JP2006310967A - Apparatus and system for recording information - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus and a system for recording information capable of recognizing a character content by a simple system. <P>SOLUTION: Handwritten characters, etc. are photographed by a camera (step S1). Photographed image information is then outputted to an image processor. The image processor executes character recognition by executing image processing from the input photographed image information (step S2). Then, character information is extracted (step S3). A controller decides whether the extracted character information is existent in a memory (step S4), and when existent in the memory, the controller outputs an instruction code corresponding to the character information (step S5). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information recording apparatus and an information recording system, and more particularly, to an information recording apparatus and an information recording system in which an input instruction is given using a camera instead of a remote controller.

  In general, information recording devices for home use such as information recording devices such as video tape recorders and DVD recorders have become widespread, and their users are not limited to specific people.

  Therefore, for example, even when a complicated operation such as a program recording reservation method is required, a method for simplifying the operation has been sought.

  In JP-A-5-258390 and JP-A-2002-27370, an apparatus that reads the content input by handwriting and controls to execute an operation based on the content input by handwriting based on the result read and recognized Is disclosed.

As a result, the operation of the device can be easily performed without executing a complicated key operation of the remote controller or the like.
JP-A-5-258390 JP 2002-27370 A

  The above publication discloses a method for recognizing handwritten character content mainly using a scanner or the like. However, when a scanner or the like is provided, the overall configuration of the device increases, and the character content is It is necessary and complicated to read.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an information recording apparatus and an information recording system capable of recognizing character contents by a simple method.

  An information recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a drive unit that executes an operation for recording / reproducing information with respect to a recording medium, an imaging unit for acquiring image information, and image information acquired by the imaging unit. Character information recognition means for extracting character information, a control section that instructs the drive section to execute an operation corresponding to character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition means, and a storage section that stores information Is provided. The control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit, and corresponds to the character information stored in the storage unit in advance based on the determination result. The drive unit is instructed to execute a predetermined operation.

  Another information recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a drive unit that executes an operation for recording / reproducing information with respect to a recording medium, an imaging unit for acquiring image information, and an image acquired by the imaging unit. Character information recognition means for extracting character information from the information, and a control section that instructs the drive section to execute an operation corresponding to the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition means.

  Preferably, the information processing apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores information, and the control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit, and based on the determination result. The drive unit is instructed to execute a predetermined operation corresponding to the character information stored in advance in the storage unit.

  An information recording system according to the present invention includes an imaging unit, a portable terminal device capable of transmitting image information captured by the imaging unit, and an information recording unit. A drive unit that executes an operation for recording / reproducing an image, a communication unit for receiving image information transmitted from a mobile terminal device, and a character for extracting character information from the image information received by the communication unit An information recognition unit, and a control unit that instructs the drive unit to execute an operation corresponding to the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit.

  Preferably, the information recording unit further includes a storage unit for storing information, and the control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit. Based on the determination result, the drive unit is instructed to execute a predetermined operation corresponding to character information stored in advance in the storage unit.

  An information recording apparatus and an information recording system according to the present invention include character information recognition means for extracting character information from image information acquired by an imaging means, and the control unit recognizes from the recognition result of the character information recognition means. The drive unit is instructed to execute an operation corresponding to the character information. Therefore, it is possible to easily perform the operation of the device without executing a complicated key operation such as a remote controller.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will not be repeated.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an information recording apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 1, information recording apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention executes a control unit 5 for controlling information recording apparatus 10 as a whole, and recording / reproduction of information on a recording medium (not shown). A recording / playback drive unit 15, a camera 20, a captured image processing unit 25, a storage unit 30, and a remote control receiving unit 35. The recording / playback drive unit 15 operates based on an instruction from the control unit 5 and displays information stored in the recording medium on the display unit 1 such as an LCD display of an external device.

  As will be described later, the camera 20 captures an image including characters by a predetermined input. Then, the image information obtained from the captured image is output to the captured image processing unit 25.

  The captured image processing unit (character information recognition unit) 25 processes captured image information input from the camera 20 to extract character information and outputs the content to the control unit 5.

  The remote control receiving unit 35 transmits a predetermined command input instruction input by key operation of the remote control 2 to the control unit 5. The control unit 5 outputs a command code for executing various operations to the recording / reproduction drive unit 15 in response to a predetermined command input instruction from the remote control reception unit.

  The storage unit 30 stores a predetermined program and various control information for controlling the information recording apparatus 10.

  The first embodiment of the present invention describes an information recording apparatus that can easily operate an apparatus based on image information captured by a camera 20 without performing complicated key operations such as a remote controller.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an input method according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to FIG. 2, for example, when a user wants to execute an operation of a device without using a remote controller or the like, a predetermined character is handwritten on a sheet or the like. Alternatively, a sheet on which predetermined characters are printed is acquired. As a result, the preparation operation before the input operation is completed.

  Then, the camera 20 is used to capture an image of a sheet on which predetermined characters are written (camera input) (step S1). Then, the camera 20 outputs the captured image information to the captured image processing unit 25, and the captured image processing unit 25 executes captured image processing (step S2). Specifically, the character information is recognized from the background color of the paper and the written character color and shape. Then, character information is extracted (step S3). Then, the captured image processing unit 25 outputs the extracted character information to the control unit 5.

  The control unit 5 refers to the storage unit 30 and determines whether character information corresponding to the extracted character information is stored in the storage unit 30 (step S4).

  In step S4, when it is determined that the character information corresponding to the extracted character information is stored in the storage unit 30, the control unit 5 proceeds to the next step S5 and performs a predetermined operation corresponding to the character information. An instruction, that is, an instruction code is output (step S5). Then, the process ends (step S6).

  On the other hand, if the character information is not stored in the storage unit in step S4, the operation based on the image information captured by the camera input is not executed (character recognition error) (step S7).

FIG. 3 is an example of a reference table of character information stored in the storage unit 30.
Please refer to FIG. For example, here, memory areas M1 to M5 are shown. In the memory area M1, data corresponding to the character information of “play” is stored, and information relating to the play mode is stored as a corresponding command code. In the memory area M2, data corresponding to the character information “recording” is stored, and information regarding the recording operation (rec mode) is stored as a corresponding command code. In the memory area M3, data corresponding to the character information “stop” is stored, and information regarding the stop operation (pose) is stored as a corresponding instruction code. In the memory area M4, data corresponding to the character information of “fast forward” is stored, and information regarding a fast forward operation (forward mode) is stored as a corresponding instruction code. In the memory area M5, data corresponding to the character information “rewind” is stored, and information regarding a rewind operation (reverse mode) is stored as a corresponding instruction code.

  For example, if the extracted character information is “reproduced” in step S4 of FIG. 2 described above, the control unit 5 is the same as the character information in the memory area M1 stored in the storage unit 30. Then, it is determined that the character information corresponding to the extracted character information is stored in the storage unit 30, and the control unit 5 reads out the corresponding instruction code stored in the memory area M1, and the recording / playback drive unit 15 Output to. The recording / playback drive unit 15 receives a command code related to the playback operation and executes the playback operation on the information stored in the recording medium.

  In this example, “reproduction” character information has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the same applies to other character information. The table shown in FIG. 3 is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to this, and it is also possible to execute a corresponding operation by providing a table and defining various other operations for operating the device. is there.

  In addition, here, a case has been described in which the data corresponding to the same character information matches the character of “play”, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it is assumed that a part of the corresponding data matches. Is also possible. For example, the determination operation may be executed only with the first “re” character of “play”.

  As described above, according to the configuration according to the first embodiment of the present invention, character recognition is performed by image processing from image information captured by a camera, character information is extracted, and corresponding character information is extracted. It is possible to instruct the device to execute the operation. That is, the operation of the device can be easily performed without executing complicated key operations such as a remote controller.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of an information storage system according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 4, the information storage system according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes display unit 1, information recording device 10 #, remote controller 2, and portable terminal device 40.

  The information recording device 10 # is different from the information recording device 10 in that the camera 20 is excluded and the captured image processing unit 25 is replaced with a captured image processing unit 25 #.

  The captured image processing unit 25 # includes a communication unit 26 that is set to be communicable with the mobile terminal device 40, a communication unit 26 that receives information transmitted from the mobile terminal device 40, and a communication unit 26. And an image processing unit 27 that receives the input of the received information, processes the input image information, extracts character information, and outputs the contents to the control unit 5.

  The portable terminal 40 has a built-in camera 45 and has a function capable of transmitting information captured by the camera 45 to the communication unit 26 of the information recording device 10 #.

  Other points such as the display unit 1 and the remote controller 2 are the same as those described with reference to FIG. 1, and thus detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an input method according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to FIG. 5, for example, when a user wants to execute an operation of a device without using a remote controller or the like, a predetermined character is handwritten on a sheet or the like. Alternatively, a sheet on which predetermined characters are printed is acquired. As a result, the preparation operation before the input operation is completed.

  Then, the camera 45 of the portable terminal 40 is used to capture an image of a sheet on which predetermined characters are written (camera input) (step S10). And the image information imaged from the portable terminal device 40 is transmitted to the information recording device 10 # (step S11). The transmitted image information is received by the communication unit 26 and output to the image processing unit 27. Subsequent operations are the same as described in FIG. That is, in the image processing unit 27, the captured image processing is executed as described above, the character information is recognized, and the character information is extracted. (Step S3). Then, the control unit 5 determines whether or not the character information corresponding to the extracted character information is stored in the storage unit 30 (step S4), and the reference table stored in the storage unit 30 as described above is used. In the case where it is determined whether the data is stored in the storage unit 30, the corresponding instruction code is input to the recording / reproduction drive unit 15.

  As described above, according to the configuration according to the second embodiment of the present invention, character recognition is performed by image processing from image information captured by the camera of the mobile terminal device, and character information is extracted and handled. It is possible to instruct the device to execute an operation corresponding to the character information. That is, the operation of the device can be easily performed without executing complicated key operations such as a remote controller.

  Particularly in this case, remote control of the information recording apparatus can be easily performed from the outside using the portable terminal 40.

  In the information recording device 10 # according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the configuration in which the communication unit 26 is provided in the captured image processing unit 25 # has been described as an example. However, the configuration is not limited thereto, and the captured image processing unit 25 is not limited thereto. Of course, it is also possible to provide it outside.

  The information recording apparatus described above may be a video tape recorder for recording / reproducing a video tape as a recording medium, a DVD player for recording / reproducing a DVD (digital versatile disc), or a hard disk for recording / reproduction. HDD player etc. are mentioned.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

It is a schematic block diagram of the information recording device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart figure explaining the input system according to Embodiment 1 of this invention. 3 is an example of a reference table of character information stored in a storage unit 30. FIG. It is a schematic block diagram of the information storage system according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. It is a flowchart figure explaining the input system according to Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Display part, 2 Remote control, 5 Control part, 10 Information recording device, 15 Recording / reproduction drive part, 20 Camera, 25, 25 # Captured image processing part, 26 Communication part, 27 Image processing unit, 30 Storage part, 35 Remote control Receiver, 40 mobile terminals, 45 cameras.

Claims (5)

A drive unit for performing an operation for recording / reproducing information on a recording medium;
Imaging means for obtaining image information;
Character information recognition means for extracting character information from the image information acquired by the imaging means;
A control unit that instructs the drive unit to perform an operation corresponding to the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit;
A storage unit for storing information,
The control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit, and based on the determination result, the character stored in the storage unit in advance An information recording apparatus that instructs the drive unit to execute a predetermined operation corresponding to information. A drive unit for performing an operation for recording / reproducing information on a recording medium;
Imaging means for obtaining image information;
Character information recognition means for extracting character information from the image information acquired by the imaging means;
An information recording apparatus comprising: a control unit that instructs the drive unit to execute an operation corresponding to character information recognized from a recognition result of the character information recognition unit. A storage unit for storing information;
The control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit, and based on the determination result, the character stored in the storage unit in advance The information recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the drive unit is instructed to execute a predetermined operation corresponding to information. A portable terminal device having imaging means and capable of transmitting image information captured by the imaging means;
An information recording unit,
The information recording unit
A drive unit for performing an operation for recording / reproducing information on a recording medium;
A communication unit for receiving image information transmitted from the mobile terminal device;
Character information recognition means for extracting character information from the image information received by the communication unit;
An information recording system including: a control unit that instructs the drive unit to execute an operation corresponding to character information recognized from a recognition result of the character information recognition unit. The information recording unit
A storage unit for storing information;
The control unit compares and determines the character information stored in advance in the storage unit and the character information recognized from the recognition result of the character information recognition unit, and based on the determination result, the character stored in the storage unit in advance The information recording system according to claim 4, wherein the drive unit is instructed to execute a predetermined operation corresponding to information.

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