JP5478075B2 - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and more particularly to a human body detection function.

  A conventional air conditioner with a human body detection function includes, for example, “... an infrared sensor and a human body tracking device, and measures the surface temperature of the human face by capturing the face of the human body whose visual field of the infrared sensor is being tracked. There is one that controls the air conditioner using the value (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Further, for example, “an imaging unit, a human body determination unit that processes a video signal from the imaging unit to determine a human body, a specific part determination unit that determines a position of a specific part of a person based on a signal from the imaging unit, and the specific Tracking means for tracking the human body by a signal from the part determination means, skin temperature detection means for detecting the skin temperature of the human body via the tracking means, and thermal sensation determination means by a signal from the skin temperature detection means, And an air conditioner comprising control means for controlling the air conditioner based on a signal from the thermal sensation means (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-157551 (Claims, Fig. 1) JP-A-2-306040 (Claims)

  The conventional air conditioner with human body detection function cannot recognize multiple human bodies at the same time. The infrared sensor follows the human body all the time, and while the human body is stopped, the human body's skin temperature and the temperature of the floor and walls around the human body. However, it cannot detect the obstacle between the human body and the air conditioner and the airflow does not reach, it takes time for the device that follows the human body to detect the direction of the human body. In such a case, there is a problem that the room cannot be photographed and the human body cannot be detected.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a first object is to distinguish between a human body and an object, recognize their position, shape, size, color, etc., and It is to obtain an air conditioner that can perform energy-saving operation by detecting the temperature of a target to be detected and performing air-conditioning control based on the information, and can set the air-conditioning to an optimum state in the environment where each human body is placed.

  The second purpose is to recognize the position, shape, size, and color of floors and walls other than the human body, and obstacles, detect the temperature of the object you want to detect, and optimize it in each environment based on that information. It is to obtain an air conditioner that can be operated in a state.

An air conditioner according to the present invention detects a human body or a plurality of human bodies based on a camera installed indoors and images the room, and one or a plurality of continuous images obtained from the camera. An image processing unit that discriminates objects and recognizes at least one of their position, shape, size, and color, an infrared sensor that detects the temperature of a remote point, and a direction change that changes the direction of the infrared sensor A focus changing unit that changes a detection target range of the infrared sensor based on image information from the image processing unit, and the direction changing unit based on image information from the image processing unit, Control that controls the air conditioning based on the image information from the image processing unit and the temperature information from the infrared sensor while directing the sensor in the direction of the detection target With the door, the image processing unit specifies the background area excluding the place where the image of the entire room taken the human body by the camera, the control unit, the temperature change of the detected body surface In response, the temperature is changed, the direction changing unit and the focus changing unit are controlled to cause the infrared sensor to detect the surface temperature of the entire room, and the temperature of the background area specified by the image processing unit is set to the infrared ray. The air conditioning setting is changed based on the temperature of the background area obtained from the output of the sensor.

  The air conditioner according to the present invention discriminates a human body such as a face, a hand or a foot from an image taken indoors and an object such as a floor, a wall or furniture, and recognizes their position, shape, size, color and the like. Based on the result, the infrared sensor is moved to detect the temperature of the person to be detected, so the temperature of the detected human body such as the face, hand, and foot and the object such as the floor, wall, furniture, etc. It can quickly detect the temperature of the object you want to detect and perform optimal air conditioning control.

It is an example of the figure which showed the structure of the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is an enlarged view of the infrared sensor 3 of FIG. 1, and is an example of a diagram showing the infrared sensor 3 in the first embodiment of the present invention. It is an example of the block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the image which the camera 2 in Embodiment 1 of this invention image | photographed. It is an enlarged view of the infrared sensor 3 of FIG. 1, and is an example of a diagram showing the infrared sensor 3 in the second embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the image which the camera 2 in Embodiment 2 of this invention image | photographed. It is an example of the block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the image which the camera 2 in Embodiment 2 of this invention image | photographed. It is a figure of the example which shows the temperature detection range of the infrared sensor in Embodiment 2 of this invention by XY coordinate. It is an example of the block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is the figure which showed simply the relationship between the body temperature of a human body, and room temperature. It is an example of the block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 4 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the image which the camera 2 in Embodiment 4 of this invention image | photographed. It is a block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 5 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the image which the camera 2 in Embodiment 5 of this invention image | photographed. It is a block diagram which shows the air conditioning apparatus 1 in Embodiment 5 of this invention.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
1 is an example of a configuration diagram showing an air-conditioning apparatus 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlarged view as an example of the infrared sensor 3 of FIG. 1, and infrared rays according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the sensor. FIG. 3 is a system block diagram according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an image taken by the camera 2 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, an air conditioner 1 corresponds to an indoor unit of a refrigerating and air-conditioning apparatus. In addition to the components as a normal indoor unit, a camera 2 and an infrared sensor 3 are arranged on the same surface as shown in the figure. Prepared for position. A wide-angle camera is used as the camera 2 and can display the entire room. A lens used for a wide-angle camera generally includes a fish-eye lens. If the angle of view is about 160 °, the entire room can be projected. As the infrared sensor 3, for example, a thermopile sensor capable of detecting the surface temperature at a remote point is used. There may be one or more thermopile elements. In the first embodiment, as an example of a thermopile element, as shown in FIG. 2, seven elements (elements 31 to 37) arranged in a vertical direction are used, and air conditioning is performed from the ceiling of the room. The surface temperature up to the floor just below the device 1 is detected.

  In FIG. 3, the air conditioning apparatus 1 includes a direction changing unit 4 that changes the direction of the infrared sensor 3, an air conditioning unit 5, and a control device 6. The direction changing unit 4 includes a mechanism that drives left and right, and can change the direction of the infrared sensor 3 to the left and right. When the direction changing unit 4 moves the direction of the infrared sensor 3 in the left-right direction, the surface temperature of the entire room can be detected. The air conditioning unit 5 changes the direction, air volume, temperature, and the like of the air flow such as cooling air of the air conditioner 1. That is, the air conditioner includes a refrigeration cycle (not shown) including a compressor, a condenser, a decompression unit, and an evaporator, and the air conditioning unit 5 includes the number of rotations of the compressor of the refrigeration cycle, and the opening degree of the decompression unit. , The number of rotations of the cooling fan, the direction of the louvers that adjust the direction of the airflow, and the like are controlled. The control device 6 is constituted by a microcomputer, for example, and paying attention to its function, the control device 6 has functions as an image processing unit 7, a temperature detection unit 8, a direction control unit 9, and an air conditioning control unit 10. The image processing unit 7, the temperature detection unit 8, the direction control unit 9, and the air conditioning control unit 10 constitute a control unit of the present invention.

  The image processing unit 7 discriminates a human body such as a face, a hand, and a leg and an object such as a floor, a wall, and furniture from an image taken by the camera 2 and recognizes their position, shape, size, color, and the like. The temperature detection unit 8 detects the temperature based on information from the infrared sensor 3. The direction control unit 9 controls the direction changing unit 4 based on information from the image processing unit 7 to change the direction (detection direction) of the infrared sensor 3. The air conditioning control unit 10 controls the air flow direction, the air volume, the set temperature, and the like of the air conditioning unit 5 based on information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature detection unit 8.

  4 adds an XY coordinate axis 11, an origin 12, and a temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3 to the image taken by the camera 2, and shows the positions of the human body and the object recognized from the image on the XY coordinate axis 11. Expressed in coordinates. Regarding the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3, the vertical direction is adjusted so that the temperature from the ceiling part of the image taken by the camera 2 to the floor part directly below the air conditioner 1 can be detected. 12 is sequentially detected in the X direction. By doing in this way, when the direction change part 4 moves to the left-right direction, the direction of the infrared sensor 3 is changed to the left-right direction, and the temperature from the end of a room to the end can be detected. By matching the origins or coordinates of the camera 2 and the infrared sensor 3, the temperature of the designated coordinates on the image can be detected. Needless to say, the temperature detection range in the vertical direction depends on the number of elements of the infrared sensor 3. By aligning the origins of the camera 2 and the infrared sensor 3, the infrared sensor 3 can be installed freely regardless of the installation position of the camera 2. Therefore, it can be installed vertically or horizontally. May be.

Next, the operation will be described.
In the air conditioning apparatus 1 configured as described above, the camera 2 captures the entire room, and the image processing unit 7 uses the human body such as the face, hands, and feet, the floor, the wall, furniture, and the like based on the image from the camera 2. It discriminates from objects and recognizes their positions, shapes, sizes, colors, and the like.
As an image processing method by the image processing unit 7, for example, there is a method of determining an object such as a human body, a floor, a wall, or furniture from one image. Characteristic features such as the eyes and ears of the human body are detected from a single photographed image, the surrounding circle is recognized as the head of the human body, and the limbs around it are recognized. Walls are recognized based on vertical straight lines connected to the ceiling, floors are recognized based on horizontal straight lines, and furniture and other objects such as squares, rectangles, parallelograms, rhombuses, circles, ellipses, etc. There are methods to recognize sofas, beds, desks, chairs, etc.

  Also, as a method of image processing by the image processing unit 7, there is a method of detecting a human body from the difference between two images taken in succession. If the difference between two images taken in succession is taken, the difference is always 0 when there is no moving object such as a human body. However, if there is a moving object, the difference is other than 0, so the moving object is at that position. It can be recognized that it exists. When the moving object is extremely small, it is determined as a pet or a fallen object, and when it is extremely large, it is determined as ambient light such as lighting or a curtain being opened, thereby improving the human body recognition rate.

  Next, the object recognized by the image processing unit 7 is converted into coordinates, such as an XY coordinate axis 11 shown in FIG. Since the position can be specified in this way, the direction control unit 9 drives the direction changing unit 4 so that the infrared sensor 3 faces the X coordinate of the target whose temperature is to be detected, and changes the direction of the infrared sensor 3 in the left-right direction. Referring to FIG. 4 as an example, when it is desired to detect the temperature of the head of the human body A, the image processing unit 7 determines the position of the human body A, that is, the XY coordinates (X1, Y1) from the image taken by the camera 2. Identify. The direction control unit 9 drives the direction changing unit 4 so that the infrared sensor 3 faces the X coordinate (X1). The temperature detected by the element 35 of the infrared sensor 3 that detects the temperature in the range corresponding to the Y coordinate (Y1) at this time is the temperature of the head of the human body A. The air conditioning control unit 10 controls the direction of the air flow, the air volume, the set temperature, and the like of the air conditioning unit 5 based on the image information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature information from the temperature detection unit 8 thus obtained. .

  As an air conditioning control method using the image information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature information from the temperature detection unit 8, for example, there is a method of airflow control avoiding an obstacle. In the conventional air conditioner, even if the position of the human body is known, if there is an object such as a sofa or a desk in front of the human body, this becomes an obstacle and the airflow does not reach. However, the image processing unit 7 according to the first embodiment can recognize not only the human body but also the position of an object such as furniture from the image taken by the camera 2, so that the air conditioning control unit 10 can control the image processing unit 7. By controlling the air flow direction, air volume, set temperature, and the like of the air conditioning unit 5 based on the recognition result, the air flow can easily reach the human body behind the object.

  There is also a method for detecting room temperature more accurately. For example, the image processing unit 7 specifies a portion excluding the place where the human body is present from the image of the entire room, the temperature detection unit 8 extracts the temperature of the specified region from the output of the infrared sensor 3, and the average value is calculated. Ask. Conventionally, since the temperature of the human body is also detected, the room temperature is raised. However, by removing the temperature of the human body, it can be brought close to the actual room temperature.

  Even in the case where there are a plurality of human bodies, the image processing unit 7 can recognize the plurality of human bodies and determine the position, temperature, etc., so that the air conditioning is optimally controlled according to each human body. Can do.

  By the way, there may be a case where a person appears on the television and the image processing unit 7 mistakenly determines that it is a human body. You can judge whether or not.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the image processing unit 7 determines a human body such as a face, a hand, and a foot and an object such as a floor, a wall, and furniture from an image captured by the camera 2, Since the shape control unit 9 recognizes the shape, size, color, and the like, the direction control unit 9 drives the direction changing unit 4 based on the information, and the infrared sensor 3 detects the temperature in the direction of the target to be detected. The temperature of the detection target can also be detected, and the air conditioning can be effectively controlled according to the environment and state.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
In the first embodiment described above, the temperature is detected by using a plurality of elements for the infrared sensor 3. Next, an example in which the temperature is detected by using one element for the infrared sensor 3 will be described. This will be described as form 2.

  FIG. 5 is an enlarged view as an example of the infrared sensor 3 of FIG. 1 and shows the infrared sensor 3 in the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is an image taken by the camera 2 in the second embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the example of.

  In FIG. 5, the infrared sensor 3 is composed of a plurality of elements in FIG. At this time, the direction changing unit 4 in FIG. 3 includes a mechanism for driving up, down, left, and right, and the direction of the infrared sensor 3 can be changed up, down, left, and right, and the direction changing unit 4 changes the direction of the infrared sensor 3 up, down, left, and right. By moving in the direction, it is possible to detect the surface temperature of the place to be detected in the room. In FIG. 6, the image processing unit 7 recognizes the human body A and the human body B and recognizes the coordinates of the human body A and the human body B on the XY coordinate axes 11 as (X1, Y1) and (X2, Y2), respectively. Is shown.

Next, the operation will be described.
In the air conditioning apparatus 1 configured as described above, the camera 2 captures the entire room, and the image processing unit 7 determines the human body such as the face, hands, and feet and the object such as the floor, wall, and furniture, Recognize shape, size and color. Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the positions of the human body and the object determined by the image processing unit 7, that is, the XY coordinates (X1, Y1) are specified. When the position is specified, the direction changing unit 4 is driven up, down, left, and right so that the direction of the infrared sensor 3 is aligned with the XY coordinates of the object whose temperature is to be detected by the direction control unit 9. For example, when it is desired to detect the temperature of the human body A in FIG. 6, the image processing unit 7 discriminates the human body A and the human body B from the image taken by the camera 2 and objects such as the floor, walls, furniture, and the position, shape, and size. After recognizing the sheath and color, the position of the human body A is represented by (X1, Y1) in the XY coordinates 11. The direction control unit 9 controls the direction changing unit 4 to direct the direction of the infrared sensor 3 to (X1, Y1), and the infrared sensor 3 detects the temperature of the human body A. Further, after detecting the temperature of the human body A, the temperature of the human body B may be detected by directing the infrared sensor 3 in the direction of (X2, Y2). May be.

  Next, a method for detecting the temperature according to the position and size of a human body or an object by changing the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3 by narrowing or widening the focus of the infrared sensor 3 will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a system block diagram according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an image taken by the camera 2 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example in which the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3 is indicated by XY coordinates.

  In FIG. 7, the air conditioning apparatus 1 includes a camera 2, an infrared sensor 3, a direction changing unit 4 that changes the direction of the infrared sensor 3, an air conditioning unit 5, a control device 6, and a focus changing unit 14. The focus changing unit 14 can narrow or widen the focus of the infrared sensor 3 and can change the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3. The control device 6 includes a focus control unit 15 in addition to the image processing unit 7, the temperature detection unit 8, the direction control unit 9, and the air conditioning control unit 10 of the first embodiment. The focus control unit 15 controls the focus change unit 14 based on the image information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature information from the temperature detection unit 8.

  FIG. 8 shows a state where the human body A is near the air conditioner 1. For example, the camera 2 detects the face, the image processing unit 7 calculates the coordinates and range thereof, and the focus control unit 15 changes the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3 according to the range in which the temperature is desired to be detected. To control. Comparing FIG. 6 and FIG. 8, it can be seen that when the human body A approaches, the temperature detection range 13 of the infrared sensor 3 is expanded. By changing the temperature detection range 13 in this way, it is possible to detect the temperature within the range to be detected once or in a small number of times without finely scanning the direction changing unit 4 within the range to be detected. The designated range for temperature detection in the image processing unit 7 may be an arbitrary rectangular range by designating coordinates 16 of two diagonal points as shown in FIG. 9, for example. Further, by specifying the coordinates 17 of the center of the circle and the radius 18 of the circle, an arbitrary range of the circle may be set.

  The direction control unit 9 controls the direction changing unit 4 to direct the direction of the infrared sensor 3 to the coordinates specified by the image processing unit 7, and the focus control unit 15 controls the focus changing unit 14 to specify the image processing unit 7. The temperature detection range of the infrared sensor 3 is adjusted to the range thus detected, and the temperature of the human body or object is detected by one thermopile sensor element. Based on the image information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature information from the temperature detection unit 8 thus obtained, the air conditioning control unit 10 changes the wind direction when the human body moves, or reduces the air volume when the human body is close. Air conditioning can be controlled in an optimal state, such as increasing the air volume if the distance is long, or decreasing the temperature if the body temperature is high.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, by recognizing a human body and an object and recognizing the position, shape, size, and the like, it is possible to effectively perform air conditioning according to the environment and the state. . In addition, the infrared sensor is composed of a single element, and the focal point and direction can be freely changed by the focal point changing unit 14 and the direction changing unit 4 to detect an arbitrary range temperature at an arbitrary position or a narrow range temperature. Therefore, it is possible to realize detection of the temperature to be detected or the temperature of the target point at lower cost than using a plurality of thermopile sensors.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
In the first and second embodiments described above, a human body and an object are recognized from an image captured by the camera 2, and the position and range are discriminated, and the temperature of a target to be detected is detected by the infrared sensor 3, and air conditioning control is performed based on the result. However, an example of detecting whether the human body is hot or cold and whether it is comfortable or not will be described as a third embodiment.

  FIG. 10 is a system block diagram according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a diagram simply showing the relationship between the human body temperature and room temperature.

In FIG. 10, the control device 6 includes a temperature recording unit 19 and a thermal sensation determination unit 20 in addition to the image processing unit 7, the temperature detection unit 8, the direction control unit 9, and the air conditioning control unit 10 of the first embodiment. And. The temperature recording unit 19 records the temperature of the human body. The thermal sensation determination unit 20 determines whether the human body feels hot or cold from the relationship between the human body temperature and room temperature.
In FIG. 11, the rectal temperature is the temperature of the rectum of the human body and is the temperature closest to the human body temperature.

Next, the operation will be described.
For example, in FIG. 10, the camera 2 captures the entire room, and the image processing unit 7 recognizes the forehead, hands, and feet of the human body and determines the position and range. Next, the direction control unit 9 controls the direction changing unit 4 to direct the direction of the infrared sensor 3 to the position of each part of the human body determined by the image processing unit 7, and the infrared sensor 3 detects, for example, the forehead, hands and feet of the human body. Detect surface temperature. The detected temperature is recorded in the temperature recording unit 19. The thermal sensation determination unit 20 determines thermal sensation by the following method based on the temperature information recorded in the temperature recording unit 19.

  As one of the determinations of thermal sensation, for example, there is a method of determining whether the human body feels hot or cold due to a change in the human body surface temperature. Since the surface temperature of the human body gradually increases or decreases by staying in an air-conditioned room, the rising temperature, falling temperature, rising temperature / minute, falling temperature / minute, etc. of the human body's forehead and hand / foot surface temperatures Calculate and determine the thermal sensation from the result.If it is determined that it feels hot, the set temperature is lowered, and if it is determined that it feels cold, the set temperature is increased. The air flow direction, air volume, set temperature, and the like of the air conditioning unit 5 are controlled so that the required air conditioning setting is obtained.

  Another method for determining thermal sensation is, for example, a method for determining from the relationship between the temperature of the forehead of the human body, the temperature of the limbs, and the room temperature. It is known that the body temperature closer to the heart is closer to the basal body temperature, and as shown in FIG. 11, the temperature of the limb far from the heart varies greatly with room temperature compared to the temperature of the forehead close to the heart. The temperature felt by the human body can be estimated from the temperature relationship. For example, if the temperature of the limb is 5 ° C. or more lower than the forehead temperature, it is determined that the temperature is cold, and the air conditioning temperature is raised.

  In addition, as a thermal sensation determination method, for example, there is a thermal sensation determination method according to the activity state of the human body. For example, the movement state of the human body may be integrated in the image processing unit 7 for the activity state of the human body. The temperature perceived by the human body differs between when the human body is moving and when it is stationary. Even if the surface temperature does not change significantly, the amount of heat generated from the body is greater when moving, compared to when it is stationary, so the air conditioning temperature is lowered, and when it is stationary, less heat is generated from the body. Increase air conditioning temperature.

  Further, when a certain human body (user) changes the set temperature with a remote controller or the like, the thermal sensation of the human body can be known. For example, the temperature of the forehead of the human body and the temperature of the limbs are detected. By comparing the thermal sensation and the average thermal sensation of the human body, and adding a correction to the thermal sensation criterion based on the comparison result, the air conditioning control adapted to the human body can be performed. In addition, since the thermal sensation determination unit 20 stores the correction result, the human body (user) can perform air conditioning in a suitable state without changing the set temperature again.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, in addition to the processing of the image from the camera 2 and the temperature detection by the infrared sensor 3, the human body obtains the thermal sensation determination by the thermal sensation determination unit 20. It is possible to control based on the result of detection and calculation by the air conditioner without the user setting the optimum air conditioning state.

Embodiment 4 FIG.
Embodiment 3 described above estimates air temperature of a human body and performs air conditioning control. Next, an example in which air conditioning control is performed according to the clothing state of the human body will be described as Embodiment 4.

  FIG. 12 is a system block diagram according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of an image taken by the camera 2 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 12, the control device 6 includes a clothing determination unit 21 in addition to the image processing unit 7, the temperature detection unit 8, the direction control unit 9, and the air conditioning control unit 10 of the first embodiment. The clothing determination unit 21 estimates the type of clothing based on the image information from the image processing unit 7 and the temperature information from the temperature detection unit 8. In FIG. 13, the arm area 22 and the foot area 23 of the human body A detected by the image processing unit 7, and the arm area 24 and the foot area 25 of the human body B are shown. Is short sleeves and shorts.

Next, the operation will be described.
In the air conditioning apparatus 1 configured as described above, the camera 2 captures the entire room, and the image processing unit 7 recognizes the face, arms, legs, and the like of the human body to detect the skin color and determine the position and range. Next, the direction control unit 9 controls the direction changing unit 4 so that the direction of the infrared sensor 3 is directed to the position of the human face, arm, or foot determined by the image processing unit 7. Detect foot temperature. At this time, the clothing determination unit 21 estimates the type of clothing from the skin color portion and the temperature of the recognized area of the arm and foot of the human body.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 13, when the skin color is detected in less than 30% of the area of the arm of the human body on the image as in the area 22 of the arm of the human body A, it is determined that the sleeve is long sleeve, and the area of the arm of the human body B is 24. If more than 30% of the skin color is detected as shown in FIG. Similarly, when the skin color is detected in less than 30% of the area of the foot of the human body in the image as in the area 23 of the foot of the human body A, it is determined as long pants, and the area of the foot 25 of the human body B is 30. If the skin color is detected by more than%, it is determined as shorts.

  For example, when less than 30% of the area of the arm of the human body on the image detects 30 ° C. to 36 ° C. as in the area of the arm 22 of the human body A, it is determined that the sleeve is long sleeve, and the area of the arm of the human body B is 24. When 30% or more detects 30 ° C. to 36 ° C. as in FIG. Similarly, in the area of the foot of the human body on the image, when less than 30% detects 30 ° C. to 36 ° C. like the foot area 23 of the human body A, it is determined as long pants, and the foot area 25 of the human body B Thus, when 30% or more detects 30 ° C. to 36 ° C., it can be determined as shorts.

  Further, for example, if the skin color part is 30% or more of the area of the human arm on the image and the skin color part is detected between 30 ° C. and 36 ° C., it is determined as a short sleeve, otherwise it is determined as a long sleeve, If the skin color part is 30% or more of the area of the human foot on the image and the skin color part is detected between 30 ° C. and 36 ° C., it is determined as short pants, otherwise it is determined as long pants, etc. If information and temperature information are combined, the accuracy can be further increased.

  As described above, the temperature perceived by the human body varies depending on the type of clothing.For example, during cooling operation, if it is recognized as short-sleeved or short-trousers, it is almost always hot. You may direct the airflow to In addition, it is possible to perform an energy saving operation while raising the set temperature and maintaining the feeling state.

  In addition to the processing of the image from the camera 2 and the temperature detection by the infrared sensor 3, the clothing determination unit 21 can estimate the state of the clothing worn by the human body, so that the body sensation can be matched to the clothing state of the human body. Optimum air-conditioning control for energy saving while maintaining temperature is possible.

Embodiment 5 FIG.
In the fourth embodiment, air conditioning control is performed based on information on clothes worn by a human body. Next, an example in which air conditioning control is performed when the image processing unit can no longer detect a human body will be described. Will be described.

  FIG. 14 is a system block diagram according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of an image taken by the camera 2 according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 14, the control device 6 includes an image recording unit 26 in addition to the image processing unit 7, the temperature detection unit 8, the direction control unit 9, and the air conditioning control unit 10 of the first embodiment. The image recording unit 26 records an image taken by the camera 2. FIG. 15 shows an area 27 where a human body action pattern is recorded and the probability that a human body is present is high.

Next, the operation will be described.
In the air conditioning apparatus 1 configured as described above, an image obtained by photographing the entire room by the camera 2 is stored in the image recording unit 26, and the illuminance is such that the image processing unit 7 cannot recognize a human body, a floor, a wall, or an object. Do not save when becomes low. Simultaneously with the storage, the image processing unit 7 recognizes the human body from the image taken by the camera 2 and records, for example, the position coordinates of the head of the human body for a certain period of time. For example, a human body action pattern is obtained based on an image taken by the camera 2. Specifically, the photographed image is divided into a plurality of areas, the area where the coordinates of the head of the human body are counted, the area where the human body is located is detected, and the information is recorded in the image recording unit 26. To do. In that case, you may divide into the area 27 with a high probability of having a human body and other areas like FIG.

  Next, when the illuminance sufficient for the camera 2 to take an image of the room is not obtained, the direction control unit 9 detects the presence of the human body by the infrared sensor 3 based on the image information stored in the image recording unit 26. The direction changing unit 4 is controlled so as to detect the temperature centering on the area 27 where the probability of the image is high, and the image processing unit 7 and the temperature detecting unit 8 are, for example, those having a certain size of 30 ° C. to 36 ° C. as a human body. Recognizing, the air-conditioning control unit 10 controls the direction of the air flow, the air volume, the set temperature, etc. of the air-conditioning unit 5 according to this human body.

  Further, if the position, shape, size, etc. of an object other than a person are recorded in the image recording unit 26, for example, a bed, a sofa, a chair or the like is used as an obstacle, regardless of the illuminance, and the airflow to that position is Air conditioning can be avoided.

  As described above, even if the camera 2 becomes dark and the camera 2 cannot be used, air conditioning control equivalent to that when the camera is bright can be performed by using an image taken while the camera is bright. In addition, since the infrared sensor 3 scans around an area where there is a high probability that a human body exists, the detection time can be shortened because it is not necessary to detect the entire area.

Embodiment 6 FIG.
The above-described first to fifth embodiments are intended for air conditioning control. Next, an example in which an abnormality is notified when a high temperature is detected without a human body in the room will be described as a sixth embodiment.

  FIG. 16 is a system block diagram according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 16, the air-conditioning apparatus 1 according to Embodiment 5 of the present invention includes an abnormal temperature notification unit 28 for notifying danger when a high temperature is detected.

Next, the operation will be described.
In the air conditioner 1 configured as described above, the control device 6 determines that the infrared sensor 3 detects an abnormal temperature when the infrared sensor 3 detects a temperature of, for example, 100 ° C. or more, and drives the abnormal temperature notification unit 28 to notify the abnormality. To do. At this time, the presence of the human body may be detected, and it may be possible to set the right or wrong of notification such as not being notified when high temperature exists near the human body, for example, when cooking or smoking.

  The functions relating to the high temperature detection and notification may be performed while the air conditioner 1 is in operation or on standby. In addition, the air conditioning unit 5 is not turned on as in the absence mode, but the camera 2 and the infrared sensor 3 are set to be movable, the mode can be switched with the remote control, and the absence mode is set. You can monitor for abnormalities such as fire. Further, as an example of the abnormal temperature notification unit 28, a warning by a buzzer or a speaker may be provided, and a warning by voice or a warning by light emission by an LED may be used, or the user may be notified by a mobile phone or the like via a network.

  As described above, when a high temperature such as a fire is detected in a room without a human body, an abnormality can be immediately notified, and the air conditioner can also be used as a fire detection notification device.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said Embodiment 1-6, You may make it implement | achieve the air conditioning apparatus which consists of a structure which combined these embodiment suitably.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air conditioning apparatus, 2 camera, 3 infrared sensor, 4 direction change part, 5 air conditioning part, 6 control apparatus, 7 image processing part, 8 temperature detection part, 9 direction control part, 10 air conditioning control part, 11 XY coordinate axis , 12 origin, 13 temperature detection range of the infrared sensor 3, 14 focus changing unit, 15 focus control unit, 16 coordinates of two diagonal points of the square indicating the temperature detection range, 17 coordinates of the center of the circle indicating the temperature detection range , 18 Radius of circle indicating temperature detection range, 19 Temperature recording unit, 20 Thermal sensation determination unit, 21 Clothing determination unit, 22 Area of arm of human body A on image, 23 Area of foot of human body A on image 24, the area of the arm of the human body B on the image, 25, the area of the foot of the human body B on the image, 26, the image recording unit, 27, the area where the human body is likely to exist in the room, 28, the abnormal temperature notification unit.

Claims (7)

A camera installed indoors to shoot the interior;
One or more human bodies are detected based on one or a plurality of continuous images obtained from the camera, the human body and the object are discriminated, and at least one or more of their position, shape, size and color An image processing unit for recognizing
An infrared sensor that detects the temperature at a remote location;
A direction changing unit for changing the direction of the infrared sensor;
A focus changing unit that changes a detection target range of the infrared sensor based on image information from the image processing unit;
The direction changing unit is controlled based on the image information from the image processing unit, the direction of the infrared sensor is directed to the direction of the detection target, and the image information from the image processing unit and the temperature from the infrared sensor A control unit for controlling the air conditioning based on the information,
The image processing unit identifies a background area excluding a place where a human body is present from an image of the entire room photographed by the camera,
The controller is
Change the set temperature according to the detected temperature change of the surface of the human body,
Control the direction changing unit and the focus changing unit to cause the infrared sensor to detect the surface temperature of the entire room,
An air conditioner that obtains the temperature of the background area specified by the image processing unit from the output of the infrared sensor and changes the air conditioning setting based on the temperature of the background area. Further comprising a thermal sensation determination unit for determining thermal sensation of the target human body according to the detected temperature change of the surface of the human body,
The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit changes a set temperature of the air conditioner according to the determined thermal sensation of the human body.   The air conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature recording unit that records the detected surface temperature of the human body. It further includes a clothing determination unit that detects information about the clothing of the human body to be detected and the bare skin temperature,
The image processing unit estimates a skin color image portion of a human body detected based on an image from the camera,
The clothing determination unit determines the skin part by detecting the temperature of the skin color image part based on the output of the infrared sensor, detects information on the skin and the skin temperature from the determination result of the skin part,
The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs air conditioning control based on information related to the clothing and a bare skin temperature. The image processing unit detects the position of the human body based on the human body action pattern obtained based on the image from the camera and the temperature information detected by the infrared sensor, and calculates the temperature of the human body at the detected position. Obtained from the output of the infrared sensor,
The air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit performs air conditioning control based on the temperature of the human body at the detected position. An image recording unit for recording image information captured by the camera;
The control unit specifies the position of the detection target according to the position of the object specified by the image information recorded in the image recording unit, detects the temperature of the detection target by the infrared sensor, and detects the detection 6. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioning is controlled based on the result.   The air conditioning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising an abnormal temperature notification unit that notifies that the output of the infrared sensor is a high temperature equal to or higher than a predetermined value.

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