JP2001092479A - Vocalizing toy and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an interactive toy or the like permitting to easily alter vocalized voices by storing voice data in an independent and replaceable storage medium. SOLUTION: The toy 100 is an interactive toy of a virtual animal shape, and is provided with a ROM card 120 so as to be able to be loaded and replaced in a ROM card housing opening provided on a bottom face 100c. Then, when the toy 100 utters voice, the voice data are read from the laded ROM card 120 and vocalized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a two-way vocal toy or the like that responds based on an external stimulus such as an action performed by a user (touch, stroke, tilt, emit sound) or a change in light quantity.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Doll-shaped vocal toys such as animals capable of talking and moving body parts have been developed.
As an example of such a vocal toy, there is a two-way vocal toy that responds based on an external stimulus such as an action performed by the user (touch, stroke, tilt, emit sound) or a change in the amount of light. FIG. 5 shows an external perspective view of the vocal toy 200.

[0003] The configuration and operation of the vocal toy 200 will be briefly described below. In FIG. 5, the vocal toy 200 has an ear 31, an eye 32, a mouth 33, and a leg 34 as operation parts. The ears 31 are configured to stand up, down, or down along the side surface of the vocal toy 200 to express a sleeping state, a normal state, an excited state, and the like. The eye 32 is configured to open and close the eyelids 32a to represent a state in which the vocal toy 200 is awake, a sleepy state, a sleeping state, and the like. Further, the mouth 33 is configured to be able to speak by outputting (speaking) sound from a speaker (not shown) together with the opening / closing operation, and to express such as eating food by pressing down the tongue in the mouth 33. Have been. The leg 34 is provided at the lower rear part of the voice toy 200, and expands and contracts downward in the figure, so that the voice toy 2
It is configured to be capable of expressing the movement of the body of the vocal toy 200, such as pushing up 00 in the figure or returning it to its original state.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an internal circuit 201 for controlling each part of the vocal toy 200. As shown in FIG. The internal circuit 201 includes a CPU 2, a motor control unit 3, a voice utterance unit 4, a sound detection unit 5, a light detection unit 6, a tilt detection unit 7, a press detection unit 8, an IR transmission / reception unit 9, RAM10
And a ROM 11, and each unit is a bus 13.
Is centrally controlled by the CPU 2 via the.

[0005] The CPU 2 includes a sound detection unit 5, a light detection unit 6,
After judging the state of the vocal toy 200 based on the detection signals input from the inclination detection unit 7, the pressure detection unit 8, and the IR transmission / reception unit 9, an instruction signal for moving the operation part is output to the motor control unit 3. Then, an instruction signal for producing a voice is output to the voice uttering unit 4. The CPU 2 grows the vocal toy 200 based on the input detection signal.
That is, the CPU 2 outputs an instruction signal corresponding to the growth degree based on the type of the detection signal, the input frequency of the specific detection signal, the lapse of the power-on time of the toy, and the like. Change actions (including utterances) and words to utter.

[0006] For example, for a certain period of time, a child
If the CPU 2 does not play, that is, if the detection signal is not input to the CPU 2 for a certain period of time, the CPU 2 changes the current growth rate to a growth rate indicating a disease, and
Half open, lay down the ears 31 and say, "I'm sick."
Is performed. The operation (including the utterance) according to the growth degree, that is, the output of the instruction signal is naturally programmed. Therefore, C
The instruction signal to be output is changed by the PU 2 changing the degree of growth.

Further, the CPU 2 realizes communication with another vocal toy 200 via an infrared signal by outputting an instruction signal to the IR transmitting / receiving section 9 and inputting a detection signal from the IR transmitting / receiving section 9, and , Or performing an operation such as dancing with another vocal toy 200 or changing the growth degree.

The motor control unit 3 drives a motor for operating the ear 31, the eye 32, the mouth 33, and the leg 34 via a cam mechanism or the like (not shown). It changes according to the signal. That is, the vocal toy 2
Based on the instruction signal from the CPU 2 which is changed / input according to the state of 00, the motor control unit 3 changes the driving amount of the motor to raise the ear 31, close the eyes 32, and open the mouth 33. Let In addition, the voice uttering unit 4 reads voice data stored in the ROM 11 according to an instruction signal input from the CPU 2 and outputs the voice data from a speaker (not shown).

The sound detector 5 detects a clapping sound or the like with a microphone installed in the housing of the vocal toy 200 and outputs a detection signal to the CPU 2. Light detector 6
In FIG. 5, the amount (intensity) of light around the voice toy 200 is detected by an optical sensor installed in a window 61 imitating a ribbon, and a detection signal is output to the CPU 2. I do. The tilt detection unit 7 detects the tilt of the voice toy 200, for example, that the voice toy 200 has been turned upside down, and outputs a detection signal to the CPU 2 using a tilt switch installed in the housing of the voice toy 200. . Press detection unit 8
Are composed of pressure switches installed at a plurality of locations under the outer skin 200a, that is, on the surface of the housing of the vocal toy 200, and spring switches disposed on the tongue in the mouth 33.
It detects that the stomach of 0 is tickled, strokes the back, or is fed, and outputs a detection signal to the CPU 2.

The IR (InfraRed) transmission / reception unit 9
In response to an instruction signal input from the CPU 2, an infrared signal is emitted from an infrared light emitting unit provided in the window 61, and an infrared signal received from the infrared light receiving unit also provided in the window 61 is converted into an electric signal. And outputs it to the CPU 2 as a detection signal. The transmission / reception of the infrared signal by the IR transmitting / receiving unit 9 performs operations such as transferring a disease to another vocal toy 200, dancing and talking with the other vocal toy 200.

The RAM 10 is an SRAM (Static Random).
Access Memory) is formed on the board of the internal circuit 201 and forms a memory area for temporarily storing various processing data executed by the CPU 2, and an instruction signal output from the CPU 2 and an input to the CPU 2 The detected detection signal and the like are temporarily stored. ROM 11
It is a rewritable ROM (Read Only Memory) constituted by a flash memory or the like, and makes various kinds of processing programs executed by the CPU 2, for example, when feeding is given, utters eating voice such as “Yam Yum”. Further, in addition to a program for uttering a burp sound such as “up” when the back is stroked, a program for outputting an instruction signal corresponding to the growth degree of the vocal toy 200 is stored. The ROM 11 stores the voice data read by the voice uttering unit 4 and the CPU.
2 stores various data such as the growth degree of the vocal toy 200 which is rewritten by 2.

As described above, the vocal toy 200 realizes a two-way vocal toy that shows various expressions and utters various words according to the movement of the child (user) such as stroking, tickling, and talking. Have been.

[0013]

However, since such an interactive toy has a program of voice data and actions (including voice) related to the voice, it is difficult to sell it in various countries around the world. Speak the language of the country, you need to develop a country-specific program. In addition, even if the language is the same, there is a similar problem when it is desired to provide a vocal toy that speaks a dialect or the like, or a baby language. Therefore, if the main program portion relating to the operation (including vocalization) of the vocal toy can be shared and voice data in different languages can be exchanged separately and independently depending on each country, dialect, etc., the vocal toy speaking different languages Can be easily provided.

Further, by physically separating the voice toy from the exchangeable voice data, it is possible to reduce the cost of developing the voice toy, the number of stocks, and the like. It can be carried out.

An object of the present invention is to provide a two-way vocal toy or the like which can store voice data in an independent and exchangeable storage medium and can easily change words to be uttered.

[0016]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a vocal toy according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of voice data having a predetermined meaning and a plurality of voice data for identifying each of the plurality of voice data. Storage means (for example, ROM 11 in FIG. 4) for storing the identification codes in association with each other, and reading means (for example, CPU 2 in FIG. 4) for reading out the associated voice data from the storage means based on the identification codes
And an audio output unit (e.g., the audio utterance unit 4 in FIG. 4) for outputting an audio based on the audio data read by the reading unit, wherein the audio data stored in the storage unit is It is characterized by reading out based on the identification code.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the voice data is associated with the identification code, the voice data stored in the storage means can be expressed by different words having the same meaning and content using the identification code as a clue. By simply rewriting the voice data, it is possible to easily change to a vocal toy that speaks different words having the same meaning. Therefore, it is possible to easily provide a voice toy that speaks a language unique to each country, a voice toy that speaks a language such as a dialect, and the like. In addition, throughout this specification, "different words" means a variety of different words, including words and dialects from around the world, as well as words due to differences in personality such as gender and age, and naughty and quiet. It is.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the vocal toy according to the first aspect, wherein the same identification code as the identification code stored in the storage means, and the voice data stored in the storage means. A removable storage medium (for example, the ROM card 120 in FIG. 1) for storing audio data having substantially the same meaning and different words in association with each other is provided, and the storage medium is mounted. In this case, the reading unit may be configured to preferentially read the audio data stored in the storage medium.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, by mounting the storage medium, it is possible to easily change a word spoken when the memory medium is not mounted to another language. For this reason, by mounting a storage medium storing voice data in a desired language, it is possible to easily realize a vocal toy that performs voice expression in a desired language.

Further, as in the third aspect of the invention, in the vocal toy according to the first aspect, the storage means may be configured as a removable storage medium (for example, the ROM card 120 in FIG. 1).

Further, as in the invention according to claim 4, in the utterance toy according to claim 3, the same identification code as the identification code stored in the storage means, and the voice data stored in the storage means. The other storage medium different from the storage medium, which has substantially the same meaning content and stores audio data in different words in association with each other, when the storage medium is replaced with the storage medium and attached, The voice data stored in the storage means may be switched to different voice data words stored in the other storage medium, and a predetermined voice expression having substantially the same meaning may be performed.

Further, the storage medium of the invention according to claim 6 is:
It is characterized in that voice data having a predetermined meaning and an identification code for identifying the voice data are stored in association with each other, and based on the identification code, voice data having a predetermined meaning is suitable to be read. I have.

According to the third, fourth and sixth aspects of the present invention, the storage means is constituted by a removable storage medium, and can be replaced with another storage medium. For this reason, by preparing another storage medium storing audio data in a desired language and replacing it with the attached storage medium,
It is possible to easily and easily realize a vocal toy that speaks a language unique to each country, a vocal toy that speaks a language such as a dialect, and the like.
Conventionally, a toy that utters a predetermined word has been produced and managed for each uttered word. However, according to the present invention, production / management of a plurality of types of storage media in which voice data is stored can be separated from production / management of a vocal toy. Adjustment can be easily realized.

Also, as in the invention according to claim 5, in the vocal toy according to any of claims 1 to 4, the vocal toy may be a doll-shaped two-way vocal toy.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the vocal toy is a doll-shaped vocal toy, and further includes actions (touching, stroking, tilting, emitting sound) and light quantity performed by the user. It is a two-way vocal toy that responds based on external stimuli such as changes. Therefore, it is possible to provide an even more interesting vocal toy having a long life cycle.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the storage medium of the sixth aspect, the storage medium may be formed in a card shape or a stick shape.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the storage medium is a card type or a stick type, even a user (child) can easily mount / replace the storage medium. In addition, since it is a card type or a stick type, for example, the storage medium can be easily mounted without impairing the beauty of the voice toy by being attached to the bottom of the voice toy or the body so as to be hidden by the body hair of the outer skin 100a.・ Can be replaced.

[0028]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A bidirectional vocal toy 100 to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS.

First, the configuration will be described. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the vocal toy 100 and the ROM card 120.

In FIG. 1, a vocal toy 100 is a bidirectional vocal toy in the shape of a fictitious animal, and has a bottom surface 100c.
ROM card storage port 12a provided in the camera (see FIG. 2)
The ROM card 120 is configured to be attachable / replaceable. When the utterance toy 100 utters, the voice data is read out from the attached ROM card 120 and is uttered. In this embodiment, this R
Although the description will be made assuming that the OM card 120 stores voice data, control data, a program, and the like relating to the operation may be stored. And voiced toy 1
00 may read the program or the like from the inserted ROM card 120 and perform various operations according to the program or the like.

Also, throughout this specification, the “operation” of a toy
Means that the utterance includes the utterance, and does not include the utterance.

The vocal toy 100 is a conventional toy 100 shown in FIGS.
Is a vocal toy that includes the functions of the interactive vocal toy 200 shown in FIG. 5, and the same parts as those of the conventional vocal toy 200 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted, and different points will be mainly described. .

FIG. 2A is a bottom view of the vocal toy 100 with the outer skin 100a removed. On the bottom surface 100c of the vocal toy 100, a screwed battery case lid 100d is provided.
And a ROM card storage opening 12a.

FIG. 2B is an enlarged view of the connection terminal 120a of the ROM card 120. ROM card 120
This is a ROM (Read Only Memory) card for storing voice data.
0 is inserted into the ROM card storage opening 12a, and the toy 1
Stored and mounted in 00. Also, the connection terminal 120a
Is a connector having a plurality of concave terminals. When the ROM card 120 is inserted from the ROM card storage opening 12a, the connector is configured to be fitted and connected to a convex connection terminal provided inside the vocal toy 100. ing.

The ROM card 120 is a PCMC.
IA (Personal Computer Memory Card International
Association) -compliant memory card or a storage medium such as a smart media, but it is desirable that the storage medium be an inexpensive and small-sized storage medium capable of realizing high-speed reading of audio data. The shape is preferably a card shape or a stick shape. Because it does not impair the beauty of the vocal toy 100, that is,
This is because the mechanical elements need not be known from the external appearance. If the mechanical elements are not known from the external appearance, for example, a ROM card mounting portion 12 is provided on the body, and a card-shaped or stick-shaped storage medium is stored in the body. It may be exchanged. In this case, since the storage medium is hidden by the hair of the outer skin 100a, the appearance of the vocal toy 100 is not impaired. In view of the necessity of replacing the ROM card 120 by a user (child) or the like, the reason that the shape is easy for the user (child) or the like to handle is the reason why the ROM card 120 is desired to have a card shape or a stick shape. one of.

FIG. 3A is a diagram showing an example of audio data stored in an English ROM card 121 which is one of the ROM cards 120, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of audio data stored in a Japanese ROM card 122 which is a Japanese language.

3A and 3B, each voice data is stored in association with a "code No. (identification code)", and furthermore, the same "code No."
Stores voice data having substantially the same meaning. For example, in FIG.
21 is “Good morning!”, While the “Code No.” of the Japanese ROM card 122 in FIG. 3B is “0”.
The voice data of "01" is "Good morning!" As described above, even in different ROM cards 120, audio data having the same meaning is stored in the audio data of the same “code No.”. Therefore, even if the ROM card 120 is different, the audio data having the same meaning can be read by reading the audio data based on the “code No.”.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an internal circuit 101 for controlling each part of the vocal toy 100. As shown in FIG. The difference from the conventional internal circuit 201 shown in FIG.
The voice data read out when the card storage unit 12 is newly provided and uttered is read out from the ROM card 120 stored and mounted in the ROM card storage unit 12.

The ROM card 120 is connected to the bus 13 when inserted and mounted in the ROM card storage section 12 through the ROM card storage port 12a. And CPU
ROM based on the "code No."
The voice data is read from the card 120 and output to the voice utterance unit 4.

Next, the operation will be described. Conventionally, the CPU 2
When a voice is uttered from the voice utterance unit 4, the ROM 1
1, the voice data is read out, and the specified voice data is read out and output to the voice utterance unit 4, whereby the voice data is uttered.

In the present invention, first, the CPU 2 specifies a "code No." corresponding to voice data to be uttered. Next, the specified “code No.” is output to the ROM card 120 attached to the ROM card storage unit 12. Then, the audio data corresponding to the “code No.” is read from the ROM card 120 and output to the audio utterance unit 4. Next, the voice utterance unit 4 performs utterance based on the input voice data as in the related art.

As described above, in the utterance toy 100 to which the present invention is applied, the voice data at the time of utterance is read out from the ROM card 120 stored and mounted in the ROM card storage unit 12. Furthermore, since the voice data stored in the ROM card 120 is associated with the “code No.”
Even if the ROM card 120 is in a different language, the CPU 2 can read out the voice data having substantially the same meaning and make a utterance simply by specifying the “code No.”.

Therefore, by exchanging the ROM card 120, it is possible to realize a speech toy capable of easily speaking another language.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the contents of the above-described embodiment, but can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
Even in Japanese, by preparing a ROM card 120 storing voice data of dialects such as the Tohoku dialect and the Kansai dialect, it is possible to easily realize a vocal toy that speaks a dialect.

Further, by preparing a ROM card 120 storing voice data such as naughty boy's words, gentle girl's words, baby's words, etc., the illusion that the characteristics differ for each voiced toy can be provided to the user (child). And a more interesting vocal toy can be provided.

Furthermore, although the present invention has been described as being applied only to words to be uttered, a program relating to the operation performed by the toy toy 100 is stored in a ROM card similar to the ROM card 120, and provided. The vocal toy 100 may perform different operations depending on the card. That is, for example, the program name to be executed when the vocal toy 100 wakes up from sleep is “A”, and the ROM
A program for performing a different operation may be stored for each card while the program name is “A”.

Although the above description has been made on the assumption that audio data is stored in the removable ROM card 120, the ROM 11
Code No. in The (identification code) and the audio data may be stored in association with each other, and the audio data in the ROM 11 may be read based on the identification code. And furthermore,
A voice data rewriting terminal is provided on the bottom surface 100c of the vocal toy 100, and the voice data in the ROM 11 is rewritten through this terminal, thereby easily changing to a vocal toy that speaks a different language. be able to. Further, since there is no need to use the ROM card 120, it is possible to provide a vocal toy with less trouble.

The code No. is stored in the ROM 11. And the voice data are stored in association with each other.
The M card 120 is configured to be detachable, and the ROM card 1
When the ROM 20 is not mounted, the audio data stored in the ROM 11 may be read, and when the ROM card 120 is mounted, the audio data stored in the ROM card 120 may be preferentially read. In this case, for example, the following production / inventory adjustment is possible. That is, the utterance toy 100 that speaks standard words, in which voice data of standard words is stored in the ROM 11, and the ROM card 120 for other words are produced. And
As needed, the ROM card 120 is mounted on the vocal toy 100 and sold, or only the ROM card 120 is sold. This makes it possible to easily reduce development and production costs, adjust inventory, and the like. Also, when the user (child) loses the ROM card 120,
Only standard words (minimum words) can be provided for speaking toys.

[0049]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the voice data is read out based on the identification code, the voice data can be easily expressed in different words simply by rewriting the voice data stored in the storage means. Toys can be provided. Therefore, it is possible to easily provide a vocal toy that speaks a language unique to each country, a vocal toy that speaks a dialect, or the like.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, by mounting the storage medium, it is possible to easily change a word spoken when the memory medium is not mounted to another language. For this reason, by mounting a storage medium storing voice data in a desired language, it is possible to easily realize a vocal toy that performs voice expression in a desired language.

According to the third, fourth and sixth aspects of the present invention,
The storage means is constituted by a removable storage medium, and can be replaced with another storage medium. For this reason, by preparing another storage medium storing voice data in a desired language and replacing it with the installed storage medium, it is possible to easily and easily speak voice toys or dialects that speak a language unique to each country. It is possible to realize a vocal toy or the like that speaks words. Also,
Conventionally, a vocal toy that utters a predetermined word has been produced and managed for each uttered word. However, according to the present invention, production / management of a plurality of types of storage media in which voice data is stored can be separated from production / management of a vocal toy. Adjustment can be easily realized.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the vocal toy is a doll-shaped vocal toy, and a change (a touch, a stroke, a tilt, a sound, etc.) or an amount of light performed by the user. It is a two-way vocal toy that responds based on such external stimuli. For this reason, it is even more interesting,
A vocal toy having a long life cycle can be provided.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the storage medium is of a card type or a stick type, even a user (child) can easily mount and exchange the storage medium. In addition, since the storage medium is in the form of a card or a stick, for example, by attaching the storage medium to the bottom of the voice toy or the inside of the ear, the appearance of the voice toy is not impaired, and the storage medium can be easily mounted and replaced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a vocal toy 100 and a ROM card 120 to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2A is a bottom view of the vocal toy 100 with the outer skin 100a removed. (B) is an enlarged view of the connection terminal 120a of the ROM card 120.

FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating an example of audio data stored in an English ROM card 121 which is one of the ROM cards 120. FIG. 3B is a diagram showing an example of audio data stored in a Japanese ROM card 122, which is also one of the ROM cards 120.

FIG. 4 is an internal circuit 10 for controlling each part of the vocal toy 100;
1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of FIG.

FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of a conventional vocal toy 200.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an internal circuit 201 that controls each section of a conventional vocal toy 200.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 voice toy 12a ROM card insertion opening 101 internal circuit 2 CPU 3 motor control unit 4 voice utterance unit 5 sound detection unit 6 light detection unit 7 tilt detection unit 8 press detection unit 9 IR transmission / reception unit 10 RAM 11 ROM 12 ROM card insertion unit 120 ROM card 121 English ROM card 122 Japanese ROM card

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat II (reference) G10K 15/04 302 G06K 19/00 T G10L 19/00 Q G10L 9/18 J F term (reference) 2C150 BA11 CA01 CA02 CA02 DF03 DF04 DF06 DF08 DF32 DF33 DF34 ED53 ED55 ED56 EF16 EF23 EF29 EF33 5B035 BB09 BC05 CA22 5D045 AA07 AA20 AB11 DB01 5D108 CA02 CA07 CA12 CA13 CA16 CA19 CA25

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A storage means for storing a large number of voice data having a predetermined meaning and associated identification codes for identifying each of the plurality of voice data, and an association based on the identification code. Reading means for reading out the obtained audio data from the storage means, and audio output means for outputting an audio based on the audio data read by the reading means, and outputting the audio data stored in the storage means. A vocal toy characterized by being read out based on the identification code. 2. An identification code identical to an identification code stored in said storage means, and audio data having substantially the same meaning as the audio data stored in said storage means and having a different language. Further comprising a removable storage medium, wherein when the storage medium is mounted, the reading means comprises:
The voice toy according to claim 1, wherein the voice data stored in the storage medium is preferentially read. 3. The vocal toy according to claim 1, wherein said storage means is a removable storage medium. 4. An identification code identical to the identification code stored in the storage means and audio data having substantially the same meaning and different language as the audio data stored in the storage means. When another storage medium different from the storage medium to be attached and stored is replaced with the storage medium and mounted, the storage medium is stored in the other storage medium from the words of the audio data stored in the storage means. 4. The voice-generating toy according to claim 3, wherein a predetermined voice expression having substantially the same meaning is performed by switching to different words of the generated voice data. 5. The voiced toy according to claim 1, wherein said voiced toy is a doll-shaped two-way type voiced toy. 6. It is suitable for storing voice data having a predetermined meaning and an identification code for identifying the voice data in association with each other, and reading voice data having a predetermined meaning based on the identification code. A storage medium characterized by the following. 7. The storage medium according to claim 6, wherein said storage medium is formed in a card shape or a stick shape.