JP2002251497A - Electronic voting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic voting apparatus, which enables disabled electors to smoothly vote like healthy persons and securely protects personal information. SOLUTION: An electronic voting apparatus is composed of a voting terminal 2a and foot switches 6a. The electronic voting apparatus is provided with graphical user interface(GUI) that allows an elector 1a to vote through operations using only foot switches 6a, which include a few switches (forward, reverce, and confirmation switches) 6b, 6c and 6d, based on information displayed on a visual guidance means (an LCD panel) 30.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic voting apparatus used for voting in elections, and more particularly, to simplify and smooth voting operation and voting management work by reducing the workload of voters and managers. In addition, the present invention relates to a computerized electronic voting apparatus in which voting is performed by a voter's own operation and a highly reliable and fair election can be performed.

[0002]

[Prior art]

Conventionally, in the elections of members of the Diet, prefectural governors, members of the Diet, mayors, mayors, and members of the Diet, etc., local governments provide election tickets to electors based on the Public Office Election Law. The postcard will be mailed, and the electorate will bring the postcard to the polling place, and will be verified as the electoral identity by checking against the electoral list. Then, when the ballot paper is given, the name of the candidate is entered on the ballot paper and mailed to the ballot box to be voted. After that, the ballot boxes were gathered in facilities such as a gymnasium, and the staff in charge of counting votes and counting the voting results. Furthermore, the explanation of the entry on the ballot at the time of voting was based on the oral explanation by the person in charge of the polling place when handing out the ballot, and the posting of the paper at the entry place on the ballot.

[0003] Therefore, conventionally, there is a problem that the operation burden and the work burden on the voter and the election manager are large, and that voting requires a lot of time and labor, and this is one factor that hinders the improvement of the voting rate. Was.

Under these circumstances, with the recent spread of computers and the development of information technology (IT), an electronic voting system, which is a paperless voting system using a computer, has been invented, and has already been disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2747171. Is disclosed. This is because an elector performs an input operation on an election terminal computer installed at a polling place, votes, transfers the data to another computer that tallies the voting data, and stores the data in a database. It is possible to carry out a counting operation.

[0005] However, the input device of the election terminal in the above disclosed technology is designed on the assumption that it is used by a healthy person who does not have a physical disability, and no measures are taken for the disabled person. Absent. In self-voting on traditional ballot papers, electors who have a hearing or visual disability, such as those who are blind, have their agents know the name of the person voting and have them fill out the ballot paper. Not only are they very distressed in protecting their privacy, but they also have problems in conducting fair elections. In this case, even if the Public Office Election Law that stipulates self-form voting is revised and shifted to an electronic voting system in the future, it is highly likely that disadvantages for persons with disabilities will not be improved. On the contrary, for a person who has difficulty or is not good at inputting an information terminal such as a personal computer, the situation may be even worse. This goes against the trend of the barrier-free era.

That is, a personal computer (Personal Compute)
As input means for information terminal equipment such as r), physically disabled people often use standard keyboards with alphabets arranged, and in particular, people with disabilities often use the standard keyboard with their feet. When it is difficult to enter a detailed key with a toe that is inconvenient, the user must give up using the computer. This is because it is impossible to perform all input operations with only a few keys, because many operating system (OS) software and application software of modern computers are designed based on the use of a standard keyboard. Because.

In order to make an electronic voting system barrier-free, it is not sufficient to simply use a conventional personal computer for election. For example, all input operations are performed using at most a few switches. It must be able to do it. There is a need for a simple interface, both hard and soft, that makes it easier for people with disabilities to enter data.

[0008] As described above, the conventional election voting has a problem that the operation load and the work load on the voter and the election manager are large, and that voting requires a lot of time and labor. They lacked consideration for free people. This was one of the factors that hindered the increase in turnout. In the electronic voting system that is currently being considered, no consideration is given to physically disabled people, especially those with physical disabilities, and people with physical disabilities are as smooth as healthy people. An electronic voting device that can execute voting has not been realized conventionally.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and particularly, selects information on a specific candidate from among information on a plurality of candidates displayed on a predetermined display screen and performs voting. An electronic voting device, a display means for displaying information on a plurality of candidates on a display screen,
By providing the operating means configured in a shape and an installation position where the operator can perform a selection operation using the foot on the information on the specific candidate from the displayed information on the plurality of candidates. Promote electrification in election voting and tallying work, so that even if multiple elections are held at the same time, they can be executed without error, and physically disabled electors, especially those with limited mobility However, an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic voting apparatus which can easily vote by a candidate selecting means using a foot and which is excellent in fair operability and reliability for all electors.

[0010]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an electronic voting apparatus having the following configuration. (1) An electronic voting device (a voting terminal, a voting terminal, for selecting information about a specific candidate from among information about a plurality of candidates displayed on a predetermined display screen (FIG. 9 candidate selection screen) and voting). Foot switches) 2a, 6a,
A display means (LCD panel) 30 for displaying information on the plurality of candidates on the display screen, and an operator using a foot to display information on a specific candidate from the displayed information on the plurality of candidates. Electronic voting devices 2a and 6a, comprising an operation means (foot switch) 6a configured in a shape and an installation position capable of performing a selection operation by a user. (2) The electronic voting apparatus (2) according to claim 1, wherein the operation means (6a) includes a help switch (6) for transmitting a help signal for asking assistance to a predetermined receiving means (6). (3) The operation means 6a is a temporary selection switch (FIG. 6 forward switch, backward switch) 6b for temporarily selecting arbitrary information from among the information on the plurality of candidates displayed on the display screen. 6. The device according to claim 1, further comprising: a confirmation switch for confirming information provisionally selected using the provisional selection switches as information regarding the specific candidate for voting. 5. The electronic voting apparatus 2a, 6a according to claim 2. (4) The provisional selection switches 6b and 6c are forward switches 6b for incrementing the provisionally selected information.
4. The electronic voting apparatus 2a according to claim 3, further comprising: a reverse switch 6c for decrementing the temporarily selected information. (5) The electronic voting apparatus (2a, 6a) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the display unit 30 switches and displays information on the plurality of candidates on a screen-by-screen basis.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, an electronic voting device (hereinafter, also referred to as a voting terminal, an electronic voting terminal, a terminal device, and a voting terminal device) according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. explain. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a situation in which voting is performed using a voting terminal and a foot switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the voting terminal of FIG. 1, and FIG. Configuration diagram of the voting terminal of FIG. 4, FIG.
Is a software configuration diagram of the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a program executed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 6 is a plan view of the footswitch of FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 is a selection method selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 9 is a candidate selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, and FIG. 10 is a candidate displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. Confirmation screen, FIG. 11 is a party selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 12 is a party confirmation screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 13 is a judge selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. Is a judge confirmation screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, FIG. 15 is a referendum list screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1, and FIG. 16 is a single entry candidate executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the flow of voting in the election. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the flow of voting in the restricted list proportional representative election executed using the voting terminal 1 and the foot switch of FIG. 1. FIG. 18 is a vote of the Supreme Court Judge National Examination executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a voting flow of a referendum executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG.

FIG. 2 is an external view of the voting terminal 2a of this embodiment. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 30 denotes a touch panel type LCD.
, 33 denotes a magnetic or IC card reader. The voting terminal 2a shown in FIG. 2 inserts a voting card (not shown) into the card reader 33, and when the voting card is accepted,
Voting can be performed by touching the election display displayed on the touch panel LCD 30 with a finger,
This is the same as for healthy people. When the touch panel 30 is not used, voting can be performed by an external selection device (described later) connected to the voting terminal 2a. In this embodiment, as will be described later in detail, a foot switch is used as the external selection device. The voting card is ejected from the voting terminal at the end of the voting.

FIG. 3 is a hardware configuration diagram of the voting terminal device 2a shown in FIG. Referring to FIG.
Is an initial screen, a voting start screen under the control of the CPU 41,
Various screens such as an election selection screen, a candidate list screen, a candidate statement screen, a vote confirmation screen, and a vote end screen are displayed.

Touch panel 3 provided on LCD 31
Reference numeral 2 is controlled by a touch panel control program 15, which will be described later, includes a switch for detecting contact with a voter's finger, and performs switching of various screens and the like in accordance with the detection result of the switch.

The flash ROM 40 has an XM described later.
The L voting program 18, an image file called from the XML files, a voting data file 27, and the like are stored.

The CPU (Central Processing Unit) 41 stores the XML voting program 18 stored in the flash ROM 40,
According to the WWW browser 17 and the voting control program 16,
It receives and processes commands, data, and the like input from the touch panel 32.

The RAM 42 is a readable / writable memory and functions as the voting data memory 20 and the like. The ROM 43 is a read-only memory and stores a diagnostic program after the apparatus is powered on, a boot program for starting up the system, and the like. Communication interface 4
Reference numeral 4 includes a wired or wireless communication device, and controls data communication with an external host computer or the like as necessary. The FDD (floppy (registered trademark) disk device) 45 is used when voting data is passed to another totaling device without using the communication device. The card reader 33 reads information recorded on a voting card and the like.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of software included in the communication terminal 2a of the present embodiment. In FIG. 4, an operating system (OS) 10 is a real-time OS capable of real-time processing of performing a target process within a requested time. The serial I / O 11 controls input or output continuously one bit at a time when data is input / output. The window system 12 manages a display portion divided by a frame or the like in a screen displayed on a display or the like. The file system 13 performs file maintenance such as file registration, addition, modification, and deletion, and file protection for restricting access to a specific file. The card control program 14 controls, for example, reading and writing of an IC card and a magnetic card. The touch panel control program 15 controls an input from the touch panel 32 and an output to the touch panel 32. The selection device control program 15b has a serial I / O
The input / output of data with an external selection device connected at 11 is controlled.

[0019] WWW (World Wide Wed)
b) The browser 17 uses a Web page description language (XML:
It is a viewer for browsing files in eXtensible Markup Language (extensible Markup Language) format, and can decode XML files and display text and images on the screen.

The XML voting program 18 is a file in an XML format. The XML voting program 18 is used to format texts (names of candidates, names of political parties to which the candidates belong, etc.), and to store the location of image files (photos of the faces of the candidates, etc.) It has been described. XML
The voting program 18 runs on the browser 17 and runs on the OS 1
Operates independently of zero. In this way, by making the data different for each election, that is, the data that needs to be updated frequently, independent of the OS and describing it in a simple language such as XML, it is extremely easy to create and change these data.

In this embodiment, XML3. 2 based on local system invocation (Loca
l Extends the script (LSIS) for executing System Invocation (LSI).

The voting control program 16 executes the above LSI
By receiving the message described by S and delivered by the OS 10, the system is out of the message waiting state.
Since the voting control program 16 manages waiting queues (queues) and events, the OS 10 does not know the relationship.

When a software keyboard is displayed on a certain screen, the window system 12 directly manages the keyboard itself. That is, one screen is divided into a part managed by the window system 12 and a part managed by the browser 17, and a keyboard is displayed in a shell window that cannot be independently moved with respect to the screen part managed by the browser 17. I do.

The browser 17 has a voting control program 16
Two queues (a queue from the browser 17 to the voting control program 16 and a queue from the voting control program 16 to the browser 17) are prepared to establish synchronization with the voting control program 16 and released to the tasks of the voting control program 16. . As for a message transmitted by any event, the content described in the script language is directly queued. Therefore, the content of the message needs to be defined by the voting control program 16.

The browser 17 uses the XML voting program 1
8 and the voting control program 16 receiving the message from the browser 17
Irrespective of the TML voting program 18 or the browser 17, the part to be displayed on the screen is separated and these can be linked appropriately.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a program configuration executed by the voting terminal 2a of the present embodiment. In FIG. 5, when the power is turned on, the voting control program 16 starts, and the browser 17 starts. The browser 17 appropriately reads and displays an XML voting program 18 for displaying an election selection screen and other screens. Also, under the control of the voting control program 16, data such as the election number and the candidate number are recorded on the one-voting data memory 20. And
At the end of one voting, the data is stored in the voting data file 27. In addition, the voting control program 1
The software keyboard 24 is displayed under the control of 6.
Characters input from the keyboard 24 are notified to the browser 17 and further to the voting control program 16 and recorded in the memory 20 together with data such as the election number.

FIG. 6 is a top view of the foot switch 6a used as the above-mentioned external selection device of the voting terminal 2a of this embodiment.

Here, the technical background of the above-mentioned foot switch 6a will be described. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a foot switch capable of performing an input operation with a foot has been known as information transmission means for a physically handicapped person among persons with disabilities. (Patent Publication No. 291066
No. 6, Patent Publication No. 2816837). This foot switch is a pedal type or button type foot switch that depresses the switch with the foot, a joystick type foot switch that changes the angle of the switch with the foot, or a mat type foot switch that detects the depressing operation by stepping on the sole There are various types of switches.
Foot switches are generally applied in various fields such as driving operation of various devices such as automobiles and machine tools, playing musical instruments such as electric tones and electric guitars, opening and closing automatic doors, and operating dance games. , It has permeated the world widely, regardless of the healthy person.

However, a personal computer (Personal Compute)
As input means for information terminal equipment such as r), physically disabled persons often use a standard keyboard in which alphabets are arranged, and even if a foot switch is used, it is used only for an auxiliary purpose. Especially when the upper limb is inconvenient, the standard keyboard is often operated with the feet, and when the toes are inconvenient and it is difficult to enter fine keys, the computer must be given up. It is. This is because it is impossible to perform all input operations with only a few keys, because many operating system (OS) software and application software of modern computers are designed based on the use of a standard keyboard. Because.

Based on the above background, the voting terminal 2a of the present embodiment is configured to perform electronic voting using a foot switch 6a described in detail below.

Returning to the description of this embodiment, the foot switch 6a shown in FIG. 6 includes a forward switch 6b and a backward switch 6c below the indications "←" and "→", and a confirmation switch below the indication "O". A switch 6d and a help switch 6e below the question mark are provided. The forward and backward switches 6b and 6c are switches for controlling the progress of voting, and are used to move selection items graphically displayed in a button format on the screen as shown in FIG.

The confirmation switch 6d is a switch for confirming the selection. The selection button 6d is a switch for indicating that the color or pattern in the frame of the button displayed on the display screen is different from the other buttons to indicate that the selection is being made. Used to determine. These three operation switches 6b, 6
The voting terminal 2 according to the present embodiment can perform all operations on the screen displaying the voting data by using c and 6d.
a is configured.

The help switch 6e is used by a voter who operates the apparatus to call a manager when the operation is unknown or when a trouble occurs. As the administrator calling means, a method of sending a signal to a terminal (not shown) used by the administrator, or turning on a warning lamp (not shown) connected to the terminal is possible.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a situation in which an actual voting operation is performed using the voting terminal 2a and the foot switch 6a of the present embodiment. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
Perform the voting operation while looking at the screen displayed in. The voter 1a selects and determines a desired candidate from the candidates displayed on the screen by operating the foot switch 6a at the foot with the foot 1a1 while watching the screen. The voting terminal 2a and the foot switch 6a are configured to transmit and receive data via a wireless transmission path.

Although various configurations can be applied to the foot switch 6a, the foot switch 6a shown in FIG. 1 has a button-type switch as shown in FIG.
This may be a mat-type switch (not shown) and placed on the footrest of a wheelchair, or a joystick-type switch (not shown) to minimize the burden on voters with disabilities. It goes without saying that any form of foot switch that reduces the number may be used.

FIGS. 16 to 19 show the voting terminal 2 of this embodiment.
7 is a flowchart illustrating a flow in which an elector with a physical disability votes using a foot switch 6a. In particular, FIG. 16 shows a single-entry candidate election, FIG. 17 shows a restricted roster-type proportional representative election, FIG. 18 shows a judge national examination, and FIG. 19 shows a referendum flow chart.

Before explaining the details of the embodiment with reference to each figure, an outline of a voting method will be described. First, a voter 1a who is physically handicapped holds a voting card and holds a voting terminal 2a.
To the booth with The voter 1a uses the voting terminal 2a and a switch of an external selection device as shown in FIG.
Candidates to vote for one or more elections are selected and confirmed, recorded (implicitly) on a recording device inside the voting terminal 2a, and the voting is completed.

[Example 1] In the case of a single-entry candidate election, the actual voting operation will be described with reference to FIG.
At the start of the voting operation, a voting standby screen is displayed on the display 30 of the voting terminal 2a in FIG. 1 (step S1). The content of the standby screen can be various configurations, but depending on the type of display, it is possible to make the design based on black for a cathode ray tube and white based for a liquid crystal display, It is desirable from the viewpoint of power consumption and display protection.

Next, the voter arrives at a booth having the voting terminal 2a with the voting card, and inserts the voting card into the voting terminal 2a. The voting card is a magnetic card or IC card issued by the election manager prior to voting,
As the built-in data, the type of election and the type of voting terminal (for the blind, the physically handicapped, the healthy, etc.) are recorded. In order to protect the anonymity of the election, no information that can identify the voter 1a is recorded on the IC card.
The data is read from the inserted card, and the voter attribute is verified as being physically handicapped by collation on the database of the server of the electronic voting system connected to the voting terminal 2a, and the identity of the person is confirmed. (Step S2). If the authentication fails, the process returns to the previous voting standby screen step S1.

When the identification is completed, a voting progress screen is displayed. First, the language to be used is determined. If the language used in the card can be selected in advance, a language selection screen as shown in FIG. 7 is displayed (step S3). At this time, the D “OK” button is invalidated. At first, change the color of A button and move the pointer to A
(Hereinafter, such an operation is described as lighting (A)). When the forward switch 6b or the backward switch 6c in the foot switch 6a in FIG. 6 is pressed, the buttons B and C are also lit cyclically as A → B → C → A. At this time, all buttons are turned off for half the lighting time before each lighting.

The voter 1a operates the forward or backward switch 6
By pressing the buttons b and 6c, the foot switch 6 shown in FIG.
The confirmation switch 6d in a is pressed. Change the color of the language button that was lit at this point, and press the button D "OK".
Enable When the voter 1a confirms that he / she wants to use the language (step S4), he presses the D "OK" button.

After setting the language used, all elections recorded on the card are executed. The following is a description of the single-entry candidate election type. First,
An election selection screen setting is displayed (step S5). A
If both "List selection" and B "Enter number" are allowed,
The screen shown in FIG. 8 is displayed, and the button A is turned on. The voter 1a who is a physically handicapped depresses the confirmation switch 6d of the foot switch 6a in FIG. 6 when the A "select list" button is turned on (step S6). The selected list selection method is determined, and a candidate selection screen as shown in FIG. 9 is displayed (step S7). Here, the B “previous page” button is disabled. At this time, if all the candidates are included in this screen, B “previous page” button, C “next page”
Button and F “Page / Page” button are not displayed. A
Each of the candidate buttons and the buttons B to E
When the voter presses the forward or backward switch in the foot switch of FIG. 5, the lights can be sequentially turned on.

The voter 1a changes the page to be displayed by pressing the buttons B and C until the candidate who wants to vote is displayed on A (step S9). At this time, the candidate name of A and the page number of F are updated (step S10). Here, if the page is the first page, the B "previous page" is invalidated, and if not, the D "return" is invalidated. When the last page has been reached, C “next page” is invalidated. Further, the display of the candidate button not displayed and the deletion of the candidate button without the candidate name are performed. The pressed B or C (the next button if not displayed) is turned on.

When the name of the candidate who wants to vote is displayed on A, the voter 1a presses the enter switch 6d when the button of the candidate name is turned on (step S).
8). Then, a screen of the selected candidate as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed (step S12). If a white vote is selected (step S11), a confirmation screen for the white vote is displayed (step S13). The voter 1a uses the forward or backward switch 6b, 6c to vote for the displayed candidate.
To turn on the "vote" button and press the decision switch 6d (step S14). The input candidate is printed on a journal printer, recorded on a recording device, and transmitted via a network (step S1).
5).

When the correct voting is confirmed, a guide voice saying "Please remove the card" is played from the speaker (step S16). This sound is repeated until the voter or attendant removes the voting card from the terminal (step S17). When the voter or attendant removes the voting card, the guide voice stops, and the voting terminal 2a returns to the initial standby screen display (step S).
18). This completes the single-entry candidate election voting.

[Embodiment 2] Next, an embodiment will be described in the case of a restricted list proportional representative election. When the voting operation is started and the language selection is completed as in the first embodiment (step T)
1 to step T4), and the screen shown in FIG. 11 is displayed (step T5). B “Previous page” is invalidated.
If all parties are within this screen, B,
C and E are not displayed. In A, turn on the first party button (displayed as gray 05 Azuchi party in the figure). The voter 1a changes the displayed page by pressing the buttons B and C so that the political party who wants to vote is displayed on the button A (step T9). On the screen, the political party name of A and the page number of E are updated. If it is the first page, the B button is invalidated, and if not, D “white vote” is invalidated. When the last page has been reached, C “next page” is invalidated. Further, the display of the non-displayed party button and the deletion of the party button without the party name are performed. B pressed
Alternatively, the light is turned on in order from C (the next button if not displayed).

When the name of the party to be voted is displayed on A, the voter 1a turns on the button of the name of the party and presses the decision switch (step T8). Then
On the screen, a confirmation screen of the selected political party as shown in FIG. 12 is displayed. If a white vote is selected (step T11), a white vote screen is displayed (step T1).
3). Voter 1a is the displayed political party (or white vote)
In order to vote, the "voting" button is turned on and the confirmation switch is pressed (step T14). Then, the input political party is printed on the journal printer, recorded on the recording device, and transmitted to the counting center via the network (step T15). When confirmation of the correct voting is completed, a guide voice saying "Please remove the card" is played from the speaker (step T16). This sound is repeated until the voter or attendant removes the voting card from the terminal (step T17). When the voter or attendant removes the voting card, the guide voice stops, and the voting terminal returns to the initial standby screen display (step T18). This completes the voting for the restricted list proportional representative election.

[Embodiment 3] A case in which a judge of the Supreme Court judge conducts a national examination will be described with reference to FIG.
Voter 1a inserts a voting card and confirms his identity,
Up to the point where the language to be used is selected, the process is the same as in the first and second embodiments (steps U1 to U4).

First, a judge selection screen shown in FIG. 13 is displayed (step U5). At this time, the B button is invalidated. If all judges are on this screen, the buttons B, C and E are not displayed. By pressing the forward or backward switch, each judge button of A and B to D are turned on in order. The voter 1a selects and lights the button of the judge who wants to be dismissed displayed in A, and presses the confirmation switch (step U8). The color of the selected judge's button changes and a mark is added. The buttons are turned on in order from the determined button (step U1).
1).

The voter 1a turns on B or C and presses the enter switch to display another page (step U9). Then, the judge name of A and the page number of E are updated (step U10). Here, B is invalidated when the first page is reached, and C is invalidated when the last page is reached. Further, a judge button that is not displayed is displayed, and a judge button without a judge name is deleted. The lights are turned on in order from the lighted B or C (the next button if not displayed). The voter 1a repeats these operations in order to select all judges to be dismissed.

The voter confirms that all buttons of the judge to be dismissed have changed colors, turns on the "OK" button and presses the enter switch (step U12), and the judge confirmation screen shown in FIG. 14 is displayed. Is displayed (Step U1
3). In FIG. 14, A displays the name of the selected judge. B is invalidated. If all selected judges are on this screen, B, C, and F are not displayed.

The voter 1a turns on B or C and presses the enter switch to display another page.
The selected judge name of A and the page number of F are updated. Here, B is invalidated when the first page is reached, and C is invalidated when the last page is reached. The lights are turned on in order from the pressed B or C (the next button if not displayed).

The voter 1a confirms the selected judge displayed on the screen, turns on the "vote" button, and presses the confirmation switch (step U14). The entered judge is printed on the journal printer, recorded on the recording device, and transmitted to the counting center via the network (step U15). When the correct voting is confirmed, a guide voice saying "Please remove the card" is played from the speaker (step U16). This sound is
The process is repeated until the voter 1a or the attendant removes the voting card from the terminal (step U17).

When the voter 1a or attendant removes the voting card, the guide voice stops, and the voting terminal 2a returns to the initial standby screen display (step U18). This completes the judge national review procedure.

[Embodiment 4] A case of performing a referendum will be described with reference to FIG. The process is the same as in the first to third embodiments described above up to the point where the voter 1a inserts a voting card, confirms his / her identity, and selects a language to be used (steps V1 to V4). The referendum list screen of FIG. 15 is displayed (step V5). At this time, the B "previous page" button is invalidated. If all the options are included in this screen, B, C, and D are not displayed.
By pressing the forward or backward switch, each of the option buttons A and B to D are sequentially turned on (step V9).

The voter 1a decides that the option of the bill to be selected is A
Buttons B and C are turned on and pressed to change the displayed page (step V1).
0). The option name of A and the page number of D are updated. Here, B is invalidated when the first page is reached, and C is invalidated when the last page is reached. Furthermore, the display of the option not displayed and the deletion of the option button without the option name are performed. The lights are turned on in order from the lighted B or C (the next button if not displayed). When the option to be selected is displayed on A, the voter 1a presses the option button (step V8). A referendum confirmation screen for the selected option is displayed, and the "vote" button and the "back" button are alternately lit.

The voter 1a turns on the "agree" button or the "disagree" button and presses the decision switch to vote for the displayed option (step V12). The input options are printed on a journal printer, recorded on a recording device, and transmitted to a tallying center via a network (step V15).

When the correct voting is confirmed, a guide voice saying "Please remove the card" is played from the speaker (step V16). This voice is repeated until the voter or attendant removes the voting card from the terminal (step V17). When the voter 1a or attendant removes the voting card, the guide voice stops, and the voting terminal 2a returns to the initial standby screen display (step V18). This completes the judge national review procedure.

The present invention has the following effects. That is, there is an effect that voting can be easily performed by connecting an external selection device, and even if the elector is a physically handicapped person, a system that can perform voting operation with only a small number of foot switches. Since it is possible to transmit election information and voting information, there is an effect that a fair voting environment can be provided to electors. In addition, by adding the wireless communication function, there is also an effect that the degree of freedom of installation can be improved regardless of a place where the apparatus is located at a short distance.

[0060]

As described above in detail, the present invention provides an electronic voting apparatus for voting by selecting information on a specific candidate from among information on a plurality of candidates displayed on a predetermined display screen. Display means for displaying information on a plurality of candidates on a display screen, and information on a specific candidate from among the displayed information on the plurality of candidates, the operator performs a selection operation using a foot. By providing an operating means configured in a shape and an installation position that can be used, it is possible to promote digitization in election voting and tallying work, etc., so that even if multiple elections are held at the same time, it can be executed without error In this way, even physically handicapped electors, especially those with disabilities, can easily vote using the foot-based candidate selection method, ensuring fair operability and reliability for all electors. Excellent It is possible to provide a child voting machines.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a situation in which voting is performed using a voting terminal and a foot switch according to an example of the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the voting terminal of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a hardware configuration diagram of the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a software configuration diagram of the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a program executed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the foot switch of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a language selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a selection method selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a candidate selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a candidate confirmation screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a political party selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a political party confirmation screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a judge selection screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 14 is a judge confirmation screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 15 is a resident vote list screen displayed by the voting terminal of FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of voting in a single-entry candidate election executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a flow of voting in a restricted list proportional representative election executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. 1;

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the flow of voting in the Judges of the Supreme Court judge executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. 1;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a flow of voting of a referendum executed using the voting terminal and the foot switch of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

2a Voting terminal (electronic voting device) 6a Foot switch (electronic voting device) 6b Forward switch (forward switch, temporary selection switch) 6c Reverse switch (reverse switch, temporary selection switch) 6d Confirmation switch 6e Help switch 30 LCD panel ( Display means)

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Kenji Narusawa 3-12 Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside Japan Victor Company of Japan (72) Inventor Toshiro Kawano 3-12 Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Address: Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (72) Yoshiya Yokochi, Inventor Yoshiya Yokochi 3-chome, Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture12-72 Victor Company of Japan Co., Ltd. (72) Ryo Saito, Moriyacho, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture No. 12 Inside Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (72) Haruo Matsuo, inventor 3-chome Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture No. 12 Inside Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (72) Tadashi Aizawa 3-chome, Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture No. 12 Inside Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (72) Inventor Koichiro Nishikawa 3 Moriyacho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 12-chome F-term in JVC, Ltd. (reference)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An electronic voting apparatus for selecting information on a specific candidate from among information on a plurality of candidates displayed on a predetermined display screen and voting, wherein the electronic voting device includes: Display means for displaying information on the display screen; and a shape allowing the operator to select information on a specific candidate from the displayed information on the plurality of candidates by using a foot. An electronic voting device, comprising: an operation means configured at an installation position. 2. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said operation means has a help switch for transmitting a help signal for assistance to a predetermined receiving means. 3. The temporary operation switch for temporarily selecting arbitrary information from among the information on the plurality of candidates displayed on the display screen, and a temporary selection switch using the temporary selection switch. 3. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a confirmation switch for confirming the selected information as information relating to the specific candidate for voting. 4. The tentative selection switch comprises a forward switch for incrementing the tentatively selected information and a backward switch for decrementing the tentatively selected information. Item 3. An electronic voting apparatus according to Item 3. 5. The electronic voting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said display means switches and displays information on said plurality of candidates on a screen-by-screen basis.