JP2006350410A - Eye image photographing device and authentication device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an eye image photographing device and an authentication device for easily photographing eyes of a subject even if the subject is not familiar with the photographing of an eye image, or it is difficult for the subject to position the eyes while looking at a guide mirror. <P>SOLUTION: An authentication device 1 is provided with a photographing part 3 equipped with a guide mirror 13 used by a subject for confirming positions of his or her own eyes by the reflected image, a light entry port 20 for taking in rays of light for photography and LEDs 12b for proximity illumination arranged at the both right and left sides of the light entry port 20. This authentication device 1 is also provided with a main body 2 equipped with a mounting stand 10 on which the photographing part 3 is mounted so as to be freely attached/detached and LEDs 12a for normal illumination arranged so as to be positioned at the right and left sides of the photographing part 3 mounted on the mounting stand 10. The photographing part 3 is configured so as to be mounted to the main body 2 in a freely attachable/detachable manner, and image information photographed by the photographing part 3 is transmitted through an information transmission part 14 to the main body 2 as an electric signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an eye image capturing device that captures an eye of a subject to acquire an eye image, and an authentication device that performs personal authentication using an eye image acquired by the device.

  In recent years, as a method of personal authentication at the time of access in devices that require high security such as entry / exit management devices and information devices storing important information such as personal information, human fingerprints, irises, fundus blood vessels, facial Various authentication methods using so-called biometric information unique to the person to be authenticated, such as features, blood vessel patterns such as arms and hands, have been put into practical use.

  As one of them, an authentication method using the difference in eyelid pattern of the iris portion of the eye (hereinafter, this authentication method is referred to as “iris authentication method”) has been proposed and put into practical use.

  In this iris authentication method, the eye of the person to be authenticated and its surroundings are illuminated with near-infrared illumination or the like, and an image of an area including the eye of the person to be authenticated (hereinafter referred to as “eye image”) is taken using a camera. . Then, extract the iris region from the obtained eye image and create authentication information that is coded so that the difference in the eyelid pattern of the iris part is expressed as numerical information, and this authentication information is pre-registered authentication information (Hereinafter referred to as “registered authentication information”) and comparison. As a result of the comparison and collation, if it is determined that they match each other, the person to be authenticated is authenticated as a person registered in advance (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In addition, since the iris image is the clearest image obtained in the vicinity of the near infrared region, many of the devices that capture the eye image used at this time have a visible light cut filter attached to the lens.

  This iris authentication method has been widely put into practical use as an authentication method in places where high reliability such as a low identity rejection rate and a low acceptance rate for others and high security is required, and has demonstrated excellent effects.

On the other hand, in an authentication apparatus that performs personal authentication by the iris authentication method as described above, an eye image that can be authenticated by the authentication apparatus, that is, an area including the iris of the person to be authenticated is included in an appropriate position at an appropriate size. The eye image must be captured in the authentication device. For this purpose, a method has been proposed in which a mirror (hereinafter referred to as “guidance mirror”) is provided on the front surface of the photographing apparatus, and the person to be authenticated adjusts the position of his / her eyes while viewing the reflected image reflected in the mirror (for example, (See Patent Document 2).
Japanese Patent No. 3307936 JP 2003-141517 A

  As described above, such an authentication device is installed at an entrance or the like in a place where high security is required, and opens the entrance door when the person to be authenticated is authenticated as a pre-registered person. It may be used for purposes such as When the authentication device is used for such door opening / closing management, the authentication device is fixed in the vicinity of the door at a height based on the average height of an adult, for example, at a position of about 160 cm from the ground. Often installed. In addition, it is desired that the authentication apparatus itself be as small as possible so that restrictions on the place where the authentication apparatus is installed are reduced, and the size of the guide mirror is often limited.

  For the authentication apparatus installed in this way, the person to be authenticated performs authentication by photographing the eye from a position away from the authentication apparatus by a predetermined distance, for example, about 30 to 60 cm. At this time, the person to be authenticated aligns the eyes while looking at the guide mirror provided in the authentication apparatus so that his / her eyes are arranged at an optimal position for photographing an eye image. However, it is not easy for a person who is not accustomed to eye alignment using a guide mirror to perform eye alignment while looking at the guide mirror located 30 to 60 cm away. Furthermore, if the size of the guiding mirror is not sufficient or the person to be authenticated is myopic, it becomes more difficult to align the eyes. In addition, when the height of the person to be authenticated is low, if there is a large difference between the height at which the authentication device is installed and the eye height of the person to be authenticated, the operation itself of the person to be authenticated looking at the guide mirror is difficult. Aligning the eyes becomes difficult.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and even if the subject is not used to taking an eye image or it is difficult to align the eye while looking at the guide mirror, the subject can be easily handled. It is an object of the present invention to provide an eye image photographing device and an authentication device that can photograph an eye.

  In order to achieve such an object, an eye image capturing device of the present invention is an eye image capturing device that captures an area including an eye of a subject, and includes a main body unit and a focal length switching unit. The focal length switching unit is configured such that when the photographing unit is separated from the main unit, the focal length of the photographing unit is shorter than when the photographing unit is attached to the main unit. It is characterized by switching to.

  With this configuration, when the imaging unit is attached to the main body, the focal length is increased to shoot an eye image, and when the imaging unit is removed from the main body, the focal length is reduced to perform the imaging of the eye image. For example, you can take an eye image of a subject at a position away from the shooting unit with the shooting unit attached to the main unit, or remove the shooting unit from the main unit and bring it close to the subject's eyes. Thus, an eye image can be taken and the eye image can be easily taken.

  The photographing unit has a fixed first lens and a second lens that can move between a position sharing an optical axis with the first lens and a retracted position, and the focal length switching unit The focal length may be switched by moving the second lens to the retracted position in accordance with separation of the unit from the main body. According to this configuration, when the photographing unit is attached to the main body, the focal length of the photographing unit is increased by using only the first lens, and when the photographing unit is detached from the main body, the first lens The focal length of the photographing unit can be shortened by using the focal length combined with the second lens.

  The photographing unit may include a zoom lens capable of switching a focal length, and the focal length switching unit may be configured to switch the focal length by driving the zoom lens in accordance with the separation of the photographing unit from the main body. . According to this configuration, since the zoom lens is provided in the photographing unit and the zoom lens is driven by the attachment and detachment state of the photographing unit and the main body, the focal length of the photographing unit is increased when the photographing unit is attached to the main body. When the photographing unit is removed from the main body, the focal length of the photographing unit can be shortened.

  Also, a first illumination unit provided in the main body unit and a second illumination unit provided in the photographing unit are provided, and the first illumination unit is performed when the photographing unit is attached to the main body unit. Illumination at the time of photographing may be performed, and the second illumination unit may be configured to perform illumination at the time of photographing performed when the photographing unit is separated from the main body. According to this configuration, the illumination of the subject is made suitable for photographing an eye image with a short focal length when the photographing unit is attached to the main body, and the eye with a long focal length when the photographing unit is detached from the main body. It is possible to obtain illumination suitable for taking an image.

  Further, a configuration may be provided that includes a mounting base that is provided in the main body section and rotatably mounts the photographing section on the main body section, and an elastic body that elastically holds the mounting base and the main body section. According to this configuration, it is possible to change the photographing direction of the photographing unit attached to the main body unit by rotating the mounting base, so that the photographing direction of the photographing unit attached to the main body unit is the eye of the subject. Even if the position is out of position, the photographing direction of the photographing unit can be easily directed to the eye position of the subject.

  Also, an eye position detection unit that is provided in the main body and detects the position of the subject's eye, a mounting base that is provided in the main body and rotatably mounts the photographing unit on the main body, and rotates the mounting base. A rotation drive unit, and a rotation control unit that controls the rotation drive unit. The rotation control unit includes a rotation control unit that controls an object in which the photographing direction of the photographing unit mounted on the mounting base is detected by the eye position detection unit. It is good also as a structure which controls a rotation drive part so that it may face in the position of eyes. According to this configuration, even if the photographing direction of the photographing unit attached to the main body part deviates from the position of the subject's eye, the eye position detection unit detects the position of the subject's eye, and the photographing unit is located at the eye position. Since the rotation control unit controls the rotation driving unit to rotate the mounting table so that the imaging direction is directed, it is possible to further easily shoot an eye image.

  The authentication device of the present invention includes an eye image capturing device and an iris authentication processing unit that performs an authentication process using an iris portion of an eye image captured by the eye image capturing device. According to this configuration, it becomes possible to easily capture an eye image of a subject, so that an eye image necessary for authentication can be quickly acquired, and authentication using an iris can be quickly performed. become able to.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to appropriately shoot an eye image both in a state where the photographing unit is attached to the main body unit and in a state where the photographing unit is detached from the main body unit. It is possible to provide an eye image capturing device and an authentication device that can easily capture an eye even if the user is not used to shooting the image or it is difficult to align the eye while looking at the guide mirror.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
An authentication apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an external view of an authentication device 1 configured by mounting an iris authentication processing unit on the eye image photographing device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The authentication apparatus 1 is configured by a photographing unit 3 being detachably attached to a main body unit 2. The main body 2 has a mounting base 10 on which the photographing unit 3 is detachably mounted, and a first part disposed so as to be positioned on both the left and right sides of the photographing unit 3 with the photographing unit 3 mounted on the mounting base 10. LED 12a for normal illumination which is the illumination part. The photographing unit 3 includes a guiding mirror 13 used for confirming the position of the subject's own eye by its reflected image, a light entrance 20 for taking in light for photographing, and both left and right sides of the light entrance 20. A proximity illumination LED 12b, which is a second illumination unit, is provided. In addition, the photographing unit 3 and the main body unit 2 are connected by an information transmission unit which will be described later, and image information captured by the photographing unit 3 is transmitted as an electrical signal to the main body unit 2 via the information transmission unit.

  Then, the eye image of the subject photographed by the photographing unit 3 is subjected to an authentication process in an iris authentication processing unit, which will be described later, and it is determined whether or not the subject has been registered in advance.

  In addition, the photographing unit 3 can photograph the eye of the subject in each of the state where the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body unit 2 and the state where the photographing unit 3 is detached. FIG. 2 is an external view showing a state where the photographing unit 3 is attached to and detached from the main body unit 2 in the authentication device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  FIG. 2A is an external view showing a state in which the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body unit 2. In photographing an eye image with the photographing unit 3 attached to the main body unit 2, the subject places his / her eyes at an appropriate position while looking at the guiding mirror 13 from a distance of about 50 cm from the guiding mirror 13. Take a picture.

  FIG. 2B is an external view illustrating a state in which the photographing unit 3 is detached from the main body unit 2. As shown in FIG. 2B, the photographing unit 3 and the main body unit 2 are connected by an information transmission unit 14, and image information photographed by the photographing unit 3 is connected to the main body via the information transmission unit 14 as an electrical signal. Is transmitted to the unit 2. Note that the information transmitted by the information transmission unit 14 may be authentication information created in advance from the image information in the imaging unit 3, and in this case, the information transmission amount is reduced as compared with the case of transmitting the image information. It is also possible. The information transmission unit 14 may be a wired cable, and can be arbitrarily selected from known transmission means such as wireless or infrared.

  Then, in photographing an eye image with the photographing unit 3 removed from the main body unit 2, the subject brings the photographing unit 3 close to a distance of about 10 cm from his / her own eye, and the guide mirror 13 or the light entrance 20 is moved from there. While looking at the camera, the user's own eye or the photographing unit 3 is placed at an appropriate position to photograph an eye image.

  In the present embodiment, hereinafter, photographing of an eye image in which the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the main body 2 and the distance between the photographing unit 3 and the subject is about 25 to 50 cm is referred to as “normal photographing”. Shooting an eye image in which the unit 3 is detached from the main unit 2 and the distance between the shooting unit and the subject is about 3 to 20 cm is referred to as “close-up shooting”.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of authentication apparatus 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  The authentication device 1 includes a photographing unit 3 that photographs an eye image, and a main body unit 2 to which the photographing unit 3 can be detachably attached.

  The photographing unit 3 includes a guide mirror 13 used for confirming the position of the subject's own eye by its reflected image, a light entrance 20 for taking in photographing light, a light emitting diode that emits near infrared light, and the like. A near-illumination LED 12b that is made of a known light-emitting element and is disposed on both the left and right sides of the light entrance 20, an illumination control unit 11b that controls the illumination of the proximity illumination LED 12b, and a focal length for normal photography and proximity photography A lens unit 21 that can be switched in two stages, a focal length switching unit 24 that switches a focal length of the lens unit 21, an imaging element 22 that is configured by a known element such as a CCD, and the imaging element 22. And a pre-processing unit 23 that performs signal processing on the processed image.

  The illumination control unit 11b prevents the proximity illumination LED 12b from emitting light when the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body unit 2 and an eye image when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the main body unit 2. Lighting control is performed so that the proximity illumination LED 12b emits light during photographing. The proximity illumination LED 12b irradiates a light amount suitable for acquiring an eye image by proximity imaging toward an area including at least the eye of the subject.

  The focal length switching unit 24 sets the focal length of the lens unit 21 for normal photographing when the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body 2 and close-up photographing when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the main body 2. Switch for each. Details of the focal length switching operation of the lens unit 21 by the focal length switching unit 24 will be described later.

  Near-infrared light emitted from the proximity illumination LED 12 b or the normal illumination LED 12 a is reflected by the face and eyes of the subject, and the reflected light is input to the image sensor 22 through the light entrance 20 and the lens unit 21. The input incident light is photoelectrically converted by the image sensor 22 and input to the preprocessing unit 23 as an electrical signal. The pre-processing unit 23 extracts an image signal component from the electrical signal input from the image sensor 22 and makes a determination on image quality such as contrast and focus, and performs necessary processing as an image signal such as gain adjustment. Then, the data is output to the image signal processing unit 30 provided in the main body unit 2 via the information transmission unit 14.

  The main body 2 includes a mounting base 10 on which the photographing unit 3 is detachably mounted, an image signal processing unit 30 that performs signal processing on an eye image of a subject photographed by the photographing unit 3, and light emission that emits near infrared light. A normal illumination LED 12a, which includes a known light emitting element such as a diode, and is disposed on both the left and right sides of the imaging unit 3 in a state where the imaging unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, and illumination of the normal illumination LED 12a An illumination control unit 11a that performs control, and an iris authentication processing unit 40 that performs authentication processing using the iris portion of the eye image of the subject imaged by the imaging unit 3 are provided.

  The illumination control unit 11a is configured so that the normal illumination LED 12a does not emit light when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the main body unit 2, and an eye image when the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body unit 2. Illumination control is performed so that the normal illumination LED 12a emits light during photographing. Then, the normal illumination LED 12a irradiates a light amount suitable for obtaining an eye image by normal photographing toward an area including at least the eye of the subject. Further, the normal illumination LEDs 12a are arranged so as to be positioned on both the left and right sides of the photographing unit 3 in a state where the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, but this is the case of the photographing unit during normal photographing. This is because the irradiation angle of the illumination light to the eye of the subject with respect to the optical axis 3 is irradiated at a predetermined angle, for example, an angle of 5 degrees or more. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the so-called red eye phenomenon in which the illumination light reflected by the retina of the subject is reflected in the eye image.

  The image signal processing unit 30 includes a pupil detection unit 31 that detects the position of the pupil from the eye image captured by the imaging unit 3, and whether the pupil detected by the pupil detection unit 31 is at an appropriate position in the eye image. And an authentication image acquisition unit 33 that receives the result of the determination unit 32 and acquires an eye image captured by the imaging unit 3 as an authentication eye image.

  The pupil detection unit 31 detects the pupil position from the eye image signal output from the preprocessing unit 23. As a method for detecting the pupil position from the signal of the eye image, a generally known technique such as a method using template matching or a method using circular integration (Japanese Patent Publication No. 8-504979) can be used. . The determination unit 32 determines whether or not the position of the pupil detected by the pupil detection unit 31 is at the center position of the eye image, and keeps the pupil at the center position of the eye image for a certain time (for example, about 0.5 seconds). When a stable detection is possible, a signal indicating that the eye has been placed at an appropriate position is output to the authentication image acquisition unit 33. The authentication image acquisition unit 33 receives the signal from the determination unit 32, takes in the eye image signal output from the preprocessing unit 23, and outputs it as an authentication eye image to the iris authentication processing unit 40.

  The iris authentication processing unit 40 cuts out the image of the iris region from the authentication eye image output from the image signal processing unit 30, and creates authentication information based on the iris pattern of the iris part. Then, the registered authentication information registered in advance and the authentication information are compared and collated to determine whether or not they match each other, thereby determining whether or not the subject is a registrant. The function of the iris authentication processing unit 40 can be realized, for example, using a method known so far as described in Patent Document 1 described above.

  As described above, in the authentication device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, the eye image of the subject is photographed by the photographing unit 3, and the iris pattern in the photographed eye image is provided in the main body unit 2. Verification by the unit 40 is performed to determine whether or not the subject is registered in advance.

  The functions of the image signal processing unit 30, the preprocessing unit 23, the illumination control units 11a and 11b, and the iris authentication processing unit 40 may be realized by hardware, or each function may be realized by software. The configuration may be described and executed by an arithmetic device or the like. When each function is realized by software, it is possible to configure using a computer loaded with a program for realizing each functional block described above on an arithmetic unit.

  Next, the operation of switching the focal length of the lens unit 21 by the focal length switching unit 24 will be described.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a relationship between the mounting base 10 and the photographing unit 3 provided in the authentication device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, the mounting base 10 is provided with an insertion portion 15, and when the photographing section 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, the side facing the light entrance 20 of the photographing section 3 (hereinafter “back”). The insertion portion 15 is inserted into the insertion hole 16 that is opened. Then, when the insertion portion 15 is inserted into the insertion hole 16, the focal length of the lens portion 21 is switched.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the structure of the photographing unit 3 in the authentication device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 5A is a diagram showing a state when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the mounting base 10, and FIG. 5B is a diagram when the photographing unit 3 is attached to the mounting base 10. FIG. It is the figure which showed the state.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the lens unit 21 of the photographing unit 3 includes a first lens 21a and a second lens 21b, and the focal length switching unit 24 includes a lens switching unit 24a and an elastic unit 24b. Both the first lens 21a and the second lens 21b are fixed focus lenses that are generally used. However, when only the first lens 21a is used, the focal length is suitable for close-up photography, and when the first lens 21a and the second lens 21b are combined, the focal length is suitable for normal photography. Each lens is combined. The first lens 21 a is fixedly disposed at a position where the light taken in from the light entrance 20 forms an image on the image sensor 22. The second lens 21b is movably provided and moves between a position sharing the optical axis with the first lens 21a and a retracted position deviating from the optical axis of the first lens 21a. The elastic part 24b is made of a generally known elastic body such as a spring, and is provided between the lens switching part 24a and the back side of the photographing part 3 as shown in FIG. 24a is elastically held.

  The lens switching unit 24a is movable between the back side of the photographing unit 3 and the light entrance 20 side (hereinafter referred to as “front surface”), and the second lens 21b is moved by the movement. It is configured. Then, the second lens 21b moves to a retracted position that is a position deviated from the optical axis of the photographing unit 3 when the lens switching unit 24a is located on the back side of the photographing unit 3, and the lens switching unit 24a is moved to the photographing unit 3. When the lens is located on the front side of the lens, it moves to a position sharing the optical axis with the first lens 21a.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 5A, when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the mounting base 10, the second lens 21b supported by the lens switching unit 24a has the lens switching unit 24a as the elastic unit 24b. As a result, the supporting position moves downward and moves to a retracted position off the optical axis of the photographing unit 3. Therefore, when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the mounting base 10, only the first lens 21 a is disposed between the light entrance 20 and the imaging element 22, and the light is taken in from the light entrance 20. Since light is imaged on the image sensor 22 only by the first lens 21a, the focal length in the photographing unit 3 is a focal length suitable for close-up photography.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5B, when the imaging unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, the lens switching unit 24 a is inserted by the insertion unit 15 of the mounting base 10 inserted into the insertion hole 16 of the imaging unit 3. Moves from the front side of the photographing unit 3. As a result, the second lens 21b is pushed up by the lens switching unit 24a and moves to a position sharing the optical axis with the first lens 21a. Therefore, when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, the first lens 21 a and the second lens 21 b are arranged between the light entrance 20 and the imaging element 22 in a state where the optical axis is shared. Since the light taken in from the light entrance 20 passes through the second lens 21b and the first lens 21a and forms an image on the image sensor 22, the focal length in the photographing unit 3 is suitable for normal photographing. The focal length.

  FIG. 6 is a front view and a side view showing the structure of the photographing unit 3 in the authentication device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 6A is a diagram illustrating a state when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the mounting table 10, and FIG. 6B is a diagram when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting table 10. FIG. It is the figure which showed the state. As shown in FIG. 6, the second lens 21b is elastically held by an elastic portion 26 made of a generally known elastic body such as a spring and the other of the shaft portion 25 held so that one end serves as a fulcrum. Provided at the end. Therefore, the second lens 21b can move with one end of the shaft portion 25 as a fulcrum. As shown in FIG. 6A, when the photographing unit 3 is detached from the mounting base 10, the support position is shifted downward because the lens switching unit 24a that supports the second lens 21b moves to the back side. The second lens 21b moves to a retracted position that deviates from the optical axis of the first lens 21a. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, it is moved to the front side of the photographing unit 3 by the insertion part 15 of the mounting base 10 inserted into the photographing part 3. Since the lens switching unit 24a pushes up the second lens 21b, the second lens 21b moves to a position sharing the optical axis with the first lens 21a.

  Thus, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the arrangement position of the second lens 21b depends on whether or not the insertion portion 15 provided in the mounting base 10 is inserted into the insertion hole 16 of the photographing unit 3. In other words, the focal length of the photographing unit 3 is changed. The focal length of the imaging unit 3 is a focal length suitable for normal imaging when the imaging unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10 and the insertion unit 15 is inserted into the insertion hole 16. In the state where the insertion portion 15 is removed and the insertion portion 15 is not inserted into the insertion hole 16, the focal length is suitable for close-up photography, and the eye image of the subject can be taken at the optimum focal length.

  The illumination switching by the illumination controllers 11a and 11b may be performed by providing a generally known pressure-sensitive sensor or the like that detects the attachment / detachment state between the photographing unit 3 and the mounting base 10, but the insertion hole 16 It is also possible to adopt a configuration that performs in conjunction with whether or not the insertion portion 15 is inserted.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the authentication device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. First, the authentication operation is started by the subject inputting an authentication start instruction (S11). Next, the attachment / detachment state of the imaging unit 3 and the main body unit 2 is determined depending on whether or not the insertion unit 15 is inserted into the insertion hole 16 (S12), and the imaging unit 3 is removed from the main body unit 2. The focal length of the lens unit 21 becomes a focal length suitable for close-up photography (S21), and further, the proximity illumination LED 12b emits light, and preparation for close-up photography of the eye image of the subject in the photographing unit 3 is completed (S22). . In step S12, when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the main body 2, the focal length of the lens unit 21 is a focal length suitable for normal photographing (S25), and the normal illumination LED 12a emits light. Thus, preparation for normal photographing of the eye image of the subject in the photographing unit 3 is completed (S26). Then, in the photographing unit 3, an eye image of the subject is photographed (S30), and the preprocessing unit 23 determines whether the image quality such as focus, luminance, and contrast of the acquired eye image is appropriate. Necessary processing such as an instruction to the subject is performed, and the eye image is captured again (S31). The pupil detection unit 31 detects the pupil position from the eye image signal captured in step S31. The determination unit 32 can determine whether or not the eye is placed at an appropriate position by performing an authentication process by the iris authentication processing unit 40 when the pupil position detected by the pupil detection unit 31 is near the center of the eye image. This is performed by determining whether the eye is within the region, and when it is determined that the eye is placed at an appropriate position, a signal indicating that the eye is placed at an appropriate position is output to the authentication image acquisition unit 33. . The authentication image acquisition unit 33 receives the signal from the determination unit 32, takes in the signal of the eye image output from the preprocessing unit 23, and outputs it as an eye image for authentication to the iris authentication processing unit 40 (S40). . The iris authentication processing unit 40 cuts out an iris image from the eye image data based on the center coordinates of the pupil (S41). Then, the iris image is converted into unique authentication information indicating the iris pattern as a numerical value (S42), and the authentication operation is executed by comparing with the registered authentication information registered (S43).

  As described above, in the eye image photographing device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, in either the state where the photographing unit 3 is attached to the main body 2 or the state where the photographing unit 3 is detached from the main body 2. In addition, an eye image can be taken with a focal length and illumination suitable for each state. Therefore, when the subject is not accustomed to taking an eye image or it is difficult to align the eye while looking at the guide mirror, the photographing unit 3 is removed from the main body 2 and brought close to its own eye, etc. The eye can be easily taken.

  In Embodiment 1 of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 10, the lens switching unit 24 a is pushed by the insertion unit 15 provided on the mounting base 10. In the above description, the second lens 21b is moved and the focal length of the photographing unit 3 is switched. However, this is only an example, and the present invention is not limited to this configuration. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating another example of the structure of the imaging unit in the authentication device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 8A is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the photographing unit in the authentication device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8B is an authentication device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a diagram illustrating another example of the structure of the imaging unit in FIG. In FIG. 8, the same components as those shown in FIG. 5 are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  For example, as illustrated in FIG. 8A, the focal length switching unit 124 included in the photographing unit 3a includes a lens switching unit 124a, a driving unit 124b, and a switch 124c, and the switch 124c is connected to the photographing unit 3a. It can also be configured to detect whether or not the insertion unit 15 has been inserted, and thereby the driving unit 124b drives the lens switching unit 124a to move the second lens 21b to switch the focal length of the imaging unit 3a. The drive unit 124b can be configured using generally known components such as an electromagnetic switch (solenoid), a linear actuator, and a cam link mechanism.

  Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 8B, the photographing unit 3b includes a focal length switching unit 224 having a zoom lens unit 224a made up of a generally known zoom lens, a zoom lens control unit 224b, and a switch 224c. 224c senses whether or not the insertion unit 15 is inserted into the photographing unit 3b, and the zoom lens control unit 224b controls the zoom of the zoom lens unit 224a, thereby switching the focal length of the photographing unit 3b. It is also possible.

  In addition, when the photographing unit is mounted on the mounting base, the photographing unit and the mounting base are configured to be electrically connected, thereby detecting that the photographing unit is mounted on the mounting base. . In addition, a magnet is disposed in place of the insertion portion and the insertion hole, and a change in the position of the magnet that occurs when the imaging portion is mounted on the mounting base, or a current that is generated due to a change in the electromagnetic field, etc. in the focal length switching portion. A configuration may be adopted in which it is sensed to sense that the photographing unit is mounted on the mounting base.

(Embodiment 2)
An authentication apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 9 is an external view of an authentication device 100 configured by mounting an iris authentication processing unit on the eye image capturing device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. 9A is a diagram showing a state in which no urging force is applied to the mounting table 110, and FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the urging force is applied to the mounting table 110. It is. In addition, the same code | symbol is used about the component similar to the authentication apparatus 1 shown in Embodiment 1, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the authentication device 100 includes a main body unit 120 provided with a rotatable mounting base 110 and a photographing unit 3. Therefore, in the authentication device 100, as shown in FIG. 9B, for example, when the subject pushes the mounting table 110 with a finger, an urging force is applied to the mounting table 110, and the mounting table 110 is rotated. Can do. At this time, if the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting table 110, the photographing unit 3 also rotates together with the mounting table 110 and changes its photographing direction.

  That is, in the second embodiment of the present invention, the photographing direction of the photographing unit 3 is directed to the direction of the subject's eye because there is a difference between the height at which the photographing unit 3 is installed and the height of the subject's eye. When there is no object, the subject can rotate the mounting table 110 by pushing the mounting table 110 with a finger or the like, and can direct the shooting direction of the shooting unit 3 to the direction of his / her eyes. .

  FIG. 10 is a side view showing the structure of authentication apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. 10A is a diagram showing a state in which the urging force is not applied to the mounting table 110, and FIG. 10B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the urging force is applied to the mounting table 110. It is.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the main body 120 in the authentication device 100 includes a mounting base shaft part 121, a mounting base elastic part 122, and a stop part 123. The mounting table 110 is formed in an L shape with a bottom surface portion that supports the bottom surface of the photographing unit 3 and a back surface portion that supports the back surface of the photographing unit 3, and a central portion of the back surface portion is rotatably supported by the mounting table shaft portion 121. Has been. The mounting base elastic portion 122 is made of a generally known elastic body such as a spring, and is provided between the back surface portion of the mounting base 110 and the back surface side of the main body portion 120 to elastically hold the mounting base 110. is doing. In addition, a stop portion 123 for limiting the range of rotation of the mounting base 110 is provided in the main body portion 120, and when the mounting base 110 is in contact with the stopping portion 123, the mounting base 110 is more than that. It is configured not to rotate.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10A, in the state where the urging force is not applied to the mounting table 110, the mounting table 110 is mounted at three locations by the mounting table shaft portion 121, the mounting table elastic portion 122, and the stop portion 123. It is held and stationary.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10B, when a biasing force is applied to the mounting table 110 by the subject pressing the mounting table 110 with a finger or the like, the mounting table 110 causes the mounting table shaft portion to be applied. It rotates about 121. Further, the elastic force of the mounting table elastic portion 122 acts, so that the amount of rotation of the mounting table 110 can be adjusted by adjusting the biasing force applied to the mounting table 110. Therefore, when the photographing unit 3 is mounted on the mounting base 110, it is possible to adjust the inclination of the mounting base 110 by adjusting the pressing force of the mounting base 110 and adjust the photographing direction of the photographing unit 3. is there.

  Further, when the applied urging force is released, the mounting base 110 returns to the original position, that is, the position where the mounting base 110 and the stop portion 123 come into contact with each other due to the elastic force of the mounting base elastic portion 122. Therefore, it is always stationary at the same position when no urging force is applied.

  As described above, in the eye image photographing device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, the mounting base 110 is rotatably provided in the main body 120, so that the height at which the photographing unit 3 is installed and the subject When the photographing direction of the photographing unit 3 is not directed to the direction of the subject's eyes due to a difference in eye height, the subject rotates the mounting base 110 by pressing the mounting base 110, It is possible to direct the photographing direction of the photographing unit 3 to the direction of its own eye. Furthermore, since the mounting base elastic portion 122 is provided between the mounting base 110 and the main body 120 and the mounting base 110 is elastically held, for example, the shooting direction of the imaging unit 3 in which the subject is mounted on the mounting base 110 When the user wants to change, the mounting base 110 can be pressed, and the shooting direction of the shooting unit 3 can be adjusted by adjusting the pressing force.

  The configuration described above is merely an example of the embodiment of the present invention. The mounting base is rotatably held by the main body, and the mounting base can be rotated only by adjusting the biasing force applied to the mounting base. Any configuration may be used as long as the amount of movement can be adjusted and the mounting base returns to a predetermined position when the urging force is released.

  In the second embodiment of the present invention, the configuration in which the mounting base 110 rotates by applying a pressing force to the mounting base 110 has been described. For example, the mounting base elastic portion 122 and the stop portion shown in FIG. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the mounting base 110 is rotated by switching the position of the mounting base 123 to each other, further providing a knob or the like on the mounting base 110 and pulling the knob.

  Alternatively, a drive unit that can move the mounting base is provided, and the mounting base can be configured to automatically rotate. FIG. 11 is a side view showing another example of the structure of the authentication device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 11A is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the authentication device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11B is another example of the structure of the authentication device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

  The authentication apparatus 200 shown in FIG. 11A is configured to automatically rotate the mounting base 210 toward the eye position detected by the eye position detection unit 221 provided in the main body unit 220.

  The main body 220 in the authentication device 200 includes an eye position detection unit 221, a rotation control unit 222, and a mounting table drive unit 223 that is a rotation drive unit. The eye position detection unit 221 includes a camera capable of capturing a wide range and an eye position detection unit that detects the position of the eye from an image captured by the camera, and detects the position of the subject's eye. As a method for detecting an eye from a photographed image, a generally known technique such as a method using template matching or a method using circular integration (Japanese Patent Publication No. 8-504979) can be used. The rotation control unit 222 calculates a rotation amount of the mounting base 210 so that the photographing unit 3 mounted on the mounting base 210 can photograph the subject's eyes based on the eye position of the subject detected by the eye position detection unit 221. Then, the mounting table driving unit 223 is controlled based on the calculated result. The mounting table driving unit 223 rotates the mounting table 210 based on an instruction from the rotation control unit 222. With such a configuration, the mounting base 210 automatically rotates and the imaging unit 3 mounted on the mounting base 210 can capture the eye of the subject simply by the subject standing on the front surface of the authentication device 200. Become.

  Further, in the authentication device 300 shown in FIG. 11B, the mounting base 310 automatically rotates until the eye detection unit 321 provided in the main body unit 320 detects an eye from the image captured by the imaging unit 3. It has a configuration.

  The main body 320 in the authentication device 300 includes an eye detection unit 321, a rotation control unit 322, and a mounting base drive unit 323. The eye detection unit 321 receives the image signal captured by the imaging unit 3, detects the presence or absence of an eye in the image, and outputs a signal indicating that the eye has been detected. As a method for detecting an eye from a captured image, the above-described technique can be used. The rotation control unit 322 controls the mounting table driving unit 323 so that the mounting table 310 slowly reciprocates, and the mounting table driving unit 323 moves the mounting table 310 based on an instruction from the rotation control unit 322. Rotate. Then, when the rotation control unit 322 receives a signal indicating that the eye has been detected from the eye detection unit 321, the rotation control unit 322 causes the mounting table driving unit 323 to rotate the mounting table 310. With such a configuration, when the mounting table 310 is slowly reciprocated, the eye detection unit 321 detects an eye from an image signal captured by the imaging unit 3 mounted on the mounting table 310. The rotation of the mounting base 310 can be made stationary. Therefore, the mounting base 310 is automatically rotated only by the subject standing on the front surface of the authentication apparatus 300, and the mounting base 310 is stationary at a position where the subject's eyes can be captured, and the imaging unit 3 mounted on the mounting base 310. Can shoot the subject's eyes.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to capture an eye image with a focal length and illumination suitable for each state in both the state where the photographing unit is attached to the main body and the state where the photographing unit is detached from the main body. Therefore, even if the subject is not accustomed to taking an eye image or it is difficult to align the eye while looking at the guide mirror, remove the imaging unit from the main unit and bring it close to your own eye. Since photographing of the subject's eyes is facilitated, such as photographing, it is useful as an eye image photographing device and an authentication device.

1 is an external view of an authentication device configured by mounting an iris authentication processing unit on the eye image capturing device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. External view showing the attachment / detachment state of the photographing unit to the main body in the authentication device Block diagram showing the configuration of the authentication device Schematic showing the relationship between the mounting base and imaging unit provided in the authentication device The figure which shows the structure of the imaging | photography part in the authentication apparatus The figure which shows the structure of the imaging | photography part in the authentication apparatus Flow chart showing operation of the authentication device The figure which shows the other example of the structure of the imaging | photography part in the authentication apparatus FIG. 3 is an external view of an authentication apparatus configured by mounting an iris authentication processing unit on the eye image capturing apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. Side view showing the structure of the authentication device Side view showing another example of the structure of the authentication device

Explanation of symbols

1,100,200,300 Authentication device 2,120,220,320 Main unit 3,3a, 3b Imaging unit 10,110,210,310 Mounting base 11a, 11b Illumination control unit 12a Normal illumination LED
12b LED for close-up lighting
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 Guide mirror 14 Information transmission part 15 Insertion part 16 Insertion hole 20 Light entrance 21 Lens part 21a 1st lens 21b 2nd lens 22 Image pick-up element 23 Preprocessing part 24,124,224 Focal length switching part 24a, 124a Lens Switching section 24b, 26 Elastic section 25 Shaft section 30 Image signal processing section 31 Pupil detection section 32 Judgment section 33 Authentication image acquisition section 40 Iris authentication processing section 121 Mounting base shaft section 122 Mounting base elastic section 123 Stop section 124b Drive section 124c , 224c switch 221 eye position detection unit 222, 322 rotation control unit 223, 323 mounting base drive unit 224a zoom lens unit 224b zoom lens control unit 321 eye detection unit

Claims (7)

An eye image capturing device that captures an area including an eye of a subject,
The main body,
A focal length switching unit, and a detachable photographing unit on the main body unit;
The focal length switching unit switches the focal length of the photographing unit to be shorter than when the photographing unit is attached to the main body when the photographing unit is separated from the main body. A featured eye image capturing device. The photographing unit includes a fixed first lens and a second lens movable between a position sharing an optical axis with the first lens and a retracted position,
The ocular image photographing according to claim 1, wherein the focal length switching unit switches the focal length by moving the second lens to the retracted position in accordance with separation of the photographing unit from the main body. apparatus. The photographing unit has a zoom lens capable of switching the focal length,
The eye image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the focal length switching unit switches the focal length by driving the zoom lens according to separation of the imaging unit from the main body. A first illumination part provided in the main body part;
A second illumination unit provided in the photographing unit,
The first illumination unit performs illumination at the time of photographing performed when the photographing unit is attached to the main body,
The eye image according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second illumination unit performs illumination at the time of photographing performed when the photographing unit is separated from the main body. Shooting device. A mounting base that is provided in the main body and rotatably mounts the photographing unit on the main body, and an elastic body that elastically holds the mounting base and the main body. The eye image photographing device according to claim 4. An eye position detector provided in the main body for detecting the position of the eye of the subject;
A mounting base provided on the main body, and rotatably mounted on the main body;
A rotation drive unit for rotating the mounting table;
A rotation control unit for controlling the rotation drive unit,
The rotation control unit controls the rotation driving unit so that a photographing direction of the photographing unit mounted on the mounting base is directed to an eye position of the subject detected by the eye position detecting unit. The eye image photographing device according to claim 4, wherein An eye image capturing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6;
An authentication apparatus comprising: an iris authentication processing unit that performs an authentication process using an iris portion of an eye image captured by the eye image capturing apparatus.

Images