Patent ID: 7576742

Claim:
A picture display controller for outputting, to a display unit, a picture taken from a specific point of view, selected or synthesized from moving-picture data including pictures taken from a plurality of viewpoints, the apparatus comprising: a memory for storing the moving picture data; an input unit; and a selector configured to select a picture to be displayed on the display unit, select and execute either a preset mode in which a picture is displayed according to a preset picture display program corresponding to the moving-picture data and arranged as time-series data for identifying a picture to be displayed or a manual mode in which a picture to be displayed is identified based on a viewpoint setting command supplied from the input unit, shift from the preset mode to the manual mode and output to the display unit a picture taken from a viewpoint based on the viewpoint setting command when the viewpoint setting command is entered, shift from the manual mode to the preset mode and output to the display unit the picture according to the preset picture display program when a viewpoint setting command is not entered within a predetermined period of time, continue in the manual mode and output to the display unit the picture from the viewpoint based on the viewpoint setting command when the viewpoint setting command is entered again for a second time within the predetermined period of time, and continue in the manual mode and output to the display unit a picture taken from a new viewpoint when a new viewpoint setting command is entered within the predetermined period of time.