JP2011008574A - Optical information reader - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical information reader which reduces the load of reading processing when reading a plurality of division information codes obtained by dividing prescribed information and improves operability in the reading operation.SOLUTION: The region of a part of a pickup image F imaged by image pickup processing is set as a reading region D by processing for setting the reading region, and decoding is performed to the reading region D by decode processing, and whether or not the decoded QR code (R) Q is one of the division information codes is determined. Then, when it is determined that the QR code (R) is one of the division information, the region including all the respective division information is estimated by estimation processing based on a part of the respective division information codes in the reading region D, and the reading region D is reset by processing for resetting the reading region, based on the estimated estimation region, and decoding is performed to the reset reading region D by decode processing.

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical information reader that optically reads information codes such as bar codes and QR codes.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a technique related to an optical information reading apparatus that optically reads an information code such as a barcode and a QR code, an optical information reading apparatus shown in Patent Document 1 below is known. The optical information reading apparatus includes an imaging unit that captures an image of a reading target on which a plurality of codes are written, a guide light irradiation unit that irradiates guide light indicating a reading position on the reading target, and a captured image of the imaging unit. And a processing means for performing a code reading process. Then, by irradiating the reading target with the guide light and only the two-dimensional code included in the two-dimensional area indicated by the guide light is the target of the reading process, the user among the plurality of two-dimensional codes can be obtained. A two-dimensional code to be read is selected and read.

JP 2005-84890 A

  By the way, in recent years, image pickup means such as a light receiving sensor tend to have high performance, and since the picked-up image to be picked up has high pixels, the amount of information tends to be very large. For this reason, if all the areas of the captured image are read as reading areas, the load of the reading process increases and the processing time becomes long. Therefore, it is desired to shorten the time required for the reading process by appropriately setting the reading area with respect to the captured image.

  However, it is necessary for the user to adjust the position and angle of the apparatus main body with respect to the information code so that the information code enters the reading area set to be small. In particular, when reading a plurality of divided information codes coded by dividing predetermined information, it is necessary to put all of the divided information codes in a small reading area. There was a problem that the sex became worse.

  Further, when each of the above-described division information codes is read one by one by the reading device described in Patent Document 1, the user can make sure that each division information code comes to the center of the reading area set to be small. It is necessary to move the device body. For this reason, there is a problem that workability at the time of reading work is deteriorated and it takes time to read all the division information codes.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and the object of the present invention is to reduce the load of reading processing and read work when reading a plurality of divided information codes obtained by dividing predetermined information. It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical information reader capable of improving workability at the time.

  In order to achieve the above object, the optical information reading apparatus according to claim 1 according to the claims can optically read a plurality of divided information codes coded by dividing predetermined information. An optical information reader, an imaging unit that images each of the division information codes, a reading area setting unit that sets a partial area of a captured image captured by the imaging unit as a reading area, and the reading Decoding means for decoding the information code including the division information code in the reading area set by the area setting means, and whether the information code decoded by the decoding means is one of the division information codes A determination means for determining whether or not the information code decoded by the determination means is one of the divided information codes; An estimation means for estimating an area including all of the division information codes based on a part of each division information code, and a reading area for resetting the reading area based on the estimation area estimated by the estimation means Resetting means, and the decoding means decodes the information code in the reading area when the reading area is reset by the reading area resetting means.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the optical information reading device according to the first aspect, the estimation means includes all of the divided information codes based on the decoded divided information code in the reading area. It is characterized by estimating a region to be recorded.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the optical information reading apparatus according to the first aspect, the estimation means is provided in an unread area, which is an area occupied by a division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area. Based on this, a region including all of the respective division information codes is estimated.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the optical information reading device according to the third aspect, a position detection pattern for determining whether or not the unread area includes a position detection pattern for detecting the position of the divided information code. Presence / absence determination means, and when the position detection pattern presence / absence determination means determines that the unread area includes the position detection pattern, the estimation means determines each division based on the area occupied by the position detection pattern. A region including all of the information code is estimated.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the optical information reading device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the read area resetting unit excludes the division information code decoded for the estimated area. The reading area is reset.

  A sixth aspect of the present invention is the optical information reading apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, further comprising storage means for storing the reading area reset by the reading area resetting means, The decoding means, when the reading area is stored by the storage means, decodes the information code in the reading area stored by the storage means with respect to the captured image captured by the imaging means. To do.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a partial area of the captured image picked up by the image pickup means is set as a read area by the read area setting means, and an information code including the division information code in the read area is decoded by the decode means. The determination unit determines whether the decoded information code is one of the divided information codes. Then, when it is determined that the information code is one of the division information codes, an estimation unit estimates an area including all of the division information codes based on a part of each division information code in the reading area. Based on the estimated area, the reading area is reset by the reading area resetting means, and the information code in the reset reading area is decoded by the decoding means.

  In this way, when the decoded information code is a normal code that is not one of the division information codes or all of the plurality of division information codes, there is no need to reset the reading area. Since only a part of the captured image is a region, the load of the reading process can be reduced as compared with the case where all the regions of the captured image are read regions. Further, even if the decoded information code is one of the division information codes, the read area for the captured image is regenerated so as to be appropriately reduced based on the estimation area estimated to include all of the division information codes. Since it is set and decoded, the load of the reading process can be reduced as compared with the case where all the areas of the captured image are set as the reading areas as described above.

Furthermore, even if not all of the division information codes are included in the set reading area, if all of the division information codes are included in the captured image, the division information codes are automatically captured without re-imaging. Thus, the reading area is reset so that all of the division information codes are included. For this reason, the user does not need to adjust the position and angle of the apparatus main body with respect to each divided information code so that all of the divided information codes are included in the reading area, thereby improving the workability during the reading operation. be able to.
Therefore, it is possible to reduce the load of the reading process when reading the division information code and improve the workability during the reading operation.

  The invention according to claim 2 is configured to estimate a region including all of the division information codes based on one of the decoded division information codes. That is, when the decoded division information code includes information for specifying the position and size of another division information code, for example, the outer size of the code, the distance between codes, etc. It is possible to accurately estimate the area occupied by the division information code. Then, the reading area is reset based on all of the division information codes estimated with high accuracy as described above, whereby a plurality of division information codes can be reliably read.

  The invention according to claim 3 is configured to estimate an area including all of the division information codes based on an unread area that is an area occupied by a division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area. ing. That is, from the outer size and position of the unread area and the cell size of each bright color area and dark color area, the outer size and position of the division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area are estimated, Since an area including all of the division information codes is accurately estimated, a plurality of division information codes can be reliably read even if the external size and code type of each division information code are different.

  In the invention of claim 4, when the position detection pattern presence / absence determination means determines that the unread area includes the position detection pattern, the estimation means determines all of the divided information codes based on the area occupied by the position detection pattern. It is comprised so that the area | region containing may be estimated. Since the position detection pattern is provided at a predetermined position of the information code in a predetermined shape and size in order to determine the reading direction of the information code including the position detection pattern, the position detection pattern is based on each region occupied by the position detection pattern. By roughly estimating the outer size, position, etc., of the division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area, an area including all of the division information codes can be accurately estimated. As a result, even if the division information codes have different outer sizes and the like, a plurality of division information codes can be reliably read. In addition, since the position detection pattern is configured as described above, it is easy to detect the position detection pattern. Therefore, by using the position detection pattern for the estimation process, the processing time can be shortened, and the load of the reading process is further reduced. be able to. In particular, when there are a plurality of position detection patterns occupying the unread area, an area including all of the divided information codes is estimated with higher accuracy.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the reading area is reset by the reading area resetting means except for the division information code decoded for the estimated area. That is, only the division information code that has not been decoded in the reset reading area is read without reading the division information code that has been decoded once, so that the load of the reading process can be surely reduced.

  According to the sixth aspect of the invention, the reading area reset by the reading area resetting means is stored by the storage means, and the information code in the reading area stored for the captured image is decoded. For this reason, for example, when the reading operation is repeatedly performed, such as a fixed optical information reading device, if the change in the positional relationship between the apparatus main body and the information code is small, the reset reading area is set to the next reading operation. By using as a reading area at the time, a reading area suitable for repeated reading work is set. In this case, all the division information codes can be read without estimating an area including all the division information codes, and the load of the reading process can be surely reduced.

1 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of an optical information reading apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of a reading process in the control circuit 40 according to the first embodiment. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a partial area of a captured image F is set as a reading area D. FIG. Is a diagram for explaining the estimation process areas included all of the QR code Q ₁ to Q ₃ it is. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state in which an area including all of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is reset as a reading area D. FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state where only areas Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ including the entire outer shape of QR code Q ₁ and QR code Q ₃ are set as a reading area D; It is a flowchart which illustrates the flow of the reading process in the control circuit 40 which concerns on this 2nd Embodiment. Is a diagram for explaining the estimation process areas included all of the QR code Q ₁ to Q ₃ it is. It is a flowchart which illustrates the flow of the reading process in the control circuit 40 which concerns on the modification in this 2nd Embodiment. Is a diagram for explaining the estimation process areas included all of the QR code Q ₁ to Q ₃ it is. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of a reading process in a control circuit 40 according to the third embodiment.

Embodiments of an optical information reading apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[First Embodiment]
As shown in FIG. 1, the optical information reader 10 is configured as a device that reads an information code such as a QR code (hereinafter simply referred to as “QR code Q”) displayed on an object. The optical information reading apparatus 10 includes a circuit unit 20 housed in a case (not shown). The circuit unit 20 mainly includes an illumination light source 21, a light receiving sensor 28, an imaging lens 27, and the like. And a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as “microcomputer”) system such as a memory 35, a control circuit 40, and a trigger switch 42. The optical system such as the light receiving sensor 28 corresponds to an example of “imaging means” recited in the claims, and the memory 35 corresponds to an example of “storage means” recited in the claims.

  The optical system is divided into a light projecting optical system and a light receiving optical system. The illumination light source 21 constituting the light projecting optical system functions as an illumination light source capable of emitting the illumination light Lf, and includes, for example, a red LED and a lens provided on the emission side of the LED. In addition, in FIG. 1, the example which irradiates the illumination light Lf toward the target object R with which QR code Q was displayed is shown notionally.

  The light receiving optical system includes a light receiving sensor 28, an imaging lens 27, a reflecting mirror (not shown), and the like. The light receiving sensor 28 is configured as a CCD area sensor, and is configured to be able to receive the reflected light Lr irradiated and reflected on the QR code Q or the object R. The light receiving sensor 28 is mounted on a printed wiring board (not shown) so as to be able to receive incident light incident through the imaging lens 27.

  The imaging lens 27 functions as an imaging optical system capable of condensing incident light incident from the outside via a reading port (not shown) and forming an image on the light receiving surface 28a of the light receiving sensor 28. . In the first embodiment, the illumination light Lf emitted from the illumination light source 21 is reflected by the QR code Q, and then the reflected light Lr is collected by the imaging lens 27 and is applied to the light receiving surface 28a of the light receiving sensor 28. An image is formed.

  The microcomputer system includes an amplification circuit 31, an A / D conversion circuit 33, a memory 35, an address generation circuit 36, a synchronization signal generation circuit 38, a control circuit 40, a trigger switch 42, a light emitting unit 43, a buzzer 44, a vibrator 45, and a liquid crystal display. 46, a communication interface 48, and the like.

  The image signal (analog signal) output from the light receiving sensor 28 of the optical system is amplified by a predetermined gain by being input to the amplifier circuit 31, and then input from the analog signal when input to the A / D conversion circuit 33. Converted into a digital signal. When the digitized image signal, that is, image data (image information) is generated and input to the memory 35, it is stored in a predetermined code image information storage area. The synchronization signal generation circuit 38 is configured to generate a synchronization signal for the light receiving sensor 28 and the address generation circuit 36, and the address generation circuit 36 is based on the synchronization signal supplied from the synchronization signal generation circuit 38. Thus, the storage address of the image data stored in the memory 35 can be generated.

  The control circuit 40 is configured by a microcomputer that can control the entire optical information reader 10, has a CPU, a system bus, an input / output interface, and the like, has an information processing function, and has an information processing device together with the memory 35. Is configured. In the present embodiment, a trigger switch 42, a light emitting unit 43, a buzzer 44, a vibrator 45, a liquid crystal display 46, a communication interface 48, and the like are connected to the control circuit 40.

  Thereby, for example, the control circuit 40 can be used to turn on / off the light emitting unit 43 that functions as an indicator for notifying the monitoring and management of the trigger switch 42 and reading information about the QR code Q, and to generate a beep sound and an alarm sound. Communication that enables ON / OFF of ringing 44, drive control of the vibrator 45 capable of generating vibration that can be transmitted to the user of the optical information reader 10, display control of the liquid crystal display 46, and serial communication with an external device Communication control of the interface 48 is enabled.

  Next, in the optical information reading apparatus 10 configured as described above, a reading process performed by the control circuit 40 when reading an information code including a plurality of divided information codes obtained by dividing predetermined information is illustrated. A description will be given with reference to FIGS.

  First, in step S101 of FIG. 2, an imaging process is performed, and the illumination light Lf is emitted from the illumination light source 21 toward the object R on which the QR code Q is displayed according to the operation of the trigger switch 42 by the operator. . Then, as shown in FIG. 1, the captured image F is acquired based on the signal output from the light receiving sensor 28 when the reflected light Lr reflected by the object R is received by the light receiving sensor 28. Here, the number of pixels of the captured image F is set to 2048 × 1536, for example.

  In step S <b> 103, a reading area setting process is performed, and a partial area at the center of the captured image F is set as the reading area D. Here, the number of pixels of the reading area D set by the reading area setting process can be set to 1024 × 768, for example. The control circuit 40 that executes the reading area setting process in step S103 corresponds to an example of “reading area setting means” recited in the claims.

  Next, a decoding process is performed in step S105. In this process, the decoding process described above is performed on the reading area D set in step S103. If the QR code Q decoded by this decoding process is a normal QR code that is not one of the division information codes described above, it is determined No in step S107, and the reading area D is set as described later. The reading process is terminated without being reset. Similarly, if the decoding process fails in step S105, it is determined No in step S107. The control circuit 40 that executes the processes of steps S105 and S107 corresponds to an example of “decoding means” and “determination means” recited in the claims.

On the other hand, for example, a divided information code obtained by dividing predetermined information into three (hereinafter referred to as “QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ ”) is a reading target, and is divided into a reading area D set as shown in FIG. If this QR code Q ₂ from being included the entire contour of the QR code Q ₂ miso which is one of the information code is decoded, it is determined as Yes at step S107.

Next, an estimation process is performed in step S109, and an area including all _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated based on the decoded QR code Q ₂ .
Specifically, in the estimation process in the first embodiment, information for specifying the positions and sizes of the other QR codes Q ₁ and Q _{3 in} the decoded QR code Q ₂ , for example, the outer size of the code, Assuming that information such as the distance between cords (distances X ₁ and X _{2 in} FIG. 4) is included, the QR code Q ₁ , based on these information and the outer shape of the QR code Q ₂ (thick line in FIG. 4) to estimate the area occupied by the Q _3. As a result, the region occupied by the QR codes Q ₁ and Q ₃ (Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ in FIG. 4) is estimated, so that the region including all _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. Is done. When the QR code Q ₂ does not include information for specifying the positions of the other QR codes Q ₁ and Q ₃ , or the entire outline of the QR code Q ₁ and the QR code Q ₃ is included in the captured image F. If not included, it is processed as a decoding failure. The control circuit 40 that executes the estimation process in step S109 corresponds to an example of an “estimation unit” described in the claims.

When an area including all _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated as described above, a reading area reset process is performed in step S111 based on the estimated area. In this process, as shown in FIG. 5, an area including all of the _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is reset as the reading area D, and the reset reading area D is set in step S105 described above. Will be decoded. As described above, in the first embodiment, the read area D with respect to the captured image F is reset and decoded based on the estimated area estimated to include all of the division information codes. Therefore, compared with the case where all the areas of the captured image F are read areas, the load of the reading process can be reduced. The control circuit 40 that executes the reading area resetting process in step S111 corresponds to an example of “reading area resetting unit” recited in the claims.

  As described above, in the optical information reading apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment, a partial area of the captured image F captured by the imaging process is set as the reading area D by the reading area setting process, and this reading is performed. The region D is decoded by the decoding process, and it is determined whether or not the decoded QR code Q is one of the division information codes. When it is determined that the QR code is one of the division information codes, an area including all of the division information codes is estimated by the estimation process based on a part of each division information code in the reading area D. Then, the reading area D is reset by the reading area resetting process based on the estimated area to be estimated, and the reset reading area D is decoded by the decoding process.

Thus, when the decoded QR code Q is a normal code that is not one of the division information codes or all of the plurality of division information codes, there is no need to reset the reading area D, Since the reading area D is only a part of the captured image F, the load of the reading process can be reduced as compared to the case where all the areas of the captured image F are the reading areas. In addition, even if the decoded QR code Q is one of the division information codes, QR code Q ₂ , an estimation region in which it is estimated that all of the division information codes (QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ ) are included. Therefore, the reading area D for the captured image F is reset and decoded so as to be appropriately reduced, so that, as described above, the reading area D is compared with the case where all the areas of the captured image F are set as the reading areas. The processing load can be reduced.

Furthermore, even if not all the division information codes are included in the set reading area D, if all the division information codes are included in the captured image F, the respective division information codes are not imaged again. The reading area D is reset so that all the division information codes are automatically included. For this reason, the user does not need to adjust the position and angle of the apparatus main body with respect to each divided information code so that all the divided information codes are included in the reading area D, thereby improving the workability during the reading operation. be able to.
Therefore, it is possible to reduce the load of the reading process when reading the division information code and improve the workability during the reading operation.

In particular, in the first embodiment, the position and size of other division information codes (QR codes Q ₁ and Q ₃ ) included in the QR code Q ₂ that is one of the decoded division information codes are specified. Based on the information, the region including all of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. As a result, since an area including all of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is accurately estimated, the reading area D is reset based on the estimated area, whereby each of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q _{3 is set.} Can be read reliably.

Next, an optical information reading apparatus 10 according to a modification example of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the modified example of the first embodiment, only the areas Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ including the entire undecoded QR code Q ₁ and QR code Q ₃ are read in the reading area resetting process described above. The main difference is that it is reset as D. Therefore, substantially the same components as those of the optical information reader 10 of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

In this modification, in step S111 described above, as shown in FIG. 6, except for the decoded region of the QR code Q ₂ are, include the entire outline of the QR code Q ₁ and QR code Q ₃ undecoded Only the areas Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ are reset as the reading area D. In step S105 described above, the reset read area D is decoded.

As described above, in the present modification, only the QR codes Q ₁ and Q ₃ that are the division information codes that have not been decoded yet in the read area D that has been reset without reading the once decoded QR code Q ₂ again. Therefore, the load of the reading process can be surely reduced. In the second embodiment to be described later, it is possible to reliably reduce the load of the reading process by resetting only the area including the entire outline of the division information code that has not been decoded as the reading area D.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, an optical information reading apparatus 10 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the second embodiment, based on an undecoded division information code area in the reading area D (hereinafter also referred to as “unread area U”), an area including all of the division information codes is estimated. The point is mainly different. Therefore, substantially the same components as those of the optical information reader 10 of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

Hereinafter, reading processing by the control circuit 40 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.
First, the as in the first embodiment, when the QR code Q ₂ which is one of the divided information code is judged Yes in step S107 of FIG. 7 that the decoded region D read at step S113 Whether or not the unread area U is included is determined. Unread region U, as shown in FIG. 8, the QR code Q ₂ to which is decoded in the reading area D are different areas, some of the QR code from the bright areas and dark areas are multiple sets Is a region that can be determined as (in the bold line frame in FIG. 8).

Then, as shown in FIG. 8, when it is determined that the unread area U is included in the read area D (Yes in S113), an estimation process is performed in step S109a. A region including all of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. More specifically, the QR code Q ₁ and QR code Q _{3 have} their external sizes and positions estimated from the external size and position of the unread area U, the cell sizes of the light and dark areas, and the QR code. Since the area occupied by Q ₁ and Q ₃ (Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ in FIG. 8) is estimated, an area including all _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. In the second embodiment, the description is made on the assumption that all the division information codes are QR codes. However, even if at least one of the division information codes is another type of code, for example, a barcode, Since the type and outline size of the division information code are estimated from the cell size and the like of the unread area U, an area including all of the division information code can be estimated. Furthermore, the estimation accuracy of the area occupied by the QR codes Q ₁ and Q ₃ may be improved by comparing the cell size of the unread area U with the cell size of the QR code Q ₂ that has been successfully decoded. If the unread area U is not included in the reading area D, it is determined No in step S113, and the reading process is terminated without resetting the reading area D as described later.

  Then, the reading area D is reset in step S111 based on the area thus estimated, and the processing from step S105 is performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, the outline size and position of the division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area D are estimated from the unread area U that can be determined as a part of the QR code. In addition, since an area including all of the division information codes is accurately estimated, even if the division information codes have different external sizes, code types, etc., it is possible to reliably read a plurality of division information codes. Can do.

Next, an optical information reading apparatus 10 according to a modification example of the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The modification in the second embodiment is mainly different in that an area including all _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated based on the area occupied by the position detection pattern FP in the unread area U. . Therefore, substantially the same components as those of the optical information reading apparatus 10 of the second embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

Hereinafter, the reading process by the control circuit 40 according to the present modification will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.
First, the as in the second embodiment, when the QR code Q ₂ which is one of the divided information code is judged Yes in step S107 of FIG. 9 that has been decoded, the unread region U at step S115 It is determined whether or not a position detection pattern FP that is a pattern for detecting the position of the QR code Q is included therein.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the position detection pattern FP (thick line in FIG. 10) is included in the unread area U (Yes in S115), an estimation process is performed in step S109b, and the position detection pattern FP is Based on the area occupied in the unread area U, an area including all of the _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. For example, based on the size and position of the position detection pattern FP, the distance between the position detection patterns FP, and the like, the outer sizes and positions of the QR code Q ₁ and the QR code Q ₃ are approximated, respectively, and are shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. Are estimated as areas Q ₁ ′ and Q ₃ ′ including the entire outline of the QR code Q ₁ and the QR code Q ₃ , and an area including all the _three QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is estimated. Is done.

The position detection pattern FP is provided in a predetermined shape and size at a predetermined position of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ in order to determine the reading direction of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ including the position detection pattern FP. Based on the respective areas occupied by the position detection pattern FP, the approximate size, position, etc. of the QR code Q ₁ and QR code Q ₃ different from the decoded QR code Q ₂ in the reading area D are approximated. A region including all of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ can be estimated with high accuracy. Moreover, since the position detection pattern FP is easily detected because it is configured as described above, the processing time can be shortened by using the position detection pattern FP for the estimation process, and the load of the reading process can be further increased. Can be reduced.

  If the position detection pattern FP is not included in the unread area U, it is determined No in step S115, and the reading process is terminated without resetting the reading area D as described later. The control circuit 40 that executes the processes of steps S115 and S109b corresponds to an example of “position detection pattern presence / absence determination means” and “estimation means” recited in the claims.

  Then, the reading area D is reset in step S111 based on the area estimated in this way, and the processing from step S105 is performed in the same manner as in the second embodiment.

As described above, the present modification is configured such that a region including all the division information codes is estimated based on the region occupied by the position detection pattern FP. That is, each division information code (QR code Q _{1) is} estimated by roughly estimating the outer size and position of the division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area based on each area occupied by the position detection pattern FP. region included all to Q ₃₎ is is accurately estimated. As a result, even if the division information codes have different outer sizes and the like, a plurality of division information codes can be reliably read. Further, since the position detection pattern FP is easily detected as described above, the processing time can be shortened by using the position detection pattern FP for the estimation process, and the load of the reading process can be further reduced. In particular, when there are a plurality of position detection patterns FP occupying the unread area U, an area including all of the divided information codes is estimated with higher accuracy.

[Third Embodiment]
Next, an optical information reading apparatus 10 according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The third embodiment is mainly different in that the decoding process is performed on the read area D reset last time. Therefore, substantially the same components as those of the optical information reader 10 of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

Hereinafter, reading processing by the control circuit 40 according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
First, when the captured image F is acquired in step S101 of FIG. 11 as in the first embodiment, it is determined in step S102 whether or not area information to be described later is stored in the memory 35. If it is determined that the area information is not stored in the memory 35 immediately after the reading process is started (No in S102), the reading area setting process is performed in Step S103 as in the first embodiment. And a partial area at the center of the captured image F is set as the reading area D.

  Next, decoding processing is performed in step S105, and when it is determined that the decoded QR code Q is one of the division information codes, each division information code is determined in step S109 as in the first embodiment. An area including all of the above is estimated.

  Then, when an area including all of the division information codes is reset as the reading area D in step S111 based on the estimated area, a storage process is performed in step S117, and the area is reset as described above. Area information corresponding to the reading area D is stored in the memory 35. In step S105 described above, decoding processing is performed on the reset reading area D.

  In the state where the reading area D is stored in the memory 35 as described above, if an imaging process is performed in step S101, it is determined Yes in step S102, and an area information reading process is performed in step S102a. The In this process, the area information stored in the memory 35 is read as described above, and the reading area D corresponding to the area information read in this way is set in step S103.

Next, decoding processing is performed in step S105, and the above-described decoding processing is performed on the previously set reading area D. At this time, if the change in the positional relationship between the apparatus main body and each of the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ is small compared with the time of the previous reading work and the time of the current reading work, for example, a fixed optical information reading device to adopt, since the possibility that all contained within the reading area D of each QR code Q ₁ to Q ₃ is increases, the QR code Q ₁ without resetting by estimating the reading area D to Q _{All 3} can be read in one decoding process. Since the QR codes Q _{1 to} Q ₃ are all included in the reading area D as described above, it is determined No in step S107, and the reading process ends.

  As described above, in the optical information reading apparatus 10 according to the third embodiment, the area information corresponding to the reading area D that is reset by the reading area resetting process is stored in the memory 35 by the storing process. The QR code Q in the reading area D corresponding to the area information stored for the captured image F is decoded. For this reason, when the positional relationship between the apparatus main body and the information code is small when the reading operation is repeatedly performed, such as the fixed optical information reading apparatus 10, for example, the reset reading area D is set as the next reading area D. By using it as the reading area D at the time of reading work, a reading area D adapted to repeated reading work is set. In this case, all the division information codes can be read without estimating an area including all the division information codes, and the load of the reading process can be surely reduced.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and may be embodied as follows. Even in this case, the same operations and effects as those of the above embodiments can be obtained.
(1) The optical information reading apparatus 10 is not limited to reading a plurality of QR codes Q as division information codes, and for example, reads a one-dimensional code such as a barcode or another two-dimensional code. Even in the case, the above-described effects are exhibited.
(2) The division information code read by the optical information reading apparatus 10 is not limited to three, and two or four or more can achieve the above-described effects.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Optical information reader 21 ... Illumination light source 28 ... Light receiving sensor (imaging means)
35 ... Memory (storage means)
40. Control circuit (reading area setting means, decoding means, determination means, estimation means, reading area resetting means, position detection pattern presence / absence determination means)
D: Reading area F: Captured image FP: Position detection pattern Q _{1 to} Q ₃ ... QR code (information code)
R ... Object U ... Unread area

Claims (6)

An optical information reader capable of optically reading a plurality of divided information codes coded by dividing predetermined information,
Imaging means for imaging each division information code;
A reading area setting means for setting a partial area of the captured image captured by the imaging means as a reading area;
Decoding means for decoding an information code including the division information code in the reading area set by the reading area setting means;
Determining means for determining whether the information code decoded by the decoding means is one of the divided information codes;
When it is determined that the information code decoded by the determination unit is one of the divided information codes, all of the divided information codes are based on a part of the divided information codes in the reading area. An estimation means for estimating an included area;
Reading area resetting means for resetting the reading area based on the estimation area estimated by the estimation means,
The optical information reading apparatus characterized in that the decoding means decodes the information code in the reading area when the reading area is reset by the reading area resetting means.   The optical information reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the estimation unit estimates an area including all the division information codes based on the decoded division information code in the reading area. apparatus.   The estimation means estimates an area including all of the division information codes based on an unread area that is an area occupied by a division information code different from the decoded division information code in the reading area. The optical information reader according to claim 1. A position detection pattern presence / absence determining means for determining whether or not the unread area includes a position detection pattern for detecting the position of the division information code;
When the position detection pattern presence / absence determination unit determines that the unread area includes the position detection pattern, the estimation unit includes all of the division information codes based on the area occupied by the position detection pattern. The optical information reading device according to claim 3, wherein a region to be read is estimated.   5. The optical according to claim 1, wherein the reading area resetting unit resets the reading area except for the division information code decoded with respect to the estimation area. Information reader. Storage means for storing the reading area reset by the reading area resetting means;
The decoding means, when the reading area is stored by the storage means, decodes the information code in the reading area stored by the storage means with respect to the captured image captured by the imaging means. An optical information reader according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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