JPH04364616A - Infrared-ray communication equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To align an optical axis automatically and to attain efficient communication in the case of the optical axis of infrared-ray communication at a transmission side and a reception side in a vertical direction as well as in a horizontal direction. CONSTITUTION:A transmission signal is sent from light emitting diodes 2a-2d at the transmission side and it is received by plural photodiodes 13a, 13b, etc., while a light transferring section 11 at the reception side is moved semi- spherically and the angle of the light transferring section 11 is adjusted by a control circuit 15 and a driving section 14 so that the output difference of the plural photodiodes 13a, 13b is eliminated, thereby matching the optical axis with that of the transmission side. On the other hand, light emitting diodes 12a, 13a, etc., send a reception identification signal through the reception of the transmission signal at the reception side and the signal is received by plural photodiodes 3a-3d while a light transferring section 1 at the transmission side is moved semi-spherically and the angle of the light transferring section 1 is adjusted by a control circuit 5 and a driving section 4 so that the output difference of the plural photodiodes 3a-3d is eliminated, thereby matching the optical axis with that of the reception side.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an infrared communication device that transmits and receives audio signals, video signals, digital signals, etc. in the air using infrared rays.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art This type of infrared communication technology is widely used in remote controllers that perform channel selection operations on television receivers. The infrared light emitting element used in this case is an LED (light emitting diode).
are commonly used, but there are problems with narrow directivity and weak emission intensity.For example, when a video camera is moved by a photographer and a fixed VTR (video tape recorder) When applied to wireless transmission and reception of signals and audio signals, it is conceivable that communication may become impossible if the distance is large or the optical axis is misaligned. For this reason, in the earlier application of Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-2843, the present applicant proposed that the video camera side includes a means for maintaining the optical axis of the transmitting section horizontally and a means for horizontally tracking the receiving section of the transmitting section. We have proposed an infrared transmission device technology in which the VTR side is provided with horizontal tracking means for the transmitting side of the receiving section.

0003

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the conventional infrared transmission device described above, since the tracking means is only in the horizontal direction, for example, a transmitter installed on the wall of a room and a television signal emitted from this transmitter are If we try to apply this to a means of communication wirelessly received by a portable television receiver (hereinafter referred to as "portable TV"), when the portable TV is moved around the room, its optical axis will not only move horizontally but also vertically. Since the optical axis also changes, it is conceivable that the optical axis may shift and the television signal cannot be received clearly. For this reason, we ended up arranging many infrared light-emitting elements vertically and horizontally to widen the narrow directivity as much as possible, and then transmitting and receiving by roughly aligning the optical axes by hand, which was a time-consuming operation each time we moved. I had to communicate.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to solve the problem even when one or both of the optical axes of infrared communication on the transmitting side and the receiving side move horizontally or vertically. An object of the present invention is to provide an infrared communication device that automatically aligns the optical axis and enables efficient infrared communication.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, in the infrared communication device of the present invention, a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a light transmitting/receiving section on the transmitting side to transmit a transmitting signal for aligning the optical axis. , a plurality of light-receiving elements for receiving the transmission signal are arranged in the light transmitting/receiving section on the receiving side, and a plurality of light-emitting elements for emitting a reception identification signal in response when the transmission signal is received are arranged, A plurality of light-receiving elements that receive the reception identification signal are arranged in the light-receiving section, and each of the transmitting side and the receiving side includes a driving section that causes the light-transmitting and receiving section to move in a hemisphere, and a drive section that causes the driving section to receive the light-receiving signal. Before the element receives the corresponding transmission signal or reception identification signal, it commands the movement of the hemisphere, and after receiving the transmission signal, the transmission is performed so that the difference in output between the light receiving elements disappears and/or the output is maximized. It is characterized by comprising a control circuit that commands adjustment of the angle of the light receiving section.

[0006]

[Operation] In the infrared communication device of the present invention, a transmission signal for aligning the optical axes is transmitted from the transmitting side, and this is received by a plurality of light receiving elements arranged in a hemispherical movement in the light transmitting/receiving section of the receiving side. The optical axis of the infrared communication on the receiving side is aligned with the transmitting side by adjusting the angle of the light transmitting and receiving parts so that the difference in output between the multiple light receiving elements is eliminated, the output is maximized, or both. . On the other hand, on the receiving side, upon receiving the transmission signal, it immediately sends out a reception identification signal, which is received by multiple light receiving elements arranged in a hemispherical movement in the light transmitting/receiving section of the transmitting side, and the outputs of these multiple light receiving elements are The optical axis of the infrared communication on the transmitting side is aligned with the receiving side by adjusting the angles of the light transmitting and receiving parts so that the difference disappears, the output becomes maximum, or both.

[0007]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention viewed from the side, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of light emitting diodes and photodiodes in the light transmitting/receiving section used in the above embodiment. be. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a light transmitting/receiving section on the transmitting side, and on one surface thereof, light emitting diodes 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d as light receiving elements and photodiodes 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d as light receiving elements are arranged on one surface as shown in FIG. As shown, they are arranged concentrically in the shape of a cross. 4 is the light transmitting/receiving section 1
5 is a control circuit thereof. On the other hand, 11
is a light transmitting/receiving section on the receiving side, and similarly to the transmitting/receiving section 1 on the transmitting side, there are light emitting diodes 12 above and below on a concentric circle on one surface.
a, 12b and photodiodes 13a, 13b are arranged, and furthermore, although not shown in FIG. 1, a pair of light emitting diodes and a pair of photodiodes are arranged on the left and right sides of the concentric circle of that surface, similar to the arrangement example shown in FIG. 2. are placed respectively. 14 is a driving section of the light transmitting/receiving section 11, and 15 is a control circuit thereof.

The connection configuration and functions of each part on the transmitting side are as follows. The drive unit 4 has two drive axes driven by motors or the like, and causes the light transmitting/receiving unit 1 to move in a hemisphere around a certain point based on commands from the control circuit 5. The control circuit 5 transmits a target signal or a signal for determining the optical axis (hereinafter referred to as a transmission signal) through the light emitting diodes 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d. The control circuit 5 also receives a signal (hereinafter referred to as a reception identification signal) issued from the reception side in response to the transmission signal to identify reception.
are received by photodiodes 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d and input individually. When this input is received, the control circuit 5 moves the light transmitting/receiving section in a direction in which the difference in reception levels between the two photodiodes 2a and 2b in the vertical direction and the difference in reception levels between the two photodiodes 2c and 2d in the left and right directions are eliminated. A command to finely adjust the angle of 1 is issued to the drive unit 4.

On the other hand, the connection configuration and functions of each section on the receiving side are as follows. The drive unit 14 is also driven by a motor or the like.
The control circuit 15 has a drive shaft for the light transmission/reception unit 11.
Based on the command, the hemisphere moves around a certain point B. The control circuit 5 includes photodiodes 13a, 1
3b etc., and receives the above-mentioned transmission signal from the transmitting side, and inputs the upper, lower, left, and right reception signals individually. When the transmission signal is received, the control circuit 15 transmits a reception identification signal through the light emitting diodes 12a, 12b, etc., and eliminates the difference in reception level between the upper and lower sides and the reception level difference between the left and right sides of the transmission signals received separately for the upper, lower, left and right sides. Light transmitting/receiving unit 1 in the direction
A command to finely adjust the angle of 1 is issued to the drive unit 14.

The operation and effect of one embodiment configured as above will be described.

FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) are flowcharts showing the operation, in which (a) shows the operation on the transmitting side, and (b)
) indicates the operation on the receiving side. First, on the transmitting side, while transmitting signals from the light emitting diodes 2a to 2d, the light transmitting/receiving section 1 is caused to move in a hemispherical direction until a reception identification signal is received from the receiving side. The hemisphere may be moved, for example, by moving it in all directions with one point on the spherical surface as a reference, by moving it left and right multiple times while moving it up and down, or by moving it in a spiral pattern. If the reception identification signal is received during this period, the movement of the hemisphere is stopped, and the output difference (reception level difference) of each photodiode set (3a, 3b) and (3c, 3d) arranged on the left and right, and the upper and lower sides is detected. ) is finely adjusted by the drive section 4 through the control circuit 5 so that the angle of the light transmitting/receiving section 1 is eliminated.

Next, on the receiving side, the light transmitting/receiving section 11 is made to move hemispherically in the same manner as described above until it receives the transmission signal from the transmitting side. When the photodiodes 13a, 13b, etc. receive the transmission signal, the movement of the hemisphere is stopped and a reception identification signal is emitted from the light emitting diodes 12a, 12b, etc. At the same time, the drive circuit 1 is operated so that the output difference (reception level difference) between the upper and lower photodiode pairs 13a and 13b and the left and right photodiode pairs (not shown) is eliminated.
5, the angle of the light transmitting/receiving section 11 is finely adjusted by the driving section 14.

As a result of repeated fine adjustment of the angles of the transmitting side and the receiving side, even if the angle of the optical axis of one or both of them changes vertically or horizontally, the center of the optical axes of both sides remains the same. They are automatically matched, and subsequent infrared communications can be carried out efficiently. That is, it becomes possible to communicate clearly over a longer distance even with low light emission power and narrow directivity.

Note that for communication by infrared rays, the light emitting element and the light receiving element of the light transmitting/receiving section may be used together, but if the optical axis alignment is to be performed at all times, it is easier to provide them independently. In the above embodiment, four photodiodes on the transmitting side and the receiving side are arranged in a cross shape. However, by using at least three photodiodes and calculating the horizontal and vertical control amounts, It is possible to adjust the angle of Similarly, it is also possible to use five or more photodiodes. In addition, in the above embodiment, an example of control was shown in which the angle of the light transmitter and receiver is adjusted so that the difference in the output of the photodiode is eliminated. It may also be controlled. The present invention may be applied to transmission and reception of television signals between a small portable indoor TV and a transmitter, but it is of course applicable to other uses as well. As described above, the present invention can be applied in various ways and can take various embodiments in accordance with the gist thereof.

[0016]

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above explanation, according to the infrared communication device of the present invention, one of the two devices incorporating the infrared communication device can be fixed and the other moved, or both can be moved. When the optical axis of infrared communication changes not only horizontally but also vertically, both optical axes can be automatically aligned, which has the advantage of eliminating the need to align the optical axes each time you move. can get.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

[Fig. 1] Schematic diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention

[Fig. 2] A diagram showing an example of arrangement of light emitting diodes and photodiodes in the light transmitting/receiving section used in the above embodiment.

[Figure 3] (a) and (b) are flowcharts showing the operation of the above embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols] 1... Light transmitting/receiving unit on the transmitting side, 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d... Light emitting diode, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d... Photodiode, 4... Drive unit, 5... Control circuit, 11... Receiving side Light transmitting/receiving section, 12a, 12b...Light emitting diode, 13a, 13b
...Photodiode, 14...Driver, 15...Control circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claim 1: A plurality of light emitting elements for emitting transmission signals for aligning optical axes are disposed in a light transmitting/receiving section on a transmitting side, and a plurality of light receiving elements for receiving the transmitting signals are disposed in a light transmitting/receiving section on a receiving side. A plurality of light emitting elements that emit a reception identification signal in response to the reception of the transmission signal are arranged, a plurality of light reception elements that receive the reception identification signal are arranged in the light transmission/reception section of the transmission side, and the transmission side and Each of the receiving sides includes a drive unit that causes the light transmitting and receiving unit to move in a hemisphere, and a drive unit that causes the drive unit to move the hemisphere before the light receiving element receives the corresponding transmission signal or reception identification signal. and a control circuit that instructs to adjust the angle of the light transmitting/receiving section so that the output difference between the respective light receiving elements disappears and/or the output becomes maximum after receiving the infrared rays. Communication device.