JP2023073188A - Furniture system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a furniture system that enables remote communication with a natural line of sight even when users' physique is different because a height of a camera and a video display unit can be easily adjusted to a height of the users' faces.

SOLUTION: A communication unit 10, which is a furniture system, is a furniture system used for remote communication that communicates video in one way or both ways via a network, and includes: a lifting/lowering desk 20 having a top board 21 and a drive unit 23 that lifts and lowers the top board 21; a camera 30 that is provided on an upper side of the top board 21 and photographs a user of the lifting/lowering desk 20; and a prompter 40 that is provided on the upper side of the top board 21 and displays, to the user of the lifting/lowering desk 20, a video used for remote communication at a position overlapping the camera 30 in a horizontal direction.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

COPYRIGHT: (C)2023,JPO&INPIT

Description

This disclosure relates to a fixture system capable of remote communication.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an information display system has been disclosed that allows a user to communicate with a natural line of sight (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2017-175579 A

According to the technique described in Patent Document 1, when users with different physiques use the information display system, it may be difficult to match the eyes of the users due to the different heights of their faces. Accordingly, an object of the present disclosure is to solve the problems related to the above.

A furniture system according to a first aspect of the present invention is a furniture system used for remote communication in which images are communicated in one direction or two directions via a network, and comprises a top plate and a drive for raising and lowering the top plate. a vertical elevating desk having a part; a camera provided above the top plate for photographing a user of the elevating desk; and a camera provided above the top plate for the user of the elevating desk. and an image display unit for displaying an image used for remote communication at a position overlapping the camera in the horizontal direction.

According to the fixture system according to the first aspect, users of different physiques can easily adjust the height of the camera and the image display unit to match the height of their faces, so remote communication can be carried out with a natural line of sight. can.

In the fixture system according to the first aspect, the camera and the image display section may be configured integrally or separately.

A furniture system according to a second aspect of the present invention is the furniture system according to the first aspect, wherein the camera and the video display unit are integrally configured.

The furniture system according to the second aspect can be easily installed.

A furniture system according to a third aspect of the present invention is the furniture system according to the second aspect, wherein the image display unit includes a half mirror arranged at a position overlapping the camera in the horizontal direction, and the half mirror a display arranged below the display for outputting an image used for remote communication, wherein the half mirror reflects the image output by the display to the front side of the top plate, and the camera includes the half mirror A cover that accommodates the half mirror, the display, and the camera is provided on the upper side of the top plate and is arranged on the back side of the top plate.

According to the fixture system according to the third aspect, since the user is photographed in the posture of looking at the image displayed on the half mirror, remote communication can be performed with a natural line of sight.

A fixture system according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the fixture system according to the first to third aspects, further comprising a control panel for processing images used in remote communication.

According to the furniture system according to the fourth aspect, it is possible to process images used for remote communication by the control panel.

A furniture system according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the furniture system according to the first to fourth aspects, further comprising an operation section for operating the driving section.

According to the fixture system according to the fifth aspect, it is possible to easily perform the drive operation of the vertically movable desk by the operation unit.

The furniture system according to the present invention described above has the following effects.

According to the furniture system according to the first aspect, remote communication can be performed with a natural line of sight.

The fixture system according to the second aspect enables easy installation.

According to the fixture system according to the third aspect, remote communication can be performed with a natural line of sight.

According to the furniture system according to the fourth aspect, images used for remote communication can be processed.

According to the furniture system according to the fifth aspect, it becomes possible to easily perform the drive operation of the vertically movable desk.

1 is a perspective view of a booth that houses a fixture system; FIG. The top view which showed the booth which accommodates a fixture system. FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a booth housing a fixture system; The perspective view which showed the furniture system. The side view which showed the 1st Example of the fixtures system. The side view which showed the 2nd Example of the furniture system.

A communication unit 10 according to an embodiment of the furniture system of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. FIG. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a communication unit 10 according to this embodiment is housed in a booth 1. FIG. The booth 1 is placed on the floor surface F and configured to be used by one person or a small number of people. Below, the side of the booth 1 on which the communication unit 10 is arranged (the left side in FIGS. 2 and 3) is referred to as the front of the booth 1 . Also, inside the booth 1 , the left side (lower side in FIG. 2 ) toward the front of the booth 1 is described as the left side of the booth 1 .

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the booth 1 constitutes a private room with a cylindrical peripheral wall 2 having an upper opening. The peripheral wall 2 is composed of four pillars 2a and a plurality of panels 2b, 2b, . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the door 2c is rotatably supported via a hinge on the rear portion of the left panel 2b.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a plurality of sound-absorbing panels 2d made of a sound-absorbing material such as non-woven fabric are provided on the front and left and right front portions of the inner surface of the peripheral wall 2. As shown in FIGS. In the booth 1, by absorbing the utterances from the user U inside the booth 1 with the sound absorbing panel 2d, the sound insulation of the booth 1 (the attenuation of the sound volume transmitted between the inside and the outside of the booth 1) ) is configured to increase

In the booth 1, a columnar frame 2e spans the opening of the peripheral wall 2 along the lateral direction of the booth 1, as shown in FIGS. Further, a roof member 2f is provided along the front-rear direction of the booth 1 at the central portion of the opening in the left-right direction.

As described above, in the booth 1, the roof member 2f is provided as a shielding portion that shields the opening of the peripheral wall 2. As shown in FIG. In this way, by reflecting the utterances from the user U inside the booth 1 by the roof member 2f, the utterances are hardly released to the outside of the booth 1, so that the sound insulation of the booth 1 can be enhanced. In addition, since both sides of the roof member 2f are open at the opening, water spraying from above by a sprinkler or the like is not hindered.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, inside the booth 1, a chair 3 is arranged behind the communication unit 10. As shown in FIG. A plate-shaped background member 4 is provided behind the chair 3 . As shown in FIG. 3, the background member 4 constitutes the background of the user U of the communication unit 10. As shown in FIG. The background member 4 has a monochromatic surface such as green, blue, white, and black.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the communication unit 10 is mainly composed of a vertically movable desk 20, a camera 30, a prompter 40 as an image display unit, and communication equipment such as a general-purpose computer (not shown). The communication unit 10 is connected to a network such as the Internet or a local area network by a communication device, and is used for remote communication (WEB conference, WEB seminar, etc.) in which video is communicated one-way or two-way through these networks. be done.

The vertically movable desk 20 includes a top plate 21, legs 22 supporting the top plate 21, a motor 23 as a driving unit for vertically expanding and contracting the legs 22 and 22, and a cover 24 provided above the top plate 21. And prepare. An operation portion 23 a for operating the drive of the motor 23 is provided on the upper surface of the base end portion of the leg 22 below the top plate 21 . A user U of the vertically movable desk 20 can extend and retract the legs 22 by operating the operation unit 23a to vertically move the table top 21 up and down.

The camera 30 is provided above the top plate 21 and photographs the user U of the vertically movable desk 20. - 特許庁An image captured by the camera 30 is used for remote communication by being transmitted via a communication device and a network.

The prompter 40, which is an image display unit, is provided above the tabletop 21 and displays an image used for remote communication to the user U of the vertically movable desk 20. FIG. Specifically, the prompter 40 is composed of a display 41 and a half mirror 42 .

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, in the communication unit 10, the half mirror 42, the display 41, and the camera 30 are housed in the cover 24. FIG. The half mirror 42 has the characteristic of reflecting part of the incident light and transmitting part of it. That is, when the half mirror 42 is placed between the bright side and the dark side, part of the light from the bright side is reflected and part of the light is transmitted to the dark side. As a result, when the user U on the bright side looks at the half mirror 42, the light appears to be reflected like a mirror. On the other hand, when the half mirror 42 is photographed from the camera 30 provided on the dark side by being accommodated inside the cover 24, the user U on the bright side is shown in the photographing area Pa shown in FIGS. The figure of is transmitted through and photographed.

The display 41 upwardly outputs an image used for remote communication by being transmitted and received via a communication device and a network. Since the half mirror 42 is inclined above the display 41, part of the image light Pr output from the display 41 is directed toward the front side of the top plate 21 (user U side) as shown in FIGS. ). Thereby, the user U can visually recognize the image output by the display 41 .

In the communication unit 10, which is the furniture system according to this embodiment, the prompter 40 displays an image used for remote communication at a position overlapping the camera 30 in the horizontal direction. Specifically, the camera 30 is arranged on the back side of the top plate 21 with respect to the half mirror 42 . Thereby, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the portion where the image light Pr from the display 41 is reflected by the half mirror 42 can be set within the imaging area Pa of the camera 30. FIG.

Therefore, when the user U of the communication unit 10 visually recognizes the image displayed by the prompter 40, the user U's line of sight is directed toward the camera 30, so that the camera 30 can photograph the user U with a natural line of sight. can. That is, since the user U is photographed by the camera 30 in a posture of looking at the image output from the display 41 and displayed on the half mirror 42, the user U can take a remote communication with a natural line of sight.

Further, according to the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment, the camera 30 and the prompter 40 are provided above the top plate 21 of the vertically elevating desk 20 . Accordingly, the user U can adjust the height between the camera 30 and the prompter 40 by operating the operation unit 23a. Therefore, even when the user U has a different physique, it is easy to adjust the height of the camera 30 and the prompter 40 to match the height of the user U's face.

Specifically, as in the first embodiment shown in FIG. 5, even if the user UL is of relatively short stature and has a small physique, by adjusting the height of the tabletop 21 low, natural line of sight can be utilized. The person UL can be photographed by the camera 30 . In addition, as in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 6, even when the user UH is relatively tall and has a large physique, by adjusting the height of the top plate 21 high, the user UH can see natural lines of sight. can be photographed by the camera 30.

As described above, according to the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment, even when the user U has a different physique, the user U can operate the operation unit 23a to adjust the height of the top plate 21 so that the camera can be adjusted. 30 and the height of the prompter 40 can be adjusted to the height of the user U's face. Therefore, according to the communication unit 10, regardless of the user U's physique, remote communication can be performed with a natural line of sight.

Further, in the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment, the camera 30 and the prompter 40 are integrally constructed on the upper surface of the top plate 21 as shown in FIGS. This makes it possible to easily install the communication unit 10 .

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment further includes a video processing device 51 as a control panel for processing video used in remote communication. This makes it possible to process video used for remote communication. Specifically, it is possible to extract only the user U from the image captured by the camera 30, or change the size of the extracted image of the user U.

Since the background member 4 is provided inside the booth 1 behind the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment, processing for extracting only the user U from the image taken by the camera 30 can be easily performed. Further, in the present embodiment, the surface of the background member 4 is composed of a single color, thereby making it easy to extract only the user U as an image from the photographed content.

As for the background member provided in the booth 1, not only a plate-shaped member as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 but also a rollable sheet-shaped member can be employed. In this case, when the background member is not used, the background member can be rolled up and stored. It is also possible to use the inside of the booth as a background by coloring the inside of the rear part of the booth with a single color.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment further includes a video switching device 52 for switching video used in remote communication. Thereby, it is possible to switch between a plurality of images used for remote communication. Specifically, it is possible to switch between the image captured by the camera 30 and the image of the remote communication partner to be displayed on the prompter 40 .

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment can be configured to include a hand camera 61 as a second camera for photographing the hand of the user U. As shown in FIG. As a result, the quality of video used by the user U for remote communication can be improved. The image captured by the hand camera 61 can be switched with another image by the image switching device 52 .

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment can be configured to include an illumination member 62 that illuminates the user U in the range photographed by the camera. As a result, since the surroundings of the user U can be brightened, the quality of images used in remote communication can be improved.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment may further include a speaker 63 for outputting voice of remote communication. As a result, voice can be output in the booth 1 for remote communication.

As shown in figures other than FIG. 4, the communication unit 10 may be configured without the hand camera 61, lighting member 62, and speaker 63 described above.

[Other Modifications]
The above embodiment can be appropriately modified as shown in other modified examples below. It should be noted that each modification described in this specification may be applied in combination with another modification within a range that does not cause contradiction.

Although the communication unit 10 according to this embodiment is housed inside the booth 1, the communication unit 10 can also be used alone without being housed in the booth 1. FIG. Also, even when the communication unit 10 is housed in a booth, the shape of the booth can be a shape other than a rectangular shape. For example, the booth may have a circular shape, a triangular shape, a pentagonal shape, a trapezoidal shape, or the like in plan view. It is also possible to configure the booth so that the top is not open and is covered with a ceiling.

The communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment is configured so that the user U sits on the chair 3 and uses the vertically movable desk 20. It is also possible to use a configuration in which Further, it is also possible to configure the vertically movable desk 20 provided in the communication unit 10 so that the user U sits on a high chair and uses it.

The prompter 40, which is an image display unit provided in the communication unit 10 according to the present embodiment, is composed of a display 41 and a half mirror 42, but the image display unit may have other configurations. For example, the image display section can be composed of a screen and a projector. In this case, by adopting a configuration in which a hole is made in the screen and the camera is placed behind the screen, or a configuration in which the camera is placed in front of the screen, the image used for remote communication is displayed in a position that overlaps the camera in the horizontal direction. It becomes possible to

Further, in the communication unit, it is possible to arrange the display above the half mirror and arrange the half mirror inclined below the display. Even in this case, since part of the image light output from the display can be reflected toward the front side (user side) of the top plate, the user can visually recognize the image output from the display.

When performing remote communication using the communication unit 10 according to this embodiment, it is also possible to communicate signals such as voice in addition to video. At this time, the inside of the booth 1 is provided with a microphone and a speaker for inputting and outputting voice data. If the microphones and speakers provided in the booth 1 have directivity, the sound collecting performance of the microphones can be enhanced at the optimum height. In addition, it is possible to lower the volume of the sound output from the speaker to a level that does not affect the surroundings.

1 booth 2 surrounding wall
2a support 2b panel
2c door 2d sound absorbing panel
2e frame 2f roof member
3 chair 4 background material
10 Communication unit (furniture system)
20 up and down desk 21 top plate
22 leg 23 motor (driving unit)
23a operation unit 24 cover
30 camera
40 prompter (video display)
41 display 42 half mirror
51 Video processing device (control panel)
52 video switching device
61 Hand camera 62 Lighting member
63 speaker
F Floor surface U User
UH user (tall)
UL user (short stature)
Pa Shooting area Pr Image light

Claims (5)

A fixture system used for remote communication in which images are communicated one-way or two-way via a network,
a vertically movable desk having a top plate and a driving unit for vertically moving the top plate;
a camera provided on the upper side of the top plate for photographing a user of the vertically movable desk;
A furniture system comprising: a video display unit provided above the top board for displaying a video image used for remote communication to a user of the vertically movable desk at a position overlapping the camera in the horizontal direction. 2. The furniture system according to claim 1, wherein said camera and said video display unit are integrally configured. The image display unit includes a half mirror arranged at a position overlapping the camera in the horizontal direction, and a display arranged below the half mirror and outputting an image used for remote communication,
The half mirror reflects the image output by the display to the front side of the top plate,
The camera is arranged on the back side of the top plate relative to the half mirror,
The furniture system according to claim 2, wherein a cover for housing the half mirror, the display, and the camera is provided above the top plate. 4. The furniture system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a control panel for processing images used in remote communication. The furniture system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising an operating section for operating the driving section.

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