JPH11338614A - Operation input device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To remotely control a device by movement by recognizing the movement of an operator and collating it with a prescribed movement pattern. SOLUTION: A movement input device provided in a bathroom remote controller 5 recognizes the movement of a person who takes a bath and compares it with a prescribed movement pattern. When the movement coincides with any movement pattern, it makes the controller 5 and a shower device 18 perform an operation corresponding to the coinciding movement pattern. For instance, when the person who takes a bath makes a circular motion with a hand, it results in an operation mode, and then shaking the hand vertically, shower is discharged.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to an operation input device. In particular, the present invention relates to an operation input device that enables remote control of bathroom equipment and plumbing equipment in a bathroom.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a bathroom, a bathroom remote controller (hereinafter, referred to as a bathroom remote controller) of an automatic bath apparatus, a shower device, a bathroom heating device, and the like are installed. While bathing, it is necessary to frequently use these devices, but conventionally, when it is desired to raise or lower the set temperature of hot water in a bathtub, it is necessary to operate a bathroom remote controller. When it is desired to blow out a shower from the shower device or to adjust the shower temperature, it is necessary to operate the operation panel of the shower device. Further, when it is desired to adjust the room temperature in the bathroom, it is necessary to operate the operation panel of the bathroom heater.

[0003] However, in order to operate the bathroom remote control or the operation panel of various bathroom equipment, it is necessary to move to the vicinity of the bathroom remote control or each operation panel and operate the buttons of the bathroom remote control or the operation panel each time. When frequent operations were required, it was very troublesome and troublesome. In particular, in the case of an elderly person or a person with a handicap, it may be difficult to manually operate devices in the bathroom.

As a remote control means for various devices, a wireless remote controller using an infrared signal is generally used. However, in the case of bathroom devices, it is necessary to provide a completely waterproof structure, which is expensive. In addition, in order to operate the bathroom equipment, the user had to move to the position where the wireless remote controller was located, which was not an effective solution.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above technical background, and an object of the present invention is to recognize the operation of an operator and collate the operation with a predetermined operation pattern. The present invention relates to an operation input device that enables remote operation of a device.

[0006]

An operation input device according to the first aspect of the present invention compares an image pickup means for capturing an image of an operator with an operation of the operator and a predetermined operation pattern, and determines whether the operation of the operator is any of the operations. An operation pattern recognizing means for outputting an operation signal corresponding to the operation pattern when the operation pattern matches the operation pattern is provided.

According to the operation input device of the present invention, it is possible to output a desired operation signal by the operation of the operator and operate the device. Therefore, without using a wireless remote controller, the device can be remotely controlled, without having to search for the wireless remote controller or move to a position of the wireless remote controller to pick up the wireless remote controller, The operation allows immediate remote control of the device.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the operation input device according to the first aspect, the operation mode is set when an operator performs an operation in a predetermined pattern.

In this embodiment, the operation mode is not set unless a predetermined pattern operation is performed.
The inconvenience of operating the device by erroneously recognizing it as an operation for operation can be prevented.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the operation input device according to the first or second aspect, the imaging means and the operation pattern recognizing means are installed in a bathroom. .

When used in the bathroom as in this embodiment, the device can be remotely controlled in the bathroom without using a completely waterproof wireless remote controller or the like. Therefore, the bather does not need to move each time to operate the automatic bath apparatus and other devices.
Therefore, bathing becomes easier for the elderly and those with a handicap.

[0012] The embodiment described in claim 4 is the first embodiment.
3. The operation input device according to item 3, wherein the correspondence between the operation pattern and the operation signal can be set or changed.

In this embodiment, since the correspondence between the operation pattern and the operation signal can be set or changed, for example, an operation pattern with easy gesture or an operation pattern with high recognizability is assigned to frequently used operations. Can be.

[0014] The embodiment described in claim 5 is the first embodiment.
The operation input device according to item 4, wherein an operation pattern can be added, deleted, or changed.

In this embodiment, an operation pattern is added,
Since deletion and change are possible, it is possible to register an operation pattern that is easy to operate in accordance with the preference and convenience of the operator, and it is possible to improve the usability.

[0016] The embodiment described in claim 6 is the first embodiment.
5. The operation input device according to item 5, further comprising a learning function of learning an operation of the operator.

In this embodiment, since the learning function is provided, the operation and habit of the operator can be learned, and the recognition accuracy of the operation of the operator can be increased and the operation accuracy can be improved.

The embodiment described in claim 7 is the first embodiment.
7. The operation input device according to item 6, wherein a plurality of the imaging units are provided.

If the movements of the operator as viewed from different directions are captured by a plurality of imaging means, the recognition accuracy of the movement of the operator is further improved. In addition, the types of recognizable operation patterns also increase, and the types of operations can be increased.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (Hot water supply system provided with operation input device) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a hot water supply system provided with a control device for bathroom equipment according to one embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes a hot water supply device for supplying hot water to the hot / water mixer tap 17 of the bathroom 2 or the kitchen 3 or for reheating the hot water in the bathtub 4. A bathroom remote controller (hereinafter, bathroom remote controller) 5 is installed on a wall surface in the bathroom 2, a controller (hereinafter, kitchen remote controller) 6 is installed in the kitchen 3, and a bathroom remote controller 5 and a kitchen remote controller 6 are installed. Is connected to a main controller 7 in the water heater 1 via a communication line (remote control line) 8. Therefore, the bathroom remote controller 5 and the kitchen remote controller 6 are also connected to each other via the main controller 7. Further, a hot and cold water mixing tap 17 and a shower device 18 installed in the bathroom 2 are also connected to the main controller 7 by a communication line 8.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the structure of the shower device 18 installed at the corner of the bathroom 2. A shower holder 41 is provided at the center of the shower device 18, and a shower hose 42 is provided on the shower holder 41.
The hand-held shower 44 provided at the tip of is held. When the position adjustment button 43 is operated, the shower holder 41 is driven up and down by a motor or the like, so that the height of the handheld shower 44 can be adjusted according to the height of the bather. On the upper part of the shower device 18, a pouring hot water nozzle 45 for dropping a water flow from a high position is provided. Jet showers 46 are provided on both sides of the shower device 18 for jetting a shower vigorously to a bather standing in front of the shower device 18.
Are arranged above and below.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the bathroom remote controller 5. The bathroom remote control 5 has an “automatic” switch 9 and a “hot water supply” switch 10 for filling the bathtub 4 with hot water, and a “reheating” for reheating the hot water in the bathtub 4, like the general bathroom remote control 5. A switch 11, a "warm" switch 37 for slightly raising the hot water temperature in the bathtub 4, a "foam" switch 12 for a foam bath, a switch 13a for increasing a set temperature, a switch 13b for decreasing a set temperature, and the like. Input operation unit 14
And a display unit 15 for displaying a water level, a set temperature, a set mode, and the like. In addition, "Warm" switch 3
When 7 is turned on, when the temperature of the hot water in the bathtub is lower than the installation temperature, it automatically turns off when the temperature of the bathtub reaches the set temperature.

Further, the bathroom remote controller 5 recognizes a predetermined operation of a bather, and
An operation input device 16 that enables remote operation such as the above is built in. Reference numeral 38 denotes a button for setting the operation input device 16.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the bathroom remote controller 5. As shown in FIG. The communication control unit 19 transmits and receives a bather identification signal, a control signal, and the like to and from the main controller 7 of the water heater 1 via the communication line 8. Thus, when any switch or button of the input operation unit 14 is operated, the central processing unit (CPU) 20 transmits the water heater operation information to the main controller 7 of the water heater 1 and controls the water heater 1. Let it. On the other hand, operation information and set values input from the input operation unit 14 of the bathroom remote controller 5 or the kitchen remote controller 6 are displayed on the display unit 15.

The operation input device 16 incorporated in the bathroom remote controller 5 comprises an imaging unit 21, an image processing unit 22, an operation pattern recognition processing unit 23, and a memory 24.
Thus, the image of the bather is captured, and the operation of the bather is recognized and processed. That is, the image captured from the imaging unit 21 is subjected to necessary image processing in the image processing unit 22, and then the motion pattern recognition processing unit 23 analyzes the motion of the bather. A plurality of operation patterns (for example, turning a hand, waving a hand up and down or right and left) are previously stored in the memory 24
And operation contents corresponding to each operation pattern are registered. The motion pattern recognition processing unit 23 checks whether or not the bather's motion matches a pre-registered motion pattern, and if so, sends an operation signal corresponding to the matched motion pattern to the bathroom remote controller 5 or the shower device. 18 and so on.

(Details of Operation Input Device) Next, the configuration of the operation input device 16 will be described in detail. Operation input device 1
As for 6, a structure as shown in FIG. 5 is used. The imaging unit 21 of the operation input device 16 is 32 × 32.
It comprises an image detector 25 composed of a C-MOS array of pixels (= 1024 pixels), an imaging lens 26, a scanner 27, a multiplexer 28, and a scanner drive controller 29. Each pixel of the image detection unit 25 is configured by a pixel core circuit 30 as shown in FIG. The pixel core circuit 30 includes a light receiving element 31, a charge storage circuit 32, and a sensitivity variable circuit 33. The sensitivity variable terminal 34 and the reset terminal 35 are connected to the scanner 27, and the photocurrent output terminal 36 is connected to the multiplexer 28. ing.

In the image pickup section 21, the image in the bathroom 2 is detected by the image forming lens 26 by the image detecting section 2.
5 is formed. The scanner 27 is driven and controlled by a scanner drive control unit 29, and controls each pixel row of the image detection unit 25 so as to be in a light receiving state (on state) sequentially at regular intervals. The photocurrents simultaneously output from the pixels in one column in the light receiving state are converted into serial data by the multiplexer 28 and output to the image processing unit 22.

When receiving the image information from all the pixels constituting the image detecting section 25, the image processing section 22 analyzes the image of the bather from the image information according to a predetermined analysis algorithm. More specifically, the original image received by the image processing unit 22 is a very coarse image that barely indicates the presence of a bather. When the image processing unit 22 captures the original image, it first converts the original image into an original image. A background removal process is performed to extract only the bather image. Next, edge processing is performed to extract the outline of the image. At this stage, an image is generated to the extent that the movement of the bather can be understood, and only the outline of the image is left as data to reduce the processing data and speed up the image processing time. Next, the motion pattern recognition processing unit 2
Reference numeral 3 compares and compares the operation of the image with the operation pattern registered in the memory 24 in advance. If the bather's movement matches any of the movement patterns, an operation signal corresponding to the movement pattern is output, and the bathroom remote controller 5 and the like are operated.

For example, when the operation input device 16 detects a bather in the bathroom 2, it enters an operation accepting state and monitors the movement of the bather. As shown in FIG. Mode, and the operation mode is informed by lighting the display lamp or voice. In the state of the operation mode, when the hand is swung right and left as shown in FIG. Then, the temperature of the hot water in the bathtub 4 is slightly increased. Alternatively, in the operation mode, when the hand is shaken up and down as shown in FIG. 9, the shower hot water switch of the shower device 18 is turned on, the shower is discharged from the handheld shower 44, and the operation mode is released. Further, when the hand is shaken up and down again in the operation mode, the shower tap switch of the shower device 18 is turned off, and the shower stops.

As described above, the equipment in the bathroom can be operated by the operation of the bather. For example, when it is desired to raise the temperature of the hot water in the bathtub, the operation of pressing the button of the bathroom remote control 5 is not required, so that no labor is required, and The bathroom remote controller 5 can be easily operated even from a position away from the remote controller 5. In addition, remote control can be easily performed without the need for a wireless remote controller for remote control. In addition, when the shower is used, the shower can be operated without touching a switch of the shower device 18 or a handle for washing with water, so that the shower can be operated with the eyes closed, and it can be used very conveniently even when washing hair.

Further, since the operation of the bather is accepted after the user has moved to the operation mode by circular movement of the hand in advance, it is possible to mistake the normal bather's operation and discharge the shower, for example. In addition, the malfunction of the operation input device 16 can be prevented and safety can be improved. In the above description, only the circular motion, the vertical motion, and the horizontal motion of the hand are described. However, other motions (for example, drawing a triangle with a hand, drawing a figure 8, etc.) can also be used. It goes without saying that other operations can be performed by the user.

(Setting of Operation in Operation Input Device) The operation input section allows the user to select and set a recognizable operation pattern and operation. For example, when the setting button 38 of the bathroom remote controller 5 is operated, the display section 15 of the bathroom remote controller 5 changes to a setting screen as shown in FIG. When the display unit 15 changes to the setting screen,
Each switch of the input operation unit 14 is a switch for setting. Now, as shown in FIG. 10, the operation target is “operation mode”, “shower switch (on / off)”, “hot water supply temperature (rising / falling)” of a shower or hot water mixer tap, “temperature switch”, “bubble”. Assuming that there are five types of “bus”, the use / non-use of the operation by the operation input device 16 and the assignment of the operation pattern can be arbitrarily determined by the “add”, “change”, and “delete” edit buttons on the setting screen. it can.

(Learning Function) Even if the same operation is performed (for example, waving the hand up and down), there is a difference in the operation depending on the person. In some cases, the operation input unit 16 may not recognize the operation accurately. May occur. Therefore, a learning button is provided on the setting screen, and when the learning button is turned on by designating an operation and the operation is performed on the operation input unit, the operation input device learns the operation and stores it in the memory 24. . Therefore, it is possible to learn the difference in the motion of the bather and accurately recognize the motion.

(Second Embodiment) The operation input device 1
6 may be provided on the ceiling of the bathroom 2 as shown in FIG. When the operation input device 16 is provided on the ceiling of the bathroom 2, the distance between the imaging unit 21 and the bather is substantially constant, so that the recognition accuracy of the operation input device 16 is improved. When the operation input device 16 is installed on the ceiling in this way, the operation for the operation is also performed, for example, by circular motion of the hand in a horizontal plane,
It may be shaken back and forth or left and right.

Although not shown, the operation input switch 1
6 or the imaging unit 21 may be attached to a plurality of locations, for example, a wall surface and a ceiling of a bathroom. If provided at a plurality of places in this way, the movement of the bather can be recognized three-dimensionally, so that the number of recognizable movement patterns increases, and it is possible to perform more detailed operations.

(Others) As the imaging unit, a CCD having a small number of pixels may be used instead of the C-MOS array. In addition, high-definition CCD with more than several hundred thousand pixels, CM
Although a light receiving device such as an OS array may be used, the number of data increases at the time of image processing, and processing takes time. Therefore, it is preferable to use a sensor having a small number of pixels, such as the sensor described above. The number of pixels is about 100 to 4000 pixels (for example,
X 10 pixels to 64 x 64 pixels), and preferably about 1000 pixels.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a hot water supply system including a bathing monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a shower device installed in a bathroom.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a bathroom remote controller installed in the bathroom.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a bathroom remote controller.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a monitoring sensor.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a pixel core circuit forming one pixel of an image detection unit of the monitoring sensor.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an operation of a bather.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing another operation of the bather.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing another operation of the bather.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state where the display unit of the bathroom remote controller is on the setting screen of the operation input device.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a hot water supply system including a bathing monitoring device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Bathroom 5 Bathroom remote control 15 Display unit 16 Operation input device 17 Hot water mixer tap 18 Shower device 21 Imaging unit 22 Image processing unit 23 Operation pattern recognition processing unit 24 Memory

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Kenji Kawai 93 Edo-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe-shi, Hyogo Pref. ) Inventor Masahide Kadono 93rd Edocho, Chuo-ku, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture Inside Noritz Corporation (72) Inventor Katsuhiro Kusuda 93rd Edocho, Chuo-ku, Kobe City, Hyogo Noritsu Corporation

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An image capturing means for capturing an image of an operator, the operation of the operator is compared with a predetermined operation pattern, and when the operation of the operator matches any one of the operation patterns, An operation input device comprising: an operation pattern recognition unit that outputs an operation signal corresponding to the operation pattern. 2. The operation input device according to claim 1, wherein the operation input mode is set when the operator performs an operation in a predetermined pattern. 3. The operation input device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit and the operation pattern recognition unit are installed in a bathroom. 4. The operation input device according to claim 1, wherein the correspondence between the operation pattern and the operation signal can be set or changed. 5. The operation input device according to claim 1, wherein an operation pattern can be added, deleted, or changed. 6. The operation input device according to claim 1, further comprising a learning function for learning an operation of the operator. 7. The operation input device according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of said image pickup units.