JP7019139B2 - Information processing equipment, information processing method, information processing program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and an information processing program.

Conventionally, a head-worn device called a headset is provided with a near-infrared irradiation unit and a near-infrared detection unit to detect changes in blood flow on the brain surface and process the detected data with a data processing device. Measurement systems are provided that acquire information indicating the state of brain activity.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-17734

It is performed to measure the brain activity state when performing various tasks (work, behavior) for a plurality of users (subjects). It is considered that the state of brain activity when a certain task (work, action) is performed is influenced by various properties included in the task and the attributes of the user. However, since there is no index for quantitatively evaluating the brain activity state, it is difficult to compare the brain activity state between users in the past and present.

An object of the present invention is to obtain an index for quantitatively evaluating a brain activity state.

In order to solve the above problems, the following means will be adopted.

That is, the first aspect is
The first detection value that detects the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the control task, and the head of the user when the user performs a unit task having a larger cognitive load than the control task. A storage unit that stores a second detection value that detects the blood flow of the unit and a third detection value that detects the blood flow of the user's head when the user performs a target task.
An index of the target task based on the difference between the first measured value based on the first detected value and the second measured value based on the second detected value using the third measured value based on the third detected value. The calculation unit that calculates the value and
It is an information processing device provided with.

Aspects of disclosure may be realized by the program being executed by an information processing device. That is, the configuration of the disclosure can be specified as a program for causing the information processing apparatus to execute the process executed by each means in the above-described embodiment, or as a computer-readable recording medium on which the program is recorded. Further, the configuration of the disclosure may be specified by a method in which the information processing apparatus executes the processing executed by each of the above-mentioned means. The configuration of the disclosure may be specified as a system including an information processing apparatus that performs processing executed by each of the above-mentioned means.

The step of writing a program includes not only processing performed in chronological order in the described order but also processing performed in parallel or individually, although not necessarily processing in chronological order. Some of the steps to write the program may be omitted.

According to the disclosed technique, it is possible to obtain an index for quantitatively evaluating the state of brain activity.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration involved in information processing of the measurement system according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a head-mounted device. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the arithmetic unit. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow of the measurement system of the embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. The configuration of the embodiment is an example, and the configuration of the invention is not limited to the specific configuration of the disclosed embodiment. In carrying out the invention, a specific configuration according to the embodiment may be appropriately adopted.

[Embodiment]
(Configuration example)
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration involved in information processing of the measurement system according to the embodiment of the present invention. This measurement system detects measurement data (also referred to as a detected value) indicating a change in blood flow from the user's head, and acquires brain activity information (brain activity waveform) indicating the activity state of the user's brain.

As shown in FIG. 1, the measurement system includes a head-mounted device 10 and an arithmetic unit 20.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a head-mounted device. The head-mounted device 10 has a control unit 11, a wireless communication unit 13, and a pair of sensors 115 and 125 as aspects of information processing. The control unit 11 controls the measurement and communication of the head-mounted device 10. The control unit 11 has, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and a memory, and executes processing by a computer program, firmware, or the like executably deployed on the memory. .. However, the control unit 11 may be an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or the like, which is a dedicated hardware circuit that activates the wireless communication unit 13 and the sensors 115 and 125 and executes the cooperation processing with each component. Further, the control unit 11
A CPU, a DSP, a dedicated hardware circuit, or the like may be mixed.

The head mounting device 10 has a structure in which the head mounting device 10 is wound around the user's head in a headband shape and mounted, and is fixed to the user's head by tightening the fixing member.

The wireless communication unit 13 is connected to the control unit 11 and the sensors 115 and 125 by a predetermined interface. However, the wireless communication unit 13 may be configured to acquire data from the sensors 115 and 125 via the control unit 11. The wireless communication unit 13 communicates with the arithmetic unit 20 via the network N1. The network N1 is, for example, a network work according to a standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), wireless LAN (Local Area Network), and ZigBee (registered trademark). The wireless communication unit 13 is an example of the transfer means. However, in this measurement system, the standard of the wireless interface of the wireless communication unit 13 is not limited.

During communication on the network N1, an identifier that identifies the head-mounted device 10 is embedded in the header part of the communication header or the user data part (payload part) in the communication data, and the arithmetic unit 20 is the user (subject). ) Can be identified.

Further, in this measurement system, instead of the wireless communication unit 13, or the wireless communication unit 13
In addition, a communication unit that communicates by wire may be provided. That is, the head-mounted device 10 and the arithmetic unit 20 may be connected by a wired communication interface. The wired communication interface in this case is not limited, and various interfaces such as USB (Universal Serial Bus) and PCI Express can be used depending on the application of the measurement system.

Both the sensors 115 and 125 irradiate the head with near-infrared rays, receive the near-infrared rays partially absorbed and scattered near the cerebral cortex of the brain, and convert them into electric signals. The cerebral cortex of the brain has different blood flow, for example, depending on the activity state of the brain. As a result, in each part of the cerebral cortex, the amount of hemoglobin bound to oxygen in the blood and the amount of hemoglobin not bound to oxygen change. Due to changes in the amount of hemoglobin, changes in the amount of oxygen, etc., the absorption characteristics or scattering characteristics of near-infrared rays near the cerebral cortex change. The sensors 115 and 125 convert the near-infrared rays whose light amount changes due to the change in the near-infrared absorption rate or the change in the transmittance according to the state of blood flow near the cerebral cortex into an electric signal and output the signals. Sensors 115 and 125 are examples of detection means.

The sensors 115 and 125 include, for example, a near-infrared light source that irradiates near-infrared rays and a light receiving unit that receives near-infrared rays. Near-infrared light sources are, for example, LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes), infrared lamps, and the like. Further, the light receiving unit includes a photoelectric element such as a photodiode and a phototransistor, an amplifier, and an AD (Analog Digital) converter. The near-infrared light source and the light receiving unit may not be provided as a pair. For example, a plurality of light receiving units may be provided for one near-infrared light source.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the arithmetic unit. The arithmetic unit 20 acquires change data of the absorption rate or transmittance of near-infrared rays in the vicinity of the user's cerebral cortex from the head-mounted device 10, and performs various information processing related to the activity state of the user's brain. Provide services including. The arithmetic unit 20 is an example of an information processing device (computer). The arithmetic unit 20 includes a PC (Personal Computer), a smartphone, a mobile phone, a tablet terminal, a car navigation device, and a PDA.
It can be realized by using a dedicated or general-purpose computer such as (Personal Digital Assistant), or an electronic device equipped with a computer. The arithmetic unit 20 may be installed in, for example, a fitness club, a cram school, or the like.

The arithmetic unit 20 includes a CPU 21, a memory 22, a wireless communication unit 23, a public line communication unit 24, a display unit 25, an operation unit 26, an output unit 27, an imaging unit 28, and a positioning unit 29. It has a physical sensor unit 2A. The CPU 21 executes processing as an arithmetic unit 20 by a computer program executably expanded in the memory 22. The processing as the arithmetic unit 20 is, for example, a service including various information processing related to the activity state of the user's brain. The CPU 21 that executes such a computer program is an example of a calculation unit.

The memory 22 stores a computer program executed by the CPU 21 or data processed by the CPU 21. The memory 22 may include a volatile memory and a non-volatile memory. The memory 22 is an example of a storage unit.

The wireless communication unit 23 is the same as the wireless communication unit 13 of the head-mounted device 10. The wireless communication unit 23 is an example of the receiving means. Further, the arithmetic unit 20 may have a communication unit that communicates by wire with the wireless communication unit 23 or instead of the wireless communication unit 23.

The public line communication unit 24 communicates with a server or the like on the network via a higher-level network (not shown). The network is a public line network, for example, a mobile telephone network. When the network is a mobile phone network, the public line communication unit 24 connects to the network via the base station of the mobile phone network. However, the network may be a network including an access network to a communication device of an Internet connection provider and the Internet. The access network to the communication device of the Internet connection company is, for example, an optical network provided by the communication company, ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line), or the like. The network is an example of a public wireless network. The public line communication unit 24 is an example of public wireless communication means. However, in this measurement system, the network is not limited to the public network, for example, a private network such as LAN (Local Area Network), a dedicated line such as a company, a business operator, a government office, a school, a research institution, etc., and a VPN (Virtual VPN). Private Network
) Etc. may be a wide area network. Hereinafter, companies, businesses, government offices, schools, research institutes, etc. are also referred to as companies.

The display unit 25 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, an EL (Electro-Luminescence) panel, or the like, and displays output information from the CPU 21. The operation unit 26 is, for example, a push button, a touch panel, or the like, and accepts a user's operation. The output unit 27 is, for example, a vibrator that outputs vibration, a speaker that outputs sound or voice, and the like. The image pickup unit 28 is, for example, a camera including a solid-state image pickup element. As the solid-state image sensor, a CCD (Charge-coupled device) image sensor, a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor, or the like can be used.

The positioning unit 29 is, for example, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver, and is a GPS.
Receives radio waves from satellites and calculates the current position (latitude, longitude, etc.), time, etc. However, the positioning unit 29 is not limited to the one having a GPS receiver. For example, when the public line communication unit 24 is a mobile phone network, the positioning unit 29 may execute positioning based on the distance from the mobile phone base station.

The physical sensor unit 2A is, for example, an acceleration sensor, an angular acceleration sensor, or the like. However, the physical sensor unit 2A may be a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, or a water pressure sensor.

<Operation example>
An operation example of the measurement system of this embodiment will be described.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow of the measurement system of the present embodiment. The head-mounted device 10 of the measurement system of the present embodiment is attached to the head of the user (subject), respectively, and is in a state where the brain activity state (cerebral blood flow) can be measured. Each of the head-mounted devices 10 is connected to the arithmetic unit 20. It is assumed that the head mounting device 10 has already been calibrated.

In S101, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the user wearing the head-mounted device 10 to perform the control task for a predetermined time. A control task is a task (work, action) that is the basis of a user's brain activity. The control task is the task of determining the baseline of brain activity. As a control task, it is desirable that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is hardly activated (activity) and that the cognitive state of the user can be unified. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is said to play a role in integrating cognitive function and controls the overall cognition of humans. By measuring the activity of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, comprehensive brain activity can be evaluated.

The control task may be to do nothing to the user, but it is desirable to let the user perform some task because the waveform of the brain activity state when nothing is done is often unstable. When the arithmetic unit 20 performs a control task, the arithmetic unit 20 displays predetermined information of the display unit 25, causes the output unit 27 to output a predetermined voice, and causes the user to perform the control task. Further, the arithmetic unit 20 outputs information and voice as a signal for starting and ending the control task through the display unit 25 and the output unit 27. The arithmetic unit 20 may accept the input of the operation of the start signal and the end signal of the control task by the user or the like through the operation unit 26.

Specific examples of the control task include a button pressing task, an object tracking task, a meditation task, a finger tap task, and the like. The button pressing task is a task of pressing a button according to a blinking mark displayed on the screen. The object tracking task is a task of visually tracking a randomly moving mark displayed on the screen. The meditation task is a task of breathing in accordance with some rhythm. The finger tap task is a task of tapping the thumb and index finger at an arbitrary pace. By using these as control tasks, it is possible to stabilize the baseline of the detected value of the brain activity state. Control tasks are not limited to these.

When the user is made to perform the control task, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the head wearing device 10 to measure the brain activity state of the user. The brain activity state is measured at a predetermined sampling frequency. The head-mounted device 10 measures the brain activity state of the user by the sensors 115 and 125, and transmits the detection value indicating the brain activity state to the arithmetic unit 20 via the wireless communication unit 13. When the arithmetic unit 20 receives the detection value (brain activity waveform) indicating the brain activity state from the head-mounted device 10 via the wireless communication unit 23, the arithmetic unit 20 stores it in a storage means such as a memory 22. Here, the detected value may be the measured value itself, information processed so that the measured value can be easily transmitted to the arithmetic unit 20, or information summarizing the values measured in a certain period. But it may be. The detected value may be a value based on the value measured by the head wearing device 10 for the change in blood flow in the head. The detection value indicating the brain activity state is stored as time-series data together with time information, a control task identifier, and a user identifier. The arithmetic unit 20 may constantly acquire a detected value indicating a brain activity state as a measurement result, and may extract a detected value indicating a brain activity state while performing a control task. The detected value (brain activity waveform) is, for example, a time change of cerebral blood flow and a time derivative of cerebral blood flow.

In S102, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the user wearing the head-mounted device 10 to perform the unit task for a predetermined time. The predetermined time for performing the unit task may be different from the predetermined time for performing the control task. The unit task is a task that gives the brain a load corresponding to one unit of an index value in brain activity. As a unit task, it is desirable that the cognitive load is constant regardless of the user, and that the fluctuation of the cognitive load due to the user's familiarity with the task is small. Since the cognitive load is constant regardless of the user, even if there is a difference in the magnitude of the brain activity during the unit task, those brain activities are considered to have occurred under the same cognitive load. By setting the task to have a small change in the cognitive load due to the user's familiarity with the task, it is possible to prevent the relationship between the index and the cognitive load from being broken. In addition, as a unit task, a task that widely activates the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is desirable regardless of the user. In the measurement of the brain activity state by the head wearing device 10, the position of the sensor shifts each time the user wears it, so that the measured brain region also shifts. By widely activating the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, it is possible to reduce the influence of the displacement of the sensor of the head mounting device 10. When the arithmetic unit 20 causes the unit task to be performed, the arithmetic unit 20 displays predetermined information of the display unit 25, causes the output unit 27 to output a predetermined voice, and causes the user to perform the unit task. Further, the arithmetic unit 20 outputs information and voice as a signal for starting and ending a unit task through the display unit 25 and the output unit 27. The arithmetic unit 20 may accept the input of the operation of the start signal and the end signal of the unit task by the user or the like through the operation unit 26.

Specific examples of the unit task include a word memory / recall task, a simple calculation task, a word attribute determination task, a Stroop task, an N-back task, and the like. The word memorization / recall task is a task of memorizing a predetermined number (for example, 10) of words displayed continuously and recalling them as accurately as possible. The simple calculation task is a task that performs one-digit four arithmetic operations. The word attribute determination task is a task of determining whether or not the attributes of two words displayed thereafter match according to a rule presented in advance. The Stroop task is a task in which a word indicating a color (for example, red or blue) is presented and the color of the character in which the word is written is answered, or the meaning of the word is answered. The N-back task is a task of storing consecutively presented numbers and determining whether or not the number presented N before is the same as the currently presented number. A unit task is a task that puts a certain load on the user's brain. The load on the unit task is greater than the load on the control task. Unit tasks are not limited to these. By selecting an appropriate control task and unit task that meet the above conditions, it is possible to calculate an index value that is not affected by differences in users.

When the user is allowed to perform a unit task, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the head-mounted device 10 to measure the user's brain activity state. The measurement of the brain activity state when the unit task is performed is the same as the measurement of the brain activity state when the control task is performed.

In S103, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the user wearing the head-mounted device 10 to perform the target task for a predetermined time. The predetermined time for performing the target task may be different from the predetermined time for performing the control task and the predetermined time for performing the unit task. Target tasks include, for example, watching videos, playing games, listening to music, exercising, eating and drinking, exams, meditation, sleeping, yoga, playing applications, and the like. The target task may be a specific action in a specific application. Applications include, for example, brain training applications. The target task is not limited to these. For example, when the arithmetic unit 20 is to watch a moving image, the display unit 25 displays the moving image, the output unit 27 outputs the sound accompanying the moving image, and the user is made to watch the moving image. Further, when the arithmetic unit 20 is to play the game, the display unit 25 and the output unit 27 are made to output the image and the sound for the game, and the operation unit 26 is made to operate the game by the user. Let them play. Further, the arithmetic unit 20 outputs the start signal and the end signal of the predetermined exercise as the target task through the display unit 25 and the output unit 27 by images and sounds. The arithmetic unit 20 may accept the input of the operation of the start signal and the end signal of the predetermined exercise as the target task through the operation unit 26.

When the user is made to perform the target task, the arithmetic unit 20 causes the head wearing device 10 to measure the brain activity state of the user. The measurement of the brain activity state when the target task is performed is the same as the measurement of the brain activity state when the control task is performed.

In S104, the arithmetic unit 20 calculates the index value of the target task. The index value is for quantitatively evaluating the amount of brain activity (activation amount) at the time of executing any task based on the difference between the measured value at the time of executing the control task and the measured value at the time of executing the unit task. The value. The CPU 21 of the arithmetic unit 20 calculates an average value (time average value) of the detected values of the brain activity state measured while performing each task. Here, the time average value of each task is used as the measured value of each task. The measured value is a value indicating the degree of brain activity, and the larger the measured value, the more actively the brain is active. The CPU 21 calculates an index value of the target task based on the following formula.

The index value of the target task represents the degree of load of the target task with respect to the load of the unit task, assuming that the brain activity state is very low when the control task is executed. The larger the index value, the larger the load of the target task with respect to the unit task. Here, according to this equation, the index value of the unit task becomes 1.

The CPU 21 stores the calculated index value of the target task in a storage means such as a memory 22. Further, the CPU 21 may output the calculated index value by the display unit 25, the output unit 27, or the like.

The order of S101, S102, and S103 may be changed. For example, the user may be made to perform the target task first.

(Actions and effects of embodiments)
In the measurement system of the present embodiment, the arithmetic unit 20 measures the brain activity state when the user is performing the control task, the unit task, and the target task by the head wearing device 10. The arithmetic unit 20 acquires the brain activity state transmitted from the head-mounted device 10. The arithmetic unit 20 calculates an index value of the target task based on the measured value of the brain activity state of each task. The index values are standardized by the measured values of the control task and the measured values of the unit task.

Even when a task that is a cognitive load is executed, the measured value of the brain activity state may differ due to individual differences, differences in the wearing position of the head wearing device 10, and the like. By using the index value of this embodiment, it is possible to compare the task load between the present and the past and between the users. The index values standardized by the measured values of the unit task and the measured values of the control task are quantitative indexes. That is, the index value of the target task obtained here is compared by excluding the influence of the variation of the detected value of the brain activity state between the past and the present, between users, the wearing position of the head wearing device 10, and the like. can do. Therefore, it is possible to quantitatively evaluate the cognitive load when an arbitrary target task is executed.

10 Head mounting device
11 Control unit
13 Wireless communication unit
115 sensor
125 sensor
20 Arithmetic logic unit
21 CPU
22 memory
23 Wireless communication unit
24 Public switched telephone network
25 Display
26 Operation unit
27 Output section
28 Imaging unit
29 Positioning unit
2A Physical sensor unit

Claims (4)

The first detection value that detects the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the control task, and the head of the user when the user performs a unit task having a larger cognitive load than the control task. A storage unit that stores a second detection value that detects the blood flow of the unit and a third detection value that detects the blood flow of the user's head when the user performs a target task.
A value obtained by subtracting the first measured value based on the first detected value from the third measured value based on the third detected value, and a value obtained by subtracting the first measured value from the second measured value based on the second detected value. The calculation unit that calculates the index value of the target task by dividing by
Information processing device equipped with. The first measured value is a time average value of the first detected value, and is
The second measured value is a time average value of the second detected value, and is
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the third measured value is a time average value of the third detected value. It is an information processing method using an information processing device.
The information processing device
The first detection value that detects the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the control task, and the head of the user when the user performs a unit task having a larger cognitive load than the control task. The second detection value for detecting the blood flow in the part and the third detection value for detecting the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the target task are acquired.
A value obtained by subtracting the first measured value based on the first detected value from the third measured value based on the third detected value, and a value obtained by subtracting the first measured value from the second measured value based on the second detected value. Calculate the index value of the target task by dividing by
An information processing method characterized by that . The first detection value in which the computer detects the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the control task, and the user when the user performs a unit task having a larger cognitive load than the control task. The second detection value for detecting the blood flow in the head of the user and the third detection value for detecting the blood flow in the head of the user when the user performs the target task are acquired.
A value obtained by subtracting the first measured value based on the first detected value from the third measured value based on the third detected value, and a value obtained by subtracting the first measured value from the second measured value based on the second detected value. Calculate the index value of the target task by dividing by
An information processing program to do that.

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