JP2002163654A - Controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To renew dictionary data corresponding to a change in the face feature amount of a user. SOLUTION: In a step S31, a threshold in the number of times of input dismissing is acquired and in a step S32, the value of an input dismissing time counter is initialized. In a step S33, personal authentication data are acquired. In a step S34, it is judged whether authenticating processing is made successful or not and in the case of failure, in a step S35, it is judged whether authenticating processing is performed prescribed times or not. When authenticating processing is performed less then prescribed times, in a step S36, the retry request of authenticating processing is sent out and '1' is added to the value of the input dismissing time counter, but when authenticating processing is performed more than prescribed times, in a step S37, a signal showing the authenticating processing failure is outputted. When authenticating processing is made successful, in a step S38, the value of the input dismissing time counter is compared with the threshold and when the value of that counter is greater than the threshold, in a step S39, the value is renewed to the face feature amount. Then, in a step S40, a log-in history is recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control device for an electronic device, and more particularly to a control device for an authentication process by updating or deleting a dictionary in which personal information used for the authentication process is registered as necessary. The present invention relates to a control device that manages dictionary data without increasing the time each time and can execute a stable authentication process.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, when managing entry and exit, and when managing users such as various information processing apparatuses such as personal computers and copiers or image forming apparatuses, a technique for specifying an individual is required. . Biometrics has attracted attention as a means for identifying individuals, and among them, personal authentication systems based on fingerprints, palm prints, or facial features of users have been put into practical use. Fingerprints, palm prints, features of the user's face, and the like are characteristics unique to an individual, and are extremely effective as means for identifying the individual.

[0003] When the features of the user's face are used as personal authentication information, it is conceivable that the accuracy of the authentication decreases as the user's face changes over time. In order to prevent a decrease in authentication accuracy, for example, a technique of updating dictionary data using newly input data every time an authentication process is performed, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-271981, JP 9
For example, there is a technique of adding a time stamp to a dictionary and always performing authentication processing using new dictionary data as disclosed in -198501.

[0004]

However, when the dictionary data is updated each time the authentication process is executed, it is necessary to take time each time the dictionary data is updated, which increases the authentication processing time. Also, even when the authentication accuracy is not reduced, the dictionary data is updated.
For example, temporary and minute changes in characteristics such as injuries may lower authentication accuracy.

[0005] Even if a time stamp is added to the dictionary, the dictionary of a user who is not in use remains, which not only causes a problem of memory capacity but also adversely affects authentication accuracy and authentication speed. There is a risk of giving.

The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and manages dictionary data by updating or deleting the dictionary as necessary without increasing the time for authentication processing every time. This enables stable authentication processing to be executed.

[0007]

According to the present invention, there is provided a control device for storing a plurality of personal authentication data as registration data.
Storage means, and a first means for acquiring personal authentication data of a user.
Acquisition means, authentication means for authenticating the user's personal authentication data acquired by the first acquisition means based on the registration data stored by the first storage means, and storage means stored by the first storage means. A second storage unit that stores a threshold value for determining whether or not to execute the update of the personal authentication data, based on the threshold value stored by the second storage unit,
Determining means for determining whether to update the personal authentication data stored in the first storage means, and personal authentication data stored in the first storage means based on a determination result by the determination means; And updating means for updating.

[0008] The personal authentication data is data representing characteristics of an individual, for example, a facial feature of a user. As the personal authentication data, for example, a fingerprint or a palm print may be used in addition to the facial feature amount.

In order to execute the authentication process, it is necessary to register personal authentication data of the user in advance. The first storage means includes, for example, a hard disk or a semiconductor memory, and includes a registration unit 65 in FIG. 3 and a registration unit 92 in FIG. 12, in which personal authentication data of a user is registered prior to an authentication process. Is what is done. In the first storage unit, an ID, a registration date and time, and the like may be registered together with the personal authentication data.

The first acquisition means is constituted by, for example, the communication unit 63 shown in FIG. 3, the CCD camera 12 shown in FIG. 12, and the like. get.

The authentication means comprises, for example, the matching section 64 shown in FIG. 3 and the matching section 91 shown in FIG. 12. In the authentication mode, the personal authentication data obtained by the first obtaining means and the registration means are used. Check the registered data.

For example, when the features of the user's face are used as the personal authentication information, it is conceivable that the accuracy of the authentication decreases as the user's face changes over time. In order to prevent a reduction in authentication accuracy, it is necessary to update or delete the dictionary as needed.

The second storage means comprises, for example, a threshold storage unit 68 shown in FIG. 3 and a threshold storage unit 95 shown in FIG. 12, and determines whether it is necessary to update or delete the dictionary. Is stored.

The determining means is, for example, the CPU 6 shown in FIG.
12 and the CPU 34 shown in FIG. 12, for example, based on the execution status of the authentication process such as the number of authentication processes, the degree of conformity, the date and time when the authentication process was last executed, or the date and time when the dictionary was registered. Then, it is determined whether the dictionary needs to be updated or deleted based on the threshold value stored by the second storage means.

The updating means includes, for example, the CPU 6 shown in FIG.
2, and updates or deletes the personal authentication data according to the judgment result of the judgment means.

In the control device of the present invention, a plurality of personal authentication data are stored as registration data, personal authentication data of the user is obtained, and the personal authentication data of the user is authenticated and stored based on the registration data. A threshold for determining whether to execute the update of the personal authentication data is stored.Based on the threshold, it is determined whether to execute the update of the personal authentication data, and based on the determination result, the stored value is stored. The personal authentication data is updated.

Therefore, the personal authentication data is updated or deleted only when necessary, so that the dictionary data can be managed and a stable authentication process can be executed without increasing the time for each authentication process.

[0018] Further, a counting means for counting the number of times of authentication by the authentication means may be further provided.
The second storage unit may store a threshold value of the number of authentications, and the determination unit may store the number of authentications counted by the counting unit with the number of authentications stored by the second storage unit. If the threshold value is larger than the threshold value, the personal authentication data stored by the first storage means can be determined to be updated to the personal authentication data acquired by the first acquisition means.

The counting means comprises, for example, an input rejection counter 70 shown in FIG. 3 and an input rejection counter 97 shown in FIG. 12, and counts the number of executions of the authentication process.

For example, when a user's facial feature is used as the personal authentication data, the user's facial feature changes gradually with the passage of time, and the first registered facial feature is used. If the authentication process is continued by using, there is a risk that even if the user is correctly registered, the authentication process will not be executed correctly someday.

For example, when authentication is not correctly performed only when the authentication process is repeated several times, it can be determined that the facial feature amount of the user has begun to change gradually.

The threshold value of the number of times of authentication stored in the second storage means is such that when the authentication process is repeated only a few times and the authentication is not correctly performed, the facial feature amount of the user is gradually reduced. This is a threshold value of the number of times of authentication that can be determined to be starting to change.

The personal authentication data is updated when the number of times of execution of the authentication processing becomes equal to or more than the threshold value, so that unnecessary processing such as changing the dictionary registration every time is not performed, and the face of the user is not changed. The dictionary can be updated only when a gradual change occurs in the feature amount, and can follow the temporal change of the user's face.

Further, a third storage means for storing a history of the authentication processing by the authentication means may be further provided.

The third storage means comprises, for example, a hard disk or a semiconductor memory, and can be constituted by the login history storage section 67 in FIG. 3 and the login history storage section 94 in FIG. The history of processing is stored.

[0026] Further, it is possible to further comprise a calculating means for calculating the authentication suitability by the authentication means from the history stored in the third storage means, wherein the second storage means has a threshold value of the authentication suitability. May be stored, and if the authentication suitability calculated by the calculation means is smaller than the authentication suitability threshold value stored by the second storage means, The personal authentication data stored by the means may be determined to be updated to the personal authentication data obtained by the first obtaining means.

The above-mentioned authentication conformance is the ratio of the success of login (authentication) to the number of times of login, that is, the number of times the execution of the authentication process is requested. The authentication conformance may be newly calculated and recorded by resetting the calculation result of the authentication conformity once every predetermined period such as one week or one month, for example. However, the authentication conformance may not be reset until the dictionary is updated.

The calculating means is, for example, the CPU 6 shown in FIG.
2 and the CPU 34 shown in FIG. 12, and calculates the authentication conformance based on the history.

When the degree of authentication conformance decreases, it can be determined that the facial feature amount of the user has begun to change gradually.

The threshold value of the authentication suitability stored in the second storage means is a threshold value of the authentication suitability level at which it is possible to judge that the user's facial feature has begun to change gradually. It can be set as a numerical value such as% or 75%.

Since the personal authentication data is updated when the authentication conformance becomes equal to or less than the threshold value, unnecessary processing such as changing the dictionary registration every time is not performed.
The dictionary can be updated only when a gradual change occurs in the facial feature amount of the user, and can follow the temporal change of the user's face.

[0032] Further, it is possible to further comprise a second acquisition means for acquiring the date and time when the authentication processing was last executed by the authentication processing means from the history stored in the third storage means. The storage means may store a threshold value for a period until erasure of the personal authentication data, and the determination means may store the time from the date and time acquired by the second acquisition means to the present time. When the personal authentication data stored in the storage unit is longer than the threshold value of the period until the deletion, the personal authentication data stored in the first storage unit can be determined to be deleted.

The second acquisition means acquires the date and time when the authentication process was last executed. If the date and time when the authentication process was last performed is old, it can be determined that the user is not currently performing the authentication process, and the registered personal authentication data is determined to be useless data. Can be.

The threshold value for the period until the personal authentication data stored in the second storage means is erased may be determined such that the registered personal authentication data is useless data. This indicates a period during which is not performed.

If the period from the date and time obtained by the second obtaining means to the present is longer than the threshold value of the period until the deletion of the personal authentication data stored in the second storage means, the personal authentication data is Since the data is erased, useless personal authentication data can be automatically erased without having to register it forever.

The first storage means can further store the registration date and time of the registration data.
The storage means may store a threshold value for the update period of the personal authentication data, and the determination means may store the time period from the registration date and time stored by the first storage means to the second time. If the personal authentication data stored by the storage unit is longer than the threshold value of the update period, the personal authentication data stored by the first storage unit is updated to the personal authentication data acquired by the first acquisition unit. Can be determined.

As described above, for example, when the user's facial feature is used as the personal authentication data, the user's facial feature gradually changes over time. If a certain period of time has elapsed from the date and time when the registration data was registered, it is highly likely that the facial feature amount of the user has changed slowly.

The threshold value for the update period of the personal authentication data stored in the second storage means is such that the facial feature amount of the user can be judged to be changing slowly, and the threshold value has elapsed since the registration data was registered. This is a value indicating a period.

Since the personal authentication data is updated when the elapsed time becomes equal to or longer than the threshold value, unnecessary processing such as changing the dictionary registration every time is not performed. The dictionary can be updated only when a gradual change occurs, and can follow the temporal change of the user's face.

The electronic devices include a computer, a personal computer, a copying machine, a facsimile, a scanner,
It may be any of a printer, an ATM, a telephone, a mobile phone, an entry / exit management device such as an apartment or an office, or a locking device such as an automobile or a locker.

Further, the control device for controlling the electronic device may be built in the electronic device.

[0042]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of an authentication system to which the present invention is applied. In this configuration example, the copying machines 1-1 to 1-N as an example of the electronic device are connected to a LAN (Loca
l It is connected to the authentication server 13 via an area network (14). Copiers 1-1 to 1-N each have a CCD
(Charge-Coupled Devices) Cameras 12-1 to 12-
N.

In the following, the copying machines 1-1 to 1
-N is simply referred to as the copying machine 1 when it is not necessary to distinguish them individually. The same applies to the CCD cameras 12-1 to 12-N and other devices.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the internal configuration of the copying machine 1. The image captured by the CCD camera 12 is amplified by an amplifier (AMP) 31 and then supplied to an A / D conversion unit 32 where it is A / D converted. CPU (Central
The processing unit 34 controls the operation of the copying machine 1 based on a user command input from the operation panel 33, and also encrypts image data captured by the CCD camera 12. The copying unit 35 is controlled by the CPU 34 to read a document placed on a document table and execute a process of copying the read image to a sheet.

The sensor 36 detects the presence of a user in front of the copying machine 1 and notifies the CPU 34 of the presence of the user. The communication unit 37 performs a process of communicating with the authentication server 13 via the LAN 14. The storage unit 38 is configured by, for example, a semiconductor memory or the like, and stores data necessary for the processing of the CPU 34,
The data being processed is stored.

The authentication server 13 is configured, for example, as shown in FIG. The input unit 61 includes a switch, a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, is operated by a user, and outputs a signal corresponding to the operation to the CPU 62. The communication unit 63 communicates with the copier 1 via the LAN 14.

The CPU 62 transmits the
In addition to decrypting the encrypted image data, various processes are executed in response to signals input from the input unit 61 or the communication unit 63. The timer 69 includes a CPU 62
The CPU 62 can obtain the current date and time by referring to the timer 69. The input rejection counter 70 is also connected to the CPU 62, and the counter is incremented or the counter is initialized under the control of the CPU 62.

The feature amount extraction unit 66 executes a process of extracting feature amounts necessary for identifying a user, such as shapes and positions of eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, from input image data of a face image. I do. The registration unit 65 registers the feature amount extracted by the feature amount extraction unit 66 in the registration mode. Registration unit 65
For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the user's facial feature amount is registered together with the ID and the dictionary update date and time.
The registration unit 65 is composed of, for example, a hard disk or a semiconductor memory. The matching unit 64 performs a matching process between the feature amount extracted by the feature amount extraction unit 66 and the feature amount registered in the registration unit 65 in advance in the normal authentication mode.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the login history storage 67 stores the login I of the logged-in user.
D, the login date and time, and the degree of conformity, which is the ratio of successful login to the number of login requests, are stored together with the number of login requests and the number of successful authentication processes.

The conformity may be newly calculated and recorded by resetting the calculation result of the conformity once every predetermined period, such as one week or one month, for example. Good, or the relevance may not be reset until the dictionary is updated.

The threshold storage unit 68 stores various thresholds for updating or erasing the dictionary, such as a threshold for the degree of conformity, a threshold for the number of input rejections, a threshold for the dictionary update period, and a threshold for the dictionary registration period. Have been.

When using this system, each user needs to register the image feature amount of his / her face in the registration unit 65 in advance.

Next, registration processing of the copying machine 1 in the authentication system of FIG. 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

In step S11, the CPU 34
It is determined whether or not the currently set mode is the registration mode.

In the registration mode, a service person or a predetermined administrator of the copying machine 1 can operate, for example, the operation panel 33.
Is set by inputting a predetermined password. Alternatively, the registration mode may be set when a key or the like prepared in advance is attached to a predetermined position of the copying machine 1. When it is determined in step S1 that the registration mode has not been set, the registration process is terminated because it is the normal authentication mode.

If it is determined in step S1 that the registration mode has been set, then in step S2,
The CPU 34 executes a process of capturing image data of the face. At this time, the CPU 34 controls the CCD camera 12 to capture an image of the user's face. CCD camera 12
Is amplified by the amplifier 31 and then input to the A / D converter 32. The A / D converter 32 performs A / D conversion on the input image data. C
The PU 34 encrypts this image data and outputs it to the communication unit 37.

In step S3, the communication unit 37
The encrypted image data supplied from the PU 34 is transmitted to the authentication server 13 via the LAN 14 and a user registration is requested.

Thereafter, as will be described later with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 7, the authentication server 13 executes a user registration process in response to the registration request, and when the registration process is completed, the registration is performed in step S25. You will be notified of completion.

Therefore, in step S5, the CPU 3
No. 4 waits until a registration completion notification is received from the authentication server 13, and upon receiving the registration completion notification, proceeds to step S6, executes a registration mode release process, and ends the process.

On the other hand, in the registration mode, the authentication server 13
The registration processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7 is executed.

In step S21, the authentication server 13
CPU 62 determines whether a registration request has been received from copying machine 1. If it is determined in step S21 that the registration request has not been received, the process ends. If it is determined in step S21 that a registration request has been received from the copying machine 1, the process proceeds to step S22.
Reference numeral 62 executes a process of taking in the image data of the face transmitted from the copying machine 1. That is, the CPU 62
The encrypted image data input via the communication unit 63 is decrypted and supplied to the feature amount extraction unit 66.

In step S23, the characteristic amount extraction unit 6
6 extracts a feature amount of the user's face from the captured image data of the face and outputs the feature amount to the registration unit 65 via the matching unit 64.

In step S24, the registration unit 65
The facial feature is input from the feature extracting unit 66, and the facial feature is added to the registration data.

In step S25, the CPU 62
The communication unit 63 notifies the copying machine 1 of the completion of the registration via the LAN 51, and ends the processing.

As described above, the facial features of the user are registered in the registration unit 65 of the authentication server 13. But,
The facial feature of the user changes gradually with the passage of time, and if the authentication process is continued using the facial feature registered first, the user is a registered user. However, there is a possibility that the authentication process will not be executed correctly someday.

For example, when the authentication is not correctly performed only when the authentication process is repeated several times, it can be determined that the user's facial feature has begun to change gradually. By utilizing this, the facial features that have been authenticated after the authentication process has been performed several times are registered as new dictionary data, so that unnecessary processing such as changing the dictionary registration every time is not performed. Thus, the dictionary can be updated only when a gradual change occurs, and it can follow the temporal change of the user's face.

Next, referring to the flowchart of FIG.
An authentication process 1 in which dictionary data is updated based on the number of input rejections will be described.

The CPU 62 determines in step S31
The threshold of the number of input rejections is obtained from the threshold storage unit 68, and in step S32, the value of the input rejection counter 70 is initialized.

In step S33, the CPU 62
The personal authentication data (that is, the image data of the user's face) transmitted from any one of the copying machines 1-1 to 1-N is acquired via the LAN 14 and the communication unit 63. The CPU 62 outputs the personal authentication data to the feature amount extraction unit 66. The feature amount extraction unit 66 performs predetermined image processing on the input image data, extracts a facial feature amount, and outputs the facial feature amount to the matching unit 64. Matching unit 64
Compares the facial feature amount registered in the registration unit 65 with the input facial feature amount, and outputs the result of the comparison to the CPU 62.

In step S34, the CPU 62
Based on the signal input from the matching unit 64, it is determined whether or not the authentication processing has been successful. If it is determined in step S34 that the authentication process has been successful, the process proceeds to step S38.

If it is determined in step S34 that the authentication processing has not been successful, in step S35, the CPU 62 determines whether the authentication processing has been executed a predetermined number of times. As described above, the personal authentication process
Since the authentication accuracy is set to be very high, for example, when the features of the user's face are slowly changing or when the face orientation is different, even if the user is correct, authentication may not be possible. The predetermined number of times allows the authentication process to be retried.

If it is determined in step S35 that the authentication process has not been executed a predetermined number of times, the CPU 62 in step S36 transmits the personal authentication data to the copier 1 via the communication unit 63 and the LAN 14. -1 to a copier 1-N, sends a retry request for authentication processing, adds 1 to the value of the input rejection counter, and returns to step S33 to execute the subsequent processing. Is repeated.

If it is determined in step S35 that the authentication process has been performed a predetermined number of times, the process proceeds to step S37.
CPU 62 includes a communication unit 63 and a LAN 14
, A signal indicating that the authentication processing has failed is output to any one of the copying machines 1-1 to 1-N that has transmitted the personal authentication data, and the processing ends.

If it is determined in step S34 that the authentication processing has been successful, the
U62 determines whether or not the value of the input rejection counter 70 is greater than the threshold value acquired in step S31.

If it is determined in step S38 that the value of the input rejection counter 70 is larger than the threshold,
Since it is highly probable that the user's facial feature has changed slowly, in step S39, the CPU 62 uses the personal authentication data obtained when the authentication processing succeeded as new registration data to update the dictionary. A control signal is generated and output to matching section 64. Matching unit 64
Updates the facial feature amount of the corresponding user registered in the registration unit 65 to the facial feature amount input in this processing, and changes the dictionary update date and time.

If it is determined in step S38 that the value of the input rejection counter 70 is smaller than the threshold,
Alternatively, after the processing in step S39 is completed,
In 40, the CPU 62 determines that the login history storage 67
Then, the login history is recorded, and the process ends.

By executing such processing, the dictionary data of the face registration fee is changed to the current user's face feature only when the possibility that the user's face feature is gradually changing is high. Therefore, stable authentication processing can be continuously executed.

Next, referring to the flowchart of FIG.
An authentication process 2 in which dictionary data is updated when the degree of conformity of the authentication process becomes equal to or less than a certain numerical value will be described.

At step S51, the CPU 62
From the threshold storage unit 68, a threshold of the degree of conformity is acquired.

In steps S52 and S53, the same processing as in steps S33 and S34 in FIG. 8 is executed.

If it is determined in step S53 that the authentication processing has failed, the process proceeds from step S54 to step S54.
In step 56, steps S35 to S3 in FIG.
The same processing as in step 7 is performed.

If it is determined in step S53 that the authentication processing has succeeded,
U62 is stored in the login history storage unit 67.
Based on the latest login history with the same login ID and the value of the input rejection counter 70, a value of the degree of conformity is calculated.

In step S58, the CPU 62
It is determined whether or not the value of the authentication processing conformity calculated in step S57 is larger than the conformance threshold acquired in step S51.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the login history is stored in the login history storage unit 67 as shown in FIG. 5, and the user with the login ID [025] logs in in the third authentication process. If the total number of logins is
Since the authentication is performed 20 times and 15 of the authentications are successful, the matching degree is 75%, which is lower than the threshold.

In step S58, the value of the degree of conformity is
If it is determined that it is smaller than the threshold value, in step S59, the same processing as in step S39 of FIG. 8 is executed.

In step S58, the value of the degree of conformity is
When it is determined that the value is larger than the threshold value, or after the process of step S59 is completed, in step S60, FIG.
A process similar to that of step S40 is executed, and the process ends.

By executing such processing, the dictionary data of the face registration fee is changed to the current user's facial feature only when there is a high possibility that the user's facial feature is changing slowly. Therefore, stable authentication processing can be continuously executed.

Further, as described with reference to FIG. 4, since the update date and time of the dictionary is recorded in the registration unit 65, the processing other than updating the dictionary by the processing described with reference to FIGS. Alternatively, for example, when a certain period of time has elapsed from the last update date and time of the dictionary, the dictionary may be updated using data that has been successfully authenticated.

Next, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 10, a process of updating a dictionary that has not been updated for a certain period of time with reference to the update date and time of the dictionary registered in the registration unit 65 will be described.

In step S72, the authentication processing 1 described with reference to FIG. 8 or the authentication processing 2 described with reference to FIG. 9 is executed.

At the step S71, the CPU 62
It is determined whether the authentication process executed in step S71 is successful. If it is determined in step S72 that the authentication process has failed, the process ends.

If it is determined in step S72 that the authentication processing has succeeded,
U62 acquires the current date and time with reference to the timer 69.

The CPU 62 proceeds to step S74.
The threshold value of the dictionary update period is acquired from the threshold value storage unit 68, and in step S75, the update date and time of the dictionary used in the authentication process of step S71 is acquired from the registration unit 65 via the matching unit 64.

At step S76, the CPU 62
Calculate the period between this login date and time and the dictionary update date and time,
It is determined whether or not the calculation result is larger than the dictionary update period threshold acquired in step S74. Step S7
In 6, the period between the login date and time and the dictionary update date and time is
If it is determined that it is smaller than the dictionary update period threshold, the process ends.

If it is determined in step S76 that the period between the current login date and time and the dictionary update date and time is larger than the dictionary update period threshold, in step S77
The same processing as in step S39 in FIG. 8 is performed, and the processing ends.

If the dictionary data has not been updated for a long period of time by such a process, the face features of the current user may have changed more slowly than the registered face features. Is determined to be high, and the dictionary data is changed to the face feature amount of the current user, so that stable authentication processing can be continuously executed.

In such an authentication processing system, when a large number of users are registered, the user may forget to delete the registration data of the user who has stopped using the system. Since the amount of facial image data used for personal authentication is very large, if the unused data is not erased, the memory capacity becomes full and new users cannot be registered. Or the need to add memory.

In order to prevent such a situation, the registration data of the user who has not logged in for a predetermined period is automatically deleted by utilizing the fact that the login history is entirely stored in the login history storage section 67. be able to. FIG.
The dictionary deletion process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The CPU 62 determines in step S91
Detects that its own power is turned on, and
9, the date and time of power-on is acquired, and step S9
In step 2, the threshold value of the dictionary deletion period is acquired from the threshold value storage unit 68.

In step S93, the CPU 62
The last login date and time of each registered dictionary is obtained from the login history stored in the login history storage unit 67.

In step S94, the CPU 62
The period between the last log-in date and time of each dictionary obtained in step S93 and the power-on date and time obtained in step S91 is calculated, and the calculation result is obtained in step S92.
It is determined whether or not there is a dictionary that is larger than the dictionary registration period threshold acquired in. If it is determined in step S94 that there is no dictionary whose period between the last login date and time and the power-on date and time of each dictionary is larger than the dictionary registration period threshold, the process ends.

If it is determined in step S94 that there is a dictionary in which the period between the last login date and time and the power-on date and time of each dictionary is larger than the dictionary registration period threshold, in step S95, the CPU 62 determines the corresponding dictionary. Erase and end the process.

By the above processing, unnecessary dictionary data can be deleted, and stable authentication processing can be executed.

In the above description, as described with reference to FIG. 1, the authentication system for controlling the plurality of copying machines 1 by using the authentication server 13 has been described. Or various types of image forming apparatuses or various types of image processing apparatuses, computers, personal computers, ATs in which functions such as a copier, a printer, a facsimile, and a scanner are combined.
The present invention can be applied to an authentication system that executes authentication processing for various information processing devices such as M, or various communication devices such as a telephone and a mobile phone.

Further, according to the present invention, an entry / exit management apparatus for managing entry / exit of a condominium or office, for example, performing personal authentication at the entrance / exit and permitting only registered users to enter / exit the room, Alternatively, the present invention can be applied to a locking device that allows only a registered user to open and close a key such as a bicycle or a locker.

Further, various image forming apparatuses, various image processing apparatuses, various information processing apparatuses, various information processing apparatuses, and the like that perform authentication processing independently without being connected to a network such as the LAN 14. The present invention can be applied to a communication device, an entry / exit management device, or a locking device.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the internal structure of a copying machine 81 to which the present invention is applied and performs authentication processing independently. Parts corresponding to those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

That is, the copying machine 81 of FIG. 2 includes a matching unit 91, a registration unit 92, a feature amount extraction unit 93, a login history storage unit 94, a threshold storage unit 95, a timer 96,
The copier 1 has the same configuration as that of the copying machine 1 shown in FIG. 2 except that an input rejection counter 97 is further provided. The functions of the matching unit 91 to the input rejection counter 97 are the same as those described with reference to FIG. 64 to the input rejection counter 70, and the description is omitted.

That is, the copying machine 81 in FIG. 12 can perform the same processing as that described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 11 by itself. The copying machine 81 is, for example, a CCD
The facial feature amount is extracted from the user's facial image data captured by using the camera 12 by using the feature amount extracting unit 93, and the facial feature amount can be registered in the registering unit 92 included therein. Even when the authentication process is performed, the login history can be stored in the login history storage unit 94 of the user himself / herself, and registered in the registration unit 92 in accordance with various thresholds stored in the threshold storage unit 95. You can update or delete existing dictionaries.

[0111] Also, here, the description has been made using the facial feature of the user as the feature for performing the personal authentication. However, the personal authentication data includes not only the user's face image but also the user's fingerprint and the like. A palm print may be used.

In the present specification, the system is
It represents the entire device composed of a plurality of devices.

[0113]

According to the control device of the present invention, it is determined whether or not to update the personal authentication data based on the threshold value.
Since the stored personal authentication data is updated based on the determination result, dictionary data can be managed and stable authentication processing can be executed without increasing the time of each authentication processing.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an authentication system to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the copying machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the authentication server in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a diagram for describing data registered in a registration unit in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining data registered in a login history storage unit in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of a copying machine.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of an authentication server.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an authentication process 1;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an authentication process 2;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a dictionary update process.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a dictionary deletion process.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of a copying machine which performs authentication processing independently.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copier 12 CCD camera 13 Authentication server 34, 62 CPU 64 Matching part 65 Registration part 66 Feature amount extraction part 67 Login history storage part 68 Threshold storage part 69 Timer 70 Input rejection counter 91 Matching part 92 Registration part 93 Feature amount extraction Unit 94 login history storage unit 95 threshold storage unit 96 timer 97 input rejection counter

Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Mitsuru Matsumura 801 Minami-Fudo-do, Shiokyo-dori, Horikawa-Higashi-iri, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto Omron Co., Ltd. OMRON Corporation F term (reference) 5B043 AA09 BA04 FA08 FA10 5J104 AA07 KA01 KA16

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A control device for controlling an electronic device, comprising: first storage means for storing a plurality of personal authentication data as registration data; first obtaining means for obtaining personal authentication data of a user; An authentication unit that authenticates the personal authentication data of the user acquired by the first acquisition unit based on the registration data stored by the first storage unit; and an authentication unit that is stored by the first storage unit. A second storage unit for storing a threshold value for determining whether or not to execute the update of the personal authentication data, and the first storage unit based on the threshold value stored by the second storage unit. Determination means for determining whether or not to update the personal authentication data stored by the storage means, and storage by the first storage means based on a determination result by the determination means. A control device comprising: updating means for updating the personal authentication data. 2. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a counting unit that counts the number of authentications performed by the authentication unit, wherein the second storage unit stores a threshold value of the number of authentications, If the number of authentications is greater than the threshold of the number of authentications stored by the second storage, the personal authentication data stored by the first storage is acquired by the first acquisition unit. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein it is determined that the personal authentication data is updated. 3. The control device according to claim 1, further comprising a third storage unit that stores a history of an authentication process performed by the authentication unit. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a calculating unit configured to calculate an authentication conformance by the authentication unit from the history stored in the third storage unit. Is stored. If the authentication suitability calculated by the calculation means is smaller than the authentication suitability threshold value stored by the second storage means, the determination means 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein it is determined that the stored personal authentication data is updated to the personal authentication data acquired by the first acquiring unit. 5. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a date and time when the authentication process was last executed by the authentication process unit, from the history stored in the third storage unit. The storage unit stores a threshold value of a period until the personal authentication data is erased, and the determination unit determines that the period from the date and time acquired by the second acquisition unit to the present is the second storage unit. And determining that the personal authentication data stored by the first storage unit is to be deleted when the personal authentication data stored in the first storage unit is longer than a threshold value for a period until the personal authentication data is stored. Or the control device according to 4. 6. The first storage unit further stores a registration date and time of the registration data, the second storage unit stores a threshold value of an update period of the personal authentication data, and the determination unit When the period from the registration date and time stored by the first storage unit to the present is longer than a threshold of the update period of the personal authentication data stored by the second storage unit, the first The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein it is determined that the personal authentication data stored in a storage unit is updated to the personal authentication data obtained by the first obtaining unit. Control device. 7. The electronic device includes a computer, a personal computer, a copier, a facsimile, a scanner,
The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the control device is any one of a printer, an ATM, a telephone, a mobile phone, an access control device, and a locking device. 8. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device that controls the electronic device is built in the electronic device.