ELECTRIC FAN CAPABLE OF CONTROLLING ROTATION RANGE AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME

• US 20190025779A1
• Filed: 07/18/2018
• Published: 01/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Myung Eun Song
• Original Assignee: Myung Eun Song
• Inventors: SONG, Myung Eun
• Granted Patent: US 10,641,517 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00814 Control systems or circuits characterised by their output, for controlling particular components of the heating, cooling or ventilating installation
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 25/06 the pump being electrically driven F04D25/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 25/105 by changing rotor axis direction, e.g. oscillating fans interconnecting rotary motion and oscillating motion F16H
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 27/004 by varying driving speed
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 1/0007 Indoor units, e.g. fan coil units self-contained units F24F1/02
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/56 Remote control
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/77 by controlling the speed of ventilators
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/79 for controlling the direction of the supplied air
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/12 Position of occupants
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/14 Activity of occupants
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/50 Depth or shape recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/70 Determining position or orientation of objects or cameras camera calibration G06T7/80
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/107 Static hand or arm
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/165 using facial parts and geometric relationships
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/28 Recognition of hand or arm movements, e.g. recognition of deaf sign language static hand signs G06V40/113
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 30/70 Efficient control or regulation technologies, e.g. for control of refrigerant flow, motor or heating

Abstract

An electric fan capable of controlling a rotation range and a method of controlling the same are provided. The electric fan includes a head unit including a fan or a heater; a photographing unit configured to capture an image; an image analysis unit configured to recognize at least one service target through detection of a face region from the image; and a movement control unit configured to control a movement of the head unit in a range including the at least one service target.

Claims

1. An electric fan comprising:

a head unit comprising a fan or a heater;

a photographing unit configured to capture an image;

an image analysis unit configured to recognize at least one service target through detection of a face region from the image; and

a movement control unit configured to control a movement of the head unit in a range comprising the at least one service target.

2. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the image analysis unit is configured to estimate a distance between the electric fan and a person based on at least one interval between feature points of eyes, a nose, a mouth, or ears in the face region of the image or a size of the face region, and identify the face region that the estimated distance is within a predetermined distance as the at least one service target.

3. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the image analysis unit is configured to extract and store a certain region below the face region from the image as an auxiliary image, and recognize the at least one service target based on the auxiliary image.

4. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the movement control unit comprises:

a path setting unit configured to set a movement path passing through the at least one service target;

a first control unit configured to control the head unit to move left and right using a first motor according to the movement path; and

a second control unit configured to control the head unit to move up and down using a second motor according to the movement path.

5. The electric fan of claim 4, wherein the path setting unit is configured to set the movement path to include a first service target in a first path in a first rotation direction and include a second service target in a second path in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction when an angle between the first service target and the second service target is less than a predetermined angle and height difference between the first service target and the second service target is longer than a predetermined distance.

6. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to determine angles between the at least one service target and control a movement of the head unit within a range in which a sum of the angles between the at least one service target is minimum.

7. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to determine angles between the at least one service target and control the head unit to rotate 360 degrees when a value at which a sum of the angles between the at least one service target is minimum is equal to or greater than a predetermined angle.

8. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to control a moving speed of the head unit differently in a certain angle range and a remaining angle range with respect to a position of the at least one service target.

9. The electric fan of claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to control a rotation speed of the electric fan differently within a certain angle range around a position of each service target and a remaining angle range.

10. The electric fan of claim 1, further comprising:

a motion recognition unit configured to recognize an instruction based on a direction of a face appearing in the face region and a position of a hand.

11. A method of controlling an electric fan, the method comprising:

capturing an image around a head unit comprising a fan or a heater;

recognizing at least one service target through detection of a face region from the image; and

controlling a movement of the head unit in a range comprising the at least one service target.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the recognizing comprises identifying the face region that a distance between the electric fan and a person estimated based on at least one interval between feature points of eyes, a nose, a mouth, or ears in the face region of the image or a size of the face region is within a predetermined distance as the at least one service target.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the recognizing comprises extracting and storing a certain region below the face region from the image as an auxiliary image and identifying the at least one service target based on the auxiliary image.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the controlling comprises setting the movement path to include a first service target in a first path in a first rotation direction and include a second service target in a second path in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction when an angle between the first service target and the second service target is less than a predetermined angle and height difference between the first service target and the second service target is longer than a predetermined distance and controlling the head unit to move up and down and left and right according to the movement path.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the controlling comprises controlling a rotation speed of the electric fan differently in a certain angle range around a position of each service target and a remaining angle range.