JP2009113725A - Device, method and program for controlling instrument, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To control a controlled instrument to the setting suitable of a user by an easy operation. <P>SOLUTION: An instrument control device 100 is connected to a controlled instrument 200 for the operational object, and has an accumulation unit 101 in which a user image indicating the characteristic of the user of the instrument and setting information when operating the controlled instrument 200 by the user are accumulated in a related manner. When the user receives the signal for operating the controlled instrument 200, an image of a part corresponding to the receiving direction of the signal is picked up by an image pickup unit 103. A discrimination unit 104 collates the picked-up image with the user image accumulated in the accumulation means to discriminate whether or not the user corresponding to the user image is present in the picked-up image. When it is discriminated that the user corresponding to the user image is present in the picked-up image, a control unit 106 controls the setting of the controlled instrument 200 according to setting information of the user read by a read-out unit 105. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device control apparatus, a device control method, a device control program, and a recording medium that perform device control according to an operator. However, use of the present invention is not limited to the above-described device control apparatus, device control method, device control program, and recording medium.

  Conventionally, there has been provided a control device that recognizes a driver's face and controls each device of the vehicle depending on who is driving. Specifically, the driver's face is photographed by a camera mounted inside the vehicle, the driver's appearance is recognized from the face image, and the face image recorded in advance is collated. When the driver is specified by the result of the collation, it is determined whether the driver can drive safely from accumulated data or the like, and each device of the vehicle is controlled (for example, refer to Patent Document 1 below).

JP 2004-330979 A

  However, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 has only a function limited to the identification of the driver. Therefore, when a passenger other than the driver wants to control each device with his / her own settings, there is an example of a problem that the passenger has to directly control each device sequentially as in the past.

  In the case of the prior art including the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, in order to recognize a face image, the user must shoot the face image by operating a camera mounted inside the vehicle. In addition, it is difficult to capture a face image in a situation of repeated running and stopping. In particular, when a driver takes an image, the problem of affecting the driving, such as being unable to concentrate on driving or having to stop is cited as an example.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the device control apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention is a device control apparatus connected to a device to be operated, and represents a user characteristic of the device. A storage unit that stores the image and setting information when the user operates the device in association with each other, a receiving unit that receives a signal from the operation unit for the user to operate the device, and the receiving unit When a signal from the operation means is received, a photographing means for photographing a portion corresponding to the direction of the signal, a photographed image photographed by the photographing means, and a user image stored in the storage means are collated. Determining means for determining whether or not a user corresponding to the user image exists in the photographed image; and a user corresponding to the user image in the photographed image by the determining means. A reading unit that reads the setting information of the user from the storage unit and a control unit that controls the setting of the device according to the setting information read by the reading unit when it is determined that the setting information is present; It is characterized by.

  Further, the device control method according to the invention of claim 6 is a device control method for controlling a device to be operated, a receiving step for receiving a signal from an operation means for a user to operate the device, When a signal from the operation means is received by the receiving step, a photographing step for photographing a portion corresponding to the direction of the signal, a user image representing a feature of the user of the device, and a user image of the device by the user With reference to the storage means stored in association with the setting information at the time of operation, the captured image captured by the imaging process is collated with the user image stored in the storage means, and the captured image is included in the captured image. A determination step of determining whether there is a user corresponding to the user image, and a case where it is determined by the determination step that a user corresponding to the user image exists in the captured image. In, characterized in that it comprises a reading step of reading the setting information of the user from the storage means, and a setting step of setting of the device in accordance with the setting information read by said reading step.

  A device control program according to a seventh aspect of the invention causes a computer to execute the device control method according to the sixth aspect.

  A recording medium according to an eighth aspect of the invention is characterized in that the device control program according to the seventh aspect is recorded in a computer-readable manner.

  Exemplary embodiments of an apparatus control device, an apparatus control method, an apparatus control program, and a recording medium according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Functional configuration of equipment control device)
First, a functional configuration of the device control apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the device control apparatus according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the device control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment is connected to a controlled device 200 that is an operation target, and includes a storage unit 101, a reception unit 102, a photographing unit 103, and a determination unit 104. And a reading unit 105 and a control unit 106. In addition, the device control apparatus 100 includes an operation device 107 that transmits a signal representing an operation instruction from the user to the controlled device as an external device.

  The storage unit 101 is a recording unit that stores predetermined information, and stores a user image representing the characteristics of a user who operates the controlled device 200 and setting information when the user operates the controlled device 200 in association with each other. Is done. The user image representing the user's characteristics is an image for distinguishing the user who operates the controlled device 200 from other users.

  Therefore, the user image stored in the storage unit 101 may be an image that can identify an individual. For example, a user face image may be stored as a user image. A feature point may be extracted from the face image and compared with the feature point of the face image photographed by the photographing unit 103, which will be described later, or a match determination may be performed. The coincidence determination may be performed in comparison with the glow information acquired from the above. In this way, what kind of determination processing is performed using the user image can be arbitrarily set according to the specifications of the device control apparatus 100.

  Further, the setting information stored in the storage unit 101 in association with the corresponding user of the user image is specifically a setting value for operating the controlled device 200. Therefore, the contents of the set value differ depending on what function the controlled device 200 has. For example, when the controlled device 200 is an AV device, the setting information includes information such as volume, image quality, display layout, and playlist. When the controlled device 200 is an air conditioner, the setting information includes information such as a set temperature, an air volume, an operation mode, and a humidity setting. As described above, various information can be set as the setting information according to the type of the controlled device 200.

  The receiving unit 102 receives a signal transmitted from the operating device 107 for operating the controlled device 200 by the user. Here, the operation device 107 is an input interface independent of the device control apparatus 100. Specifically, for example, a remote controller including a predetermined instruction button or a keyboard is used, and a signal is transmitted to the device control apparatus 100 when the user presses the predetermined instruction button. Note that the receiving unit 102 has a function of identifying which direction the signal is transmitted from when the signal transmitted from the operation device 107 is received.

  When the reception unit 102 receives a signal transmitted from the operating device 107, the imaging unit 103 captures a location corresponding to the direction of the transmission source of the signal identified by the reception unit 102. By photographing a portion corresponding to the direction of the signal transmission source, the photographing unit 103 can photograph the user who has operated the operation device 107.

  For example, in the case of FIG. 1, the photographing unit 103 is provided with a camera capable of adjusting the photographing angle. Therefore, it is possible to photograph the user who operates the operation device 107 by adjusting the shooting angle of the camera in the direction of the signal received from the operation device 107.

  Moreover, the imaging unit 103 may be provided with a plurality of cameras installed at different positions as another method. In such a case, it is possible to identify a camera arranged at a position where the user who operated the operation device 107 can be photographed from the direction of the signal received from the operation device 107 and photograph the user with the identified camera.

  The determination unit 104 collates the captured image captured by the imaging unit 103 described above with the user image stored in the storage unit 101, and determines whether or not there is a user corresponding to the user image in the captured image. Determine. Which information of the information included in the captured image is referred to perform the discrimination processing is based on the setting of the user image as described above. Therefore, for example, as described above, when a face image is accumulated as a user image, the face image photographed by the photographing unit 103 and the user's face image accumulated in the accumulation unit 101 are collated. Then, it is determined whether or not there is a user corresponding to the user image in the photographed face image.

  Depending on the shooting angle by the shooting unit 103, the shot image may include a plurality of face images. In such a case, when the user image corresponding to one of the face images included in the captured image is stored, the determination unit 104 determines that there is a user corresponding to the user image. To do.

  Further, when it is determined that there is a user corresponding to both of the plurality of face images, the user may be notified that the plurality of users have been determined, and the selection of which user has operated may be accepted. Alternatively, information on the priority order of users may be received in advance, and a user with a high priority may be determined based on the information on the priority order. Alternatively, the user image stored in the storage unit 101 may be associated with the number of times used for the determination process by the determination unit 104, and a user image having a large number of times may be set to be used preferentially for determination. .

  When the determination unit 104 determines that there is a user corresponding to the user image in the captured image, the reading unit 105 reads setting information stored in association with the user image of the user from the storage unit 101. Then, the control unit 106 controls the setting of the controlled device 200 according to the setting information read by the reading unit 105.

  By providing the above functions, the device control apparatus 100 can automatically control the setting of the controlled device 200 according to the user who operates the operation device 107. In addition, by newly adding an acquisition unit and a storage unit (both not shown) to the basic configuration as described above, a user who is not registered in the storage unit 101 can be newly registered.

  When the determination unit 104 determines that there is no corresponding user, the acquisition unit acquires setting information when the user operates the controlled device 200. The storage unit stores the user image captured by the imaging unit 103 and the user setting information acquired by the acquisition unit in the storage unit 101 in association with each other. By such processing, when the user operates the operation device 107 from the next time onward, the controlled device 200 is automatically set according to the setting information.

(Contents of processing of device control device)
Next, a processing procedure of the device control apparatus will be described. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the device control apparatus according to the present embodiment. In the flowchart of FIG. 2, first, the receiving unit 102 determines whether or not a signal from the operating device 107 has been received (step S201). Here, the process waits until a signal is received (step S201: No loop). When a signal is received (step S201: Yes), the photographing unit 103 photographs a location corresponding to the direction of the received signal (step S202). .

  When shooting in step S202 is completed, the discrimination unit 104 first collates the shot image with the user image stored in the storage unit 101 (step S203). Then, as a result of the collation in step S203, it is determined whether or not there is a user corresponding to the photographed image among the user images accumulated in the accumulation unit 101 (step S204).

  If it is determined in step S204 that the corresponding user exists (step S204: Yes), the setting information of the corresponding user determined in step S204 is read from the storage unit 101 by the reading unit 105 (step S205). Finally, the controlled device 200 is set by the control unit 106 in accordance with the setting information read out in step S205 (step S206), and the series of processing ends.

  If it is determined in step S204 that the corresponding user does not exist (step S204: No), since the setting information of the user who operated the operating device has not been registered, the series of processing ends. At this time, the user may be notified that the user is not registered, or the user may be photographed by the photographing unit 103, and the photographed user image may be stored in the storage unit 101 together with the setting information as a new user. It may be set.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, a user who wants to control each device, regardless of a driver or other passengers, transmits an operation instruction using the operation device 107, thereby controlling the controlled device. Control suitable for each user can be performed on 200.

  In the case of the present embodiment, when the user operates the operation device 200, the imaging unit 103 can automatically capture an image for identifying the user with reference to the signal reception direction. As described above, if the user performs a minimum operation on the operation device 200, information for specifying the user can be provided. Therefore, the control process by the device control apparatus 100 does not disturb other operations and processes that the user intends to perform.

  Examples of the present invention will be described below. A present Example demonstrates an example at the time of implementing the apparatus control apparatus 100 concerning this invention with the navigation apparatus mounted in a vehicle.

(Hardware configuration of navigation device)
The hardware configuration of the navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 3, a navigation device 300 is mounted on a moving body such as a vehicle, and includes a CPU 301, ROM 302, RAM 303, magnetic disk drive 304, magnetic disk 305, optical disk drive 306, optical disk 307, and audio. I / F (interface) 308, microphone 309, speaker 310, input device 311, video I / F 312, display 313, communication I / F 314, GPS unit 315, various sensors 316, and camera 317 And. Each component 301 to 317 is connected by a bus 320.

  The CPU 301 governs overall control of the navigation device 300. The ROM 302 stores various programs such as a boot program, a current position calculation program, a route search program, a route guidance program, a voice recognition program, and a device control program. The RAM 303 is used as a work area for the CPU 301.

  The current position calculation program, for example, calculates the current position of the vehicle (current position of the navigation device 300) based on output information from a GPS unit 315 and various sensors 316 described later.

  The route search program searches for an optimal route from the departure point to the destination point using map data or the like recorded on a magnetic disk 305 described later. Here, the optimum route is a shortest (or fastest) route to the destination point or a route that best matches a condition specified by the user. Further, not only the destination point but also a route to a stop point or a rest point may be searched. The searched guidance route is output to the audio I / F 308 and the video I / F 312 via the CPU 301.

  The route guidance program is based on guidance route information searched by executing the route search program, vehicle current location information calculated by executing the current position calculation program, and map data read from the magnetic disk 305. Real-time route guidance information is generated. The generated route guidance information is output to the audio I / F 308 and the video I / F 312 via the CPU 301.

  The voice recognition program starts voice recognition for the voice input from the voice I / F 308 when the movement of the user's mouth is recognized based on the imaging result of the user's mouth shot by the camera 317. Let

  The device control program is a program that causes the navigation device to execute the functions of the device control device described in the embodiment. When the device control program receives an operation instruction signal from the remote controller 400 (see FIG. 4) corresponding to the navigation device 300, the device control program recognizes the user and adjusts the designated function to a setting corresponding to the user. Further, as setting information corresponding to the navigation device 300, font size, map view setting, ground color, screen background, music playlist, personal address book, route search setting, button arrangement, favorite tourist spot, favorite URL, route search method The search history is also stored.

  The magnetic disk drive 304 controls the reading / writing of the data with respect to the magnetic disk 305 according to control of CPU301. The magnetic disk 305 records data written under the control of the magnetic disk drive 304. As the magnetic disk 305, for example, an HD (hard disk) or an FD (flexible disk) can be used.

  The optical disk drive 306 controls the reading / writing of the data with respect to the optical disk 307 according to control of CPU301. The optical disk 307 is a detachable recording medium from which data is read according to the control of the optical disk drive 306. As the optical disc 307, a writable recording medium can be used. In addition to the optical disk 307, the removable recording medium may be an MO, a memory card, or the like.

  The audio I / F 308 is connected to a microphone 309 for audio input and a speaker 310 for audio output. The microphone 309 is configured by a hands-free microphone that collects sound in the vehicle interior. For example, the microphone 309 may be installed near the sun visor of the vehicle, and the number thereof may be one or more. The sound received by the microphone 309 is A / D converted in the sound I / F 308. Sound is output from the speaker 310.

  Examples of the input device 311 include a remote controller having a plurality of keys for inputting characters, numerical values, various instructions, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, and the like.

  The video I / F 312 is connected to the display 313. Specifically, the video I / F 312 includes, for example, a graphic controller that controls the entire display 313, a buffer memory such as a VRAM (Video RAM) that temporarily records image information that can be displayed immediately, and a graphic controller. Based on the output image data, the display 313 is configured by a control IC or the like.

  The display 313 displays icons, cursors, menus, windows, or various data such as characters and images. As the display 313, for example, a CRT, a TFT liquid crystal display, a plasma display, or the like can be adopted.

  The communication I / F 314 is connected to a network via wireless and functions as an interface between the navigation device 300 and the CPU 301. In the communication I / F 314, for example, an operation signal transmitted from a remote controller 400 (see FIG. 4) corresponding to the navigation device 300 can be received, and a signal instructed by the operation signal can be sent to the CPU 301.

  The communication I / F 314 is further connected to a communication network such as the Internet via wireless, and also functions as an interface between the communication network and the CPU 301. Here, the communication network includes a LAN, a WAN, a public line network, a mobile phone network, and the like. Specifically, the communication I / F 314 includes, for example, an FM tuner, a VICS (Vehicle Information and Communication System) / beacon receiver, a radio navigation device, and other navigation devices. Get road traffic information such as regulations. VICS is a registered trademark.

  The communication I / F 314 is configured by an in-vehicle wireless device that performs two-way wireless communication with a wireless device installed on the roadside, for example, when using DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), and traffic information and map information Get various information. A specific example of DSRC is ETC (non-stop automatic fee payment system).

  The GPS unit 315 receives radio waves from GPS satellites and outputs information indicating the current position of the vehicle. The output information of the GPS unit 315 is used when the CPU 301 calculates the current position of the vehicle together with output values of various sensors 316 described later. The information indicating the current position is information for specifying one point on the map information such as latitude / longitude and altitude.

  The various sensors 316 include a vehicle speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, and the like, and output information that can determine the position and behavior of the vehicle. The output values of the various sensors 316 are used for the calculation of the current position of the vehicle by the CPU 301 and the measurement of the speed and direction change amount.

  For example, the camera 317 captures an image of the driver's mouth. In the case of the navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment, the camera 317 is used particularly when shooting in the direction in which the user is positioned in accordance with the operation of the remote controller 400 (see FIG. 4). The camera 317 used here includes a variable operation unit, and the shooting angle can be adjusted by moving this operation.

  The functions of the storage unit 101 and the reading unit 105 included in the device control apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 can be realized by the magnetic disk drive 304, the magnetic disk 305, the optical disk drive 306, and the optical disk 307, for example. Further, the reception unit 102 can realize its function by the CPU 301, the ROM 302, and the communication I / F 314. In addition, the photographing unit 103 can realize its functions by, for example, the CPU 301, the ROM 302, the video I / F 312 and the camera 317. Further, the function of the determination unit 104 and the control unit 106 can be realized by the CPU 301 and the ROM 302.

  Each hardware of the CPU 301 to the camera 317 of the navigation device 300 functions as the controlled device 200 according to the contents of the setting information stored in the magnetic disk 305 and the optical disk 307, respectively.

  That is, the navigation device 300 according to the present embodiment executes the device control program recorded in the ROM 302 as a recording medium in the navigation device 300, so that the functions of the device control apparatus 100 shown in FIG. It can be executed according to the procedure of device control processing shown in FIG.

(Navigation device setting process)
Next, a procedure of setting processing for each function by the navigation device 300 will be described. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a usage form of a navigation device by a vehicle occupant. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, a case where two persons, a driver A and a passenger B in the passenger seat, are in the vehicle will be described as an example.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the navigation device setting process. In the flowchart of FIG. 5, it is first determined whether or not the navigation device 300 has been operated by a vehicle occupant (step S501). In the example shown in FIG. 4, as described above, there are a driver A and a passenger B as passengers, and the passenger B operates the remote controller 400 to set the navigation device 300 as described below. to continue.

  In the determination of step S501, it waits until the navigation device 300 is operated (step S501: No loop). When operated by the remote controller 400 (step S501: Yes), user recognition processing is performed (step S502). The user recognition process is a process of recognizing who is the user who has operated the navigation device 300 using the remote controller 400 in step S501.

  Specifically, when a signal from remote controller 400 is received, camera 317 captures the direction in which the signal was transmitted. When the direction in which the signal in this case is transmitted is photographed, an image including the face image of the passenger B is obtained. Then, matching processing is performed between the captured image and user information including the user's face image stored on the magnetic disk 305 or the optical disk 307.

  If user recognition processing is performed in step S502, it is next determined whether or not the captured face image matches the stored user information (step S503). Here, when it is determined that there is a match (step S503: Yes), the setting of the navigation device 300 is customized to a setting suitable for the user (here passenger B) using the matched user information (step S504). Then, a series of processing is completed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S503 that the stored user information does not match (step S503: No), the user information about the user who has operated this time is not stored, so the current operation is newly recorded. Whether or not (step S505).

  Note that the determination of whether or not to record the current operation in step S505 may be set to record the user's operation content when a new user uses it in advance. You may display the message which requests | requires the instruction | indication of whether to record this operation with respect to a user.

  If it is determined in step S505 that the operation is to be recorded (step S505: Yes), the current operation on the navigation device 300 is recorded (step S506), and the recorded content is stored as guest user information (step S507). Then, a series of processing is completed. Passenger B can reset personal information as formal user information later on with respect to the information accumulated as guest user information in step S507. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S505 that no operation is to be recorded (step S505: No), the series of processing ends.

  In addition, the setting information newly set as described above is transmitted not only to the navigation device 300 but also to an external network via the communication I / F 314, and is transmitted to a device mounted on another vehicle used by the user. It can also be reflected.

  As described above, according to the device control apparatus, the device control method, the device control program, and the recording medium according to the present invention, the setting desired by the user is reflected on the controlled device without causing the user to perform troublesome operations. Can be made.

  The device control method described in this embodiment can be realized by executing a program prepared in advance on a computer such as a personal computer or a workstation. This program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, a CD-ROM, an MO, and a DVD, and is executed by being read from the recording medium by the computer. The program may be a transmission medium that can be distributed via a network such as the Internet.

It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of the apparatus control apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of the apparatus control apparatus concerning this Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of the navigation apparatus concerning a present Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the utilization form of the navigation apparatus by the vehicle passenger. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the setting process of a navigation apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Device control apparatus 101 Accumulation part 102 Reception part 103 Image | photographing part 104 Discriminating part 105 Reading part 106 Control part 107 Operation apparatus 200 Controlled apparatus

Claims (8)

A device control device connected to the device to be operated,
Storage means for storing a user image representing the characteristics of the user of the device and setting information when the user operates the device in association with each other;
Receiving means for receiving a signal from an operating means for a user to operate the device;
When the receiving unit receives a signal from the operation unit, an imaging unit that captures a location corresponding to the direction of the signal;
A discriminating unit that collates a captured image captured by the capturing unit with a user image stored in the storage unit, and determines whether or not a user corresponding to the user image exists in the captured image;
A reading unit that reads out setting information of the user from the storage unit when the determination unit determines that there is a user corresponding to the user image in the captured image;
Control means for controlling the setting of the device according to the setting information read by the reading means;
A device control apparatus comprising:   The photographing unit includes a photographing device capable of adjusting a photographing angle, and photographs the user who operates the operation unit by adjusting a photographing angle of the photographing device in a direction of a signal received from the operation unit. The apparatus control apparatus according to claim 1.   The photographing unit includes a plurality of photographing devices installed at different positions, specifies a photographing device disposed at a position where a user who operates the operating unit can be photographed from a direction of a signal received from the operating unit, The device control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the user is photographed by the identified photographing device. The storage means stores a user face image as the user image,
The photographing means photographs the user's face,
The said discrimination | determination means collates the face image image | photographed by the said imaging | photography means, and the user's face image accumulate | stored in the said accumulation | storage means, The one of Claims 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Equipment control device. An acquisition means for acquiring setting information at the time of operation of the device by the user when the determination means determines that there is no corresponding user;
Storage means for associating the user image photographed by the photographing means with the setting information of the user obtained by the obtaining means in the storage means;
The device control apparatus according to claim 1, comprising: A device control method for controlling a device to be operated,
A receiving step in which a user receives a signal from an operating means for operating the device;
When receiving a signal from the operating means by the receiving step, a photographing step of photographing a portion corresponding to the direction of the signal;
With reference to storage means in which a user image representing the characteristics of the user of the device and setting information at the time of operation of the device by the user are stored in association with each other, the captured image captured by the capturing step and the storage unit A determination step of comparing the user image stored in the image and determining whether there is a user corresponding to the user image in the captured image;
When it is determined that there is a user corresponding to the user image in the captured image by the determination step, a reading step of reading the setting information of the user from the storage unit;
A setting step for setting the device according to the setting information read by the reading step;
The apparatus control method characterized by including.   A device control program for causing a computer to execute the device control method according to claim 6.   8. A recording medium in which the device control program according to claim 7 is recorded on a computer in a readable manner.

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