JP2009265296A - Projector, program, and information storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a projector or the like capable of informing easily understandably a user of a current operation state of a projector in response to an installation condition of the projector, while restraining an electric power consumption. <P>SOLUTION: This projector 100 includes an indicator 140 having at least one light source for notifying the operation state of the projector 100, a determination part 130 for determining whether the installation condition of the projector 100 is a plane installation condition or not, and a control part 132 for conducting control to enhance visibility compared with that in the case where the installation condition is the plane installation condition, when the installation condition is not the plane installation condition with respect to the indicator 140. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a projector, a program, and an information storage medium.

  The projector includes a light emitting unit (a so-called indicator) on the upper surface or the like for allowing the user to recognize the current operation status. The light-emitting unit allows the user to recognize states such as warm-up immediately after startup, normal operation, and abnormal operation by lighting or blinking the lamp. As a usage mode of the projector, there is a usage mode in a normal state (planar installation state) in which the upper surface is up, and a usage mode in a so-called ceiling-mounted state in which the upper surface is down. In the ceiling-mounted state, the distance between the display unit and the user is longer than that in the normal state, so that it is difficult for the user to check the display unit.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-101622 describes that a projector performs blinking control of an LED, which is a light source for projecting an image, for the purpose of reducing discomfort caused by projection light hitting a person. ing. Specifically, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-101622, an acceleration sensor or the like is used to determine whether or not the projector is moving, and when the projector is moving, the light emission of the LED is turned off or the light emission amount is reduced. It is described that.
JP 2004-101622 A

  However, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-101622 does not consider the installation state of the projector (ceiling installation state, normal state), and the technique of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-101622 depends on the installation state of the projector. The user cannot be notified of the current operating status of the projector in an easy-to-understand manner.

  In addition, as a method of notifying the current operation status of the projector, a method using sound is also conceivable, but a general projector does not have a sound output unit such as a speaker, and so on to notify an abnormal operation or the like. Providing a new audio output unit complicates the configuration of the projector and increases the manufacturing cost. Therefore, it is not preferable to apply a method of notifying operation status using audio.

  Further, it is conceivable that the light emitting unit always emits light with the highest luminance regardless of the installation state of the projector, but this is not preferable because the power consumption of the projector 100 increases.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a projector, a program, and an information storage medium capable of notifying the user of the current operating status of the projector more easily in accordance with the installation state of the projector while suppressing power consumption. is there.

  In order to solve the above problems, a projector according to the present invention is a projector that projects an image, a light emitting unit having at least one light source for notifying an operation state of the projector, and the installation state of the projector is a flat installation state A determination unit that determines whether or not, and a control unit that performs control to increase visibility compared to a case where the installation state is a plane installation state when the installation state is not a plane installation state with respect to the light emitting unit, It is characterized by including.

  A program according to the present invention is a projector that projects an image and includes a computer having a projector including a light emitting unit having at least one light source for notifying an operating state of the projector. A determination unit that determines whether or not the state is a plane installation state, and a control that increases visibility when the installation state is not a plane installation state with respect to the light emitting unit as compared with a case where the installation state is a plane installation state. It is made to function as a control part to perform.

  In addition, an information storage medium according to the present invention is a projector that projects an image and is readable by a computer included in the projector including a light emitting unit having at least one light source for notifying the operation state of the projector. An information storage medium storing a program, wherein the program is stored.

  According to the present invention, the projector causes the light emitting unit to emit light by performing control to increase the visibility when the installation state is not the plane installation state with respect to the light emitting unit as compared with the case where the installation state is the plane installation state. As a result, it is possible to notify the user of the current operating status of the projector in an easy-to-understand manner according to the installation state of the projector while suppressing power consumption.

  Further, the control unit may perform at least one of control for increasing the light emission amount of the light emitting unit and control for increasing the blinking speed of the light emitting unit as control for improving the visibility.

  According to this, the projector can improve the visibility by performing the control to increase the light emission amount of the light emitting unit and the control to increase the blinking speed of the light emitting unit, and to the user according to the installation state of the projector. The operating status of the projector can be notified more clearly.

  The projector includes an attitude detection sensor that detects an attitude of the projector, and the determination unit determines whether the installation state of the projector is a flat installation state based on a detection result of the attitude detection sensor. May be.

  According to this, the projector can notify the user of the current operating status of the projector more easily in accordance with the attitude of the projector. In particular, according to this, since the projector can detect a change in posture in real time, even when the posture of the projector changes frequently, it is possible to appropriately notify the operation status.

  In addition, the projector includes an input unit that inputs information indicating an installation state of the projector, and the determination unit determines whether the installation state of the projector is a planar installation state based on the information indicating the installation state. You may judge.

  According to this, the projector can notify the user of the current operation status of the projector more easily in accordance with the information indicating the installation state of the projector. In particular, according to this, the projector can grasp the installation state more accurately.

  The light emitting unit may include a plurality of light sources, and the control unit may control blinking of each light source by changing a blinking speed of each light source when blinking the plurality of light sources.

  According to this, even when a plurality of light sources blink simultaneously, the projector can notify the user of the number of blinking light sources in an easy-to-understand manner by performing control to change the blinking speed of each light source. it can.

  Embodiments in which the present invention is applied to a projector will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, the Example shown below does not limit the content of the invention described in the claim at all. In addition, all the configurations shown in the following embodiments are not necessarily essential as means for solving the invention described in the claims.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a projection state of the projector 100 in the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a projection state of the projector 100 in the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the projector 100 projects an image onto the screen 20. The main installation state of the projector 100 includes a flat installation state (normal state, a state indicated by a solid line) and a ceiling installation state (a state indicated by a two-dot chain line). As shown in FIG. 2, an indicator 140 that functions as a light emitting unit that notifies the state of the projector 100 by causing a light source to emit light is provided on the upper surface of the projector 100.

  For this reason, since the distance to the user is short in the flat installation state, it is easy for the user to visually recognize the light emission state of the indicator 140. However, in the ceiling installation state, the user is far It is difficult to see the light emission state.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a lighting state and a cause of the indicator 140 in the first embodiment. For example, the indicator 140 is provided with three LEDs (light source): an operation indicator, a lamp indicator, and a temperature indicator.

  For example, in the state at the top of FIG. 3, the operation indicator is lit, the lamp indicator is flashing, and the temperature indicator is flashing. In this case, the indicator 140 indicates that an internal abnormality has occurred.

  Further, for example, in the second state from the top in FIG. 3, the operation indicator is lit, the lamp indicator is blinking, and the temperature indicator is turned off. In this case, the indicator 140 indicates that the lamp should be replaced.

  Further, for example, in the third state from the top in FIG. 3, the operation indicator is turned on, the lamp indicator is turned off, and the temperature indicator is blinking. In this case, the indicator 140 indicates that an abnormality has occurred in the fan or sensor.

  Further, for example, in the state at the bottom of FIG. 3, the operation indicator blinks, the lamp indicator turns off, and the temperature indicator blinks. In this case, the indicator 140 indicates that fast cooling is being performed.

  As described above, the indicator 140 has a function of notifying various states of the projector 100, and the visibility of the indicator 140 is not reduced as much as possible even when the distance between the projector 100 and the user is large. is important.

  In the present embodiment, the projector 100 controls the indicator 140 according to the installation state of the projector 100, thereby suppressing power consumption and not reducing the visibility even in the ceiling-mounted state.

  Next, functional blocks of projector 100 having such a function will be described. FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the projector 100 in the first embodiment.

  The projector 100 includes an indicator 140 having a plurality of light sources for notifying the operation state of the projector 100, a determination unit 130 that determines whether or not the installation state of the projector 100 is a planar installation state, and the installation state with respect to the indicator 140 When the installation state is not the plane installation state, the control unit 132 includes a control unit 132 that performs control to increase the visibility compared to the case where the installation state is the plane installation state.

  The projector 100 also receives an image signal (for example, an RGB signal) from the storage unit 120 that stores control data 124 for controlling the indicator 140, the power source 160, the fan 162, a PC (Personal Computer), and the like. An input image signal input unit 170, an image generation unit 180 that generates an image based on the image signal (image processing calculation, image formation on a liquid crystal panel, etc.), a projection unit 190 that projects an image, and a projector 100 A temperature detection sensor 150 that detects the internal temperature and an attitude detection sensor 110 that detects the attitude of the projector 100 are included.

  Note that the control data 124 includes a plurality of control data 124 indicating a blinking pattern (for example, control values of each light source) of the indicator 140 according to the type of notification event.

  These units may be mounted on the projector 100 using the following hardware, for example. For example, the posture detection sensor 110 includes a (gravity) acceleration sensor, a three-dimensional position sensor, the storage unit 120 includes a RAM, the determination unit 130, the control unit 132 includes a CPU, the indicator 140 includes an LED, an image signal, and the like. The input unit 170 may be an image signal input terminal, the image generation unit 180 may be an image processing circuit, and the projection unit 190 may be a liquid crystal driving circuit, a liquid crystal panel, a lamp, or the like.

  Further, the projector 100 may be implemented by reading a program from the information storage medium 200 such as the determination unit 130. As such an information storage medium 200, for example, a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, ROM, RAM, HDD or the like can be applied, and the program reading method may be a contact method or a non-contact method. Good.

  Next, a lighting control procedure for the indicator 140 using these units will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a lighting control procedure in the first embodiment.

  The determination unit 130 determines whether a notification event has occurred based on information from the power supply 160, the fan 162, the projection unit 190, the temperature detection sensor 150, and the like (step S1). For example, the determination unit 130 determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the power supply 160 based on operation information from the power supply 160, or determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the fan 162 based on operation information from the fan 162. Determining whether it is time to replace the lamp based on the lamp driving information from the projection unit 190, or determining whether an internal temperature abnormality has occurred based on the temperature detection information from the temperature detection sensor 150, To do.

  Note that the notification event corresponds to an internal abnormality (for example, power supply abnormality, internal temperature abnormality, etc.) shown in the cause of FIG. 3, a lamp replacement recommendation (the lamp replacement time has come), or the like. In addition, the notification event is not limited to the cause of FIG. 3, and various events for which notification is performed are applicable.

  The attitude detection sensor 110 always detects the attitude of the projector 100 (for example, gravitational acceleration, three-dimensional position, etc.) (step S2). Note that the orientation detection sensor 110 may detect the orientation of the projector 100 only when there is a detection instruction from the control unit 132 or the like.

  The determination unit 130 determines whether the installation state of the projector 100 is a plane installation state based on the detection result of the attitude detection sensor 110 (step S3). For example, the determination unit 130 determines that a plane installation state is present when the direction of gravitational acceleration is a positive direction, and a ceiling installation state when the direction of gravity acceleration is reverse, and a plane installation state when the three-dimensional position is a plane position. If it is a ceiling-suspended position, it may be determined that the ceiling-suspended state is set.

  When in the plane installation state, the control unit 132 selects the control data 124 corresponding to the type of the notification event determined by the determination unit 130, and controls the indicator 140 to blink with reference luminance using the control data 124 ( Step S4).

  On the other hand, when it is not in the plane installation state, the control unit 132 selects the control data 124 according to the type of the notification event determined by the determination unit 130, and uses the control data 124 to increase the luminance (higher than the reference luminance). The flashing of the indicator 140 is controlled by increasing the brightness and the light emission amount (step S5).

  In addition, as a method of increasing the brightness, for example, a method of increasing the number of LEDs to be lit (for example, two of the four LEDs are lit in the flat installation state, and 4 in the ceiling installation state). A method of increasing the brightness of the LED by dimmer control (control by a high frequency pulse) or the like may be employed.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the projector 100 controls the indicator 140 so that the visibility is improved when the installation state is not the plane installation state compared to the case where the installation state is the plane installation state (for example, In addition, the light emitting unit emits light by performing control to increase the brightness of the indicator 140, etc., and the current operation status of the projector 100 is notified to the user more easily according to the installation state of the projector 100 while suppressing power consumption. can do.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the projector 100 can notify the user of the current operating status of the projector in a more easily understandable manner according to the attitude of the projector 100. In particular, according to the present embodiment, since the projector 100 can detect a change in posture in real time, even when the posture of the projector 100 changes frequently, it is possible to appropriately notify the operation status. it can.

(Second embodiment)
In the first embodiment, the projector 100 uses the attitude detection sensor 110, but information indicating the installation state may be directly input without using the attitude detection sensor 110.

  FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of the projector 101 in the second embodiment. The projector 101 includes an input unit 112 that inputs information indicating the installation state of the projector 101, a storage unit 121 that stores control data 124, state data 126 that indicates the installation state of the projector 101, and information from the input unit 112. An update unit 134 that updates the state data 126 based on the state data and a determination unit 131 that determines the installation state of the projector 101 based on the state data 126 are configured.

  As the input unit 112, for example, a receiving unit that receives information from an external device, a remote controller that inputs user instruction information, or the like, a CPU or the like may be used as the update unit 134.

  Further, the projector 101 does not include the attitude detection sensor 110. In addition, since the configuration of the control unit 132 and the like other than these is the same as that of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted. Further, similarly to the first embodiment, the projector 101 may read the program stored in the information storage medium 201 and implement functions such as the determination unit 131.

  Next, a lighting control procedure using the determination unit 131 and the like will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a lighting control procedure in the second embodiment.

  The updating unit 134 determines whether information indicating the installation state is input to the input unit 112 (step S11). When information indicating the installation state is input, the update unit 134 updates the state data 126 based on the information (step S12).

  The determination unit 131 determines whether a notification event has occurred based on information from the power supply 160, the fan 162, the projection unit 190, the temperature detection sensor 150, and the like (step S13). Further, the determination unit 131 determines whether or not the installation state of the projector 100 is a plane installation state based on the state data 126 (step S14).

  Since the blinking control of the indicator 140 (steps S4 and S5) is the same as that of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the projector 101 can notify the user of the current operating status of the projector 101 more easily in accordance with the information indicating the installation state of the projector 101. In particular, according to the present embodiment, the projector 101 can grasp the installation state more accurately.

(Other examples)
In addition, application of this invention is not limited to the Example mentioned above, A various deformation | transformation is possible. For example, when the indicator 140 includes a plurality of light sources and the indicator 140 includes a plurality of light sources, the control unit 132 controls blinking of each light source by changing the blinking speed (flashing interval, blinking period, etc.) of each light source. Also good. Specifically, for example, in the case of the internal abnormality shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 132 may blink the lamp indicator at 1 second intervals and the temperature indicator at 0.3 second intervals.

  According to this, even when a plurality of light sources blink simultaneously, the projector can notify the user of the number of blinking light sources in an easy-to-understand manner by performing control to change the blinking speed of each light source. it can.

  Specifically, for example, in the case of the internal abnormality shown in FIG. 3 and the lamp replacement recommendation, both are indicators that light up, and there are indicators that flash below it, so the user distinguishes between them when the projector is suspended from the ceiling. difficult.

  In such a case, by controlling to change the blinking speed of each light source, it is possible to notify the user of the number of blinking light sources in an easy-to-understand manner. It is possible to distinguish between abnormalities and lamp replacement recommendations.

  In addition, when the control unit 132 causes the indicator 140 to include a plurality of light sources and blinks the plurality of light sources, the control unit 132 combines the blinking of each light source depending on the case of the ceiling installation state compared to the case of the planar installation state. The indicator 140 may be turned on with a color that is easily visible.

  For example, when the indicator 140 includes a red LED and a blue LED, the control unit 132 turns on the red LED in the flat installation state and turns off the blue LED, and turns off the red LED in the ceiling installation state. The blue LED may be turned on.

  In general, since blue light has better visibility than red light, the projector can easily notify the user that the indicator 140 is lit even when the projector is suspended from the ceiling. The indicator 140 may have one light source.

  Even in the case of a plane installation state, the visibility of the indicator 140 may be lowered by tilting the projector 100 upward or the like. The controller 132 may perform control to increase the visibility of the indicator 140 even in such a case.

  The projector 100 is not limited to a liquid crystal projector, and may be a projector using a DMD (Digital Micromirror Device), for example. DMD is a trademark of Texas Instruments Incorporated. Further, the function of the projector 100 may be distributed and implemented in a plurality of devices (for example, a PC and a projector).

It is a figure which shows the projection state of the projector in a 1st Example. It is a figure which shows the projection state of the projector in a 1st Example. It is a figure which shows the lighting state and cause of the indicator in a 1st Example. It is a functional block diagram of the projector in a 1st Example. It is a flowchart which shows the lighting control procedure in a 1st Example. It is a functional block diagram of the projector in a 2nd Example. It is a flowchart which shows the lighting control procedure in a 2nd Example.

Explanation of symbols

  20 screen, 100, 101 projector, 110 attitude detection sensor, 112 input unit, 120, 121 storage unit, 124 control data, 126 status data, 130, 131 determination unit, 132 control unit, 134 update unit, 140 indicator, 150 temperature Detection sensor, 160 power source, 162 fan, 170 image signal input unit, 180 image generation unit, 190 projection unit, 200, 201 information storage medium

Claims (7)

In projectors that project images,
A light emitting unit having at least one light source for notifying the operating state of the projector;
A determination unit for determining whether or not the installation state of the projector is a plane installation state;
A control unit that performs control to increase visibility compared to a case where the installation state is a plane installation state when the installation state is not a plane installation state with respect to the light emitting unit;
including,
projector. The projector according to claim 1, wherein
The control unit performs at least one of control for increasing the light emission amount of the light emitting unit and control for increasing the blinking speed of the light emitting unit as control for improving the visibility.
projector. The projector according to any one of claims 1 and 2,
Including an attitude detection sensor for detecting the attitude of the projector;
The determination unit determines whether the installation state of the projector is a plane installation state based on the detection result of the attitude detection sensor.
projector. The projector according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Including an input unit for inputting information indicating an installation state of the projector;
The determination unit determines whether the installation state of the projector is a plane installation state based on the information indicating the installation state.
projector. The projector according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The light emitting unit has a plurality of light sources,
The control unit, when blinking a plurality of light sources, controls blinking of each light source by changing the blinking speed of each light source,
projector. A computer having a projector that projects an image and includes a light emitting unit having at least one light source for notifying an operation state of the projector,
A determination unit for determining whether or not the installation state of the projector is a plane installation state;
When the installation state is not a planar installation state with respect to the light emitting unit, the light emitting unit functions as a control unit that performs control to increase visibility compared to a case where the installation state is a planar installation state.
program. An information storage medium that stores a computer-readable program that is a projector that projects an image and that includes a light-emitting unit that includes at least one light source for notifying an operation state of the projector.
The program according to claim 6 is stored.
Information storage medium.

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