JP2008047947A - Electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain electronic equipment which never offends circumferential persons. <P>SOLUTION: An imaging unit 12 photographs a user 2 at the time of registration and use and outputs data, and a control unit 13 stores data generated in a state wherein the user 2 is photographed facing a mobile phone 1 at the time of the registration in a memory 14 as initial data. When the electronic equipment is used, current data generated by photography in the use are collated with the initial data to authenticate the user 2, and the current data are compared with the initial data to calculate the direction of the mobile phone 1 to the user 2. Based upon the direction calculated by the control unit 13, a speaker control unit 15 controls the directivity and sound volume of a directional speaker 16. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device that controls the volume and direction of output sound.

  Conventional electronic devices carried by individuals such as mobile phones are equipped with functions to play video and sound such as games and televisions, but do not cause discomfort to people around in public places. In particular, it is necessary to consider the volume and direction of the output sound. For this purpose, it is necessary to specify the direction of the user with respect to the electronic device. For example, in the electronic device described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of ultrasonic waves output from an ultrasonic oscillator carried by the user are used. The direction of the user is specified based on the phase information or the phase information and the amplitude information.

JP 2001-359187 A (paragraphs 0009 to 0010)

  Since conventional electronic devices are configured as described above, the direction of the user cannot be specified unless the user carries an ultrasonic oscillator, and only sounds such as games and TV can be heard from the user. For this reason, there is a problem in that the volume and direction of the output sound cannot be controlled, and the surrounding human being is uncomfortable.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. An electronic device that does not cause discomfort to surrounding people by controlling the volume and direction of sound output without carrying an ultrasonic oscillator. The purpose is to obtain.

  An electronic device according to the present invention includes an imaging unit that captures an image of a user when the user is registered and when the user is using the electronic device, and outputs the captured data, and when the user is registered, the user is When the user uses the electronic device, the current data captured by the imaging unit and the initial data stored in the memory are stored in the memory as initial data. The control unit for authenticating the user and calculating the direction of the electronic device relative to the user, and the directivity and volume of the directional speaker based on the direction of the electronic device relative to the user calculated by the control unit And a speaker control unit that controls at least one of the above.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to control the volume and direction of the sound output without carrying the ultrasonic oscillator, and to produce an effect of not causing discomfort to surrounding people.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below.
Embodiment 1 FIG.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an electronic device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Here, a mobile phone 1 is used as an example of the electronic device to output video and sound of a television or a game.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile phone 1 includes a display unit 11, an imaging unit 12, a control unit 13, a memory 14, a speaker control unit 15, and a directional speaker 16.

  In FIG. 1, the display unit 11 displays television or game images based on instructions from the control unit 13. The imaging unit 12 captures the user 2 when the user 2 is registered and when the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1 and outputs the captured data. In addition, when the user 2 is registered, the imaging unit 12 is assumed to shoot in a state in which the user 2 is directly facing the mobile phone 1 and is activated in conjunction with the activation of a game or the like, or the user 2 is manually activated. Can be made.

  In addition, it is assumed that the installation positions of the display unit 11 and the imaging unit 12 are not on the front and back of the mobile phone 1 but on the same surface of the mobile phone 1 when in use and facing the same direction.

  When the user 2 is registered, the control unit 13 stores data captured by the imaging unit 12 in the memory 14 as initial data in a state where the user 2 faces the mobile phone 1, and the user 2 receives the mobile phone 1. 1 is used, current data photographed by the imaging unit 12 and initial data stored in the memory 14 are collated to authenticate the user 2 and calculate the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2. .

  The speaker control unit 15 controls the directivity and volume of the directional speaker 16 based on the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13. The directional speaker 16 outputs sound in the direction of the user 2 based on the directivity and volume controlled by the speaker control unit 15.

Next, the operation will be described.
First, in order to register the initial data of the user 2 at the time of registration, the imaging unit 12 captures an image of the user 2 facing the electronic device, and outputs the captured data to the control unit 13. The control unit 13 outputs initial data as data output from the imaging unit 12 to the memory 14, and the memory 14 stores the initial data.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart when the mobile phone 1 is used in the first embodiment of the present invention.
At the time of use, the user 2 first activates the imaging unit 12, and the activated imaging unit 12 captures the current user 2 and outputs the captured data to the control unit 13. The control unit 13 uses this data as current data, reads the initial data stored in the memory 14, collates the current data with the initial data read from the memory 14, and the user 2 and the user 2 at the time of registration It is determined whether or not they are the same person (ST1). When the control unit 13 determines that they are the same person, the user 2 can use the mobile phone 1.

  As an example of face recognition when determining whether or not they are the same person in ST1, feature points such as eyes, nose, and mouth are extracted from the captured data, their positions are calculated, and the person registered in advance is registered. The person can be recognized by collating with the data.

  When the user 2 can use the mobile phone 1 in the determination of ST1 in FIG. 2, the imaging unit 12 continuously captures the user 2 and outputs the captured data to the control unit 13. Using this data as current data, the current data is compared with the initial data of the user 2 read from the memory 14, and the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the current user 2 is calculated (ST2).

  As one method for calculating the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 in ST2, feature points such as eyes, nose, and mouth are extracted from the captured data, and the eyes, nose, There is a method of calculating the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the current user 2 by changing the position of the extracted facial part as compared with the position of the mouth.

The control unit 13 is set with two thresholds regarding the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing threshold values relating to the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 13 determines that the maximum direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is 45 degrees within a range in which no uncomfortable feeling is given to the surroundings. 2 is set, and the half of 22.5 degrees is set as the threshold 1. The control unit 13 compares these threshold values with the calculated direction (ST3), and outputs the comparison result to the speaker control unit 15.

  In the first embodiment, two thresholds regarding the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2 are provided, but the number of thresholds is not limited. Although FIG. 3 shows a state in which the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is changed to the left and right, the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 may be changed in any direction.

  When the control unit 13 compares the calculated direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 and the threshold value related to the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 and the calculated direction is smaller than the threshold value 1 (ST4), the speaker control unit 15 changes the directivity of the directional speaker 16 to face the direction of the user 2 so as not to transmit sound to the surrounding human 3 (ST5).

Here, FIG. 4 illustrates a change to a state where the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 in the first embodiment of the present invention described in ST4 and ST5 in FIG. The surrounding human 3 is a person who may be uncomfortable.
FIG. 4A shows a state in which the user 2 is directly facing the mobile phone 1, and the user 2 is in the directivity range of the directional speaker 16, so that the user 2 listens to the voice from the mobile phone 1. be able to. 4B is a diagram in which the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 changes from the state of FIG. 4A, and this direction does not change up to the threshold value 1. By changing the directivity of the directional speaker 16 to face the user 2, only the user 2 can hear the sound from the directional speaker 16, and the surrounding human 3 is not uncomfortable. .

  As an example of changing the direction of the directional speaker 16, there is a method of using a driving unit or a movable unit such as a motor that can be changed vertically and horizontally. The directional speaker 16 is configured to control the change in directivity using only one drive unit for a single speaker, or to control the change in directivity of a plurality of speakers using two or more speakers and a signal processing unit. Various configurations such as a configuration to be used can be used.

  In ST5, the directional speaker 16 is controlled only in the direction. However, the control method is not limited to the direction, and can be controlled by reducing the volume. In ST5, the directional speaker 16 is controlled. However, it is not necessary to change the directivity to the direction of the user 2 as long as the surrounding person 3 is not uncomfortable.

  As a result of the comparison by the control unit 13 in ST3, when the direction calculated in ST2 is larger than the threshold 1 shown in FIG. 3 and smaller than the threshold 2 (ST6), the speaker control unit 15 moves the directional speaker 16 to the threshold 1 direction. However, since the sound may be heard by the surrounding human 3, the volume from the directional speaker 16 is further reduced (ST 7).

As a result of the comparison by the control unit 13 in ST3, when the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated in ST2 is larger than the threshold 2 (ST8), the speaker control unit 15 gives discomfort to the surrounding human 3 The sound of the directional speaker 16 is stopped so as not to be present (ST9).
Here, FIG. 5 illustrates the change to the state where the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is larger than the threshold 2 in the first embodiment of the present invention described in ST8 and ST9 of FIG. FIG. 5A shows a state where the user 2 faces the mobile phone 1 in the same manner as FIG. 4A, and FIG. 5B shows the state shown in FIG. From the state, the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is changed and exceeds the threshold value 2, and in this state, there is a possibility of giving discomfort to the surrounding human 3 as shown in FIG. Since it is high, the speaker control unit 15 stops the sound of the directional speaker 16.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, when the user 2 is registered and when the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1, the imaging unit 12 that captures the user 2 and outputs the captured data is used. When the user 2 is registered, the data captured by the imaging unit 12 is stored in the memory 14 as initial data while the user 2 is facing the mobile phone 1, and when the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1, the image is captured. A control unit 13 that authenticates the user 2 by comparing the current data captured by the unit 12 with the initial data stored in the memory 14 and calculates the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2; By providing a speaker control unit 15 that controls at least one of directivity and volume of the directional speaker 16 based on the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the unit 13, ultrasonic oscillation The by controlling the size and direction of the sound to be output without carrying an effect that does not give an unpleasant feeling to people around 3.

  In the first embodiment, the use of the directional speaker 16 eliminates the need to carry an attached product other than an electronic device such as an earphone.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of the mobile phone 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
The mobile phone 1 of the second embodiment is basically the same as the mobile phone 1 of the first embodiment, but uses a sensor 17 instead of the photographing unit 12. The sensor 17 uses a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, or the like. For example, the magnetic sensor detects the strength of the magnetic field on a predetermined axis, measures the strength of the magnetic field acting on the main body of the mobile phone 1 in each of the X, Y, and Z axis directions. By detecting the heading and the inclination with respect to the ground surface, the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 can be detected.

Next, the operation will be described.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a use state of the mobile phone 1 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
At the time of registration, the sensor 17 detects the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2 with the user 2 facing the mobile phone 1, and outputs the detected data to the control unit 13, which the control unit 13 detects. The data is the initial data. The control unit 13 outputs initial data to the memory 14, and the memory 14 stores the initial data.

  When the cellular phone 1 is used, ST2 to ST9 in FIG. The sensor 17 is activated, and the sensor 17 detects the data of the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 in the state where the current user 2 is facing the mobile phone 1 and outputs the data to the control unit 13 for control. The unit 13 uses the detected data of the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 as current data. Basically, the user 2 does not move.

  Using this current data and the initial data stored in the memory 14, the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2 of the mobile phone 1 is similar to ST2 in the flowchart when using the mobile phone 1 in the first embodiment of FIG. The calculated result and the threshold set by the control unit 13 are compared in the same manner as in ST3 in FIG. 2, and ST4 to ST9 similar to those in the first embodiment in FIG. The directivity and volume of the directional speaker 16 are controlled.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, when the user 2 is registered and when the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1, the sensor 17 that detects the user 2 and outputs the detected data, and the user 2, the data detected by the sensor 17 is stored in the memory 14 as initial data while the user 2 is facing the mobile phone 1. When the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1, the sensor 17 Using the detected current data and the initial data stored in the memory 14, the control unit 13 that calculates the direction of the mobile phone 1 relative to the user 2, and the mobile phone for the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13 By providing the speaker control unit 15 that controls at least one of the directivity and volume of the directional speaker 16 based on the direction of 1, output without carrying an ultrasonic oscillator That by controlling the size and direction of the sound, an effect that does not give an unpleasant feeling to people around 3.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a usage state of the mobile phone 1 according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.
The mobile phone 1 according to the third embodiment is basically the same as the mobile phone 1 according to the first embodiment, but has a configuration in which a mirror 18 is further added. The user 2 is shown so that it can be used in a state corresponding to it.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, the user 2 uses the mobile phone 1 so that the user 2 is displayed on the mirror 18. It has the effect of not giving pleasure.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration of the mobile phone 1 according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention.
The mobile phone 1 according to the fourth embodiment is basically the same as the mobile phone 1 according to the first embodiment, except that a microphone control unit 19 and a directional microphone 20 are added to the configuration of the first embodiment. Yes, it is mainly used when the user 2 makes a voice input while watching the display unit 11 using a videophone function or the like.

  Here, the microphone control unit 19 inputs the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13, and outputs an instruction for the direction of the directional microphone 20 based on the calculated result.

  Directional microphone 20 controls the direction in which external sound is collected, and can collect only the sound of user 2. In addition, the directional microphone 20 has a configuration in which a change in directivity is controlled by using only one drive unit for one microphone, a configuration in which the direction of a plurality of microphones is controlled by using two or more microphones and a signal processing unit, and the like. Various configurations can be used.

  As described above, according to the fourth embodiment, in addition to the configuration of the first embodiment, the directivity of the directional microphone 20 is changed based on the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13. By providing the microphone control unit 19 to be controlled, it is possible to control the magnitude and direction of the sound to be output without carrying the ultrasonic oscillator so as to prevent the surrounding human 3 from being uncomfortable, and further to the user 2. This makes it easier to pick up the voice of the video and is effective in using the videophone function and the like.

Embodiment 5. FIG.
FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the display contents of the display unit 11 of the mobile phone 1 according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention. The mobile phone 1 of Embodiment 5 is the same as the mobile phone 1 of Embodiment 1. The display unit 11 displays a directivity range navigation 21 that displays the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13.

  In the first, third, or fourth embodiment, as in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 13 inputs data and calculates the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2. Then, the display unit 11 displays the directivity range navigation 21 so that the user 2 can recognize the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13 at a glance using an image, character information, or the like.

  There is also a method of notifying the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 using a light emitting function that notifies an incoming call or the like by light instead of displaying using the directivity range navigation 21. As an example, when the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is smaller than the threshold value 2 shown in FIG. 3, the light emitting unit is turned on, and when the direction is larger than the threshold value 2 shown in FIG. There is also a method of notifying the user 2 of the direction of the mobile phone 1 using a vibration function that notifies an incoming call or the like by vibration. As an example, the cellular phone 1 is not vibrated when the direction of the cellular phone 1 with respect to the user 2 is smaller than the threshold 2 shown in FIG. 3, and the cellular phone 1 is vibrated when the direction is larger than the threshold 2 shown in FIG.

  Furthermore, it is possible to notify the user 2 of the directivity range by combining at least two of the display function, light emitting function, and vibration function of the mobile phone 1.

  As described above, according to the fifth embodiment, in the first, third, or fourth embodiment, the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 calculated by the control unit 13 is directional using images, character information, and the like. Providing the display unit 11 for displaying the range navigation 21 has an effect of notifying the user 2 of a shift in the direction of the mobile phone 1 with respect to the user 2 as can be seen at a glance.

  In the above embodiment, a mobile phone which is an example of an electronic device is described. However, the present invention is not limited to a mobile phone, and a mobile terminal or the like can be used.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the electronic device in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart at the time of use of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the threshold value regarding the direction of the mobile telephone 1 with respect to the user 2 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the figure which changed to the state where the direction of the mobile telephone 1 with respect to the user 2 is smaller than the threshold value 1 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the figure which changed to the state where the direction of the mobile telephone 1 with respect to the user 2 is larger than the threshold value 2 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the use condition of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the use condition of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the display content of the display part 11 of the mobile telephone 1 in Embodiment 5 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mobile phone, 2 users, 3 surrounding humans, 11 Display part, 12 Imaging part, 13 Control part, 14 Memory, 15 Speaker control part, 16 Directional speaker, 17 Sensor, 18 Mirror, 19 Microphone control part, 20 Directional microphone, 21 Directional range navigation.

Claims (6)

An imaging unit that captures images of the user and outputs the captured data when the user registers and when the user uses the electronic device;
When the user is registered, the data captured by the imaging unit is stored in the memory as initial data while the user is facing the electronic device, and when the user uses the electronic device, the data is captured by the imaging unit. A controller that compares the current data with the initial data stored in the memory, authenticates the user, and calculates the direction of the electronic device relative to the user;
An electronic device comprising: a speaker control unit that controls at least one of directivity and volume of a directional speaker based on a direction of the electronic device with respect to a user calculated by the control unit.   The control unit has a threshold value related to the direction of the electronic device with respect to the user, compares the calculated direction of the electronic device with respect to the user and the threshold value, and the speaker control unit determines the direction of the directional speaker based on the comparison result by the control unit. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of directivity and volume is controlled.   The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a mirror that reflects the user so that the user can use the electronic device in a state of facing the electronic device.   The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a microphone control unit that controls the directivity of the directional microphone based on the direction of the electronic device with respect to the user calculated by the control unit.   The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit configured to display a direction of the electronic device with respect to the user calculated by the control unit. A sensor that detects the user when the user registers and when the user uses the electronic device, and outputs the detected data;
When the user is registered, the data detected by the sensor is stored in the memory as initial data while the user is facing the electronic device, and the current detected by the sensor is used when the user uses the electronic device. A controller that calculates the direction of the electronic device relative to the user using the data and the initial data stored in the memory;
An electronic device comprising: a speaker control unit that controls at least one of directivity and volume of a directional speaker based on a direction of the electronic device with respect to a user calculated by the control unit.

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