WO2017013955A1

WO2017013955A1 - Optical touch panel and vending machine

Info

Publication number: WO2017013955A1
Application number: PCT/JP2016/066802
Authority: WO
Inventors: 中村　誠; 前川　智律; 裕樹我妻
Original assignee: 富士電機株式会社
Priority date: 2015-07-17
Filing date: 2016-06-06
Publication date: 2017-01-26

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an optical touch panel which, if saturation or reduction in the amount of reflection occurs in detection images, can prevent the deterioration of accuracy of touch detection based on detection images by automatically adjusting to obtain detection images that have a suitable amount of reflection, or by automatically adjusting optical axis misalignment of the optical system that captures detection images; a further purpose of the present invention is to provide a vending machine. To this end, this optical touch panel is provided, for example, with: retroreflective plates 22a, 22b, 22c; an upper left detection unit 23a and an upper right detection unit 23b; a lower left detection unit 23c; a lower right detection unit 23d; an operation determination unit 1; and an exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3 which, if a point with a saturated amount of reflection is detected on the optical axis line of detection images continuously over a set period of time, shortens the exposure time of the detection unit which receives the reflected light, and which, if a point with a reflection amount less than or equal to a threshold value is detected on the aforementioned optical axis line continuously over a prescribed period of time, extends the exposure time of the detection unit which receives the reflected light.

Description

Optical touch panel and vending machine

The present invention automatically adjusts to a detected image having an appropriate amount of reflection when the amount of reflection is saturated or reduced on the detected image, or automatically adjusts the optical axis shift of the optical system that captures the detected image to detect the detected image. The present invention relates to an optical touch panel and a vending machine that can prevent deterioration in touch detection accuracy based on an image.

In recent vending machines, a product sample is displayed as an image using a display incorporated in the front door, and a product is selected using a touch panel or the like (see Patent Document 1). By using this display and touch panel, the vending machine can be expanded.

On the other hand, Patent Document 2 describes a capacitance method, an optical method, and an ultrasonic method as an example of a touch panel. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-228561 describes a technique for detecting the position of an indicator that is in contact with or close to the detection surface using a detection reference that is preset for each predetermined position in the detection surface.

Patent Document 4 relates to position detection by the light blocking method, and describes that an optical sensor that projects and receives light is arranged on one side of the detection region and a thin light retroreflective frame is provided on the other side. ing. And in patent document 4, in order to reduce the influence of ambient light, the light source is blinked and the difference of the signal at the time of lighting and light extinction is taken.

In Patent Document 5, in order to obtain the position coordinates of an indicator that emits radiated light directly or indirectly on a coordinate plane, detection that receives the radiated light and converts it into an electrical signal is arranged around the coordinate plane. Means, optical means for limiting the field of view of the detection means to a predetermined height or less from the coordinate plane and making the range of radiated light receivable parallel to the coordinate plane, and surrounding the periphery of the coordinate plane And a shielding means such as a shielding frame for removing unnecessary light other than radiated light from the visual field.

JP-A-11-232537 JP 2009-289084 A JP 2014-52696 A JP 2004-54065 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-3170

In the optical touch panel, a retroreflective plate is arranged inside the rectangular frame, and infrared rays are irradiated to the upper left corner and upper right corner of the frame from the lower right side and the lower left side, respectively, from the retroreflective plate. In some cases, an upper left detection unit and an upper right detection unit for detecting the return light are provided. The optical touch panel detects the touch of an operating body such as a human finger based on the shadow position of the return light from the retroreflective plate detected by the upper left detection unit and the upper right detection unit.

Here, when the brightness of the optical touch panel changes, or when the reflectance of the retroreflector changes due to contamination of the optical system or deterioration over time, the amount of reflection on the detected image is saturated, or detection processing is performed. However, the accuracy of touch detection based on the detected image is deteriorated.

Also, in the optical touch panel, the optical axis of the optical system that acquires the detection image may be shifted due to vibration, distortion of the housing, or the like. When the optical axis is shifted, the touch detection accuracy based on the detected image is deteriorated.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and automatically adjusts a detection image having an appropriate reflection amount or captures a detection image when saturation or reduction of the reflection amount occurs on the detection image. It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical touch panel and a vending machine that can automatically adjust the optical axis shift of the system and prevent deterioration of touch detection accuracy based on a detected image.

In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, an optical touch panel according to the present invention includes a retroreflective plate provided inside a rectangular frame, irradiates infrared rays to the retroreflective plate, and A plurality of detection units that generate a detection image between the retroreflecting plate based on the reflected light of the light and a touch position based on the optical axis lines on the plurality of detection images generated by the plurality of detection units. When the detection of the operation determination unit to detect and the point where the reflection amount is saturated on the optical axis line continues for a certain time, the exposure time of the detection unit receiving the reflected light is shortened, and the reflection amount on the optical axis line And an exposure time automatic adjustment unit that extends the exposure time of the detection unit that receives the reflected light when detection of a point at which the threshold value is equal to or less than the threshold value continues for a certain period of time.

The optical touch panel according to the present invention includes a maintenance guidance processing unit that detects the lowest point of the reflection amount on the optical axis line and guides maintenance according to the value of the lowest point in the above invention. It is characterized by that.

In the optical touch panel according to the present invention, in the above invention, the maintenance guidance processing unit is configured to provide a second predetermined value in which the lowest point value is less than a first predetermined value and smaller than the first predetermined value. When the value is equal to or greater than the value, guidance for cleaning and parts replacement is performed. When the value of the lowest point is less than a threshold value, foreign object detection guidance is performed.

The vending machine according to the present invention is characterized in that the optical touch panel according to the present invention is provided on the outer door of the vending machine.

The optical touch panel according to the present invention includes a retroreflective plate provided inside a rectangular frame, and irradiates the retroreflective plate with infrared rays, and the retroreflective plate based on reflected light from the retroreflective plate. A plurality of detection units that generate a detection image between, an operation determination unit that detects a touch position based on the optical axis lines on the plurality of detection images generated by the plurality of detection units, and the optical axis line And an optical axis automatic adjustment unit that automatically adjusts the optical axis line that maximizes the sum of the reflection amounts on the detected image.

According to the present invention, the exposure time automatic adjustment unit reduces the exposure time of the detection unit that receives the reflected light when the detection of the point where the reflection amount is saturated on the optical axis line continues for a certain time, and the optical axis When detection of a point where the amount of reflection is below the threshold on the line continues for a certain period of time, the exposure time of the detector that receives the reflected light is extended, so it automatically adjusts to a detected image with the appropriate amount of reflection. can do.

In addition, according to the present invention, the optical axis automatic adjustment unit automatically adjusts the optical axis line to the optical axis line that maximizes the sum of the reflection amounts on the detected image. The optical axis shift of the optical system can be automatically adjusted.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of an optical touch panel according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the retroreflective plate. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an image detected by the upper left detection unit. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a detection process when the reflection amount of the retroreflective plate provided on the lower frame is lowered. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating detection processing when the retroreflective plate provided on the lower frame is normal. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the detected image and the optical axis line. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an exposure time automatic adjustment processing procedure by the exposure time automatic adjustment processing unit. FIG. 8 is an explanatory view for explaining the exposure time automatic adjustment processing. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a maintenance guidance processing procedure by the maintenance guidance processing unit. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the maintenance guidance process. FIG. 11 is a front view showing the appearance of a vending machine to which the optical touch panel according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention is applied. FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing an internal configuration of the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the front surface of the outer door when the front surface of the display panel, the front surface of the dummy product display unit, and the front surface of the flat product display unit are used as detection areas of the touch detection unit. FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of the optical touch panel according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a detected image and an optical axis line. FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating an optical axis automatic adjustment processing procedure by the optical axis automatic adjustment processing unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
[Configuration of optical touch panel]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of an optical touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the touch detection unit 20 is provided on the surface of the display panel 10 having a display area corresponding to the detection area E.

The touch detection unit 20 has a rectangular detection area E in a rectangular frame 21. The touch detection unit 20 includes

retroreflective plates

22a, 22b, and 22c that generate reflected light on the axis of the input light on the inner side surface of the left frame, the inner side surface of the lower frame, and the inner side surface of the right frame. The touch detection unit 20 includes an upper left detection unit 23a, an upper right detection unit 23b, a lower left detection unit 23c, and a lower right detection unit 23d at the upper left corner, the upper right corner, the lower left corner, and the lower right corner of the frame 21, respectively. Note that the lower left detection unit 23c and the lower right detection unit 23d are disposed at a distance d from the lower frame. This distance d is, for example, a value corresponding to the thickness of dust, snow, etc. deposited on the retroreflective plate 22b.

The upper left detection part 23a irradiates infrared rays toward the

retroreflective plates

22b and 22c, and receives the reflected light from the

retroreflective plates

22b and 22c. The upper right detection unit 23b irradiates infrared rays toward the

retroreflective plates

22a and 22b, and receives reflected light from the

retroreflective plates

22a and 22b. The lower left detection part 23c irradiates infrared rays toward the retroreflective plate 22c, and receives reflected light from the retroreflective plate 22c. The lower right detector 23d irradiates infrared rays toward the retroreflective plate 22a and receives reflected light from the retroreflective plate 22a. In addition, the infrared irradiation part of the upper left detection part 23a, the upper right detection part 23b, the lower left detection part 23c, and the lower right detection part 23d is implement | achieved by infrared LED, for example. Moreover, the infrared detection part of the upper left detection part 23a, the upper right detection part 23b, the lower left detection part 23c, and the lower right detection part 23d is implement | achieved by the infrared image sensor, for example. That is, the upper left detection unit 23a, the upper right detection unit 23b, the lower left detection unit 23c, and the lower right detection unit 23d are infrared light receiving and emitting devices.

The

retroreflective plates

22a, 22b, and 22c are striped tapes that reflect infrared incident light as reflected light in the same direction as the incident light, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the

specific retroreflecting plates

22 a, 22 b, and 22 c have a large number of fine glass beads 15 that are glass spheres scattered on the surface, and a reflective film 16 is formed on the lower surface of the glass beads 15. is doing. The

retroreflecting plates

22a, 22b, and 22c can also be realized by a corner cube prism group in which a plurality of corner cube prisms are closely arranged in a plane. In this planar arrangement, it is preferable that the triangular entrance / exit surfaces of each corner cube prism are arranged densely. The corner cube prism is a triangular pyramid prism composed of three 90 degree right angles, and the reflected light always has a function of returning to the direction of the incident optical axis.

The controller C is connected to the upper left detection unit 23a, the upper right detection unit 23b, the lower left detection unit 23c, the lower right detection unit 23d, and the display panel 10 and to an external device (not shown). The controller C includes an operation determination unit 1, a display control unit 2, an exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3, and a maintenance guidance processing unit 4. The operation determination unit 1 determines whether or not the operation object has been touched based on the detection image of the operation object by the touch detection unit 20. Note that the operation determination unit 1 specifies the coordinate position on the detection area E where the operation tool is touched. The display control unit 2 performs display processing on the display panel 10 according to the touch position of the operating body determined by the operation determination unit 1.

The automatic exposure time adjustment unit 3 shortens the exposure time of the detection unit that receives the reflected light when the detection of the point where the reflection amount is saturated on the optical axis line for determination processing in the detection image continues for a certain period of time. When the detection of the point where the reflection amount is below the threshold on the optical axis line continues for a certain time, the exposure time of the detection unit that receives the reflected light is extended. Here, the exposure time may be adjusted by adjusting the light emission time on the light emitting side or the shutter time on the light receiving side. The maintenance guidance processing unit 4 detects the lowest point of the reflection amount on the optical axis line, and performs maintenance guidance according to the value of the lowest point.

[Detection operation by touch detector]
First, the upper left detection unit 23a and the upper right detection unit 23b can detect the entire surface of the detection region E, respectively. Further, the lower left detection unit 23c can detect a region on the right side of the detection region E with respect to the diagonal line with the upper right detection unit 23b. Moreover, the lower right detection part 23d can detect the area | region of the left side rather than the diagonal with respect to the upper left detection part 23a among the detection areas E. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, when an operation tool touches a position P on the right side of the detection region E, the upper left detection unit 23 a can obtain the detection image illustrated in FIG. 3. In this detected image, there is a shadow P1 in which infrared rays do not return due to the presence of the operating tool. Similarly, the upper right detection unit 23b can obtain a detection image in which the shadow P2 exists. Moreover, the lower left detection part 23c can obtain the detection image in which the shadow P3 exists. Note that the lower right detection unit 23d cannot obtain a shadowed detection image because the position P is outside the detection region. The operation determination unit 1 specifies the position P in the detection region E based on the three detection images having shadows P1, P2, and P3. The specification of the position P can be performed by triangulation such as a forward intersection method using two or more detection images having shadows.

[Detection operation when the reflection amount of the retroreflector 22b is reduced]
By the way, as shown in FIG. 4, since the detection area E is a layered space with an open front surface, dust, snow, and the like are likely to accumulate on the retroreflective plate 22b. For this reason, if dust, snow, or the like accumulates on the retroreflective plate 22b, the amount of reflected light from the retroreflective plate 22b is reduced, so that it is difficult to determine the shadow in the detected image, and the detection accuracy decreases. . That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the detection area of the upper left detection unit 23a is only the detection area Ea corresponding to the retroreflective plate 22c. Similarly, the detection area of the upper right detection unit 23b is only the detection area Eb corresponding to the retroreflective plate 22a. Therefore, in the conventional optical touch panel having only the two detection units of the upper left detection unit 23a and the upper right detection unit 23b, when the reflection amount of the retroreflective plate 22b is reduced, the detection regions are the detection regions Ea and Eb. Only the detection area Eab, which is an overlapping area, was provided.

In this Embodiment 1, the lower left detection part 23c and the lower right detection part 23d which do not use the retroreflection board 22b are provided. As a result, as shown on the upper right side of FIG. 4, detection areas Ec and Ed that are vertically symmetrical with respect to the detection areas Ea and Eb by the two detection units of the upper left detection unit 23a and the upper right detection unit 23b are formed. As a result, as shown in the lower part of FIG. 4, even when the retroreflective plate 22b cannot be used, the four detections of the upper left detection unit 23a, the upper right detection unit 23b, the lower left detection unit 23c, and the lower right detection unit 23d. Two detection images can be obtained for the entire surface of the detection region E by the unit, and the touch position can be detected with high accuracy for the entire surface of the detection region E. Specifically, as shown in the lower part of FIG. 4, the upper area obtained by dividing the detection area E by a diagonal line overlaps the detection areas Ea and Eb, and the left area overlaps the detection areas Eb and Ed. The detection areas Ea and Ec overlap in the area, and the detection areas Ec and Ed overlap in the lower area.

[Detection operation when the reflection amount of the retroreflector 22b is normal]
When the retroreflective plate 22b is normally reflected, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper area E1 obtained by dividing the detection area E by a diagonal line overlaps the detection areas Ea and Eb, and the left area E2 is the detection area. Three regions Ea, Eb, Ed overlap, right region E3 overlaps three detection regions Ea, Eb, Ec, and lower region E4 includes four detection regions Ea, Eb, Ec, Ed. Two areas overlap.

In this case, in an area where three or more detection areas are overlapped, two detection areas to be preferentially used in the touch position specifying process are set in advance. Then, another detection area is used as an auxiliary to the touch position specifying process. For example, two detection areas in each area shown in the lower part of FIG. 4 are set as priority detection areas. For example, in FIG. 5, in the left region E2, the detection regions Eb, Ed are set as the priority detection regions for the touch position specifying process among the detection regions Ea, Eb, Ed, and the detection region Ea is touched. It is set as an auxiliary detection area for position identification processing. When the auxiliary detection area is used, it is possible to specify a touch position with high accuracy. On the other hand, when performing quick touch position specification, a priority detection area may be used.

In the above-described embodiment, the retroreflecting plate 22b is provided inside the lower frame. However, at least the

retroreflecting plates

22a and 22c are provided, and the four upper left detection units 23a, the upper right detection unit 23b, and the lower left detection are provided. The part 23c and the lower right detection part 23d may be provided at the four corners of the frame 21, respectively. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, two or more detection images are detected on the entire detection region E by two detection units of the upper left detection unit 23a, the upper right detection unit 23b, the lower left detection unit 23c, and the lower right detection unit 23d. And the touch position of the operating tool can be detected.

In the above-described embodiment, one detection region E is provided. However, a plurality of detection regions E may be formed by using the touch detection unit 20 as a multi-stage configuration.

[Automatic exposure time adjustment]
As shown in the upper part of FIG. 6, for example, the detection image I0 acquired by the upper left detection unit 23a is a belt-like image, and the optical axis line A0 is set at a portion where the reflection amount at the central portion in the width direction is high. Then, touch position detection processing is performed based on the amount of reflection on the optical axis line A0. However, when the external brightness changes, the amount of reflection is saturated, and when the reflectivity of the

retroreflective plates

22b and 22c decreases due to dirt or aging of the optical system, the amount of reflection becomes extremely small. In either case, the detection accuracy of touch position detection deteriorates. In addition, as in the detection image I1, there is a case where the distribution of the reflection amount is changed by an inclination or the like.

Therefore, the exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3 automatically adjusts the amount of reflection on the optical axis line A0. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an exposure time automatic adjustment processing procedure by the exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3. As shown in FIG. 7, first, the automatic exposure time adjustment unit 3 determines whether there is a point on the optical axis line A0 where the amount of reflection continues for a certain period of time and is saturated (maximum value Rmax) or below a threshold value Rth. (Step S101).

If there is a point where the reflection amount is saturated for a certain period of time (step S101, saturation), the exposure time is shortened (step S102), and this process is terminated. If there is a point where the reflection amount continues below the threshold value for a certain time (step S101, below the threshold value), the exposure time is extended (step S103), and this process is terminated. If the reflection amount continues for a certain time and there is no saturation and no point below the threshold (No in step S101), the process is terminated as it is. Note that the above-described processing is repeatedly performed every predetermined time.

That is, as shown in FIG. 8A, when there is a saturated point on the optical axis line A0, the exposure time is shortened to reduce the reflection amount of the optical axis line A0 as a whole. As shown in FIG. 8B, the entire optical axis line A0 is adjusted so as to exist between the maximum value Rmax and the threshold value Rth of the reflection amount. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8C, when there is a point below the threshold Rth on the optical axis line A0, the exposure time is extended to increase the reflection amount of the optical axis line A0 as a whole. As shown in (b), adjustment is made so that the entire optical axis line A0 exists between the maximum value Rmax of the reflection amount and the threshold value Rth. Since this exposure time automatic adjustment process is repeatedly performed, it is preferable to perform adjustment to increase or decrease the exposure time stepwise.

[Maintenance guidance processing]
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a maintenance guidance processing procedure performed by the maintenance guidance processing unit 4. As shown in FIG. 9, the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 first performs an exposure time automatic process by the exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3 (step S201). Thereafter, the lowest point of the reflection amount on the optical axis line A0 is detected (step S202). Thereafter, the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 determines whether or not the lowest point reflection amount is less than the first predetermined value R1 (step S203). If the lowest point reflection amount is less than the first predetermined value R1 (step S203, Yes), it is further determined whether or not the lowest point reflection amount is greater than or equal to the second predetermined value R2 (step S204).

If the lowest point reflection amount is equal to or greater than the second predetermined value R2 (Yes in step S204), cleaning / part replacement guidance is provided (step S205), and the process ends. On the other hand, if the lowest point reflection amount is not equal to or greater than the second predetermined value R2 (No in step S204), it is further determined whether or not the lowest point reflection amount is equal to or greater than the threshold value Rth (step S206).

If the reflection amount at the lowest point is equal to or greater than the threshold value Rth (step S206, Yes), the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 provides guidance for function deterioration (step S207), and ends this processing. On the other hand, when the reflection amount at the lowest point is not equal to or greater than the threshold value Rth (No at Step S206), the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 performs foreign object detection guidance (Step S208), and ends this process. Note that the processing described above is repeated.

That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 has a minimum value of the reflection amount that is not less than the first predetermined value R1 and not less than the second predetermined value R2 that is smaller than the first predetermined value R1. If this is the case, guidance for cleaning and parts replacement will be provided. In addition, the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 provides guidance for function deterioration when the value of the lowest point of the reflection amount is less than the second predetermined value R2 and greater than or equal to the threshold value Rth, which is a value smaller than the second predetermined value R2. . Furthermore, the maintenance guidance processing unit 4 performs foreign object detection guidance when the value of the lowest point of the reflection amount is less than the threshold value Rth.

[Application to vending machines]
Next, a case where the above-described optical touch panel is applied to a vending machine will be described. Here, a vending machine that sells products such as canned beverages, bottled beverages, and plastic bottled beverages will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a cup that dispenses beverages into a cup The present invention can also be applied to a beverage vending machine and a vending machine selling goods.

FIG. 11 is a front view showing an appearance of a vending machine to which the above-described optical touch panel is applied. FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing an internal configuration of the vending machine shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the vending machine shown in FIG.

The vending machine 100 is a vending machine that sells products such as canned beverages, bottled beverages, and plastic bottled beverages, and has a main body cabinet 101 as shown in FIG. The main body cabinet 101 is formed in a box shape having an open front by appropriately combining a plurality of steel plates, and the front opening of the main body cabinet 101 is closed by an openable / closable outer door 102.

The interior of the main body cabinet 101 is defined by a machine room 103 and a product storage room 104. The product storage chamber 104 is further partitioned into three

product storages

104a, 104b, and 104c by a heat insulating partition plate. Of these three

commodity storages

104a, 104b, and 104c, the left-hand side product storage (hereinafter referred to as “left storage”) 104a and the central product storage (hereinafter referred to as “center storage”) 104b are: Switching between cold and hot is possible. And when the goods storage 104a (104b) is set to cooling, the inside of the goods storage 104a (104b) is cooled, and the goods stored in the goods storage 104a (104b) are cooled. On the other hand, when the product storage case 104a (104b) is set to warm, the inside of the product storage case 104a (104b) is heated, and the product stored in the product storage case 104a (104b) is heated. Further, the right product storage (hereinafter referred to as “right storage”) 104c facing the front is a cooling-only storage, which cools the inside of the product storage 104c and cools the products stored in the product storage 104c.

The product storage rack 105 is mounted on each of the

product storage boxes

104a, 104b, and 104c. In the vending machine 100, two rows of product storage racks 105 are mounted in the width direction of the left store 104a and the right store 104c, and one row of product storage racks 105 are mounted in the width direction of the center store 104b. The merchandise storage rack 105 is provided with five passages (hereinafter referred to as “rack” for convenience) in the depth direction of the

merchandise storage boxes

104a, 104b, and 104c. It is possible.

As shown in FIG. 11, a main door lock 121 is provided in the middle of the front right side of the outer door 102, and is locked in a state where the outer door 102 is closed. In addition, a display operation unit 120 (see FIG. 11) is provided in the upper front portion of the outer door 102. The display operation unit 120 is a combination of the large display panel 10 and the touch detection unit 20, and displays a sales display screen. On the sales display screen, products that can be sold are displayed, and the products are determined by at least the detection of the operation tool described above.

Further, a coin insertion slot 123, a bill insertion slot 124, a return lever 125, and an electronic money reader / writer 126 are provided in the middle of the outer door 102 below the display operation unit 120.

The coin insertion slot 123 is an opening for receiving coins, and the coins inserted from the coin insertion slot 123 are accommodated in a coin mechanism (coin processing device) 131 (see FIG. 12) mounted inside the outer door 102. Is done. The coin mechanism 131 arranges the number of inserted various coins and transmits the coins to a main controller 140 (see FIG. 13), which will be described later, while paying out various coins according to a command from the main controller 140. The coin mechanism 131 mounted on the vending machine 100 has a self-monitoring function for monitoring its own state, and a cassette tube (not shown) containing coins is used to collect the coins stored therein. When the user removes or operates an inventory switch (not shown), the coin mechanism 131 transmits a message to that effect to the main controller 140 (to be described later).

The banknote insertion slot 124 is an opening for receiving banknotes, and the banknotes inserted from the banknote insertion slot 124 are accommodated in a bill validator (banknote processing device) 132 (see FIG. 12) mounted inside the outer door 102. Is done. The bill validator 132 organizes the number of inserted bills and transmits it to the main controller 140 (see FIG. 13), while paying out bills according to a command from the main controller 140. The bill validator 132 mounted on the vending machine 100 has a self-monitoring function for monitoring its own state, and a stacker (not shown) containing banknotes is collected in order to collect banknotes stored therein. When the opening operation is performed, the bill validator 132 transmits a message to that effect to the main controller 140 (to be described later).

The return lever 125 is for instructing to interrupt the transaction. When the return lever 125 is operated, the transaction is interrupted, and change or the like is discharged to the return port 127. The electronic money reader / writer 126 identifies the card and performs settlement with the electronic money charged in the card.

In addition, an outlet 128 is provided at a position below the outer door 102. The take-out port 128 is an opening for taking out the product carried out from the product storage rack 105.

In addition, a remote controller 133 is disposed inside the outer door 102. The remote controller 133 is for performing various setting operations and various sales data confirmation operations, and includes a monitor (liquid crystal character display) on which various setting data and confirmation data are displayed in addition to operation keys and a cooling / warming switch. . The setting data set and input from the remote controller 133 is transmitted to the main controller 140, and the confirmation data transmitted from the main controller 140 is received. Further, the vending machine 100 is provided with an operation key (replenishment operation key) that is operated when a product is replenished (loading), and when the operation key is operated, the remote controller 133 indicates that (input of a product replenishment operation). Is transmitted to the main controller 140 described later.

Further, a door switch 134 is provided inside the outer door 102. The door switch 134 is for detecting the open / closed state of the outer door 102 and is turned on when the outer door 102 is opened, and turned off when the outer door 102 is closed.

As shown in FIG. 13, the above-described coin mechanism 131, bill validator 132, and electronic money reader / writer 126 are connected to a main controller (main control unit) 140 via a line 141, and a display operation unit 120 (display panel). 10 and the touch detection unit 20) and the remote controller 133 are connected to the main controller 140 via a line 142. A main body control unit 144 is connected to the main controller 140 via a line 143.

In addition to the door switch 134 described above, a cooling / heating device 145 and a carry-out device 146 are connected to the main body control unit 144, and the cooling / heating device 145 and the carry-out device 146 are controlled in accordance with instructions from the main controller 140.

The cooling / heating device 145 is for managing the above-described

commodity storages

104a, 104b, 104c in a set state, and cools the inside of the cooling-set commodity storages, while heating the product storages. Warm the inside.

The carry-out device 146 is for managing bend solenoids and sold-out switches provided for each rack. The carry-out device 146 carries out products from the rack according to a carry-out command transmitted from the main controller 140 to the main body control unit 144, while When all the stored products are carried out, a sold-out signal is output to the main body control unit 144.

As shown in FIG. 13, the main controller 140 includes a control unit 150, an operation determination unit 1, a display control unit 2, an exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3, and a maintenance guidance processing unit 4.

The control unit 150 centrally manages the electronic money reader / writer 126, the coin mechanism 131, the bill validator 132, the display operation unit 120 (the display panel 10 and the touch detection unit 20), the remote controller 133, the main body control unit 144, and the like. Control is performed based on various setting data stored in the storage unit.

When the operation determination unit 1 determines that the determination operation for the product or the like has been performed by the touch operation of the operation tool based on the detection result of the touch detection unit 20, the main controller 140 determines that the electronic money reader / writer 126, the coin A money process is performed based on information of the mechanism 131 and the bill validator 132, and a product carry-out process corresponding to the determined position is performed via the main body control unit 144.

[Detection area of touch detection unit in vending machine]
In the vending machine 100 shown in FIG. 11, the detection area of the touch detection unit 20 covers only the large display panel 10 such as a liquid crystal panel. However, as shown in FIG. The unit 20 includes, in addition to the display panel 10, the front surface of the dummy product display unit 110 that displays a dummy that is a three-dimensional product and the front surface of the flat product display unit 111 on which the product is drawn in a planar manner in the detection region. You may do it. The detection area of the touch detection unit 20 may be a combination of one or more of the front surface of the display panel 10, the front surface of the dummy product display unit 110, and the front surface of the flat product display unit 111. When the front surface of the dummy product display unit 110 and the front surface of the flat product display unit 111 are set as detection areas, a product purchase guidance display may be displayed on the display panel 10 or voice guidance may be performed.

Unlike the conventional resistive film type or capacitive type touch panel, the touch detection unit 20 does not require a touch sensor or a protective film to be attached to the surface of the display panel 10, so various display units (display panel 10, dummy An arbitrary area in front of the product display unit 110 and the flat product display unit 111) can be easily set as a detection region.

(Embodiment 2)
In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 15, an automatic optical axis adjustment unit 33 is provided in place of the exposure time automatic adjustment unit 3 and the maintenance guide processing unit 4 shown in the first embodiment. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

The optical axis automatic adjustment unit 33 automatically adjusts the current optical axis line on the detection image to an optical axis line that maximizes the sum of the reflection amounts on the detection image.

[Optical axis automatic adjustment processing]
As shown in the upper part of FIG. 16, for example, the detection image I0 acquired by the upper left detection unit 23a is a belt-like image, and the optical axis line A0 is set at a portion where the reflection amount at the central portion in the width direction is high. Then, touch position detection processing is performed based on the amount of reflection on the optical axis line A0. However, if the optical axis shift of the optical system occurs due to vibration or distortion of the housing, the detection image I1 shown in the lower part of FIG. 16 is obtained. A portion where the amount of reflection is reduced occurs above, and the detection accuracy of touch position detection deteriorates.

Therefore, the optical axis automatic adjustment unit 33 adjusts the optical axis line A0 to the optimum optical axis line A1. FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an optical axis automatic adjustment processing procedure by the optical axis automatic adjustment unit 33. As shown in FIG. 17, first, the optical axis automatic adjustment unit 33 determines whether it is the optical axis automatic adjustment time (step S301). The optical axis automatic adjustment time is every predetermined time or maintenance. When it is the optical axis automatic adjustment time (step S301, Yes), the optical axis automatic adjustment unit 33 sets the optical axis line that maximizes the sum of the reflection amounts on the detected image as the current optical axis line (step S302). ), This process is terminated.

In the application of the second embodiment to the vending machine, an automatic optical axis adjustment unit 33 is provided instead of the automatic exposure time adjustment unit 3 and the maintenance guide processing unit 4 shown in FIG.

Further, the exposure time automatic adjustment process and the maintenance guide process or the optical axis automatic adjustment process described above are not limited to the case where four detection units are provided at the four corners of the frame 21, but also when only two detection units are provided. Can be applied.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Operation determination part 2 Display control part 3 Exposure time automatic adjustment part 4 Maintenance guidance process part 10 Display panel 15 Glass bead 16 Reflective film 20 Touch detection part 21

Frame

22a, 22b, 22c Retroreflective board 23a Upper left detection part 23b Upper right detection part 23c Lower left detection unit 23d Lower right detection unit 33 Optical axis automatic adjustment unit 100 Vending machine 101 Main body cabinet 102 Outer door 103 Machine room 104 Product storage room 105 Product storage rack 110 Dummy product display unit 111 Flat product display unit 120 Display operation unit 121 Main Door Lock 123 Coin Insertion Port 124 Bill Insertion Port 125 Return Lever 126 Electronic Money Reader / Writer 127 Return Port 128 Outlet 131 Coin Mechanism 132 Bill Validator 133 Remote Control 134 Door Switch 1 0 main controller 141-143 line 144 main control unit 145 cold 146 unloading device 150 controller d distance E detection region P position P1, P2, P3 shadow R1 first predetermined value R2 second predetermined value Rth threshold

Claims

A retroreflector provided inside the rectangular frame;
A plurality of detection units that irradiate the retroreflective plate with infrared rays and generate a detection image between the retroreflective plate based on reflected light from the retroreflective plate;
An operation determination unit that detects a touch position based on optical axis lines on a plurality of detection images generated by the plurality of detection units;
When detection of the point where the reflection amount is saturated on the optical axis line continues for a certain period of time, the exposure time of the detection unit that receives the reflected light is shortened, and the reflection amount on the optical axis line is less than a threshold value. When detection continues for a certain period of time, an exposure time automatic adjustment unit that extends the exposure time of the detection unit that receives reflected light; and
An optical touch panel characterized by comprising:
The optical touch panel according to claim 1, further comprising a maintenance guidance processing unit that detects a lowest point of the reflection amount on the optical axis line and guides maintenance according to a value of the lowest point.
The maintenance guidance processing unit guides cleaning and parts replacement when the value of the lowest point is less than a first predetermined value and greater than or equal to a second predetermined value that is smaller than the first predetermined value. If the lowest score value is less than the second predetermined value and greater than or equal to the threshold value, which is smaller than the second predetermined value, the function deterioration guidance is provided. If the lowest score value is less than the threshold value, foreign object detection is performed. The optical touch panel according to claim 2, wherein guidance is provided.
A vending machine comprising the optical touch panel according to any one of claims 1 to 3 provided on an outer door of the vending machine.
A retroreflector provided inside the rectangular frame;
A plurality of detection units that irradiate the retroreflective plate with infrared rays and generate a detection image between the retroreflective plate based on reflected light from the retroreflective plate;
An operation determination unit that detects a touch position based on optical axis lines on a plurality of detection images generated by the plurality of detection units;
An optical axis automatic adjustment unit that automatically adjusts the optical axis line to an optical axis line that maximizes the sum of reflection amounts on the detected image;
An optical touch panel characterized by comprising:
A vending machine comprising the optical touch panel according to claim 5 provided on an outer door of the vending machine.