JP2001101380A - Method and device for reading numerical value - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and device for reading an integrating meter capable of reading an integrated value even while numeral figures to be displayed are in the middle of carrying in a use integrating meter of electricity, gas, water, etc. SOLUTION: In a use integrating meter 1 of electricity, etc., to be fitted to a consumer's residence, spaces between the respective numeral figures A of respective rotary frames 9 are divided into equal intervals, the picture of the figure A at each digit appearing in a display part 1 is stored in a storing device 19 (Fig. 4), and the image of the part 1 is picked up by an electronic camera 12. When the video of each digit expresses a single numeral figure, the figure A is compared with the video stored in a storing device 20 by each of the digit and when the video expressed the respective parts of two numeral figures, a smaller numeral figure A is compared with the video to output the numeral figure A corresponding to the video whose coincident part is the largest from the device 20 to read an integrated value.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for reading numerical values, and more particularly, to a method and a method for reading the displayed numerical values of an integrator used by a customer such as electricity, water or gas by remote meter reading. It concerns the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The amount of electricity, gas, water, and the like used is conventionally calculated from data obtained by a meter reader directly reading a meter of usage meter attached to each customer. By the way, the efficiency of meter reading business has been reduced due to overcrowding in urban areas, heavy snowfall areas,
It is well known that remote meter reading devices have been developed in the past due to a decrease in efficiency of meter reading operations and an increase in meter reading costs, such as difficulty in securing meter readers in depopulated areas.

[0003]

By the way, the present inventors attach an electronic camera to a usage integrator (hereinafter simply referred to as "integrator") which has been conventionally attached to a customer, and directly or indirectly display the image by a mirror. The centralized control unit transmits a signal obtained by imaging the unit to the central control unit, and invents a remote meter reading device that digitizes the centralized control unit and calculates the usage amount for each customer.
A patent application has already been filed.

[0004] Generally, in the display of the integrator, when the rotating frame of each digit makes one rotation and the display becomes zero, the numerical value of the rotating frame one digit higher increases by one. In general, this carry operation is performed so that when the number becomes about 9, it meshes with the gear of the uppermost rotating piece, and when the numerical value becomes zero, the number of the uppermost rotating piece increases by one.

[0005] Therefore, when electricity or the like is used, two digits may be partially displayed as the lowest digit and carry. Therefore, there is a problem that a numerical value must be read even in remote meter reading. Accordingly, it has been found that, as described above, when a customer performs remote meter reading of an integrator capable of visually reading an integrated value, it is necessary to accurately read even an incomplete display as described above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems. In an integrator that mechanically integrates and displays the integrated value of the amount of electric power, gas, water, etc. It is an object of the present invention to provide an integrator reading method and an apparatus thereof that can reliably read an integrated value even when a number is not accurately displayed.

[0007]

According to the present invention, there is provided a method for reading numerical values, comprising the steps of:
In a usage integrator attached to a customer, a number of rotating pieces corresponding to a predetermined number of digits are arranged coaxially, and numbers 0 to 9 are arranged on the peripheral surface of the rotating piece for each digit, and Is rotated, the rotation is divided at regular intervals while the numbers are sequentially displayed, and for each division unit, the number of digits of the rotating frame and the video signal of the rotating frame are displayed for the image displayed on the display unit. And, when the image represents a single number, the number is stored in a storage device, and when the image represents each part of the two numbers, the smaller number is stored in a storage device. The video signal for each digit and the video signal stored in the storage device are compared, and the integrated value displayed by the usage integrator is calculated from the number and the digit corresponding to the video having the largest matching portion. Is intended to be read

The number of divisions is arbitrary and is not particularly limited. For example, the number of divisions can be 100, that is, one rotation is equally divided into 1000.

As an electronic camera that can be used, a CCD is used.
(Electron coupling device), a known device using an image-electric signal conversion device such as a MOS type solid image sensor can be used.

There is no particular limitation on the method of detecting the numeral portion from the video signal output from the electronic camera. For example, the numeral portion and the other portions can be distinguished from each other based on the difference in contrast of the density of the video. As means for capturing the features of the obtained image, various conventionally known feature extraction methods, for example, second derivative processing, Hough transform, etc., are used, and then the correlation with the stored standard pattern is performed using a pattern matching method. Can be identified.

Further, as means for extracting the features of the numeral portion, the area of the numeral for each digit can be obtained and read. Naturally, other methods of recognizing numbers, for example, determining whether or not a characteristic portion of each numerical value is an engraved portion, combine conventionally used means with the means of the present invention,
Numerical reading accuracy can be improved. The area may be represented by a ratio of a numerical display area to a display frame area.

[0012] Further, the numerical reading device of the present invention, in a usage integrator attached to a consumer such as electricity, gas, water or the like, a display for displaying an integrated value, an electronic camera for imaging at least the display, An arithmetic unit for detecting an integrated value from an image on the display unit, wherein the display unit is composed of rotating coaxial members arranged coaxially with a number equal to the required number of digits, and 0 to 9 is provided on each peripheral surface of each rotating coma. Are equally spaced, and the numbers are 0 to 0 in ascending order, with the rotation direction of the rotating top as the forward direction.
9 are arranged, and in the arithmetic unit, for each of the rotating frames, the adjacent numbers are sequentially spaced at regular intervals in the display frame at regular intervals between the rotating positions of the rotating frame. And, when the rotating frame is rotated for each unit of the division, an image displayed in the display frame, and when the image represents a single number, the number is used. When each part of the number is represented, a storage device for storing the number on the smaller side and the number of digits of the rotating frame is provided, and the arithmetic unit includes a video signal of the display unit given from the electronic camera. The video signal stored in the storage device may be compared with the video signal, and the number having the highest degree of coincidence may be extracted from the storage device for each digit.

[0013] Transmission means may be provided in the usage amount integrator, and the calculation unit may be arranged in a central control room, and a video signal output by the electronic camera may be transmitted to the calculation unit by the transmission unit. As the transmitting unit, any of a wired communication unit, a wireless communication unit, and a combination thereof can be used depending on a transmission environment.

It is clear that the video signals input to the pre-storage device need to be stored for all types of integrator video to be transmitted.

There is no particular limitation on the carry mechanism of the rotating frame, and a conventionally used mechanism can be used.

As a light source for an electronic camera, external light (visible light) can be used as a light source. However, in order not to be affected by unstable light such as a headlight or a flash,
For example, it is preferable to block the integrator from external infrared rays, use infrared rays, particularly near infrared rays as a light source, and take an image with an infrared electronic camera.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

An integrated value display unit (hereinafter simply referred to as a “display unit”) 1 of the power consumption integrating meter (watt hour meter) of the present embodiment 1
Is a part 1-1 that displays a 4-digit numerical value as shown in FIG.
And a part 1-2 for displaying a numerical value with one decimal place. In general, the numeral A is colored white, the surrounding ground B and the periphery 4 of the opening 3 opened in the panel 2 are colored black. ing.

In FIG. 1, a scale 6 used at the time of the test is usually engraved in parallel with the number A of one digit (minimum digit) below the decimal point 5, and a portion corresponding to a mark line 7 provided on the panel 2. By reading the scale 6 of, the display position of the minimum digit can be accurately known.

Rotating frame 9 engraved with a digit A for each digit
(FIG. 3) has a cylindrical shape (not shown) which is flat in the axial direction, and the number of digits (five in this embodiment) is arranged coaxially. FIG. 2 shows an example in which the numeral A stamped on the peripheral surface is developed. The arrow shown in FIG. 2 indicates the direction of rotation.

Each of the rotating tops 9 has a carry mechanism that, except for the topmost rotating top (not shown), rotates the uppermost rotating top 9 by 1/10 every one rotation. It is well known that when the displayed number changes from 9 to 0, it engages with the uppermost rotating top 9 (the left side when viewed) and rotates the rotating top 9 together by 1/10 rotation. It is as follows. As the carry mechanism, a known mechanism can be used.

As shown in FIG. 3, the actual reading of the display unit 1 is performed by arranging a half mirror 11 in front of the display unit 1 and an electronic camera 12 below the half mirror 11 to visually read and image the display unit 1. And can be done at the same time. Since the electronic camera 12 is generally installed in a narrow place,
It cannot be mounted in a location convenient for shooting, and the image may be distorted. Although such image distortion can be corrected by image processing, it is not an essential part of the present invention, and a description thereof will be omitted.

The video signal output from the CCD 13 as the light receiving section of the electronic camera 12 was transmitted to the arithmetic section 14 in the central control room by the method shown in FIG. That is, C attached to each integrator 15
The video signal output from the CD 13 is sent to a relay device 18 of a pole transformer 17 together with various necessary signals such as a device number to a control device 16 mounted beside the integrator 15. Reference numeral 19 shown in FIG. 4 is a storage device attached to the arithmetic unit 14.

Here, the video signals output from the respective CCDs 13 are collected and transmitted collectively to the arithmetic unit 14 in the central control room. Although this transmission means is not particularly limited, in the present embodiment, the transmission is performed by a telephone line using PHS. The central processing unit 14 that has received the video signal performs operations such as recording the video on the display unit 1, reading numerical values, and calculating the current month's usage from the video signal. In addition, control such as meter reading time
The control is performed by a command signal sent from the central processing unit 14 to each control device 16.

When the integrated value is read from the image on the display unit 1, the following problem occurs. That is, the opening 3
The number of each digit appearing in (FIG. 1) does not necessarily mean that the number displayed as described above is correctly displayed in the opening 3.
There is a problem that two numbers appear partially. This problem will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 5 exemplifies 10 scenes of an image which changes every 1/100 rotation when the display number in the display frame 20 changes from "8" to "9". In the image displayed in the display frame 20 which is divided by the opening 3 and both end edges of the rotating frame 6, “8” moves out of the display frame 20 and “9” appears in the display frame 20. This change is similar in any order.

In this embodiment, the area of the numeral A (or the ratio to the area of the display frame 20) is obtained from the change in the image, and the relationship with the rotational position is input to the storage device 20 (FIG. 4). Then, the area of the character portion is calculated from the actually picked-up video signal and compared with the data stored in the storage device 20, whereby the position of the rotary frame 6 can be known for each digit.

Known means can be used in combination to improve the numerical identification accuracy. That is, whether or not the numeral 5 exists at the specific coordinates in the opening 3 for each digit is input in advance to the storage device for the data on the 1000 scenes, and is combined with the area determination to obtain the numeral reading accuracy. Can be improved. In this case, the specific coordinates may represent a specific area, or may be determined for a plurality of coordinates.

[0029]

As described above, the numerical value reading method and apparatus according to the present invention provide an electronic camera for displaying the integrated value of the amount of consumption, such as electricity, gas, water, etc. The integrated value is read out from the number corresponding to the image stored in the arithmetic unit, and the used amount is calculated. The integrated value can be accurately read even in the case where the odd numbers appear.

Further, since the video signal before reading the integrated value can be intensively read by the processing device arranged in the central control room instead of placing the arithmetic device in each terminal device, the existing usage amount integrator can be used. Since the present invention can be easily applied, it is possible to obtain an effect that the initial capital investment is reduced as much as possible and the present invention can be easily applied to a wide area customer.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a display unit of a usage amount integrator according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a development view of numbers 0 to 9 engraved on a peripheral surface of a rotating piece of the usage amount integrator of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a method of simultaneously performing visual observation of a display unit shown in FIG. 1 and imaging by a camera.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a procedure for transmitting a video signal of the display unit of FIG. 1 to a central processing unit.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing how numbers displayed by rotation of the rotating frame shown in FIG. 2 change.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 display unit (integrated value display unit) 9 rotating frame 12 electronic camera 20 storage device A number

Claims (9)

[Claims] In a usage integrator attached to a consumer, such as electricity, gas, water, or the like, a number of rotating pieces corresponding to a predetermined number of digits are coaxially arranged, and the number of rotating pieces is arranged on the peripheral surface of the rotating piece for each digit. Numbers from 0 to 9 are arranged, the rotation frame is rotated, the rotation is divided at regular intervals while the numbers are sequentially displayed, and for each division unit, for an image displayed on the display unit,
The number of digits of the rotating frame, the video signal of the rotating frame, the number when the image represents a single number, and the smaller number when representing each part of the two numbers are stored. Stored in the device, for the image by the electronic camera of the display unit, the video signal for each digit, and compare the video signal stored in the storage device, the number and the number corresponding to the video with the largest matching portion and the A numerical value reading method in which an integrated value displayed by the usage amount integrator is read from digits. 2. The numerical value reading method according to claim 1, wherein the number of divisions is set to 100. 3. The numerical value reading method according to claim 1, wherein the detection of the numeral portion is detected from a difference between the brightness of the numeral portion and the brightness of the other portions. 4. An image stored in a pre-storage device is stored according to an area of a numeral portion displayed in a display frame for each digit, and an area of the numeral portion is calculated from a video signal output from the electronic camera. 4. The numerical value reading method according to claim 1, wherein the numerical value is calculated by an arithmetic unit, and the comparison is performed based on an area. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the area is represented by a ratio of a numerical display area to a display frame area. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein each of the images is distinguished from the other images as to whether the identifiable portion is a numeral portion or another portion, thereby improving reading accuracy. Numerical value reading method for the strike described in 3, 4 or 5. 7. A usage integrating meter attached to a consumer such as electricity, gas, water, or the like, a display section for displaying an integrated value, an electronic camera for capturing at least the display section, and an integrated value from an image on the display section. And an arithmetic unit for detecting
The display unit is composed of rotating coma in which a number equal to the required number of digits is arranged coaxially.
9 is arranged in the arithmetic unit, and for each of the rotating frames, the rotating frame is rotated and the rotation is divided at regular intervals while the number is sequentially displayed, and the rotating frame is divided into the divided units. When rotated for each, for each division unit, for the image displayed on the display unit, the number of digits of the rotating frame,
A storage device is provided for storing the image signal of the rotating frame, the number when the image represents a single number, and the smaller number when representing the respective parts of the two numbers. The arithmetic unit compares the video signal of the display unit provided from the electronic camera with the video signal stored in the storage device, and stores the number having the highest degree of coincidence for each digit. Numerical reading device designed to be removed from the device. 8. The use amount integrator is provided with transmission means, the operation unit is disposed in a central control room, and a video signal output from the electronic camera is transmitted to the operation unit by the transmission means. Item 5. The numerical reading device according to Item 5. 9. The numerical reading device according to claim 6, wherein said transmitting means is one of a wired communication means, a wireless communication means, and a combination means thereof.