JP7117780B2 - conference system - Google Patents

Description

Application of Patent Law Article 30, Paragraph 2 On September 20 and 21, 2018, at the OS Tokyo Building, OSM Co., Ltd. held a conference system invented by Masayuki Okumura at the OS exhibition hosted by OS Co., Ltd. exhibited.

The present invention relates to a conference system having a display device that displays a screen from a position in front of a conference desk (hereinafter referred to as "front of the conference room") toward the rear of the conference desk.

Conventionally, this type of conference system transmits and receives audio and video to and from a distant conference room through a communication network such as the Internet, and holds a conference while sharing display data such as materials used in the conference. A "teleconference system" is provided. In such a teleconferencing system, as described above, it was necessary to split display multiple images on the screen in front of the conference room, such as materials to be shared in addition to the video of the other party's conference room (for example, see Patent Document 1, 2, etc.).

However, when a plurality of images are divided and displayed on one screen in this way, the size of each image becomes small, which is inconvenient when holding a meeting while looking at detailed design drawings, for example. It is conceivable to install a display device with a relatively large screen side by side in the front position in order to display design drawings and the like without split display, but this requires a large installation space and is limited to large conference rooms. .

JP-A-7-264566 JP 2017-216668 A

Therefore, in view of the above-mentioned situation, the present invention aims to solve the problem by enabling meetings to be held while viewing materials such as detailed design drawings on a large screen without requiring a large installation space. The object is to provide a conference system suitable for a video conference system.

In view of the current situation, the present inventors have made intensive studies, and as a result, regarding the layout of the desks and seats in the conference room, the short sides of the long desks are directed toward the front and rear of the conference room, and a plurality of seats are arranged along both the left and right long sides. It is common that seats are prepared for the left and right, and from the left and right seated attendees, not only the front position in front of the conference room, but also the opposite side position and diagonal front position can be seen without straining at the same time. Focusing on the fact that it is possible, the present invention has been completed.

That is, the present invention includes the following inventions.
(1) A conference system comprising a display device that displays a screen from a front position in front of a conference desk to a rear side of the conference desk, wherein the first display device is disposed at the front position as the display device. A display device and a second display device that displays a screen larger than that of the first display device at the front position are provided, and the first display device is positioned at a lateral position with respect to the conference desk. Alternatively, a movement mechanism is provided to move the conference desk, which is closer to the rear than the front position, to an obliquely forward position, and to display a screen from the moved position toward the conference desk, whereby the first A first display posture in which the display device performs screen display at the front position, and the first display device moves to the side position or the oblique front position by the moving mechanism and displays the screen from the position toward the conference desk. Further, the conference system is characterized in that the posture of the second display device can be changed to a second display posture in which screen display is performed at the front position.

(2) As the first display device, two display devices arranged side by side in the front position are provided, and the moving mechanism moves the left and right display devices as the first display device to: They are moved to left and right lateral positions with respect to the conference desk, or to oblique front positions with respect to the conference desk, which are closer to the rear side than the front position, and are displayed on the screen from the moved positions toward the conference desk, respectively. Accordingly, the first display posture is a posture in which the left and right display devices as the first display device display screens side by side at the front position, and the second display posture is the first display device. The left and right display devices are moved to the side position or the diagonally forward position by the moving mechanism, and from that position each screen is displayed toward the conference desk, and the second display device is the front position. The conference system according to (1), which assumes a display posture.

(3) The conference system according to (1) or (2), further comprising drive means for operating the moving mechanism and drive control means for controlling the drive means.

(4) Switching control means for switching and controlling the screen display of the display device is provided, and the switching control means interlocks with the drive control means to change the screen display of each display device according to the change in the display orientation of the display device. The conferencing system according to (3), which controls display.

(5) As the second display device, there is provided a projection screen that moves up and down by being wound up/extended on a winding shaft provided at or near the ceiling at the front position, and the projection screen is driven up and down. means, and elevation control means for controlling the elevation drive means, the elevation control means interlocks with the drive control means of the movement mechanism, and the second display device moves in response to a change in the display orientation of the display device. The conference system according to (3) or (4), which controls the lifting operation of the.
(6) An imaging camera for imaging attendees seated at the conference table is provided at the front front position, and the imaging camera is retracted and moved above or below the display screen area of the second display device. and an elevation control means for controlling the elevation drive means. The elevation control means interlocks with the drive control means of the movement mechanism, and the imaging is performed in accordance with a change in the display posture of the display device. The conference system according to any one of (3) to (5), which controls the up/down operation of the camera.

(7) The moving mechanism includes support rods for suspending and supporting the first display devices from the ceiling, and a rotating device provided above the support rods for rotating the support rods about an axis; a guide mechanism that guides movement from the front position to the side position or the diagonally forward position while supporting the rotating device together with the support rod; and a state in which the rotating device is guided by the guide mechanism. The conference system according to any one of (1) to (6), further comprising a driving mechanism for moving the conference system.
(8) The display device according to any one of (1) to (6), wherein each display device of the first display device and the second display device is a liquid crystal display, a projection screen, or an electronic blackboard. conference system.

According to the conference system according to the present invention, a normal conference can be held on the screens of the first and second display devices positioned in front in the first display posture. If you want to have a meeting while viewing materials such as drawings on a large screen, display the detailed design drawings and the like on the second display device that displays the screen larger than the front in the second display posture, In addition, the image of the conference room of the other party can be displayed by the first display device moved to the side position or diagonally forward position.
In particular, in the case where two left and right display devices are provided as the first display device, the image of the other party's conference room is displayed on each of the two left and right screens of the first display device positioned in front in the first display posture. In addition to being able to display videos and meeting materials side by side, you can hold a normal meeting. In the second display posture, the detailed design drawings and the like are displayed on the second display device that displays a larger screen from the front, and the first display device is moved to the left and right side positions or diagonally forward positions. Each display device displays the image of the other party's conference room, etc., and the attendees seated on the right side facing the front of the conference room are displayed on the large screen in front and the first display moving to the left side or diagonally to the left. The attendees seated on the opposite left side can see the screen of the device and continue the conference without difficulty, and the attendees seated on the opposite left side can see the large screen in front and the second display device moving to the right side or diagonally forward right. Looking at the screen, you can continue the meeting without difficulty.

In the present invention as described above, neither the first display posture nor the second display posture requires a large installation space, and makes it possible to efficiently hold meetings using detailed materials on a large screen. That is, by switching from the first display posture to the second display posture as in the present invention, it is possible to hold a multi-screen conference while viewing two screens even in a small conference room, with one of the screens being a large screen. .

Here, when a driving means for operating the moving mechanism and a driving control means for controlling the driving means are provided, it becomes possible to automatically change the display posture, thereby improving convenience.

Further, switching control means for switching and controlling the screen display of the display device is provided, and the switching control means is interlocked with the drive control means, and changes the screen display of each display device according to the change of the display posture of the display device. In the control device, the screen display can be automatically switched in conjunction with the change of the display orientation.

As the second display device, there is provided a projection screen which moves up and down by being wound up/extended on a winding shaft provided at or near the ceiling at the front position, and the projection screen is driven up and down. means, and elevation control means for controlling the elevation drive means, the elevation control means interlocks with the drive control means of the movement mechanism, and the second display device moves in response to a change in the display orientation of the display device. , the display screen (projection screen) of the second display device can be rolled up and stored in the first display posture in which the second display device is not used, and the conference space is more efficient and looks better. Further, the screen of the second display device can be set at a front position substantially the same as the position of the display screen of the first display device in the first display posture, and the first display device can be shifted to the second display posture. (Mutual interference between the display screens of the first display device and the second display device) can be easily avoided.

In addition, an imaging camera is provided at the front position for imaging the attendees seated at the conference table, and the imaging camera is moved upward or downward from the display screen area of the second display device. Driving means and elevation control means for controlling the elevation driving means are provided. The elevation control means is interlocked with the drive control means of the moving mechanism, and the imaging camera is operated in accordance with the change in the display orientation of the display device. By controlling the up-and-down operation, it is possible to automatically image the state of the conference room at the best central position in front in both display postures without interfering with the screen display by the second display device. .

Further, the moving mechanism includes support rods for suspending and supporting the first display devices from the ceiling, a rotating device provided on the upper part of the support rods for rotating the support rods about an axis, and a guide mechanism that guides the movement from the front position to the side position or obliquely forward position while supporting the rotation device together with the support rod; and a guide mechanism that guides the rotation device. In the second posture, the screen of the first display device can be oriented at an angle that is easy for the attendees seated on the opposite side to see. Movement and angle change can be performed automatically and efficiently.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the first display posture in the conference system according to the representative embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the second display posture in the conference system as well. (a) and (b) are explanatory diagrams showing display screens viewed by attendees of the conference in each display posture. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of a teleconference terminal in the same conference system; FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a movement mechanism of the first display device in the same conference system; Sectional drawing which similarly shows a moving mechanism. Sectional drawing of the rotation apparatus which similarly comprises a moving mechanism. Explanatory drawing which shows the conference system based on the modification of this invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The conference system 1 according to the present invention, as shown in FIGS. , 2C). As shown in FIG. 1, two display devices (2A, 2B) as the first display device are arranged side by side at the front position 91, and as shown in FIG. , there is provided a second display device 2C that displays on a larger screen than the two first display devices (2A, 2B).

Also, the two first display devices (2A, 2B) are placed at left and right lateral positions (92, 93) with respect to the conference desk 8, respectively, or at positions closer to the rear than the front position 91 with respect to the conference desk 8. A moving mechanism 20 is provided for moving to diagonally forward positions (diagonally forward positions 94 and 95) and displaying screens toward the conference desks 8 from the moved positions.

By the operation of the moving mechanism 20, the first display device (2A, 2B) displays the screen at the front position 91 as shown in FIG. The display devices (2A, 2B) are moved to left and right lateral positions 92, 93 (or diagonally forward positions 94, 95) by the moving mechanism 20, and display screens toward the conference desk 8 from these positions. The second display device 2</b>C is configured to be changeable to a second display posture 12 in which screen display is performed at a front position 91 .

By making it possible to change the posture of the display device in this way, first, in the first display posture 11, as shown in FIG. A normal conference can be held by displaying images of the other party's conference room, conference materials, etc. side by side on the left and right screens (display units) of 2B. Also, in the middle of a meeting, for example, when a situation arises in which the user wants to hold a meeting while viewing materials such as detailed design drawings on a large screen, as shown in FIG. Then, the detailed design drawings and the like are displayed on the front by the display unit of the second display device 2C, which is displayed on the large screen at the front position. It is possible to display the image of the other party's conference room and the like by the display section of each display device of the moved first display devices 2A and 2B.

In the second display posture 12, as can be seen from FIG. 3(b), attendees (D1, D2, D3) seated on the right side of the front of the conference room can see the front large screen (display device 2C). ) and the screen of the first display device 2A moving to the left (or diagonally forward to the left), the conference can be continued without difficulty, and the attendee seated on the opposite left ( E1, E2, E3) look at the front large screen (the display section of the display device 2C) and the screen of the first display device 2B moving to the right side (or obliquely forward to the right), and similarly they can easily and efficiently I can continue the meeting well.

That is, in the first display posture 11, mutually different images (for example, conference materials on one side and camera images of the other party's conference room on the other side) are displayed on the two first display devices (2A, 2B), and the first display posture 11 is displayed. In 12, the two first display devices (2A, 2B) display the same image (for example, the camera image of the other party's conference room), and the second display device 2C displays the conference material on a large screen. As a result, it is possible to continue multi-screen video conferences without requiring a large installation space as a whole. Of course, the contents to be displayed on each display device may be different. Contents different from each other may be displayed in the two display postures 12 .

The first display devices (2A, 2B) can be composed of various display devices used in known conference systems, such as liquid crystal displays, electronic blackboards, whiteboards, and projection screens. The moving mechanism 20 for moving the first display device (2A, 2B) may be a manual one, but in this example, as shown in FIGS. 22 and drive control means for controlling the drive means 22 are provided so that the display attitude can be automatically changed. The driving control means is implemented by a processing device 40 of the video conference terminal 4, which will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 5, the moving mechanism 20 includes a support rod 50 for suspending the first display device 2A (2B) from the ceiling, and a support rod 50 provided above the support rod 50. and a pivoting device 51 that rotates in an upward direction, and while supporting the pivoting device 51 together with the support rod 50, the movement from the front position 91 to the side position 92 (93) or the diagonally forward position 94 (95) can be performed. It is composed of a guide mechanism 52 for guiding and a drive mechanism 53 for moving the rotating device 51 while being guided by the guide mechanism 52 .

The rotating device 51 includes a housing frame 54 that rotatably supports the upper portion of the support rod 50, as shown in FIG. A support cylinder 55 is provided through the bottom plate 540 of the housing frame 54 , and the support rod 50 is rotatably mounted in the support cylinder 55 in a state of being penetrated therethrough. Numeral 73 is a decorative panel attached to the ceiling panel 95. In the central part, the supporting cylinder 55 is passed through and moves from the front position 91 to the side position 92 (93) or the oblique front position 94 (95). A slit 73b is provided to allow this.

A rotating base plate 56 is fixed to the upper end portion of the support rod 50 projecting upward from the support cylinder 55 in the housing frame 54 . The rotation base plate 56 is movable in the circumferential direction around the central axis of the support rod 50 on the upper surface of the bottom plate 540 in the housing frame 54 by means of wheels 57 provided on the lower surface side. . Thus, the support rod 50 is rotatably supported on the bottom plate 540 of the housing frame 54 together with the rotating base plate 56 .

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a rotation driving mechanism for rotating the support rod 50 of the rotation device 51 is provided on the upper surface of the bottom plate 540 of the housing frame 54 so as to be coaxial with the central axis of the support rod 50 . a fixed gear 58 fixed in a shape, a rotary gear 59 projecting from the lower surface side of a rotary base plate 56, meshing with the fixed gear 58, and rolling around the fixed gear 58; A deceleration mechanism 60 and a rotation motor 61 are provided on the base plate 56 to rotate the rotation gear 59 . The rotating motor 61 constitutes the driving means 22 .

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the guide mechanism 52 includes a pillar 62 extending to the upper surface side of the housing frame 54 of the rotating device 51, wheels 63 provided at the tip of the pillar, and the wheels 63. Guide rails 64 are provided for receiving and longitudinally movably supporting. The guide rail 64 is attached to the lower surface of a support frame 66 suspended from the slab via a support pipe 65 . The support frame 66 is provided over at least the range from the front position 91 to the side position 92 (93) or the oblique front position 94 (95), and the guide rail 64 is also provided horizontally on the lower surface of the support frame 66 over the range. are placed in

The driving mechanism 53 includes an annular belt 69 that is stretched between pulleys 67 and 68 provided at both ends of the above range, and a housing frame 54 of the rotating device 51 that protrudes upward and is fixed to the annular belt 69. and a deceleration mechanism 71 and a rotation motor 72 for rotating the pulley 67 and reciprocating the bracket plate 70 integrally with the annular belt 69 within the range. The rotating motor 72 constitutes the driving means 22 . The support frame 66 is provided with a slit 66b that vertically penetrates the bracket plate 70 to enable the movement.

The second display device 2C may be of any type as long as it can display on a screen larger than the screen of each display device of the first display devices (2A, 2B). A display device used in various known conference systems, such as a screen, can be used, and a display device that projects images onto a white wall in front of the conference room (front) by a projector is also included. In this example, the projection screen 2 is provided as the display unit of the second display device 2C so as to move up and down by being wound up/extended on a winding shaft provided at or near the ceiling at the front position 91 .

Further, as the second display device 2C, there are further provided an elevation drive means 25 for the projection screen 21, an elevation control means for controlling the elevation drive means 25, and a projector device 24 for projecting an image on the projection screen 21. . As the elevation driving means 25 and the projector device 24, conventionally known devices can be adopted. The projector device 24 of this example is provided with a lifting mechanism (not shown) for storing in the ceiling space when not in use. It is controlled by the elevation control means. The elevation control means is realized by the processing device 40 of the video conference terminal 4, which will be described later.

An imaging camera 3 for imaging attendees seated at the conference table 8 is provided between the two first display devices (2A, 2B) arranged on the left and right sides of the front position 91, and further, Elevation driving means 30 for retracting and moving the imaging camera 3 upward or downward from the display screen area of the second display device, and elevation control means for controlling the elevation driving means 30 are provided. The elevation control means is realized by the processing device 40 of the video conference terminal 4, which will be described later.

These display devices 2A to 2C and imaging camera 3 are connected to teleconference terminals provided inside and outside the conference room, and the display orientation, screen display contents, and the like are controlled. As such a teleconference terminal 4, as shown in FIG. 4, a known teleconference terminal computer including a processing device 40, a storage device 41, a communication control section 42, and an operation section 43 such as a keyboard, a mouse, various switches, etc. can be used.

The teleconference terminal 4 is connected to the teleconference terminal in the conference room of the other party and the teleconference server through the communication control unit 42 and the communication network. Send and receive. In addition to the display devices 2A to 2C and the imaging camera 3, the teleconference terminal 4 is connected to a microphone 44 and a speaker 45 for inputting the voices of attendees. It is possible to connect wirelessly through the communication control unit 42 .

The processing unit 40 is mainly composed of a CPU such as a microprocessor, and various information is input/output through an input/output unit and a bus line. The storage device 41 includes storage memories such as RAM and ROM inside and outside the processing device 40 and a hard disk inside and outside the device, and stores programs and processing data that define the procedures of various processing operations in the processing device 40 .

Specifically, the processing device 40 controls a drive control processing unit 23 as drive control means for controlling the operation of the drive means 22 of the moving mechanism 20, an elevation drive means 25 of the projection screen 21, and an elevation drive operation of the projector. a first elevation control processing unit 26 as elevation control means for controlling the elevation, a second elevation control processing unit 31 as elevation control means for controlling the operation of elevation driving means 30 of the imaging camera, first and second display devices 2A A display processing unit 46 as display control means for controlling the contents of the screen display of ~ 2C, an imaging processing unit 47 that controls the imaging operation by the imaging camera and stores the output video data in the storage device 41, and a microphone, At least an audio control processing unit 48 for controlling audio input/output of the speaker is provided.

The elevation control processing unit 26 is linked to the drive control processing unit 23 of the moving mechanism, and controls the elevation operation of the second display device according to the content of the change in the display orientation of the display device. The elevation control processing unit 31 also interlocks with the drive control processing unit 23 of the moving mechanism 20, and controls the elevation operation of the imaging camera 3 by the elevation driving means 30 according to the content of the change in the display orientation of the display device. do.

The display processing unit 46 is provided with a switching control processing unit 48 as switching control means for switching and controlling the screen display of the display device. The screen display of each display device 2 is controlled according to the change of the display posture of 2.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is by no means limited to such embodiments, and can of course be embodied in various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, in the representative embodiments described above, a system has been described as an example in which a terminal in a conference room at a remote location can be connected via a server to conduct a video conference, but the present invention constructs such a video conference system. It is of course possible to construct a conference system in a closed environment in a conference room in which the first and second display devices according to the present invention are installed. Alternatively, the above-described display orientation may be switched manually without providing a conference terminal.

In addition, in the description of the above representative embodiment, two first display devices (2A and 2B) are provided, but as shown in FIG. 8, only one first display device (2A only) is provided. Anything is fine. In the example of FIG. 8, a fixed (non-movable) third display device 2D is provided at the diagonally forward position 94, but this may be omitted. According to this example, the attendees of the conference look at the first display device 2A (and the third display device 2D) in the front position in the first display posture 11 ((a) in the figure), and hold the meeting in the second display posture. In the display posture 12 ((b) in the figure), a meeting can be held while looking at the second display device 2C in front and the first display device 2A (and the third display device 2D) moved to the oblique front position 95. can.

1 Conference System 2A-2D Display Device 3 Imaging Camera 4 Teleconference Terminal 8 Conference Desk 11 First Display Posture 12 Second Display Posture 20 Moving Mechanism 21 Projection Screen 22 Drive Means 23 Drive Control Processor 24 Projector Device 25 Elevator Drive Means 26 Elevation control processing unit 30 Elevation driving means 31 Elevation control processing unit 40 Processing device 41 Storage device 42 Communication control unit 43 Operation unit 44 Microphone 45 Speaker 46 Display processing unit 47 Imaging processing unit 48 Audio control processing unit 50 Support rod 51 Rotating device 52 guide mechanism 53 drive mechanism 54 housing frame 55 support tube 56 rotation base plate 57 wheel 58 fixed gear 59 rotation gear 60 reduction mechanism 61 rotation motor 62 support 63 wheel 64 guide rail 65 support pipe 66 support frame 67 pulley 69 Circular belt 70 Bracket plate 71 Reduction mechanism 72 Rotating motor 73 Decorative panel 91 Front position 92, 93 Side position 94, 95 Diagonal front position 96 Ceiling panel 540 Bottom plate

Claims (8)

A conference system comprising a display device that displays a screen from a front position in front of a conference desk to a rear side where the conference desk is located,
As the display device, a first display device arranged at the front position and a second display device displaying at the front position on a screen larger than that of the first display device are provided,
The first display device is moved to a lateral position with respect to the conference desk or to a diagonally forward position with respect to the conference desk that is closer to the rear than the front position, and is directed from the moved position to the conference desk. A movement mechanism is provided to display the screen by
Thereby, a first display posture in which the first display device performs screen display at the front position;
The first display device is moved to the side position or the oblique front position by the moving mechanism, and displays a screen from that position toward the conference desk, while the second display device displays a screen at the front position. Characterized by being configured to be able to change the posture to the second display posture,
conference system. As the first display device, two display devices arranged side by side at the front position are provided,
The moving mechanism moves the left and right display devices as first display devices to left and right lateral positions with respect to the conference desk, respectively, or diagonally in front of the conference desk, which is closer to the rear than the front position. move it to a position and display it on the screen from the moved position toward the conference desk,
Thereby, the first display posture is a posture in which the left and right display devices serving as the first display device display screens side by side at the front position,
In the second display posture, the left and right display devices as the first display devices are moved to the side position or the oblique front position by the movement mechanism, and from this position, the screen is displayed toward the conference desk, and the The second display device assumes a posture for screen display at the front position,
The conference system according to claim 1. a driving means for operating the moving mechanism;
a drive control means for controlling the drive means;
3. The conference system according to claim 1 or 2. A switching control means for switching and controlling the screen display of the display device is provided,
The switching control means interlocks with the drive control means, and controls screen display of each display device according to a change in the display orientation of the display device.
The conference system according to claim 3. As the second display device, there is provided a projection screen that moves up and down by being wound up/unrolled on a winding shaft provided at or near the ceiling at the front position, and means for driving up and down the projection screen; A lift control means for controlling the lift drive means is provided,
The elevation control means is linked to the drive control means of the movement mechanism, and controls the elevation operation of the second display device according to the change in the display orientation of the display device.
5. The conference system according to claim 3 or 4. An imaging camera for imaging attendees seated at the conference table is provided at the front front position, and
Elevation driving means for retracting and moving the imaging camera above or below the display screen area of the second display device, and elevation control means for controlling the elevation driving means are provided,
The elevation control means interlocks with the drive control means of the moving mechanism, and controls the elevation operation of the imaging camera according to a change in the display orientation of the display device.
The conference system according to any one of claims 3-5. The moving mechanism is
a support rod for suspending and supporting the first display device from the ceiling;
a rotating device provided on the upper part of the supporting rod for rotating the supporting rod around an axis;
a guide mechanism that guides movement from the front position to the side position or the oblique front position while supporting the rotation device together with the support rod;
a drive mechanism for moving the rotating device while being guided by the guide mechanism;
A conference system according to any one of claims 1 to 6. 7. The conference system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein each display device of said first display device and said second display device is a liquid crystal display, a projection screen, or an electronic blackboard.

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