INFORMATION TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, INFORMATION SENDING DEVICE, INFORMATION RECEIVING DEVICE, INFORMATION TRANSMISSION METHOD, INFORMATION SENDING METHOD, INFORMATION RECEIVING METHOD AND PROGRAM PRODUCT

• US 20120328302A1
• Filed: 06/20/2012
• Published: 12/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: IIZUKA, Nobuo, Kikuchi, Masaaki, Kaneko, Keiichi
• Granted Patent: US 8,886,054 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 398/130
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/11 Arrangements specific to free-space transmission, i.e. transmission through air or vacuum
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/1129 Arrangements for outdoor wireless networking of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/116 Visible light communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/516 Details of coding or modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/548 Phase or frequency modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/69 Electrical arrangements in the receiver

Abstract

An information transmission system is constituted by: an information sending device including a light emitting section that emits light in a plurality of colors, a modulating section that modulates information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color, and a light emission control section that controls the light emitting section to emit light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated by the modulating section; and a receiving device including a camera that captures an image having color, and a control and communication section that detects a temporal color change of the light emitting section emitting light by light emission control by the information transmitting device, from images consecutively captured by the camera, decodes the detected color change into information, and outputs the generated information to a display section.

Claims

1. An information transmission system comprising

an information sending device including a light emitting section which emits light in a plurality of colors, a modulating section which modulates information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color, and a light emission control section which controls the light emitting section to emit light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated by the modulating section;

and

an information receiving device including an imaging section which captures an image having color, a detecting section which detects a temporal color change of the light emitting section emitting light by light emission control by the light emission control section from images consecutively captured by the imaging section, a decoding section which decodes the color change detected by the detecting section into information, and an information output section which outputs the information generated by the decoding section.

2. The information transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the information receiving device further includes:

a converting section which converts color change of the images consecutively captured by the imaging section to information on color space including hue, saturation, and brightness as parameters; and

a generating section which generates an image expressed by the parameters of the information on color space generated by the converting section excluding hue from the images consecutively captured by the imaging section,

wherein the detecting section detects the temporal color change by identifying an image of the light emitting section whose light emission control has been performed by the light emission control section, based on the image generated by the generating section.

3. The information transmission system according to claim 2, wherein the decoding section decodes the color change into the information by judging the color change detected by the detecting section as change in hue parameter in the color space, and converting the change to corresponding signal sequence.

4. The information transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the information sending device and the information receiving device both include a table in which signals included in information to be transmitted and received are associated with information on color changes in a plurality of stages,

wherein the modulating section modulates the information to be transmitted into the signals composed of changes in color by referencing the table, and

wherein the decoding section decodes the color change detected by the detecting section into the information by referencing the table.

5. The information transmission system according to claim 4, wherein the table defines types of acceptable color changes based on a redundancy level.

6. The information transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the information receiving device further includes:

a shape evaluating section which evaluates a shape of a specific area in the images consecutively captured by the imaging section; and

a judging section which judges whether or not the specific area is a modulation area based on an evaluation result from the shape evaluating section,

wherein the detecting section detects the temporal color change in the specific area judged to be a modulation area by the judging section.

7. The information transmission system according to claim 1, wherein the information sending device includes a display device which displays a predetermined image by emitting light in a plurality of colors in pixel units.

8. The information transmission system according to claim 7, wherein the light emission control section controls light emission while changing color temporally using a pixel area of the display device as the light emitting section.

9. The information transmission system according to claim 8, wherein the pixel area of the display device whose light emission control has been performed by the light emission control section has a frame display area set around a periphery thereof which is used to differentiate from an image displayed outside of the pixel area.

10. An information sending device comprising:

an image display section which has a light emitting section which emits light in a plurality of colors in pixel units;

a modulating section which modulates information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color; and

a light emission control section which controls a pixel area of the image display section to emit light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated by the modulating section.

11. The image sending device according to claim 10, further comprising:

a table in which signals included in information to be transmitted are associated with information on color changes in a plurality of stages,

wherein the modulating section modulates the information to be transmitted into the signals composed of changes in color by referencing the table.

12. The information sending device according to claim 10, wherein the pixel area has a frame display area set around a periphery thereof which is used to differentiate from an image displayed outside of the pixel area.

13. An information receiving device comprising:

an imaging section which captures an image having color;

a detecting section which detects a pixel area whose color changes temporally from images consecutively captured by the imaging section;

a decoding section which decodes color change detected by the detecting section into information; and

an information output section which outputs the information generated by the decoding section.

14. The information receiving device according to claim 13, further comprising:

a converting section which converts color change of the images consecutively captured by the imaging section to information on color space including hue, saturation, and brightness as parameters; and

a generating section which generates an image expressed by the parameters of the information on color space generated by the converting section excluding hue from the images consecutively captured by the imaging section,

wherein the detecting section detects a temporal color change by identifying the pixel area whose color changes, based on the image generated by the generating section.

15. The information receiving device according to claim 14, wherein the decoding section decodes the color change into the information by judging the color change detected by the detecting section as change in hue parameter in the color space, and converting the change to corresponding signal sequence.

16. The information receiving device according to claim 13, further comprising:

a table in which signals included in information to be decoded are associated with information on color changes in a plurality of stages,

wherein the decoding section decodes the color change detected by the detecting section into the information by referencing the table.

17. The information receiving device according to claim 13, further comprising:

a shape evaluating section which evaluates a shape of a specific area in the images consecutively captured by the imaging section; and

a judging section which judges whether or not the specific area is a modulation area based on an evaluation result from the shape evaluating section,

wherein the detecting section detects the temporal color change in the specific area judged to be a modulation area by the judging section.

18. An information transmission method comprising:

a modulating step of modulating information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color;

a light emission control step of controlling a light emitting section which emits light in a plurality of colors so that the light emitting section emits light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated in the modulating step;

a detecting step of detecting a temporal color change of the light emitting section emitting light by light emission control in the light emission control step, from images consecutively captured by an imaging section which captures images having color;

a decoding step of decoding the color change detected in the detecting step into information; and

an information output step of outputting the information generated in the decoding step.

19. An information sending method comprising:

a modulating step of modulating information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color; and

a light emission control step of controlling a pixel area of an image display section having a light emitting section which emits light in a plurality of colors in pixel units, so as to emit light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated in the modulating step.

20. An information receiving method comprising:

a detecting step of detecting a pixel area whose color changes temporally from images consecutively captured by an imaging section which captures an image having color;

a decoding step of decoding color change detected in the detecting step into information; and

an information output step of outputting the information generated in the decoding step.

21. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a program that is executable by a computer controlling an image display device having a light emitting section which emits light in a plurality of colors in pixel units the program being executable by the computer to perform functions comprising:

modulation processing for modulating information to be transmitted into signals composed of changes in color; and

light emission control processing for controlling a pixel area of the image display device to emit light while changing color temporally based on the signals generated by the modulation processing.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a program that is executable by a computer having an imaging section which captures an image having color, the program being executable by the computer to perform functions comprising:

detection processing for detecting a pixel area whose color changes temporally from images consecutively captured by the imaging section;

decode processing for decoding color change detected by the detection processing into information; and

information output processing for outputting the information generated by the decode processing.