JP2017227659A - Output control device, output control method and program - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an output control device capable of ensuring viewers to view notable point of content.SOLUTION: A projector 1 has a control unit 11 that detects a recognizable area for a viewer in a content being output from a pick-up image acquired by an imaging unit 14 and determines whether the point to be viewed in the content is included in the recognizable area. When determining that the point to be viewed in the content is not included in the recognizable area for the viewer, the control unit controls to output a piece of notification information for notifying the point to be viewed in the content.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an output control device, an output control method, and a program.

  Conventionally, a technique for projecting an image in all directions is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2005-277670 A

  However, when an image is projected in all directions, there is a case where a notable part of the content is not included in the viewer's visually recognizable area, and the viewer may miss the notable part of the content.

  An object of the present invention is to prevent a viewer from missing a notable part of content.

In order to solve the above problem, an output control device according to a first aspect of the present invention provides:
Detection means for detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
A determination means for determining whether or not a noticeable portion of the content is included in the viewable area;
Control means for outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when the determining part determines that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
Is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent a viewer from missing a notable part of content.

It is a figure which shows the installation state of the projection apparatus in this embodiment. It is an image figure which shows the state which projected the content with the projection apparatus of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structure of the projection apparatus of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the output control process performed by the control part of FIG.

  Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following embodiment, a case where the output control device according to the present invention is applied to the projection device 1 will be described as an example. The present invention is not limited to the illustrated example.

[Configuration of Projector 1]
For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the projection apparatus 1 is an apparatus that is provided on a ceiling or the like in a room, and outputs (projects) content in all directions (360 ° overall surface) in the room as shown in FIG. .

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a main control configuration of the projection apparatus 1 in the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the projection apparatus 1 includes a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, an operation unit 13, an imaging unit 14, a projector 15, an audio output unit 16, a communication unit 17, and the like.

  The control unit 11 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes various programs stored in the storage unit 12 to perform predetermined calculations and control of each unit, and a memory that is a work area when the program is executed. (Both not shown). The control unit 11 executes output control processing described later in cooperation with a program stored in the program storage unit 121 of the storage unit 12 and functions as a detection unit, a determination unit, a control unit, and a determination unit.

  The storage unit 12 includes an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), a nonvolatile semiconductor memory, or the like. As shown in FIG. 3, the storage unit 12 includes a program storage unit 121, a content storage unit 122, and an attention direction table storage unit 123.

  The program storage unit 121 stores a system program executed by the control unit 11, various processing programs, data necessary for executing these programs, and the like.

  The content storage unit 122 stores content information (content data) for outputting content by the projection apparatus 1 in association with a content ID for identifying content. The content information is composed of, for example, moving image data composed of a plurality of frame images and audio data corresponding to each frame image, but is composed only of image data (still image data or moving image data). It may be a thing.

  The attention direction table storage unit 123 stores an attention direction table. The attention direction table has items such as “content ID”, “reproduction time”, and “notice direction”, and is associated with the reproduction time of each content (elapsed time from the start of reproduction) and the reproduction time of that content. The direction in which there is a place to be noted (direction to be noted) is stored. In other words, the attention direction table storage unit 123 can store different directions as attention directions for each content reproduction time. In addition, it is good also as memorize | stores the direction which a viewer should pay attention for every frame image. Moreover, the direction which should be noted may be represented by the east, the west, the south, the north, the top, the bottom, etc., for example, and may be represented by the angle.

  The operation unit 13 includes a plurality of function buttons, detects a press signal of the function button, and outputs it to the control unit 11.

  The imaging unit 14 is an imaging unit that includes a camera including an optical system and an imaging element, and an imaging control unit that controls the camera. The optical system of the camera is directed in a direction in which an indoor person can be photographed from above. The image pickup device is an image sensor such as a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS), and converts an optical image that has passed through the optical system into a two-dimensional image signal.

  The projector 15 includes a fisheye lens and projects the image data of the content output from the control unit 11 in all directions.

The audio output unit 16 includes a D / A converter, an amplifier, a speaker, and the like. The audio signal of the video signal is converted into an analog signal by the D / A converter according to the control signal output from the control unit 11, and then the analog audio signal is converted. Amplified to a predetermined volume by an amplifier and output as sound from a speaker. The audio output unit 16 is surround and can output audio from a plurality of directions.
The projector 15 and the audio output unit 16 function as output means.

  The communication unit 17 includes a modem, a router, a network card, and the like, and performs communication with an external device connected to a communication network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network).

[Operation of Projector 1]
Next, the operation of the projection apparatus 1 in this embodiment will be described.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the output control process executed in the projection apparatus 1. The output control process is executed by cooperation between the control unit 11 and the program stored in the program storage unit 121 when an output target content is designated by the operation unit 13 and an output is instructed.

  First, the control unit 11 starts outputting one content designated by the projector 15 and the audio output unit 16 (step S1). That is, the control unit 11 reads the content information stored in the content storage unit 122, converts the moving image data of the read content information into projection data for omnidirectional projection, and causes the projector 15 to project an image of the content. Also, the audio output unit 16 outputs the audio of the content based on the audio data of the read moving image data.

Next, the control unit 11 detects the viewer's visible region (step S2).
For example, the control unit 11 first causes the imaging unit 14 to perform imaging, and recognizes the orientation of the viewer's face from the captured image obtained by imaging. Based on the orientation of the viewer's face, the viewer's viewable area in the content being output is detected. Alternatively, the imaging unit 14 is provided on the surrounding wall instead of the ceiling, and the viewer's line-of-sight direction is detected from the captured image acquired by the imaging unit 14 and can be visually recognized based on the viewer's line-of-sight direction. An area may be detected. Recognition of the viewer's face direction and line-of-sight direction from the captured image can be performed by a known image processing technique.

  Next, the control unit 11 refers to the attention direction table stored in the attention direction table storage unit 123. When the content reproduction time becomes the content reproduction time stored in the attention direction table, the control unit 11 is outputting The direction to be noticed of the content is identified, and it is determined whether or not the direction to be noticed is included in the viewer's viewable area (step S3).

  When it is determined that the direction to be noticed is included in the viewer's viewable region (step S3; YES), the control unit 11 proceeds to step S5.

When it is determined that the direction to be noted is not included in the viewer's viewable area (step S3; NO), the control unit 11 outputs notification information indicating the direction to be noted (step S4), and step S5. Migrate to
In step S4, for example, an arrow indicating the direction to be noted is added to the direction in which the viewer of the content being output is facing, or the notification sound is output from the direction to be noted by the audio output unit 16, for example. Broadcast information indicating the direction to be output is output.

  In step S5, the control unit 11 determines whether or not the content has ended (step S5). When it is determined that the content has not ended (step S5; NO), the control unit 11 returns to step S2 and repeatedly executes the processes of steps S2 to S5. If it is determined that the content has ended (step S5; YES), the output control process ends.

As described above, according to the control unit 11 of the projection apparatus 1, the viewer's viewable area in the content being output is detected from the captured image acquired by the imaging unit 14, and the portion of the content to be noticed is detected. It is determined whether or not it is included in the viewable area. Then, when it is determined that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewer's viewable area, the notification information for notifying the notable part of the content is output.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent the viewer from missing a notable part of the content.

  For example, the control unit 11 can recognize the orientation of the viewer's face based on the captured image acquired by the imaging unit 14, and can detect the viewer's viewable region based on the recognized orientation of the face. . Alternatively, the viewer's line-of-sight direction can be recognized based on the captured image acquired by the imaging unit 14, and the viewer's viewable area can be detected based on the recognized line-of-sight direction.

  Since the portion of the content to be noticed can be changed depending on the reproduction time of the content, the direction of the portion to be noticed at that time can be notified to the viewer.

  In addition, the description content in the said embodiment is a suitable example of the projection apparatus 1 which concerns on this invention, and is not limited to this.

  For example, the direction to be noted in each reproduction time of each content stored in the attention direction table storage unit 123 may be different for each attribute (gender, adult, child, etc.) of the viewer. And the control part 11 estimates a viewer's sex and age from the picked-up image acquired from the imaging part 14, specifies a viewer's attribute, and the direction which should be noticed according to the specified attribute is a viewer's visual recognition. It may be determined whether or not it is included in the possible area, and if it is not included, notification information indicating a direction to be noted may be output. In this way, when content that is different depending on the direction (location) is output, it is possible for the viewer to see the content corresponding to the attribute.

  In the above embodiment, the case where content information is stored in the content storage unit 122 of the projection apparatus 1 has been described as an example. However, the content information is stored in a PC (Personal) connected to the communication unit 17 of the projection apparatus 1. The content information may be stored in an external device such as a computer. Then, at the time of content output, the content information may be converted into projection data for omnidirectional projection by an external device and transmitted to the projection device 1, and the content may be projected by the projector 15 in the projection device 1.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the notable direction is stored (designated) in advance for each playback time of each content has been described as an example. However, the method for specifying the notable direction is not limited to this. For example, the control unit 11 analyzes the content information to acquire the amount of movement and volume of the object in each frame. For example, the direction in which the amount of movement of the object is large and / or the direction in which the volume is large is specified as the direction to be noted. Also good.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to the projection apparatus 1 has been described as an example. However, the present invention may be applied to a VR (Virtual Reality) head mounted display. The VR head-mounted display can display content from the front direction of the viewer to a predetermined angle in the display area, and the range displayed in the display area is the viewer's viewable area, but is mounted It is possible to display 360-degree omnidirectional video by changing the orientation of the face of the viewer. For example, in a VR head mounted display, it is determined whether or not a direction to be noticed is included in a viewer's viewable area (that is, a displayed area) during content output. Outputs the notification information (display and sound) indicating the direction to be noted, as in the projection device 1. Thereby, when viewing content on the VR head mounted display, it is possible to prevent the viewer from overlooking the direction to which attention should be paid.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the notable portion of the content is specified by the notable direction in which the portion exists is described as an example, but may be specified by the coordinates.

  In addition, the detailed configuration and detailed operation of each apparatus constituting the projection apparatus can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and equivalents thereof.
The invention described in the scope of claims attached to the application of this application will be added below. The item numbers of the claims described in the appendix are as set forth in the claims attached to the application of this application.
[Appendix]
<Claim 1>
Detection means for detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
A determination means for determining whether or not a noticeable portion of the content is included in the viewable area;
Control means for outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when the determining part determines that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
An output control device comprising:
<Claim 2>
Equipped with shooting means,
The detection unit recognizes the orientation of the viewer's face based on a photographed image acquired by the photographing unit, and detects the viewer's viewable region based on the recognized face orientation. The output control device described in 1.
<Claim 3>
Equipped with shooting means,
The said detection means recognizes the said viewer's gaze direction based on the picked-up image acquired by the said imaging means, and detects the viewer's visual recognition area | region based on the recognized gaze direction. Output control device.
<Claim 4>
Determination means for determining whether or not the reproduction time of the content has reached a predetermined reproduction time;
The said control means outputs the alerting | reporting information for alert | reporting the location which should be noted of the said content, when the said determination means further determines that the reproduction | regeneration time of the said content became predetermined | prescribed reproduction time. The output control device according to any one of the above.
<Claim 5>
The output control apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a notable part of the content varies depending on an attribute of the viewer.
<Claim 6>
The output control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an output unit that outputs the content.
<Claim 7>
The output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the output unit outputs the video of the content in all directions.
<Claim 8>
Detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
Determining whether a notable part of the content is included in the viewable area;
A step of outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when it is determined that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
Output control method.
<Claim 9>
Computer
Detection means for detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
A determination means for determining whether or not a noticeable portion of the content is included in the viewable area;
Control means for outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when the determining part determines that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
Program to function as.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Projection apparatus 11 Control part 12 Storage part 121 Program storage part 122 Content storage part 123 Attention direction table storage part 13 Operation part 14 Imaging part 15 Projector 16 Audio | voice output part 17 Communication part

Claims (9)

Detection means for detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
A determination means for determining whether or not a noticeable portion of the content is included in the viewable area;
Control means for outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when the determining part determines that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
An output control device comprising: Equipped with shooting means,
The detection unit recognizes the orientation of the viewer's face based on a photographed image acquired by the photographing unit, and detects the viewer's viewable region based on the recognized face orientation. The output control device described in 1. Equipped with shooting means,
The said detection means recognizes the said viewer's gaze direction based on the picked-up image acquired by the said imaging means, and detects the viewer's visual recognition area | region based on the recognized gaze direction. Output control device. Determination means for determining whether or not the reproduction time of the content has reached a predetermined reproduction time;
The said control means outputs the alerting | reporting information for alert | reporting the location which should be noted of the said content, when the said determination means further determines that the reproduction | regeneration time of the said content became predetermined | prescribed reproduction time. The output control device according to any one of the above.   The output control apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a notable part of the content varies depending on an attribute of the viewer.   The output control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an output unit that outputs the content.   The output control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the output unit outputs the video of the content in all directions. Detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
Determining whether a notable part of the content is included in the viewable area;
A step of outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when it is determined that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
Output control method. Computer
Detection means for detecting a viewer's viewable area in one content;
A determination means for determining whether or not a noticeable portion of the content is included in the viewable area;
Control means for outputting notification information for notifying the notable part of the content when the determining part determines that the notable part of the content is not included in the viewable region;
Program to function as.

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