JP7132903B2 - Operating device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an operating device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an operating device configured such that a reader of a toy main body reads operating mode information of an object to be read in a non-contact manner, and the toy main body operates based on the operating mode information (for example, Patent Document 1). reference).

JP-A-2004-329770

However, in the motion device of Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 6, the object to be read is a ball. When the ID tag of the ball has to be read, the tag of the ball may not be read because the antenna of the tag of the ball and the antenna of the tag reader do not properly face each other. In this case, the desired operation cannot be performed by the operating device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an operating device having a structure capable of reliably reading information from a tag incorporated in a rolling element.

The first means is
a rolling element containing a tag storing information that is electronic information;
a device main body having a tag reader that receives the information via an antenna, an output unit that outputs based on the information received by the tag reader, a clock unit that measures time, a storage unit, and a central processing unit ; with
The main body of the apparatus has an inlet for inserting the rolling elements, and a spiral feeding mechanism for conveying the rolling elements inserted from the inlet through a predetermined path while rolling by sliding contact in the order in which they are inserted. , is provided,
The antenna is arranged beside the passage of the spiral feeding mechanism, and the tag reader is configured to receive the information of the tag of the rolling body passing through a portion of the passage facing the antenna,
When the time during which there is a possibility that the information of the tag of one of the rolling bodies passing through the portion facing the antenna is received a plurality of times as a predetermined time,
When the tag reader receives the information, the central processing unit causes the timer to count the predetermined time from the time of reception of the information, and disables reception by the tag reader until the predetermined time elapses; Allowing reception by the tag reader after the predetermined time has elapsed,
It is characterized by
Here, the “rolling body” refers to a rolling sphere, polyhedron, or the like. Although not particularly limited, it is preferable that the main body of the apparatus is provided with a discharge port for discharging the rolling elements.

A second means is the first means, wherein the tag is a passive tag.

The third means is the first means or the second means ,
The central processing unit orders the information of the tag of the subsequent rolling body read while the output based on the information of the tag of the previous rolling body is continued, by a reception interrupt, and stores the information in the storage unit. and causing the output unit to sequentially execute the output based on the stored information after the continuation of the output.

The fourth means is any one of the first to third means ,
The apparatus main body is a toy main body in a running toy, and the information is operation mode information.

A fifth means is the fourth means ,
The toy main body is a locomotive toy in which a chimney, an operator's cab and a coal bunker are arranged in order from the front side to the rear side, and the coal bunker is formed with the inlet into which the rolling element can be inserted from above, A discharge port for discharging the rolling elements backward is formed at the upper end of the chimney, and the spiral feeding mechanism includes a first spiral feeding mechanism that conveys the rolling elements from the bottom of the coal bunker to the bottom of the chimney. , and a second spiral feed mechanism for raising the rolling element from the bottom to the top of the chimney .

A sixth means is the fifth means, characterized by comprising a passage for returning the rolling elements discharged from the discharge port to the input port.

According to the first means, since the rolling element introduced into the main body of the apparatus from the inlet is conveyed in a predetermined direction while rolling due to sliding contact with the spiral feed mechanism, the orientation of the antenna of the tag changes during conveyance. and the information can be reliably read through the tag reader. Therefore, the number of tag readers for reading information can be reduced.
Further, when the information is received, the output unit is caused to output based on the information, while the clock unit is caused to count a predetermined time from the time when the information is received, and the tag reader receives the information until the predetermined time elapses. is disabled, it is possible to prevent the tag of one rolling element from being read multiple times.

According to the second means, since the tag is a passive tag, it is cheaper than an active tag.

According to the third means , while the output based on the information of the tag of the previous rolling body is performed, the information of the tag of the subsequent rolling body read while the output is continued is sequentially stored and stored. It is possible to cause the output unit to sequentially perform output based on the stored information later.

According to the fourth means , it is possible to realize an action toy having a structure in which the information of the tag incorporated in the rolling element can be reliably read.

According to the fifth means , throwing in the rolling elements from the coal bunker gives the image of coal being fed into the boiler, and discharging the rolling elements from the chimney gives the image of smoke being emitted. An interesting action toy can be realized.

According to the sixth means , since the rolling elements can be circulated, the repetitive operation mode can be changed.

1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of an action toy of an embodiment; FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the internal structure of the locomotive toy. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a motor drive device and moving parts operated by the motor drive device; It is the perspective view which showed the connection structure of a motor drive and a spiral feed mechanism. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the ball; FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the control configuration of the action toy; 4 is a flowchart showing operation control processing; It is the side view which showed the modification of the motion toy of embodiment.

"overall structure"
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of an operating device according to an embodiment.
The motion device of the embodiment is a motion toy 100 comprising a locomotive toy 10 as a toy body and a ball 70 as a rolling element. Ball 70 may be polyhedral.
The toy locomotive 10 has a smoke chamber 11 and a chimney 12 in the front, an operator's cab 13 in the middle, and a coal bunker 14 in the rear. An inlet 15 for the balls 70 is formed in the upper surface of the coal bunker 14 , and an outlet 16 for the balls 70 is formed in the upper end of the chimney 12 . Driving wheels 17 are provided on the left and right sides of the boundary between the cab 13 and the coal bunker 14 , and follower wheels 18 are provided on the left and right sides of the smoke chamber 11 . Casters 19 are provided under the front portion of the locomotive toy 10 (Fig. 2).
An RF tag (RFID tag) 71 is incorporated in the ball 70 . The RF tag 71 stores operation mode information in the form of electronic data. In this embodiment, a plurality of balls 70 having the same outer shape and different operation mode information are prepared.
In the action toy 100 of this embodiment, when a player throws a ball 70 into the throwing port 15 of the coal bunker 14, the locomotive toy 10 sequentially operates in the action mode corresponding to the thrown ball 70. It is configured. The action in response to the ball 70 is, for example, advancing, retreating, turning left, turning right, turning left, turning right, or changing the movement speed. This action may also include stopping. These operations are performed by controlling the presence/absence of rotation of the left and right drive wheels 17, 17, the direction of rotation, and the speed of rotation.

《Detailed composition》
Details of the motion toy 100 will be described below. The locomotive toy 10 is powered by four dry batteries, although not particularly limited. Although not shown, the dry battery can be replaced from below the chassis. In addition, a power knob is provided under the chassis. The ball 70 is hollow inside and can be split in half as shown in FIG. An RF tag 71 is fixedly provided while being supported by a support plate.

locomotive toy 10
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the locomotive toy.
A ball passage 20 is formed in the locomotive toy 10 through the coal bunker 14, the cab 13, the smoke chamber 11 and the chimney 12. The ball passage 20 includes a first passage 20a formed in the coal bunker 14, a second passage 20b formed over the coal bunker 14, the operator's cab 13 and the smoke chamber 11, and a second passage 20 b formed over the smoke chamber 11 and the chimney 12. and a third passage 20c formed. The ball 70 entering from the inlet 15 passes through the first passage 20a, the second passage 20b and the third passage 20c in this order and is discharged from the discharge port 16. As shown in FIG.

Here, the first passage 20a extends in the vertical direction of the coal bunker 14, and the inlet 15 is formed at the upper end of the first passage 20a. The inlet 15 narrows downward from the edge of the coal bunker 14 in a funnel shape. A portion of the first passage 20a below the inlet 15 is a circular vertical hole 21 (FIG. 1).
The second passage 20b extends in the front-back direction of the toy locomotive 10, and its rear portion communicates with the lower end of the first passage 20a. The second passage 20b is defined by a first arcuate portion 22b of a guide member 22, which will be described later, and a forward spiral feed mechanism (first spiral feed mechanism) 23, which will be described later, arranged below the first arcuate portion 22b. ing.
The third passage 20c extends in the vertical direction of the smoke chamber 11 and the chimney 12, and the discharge port 16 is formed at the upper end of the third passage 20c. The third passage 20c is formed in a substantially circular vertical hole 24 (FIG. 1), into which the second arcuate portion 22c of the guide member 22 is inserted from below, and the upward spiral feeding mechanism ( A second spiral feeding mechanism) 25 is installed. A part of the upper end of the chimney 12 is notched in the rear part, and the ball 70 is discharged rearward from the notched part.

The guide member 22 is formed in an L shape when viewed from the side. That is, the guide member 22 has a first arcuate portion 22b that extends in the front-rear direction and is curved so that the lower side is concave, and a second arcuate portion 22c that extends in the vertical direction and is curved so that the front side is concave. Prepare. A shaft support plate 22c is attached to the upper end of the second arcuate portion 22c to support the upper end of a shaft 25a of an upward spiral feed mechanism 25, which will be described later. Further, the first arc-shaped portion 22b is provided at a position where the antenna of the plate-like tag reader 27 does not come into sliding contact with the ball 70. As shown in FIG. The antenna of the tag reader 27 is located above the shaft 23a of the forward spiral feeding mechanism 23, which will be described later, and is provided facing the shaft 23a. The tag reader 27 is a passive RF tag reader and has a planar antenna.

As shown in FIG. 3, the forward spiral feed mechanism 23 is provided with spiral blades 23b extending along a straight shaft 23a. The forward spiral feeding mechanism 23 receives the ball 70 thrown into the input port 15 and dropped in the first passage 20a, and pushes the ball 70 forward by the blades 23b rotating following the rotation of the shaft 23a. along the third passage 20c. During this time, the ball 70 is in sliding contact with the blades 23b and the like and rotates (rolls) on the shaft 23a.

As shown in FIG. 4, the upward spiral feed mechanism 25 is provided with spiral blades 25b extending along a straight shaft 25a. The upper spiral feed mechanism 25 receives the ball 70 from the front spiral feed mechanism 23, pushes the ball 70 with the blades 25b that rotate following the rotation of the shaft 25a, and conveys the ball 70 above the third passage 20c. A push rod 25c is attached to the upper portion of the shaft 25a of the upward spiral feed mechanism 25, and the ball 70 is pushed out above the third passage 20c and discharged rearward from the discharge port 16 by the push rod 25c.

As shown in FIG. 3, the locomotive toy 10 includes a motor driving device 30 for driving the left driving wheel 17, a motor driving device 31 for driving the right driving wheel 17, a forward spiral feed mechanism 23, and a A motor drive 32 is provided for driving the upper spiral feed mechanism 25 .

The motor drive device 30 includes a motor 30 a ( FIG. 6 ) as a power source and a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the power of the motor 30 a to the left driving wheel 17 . The output shaft of this motor drive device 30 constitutes the axle of the left driving wheel 17 . The output shaft and the axle of the driving wheel 17 may be coupled so that their axes are aligned, or may be coupled by a gear mechanism. Also, the motor 30a and the power transmission mechanism are housed in one box 30b. Here, the motor 30a is a motor capable of forward and reverse rotation.

The motor drive device 31 includes a motor 31a (FIG. 6) as a power source and a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the power of the motor 31a to the driving wheel 17 on the right side. The output shaft of this motor drive device 31 constitutes the axle of the right driving wheel 17 . The output shaft and the axle of the driving wheel 17 may be coupled so that their axes are aligned, or may be coupled by a gear mechanism. The motor 31a and power transmission mechanism are housed in one box 31b. Here, the motor 31a is a motor capable of forward and reverse rotation.

The motor drive device 32 includes a motor 32a (FIG. 6) as a power source, and a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the power of the motor 30a to the forward spiral feed mechanism 23 and the upward spiral feed mechanism 25. . A motor 32a and part of the power transmission mechanism are housed in one box 32b. As shown in FIG. 4, the shaft 25a of the upper spiral feed mechanism 25 is attached to the shaft 32c projecting upright from the box 32b so as to be axially aligned. A gear (crown gear) 32d is attached to the shaft 32c. The gear 32d is meshed with a gear 32f fixed to the front end of a shaft 32e extending in the front-rear direction. A gear 32g is fixed to the rear end of the shaft 32e, and the gear 32g is meshed with a gear 32h at the front end of the shaft 23a of the forward spiral feed mechanism 23. As shown in FIG. In addition, in FIG. 4, the gear 32g and the gear 32h are separated from each other for the convenience of drawing.

(control configuration)
FIG. 6 shows the control configuration of the motion toy 100. As shown in FIG.
The action toy 100 has a central processing unit 40, a main memory device 41, and an auxiliary memory device 42 as a control configuration.

The central processing unit 40 comprises a control unit 40a and an arithmetic unit 40b.
Predetermined programs and various data are stored in the auxiliary storage device 42 . As data, data necessary for executing various programs, a plurality of music data, sound effect data, and the like are stored.
The central processing unit 40 appropriately reads programs and various data and executes control and calculation. The main storage device 41 serves as a work area, and temporarily stores programs and various data as necessary.

The motion toy 100 also includes a tag reader 27, a clock section 44, a sound output section 45, and motors 30a, 31a, and 32a as control components.
The tag reader 27 supplies power to the RF tag 71 and receives data including operation mode information from the RF tag 71 in a contactless manner.
Upon receiving a timing start command TMC from the central processing unit 40, the timing unit 44 starts measuring the elapsed specified time (T2) from that time, and when the elapsed specified time (T2) is detected, the timing interrupt TIT is centrally processed. Send to device 40 . After that, the clock unit 44 does not clock until it receives a new clock start command TMC from the central processing unit 40 . In this case, the predetermined time (T2) is such that the operation mode information of one ball 70 passing through the tag reader 27 is not read more than twice, while the operation mode information of the balls 70 continuously inserted from the slot 15 is read. The time is set so that the information can be reliably read one by one in the order in which it was entered. For example, this predetermined time (T2) is set to the time during which the forward spiral feed mechanism 23 feeds one ball 70 forward.
Note that the sound output unit 45 outputs music and sound effects during operation under the control of the central processing unit 40 .

(control processing)
As shown in FIG. 7, in this action toy 100, when the power is turned on, the central processing unit 40 performs initial setting processing (step S1). In the initialization process, the central processing unit 40 sets the operation mode to the initial operation mode. Although not particularly limited, in the action toy 100 of the embodiment, the initial action mode is the stationary mode. Also, in the initial setting process, the central processing unit 40 sets the receive interrupt acceptable state and turns off the operation mode designation flag FG.
Subsequently, the central processing unit 40 performs the control processing of the initial operation mode operation in step S2 to continue the initial operation mode operation. Check the value regularly. The central processing unit 40 continues the operation in the initial operation mode unless the operation mode designation flag FG is turned ON, and when the operation mode designation flag FG is turned ON, the operation mode designation flag FG is turned OFF and the next operation mode is selected. An operation control process (step 4) is executed.

A receive interrupt RIT is sent to the central processing unit 40 when the tag reader 27 receives a single batch of data from the RF tag 71 on the ball 70 during the continuation of the initial operation mode operation. When the central processing unit 40 receives the reception interrupt RIT, it starts reception interrupt processing (step 3).
In the reception interrupt process, the central processing unit 40 sets the reception interruption unacceptable state (step 31), and reads the operation mode information included in the data of the RF tag 71 (step S32). Then, the central processing unit 40 turns ON the operation mode designation flag FG (step S33), issues a timing start command TMC (step S34), and causes the timing unit 44 to start measuring the passage of the designated time (T2) from that time. Let

Then, when the operation mode designation flag FG is turned ON in step S2, the central processing unit 40 sets the designated operation mode read in step S32 as the next operation mode, and performs control processing for the next operation mode operation (step S4). Continue operation mode operation. Further, during the continuation of the next operation mode operation, the central processing unit 40 periodically checks the value of the operation mode designation flag FG. Then, the central processing unit 40 continues the next operation mode operation unless the operation mode designation flag FG is turned ON, and turns off the operation mode designation flag FG when the operation mode designation flag FG is turned ON. Execute control processing for operation mode operation.

Further, during the continuation of the operation in the next operation mode, when the timer unit 44 detects that the specified time (T2) has passed, it sends a timer interrupt TIT to the central processing unit 40 . As a result, the central processing unit 40 performs a timing interrupt process (step S5). When the central processing unit 40 receives this timing interrupt TIT, it is set to a receiving interrupt acceptable state (step S51). Thereafter, when the tag reader 27 receives data for one time from the RF tag 71 of the ball 70 while the next operation mode operation is continuing, a reception interrupt RIT is sent to the central processing unit 40 . When the central processing unit 40 receives the reception interrupt RIT, it starts reception interrupt processing. In this reception interrupt process, the same process as in step S3 is performed.

<<Modification>>
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments, and various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the invention.

For example, as shown in FIG. 8, a path 50 may be provided for returning the ball 70 from the outlet 16 toward the inlet 15 . One end of the passage 50 can be inserted into the chimney 12 and is preferably detachable, but it may be fixed. With such a configuration, it is possible to change the repetition operation mode. In the case of the toy locomotive 10, the passage 40 preferably undulates vertically when viewed from the side so that it looks like smoke.

In the above embodiment, when the operation mode information held in the RF tag 71 of the ball 70 is read by the tag reader 27, the operation corresponding to the read operation mode information is immediately performed. You may make it perform time continuously.
In this case, the operation mode information of the RF tags of the other balls 70 read while continuing the operation based on the operation mode information of the RF tag of the previous ball 70 is ordered by the reception interrupt and stored. , the operations based on the stored operation mode information can be sequentially executed.
Further, all the operation mode information of the RF tags of the ball 70 can be stored in order, and then the operations based on the stored operation mode information can be sequentially executed.
In these cases as well, it is preferable that the timing unit clocks a predetermined period of time from the time when the one operation mode information is received, and that the reception interrupt is disabled during the clocking. By doing so, it is possible to prevent erroneous operation due to multiple reading of the operation mode information of one ball 70 .

In the above embodiment, the action of the action toy 100 is the running action, but it is not limited to the running action. It can be applied to all motion toys that do. The operation in this case includes general outputs such as sound output operation, light output operation, and display operation.

Also, the present invention can be applied not only to motion toys but also to motion devices in general having an output unit. In this case, it is also possible to store article information in the RF tag in place of or together with the operation mode information. For example, a capsule container or the like containing an article is used as the rolling element, a tag is attached to the capsule container or the article, or a tag is inserted in the capsule container, and information about the article is sent to the device main body (display device main body). can be made to display.

Furthermore, the information stored in the RF tag may be arbitrarily changed not only by the manufacturer but also by the user according to predetermined rules.

10 locomotive toy 11 smoke chamber 12 chimney 13 cab 14 coal bunker 15 inlet 16 outlet 20 ball passage 23 forward spiral feed mechanism 25 upward spiral feed mechanism 27 tag reader 70 ball 71 RF tag 100 motion toy

Claims (6)

a rolling element containing a tag storing information that is electronic information;
a device main body having a tag reader that receives the information via an antenna, an output unit that outputs based on the information received by the tag reader, a clock unit that measures time, a storage unit, and a central processing unit ; with
The main body of the apparatus has an inlet for inserting the rolling elements, and a spiral feeding mechanism for conveying the rolling elements inserted from the inlet through a predetermined path while rolling by sliding contact in the order in which they are inserted. , is provided,
The antenna is arranged beside the passage of the spiral feeding mechanism, and the tag reader is configured to receive the information of the tag of the rolling body passing through a portion of the passage facing the antenna,
When the time during which there is a possibility that the information of the tag of one of the rolling bodies passing through the portion facing the antenna is received a plurality of times as a predetermined time,
When the tag reader receives the information, the central processing unit causes the timer to count the predetermined time from the time of reception of the information, and disables reception by the tag reader until the predetermined time elapses; Allowing reception by the tag reader after the predetermined time has elapsed,
An operating device characterized by: 2. The operating device according to claim 1, wherein said tag is a passive tag. The central processing unit orders the information of the tag of the subsequent rolling body read while the output based on the information of the tag of the previous rolling body is continued, by a reception interrupt, and stores the information in the storage unit. 3. The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the output based on the stored information is sequentially executed by the output unit after the continuation of the output. 4. The motion device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the device body is a toy body of a running toy, and the information is motion mode information. The toy main body is a locomotive toy in which a chimney, an operator's cab and a coal bunker are arranged in order from the front side to the rear side, and the coal bunker is formed with the inlet into which the rolling element can be inserted from above, A discharge port for discharging the rolling elements backward is formed at the upper end of the chimney, and the spiral feeding mechanism includes a first spiral feeding mechanism that conveys the rolling elements from the bottom of the coal bunker to the bottom of the chimney. and a second spiral feed mechanism for raising the rolling element from the bottom to the top of the chimney. 6. The operating device according to claim 5 , further comprising a passage for returning the rolling elements discharged from the discharge port to the input port.

Images