JP2680450B2 - Optically-readable automatic ticket gate - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial applications]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic ticket gate that optically reads a ticket, an entrance ticket, or the like inserted in an automatic ticket gate body and controls opening and closing of a door based on the result.

[Prior art]

Conventionally, a magnetic reading type ticket is known as an automatic ticket gate. This conventional magnetic-reading automatic ticket gate uses a transport mechanism to eject a ticket or admission ticket (hereinafter typically referred to as a ticket) that is inserted into the insertion slot of the automatic ticket gate body (hereinafter referred to as the main body). While it is being transported to, the magnetic data recorded on the ticket is read by a magnetic head, and the read data is processed by a controller built around a microcomputer. Is configured to be controlled to be opened and closed.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, since the above-mentioned conventional automatic ticket gate is configured to be controlled based on the magnetic data recorded in the ticket, the ticket used in the automatic ticket gate is
It can be magnetically recorded. Therefore, the conventional automatic ticket gate is paired with the magnetic recording type automatic ticket vending machine so that the automatic ticket gate function can be achieved for the first time. there were. In order to solve such a drawback, it has been proposed to optically read an ordinary ticket without a magnetic recording surface and control the automatic ticket gate based on the calculation result of the read information. The optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to this proposal is designed to cut out an image of a picked-up ticket face for each block in a predetermined reference cutting-out format, and read the cut-out image in comparison with a reference pattern. However, the printing state of the face of the bill is not uniform even if the same face of the bill is picked up due to variations in printing position and uneven transportation. Therefore, when the cutout processing is performed uniformly without considering the variation of the picked-up image, the cutout data may include an error, and there is a possibility that an erroneous determination may be made if reading is performed based on such cutout data. Therefore, the present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and the purpose thereof is even if there is a degree of variation that normally occurs in printing of the face of a ticket, or even if there is uneven transport, It is to provide an optical reading type automatic ticket gate that can cut out accurately.

[Means for Solving the Problems]

In order to achieve the above object, the optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to the present invention is constituted by a to g as shown in FIG. The image pickup means a picks up an image of the ticket face of the ticket inserted in the main body of the automatic ticket gate. The position detecting means b detects a specific position of the captured image. The image error detection means c detects an error of the imaged screen from the detected position of the specific portion and the previously stored reference position. The cutting-out means d cuts out the imaged image while correcting the error by the cutting-out format stored in the cutting-out format storage unit in advance. The reading means e is used to read each cut-out image using a pattern of characters, numbers or symbols having a predetermined matching width which is stored in advance in the character pattern storage unit. The judging means f judges, based on the read data, whether or not the ticket allows passage through the ticket gate passage. The door control means g controls the opening and closing of the door based on the determination result.

[Action]

The optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to the present invention detects the position of a specific portion in a captured image, obtains an error from this and a reference position, cuts out a predetermined section while correcting this error, and cuts out the image. Read each time. Then, the judgment result is judged, and the door opening / closing control is performed based on the judgment result.

【Example】

An optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a front view showing a schematic internal structure of the automatic ticket gate A according to the embodiment, which is inserted from the insertion opening 2 between the insertion opening 2 and the discharge opening 3 of the main body 1. A transport mechanism 4 for transporting the ticket a to the discharge port 3 is provided. The transport mechanism 4 is composed of an endless belt which is rotationally driven by a motor M, like the transport mechanism of a conventional magnetic reading type automatic ticket gate. And, the part near the insertion port 2 is the alignment conveyance path 4a for aligning the inserted tickets a, and the part on the downstream side of the alignment conveyance path is
A main transport path 4b is configured to optically read the ticket B being transported and to perform punching processing if necessary. Therefore, on the main conveyance path 4b, the image pickup device 5 including a CCD camera for optically reading the ticket B being conveyed
Further, a punching unit 6 for punching a ticket B is provided on the downstream side of the image pickup device. In the figure, D is a door, which is opened when the passage of a passenger is permitted, like a conventional automatic ticket gate, and is opened and closed by a command from a controller described later. W is a wing that moves up and down according to a command from the controller depending on whether the inserted ticket a is a collection ticket or a return ticket. The controller C is configured as shown in the block diagram of FIG. That is, the ROM 10a in which the system program is stored and the working program in which it is stored
A so-called microcomputer mainly including a central processing unit (CPU) 10 that performs arithmetic processing by the RAM 10b is configured. The CPU 10 stores a cut-out format table for cutting out the image of the face of the inserted ticket A in a predetermined format.
Is connected to a character pattern storage unit 12 in which patterns of characters, numbers, symbols, or a combination thereof, which serve as a reference at the time of reading, are stored. It is also possible to increase the storage capacity of the RAM 10b for these storage units 11 and 12 so that the RAM also serves as the storage unit. Further, the CPU 10 includes an image processing circuit 14 of the image pickup device 5 and a driving circuit 15 of the punching unit 6 via the I / O unit 13.
And the drive circuit 16 of the door D are connected. Note that CP
A drive circuit for the drive motor M, a circuit for a sensor for detecting the transport position of the ticket a, and the like are connected to the U10 via the I / O unit 13, but they are omitted here. The basic operation of the automatic ticket gate A of the present embodiment based on the above configuration is performed according to the general flow chart of FIG. First, when the ticket a is inserted into the insertion slot 2 of the main body 1, the operation is started (Yes at step 100). The inserted ticket B is imaged by the image pickup device 5 while being conveyed by the conveying mechanism 4 (step 102). That is, while the ticket a is being conveyed in the long direction, the imaging device 5 intermittently scans the ticket a in the short direction. The signal obtained by scanning is binarized by the image processing circuit 14 and sequentially stored in the RAM 10b. Then, the cutout process (step 104) is performed.
This cutout process is performed using the matching line. For example, as shown in Fig. 5 (a), the inserted ticket a is taken from Shinjuku Station to Tokyo Station on Company A (own company) line, and then 120 yen section from Tokyo Station to Company B (other company) line. Face value 2 to get on
It is assumed that it is the face pattern of a transfer ticket of 40 yen. A virtual line (dotted line in FIG. 5 (a)) is drawn from the collation line and the imaged data to a blank portion (portion where print dots do not exist) of the bill face, and this virtual line is cut out and stored in the format storage unit 11
Which matching line of the matching line table stored in advance is matched. Therefore, FIG.
In the case of the bill, the format matching line shown in FIG. The cut-out form storage unit 11 stores a cut-out format (hereinafter referred to as FTC format) corresponding to each matching line as shown in FIG. 5C (FIG. ) Is compatible with the FTC format), so when the matching line is extracted, the FTC format corresponding to this
The format is extracted. When the FTC format is extracted, the letters, numbers, and symbols are “From Shinjuku”, “240”, “Yen”, “Tokyo”, and direction symbols. The image is divided into “120” and “circles” and cut out (step 108), but before that, an image correction process is performed so that this cutting out process is accurately performed (step 10).
6). This image correction process, which is a feature of the present invention, will be described in detail later, but an image caused by uneven transportation that normally occurs when the ticket a is transported by the transport mechanism 4 or variation in the printing position that normally occurs. Data error (below,
Sometimes there is a gap. ) Is detected and is corrected. After the cutting process, the reading process is performed for each of the cut blocks (step 110). This reading process is performed using the reference character, number, or symbol pattern stored in the character pattern storage unit 12. FIG. 6 (a)
Is the image data of the station name "Tokyo", and FIG. 9B shows the pattern of the reference table of the corresponding reference characters. As is clear from these figures, the collation table is a table expanded by several dots (for example, 2 dots). As described above, the collation table has a predetermined width, that is, a predetermined collation width, so that the collation table can be efficiently read even if the image data has some deviation. Therefore, if it is over a certain range experimentally obtained, the target character or numerical value is read as the character or numerical value in the matching table. The reading is performed by prioritizing all the cut blocks. This is because, for example, in reading the cut-out block of the date, if it is read as something other than the valid period, the inserted ticket can be processed as an error without reading the other cut-out blocks. Is. After the reading process, the determination process is performed (step 11).
2). That is, the determination process is to determine whether or not passage of the ticket passage may be permitted by the inserted ticket B. When the determination is affirmative (steps 112 and 114 affirmative), the conventional magnetic reading type Similar to the automatic ticket gate, the door drive circuit 16 is driven to open the door D (step 11).
6). Note that in the case of the normally open type, the door is kept open. On the other hand, when it is determined that the passage is not permitted (No at step 114), the inserted ticket B is returned to the passenger and the door drive circuit 16 keeps the door D in the closed state. (The door is closed in the case of the normally open type), and error processing is performed to the effect that the ticket B cannot be passed (step 118). The image correction processing of step 106 in FIG. 4 is to detect how much the captured image data deviates from the reference data stored in the cutout format storage unit 11. Therefore, in the automatic ticket gate according to the present embodiment, the destination direction that always appears at a fixed position on the face of the ticket is shown. An image pickup position of a symbol (hereinafter referred to as a triangle mark) a'is detected, and it is detected how much the detected position differs from the reference data. FIGS. 7 and 8 show a first image correction processing example, in which the triangular mark is scanned with a 4-byte scanning line to detect the position of the leading end b, and the leading end is compared with reference data. The point is to calculate the deviation. Furthermore, in detail, it is assumed that the bill surface is now conveyed in the direction of arrow C in FIG. Then, when the scan is started from the predetermined position D in the direction of the solid arrow (step 200),
First, the measurement for the first 1 byte is performed, and it is determined whether or not the 1 byte has reached the leading end (steps 202, 20).
Four). When the first one scan is completed, the next scan is performed, and the sequence is repeated until the front end B is detected (steps 204, 206, NO, 208). When the leading end b is detected (Yes at step 204), the position of the leading end b is compared with the position of the reference data. That is, the position of the tip b is fixed and the reference data (binary data)
Are sequentially shifted to the left. At the time of this shift, the number of times of the shift is counted, and the shift is performed up to the place where the carry flag is set (steps 212, 214, 216 negative). Then, when the carry flag is set, that is, when the position of the leading end B in the reference data is reached, the shift is stopped (step 216: Yes). Then, the shift is calculated based on the shift count number (step 218). If the deviation is found, the difference between the image pickup data and the reference data becomes quantitatively clear, and the deviation can be corrected and cut out at the time of the next cutout processing. 9 and 10 show a second image correction processing example in which the center position of the triangular mark I '(dashed line position in FIG. 9) is detected and compared with the reference data. First, the center position is obtained by scanning with a 3-byte scanning line from the predetermined position of the triangle mark ‘
It is stored in 0b (steps 300 to 304). Next, the next scanning line obtained by adding a certain value to the above scanning line is obtained, and the scanning line is scanned, and similarly the center position is obtained (steps 306, 308 negative). As an example, when four central positions are obtained by scanning four scanning lines, the central positions are averaged and detected as positions of the imaged image (Yes at step 308, 310). Then, it is detected how much the detected position deviates from the reference data (step 312). If the deviation is found, the difference between the image data and the reference data becomes quantitatively clear, and the deviation can be corrected and the accurate cutting can be performed in the next cutting processing. Although the number of scanning lines is four in the above-mentioned example, the number of scanning lines may be more, or two or three. However, the center position can be detected almost accurately with about four lines. Of course, five or more may be used,
In this case, the accuracy is improved but the processing time is long, which is not a good idea. As described above, in the automatic ticket gate A according to the present embodiment, a character that appears at a specific portion of the image picked up by the image pickup device 5, such as a mark indicating the direction of the destination, at a fixed position on the ticket, appears. Positions such as figures are detected and deviations are measured, the deviations are compensated and cut out, and each cut out image is read using the data in the matching table with a specified matching width, and the reading result is judged. Since the door is controlled to be opened / closed based on the result of the determination, the cutout can be performed accurately and the legibility can be efficiently read.

【The invention's effect】

The optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to the present invention detects the position of a specific portion in the image picked up by the image pickup means, measures the shift, cuts out the picked up image by compensating for this shift, and cuts it out. Since each image is read by collating it with a pattern having a predetermined collation width, the reading result is determined, and the opening / closing control of the door is performed based on the determination result, the cutting can be performed accurately. For this reason, it is possible to prevent erroneous reading from occurring even if there is print misalignment or transport unevenness, and it is possible to efficiently read.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing the structural features of the optical reading type automatic ticket gate according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the automatic ticket gate according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a controller, FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an outline of a control program of the controller, FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a cutting procedure, FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of image data and a collation table, FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of an example of the image correction processing, FIG. 8 is its flowchart, FIG. 9 is an explanatory view of another example of the image correction processing, and FIG. 10 is its flowchart. 1 ... Main body, 2 ... Insertion port, 3 ... Ejection port, 4 ... Transport mechanism, 5 ... Imaging device, 6 ... Punching unit, A ... Optical reading automatic ticket gate, 10 ... CPU, 11 …… Cutout format storage section, 12 …… Character pattern storage section.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] Claim: What is claimed is: 1. An image pickup means for picking up an image of a ticket face or an entrance ticket inserted in the main body of an automatic ticket gate, a position detecting means for detecting a position of a specific portion of the picked-up image, and a detected specific portion. The image error detection means for detecting the error of the imaged screen position from the position of the image and the previously stored reference position, and the detected error is corrected by the cutout format stored in the cutout format storage unit in advance. While cutting out means for cutting out the imaged image, reading means for reading out each cut-out image using a pattern of characters, numbers or symbols having a predetermined collation width, which is stored in advance in the character pattern storage section, Based on the deciphered data, a judging means for judging whether or not the ticket or the like is allowed to pass through the ticket gate, and a door control hand for controlling the opening and closing of the door based on the judgment result. If, optical reading type automatic ticket gate, characterized by comprising.