JP2020185366A - toy - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a toy which works upon a user from the toy, which can output an action or the sound of a voice corresponding to the reaction of the user, and which never makes the user get tired of the toy.SOLUTION: A controller 3 includes: a direction determination part which determines the direction of a body part 2 from acceleration data inputted by an acceleration sensor 5; a demand response history part which records demand of a toy 1 for the direction, user's response for the demand, and background of lapsed time; a condition information part which has conditions having as factors the demand of the toy 1, the user's response to the demand, and lapsed time, and has an output corresponding to the conditions; an output data specification part which inputs data of direction of the body part 2 from the direction determination part, which refers to the demand response history part and the condition information part, and which specifies identification information of the output data to be outputted; an output processing part which acquires the corresponding output data from the output data part and outputs it; and a history processing part which records in the history data part the output data outputted by the output processing part, time, and the history of directions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to toys.

Conventionally, there have been toys that have a sensor and output a predetermined voice or action when the detection result of the sensor satisfies a predetermined condition. In addition, there were toys that changed the output voice and movement in various ways.

For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a toy that has a plurality of sensors and emits different voices or talks with a user depending on the combination of the presence or absence of detection of each sensor.

As a specific example, the toy of Patent Document 1 has, for example, a main body (doll body) having the shape of a doll, has contact sensors on the buttocks and forehead of the doll body, and the buttocks sensor detects contact. When the forehead sensor does not detect contact, it recognizes that the doll is sitting and is in a state where voice recognition is possible. When the user lifts the doll body, the buttock sensor does not detect the contact, and the forehead sensor detects the contact. Therefore, the user recognizes that the doll has been lifted and outputs the corresponding voice.

This type of toy outputs a predetermined voice or action triggered by a certain state. From this point, this kind of toy can be called a passive toy. For example, a toy that detects that it has been stroked and emits a predetermined sound can be mentioned.

On the other hand, there are toys that output the corresponding voices and movements in response to the voices and movements actively emitted by the user. This type of toy can be called an interactive toy because it outputs in response to the user's voice and movement. For example, a toy that returns words in response to words spoken by the user.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-6586

The passive toy described above generally receives a certain state and outputs a predetermined action or sound by using it as a trigger.

The interactive toy receives the user's voice or action and outputs the corresponding action or voice, but the toy is passive in that it outputs a predetermined action or voice after receiving the user's voice or action. It's the same as a toy.

As described above, in the conventional toys, including the passive toys and the interactive toys, the toys output some reaction by using the input as a trigger regardless of whether the input is a sensor input or an input from the user. I was trying to do it.

However, no output from the toy, unless the user exerts some action on the toy, including setting the toy in a usable state, gives the user the feeling that the toy is being used. And reduce the interest of the user.

In addition, unless the user works on the toy, if the toy continues to be unresponsive, the user often gets bored.

On the other hand, there are toys that detect and react to the inevitable movements of the user so as not to make the user aware that some action is being applied to the toy.

However, this kind of toy also makes the user bored and reduces the user's interest in that when a predetermined condition is satisfied, a constant reaction corresponding to the predetermined reaction, that is, a predictable reaction is output.

In addition, if the user does not move or the like for a long time, the toy does not output at all, so that the user tends to get bored.

For this reason, in the field of conventional toys, there has been a continuous strong demand for toys that do not make users bored.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a toy that can work on the user from the toy and output an action or a voice corresponding to the reaction of the user so that the user does not get bored.

In other words, it is an object of the present invention to provide a reverse active toy that works from the toy to the user.

The toy of the present invention is, for example,
A toy having a main body having a control device, an output device, an acceleration sensor, and a power supply.
The control device is
An orientation determination unit that determines the orientation of the main body from the acceleration data input from the acceleration sensor,
A request / response history unit that records the history of the toy's request for orientation, the user's response to the request, and the elapsed time.
A condition information unit having at least one condition having a toy request, a user's response to the request, and an elapsed time as factors, and at least one output corresponding to the condition.
An output data specifying unit that acquires orientation data of the main body from the orientation determining unit, refers to the request / response history unit and the condition information unit, and specifies identification information of output data to be output.
An output processing unit that acquires identification information of the specified output data from the output data specifying unit, acquires the corresponding output data from the output data unit that stores the output data, and outputs the corresponding output data.
It is characterized by having an output data output by the output processing unit, and a history processing unit that records the elapsed time and the history of the orientation of the main body unit in the history data unit.

The orientation may be determined by a three-axis accelerometer.

The output may be a voice output or an output of the toy's movement.

The output data specifying unit identifies the identification information of the voice output requesting to change the direction of the main body unit, causes the output processing unit to output the identification information, detects the user's response from the orientation determining unit, and makes the request. The voice output indicating satisfaction or dissatisfaction may be specified by referring to the response history unit and the condition information unit and output to the output processing unit.

The condition information unit outputs an output showing satisfaction when the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy, and when the user performs an operation contrary to the request of the toy or does not respond to the request. Conditions and correspondence may be set to output a dissatisfied output.

The condition information unit may be set with conditions and correspondence so that the degree of satisfaction or dissatisfaction increases with the passage of time.

The output data may have a plurality of audio sequences in which voice sound or sound quality or volume or content or wording or at least two combinations thereof differ from each other.

The output data specifying unit may refer to the condition information unit and specify the identification information of the output data of a predetermined voice series after the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy.

The output data specifying unit may randomly specify the identification information of the output data of a predetermined voice series after the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy.

The output data specifying unit may switch the output data of a predetermined voice series to the output data and output the output data to another voice series while the output data of the predetermined voice series is being output with the passage of time.

In the voice sequence, a voice synthesis engine of the first language decomposes a sentence of the second language into words, applies a word of the first language whose pronunciation is close to each word, and synthesizes the voice, and synthesizes the voice. May be provided as an audio output in the second language.

The output data specifying unit detects the user's response to the request from the orientation determination unit, outputs an instruction to increase the output magnitude according to the elapsed time when the request is not satisfied, and the output processing unit outputs a command to increase the output magnitude. An audio output of a corresponding magnitude may be output in response to the command.

The output data specifying unit has information on the orientation of the main body portion in which the speaker faces downward, compares the orientation data from the orientation determination unit with the orientation in which the speaker faces downward, and the speaker faces downward. When it is determined that there is, an instruction to output a large audio output may be output, and the output processing unit may output an audio output having a corresponding magnitude in response to the instruction.

It is a block diagram of the toy by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the control device by one Embodiment of this invention. It is the method of defining the orientation of a toy by one Embodiment of this invention (FIG. 3A), and it is explanatory drawing (FIG. 3B) explaining the processing of a control device. It is explanatory drawing of an example of selection of the voice sequence by the output voice identification part of one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of an example of selection of another voice sequence by the output voice identification part of one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the stored data of the history data part by one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the stored data of the condition information part by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of processing of the audio output by one Embodiment of this invention.

An example of the embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described below.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the toy 1 according to one embodiment.

The toy 1 has a main body 2. The main body 2 has a control device 3, a speaker 4 (output device), an acceleration sensor 5 (sensor), and a power supply 6.

In the toy 1 of the present embodiment, the toy 1 issues a request to the user in the direction in which the main body 2 is placed, and further outputs the request in response to the user's response to the request.

For ease of understanding, the following example requires the user to change the orientation of the toy 1 over time when the body 2 of the toy 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape and is placed in a predetermined orientation (posture). Is issued, and when the user responds to the request, an output showing satisfaction is output, and when the user does not respond to the request or a response contrary to the request, an output indicating dissatisfaction is output.

Since the main body 2 is a rectangular parallelepiped, there are six types of "directions" when each side is placed face down.

The toy 1 outputs an output indicating that the degree of dissatisfaction increases with the passage of time when the user does not respond to the request. In addition, when the user responds to the request after a long period of time, the output shows a deeper satisfaction. On the contrary, when the user responds contrary to the request after a long period of time, the content that causes dissatisfaction is output.

Since the request and output of the toy 1 are related to the "direction", the main body 2 will be described below assuming that the main body 2 has a hexahedral shape for the sake of simplicity. However, the main body 2 is not limited to a hexahedron, and any form such as a polyhedron, a doll, or an animal may be provided as long as it can maintain a posture in a certain direction for a certain period of time.

The above-mentioned "direction" will be further defined and described later.

The present embodiment includes an acceleration sensor 5 as a sensor for detecting the orientation. If the request or output of the toy 1 is for another environment (for example, temperature, sound, etc.), another type of sensor capable of detecting the state of the environment is used. Other types of sensors include, but are not limited to, motion sensors, vibration sensors, temperature sensors, humidity sensors, light sensors, and sound sensors. Of course, the sensor is not limited to one type of sensor, and may be used in combination with other sensors, for example, an acceleration sensor 5 and another sensor such as a motion sensor may be used in combination.

Since the toy 1 of the present embodiment is an example of outputting voice as an output, it has a speaker 4 as an output device. However, the output device of the toy 1 is not limited to the speaker 4.

That is, the output of the toy 1 is not limited to the voice output as long as it can express satisfaction and dissatisfaction. For example, the toy 1 may express a feeling of satisfaction or dissatisfaction by its movement.

When referring to the "motion" of the toy 1 in the present specification, the "motion" is not limited to a motion, but includes a motion without motion, such as a change in color, illuminance, temperature, or odor. ..

Therefore, the output device of the toy 1 may be a drive device that causes the toy 1 to perform a predetermined movement, a lighting device that changes the color or illuminance, a heater that changes the temperature or odor, or the like, in addition to the speaker 4.

The power source 6 is generally a battery, but since it is sufficient to provide power, it includes an external power source connected by a cord or the like.

FIG. 2 shows the functional configuration of the control device 3.

The control device 3 has an orientation determination unit 7, an output voice specifying unit 8, a voice output processing unit 9, and a history processing unit 10 as modules for processing data.

Further, the control device 3 has a condition information unit 11, a request / response history unit 12, a voice data unit 13, and a history data unit 14 for storing and managing data.

In the present embodiment, since the environment in which the toy issues a request depending on the state is the "orientation" in which the toy is placed, the orientation determination unit 7 is provided, but the orientation determination unit 7 is a superordinate concept thereof. This is an example of a certain environmental condition determination unit. If the environment changes, so will the judgment method and sensors.

Further, in the present embodiment, since the toy outputs by voice, it has an output voice specifying unit 8, a voice output processing unit 9, and a voice data unit 13, which are higher-level concepts of each. This is an example of an output processing unit and an output data unit. As described above, the output includes voice and operation, and the format of the output data differs depending on the type of output.

The functions of each part of the control device 3 are as follows.

The orientation determination unit 7 acquires acceleration data from the acceleration sensor 5 and determines the orientation of the main body 2. The request / response history unit 12 records and manages the request of the toy 1 with respect to the orientation of the main body 2, the response of the user to the request, and the history of the passage of time.

The condition information unit 11 stores information used for processing for specifying voice data (output voice) to be output. In the condition information unit 11, for example, a rule is stored for determining the voice data to be output next from the history of the voice or the like output in the past. In addition, a correspondence table is stored in which the request of the toy 1, the response of the user to the request, at least one condition having the passage of time as a factor, and at least one output corresponding to the condition are associated with each other. There is.
The output voice specifying unit 8 inputs the orientation data of the main body 2 from the orientation determination unit 7, refers to the request / response history unit 12 and the condition information unit 11, and specifies the identification information of the voice data to be output.

The voice output processing unit 9 inputs the identification information of the voice data to be output specified by the output voice specifying unit 8, acquires the corresponding voice data from the voice data unit 13, and outputs the corresponding voice data. Therefore, the voice data unit 13 stores voice data (voice file in wav or mp3 format) corresponding to the identification information of the voice data. The voice data may be stored in advance, or may be generated and stored by voice synthesis from text when necessary.

The history processing unit 10 records and manages the output data output by the voice output processing unit 9 and the history of time and direction in the history data unit 14.

The specific processing of the control device 3 will be described below with reference to FIG.

FIG. 3A shows a method of defining the orientation of the toy 1. The main body 2 of the toy 1 is a rectangular parallelepiped (a hexahedron in which three sets of surfaces parallel to each other are orthogonal to each other). The center of the main body 2 is the origin O, and the spatial coordinate axes are X, Y, and Z. Of the X, Y, and Z axes, the Z axis is vertical and the X and Y axes are horizontal. Preferably, the X, Y, and Z axes are arranged parallel to or at right angles to each surface of the main body 2.

In such a coordinate system, the orientation of the toy 1 can be defined by the rotation angles θ _X , θ _Y , and θ _Z with respect to the coordinate axes X, Y, and Z.

The value of the rotation angle θ _Z around the Z axis changes depending on which direction in the horizontal direction the bottom surface of the main body 2 is oriented horizontally. When the toy 1 considers the deflection with respect to a certain horizontal direction as a reference, the rotation angle θ _Z is set as one element of the direction. For example, there is a case where a sensor detects the direction in which the user is, and a request or output is made by deflecting the direction with respect to that direction.

In the example of the present embodiment, since the environment in which the toy 1 outputs voice is the posture in which the toy 1 is placed except for the orientation in the horizontal plane, only the rotation angles θ _X and θ _{Y with} respect to the X axis and the Y axis are used. , The orientation of the main body 2 may be specified. The left-right inclination and the front-back inclination of the main body 2 can be defined by the rotation angle θ _X around the X-axis and the rotation angle θ _Y around the Y-axis.

The acceleration sensor 5 can be a so-called "three-axis acceleration sensor" that detects acceleration in the three-axis directions of X, Y, and Z. The toy 1 is constantly subjected to gravitational acceleration. Therefore, the orientation determination unit 7 can determine the orientation in which the toy 1 is placed, depending on which axis of the acceleration sensor shows a value close to the positive or negative gravitational acceleration. For example, when the acceleration sensor that detects the Z-axis direction in FIG. 3 detects positive gravitational acceleration (including an error range), the upper surface of the box shown in FIG. 3 is placed upward (that is, that is). It can be determined that θx = 0 °, θy = 0 °). On the contrary, when a negative gravitational acceleration (including an error range) is detected, it can be determined that the upper surface is placed downward (that is, θx = 180 °, θy = 0 °). For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when a person is drawn on the box, the ventral side is grounded (θx = 0 °, θy = 270 °), the back side is grounded (θx = 0 °, θy = 90 °), and the foot side. Is grounded (θx = 0 °, θy = 0 °), the head side is grounded (θx = 0 °, θy = 180 °), the left hand side is grounded (θx = 90 °, θy = 0 °), and the right hand side is grounded. The six states (θx = 270 °, θy = 0 °) can be easily detected.

The control device 3 integrally controls the operation of the toy 1. The control device 3 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) which is an arithmetic device, a RAM (Random Access Memory) which is a volatile storage device, a ROM (Read Only Memory) which is a non-volatile storage device, and a control device 3. It can be realized by a computer including an interface (I / F) circuit for connecting other units, a bus for connecting these to each other, and the like. The control device 3 may be realized by an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or the like.

At least a part of the function of the control device 3 can be realized by, for example, the CPU reading a predetermined program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executing the program. The predetermined program is, for example, an application program that runs on an OS (Operating System), and can be read from a portable storage medium and installed, or downloaded and installed from a server on a network.

FIG. 3B shows a method in which the toy 1 outputs a sound depending on the orientation and the passage of time.

In FIG. 3B, the orientation and elapsed time in which the toy 1 is placed and the history portion of the user's response are managed by the request response history unit 12. Further, the relationship of selecting predetermined voice data on the condition of the orientation in which the toy is placed, the elapsed time, and the response history of the user is stored and managed in the condition information unit 11.

The “time” column in the table of FIG. 3 (b) indicates the time when the orientation of the toy 1 is detected. For t ₁ , t ₂ , t ₃ , ..., The orientation of the toy 1 is preferably detected at regular time intervals t.

The columns θ _X and θ _{Y in} the table of FIG. 3B indicate the orientation (angle) of the toy 1. In the present embodiment, since the rotation angle θ _Z around the Z axis is not used as an element, the orientation of the toy 1 is defined by the rotation angles θ _X and θ _Y.

The “T” column in the table of FIG. 3 (b) indicates the cumulative length of time that has elapsed since the orientation was fixed.

The right side of the table of FIG. 3B shows the audio output to be output on condition of the orientation in which the toy 1 is placed, the elapsed time, and the history of the user's response. For example, N2 (S1, N1) indicates that the history of S1 and N2 is obtained and N2 is output.

N, M, O, P, Q, ... Indicates a voice sequence of voice output. A voice sequence is a group of voice outputs in which voice sound (fear), sound quality, volume, content, wording, or at least two combinations thereof are different for each series. For example, there are a voice series based on a child's voice, a voice series based on a woman's voice, and a voice series such as a foreigner speaking Japanese. Even if the voice sounds are the same, it has a voice series with gentle wording and a voice series with rough wording. Alternatively, there is a voice sequence that includes a dialect.

The numbers added to the characters representing the voice series, such as N1, N2, N3, ..., Indicates the depth in the same voice series, that is, the degree of dissatisfaction and satisfaction over time.

The request by the toy 1 of the present embodiment requests that the toys change their orientations when they are placed in the same orientation, and the longer the time when they are placed in the same orientation, the more dissatisfied with the audio output. The degree of indication is high. The numbers added to the voice series such as N1, N2, N3, ... Mainly indicate the degree of dissatisfaction in the same voice series. The higher the number, the higher the degree of dissatisfaction. If the user performs an action that meets the demand in a place where the degree of dissatisfaction is high, the degree of satisfaction is also high.

A code composed of a voice sequence and a number, such as N1, N2, etc., has a one-to-one correspondence with voice output (voice data), and is identification information of voice data to be output.

Like N3 (S1, N1, N2), S1, N1, N2 in parentheses of N3 indicate the history up to N3. This history is a condition for determining the next audio output. That is, the history shows the history of how the request of the toy 1 is made, and based on the history, the output can be changed according to the history, for example, the degree of dissatisfaction is rapidly increased. In addition, the audio sequence of the next audio output can be changed according to the history.

The rule for determining the next audio output from the history is stored in the condition information unit 11 in advance. For example, the audio output of the same series is determined in numerical order until a predetermined time elapses from a certain series, and when the predetermined time elapses, it is changed to another predetermined (may be randomly determined) series. Also, if the orientation is changed while the same series continues, it changes to another predetermined (may be randomly determined) series.

When the voice is output in the same voice series, it seems that the same person or thing speaks to the voice, and the continuous request continues. On the other hand, if the voice sequence changes on the way, it feels like the voice has changed significantly due to emotions, and the user can continue to be interested without getting bored.

Here, the mechanism by which the audio output changes will be described over time.

At time t ₁ of FIG. 3 (b), the process is started the control device 3, as a reference for the toy 1 faces the starting orientation as theta _{X =} 0 and θ _{Y =} 0. The elapsed time T is 0. The audio output (identification information) at this time is S1. S1 may be a default greeting or a start message.
Next, it is shown that the time at _{t 2,} the toy 1 is rotated 90 degrees around the X-axis, rotation angle _theta X = 90 °, it becomes θ _Y = 0 °. The elapsed time T from the orientation of θ _X = 90 ° and θ _Y = 0 ° is 0. As the audio output at this time, an N-series audio sequence is selected. Since the starting point of the change to the N-series voice sequence is the immediately preceding output S1, S1 is shown at the beginning of the history. Here, the number indicating the degree of S1 is 1. Therefore, N1 (S1) is a message showing a light satisfaction, for example, "I'm glad I lay down".

Then, at time t _3, the rotation angle θ _{X =} 90 ° toy 1, θ _{Y =} 0 ° in the state is maintained, and t time has passed from when in that state. At this time, the audio output N2 (S1, N1) is determined based on the histories S1 and N1. The voice output N2 (S1, N1) is a message such as "It's about time to wake up" by increasing the degree of request.

Then, at time _{t 4,} the rotation angle of the toy 1 _{θ X} = 90 °, from becoming a state of θ _Y = 0 ° 2t time has elapsed. At this time, audio output N3 (S1, N1, N2) is output based on the history S1, N1, N2. In this case, the degree of satisfaction and dissatisfaction is 3 because the user does not respond to any request even after the lapse of time 2t. Therefore, the voice output N3 (S1, N1, N2) can output a message such as "Wake up early!".

Then, at time _{t 5,} the rotation angle of the toy 1 _{θ X} = 180 °, in the state of θ _Y = 0 °. This indicates that the user did not raise the toy 1 normally as requested, but placed it upside down. That is, it indicates that the user has performed an operation contrary to the request of the toy 1. The elapsed time from this state is 0, but since it is clear from the history that the user performed an operation contrary to the request regardless of the repeated request, for example, the voice of the M-sequence with rough wording. The sequence is selected and the rough word M1 (N3) is output.

Then, at time _{t 6,} the rotation angle of the toy 1 _{θ X} = 180 °, the state of θ _Y = 0 ° is maintained, has elapsed time t. Audio output M2 (N3, M1) is output based on the history N3, M1. The degree of dissatisfaction is even greater, and it is possible to output a message such as "No, wake up early!".

Next, at time t ₇ , the state of rotation angles θ _X = 180 ° and θ _Y = 0 ° of the toy 1 is maintained, and a time of 2 t has elapsed. Audio output M3 (N3, M1, M2) is output based on the history N3, M1, M2. The voice output M3 (N3, M1, M2) can output a message corresponding to the orientation of the toy 1, such as "Itetete, blood spills on the head, wake up quickly!".

Then, at time _{t 8,} the rotational angle _{θ X} = 270 ° of the toy 1, becomes a state of theta _Y = 0 °, the elapsed time T since in this state is 0. The change in orientation indicates that the user has responded to the request of Toy 1. The history has M3, which is the previous final operation. The history of M3 is found to be M3 (N3, M1, M2) by referring to the previous history, and the user responds to the previous request of N3 in the M voice sequence up to that point. Therefore, it shows that the toy 1 is in trouble. Therefore, when the rotation angle θ _X = 270 °, the upside-down state is alleviated, a slightly gentle O series is selected as the voice series, and a voice output O1 (M3) showing a slightly relieved satisfaction is output. To. The voice output O1 (M3) can output, for example, "Good, lay down." The voice output of the toy 1 can output a corresponding message with reference to the current orientation.

Next, at time t ₉ , the state of rotation angles θ _X = 270 ° and θ _Y = 0 ° of the toy 1 is maintained, and t time has elapsed. The degree of dissatisfaction has increased to 2. Based on the history M3 and O1, the audio output O2 (M3, O1) refers to the rotation angle θ _X = 90 ° of the previous history, for example, "It is better to use the left side instead of the right side." be able to. That is, it is possible to change to a different request depending on the degree of dissatisfaction 2.

At time _{t 10,} the rotational angle _{θ X} = 270 ° of the toy 1, θ _Y = 0 ° in the state is maintained, has elapsed 2t time. Therefore, the degree of dissatisfaction has increased to 3. The voice output may be called, for example, "Hey, wake up early".

At time _{t 11,} the rotational angle _{θ X} = 270 ° is be maintained, the rotation angle of the Y axis is changed to θ _Y = 90 °. This indicates that the user did not raise the toy 1 but knocked it forward. In this state, the elapsed time T becomes 0. Since this new orientation is the response of the user contrary to the request of the toy 1, the voice series P having a high degree of dissatisfaction as a whole can be selected and the voice output by the voice series P can be started.

The time t ₁₁ and subsequent, similarly there are differences schematic, based on a predetermined algorithm, it is possible to select the next audio output, continues to output the sound.

Note that the audio output of the t ₁₁ after the above time t ₁ has been described in example degree basically dissatisfaction increases. That is, the case where the degree of dissatisfaction increases when left in a certain state or placed in a state contrary to the demand was explained.

However, the degree of dissatisfaction and the degree of satisfaction are in a two-sided relationship, and audio may be output according to the degree of satisfaction.

That is, if the requirement is satisfied, the degree of satisfaction becomes a large value, and if not, the degree of satisfaction may decrease.

In this case, since the voice output is such that the degree of satisfaction gradually decreases, it gives an impression of so-called "complaining", and can give different effects to the user's emotions.

Further, although the above description does not explain the change in volume, the audio output may change the volume.

That is, the volume may be increased as the time when the requirement is not satisfied becomes longer. In order to realize such audio output, the output audio identification unit 8 has a volume-related command during the instruction to the audio output processing unit 9, and the audio output processing unit 9 increases or decreases the volume when the speaker 4 outputs the sound. To be able to control and output.

Further, the volume may be increased when the surface of the main body 2 provided with the speaker 4 faces downward.

In order to realize such audio output, the output audio identification unit 8 inputs the direction of the main body 2 from the orientation determination unit 7, and when the surface on which the speaker 4 is provided faces downward, the audio output processing unit 8 A command to increase the volume is output to the speaker 9, and the voice output processing unit 9 can output the volume by controlling the volume to be large when the speaker 4 outputs the command.

The method of selecting the audio output has been described above, but the selection / identification of the next audio output is performed with reference to the history up to that point. However, if the audio output is repeated in a certain relationship, the user is often bored. Here, a method of giving a change to the audio output will be described.

One method of giving a change to the voice output is to have the condition information unit 11 store and manage all the patterns of the change of the voice output, and randomly select the pattern with a certain degree of freedom. However, in this method, the number of change patterns of the audio output stored in the condition information unit 11 becomes enormous. In addition, it is difficult for the change pattern of the voice output to fit the history of the request of the toy 1 and the response of the user up to that point.

Another method is to make the condition information unit 11 have a basic correspondence between the history and the audio output, and the output audio identification unit 8 has an algorithm for modifying the correspondence of the condition information unit 11. is there.

That is, the condition information unit 11 stores the voice output corresponding to the condition, but the voice output belongs to the voice series, and each voice series includes the degree of dissatisfaction, the brightness of the expression, the voice, and the wording. Attributes are attached by the content.

The output voice specifying unit 8 determines the voice sequence and the degree of satisfaction and dissatisfaction according to the rule of the conditional information processing unit 11, that is, the rule for determining the voice output on the condition of the response history, and specifies the voice to be output. The identification information is output. It should be noted that each voice sequence has a plurality of voice outputs according to the degree of satisfaction and dissatisfaction, and the output voice specifying unit 8 can select the voice output from any dissatisfaction of any voice series.

Further, the output voice specifying unit 8 makes it possible to change the voice series to be output with a certain probability when there are a plurality of selectable voice series.

FIG. 4 illustrates the selection of the voice sequence by the output voice specifying unit 8.

The "Voice series" column in the table of FIG. 4 indicates the current voice series. "Next selected voice sequence" in the table indicates the next selected voice series. The "Satisfaction" column indicates that the same voice sequence can be started from any degree of satisfaction / dissatisfaction. The primary, secondary, ... correspond to the satisfaction numbers.

If the current voice sequence is N, the default value is to select the voice sequence N as well. On the other hand, the output voice specifying unit 8 can change the voice series N to the voice series O by referring to the history up to that point.

In addition, the audio output can be started from the order of the satisfaction of the audio series selected by inheriting the magnitude of the immediately preceding satisfaction.

As shown in FIG. 4, the output voice specifying unit 8 can change to the voice series O with a certain probability and select another voice series.

Alternatively, the output voice specifying unit 8 can select an arbitrary voice sequence completely randomly.

FIG. 5 shows the selection of another voice sequence by the output voice specifying unit 8.

In the case of FIG. 4, when the output voice specifying unit 8 selects one series of voice output, the same voice series is output until the next user responds.

On the other hand, in FIG. 5, it is possible to switch to another voice series in the middle of the output of the same voice series. The trigger for switching can be arbitrarily provided in the output voice specifying unit 8 or the condition information unit 11. For example, if the user does not respond to the request of the toy 1 for a predetermined number of times, the output voice specifying unit 8 can switch to another emotional voice series on the way. This makes it appear that there are emotional ups and downs.

Further, even when the voice series is switched in the middle, it is possible to select an arbitrary voice series from a plurality of voice series (M, O, P in the example of FIG. 5) with a predetermined probability.

As is clear from the above description, according to the toy 1 of the present embodiment, the toy 1 actively makes a request to the user and requests a response from the user, so that the user pays attention to the toy. It is possible to prevent the toy from disappearing.

Further, according to the toy 1 of the present embodiment, the toy 1 has a change of emotion, and the corresponding voice is output from the history of the user's response. Therefore, it is possible to capture the user's response and work on the user more interactively to prevent the user from getting bored.

Further, by including the contents irrelevant to the orientation of the toy 1 in the voice series and making them randomly selected, it is possible to attract the attention of the user and prevent boredom. As an example, it may include audio sequences such as funny stories and daily sayings.

Furthermore, the state of the surrounding environment may be acquired by a sensor and the voice sequence may be changed.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the stored data of the history data unit 14.

The "elapsed time" column of FIG. 6 stores data of times t1, t2, t3, ..., Which detect the direction and output the sound. The “History (direction)” column in the figure stores the direction data θ _X , θ _Y , and θ _Z corresponding to each elapsed time. The "History (output)" column in the figure stores the data of the output voice series. The "History (ID)" column in the figure stores the output voice data N1, N2, ....

FIG. 7 shows an example of the stored data of the condition information unit 11.

In the "condition ID" column of FIG. 7, the identification number of the default condition is stored. In the "condition" column of the figure, data such as a default condition, that is, the current orientation of the toy 1, the duration of the same orientation, the previous orientation, and the like are stored. Audio output data N1, N2, N3, ... Are stored in the "audio data" in the figure.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing of voice output by the toy 1.

When the power is turned on to the toy 1, the control device 3 starts the process (S100).

First, the orientation determination unit determines the orientation of the toy 1, specifically the main body 2 (S110).

Next, the output voice identification unit 8 specifies the identification information of the voice to be output next by using the determined direction, the history of the request / response history unit 12, the stored information of the condition information unit 11, and the like (S120).

Next, the voice output processing unit 9 acquires the identification information of the voice data specified from the output voice specifying unit 8, acquires the corresponding voice data from the voice data unit 13, and outputs the corresponding voice data to an output device such as the speaker 4. (S130).

Next, the history processing unit 10 records the history in the history data unit 14 based on the output voice output (S140).

When the processes of S100 to S140 are completed, the control device 3 returns to the orientation determination of S110, and then repeats the processes of processes S110 to S140.

Here, as an example of the voice series, a voice series such as Japanese pronunciation by a foreigner will be described.

Such a voice series is referred to as a "non-standard Japanese voice series" here because the pronunciation is non-standard Japanese in a superordinate concept.

Non-standard Japanese speech sequences that are synthesized by a speech synthesis engine often attract more human attention than those that are actually pronounced by humans.

The specific method of generating a non-standard Japanese voice sequence is to use a foreign language (first language) voice synthesis engine to decompose the target Japanese (second language) sentence into words, and then use the words in each second language. Apply a word in the first language that has a similar pronunciation to, and let the speech synthesis engine of the foreign language (first language) pronounce it.

As a result, the voice synthesis engine reads out sentences that do not make sense as a foreign language (first language), but as Japanese (second language), the pronunciation is strange and non-standard, but the meaning is understood. Japanese (second language) voice is generated.

The reason for providing such a non-standard Japanese voice sequence is that the voice output in Japanese, which is a little strange for Toy 1, attracts the user's attention and is used compared to the voice output in standard Japanese. This is because it does not make people bored.

For example, the output voice specifying unit 8 normally selects voice data of a standard voice series as the identification information of the voice data to be output, but when a predetermined time elapses for not responding to the request of the toy 1. It is also possible to select audio data of a non-standard audio series having a strange pronunciation.

Based on the above description, those skilled in the art may be able to conceive of additional effects and various modifications of the present invention, but the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments. Various additions, changes and partial deletions can be made without departing from the conceptual idea and purpose of the present invention derived from the contents defined in the claims and their equivalents.

1: Toy 2: Main body 3: Control device 4: Speaker 5: Acceleration sensor 6: Power supply 7: Direction determination unit 8: Output voice identification unit 9: Voice output processing unit 10: History processing unit 11: Condition information unit 12: Request response history unit 13: Voice data unit 14: History data unit

Claims (14)

A toy having a main body having a control device, an output device, an acceleration sensor, and a power supply.
The control device is
An orientation determination unit that determines the orientation of the main body from the acceleration data input from the acceleration sensor,
A toy request for orientation, a user response to the request, a request response history unit that records the history of elapsed time, and the like.
A condition information unit having at least one condition having a toy request, a user's response to the request, and an elapsed time as factors, and at least one output corresponding to the condition.
An output data specifying unit that acquires orientation data of the main body from the orientation determining unit, refers to the request / response history unit and the condition information unit, and specifies identification information of output data to be output.
An output processing unit that acquires identification information of the specified output data from the output data specifying unit, acquires the corresponding output data from the output data unit that stores the output data, and outputs the corresponding output data.
A toy having an output data output by the output processing unit, a history processing unit that records the elapsed time, and a history of orientation of the main body unit in the history data unit. The toy according to claim 1.
The orientation is a toy determined by a 3-axis accelerometer. The toy according to claim 1 or 2.
The output is a voice output or an output of the movement of the toy, the toy. The toy according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
The output data specifying unit identifies the identification information of the voice output requesting to change the orientation of the main body unit, outputs the identification information to the output processing unit, detects the user's response from the orientation determining unit, and performs the request. A toy that identifies a voice output indicating satisfaction or dissatisfaction by referring to the response history unit and the condition information unit, and outputs the voice output to the output processing unit. The toy according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The condition information unit outputs an output showing satisfaction when the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy, and when the user performs an operation contrary to the request of the toy or does not respond to the request. A toy whose conditions and correspondence are set to output a dissatisfied output. The toy according to claim 5.
The condition information unit is a toy in which conditions and correspondence are set so that the degree of satisfaction or dissatisfaction increases with the passage of time. The toy according to any one of claims 1 to 6.
The output data is a toy having a plurality of voice sequences in which voice sound or sound quality or volume or content or wording or at least two combinations thereof differ from each other. The toy according to claim 7.
The output data specifying unit is a toy that, after the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy, refers to the condition information unit and specifies identification information of output data of a predetermined voice series. The toy according to claim 7.
The output data specifying unit is a toy that randomly identifies identification information of output data of a predetermined voice series after the user performs an operation in response to the request of the toy. The toy according to claim 9.
The output data specifying unit is a toy capable of switching the output data of a predetermined voice series to output data and outputting the output data to another voice series while outputting the output data with the passage of time. The toy according to any one of claims 7 to 10.
In the voice sequence, a voice synthesis engine of the first language decomposes a sentence of the second language into words, applies a word of the first language whose pronunciation is close to each word, and synthesizes the voice, and synthesizes the voice. As an audio output in the second language. The toy according to any one of claims 1 to 11.
The output data specifying unit is a toy that identifies voices having non-standard pronunciation as identification information of voice data to be output when a predetermined time elapses for a time during which the operation of responding to the request of the toy is not performed. The toy according to any one of claims 4 to 12.
The output data specifying unit detects the user's response to the request from the orientation determination unit, and outputs a command to increase the magnitude of the output according to the elapsed time when the request is not satisfied.
The output processing unit is a toy that outputs an audio output of a corresponding size in response to the command. The toy according to any one of claims 4 to 13.
The output data specifying unit has information on the orientation of the main body portion in which the speaker faces downward, compares the orientation data from the orientation determination unit with the orientation in which the speaker faces downward, and the speaker faces downward. When it is determined that there is, a command to output a large audio output is output, and
The output processing unit is a toy that outputs an audio output of a corresponding size in response to the command.