Intercom system, control method of intercom system, and program

Abstract

To provide an intercom system capable of performing call notifications properly for persons and a pet depending on the situation of the pet in the home when a call is made using an intercom device.SOLUTION: The intercom system for notifying everyone in the home of visitors in response to a call operation on an intercom handset 6 installed at the entrance of a house, includes: a device information acquisition unit that acquires device information from a device 4 in the house; a domestic animal detection unit that detects whether or not there are pets in the house based on the device information; and a call control unit that controls a call sound emitted by the intercom master unit 5 installed in the house to notify visitors based on the presence / absence of domestic animals detected.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an intercom system, and a control method and program for an intercom system. [Background technology]

[0002] There is provided a method for an intercom device that acquires information such as the current time and the surrounding environment, and automatically adjusts the volume of the ringtone of the intercom device depending on the situation.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an intercom device that allows two parties to talk to each other by calling the master unit from the entrance slave unit and ringing the master unit from a loudspeaker, and that when the master unit calls from the entrance slave unit, the master unit detects the presence or absence of people around the master unit with a human body sensor and the level of ambient noise around the master unit with a noise level detection circuit, and adjusts the ring volume from the loudspeaker by controlling the electronic volume. This adjusts the ring volume to an appropriate level, so that residents are not surprised by the sudden ringing or have difficulty hearing the ringing sound due to surrounding noise. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2002-261945 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, although the optimal ring volume for the resident is taken into consideration, other circumstances, such as the impact of the ring tone on the neighborhood, are not taken into consideration. Many residents keep pets, and there may be pet animals in the house other than the resident. Here, if the intercom device rings when there is a pet animal, such as a dog, in the house, the dog may bark in response to the ringing of the intercom device. The dog's barking causes noise in the neighborhood, causing a problem of nuisance to the neighborhood. Thus, in a house with pet animals, it is necessary for the intercom device to set not only a ring tone that is appropriate for people, but also a ring tone that takes into consideration the reaction of the pet animal.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide an appropriate call notification for people and kept animals in the home, depending on the status of the kept animals, when a call operation is performed using an intercom device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, the intercom system disclosed herein is an intercom system that notifies inside the home of a visitor in response to a call operation of an intercom handset installed at the entrance of the home, and includes an equipment information acquisition unit that acquires equipment information from equipment in the home, a pet detection unit that detects the presence or absence of pets in the home based on the equipment information, and a call control unit that controls the call sound emitted by the intercom parent unit installed in the home to notify of a visitor based on the detected presence or absence of pets. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present disclosure, when a call operation is performed using an intercom device, information from equipment installed in the home is obtained to determine the situation within the home, and appropriate call notifications can be made to people and pets depending on the status of the pets within the home. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of an intercom system according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of an intercom master unit according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an intercom master unit according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] A sequence diagram executed by the intercom system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] Functional block diagram of a device control device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 1 is a flowchart showing a ringtone control process of a device control device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing thermal image sensor information acquired by a device information acquisition unit of a device control device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure; [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram of another example executed by the intercom system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] 11 is a flowchart showing another example of the ringtone control process of the device control device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram of another example executed by the intercom system according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] 11 is a flowchart showing another example of the ringtone control process of the device control device according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] A sequence diagram executed by the intercom system according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] Functional block diagram of a device control device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 14] 11 is a flowchart showing a ringtone control process of a device control device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing thermal image sensor information acquired by a device information acquisition unit of a device control device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing thermal image sensor information acquired by a device information acquisition unit of a device control device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 17] A sequence diagram executed by an intercom system according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 18] Functional block diagram of a device control device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 19] 11 is a flowchart showing a ringtone control process of a device control device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 20] 11 is a flowchart showing a notification process of a device control device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 21] A sequence diagram executed by an intercom system according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 22] Functional block diagram of a device control device according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 23] 11 is a flowchart showing a ringtone control process of a device control device according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 24] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a data table of alarm patterns according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 25] 13 is a flowchart showing another example of the ring tone control process of the device control device according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 26] A sequence diagram executed by an intercom system according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 27] Functional block diagram of a device control device according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 28] 11 is a flowchart showing a ringtone control process of a device control device according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an intercom system, a control method for an intercom system, and a program according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used to denote the same or corresponding parts.

[0011] (Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an intercom system according to the first embodiment. This intercom system is a system that is mainly applied to collective housing such as condominiums and apartments. The intercom system 1 is a linking system between an intercom device 2 and devices installed in a residence H, and includes a device control device 3, a device 4, and the intercom device 2. The intercom device 2 includes an intercom master unit 5 and an intercom slave unit 6. The device 4 and the intercom device 2 are installed in the residence H. The device 4 and the intercom device 2 are connected to the device control device 3 via a network 7.

[0012] The device control device 3 detects the presence or absence of pet animals in the house H based on information acquired from the device 4 in the house H, and transmits a control signal to the intercom master unit 5 according to the detection result.

[0013] The device 4 is, for example, an air conditioner, an induction cooking heater, an EcoCute (registered trademark), a refrigerator, a light, an indoor camera, a smart watch or smartphone owned by a resident, a pet wearable device worn by a pet animal, etc. When the device 4 receives a request from the device control device 3, the device 4 transmits device information such as an operation history of the device 4, an operation history, information detected by a sensor, image information captured by a camera mounted on the device 4, thermal image information captured by a thermal image sensor, wireless connection information of the device 4, etc. to the device control device 3.

[0014] Intercom handset 6 is installed at the entrance of house H or the like, and when a visitor to house H presses a call button on intercom handset 6, intercom handset 6 notifies intercom master unit 5 of the visit.

[0015] The intercom master unit 5 is installed in the residence H, receives a visitor notification from the intercom handset 6, talks to the visitor via the intercom handset 6, and changes the call volume based on a control signal transmitted from the equipment control device 3. In FIG. 1, the residence H is a detached house, and the intercom system 1 in which the intercom handset 6 is installed at the entrance of the residence H is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this. The intercom handset 6 may be installed at the common entrance of an apartment building, and a visit to the target residence may be notified by a call operation to the intercom master unit 5 installed in each of the residences that are dwelling units constituting the apartment building.

[0016] 2 shows a functional configuration of the intercom master unit 5. The intercom master unit 5 includes an intercom communication unit 11, an intercom control unit 12, a display unit 13, an operation unit 14, a sound collection unit 15, a sound generation unit 16, and a network communication unit 17.

[0017] The intercom communication unit 11 communicates with the intercom slave 6, and acquires images captured by a camera provided in the intercom slave 6 and audio collected by a microphone provided in the intercom slave 6 in response to a request from the intercom control unit 12. The intercom control unit 12 also acquires operation information operated by an operation unit 14 such as a button or a touch panel provided in the intercom master 5, and instructs the display unit 13 to display based on the acquired operation information. The display unit 13 is a display such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) panel or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) panel, and displays the images acquired from the intercom slave 6 through the intercom communication unit 11 based on an instruction from the intercom control unit 12. The sound collection unit 15 is a microphone that collects sounds generated within the house H, such as the cries of pet animals, and also collects audio to be used to speak to visitors through a speaker provided in the intercom slave 6. The ringing unit 16 is a speaker that generates a ringing sound to notify the presence of a visitor in the room based on the operation of a call button provided on the intercom handset 6, and plays back the voice of the visitor through a microphone provided on the intercom handset 6. The intercom control unit 12 also transmits to the intercom handset 6 a voice signal of the resident speaking, collected from the microphone of the intercom master 5, based on the operation information, and receives the voice signal of the visitor transmitted from the intercom handset 6. The network communication unit 17 is connected to the device control device 3 via the network 7. The device control device 3 transmits volume control information to the intercom master 5. The volume control information is received through the network communication unit 17 via the network 7 and transmitted to the ringing unit 16. The ringing unit 16 changes the volume and type of the ringing sound based on the volume control information from the device control device 3.

[0018] 3 shows the hardware configuration of the intercom master unit 5. The intercom master unit 5 includes a processor 21, a memory 22, a network interface 23, a microphone 24, a speaker 25, a display 26, and a bus 27 that interconnects these elements. The memory 22 stores a control program and data for data processing executed by the processor 21. The processor 21 reads the control program and data from the memory 22 and processes the data according to the control program. The network interface 23 is an interface required for network communication. The microphone 24 collects sounds within the residence H and functions as the sound collection unit 15. The speaker 25 generates a ring tone and the voice of a visitor from the intercom slave unit 6 and functions as the ringing unit 16. The display 26 is an LCD panel, an organic EL panel, or the like, and functions as the display unit 13.

[0019] In the first embodiment, sensor information is acquired from device 4 installed in house H to detect the presence of a pet in house H, and the ring volume of intercom master unit 5 is controlled based on the detected information on the presence of the pet. Since the ring tone of intercom master unit 5 is controlled according to the status of the pet, it is possible to prevent the pet from barking in response to the ring tone of intercom master unit 5.

[0020] FIG. 4 shows a sequence diagram in which the intercom system 1 executes the above process. The sequence diagram shows the intercom slave 6, the intercom master 5, the device control device 3, and the device 4 that constitute the intercom system 1. The device control device 3 transmits an acquisition request to the device 4 installed in the house H at regular time intervals to acquire device information such as a camera image and a thermal image acquired from the device 4 (step S101). When the device 4 receives the acquisition request from the device control device 3, it acquires the information of the device 4 (step S102). The device 4 transmits the acquired device information to the device control device 3 as a response to the acquisition request (step S103). The device control device 3 detects whether or not a pet animal is present in the house H based on the device information acquired from the device 4 (step S104). After the detection process of the pet animal, the device control device 3 transmits a volume control signal for controlling the volume of the ringtone of the intercom master 5 to the intercom master 5 based on the detection result of the pet animal (step S105). The intercom master unit 5 sets the volume of the ring tone based on the volume control signal from the device control device 3, and causes the speaker to ring at the set volume (step S106).

[0021] 5 is a functional block diagram of the device control device 3 that executes the above sequence processing. The device control device 3 includes a device information acquisition unit 31, a pet animal detection unit 32, a volume control information generation unit 33, and a communication unit .

[0022] The device information acquisition unit 31 communicates with the devices 4 installed in the house H and acquires the device information. Here, the device information refers to information acquired from cameras, sensors, wireless devices, etc. mounted on the devices 4, such as image information from a camera, thermal image information from an infrared sensor, and wireless connection information with devices in the house. For example, an air conditioner installed in the house H is equipped with an infrared sensor and captures the temperature distribution in the house H. The device information acquisition unit 31 acquires thermal image information from the infrared sensor equipped in the air conditioner.

[0023] The pet detection unit 32 determines the presence or absence of a pet based on camera images acquired from the device 4, or determines the presence or absence of a pet based on the temperature and shape of the thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4, or determines the presence or absence of a pet based on connection information between a wireless device installed in a wearable device attached to the pet, such as a smart collar, and a router device in the home.

[0024] The volume control information generating unit 33 generates a control signal to be communicated to the intercom master unit 5 according to the determination result of the pet animal detection unit 32. For example, when a pet animal is present in the house H, a control signal with a lower volume is generated so that the pet animal does not bark in response to the ringing of the intercom master unit 5, and conversely, when no pet animal is present in the house H, a control signal with the normal volume is generated. The volume control information generating unit 33 corresponds to the call control unit in this disclosure.

[0025] The communication unit 34 communicates with the device 4 to request acquisition of device information, acquires the device information, and communicates with the intercom master unit 5 to transmit the signal generated by the volume control information generation unit 33.

[0026] Next, the call tone control process of the device control device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 6. In the call tone control process of the device control device 3, first, the device control device 3 acquires device information from the device 4 in the house H (step S201). The device information here refers to information acquired from a camera or sensor mounted on the device 4, a wearable device attached to a pet, etc., such as a camera image, thermal image sensor information, wireless connection information, etc. When the device information is acquired in step S201, the device control device 3 detects a pet animal (step S202). The detection of the pet animal is performed based on the device information acquired from the device 4. For example, the pet animal is detected from the temperature and shape based on the thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4.

[0027] FIG. 7 is an example of thermal image sensor information acquired by the device information acquisition unit of the device control device 3. The thermal image sensor detects a temperature range of, for example, 20°C to 40°C, and the higher the color density, the higher the temperature. Here, it is shown that a dog is present as an example of a pet animal. The black part indicates that a temperature of about 38°C, which is close to the dog's normal body temperature, has been detected, and it is determined that a dog is present based on this temperature and the shape of the temperature distribution. Note that the detection of the pet animal may also be performed by, for example, performing image analysis of a camera image acquired from the device 4, or from connection information between a wireless device mounted on a wearable device attached to the pet animal, such as a smart collar, and a router device in the home.

[0028] When a pet animal is detected, the presence or absence of the pet animal is determined (step S203). If a pet animal is detected as a result of the determination (step S203: Yes), it is determined that a pet animal is present (step S204), and a volume control signal is generated to change the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a volume that does not cause the pet animal to bark in response. If a pet animal is not detected as a result of the determination (step S203: No), it is determined that a pet animal is absent (step S205), and a volume control signal is generated to change the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a normal volume. The device control device 3 transmits the generated volume control signal to the intercom master unit (step S206). The intercom master unit 5 receives the volume control signal from the device control device 3 and changes the ring tone to a volume that does not cause the pet animal to bark, or leaves it at the normal volume without changing it. In this way, the ring tone of the intercom master unit is controlled according to the status of the pet animal, so that the pet animal can be prevented from barking in response to the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5. This ringtone control process is performed at regular intervals, and the device 4 transmits its operation history, operation history, information detected by the sensor, image information from the mounted camera, and information detected by the thermal image taken by the thermal image sensor to the device control device 3 at regular intervals. Therefore, the presence or absence of pets is constantly determined, and the ringtone of the intercom master unit is set according to the latest status of the pets. Therefore, when a visitor arrives and presses the call button, the processing time from operating the call button on the intercom slave unit 6 to ringing the intercom master unit 5 is short.

[0029] The above-mentioned ringtone control process is executed by acquiring device information from the device 4 at regular time intervals. However, as another example, the ringtone control process may be executed by the device 4 transmitting the device information to the device control device 3 at the timing of a change in the device information, for example, when an operation is performed on the device 4 or a change is made in the thermal image, regardless of the period. Fig. 8 shows a sequence executed by the intercom system 1 to acquire device information and perform ringtone control when there is a change in the device information.

[0030] When a change occurs due to information detected by a sensor, image information from a mounted camera, information detected by a thermal image captured by a thermal image sensor, or the like, the device 4 acquires device information (step S301). For example, when a thermal image sensor detects a thermal image, the device 4 acquires the thermal image sensor information. The device 4 transmits the acquired device information to the device control device 3 (step S302). The device control device 3 detects whether or not a pet animal is present in the house H based on the device information acquired from the device 4 (step S303). After the pet animal detection process, the device control device 3 transmits a volume control signal to the intercom master unit 5 to control the volume of the ringtone of the intercom master unit 5 based on the result of the detection of the pet animal (step S304). The intercom master unit 5 sets the volume of the ringtone based on the volume control signal from the device control device 3, and causes the speaker to ring at the set volume (step S305).

[0031] Next, the ringtone control process of the device control device 3 in the above example will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 9. When the device 4 detects a change in device information, for example, when a thermal image sensor that has not detected a thermal image detects a thermal image, the device 4 transmits thermal image sensor information to the device control device 3. The device control device 3 receives device information from the device 4, for example, thermal image sensor information from the thermal image sensor, and determines whether the device information has been acquired (step S401). When the device control device 3 has acquired device information from the device 4 (step S401: Yes), the device control device 3 detects a pet animal based on the acquired device information (step S402). When the device control device 3 has not acquired device information from the device 4 (step S401: No), the device control device 3 returns to step S401 and repeats the process of step S401 until the device information is acquired. The detection of a pet animal is, for example, based on the thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4 and detects the pet animal from its temperature and shape. When the pet animal is detected, the presence or absence of the pet animal is determined (step S403). If the result of the determination is that a pet animal is detected (step S403: Yes), it is determined that a pet animal is present (step S404), and a volume control signal is generated to change the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a volume that does not cause the pet animal to bark in response. On the other hand, if the result of the determination is that a pet animal is not detected (step S403: No), it is determined that a pet animal is absent (step S405), and a volume control signal is generated to change the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a normal volume. The device control device 3 transmits the generated volume control signal to the intercom master unit (step S406). With the above configuration, the number of communications between the device control device 3 and the device 4 can be reduced depending on the operating status of the device 4 in the house H.

[0032] As another example of the ring tone control process, an example will be described below in which the ring tone control process is executed by acquiring device information from the device 4 when a visitor arrives. As for the other example of the ring tone control process, a sequence executed by the intercom system 1 is shown in FIG.

[0033] In FIG. 10, a visitor presses a call button on the intercom slave 6 installed at the entrance of the house H. When the call button is pressed to make a call (step S501), the intercom slave 6 transmits a visit notification to the intercom master 5 (step S502). When the intercom master 5 receives the visit notification from the intercom slave 6, it displays an image of the visitor taken by the camera installed in the intercom slave 6 on the screen of the display unit 13 of the intercom master 5 (step S503) and transmits the visit notification to the device control device 3 (step S504). When the device control device 3 receives a control request for the ring volume from the intercom master 5, it transmits an acquisition request to the device 4 installed in the house H to acquire device information such as a camera image and a thermal image acquired from the device 4 (step S505). When the device 4 receives the acquisition request from the device control device 3, it acquires the information of the device 4 (step S506). The device 4 transmits the acquired device information to the device control device 3 as a response to the acquisition request (step S507). The device control device 3 detects whether or not a pet animal is present in the house H based on the device information acquired from the device 4 (step S508). After the pet animal detection process, the device control device 3 transmits a volume control signal to the intercom master unit 5 to control the volume of the ringtone of the intercom master unit 5 based on the result of the pet animal detection (step S509). The intercom master unit 5 sets the volume of the ringtone based on the volume control signal from the device control device 3, and sounds the ringtone from the speaker at the set volume (step S510).

[0034] Next, the call tone control process of the device control device 3 in the above-mentioned other example will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 11. In the call tone control process of the device control device 3, first, it is determined whether or not there has been a visit to the house H (step S601). When there has been a visit to the house H, that is, when the call button of the intercom handset 6 is pressed, a call signal is transmitted from the intercom handset 6 to the intercom master unit 5, and the intercom master unit 5 notifies the device control device 3 that there has been a visit. At this time, the device control device 3 determines that there has been a visit (step S601: Yes) and acquires device information from the device 4 in the house H (step S602). When it is not determined that there has been a visit (step S601: No), the process of step S601 is repeated. When the device information is acquired in step S602, the device control device 3 detects a pet animal (step S603). When a pet animal is detected, it is determined whether or not there is a pet animal (step S604). If the result of the determination is that a pet is detected (step S604: Yes), it is determined that a pet is present (step S605), and a volume control signal is generated to change the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a volume that will not cause the pet to bark in response. If the result of the determination is that a pet is not detected (step S604: No), it is determined that a pet is absent (step S606), and a volume control signal is generated to set the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a normal volume. The device control device 3 transmits the generated volume control signal to the intercom master unit 5 (step S607). With the above configuration, volume control is performed according to the timing at which the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is actually emitted, and it is possible to prevent the pet from barking in response to the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5.

[0035] (Embodiment 2) Next, a second embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the second embodiment, in addition to detecting the presence of a pet animal in the house H, the presence of a person in the house H is detected. By detecting the presence of a person in the house H, the call of the intercom master unit 5 itself is controlled. That is, when a person is absent, the intercom master unit 5 does not ring. When a person to be notified of a visit is absent, unnecessary ringing sounds are suppressed, so that the pet animal can be prevented from barking in response to the ringing sound. In addition, when a pet animal and a person are present, the ringing sound is changed to the owner's voice or the frequency of the ringing sound is changed. By changing the ringing sound to the owner's voice or the frequency instead of the ringing sound of a general intercom device, the pet animal can be prevented from barking. The configuration of the intercom system according to the second embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 1.

[0036] FIG. 12 shows a sequence diagram in which the intercom system 1 executes the above process. In the sequence diagram, the intercom slave 6, the intercom master 5, the device control device 3, and the device 4 that constitute the intercom system 1 are shown, as in the first embodiment. Steps S701 to S704 are the same as steps S101 to S104 in FIG. 4, so their explanations will be omitted. In step S705, in addition to detecting the domestic animals, detection of people in the house H is performed. The detection of people is performed by determining the presence or absence of people based on a camera image acquired from the device 4. Alternatively, based on thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4, the presence or absence of people is determined from the temperature and shape of the device 4 carried or worn by the person, or the presence or absence of people is determined from the connection information between the wireless mounted on the device 4 carried or worn by the person, such as a smartphone, a smart watch, and a router device in the house. After the detection process of people and domestic animals, the device control device 3 transmits a ringing method instruction signal for controlling the ringing sound of the intercom master 5 to the intercom master 5 based on the detection results of people and domestic animals (step S706). The ringing method instruction signal to the intercom master unit 5 instructs control to not sound the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5, to change the intercom ring tone to the voice of the pet owner, or to change the frequency of the ring tone to a low frequency near the lower limit of the human audible range. The intercom master unit 5 sets the ring tone method based on the ringing method instruction signal from the equipment control device 3, and sounds the ring tone from the speaker according to the set ring tone method, or does not sound the ring tone (step S707).

[0037] Fig. 13 shows a functional block diagram of the device control device 3 that executes the above sequence processing. The device control device 3 includes a device information acquisition unit 31, a pet animal detection unit 32, a human detection unit 35, a sound method instruction generation unit 36, and a communication unit 34. The device information acquisition unit 31, the pet animal detection unit 32, and the communication unit 34 are the same as those in Fig. 5, so their explanations will be omitted.

[0038] The human detection unit 35, like the pet animal detection unit 32, determines the presence or absence of a human based on a camera image acquired from the device 4, or determines the presence or absence of a human based on the temperature and shape based on thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4, or determines the presence or absence of a human based on connection information between a wireless communication means installed in a portable device held by a person, such as a smartphone, or a wearable device worn by a person, such as a smart watch, and a router device in the house. The information used by the pet animal detection unit 32 to determine the presence or absence of a human and the information used by the human detection unit 35 to determine the presence or absence of a human may be a camera image or thermal image sensor information acquired from the same device 4, or may be information acquired from different devices 4, such as wearable devices 4 worn by each of them. In addition to detecting the presence or absence of a human based on a camera image, thermal image sensor information, or connection information between a wireless communication means installed in a portable device and a router device in the house, the human detection unit 35 determines whether a human is present near the device 4 based on the most recent operation or operation from the operation history and operation history of the device 4 acquired by the device information acquisition unit 31.

[0039] The ringing method instruction generating unit 36 ​​generates a control signal to be communicated to the intercom master unit 5 according to the determination results of the pet detection unit 32 and the human detection unit 35. For example, when it detects that there is a pet animal in the house H but no human, it generates a control signal that does not ring. Alternatively, it generates a control signal to change the ringing sound to the owner's voice, or to change the frequency of the ringing sound to a value to which the pet animal does not react. The ringing method instruction generating unit 36 ​​corresponds to the call control unit of the present disclosure.

[0040] Next, the ring tone control process of the device control device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 14. Steps S801 to S803 are similar to steps S201 to S203 in Fig. 6, so the description will be omitted.

[0041] In step S803, if a pet animal is detected (step S803: Yes), it is determined that a pet animal is present, and then detection of a person in the house H is performed (step S804). The person is detected based on the device information acquired from the device 4. For example, a person is detected from the temperature and shape based on the thermal image sensor information acquired from the device 4.

[0042] 15 and 16 are examples of thermal image sensor information acquired by the device information acquisition unit 31 of the device control device 3. As in FIG. 7, the thermal image sensor detects a temperature range of, for example, 20°C to 40°C, and the higher the color density, the higher the temperature. FIG. 15 shows that a person is present. The gray area close to black indicates that a temperature of about 36°C, which is about 2°C lower than the black area in FIG. 7, is detected. The human detection unit 35 detects the presence or absence of a person from the temperature of about 36°C included in the thermal image and the shape of the temperature distribution. FIG. 16 also shows that a pet animal is present in addition to a person. The detection of the pet animal is the same as that described in FIG. 7. By detecting both the person and the pet animal, it is determined that both the person and the pet animal are present. Note that, like the detection of the pet animal, the detection of a person may be performed by, for example, image analysis of a camera image acquired from the device 4, or may be performed from connection information between a wireless device installed in a smartphone held by a person or a wearable device worn by a person and a router device in the home.

[0043] In step S804, when a person is detected, the presence or absence of a person is determined (step S805). If a person is detected as a result of the determination (step S805: Yes), it is determined that a person and a pet are present, in addition to the result of the determination in step S803. In response to the determination, a ringing method instruction signal is generated to change the frequency of the ringing sound of the intercom master unit 5 to a low frequency near the lower limit of the human audible range so that the pet does not react and bark, or a ringing method instruction signal is generated to change the ringing sound to the owner's voice (step S806). In addition, if a person is not detected as a result of the determination (step S805: No), it is determined that only a pet is present, in addition to the result of the determination in step S803. In response to the determination, a ringing method instruction signal is generated to instruct not to ring the intercom master unit 5 (step S807). The device control device 3 transmits the generated ringing method instruction signal to the intercom master unit 5 (step S808). In addition, in step S803, if the result of the determination is that no pet is detected (step S803: No), it is determined that no pet is present, and in step S808, a ringing method instruction signal for maintaining the normal type and volume of the ring tone is sent to the intercom master unit 5. This controls the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 according to the situation of people and pet animals, thereby preventing pet animals from barking in response to the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5.

[0044] Note that, instead of executing the ring tone control process by acquiring device information from the device 4 at regular time intervals in the process shown in Figures 12 and 14, the ring tone control process may be executed by the device 4 transmitting the device information to the device control device 3 when the device information changes, as in Figures 8 and 9. Also, the ring tone control process may be executed by acquiring device information from the device 4 when a visitor arrives, as in Figures 10 and 11.

[0045] (Embodiment 3) Next, a third embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the third embodiment, when the presence of a pet animal in the house H is detected, the device 4 that detects the presence of a person nearby issues an alert without ringing the intercom master unit 5, thereby notifying the person of a visit. Since the device 4 makes a call without ringing the intercom master unit 5 depending on the situation of the pet animal, it is possible to prevent the pet animal from barking in response to the intercom device 2. The configuration of the intercom system according to the third embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 1. In addition to the operations described in the first embodiment, the device 4 receives an alert signal transmitted from the device control device 3 and performs an alert operation based on the received alert signal.

[0046] FIG. 17 shows a sequence diagram in which the intercom system 1 executes the above process. In the sequence diagram, the intercom slave 6, the intercom master 5, the device control device 3, and the device 4 that constitute the intercom system 1 are shown, as in the first embodiment. Steps S901 to S904 are the same as steps S101 to S104 in FIG. 4, and therefore will not be described. In step S905, the device control device 3 performs an alarm device determination. The alarm device determination is to estimate whether a person is present near the device 4 from the device information acquired from the device 4 in the house H, and to specify the device 4 that is estimated to be near a person as an alarm device that notifies a call from the intercom slave 6 by a visitor. The alarm device determination is to estimate whether a person is present near the device 4 based on the most recent operation, operation, etc. from the operation history, operation history, etc. of the device 4. The equipment control device 3 transmits a volume control signal for controlling the volume of the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to the intercom master unit 5 based on the result of the detection of the pet animal and the notification device determination (step S906). The intercom master unit 5 sets the volume of the ring tone based on the volume control signal from the equipment control device 3, and sounds the ring tone from the speaker at the set volume (step S907).

[0047] In parallel with the above steps S901 to S907, when a visitor presses the call button of the intercom slave 6 to make a call in step S908, the intercom slave 6 notifies the intercom master 5 that a visitor has arrived (step S909). When the intercom master 5 receives the visitor notification, it displays an image of the visitor taken by the camera provided in the intercom slave 6 on the screen of the display unit 13 of the intercom master 5 (step S910) and transmits the visitor notification to the device control device 3 (step S911). If there is a device 4 in which a person exists nearby based on the notification device judgment, the device control device 3 generates a notification signal for the device 4 identified as having a person nearby (step S912). The notification signal is a device control signal that instructs the specific device 4 determined as having a person nearby based on the notification device judgment to notify that a visitor has arrived. The device control device 3 transmits the generated notification signal to the identified device 4 (step S913). The specific device 4 that has received the notification signal notifies the visitor that a visitor has arrived (step S914). In accordance with the notification signal transmitted from the device control device 3, the device 4 performs a process of displaying an LED (Light Emitting Diode) or a liquid crystal screen, a process of generating a sound from a speaker mounted on the device, a process of executing a vibrator function mounted on the device 4, and the like, thereby notifying a person presumed to be nearby that a visitor has arrived.

[0048] Fig. 18 shows a functional block diagram of the device control device 3 that executes the above sequence processing. The device control device 3 includes a device information acquisition unit 31, a pet animal detection unit 32, an alarm device identification unit 41, a volume control information generation unit 33, an alarm signal generation unit 43, a communication unit 34, and an alarm device communication unit 45. The device information acquisition unit 31, the pet animal detection unit 32, the volume control information generation unit 33, and the communication unit 34 are the same as those in Fig. 5, so their description will be omitted.

[0049] When the pet animal detection unit 32 detects the presence of a pet animal in the house H, the alarm device identification unit 41 identifies a nearby device 4 where a person is present as an alarm device. The alarm signal generation unit 43 generates an alarm signal that instructs the device 4 identified by the alarm device identification unit 41 as an alarm device to notify people in the house H of the presence of a visitor. The alarm device communication unit 45 is an interface for transmitting the generated alarm signal to the identified device. In addition, when a pet animal is present in the house H and an identified device 4 that performs alarm processing is present, the volume control information generation unit 33 generates a control signal to stop the ringing sound from the intercom master unit 5.

[0050] Next, the ring tone control process of the device control device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 19. Steps S1001 to S1003 are similar to steps S201 to S203 in Fig. 6, so the description will be omitted.

[0051] In step S1003, if a pet animal is detected (step S1003: Yes), it is determined that a pet animal is present, and then it is determined whether an operation is being performed or an operation is being executed for the device 4 present in the house H (step S1004). In determining whether an operation or operation is being executed for the device 4 in the house H, the operation history or operation history of the device 4 in the house H is acquired. From the acquired history, it is determined whether an operation is performed within a predetermined time from the current time, or whether an operation is being executed at the current time. If an operation of the device 4 is being performed, if it is within a predetermined time from the time the operation is received, or if an operation of the device 4 is being executed at the current time (step S1004: Yes), the device control device 3 estimates that a person is present near the device 4, and identifies the estimated device 4 (step S1005). The identified device 4 is identified as an alarm device that executes an alarm process to notify a visitor. Examples of the operation history include an operation history of opening and closing the door of a refrigerator, an operation history of a smartphone, etc. If the refrigerator door has been opened or closed or the smartphone has been operated recently, it is presumed that a person is present near these devices 4. Examples of the operation history include the operation of lights, televisions, etc. If the lights, televisions, etc. are ON, it is presumed that a person is present. If multiple devices 4 have been operated within a predetermined time or are currently operating, for example, one device may be identified according to a predetermined priority order. For example, if the television is ON, it may be identified as the notification device regardless of the operation history and operation history of the other devices 4. If there are multiple devices 4 that have been operated within a predetermined time, it may be identified as the notification device based on the operation history of the devices 4 that have been operated within the predetermined time. If it is determined in step S1004 that no operation or operation has been performed on the devices 4 present in the house H (step S1004: No), the device control device 3 presumes that no person is present near the devices 4 and does not identify any of the devices 4 as notification devices.

[0052] In step S1005, when the notification device is specified, the device control device 3 transmits an audio control signal to the intercom master unit 5 to stop the ringing sound (step S1006). As a result, the ringing sound from the intercom master unit 5 is stopped, and a notification of a visitor is executed from the device 4 located near the person. Since the ringing sound from the intercom master unit 5 is stopped, the pet animals in the house H do not bark in response to the sound, and the notification of a visitor is executed from the device 4 located near the person, so that the resident can know the presence of a visitor. Also, if it is determined in step S1004 that no operation or action is executed (step S1004: No), the device control device 3 transmits a volume control signal to the intercom master unit 5 to control the ringing sound to a volume at which the pet animals in the house H do not react to the sound (step S1006). In addition, in step S1003, if the result of the judgment is that no pet is detected (step S1003: No), it is determined that no pet is present, and in step S1006, a volume control signal to maintain the ringtone at the normal type and normal volume is sent to the intercom master unit 5.

[0053] Next, the notification process of the device control device 3 executed in parallel with the above-mentioned ring tone control process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 20. In step S1011, the device control device 3 judges whether or not there has been a visitor based on the presence or absence of a visit request from the intercom master unit 5. If the device control device 3 judges that there has been a visitor (step S1011: Yes), it judges whether or not there is a device 4 specified as a notification device (step S1012). If it does not judge that there has been a visitor (step S1011: No), the process of step S1011 is repeated until it is judged that there has been a visitor. In step S1012, if it is judged that there is a device 4 specified as a notification device (step S1012: Yes), the device control device 3 transmits a notification signal to the specified device 4 to execute notification that there has been a visitor (step S1013). When the device 4 receives the notification signal, it executes the notification. Also, in step S1012, if it is determined that there is no device 4 identified as a notification device (step S1012: No), the process ends.

[0054] Although the above-mentioned ring tone control process is executed by acquiring device information from device 4 at regular time intervals, instead, the ring tone control process may be executed by device 4 transmitting the device information to the device control device 3 when the device information changes, as in Figures 8 and 9. Also, the ring tone control process may be executed by acquiring device information from device 4 when a visitor arrives, as in Figures 10 and 11.

[0055] (Embodiment 4) Next, a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the fourth embodiment, when the intercom master unit 5 rings, the ringing pattern and the barking sound of the pet animal are learned, and the ringing pattern that makes the sound of the pet animal below a certain volume is used as the ringing sound of the intercom master unit 5. By changing the ringing pattern of the intercom, the pattern that makes the barking sound of the pet animal the quietest can be found, thereby preventing noise pollution to the neighborhood. The configuration of the intercom system according to the fourth embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 1.

[0056] FIG. 21 shows a sequence diagram in which the intercom system 1 executes the above process. In the sequence diagram, the intercom slave 6, the intercom master 5, the device control device 3, and the device 4 that constitute the intercom system 1 are shown, as in the first embodiment. The intercom master 5 is provided with an operation button (not shown) for specifying a ringing pattern suitable for a pet animal. The resident selects a ringing pattern specification request by pressing this operation button (step S1101). When the operation button is pressed, the device control device 3 transmits a request for specifying a ringing pattern to the device control device 3 (step S1102). When the device control device 3 receives the specification request, in step S1103, it selects a ringing pattern candidate from among a plurality of ringing patterns for the ringing tone of the intercom master 5 (step S1103). When a ringing pattern candidate is selected from among a plurality of ringing patterns, the device control device 3 transmits a control signal to the intercom master 5 to instruct it to ring in the selected ringing pattern (step S1104). Intercom master unit 5 receives the control signal and sets the ringing pattern of the call tone in accordance with the selected ringing pattern (step S1105).

[0057] After the ringing pattern is set, when a visitor operates the intercom handset 6 to make a call (step S1106), the intercom handset 6 transmits a visitor notification to the intercom master 5 (step S1107), and the intercom master 5 rings according to the set ringing pattern (step S1108). While the intercom master 5 is ringing according to the ringing pattern set by the visitor's operation of the intercom handset 6, the intercom master 5 records the barking sound of a pet animal present in the house H with a built-in microphone and transmits the recorded sound to the device control device 3 (step S1109). The device control device 3 determines whether or not at least one of the recorded barking sound of the pet animal or the duration of the barking meets a condition that is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold. If the condition is met, the ringing pattern candidate selected in step S1103 is determined as the ringing pattern for the house H (step S1110).

[0058] FIG. 22 shows a functional block diagram of the device control device 3 that executes the sequence process. The device control device 3 includes a microphone sound acquisition unit 51, a volume determination unit 52, a storage unit 53, a call control information generation unit 54, and a communication unit 34. The microphone sound acquisition unit 51 receives an audio signal of the barking sound of a domestic animal recorded while a call tone is sounding in a ringing pattern. The volume determination unit 52 compares the volume of the received audio signal of the barking sound of the domestic animal with a threshold value to determine the barking sound of the domestic animal that is equal to or lower than the threshold value. The storage unit 53 stores a set of the ringing pattern, the volume of the barking sound of the domestic animal corresponding to the ringing pattern, and the result of the ringing pattern. The call control information generation unit 54 finds the ringing pattern that produces the quietest barking sound of the domestic animal from the ringing patterns corresponding to the barking sounds of the domestic animals stored in the storage unit 53, and transmits the ringing pattern to the intercom master unit 5.

[0059] Next, the ring tone control process of the device control device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 23. When there is a request from the intercom master unit 5 to adjust the ring tone pattern, the device control device 3 starts the ring tone control process. First, the device control device 3 selects a candidate ring tone pattern for the intercom master unit 5 (step S1201). In step S1201, one ring tone pattern that has not been implemented is selected from the predefined patterns shown in FIG. 24. Next, the device control device 3 transmits the selected ring tone pattern to the intercom master unit 5 (step S1202). In order to confirm how much the pet barks in response to the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 by the call operation of the intercom slave unit 6, the device control device 3 acquires a sound from a microphone built into the intercom master unit 5 (step S1203). The device control device 3 stores the sound of the pet barking in response to the ring tone pattern acquired from the microphone of the intercom master unit 5 (step S1204). The microphone volume of the sound of the barking of the pet animal is compared with a threshold value (step S1205). If the acquired microphone volume of the sound of the barking of the pet animal and the duration of the barking are equal to or less than the threshold value (step S1205: Yes), the selected ring pattern is confirmed as the optimal ring pattern, and this ring pattern will be used when a visitor comes in the future (step S1206). As a result, even if the pet animal barks in response to the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5, the barking sound volume is equal to or less than the set threshold value, so it will not be a nuisance to the neighborhood. On the other hand, if the microphone volume and the duration of the barking are greater than the threshold value (step S1205: No), the process returns to step S1201, and the process from step S1201 onwards is executed again to change the ring pattern and microphone volume, and the process is repeated until the optimal ring pattern is confirmed.

[0060] In the above-mentioned ringing control process, if the reaction of the pet animal to the ringing pattern satisfies the conditions, the ringing pattern is determined. As another method for determining the ringing pattern, when reactions to all prepared ringing patterns are acquired, the pattern with the smallest barking volume or the shortest barking time may be determined as the optimal ringing pattern. Another example of this ringing control process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 25. Steps S1211 to S1214 are the same as steps S1201 to S1204 in the flowchart of FIG. 23. A candidate for the ringing pattern of the intercom master unit 5 is selected (step S1211) and transmitted to the intercom master unit 5 (step S1212). When the selected ringing tone is sounded from the intercom master unit 5 by the call operation of the intercom slave unit 6, the reaction of the pet animal to the ringing is acquired from the microphone (step S1213) and stored (step S1214). When the equipment control device 3 acquires the reaction of the captive animal to the sound, it judges whether or not all the sound patterns have been selected (step S1215). If all the sound patterns have not been selected (step S1215: No), it returns to step S1211 and repeats the processes of steps S1211 to S1215 until all the remaining sound patterns are selected. When all the sound patterns have been selected and the reaction to the sound patterns has been acquired (step S1215: Yes), it extracts from all the acquired reactions the sound pattern that minimizes the volume of the captive animal's barking or the duration of barking that is shortest, and determines this as the optimal sound pattern (step S1216).

[0061] In addition to the device control device 3 changing the ringing pattern in response to a request from the intercom parent unit 5 to adjust the ringing pattern, a mode for specifying the ringing pattern may be provided, and when a mode is selected on the intercom parent unit 5, the ringing pattern may be changed sequentially, and microphone audio may be acquired for each ringing pattern, and this may be repeated until the volume of the microphone audio falls below a certain level.

[0062] (Embodiment 5) Next, a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the fifth embodiment, in a case where the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is set according to the status of the pet animals in the residence H, if there is no response from the intercom master unit 5 for a certain period of time after the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 sounds, a process is performed to return the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 to a normal state. The ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is set with consideration for the pet animals, but if a person does not notice the ring tone of the intercom, the ring tone can be returned to the normal state to ensure that the person notices the visitor. The configuration of the intercom system according to the fifth embodiment is the same as that of FIG. 1.

[0063] Fig. 26 shows a sequence diagram in which the intercom system 1 executes the above process. In the sequence diagram, as in the second embodiment, the intercom handset 6, the intercom master 5, the device control device 3, and the device 4 that constitute the intercom system 1 are shown. Steps S1301 to S1307 are the same as steps S701 to S707 in Fig. 12, and therefore will not be described. After the ringing pattern is set, when a visitor operates the intercom handset 6 to make a call (step S1308), a visit notification is sent from the intercom handset 6 to the intercom master 5 (step S1309), and the intercom master 5 displays an image of the visitor taken by a camera provided in the intercom handset 6 on the screen of the display unit 13 of the intercom master 5 (step S1310) and rings according to the set ringing pattern (step S1311). The intercom master unit 5 notifies the device control device 3 of the response state indicating whether or not a response operation has been performed on the intercom master unit 5 within a certain period after the ringing (step S1312). When the device control device 3 detects no response from the resident from the response state notification while a person is detected in the house H (step S1313), it transmits a ringing method instruction signal to the intercom master unit 5 instructing the device control device 3 to return the ringing pattern to the normal state (step S1314). When the intercom master unit 5 receives the ringing method instruction signal, it sets the ringing method of the ringing sound to be returned to the normal ringing based on the ringing method instruction signal (step S1315). The intercom master unit 5 displays an image of the visitor taken by the camera provided in the intercom slave unit 6 on the screen of the display unit 13 of the intercom master unit 5, and stops the display after a certain period of time has elapsed using a clock, timer, etc. (not shown). However, if the device control device 3 receives the ringing method instruction signal before the display stops, it immediately rings with the normal ringing sound.

[0064] Fig. 27 shows a functional block diagram of the device control device 3 that executes the sequence process. As in Fig. 13, the device control device 3 includes a device information acquisition unit 31, a pet animal detection unit 32, a human detection unit 35, a ringing method instruction generation unit 36, and a communication unit 34. The difference from Fig. 13 is that the device control device 3 further includes a response detection unit 55 that acquires a response state to a call from the intercom master unit 5 via the communication unit 34 and detects the presence or absence of a response, and notifies the ringing method instruction generation unit 36 ​​of the device control device 3 of the detection result of the response detection unit 55. In addition, a human detection signal from the human detection unit 35 is input to the response detection unit 55. If the device control device 3 does not receive a notification that the response button has been pressed while a human is detected in the house H, it transmits an instruction to the intercom master unit 5 to return the ringing sound setting to the original state.

[0065] Next, the ring tone control process of the device control device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of Fig. 28. Steps S1401 to S1408 are similar to steps S801 to S808 in Fig. 14, so the description will be omitted.

[0066] When a ringing pattern is set in the intercom master unit 5 by the ringing method instruction in step S1408, and a visitor subsequently operates the intercom slave unit 6 to make a call, the intercom master unit 5 rings in accordance with the set ringing pattern and notifies the device control device 3 of information regarding whether or not an answering operation has been performed within a certain period of time after the ringing. When the device control device 3 acquires a response status notification indicating whether or not an answering operation has been performed from the intercom master unit 5 in step S1409 (step S1409: Yes), it determines whether or not an answering operation has been performed in response to the call on the intercom slave unit 6 (step S1410). When the device control device 3 determines that an answering operation has been performed (step S1410: Yes), it ends the process. When it is determined that no response operation has been performed (step S1410: No), the device control device 3 ends the process if no person is detected (step S1411: No) based on the result of the determination of the presence or absence of a person in step S1404, and transmits a ringing method instruction signal to the intercom master unit 5 to return the ringing sound to its original state if a person is detected (step S1411: Yes) (step S1412). As a result, the intercom master unit 5 returns the ringing sound setting to its original state. In the second embodiment, the volume, type, and frequency of the intercom ringing sound are changed so that the pet animals in the house H do not react to the intercom ringing sound, but if the changed volume is too low, there is a possibility that the person in the house H will not notice the visit. Therefore, in the fifth embodiment, the response state of the intercom master unit 5 is detected to check whether the person in the house H notices the intercom ringing sound. If there is a response operation on the intercom master unit 5, it is determined that the person has noticed the intercom ringing and the process ends there, but if there is no response operation on the intercom master unit 5 for a certain period of time, the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is restored to ringing. This makes it possible to reliably make people in the residence H notice the intercom ringing.

[0067] Note that, although this embodiment has been described as a modified example of the second embodiment, it may also be applied to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, when the presence of a pet animal is detected, instead of ringing the intercom master unit 5, the device 4 is made to issue an alert to notify the resident of a visit. With this setting maintained, if the resident is in the house H but does not respond, the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is restored to ringing. As a result, in the case where the alert from the device 4 is not noticed, the ring tone of the intercom master unit 5 is restored to ringing, thereby making it possible to reliably notify the person of a visit.

[0068] Various embodiments and modifications of the present disclosure are possible without departing from the broad spirit and scope of the present disclosure. The above-described embodiments are for explaining the present disclosure and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, the scope of the present disclosure is indicated by the claims, not the embodiments. Various modifications made within the scope of the claims and within the scope of the disclosure equivalent thereto are considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0069] Various aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below as appendices.

[0070] (Appendix 1) An intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house, the intercom system comprising: a device information acquisition unit that acquires device information from devices in the home; a pet detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a call control unit that controls a call sound emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the house to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; An intercom system comprising: (Appendix 2) a human detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a human in the house based on the device information, The call control unit controls the call tone based on the detected presence or absence of the pet animal and the detected presence or absence of the person. 2. The intercom system according to claim 1. (Appendix 3) the call control unit does not ring the call tone when the pet animal is present and the person is not present. 10. An intercom system as described in claim 2. (Appendix 4) the call control unit changes the ring tone to a voice of the owner of the pet animal when the pet animal and the person are present; 4. An intercom system as described in appendix 2 or 3. (Appendix 5) the call control unit sets a frequency of the call sound to a low value near the lower limit of the human audible range when the pet animal and the person are present. 4. An intercom system as described in appendix 2 or 3. (Appendix 6) the call control unit, when the pet animal is present and the person is present, does not emit a call sound from the intercom master unit and causes the device to notify the visitor. 4. An intercom system as described in appendix 2 or 3. (Appendix 7) the call control unit learns a ringing pattern that reduces the volume of the barking sound of the domestic animal to a certain level or less based on a plurality of ringing patterns of the ringing sound and the barking sound of the domestic animal in response to the ringing sound of the plurality of ringing patterns, and determines the ringing pattern of the ringing sound. 4. An intercom system according to any one of claims 1 to 3. (Appendix 8) the call control unit returns the setting of the ring tone, which is set based on the presence or absence of the pet animal, to a normal state when there is no response from the intercom master unit to the ring tone after the ring tone is sounded; 8. An intercom system according to any one of claims 1 to 7. (Appendix 9) A control method for an intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house, comprising: acquiring device information from devices in the home; detecting the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a step of controlling a ringtone emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the residence to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; A method for controlling an intercom system comprising: (Appendix 10) a computer for controlling an intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house; a device information acquisition unit that acquires device information from devices in the home; a pet detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a call control unit that controls a call sound emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the house to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; A program that functions as a [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 1 intercom system, 2 intercom device, 3 device control device, 4 device, 5 intercom parent unit, 6 intercom child unit, 7 network, 11 intercom communication unit, 12 intercom control unit, 13 display unit, 14 operation unit, 15 sound collection unit, 16 ringing unit, 17 network communication unit, 21 processor, 22 memory, 23 network interface, 24 microphone, 25 speaker, 26 display, 31 device information acquisition unit, 32 pet animal detection unit, 33 volume control information generation unit, 34 communication unit, 35 human detection unit, 36 ringing method instruction generation unit, 41 alarm device identification unit, 43 alarm signal generation unit, 44 intercom communication unit, 45 alarm device communication unit, 51 microphone voice acquisition unit, 52 volume determination unit, 53 memory unit, 54 call control information generation unit, 55 response detection unit, H residence.

Claims

1. An intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house, the intercom system comprising: a device information acquisition unit that acquires device information from devices in the home; a pet detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a call control unit that controls a call sound emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the house to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; An intercom system comprising:

2. a human detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a human in the house based on the device information, The call control unit controls the call tone based on the detected presence or absence of the pet animal and the detected presence or absence of the person.

2. The intercom system according to claim 1.

3. the call control unit does not ring the call tone when the pet animal is present and the person is not present.

3. The intercom system according to claim 2.

4. the call control unit changes the ring tone to a voice of the owner of the pet animal when the pet animal and the person are present; 3. The intercom system according to claim 2.

5. the call control unit sets a frequency of the call sound to a low value near the lower limit of the human audible range when the pet animal and the person are present.

3. The intercom system according to claim 2.

6. the call control unit, when the pet animal is present and the person is present, does not cause the intercom master unit to emit a call sound and causes the device to notify the visitor of the visit.

3. The intercom system according to claim 2.

7. the call control unit learns a ringing pattern that reduces the volume of the barking sound of the domestic animal to a certain level or less based on a plurality of ringing patterns of the ringing sound and the barking sound of the domestic animal in response to the ringing sound of the plurality of ringing patterns, and determines the ringing pattern of the ringing sound.

2. The intercom system according to claim 1.

8. the call control unit returns the setting of the ring tone, which is set based on the presence or absence of the pet animal, to a normal state when there is no response from the intercom master unit to the ring tone after the ring tone is sounded; 2. The intercom system according to claim 1.

9. A control method for an intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house, comprising: acquiring device information from devices in the home; detecting the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a step of controlling a ringtone emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the residence to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; A method for controlling an intercom system comprising:

10. a computer for controlling an intercom system that notifies a visitor to a house in response to a call operation of an intercom slave unit installed at an entrance of the house, a device information acquisition unit that acquires device information from devices in the home; a pet detection unit that detects the presence or absence of a pet in the house based on the device information; a call control unit that controls a call sound emitted by an intercom master unit installed in the house to notify the visitor of the visit based on the presence or absence of the pet animal detected; A program that functions as a

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