangle tool 28 are displayed above the square tool 26 as shown in FIG. Here, one of the figures is selected using the up and down arrow tools 6 and 8. FIG.
Shows a state where the triangle tool 28 is selected, and the tool 28 is highlighted. In this state, by pressing the confirmation button 10, the triangle tool 28 is selected as the graphic tool 22. A method of drawing a figure (square, circle, triangle) using the figure tool 22 selects any two pixels 12 in the drawing area 18 in the same manner as the pencil tool 20. Here, if the square tool is selected, a square having two selected pixels 12 as diagonals is drawn. When the circular tool 27 has been selected, a circle or an ellipse inscribed in a quadrilateral having the two selected pixels 12 as diagonals is drawn. further,
If the triangle tool 28 has been selected, an isosceles triangle that is inscribed in a quadrilateral having the two selected pixels 12 as diagonals is drawn. At this time, the drawn figure is drawn in the color selected by the color selection tool 23. The color selection tool 23 is a tool for selecting a color for drawing the pixel 12. By selecting the color selection tool 23, selectable colors (black, blue, red, yellow, purple, green, orange) are displayed. Here, after selecting a desired color using the up and down arrow keys 6 and 8, the confirmation button 10 is pressed. In FIG.
“Yellow” indicates a selected state. in this way,
Before drawing the pixel 12, a desired color is selected. The filling tool 24 is used for the pixels 12 drawn in colors other than white.
Is a tool that fills the area enclosed by. For example, in the image of the “house” in FIG.
When an arbitrary pixel 12 in the area corresponding to is selected, the corresponding area is filled with the color selected by the color selection tool 23. In this case, "black" as the color selection tool
Is selected, the area corresponding to the “roof” is painted black.

The menu tool 25 will be described with reference to FIG. 3 again. The menu tool 25 is a tool for transmitting or storing an image created by a user. When the menu tool 25 is selected, the save tool 30 and the transmission tool 31 are displayed, and the save tool 30
Alternatively, one of the transmission tools 31 can be selected. Here, when the save tool 30 is selected by operating the up and down arrow keys 6 and 8, the image created by the user is saved in the RAM 15. As a result, the user can save the image being created and edit the saved image again later. On the other hand, when the transmission tool 31 is selected, the user can transmit (upload) the created image to a dedicated server.

As described above, the user uses the pencil tool 20, the eraser tool 21, the graphic tool 22, the color selection tool 23, the filling tool 24, and the menu tool 25 to obtain the color information of each pixel 12 in the drawing area 18. , The color information of the pixels 12 in the drawing area can be changed to create an arbitrary image. next,
The image browsing system 32 will be described with reference to FIG. The image browsing system 32 receives an image from the mobile phone 1 via the Internet 33, and
The server 17 is open to the public. Server 17
A memory 34 and a control unit 35 are provided as storage means for storing images transmitted from the mobile phone 1, and are connected to the Internet 33. The memory 34 stores a control program that is activated when an image is transmitted from the mobile phone 1. The control unit 35 activates the control program and receives an image transmitted from the mobile phone. Further, when receiving an image browsing request from the third party mobile phone 1, the server 17 transmits the corresponding image to the third party mobile phone 1.

Next, a transmission method from the mobile phone 1 to the server 17 will be described. First, as described above, after creating an image, the user selects the transmission tool 31 from the menu tool 25. When transmitting an image, the control unit 13 of the mobile phone 1 uses an image format (for example, JPEG (Joint
Photographic Expert Group) or GIF (Graphic Inter
change Format)) and compressed to reduce image file size. Then, the transmission request is transmitted to the server 17 for uploading the image via the Internet 33. At this time, server 1 to be sent
The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) 7 is preset in the image creation application. In response to the transmission request, the server 17 prompts the user to enter user information. Specifically, an image upload screen shown in FIG. 5 is displayed on the display unit 3 of the mobile phone 1 of the user.
The user inputs the title of the created image and the creator name of the image (user name) according to the display on the upload screen, and then presses the registration button 36. Here, the user has input “house” as the title of the image and “Ishikawa” as the author name. As a result, the image created by the user, the title of the image, and the author name are stored in the server 1.
7 and stored in the memory 34, and the image stored in the memory 34 can be viewed by a third party.

Next, a method of browsing an image will be described. The control unit 35 of the server 17 links an HT to the image so that the transmitted image can be disclosed to a third party.
Generate an ML (Hyper Text Markup Language) file. This file is generated when a third party accesses the server 17 or when an image is transmitted. When a third party accesses the server 17 to browse images, the HTML file is first received, and a screen as shown in FIG. 6 is displayed on the third party's mobile phone 1. In detail, the date, title and author name of the registered image are listed. The title of the image is underlined to indicate that it is a link to the image. The third party operates the up and down arrow keys 6 and 8 to select the title of the image desired to be viewed. Specifically, by pressing the down arrow key 8, "house" and "car" are sequentially selected. By pressing the confirmation button 10 while the desired image is selected, the selected image is downloaded from the server 17 and displayed on the third party's mobile phone 1 as shown in FIG. As described above, the third party can download the image created by another user from the server 17 and view it. The third party can use the browsed image as a standby screen of the mobile phone 1.

As described above, the present embodiment has the following advantages. (1) The user of the mobile phone 1 with an image creation function operates the image creation application to display the display unit 3.
The color information of each pixel 12 can be arbitrarily changed.
Therefore, by using various tools, an arbitrary image or a unique image desired by the user can be created. As a result, the mobile phone 1 can enjoy creating an image in the same manner as a personal computer. The creation of this image, while taking advantage of the excellent portability unique to the mobile phone 1,
It can be done easily anytime, anywhere. (2) The mobile phone 1 has a function of transmitting images and character data, and images created by the user can be uploaded to the dedicated server 17. Therefore, unlike the related art, the user can upload the created image to the server 17 and release the image to a third party without using a personal computer. As a result, the user who created the image can make a self-appeal (self-expression) with a unique image that could not be expressed with conventional character information. (3) A third party can browse images created by other users by accessing the dedicated server 17. In addition, the browsed image can be used as a standby screen of the mobile phone 1. (4) In general, the storage capacity of the mobile phone 1 is relatively small, but it is not necessary to store the image in the mobile phone 1 by uploading the image to the server 17. As a result, the memory of the mobile phone 1 can be saved.

The above embodiment may be embodied as follows. (1) In the above embodiment, the image creation application is stored in the ROM 16 of the mobile phone 1 in advance, but may be an application downloaded from any server and used. According to this, even if the image creation application is not installed in the mobile phone in advance, the application can be added and used later. (2) In the above embodiment, seven colors can be selected by the color selection tool 23 of the image creation application.
Including the initial state, the number of colors that can be specified for the pixel 12 is eight, but the number of colors that can be used according to the performance of the display unit 16 is sixteen.
The colors may be arbitrarily changed, such as 256 colors. (3) In the above embodiment, the image creation application may have another tool for editing an image. For example, a filter tool for applying a special effect to an image, a tool for drawing a straight line, a tool for changing the width of a drawn line, a tool for inputting characters, and the like may be employed. By providing such a tool, it is possible to create a more complicated image. (4) In the above embodiment, the number of pixels in the drawing area 18 may be arbitrarily changed according to the size of the display unit 3. (5) In the above embodiment, the eraser tool 21 changes the color information of the selected pixel 12 to white, but may be colorless. (6) In the above embodiment, the mobile phone 1 may have a camera function. In this case, the user can edit the image shot by the camera with the image creation application. (7) In the above embodiment, joystick-like operation keys may be used instead of the arrow keys 6 to 9 and the confirmation button. The operation keys are 4
It is supported so that it can swing in the direction. The operation of the user pressing the operation keys forward, backward, left and right includes arrow keys 6, 8, 9,
Corresponds to pressing 7. The operation of pressing the operation key in the vertical direction corresponds to the pressing of the confirmation button 10. If such operation keys are employed, the area occupied by the operation keys can be reduced, so that the mobile phone can be downsized.

[0016]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the image creating means changes the color information of each pixel of the display unit based on the operation of the user. An arbitrary individual image can be created by the user changing the color information of the pixel at the desired position. This image creation can be easily performed anytime and anywhere by the excellent portability of the mobile phone. According to the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the user of the mobile phone can upload the created image to the server via the network by the transmission unit. As a result, a third party who can access the server can view the uploaded image. As a result, the user who created the image creates and publishes a unique image, thereby making the self-appeal (self-expression)
It can be performed. According to the invention described in claim 3,
The server receives the image created and transmitted using the mobile phone and stores the image in the memory,
The image stored in the memory can be disclosed to a third party. A third party who can access the server using the mobile phone can browse the images stored in the storage means of the server. As a result, the user who created the image can appeal (self-expression) through the release of the image.
It can be performed.

[0017]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal circuit of the mobile phone shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view showing various tools of the mobile phone shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an image browsing system.

FIG. 5 is a view showing an image transmission screen of the mobile phone.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an image browsing screen of the mobile phone.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Mobile telephone, 3 ... Display part, 4 ... Operation part, 5 ... Antenna which comprises transmission means, 6, 7, 8, 9 ... Arrow keys which comprise an operation part, 10 ... Confirmation button which comprises an operation part, 1
Reference numeral 1 denotes a tool button constituting an operation unit; 12 denotes a pixel;
3, 35 ... control unit, 14 ... communication unit constituting transmission means,
18 drawing area, 19 tool box, 20 pencil tool, 21 eraser tool, 22 figure tool, 2
3 ... color selection tool, 24 ... fill tool, 25 ... menu tool, 30 ... save tool, 31 ... send tool,
33 ... Internet as a network, 34 ... Memory as storage means.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04Q 7/38 G09G 3/20 680S // G09G 3/20 633 H04B 7/26 109T 680 H04N 1/46 Z F-term (reference) 5C079 HA02 LB11 MA02 MA17 MA19 MA20 PA00 5C080 AA10 BB05 CC03 DD21 EE17 GG12 JJ01 JJ06 KK52 5K027 AA11 BB02 FF01 FF22 HH00 5K067 AA34 AA42 BB04 DD52 NN23 FF23 KK23 NN23 NN

Claims (3)

[Claims] A display unit including a plurality of pixels; an operation unit configured to change display content of the display unit; and a color information of a pixel of the display unit is changed based on a predetermined key operation of the operation unit. A mobile phone comprising: an image creating unit that creates an image. 2. The mobile phone according to claim 1, further comprising a transmission unit that uploads the created image to a server for image registration via a network. 3. An image browsing system, comprising a server for receiving an image created and transmitted using a mobile phone, wherein the server has storage means for storing the image and requests access. An image browsing system using a mobile phone, wherein the image is disclosed to an arbitrary mobile phone.