JP6159364B2 - Interactive elevator - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments of the present invention relate to interactive elevators.

  Conventionally, an interactive elevator that can interact with a user is known. In the conventional interactive elevator, the user can display the operation information of the car or register the call on the mobile terminal by operating the mobile terminal. These services were convenient for users accustomed to operating portable terminals. However, it is difficult for users (such as elderly people) who are unfamiliar with the operation of the mobile terminal and visually impaired users to operate the mobile terminal and receive these services.

JP 2014-156356 A

  To provide an interactive elevator that can communicate with users by voice.

  An interactive elevator according to an embodiment includes a wireless communication device, a voice recognition unit, a response message generation unit, a voice synthesis unit, and a speaker. The wireless communication device wirelessly receives voice data input by the user from the user's mobile terminal. The voice recognition unit recognizes the content of the message from the user based on the voice data. The response message generation unit generates a response message in response to the message from the user. The voice synthesizer generates voice data of the response message. The speaker receives voice data of the response message and outputs the response message as voice. The wireless communication device transmits the voice data of the response message to the mobile terminal.

The figure which shows an example of the interactive elevator which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the connection process of the portable terminal which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the dialogue process which concerns on 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the interactive elevator which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the dialogue process which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the interactive elevator which concerns on 3rd Embodiment.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
The interactive elevator according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The interactive elevator according to the present embodiment can interact with a user by voice. The user can interact with the interactive elevator via the mobile terminal T. First, the mobile terminal T will be described.

  The portable terminal T includes a wireless communication unit, a microphone, a speaker, and a display. When the user speaks toward the portable terminal T, the microphone of the portable terminal T picks up the voice of the user, and the voice of the user is input to the portable terminal T as voice data. In this manner, the user can input a message such as a question or a request to the mobile terminal T by voice. The portable terminal T wirelessly transmits the voice data input from the user to the interactive elevator together with its own ID. Although the portable terminal T is a smart phone, a mobile phone, and a tablet terminal, for example, it is not restricted to this.

  The interactive elevator according to the present embodiment outputs a message (response message) in response to a message from the user by voice. Here, FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an interactive elevator according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the interactive elevator includes a hall 1, a basket 2, a dialog control device 3, and a control panel 4.

  The hall 1 is provided with a hall door 11, an operation panel 12, a wireless communication device 13, and a speaker 14. The landing door 11 is a door on the landing 1 side for a user to get on and off the basket 2. The operation panel 12 includes a hall call button for registering a hall call.

  The wireless communication device 13 communicates wirelessly with the mobile terminal T of the user at the hall 1. The wireless communication device 13 is provided at a predetermined position so that the hall 1 is included in the communication area. In the example of FIG. 1, the wireless communication device 13 is provided on the wall surface of the hall 1, but may be incorporated in the operation panel 12 or may be provided on the ceiling of the hall 1.

  A communication standard between the wireless communication device 13 and the portable terminal T can be arbitrarily selected. The communication standard is, for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark), but is not limited thereto.

  The wireless communication device 13 detects the mobile terminal T that has entered the communication area, and connects to the detected mobile terminal T. Therefore, when the user arrives at the hall 1, the user's mobile terminal T is automatically connected to the wireless communication device 13.

  Further, when the connected mobile terminal T goes out of the communication area, the wireless communication device 13 cancels the connection with the mobile terminal T that has left. Therefore, when the user leaves the hall 1, the user's mobile terminal T is automatically disconnected from the wireless communication device 13.

  The wireless communication device 13 transmits and receives audio data to and from the connected mobile terminal T. When receiving the voice data from the connected mobile terminal T, the wireless communication device 13 inputs the received voice data and the ID of the source mobile terminal T together with its own ID to the dialogue control device 3.

  The speaker 14 outputs a response message as a voice to the user at the hall 1. The speaker 14 is provided at a predetermined position so that the user at the hall 1 can hear the response message. In the example of FIG. 1, the speaker 14 is provided on the wall surface of the hall 1, but may be built in the operation panel 12 or may be provided on the ceiling of the hall 1. A plurality of speakers 14 may be provided at the hall 1.

  The speaker 14 receives voice data of a response message from a voice synthesizer 34 described later, and outputs the voice data as synthesized voice. Thereby, a response message is output to the user at the hall 1 by voice.

  The basket 2 includes a basket door 21, an operation panel 22, a wireless communication device 23, and a speaker 24. The cage door 21 is a door on the cage 2 side for a user to get on and off the cage 2. The operation panel 22 includes a door opening button, a door closing button, and a destination floor button for each floor for registering a basket call.

  The wireless communication device 23 communicates wirelessly with the user's mobile terminal T in the basket 2. The wireless communication device 23 is provided at a predetermined position so that the basket 2 is included in the communication area. In the example of FIG. 1, the wireless communication device 23 is provided on the wall surface of the cage 2, but may be built in the operation panel 22 or may be provided on the ceiling of the cage 2.

  A communication standard between the wireless communication device 23 and the portable terminal T can be arbitrarily selected. The communication standard is, for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark), ZigBee (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark), but is not limited thereto.

  The wireless communication device 23 detects the mobile terminal T that has entered the communication area, and connects to the detected mobile terminal T. Therefore, when the user gets on the car 2, the user's mobile terminal T is automatically connected to the wireless communication device 23.

  Further, when the connected mobile terminal T goes out of the communication area, the wireless communication device 23 releases the connection with the mobile terminal T that has gone out. Therefore, when the user gets off the car 2, the user's mobile terminal T is automatically disconnected from the wireless communication device 23.

  The wireless communication device 23 transmits and receives audio data to and from the connected mobile terminal T. When receiving the voice data from the connected mobile terminal T, the wireless communication device 23 inputs the received voice data and the ID of the source mobile terminal T together with its own ID to the dialogue control device 3.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the interactive elevator includes a wireless communication device 13 provided in the hall 1 and a wireless communication device 23 provided in the car 2, but the wireless communication device 13 or the wireless communication device is provided. Only one of 23 may be provided.

  The speaker 24 outputs a response message to the user of the basket 2 by voice. The speaker 24 is provided at a predetermined position so that the user of the basket 2 can hear the response message. In the example of FIG. 1, the speaker 24 is provided on the wall surface of the basket 2, but may be built in the operation panel 22 or may be provided on the ceiling of the basket 2.

  The speaker 24 receives voice data of a response message from a voice synthesizer 34 described later, and outputs the voice data as synthesized voice. Thereby, a response message is output to the user of the basket 2 by voice.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the interactive elevator includes the speaker 14 provided in the hall 1 and the speaker 24 provided in the cage 2, but includes only one of the speaker 14 and the speaker 24. May be.

  The dialogue control device 3 is a computer that controls dialogue with a user by an interactive elevator. The dialogue control device 3 may be constituted by a control panel 4 that controls the operation of the basket 2, may be constituted by another computer connected to the control panel 4, or a server installed in the central management center. It may be constituted by. In any case, the dialogue control device 3 is connected to the wireless communication devices 13 and 23 and the speakers 14 and 24 so that they can communicate with each other by wire or wirelessly.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the dialogue control device 3 includes a voice recognition unit 31, a response message generation unit 32, an operation information acquisition unit 33, and a voice synthesis unit 34 as functional configurations. Each functional configuration is realized by a computer configuring the dialog control device 3 executing a program.

  The voice recognition unit 31 receives the voice data input by the user, the ID of the mobile terminal T, and the ID of the radio communication devices 13 and 23 from the radio communication devices 13 and 23. The voice recognition unit 31 performs existing voice recognition processing using a hidden Markov model or the like on the input voice data, and recognizes the content of the message from the user. The voice recognition unit 31 inputs the content of the message obtained by the voice recognition process to the response message generation unit 32.

  The response message generation unit 32 receives the content of the message from the voice recognition unit 31 and generates a response message in response to the input message. The response message can be generated using any existing question answering method. The response message generator 32 is preferably connected to a database or the Internet for generating a response message.

  The response message generator 32 may generate a response message based on the operation information of the basket 2. Thereby, the response message generator 32 can generate a response message that answers a question from the user regarding the operation of the car 2 (for example, “How long will the car arrive?”).

  The operation information acquisition unit 33 acquires operation information from the control panel 4 of the car 2 in response to a request from the response message generation unit 32 or periodically. The operation information includes the current position (floor) of the basket 2, the speed, the lifting direction, the weight, the registered call, and the like. The operation information acquisition unit 33 inputs the acquired operation information to the response message generation unit 32. Thereby, the response message production | generation part 32 can produce | generate the response message based on the above operation information.

  The voice synthesizer 34 receives the response message from the response message generator 32 and generates voice data of the input response message. The voice data of the response message is voice data indicating the waveform of the synthesized voice that reads the response message. Such conversion from text (response message) to synthesized speech can be performed by an existing speech synthesis method. The voice synthesizer 34 inputs the generated voice data to the speakers 14 and 24.

  The control panel 4 controls the operation of the car 2 (elevation, door opening, door closing, etc.), registers the call according to the input from the hall call button and the destination floor button, and collects the operation information of the car 2. . The control panel 4 inputs the collected information to the operation information acquisition unit 33.

  Next, the operation of the interactive elevator according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing connection processing of the portable terminal T by the wireless communication devices 13 and 23. Hereinafter, the wireless communication device 13 will be described as an example. Assume that the wireless communication device 13 is a wireless LAN base unit, and the mobile terminal T is a wireless LAN handset.

  First, the wireless communication device 13 determines whether there is an unconnected mobile terminal T in the communication area (step S1). Specifically, the wireless communication device 13 may transmit a beacon, collect the ID of the mobile terminal T that responds to the beacon, and check whether the collected ID includes an unconnected ID.

  If there is no unconnected mobile terminal T (NO in step S1), the process proceeds to step S3. On the other hand, when there is an unconnected mobile terminal T (YES in step S1), the wireless communication device 13 connects to the discovered unconnected mobile terminal T (step S2). At this time, the wireless communication device 13 stores the ID of the newly connected mobile terminal T as the ID of the currently connected wireless LAN slave unit. Further, the newly connected mobile terminal T stores the ID of the wireless communication device 13 as the ID of the currently connected wireless LAN base unit. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S3.

  Next, the wireless communication device 13 determines whether there is a mobile terminal T that has gone out of the communication area among the connected mobile terminals T (step S3). For example, if the wireless communication device 13 has not been able to continuously receive a signal from a certain mobile terminal T for a predetermined time or more, it may determine that the mobile terminal T has gone out of the communication area. For such determination, the wireless communication device 13 preferably stores a communication history with each connected mobile terminal T.

  If there is no mobile terminal T that has gone out of the communication area (NO in step S3), the process ends. On the other hand, when there is a mobile terminal T that has gone out of the communication area (YES in step S3), the wireless communication device 13 cancels the connection with the mobile terminal T that has gone out of the communication area (step 4). ). Then, the wireless communication device 13 deletes the ID of the mobile terminal T that has been disconnected from the ID of the currently connected wireless LAN slave device.

  The wireless communication device 13 repeats the above processing at predetermined time intervals. With this operation of the wireless communication device 13, the user's mobile terminal T that has arrived at the hall 1 is automatically connected to the wireless communication device 13 without being operated by the user. Further, the user's portable terminal T that has left the hall 1 is automatically disconnected from the wireless communication device 13 without being operated by the user.

  The same applies to the wireless communication device 23. That is, the wireless communication device 23 repeats the connection process of steps S1 to S4 at a predetermined time interval. Thereby, the mobile terminal T of the user who gets on the car 2 is automatically connected to the wireless communication device 23, and the mobile terminal T of the user who gets off the car 2 is automatically connected to the wireless communication device 23. Is released.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a dialogue process between the interactive elevator and the user according to the present embodiment. Hereinafter, a case where the user is at the hall 1 will be described as an example. It is assumed that the user's mobile terminal T is connected to the wireless communication device 13 by the connection process described above.

  When the user speaks toward the portable terminal T, the voice of the user is input to the portable terminal T as voice data (step S5). When the voice data is input, the portable terminal T wirelessly transmits the input voice data together with its own ID to the connected wireless communication device 13 (step S6).

  In order to realize such processing, it is preferable that the portable terminal T is preinstalled with an application for transmitting voice data input from the user to the wireless communication device 13. This application may be always activated in the background of the mobile terminal T, or may be activated by being connected to the wireless communication device 13 as a trigger.

  The wireless communication device 13 receives the audio data transmitted by the mobile terminal T (step S7). The wireless communication device 13 may always perform reception processing of audio data, or may perform it at predetermined time intervals in order to reduce power consumption.

  When the wireless communication device 13 receives the audio data, the wireless communication device 13 confirms the ID of the transmission source portable terminal T and confirms whether the transmission source portable terminal T is the connected portable terminal T. When the transmission source portable terminal T is the connected portable terminal T, the wireless communication device 13 inputs the voice data and the ID of the transmission source portable terminal T together with its own ID to the voice recognition unit 31. (Step S8). When the transmission source mobile terminal T is an unconnected mobile terminal T, the wireless communication device 13 may perform the connection process described above.

  When voice data is input, the voice recognition unit 31 executes voice recognition processing and recognizes the content of the message from the user (step S9). The voice recognition unit 31 inputs the content of the recognized message to the response message generation unit 32 together with the ID of the portable terminal T and the ID of the wireless communication device 13.

  The response message generator 32 generates a response message based on the content of the input message (step S10).

  At this time, the response message generator 32 may generate a response message using the ID of the wireless communication device 13. Since the floor of the user is known from the ID of the wireless communication device 13, a response message corresponding to the floor of the user can be generated.

  For example, the response message generating unit 32 responds to the question “How long will the basket arrive?” From the user based on the operation information and the floor where the user is located. The response time message “The basket will arrive in 20 seconds” can be generated.

  The response message generator 32 inputs the generated response message together with the ID of the portable terminal T and the ID of the wireless communication device 13 to the voice synthesizer 34.

  When the response message is input from the response message generator 32, the voice synthesizer 34 executes a voice synthesis process and generates voice data of the response message (step S11). Then, the voice synthesizer 34 confirms the ID of the wireless communication device 13 input together with the response message, identifies the speaker 14 installed in the landing 1 on the floor where the user is located, and speaks to the identified speaker 14. Data is input (step S12).

  The voice synthesizer 34 may store the speaker 14 corresponding to the ID of the wireless communication device 13 in advance or specify the speaker 14 corresponding to the ID of the wireless communication device 13 in order to specify the speaker 14 to which the voice data is input. The database storing 14 may be referred to.

  When the voice data is input from the voice synthesizer 34, the speaker 14 outputs the input voice data as synthesized voice. As a result, the response message is output as voice from the speaker 14 (step S13).

  As described above, the interactive elevator according to the present embodiment can interact with the user by voice via the mobile terminal T. Since dialogue is possible by voice, complicated operation of the portable terminal T is not necessary. Therefore, even a user who is unaccustomed to the operation of the mobile terminal T (elderly person) or a user who is blind is able to easily interact with the interactive elevator and receive services such as providing information.

  Further, the interactive elevator according to the present embodiment can reduce the length of the waiting time felt by the user by interacting with the user waiting for the arrival of the basket 2.

  In the above description, the response message is output from the speakers 14 and 24, but may be output from the user's portable terminal T. In this case, the interactive elevator may not include the speakers 14 and 24. As a method for outputting a response message from the portable terminal T, the following method is conceivable.

  First, the voice synthesizer 34 that generated the voice data of the response message confirms the ID of the wireless communication device 13 that is input together with the response message, and sends the voice data and the mobile terminal T to the wireless communication device 13 having this ID. Enter the ID.

  Next, the wireless communication device 13 to which the voice data is input confirms the ID of the portable terminal T input together with the voice data, and transmits the voice data wirelessly to the portable terminal T having this ID.

  And the portable terminal T which received audio | voice data outputs a response message by audio | voice from its speaker. Thereby, the user can hear the response message from the interactive elevator from his portable terminal T.

  Further, the interactive elevator may be able to register a call by a message inputted by voice from a user. For example, when a message “going to the first floor” is input from a user who has boarded the car 2, the interactive elevator outputs a response message as a voice and calls the car 2 to the first floor. You may register. Thereby, the user can operate the basket 2 by voice.

(Second Embodiment)
The interactive elevator which concerns on 2nd Embodiment is demonstrated with reference to FIG.4 and FIG.5. The interactive elevator according to the present embodiment displays a response message as text. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an interactive elevator according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4, the interactive elevator includes display devices 15 and 25. In addition, the dialogue control device 3 includes a text data generation unit 35 as a functional configuration. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  The display device 15 displays a response message as text on the user at the hall 1. The display device 15 is, for example, an LCD (liquid crystal display), a CRT (CRT), and a PDP (plasma display), but is not limited thereto. The display device 15 is provided at a predetermined position so that the user at the hall 1 can see the response message. In the example of FIG. 4, the display device 15 is provided above the landing door 11, but may be provided on the operation panel 12.

  When the text data of the response message is input from the text data generation unit 35 described later, the display device 15 displays the response message in text. Thereby, the user at the hall 1 can read the response message.

  The display device 25 displays a response message as text on the user in the basket 2. The display device 25 is, for example, an LCD, a CRT, and a PDP, but is not limited thereto. The display device 25 is provided at a predetermined position so that the user in the basket 2 can see the response message. In the example of FIG. 4, the display device 25 is provided above the car door 21, but may be provided on the operation panel 22.

  When the text data of the response message is input from the text data generation unit 35 described later, the display device 25 displays the response message in text. Thereby, the user in the basket 2 can read the response message.

  In the example of FIG. 4, the interactive elevator includes a display device 15 provided in the hall 1 and a display device 25 provided in the car 2, but either the display device 15 or the display device 25 is provided. Only one may be provided.

  The text data generation unit 35 receives the response message from the response message generation unit 32 and generates text data of the input response message. The text data of the response message is data having a predetermined format for displaying the response message in text. The text data generation unit 35 inputs the generated text data to the display devices 15 and 25.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing dialogue processing between the interactive elevator and the user according to the present embodiment. Steps S5 to S13 in FIG. 5 are the same as in the first embodiment. Below, step S14-step S16 are demonstrated. As in the description of the first embodiment, a case where the user is at the hall 1 will be described as an example.

  In the present embodiment, the response message generator 32 inputs the generated response message together with the ID of the mobile terminal T and the ID of the wireless communication device 13 to the speech synthesizer 34 and the text data generator 35.

  When the response message is input from the response message generation unit 32, the text data generation unit 35 generates text data of the response message (step S14). Then, the text data generation unit 35 confirms the ID of the wireless communication device 13 input together with the response message, identifies the display device 15 installed in the landing 1 on the floor where the user is located, and identifies the identified display device. Text data is input to 15 (step S15).

  The text data generation unit 35 may store the display device 15 corresponding to the ID of the wireless communication device 13 in advance in order to specify the display device 15 to which the text data is input. A database storing the corresponding display device 15 may be referred to.

  When the text data is input from the text data generation unit 35, the display device 15 displays the input text data as text. Thereby, the response message is displayed in text on the display device 15 (step S16).

  As described above, the interactive elevator according to the present embodiment can display the response message in text. Therefore, the user can confirm the response message even if he / she misses the response message output by voice.

  In the above description, the response message is displayed in text on the display devices 15 and 25, but may be displayed in text on the user's mobile terminal T. In this case, the interactive elevator may not include the display devices 15 and 25. As a method for displaying the response message in text on the portable terminal T, the following method is conceivable.

  First, the text data generation unit 35 that has generated the text data of the response message confirms the ID of the wireless communication device 13 input together with the response message, and sends the text data and the mobile terminal T to the wireless communication device 13 having this ID. Enter the ID.

  Next, the wireless communication device 13 to which the text data is input confirms the ID of the mobile terminal T input together with the text data, and wirelessly transmits the text data to the mobile terminal T having this ID.

  Then, the mobile terminal T that has received the text data displays the response message in text on its display device. Thereby, the user can see the response message from the interactive elevator on his / her mobile terminal T.

(Third embodiment)
An interactive elevator according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The interactive elevator according to the present embodiment generates a response message using the images in the hall 1 and the basket 2 taken by the camera.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an interactive elevator according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, the interactive elevator includes cameras 16 and 26. Further, the dialogue control device 3 includes an image processing unit 36 as a functional configuration. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

  The camera 16 photographs the hall 1. The camera 16 is provided on the ceiling or wall of the hall 1 so that the hall 1 can be photographed. The camera 16 inputs image data of the captured image to the image processing unit 36.

  The camera 26 photographs the inside of the basket 2. The camera 26 is provided on the ceiling or wall of the basket 2 so that the inside of the basket 2 can be photographed. The camera 26 inputs image data of the captured image to the image processing unit 36.

  In the example of FIG. 6, the interactive elevator includes the camera 16 provided in the hall 1 and the camera 26 provided in the car 2, but includes only one of the camera 16 and the camera 26. May be.

  The image processing unit 36 receives image data from the cameras 16 and 26 and executes image processing on the input image data. By the image processing, for example, information such as the number of users, the positions of the users, and the presence or absence of weak persons (injured persons, sick persons, elderly persons, etc.) can be obtained. The image processing unit 36 inputs information obtained by the image processing to the response message generation unit 32.

  In the present embodiment, the response message generation unit 32 generates a response message using information input from the image processing unit 36. For example, the response message generating unit 32 responds to the question “How many can you ride in the car?” From the user based on the number of users in the car 2 input from the image processing unit 36. The number of users who can ride can be calculated, and a response message “You can ride two more” can be generated.

  As described above, the interactive elevator according to the present embodiment can generate a response message using information obtained from the images in the hall 1 and the basket 2 taken by the cameras 16 and 26. Thereby, a more detailed response message reflecting the real-time situation in the hall 1 and the car 2 can be generated.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by modifying the components without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Moreover, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments. Further, for example, a configuration in which some components are deleted from all the components shown in each embodiment is also conceivable. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component described in different embodiment.

1: landing, 2: basket, 3: dialog control device, 4: control panel, 11: landing door, 12: operation panel, 13: wireless communication device, 14: speaker, 15: display device, 16: camera, 21: Basket door, 22: operation panel, 23: wireless communication device, 24: speaker, 25: display device, 26: camera, 31: voice recognition unit, 32: response message generation unit, 33: operation information acquisition unit, 34: voice synthesis Part 35: text data generation part 36: image processing part

Claims (4)

A wireless communication device that wirelessly receives voice data related to the arrival time of the basket input by the user from the mobile terminal of the user;
A voice recognition unit for recognizing the content of a message from the user based on the voice data;
A response message generating unit that generates a response message related to the arrival time of the basket responding to the message from the user;
A voice synthesizer for generating voice data of the response message;
A speaker that receives the audio data of the response message and outputs the response message as audio;
With
The wireless communication apparatus is an interactive elevator that transmits the voice data of the response message to the mobile terminal. The interactive elevator according to claim 1, wherein the response message generation unit generates the response message based on the content of the message and operation information. A text data generation unit that generates text data of the response message;
Said text data is input, interactive elevator according to claim 1 or claim 2 and a display device for displaying text of said response message. A camera provided on at least one of Ca Gore in及beauty multiplication field,
An image processing unit for performing image processing on the image data of the camera;
An interactive elevator according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

Images