Information communication method

• US 10,368,006 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2019
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Oshima, Mitsuaki, Nakanishi, Koji, Aoyama, Hideki, Fuchigami, Ikuo, Shin, Hidehiko, Mukai, Tsutomu, Matsushita, Yosuke, Iida, Shigehiro, Yamada, Kazunori
• Primary Examiner(s): Dobson, Daniel G
• Application Number:
  US16/263,292
• Publication Number:
  US 20190166296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 180 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/116 Visible light communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/516 Details of coding or modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/73 by influencing the exposure time

Abstract

A method includes obtaining a destination of a user of a terminal device, and setting an exposure time of an image sensor included in the terminal device so that, in an image obtained by capturing a subject by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of a plurality of exposure lines appears according to a change in luminance of the subject. The method also includes obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the subject that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time, and obtaining identification information of the subject, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines. The method includes obtaining a position of the terminal device, and displaying an arrow that indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination on a map on the terminal device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

obtaining a destination of a user of a terminal device;

setting an exposure time of an image sensor included in the terminal device so that, in an image obtained by capturing a subject by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of a plurality of exposure lines included in the image sensor appears according to a change in luminance of the subject;

obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the subject that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time;

obtaining identification information of the subject, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines included in the obtained bright line image;

obtaining a position of the terminal device that is specified by the identification information; and

displaying an arrow, which indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination, on a map on a display of the terminal device.

2. The method according to claim 1,

wherein the destination of the user is obtained by an input of the user.

3. The method according to claim 1,

wherein the destination of the user is obtained from a non-transitory memory of the terminal device.

4. The method according to claim 3,

wherein ticket information is stored in the non-transitory memory, and

the destination is related to the ticket information.

5. The method according to claim 1,

wherein the arrow is displayed on a map that is stored in a non-transitory memory of the terminal device.

6. The method according to claim 1,

wherein an ID list is stored in a non-transitory memory of the terminal device,

each of plurality of IDs corresponds each of a plurality of positions of subjects,

a position of the subject is specified by searching the ID list,

the position of the subject corresponds to one of the plurality of subjects,

an ID of the one of the plurality of subjects corresponds to the identification information, and

the position of the terminal device is specified using the position of the subject.

7. The method according to claim 1,

wherein the obtaining of the position includes

sending the identification information to a server, and

receiving the position that is related to the identification information from the server.

8. A device, comprising:

a processor,

an image sensor having a plurality of exposure lines; and

a memory storing thereon a computer program, which when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform operations including

obtaining a destination of a user of a terminal device;

setting an exposure time of an image sensor so that, in an image obtained by capturing a subject by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of the plurality of exposure lines included in the image sensor appears according to a change in luminance of the subject;

obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the subject that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time;

obtaining identification information of the subject, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines included in the obtained bright line image;

obtaining a position of the terminal device that is specified by the identification information; and

displaying an arrow, which indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination, on a map on a display of the terminal device.

9. A non-transitory recording medium storing thereon a computer program, which when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform operations including:

obtaining a destination of a user of a terminal device;

setting an exposure time of an image sensor included in the terminal device so that, in an image obtained by capturing a subject by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of a plurality of exposure lines included in the image sensor appears according to a change in luminance of the subject;

obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the subject that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time;

obtaining identification information of the subject, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines included in the obtained bright line image;

obtaining a position of the terminal device that is specified by the identification information; and

displaying an arrow, which indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination, on a map on a display of the terminal device.

10. A method, comprising:

transmitting identification information from a subject to a terminal device by change in luminance of the subject;

setting an exposure time of an image sensor included in the terminal device so that, in an image obtained by capturing the subject by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of a plurality of exposure lines included in the image sensor appears according to a change in luminance of the subject;

obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the subject that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time;

obtaining the identification information of the subject, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines included in the obtained bright line image;

obtaining a position of the terminal device which is specified by the identification information; and

displaying an arrow, which indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination, on a map on a display of the terminal device.

11. A system, comprising:

a transmitter configured to transmit identification information to a terminal device by change in luminance of the transmitter, and

a terminal device, including

a processor,

an image sensor having a plurality of exposure lines; and

a memory storing thereon a computer program, which when executed by the processor, causes the processor to perform operations including

setting an exposure time of the image sensor so that, in an image obtained by capturing the transmitter by the image sensor, a bright line corresponding to each of the plurality of exposure lines included in the image sensor appears according to a change in luminance of the transmitter,

obtaining a bright line image including a plurality of bright lines, by capturing the transmitter that changes in luminance by the image sensor with the set exposure time;

obtaining the identification information of the transmitter, by demodulating data specified by a pattern of the plurality of bright lines included in the obtained bright line image;

obtaining a position of the terminal device that is specified by the identification information; and

displaying an arrow, which indicates a direction from the position of the terminal device toward the destination, on a map on a display of the terminal device.