Information processing apparatus and storage medium

• US 9,799,232 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2014
• Issued: 10/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sako, Yoichiro, Takehara, Mitsuru, Hanaya, Hiroyuki, Onuma, Tomoya, Koga, Yuki, Hayashi, Kazunori, Kamada, Yasunori, Kon, Takayasu, Asada, Kohei, Tange, Akira, Nakamura, Takatoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Yao, Sam
• Assistant Examiner(s): Carlos, Alvin
• Application Number:
  US14/225,530
• Publication Number:
  US 20140315161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,308 Days
• Field of Search: 434127
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/0092 Nutrition

Abstract

There is provided an information processing apparatus including a determination unit configured to determine whether a user is consuming food and drink or whether food and drink is present in a periphery of the user, and a control unit configured to carry out control to output a control signal to an adding unit that adds a lighting effect to one of the food and drink present in a real space and picked-up images of the food and drink in accordance with a determination result of the determination unit.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a determination unit configured to determine whether a user is consuming food and drink or whether food and drink is present in a periphery of the user; and

a control unit configured to carry out control to output a control signal to an adding unit that adds a lighting effect to one of the food and drink present in a real space and picked-up images of the food and drink in accordance with a determination result of the determination unit,

wherein the control unit carries out the control to output the control signal to the adding unit to selectively add either a first lighting effect for increasing a visual appeal of the food and drink and which is generated by a first light source type or a second lighting effect for decreasing the visual appeal of the food and drink and which is generated by a second light source type different than the first light source type, the selection being made between the first lighting effect and the second lighting effect in accordance with the determination result, and

wherein the determination unit, the control unit, and the adding unit are each implemented via at least one processor.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the determination unit is configured to further individually identify types of the food and drink, and

the control unit is configured to output a control signal for adding a lighting effect in accordance with the individually identified types of the food and drink to the adding unit.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the determination unit is configured to further identify a type of each ingredient included in the food and drink, and

the control unit is configured to output a control signal for adding a lighting effect to each identified ingredient in the food and drink in accordance with the type.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein the control unit is configured to output, to the adding unit, a control signal for adding a lighting effect to each ingredient included in the food and drink by image signal processing on picked-up images of the food and drink.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the determination unit is configured to determine whether the user is consuming food and drink or whether food and drink is present in the periphery of the user based on picked-up images produced by image pickup of the periphery of the user.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the adding unit is a lighting unit that lights the food and drink present in the real space.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the adding unit is a projecting unit that adds a lighting effect by projecting onto the food and drink present in the real space.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the adding unit is an image signal processing unit that adds a lighting effect by carrying out image processing on picked-up images of the food and drink.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit is operable when it has been determined that the user is consuming food and drink or it has been determined that food and drink is present in the periphery of the user, to output a control signal for adding a specified lighting effect to one of the food and drink present in the real space and picked-up images of the food and drink to the adding unit.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit is configured to generate the control signal in accordance with a specified mode which has been set out of a plurality of modes.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the plurality of modes are modes for achieving specified objectives.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein the specified mode is set in accordance with a health state or medical information of the user.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12,

wherein the specified mode is set in accordance with a real-time health state based on a detection result of a biological sensor attached to the user.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control signal is a control signal for adding a lighting effect that causes changes to shadows or colors of the food and drink.

15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit is configured to output, to the adding unit, a control signal indicating addition, to one of the food and drink present in the real space and picked-up images of the food and drink, of an image for positively or negatively presenting a state of food and drink using projection or image processing.

16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit is configured to output, to the adding unit, a control signal for adding a lighting effect to a dish containing the food and drink and is present in a real space or a periphery of the dish or to picked-up images of a dish containing the food and drink or a periphery of the dish.

18. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit carries out the control to output the control signal to the adding unit to add the first lighting effect, when operation is in a first mode for appetite stimulation, and

wherein the control unit carries out the control to output the control signal to the adding unit to add the second lighting effect, when operation is in a second mode for appetite suppression.

19. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the first light source type is an incandescent lighting source, and the second light source type is a fluorescent lighting source.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, which when executed by a computer causes the computer to execute a method, the method comprising:

determining whether a user is consuming food and drink or whether food and drink is present in a periphery of the user; and

controlling, in accordance with a result of the determination, a lighting effect to be selectively added to one of the food and drink present in a real space and picked-up images of the food and drink,

wherein either a first lighting effect for increasing a visual appeal of the food and drink and which is generated by a first light source type or a second lighting effect for decreasing the visual appeal of the food and drink and which is generated by a second light source type different than the first light source type is controlled to be added, in accordance with the result of the determination.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 17,

wherein the first lighting effect is added when operation is in a first mode for appetite stimulation, and

wherein the second lighting effect is added when operation is in a second mode for appetite suppression.