JP2022118768A - Aroma display, computer program, and method of operating aroma display - Google Patents

Abstract

To make blowing of air containing aroma less annoying while moderately retaining emission of aroma from an aroma display.SOLUTION: An aroma display comprises: an aroma cartridges 130, ..., 140 to hold aroma sources; micro-blowers 180, ..., 190 to generate an air flow for jetting aroma out of the aroma cartridges 130, ..., 140 in response to a drive signal; and a control board 98 to generate the drive signal and give it to the micro-blowers 180, ..., 190 such that the air flow jets out with a strength according to a level of environmental sound obtained by a microphone 72, in response to an aroma generation command signal given from an outside.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

The present invention relates to a scent display, and more particularly to an improved scent display capable of releasing various scents by loading a plurality of scent cartridges.

Human communication has various modes according to human senses. The most commonly used of these are visual and auditory communication. On the other hand, although the sense of smell is used relatively frequently in human life, there are very few examples of using it for communication. However, if it becomes possible to use the sense of smell in addition to sight and hearing in communication, communication will become more efficient and various people will be able to share their experiences more deeply.

Focusing on these points, recently, a device has been proposed which is used with a device capable of reproducing video and audio, such as a television receiver, a personal computer, and a game machine, and emits a scent according to the scene. In this specification, such a device that emits scent according to the scene is called a scent display.

For example, when holding a gathering of some kind, it is conceivable to use the scent display to emit a specific scent at the venue that is consistent with the purpose of the gathering. In addition, for example, by generating a scent that calms the mind when going to bed and a scent that invites a refreshing feeling when waking up, each day can be lived more comfortably.

Therefore, in such a scent display, the scent cannot be fully utilized unless it has a function to freely switch between multiple scents. Therefore, a plurality of cartridges (referred to as scent cartridges) each containing a pre-selected source of scent (referred to as a scent source) are prepared, loaded into the scent display, and the scent emitted from the desired cartridge. can be considered.

The cartridge is provided with a scent passage through which the scent from the scent source inside is released to the outside, and by providing a mechanism on the scent display side that sends air into the cartridge at the desired timing, the scent is released to the outside through the scent passage. . In addition to the mechanism for releasing scent from these cartridges, the scent display is provided with a mechanism for releasing air containing no scent components having a release port near the scent passage of the cartridge. After releasing a certain fragrance, when switching to the next fragrance, air is released from this air release mechanism to blow away the surrounding air containing the fragrance, and then the next fragrance is released. By doing so, the scent can be switched at any timing without mixing the scents.

Such a technique is disclosed in Patent Literature 1 listed below. The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 is as outlined above. However, the housing of the scent display is formed with an opening for releasing scent to the outside, and the scent passage of each scent cartridge and the air outlet are both connected to this opening. Each scent cartridge is detachably loaded in the housing of the scent display. An opening for blowing air into the fragrance cartridge is formed at a predetermined portion of each fragrance cartridge. When the scent cartridges are loaded in the scent display, a wind source having a built-in diaphragm with a piezoelectric element is built in corresponding to each scent cartridge in a portion facing the opening on the scent display side. When an AC voltage is applied to this piezoelectric element, the diaphragm vibrates, sending air into the fragrance cartridge through the nozzle provided in the wind source and the opening of the fragrance cartridge. From the fragrance cartridge to which the air is sent, the air containing the fragrance corresponding to the internal fragrance source is released to the outside through the fragrance passage. Various other mechanisms for sending air into the fragrance cartridge are conceivable.

JP 2014-92673 A

According to the scent display configured as described above, the scent can be freely switched depending on which wind power source is operated. Therefore, by programming which fragrance to emit at which time, there is an excellent effect that one can spend every day comfortably as described above.

However, the device disclosed in Patent Literature 1 employs a mechanism in which air is sent into the fragrance cartridge, the pressure inside the fragrance cartridge is increased, and the fragrance-laden air is released from the fragrance cartridge. Therefore, when the scent is emitted from the scent display, there is a problem that the scent is emitted, although it is small. This sound is not very noticeable when there is some environmental sound. However, when the surroundings are very quiet, such as when sleeping or meditating, some people may find these sounds annoying. On the other hand, in order to release the scent and achieve the intended purpose, a certain amount of power is required to blow out the air containing the scent. Can not. There is a need for a technique that achieves both simultaneously.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a scent display, a computer program therefor, and a method of operating the scent display, in which the sound of blowing scent-laden air is not disturbing while the scent emitted from the scent display is kept moderate. It is to be.

A scent display according to a first aspect of the present invention comprises a scent source holding means for holding a scent source, and an air flow generator for generating an air flow for ejecting the scent from the scent source holding means in response to a drive signal. and a drive signal generator for generating a drive signal in response to an externally applied scent generation instruction signal so as to blow out an air flow with a strength according to the level of the environmental sound, and applying the drive signal to the air flow generation means. means.

Preferably, the drive signal generation means includes drive control signal generation means for generating a drive control signal for driving the airflow generation means in response to the scent generation instruction signal, and a drive control signal generation means for generating the drive control signal according to the level of the environmental sound. and power control means for controlling power and outputting it as a drive signal.

More preferably, the power control means includes comparison means for comparing the voltage level of the level signal indicating the level of the environmental sound with a predetermined threshold value, and the output of the comparison means is used to modulate the drive control signal for driving. and modulating means for outputting as a signal.

More preferably, the modulating means includes means for modulating the amplitude or wavelength, or both, of the drive control signal with the output of the comparing means.

Preferably, the scent display further includes level measuring means for measuring the level of ambient sound and outputting a level signal.

More preferably, the scent display further includes a communication device for receiving the level signal from outside the scent display via wireless or wired communication and providing it to the comparison means.

More preferably, the comparing means includes a comparator with hysteresis.

A computer program according to a second aspect of the present invention provides a scent source holding means for holding a scent source, and an air flow generator for generating an air flow for causing the scent source holding means to spray fragrance in response to a drive signal. means for controlling the scent display, the computer comprising: sampling means for sampling a level signal indicative of the intensity level of the ambient sound; and comparing the output of the sampling means to a predetermined threshold. and a drive signal generating means for generating a drive signal by controlling the amplitude or wavelength or both of them according to the output of the comparing means in response to a scent generation instruction signal from the outside.

Preferably, the computer program further causes the computer to function as threshold control means for varying the predetermined threshold value in response to the output of the comparison means.

A method according to a third aspect of the present invention comprises incense source holding means for holding an incense source, and air flow generating means for generating an air flow for injecting fragrance from the incense source holding means in response to a drive signal. and generating a level signal indicating the level of environmental sound; and responding to an externally applied scent generation instruction signal to increase the strength of the level signal according to the voltage level of the level signal. generating and applying a drive signal to the airflow generating means to eject the airflow at .

Objects, configurations, and effects of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the appearance of the scent display according to the first embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the scent display shown in FIG. 1 as seen obliquely from above. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the scent display shown in FIG. 2 as viewed obliquely from above. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the fragrance cartridge as seen obliquely from above. FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a microblower. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the scent display shown in FIG. 1 through the plane indicated by arrows 6-6. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing air movement paths within the scent display. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control circuit for the scent display. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the amplitude control circuit in the first embodiment. FIG. 10 is a waveform diagram for explaining amplitude control of the drive signal in the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a wavelength control circuit according to the second embodiment. FIG. 12 is a waveform diagram for explaining wavelength control of drive signals in the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the amplitude and wavelength control circuit in the third embodiment. FIG. 14 is a waveform diagram for explaining amplitude and wavelength control of drive signals in the third embodiment. FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the amplitude and wavelength control circuit in the fourth embodiment. FIG. 16 is a waveform diagram for explaining amplitude and wavelength control of drive signals in the fourth embodiment. FIG. 17 is a flow chart showing the control structure of a computer program executed by a processor to implement drive signal amplitude control in the fifth embodiment. FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a drive signal amplitude control circuit according to the sixth embodiment. FIG. 19 is a waveform diagram for explaining amplitude control of the drive signal in the sixth embodiment.

In the following description and drawings, identical parts are provided with identical reference numerals. Therefore, detailed description thereof will not be repeated. Also, it should be understood that not all portions of the embodiments described below are essential to the invention. Such portions may be absent or replaced by other forms.

[First embodiment]
<Configuration>
FIG. 1 shows an external view of a scent display 50 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The scent display 50 has a substantially hexagonal prism-shaped housing 60 . An opening region 64 is arranged in the central portion of the upper panel at a position corresponding to the bottom plate of the hexagonal column of the housing 60 . An opening 68 is formed in the center of the open area 64 through which scent-free air is released. Around it are formed six openings, including an opening 70, through which scent-laden air is emitted. An air release mechanism that does not contain fragrance components is provided in the housing 60, and the air from the release mechanism is released from the opening. Scented air is emitted from six scent cartridges (not shown in FIG. 1) housed inside housing 60 . As will be described later, these scent cartridges hold a scent source inside and can release air from the scent source to the outside.

A microphone 72 for converting ambient sounds (environmental sounds) around the scent display 50 into electrical signals is provided on the lower surface of the scent display 50 . A camera tripod 62 can be attached near the microphone 72 . When the tripod 62 is attached in this way, the scent display 50 can be placed, for example, very close to the personal computer, and the scent display 50 can be arranged so that the opening region 64 is very close to the face of the user of the personal computer and faces the user's face. It is effective in delivering the scent of

A micro USB connector 66 is provided on the side of the housing 60 . In this embodiment, the connector 66 supplies power to the scent display 50 through a USB cable and charges the battery built into the scent display 50 . The circuitry of the scent display 50 does not communicate with the outside via the USB cable. A circuit inside the scent display 50 performs data communication with the outside through wireless communication. Of course, the internal circuit of the scent display 50 may perform wired data communication with the outside through this USB cable.

Referring to FIG. 2, the housing 60 includes a base panel 82, a base housing 84 arranged on the top of the base panel 82 and screwed to the base panel 82, and a base housing 84 extending from the top of the base housing 84. An intermediate housing 86 assembled to 84, an upper housing 88 that is assembled to the upper portion of the intermediate housing 86, opens to the top, and has a cartridge housing portion that houses a fragrance cartridge (not shown) inside, and the upper housing 88. and a top panel 90 assembled to the top housing 88 to cover the top opening of the housing. Removing the top panel 90 opens the opening in the top housing 88 to allow the user to access the scent cartridge housing and load or remove the scent cartridge into and out of the housing.

2 and 3, in this embodiment, the cross section of the upper housing 88 has a regular hexagonal shape, and inside the upper housing 88 are six scent cartridges 130, 132, 134, 136, Cartridge receiving portions 110, 112, 114, 116, 118 and 120 are formed which can receive 138 and 140 (cartridges 138 and 140 are not shown in FIG. 3). An NFC tag is provided on the bottom surface of each scent cartridge, as will be described later, and an NFC chip capable of wireless communication with this NFC tag is provided inside the upper housing 88 in the vicinity thereof. These will be described later.

, 120 and the inner wall of the upper housing 88, the inside of the cartridges 130, . . . Microblowers 150, 152, 154, 156, 158 and 160 (microblowers 158 and 160 not shown in FIG. 3) are provided for blowing air into the chamber.

A side surface of the base housing 84 is formed with a screw hole 92 to which the tripod 62 (FIG. 1) can be attached as shown in FIGS. The threaded hole 92 is formed to a suitable standard so that a camera tripod can be engaged.

Referring to FIG. 3, the base housing 84 incorporates a control board 98 having a communication device capable of communicating with the outside by wireless communication and a control circuit for driving a micro-blower, which will be described later, and a battery serving as the power supply for the control board 98. It is Between the intermediate housing 86 and the upper housing 88 is provided an NFC chip stage 102 having six NFC chips such as NFC chips 180, 182, and 184 mounted on its upper surface. Further, the base panel 82 is formed with a number of small holes 96 for taking in air for generating power to blow the scent-laden air out of the scent cartridge. A filter 94 is provided between the base panel 82 and the base housing 84 to remove dust, dirt and the like from the intake air.

Six NFC chips, including NFC chips 180, 182 and 184, are NFC readers and are fixed in place on the NFC chip stage 102 near the bottom of the cartridge housings 110, . When the scent cartridge is loaded in the portion corresponding to each NFC chip, a code identifying the scent of the scent cartridge is received by NFC communication from the NFC tag attached to the bottom surface of the scent cartridge loaded in the corresponding position. can. An opening serving as an air passage is formed in the vicinity of each NFC chip.

These six NFC chips are connected to wireless communication devices installed on the control board 98, respectively. The wireless communication device identifies the position of the NFC chip according to where the NFC chip is connected to its input, and together with the code of the scent cartridge received from the NFC chip, the data indicating the loading position of the scent cartridge. Wirelessly transmit to the outside.

Although not shown in FIG. 3, referring to FIG. 6, a micro blower 104 that forms an air release mechanism is fixed to the portion of the lower surface of the upper housing 88 that is in contact with the NFC chip stage 102. It is The mechanism of the micro-blower that blows air into each fragrance cartridge, including this micro-blower, will be described later.

All of the scent cartridges 130, . . . , 140 have the same shape. Referring to FIG. 4, for example, the fragrance cartridge 132 has a hollow triangular prism shape with a substantially equilateral cross section, and is composed of an upper surface 164 and a lower surface parallel to each other, and a side surface 166 formed so as to connect the periphery thereof. It has a body 178. Grooves 168 and 170 are formed in the vicinity of the edge 162 on two side surfaces sandwiching one vertical edge 162 of the housing 178 .

A region of the top surface 164 sandwiched between the edge 162 and the grooves 168 and 170 communicates with the space inside the housing 178 and emits scent-laden air from the incense source enclosed in the housing 178. An opening 174 is formed. An air inlet 172 is formed in the portion of the side 166 opposite the edge 162 to generate and send an air flow into the interior of the housing 178 by an external micro-blower.

Referring to FIG. 4, an NFC tag (not shown) for performing short-range wireless communication with the NFC chip is attached by a sticker 176 to the bottom surface of housing 178 . In this embodiment, seal 176 protrudes from the bottom surface and partially wraps around side surface 166 . A commercially available NFC tag attached to a seal is used in this embodiment. Since the seal 176 can be peeled off from the housing 178, the NFC tag can be removed from the housing 178 and replaced with another one if necessary.

With reference to FIGS. 3 and 6, when each fragrance cartridge is attached to the cartridge housing portion, the air supply port for sending air into the interior of the fragrance cartridge faces the outside of the upper housing 88 . For example, in the case of scent cartridge 132, air inlet 172 faces outward. A micro-blower 152 is arranged between the upper housing 88 and the fragrance cartridge 132 to send an air flow into the air inlet 172 . By driving the micro-blower 152, air is sent into the interior of the fragrance cartridge 132, and the fragrance-laden air is released from the opening 174 (see FIG. 4) for releasing the fragrance of the fragrance cartridge 132 located at the center side. released to

The micro-blower 152 has a configuration similar to that disclosed in Patent Document 1 above. Referring to FIG. 5, specifically, the micro-blower 152 is attached to a case 250 having a blower chamber 252 which is an internal space, and is attached to cover the upper surface of the case 250 so as to block the blower chamber 252. and a cover member 254 having a nozzle 270 mounted thereon. An air circulation hole 256 is formed inside the nozzle 270 , and the circulation hole 256 opens to the upper part of the blower chamber 252 .

A partition plate 258 is provided inside the blower chamber 252 to divide the blower chamber 252 into upper and lower parts. An opening 260 aligned with the communication hole 256 is formed in the partition plate 258 immediately below the opening of the communication hole 256 .

The lower space of the blower chamber 252 partitioned by the partition plate 258 includes a diaphragm 262 formed of a thin metal plate having spring elasticity and a piezoelectric element 264 adhered to the lower surface of the diaphragm 262 . By applying an alternating voltage to the piezoelectric element 264 , the diaphragm 262 vibrates up and down to discharge air into the blower chamber 252 through the opening 260 and then out through the flow hole 256 . By providing the micro blower 152 inside the upper housing 88 so that the nozzle 270 is located at the position of the opening on the back of the fragrance cartridge, air can be sent into the fragrance cartridge at an arbitrary timing for an arbitrary period of time. Air containing fragrance can be released from the cartridge. An air intake port 266 is provided in the case 250 , and air from the intake port 266 is supplied into the blower chamber 252 through a flow passage 268 . Outside air taken in from the small hole 96 shown in FIG. 3 is supplied to the intake port 266 .

In addition to the fragrance cartridge 132, micro-blowers are arranged to send air into the interior from the air supply port on the back side. By operating these independently, it is possible to release fragrance from any fragrance cartridge to the outside at any timing and for any period of time. The micro-blower 104 shown in FIG. 6 also has the same structure as this micro-blower, and can emit scent-free air from the opening 68 shown in FIG. 2 at any timing and for any period of time.

FIG. 7 shows air flow inside the scent display 50 . Focusing on the fragrance cartridge 132, the description will be made below. A large number of small holes 96 are formed in the base panel 82, and air is drawn into the housing 60 through these small holes. This air is supplied to the microblower 104 through the air passages 300 and 302 formed in the base housing 84 and the intermediate housing 86, and partly through the air passages 306. The remainder is further supplied to blower chamber 252 of microblower 152 via air passage 304 formed in upper housing 88 . By applying an alternating voltage to the micro-blower 152 , the airflow emitted from the micro-blower 152 is guided into the scent cartridge 132 through the communication hole 256 and the air supply port 172 .

When the air flow is introduced into the fragrance cartridge 132 by the micro blower 152, the air containing the fragrance in the fragrance cartridge 132 is released to the outside through the path leading from the opening 174 of the fragrance cartridge 132 to the opening 70 of the upper panel 90. be. The same is true for other scent cartridges, such as cartridge 138 and micro-blower 158 .

On the other hand, when the alternating voltage is applied to the micro-blower 104 , the air supplied to the micro-blower 104 passes through the air passage 310 and is discharged outside from the opening 68 formed in the upper panel 90 . When the scent-free air is released from the opening 68 after releasing the fragrance-containing air from the fragrance cartridge, the fragrance-containing air remaining in the surrounding area is dissipated, and the scent can be changed to another fragrance.

It should be noted that the air emitted from the opening 68 by driving the micro-blower 104 with an alternating voltage serves not only to dissipate the surrounding air, but also to boost the fragrance-laden air emitted from the opening 70 to reach a distance. also function. For this reason, the micro-blower 104 may be of the same size as the micro-blower 152 that blows air into the scent cartridge 132, but may have a larger size than the micro-blower 152, and may be configured to blow more air with greater force. It is preferable to have Also, by controlling the amount of air emitted from the opening 68 by the micro-blower 104, the concentration of the fragrance emitted from the opening 70 can be controlled. Furthermore, by controlling the amount of air released from the openings 68 and 70, the scent adjustment function of the scent display 50 can be achieved.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a control circuit for the scent display. Referring to FIG. 8, the control system circuit of scent display 50 receives a command for controlling scent display 50 from a control system external to scent display 50, and controls to transmit a control signal corresponding to the command to each part. A substrate 98, a micro-blower group 320 including micro-blowers 150, . and substrate 324 . In practice, parameters corresponding to commands are stored in storage areas assigned to each of the micro-blowers of the micro-blower group 320 and to the drive circuit board 324 inside the control processor 330, and are stored in the micro-blowers 150, . This value is read at a constant timing when 104 operates. As a result, each of the micro-blowers in the micro-blower group 320 and the micro-blower 104, when parameters specifying channels are transmitted from an external control system, operate according to the parameters almost in real time with almost no time delay. Operate.

As described above, on the bottom surface of each of the scent cartridges 130, . affixed by Each NFC chip of the fragrance cartridges 130, . . . , 140 stores an identification code of the fragrance enclosed in the corresponding fragrance cartridge. This identification code is transmitted from the NFC tags of the fragrance cartridges 130, . . . , 140 to the NFC chips 180, . Send. The external control system uses this identifier to determine which of the scent cartridges 130, . .

-Configuration of Control Board 98-
The control board 98 includes a wireless communication unit 332 for communicating wirelessly with an external control system, and a microblower according to a command received from the external control system via the wireless communication unit 332. A command signal for controlling the group 320 and the drive circuit board 324 is generated, and an identification code for specifying the scent of each scent cartridge set on the scent display 50 is generated from the NFC chip group 322 including the NFC chips 180, . Control processor 330 for receiving and transmitting to an external control system via wireless communication unit 332; 0 336 and input/output I/O 334 between control processor 330 and NFC chip group 322 .

The control board 98 is further provided between the input/output I/O 336 and the micro-blower group 320, and controls the alternating voltage output from the input/output I/O 336 to each micro-blower according to the level of the acoustic signal output from the microphone 72. includes an amplitude control circuit 338 for controlling the amplitude of the . A microphone 72 is provided on the lower surface of the scent display 50 as shown in FIG. 1 in order to convert environmental sounds into electrical signals and output them.

When the control processor 330 receives the identification code of the corresponding fragrance cartridge from the NFC chips 180, . It has a function to transmit to an external control system via Control processor 330 also receives commands from an external control system via wireless communication unit 332, and responds to commands through appropriate ports of input/output I/O 336 according to the type and destination of the command. Outputs a scent generation instruction signal. The scent generation instruction signal is converted into an alternating voltage by the amplitude control circuit 338, and after the amplitude is controlled, it is given as a drive signal to the micro-blower to be driven. Therefore, when some operation is performed on the scent display 50 by an external control system, the operation is immediately reflected in the operation of the scent display 50 in real time.

The scent generation instruction signal transmitted from the input/output I/O 336 to each microblower is converted into an alternating voltage with a constant cycle by the amplitude control circuit 338 . Its amplitude is constant at the time it is output from the input/output I/O 336 regardless of environmental conditions. However, if the level of the environmental sound is higher than a predetermined threshold value by the amplitude control circuit 338, the driving signal is output to the target microblower while maintaining the amplitude when output from the input/output I/O 336. . If the environmental sound level is below the threshold value, the amplitude of the drive signal is reduced by the amplitude control circuit 338 and output to the target micro-blower.

Note that in this embodiment only one threshold is used to control the amplitude. Therefore, the level of the drive signal is either high or low. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. For example, it is easy to set the drive signal level to 3 or more.

FIG. 9 shows the configuration of the amplitude control circuit 338 according to this embodiment. 9, amplitude control circuit 338 includes level signal output circuit 360 for outputting a level signal indicating the level of the acoustic signal from microphone 72, and processor 330 (see FIG. 9) for controlling the amplitude of the input signal. 8), and a switch 362 for switching between the output of the limiter 364 and the drive control signal. , 160 and 104 through a limiter 364 when the level signal is at a high level (indicating that the environmental sound level is higher than the threshold value). It functions to output a suppressed drive signal for driving, and to output it as it is without passing through the limiter 364 when it is low level (indicating that the environmental sound level is equal to or less than the threshold value).

The level signal output circuit 360 detects the voltage level of the acoustic signal from the microphone 72 and outputs it as a voltage signal, and the voltage of the output signal of the level detection circuit 390 and a predetermined threshold voltage. and a comparator 392 for comparing and outputting the comparison result as a high level or low level voltage.

<Action>
The scent display 50 described above operates as follows.

It is assumed that each scent cartridge is attached with a label corresponding to the scent source therein, and further attached to the bottom surface thereof is an NFC tag in which an identifier pre-assigned to the scent source is written. A user purchases a scent cartridge of a scent that he or she likes, and loads the scent display 50 with the following procedure.

Referring to FIG. 3, removing the top panel 90 from the housing 60 exposes the top opening of the top housing 88 . A user loads a fragrance cartridge into a cartridge accommodating portion at an arbitrary position among them. For example, the user loads all six cartridge receptacles with scent cartridges of different scents. After loading the scent cartridge, the top panel 90 is attached to the housing 60 .

Referring to FIG. 6, the NFC tag attached to each scent cartridge transmits the scent identifier of the scent cartridge to the NFC chip by short-range wireless communication with the NFC chip attached to the corresponding scent cartridge. The wireless communication unit 332 shown in FIG. 8 combines information specifying the NFC chip that has transmitted the scent identifier (information that can specify the position of the storage unit corresponding to the NFC chip) and the scent identifier, and transmits the scent identifier to the external device. Send to control system. In this way, the control system or the like can know which scent cartridge of which scent is loaded in which cartridge housing portion of the scent display 50 .

For example, it is assumed that an external control system (not shown) transmits a scent generation instruction signal to the scent display 50 by wireless communication for emitting scent from the cartridge 130 for a certain period of time from a certain time. The wireless communication unit 332 shown in FIG. 8 receives this scent generation instruction signal and provides it to the control processor 330 . The control processor 330 controls the input/output I/O 336 to output a drive signal for driving the micro-blower 150 corresponding to the cartridge 130 in order to generate fragrance from the cartridge 130 . This drive signal consists of an alternating voltage with a constant amplitude and a constant cycle.

On the other hand, the microphone 72 gives an acoustic signal representing the environmental sound to the level detection circuit 390 of the amplitude control circuit 338 shown in FIG. Level detection circuit 390 provides a signal indicative of the voltage level of this acoustic signal to the positive terminal of comparator 392 . Comparator 392 compares the input voltage to its plus terminal with the threshold voltage input to its minus terminal and outputs a high level voltage if the input voltage to its plus terminal is greater than the threshold voltage, otherwise A low level voltage is applied to switch 362 . The switch 362 switches the connection so that the drive signal from the input/output I/O 336 is applied to the input of the limiter 364 when the output voltage of the comparator 392 is high level. The switch 362 switches the connection so that the drive signal from the input/output I/O 336 is applied to the other transmission line instead of the limiter 364 when the output voltage of the comparator 392 is low level. Therefore, the output of the amplitude control circuit 338 is a high voltage drive signal if the ambient sound level is above a predetermined threshold, and a lower voltage drive signal otherwise.

Level control of the drive signal will be specifically described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10A shows a signal indicating the level of environmental sound (output of level detection circuit 390 shown in FIG. 9). FIG. 10B is a waveform diagram showing the output of comparator 392 shown in FIG.

FIG. 10C shows the scent generation instruction signal received by the wireless communication unit 332 through wireless communication. FIG. 10D shows drive control signals from the input/output I/O 336. FIG. In FIG. 10(D), the drive control signal is shown as a rectangular pulse signal for the sake of clarity, but actually a higher frequency pulse signal exists in this rectangular portion. FIG. 10(E) shows the drive control signal always passing through the limiter 364 shown in FIG. FIG. 10F shows the waveform of the drive signal finally output from the amplitude control circuit 338. FIG.

Assume that the environmental sound level changes as shown in FIG. 10(A). In this example, it is assumed that measurement of the environmental sound level is started from time t0, and that the environmental sound level signal 410 is below the threshold value 411 at that time, as shown in FIG. 10(A). As shown in FIG. 10B, the output (comparison signal) of the comparator 392 shown in FIG. 9 is at low level. Switch 362 shown in FIG. 9 switches the connection of the transmission line so that the drive signal passes through limiter 364 . Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10(C), it is assumed that no fragrance generation instruction signal is received from time t0 to time t11. As shown in FIG. 10(D), the drive signal for the microblower is not input to the amplitude control circuit 338 during this period. As a result, there is no output from the amplitude control circuit 338 either. Therefore, the corresponding microblower does not work.

As shown in FIG. 10C, it is assumed that the scent generation instruction signal 414 is at high level from time t11 to time t12. That is, it is assumed that an instruction to generate fragrance has been received from an external control system. During this time, as shown in FIG. 10(D), the microblower drive control signal 416 generated by the control processor 330 in FIG. 8 is input to the amplitude control circuit 338 shown in FIG. Since the switch 362 shown in FIG. 9 directs the drive control signal 416 to the limiter 364 side, the drive signal 418 output from the amplitude control circuit 338 as shown in FIG. becomes. Since the piezoelectric element of the microblower receiving this drive signal 418 vibrates with a relatively small amplitude, the diaphragm also vibrates with a small amplitude. As a result, the flow of air generated by the micro-blower is relatively small, and air containing fragrance is jetted from the fragrance cartridge quietly without jetting noise. That is, the amplitude control circuit 338 controls the amplitude of the drive signal for driving the microblower according to the level of the environmental sound picked up by the microphone 72 and outputs the drive signal.

It should be noted that the pulsed waveform shown in FIG. 10(E) actually contains a signal consisting of a higher frequency alternating voltage.

As shown in FIG. 10A, it is assumed that the level of the environmental sound level signal 410 subsequently exceeds the threshold value 411 at time t1 (t11<t1<t12). As shown in FIG. 10B, the comparison signal 412 becomes high level. A switch 362 shown in FIG. 9 switches the connection so that the drive control signal 416 does not pass through the limiter 364 . As a result, as shown in FIG. 10(F), the level of the drive signal 418 output from the amplitude control circuit 338 becomes as high as the drive control signal 416 at time t1. Since the piezoelectric element of the microblower receiving this drive signal 418 vibrates with a large amplitude, the diaphragm also vibrates with a large amplitude. As a result, the flow of air generated by the micro-blower becomes large, and air containing fragrance is jetted relatively strongly from the fragrance cartridge.

Thereafter, the amplitude control circuit 338 operates similarly. It is assumed that the scent generation signal is no longer received at time t12, the level of the environmental sound level signal 410 falls below the threshold 411 at time t2 (>t12), and exceeds the threshold 411 again at time t3. It is also assumed that reception of the scent generation instruction signal 414 is restarted at time t13 (t2<t13<t3).

Then, by the same operation as the operation described above, the output of the drive signal 418 is stopped at time t12, the output with small amplitude is resumed at time t13, and the output changes to the output with large amplitude at time t3.

By operating the scent display 50 in this manner, the following effects can be obtained. When the scent generation instruction signal is input to the scent display 50 when the level of the environmental sound is high, a large-amplitude drive signal is applied to the micro-blower that drives the scent cartridge. Since the power of the drive signal is large, the fragrance is strongly sprayed from the fragrance cartridge. On the other hand, when the scent generation instruction signal is input to the scent display 50 when the environmental sound level is low, a small amplitude drive signal is applied to the microblower. Since the power of the drive signal is small, the fragrance is quietly sprayed from the fragrance cartridge. Therefore, even when the environmental sound is quiet, the sound when the scent display 50 injects the scent is so small that most people around the scent display 50 do not notice it. At least, the scent is more quietly emitted than when the amplitude of the microblower is not controlled.

[Second embodiment]
In the first embodiment, when the environmental sound level is below (or below) a threshold value, the power is limited by limiting the amplitude (amplitude modulation) of the drive signal of the microblower, and the scent display 50 displays the scent. It reduces the sound when blowing out air containing However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. For example, the power of the drive signal can be limited by controlling the drive time rather than the amplitude of the drive signal. In this case, the pulse width (hereinafter referred to as "wavelength") of the envelope of the drive signal should be reduced by wavelength modulation. This second embodiment is such an embodiment.

FIG. 11 shows the configuration of the wave width control circuit 430 in the scent display according to the second embodiment. The scent display according to the second embodiment is characterized in that it includes a sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 and a wave width control circuit 430 instead of the amplitude control circuit 338 according to the first embodiment. Otherwise, the scent display of this second embodiment does not differ from the first embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 11, wave width control circuit 430 receives the acoustic signal from microphone 72 and the sawtooth wave from sawtooth wave generating circuit 432, and the level of the acoustic signal is equal to the level of the sawtooth wave from sawtooth wave generating circuit 432. and a level signal output circuit 450 for outputting a level signal that is high level in a section exceeding the level and low level in other sections, and receives the output of the level signal output circuit 450 and the drive signal for the microblower, respectively. and an AND circuit 452 having a terminal. The output of the AND circuit 452 becomes the drive signal for the microblower.

The level signal output circuit 450 includes a comparator 392 which receives the acoustic signal from the microphone 72 at its plus terminal and the sawtooth wave from the sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 at its minus terminal.

Referring to FIG. 12, the scent display according to this second embodiment operates as follows.

12A, the acoustic signal is represented by signal waveform 470, and the sawtooth wave output from sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 is represented by signal waveform 472. Referring to FIG. The sawtooth wave has a waveform that periodically reaches an upper limit with a constant slope from 0 and returns to 0 immediately.

As shown in FIG. 12(A), when the level of signal waveform 470 is relatively low, the time during which signal waveform 470 exceeds signal waveform 472 is short, and when the level of signal waveform 470 is high, the time is lengthened. Therefore, the waveform output from the comparator 392 (comparator output) shown in FIG. 11 is a signal waveform consisting of a pulse train with a large width when the level of the signal waveform 470 is high and a small pulse train when the level is high, as shown in FIG. 12(B). 480.

As shown in FIG. 12(C), the signal waveform 490 of the scent generation instruction signal is at high level from time t0 to t1, from time t2 to t3, from time t4 to t5, and after time t6. shall be low level. Then, the signal waveform output from the AND circuit 452 shown in FIG. 11 is obtained by ANDing the signal waveform 480 shown in FIG. 12B and the signal waveform 490 of the scent generation instruction signal shown in FIG. 12C. becomes. Its waveform is like the drive signal 500 shown in FIG. 12(D).

As is clear from a comparison of FIGS. 12A and 12D, the driving signal 500 becomes a waveform with a small pulse width when the level of the signal waveform 470 is low, and becomes a waveform with a large pulse width otherwise. Become.

With such a configuration, when the level of the environmental sound is low, the time for which the scent display injects scent-laden air is shorter than when it is not. The time during which the scent display operates becomes shorter, and as a result, the sound generated by the scent display also becomes lower. As a result, even when the scent display is operated when the level of the environmental sound is low, the total amount of sound generated by the scent display is small, and the fragrance-laden air can be jetted more quietly.

[Third embodiment]
In the first embodiment, the pulse amplitude is controlled in the envelope of the driving signal that finally drives the microblower. Further, in the second embodiment, the pulse width is controlled in the envelope of the drive signal. However, it is also possible to combine them with each other. The scent display according to the third embodiment is a combination of both.

Referring to FIG. 13, the scent display according to the third embodiment includes a first wave width control circuit 430 and a sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 in addition to the wave width control circuit 430 and the sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 shown in the second embodiment. An amplitude control circuit 338 according to the embodiment is provided. The output of sawtooth wave generating circuit 432 is input to amplitude control circuit 338 as a microblower drive signal, as shown in FIG. A level signal from the microphone 72 is also input to the control processor 330 of the amplitude control circuit 338 .

The operation of the scent display according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 14A to 14D are substantially the same as FIG. In this embodiment, the signal waveform 470 is also compared with a threshold value 570 as shown in FIG. 14(E). If the level of the signal waveform 470 is higher than the threshold value 570, the comparator output becomes high level as shown in FIG. 14(F), and the signal waveform shown in FIG. 14(D) is directly output from the amplitude control circuit 338. be. If the level of the signal waveform 470 is equal to or less than the threshold value 570 (less than), the comparator output becomes low level as shown in FIG. 14(F), and the amplitude of the signal waveform shown in FIG. Output from control circuit 338 . As a result, the envelope of the driving signal output from the amplitude control circuit 338 becomes as shown in FIG. 14(G).

Referring to FIG. 14G, in drive signal 590, when signal waveform 470 is larger than threshold value 570, the amplitude is large and the wave width is relatively large when the scent generation instruction signal is input to the scent display. The large pulse becomes the envelope of drive signal 590 . On the other hand, when the signal waveform 470 is smaller than the threshold value 570, a pulse with a small amplitude and a relatively small wave width becomes the envelope of the drive signal 590 when the scent generation instruction signal is input to the scent display. Specifically, when the comparator output in FIG. 14F is at a low level, for example, as shown by pulse 592 and pulse group 594, the output drive signal 590 has a smaller amplitude and a smaller wave width. Become.

Therefore, in the scent display according to the third embodiment, even if the scent display is operated when the environmental sound level is low, the sound generated is small and short. Therefore, the possibility that the sound generated by the scent display is disturbing is further reduced compared to the first embodiment or the second embodiment.

It should be noted that the pulse-shaped waveform shown in FIG. 14(G) actually includes a signal composed of alternating voltages with a higher frequency.

[Fourth embodiment]
In any of the first to third embodiments, the total amount of scent-laden air ejected from the scent display is considerably smaller when the environmental sound level is low than when the ambient sound level is high. In a sense, this is unavoidable. However, even when the level of the environmental sound is low, it is preferable if the sound can be quietly ejected and more air containing fragrance can be jetted than in any of the first to third embodiments. This fourth embodiment is such an embodiment.

15, the scent display according to the fourth embodiment includes a comparison circuit 600 shown in FIG. 15 instead of the wave width control circuit 430 shown in FIG. 13 in the scent display according to the third embodiment. It is characterized by points. The comparison circuit 600 controls the wave width of the drive signal for the microblower, like the wave width control circuit 430 of the third embodiment. However, while the waveform control circuit 550 reduces the pulse width of the drive signal when the environmental sound level is equal to or less than the threshold value, the comparison circuit 600 reduces the pulse width to that of the third embodiment. It is characterized by being relatively large. Otherwise, this fourth embodiment is the same as the third embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 15, comparison circuit 600 outputs a signal whose amplitude is high level when the acoustic signal output from microphone 72 is higher than the threshold value and low level otherwise, and whose phase is inverted. and an AND circuit 452 connected to receive the output of the phase control circuit 610 at one terminal and the drive signal for the microblower at the other terminal.

The phase control circuit 610 includes a level detection circuit 390 that receives the acoustic signal output from the microphone 72 at one end, the output of the level detection circuit 390 at its positive terminal, the sawtooth wave output from the sawtooth wave generation circuit 432 at its negative terminal, a comparator 620 receiving the output of the level detection circuit 390 at its plus terminal and a predetermined threshold signal at its minus terminal; an inverter 624 inverting the output of the comparator 620; 620 and a second terminal for receiving the output of the inverter 624. When the output signal of the comparator 622 is at high level, the output of the comparator 620 is output. and a selector 626 that selects each of the outputs and provides them to the AND circuit 452 .

The operation of the scent display according to the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 16A shows the signal waveform 470 of the environmental sound, the signal waveform 472 of the sawtooth wave, and the threshold value 650 superimposed. As shown in FIGS. 16A and 16B, in this example, the environmental sound level is lower than the sawtooth wave level at time t0, which is the beginning of the measurement, but reverses at time t31, and again at time t32. Reverse. Furthermore, at time t33, the level of the environmental sound exceeds the level of the sawtooth wave, and this state continues.

The selector 626 shown in FIG. 15 selects the output of the comparator 620 when the output of the comparator 622 is at high level, and selects the output of the inverter 624 otherwise. Therefore, when the output of the comparator 622 changes from high level to low level and from low level to high level, the movement of the signal output from the selector 626 is reversed by 180 degrees. As a result, in FIG. 16B, the waveform 660 of the output of the comparison circuit 600 from time t31 to t32 and after time t33 matches that shown in FIG. 14B. On the other hand, the waveforms of the outputs of the comparison circuit 600 from time t0 to t31 and from time t32 to t33 are, as shown in FIG. 16B, the phases of those shown in FIG. Become. As a result, in the third embodiment, the pulse width output from the comparator is reduced when the environmental sound level is below the threshold value. becomes louder and has the same width as when the ambient sound level is above the threshold.

The processing by the amplitude control circuit 338 on the output of the comparison circuit 600 is the same as in the third embodiment. However, since the pulse width in the output of the comparison circuit changes as described above, the waveform 670 of the wavelength-modulated signal output from the comparison circuit 600 corresponds to the wavelength from time t32 to time t33 as shown in FIG. 16(D). is longer than in the third embodiment. The finally obtained waveform of the drive signal for the microblower is different from that of FIG. 14(G), as shown in FIG. 16(E). Specifically, in FIG. 14G, the pulse 592 and the pulse group 594 have smaller amplitudes and smaller pulse widths. However, in the drive signal 680 shown in FIG. 16(E), the pulse 682 and the pulse group 684, particularly the pulses included in the pulse group 684, have small amplitudes but relatively large pulse widths. 14 and 16, the height of the threshold is different, and is set slightly lower in FIG. 16 than in FIG. Therefore, it should be noted that the waveform in FIG. 14(G) and the waveform in FIG. 16(E) do not exactly correspond to each other.

Such a configuration provides the following effects. When the environmental sound falls below the threshold, the amplitude of the drive signal for the microblower becomes small, but the pulse width becomes relatively large. Therefore, although the driving noise of the microblower is reduced, the driving time is relatively long. As a result, even when the level of the environmental sound is low, it is possible to inject more scent-laden air while reducing the drive sound compared to the devices of the first to third embodiments. As a result, it is possible to obtain an effect that sufficient fragrance can be released with a quiet operating sound.

[Fifth embodiment]
In the first to fourth embodiments, it is assumed that the threshold for comparison with the environmental sound level does not change. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. When the level of the environmental sound changes relatively frequently, there is a problem that the change in the drive sound becomes conspicuous if the emission of the scent display is controlled accordingly. Therefore, in any of the above-described embodiments, a comparator with hysteresis may be used instead of a normal comparator. That is, the threshold is raised when the environmental sound level changes below the threshold, and the threshold is lowered when there is an opposite change.

In this way, even if the level of the environmental sound changes frequently, the change in driving intensity of the scent display can be reduced, and the problem that the change in the driving sound is conspicuous even when the level of the environmental sound is relatively low can be avoided. can.

It is possible to control the operation of the scent display by causing a processor, which is a computer, to execute a predetermined computer program (hereinafter simply referred to as "program"), including such control as to give hysteresis to the threshold value. can. A fifth embodiment relates to such a program.

It should be noted that this program employs a method of generating a drive signal using a timer in order to reduce the load on the processor. In this method, a value indicating the amplitude of the drive signal and a value indicating the duration of the signal are set in a predetermined register, and a timer is used to output a signal with a constant frequency that continues for a specified time and with a specified amplitude. is a method using The processor is not burdened with signal generation and can perform other processing.

Referring to FIG. 17, this program includes step 700 for initial setting. The variables set in step 700 are a variable R1 that designates whether the amplitude of the drive signal is set to the higher first value or the lower second value, and a variable R1 that specifies whether to output the drive signal. It includes a specifying variable R2, the level L of the sound signal, and a threshold value L _TH to which the level of the sound signal is compared. The constants used include a first threshold L _TH1 and a second threshold L _TH2 that is greater than the first threshold L _TH1 . In this embodiment, when the value of variable R1 is "1", the amplitude of the drive signal is set to the first or higher value. When the value of variable R1 is "0", the amplitude of the drive signal is set to a second, lower value. When the value of the variable R2 is "1", the drive signal is generated, and when the value of the variable R2 is "0", the drive signal is not generated.

At step 700, both variables R1 and R2 are set to zero. The average value of the first threshold L _TH1 and the second threshold L _TH2 is set as the threshold L _TH .

This program further continues to step 700, reads out the value L of the level signal indicating the level of the environmental sound from a predetermined address, i.e., samples the value L of the level signal at step 702, and reads out the value L of the level signal in step 702. with a threshold L _TH and branching control flow accordingly.

The program further includes a step 706 of assigning the value "1" to the variable R1 when the determination of step 704 is affirmative, and following step 706, setting the threshold L _TH to the value of the first threshold L _TH1 . step 708 of substituting , step 710 of substituting the value "0" into the variable R1 when the determination in step 704 is negative, and step 712 of substituting the second threshold L _TH2 into the threshold L _TH . including.

Through the processing of steps 704 to 712, when the level signal crosses the threshold value L _TH upward, the threshold value L _TH becomes the first threshold value L _TH1 which is a small value. Also, when the level signal crosses the threshold L _TH downward, the threshold L _TH becomes a second threshold L _TH2 which is a larger value. Therefore, once the level signal crosses the threshold value _LTH , even if the level signal becomes the same value next time, the judgment result of step 704 will not be immediately reversed, and the judgment of step 704 will be made if the value does not change significantly. The result is not inverted. That is, the hysteresis effect can be obtained by the processing from step 704 to step 712 .

This program is further executed after both steps 708 and 712 to determine whether or not the scent generation instruction signal is ON, and depending on the result, branch the control flow to step 714 and step 714. Step 716 of assigning a value of "1" to variable R2 if the determination is affirmative, step 718 of assigning a value of "0" to variable R2 if the determination of step 714 is negative, steps 716 and 718; and step 720, in which it is determined whether or not an instruction to end the operation of the scent display 50, that is, an instruction to turn off the power of the scent display 50 has been received, and the flow of control is branched according to the result. , step 722 for executing post-processing such as substituting 0 for the variable R2 when the determination of step 720 is affirmative, and ending execution of the program; and execution of the program when the determination of step 720 is negative. and a step 724 which returns control to step 702 after waiting until the end of the cycle time.

This program causes the scent display 50 to operate as follows. In the following explanation, it is assumed that the environmental sound level is high at first, becomes low in the middle, and then becomes high. Also, in the middle of the initial period when the environmental sound level is high, the scent generation instruction signal is given to the scent display 50, maintained until the environmental sound level becomes low, and is interrupted before the environmental sound level becomes high again. and

When the scent display 50 first starts up, the processor performs initialization at step 700 . In particular, the average value of the first threshold value L _TH1 and the second threshold value L _TH2 is set as the threshold value L _TH . The processor reads the ambient sound level signal at step 702 and determines at step 704 whether the ambient sound level is greater than a threshold L _TH . Here, the determination in step 704 becomes affirmative, and steps 706 and 708 are executed. That is, the amplitude of the driving signal is set large, and the threshold value L _TH is set to the first threshold value L _TH1 which is a low value.

Since there is no scent generation instruction signal immediately after the scent display is activated, the determination in step 714 is negative, and step 718 is executed. Since no drive signal for the microblower is generated even if step 718 is executed, the determination at step 720 is negative, and control returns to step 702 via step 724 . Thereafter, the above process is repeated until the scent generation instruction signal is given to the scent display 50, so no drive signal is generated.

When the scent generation instruction signal is given to the scent display 50, the determination in step 714 becomes affirmative and step 716 is executed. As a result, the drive signal starts to be generated, but the amplitude at that time is a large value. Thereafter, steps 702, 704, 706, 708, 714, 716, 720 and 724 are repeatedly performed until the environmental sound level falls below the first threshold L _TH1 .

If the ambient sound level is below the first threshold L _TH1 , the determination at step 704 is negative. Step 710 is executed and the amplitude of the drive signal is set to a small value. As step 712 is executed, the value of threshold L _TH changes from a first threshold L _TH1 to a second, higher threshold L _TH2 . The determination at step 714 is now affirmative and the processor executes steps 716 , 720 and 724 . Thereafter, steps 702, 704, 710, 712, 714, 716, 720 and 724 are repeatedly executed. As a result, the drive signal continues to be generated with a small amplitude. Since the threshold L _TH is the larger second threshold L _TH2 , even if the level of the environmental sound rises somewhat, the determination in step 704 is not immediately reversed, and the output of the drive signal is maintained. be done.

After that, it is assumed that the scent generation instruction signal to the scent display 50 is interrupted. The determination in step 714 becomes negative, step 718 is executed, and the output of the drive signal is terminated. Steps 720 and 724 are then executed and control returns to step 702 . After this, steps 702, 704, 710, 712, 714, 718, 720 and 724 are repeatedly performed until the ambient sound level exceeds the second threshold L _TH2 . During that time, no drive signal is output.

When the environmental sound level eventually exceeds the second threshold value _LTH2 , the determination in step 704 becomes affirmative, and steps 706 and 708 are executed to return the state of the scent display 50 to the initial state.

As described above, the processor executes the program whose control structure is shown in FIG. 17, so that the scent display 50 operates in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Also, in the fifth embodiment, the threshold level changes with each downward crossing of the threshold level to a higher value and each upward crossing with a lower value, resulting in a hysteresis effect in the comparison process. . Even if the environmental sound fluctuates in a relatively short period of time, the operation of the scent display 50 is not immediately affected by it, and the scent display 50 emits the air containing the scent only when the level of the environmental sound completely changes. The strength of time changes. In other words, the operating sound of the scent display 50 does not change frequently, and it is possible to prevent repeated sudden increases in volume during silent operation. As a result, it is possible to avoid the situation where the operation sound of the scent display 50 frequently changes and the user is concerned about it.

Control flow is through step 718 whenever the scent generation indication signal is off, so no microblower drive signal is generated regardless of the ambient sound level.

[Sixth embodiment]
In the above embodiment, the level signal is compared with a constant threshold value or a signal that changes like a sawtooth wave, and the result is used to binary determine the amplitude or wave width of the drive signal. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. The amplitude or wave width of the drive signal may be changed analogously according to the level signal. The scent display according to this sixth embodiment has such a function.

FIG. 18 shows in block diagram form the configuration of the drive signal amplifier 750 used in the scent display according to the sixth embodiment. This drive signal amplifier 750 can be used in place of the amplitude control circuit 338 shown in FIG.

18, drive signal amplifier 750 includes level detection circuit 390 that detects the voltage level of the acoustic signal from microphone 72 and outputs a level signal, and drive control received from input/output I/O 336 shown in FIG. An amplifier circuit 760 amplifies the signal with an amplification factor that varies according to the output of the level detection circuit 390 and outputs it as a drive signal. and a limiter 762 for preventing the voltage of the drive signal from exceeding a certain voltage to be applied to the corresponding micro-blower to prevent the voltage from being applied to the micro-blower.

The operation of drive signal amplifier 750 will be briefly described. When the scent display receives an instruction to release a scent from a scent cartridge, the scent display control processor 330 (FIG. 8) outputs a driving control signal consisting of a constant alternating voltage at a constant cycle to the input/output I/O 336 ( 8). This drive control signal is input to the amplifier circuit 760 shown in FIG.

On the other hand, the level detection circuit 390 shown in FIG. 18 detects the level of the acoustic signal from the microphone 72 and outputs a level signal. Amplification circuit 760 amplifies the amplitude of the drive control signal received from input/output I/O 336 according to the voltage output from level detection circuit 390 . Normally, the voltage of the driving signal output from the amplifier circuit 760 falls within a range that does not adversely affect the microblower. However, sometimes the voltage of the drive signal after amplification may become excessive. Therefore, a limiter 762 is provided after the output of the amplifier circuit 760, and when the absolute value of the voltage of the drive signal exceeds a certain value, the voltage of the drive signal is limited to that certain value and applied to the microblower.

FIG. 19A shows the level signal waveform 470 of the acoustic signal, FIG. 19B shows the signal waveform 490 of the scent injection instruction signal, and FIG. 19(A) and 19(B) are the same as those shown in FIGS. 14(E) and 14(F).

Referring to FIG. 19(C), drive signal 800 is applied only during periods when signal waveform 490 of the scent injection instruction signal is on (time t0 to t1, t2 to t3, t4 to t5, and after t6). It is output in a waveform that changes according to changes in the level signal waveform 470 . However, immediately after time t2, in the latter half of time t4 to t5, and after time t6, the voltage of the drive signal becomes excessive. Limited to the values shown.

According to this embodiment, the level of the driving signal changes following the level of the acoustic signal, that is, if the level of the acoustic signal is low, the level of the driving signal is also low, and the scent display operates quietly. The higher the level of the acoustic signal, the higher the level of the drive signal, causing the scent display to spray more scented air. As a result, the strength of the operation of the scent display can be controlled in an analog manner according to the level of the environmental sound.

Note that in this embodiment, the amplification factor of the drive signal closely follows the level of the acoustic signal. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. For example, it is possible to stop the operation of the amplifier circuit when the level of the acoustic signal falls below a certain value. In this case, when the surroundings become quieter than a certain level, the scent display stops, so that the operation sound of the scent display is no longer annoying. Further, in the sixth embodiment, the amplification factor of the amplifier circuit 760 is constant. However, the amplification factor may be changed in several steps or continuously.

In the above-described embodiments, all scent generation instruction signals are given to the scent display 50 from the outside through wireless communication. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. The scent generation signal may be provided to the scent display 50 via wired communication. Also, a scent generation instruction signal may be provided inside the scent display 50 . Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the level signal is obtained by passing the output of a microphone that records the ambient sound of the scent display through a level detection circuit. However, the invention is not limited to such embodiments. As the level signal, for example, in a device that reproduces audio and video, an output signal of a circuit such as an amplifier that processes an audio signal may be directly used. The environmental sound in this case is not the sound generated around the scent display, but the sound expected to be generated around the scent display. However, in this case as well, the sound is a sound that is expected to be emitted when the scent display emits the scent, so it can be regarded as a kind of environmental sound.

The embodiments disclosed this time are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. The scope of the present invention is indicated by each claim in the scope of claims after taking into consideration the description of the detailed description of the invention, and all changes within the meaning and range of equivalents to the wording described therein include.

50 scent display 72 microphone 98 control board 102 NFC chip stage 104, 150, 152, 154, 156, 158, 160 micro blower 110, 112, 114, 116, 118, 120 cartridge housing 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 , 140 cartridge 172 air supply ports 180, 182, 184, 190 NFC chip 320 micro blower group 322 NFC chip group 324 drive circuit board 330 control processor 332 wireless communication units 334, 336 input/output I/O
338 amplitude control circuits 360, 450 level signal output circuit 362 switches 364, 762 limiter 390 low-pass filters 392, 620, 622 comparator 410 environmental sound level signals 411, 570, 650 threshold value 412 scent generation instruction signal 416 drive control signal 418 , 500, 590, 680, 800 drive signal 430 wave width control circuit 432 sawtooth wave generation circuit 550 waveform control circuit 600 comparison circuit 610 phase control circuit 750 drive signal amplifier 760 amplifier circuit

Claims (10)

Incense source holding means for holding an incense source;
an air flow generating means for generating an air flow for spraying fragrance from the scent source holding means in response to a drive signal;
Drive signal generation means for generating the drive signal and applying it to the air flow generation means in response to a scent generation instruction signal given from the outside so as to blow out the air flow with strength according to the level of the environmental sound. Scent display, including and. The driving signal generating means is
drive control signal generation means for generating a drive control signal for driving the airflow generation means in response to the scent generation instruction signal;
2. The scent display according to claim 1, further comprising power control means for controlling the power of said drive control signal according to the level of said environmental sound and outputting it as said drive signal. The power control means is
comparison means for comparing the voltage level of the level signal indicating the level of the environmental sound with a predetermined threshold;
3. The scent display according to claim 2, further comprising modulating means for modulating said drive control signal using the output of said comparing means and outputting said drive signal as said drive signal. 4. The scent display of claim 3, wherein said modulating means includes means for modulating the amplitude or wavelength, or both, of said drive control signal according to the output of said comparing means. 5. The scent display according to claim 3 or 4, further comprising level measuring means for measuring the level of environmental sound and outputting said level signal. 5. The scent display according to claim 3 or 4, further comprising a communication device for receiving said level signal from the outside of said scent display by wireless or wired communication and providing it to said comparison means. 7. A scent display according to any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein said comparison means comprises a comparator with hysteresis. Incense source holding means for holding an incense source;
and an airflow generating means for generating an airflow for ejecting the scent from the scent source holding means in response to a drive signal, the computer program for controlling the scent display,
the computer,
sampling means for sampling a level signal indicative of the intensity level of the environmental sound;
comparison means for comparing the output of said sampling means with a predetermined threshold;
A computer program functioning as drive signal generation means for generating the drive signal by controlling the amplitude or wavelength or both of them according to the output of the comparison means in response to a scent generation instruction signal from the outside. 9. The computer program according to claim 8, further causing the computer to function as threshold control means for changing said predetermined threshold according to the output of said comparison means. A method for operating a scent display comprising: scent source holding means for holding a scent source; and air flow generating means for generating an air flow for spraying the scent from the scent source holding means in response to a drive signal. hand,
generating a level signal indicative of the level of the ambient sound;
and generating the drive signal in response to an externally applied fragrance generation instruction signal and applying the driving signal to the airflow generating means so as to blow out the airflow with a strength corresponding to the voltage level of the level signal. ,Method.

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