Patent ID: 6430566
Filing Date: 2002-08-06
Classification: G06F,Y10S

Abstract:
An image processing apparatus for managing image data, comprising:first input means for inputting a first retrieval condition for retrieving desired image data; analysis means for analyzing the retrieval condition inputted by said first input means; output means for outputting a question based on an analysis result from said analysis means to prompt a user to input a second retrieval condition different from the first retrieval condition; second input means for inputting the second retrieval condition in accordance with the question outputted by said output means; and retrieval means for retrieving image data based on the first and second retrieval conditions, wherein said analysis means analyzes a morpheme and modification of the first retrieval condition to acquire a retrieval object name constituting the first retrieval condition and an outer appearance feature of an object represented by the retrieval object name, and wherein said analysis means comprises: storage means for storing a synonym/concept dictionary for managing synonyms in units of concepts, extraction means for extracting a word corresponding to the retrieval object name by looking up the synonym/concept dictionary, and calculation means for calculating an image feature amount with respect to an image feature weight based on the word extracted by the extraction means and the outer appearance feature.