JP2004511861A - LCD barcode scanner that can scan LCD barcodes - Google Patents

Abstract

A scanner for recognizing a bar code displayed on a liquid crystal display (LCD) of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA (mobile information terminal), and a pager (pager). The liquid crystal display bar code scanner can scan and decode customer information displayed on the liquid crystal display of the mobile terminal in the form of a bar code, thereby accurately, easily and conveniently recognize customers.

Description

[0001]
(Technical field)
The present invention generally relates to a scanner system for recognizing a bar code displayed on a liquid crystal display (LCD) of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA (mobile information terminal), a pager (pager), and more particularly, a mobile terminal. The present invention relates to an LCD barcode scanner which scans and decodes customer information displayed in the form of a barcode on an LCD of the LCD, thereby accurately, simply and conveniently recognize the customer.
[0002]
(Background technology)
In general, a barcode is a combination of a plurality of black and white bars having different thicknesses at a specific ratio and is given a single code.A device that reads and decodes the barcode is called a barcode scanner. .
Such barcodes have been widely used to indicate the price of goods in supermarkets and large stores. The barcode writing device must first be provided to manage products based on the barcode. The barcode is printed and attached to the related product. When a particular product is bought by a customer, the price can be confirmed by scanning the barcode. As a result, the related information can be easily and conveniently confirmed in a short time by using the barcode.
[0003]
For this reason, department stores and large stores often use a card on which a customer identification barcode is written, rather than a method of entering the name and address registration number of each customer for customer identification.
Recently, research on applying barcodes to a member management system on the Internet has been actively conducted.
However, applying the conventional barcode to a member management system on the Internet has the following problems.
[0004]
First, printed barcodes cannot be stored for long periods of time. That is, when the printed barcode is repeatedly scanned, the original pattern cannot be continuously maintained, and an error may occur in data recognition. Managing members on the Internet using printed barcodes increases the frequency of use of barcodes over time, leading to the inconvenience of having to replace a new barcode immediately after installation. In addition, replacing the barcode complicates the membership management since the identification of the customer must also be verified.
[0005]
Second, the data of the barcode itself cannot be changed using a conventional printed barcode scanner. In order to perform membership management on the Internet using the printed barcode, the barcode content of the customer must be changeable. Despite this fact, the customer's barcode content cannot be changed by transmitting data over a network. Thus, each time the customer's barcode content is modified, the associated printed barcode must be updated, leading to inconvenience in use. In the future, barcodes are expected to be of various types, such as liquid crystal display (LCD) types and printing types, and can be used continuously. In this regard, conventional print barcode scanners have the disadvantage that they cannot decode LCD-type barcodes.
[0006]
Third, the customer must have a printed barcode for Internet membership management separately from the mobile phone. This is inconvenient for the customer to use.
[0007]
In order to solve the above problem, there is a need for a method capable of displaying customer identification information as a bar code on a liquid crystal of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, or a pager. This requires an LCD barcode scanner that can scan barcodes displayed on the liquid crystal of the mobile terminal.
[0008]
Furthermore, the conventional scanner must include an RC signal generator for generating a signal for driving a charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor and a sampling / holding circuit for setting synchronization of signal generation. , An oscillation circuit and a frequency divider are required. As a result, conventional scanners are complex and occupy a large amount of space to assemble, and thus are costly and difficult to control precisely.
[0009]
(Disclosure of the Invention)
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to scan and decode customer information displayed as a bar code on a liquid crystal of a mobile terminal, thereby enabling a customer to be decoded. An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display barcode scanner that can be accurately, easily and conveniently recognized.
[0010]
The above and other objects according to the present invention include a trigger switch for starting a barcode scanning operation of a scanner; a memory for storing firmware for controlling each component in the scanner; and a memory for storing firmware in the memory. A microprocessor that controls the operation of each component in the scanner according to firmware, controls light emission and a bar code signal detection operation in response to a switch operation of the trigger switch, and inputs liquid crystal display bar code information. A light source having a light emitting diode controlled by said microprocessor to irradiate a red wavelength light to a scanned liquid crystal display bar code under the control of said microprocessor. And from the liquid crystal display barcode A lens / optical filter for collecting the emitted light; a charge-coupled device sensor for converting the intensity of the light collected by the lens / optical filter into an electric signal; an analog signal from the charge-coupled device sensor is amplified and amplified. A signal detector that converts the converted analog signal into a digital signal and outputs the converted digital signal to the microprocessor; and transmits barcode information decoded by the microprocessor to an external device under the control of the microprocessor. An input / output driver; and a liquid crystal display barcode scanner.
[0011]
(Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention)
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can decode a barcode displayed on a liquid crystal display (LCD) of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a pager or a conventional printed barcode, and is applied to an Internet service through a wireless communication network. To provide a liquid crystal display barcode scanner. Unlike conventional printed barcode scanners, the contents of the barcode displayed on the LCD of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, PDA, pager, etc., can be decoded by the LCD barcode scanner, so that the wireless communication network You can modify it at any time above. This LCD barcode scanner can be applied to an Internet customer management system by using a customer management card, coupon, ticket, and the like.
[0012]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an LCD barcode scanner according to the present invention. As shown in this figure, the LCD bar code scanner has a trigger switch TSW for starting bar code scanning of the scanner, a memory 10 for storing firmware for controlling each component in the scanner, and a memory 10 for storing in the memory 10. And a microprocessor 20 for controlling the operation of each component in the scanner by the firmware. The microprocessor 20 controls the light emission and the barcode signal detection operation in response to the switch operation of the trigger switch TSW, decodes the input LCD barcode information, and transmits the decoded barcode information to an external device. Transmission is controlled. The LCD barcode scanner further collects light reflected from the LCD barcode by a light emitting diode (LED) light source 30 controlled by the microprocessor 20 to illuminate the scanned LCD barcode with light of a red wavelength (660 nm). A lens / optical filter 40; a charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor 50 for converting the intensity of light collected by the lens / optical filter 40 into an electric signal; and an amplified analog signal that amplifies a signal from the CCD sensor 50. To a digital signal, and a signal detector 60 for outputting the converted digital signal to the microprocessor 20; and an input for transmitting barcode information decoded by the microprocessor 20 to an external device under the control of the microprocessor 20. / Output (I / O) driver 70.
[0013]
The memory 10 is a storage device that stores firmware used in the present invention. To solve the limitation of accurately expressing a barcode (thickness ratio) due to the minimum display resolution (1 dot unit) of the LCD, the firmware calculates a barcode bar width by a compensation function. Used to program A feature of the firmware of the present invention is that, since the width of the LCD of the mobile terminal is limited, the barcode is represented in two columns, and both the first and second columns are read and sent to the computer. is there. In another aspect of the invention, this firmware not only allows the user to maintain the scanner when new features are added, but also allows the developer to easily test the scanner. It has such a maintenance function and a test function of the present invention.
[0014]
The microprocessor 20 monitors the output signal from the trigger switch TSW when the user starts scanning, displays the current status of the scanner on the display 100, and notifies the user of the status. Further, the microprocessor 20 functions to generate a signal for controlling the LED light source 30 and a pulse signal for controlling the CCD. Further, the microprocessor 20 decodes the digital signal from the signal detector 60 according to the barcode, and transmits the decoded result to a computer or a host device.
[0015]
When the user presses the trigger switch TSW to scan a barcode, the LED light source 30 functions to irradiate the barcode with light of a red wavelength (660 nm) according to a control signal from the microprocessor 20.
[0016]
The lens / optical filter 40 functions to collect light reflected from a barcode displayed on an LCD of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a pager or a barcode printed on paper. The lens / optical filter 40 also functions to remove noise components from the light reflected from the barcode.
[0017]
Generally, a scanner can receive light reflected from an object in two ways. One is a contact method in which the window rubber contacts the object, and the other is a non-contact (long range) method in which the window rubber does not contact the object. The present invention adopts a non-contact method, in which an object, that is, a bar code is projected under a protective film on an LCD of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA or a pager. On the other hand, the scanner of the present invention can accurately read barcodes (based on thickness ratio) because of the light reflection by the protective film, the background light of the LCD, the surface reflection of the LCD, and the minimum display resolution (1 dot unit) of the LCD. There is a limit in expressing. To overcome this limit, the present invention employs a non-contact method that compensates for the distance between the scanner and the object (to ensure a DOF (depth of field) margin).
[0018]
The CCD sensor 50 adjusts the intensity of the light collected by the lens / optical filter 40 to a high voltage level for the white bar of the LCD barcode because it reflects a large amount of light, and to the black bar of the LCD barcode. In other words, it functions to convert the light level to a low voltage level by absorbing the irradiated light. The two-phase clock signal and four control signals (pulses) are necessary for the operation of the CCD sensor 50. In the present invention, these signals are generated under the control of the microprocessor 20. Since the CCD sensor of the present invention has a large number of photodiodes arranged on the X-axis, it has an advantage that the sensing capability is uniform and barcode information can be received in a non-contact state with an object.
[0019]
The signal detector 60 functions to convert a weak electric signal from the CCD sensor 50 into a digital signal using an analog amplifier and an electric filter. The analog amplifier is preferably an operational amplifier (OP AMP). The electric filter is used to remove electric noise components generated by the CCD sensor during the light / electric conversion. To divide the electrical signal from the electrical filter into two digital levels (+ 5V and 0V), the signal detector 60 digitizes the electrical signal to 5V when higher or equal to the reference potential and to 0V when lower than the reference potential. , The digital signal can be monitored by the microprocessor 20.
[0020]
The I / O driver 70 functions to transmit the barcode content decoded by the microprocessor 20 to a personal computer (PC) or a host device via a keyboard (K / B) or an RS-232C interface.
[0021]
In the LCD barcode scanner of the present invention, the microprocessor 20 further functions to control a specific sound and a specific light output each time the barcode scanning operation is completed. The LCD barcode scanner further includes a completion sound output device 80 for notifying the end of the barcode scanning with a specific sound and a completion light output device 90 for notifying the completion of the barcode scanning with a specific light.
[0022]
The LCD barcode scanner further has a display device 100 for displaying the scanning status of the scanner on a screen. The microprocessor 20 controls the display device 100 to display information on the scanning status of the scanner.
[0023]
FIG. 2 is a waveform diagram illustrating LCD barcode information and a digital signal corresponding thereto. As shown in this figure, the bar code is constituted by alternating gray bars (or white bars) and black bars having a predetermined thickness ratio, and represents the contents of the bar code.
[0024]
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an appearance of the LCD barcode scanner of FIG. As shown in this figure, the trigger switch TSW is provided on the outer surface of the LCD barcode scanner, applies a trigger signal to the microprocessor 20 in the scanner, and starts the scanning operation of the scanner.
[0025]
Hereinafter, the operation of the LCD barcode scanner having the above-described configuration according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
First, when the user presses a trigger switch TSW provided on the outer surface of the scanner, the microprocessor 20 in the scanner recognizes that the trigger switch TSW has been pressed, and operates the components including the LED light source 30. Control.
[0026]
The LED light source 30 is controlled by the microprocessor 20 to irradiate a bar code to be scanned with light of a red wavelength (660 nm). Then, the light applied to the bar code is reflected from the bar code with an intensity corresponding to the information contained in the bar code. The reflected light is collected by the lens / optical filter 40 and sent to the CCD sensor 50.
[0027]
The CCD sensor 50 converts the weak optical signal sent by the lens / optical filter 40 into an electric analog signal, and transmits the converted analog signal to the signal detector 60. The signal detector 60 amplifies the analog signal from the CCD sensor 50 to a predetermined level, converts the amplified analog signal into a digital signal that can be decoded by the microprocessor 20, and sends the converted digital signal to the microprocessor 20. Output.
[0028]
Upon receiving the digital signal from signal detector 60, microprocessor 20 decodes the signal and transmits the decoded data to I / O driver 70 for transmission to an external device. Thereafter, the I / O driver 70 transmits the decoded data of the LCD barcode to the external device.
[0029]
That is, the decoded data is sent to a computer or host device via a signal line connected to the tail of the scanner. In particular, the scanner must be mobile. Finally, in the present invention, the scanner has a Bluetooth function, and transmits the bar code data wirelessly to a computer or a host device. Since this Bluetooth function can solve the limitation of the distance between the scanner and the host computer, the bar code data displayed on the LCD of a remote mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a pager can be transferred to the host computer. Can be transmitted.
[0030]
On the other hand, when the decoding of the predetermined bar code is completed without error, the microprocessor 20 controls the output of the completion sound when the bar code scanning is completed. As a result, the completion sound output device 80 outputs a specific sound indicating that the barcode scanning is completed, for example, a “whistle sound” under the control of the microprocessor 20. Further, when the predetermined barcode is decoded without error, the microprocessor 20 outputs a light indicating that the barcode scanning is completed. As a result, the completion light output device or indicator 90 is, for example, a light emitting diode mounted on the top of the scanner, and a specific light indicating that the barcode scanning has been completed, such as "green light" or "green light" under the control of the microprocessor 20. Outputs “red light”. Therefore, when the barcode scan is completed, the LCD barcode scanner of the present invention will flash the light for a short time together with the "whistle sound" so that the user can easily recognize the completion of the scan.
[0031]
(Possibility of industrial use)
As will be apparent from the foregoing description, the present invention provides a liquid crystal display (LCD) barcode scanner having the effects summarized below.
[0032]
First, an LCD barcode scanner can decode a barcode displayed on a LCD of a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a pager or a printed barcode. An advantage of LCO barcodes is that the incidence of errors during repeated use can be reduced.
[0033]
Second, by scanning the barcode on the mobile terminal's LCD, the barcode can be written over the Internet. Therefore, the LCD barcode scanner can be applied to an Internet-based customer management system.
[0034]
Third, the decoding of the barcode on the LCD of the mobile terminal makes it easier for customers to carry the barcode.
[0035]
Fourth, decoding the LCD barcode using the Bluetooth function enables barcode scanning at a location remote from the host computer. As a result, the user of the scanner can easily confirm whether or not the customer is a member through the LCD of the customer's mobile terminal even if the customer is away from the host computer.
[0036]
Fifth, the LCD barcode scanner can be applied to an Internet customer management system using a customer management card, coupon, ticket, etc., which can decode the barcode on the LCD of the mobile terminal.
[0037]
The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for the purpose of explanation, and those skilled in the art may make various modifications without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed in the appended claims. , Addition, and replacement are possible.
[Brief description of the drawings]
The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
FIG.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a liquid crystal display barcode scanner related to the present invention.
FIG. 2
FIG. 4 is a waveform diagram illustrating liquid crystal display barcode information and digital signals related thereto.
FIG. 3
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an appearance of the liquid crystal display barcode scanner of FIG.

Claims (3)

A trigger switch for initiating a barcode scanning operation of the scanner;
A memory for storing firmware for controlling each component in the scanner;
A microprocessor that controls the operation of each component in the scanner according to firmware stored in the memory, and controls light emission and bar code signal detection in response to a switch operation of the trigger switch; A microprocessor for decoding the decoded liquid crystal display barcode information and transmitting the decoded barcode information to an external device;
A light source having a light emitting diode controlled by the microprocessor to illuminate a red wavelength light on a liquid crystal display bar code to be scanned;
A lens / optical filter for collecting light reflected from the liquid crystal display barcode;
A charge coupled device sensor that converts the intensity of light collected by the lens / optical filter into an electrical signal;
A signal detector that amplifies an analog signal from the charge-coupled device sensor, converts the amplified analog signal into a digital signal, and outputs the converted digital signal to the microprocessor;
An input / output driver for transmitting barcode information decoded by the microprocessor to an external device under the control of the microprocessor;
A liquid crystal display barcode scanner comprising: A completion sound output device that outputs a specific sound indicating that the barcode scanning has ended; and a completion light output device that outputs a specific light indicating that the barcode scanning has ended. 2. The liquid crystal display according to claim 1, wherein the microprocessor further controls output of a specific sound and a specific light from the completion sound output device and the completion light output device when barcode scanning is completed. Display barcode scanner. The display device may further include a display device for displaying a scanning state of the scanner on a screen, and the microprocessor may further control the display device to display information on the scanning state of the scanner. The bar code scanner according to claim 1.

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