Portable terminal and character reading method using a portable terminal

1. A portable terminal, comprising:

a screen image pickup means for photographing text;

a character clipping means for clipping an image containing at least one character string from an image of text photographed by the screen image pickup means;

a character recognition means for recognizing a character string contained in the image clipped by the character clipping means and acquiring a character code string of the clipped character string; and

a character string tracking means for comparing a current character code string acquired by the character recognition means and a previous character code string acquired from a character string contained in a clipped image of immediately preceding text captured by the screen image pickup means and for setting the current character code string as a tracking object character string when a character code line of the current character code string is at least partially the same as a character code line of a previous character code string.

2. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the character code string set as the tracking object character string by the character string tracking means is ultimately used as an input character string.

3. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , further comprising a display means for highlighting of the character string set as the tracking object character string by the character string tracking means upon image of the text when displaying the image of text photographed by the screen image pickup means.

4. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the screen image pickup means repeatedly photographs the text at a predetermined time interval.

5. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the character string clipping means acquires character string image position information of the image of the character string showing where the image photographed by the screen image pickup means is positioned when the screen image pickup means clips the image of a character string from the image photographed; and

wherein the character string tracking means judges whether or not the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area of the screen image pickup means based on the character string position information and, when the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area of the screen image pickup means, the character string tracking means directs clipping of the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information to the character string clipping means and so as to be within the photographable area of the screen image pickup means.

6. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the character string clipping means further acquires image size information showing image size of the clipped character string upon clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the screen image pickup means; and

wherein the character string tracking means judges whether or not character strings are the same position or the same image size based on the character string image position information and the image size information when judging if the same character string, wherein when the character strings to compare are in the same position or the same image size are judged as being the same character string.

7. The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the character string clipping means further acquires image size information showing the image size of the clipped character string upon clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the screen image pickup means; and

the character string tracking means judges whether or not character strings are the same position and the same image size based on the character string image position information and the image size information when judging if the same character string, wherein when the character strings to compare are in the same position and the same image size are judged as being the same character string.

8. The portable terminal according to claim 5 , wherein the character string tracking means directs clipping of the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information to the character string clipping means so as to be within the photographable area of the screen image pickup means, which clips the character string existing adjacent to the tracking object character string by the character string clipping means and recognizes the character string existing adjacent to the tracking object character string as a marker character string for tracking of the tracking object character string.

9. The portable terminal according to claim 8 , wherein the character string tracking means judges whether or not the marker character string extends beyond the photographable area of the screen image pickup means based on the character string position information of the recognized marker character string, wherein when the marker character string extends beyond the photographable area, the screen image pickup means directs clipping of the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information to the character string clipping means so as to be within the photographable area of the screen image pickup means; and

wherein as a result of clipping the character string adjacent to the tracking object character string by the character string clipping means, the character string adjacent to the marker character string will be recognized as the next marker character string.

10. The portable terminal according to claim 8 , wherein the character string tracking means acquires direction information showing the current direction of the marker character string relative to the tracking object character string based on the character string position information of the marker character string and the character string position information of the tracking object character string.

11. The portable terminal according to claim 10 , wherein the display means display indicates recognized direction with the tracking object character string based on the direction information acquired by the character string tracking means.

12. The portable terminal according to claim 8 , wherein the character string tracking means issues a command so that the adjacent character string is clipped in the direction containing the tracking object character string from the position containing the marker character string to the character string clipping means,

wherein the character string tracking means, upon clipping the marker character string by the character string clipping means, sets the most current marker character string and judges the direction containing the tracking object character string from the character string image position information of the most current marker string.

13. A character reading method for a portable terminal having an image pickup section, a character clipping section, a character recognition section, and a character string tracking section, comprising the steps of:

photographing text repeatedly by the image pickup section at a predetermined time interval;

clipping, at the character clipping section, an image containing at least one character string from an image of text photographed by the image pickup section;

recognizing, at the character recognition section, a character string contained in the clipped image and acquiring a character code string of the clipped character string;

comparing, at the character string tracking section, the acquired character code string from the character string clipped from the image of text photographed immediately preceding and setting, at the character string tracking section, the character string of the character code string as a tracking object character string when a character code line of the current character code string is at least partially the same as a character code line of a previous character code string; and

setting, at the character string tracking section, the character code string of a character string as the tracking object character string which is ultimately used as an input character string.

14. The character reading method according to claim 13 , wherein the portable terminal further has a display section, the method further comprising the step of:

highlighting, at the display section, of the character string set as the tracking object character string upon the image of text when displaying the image of text photographed.

15. The character reading method according to claim 13 , wherein the portable terminal further has a display section, the method further comprising the steps of:

acquiring, at the character clipping section, character string image position information of the tracking object character string showing where the image of the character string positions on the image photographed when clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the image pickup section;

judging, at the character string tracking section, whether or not the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area of the image pickup section based on the character string position information of the tracking object character string and clipping, at the character clipping section, the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information of the tracking object character string so as to be within the photographable area when the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area;

recognizing, at the character string tracking section, the character string existing adjacent to the tracking object character string and within the photographable area as a marker character string for tracking of the tracking object character string;

acquiring, at the character string tracking section, direction information showing the current direction of the marker character string relative to the tracking object character string based on the character string position information of the marker character string and the character string position information of the tracking object character string; and

indicating, at the display section, recognized direction with the tracking object character string based on the acquired direction information.

16. The character reading method according to claim 13 , further comprising the steps of:

acquiring, at the character clipping section, image size information showing image size of the clipped character string upon clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the image pickup section;

judging, at the character string tracking section, whether or not character strings are the same position or the same image size based on the character string image position information and the image size information when judging if the same character string; and

judging, at the character string tracking section, as being the same character string when the character strings to compare are in the same position or the same image size.

17. The character reading method according to claim 13 , further comprising the steps of:

acquiring, at the character clipping section, image size information showing image size of the clipped character string upon clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the image pickup section;

judging, at the character string tracking section, whether or not character strings are the same position and the same image size based on the character string image position information and the image size information when judging if the same character string; and

judging, at the character string tracking section, as being the same character string when the character strings to compare are in the same position and the same image size.

18. The character reading method according to claim 13 , further comprising the steps of:

judging, at the character string tracking section, whether or not the marker character string extends beyond the photographable area of the image pickup section based on the character string position information of the recognized marker character string;

clipping, at the character string clipping section, the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information so as to be within the photographable area when the marker character string extends beyond the photographable area; and

recognizing, at the character string tracking section, the character string adjacent to the marker character string as the next marker character string.

19. The character reading method according to claim 13 , wherein upon clipping the character string adjacent to the direction containing the tracking object character string from the position containing the marker character string, the clipped character string will be set, a the character string tracking section, as the most current character string; and judges, at the character string tracking section, the direction containing the tracking object character string from the character string image position information of the most current marker string.

20. A character reading program stored in a memory of a portable terminal having an image pickup section, a character clipping section, a character recognition section, and a character string tracking section, the program comprising:

program code for photographing text by the image pickup section;

program code for clipping, at the character clipping section, an image containing at least one character string from an image of text photographed by the image pickup section;

program code for recognizing, at the character recognition section, a character string contained in the clipped image and for acquiring a character code string of the clipped character string; and

program code for comparing, at the character string tracking section, the acquired character code string from the character string clipped from the image of text photographed immediately preceding and for setting, at the character string tracking section, the character string of the character code string as a tracking object character string when a character code line of the current character code string is at least partially the same as a character code line of a previous character code string; and

program code for setting, at the character string tracking section, the character code string of a character string as the tracking object character string which is ultimately used as an input character string.

21. The character reading program according to claim 20 , wherein the portable terminal further has a display section, the program further comprising:

program code for highlighting, at the display section, of the character string set as the tracking object character string upon the image of text when displaying the image of text photographed.

22. The character reading program according to claim 20 , wherein the portable terminal further has a display section, the program further comprising:

program code for acquiring, at the character clipping section, character string image position information of the tracking object character string showing where the image of the character string positions on the image photographed when clipping the image of a character string from the image photographed by the image pickup section;

program code for judging, at the character string tracking section, whether or not the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area of the image pickup section based on the character string position information of the tracking object character string;

program code for clipping, at the character clipping section, the character string adjacent to the position indicated by the character string image position information of the tracking object character string so as to be within the photographable area when the tracking object character string extends beyond the photographable area;

program code for recognizing, at the character string tracking section, the character string existing adjacent to the tracking object character string and within the photographable area as a marker character string for tracking of the tracking object character string;

program code for acquiring, at the character string tracking section, direction information showing the current direction of the marker character string relative to the tracking object character string based on the character string position information of the marker character string and the character string position information of the tracking object character string; and

program code for indicating, at the display section, recognized direction with the tracking object character string based on the acquired direction information.