JP2010244422A - Information display device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is an information display device capable of recognizing that an operator can surely press a button far ahead of an action after the button is pressed and relieving anxiety. .
An operation body based on a three-dimensional space position of an operator's hand (operation body) approaching an operation screen D on which a button for accepting an operator's operation is arranged on a display device with a coordinate input device. Indicates the position on the operation screen D, and how far the operation body is from the operation screen D. Thus, the fact that the operator can surely press the button on the operation screen D can be recognized much before the action after the button is pressed, and the anxiety can be resolved.
[Selection] Figure 6

Description

  The present invention relates to an information display device.

  For example, in many restaurants such as family restaurants and taverns, an order management system capable of centrally managing from ordering a restaurant menu to accounting is constructed (see Patent Document 1). The system disclosed in Patent Document 1 is an accounting device such as an electronic cash register or a POS (Point Of Sales) terminal installed at a cash register which is a billing accounting place, and management of various information transmitted from the accounting device. And the like, a slip issuing printer that is connected to an accounting apparatus and prints and issues an order slip, and a kitchen printer that prints and outputs a cooking instruction slip. The station, the slip issuing machine, the kitchen printer, and the accounting apparatus are connected via a communication line such as a LAN (Local Area Network).

  By the way, according to the accounting apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, an order is input by touching each menu button in the menu item column in the order input screen.

  In general, a mouse that is a pointing device has a mouse cursor and can easily determine where the pointer is now. The keyboard also has a cursor so that it can be easily determined where to input.

  However, a touch input type terminal such as the accounting apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has no cursor display. Therefore, when a button on the screen that uses a GUI (Graphic User Interface) that has many buttons on one screen is selected by touching, it is determined whether or not the button can be pressed until an action after the touch occurs. There is a problem of not being able to stick. In other words, the result of whether or not the button has been pressed cannot be determined until the action after the touch input to the button is actually waited, and since it is sudden, the user presses the appropriate place when trying to press the button on the screen. There is a problem that the operator feels uneasy about whether or not it is possible.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and it can be recognized that the operator can surely press the button far ahead of the action after the button is pressed. An object of the present invention is to provide an information display device that can eliminate the problem.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the information display device of the present invention is a button display means for displaying an operation screen on which buttons for accepting an operator's operation are arranged on a display device with a coordinate input device. And a three-dimensional space position detecting means for detecting a three-dimensional space position of the operating body approaching the operation screen displayed on the display device by the button display means, and the three-dimensional space position detecting means detected by the three-dimensional space position detecting means. Informing means for informing which position on the operation screen the operation body is directed to, and how far the operation body is away from the operation screen, based on a three-dimensional space position. .

  According to the present invention, the fact that the operator can surely press the button can be recognized far before the action after the button is pressed, and the anxiety can be resolved.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of an information display device according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front side. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing electrical connection of the information display device. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a module configuration realized by a computer program. FIG. 4 is a flowchart schematically showing the flow of order processing. FIG. 5 is a front view showing an example of an order menu input screen. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which a shadow image is displayed on the order menu input screen.

  Exemplary embodiments of an information display device according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, customers who visit the store are guided to a table arranged on the customer service floor, and the customer service that supports such customer service is included in the entire customer service flow in which orders are received and served (distributed). This is an example in which an information terminal of a support system is applied as an information display device.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of an information display device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the front side. As shown in FIG. 1, the information display device 100 is configured by mounting a liquid crystal display 109 as a display device on the upper surface of a main body 108. In the liquid crystal display 109, a touch panel 110 as a coordinate input device is laminated on the display surface. The information display device 100 also includes a customer display device 107. A printer 106 is installed adjacent to the information display device 100 and connected to the information display device 100 via an interface such as a USB.

  Such an information display device 100 is installed on the customer service floor and the checkout counter. Whether the information display device 100 is installed on the customer service floor or on the checkout counter, the basic structure and function thereof are not changed. What is different is how it is used. In other words, the information display device 100 installed on the customer service floor supports each business such as customer guidance business, order reception business, and waiter service, while the information installed in the checkout counter. The display device 100 supports accounting operations in addition to those operations. That is, the information display device 100 installed in the checkout counter also functions as a so-called POS terminal.

  In addition, the information display device 100 of the present embodiment is provided with a three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 (see FIG. 2) that functions as a three-dimensional spatial position detection means. The three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 includes a plurality of television cameras 121 arranged around the liquid crystal display 109. The three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 is used to detect a three-dimensional image of a user's action described later. In the present embodiment, two television cameras 121 are horizontally arranged on both side surfaces of the liquid crystal display 109.

  The three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 recognizes a three-dimensional image of the user's movement by a method disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-174948. Schematically, an operator's action is imaged by a plurality of television cameras 121 from different angles. Image data output from each television camera 121 is stored at a predetermined sampling period. Thereafter, a feature image that is skin color data such as an operator's hand (operation body) is extracted from the stored image data, and the parallax included in the feature image extracted from the image data from each TV camera 121 is used. The three-dimensional spatial position of the blob (image grasped as one lump) corresponding to the hand is calculated. In the case where the operating body is not the operator's hand but an instruction bar held by the operator's hand, a feature image that is color data of the instruction bar is extracted.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing electrical connection of the information display apparatus 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the information display apparatus 100 includes a microcomputer 201, and the microcomputer 201 drives and controls each unit. The microcomputer 201 functions as a work area or the like by storing a ROM 204 for storing fixed information such as a control program in advance via a bus line 203 and a ROM 204 for storing various information in a rewritable manner in a CPU 202 that controls each unit centrally. A RAM 205 is connected. Therefore, the microcomputer 201 constitutes an information processing unit that executes information processing.

  A touch panel controller 206, a display controller 207, an HDD 208, an interface 209, and a communication interface 210 are connected to the microcomputer 201 via a bus line 203. In addition, a three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 is connected to the microcomputer 201. The touch panel controller 206 takes an input signal from the touch panel 110 into the microcomputer 201. The display controller 207 drives and controls the liquid crystal display 109 based on the image data, and causes the liquid crystal display 109 to display an image corresponding to the image data. The interface 209 is an interface for connecting the printer 106 and the customer display device 107 to the microcomputer 201, and is configured by a USB or the like as described above. The communication interface 210 is an interface for enabling the microcomputer 201 to perform data communication with other devices via a LAN.

  The HDD 208 is installed with an OS, a computer program, various files, and the like. These OSs, computer programs, various files, and the like are all or partially copied to the RAM 205 when the information display apparatus 100 is started up and accessed by the CPU 202. The CPU 202 executes processing according to the OS and computer program copied in this way.

  Next, among the processes executed by the microcomputer 201 using the OS and computer program installed in the HDD 208 of the information display apparatus 100, characteristic processes included in the information display apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  The computer program executed by the information display apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment has a module configuration including each unit (button display means 10 and notification means 20) as shown in FIG. When the CPU 202 of the microcomputer 201 reads out and executes a computer program from the HDD 208, the above-described units are loaded onto the RAM 205, and the button display means 10 and the notification means 20 are generated on the RAM 205.

  Next, a function that the control program stored in the HDD 18 causes the CPU of the POS control unit 17 to execute will be described. Note that description of processing that is the same as processing conventionally performed is omitted.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart schematically showing the flow of order processing. As shown in FIG. 4, the CPU 202 of the microcomputer 201 of the information display device 100 displays an order menu input screen D as an operation screen as shown in FIG. 5 on the liquid crystal display 109 by the OS and computer program installed in the HDD 208. Display (step S1). On the order menu input screen D, a department tag D11, a menu item column D12, an order list D13, an operation designation key D14, a function key D15, and the like are displayed.

  When inputting a menu item on such an order menu input screen D, “drink”, “dessert”, “Japanese candy”, “Japanese / Western food”, “boiled stuff” can be specified by touching the desired department tag D11. , "Nabemono", "Udon & Soba", "One dish", "Kenna and salad" can be selected. For example, when the department button D11a “single dish” of the department tag D11 is touch-designated, an order menu input screen D for “single dish” as illustrated in FIG. 5 is displayed.

  When viewing the order menu input screen D displayed as described above and the operator moves his / her hand (operation body) to make a touch designation with respect to any button, the three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 is a television. The movement of the hand photographed by the camera 121 is detected, and the three-dimensional spatial position of the blob corresponding to the hand is calculated. The three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 transmits the calculated three-dimensional spatial position to the CPU 202. Note that the operating body is not limited to the operator's hand, and may be an indicator bar or the like held by the operator.

  When the CPU 202 acquires the three-dimensional space position of the operator's hand from the three-dimensional space position detection device 120 (step S2), the CPU 202 is a shadow that is an image in which the operator's hand is projected on the screen based on the three-dimensional space position. An image is generated (step S3), and the generated shadow image is displayed on the order menu input screen D (step S4). As shown in FIG. 6, the shadow image S is circular. More specifically, the Z coordinate position (distance from the order menu input screen D) of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as the size of the circle, and the XY coordinate position (the direction of movement of the operator's hand, that is, the operator) The position of the button that is about to be touched is reflected as the center of the circle. Shadows are always present where there is light and are a symbol of the existence of objects. By displaying the shadow image S on the order menu input screen D, it is possible to clearly indicate to the operator that there is a place where the user is pushing.

  The processes in steps S2 and S3 described above are continuously executed, and the location and size of the shadow image S change depending on the position of the hand. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, when the operator's hand is far from the desired button on the order menu input screen D, the shadow image S is large, and the operator's hand is the desired button on the order menu input screen D. The shadow image S becomes smaller as it approaches. As a result, a cursor-like shadow image S for the target (button) that the operator himself is trying to press is displayed on the order menu input screen D in accordance with the positional relationship between the target (button) and the operator. It can be recognized that the user can surely press the button on the order menu input screen D before the action after the button is pressed, and it is psychologically disadvantageous of the touch-type POS terminal. Anxiety about whether or not it can be pressed is resolved, leading to a reduction in stress. This is also expected to improve input accuracy and reduce input speed. Furthermore, since the process of step S2 and step S3 is continuously performed, the target can be determined continuously, so that the position of the hand can be corrected with respect to the target one by one. In addition, since the target and hand positions can be easily recognized, the touching operation is accelerated.

  Thereafter, when the CPU 202 obtains contact information indicating that any one button of the order menu input screen D has been touched from the touch panel 110 (step S5), an appropriate action (menu display or the like) corresponding to the touched button is obtained. ) Is executed (step S6).

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the three-dimensional of the operator's hand (operating body) approaching the order menu input screen D in which the button for accepting the operator's operation on the liquid crystal display 109 with the touch panel 110 is arranged. Based on the spatial position, the operator can reliably press the button by notifying which position on the order menu input screen D the operator is heading and how far the operator is from the order menu input screen D. The fact that it can be pressed can be recognized much earlier than the action after the button is pressed, and anxiety can be resolved.

  In the present embodiment, the three-dimensional spatial position detection device 120 calculates the three-dimensional spatial position of the operator's hand from the image data output from the television camera 121. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The position of the hand may be grasped from the intensity of light received by a plurality of light sensors provided on the screen side, or the three-dimensional spatial position of the operator's hand is calculated using an RFID tag. You may do it.

  In the present embodiment, the operation is circular, and the Z coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as the size of the circle, and the XY coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is the center of the circle. Although the shadow image S reflected as the body traveling direction is displayed on the order menu input screen D, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, on the order menu input screen D, a shadow image S that is an image in which the operating tool is projected on the screen and in which the XY coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as the center of the circular shape indicating the traveling direction of the operating tool. In addition, a sound in which the Z coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as a sound cycle interval may be played through a speaker (not shown). In this case, for example, when the operator's hand is far from the desired button on the order menu input screen D, the “sound cycle” is long, and the operator's hand approaches the desired button on the order menu input screen D. The “sound cycle” is shortened.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Button display means 20 Notification means 100 Information display apparatus 109 Display apparatus 110 Coordinate input apparatus 120 Three-dimensional space position detection means D Operation screen S Shadow image

JP 2008-299821 A

Claims (4)

Button display means for displaying an operation screen on which buttons for accepting an operator's operation are arranged on a display device with a coordinate input device;
Three-dimensional space position detecting means for detecting a three-dimensional space position of an operating body approaching the operation screen displayed on the display device by the button display means;
Based on the three-dimensional space position detected by the three-dimensional space position detection means, it is informed which position on the operation screen the operation body is directed to, and how far the operation body is away from the operation screen. Notification means for
An information display device comprising: The notification means is an image obtained by projecting the operating body on a screen, and indicates a position on the operating screen to which the operating body is directed and a distance indicating how far the operating body is away from the operating screen. Generating an image and displaying the generated shadow image on the operation screen;
The information display device according to claim 1. The shadow image generated by the notifying means is circular, and the Z coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as the size of a circle, and the XY coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is a circle. Reflected as the traveling direction of the operation body that is the center,
The information display device according to claim 2. The notification means is an image in which the operating body is projected on a screen, and a shadow image in which the XY coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as a circular center indicating the traveling direction of the operating body is described above. A sound is displayed on the operation screen and the Z coordinate position of the three-dimensional space position is reflected as a sound cycle interval.
The information display device according to claim 1.

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