JP6859996B2 - Light emitting unit, light emitting control method and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention is, for example, suitable and video shooting, the light emitting unit, to light emission control method and a program.

In recent years, visible light communication technology has been highlighted, and by shooting a subject with a digital camera, a technology that can track the subject from a specific visible light pattern shown in the shot image has been proposed. (For example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2014-075635

Depending on the environment in which the subject exists, including the technology described in the above patent document, the digital camera may lose sight of the lighting pattern of visible light communication in the captured image due to external light or the color of the background, or the lighting pattern. There was a possibility that the subject could not be tracked due to the false detection of.

The present invention has been made in view of the circumstances described above, and an object was to improve the tracking performance in the captured image of the visible light communication emitting unit, the light emitting unit, light emission control method and To provide a program.

One aspect of the present invention includes a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information, and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. In the light emitting unit of the optical communication system, other than visible light communication between the external environment information acquisition means for detecting and acquiring the ambient illuminance, the light emitting means for transmitting visible light in a predetermined light emitting pattern, and the light receiving unit. A wireless communication means for performing wireless communication, a distance acquisition means for acquiring the distance between the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit based on the communication strength obtained by the wireless communication means, a distance acquired by the distance acquisition means, and the external. It is characterized by including a changing means for changing the speed of the light emitting pattern according to the ambient illuminance acquired by the environmental information acquiring means.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the performance that the light receiving unit side keeps tracking the light emitting unit of visible light communication.

The block diagram which shows the circuit structure of the light emitting tag which is the light emitting unit which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the storage content example of the light emission pattern table which concerns on the same Example. The block diagram which shows the circuit structure of the digital camera which is the light receiving unit which concerns on this Example. The flowchart of the processing content executed in the light emitting tag in the 1st operation example which concerns on the same Example. The flowchart of the processing content executed in the light emitting tag in the 2nd operation example which concerns on the same Example. The flowchart of the processing content executed in the digital camera in the 3rd operation example which concerns on the same Example. The flowchart of the processing content executed in the light emitting tag in the 3rd operation example which concerns on the same Example.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in the case where the present invention is applied to a visible light communication system using a light emitting tag and a digital camera will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Constitution)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a light emitting tag 10 as a light emitting unit, which is worn by a person or the like as a subject. As shown in the figure, in the light emitting tag 10, the sensor unit 11, the light emitting pattern memory 12, the communication unit 13, and the CPU 14 are connected via the bus B1.

The sensor unit 11 includes an illuminance sensor 11A arranged on the same surface as the light emitting unit 16 described later in the housing of the light emitting tag 10, and drives the illuminance sensor 11A to detect the illuminance around the light emitting tag 10. The detected illuminance information is transmitted to the CPU 14 via the bus B1.

The light emitting pattern memory 12 reads out the contents stored in the light emitting pattern table 12A in response to the request of the CPU 14.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the contents of the light emission pattern table 12A. In each pattern table, the lighting pattern and the lighting brightness are selectively switched. The lighting pattern table A shown in FIG. 2A stores a lighting pattern at a relatively low speed (15 [Hz]). The lighting pattern table B shown in FIG. 2B stores a lighting pattern at a relatively high speed (240 [Hz]). The lighting pattern table C shown in FIG. 2C stores a lighting pattern in which information of relatively low speed (15 [Hz]) and relatively high speed (240 [Hz]) is combined.

The communication unit 13 transmits and receives control data to and from the digital camera 20 as a light receiving unit, which will be described later, by, for example, a wireless LAN function based on the IEEE802.11 standard.

The CPU 14 controls the control operation of the entire light emitting tag 10 according to the operation clock supplied from the timing generator 15 to which the power key 17 is directly connected, and directly controls the light emitting unit 16 to the light emitting pattern table. The light emission drive is performed accordingly.

The light emitting unit 16 is composed of, for example, three primary colors R (red), G (green), and B (blue) LEDs (light emitting diodes) and their drive circuits, and is synchronized with the operation clock given by the timing generator 15. Then, the light is emitted with the light emission pattern and the light emission brightness based on the light emission pattern table 12A.

The light emitting unit 16 is provided with a plurality of R, G, and B LEDs instead of one each, and when it is necessary to light brighter by the control described later, the number of simultaneous lighting is increased to emit light. Is also possible.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a digital camera 20 as a light receiving unit for photographing a subject to which the light emitting tag 10 is attached. As shown in the figure, in the digital camera 20, the image pickup unit 22, the RAM 23, the communication unit 24, the image processing unit 25, the memory 26, the display unit 27, and the input unit are connected to the CPU 21 that controls the overall control operation via the bus B2. 28 and the memory card 29 are connected.

The imaging unit 22 includes a photographing lens system, for example, a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS image sensor, a drive circuit of the element, and the like, and an imaging operation is performed at a timing based on control by the CPU 21. To execute.

The RAM 23 functions as a work memory of the CPU 21.

Similar to the communication unit 13 of the light emitting tag 10, the communication unit 24 transmits and receives control data to and from the light emitting tag 10 by, for example, a wireless LAN function based on the IEEE802.11 standard.

The image processing unit 25 adjusts various adjustments such as white balance for the image data acquired by the image capturing unit 22 at the time of shooting, and compresses the data into a predetermined data file format, for example, a JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) file format for a still image. Performs file conversion processing with. On the other hand, at the time of image reproduction, the image processing unit 25 expands the image data read from the memory card 29, which is a recording medium, by a solution method opposite to that at the time of data compression, and acquires image data for display.

The memory 26 fixedly stores an operation program executed by the CPU 21, fixed data, and the like, and has a light emission pattern table 26A shown in FIG. 2 like the light emission pattern memory 12 of the light emission tag 10.

The display unit 27 is provided on the surface of the digital camera 20 housing on the side opposite to the photographing lens system of the imaging unit 22, and displays a monitor image at the time of image photographing, a reproduced image at the time of image reproduction, and the like.

The input unit 28 includes a power key, a shutter key, a mode key for switching a shooting mode / playback mode, various operation keys, and a touch panel made of a transparent panel provided integrally with the display unit 27, and operates signals thereof. Is sent to the CPU 21.

The memory card 29 is a recording medium that is detachably attached to the digital camera 20 via the card connector C, and is composed of a non-volatile memory and a controller circuit thereof.

(First operation example)
The first operation example of the said embodiment will be described.
In this operation example, the processing content on the light emitting tag 10 side, which is the light emitting unit, will be described.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the light emitting tag 10 executed by the CPU 14 after the power is turned on by the power key 17. At the beginning of the process, the CPU 14 acquires the detection output from the illuminance sensor 11A of the sensor unit 11 (step S101).

The CPU 14 compares the acquired illuminance information, which is the detection output, with a preset threshold value, and determines whether or not the surroundings where the light emitting tag 10 is present are dark, depending on whether or not the illuminance information is less than the threshold value. Step S102).

Here, when it is determined that the illuminance information is less than the threshold value and the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are dark (Yes in step S102), the CPU 14 sets the first light emitting condition from the light emitting pattern table 12A of the light emitting pattern memory 12, for example, the above figure. The conditions of "Pattern 1" shown in 2 (B) and "Brightness A" having a lower emission brightness are read (step S103), and the light emitting unit 16 is set to continuously emit light based on the read light emission conditions. (Step S104).

That is, when it is determined that the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are dark, it is assumed that the light emitted by the light emitting tag 10 can be more reliably captured by the digital camera 20 side, and the light emitting pattern is set at a higher speed to obtain a large amount of information. Is set to transmit, and the emission brightness is suppressed to reduce power consumption.

Further, in step S102, when it is determined that the acquired illuminance information is equal to or greater than the threshold value and the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are bright (No in step S102), the CPU 14 emits second light from the light emitting pattern table 12A of the light emitting pattern memory 12. As the conditions, for example, the condition of "pattern 1" shown in FIG. 2 (A) and the condition of "luminance C" having higher emission brightness are read (step S106), and the light emitting unit 16 is continuously generated based on the read light emission conditions. And set to drive light emission (step S107).

That is, when it is determined that the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are bright, the light emitting pattern is set to a lower speed and the light emitting brightness is increased so that the light emitted by the light emitting tag 10 can be captured more reliably on the digital camera 20 side. To set.
In changing the light emitting conditions, the method of transmitting the information regarding the light emitting conditions to be changed in advance from the light emitting unit to the light receiving unit is performed by showing a predetermined light emitting pattern indicating the change of the light emitting conditions by the light emitting tag.

After the light emission condition setting process in step S104 or step S107, the CPU 14 determines whether or not the power off operation has been performed by the power key 17 (step S105), and determines that the power off operation has not been performed (step S105). No), the process returns to the process from step S101 again.

Further, in step S105, when it is determined that the power off operation is performed by the power key 17 (Yes in step S105), the CPU 14 ends the process of FIG. 4 at that time and accepts the operation from the power key 17. Stop all operations of.

In this way, in the power-on state, when it is judged that the surroundings are dark, it is based on the first light emitting condition, while when it is judged that the surroundings are bright, it is judged to be bright, it emits light based on the second light emitting condition. Since the unit 16 is driven, the digital camera 20 can reliably continue to track the light emitting tag 10 in the captured image.

(Second operation example)
A second operation example of the above embodiment will be described.
In this operation example, the processing content on the light emitting tag 10 side, which is the light emitting unit, will be described.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the light emitting tag 10 executed by the CPU 14 after the power is turned on by the power key 17. At the beginning of the process, the CPU 14 acquires the detection output from the illuminance sensor 11A of the sensor unit 11 (step S201).

Subsequently, the CPU 14 measures the radio wave intensity with the digital camera 20 side by the communication unit 13, and acquires the estimated distance information between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 based on the measured radio wave intensity (step S202).

Both the illuminance information and the distance information obtained in this way are compared with preset threshold values, and depending on whether or not both are below the threshold values, the surroundings where the light emitting tag 10 is present are dark and emit light. It is determined whether or not the distance between the tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is short (step S203).

Here, when it is determined that the illuminance information is less than the threshold value, the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are dark, and the distance between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is less than the threshold value and sufficiently close (Yes in step S203), the CPU 14 Reads, for example, the condition of "Pattern 1" shown in FIG. 2B above and the condition of "Brightness A" having a lower emission brightness as the first light emission condition from the light emission pattern table 12A of the light emission pattern memory 12 (step S204). , The light emitting unit 16 is set to continuously emit light based on the read light emitting conditions (step S205).

That is, when it is determined that the periphery of the light emitting tag 10 is dark and the distance between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is less than the threshold value and is sufficiently close, the light emitted by the light emitting tag 10 is more reliably emitted by the digital camera 20. Assuming that it can be captured on the side, the light emission pattern is set at a higher speed to transmit a large amount of information, and the light emission brightness is suppressed to reduce power consumption.

Further, in step S203, at least when it is determined that the illuminance information is equal to or more than the threshold value and the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are bright, and when it is determined that the distance between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is equal to or more than the threshold value and is far. When one of them is applicable (No in step S203), the CPU 14 sets the second light emission condition from the light emission pattern table 12A of the light emission pattern memory 12, for example, "Pattern 1" shown in FIG. The condition of high "luminance C" is read out (step S207), and the light emitting unit 16 is set to continuously emit light based on the read light emitting condition (step S208).

That is, when it is determined that the surroundings of the light emitting tag 10 are bright and at least one of the cases where the distance between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is long is applicable, the light emitted by the light emitting tag 10 is more reliably emitted by the digital camera 20. The emission pattern is set to a lower speed and the emission brightness is set to be increased so that the light can be captured on the side.
In changing the light emitting conditions, as a method of transmitting information on the light emitting conditions to be changed in advance from the light emitting unit to the light receiving unit, a method of showing a predetermined light emitting pattern indicating the change of the light emitting conditions by the light emitting tag may be used. , A method of transmitting information regarding a change in light emission conditions by wireless communication may also be used.

After the light emission condition setting process in step S205 or step S208, the CPU 14 determines whether or not the power off operation has been performed by the power key 17 (step S206), and determines that the power off operation has not been performed (step S206). No), the process returns to the process from step S201.

Further, in step S206, when it is determined that the power off operation is performed by the power key 17 (Yes in step S206), the CPU 14 ends the process of FIG. 5 at that time and accepts the operation from the power key 17. Stop all operations of.

In this way, in the power-on state, when it is determined that the surroundings are dark and the distance between the light emitting tag 10 and the digital camera 20 is short, it is based on the first light emitting condition, while at least the surroundings are bright or the light emitting tag 10 and the like. When it is determined that the distance between the digital cameras 20 is long, the light emitting units 16 are driven based on the second light emitting condition, so that the digital camera 20 can surely continue to track the light emitting tag 10 in the captured image. It will be possible.

(Third operation example)
A third operation example of the above embodiment will be described.
In this operation example, the processing contents of both the light emitting tag 10 which is a light emitting unit and the digital camera 20 which is a light receiving unit will be described.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of processing contents executed by the CPU 21 in the reception mode of visible light communication in the digital camera 20.

At the beginning of the process, the CPU 21 instructs the user of the digital camera 20 to start the live view operation of displaying the image data obtained by the shooting by the imaging unit 22 on the monitor on the display unit 27, and the light emitting tag in the shot image is also given to the user of the digital camera 20. The position of 10 is made visible on the display unit 27 (step S301).

After that, the CPU 21 drives the solid-state image sensor of the image pickup unit 22 at a frame rate of, for example, about 500 [frames / second], which is faster than the double speed corresponding to the high-speed frequency "240 [Hz]" of the light emission pattern. By monitoring the change in brightness of the shooting output for each pixel, the light emitting pattern of the light emitting tag 10 is detected from the captured image (step S302).

Here, the CPU 21 determines whether or not the predetermined light emission pattern stored in the light emission pattern table 26A of the memory 26 is obtained (step S303), and if it is determined that the predetermined light emission pattern is not obtained (step S303). No) in step S303, the process returns to the process from step S302 again.

By repeatedly executing the processes of steps S302 and S303 until a predetermined light emission pattern is obtained in this way, the process waits for the predetermined light emission pattern to be obtained.

Then, when it is determined that a predetermined light emission pattern has been obtained (Yes in step S303), the CPU 21 attaches the light emission tag 10 by a peripheral contour extraction process included in the light emission tag 10, a pattern matching process including a person's face pattern, or the like. The range of the subject is determined (step S304), and the subject is instructed to start tracking including the light emitting tag 10 (step S305).

After that, the CPU 21 again detects the light emission pattern of the light emission tag 10 from the captured image (step S306), and determines whether or not a predetermined light emission pattern stored in the light emission pattern table 26A of the memory 26 is obtained (step). S307).

If it is determined that the predetermined light emission pattern has been obtained (Yes in step S307), the CPU 21 further determines whether or not an instruction operation for stopping the tracking of the subject has been performed by the operation signal in the input unit 28. (Step S308).

When it is determined that the instruction operation for stopping the tracking of the subject has not been performed (No in step S308), the CPU 21 further returns to the process from step S306 and continues the tracking operation of the subject and the light emitting tag 10.

Further, in the process of repeatedly executing the processes of steps S306 to S308 and continuing the tracking operation of the subject and the light emitting tag 10 from the captured image, it is said that the predetermined light emitting pattern previously tracked in step S307 could not be obtained. If it is determined (No in step S307), it is assumed that the light emitting tag 10 has been lost for some reason, and the CPU 21 transmits a request signal for instructing the light emitting tag 10 to change the light emitting conditions toward the light emitting tag 10 side by the communication unit 24. After that (step S310), the process returns to the process from step S302, and the process proceeds to the process of waiting for the detection of the light emitting tag 10 again.

Here, as a factor of losing sight of the light emitting tag 10 from the captured image, in addition to the case where the light emitting tag 10 is simply located in the shadow of the subject and cannot be visually recognized when viewed from the digital camera 20 side, for example, the background color of the subject or When the color of the subject itself to which the light emitting tag 10 is attached contains a large amount of primary color components such as R, G, and B, an adjustment process that automatically attenuates the image data of the color components by the auto white balance function of the digital camera 20. It is conceivable that the detection sensitivity of the light emitting pattern of the light emitting tag 10 may be lowered by performing the above.

Therefore, especially when a large amount of image data of a specific primary color component is included, the communication unit 24 sends a request signal for the CPU 21 to newly select a light emission pattern in a color deviating from the color component. It may be sent to the side.

Further, for example, a light source such as a traffic signal using an LED, which does not have a visible light communication function but has a periodic light emission pattern of a visibility level or less similar to visible light communication. In this case as well, a request signal for selecting a light emission pattern in a color other than the color component that is selectively emitting light at that time may be transmitted toward the light emission tag 10.

Further, in step S308, when it is determined that the instruction operation for stopping the tracking of the subject has been performed (Yes in step S308), the CPU 21 stops the shooting operation by the imaging unit 22 at that time (step S309). With the above, the process of FIG. 6 is completed.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the light emitting tag 10 executed by the CPU 14 after the power is turned on by the power key 17. At the beginning of the process, the CPU 14 acquires the detection output from the illuminance sensor 11A of the sensor unit 11 (step S401).

Subsequently, the CPU 14 determines whether or not the communication unit 13 has received the request signal for instructing the change of the light emission condition from the digital camera 20 side (step S402).

Here, when it is determined that the request signal for instructing the change of the light emission condition has not been received from the digital camera 20 side (No in step S402), the CPU 14 sets the first light emission condition from the light emission pattern table 12A of the light emission pattern memory 12. Read and read the light emission condition based only on the illuminance acquired in the above step S401 immediately before, for example, the condition of "pattern 1" shown in FIG. 2 (B) and "brightness A" having a lower light emission brightness (step S403). The light emitting unit 16 is set to continuously emit light based on the light emitting conditions (step S404).

That is, when the request signal for instructing the change of the light emission condition is not particularly sent from the digital camera 20 side, the light emission pattern based only on the illuminance acquired by the detection of the illuminance sensor 11A and the light emission condition based on the emission brightness. To set.

Further, in step S402, when it is determined that the request signal for instructing the change of the light emission condition is received from the digital camera 20 side (Yes in step S402), the CPU 14 emits a second light from the light emission pattern table 12A of the light emission pattern memory 12. As a condition, a light emitting condition based on the received request signal and the illuminance acquired in the immediately preceding step S401, for example, "Pattern 3" in which G (green) is not emitted as shown in FIG. 2 (A) above. The condition of "luminance C" having high emission brightness is read (step S406), and the light emitting unit 16 is set to continuously emit light based on the read light emission condition (step S407).

That is, when a request signal instructing to change the light emission conditions is sent from the digital camera 20 side, for example, there are many G (green) color components around and in the background of the light emission tag 10 in the captured image, and the light emission of G itself. When a request signal that suppresses the emission of the same color is sent from the digital camera 20 side because the other detection level is low, pattern 3 that does not emit G (green) according to the request signal is selected and set. At the same time, the emission brightness based on the illuminance acquired in the immediately preceding step S401 is selected and set.

After the light emission condition setting process in step S404 or step S407, the CPU 14 determines whether or not the power off operation has been performed by the power key 17 (step S405), and if it is determined that the power off operation has not been performed (step S405). No), the process returns to the process from step S401 again.

Further, in step S405, when it is determined that the power off operation is performed by the power key 17 (Yes in step S405), the CPU 14 ends the process of FIG. 7 at that time and accepts the operation from the power key 17. Stop all operations of.

In this way, when the power is on, the light emitting tag 10 changes the light emitting conditions according to the illuminance around the light emitting tag 10 and the change instruction from the digital camera 20 side according to the background of the light emitting tag 10 in the captured image. The camera 20 can reliably continue to track the light emitting tag 10 in the captured image.

(effect)
As described in detail above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to improve the performance that the light receiving unit side keeps tracking the light emitting unit of visible light communication.

In particular, in the above embodiment, the illuminance is detected as one factor of the external environment of the light emitting tag 10, and the light emitting conditions are appropriately changed based on the detected illuminance. However, unnecessary power consumption can be suppressed and the operating time of the light emitting tag 10 can be lengthened.

In this case, since the illuminance is compared with a preset threshold value and the light emission condition is changed according to the comparison result, it is possible to simplify the judgment on the detected illuminance and reduce the burden required for control.

Further, in the above embodiment, as another factor of the external environment of the light emitting tag 10, the approximate distance between the two units is acquired from the communication strength when the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit communicate with each other, and the approximate distance between the two units is acquired according to the distance information. Since the light emitting conditions are changed, the light receiving unit side can continue to track the light emitting unit more reliably by changing the light emitting conditions according to the line-of-sight distance of visible light.

In changing the light emitting conditions, the light emitting unit transmits information on the light emitting conditions to be changed to the light receiving unit. In that case, the light receiving unit that has received the information can start tracking the light emitting unit according to the changed light emitting conditions, so that the tracking can be continued with high responsiveness.

Further, if the threshold value as a reference for comparing the illuminance is adjusted according to the acquired distance, the light emitting condition can be controlled more accurately and the light receiving unit can continue to track reliably.

In the above embodiment, as a specific example of the light emitting condition, it is assumed that the change is required by combining the brightness, the number of elements, the light emitting color, and the frequency, so that it is more appropriate and easy to track according to the change of the surrounding environment. It is possible to set various light emission conditions.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified at the implementation stage without departing from the gist thereof. In addition, the functions executed in the above-described embodiment may be combined as appropriate as possible. The above-described embodiments include various steps, and various inventions can be extracted by an appropriate combination according to a plurality of disclosed constitutional requirements. For example, even if some constituent requirements are deleted from all the constituent requirements shown in the embodiment, if the effect is obtained, the configuration in which the constituent requirements are deleted can be extracted as an invention.

The inventions described in the claims of the original application of the present application are described below.
[Claim 1]
In a light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. ,
External environment information acquisition means to acquire information about the external environment,
A light emitting means that emits visible light based on predetermined light emitting conditions,
A changing means for changing the light emitting conditions of the light emitting means according to the information about the external environment acquired by the external environment information acquiring means.
A light emitting unit characterized by being provided with. [Claim 2]
The light emitting unit according to claim 1, wherein the external environment information acquisition means detects and acquires ambient illuminance.
[Claim 3]
The light emitting unit according to claim 2, wherein the changing means compares the ambient illuminance acquired by the external environment information acquiring means with a predetermined threshold value, and changes the light emitting conditions according to the comparison result.
[Claim 4]
A wireless communication means for performing wireless communication other than the visible light communication with the light receiving unit, and
With the distance acquisition means for acquiring the distance between the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit based on the communication strength obtained by the wireless communication means.
With more
The light emitting unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the changing means changes the light emitting conditions of the light emitting means according to the distance and the illuminance.
[Claim 5]
The light emitting unit according to claim 4, wherein the changing means compares the distance acquired by the distance acquiring means and the illuminance with a predetermined threshold value, and changes the light emitting conditions according to the comparison result.
[Claim 6]
The light emitting unit according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the changing means transmits information regarding the light emitting condition to be changed to the light receiving unit by one of the light emitting means and the wireless communication means.
[Claim 7]
In a light receiving unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. ,
Imaging means and
A visible light information acquisition means for acquiring information contained in visible light emitted by the light emitting unit from an image signal obtained by photographing with the image pickup means, and a visible light information acquisition means.
The pixel values of the light emitting region of the light emitting unit and the surrounding area in the image signal obtained by photographing with the imaging means are compared, and the light emitting unit is requested to change the light emitting conditions based on the comparison result. With change request means
A light receiving unit characterized by being provided with.
[Claim 8]
The light receiving unit according to claim 7, wherein the change of the light emitting condition required by the change requesting means includes at least one change of the light emitting brightness, the number of light emitting elements, the light emitting color, and the light emitting frequency.
[Claim 9]
The light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. It is a light emission control method by
External environment information acquisition process to acquire information about the external environment,
A light emitting process that emits visible light based on predetermined light emitting conditions,
A change process that changes the light emission conditions in the light emission process according to the information about the external environment acquired in the external environment information acquisition process.
A light emission control method comprising.
[Claim 10]
The light receiving unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. It is a light emission control method by
A visible light information acquisition step of acquiring information contained in the visible light emitted by the light emitting unit from the image signals obtained by photographing in the imaging step, and a visible light information acquisition step.
The pixel values of the light emitting unit shooting region and the surrounding region in the image signal obtained by the shooting in the imaging step are compared, and the light emitting unit is requested to change the light emitting conditions based on the comparison result. Change request process
A light emission control method comprising.
[Claim 11]
The light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. Is a program executed by the built-in computer, and the above computer
External environment information acquisition means for acquiring information about the external environment,
A light emitting means that emits visible light based on predetermined light emitting conditions, and a light emitting means.
Changing means for changing the light emitting conditions in the light emitting process according to the information about the external environment acquired by the external environment information acquiring means.
A program characterized by functioning as.
[Claim 12]
The light receiving unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. Is a program executed by the built-in computer, and the above computer
Imaging means,
A visible light information acquisition means for acquiring information contained in visible light emitted by the light emitting unit from an image signal obtained by photographing with the image pickup means, and a visible light information acquisition means.
The pixel values of the light emitting unit shooting region and the surrounding region in the image signal obtained by shooting with the imaging means are compared, and the light emitting unit is requested to change the light emitting conditions based on the comparison result. Change request means
A program characterized by functioning as.

10 ... Light emitting tag (light emitting unit),
11 ... Sensor unit,
11A ... Illuminance sensor,
12 ... Luminous pattern memory,
12A ... Luminous pattern table,
13 ... Communication Department,
14 ... CPU,
15 ... Timing generator,
16 ... Light emitting part,
17 ... Power key,
20 ... Digital camera,
21 ... CPU,
22 ... Imaging unit,
23 ... RAM,
24 ... Communication Department,
25 ... Image processing unit,
26 ... Memory,
26A ... Luminous pattern table,
27 ... Display,
28 ... Input section,
29 ... Memory card,
B1, B2 ... Bus,
C ... Card connector.

Claims (5)

In a light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. ,
External environment information acquisition means that detects and acquires the ambient illuminance,
A light emitting means that emits visible light in a predetermined light emitting pattern,
A wireless communication means that performs wireless communication other than visible light communication with the light receiving unit,
Based on the communication strength obtained by the wireless communication means, the distance acquisition means for acquiring the distance between the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit, and the distance acquisition means.
A changing means for changing the speed of the light emitting pattern according to the distance acquired by the distance acquiring means and the ambient illuminance acquired by the external environment information acquiring means, and
A light emitting unit characterized by being provided with. The light emission according to claim 1 , wherein the changing means compares the ambient illuminance acquired by the external environment information acquiring means with a predetermined threshold value, and changes the speed of the light emitting pattern according to the comparison result. unit. The light emitting unit according to claim 2, wherein the changing means further compares the distance acquired by the distance acquiring means with a predetermined threshold value, and changes the speed of the light emitting pattern according to the comparison result. The light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. It is a light emission control method by
The external environment information acquisition process that detects and acquires the ambient illuminance,
A light emitting process that emits visible light in a predetermined light emitting pattern,
A distance acquisition step of acquiring the distance between the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit based on the communication strength obtained by the wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication other than visible light communication with the light receiving unit.
A change step of changing the speed of the light emission pattern according to the distance acquired in the distance acquisition step and the ambient illuminance acquired in the external environment information acquisition step, and a change step.
A light emission control method comprising. The light emitting unit of a visible light communication system having a light emitting unit that emits visible light including arbitrary information and a light receiving unit that receives visible light from the light emitting unit and acquires information superimposed on the received visible light. Is a program executed by the built-in computer, and the above computer
External environment information acquisition means that detects and acquires the ambient illuminance,
A light emitting means that emits visible light in a predetermined light emitting pattern,
A distance acquisition means for acquiring the distance between the light receiving unit and the light emitting unit based on the communication strength obtained by the wireless communication unit that performs wireless communication other than visible light communication with the light receiving unit.
A changing means for changing the speed of the light emitting pattern according to the distance acquired by the distance acquiring means and the ambient illuminance acquired by the external environment information acquiring means.
A program characterized by functioning as.

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