Control system and method for fast voting process of electronic ballot box

Abstract

The present invention provides a control system and method for a fast voting process of an electronic ballot box, comprising: a control terminal, a multi-channel mechanism and a ballot box entrance control component; the multi-channel mechanism comprises a plurality of channels, each channel comprises a first port located at the upper side of the channel and a second port located at the lower side, each channel is provided with a first ballot detection sensor element communicating with the control terminal, and the second port of each channel is provided with an openable and closable channel door communicating with the control terminal; each channel can change position under the drive of a driving mechanism so that the first port of one channel is opposite to the ballot box entrance position to receive ballots each time, and each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the second port of one channel is opposite to the scanner position to transmit ballots to the scanner each time; the ballot box entrance control component comprises: a ballot box entrance control switch communicating with the control terminal respectively, a second ballot detection sensor element located at the ballot box entrance and an indicator light located at the ballot box entrance; the present invention improves the working efficiency of the ballot box.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of electronic ballot boxes, and in particular to a control system and method for a quick voting process of an electronic ballot box. Background Art

[0002] The statements in this section merely provide background art related to the present invention and do not necessarily constitute prior art.

[0003] The existing electronic ballot box voting method requires voters to align multiple ballots and then drop them into the ballot box from the ballot box entrance at one time. The ballots automatically slide into the scanner entrance along the slide, triggering the scanner to start the scanning process. At the same time, the microcontroller detects the scanner working instruction and immediately turns off the ballot box entrance switch (to prevent other ballots from being put in during the scanning process). At the same time, the green light at the ballot box entrance is controlled to turn off and the red light is controlled to turn on (the red light is on to remind the voter not to vote). The scanner scans the ballots one by one in turn. After the scanning is completed, the scanner idle instruction is transmitted to the microcontroller through the host computer. The microcontroller controls the green light at the ballot box entrance to turn on and the red light to turn off, opens the ballot box entrance switch, and waits for the next vote.

[0004] The inventors found that in the actual operation process, due to factors such as voters' nervousness, when multiple ballots are occasionally put into the ballot box, one ballot falls into the scanner entrance and triggers the scanner to work, while the voters do not let go of other ballots and put them into the ballot box. At this time, the microcontroller detects the scanner working instruction and immediately closes the ballot box entrance switch, jamming the ballot that has not fallen in, causing irreversible deformation of the paper, thereby causing the ballot to be invalidated due to paper deformation. Summary of the invention

[0005] In order to address the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention provides a control system and method for the quick voting process of an electronic ballot box, which can synchronize the voting action with the ballot scanning action during the ballot box voting process, thereby increasing the voting speed and preventing the falling ballots from affecting the operation of scanning the ballots, thereby avoiding the phenomenon of stuck ballots, greatly improving the working efficiency of the ballot box and improving the user experience.

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0007] A first aspect of the present invention provides a control system for the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box.

[0008] A control system for a fast voting process of an electronic ballot box, comprising: a control terminal, a multi-channel mechanism and a ballot box entrance control component;

[0009] A multi-channel mechanism, comprising a plurality of channels, each channel comprising a first port located at the upper side of the channel and a second port located at the lower side, each channel being provided with a first ballot detection sensor element communicating with a control terminal, and the second port of each channel being provided with an openable and closable channel door communicating with the control terminal;

[0010] Each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the first port of one channel is opposite to the ballot box entrance position to receive the ballot, and each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the second port of one channel is opposite to the scanner position to transmit the ballot to the scanner;

[0011] The ballot box entrance control component includes: a ballot box entrance control switch that communicates with the control terminal, a second ballot detection sensor element located at the ballot box entrance, and an indicator light located at the ballot box entrance.

[0012] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, it also includes a switch driving circuit that communicates with the control terminal, and the switch driving circuit is configured to open and close the ticket box entrance and the second port of the channel and exchange the positions of each channel according to the instructions of the control terminal.

[0013] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, it also includes a sensor detection circuit that communicates with the control terminal, and the sensor detection circuit includes a first ballot detection sensor element and a second ballot detection sensor element and their associated driving circuit.

[0014] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, the control terminal has a watchdog timer, a UART serial port and an IO port for real-time monitoring of the command status of the host computer and the position status of the ballot.

[0015] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, the multi-channel mechanism includes two channels, namely a first channel and a second channel.

[0016] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, the control terminal controls the opening and closing of the ballot box entrance based on the real-time position detection of the ballot to avoid ticket jams, and determines the status of the scanner based on the instructions of the host computer to prevent interference with ballot transmission and scanning.

[0017] As an optional implementation of the first aspect, it also includes a host computer that communicates with the control terminal, and the host computer communicates with the scanner.

[0018] A second aspect of the present invention provides a method for controlling the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box.

[0019] A method for controlling a fast voting process of an electronic ballot box, using the control system for the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box according to the first aspect of the present invention, when only a first channel and a second channel exist, comprises the following process:

[0020] Detect the host computer's instructions in real time, determine the current scanner status, and receive instructions to start or end counting;

[0021] When receiving the instruction to start counting votes, the ballot box entrance is opened, the first indicator light is turned on, the second port of each channel is closed, and the first port of the first channel is aligned with the ballot box entrance. When it is detected that a ballot falls into the first channel and there is no ballot at the ballot box entrance, the ballot box entrance is closed and the second indicator light is turned on;

[0022] The first channel and the second channel are swapped, the first indicator light is turned on, the ballot box entrance is opened, the first port of the second channel is waiting to receive the ballot, and at the same time, the second port of the first channel is opened, and after the ballot falls into the scanner, the second port of the first channel is closed;

[0023] Determine whether to end the counting of votes. If not, if it is detected that there are ballots in the second channel and there are no ballots at the ballot box entrance, first close the ballot box entrance, light up the second indicator light, swap the first channel and the second channel, light up the first indicator light, open the ballot box entrance, wait for the first channel to vote, and at the same time, open the second port of the second channel. After the ballot falls into the scanner, close the second port of the second channel.

[0024] Determine whether to end the vote counting. If not, if there are ballots in the first channel and no ballots at the ballot box entrance, close the ballot box entrance first, light up the second indicator light, swap the first channel and the second channel, and repeat the cycle until the vote counting is ended.

[0025] As an optional implementation method of the second aspect of the present invention, the moving position of the ballot is determined by the first ballot detection sensor element and the second ballot detection sensor element, the state of the scanner is determined by the instruction status word of the host computer, the switch is controlled to be opened and closed when the ballot is stationary, and the ballot is fed in for scanning when the scanner is idle.

[0026] As an optional implementation manner of the second aspect of the present invention, the first indicator light and the second indicator light are different colors of one indicator light; or, the first indicator light and the second indicator light are different indicator lights and have different colors.

[0027] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0028] 1. The use of dual channels and the detection of ballot position described in the present invention enable the ballot to enter the voting channel stably when it is put in, thus avoiding the problem of ballot being stuck when the door is closed.

[0029] 2. The dual channels of the present invention isolate the physical space for voting and scanning, so that the voting process and the scanning process do not interfere with each other, so that voters can put in their ballots with confidence without worrying about the problem of ticket jam caused by the speed of putting in the ballots, and do not need to wait for the scanner to finish working before voting, and can start voting with confidence and ease.

[0030] 3. The present invention improves the voting speed by exchanging voting channels, isolates the physical space of the voting process and the scanning process, prevents the ticket jamming caused by ballot collision, solves the problem of slow voting speed and ticket loss due to jamming, and improves users' trust in the product.

[0031] Advantages of additional aspects of the present invention will be given in part in the following description, and in part will become obvious from the following description, or will be learned through practice of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] The accompanying drawings in the specification, which constitute a part of the present invention, are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention. The exemplary embodiments of the present invention and their descriptions are used to explain the present invention and do not constitute improper limitations on the present invention.

[0033] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process provided in Example 1 of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 2 A flowchart of a method for controlling the quick voting process of an electronic ballot box provided in Embodiment 2 of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0036] It should be noted that the following detailed descriptions are exemplary and are intended to provide further explanation of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs.

[0037] It should be noted that the terms used herein are only for describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit exemplary embodiments according to the present invention. As used herein, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular form is also intended to include the plural form. In addition, it should be understood that when the terms "comprising" and / or "including" are used in this specification, it indicates the presence of features, steps, operations, devices, components and / or combinations thereof.

[0038] In the absence of conflict, the embodiments of the present invention and the features of the embodiments may be combined with each other.

[0039] Embodiment 1:

[0040] Embodiment 1 of the present invention provides a control system for a fast voting process of an electronic ballot box, including: a control terminal, a multi-channel mechanism, and a ballot box entrance control component;

[0041] In this embodiment, the control terminal uses a microcontroller, which is mounted on the control unit board. It serves as the control core of the electronic ballot box fast voting control system. The existing chip can be used to achieve the above functions, reducing the maintenance cost of the control system.

[0042] The multi-channel mechanism includes a plurality of channels (two channels are used as an example in this embodiment, and the channels can be exchanged. Optionally, a person skilled in the art can also select more channels, such as three, four or more channels). Each channel includes a first port located at the upper side of the channel and a second port located at the lower side. A first ballot detection sensor element communicating with a control terminal is provided in each channel, and a second port of each channel is provided with an openable and closable channel door communicating with the control terminal.

[0043] Each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the first port of one channel is opposite to the ballot box entrance position to receive the ballot, and each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the second port of one channel is opposite to the scanner position to transmit the ballot to the scanner;

[0044] The ballot box entrance control component includes: a ballot box entrance control switch that communicates with the control terminal, a second ballot detection sensor element located at the ballot box entrance, and an indicator light located at the ballot box entrance.

[0045] Quick voting process control (for channel A and channel B): The microcontroller located on the control unit board detects the instructions of the host computer in real time. Once the host computer's start counting instruction is detected, it controls the ballot box entrance control device and the dual-channel switching device. First, the ballot is put into channel A. After it stabilizes, the AB channels are exchanged, and channel B receives the ballot. The ballot in channel A falls into the scanner, and then channels AB are exchanged. Channel A receives the ballot, and the ballot in channel B falls into the scanner, and then channels AB are exchanged again. This cycle is repeated until the counting is completed, thereby realizing the control process of quick voting and counting.

[0046] If three channels ABC are included, the three channels can be cycled in sequence. For example, the AB channel can be exchanged first, then the BC channel, then the BC channel, and finally the AB channel. Technical personnel in this field can design an interaction strategy according to specific working conditions, which will not be repeated here.

[0047] In the specific implementation, the control unit board serves as the control core, and the microcontroller is connected to the sensor detection circuit. Through the first ballot detection sensor element and the second ballot detection sensor element, the status of the ballots at the ballot box entrance and in the A and B channels can be detected in real time. It can stably confirm whether the ballots have stably fallen into the A and B channels. The microcontroller is then connected to the switch drive circuit. By controlling the switches at the ballot box entrance and the bottom of the A and B channels, the ballots in the channels can be sent to the scanner for scanning and uploading to achieve rapid counting.

[0048] Optionally, the multi-channel mechanism in this embodiment realizes the synchronization of the voting process and the ballot scanning action, shortening the voting time. The microcontroller controls the ballot box entrance switch and the exit switch of the AB channel by detecting the position status of the ballot, so that the ballot can be put into one channel while the ballot in the other channel is sent to the scanner for scanning and uploading. This solves the problem of slow voting and brings great convenience to both service providers and customers.

[0049] like Figure 1 As shown, the dual-channel switching control system includes:

[0050] A microcontroller connected to a ballot box entrance control component, wherein the ballot box entrance control device can activate red and green indicator lights (including a first indicator light and a second indicator light, wherein the first indicator light and the second indicator light can be different colors of the same light, or different lights but different colors, green represents on, and red represents off), prompting permission / prohibition of ballots from being put into the ballot box, can detect whether there is a ballot put into the ballot box entrance, and can open / close the ballot box entrance;

[0051] A switch driving circuit is connected to the microcontroller and is used to control the exchange of AB channels, control the opening and closing of the lower port of the AB channel, and control the ticket box entrance switch;

[0052] The sensor detection circuit is connected to the microcontroller, and can detect whether there is a ballot in the ballot box entrance, whether there is a ballot completely in the channel, whether to drive the channel to switch, and whether the ballot in the channel can be sent to the scanner for scanning;

[0053] Among them, in this embodiment, the microcontroller has a watchdog timer, a UART serial port and an IO port, which are used to monitor the ballot position in real time, exchange channels A and B, control the ballot to fall into the scanner for scanning, detect the host computer instructions to determine the scanner status, so as to achieve stable and accurate exchange of channels A and B.

[0054] In a specific implementation, the switch driving circuit and the sensor detection circuit can be implemented by using existing circuits, such as: TTL level conversion circuit and multiplexer;

[0055] This embodiment uses dual channels to receive ballots, which greatly improves the speed of ballot insertion. In conjunction with the sensor detection circuit, it accurately confirms the position of the ballot and eliminates the phenomenon of ballots being stuck when the ballot box door is closed.

[0056] Embodiment 2:

[0057] Embodiment 2 of the present invention provides a method for controlling the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box, using the control system for the fast voting process of the electronic ballot box described in Embodiment 1, including the following process:

[0058] When the control unit board is powered on, the microcontroller detects the host computer's instructions in real time, determines the current scanner status, and whether the host computer requires the start or end of vote counting;

[0059] The microcontroller detects the command to start counting votes, turns on the ballot box entrance switch, lights up the green light at the ballot box entrance, closes the lower openings of A (i.e., the first channel) and B (i.e., the second channel), and aligns channel A with the lower entrance of the ballot box. After the microcontroller detects that the ballot falls into channel A, it detects that there is no ballot at the ballot box entrance, turns off the ballot box entrance switch first, and lights up the red light at the ballot box entrance.

[0060] Then exchange channels A and B, turn on the green light at the ballot box entrance, turn on the ballot box entrance switch, and wait for the ballot to be put into channel B; at the same time, turn on the lower switch of channel A, and after the ballot falls into the scanner, turn off the lower switch of channel A; determine whether to end the vote counting, if not, if there is a ballot in channel B, check if there is no ballot at the ballot box entrance, turn off the ballot box entrance switch first, and turn on the red light at the ballot box entrance;

[0061] Exchange channels A and B, turn on the green light at the ballot box entrance, open the ballot box entrance switch, and wait for channel A to vote; at the same time, open the lower switch of channel B, and close the lower switch of channel B after the ballot falls into the scanner;

[0062] Determine whether the counting is over. If not, if there are ballots in channel A, check if there are no ballots at the ballot box entrance. First, close the ballot box entrance switch and light up the red light at the ballot box entrance; swap channels AB, and repeat this cycle until the counting is over.

[0063] Optionally, in some implementations, the exchange control system can stably control the ballots to fall into the channel during the ballot insertion process, thus preventing the problem of ballots getting stuck when the ballot box entrance is closed; at the same time, the exchange control system can also stably drop the ballots into the scanner, thus preventing the problem of ballots getting stuck due to being hit by other ballots during scanning.

[0064] Optionally, in some implementations, when the exchange control system determines the position status of the ballot, it makes a judgment based on the detection results of the first ballot detection sensor element and the second ballot detection sensor element. For example, when determining whether a ballot has fallen into a channel, it first determines whether a ballot has fallen at the ballot box entrance, then determines whether there is a ballot in the channel, and then returns to determine whether there is no ballot at the ballot box entrance, and then closes the ballot box entrance switch. This greatly improves the stability of the exchange control system.

[0065] In this embodiment, the microcontroller can determine the position of the ballot and the status of the scanner in real time by detecting the instructions of the host computer and the status of the first ballot detection sensor element and the second ballot detection sensor element, and timely exchange channels to increase the voting speed, and timely send the ballot into the scanner to improve the working efficiency of the scanner, thereby improving the overall efficiency of the ballot counting work and bringing great convenience to customers.

[0066] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention may have various modifications and variations. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A control system for the rapid voting process of an electronic ballot box, It is characterized in that It includes: control terminal, multi-channel mechanism and ticket box entrance control component; A multi-channel mechanism, comprising a plurality of channels, each channel comprising a first port located at the upper side of the channel and a second port located at the lower side, each channel being provided with a first ballot detection sensor element communicating with a control terminal, and the second port of each channel being provided with an openable and closable channel door communicating with the control terminal; Each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the first port of one channel is opposite to the ballot box entrance position to receive the ballot, and each channel can change position under the drive of the driving mechanism so that the second port of one channel is opposite to the scanner position to transmit the ballot to the scanner; The ballot box entrance control assembly includes: a ballot box entrance control switch that communicates with the control terminal, a second ballot detection sensor element located at the ballot box entrance, and an indicator light located at the ballot box entrance; The control terminal performs opening and closing control of the ballot box entrance according to the real-time position detection of the ballot to avoid ticket jamming, and determines the status of the scanner according to the instruction of the host computer to avoid interference between ballot transmission and scanning.

2. The control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a switch driving circuit that communicates with the control terminal. The switch driving circuit is configured to open and close the ticket box entrance and the second port of the channel and exchange the positions of the channels according to the instructions of the control terminal.

3. The control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a sensor detection circuit that communicates with the control terminal, and the sensor detection circuit includes a first ballot detection sensor element and a second ballot detection sensor element and their associated drive circuits.

4. The control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The control terminal is equipped with a watchdog timer, a UART serial port and an IO port, which are used to monitor the command status of the host computer and the position status of the ballot in real time.

5. The control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The multi-channel mechanism comprises two channels, namely a first channel and a second channel.

6. The control system for the electronic ballot box quick voting process as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a host computer that communicates with the control terminal, and the host computer communicates with the scanner.

7. A method for controlling the rapid voting process of an electronic ballot box, using the control system for the rapid voting process of an electronic ballot box as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: When only the first channel and the second channel exist, the following process is included: Detect the host computer's instructions in real time, determine the current scanner status, and receive instructions to start or end counting; When receiving the instruction to start counting votes, the ballot box entrance is opened, the first indicator light is turned on, the second port of each channel is closed, and the first port of the first channel is aligned with the ballot box entrance. When it is detected that a ballot falls into the first channel and there is no ballot at the ballot box entrance, the ballot box entrance is closed and the second indicator light is turned on; The first channel and the second channel are swapped, the first indicator light is turned on, the ballot box entrance is opened, the first port of the second channel is waiting to receive the ballot, and at the same time, the second port of the first channel is opened, and after the ballot falls into the scanner, the second port of the first channel is closed; Determine whether to end the counting of votes. If not, if it is detected that there are ballots in the second channel and there are no ballots at the ballot box entrance, first close the ballot box entrance, light up the second indicator light, swap the first channel and the second channel, light up the first indicator light, open the ballot box entrance, wait for the first channel to vote, and at the same time, open the second port of the second channel. After the ballot falls into the scanner, close the second port of the second channel. Determine whether to end the vote counting. If not, if there are ballots in the first channel and no ballots at the ballot box entrance, close the ballot box entrance first, light up the second indicator light, swap the first channel and the second channel, and repeat the cycle until the vote counting is ended.

8. The method for controlling the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: The moving position of the ballot is determined by the first ballot detection sensor element and the second ballot detection sensor element, the state of the scanner is determined by the instructions of the host computer, the switch is turned on and off when the ballot is stationary, and the ballot is fed in for scanning when the scanner is idle.

9. The method for controlling the fast voting process of an electronic ballot box as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: The first indicator light and the second indicator light are different colors of one indicator light; or, the first indicator light and the second indicator light are different indicator lights and have different colors.

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