JP2018018345A - Notification system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a notification system which allows a user to know a state of a notification object person such as a child at the time of returning or leaving home.SOLUTION: A control unit determines whether a resident is a child on the basis of a face image of the resident picked up by a camera installed around a main entrance (step S19), determines an expression of the face of the child on the basis of the face image picked up when determining that the resident is a child (step S20), determines to which notification destination a notification is sent depending on the determined expression of the child (step S21) and notifies the determined notification destination of the expression of the child (step S22).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a notification system.

  In recent years, many parents are absent during the day because their parents work together. In such a family, it is conceivable that the child's trend is worrisome to the parents at work, such as whether the child has returned from school or has not gone somewhere after returning home. In view of such circumstances, various notification systems have been proposed that detect when a child goes home or goes out, and notifies the parent of the return or going out (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to such a notification system, the parent at work can know that the child has returned home, so that the parent can feel secure.

JP 2001-156828 A

  However, in the conventional notification system, although it is possible to know that the child has returned home, it is not known how the child has returned home. As a result, children are still concerned about their parents at work.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a main object of the present invention is to provide a notification system capable of ascertaining the state of a notification target person such as a child when returning home or going out.

  In order to solve the above problems, a notification system according to a first aspect of the present invention is provided around an entrance / exit of a house, a photographing means for photographing a resident's face entering and exiting the house through the entrance / exit, and a residence photographed by the photographing means Determination means for determining whether the resident is a notification target person registered in advance based on the face image of the person and the resident photographed by the photographing means is determined to be the notification target person. A facial expression determination means for determining the facial expression of the notification target person based on the photographed face image, and a predetermined predetermined facial expression of the notification target person determined by the facial expression determination means And a notification means for notifying to the notification destination.

  According to the present invention, the face of the resident who goes in and out of the house, that is, the resident who goes back to the house through the doorway or goes out of the house is photographed by the photographing means provided around the entrance of the house, and the photographed resident Whether or not the resident is a notification target person such as a child is determined based on the face image. As a result of the determination, if the resident is a notification target person, the facial expression of the notification target person is determined based on the photographed face image, and the determined notification target person's facial expression is Notified to the notification destination. In this case, since the person to be notified can know the facial expression of the person to be notified when returning home or going out, it is possible to know the state of the person to be notified when returning home or going out.

  A notification system according to a second invention is the notification system according to the first invention, comprising: a locking / unlocking unit that locks / unlocks the entrance / exit door that opens / closes the entrance / exit; a face authentication camera provided around the entrance / exit; and the face authentication camera. A face authentication means for authenticating whether or not the person is a resident based on the photographed person's face image, and when the face authentication means has been authenticated as a resident It is applied to a house provided with a face authentication type locking / unlocking system for unlocking the locking / unlocking means, and the face authentication camera is used as the photographing means.

  In a house with a face authentication type locking / unlocking system, a face authentication camera is installed around the entrance, and when the resident's face is photographed and authenticated by the camera, the door unlocking / unlocking device is unlocked. It is designed to be locked. Therefore, the face authentication camera captures a face image of a resident who goes home or goes out through the entrance. Therefore, in the present invention, focusing on this point, the face authentication camera is used as a photographing means for photographing the face of a resident who goes home or goes out. In this case, the effect of the first aspect of the invention can be obtained while effectively using the face authentication camera in a house provided with a face authentication type locking / unlocking system.

  A notification system according to a third invention is the notification system according to the first or second invention, wherein a plurality of notification destinations are set as the predetermined notification destinations, and the notification subject's facial expression determined by the facial expression determination means is used. And determining means for determining which of the plurality of notification destinations the facial expression is to be notified, wherein the notification means notifies the notification subject's facial expression to the notification destination determined by the determination means It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, according to the facial expression of the person to be notified determined by the facial expression determination means, it is determined which of the plurality of notification destinations the facial expression is to be notified, and to the determined notification destination On the other hand, the facial expression of the person to be notified is notified. In this case, for example, when the facial expression of the person to be notified is an expression that expresses negative emotions such as anger and sadness, the person to be notified is included in the notification destination, and the person to be notified (neighbor) Can be rushed to care for the person being notified.

  In any one of the first to third inventions, the notification system of the fourth invention includes the first notification destination as the predetermined notification destination, and the notification means is determined by the facial expression determination means. The notification target person's facial expression is notified to the first notification destination only when the facial expression of the notification target person is a predetermined facial expression.

  According to the present invention, only when the notification subject's facial expression is a predetermined facial expression, the notification subject's facial expression is notified to the first notification destination. As the first notification destination, a person other than a resident (that is, a non-resident) such as a grandparent or an acquaintance can be considered. In this case, the first notification destination is notified only when the person to be notified has an expression of concern (for example, an expression expressing negative emotions), so that the sensitivity to the notification of the first notification destination is increased. Can be increased. Accordingly, it is possible to expect an effect of prompting a response such as receiving a notification from a first notification destination person (for example, a non-resident) and applying it to the care of the person to be notified.

  The notification system according to a fifth aspect is characterized in that, in the fourth aspect, the predetermined facial expression is a facial expression representing a negative emotion.

  According to the present invention, only when the notification subject's facial expression determined by the facial expression determination means is a facial expression representing a negative emotion such as anger or sadness, the facial expression is notified to the first notification destination (for example, a non-resident). Is done. In this case, prior care of the notification target person, such as having the first notification destination (non-resident) contact the notification target person and have a conversation with the notification target person before the resident returns home. It becomes possible to have you.

  A notification system of a sixth invention is the fourth or fifth invention, wherein the second notification destination is included as the predetermined notification destination, and the notification means The facial expression is notified irrespective of the facial expression of the notification subject determined by the facial expression determination means.

  According to the present invention, the notification destination includes the second notification destination in addition to the first notification destination. The second notification destination may be a resident of a house such as parents. The second notification destination is notified of the facial expression regardless of the facial expression of the notification subject determined by the facial expression determination means. Thereby, since the person who is the second notification destination can know the state of the notification target person every time the notification target person returns home or goes out, a sense of security can be obtained.

  A notification system according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the notification system according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, further comprising a return home determination unit that determines whether the person to be notified has returned home through the doorway or has gone out. In addition to the facial expression of the person to be notified determined by the facial expression determination unit, the determination result of the outing determination unit is also notified to the predetermined notification destination.

  According to the present invention, in addition to the facial expression of the person to be notified at the time of returning home or going out, the notification destination is also notified whether the person to be notified has returned home or has gone out. As a result, for example, if the person to be notified (for example, a child) has an angry or sad expression when he / she comes home, he / she can determine that there is something on the go (for example, a teacher was tempted) In the case of a sad expression, it can be determined that something has happened in the house (home) (for example, it has fallen and injured). Therefore, the person who is the notification destination (for example, a resident) can take an appropriate response to the notification target person accordingly.

  A notification system according to an eighth invention is characterized in that, in any one of the first to seventh inventions, the notification means notifies the facial expression of the notification subject determined by the facial expression determination means as characters. To do.

  According to the present invention, since the facial expression of the person to be notified is notified by letters, the facial expression of the person to be notified can be grasped at a glance even if the person to be notified is busy with work or the like.

The top view which shows the entrance periphery vicinity of a house. The figure which shows the electrical constitution of a face authentication type locking / unlocking system. The figure which showed the pictogram showing each expression. The flowchart which shows the content of control processing. The flowchart which shows locking / unlocking control processing.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the vicinity of a house entrance in the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a double working parents (father and mother) and their children live in the house. In addition, it is assumed that a child's grandparents live near a house (for example, a neighbor).

  As shown in FIG. 1, a house 10 is provided with an entrance 11, a corridor 12, a bedroom 13, a storage room 14, and the like. The entrance 11 is provided with an entrance 15 that communicates indoors and outdoors. Access to the house 10 is possible through the entrance 15. The entrance door 15 is provided with an entrance door 16 made of a hinged door. The entrance door 15 is opened and closed by the entrance door 16. The entrance door 16 is not necessarily a hinged door, and may be a sliding door. Further, the entrance 15 corresponds to “entrance / exit”, and the entrance door 16 corresponds to “entrance / exit door”.

  The entrance door 16 is provided with a locking / unlocking device 19 for locking and unlocking the door 16. This locking / unlocking device 19 corresponds to locking / unlocking means. The locking / unlocking device 19 includes an electric lock that electrically locks / unlocks the front door 16. In the house 10, the locking / unlocking by the locking / unlocking device 19 is performed based on the face authentication by the face authentication device 30. The face authentication type locking / unlocking system will be described below with reference to FIG. 2 in addition to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an electrical configuration of the face authentication type locking / unlocking system.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of (two) face authentication cameras 21 and 22 are provided near the entrance 15 in the house 10. These cameras 21 and 22 are both constituted by digital cameras. Of these cameras 21 and 22, the camera 21 is an outdoor camera 21 provided outdoors. The outdoor camera 21 is attached to the outer wall near the entrance door 16, for example. The outdoor camera 21 captures the face of a person in the vicinity of the entrance door 16 outdoors. When a person approaches the vicinity of the entrance door 16 outdoors, the face of the person is detected by the outdoor camera 21 and photographing is performed. In other words, the outdoor camera 21 is a face authentication camera for returning home that is used to perform face authentication of the resident when the resident returns home.

  On the other hand, the camera 22 is an indoor camera 22 provided indoors. The indoor camera 22 is attached to the wall surface of the entrance 11, for example. The indoor camera 22 captures the face of a person in the vicinity of the entrance door 16 indoors (entrance 11). When a person approaches the vicinity of the entrance door 16 indoors, the person's face is detected by the indoor camera 22 and photographing is performed. That is, the indoor camera 22 is a face authentication camera for going out that is used to perform face authentication of the resident when the resident goes out. Note that the outdoor camera 21 and the indoor camera 22 correspond to a photographing unit.

  In the house 10, a face authentication device 30 is provided. The face authentication device 30 is a computer including a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and is attached to, for example, the wall surface of the hallway 12 in the house 10. As shown in FIG. 2, an outdoor camera 21 and an indoor camera 22 are connected to the face authentication device 30. When a person's face is photographed by the outdoor camera 21, the photographed face image is input from the outdoor camera 21 to the face authentication device 30. Similarly, when a human face is photographed by the indoor camera 22, the photographed face image is input from the indoor camera 22 to the face authentication apparatus 30.

  The face authentication device 30 includes a control unit 31, a storage unit 32, and an authentication unit 33. The control unit 31 controls the control of the locking / unlocking system. A storage unit 32 and an authentication unit 33 are connected to the control unit 31.

  The storage unit 32 stores (registers) face images of residents living in the house 10 as registered face images in advance. Specifically, the storage unit 32 stores face images of parents (fathers, mothers) and children living in the house 10 as registered face images.

  The authentication unit 33 authenticates whether or not the person is a resident based on the face image of the person input from the outdoor camera 21 or the indoor camera 22 according to a command from the control unit 31. Specifically, the authentication unit 33 determines whether a human face image input from the outdoor camera 21 or the indoor camera 22 matches the registered face image stored in the storage unit 32.

  A locking / unlocking device 19 is connected to the face authentication device 30 (control unit 31). The controller 31 controls locking / unlocking of the locking / unlocking device 19 based on the authentication result by the authentication unit 33.

  The home 10 is provided with a home management system for managing which resident is currently in the home 10. In the present embodiment, this home management system is configured using the face authentication device 30, and this will be described below.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of (two) human detection sensors 23 and 24 are provided near the entrance 15 in the house 10. Among these human detection sensors 23 and 24, the human detection sensor 23 is an outdoor-side human detection sensor 23 provided outdoors. The outdoor side human detection sensor 23 detects that there is a person near the entrance door 16 outdoors, and is attached to an outer wall near the entrance door 16, for example.

  On the other hand, the human detection sensor 24 is an indoor side human detection sensor 24 provided indoors. The indoor side person detection sensor 24 detects that there is a person in the vicinity of the entrance door 16 indoors (entrance 11), and is attached to the ceiling surface of the entrance 11, for example.

  These human detection sensors 23 and 24 are connected to the face authentication device 30 (control unit 31). When a person is detected by any one of these human detection sensors 23 and 24, the detection result is input to the control unit 31 from the human detection sensors 23 and 24 that have detected the person.

  When the locking / unlocking device 19 is unlocked by authentication (resident authentication) by the authentication unit 33, the control unit 31 allows the resident to pass through the entrance 15 based on the detection results from the human detection sensors 23 and 24. It is determined whether the user has returned (entered) the house 10 or has gone out (exited) from the house 10. Moreover, the control part 31 specifies who the resident who went home or went out based on the face image image | photographed with the outdoor camera 21 or the indoor camera 22. FIG. And the control part 31 memorize | stores the going-out information regarding whether the specified resident came home or went out in the memory | storage part 32. FIG.

  As described above, the storage unit 32 is configured to store (update) return home information for each resident each time the resident goes home or goes out. Thereby, in this home management system, it is possible to grasp (manage) the presence / absence of each resident in the house 10 based on the outing information of each resident stored in the storage unit 32.

  Here, when the child who is a resident goes home or goes out, the present home management system has a home / outgoing notification function for notifying parents or grandparents of returning home or going out. The configuration related to the notification function will be described below.

  The face authentication device 30 has a communication unit 34. The communication unit 34 can wirelessly communicate with a portable terminal 38 carried by parents who are residents of the house 10. The communication unit 34 can also perform wireless communication with the portable terminal 39 carried by the grandparents. These portable terminals 38 and 39 are made of, for example, a smartphone or a mobile phone, and have display units 38a and 39a capable of displaying characters and images. In addition, although each of the parents (father and mother) carries the portable terminal 38, only one portable terminal 38 is illustrated in FIG. 2 for convenience. Similarly, each of the grandparents also carries the portable terminal 39, but only one portable terminal 39 is shown in FIG.

  The communication unit 34 is connected to the control unit 31. The control unit 31 transmits information on whether the child has returned home or has gone out, that is, information on going out of the child, to the parents' portable terminal 38 or the grandparent's portable terminal 39 through the communication unit 34. Specifically, the control unit 31 transmits the child's return home information to the portable terminals 38 and 39 by e-mail. For example, a message (character) such as “XX-kun has come home” or “XX-kun is out” is transmitted. In this case, when the transmitted home return information is received by the mobile terminals 38 and 39, the home return information is displayed on the display units 38 a and 39 a of the mobile terminals 38 and 39. This allows parents at work and their neighborhood grandparents to know that their child has gone home or out.

  In addition, the present home management system further has a function of discriminating the facial expression of the child when the child goes home or going out, and notifies the parents of the identified child's facial expression. Hereinafter, this function will be described.

  The face authentication device 30 further includes a facial expression determination unit 35. The facial expression determination unit 35 is connected to the control unit 31. The facial expression determination unit 35 determines the facial expression of the resident's face based on the resident (child) face image photographed by the outdoor camera 21 or the indoor camera 22 in accordance with a command from the control unit 31. Specifically, the facial expression discrimination unit 35 discriminates which of the facial expressions of the resident is “no expression”, “joy”, “anger”, “surprise”, and “sadness”. . Of these facial expressions, facial expressions of “anger” and “sadness” correspond to “facial expressions expressing negative emotions”.

  The control unit 31 transmits the child's facial expression (expression information) determined by the facial expression determination unit 35 to the portable terminals 38 and 39 of the parents and grandparents through the communication unit 34. That is, in the present home management system, the control unit 31 transmits child facial expression information to the portable terminals 38 and 39 in addition to the child return home information. Specifically, the control unit 31 expresses the child's facial expression determined by the facial expression determination unit 35 as a character, more specifically, a pictograph, and transmits it by e-mail as child's facial expression information. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, pictographs representing the expressions “no expression”, “joy”, “anger”, “surprise”, and “sadness” are stored in the storage unit 32 in advance. Yes. And the control part 31 reads the pictogram corresponding to the child's facial expression discriminated by the facial expression discrimination | determination part 35 from the memory | storage part 32, and transmits the read pictogram as child's facial expression information.

  Next, the content of the control process performed by the control part 31 of the face authentication apparatus 30 is demonstrated. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the contents of the control process. This control process is repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle.

  As shown in FIG. 4, first, in step S11, a locking / unlocking control process is performed. First, the flow of this locking / unlocking control process will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of the locking / unlocking control process.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the locking / unlocking control process, first, in step S <b> 31, it is determined whether any one of the outdoor camera 21 and the indoor camera 22 has taken a human face. If no person's face is photographed by any of the outdoor camera 21 and the indoor camera 22, this process is terminated. On the other hand, when a person's face is photographed by either the outdoor camera 21 or the indoor camera 22, face images are acquired from the cameras 21 and 22 where the photographing was performed (step S32).

  In step S33, the authentication unit 33 performs an authentication process based on the acquired face image. In the authentication process, as described above, it is determined whether or not the acquired face image matches the registered face image stored in the storage unit 32 (step S34). If the acquired face image does not match the registered face image, the photographed person is a person other than the resident, and the process proceeds to step S38 to perform the locking process. In the locking process, a locking signal is output to the locking / unlocking device 19, and the entrance door 16 is locked by the device 19. Thereafter, this process is terminated.

  If the acquired face image matches the registered face image, that is, if the photographed person is authenticated as a resident, the process proceeds to step S35 to perform the unlocking process. In the unlocking process, an unlock signal is output to the locking / unlocking device 19 and the entrance door 16 is unlocked by the device 19. As a result, the resident can open the entrance door 16 and enter and exit the house 10 through the entrance 15. That is, if the resident is outdoors, the resident can enter the house 10 (go home), and if the resident is indoors, the resident must leave the house 10 (go out). Can do. After the unlocking process (step S35), the process proceeds to step S36, and the unlocking flag is set.

  In a succeeding step S37, a standby process for waiting for a predetermined time to elapse is performed. Here, the predetermined time is set to a sufficient time (for example, 30 seconds) required for the resident to open the entrance door 16 and enter / exit the house 10 after the entrance door 16 is unlocked. After the standby process (step S37), the process proceeds to step S38, and a locking process is performed. Thereby, the entrance door 16 is locked. Thereafter, this process is terminated.

  Returning to the description of FIG. 4, in step S12 after the locking / unlocking control process (step S11), it is determined whether or not the unlocking flag is set. That is, here, in the above-described locking / unlocking control process, it is determined whether the resident authentication is performed by the authentication unit 33 and the locking / unlocking device 19 is unlocked. If the unlock flag is not set, this process ends. If the unlock flag is set, the process proceeds to step S13.

  In step S <b> 13, it is determined whether or not the authenticated resident has returned (entered) the house 10 through the entrance 15. This determination is made based on whether the resident's face is photographed by the outdoor camera 21 in step S31 (FIG. 5) and the person (resident) is detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24 thereafter. When the resident's face is photographed by the outdoor camera 21 and then the resident is detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24, it is considered that the resident has moved from the outside to the inside (inside the house 10) through the entrance door 15. In this case, it is determined that the resident has come home, and the process proceeds to step S16 to set a return flag.

  On the other hand, when the resident's face is photographed by the outdoor camera 21 but the resident is not detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24 or when the resident's face is not photographed by the outdoor camera 21. Since it cannot be considered that the resident has moved indoors from the outside, in this case, it is determined that the resident has not returned home, and the process proceeds to step S14.

  In step S <b> 14, it is determined whether or not the resident has left (exited) the house 10 through the entrance 15. This determination is made based on whether the resident's face is photographed by the indoor camera 22 in step S31 (FIG. 5) and a person (resident) is detected by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23 thereafter. When the occupant's face is photographed by the indoor camera 22 and then the occupant is detected by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23, it is considered that the occupant has moved from the inside (inside the house 10) to the outside through the entrance 15. Therefore, in this case, it is determined that the resident has gone out, the process proceeds to step S15, and the outing flag is set.

  On the other hand, when the resident's face is photographed by the indoor camera 22 but the resident is not sensed by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23 thereafter, or when the resident's face is not photographed by the indoor camera 22 Since it cannot be considered that the resident has moved from the indoor to the outdoor, in this case, it is determined that the resident has not gone out and this processing is terminated.

  In addition, a series of processes of step S14 and step S15 are equivalent to a go-out determination process.

  In step S17 after step S15 or step S16, a resident identification process for identifying who is the resident who has returned home or has gone out based on the face image of the resident acquired in step S32 (FIG. 5). Do.

  In the subsequent step S18, the return-to-home information (information regarding whether the user has returned home or has gone out) of the resident identified in step S17, that is, the resident who has returned home or has gone out is stored (updated) in the storage unit 32. When the return flag is set, information indicating that the user has returned home is stored. When the return flag is set, information indicating that the user has been returning is stored.

  In subsequent step S19, it is determined whether or not the resident specified in step S17, that is, the resident who has returned home or has gone out is a child. If the resident who has returned home or has gone out is not a child, this processing is terminated. On the other hand, when the resident who goes home or goes out is a child, the process proceeds to step S20. Note that a child corresponds to a notification target person.

  In step S20, the facial expression discrimination unit 35 performs facial expression discrimination processing for discriminating the facial expression of the child based on the face image of the resident (child) acquired in step S32.

  In the subsequent step S21, notification destination determination processing is performed for determining which notification destination is notified of the child's facial expression determined by the facial expression determination processing. In this process, the notification destination is determined according to the facial expression of the child determined by the facial expression determination process. Specifically, when the identified facial expression of the child is “angry” or “sad”, the notification destination is determined as the parents and grandparents. Further, when the identified child's facial expression is “no expression”, “joy”, or “surprise”, the notification destination is determined to be only the parents. In this case, the parents correspond to the second notification destination and the grandparents correspond to the first notification destination.

  In the subsequent step S22, the child's return-to-home information stored in the storage unit 32 (information on whether the child has returned home or out) and the child's facial expression information determined by the facial expression determination process are determined in step S21. Perform notification processing to notify the notification destination. Specifically, when the notification destination is determined as the parents and grandparents in step S21, the child's return-to-home information and facial expression information (pictograms) are sent to the parents and grandparents' mobile terminals 38, 39 by e-mail. To do. If the notification destination is determined to be only the parents in step S21, the child's return-to-home information and facial expression information (pictograms) are transmitted by e-mail only to the parents' portable terminal 38. In this case, when the transmitted home return information and facial expression information are received by the portable terminals 38 and 39, these pieces of information are displayed on the display units 38a and 39a of the portable terminals 38 and 39, respectively. As a result, the parents and grandparents can know that the child has returned home or have gone out, and can also know the facial expression of the child when returning home or going out.

  After step S22, various flags (unlock flag, outing flag, return flag) are reset (erased), and this process ends.

  As mentioned above, according to the structure of this embodiment explained in full detail, the following outstanding effects are acquired.

  Photographs of the faces of the residents who go in and out of the house 10 through the entrance 15 by the cameras 21 and 22 provided around the entrance 15 of the house 10, that is, the residents who return to or go out of the house 10, are taken. Based on the above, it is determined whether or not the resident is a child (corresponding to a notification target person). If the result of the determination is that the resident is a child, the facial expression of the child is determined based on the captured face image, and the determined child's facial expression is notified to the parents and grandparents (corresponding to the notification destination). I tried to do it. In this case, parents and grandparents (hereinafter also referred to as parents and the like) can know the facial expressions of the child when they go home or go out, so that they can know the situation when the child comes home or when they go out.

  As the cameras 21 and 22 for photographing the face of a resident who returns home or goes out, a face authentication camera used in a face authentication type locking / unlocking system is used. In this case, the above-described effects can be obtained while effectively using the face authentication camera.

  According to the identified facial expression of the child, it is determined to which notification destination the facial expression is to be notified, and the determined facial expression is notified to the child's facial expression. Specifically, when the identified child's facial expression is an expression of anger or sadness, the notification destination is determined as parents and grandparents, and when the identified child's facial expression is no expression, joy or surprise, The notification destination is decided only for parents. In this case, if the child's facial expression expresses negative emotions such as anger or sadness, the grandparents in the neighborhood are also notified. The child can be given pre-care such as having a conversation with the child.

  Also, the child's facial expression is notified to the grandparents (corresponding to the first notification destination) only when the identified facial expression of the child is an angry or sad facial expression (corresponding to a predetermined facial expression). In this case, since the grandparent is notified only when the child has an expression of concern (an expression expressing negative emotion), the sensitivity to the notification of the grandparent can be increased. As a result, it is possible to expect an effect of encouraging the grandparents to receive notification and apply to the child care.

  Also, the child's facial expression is notified to the parents (corresponding to the second notification destination) regardless of the identified facial expression of the child. Therefore, every time a child goes home or goes out, the parents can know the state of the child, and can get a sense of security for parents who are worried about the trend of the child.

  It is determined whether the child has returned home or moved out through the entrance 15 and the parents are notified of the determination result, that is, the child's return information. In other words, in addition to the identified facial expressions of the children, the parents are also notified of the child's return information. As a result, for the parents who received the notification, if the child was angry or sad at the time of going home, it was determined that something was happening on the go (for example, the teacher was good), Sometimes, when an expression of anger or sadness is present, it can be determined that something has happened in the house 10 (home) (for example, it has fallen and injured). For this reason, parents and the like can take appropriate measures for children accordingly.

  Since the identified facial expression of the child is sent as a letter to the parents or the like (notification), the facial expression of the child can be grasped at a glance even if the parents are busy with work or the like. In particular, in this embodiment, since the child's facial expression is transmitted as a pictogram, the child's facial expression can be more easily grasped.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be implemented as follows, for example.

  (1) In the above-described embodiment, the facial expression is determined based on the face images taken by the face authentication cameras 21 and 22. However, when the facial expression is determined, the face authentication camera 21, There is no need to use 22. For example, in a house where a face authentication type locking / unlocking system is not provided, a camera (corresponding to a photographing means) is provided around the entrance 15 and facial expressions are discriminated based on a face image photographed by the camera. Also good.

  In the above embodiment, the cameras 21 and 22 (photographing means) are provided outdoors and indoors. However, the cameras may be provided only either outdoors or indoors. Even in that case, the face of the resident entering and exiting through the entrance 15 can be photographed by the one camera.

  (2) In the above embodiment, when the occupant is photographed by the outdoor camera 21 and then detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24, it is determined that the occupant has returned to the house 10, and the indoor camera When the resident is photographed at 22 and the resident is detected by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23, it is determined that the resident has gone out of the house 10, but it is determined whether the resident has come home or has gone out. The method is not necessarily limited to this.

  For example, if the resident is detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24 after the resident is detected by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23, it can be considered that the resident has moved indoors from the outside. Therefore, in this case, it may be determined that the resident has come home. Similarly, if the resident is detected by the outdoor side human detection sensor 23 after the resident is detected by the indoor side human detection sensor 24, the resident is considered to have moved from the indoor to the outdoor. In this case, it may be determined that the resident has gone out.

  In addition, it is not always necessary to use the human detection sensors 23 and 24 to determine whether the resident has returned home or moved out. For example, the outdoor camera 21 and the indoor camera 22 may be used. If the resident is photographed by the outdoor camera 21 and then the resident is photographed by the indoor camera 22, it can be considered that the resident has moved from the outside to the indoor. Make a decision. Further, when the resident is photographed by the indoor camera 22 and then the resident is photographed by the outdoor camera 21, it can be considered that the resident has moved from the indoor to the outdoor. It is conceivable to determine that it has occurred.

  As described above, in each of the above determination methods, it is determined whether the resident has come home or has gone out because the resident has moved from the outside to the inside or from the inside to the outside. It is possible to accurately determine whether or not

  Note that a distance measuring sensor may be used to determine that the resident has moved indoors or outdoors from the outdoors. In this case, a distance measuring sensor for measuring the distance to the resident is provided near the entrance 15, and the resident moves from the outside to the inside or from the inside to the outside through the entrance 15 based on the measurement result of the distance measuring sensor. Judgment is made.

  In addition to the above-described determination methods, the following determination methods are also conceivable. For example, when the resident is photographed by the outdoor camera 21, it is determined (estimated) that the resident has come home, and when the resident is photographed by the indoor camera 22, it is determined (estimated) that the resident has gone out. To do. Also by this method, it is possible to determine whether the resident has come home or has gone out. However, in this case, it is more accurate to determine whether the occupant has gone home or has gone out compared to the above-described determination methods for determining whether the occupant has moved home from the outdoors or from the indoors to the outdoors. Difficult to do well. For this reason, in view of this point, it can be said that it is desirable to employ each of the determination methods described above.

  (3) In the above embodiment, when the facial expression is discriminated, it is discriminated whether the facial expression is one of the facial expressions of “no expression”, “joy”, “anger”, “surprise”, and “sadness” (five types). However, the type of facial expression to be determined is not necessarily limited to this. For example, it can be considered that there are only three types of facial expressions to be discriminated: “joy”, “anger”, and “sadness”. In addition, facial expressions other than the above five types of facial expressions, such as “calm” and “depressed”, may be added as types of facial expressions to be identified. The expression “depressed” corresponds to “an expression expressing negative emotion”.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the facial expression information of the child is transmitted as a pictograph during the notification process (step S22), but it may be transmitted as a normal character. In this case, for example, it may be possible to transmit a message such as “I am angry” or “I am happy”. The facial expression information does not necessarily have to be transmitted as characters, and may be transmitted by voice, for example. For example, it is conceivable to transmit the above message by voice. In this case, when the voice (voice information) is received by the portable terminals 38 and 39, the voice is output from the speakers of the portable terminals 38 and 39. Therefore, also in this case, it becomes possible to notify the child's facial expression.

  (5) In the embodiment described above, the child's home information and facial expression information are notified during the notification process (step S22). However, only facial expression information may be notified from these pieces of information. In this case, parents can not know whether the child has returned home or has gone out, but can know the state of the child when returning home or going out, so that a sense of security can be obtained.

  (6) In the above embodiment, in the notification process (step S22), the facial expression information of the child is transmitted to the portable terminals 38 and 39 of the parents and the grandparents (notification destination), but the transmission destination is not necessarily a portable terminal. There is no need. For example, when a terminal device such as a personal computer is installed in the grandparent's residence, child facial expression information or the like may be transmitted to the terminal device.

  (7) In the above embodiment, the case where the notification target person is a child has been described. However, for example, a father may be included as the notification target person instead of or in addition to the child. In this case, when the father goes home or goes out, it is conceivable to determine the facial expression of the father and transmit the facial expression of the father to the mother's mobile terminal 38. As a result, it is possible to know the state of the father when he / she comes home, and for example, it is possible to take measures such as soothing when the father gets angry and comes home.

  (8) In the above embodiment, grandparents are included in addition to parents as notification destinations for notifying children's facial expressions, but acquaintances, friends, etc. may be included in notification destinations when grandparents are not in the neighborhood. Even in such a case, when the child is angry or sad, the acquaintance, friend, or the like can give the child some kind of care.

  In this case, it is desirable to perform notification processing for the acquaintance, friend, etc. only when the child's facial expression is an angry or sad expression. If you do so, you will receive notifications for acquaintances only when you are angry or sad, so sensitivity to acquaintances will increase, and acquaintances will be notified and actively respond to children You can expect me to do it.

  (9) It is conceivable to provide a crime prevention system in the house 10 of the above-described embodiment, where parents are often absent due to working together, in order to improve crime prevention performance. In this case, as a crime prevention system, for example, when the presence of a suspicious person is detected in the house 10 or the vicinity thereof, an alarm system that issues an alarm to the suspicious person may be provided. Here, when providing such an alarm system in the house 10, it is conceivable to link it with the above-described home management system. In the home management system, since the storage unit 32 stores information on going out of each resident, the control unit 31 determines the presence / absence of each resident in the house 10 based on the information on going out of the home. It can be determined (understood), and as a result, it can be determined whether the house 10 is currently in a home state where any resident is at home, or whether any resident is not in the home state. .

  Therefore, when the alarm system is linked with the home management system, it is conceivable to automatically switch the alarm control mode based on whether the house 10 is at home or not. Specifically, when the house 10 is in the home state, the mode is set to the home time mode, and when the house 10 is in the absence state, the mode is set to the unattended mode. In this case, for example, in the home mode, the alarm level may be lowered, for example, by reducing the volume of the alarm sound, while in the absence mode, the alarm level may be increased, for example, by increasing the volume of the alarm sound. Thereby, since a warning level can be automatically changed according to the presence or absence of the resident in the house 10, crime prevention performance can be suitably ensured.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Housing, 15 ... Entrance door as entrance / exit, 16 ... Entrance door as entrance door, 19 ... Locking / unlocking device as locking / unlocking means, 21 ... Outdoor camera as photographing means and face authentication camera, 22 ... Shooting means And an indoor camera as a face authentication camera, 30 ... a face authentication device, 31 ... a control unit, 33 ... an authentication unit as a face authentication means, 34 ... a communication unit, 35 ... an expression discrimination unit.

Claims (8)

A photographing means for photographing a face of a resident who enters and exits the house through the entrance, provided around the entrance of the house;
Determination means for determining whether the resident is a notification target person registered in advance based on the face image of the resident photographed by the photographing means;
Facial expression discriminating means for discriminating facial expressions of the notification subject person based on the photographed face image when it is determined that the resident photographed by the photographing means is the notification subject person;
Notification means for notifying a predetermined notification destination of the facial expression of the notification subject determined by the facial expression determination means;
A notification system comprising: Locking / unlocking means for locking / unlocking the door for opening / closing the door;
A face authentication camera provided around the entrance,
A face authentication means for authenticating whether or not the person is a resident based on a face image of the person photographed by the face authentication camera;
Applied to a house provided with a face authentication type locking / unlocking system that unlocks the locking / unlocking means when the face authentication means is authenticated as a resident,
The notification system according to claim 1, wherein the face authentication camera is the photographing unit. A plurality of notification destinations are set as the predetermined notification destination,
In accordance with the facial expression of the person to be notified determined by the facial expression determination unit, a determination unit that determines which of the plurality of notification destinations to notify the facial expression,
The notification system according to claim 1, wherein the notification unit notifies the notification destination determined by the determination unit of the facial expression of the person to be notified. A first notification destination is included as the predetermined notification destination;
The notification unit notifies the first notification destination of the facial expression of the notification target person only when the facial expression of the notification target person determined by the facial expression determination unit is a predetermined facial expression. Item 4. The notification system according to any one of Items 1 to 3.   The notification system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined facial expression is a facial expression representing negative emotion. A second notification destination is included as the predetermined notification destination;
The said notification means notifies the said facial expression to the said 2nd notification destination irrespective of the said notification subject's facial expression discriminated by the said facial expression discrimination means. Notification system. Going out and going out judging means for judging whether the person to be notified has gone home or went out through the doorway,
The notification means notifies the predetermined notification destination of the determination result of the return home determination means in addition to the facial expression of the person to be notified determined by the facial expression determination means. The notification system according to claim 6.   The notification system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the notification unit notifies the facial expression of the notification subject determined by the facial expression determination unit as characters.

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