JP2013151045A - Information processing apparatus and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processing apparatus capable of effectively making an appeal to an object of notification, and to provide a program.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus includes: a robot installed in a moving body and having a plurality of movable units and a drive unit of driving the movable units; an image pickup unit provided to the robot and picking up an image around the vicinity of the robot; a recognition means for recognizing characters contained in the image; a detection means for detecting a predetermined notification object character from among the characters recognized by the recognition means; and a notification means for controlling the drive unit and notifying that the notification object character is detected by an operation of the robot.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to an information processing apparatus and a program.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technology has been proposed in which an information terminal is provided on a mobile object such as a shopping cart and a user is notified of information on events and products performed in a store by displaying still images and moving images on the information terminal. .

  However, in the above conventional technique, there is room for improvement in terms of appealing to the user, and a technique capable of effectively appealing the notification target to the user is desired.

  The information processing apparatus according to the embodiment includes a robot, an imaging unit, a recognition unit, a detection unit, and a notification unit. The robot is installed on a moving body and has a plurality of movable parts and a drive part that drives the movable parts. The imaging unit is provided in the robot and captures an image around the robot. The recognition means recognizes characters included in the image. The detection means detects a predetermined notification target character from the characters recognized by the recognition means. The notification means controls the drive unit to notify that the notification target character is detected by the operation of the robot.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a usage example of the information processing apparatus (shopping assist apparatus) according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of the shopping assist device according to the embodiment. Drawing 3 is a front view showing a part of appearance of a shopping assistant device concerning an embodiment. FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing an appearance of the shopping assist apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a side view showing an appearance of the shopping assist device according to the embodiment, and is a view showing a state in which an arm portion is rotated. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the external appearance of the head of the shopping assistance apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 7 is a side view showing the appearance of the head of the shopping assistance apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the shopping assist device according to the embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of notification target character data. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of notification direction specifying data. FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of operation pattern data. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of shopping assist processing performed by the shopping assist device according to the present embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image captured by the imaging unit of the shopping assist apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the shopping assist apparatus according to the present embodiment.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a usage example of the information processing apparatus according to the embodiment. This information processing apparatus is realized as a shopping assist apparatus 1 which is a humanoid or animal type robot called a mascot robot or the like. As shown in the figure, the shopping assist device 1 is used in a store such as a shopping center, and is installed in a mobile body such as a shopping cart 100 as shown in FIG. In addition, the drive power supply of the shopping assistance apparatus 1 shall be supplied from the built-in battery pack (not shown).

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of the shopping assist device 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the shopping assist device 1 includes a base portion 2, a body portion 3, a head portion 4, and left and right arm portions 5 and 6. The body 3, the head 4, and the arms 5 and 6 can be relatively moved (rotated) relative to the base 2, as will be described in detail later. The body part 3, the head part 4, and the arm parts 5 and 6 are examples of movable parts.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the base 2 has a base housing 2a and left and right feet 2b. The left and right feet 2b are integrally formed with the base housing 2a. In a state where the shopping assist device 1 is installed in the shopping cart 100, the bottom of the base housing 2a and the bottom of the left and right feet 2b are in contact with and fixed to the installation surface of the shopping cart 100.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the body portion 3 is disposed above the base portion 2. The body part 3 has a body housing 3a. The body portion 3 is connected to the base portion 2 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis A1 (FIGS. 3 and 5) by a connection mechanism (not shown). In other words, the connecting mechanism is, for example, a joint. As shown in FIG. 4, the movable range of the body portion 3 is a prescribed angle α1 that is prescribed to the left and right with respect to the reference posture. An arrow B <b> 1 in FIG. 4 indicates the rotation direction of the body portion 3. The body part 3 is connected to a first motor 141 (FIG. 8) and is driven to rotate about the rotation axis A <b> 1 by the first motor 141. The rotation operation around the rotation axis A1 of the body part 3 is also referred to as a hip swinging operation.

  Although not shown in FIGS. 2 to 7, a speaker 12 (see FIG. 8) for outputting a voice message, a notification sound or the like and a customer using the shopping cart 100 are provided on the body 3. A microphone 13 (see FIG. 8) for picking up sound is provided. For example, in the case of the configuration of FIG. 1, the speaker 12 and the microphone 13 may be provided on the back surface portion of the body portion 3.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the left and right arm parts 5 and 6 are disposed on the side of the body part 3 and are located at positions sandwiching the body housing 3 a of the body part 3. Since the configuration of the left (one) arm portion 5 and the configuration of the right (other) arm portion 6 are bilaterally symmetrical, the left arm portion 5 will be described in detail below, and the right arm portion 6 will be duplicated. The description to be omitted is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 5, the arm portion 5 is formed in a substantially disc shape and increases in thickness from the outer peripheral portion toward the inner peripheral portion. The arm portion 5 is coupled to the upper portion of the body portion 3 by a coupling mechanism 7. The arm portion 5 is connected to the base portion 2 by a connecting mechanism 7 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis A2 (FIG. 2). Specifically, the arm portion 5 can be rotated up and down, and can be rotated between a closed position (FIG. 2) and an open position (FIG. 3). As shown in FIG. 3, the movable range around the rotation axis A <b> 2 of the body part 3 is a prescribed angle α <b> 2 defined upward with respect to the reference posture. An arrow B2 in FIGS. 2 and 3 indicates the rotation direction of the body portion 3 around the rotation axis A2. The arm portion 5 is connected to a second motor 142 (FIG. 8), and is rotated by the second motor 142 about the rotation axis A2. The rotation operation of the arm 5 around the rotation axis A2 is also referred to as a flapping operation. The motor for flapping operation of the right arm 6 is a third motor 143 (FIG. 8). That is, a flapping motor is provided for each arm 5 and 6.

  The arm portion 5 is connected to the base portion 2 by a connecting mechanism 7 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis A3 (FIG. 2). In detail, the arm part 5 can be rotated back and forth. As shown in FIG. 5, the movable range of the body part 3 around the rotation axis A3 is defined in a prescribed angle α3 in one direction (forward) with respect to the reference posture and in another direction (backward) with respect to the reference posture. The specified angle α4. The arrow B3 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 5 indicates the rotation direction of the body part 3 around the rotation axis A3. The arm 5 is connected to a fourth motor 144 (FIG. 8), and is driven to rotate about the rotation axis A3 by the fourth motor 144. The turning operation of the arm portion 5 about the turning axis A3 is also referred to as an arm swinging operation. The arm swinging motor for the right arm 6 is a fifth motor 145 (FIG. 8). That is, an arm swinging motor is provided for each arm portion 5 and 6.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the head 4 is disposed above the body portion 3. The head 4 has a head housing 4a. An imaging unit 11 having an imaging element such as a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) is provided at a position corresponding to the front eye (left eye) of the head housing 4a. In the present embodiment, a single imaging unit 11 is provided. However, a pair of imaging units 11 may be provided at both eye portions. The imaging unit 11 may be provided in a part other than the front of the head 4 (for example, the back of the head 4), and more preferably according to the installation position and installation direction of the shopping assist device 1 in the shopping cart 100. Thus, it is preferable to determine the installation position of the imaging unit 11.

  The head 4 is connected to the body 3 so as to be rotatable about a rotation axis A4 (FIG. 5) by a connection mechanism (not shown). Specifically, the head 4 is rotatable left and right. As shown in FIG. 6, the movable range around the rotation axis A4 of the head 4 is a specified angle α5 left and right with respect to the reference posture. An arrow B <b> 4 in FIG. 6 indicates a rotation direction around the rotation axis A <b> 4 of the body portion 3. The head 4 is connected to a sixth motor 146 (FIG. 8), and is driven to rotate about the rotation axis A4 by the sixth motor 146. The turning operation of the head 4 around the turning axis A4 is also referred to as a neck swinging operation.

  The head 4 is connected to the body portion 3 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis A5 (FIG. 6) by a connection mechanism (not shown). Specifically, the head 4 can be turned up and down. As shown in FIG. 7, the movable range of the head 4 around the rotation axis A <b> 5 is a prescribed angle α <b> 6 that is vertically defined with respect to the reference posture. An arrow B5 in FIG. 7 indicates a rotation direction around the rotation axis A5 of the body 3. The head 4 is connected to a seventh motor 147 (FIG. 8), and is rotated about the rotation axis A5 by the seventh motor 147. The rotation operation of the head 4 around the rotation axis A5 is also referred to as a neck vertical swing operation.

  The first to seventh motors 141 to 147 for driving the movable parts (the body part 3, the head part 4, the left and right arm parts 5 and 6) are accommodated in the body housing 3a and fixed to the body housing 3a. . The first to seventh motors 141 to 147 are examples of driving units (actuators) that drive the movable unit. The 1st-7th motors 141-147 comprise the structure with the base 2 and the movable part (the trunk | drum 3, the head 4, the left and right arm parts 5 and 6). Hereinafter, for convenience, the first motor 141 to the seventh motor 147 may be simply referred to as the motor 14.

  Moreover, the shopping assistance apparatus 1 is provided with the memory | storage part 21 and the control part 22, as shown in FIG.

  The storage unit 21 is a storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and is housed in the body housing 3a as an example. The storage unit 21 stores various programs executed by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) described later and various setting data. In addition, the storage unit 21 stores notification target character data 211, notification direction specifying data 212, operation pattern data 213, and message data 214 as data related to a shopping assist process described later.

  In the notification target character data 211, characters to be notified (hereinafter referred to as notification target characters) are registered in advance. FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the notification target character data 211. The figure shows an example in which characters representing specific events such as “special sale” and “sale” are registered as notification target characters.

  Note that the notification target character is not limited to FIG. 9, and any character such as a product name can be registered. For example, the user's voice picked up by the microphone 13 may be recognized by a known voice recognition technique, and characters such as product names included in the voice may be registered in the notification target character data 211 as notification target characters. . When this form is used, registration of the notification target character is started in response to a predetermined voice (for example, “registration start” or the like) instructing registration of the notification target character, and a voice (for example, “registration end” is instructed) It is good also as a form which registers the characters, such as a product name, collected until "" etc.) is input into the alerting target character data 211 as an alerting target character.

  In the notification direction specifying data 212, the relationship between the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11, the presence direction of the notification target character in the image captured by the imaging unit 11, and the notification direction determined from the combination of the imaging direction and the existing direction. Is defined. In the operation pattern data 213, the notification direction and the operation pattern of the shopping assist device 1 are registered in association with each other. Specific examples of the notification direction specifying data 212 and the operation pattern data 213 will be described later.

  In the message data 214, data related to the voice uttered by the shopping assist device 1 is registered in advance. The message data 214 includes, for example, a message indicating a direction such as “left direction” or “right direction”, a message indicating an event such as “special sale” or “sale”, a message indicating a product name, or the like. The data registered in the message data 214 may be voice data or text data for voice synthesis.

  The control unit 22 is a computer including a CPU, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores programs and setting information, a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like, and is housed in the body housing 3a as an example. The CPU comprehensively controls the operation of the shopping assist device 1 by cooperating with a program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 21.

  The control unit 22 is connected to the imaging unit 11, the speaker 12, the microphone 13, the first to seventh motors 141 to 147, the storage unit 21, and the like via the bus line 23 and the like.

  The control unit 22 performs assist processing for the customer using the imaging unit 11, the speaker 12, the microphone 13, and the like. As an example, the control unit 22 discriminates customer attributes (for example, gender and age) from the customer image captured by the image capturing unit 11, and provides the speaker 12 with information (for example, promotion of products) according to the customer. To do.

  Moreover, the control part 22 is an image acquisition part 221, the character recognition part 222, the alerting | reporting object character detection part 223, the alerting | reporting direction specific | specification part 224, and the alerting | reporting process part 225 as a function part which concerns on the shopping assistance process mentioned later. And an operation control unit 226. These functional units may have a software configuration realized by cooperation of a CPU and a predetermined program stored in the ROM or the storage unit 21, or may be a hardware configuration configured by a dedicated processor or the like. Also good.

  The image acquisition unit 221 sequentially acquires images captured by the imaging unit 11. The character recognition unit 222 analyzes the image acquired by the image acquisition unit 221 to recognize a character (character string) included in the image, and notifies the notification target character detection unit 223 together with the position information of the character. Output. Here, the position information is information indicating the position of the character in the image, and is, for example, a data value such as coordinates. In addition, the character recognition in the character recognition part 222 shall use the well-known character recognition technique used by OCR (Optical Character Reader) etc.

  The notification target character detection unit 223 refers to the notification target character data 211 stored in the storage unit 21 and detects the notification target character from the characters recognized by the character recognition unit 222. For example, when the notification target character data 211 shown in FIG. 9 is used, the notification target characters “special sale” and “sale” are detected from the characters recognized by the character recognition unit 222. In addition, the notification target character detection unit 223 outputs the detected notification target character to the notification direction identification unit 224 together with the position information of the notification target character.

  The notification direction specifying unit 224 determines that the notification target character is based on the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 and the position (position information) of the notification target character input from the notification target character detection unit 223 in the image. In which direction it exists.

  Specifically, the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 from the current rotation angles of the body unit 3 and the head 4. More specifically, the notification direction specifying unit 224 obtains the sum of the rotation angles of the body 3 and the head 4 in the left-right direction, and the magnitude of the left or right angle that is the sum is a predetermined threshold value. In the above case, the direction is specified as the imaging direction. For example, when the body part 3 is rotated 5 degrees to the right and the head 4 is rotated 20 degrees to the left, the sum of the rotation angles ((−5) +20) is left if the left direction is positive. 15 degrees in the direction. Also, if the threshold value for direction determination is 10 degrees, the derived absolute value of 15 degrees is equal to or greater than the threshold value, and thus the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 as “left”. In addition, when less than a threshold value, the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 is specified as “front”.

  In addition, the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies in which direction in the image the notification target character exists from the position information of the notification target character input from the notification target character detection unit 223. Here, the notification direction specifying unit 224 divides the horizontal component of the image into three parts, for example, to divide into three regions of “left”, “front”, and “right”, and inputs from the notification target character detection unit 223. By determining which region the position information of the notified notification character belongs to, the direction in which the notification target character exists in the image is specified.

  The notification direction specifying unit 224 refers to the notification direction specifying data 212 stored in the storage unit 21 and specifies the notification direction from the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 and the presence direction of the notification target character.

  Here, FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the notification direction specifying data 212. As shown in the figure, the notification direction specifying data 212 defines the relationship between the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11, the presence direction of the notification target character, and the notification direction determined from the combination of the imaging direction and the existing direction. Yes. In the notification direction specifying data 212 shown in the figure, when the imaging direction is “left” or when the imaging direction is “front” and the existence direction is “left”, the notification direction is defined as “left”. Yes. In addition, when the imaging direction is “right” or when the imaging direction is “front” and the presence direction is “right”, the notification direction is defined as “right”. Further, when the imaging direction is “front” and the existence direction is “front”, the notification direction is defined as “front”.

  Note that the notification direction of the notification direction identification data 212 is determined based on the front direction (traveling direction) of the shopping cart 100 in which the shopping assist device 1 is installed. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, when the front of the shopping assist device 1 and the front of the shopping cart 100 coincide, the notification direction is specified using the notification direction specifying data 212 shown in FIG. The notification direction viewed from the cart 100 can be matched. Further, when the imaging unit 11 is provided at the back of the head 4, in the configuration of FIG. 1, the front of the shopping assist device 1 and the front of the imaging unit 11 are in opposite directions, so the definition of the right and left direction of the notification direction is switched. By doing so, it is assumed that the notification direction is based on the front of the shopping cart 100 as a reference. Note that the setting content of the notification direction specifying data 212 is not limited to the example of FIG. 10 and can be arbitrarily changed.

  Returning to FIG. 8, when the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the notification direction from the relationship between the imaging direction and the existence direction defined in the notification direction specifying data 212, the notification processing unit together with the notification target character corresponding to the specified notification direction. To 225.

  The notification processing unit 225 performs processing for notifying the user who operates the shopping cart 100 of the notification direction and the notification target character input from the notification direction specifying unit 224.

  Specifically, the notification processing unit 225 controls the operation control unit 226 to notify the notification direction input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 by the operation (action) of the shopping assist device 1. Here, the notification processing unit 225 determines the operation of the shopping assist device 1 according to the notification direction using the operation pattern data 213 of the storage unit 21.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the operation pattern data 213. As shown in the figure, in the operation pattern data 213, an operation pattern representing the operation of the shopping assist device 1 corresponding to the notification direction is registered in association with each notification direction. In the operation pattern data 213 shown in the figure, for example, when the notification direction indicates “left”, the body portion 3 is rotated 15 degrees to the right from the reference posture, and the head 4 of the shopping assist device 1 is moved from the reference posture. It is defined that the arm portion 5 is turned to the left by 20 degrees, the arm portion 5 is turned upward from the reference posture by 110 degrees, and the front portion is rotated by 30 degrees, and the arm portion 6 is set to the reference posture (rotation angle 0). Further, when the notification direction indicates “front”, the body 3 and the head 4 of the shopping assist device 1 are set to the reference posture (rotation angle 0), and the arms 5 and 6 are 110 degrees upward from the reference posture in front. It is defined to be rotated 30 degrees.

  The notification processing unit 225 reads the operation pattern corresponding to the notification direction input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 from the operation pattern data 213, and outputs instruction information instructing execution of the operation pattern to the operation control unit 226. The notification direction is notified by the operation of the shopping assist device 1. Note that the operation pattern set in the operation pattern data 213 is not limited to the example of FIG. For example, instead of directly specifying the rotation angle, a command for instructing an operation such as a flapping operation or an arm swinging operation may be set. Moreover, it is good also as a form which makes the shopping assistance apparatus 1 perform continuous operation | movements, such as a dance, by registering a some operation | movement pattern in the same alerting | reporting direction. In addition, a unique operation pattern may be set for each type of notification target character.

  In addition, the notification processing unit 225 uses the message data 214 stored in the storage unit 21, so that a message corresponding to the notification direction and the notification target character input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 is generated by voice synthesis or the like by the speaker 12. Output from. For example, when the notification direction indicates “left” and the notification target character indicates “sale”, the notification processing unit 225 causes the speaker 12 to output a message such as “There is a sale item in the left direction”. Note that speech synthesis uses a known technique.

  The operation control unit 226 controls the driving of the motor 14 (first to seventh motors 141 to 147) of the shopping assist device 1 in accordance with the instruction information input from the notification processing unit 225, thereby allowing the shopping assist device 1 to A predetermined operation (operation pattern) is performed.

  Next, shopping assistance processing performed by the shopping assistance device 1 will be described. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the purchase support process performed by the shopping assist device 1. As a premise of this processing, it is assumed that imaging is performed in the imaging unit 11 of the shopping assist device 1.

  The image acquisition unit 221 acquires an image captured by the imaging unit 11 (step S11). For example, if the user is moving through a passage in a store using the shopping cart 100 shown in FIG. 1, a product shelf installed along the passage is imaged by the imaging unit 11. At this time, in order to widen the imaging range, the image acquisition unit 221 cooperates with the operation control unit 226 to operate the motor 14 provided on the body unit 3 or the head unit 4 to move the body unit 3 to the waist. It is good also as a form which carries out a swing operation | movement or makes the head 4 swing a neck sideways motion or a head longitudinal swing motion.

  The character recognizing unit 222 recognizes the character from the image acquired in step S11 and outputs it to the notification target character detecting unit 223 together with the position of the character in the image (step S12). The notification target character detection unit 223 compares the notification target character registered in the notification target character data 211 with the character recognized by the character recognition unit 222, and whether or not the notification target character exists in the character. Is determined (step S13).

  Here, when it is determined that the notification target character does not exist (step S13; No), this process ends. When the notification target character is detected (step S13; Yes), the notification target character detection unit 223 outputs the notification target character to the notification direction specifying unit 224 together with the position information of the notification target character.

  When the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 and the presence direction in the image of the notification target character, the notification direction specification unit 224 sets the imaging direction and the existence direction based on the notification direction specification data 212 of the storage unit 21. The notification direction corresponding to is specified (step S14). The notification direction specified here is output to the notification processing unit 225 together with the notification target character.

  Subsequently, when the operation pattern corresponding to the notification direction specified by the notification direction specifying unit 224 is read from the operation pattern data 213 of the storage unit 21, the notification processing unit 225 instructs the execution of the operation pattern. Is output to the operation control unit 226 (step S15). The operation control unit 226 drives the motor 14 of the shopping assist device 1 according to the instruction information from the notification processing unit 225 and causes the shopping assist device 1 to perform a predetermined operation (operation pattern) according to the notification direction. The notification direction is notified by the operation of the shopping assist device 1 (step S16).

  In addition, the notification processing unit 225 uses the message data 214 to output a message corresponding to the notification direction and the notification target character input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 as sound from the speaker 12 (step S17). Exit. The execution timing of this process is not particularly limited, and may be executed every time the imaging unit 11 captures an image, or may be executed every predetermined time interval (for example, every 30 seconds).

  Hereinafter, the operation of the shopping assist process will be described with reference to FIGS. 13 and 14. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image captured by the imaging unit 11 of the shopping assist device 1. As shown in the figure, when a user moves a passage in a store using a shopping cart 100, an image in the store is captured by the imaging unit 11. Here, if an image G1 including a product shelf SH provided in the store is captured as shown in FIG. 13, the image acquisition unit 221 acquires this image G1 in step S11. In step S12, the character recognition unit 222 recognizes characters such as “special sale”, “50%”, and “OFF” from the image G1 acquired by the image acquisition unit 221, and notifies the presence of these characters. The data is output to the target character detection unit 223.

  Next, in step S13, the notification target character detection unit 223 compares the notification target character registered in the notification target character data 211 with the character input from the character recognition unit 222, and notifies the input character of the notification target character. It is determined whether the target character exists. Here, when the notification target character data 211 shown in FIG. 10 is used (step S13; Yes), since the notification target character “special sale” exists in the input characters, the notification target character detection unit 223 performs this operation. The notification target character “sale” and its presence position are output to the notification direction identification unit 224.

  In subsequent step S <b> 14, the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the imaging direction of the imaging unit 11 based on the currently set rotation angles of the body 3 and the head 4. Further, as shown in FIG. 13, the notification direction specifying unit 224 divides the horizontal component of the image G1 into three equal parts, thereby dividing the region into regions C1 to C3, and the notification target character input from the notification target character detection unit 223 By determining which region the position information belongs to, it is specified in which direction the character to be notified exists. Here, in the case of the image G1 in FIG. 13, since the notification target character “special sale” belongs to the area C1, the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the presence direction of the notification target character as “left”.

  And the alerting | reporting direction specific | specification part 224 specifies a corresponding alerting | reporting direction from the imaging direction of the imaging part 11, and the presence direction of a alerting | reporting object character using the alerting | reporting direction specific data 212 memorize | stored in the memory | storage part 21. FIG. Here, if the body part 3 and the head 4 are in the reference posture (rotation angle 0), the notification direction specifying unit 224 specifies the notification direction as “left” from the notification direction specifying data 212 shown in FIG. And output to the notification processing unit 225 together with the notification target character.

  Subsequently, when the operation pattern corresponding to the notification direction input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 is read from the operation pattern data 213 in step S15, the notification processing unit 225 reads instruction information instructing execution of the operation pattern. The data is output to the operation control unit 226. In step S16, the operation control unit 226 causes the shopping assist device 1 to execute the instructed operation pattern.

  Here, for example, if the operation pattern data 213 shown in FIG. 11 is used, the notification processing unit 225 reads the operation pattern corresponding to the notification direction “left” input from the notification direction specifying unit 224, and the operation pattern By outputting the instruction information instructing the execution of the item to the operation control unit 226, the operation corresponding to the operation pattern is executed by the shopping assist device 1 as shown in FIG. In this way, the notification processing unit 225 and the operation control unit 226 cooperate to notify the notification direction specified by the notification direction specifying unit 224 by the operation of the shopping assist device 1.

  In step S17, the notification processing unit 225 causes the speaker 12 to output a message corresponding to the notification direction and the notification target character input from the notification direction specifying unit 224 by voice synthesis or the like. Note that FIG. 14 shows an example in which a voice message “There is a sale item in the left direction” is output as a message.

  As described above, in the shopping assist device 1, when there is a notification target character (notification target character) in the image captured by the imaging unit 11, the notification direction in which the notification target character exists with respect to the shopping cart 100 is determined. Since the notification is made by the operation of the shopping assist device 1, the notification target character existing around the shopping cart 100 can be effectively appealed to the user of the shopping cart 100. Further, since the message corresponding to the notification direction and the notification target character is notified by voice output together with the operation of the shopping assist device 1, information on the notification target character can be more effectively appealed.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, the said embodiment was shown as an example and is not intending limiting the range of invention. The above embodiment can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, changes, additions, and the like can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Moreover, the said embodiment and its deformation | transformation are included in the range of the invention, the summary, and the invention described in the claim, and its equal range.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the front of the shopping assist device 1 is installed in a state where the front of the shopping cart 100 is aligned with the front of the shopping cart 100 at the top of the shopping cart 100 is described. Not limited to. For example, it is good also as a form which installs the shopping assistance apparatus 1 in the handle part 101 side (FIG. 1) which a customer hold | grips when moving the shopping cart 100, or the front of the shopping assistance apparatus 1 faces the handle part 101 side. It is good also as a form to install. Note that when the shopping assist device 1 is installed with the front face toward the handle portion 101, the imaging unit 11 is preferably provided at the back of the head 4.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, the shopping assistance apparatus 1 is provided with the function part of the image acquisition part 221, the character recognition part 222, the alerting | reporting object character detection part 223, the alerting | reporting direction specific | specification part 224, the alerting | reporting process part 225, and the operation control part 226. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an external device may include a part or all of these functional units, and the external device may control the operation of the shopping assist device 1 by wired or wireless communication.

  In the above embodiment, the imaging direction, the presence direction, and the notification direction are divided into three directions of “left”, “front”, and “right”. However, the unit of the division is not limited to this, and the embodiment is divided in more detail. It is good. Moreover, it is good also as a form similarly specified also about an up-down direction.

  In addition, the program executed by the shopping assist device 1 of the above embodiment is provided by being incorporated in advance in a storage medium (ROM or storage unit 21) included in the shopping assist device 1, but is not limited thereto and can be installed. The file is recorded in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) in a format or executable format. Also good. Furthermore, the storage medium is not limited to a medium independent of a computer or an embedded system, but also includes a storage medium in which a program transmitted via a LAN, the Internet, or the like is downloaded and stored or temporarily stored.

  Further, the program executed by the shopping assist device 1 of the above embodiment may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. You may comprise so that it may provide or distribute via a network.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shopping assistance apparatus 2 Base part 3 Body part 4 Head part 5 Arm part 6 Arm part 11 Imaging part 12 Speaker 13 Microphone 14 Motor 21 Memory | storage part 211 Notification object character data 212 Notification direction specific data 213 Operation pattern data 214 Message data 22 Control part 221 Image acquisition unit 222 Character recognition unit 223 Notification target character detection unit 224 Notification direction identification unit 225 Notification processing unit 226 Operation control unit 23 Bus line 100 Shopping cart

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 08-40276 JP 2007-66108 A

Claims (6)

A robot installed on a moving body and having a plurality of movable parts and a drive part for driving the movable parts;
An imaging unit that is provided in the robot and captures an image around the robot;
Recognition means for recognizing characters contained in the image;
Detection means for detecting a predetermined notification target character from the characters recognized by the recognition means;
Informing means for controlling the driving unit and informing that the notification target character is detected by the operation of the robot;
An information processing apparatus comprising: Identification that identifies the direction in which the notification target character exists as the notification direction for the mobile body based on the imaging direction of the imaging unit and the presence position in the image of the notification target character detected by the detection unit Further comprising means,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit controls the driving unit to notify the notification direction by an operation of the robot. The imaging unit is provided in the movable unit that can be rotated in the horizontal direction of the robot,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the specifying unit specifies the imaging direction based on a rotation angle of the movable unit in a horizontal direction. The robot has, as the movable part, a trunk part, a head connected to the trunk part, and a pair of left and right arms,
The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the notification unit operates any one of the body part, the head part, and the arm part. A voice output unit for outputting voice;
The said alerting | reporting means outputs the audio | voice which alert | reports the said notification object character which the said detection means detected, and the alerting | reporting direction which the said specific means specified from the said audio | voice output part. Information processing device. A computer of an information processing apparatus, comprising: a robot installed on a moving body and having a plurality of movable parts and a drive part that drives the movable parts; The
Recognition means for recognizing characters contained in the image;
Detection means for detecting a predetermined notification target character from the characters recognized by the recognition means;
Informing means for controlling the driving unit and informing that the notification target character is detected by the operation of the robot;
Program to make it function.

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