A database search system that retrieves multimedia information in a flexible, user friendly system. The search system uses a multimedia database consisting of text, picture, audio and animated data. That database is searched through multiple graphical and textual entry paths. Those entry paths include an idea search, a title finder search, a topic tree search, a picture explorer search, a history timeline search, a world atlas search, a researcher's assistant search, and a feature articles search.

Multimedia search system using a plurality of entry path means which indicate interrelatedness of information

An electronic book device has an electronic display unit having a flat panel screen and a housing for containing the flat panel screen. A cover is provided, which is hingedly and electrically connected to the electronic display unit. The housing further has a means for accessing material on a PC card and forwarding the material to the electronic display unit. The housing also has navigation keys for cursering through the material. Activation and deactivation of the electronic display unit is responsive to opening, partially opening and closing of the electronic book device. The device features a means for orientating the material on the electronic display unit responsive to an opening position of the electronic book device. In another embodiment, a data entry mechanism is operatively connected to the electronic display unit. The data entry mechanism can be implemented by using a touchscreen for the electronic display unit. In still another embodiment, a second electronic display unit replaces the cover.

Electronic book device

A method and system for encoding a book for reading by an electronic book having an internal machine-readable dictionary includes receiving data representative of text and graphical information of the book. First machine-readable data representative of a plurality of words are encoded to provide a customized dictionary which augments the internal machine-readable dictionary. Second machine-readable data representative of the text are encoded. The second machine-readable data includes a plurality of pointers which point to a corresponding plurality of words in the machine-readable dictionary and the customized dictionary. Third machine-readable data representative of the graphical information are encoded. An access authorization level is provided for reading at least one of the first machine-readable data, the second machine-readable data, and the third machine-readable data.

Method and system for encoding a book for reading using an electronic book

Automated entry system for printed documents

A user interactive mass storage data access system includes a personal computer (10) and a simulated book (30). A mass storage device, such as a compact disk (CD) read only memory (ROM) (22), is connected to the personal computer, and the computer and the simulated book are connected by an infrared (IR) data communications link including IR transceivers (26, 48). The simulated book includes a display screen (34) and a microprocessor (43) with memory (44, 46). The microprocessor is programmed for storing data received and decoded by its IR transceiver (48) in memory (46) and responsive to user input for displaying a page of data on the display screen. In addition, the microprocessor is programmed to cause its IR transceiver (48) to transmit to the IR transceiver (26) connected to the personal computer (10) a data request command, and the personal computer is in turn programmed to transmit data from the CD ROM (22) to the simulated book (30). Data can be loaded in the simulated book and accessed at a later time when out of the proximity of the personal computer.

Microprocessor based simulated book

PURPOSE:To obtain the document understanding system making it possible to extract a keyword from a document by dividing a routine document into partial documents according to the structure and comparing a designated character string and a character string in the document. CONSTITUTION:Figure shows a block diagram representing the constitution of a device adopting the document understanding system. Each section of the device is connected by buses and the entire operation is controlled by a control section 1. The information (character code information) on the document being an analysis object is inputted by a keyboard or an external storage medium and stored in a character code storage section 7. Rules of the arrangement and content of the document are stored in advance in a grammatical expression storage section 6. The information is normalized in the unit of pages and stored in a page image storage section 8. A rectangular area retrieval section 2 retrieves a corresponding area according to the content of the grammatical expression storage section 6, retrieves the character string in the inside of the obtained area from a character code storage section 7 and transfers the result extracted by a character string extracting section 4 to a character string storage section 10 as required. At the retrieval of the character string, when a synonym dictionary is required, a synonym storage section 5 is referenced.

Document understanding system

An image display apparatus that can ease the man-machine interaction when a user searches for a document in an electronic filing system, for example, through the image display apparatus. In a conventional electronic document filing system, it has been difficult to search for a document by inspecting or looking at the original document images shown on an image display screen. The difficulty comes from the lack in a capability of controlling the instantaneous display speed, an appropriate feedback to the user to synchronize the image paging, and a capability of showing the direction of paging. The image display apparatus disclosed here has a tactile feedback mechanism that tells the user the time a new image page is shown and that also tells him/her other status of the apparatus, like how busy it is, in terms of a tactile signal to the user's fingers. The mechanism is installed in a mouse-like pointing device that tells the apparatus the speed of paging. By using this, the user can control the paging speed spontaneously and at the same time he/she can feel the paging through the tactile feedback, in addition to a kind of sound effect.

Image display apparatus

PURPOSE:To realize flexible retrieval by changing a concept in a retrieval text as observing multilateral information with respect to a remarked concept, and generating the retrieval text. CONSTITUTION:The display of the retrieval text, that of the high-order concept of the remarked concept in the retrieval text, and network display from the remarked concept to a low-order concept which satisfies a condition being attached on the remarked concept from a changeable high-order concept are performed by utilizing a multiwindow function. Also, it is possible to always execute the movement of the remarked concept by the movement between concepts in the retrieval text, the change of the remarked concept in the concept which satisfies an attached condition, the addition of the condition and the route of the remarked concept, the retrieval of the concept which satisfies the attached condition. In such a way, it is possible to find the concept without being conscious of retrieving the concept by a user.

Information retrieval system

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To segment the characters with high accuracy and to recognize the character strings even when the segmentation of characters is impossible in the character recognition and character string collation modes by applying the evaluation value (outline penalty) decided based on the sizes of character patterns and the positional relation between the preceding and next patterns to a multiple hypothesis certification system. SOLUTION: In a character pattern candidate extraction processing 302, the character pattern candidates are extracted out of the address character lines extracted out of a whole image and a segmentation flag is generated. The outline penalty P of every pattern candidate is calculated in the outline penalty calculation processing 303. In the character recognition processing 304, the characters of every character pattern are identified and the similarity between plural candidate character codes and every candidate character is outputted. In the pattern certainty calculation processing 305, the pattern certainty of every pattern candidate is calculated based on the similarity of character identification results and the outline penalty P. In the address dictionary collation processing 306, the pattern candidates are selected based on the pattern certainty of every pattern candidate and collates the candidate characters of the character identification results with an address character string dictionary.

Address reading method

PURPOSE:To obtain a dictionary exclusive use for each user b using an individual pattern dictionary for a pattern recognition to an input pattern, applying language processing as a post-processing and using a personal dictionary for the purpose. CONSTITUTION:An input pattern string 70a (string of character, voice of other pattern) is inputted to a pattern observing section 71, a pattern string 71a converted into an electric signal, the pattern is segmented at each unit pattern by a segmentation section 72 and the pattern is converted into unit pattern strings 72a. Each unit pattern is inputted to a pattern recognition section 73, and after the similarity with each standard pattern 74a belonging to a personal pattern dictionary 74 for pattern recognition is evaluated, >= one candidate category string 73a is outputted. A language processing section 75 outputs a category string 74a besed on the language processing between the content 76a belonging to the personal dictionary 76 for language processing and the category string 73. As the language processing, word collation, paragraph processing, syntax analysis and significance analysis are used.

Fujisawa Hiromichi

Papers

Document understanding system

Image display apparatus

Information retrieval system

Address reading method

Pattern recognition device