JP2017119337A - Robot, robot control method and robot program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a robot which can control output of personal information of a user on the basis of the disclosure range reflecting the intent of the user in communication between the user and the robot.SOLUTION: A robot includes: a reception unit which receives a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user; a voice input unit which acquires the voice emitted from the user; a generation unit which generates voice information on the basis of the voice; a reception unit which receives designation of the disclosure range of at least one of the message and voice information; an association unit which associates the message or voice information with the disclosure range; and a control unit which controls a mechanism for making the robot perform an action, and controls output of personal information included in the message or voice information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a robot, a robot control method, and a robot program, and more particularly, to a robot, a robot control method, and a robot program that control output based on a disclosure range of user personal information and the like.

  In recent years, communication robots aimed at coexistence with users are becoming popular. Users can talk to such communication robots as easily as pets, for example, from a very private story that cannot be spoken to other people, to a story that is widely known to the general public, May communicate. The content of the conversation at this time is becoming increasingly necessary from the viewpoint of protecting personal information.

  On the other hand, the content that the user talks to the communication robot is precious information for companies because there are many content that does not care about other people's eyes (evaluation and opinion), so it is valuable information for the company, I could not see a new market as big data It has value to be used for the development of companies that could not be achieved so far, such as needs and strategies for the future.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 is a robot having a communication function for sharing information with other robots, and discloses a technique for performing generation management of shared information. This technique relates to a technique for preventing copyright and privacy problems from occurring by adding the above-mentioned appropriate restrictions to information shared with other robots.

  Patent Document 2 controls the sharing of private relation information for terminals participating in an application or group based on attribute information in which terminal identification information and application or group identification information are associated with each other. Technology is disclosed. This technique relates to a technique for preventing private relation information between users and information leakage through intermediary between persons.

JP 2005-279830 A JP 2008-003809 A

  However, in the technique of Patent Document 1, since the number of generations and encryption processing are set according to the type of information to be shared with the transmission partner, the intention of the user is not taken into consideration, and the information not intended by the user is shared. There is a fear.

  Also in the technique of Patent Document 2, sharing of private related information is controlled based on identification information (for example, person ID) of a user, a terminal, a group, etc., so that information unintended by the user is shared. There is a risk.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a robot, a robot control method, and a robot program that control output of personal information of a user based on designation of a disclosure range of the user in a conversation between the user and the robot The purpose is to provide.

  The robot according to the present invention includes a receiving unit that receives a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user, a voice input unit that acquires a voice emitted from the user, and a generation unit that generates voice information based on the voice. A reception unit that accepts specification of at least one disclosure range of message or voice information, an association unit that associates the message or voice information with the disclosure range, and a mechanism for causing the robot to act and associate And a control unit for controlling the output of personal information included in the message or voice information.

  Furthermore, in the robot according to the present invention, the associating unit may associate the message or voice information with the disclosure range designated within a predetermined time from the date and time when the message was received or the date and time when the voice information was generated.

  A robot according to the present invention includes a receiving unit that receives a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user, a voice input unit that acquires voice uttered by the user and generates voice information, and at least a message or voice information A determination unit that determines the disclosure range from information attached to any one of the above, and a control unit that controls a mechanism for causing the robot to act, and controls output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the determination With.

  Furthermore, in the robot according to the present invention, the control unit may determine the action of the robot based on the disclosure range.

  Furthermore, the robot according to the present invention further includes a transmission unit that transmits a message to a terminal owned by the user, and a voice output unit that generates utterance information and outputs a voice based on the utterance information. The control unit accepts the specification of the output range by at least one user of message transmission or voice output, and the control unit determines whether the transmission unit or the voice output unit is based on the disclosure range and the output range associated with the personal information. It may control output of personal information included in at least one message or voice information.

  Furthermore, the robot according to the present invention further includes a storage unit that stores the user's personal information and at least one of a contract period related to the use of the robot or the maximum battery amount of the robot, and the control unit The personal information may be partially or entirely deleted step by step based on the comparison between the date and time information and the contract period, or the comparison between the battery amount at a certain point in time and the maximum battery amount.

  The robot control method according to the present invention generates voice information based on a reception step of receiving a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user, a voice input step of acquiring voice emitted from the user, and the voice. Controlling a generation step, a reception step for accepting designation of at least one disclosure range of message or voice information, an association step for associating the message or voice information with the disclosure range, and a mechanism for causing the robot to act, And a control step of controlling output of personal information included in the message or the voice information based on the association.

  A robot program according to the present invention is a program for controlling a computer mounted on a robot, and includes a reception function for receiving a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user and a voice input for acquiring a voice uttered by the user. A function, a generation function for generating voice information based on voice, a reception function for accepting designation of at least one of message or voice information disclosure range, and a correspondence function for associating a message or voice information with a disclosure range And a control function for controlling the mechanism for causing the robot to act and controlling the output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the correspondence.

  The robot according to the present invention includes a receiving unit that receives a message transmitted from a terminal owned by a user, a voice input unit that acquires a voice emitted from the user, and a generation unit that generates voice information based on the voice. A reception unit that accepts specification of at least one disclosure range of message or voice information, an association unit that associates the message or voice information with the disclosure range, and a mechanism for causing the robot to act and associate And a control unit for controlling the output of personal information included in the message or voice information. With these configurations, the robot according to the present invention can easily control the output reflecting the user's intention for each user's personal information based on the disclosure range designated by the user.

  The robot, the robot control method, and the robot program of the present invention can control the output of personal information of the user based on the disclosure range reflecting the user's intention.

System diagram showing an example of the configuration of the robot system 500 The block diagram which shows the example of a function structure of the robot 100, the server 200, and the user terminal 300 Schematic diagram for explaining the operation of the robot according to the first embodiment. Schematic diagram for explaining the operation of the robot according to the second embodiment. Data configuration diagram for explaining an example of correspondence between user personal information, user-specified disclosure range, user-specified output range, communication status, and presence / absence of output The flowchart figure which shows operation | movement of the robot 100 from controlling designation | designated of the disclosure range etc. by audio | voice etc. to controlling an output and determining an action. The flowchart figure which shows operation | movement of the robot until it erase | eliminates personal information from memory | storage of contract periods etc.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
<Embodiment>
<Overview>
FIG. 1 is a system diagram showing an example of the configuration of the robot system 500.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the robot system 500 includes a server 200, a user portable terminal 300 a, a user terminal 300 a, and a robot 100, and the server 100 is connected via a network 400 to the user terminal 300 a, the user terminal 300 b, and the robot 100. Communication connection. In FIG. 1, for simplicity of explanation, only one server 200 and one robot 100 and two user terminals are shown, but it goes without saying that there may be more than this. In addition, the specific device of the user terminal 300a is not limited to a smartphone as illustrated, and may be, for example, a mobile terminal, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or other electronic devices. Further, as illustrated, the user terminal 300b is not limited to a desktop personal computer, and may be, for example, a notebook personal computer, a client device of a thin client system, or other electronic devices. In the following description, user terminals are collectively referred to as user terminals 300 when there is no particular need for distinction.

  The user's portable terminal 300a and the robot 100 constitute a system that can exchange messages, that is, so-called chat, using a general instant messaging system. The robot 100 receives the message transmitted from the user's mobile terminal 300 a via the network 400. The application 131 can be selected based on the information indicating the application included in the received message, and the robot can operate based on the selected application 131. As an example, the application 131 causes the server 100 to have a function as an application server, and as a terminal application unit 191 on the user's portable terminal 300a or as an application 131 of the robot 100 according to a user request from the application server. Since it can be downloaded and installed, a versatile robot operation can be realized.

<Configuration>
Hereinafter, the configurations of the robot 100, the server 200, and the user terminal 300 will be described in detail.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating examples of functional configurations of the server 200, the robot 100, and the user terminal 200. In addition, in arrangement | positioning of each part, you may change suitably according to an operating environment etc. between the robot 100, the server 200, and the user terminal 300. FIG. For example, the association unit 122 and the determination unit 123 of the robot 100 may be arranged in the control unit 220 of the server 200.

  Hereinafter, an example of a functional configuration of the robot 100 will be described. As an example, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the robot 100 includes a communication unit 110, a control unit 120, a storage unit 130, a tactile sense detection unit 140, a photographing unit 150, a voice input unit 160, and a voice output unit 170. The reception unit 180 includes a power supply unit 190.

  The communication unit 110 includes a transmission unit 111, a reception unit 112, and an interface 113, and has a function of executing communication (various data, message transmission / reception, etc.) with the user terminal 300 and the server 200 via the network 400. The communication may be either wired or wireless, and any communication protocol may be used as long as mutual communication can be performed. Further, the communication may be subjected to an encryption process in order to ensure security.

  Here, the “message” is not limited to the text message, but includes images (photos, illustrations), sounds, videos, and the like and information attached thereto (semantic information attached to the illustrations, dates attached to the images, sounds, and videos, and Information on position etc.). The message also includes instruction information for the robot 100. Here, “instruction information” refers to information for designating the application 131 to be designated for the application 131 stored in the storage unit 130 and input information (such as an argument) for performing processing of the designated application 131. Say. Here, the “semantic information attached to the illustration” refers to text information indicating an illustration attached to an illustration such as a stamp used in an instant messaging system, for example. In the case of an illustration of a heart, the text information is a character string indicating the meaning conceived from an illustration such as likes, joys, and loves.

  Further, the image includes photo data sent from the user terminal 300 to the robot 100. The photograph data may be an image photographed by the user terminal 300, or an image photographed by a camera or another terminal. Further, the supplementary information related to dates attached to images and moving images refers to information related to dates and times when images and moving images are taken. Further, the incidental information regarding the position is position information at the time of photographing, for example, latitude and longitude information.

  The transmission unit 111 transmits a message transmitted from each unit (the control unit 120, the storage unit 130, etc.) via the network 400 according to the control of the control unit 120, the correlation result of the correlation unit 122, and the determination by the determination unit 123. It has a function of transmitting various data such as results to the server 200 and the user terminal 300.

  The receiving unit 112 receives a message transmitted from the user terminal 300 via the network 400, various data for controlling the robot 100 transmitted from the server 200, and a distributed application, and is included in the message. It has a function to transmit data, various data, and applications to each unit.

  The interface 113 is used for wireless or wired connection with another terminal or medium. Specifically, the interface 113 is a connection device such as WiFi (Wireless Fidelity), HDMI (registered trademark) (High-Definition Multimedia Interface), USB (Universal Serial Bus), power connector, and I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit). Say.

  The control unit 120 is a processor having functions for controlling each mechanism and each unit for causing the robot 100 to act. The control unit 120 includes a generation unit 121, an association unit 122, and a determination 123. Specifically, the control unit 120 receives a program stored in the storage unit 140 or a command output from the application 131, and controls each mechanism or the like to operate based on the command. Here, each mechanism and each part refers to a driving unit provided with a flexible driving device such as a body part, an arm part, a neck part, an eyeball part, a buttocks part, or a mouth part included in the robot, or a photographing that captures an image or a moving image. And a tactile sense detection unit that detects contact, a distance sensation detection unit that detects a sense of distance from an object, a sound input unit 160 that inputs sound, and a sound output unit 170 that outputs sound.

  The control unit 120 also has a function of controlling output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the correspondence between the message or voice information transmitted from the correlation unit 122 and the disclosure range. Here, the “personal information” of the user is information relating to the individual of the user, for example, the user's name, gender, date of birth, age, permanent address, address, resident card code, my number, landline / mobile phone Number, work place, occupation, income (monthly income, annual income), family, user or related person's photo, fingerprint, vein pattern, iris, DNA base sequence and other biological information, email address, computer network IP Information such as address, remote host, MAC address, HTTP cookie, etc. and applicable to cases where an individual can be identified.

  Specifically, for example, the control unit 120 responds when a disclosure range corresponding to a message and personal information included in the message is associated with a disclosure range of “only the person” and a communication state of “Offline”. Based on the attachment, the personal information is not output (for example, the voice output unit 170 utters the content of the personal information by voice) only when it is recognized that there is only the person around when the communication state is offline. Can be controlled. As a result, the personal information can be disclosed based on the disclosure range designated by the user, so that the user can safely talk to the robot 100 with the privacy and the disclosure of the personal information intended by the user. It is possible to provide a robot with high security that is easy to use.

  The control unit 120 also has a function of controlling the output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the information attached to the message or voice information transmitted from the determination unit 123 and the determination of the disclosure range. Specifically, for example, when the accompanying information indicating that the secret level is high is attached to the header part or the footer part of the message, the control unit 120 discloses the personal information included in the message from the accompanying information. Only when the subject of disclosure is determined to be “person only” and the communication status is “Offline”, and based on the determination result, when the communication status is offline, it is recognized that there is only one person around. It can be controlled not to output (for example, the voice output unit 170 emits the content of the personal information by voice). Accordingly, since it is possible to control the output of personal information for each message without designating the disclosure range for each message, the user can make the robot 100 a highly private story with peace of mind, which is easy to use. A highly secure robot can be provided.

  Further, the control unit 120 has a function of determining the action of the robot 100 based on the disclosure range of personal information. Specifically, for example, when the disclosure target is “family / friend” and the communication state is “Online” with respect to the disclosure range, the control unit 120 The robot 100 can be caused to act so as not to transmit a message including the personal information only to an address stored in the storage unit 130 as the user terminal 300 owned by a family member or a friend. Further, when the current communication state is “Offline”, a person is identified by image recognition by the control unit 120 using an image taken by the photographing unit 150, and the person, family, When a person other than a friend is included, the robot 100 can be caused to take an action so as not to make a speech including the personal information. Thereby, since the robot 100 acts based on the disclosure range designated by the user, it is possible to provide a robot with high security while reflecting the user's intention.

  Further, the control unit 120 outputs personal information included in at least one message or audio information of the transmission unit 111 or the audio output unit 170 based on the disclosure range and the output range associated with the personal information of the user. It has a function to control. Specifically, for example, the control unit 120 associates a disclosure range of a message and personal information included in the message with a disclosure target “only the person” and a communication state “Offline”, and the reception unit 180. When the designation of “family / friends” is transmitted as the output range (output target) from, based on the corresponding disclosure range and output range, when the communication status is offline, there is only the person around Only when it is recognized, the personal information can be controlled not to be output (for example, the voice output unit 170 utters the content of the personal information by voice). As a result, the personal information can be disclosed based on the disclosure range designated by the user, so that the user can safely talk to the robot 100 with the privacy and the disclosure of the personal information intended by the user. It is possible to provide a robot with high security that is easy to use.

  In addition, the control unit 120 erases the user's personal information stepwise or entirely based on a comparison between the date and time information at a certain point in time and the contract period of the robot 100 or a comparison between the battery amount and the maximum battery amount at a certain point in time. can do. Specifically, for example, the control unit 120 compares (1) full user personal information stored in the storage unit 130 when the battery amount is less than a predetermined amount compared to the maximum battery amount. Erasing can be performed in stages, such as storage, (2) partial erasure, (3) complete erasure, etc. Alternatively, when the remaining usage period until the contract period (the period obtained by subtracting the latest date / time information from the contract period) becomes equal to or less than a predetermined period, the robot 100 stores the personal information of the user stored in the storage unit 130 as (1 The data can be erased in stages or all at once, such as full storage, (2) partial erase, and (3) complete erase.

  Also, the control unit 120 informs the audio output unit 170 that the robot 100 will notify the user that the battery will be erased, such as “The memory will be erased if it is not charged quickly” when the battery amount is reduced to a predetermined amount. It can also be controlled to emit a sound for alerting. Alternatively, when the remaining usage period until the contract period (the period obtained by subtracting the latest date / time information from the contract period) is reduced to the vicinity of the predetermined period, the robot 100 informs the user that “the contract expires in a little more time”. It can be controlled to emit a sound for an alert for notifying deletion, such as “It ’s almost disappearing”. Accordingly, it is possible to actively prompt the user to charge the battery amount or update the contract period, and it is possible to provide a robot that can be used continuously by the user. In addition, by this, the user can actively create an opportunity to relate to the robot, prompt the user to continue to use the robot, and provide a robot that is in close contact with the user.

  The generation unit 121 has a function of generating information for processing by other units based on data detected, photographed, acquired, and the like by each unit. For example, the production | generation part 121 can produce | generate contact information based on the result of having detected the contact from the outside. Specifically, the generation unit 121 stores the detection result based on the detection result of the contact pressure transmitted from the tactile sense detection unit 140, the temperature change caused by the infrared rays naturally radiated by humans or the like. The contact information is generated based on the detection result accumulated for a predetermined period stored in the unit 130. Here, the “contact information” means (1) a contact position (for example, if the tactile sense detection unit 140 arranged at the end of the arm part of the robot detects contact, it is positioned as “hand”). (2) Contact amount (accumulated number of contact detections in a given period, contact frequency (number of contact detections in year / month / day), cumulative contact time, average contact time in a given period (hour / minute / second / year / month / day) ), (3) pressure information (Pa, kgf / m2) at the time of contact, (4) temperature change amount (° C) at the time of contact, and the like. The generation unit 121 transmits the generated contact information to the control unit 120.

  In addition, the generation unit 121 performs image recognition based on the captured result (image) transmitted from the imaging unit 150, and generates shape color information. For image recognition, for example, pattern matching, statistical identification method, structure identification method or the like may be used. Here, the “shape color information” includes shape information and color information of the object to be photographed. Specifically, for example, the generation unit 121 extracts a feature amount (shape feature amount, grayscale feature amount) of the captured image, estimates the shape of the object from the feature amount using pattern matching, and the like. Information can be generated. Further, the generation unit 121, for example, (1) maps each pixel of the image to an RGB (Red Green Blue) space. (2) The space is divided so that the number of pixels is equally divided with respect to one of RGB axes having the widest pixel distribution range. (3) Among the divided spaces, a space having an axis with the largest pixel distribution range is set as the next division target. (2) to (3) are repeated to divide the RGB space to the required number. (4) For each divided partial space, color information can be generated by calculating an average color of pixels included in the partial space. The generation unit 121 transmits the generated shape color information to the control unit 120.

  Further, the generation unit 121 generates distance information based on the result of the distance sense detection unit 180 measuring the distance between the surrounding person or object and the robot 100. Specifically, for example, the generation unit 121 stores the measured result and the storage unit 130 based on the distance transmitted from the distance sense detection unit 180 or the result of measuring the distance to a person or an object. The distance information is generated based on the measurement result accumulated for a predetermined period. Here, “distance information” includes (1) distance (cm, m) for each latest person or object, (2) distance data group (cm, m) accumulated for a predetermined period, (3) predetermined distance This refers to information such as the average distance (cm, m) of the accumulated distance over a period. The generation unit 121 transmits the generated distance information to the control unit 120.

  Further, the generation unit 121 generates audio information based on the audio acquired by the audio input unit 160. The generation unit 121 transmits the generated audio information to the control unit 120.

  The association unit 122 has a function of associating the message transmitted from the reception unit 112 or the voice information transmitted from the generation unit 121 with the disclosure range transmitted from the reception unit 180. Specifically, for example, the associating unit 122 includes information attached to the message (transmission date / time, reception date / time information) or date / time information included in the voice information (date / time information when generating the voice information, date / time information when acquiring the voice). And the designated reception date / time information of the designated disclosure range, both dates and times within a predetermined time (for example, several seconds, several minutes, etc., depending on the specifications of the robot 100). Whether or not can be determined, and if so, they can be associated with each other. In addition to the association within a predetermined time, the association is performed when a keyword is extracted by performing morphological analysis on the content of the message or voice information, and the association is performed when the keyword matches a predetermined criterion or more. May be. Accordingly, it is not necessary to manually specify the disclosure range for each message by the user, and it is possible to protect the personal information reflecting the user's intention and provide a user-friendly robot.

  The determination unit 123 has a function of determining the disclosure range of the message, the acquired sound, or the captured face image based on information attached to at least one of the message, the acquired sound, or the captured face image. Specifically, for example, the determination unit 123 includes information attached to the message (secret designation (high, medium, low), transmission date / time, reception date / time information, etc.), date / time information included in the voice information (during voice information generation) Date / time information, date / time information at the time of voice acquisition) or date / time information included in the image information (date / time information at the time of image information generation, date / time information at the time of image shooting, etc.) Is designated as “high”, the disclosure target can be determined as “person” and the communication information as “Offline”.

  The storage unit 130 has a function of storing various programs, data, and parameters necessary for the robot 100 to operate and control. In addition, the storage unit 130 includes application 131, user information (including user personal information), user personal information disclosure range, voice information, distance information, a contract period related to use of the robot 100, a maximum battery amount, It is possible to store correspondences between personal information, a user disclosure range, an output range, a communication state, and presence / absence of output. The storage unit 130 can accumulate and store contact information and distance information for a predetermined period. The predetermined period may be a period from when the robot 100 is first turned on until the power is turned off, or may be a predetermined period such as several days, one month, several months, one year, several years, etc. The period may be set according to the storage capacity of the storage unit 130. The storage unit 130 is typically realized by various recording media such as an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), and a flash memory (SD (Secure Digital) memory card). Here, “user information” refers to information including personal information of the user and information relating to the individual user and information that cannot identify the user (for example, information such as a user ID and a hobby).

  The application 131 performs processing for operating the robot 100 based on the instruction information included in the message received by the receiving unit 112 from the server 200 and the user terminal 300, and outputs a command to the control unit 120. In FIG. 2, only two applications 131 are shown for simplicity of explanation, but it goes without saying that more applications may exist.

  Further, the application 131 may be an application registered in the application market server of the server 100. The application market server provides an online service for the purpose of distributing applications. Specifically, the application market server can register an application created by a developer, and can download the registered application to the robot 100 in response to a user request. The charge system for using the online service of the application market server may be a charge system for each download or a flat-rate system.

  The tactile sense detection unit 140 has a function of detecting contact from the outside. Typically, the tactile sense detection unit 140 may be realized by a pressure sensor, a heat sensor, a temperature sensor, or the like. Specifically, for example, the tactile sense detection unit 140 detects a pressure of contact, a temperature change due to infrared rays naturally radiated by a person or an animal, and the like. The tactile sense detection unit 140 transmits the detection result to the generation unit 121. As an example, the tactile sense detection unit 140 includes (1) a contact position (for example, if the tactile sense detection unit 140 disposed at the end of the arm part of the robot detects contact, it is positioned as “hand”), (2 ) Contact amount (number of contact detection, contact time (hour / minute / second / year / month)), (3) Pressure amount at contact (Pa, kgf / m2), (4) Temperature change at contact (° C) Is detected. Moreover, the tactile sense detection unit 140 may include date and time information at the time of the detection in the detection result. The tactile sense detection unit 140 transmits the detection result to the generation unit 121. In FIG. 2, five tactile sense detection units 140 are arranged, that is, the head, the end of the arm, and the end of the leg, but it goes without saying that the arrangement location and the number are not limited to this.

  The photographing unit 150 has a function of photographing by recording a still image or a moving image such as a surrounding person or a landscape captured by the robot 100 through the lens. Specifically, for example, the photographing unit 150 can photograph an object in a predetermined area with the robot 100 as a reference. The imaging unit 150 acquires an image by converting an optical signal into an electrical signal by a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) image sensor or a CMOS (Complementary MOS) image sensor. The imaging unit 150 has the same function as a digital camera.

  The voice input unit 160 has a function of acquiring ambient sounds including the voice uttered by the user by the robot 100. Specifically, the voice input unit 160 is realized by a monaural microphone or a stereo microphone.

  The voice output unit 170 has a function for the robot 100 to output voice. The voice may be a voice output by voice synthesis, or a voice output by voice in which a voice actor or the like is blown. In addition, the voice output unit 170 can generate utterance information from the content stored in the storage unit 130 and output the utterance information by voice under the control of the control unit 120.

  The reception unit 180 has a function of receiving specification of at least one disclosure range of message or voice information. Specifically, for example, the accepting unit 180 includes a touch panel or a push button switch, and can accept specification of a disclosure range by a user operation. The reception unit 180 is, for example, a three-stage push button switch that is “only the person” when the button is pressed most deeply, and “family / friends” when the button is pressed in the middle, and is pressed most shallowly. If the disclosure range is set stepwise as “open”, it is possible to accept the specification of the disclosure range of the received message and the acquired voice according to the pressing status.

  In addition, the reception unit 180 can also receive specification of a disclosure range from information included in or attached to a message or voice information. For example, the reception unit 180 extracts personal information and disclosure range designation from the content included in the message (for example, extraction by keyword search with keywords as “secret”, “confidential”, and “secret”), and the extracted personal information Then, the disclosure range of the personal information is accepted as, for example, “person” or “Online”.

  The receiving unit 180 can also receive an output range specification by at least one of the user who transmits a message or outputs the voice. Specifically, for example, the accepting unit 180 includes a touch panel or a push button switch separately from the disclosure range, and can accept designation of an output range by a user operation. The reception unit 180 is, for example, a three-stage push button switch that is “only the person” when the button is pressed most deeply, and “family / friends” when the button is pressed in the middle, and is pressed most shallowly. At the time of pressing, when “open” and the output range are set stepwise, it is possible to accept the transmission of a message and the specification of the output range of audio output according to the pressing state.

  The accepting unit 180 can also accept designation of an output range included in a message or voice information. For example, the accepting unit 180 can extract the designation of the output range from the content included in the message, and accept the extracted output range as, for example, “person” or “Online”.

  The reception unit 180 may include the notification unit 181. The notification unit 131 can notify the user of the disclosure range based on the specified disclosure range. In the notification, for example, the notification unit 181 includes a lamp such as an illumination lamp or an indicator lamp, and can notify the user of the current disclosure range depending on how the lamp is lit.

  The power supply unit 190 supplies electricity for the robot 100. When the user holding the user terminal 300a approaches the robot 100, the interface 113 of the robot 100 receives a wireless communication signal issued from the user terminal 300a or the terminal application unit 341 of the user terminal 300a, and the power supply unit 190 Alternatively, the power may be automatically turned on.

Further, the robot 100 may include a distance sense detection unit 195 (not shown). The distance sensation detection unit has a function of measuring the distance to surrounding people and objects. The distance sense detection unit 195 is typically realized by an ultrasonic sensor, an infrared sensor, a proximity sensor, a displacement sensor, or the like. Specifically, for example, the distance sensation detection unit 195 identifies an object such as a user from surrounding people and objects by image recognition from the image captured by the imaging unit 150, and the identified object such as the user By transmitting the ultrasonic wave toward the object and receiving the reflected wave by the receiver, the relationship between the time required from the transmission of the ultrasonic wave to reception and the speed of sound is calculated, and the target from the sensor to the user. The distance to the object can be calculated, and the presence or absence of the object and the distance to the object can be measured. The distance sense detection unit 195 transmits the measurement result to the generation unit 121.
The above is an explanation of an example of the functional configuration of the robot 100.

  Hereinafter, an example of a functional configuration of the server 200 will be described. As an example, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the server 200 includes a communication unit 210, a control unit 220, and a storage unit 230.

  The communication unit 210 includes a transmission unit 211 and a reception unit 212 and has a function of performing communication (various data, message transmission / reception, etc.) with the robot 100 and the user terminal 300 via the network 400. The communication may be either wired or wireless, and any communication protocol may be used as long as mutual communication can be performed.

  The receiving unit 211 receives messages transmitted from the user terminal 300 via the network 400, various data such as association results and determination results transmitted from the robot 100, and includes data and various data included in the messages. Is transmitted to each part.

  The transmission unit 212 has a function of transmitting messages, data, and applications transmitted from each unit (the control unit 220, the storage unit 230, etc.) to the robot 100 and the user terminal 300 through the network 400 according to the control of the control unit 220. Have

  The control unit 220 is a processor having a function of controlling each unit of the server 200.

The storage unit 230 has a function of storing various programs, data, and parameters required for the operation of the server 200. Specifically, for example, the storage unit 230 stores analysis result information, evaluation information, and the like received from the robot 100. The storage unit 230 is typically realized by various recording media such as an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), and a flash memory.
The above is an example of the functional configuration of the server 200.

  Hereinafter, an example of a functional configuration of the user terminal 300 will be described. As an example, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the user terminal 300 includes a communication unit 310, a control unit 320, a display unit 330, and a storage unit 340.

  The communication unit 310 includes a reception unit 311 and a transmission unit 312, and has a function of executing communication (various data, message transmission / reception, etc.) with the robot 100 and the server 200 via the network 400. The communication may be either wired or wireless, and any communication protocol may be used as long as mutual communication can be performed.

  The receiving unit 311 receives messages transmitted from the robot 100, various information generated, various data such as association results and determination results from the server 100 via the network 400 according to the control of the control unit 320. It has a function of receiving various data and applications for control and transmitting the data, various data, and applications included in the message to each unit.

  The transmission unit 312 transmits the message, data, and application transmitted from each unit (the control unit 320, the display unit 330, the storage unit 340, etc.) to the robot 100 and the server 200 via the network 400 according to the control of the control unit 320. It has a function to transmit.

  The control unit 320 is a processor having a function of controlling each unit of the user terminal 300.

  The display unit 330 is a monitor having a function of displaying display information and the like transmitted from the robot 100 and the server 200 under the control of the control unit 320. Typically, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) display, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) display, an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display, or the like may be used. The display unit 330 has a function of receiving input from the user. Typically, it is realized by a soft key or a hard key such as a touch panel.

The storage unit 340 has a function of storing various programs, data, and parameters necessary for the operation of the server 200. Specifically, for example, the storage unit 340 stores analysis result information, evaluation information, and the like received from the robot 100. The storage unit 340 is typically realized by various recording media such as an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), and a flash memory.
The above is an example of the functional configuration of the user terminal 300.

  Next, an aspect of the action at the time of communication with the user of the robot 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining an action of the robot according to the first embodiment. Specifically, FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an action of the robot 100, a stepwise disclosure range, and an image of an output range in a conversation between the user (woman) and the robot 100. As shown in FIG. 3, as an example, when the user speaks to the robot 100 “… This content is secret!”, The voice input unit 160 acquires the voice, and the generation unit 121 generates the voice information. To do. Based on the generated voice information, the control unit 120 emits voice from the voice output unit 170 with “OK!”. At the same time, the accepting unit 180 analyzes the disclosure range designation (designation “secret!”) And accepts the disclosure range of personal information included in the message as, for example, “person” or “Online”. The associating unit 122 associates the personal information included in the message with the accepted disclosure range. In addition, the reception unit 180 can also accept the designation of the disclosure range as a “principal” with a push button switch, and can also notify the designated disclosure range by lighting the lamp of the notification unit 181 ( For example, a portion indicated by ● in the body portion of the robot 100).

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the user sets the output range of personal information to “Online” as the communication state, the disclosure target is (1) himself, (2) family / friends, and (3) open. Among them, for example, if the robot 100 has issued from the voice output unit 170 “I'm opening the information right now” (3) When opening is specified, the disclosure range is specified as “Principal” or “Online” The personal information of the user is controlled by the control unit 120 so that only the user is disclosed. Specifically, the robot 100 outputs only the message transmitted to the user terminal 300 of the user himself / herself so as to include or suggest the personal information, and the user terminal of another user is transmitted via the server 100. It is controlled so that it is not output at all to the corporate server 300 or the linked company server. Accordingly, the robot can use the personal information included in the message reflecting the disclosure specification for each message of the user, and provide a robot with high security and reflecting the user's intention. it can.

<Embodiment 2>
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the action of the robot according to the second embodiment. Specifically, FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an action of the robot 100 in a conversation related to the user (woman) and the robot 100 erasing personal information. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the robot 100 stores (1) full storage, (2) partial erasure, and (3) complete erasure of personal information stored in the storage unit 130 when the battery amount falls below a predetermined amount. Can be erased step by step or at once. When the battery amount is reduced to the vicinity of the predetermined amount, the robot 100 issues a sound for an alert for notifying the user of the erasure from the sound output unit 170 such as “If the battery is not charged early, the memory will be erased”. be able to. Alternatively, when the remaining usage period until the contract period (the period obtained by subtracting the latest date / time information from the contract period) is reduced to the vicinity of the predetermined period, the robot 100 also notifies the user that “the contract is almost over. The voice output unit 170 can generate a sound for alerting the erasure, such as “It is almost disappearing”. The robot 100 can partially erase or completely erase the personal information of the user from the storage unit 130 as a storage DB when the battery amount becomes a predetermined amount or less, or when the contract period reaches a predetermined period. it can. Accordingly, it is possible to prompt the user to actively charge the battery amount or update the contract period, and it is possible to provide a robot that can be used continuously by the user.

<Data>
Here, in the present embodiment, user personal information used in the robot 100, a user-specified disclosure range, a user-specified output range, a communication state, the presence / absence of an output, and an association thereof will be described.
FIG. 5 is a data conceptual diagram illustrating an example of the association information stored in the storage unit 130 of the robot 100.

  As shown in FIG. 5, as long as the association information is information that can specify the disclosure range and the output range, the current communication state, and whether or not to be output as a result, for each personal information of the user. Needless to say, such information may be included, and other information may be included.

  The personal information of the user is as described above. The user's personal information may be expressed in any form, for example, using numbers, hiragana, katakana, kanji, alphabets, symbols, and the like.

  The disclosure range specified by the user represents the disclosure range for each personal information specified by the user. As shown in FIG. 5, the user-specified disclosure range is configured to include a disclosure target and a communication state. The user can specify the disclosure target in stages such as (1) the person, (2) family / friends, and (3) open. Further, the user can designate the communication state, for example, offline (Online) or online (Offline). Note that the user may specify at least one of the disclosure target and the communication state in the specification of the disclosure range.

  The output range specified by the user represents the output range of information of the robot 100 at that time specified by the user. As shown in FIG. 5, it is configured to include an output target. The user can specify the disclosure target in stages such as (1) the person, (2) family / friends, and (3) open. The current communication state indicates the communication state offline (Online) or online (Offline) set by the user. The output control indicates the control state of the output of the personal information of the user based on the combination of the disclosure range specified by the user, the output range specified by the user, and the communication state. Specifically, for example, for the personal information “age” of the user, when the subject of disclosure is “Principal”, the communication state is “Offline”, the user-specified output range is “Open”, and the communication state is “Online” , “Age” can be “no output” output in the narrowest range of the combination.

<Operation>
An operation of the robot 100 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  With reference to FIG. 6, the operation of the robot 100 from designation of a disclosure range by voice or the like to control of output and determination of an action will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the robot 100 from designation of a disclosure range or the like by voice or the like to control of output and determination of an action.

  The receiving unit 112 receives a message transmitted from the user terminal 300 owned by the user (step S11). The voice input unit 160 acquires voice uttered by the user (step S12). The generation unit 121 generates audio information based on the acquired audio (step S13). When the disclosure range is designated for the message or the voice information (designation of the disclosure range in step S14) and the designation is made by the user (designation of the user in step S15), the reception unit 180 designates the disclosure range. Accept (step S16). When the disclosure range is designated (designation of the disclosure range in step S14) and the determination is based on the supplementary information (supplemental information in step S15), the determination unit 123 determines the disclosure range (step S17). The associating unit 122 associates the message or voice information with the disclosure range (step S18). The control unit 120 controls the output of the user's personal information based on the association (step S19).

  When the output range is designated for the message or the voice information (designation of the output range in Step S14), the accepting unit 180 accepts the designation of the output range (Step S20). The associating unit 122 associates the message or voice information with the output range (step S21). The control unit 120 controls the output of personal information based on the association (step S22). The control unit 120 determines the action of the robot 100 based on the disclosure range or the output range (step S23).

  Next, an operation until the personal information is deleted from the storage of the contract period of the robot 100 will be described. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the robot until the personal information is deleted from the storage of the contract period and the like.

The storage unit 130 stores the contract period and the maximum battery amount (step S31). The generation unit 121 acquires the latest date and time and generates date information (step S32). The control unit 120 compares whether the difference between the date information and the contract period falls within a predetermined period (step S33). The control unit 120 acquires the latest battery amount (step S34). The control unit 120 compares whether the difference between the battery amount and the maximum battery amount falls within a predetermined amount (step S35). The tactile sense detection unit detects contact from the outside (step S36). The generation unit 121 generates contact information based on the detection result (step S37). The storage unit 130 accumulates and stores the contact information (step S38). The control unit 120 compares the accumulated contact information with a predetermined reference (step S39). Based on these comparison results, the control unit 120 deletes the user's personal information stored in the storage unit 130 (step S40).
The above is the operation of the robot 100.

  Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiment and the drawings, examples of the representative embodiment are shown, and the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Robot 110 Communication part 120 Control part 130 Storage part 140 Tactile sense detection part 150 Image pick-up part 160 Audio | voice input part 170 Audio | voice output part 180 Reception part 190 Power supply part 200 Server 210 Communication part (server)
220 Control unit (server)
230 Storage unit (server)
300 user terminal 310 communication unit (user terminal)
320 Control unit (user terminal)
330 Display unit (user terminal)
340 storage unit (user terminal)

Claims (8)

A receiving unit for receiving a message transmitted from a terminal owned by the user;
A voice input unit for acquiring voice emitted from a user;
A generating unit that generates voice information based on the voice;
An accepting unit that accepts designation of at least one disclosure range of the message or the audio information;
An association unit associating the message or voice information with the disclosure range;
A control unit that controls a mechanism for causing the robot to act, and controls output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the association;
Robot equipped with.   2. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the association unit associates the message or the voice information with the disclosure range designated within a predetermined time from the reception date and time of the message or the generation date and time of the voice information. . A receiving unit for receiving a message transmitted from a terminal owned by the user;
A voice input unit that acquires voice generated by a user and generates voice information;
A determination unit that determines a disclosure range from information attached to at least one of the message and the voice information;
A control unit that controls a mechanism for causing the robot to act, and controls output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the determination;
Robot equipped with. The controller is
The robot according to claim 1, wherein an action of the robot is determined based on the disclosure range. The robot is
A transmission unit for transmitting a message to a terminal owned by the user;
A voice output unit for generating voice information and outputting voice based on the voice information;
The accepting unit accepts designation of an output range by at least one of the transmission of the message or the output of the voice;
The control unit outputs the personal information included in at least one of the message or the voice information of the transmission unit or the voice output unit based on the disclosure range associated with the personal information and the output range. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the robot is controlled. The robot is
A storage unit for storing personal information of the user and at least one of a contract period related to use of the robot or a maximum battery amount of the robot;
The control unit erases part or all of the personal information step by step based on a comparison between date and time information at a certain point in time and the contract period, or a comparison between a battery amount at a certain point in time and the maximum battery amount. The robot according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: A receiving step of receiving a message transmitted from a terminal owned by the user;
A voice input step for acquiring voice uttered by the user;
Generating step for generating voice information based on the voice;
An accepting step of accepting designation of a disclosure range of at least one of the message and the audio information;
A step of associating the message or voice information with the disclosure range;
A control step of controlling a mechanism for causing the robot to act, and controlling output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the association;
A robot control method including: A program for controlling a computer mounted on a robot,
A receiving function for receiving a message sent from a terminal owned by the user;
A voice input function for acquiring voice emitted from the user;
A generation function for generating voice information based on the voice;
A reception function for receiving specification of a disclosure range of at least one of the message and the voice information;
An association function for associating the message or voice information with the disclosure range;
A control function for controlling a mechanism for causing the robot to act, and for controlling output of personal information included in the message or voice information based on the association;
Is a robot program that can be realized by computer.

Images