JPH10145661A - Unattended information terminal equipment and control method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide optimum image information at a camera installed at an unattended information terminal for opening its operation to unspecified users by providing a camera control button near a slave screen for displaying a photographed picture inside a display part. SOLUTION: A display part 3 has a slave screen 6, and the monitor picture of images photographed by a camera 2 is projected. An imaged camera control button 5 is arranged near the slave screen 6, and the touched section of the camera control button is recognized on a touch panel overlapped on the display part 3. The user performs camera control for the position or size of image by selecting any required button of the camera control button 5 and touching the screen while watching his own portrait projected on the slave screen 6. Thus, since the user to really control the direction or the like of the camera can operate the camera control button without considerably deviating his sight out of the slave screen projecting images, natural human portraits can be made into data.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an adjustment mechanism for adjusting the position and size of an image which is carried out by a camera provided in an unmanned information terminal for opening its operation to an unspecified user in order to obtain optimum image information. It relates to the control method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A camera is added to an unmanned information terminal such as an unmanned reception terminal, an unmanned consultation desk, or an unmanned contract machine, which opens its operation to unspecified users, and is operated, for example, face to face. A method of photographing a user's face and capturing it as image information has been performed.

[0003] These measures are for identifying a user facing the unmanned information terminal, or for creating a card with a picture in particular when making a contract card using an unmanned contract machine or the like.

Here, the following terms according to the present invention will be clarified by showing their definitions.

[0005] Camera adjustment here refers to adjusting the position, size, and the like of an image contained in an image frame by changing the focus, direction, and zoom of the camera toward a subject.

FIG. 5 schematically shows an unmanned information terminal device according to the prior art. The unattended information terminal device 21 includes an operation unit 24 operated by the user and a display unit 2 for giving necessary instructions to the user.
3 and a speaker 28, and a camera 22 for photographing the user.

An image captured by the camera 22 is displayed as a monitor on a child screen 26 provided inside the display unit 23, and a user operating the unmanned information terminal device 21 can display his or her own image according to the display on the screen or an instruction from the speaker 28. Adjust the position and adjust the camera to obtain an appropriate image.

Alternatively, the aforementioned unmanned information terminal device 2
The user who operates the device 1 can display the screen or use the speaker 28.
By operating the operation unit 24 in accordance with the instruction by the user, the camera adjustment of the camera 22 is performed so that the image displayed as a monitor on the child screen 26 has an appropriate position and size.

Further, as a countermeasure against a user who is afraid or disliked of the operation of the operation unit 24, an operator in charge of operating the headquarter terminal connected to the unmanned information terminal device 21 can remotely control the camera 22. Adjustments may be made to obtain an appropriate image.

[0010]

As described above, in the camera operation in the unmanned information terminal device according to the conventional technology,
There are the following problems.

1) In the method in which the user moves and stands at an appropriate position, the user is instructed to change his / her posture, so that a burden is imposed on the user, and the use is easily avoided.

2) In a system in which the user operates camera adjustment such as the direction of the camera, it is necessary to reciprocate the line of sight between a child screen for displaying an image and an operation unit for actually performing an operation. For a user who cannot be used, it tends to be a mental burden, and use is easily avoided.

[0013] 3) In the method of adjusting the camera by remote control of an operator of the head office terminal device connected to the unmanned information terminal device, an operator must always be resident at the head office terminal device. The number of unattended information terminal devices to which the number of persons in charge can be connected or the operating time period of the unattended information terminal device becomes a constraint condition, and it is unavoidable to increase labor costs to deal with.

[0014]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following means.

1) The unmanned information terminal device is provided with a camera adjustment button near a child screen for displaying a shooting screen in the display unit when adjusting the position and size of a shot image to a user operation.

By adopting this means, a user who adjusts the direction of the camera or the like when operating the unmanned information terminal device has an effect of operating the camera adjustment button on the same plane as the small screen.

2) The unmanned information terminal device provides an area for measuring the distance from the camera to the subject in the captured video, and sets the point at which the distance greatly changes as a boundary of the human image, thereby defining the area of the image. The person image area is determined, and camera adjustment is performed.

By taking this measure, the unmanned information terminal device has an effect of automatically adjusting the camera.

[0019]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention takes the following forms.

1) When entrusting camera adjustment of an image captured by a camera provided in the unmanned information terminal device to a user operation, the same sub-screen that displays a shooting screen provided in the display unit of the unmanned information terminal device is used. A camera adjustment button is provided on the screen and in the vicinity of the child screen by a touch panel.

By adopting this mode, the user who actually performs the camera adjustment operates the camera adjustment button without greatly shifting the line of sight from the child screen on which the person image is projected.

2) A horizontal scanning line and a vertical scanning line are provided as an area for measuring a distance from the camera to a subject in an image captured by a camera provided in the unmanned information terminal device. A point at which the distance to the subject changes greatly is recognized as a contour point of the human image.

By taking this form, the unmanned information terminal device has an effect of recognizing a focus, a positional shift, a size, and the like of a human image portion in an image captured by the camera.

3) In the control of the camera adjustment of the unmanned information terminal device, the points of the outline of the human image portion in the horizontal scanning line and the vertical scanning line provided in the image taken by the camera are specified, and The position shift and the size of the person image are adjusted by bringing the position of the contour point closer to a preset position.

By taking this form, the unmanned information terminal device has an effect of performing camera adjustment of an image obtained by an attached camera.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A representative embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 schematically shows an unmanned information terminal device according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1A, the unmanned information terminal device 1 has a sensor 7 for detecting a user approaching for operation.
Having. Also, a display unit 3 is provided on the surface for the user,
The display of the operation result or the guide of the necessary operation method is displayed. Further, it may have a speaker 8 and emit a guidance by a voice or a synthesized voice of an operator of the head office terminal device to which the unmanned information terminal device 1 is connected, and may sometimes play background music or the like.

Normal operations performed by the user are performed by the operation unit 4, and the operation results are displayed on the display unit 3.

FIG. 1B shows the details of the display unit 3. The display unit 3 has a child screen 6 on which a monitor screen of an image captured by the camera 2 is displayed.

An image-adjusted camera adjustment button 5 is arranged near the child screen 6, and a touched portion of the camera adjustment button 5 is recognized by a touch panel superimposed on the display unit 3.

The user selects the necessary buttons of the camera adjustment buttons 5 while touching the screen while viewing his or her own personal image projected on the sub-screen 6, and touches the screen to determine the position and size of the image. Make adjustments.

By displaying an overlay figure in which a contour line or the like of a standard human image is drawn on the child screen 6 in advance, an appropriate image size and position can be obtained.

Further, since the camera adjustment button 5 is arranged near the same plane as the sub-screen 6, the user can operate the camera without releasing his / her eyes from the sub-screen 6 even when operating the buttons. It can be performed.

A representative embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 shows the principle of the mechanism for optimizing the position of a human image according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2A, a human image captured by the camera 2 includes a part of the upper body with the user's face as the center as the center.

As shown in FIG. 2A, a vertical scanning line 11 and a horizontal scanning line 12 are set in advance on a sub-screen 6 for displaying an image captured by the camera 2. Further, a point where the vertical scanning line 11 and the horizontal scanning line 12 intersect is set as a focus setting point.

The vertical scanning line 11 is located at the center of the small screen 6, and the horizontal scanning line 12 is
Above the center of the face, which corresponds to the center of the face position assumed from the beginning.

In an image obtained by photographing the user located in front of the camera 2, the image is focused at the focus setting point and the image is once fixed.

The focus of the image is examined from A to B along the horizontal scan line 12 and the distance from the camera to the subject is measured.

FIG. 2B shows the horizontal scanning line 12.
5 shows a change in the distance from the camera to the subject, which measures an area from A to B along the line. The vertical axis is represented by the reciprocal value of the distance from the camera to the subject.

Since the distance from the camera to the subject in the background portion greatly changes with respect to the distance from the camera to the subject in the portion where the person is photographed, the changing boundary point is defined as the contour of the human image. The distance L1 and the distance L2 between the left and right backgrounds are measured.

The angle of the camera 2 is set such that the distance L1 is equal to the distance L2 by driving the horizontal swing mechanism (not shown) of the camera 2 described above. Thus, the person image is located at the center of the entire image.

By driving the zoom mechanism of the camera 2,
The size of the image is adjusted so that the distance L1 and the distance L2 match a preset value. Thus, the person image has an appropriate size.

The focus of the image is inspected along the vertical scanning line 11, and the distance from the camera to the subject is measured.

FIG. 2C shows the vertical scanning line 11.
Shows the change in the distance from the camera to the subject, which measures the area from C to D along. The vertical axis is represented by the reciprocal value of the distance from the camera to the subject.

Similarly to the inspection along the horizontal scanning line 12, the boundary point at which the distance from the camera to the subject greatly changes is recognized as the contour point of the head of the human image, and the head point of the human image is recognized. The distance L3 from the contour line to the end of the image is measured.

The vertical swing mechanism (not shown) of the camera 2 is driven to adjust the angle so that the distance L3 matches a preset value. With this, the person image fits in an appropriate area.

As described above, the recognition of the outline of a human image by analyzing the image captured by the camera does not require the detection of a fine outline, so that the sensor 7 measures the distance to the target object. The function of the camera 2 can be substituted.

An embodiment of a typical control method according to the third aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 3 shows a configuration according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 shows a flowchart according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

In step S01, unattended information terminal equipment B01
Is waiting for the user to approach in a standby state. Step S
In step 02, the sensor B19 detects the approach of a person and confirms that the person has entered a predetermined distance range. Then, the process proceeds to step S03, in which a guidance message is displayed on the display unit B15 to provide operational guidance.

In step S04, the user operates display unit B15.
Operation unit B16 according to the guidance message displayed on
Perform the above operations.

Next, from step S05 to step S12
Make camera adjustments to The camera adjustment can also be performed by a camera adjustment button B21 set on a touch panel B12 provided on the display unit B15.

In step S05, the camera driver B13 adjusts the focus of the camera B14. Next, the process proceeds to step S06 to perform horizontal scanning. In step S07, the arithmetic processing unit B24 that has obtained necessary image data from the image processing unit B23 instructs the camera control unit B22, and the camera driving unit B13 drives the camera B14. To adjust the portrait direction of the portrait image, and set the portrait image in the center of the screen.

In step S08, zoom control of the camera B14 is performed by performing control along the same route as in the above-described horizontal adjustment, and the size of the image is set to a predetermined value.

In step S09, vertical scanning is performed, and in step S10, vertical adjustment of the human image is performed. The signal flow in the control is the same as the above-described horizontal adjustment.

The flow advances to step S11 to confirm the image position. If it is recognized in step S12 that an appropriate image has been obtained, the camera adjustment is terminated, and the flow advances to step S13 to process the image data. Is processed, and in step S15, the printer unit B
A printing process is performed by 17 to provide necessary documents to the user.

It should be noted that steps S05 to S
Since the camera adjustment operation up to 12 is actually performed within a short time, the user can wait without any special awareness.

At step S16, the end is displayed, and when the user leaves, the unmanned information terminal device B01 proceeds to step S17.
To enter the standby state again.

[0062]

According to the present invention, the following effects can be expected.

1)) In a method in which the adjustment of the position and size of a captured image is entrusted to the user's operation, a camera adjustment button is provided by a touch panel near the sub-screen on the same surface as the sub-screen in the display unit. .

By this means, the user who actually adjusts the direction of the camera and the like operates the camera adjustment button without greatly shifting the line of sight from the child screen on which the image is projected, so that a reasonable person image can be converted into data. Get the effect.

2) A horizontal scanning line and a vertical scanning line are provided as an area for measuring a distance from the camera to a subject in an image taken by a camera provided in the unmanned information terminal device. A point at which the distance to the subject changes greatly is recognized as a contour point of the human image.

By this means, the unmanned information terminal device recognizes the focus, position shift, size, and the like of the human image portion in the image taken by the camera, so that these elements can be controlled. The effect is obtained.

3) In the control of the camera adjustment of the unmanned information terminal device, the outline points of the human image portion on the horizontal scanning line and the vertical scanning line provided in the image taken by the camera are specified, and The position shift and the size of the person image are adjusted by bringing the position of the contour point closer to a preset position.

By taking this form, the unmanned information terminal device has an effect of automatically creating a person image photographed at an appropriate position since the unattended information terminal device performs camera adjustment of the image obtained by the attached camera.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an unmanned information terminal device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a principle diagram of camera adjustment.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an unmanned information terminal device according to the related art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: Unmanned information terminal device 2: Camera 3: Display unit 4: Operation unit 5: Camera adjustment button 6: Child screen 7: Sensor 11: Vertical scanning line 12: Horizontal scanning line

Claims (3)

[Claims] An unmanned information terminal device, comprising: an operation unit provided for an operation of an operator; a display unit for presenting necessary information to the operator; and a camera for photographing the operator. A sub-screen (6) for displaying an image of the operator taken by (2), and a camera adjustment formed by an image set by the operator to control the shooting direction of the camera (2) An unmanned information terminal device comprising a display (3) and a button (5). 2. An unmanned information terminal device, comprising: an operation unit for operation of an operator; a display unit for presenting necessary information to the operator; and a camera for photographing the operator. In the image captured in (2), a horizontal scanning line (12) and a vertical scanning line (11) are provided as regions for measuring the distance from the camera (2) to the subject. Unattended information terminal equipment. 3. A method for controlling an unmanned information terminal device comprising an operation unit provided for an operation of an operator, a display unit for presenting necessary information to the operator, and further comprising a camera for photographing the operator. By measuring the distance from the camera (2) to the subject in the horizontal scanning line (12) and the vertical scanning line (11) in the image captured by the camera (2), the area of the human image is obtained. A method for controlling unmanned information terminal equipment, characterized in that camera control is performed by determining the value of