JPH06124188A - Information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To save energy, to protect the device, to improve security and to prevent a picture from being unexpectedly erased by stepwise controlling functions provided at the device for power saving, device protection and security or the like based on the lapse of time when a user is absent. CONSTITUTION:A main body part 1 is composed of an absence time control data base 11, external program execution part 12, device control part 13 for controlling an input device 2 or the like and user existence judge part 20. The absence time control data base 11 stores programs or data for stepwise controlling the functions provided at the device. Based on presence/absence information from the user existence judge part 20, a central control part 14 controls the data base 11, program execution part 12 and device control part 13. The user existence judges whether the user is present or absent based on an infrared output part 21, output control part 22 and infrared photodetection part 23 or the like. When the output level of the infrared photodetection part 23 is high, it is judged that the user exists near the device.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information processing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer or a workstation, the power is turned off when a user (hereinafter referred to as a user) does not perform an operation (for example, keyboard input, mouse operation, floppy disk insertion, etc.) for a certain period of time. Control, such as turning on the screen, turning off the screen, or operating a program such as a so-called screen saver, to save power and protect the device.

[0003]

However, this power saving and device protection function (hereinafter referred to as the power saving function) is provided by reading the document displayed on the monitor screen without the user operating the keyboard or the like. It worked even during the operation, and the power suddenly turned off regardless of the user's intention, which was very inconvenient. For example, when reading a document displayed on the monitor screen, normally, no operation is usually performed for several minutes, and the power saving function is activated each time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus capable of power saving and device protection in consideration of convenience.

[0005]

In order to solve the above problems, an information processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a user detecting means for detecting that a user is near the apparatus, and the user detecting means. It is characterized by having a control means for measuring the absence time of the user based on the detection result from, and stepwise controlling the function of the device based on the absence time.

[0006]

In the information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied, the functions included in the apparatus are controlled step by step based on the absent time.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of an information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings. An information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied includes, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, a main body 1 having a function of detecting that a user (hereinafter referred to as a user) is near the apparatus, and a keyboard and a mouse, for example. An input device 2, an output device 3 including, for example, a monitor receiver, and a floppy disk device (hereinafter referred to as FD)
D) and hard disk drive (henceforth HDD)
The external storage device 4 includes a communication device 5 including a modem.

The information processing apparatus is adapted to perform various data processing such as execution of application programs, document editing, and data communication.
Further, it detects that the user is in the vicinity of the device, measures the user's absence elapsed time according to the detection result, and based on this absence time, the function of the device, such as power saving, device protection, security It is designed to control the functions such as.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the main body 1 stores programs and data for stepwise controlling the functions of the apparatus when the user is absent. The absence control database 11, an external program execution unit 12 that executes a program stored in the absence control database 11, a device control unit 13 that controls peripherals of the input device 2 and the like, and a user in the vicinity of the device. Presence determination unit 20 for detecting that the user is present
And a central control unit 14 that controls the absence control database 11, the external program execution unit 12, and the device control unit 13 based on presence / absence information from the user presence determination unit 20.

Further, the user presence determination section 20 has an infrared output section 21 for emitting infrared rays, as shown in FIG. 2, for example.
And an output control unit 22 that controls the infrared output unit 21 in response to a request signal from the central control unit 14, and an infrared light receiving unit that receives reflected light obtained by reflecting light emitted from the infrared output unit 21 by a user. 23 and the infrared light receiving section 2
The presence / absence of the user is determined based on the output of 3 and
The light receiving information analyzing unit 24 supplies the absence information to the central control unit 14.

The output control section 22 controls the light emission of the infrared output section 21 in response to a request signal supplied from the central control section 14, for example. The infrared light emitted from the infrared output unit 21 is reflected by the user and received by the infrared light receiving unit 23. Based on the output of the infrared light receiving unit 23, the light reception information analysis unit 24 determines that the user is near the device when the output level of the infrared light receiving unit 23 is high, and the user is near the device when the output level is low. The presence / absence information of “Nana” is supplied to the central control unit 14. Therefore, when the user is reading the document displayed on the monitor screen, it is detected that the user is present (hereinafter, the user state is referred to as “present”). By the way, in the detection of the user state by the user presence determination unit 20, in addition to the request from the central control unit 14, for example,
Always detect, user status from "present" to "absent",
Further, when changing from “absent” to “present”, the change information may be supplied to the central control unit 14. Further, for example, a time counter may be provided inside and the presence / absence information may be periodically supplied to the central control unit 14. Further, for example, infrared rays may be so-called pulse-modulated and emitted, and the distance to the user may be detected more accurately based on the phase of the reflected light.

The central control unit 14 causes the functions such as power saving, device protection, and security to operate stepwise according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, for example. That is, the central control unit 14 internally includes a user status register that stores the previous user status, a time counter that measures time, and the like.
In step ST1, "absent" is set in the user status register, and the process proceeds to step ST2.

In step ST2, the central control unit 14
Resets the time counter and proceeds to step ST3.

In step ST3, the central control unit 14
Outputs a request signal to the user presence determination unit 20, and proceeds to step ST4.

In step ST4, the central controller 14
Receives presence / absence information from the user presence determination unit 20,
Go to step ST5.

In step ST5, the central controller 14
On the basis of presence / absence information, the process proceeds to step ST6 when the user status is "absent", and proceeds to step ST7 when the user condition is "present".

In step ST6, the central control unit 14
Counts up the time counter as will be described later, and saves power in stages depending on the length of absence time,
Functions such as device protection and security are activated, and the process returns to step ST3.

On the other hand, in step ST7, the central control unit 14 determines whether or not the contents of the user status register are "absent". If yes, the process proceeds to step ST8, and if not, the process returns to step ST3.

In step ST8, the central controller 14
Cancels functions such as power saving as described later, and returns to step ST2. Thus, when the user status is “present”, the central control unit 14 proceeds to step ST3 → step ST4 →
The loop of step ST5 → step ST7 → step ST3 is executed, and when the user state changes from “present” to “absent” or “absent”, step ST3 → step ST4 → step ST5 → step ST6 → step ST3 When the user state is changed from “absent” to “present” by executing the loop, step ST3 → step S
T4 → step ST5 → step ST7 → step ST
A loop of 8 → step ST2 → step ST3 is executed.

That is, when the user status is "present", the central control unit 14 always executes the loop of step ST3 → step ST4 → step ST5 → step ST7 → step ST3 to keep the user status "absent". To detect.

Next, the user status changes from "present" to "absent"
When it changes to, the central control unit 14 proceeds to step ST6, increments the time counter in step ST6a, and proceeds to step ST6b.

In step ST6b, the central controller 1
No. 4 determines whether the time counter is 5 minutes or more, and if it is applicable, the process proceeds to step ST6c, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST6d.

In step ST6c, the central controller 1
4 turns off the power and returns to step ST3.

In step ST6d, the central controller 1
No. 4 determines whether the time counter is 4 minutes or more, and if it is applicable, the process proceeds to step ST6e, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST6f.

In step ST6e, the central controller 1
The control unit 4 controls the device control unit 13 so as to stop the motor of the HDD, for example, and returns to step ST3. This causes the device control unit 13 to stop the rotation of the motor.

In step ST6f, the central controller 1
No. 4 determines whether the time counter is 3 minutes or more, and if it is applicable, the process proceeds to step ST6g, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST6h.

In step ST6g, the central controller 1
4 controls the external program execution unit 12 to activate the security program stored in the absence control database 11, and returns to step ST3. The external program execution unit 12 executes a security program such as prohibiting use unless an appropriate password is input.

In step ST6h, the central controller 1
No. 4 determines whether the time counter is 2 minutes or more, and if it is applicable, the process proceeds to step ST6i, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST6j.

In step ST6i, the central controller 1
4 controls the external program execution unit 12 so as to activate, for example, the screen saver program stored in the absence control database 11, and returns to step ST3. The external program execution unit 12 executes a screen saver program for protecting the monitor receiver.

In step ST6j, the central control unit 1
No. 4 determines whether the time counter is 1 minute or more, and if it is applicable, the process proceeds to step ST6k, and if not, the process proceeds to step ST6m.

In step ST6k, the central controller 1
In step 4, the CPU operation clock is controlled to be lower than the normal frequency, and the process returns to step ST3.

In step ST6m, the central controller 1
4 determines whether or not the content of the user status register is "absent", and if so, returns to step ST3, and if not, proceeds to step ST6n.

In step ST6n, the central controller 1
4 sets "present" in the user status register, and returns to step ST3.

Thus, based on the elapsed time since the user was absent, the CPU operation clock is lowered after 1 minute to save power, and after 2 minutes the monitor receiver is turned off to save power. Protect the device, prohibit the use by other than the original user after 3 minutes, and secure the security.
After 5 minutes, the motor such as the HDD can be stopped to save power and protect the device, and after 5 minutes, the power can be turned off to save power.

On the other hand, when the user state changes from "absent" to "present", the central control unit 14 proceeds to step ST8, sets "present" in the user state register at step ST8a, and proceeds to step ST8b.

In step ST8b, the central controller 1
4 determines whether the CPU operation clock is low, and if so, proceeds to step ST8c; otherwise, returns to step ST2.

In step ST8c, the central controller 1
4 controls the CPU operating clock so that it has a normal frequency, and proceeds to step ST8d.

In step ST8d, the central controller 1
Step 4 judges whether or not the screen saver program is in operation, and if so, the process proceeds to step ST8e, and if not, returns to step ST2.

In step ST8e, the central controller 1
4 controls the external program execution unit 12 to end the screen saver program, and step ST8f
Proceed to. As a result, the monitor receiver gives a normal display.

In step ST8f, the central controller 1
4 determines whether or not the motor of the HDD or the like is stopped, and if yes, proceeds to step ST8g, otherwise returns to step ST2.

In step ST8g, the central controller 1
4 controls the device control unit 13 so as to start the motor of the HDD or the like, and returns to step ST2. The device control unit 13 activates a motor such as an HDD.

As described above, in this embodiment, it is detected that the user is in the vicinity of the device, the elapsed time of the user's absence is measured based on the detection result, and the device has a function based on this elapsed time of the absence. That is, by gradually operating functions such as power saving, device protection, and security, the screen suddenly changes while reading a document displayed on the monitor screen, for example, like a conventional device. It can be prevented from disappearing. It should be noted that after the security program operates, it can be used, for example, when an appropriate password is entered. Further, when the user performs an operation such as inputting from the keyboard, for example, it may be possible to immediately use the device by interrupting step ST8 of the flowchart shown in FIG. Further, for example, in an application such as electronic mail, when the user is absent, the fact that the user is absent may be notified via the communication device 5.

It should be noted that the user presence determination unit 20 is the same as that shown in FIG.
The present invention is not limited to the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 4, and the user presence determination unit 20 is configured to operate as described above, in accordance with a request signal from the image capturing unit 31 such as a video camera and the central control unit 14 as illustrated in FIG. An imaging control unit 31 that controls the imaging unit 31, and an imaging information analysis unit that determines presence / absence of a user based on an imaging signal from the imaging unit 31 and supplies presence / absence information to the central control unit 14. 33, and the user state may be detected based on an image pickup signal obtained by a video camera, for example.

Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, an oscillator 41 which is always carried by a user, a receiving unit 42 which receives a signal from the oscillator 41, and a request signal from the central control unit 14 are used. A reception information analysis unit that determines presence / absence of a user and supplies presence / absence information to the central control unit 14 based on an output of the reception control unit 43 that controls the reception unit 42 and the reception unit 31. 44, for example, a radio signal including a user ID for individually identifying a user is constantly or periodically transmitted from the oscillator 41, and the receiving unit 4
The user status may be set to “present” when the reception information analysis unit 44 detects the user ID permitted to be used in step 2 of receiving the signal.

[0045]

As is apparent from the above description, in the information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied, it is detected that the user is in the vicinity of the apparatus, the elapsed time of absence of the user is measured based on the detection result, By gradually controlling the functions of the apparatus, such as power saving, device protection, and security, based on the elapsed time of absence, power saving, device protection, security improvement, etc. can be achieved. As in the conventional device, it is possible to prevent the screen from unexpectedly disappearing while reading the document displayed on the monitor screen, for example.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of an information processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a specific circuit configuration of a user presence determination unit included in the information processing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the information processing device.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another specific circuit configuration of the user presence determination unit.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing another specific circuit configuration of the user presence determination unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Main body part 2 ... Input device 3 ... Output device 4 ... Foreign affairs storage device 5 ... Communication device 11 ... Absence control database 12 ... External program execution part 13 ... -Device control unit 14 ... Central control unit 20 ... User presence determination unit

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A user detecting means for detecting that a user is in the vicinity of the device, and a user's absence elapsed time is measured by a detection result from the user detecting means, and based on the absence time. And an information processing apparatus that has a control unit that controls the functions of the apparatus in a stepwise manner.