MULTIMEDIA INFORMATION SORTING/ARRANGING DEVICE AND SORTING/ARRANGING METHOD

A multimedia information arranging apparatus that utilizes various feature values contained in multimedia information, carries out a flexible retrieval and classification and displays the information in an information set arrangement space is provided. An information set obtaining portion 10 obtains information sets. An axis setting portion 20 assigns the feature value of the media information to an information set arrangement space axis so as to set the information set arrangement space. A feature value extracting portion 30 extracts the feature value from each of the media information of the obtained information set, and an information set arranging portion 40 arranges the information sets in the information set arrangement space according to their feature values. An information displaying portion 50 displays the information set arrangement space in such a manner as to be seen from a predetermined display viewpoint. By seeing the display result, as necessary, the axis setting portion 20 resets the information set arrangement space axis using a different feature value, so that the information sets are rearranged and redisplayed in the information set arrangement space, and retrievals of different aspects are repeated.