Card set and toy system

Abstract

To provide a card set and a toy system in which information can be correctly acquired from multiple cards on which patterns with information encoded are printed.SOLUTION: A card set comprises multiple cards (30) classified into multiple kinds, and each of the multiple cards has: a surface including an internal region (31) and a peripheral region (32) surrounding the internal region. In the internal region of each card, multiple identification patterns (72) which are imaged by a movable body traveling on the card and indicate a kind to which the card belongs, are printed, and on the peripheral region of each of the multiple cards, an identification pattern for indicating a kind out of the multiple kinds is not printed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a card set and a toy system. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a system that controls a moving object that travels over a sheet-like medium by printing a plurality of patterns associated with information different from position information on one side of the medium.

[0003] Patent document 1 discloses that a cart runs over a sheet-like medium on which multiple second array patterns, for which control information is defined, are printed, and the running of the cart is controlled by reading the patterns printed on the medium. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 025467 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The inventors have developed a system that uses multiple cards, each of which is a sheet-like medium, to control the operation of a moving object. When multiple cards with patterns printed with the same encoded information are placed in succession, the information read does not change even when the moving object traveling over them moves onto the next card. This makes it difficult to accurately recognize whether the moving object is obtaining information from one card or multiple cards.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a technology that can accurately obtain information from multiple cards on which patterns encoding information are printed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, a card set of the present invention includes a plurality of cards classified into a plurality of types, each of the plurality of cards having a surface including an internal area and a peripheral area surrounding the internal area, the internal area of ​​each of the plurality of cards is printed with a plurality of identification patterns which are photographed by a moving object traveling over the internal area and which indicate the type to which the card belongs, and the peripheral area of ​​each of the plurality of cards is not printed with an identification pattern which indicates any of the plurality of types.

[0008] In one aspect of the present invention, the peripheral area may be arranged on the periphery of each of the plurality of cards.

[0009] In one aspect of the present invention, a pattern that does not exhibit any of the plurality of types may be printed in the peripheral region.

[0010] In one aspect of the present invention, the plurality of identification patterns may be arranged within the internal region, and the plurality of peripheral patterns may be arranged to surround the internal region.

[0011] In addition, the toy system of the present invention includes a plurality of cards classified into a plurality of types, and a moving body including a camera that repeatedly photographs, each of the plurality of cards has a surface including an internal area and a peripheral area surrounding the internal area, each of the plurality of cards has a plurality of identification patterns printed in its internal area indicating the type to which it belongs, and each of the plurality of cards has a peripheral pattern printed in its peripheral area that is different from the patterns indicating any of the types, and when any of the plurality of identification patterns is photographed by the camera after the peripheral pattern is photographed, the operation of the moving body is controlled based on the photographed identification pattern.

[0012] In one aspect of the present invention, when the same identification pattern as that captured previously is captured by the camera, the operation of the moving object does not need to be controlled based on the captured identification pattern. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the present invention, information can be accurately obtained from a number of cards on which patterns encoding information are printed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a toy system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a toy system. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a moving object as viewed from below. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a card. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between a pattern printed on a card and a moving object. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing functions realized by the toy system. [Figure 7] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an example of control of a moving object by an action instruction card. [Figure 8] 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of a moving body. [Figure 9] 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing of a moving body. [Figure 10] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a number of cards arranged in a line. [Figure 11] 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an example of the movement of a moving object with respect to a plurality of cards arranged in a row. [Figure 12] 13A to 13C are diagrams illustrating another example of the movement of the moving object with respect to a plurality of cards arranged in a row. [Figure 13] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a travel process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Among the components appearing, those having the same functions are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0016] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a toy system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The toy system according to the present invention includes at least a moving body 20 and a plurality of cards 30. The moving body 20 has a cube-like outer shape, and its corners are chamfered. In addition, a plurality of protrusions are provided on the upper surface to enable attachment of other toys.

[0017] At least some of the multiple cards 30 are placed by the user at any location on a flat surface (e.g., on a desk or floor). When the moving object 20 travels over any of the cards 30, it reads the image and performs an operation according to the instruction shown in the image.

[0018] The cards 30 are classified into a number of card types, and an image in which information indicating the card type is encoded is printed on the cards. The card types are further classified into groups in a number of hierarchical levels. At the highest level, the card types are classified into an action instruction group and a setting group. Cards that belong to the action instruction group are called action instruction cards.

[0019] The multiple cards 30 include multiple action instruction cards, and each of the multiple action instruction cards is printed with an image indicating an instruction (action instruction) for an action of the moving object 20. Each of the multiple action instruction cards is printed with an encoded image indicating one of the multiple action instructions for the moving object 20. The type of action instruction has a one-to-one correspondence with the card type, and decoding the card type corresponds to decoding the action instruction.

[0020] Furthermore, the operation instructions given by the multiple operation instruction cards are classified into multiple types (groups). The multiple types include a state change type, an action type, and a forced type. The state change type is a group consisting of instructions that change the operation (e.g., the running state) of the moving body 20. The action type is a group consisting mainly of instructions that cause the moving body 20 to execute a predetermined operation. An action type instruction may resume the previous operation after the operation is executed. Note that even an action type instruction may cause the running state to change as a result of the operation. The forced type is a group consisting of instructions that cause the moving body 20 to immediately stop.

[0021] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of the toy system. The moving object 20 includes a processor 21, a storage 22, a communication unit 23, a camera 24, two motors 25, and a speaker .

[0022] The processor 21 operates according to a program stored in the storage 22, and controls the communication unit 23, the camera 24, the motor 25, the speaker 26, etc. The above program may be provided from another computer by communication via the communication unit 23. The above program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium such as a flash memory or an optical disk and provided to the other computer. The number of processors 21 may be one or more.

[0023] The storage 22 is configured with a DRAM, a non-volatile memory, etc. The storage 22 stores the above-mentioned programs. The storage 22 also stores information input from the processor 21, the communication unit 23, etc., and calculation results.

[0024] The communication unit 23 is composed of an integrated circuit, an antenna, and the like for communicating with other devices. The communication unit 23 has a function of communicating with other devices (e.g., computers) according to, for example, the Bluetooth (registered trademark) protocol or a wireless LAN protocol. Under the control of the processor 21, the communication unit 23 inputs information received from other devices to the processor 21 or the storage 22, and transmits information to other devices. The communication unit 23 may communicate with other devices via a wired network.

[0025] Camera 24 is positioned to capture an image of the area below moving object 20, and repeatedly captures an image of the area below moving object 20. When moving object 20 travels over card 30, camera 24 captures an image of pattern 71 (see FIG. 4) printed on card 30. In this embodiment, pattern 71 that can be recognized in the infrared frequency domain is printed on card 30, and camera 24 captures an infrared image of the pattern 71. In addition to pattern 71, a picture that can be recognized in visible light is printed on card 30.

[0026] The motor 25 is a so-called servo motor, the direction, amount and speed of rotation of which are controlled by the processor 21 .

[0027] The speaker 26 outputs sound based on the control of the processor 21 and the like.

[0028] 3 is a bottom view of an example of the moving body 20. The moving body 20 further includes a switch 222, a power switch 223, and two wheels 254. One motor 25 is assigned to each of the two wheels 254, and the motor 25 drives the assigned wheel 254. The drive mechanism including the motor 25 and the wheels 254 constitute a traveling device that causes the moving body 20 to travel.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of a card 30. The front surface of one card 30 includes an internal area 31 surrounded by a dashed line in FIG. 4, and a peripheral area 32 outside the dashed line and surrounding the internal area 31. A plurality of patterns 71 are printed on the card 30 in a matrix arrangement. Each of the patterns 71 is an image of a predetermined size, for example, 0.2 mm square. The size of each of the patterns 71 is smaller than the size of the moving object 20. In FIG. 4, the patterns 71 are written on a part of the card 30, but in reality, they are arranged so as to fill the entire surface of the card 30. For ease of explanation, the image "Sound" that can be recognized by visible light is written in dashed lines.

[0030] In the internal area 31, among the patterns 71, a plurality of identification patterns 72 indicating the card type to which the card 30 belongs are arranged. The identification pattern 72 is an image in which the information of the card type is encoded, and the image of the identification pattern 72 differs depending on the card type. The plurality of identification patterns 72 are arranged in a matrix in the internal area 31. For the same card 30, the plurality of identification patterns 72 may be the same image. Note that the internal area 31 does not have to be rectangular, and the pattern 71 protruding from the internal area 31 becomes a peripheral pattern 73 described below rather than an identification pattern 72. In addition, in order that the moving object 20 traveling in the internal area 31 can always recognize the identification pattern 72, for example, 3×3 or more identification patterns 72 are arranged in the internal area 31. The identification patterns 72 do not necessarily have to be arranged in a matrix, and may be arranged in concentric circles, for example.

[0031] The peripheral area 32 is disposed on the periphery of the front surface of the card 30. In the peripheral area 32, a plurality of peripheral patterns 73 are disposed so as to surround the internal area 31 in which the plurality of identification patterns 72 are disposed. From another perspective, the identification pattern 72 indicating any of the card types is not printed in the peripheral area 32. The peripheral pattern 73 is a pattern 71 indicating none of the plurality of card types, and is an image in which peripheral information different from the information indicating the card type is encoded. In this embodiment, the peripheral information is a fixed value regardless of the card type, but it does not necessarily have to be a fixed value. The plurality of peripheral patterns 73 need only be disposed so as to be read by the moving body 20 traveling from the internal area 31 toward the outside of the card 30, and do not necessarily have to be arranged in a matrix. The width of the peripheral area 32 may be, for example, twice or more the size of the pattern 71.

[0032] Although the dashed dotted line is not actually printed, it is clear that the boundary between the internal region 31 and the peripheral region 32 exists between the identification pattern 72 and the peripheral pattern 73, which are adjacent to each other, and the existence of the internal region 31 and the peripheral region 32 can be easily confirmed. The pattern 71 does not have to be printed in the peripheral region 32.

[0033] 5 is a diagram showing an example of the relationship between the pattern 71 printed on the card 30 and the moving object 20. When the moving object 20 passes over the card 30, the pattern 71, which is usually printed in different positions as time progresses, is read.

[0034] In the toy system according to this embodiment, the camera 24 of the moving body 20 captures an image of the pattern 71 printed on the card 30, and the moving body 20 decodes the pattern 71 to acquire information. For example, the moving body 20 acquires an action instruction as information from an identification pattern 72 printed on an action instruction card. The moving body 20 acquires peripheral information from a peripheral pattern 73. The moving body 20 also detects the inclination of the pattern 71 in the image captured by the camera 24 to detect the direction of the moving body 20 (for example, angle A from a reference direction).

[0035] 6 is a block diagram showing functions realized by the toy system. The toy system functionally has a card information acquisition unit 51 and an action control unit 52. The action control unit 52 functionally includes a card determination unit 53, a parameter update unit 54, a running processing unit 55, and an action processing unit 56. These functions are mainly realized by the processor 21 included in the moving object 20 executing a program stored in the storage 22 and controlling the camera 24, the motor 25, and the speaker 26. Note that some of these functions may be realized by the processor 21 transmitting a processing request to another computer included in the toy system via the communication unit 23 and receiving a processing result from the other computer.

[0036] The card information acquisition unit 51 reads the pattern 71 (image) printed on the card 30 and acquires information indicated by the pattern 71. More specifically, when the moving object 20 runs over any one of the multiple cards 30, the card information acquisition unit 51 reads the pattern 71 printed on the card 30 and decodes information (card type, peripheral information) from the pattern 71. Here, the card type is decoded from the identification pattern 72, and the peripheral information is decoded from the peripheral pattern 73. The card information acquisition unit 51 also acquires the orientation (angle) of the moving object 20 with respect to the card 30 based on the inclination of the pattern 71 photographed by the camera 24.

[0037] When information (card type) indicating an operation instruction is acquired from the identification pattern 72, the operation control unit 52 controls the running device, the speaker 26, etc., according to the operation instruction. When the operation instruction belongs to a state change group, the operation control unit 52 changes the running parameters according to the operation instruction, and controls the running device (motor 25) according to the changed parameters. When the identification pattern 72 is not read, the operation control unit 52 controls the running device to continue the operation according to the previously read operation instruction until a new identification pattern 72 is read as the moving object 20 runs over a new card 30. When an operation instruction is acquired from a new identification pattern 72, the operation control unit 52 controls the operation of the moving object 20 according to the new operation instruction indicated by the new identification pattern 72.

[0038] Furthermore, when the identification pattern 72 is photographed by the camera 24 after the peripheral pattern 73 is photographed, the operation control unit 52 controls the running device of the moving body 20 based on the photographed identification pattern 72. On the other hand, when the same identification pattern 72 as the previous time is photographed by the camera 24, the operation control unit 52 does not control the operation of the moving body 20 based on the photographed identification pattern 72. Note that, when the identification pattern 72 is photographed for the first time when the moving body 20 starts running based on a user's instruction, the operation control unit 52 may control the running device of the moving body 20 based on the photographed identification pattern 72. The above process makes it possible to recognize the differences between multiple cards 30 of the same type lined up.

[0039] The card determination unit 53 determines whether the information acquired by the processing of the card information acquisition unit 51 is a card type or peripheral information, and further determines whether the card type belongs to an action instruction group or a setting group. If the card type belongs to the action instruction group, in other words, if the information indicates an action instruction, the card determination unit 53 determines the group to which the action instruction belongs. If the action instruction belongs to a state change type, the card determination unit 53 causes the parameter update unit 54 to execute processing, and if the action instruction belongs to an action type, the card determination unit 53 causes the action processing unit 56 to execute processing.

[0040] The parameter update unit 54 updates the driving parameters based on the operation instructions belonging to the state change system. Here, the operation instructions belonging to the state change system are further classified into a plurality of subgroups. The plurality of subgroups include a steering wheel subgroup, a speed subgroup, and a brake subgroup. A driving parameter exists for each of the subgroups. The steering wheel subgroup includes an instruction to change the steering wheel state to the right or left, and an instruction to change the steering wheel state to go straight. Changing the steering wheel state to the right or left means continuously changing the traveling direction of the moving body 20 to the right or left, and a value according to the instruction is set to the steering wheel driving parameter. The speed subgroup includes an instruction to set the speed driving parameter to a specified value. The specified value may be any one of a plurality of predetermined candidate values ​​(e.g., slow, fast, very fast), and each of the plurality of instructions included in the speed subgroup may indicate a candidate value different from each other. The brake subgroup includes a brake instruction to continuously reduce the speed. A brake instruction sets a driving parameter for the brake state. The driving parameter causes the moving body 20 to perform a brake operation to continuously reduce the speed. Here, each of the multiple operation instructions belonging to the state change system may be classified (labeled) into one or more subgroups. For example, a certain operation instruction may be labeled into both a speed subgroup and a handle subgroup.

[0041] The parameter update unit 54 updates the driving parameters of the subgroup to which the operation instruction indicated by the read pattern 71 is classified, among the multiple subgroups, to information (e.g., a value) indicated by the operation instruction. By setting driving parameters for each subgroup and controlling the driving by the multiple driving parameters, the operation of the mobile object 20 can be made more diverse. When the operation instruction indicated by the read pattern 71 is classified into multiple subgroups of state change systems, the parameter update unit 54 may update each of the driving parameters of the multiple subgroups to which the operation instruction belongs to information of the driving parameters of the respective subgroups according to the operation instruction.

[0042] The driving processing unit 55 controls a driving device (e.g., the motor 25) based on the set driving parameters. The driving processing unit 55 continuously changes the traveling direction of the moving body 20 to the right or left, or makes the moving body 20 go straight, according to the driving parameters of the steering wheel state. The driving processing unit 55 makes the moving body 20 travel at a speed according to the parameters of the speed subgroup. Furthermore, the driving processing unit 55 continuously reduces the speed of the moving body 20 when the parameters of the brake state are set.

[0043] The action processing unit 56 controls the moving body 20 to perform an action indicated by an action instruction based on the action instruction. When an instruction to turn in a specified direction is acquired from the identification pattern 72, the action processing unit 56 controls the traveling device so that the moving body 20 turns in the specified direction. When an instruction to perform a predetermined action is acquired from the identification pattern 72 as an action instruction belonging to the action system, the action processing unit 56 controls the moving body 20 to perform the predetermined action. The instruction to perform the predetermined action may be, for example, an instruction to output a predetermined sound or to run in a predetermined manner (snaking or rotating).

[0044] FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining another example of the control of the moving body 20 by the action instruction card. In the example of FIG. 8, a "Fast" card 30b and an arrow card 30h indicating the moving direction are arranged as the action instruction cards. In the example of FIG. 8, the moving body 20 first reads the pattern 71 on the card 30b, updates the parameters of the speed subgroup to a specified (faster) speed, and moves straight at that speed. Then, the moving body 20 reads the pattern 71 on the card 30h, and executes an action of turning (changing direction) so that the direction indicated by the pattern 71 and the moving direction of the moving body 20 form a specified angle (the moving body 20 faces the direction of the arrow). After the change of direction is completed, the moving body 20 moves straight in the moving direction.

[0045] In the example of FIG. 7, for example, a running parameter is changed by an operation instruction of the card 30, and then the moving body 20 continues to move according to the operation instruction until it reaches the next card 30. This makes the reading of the card 30 and the resulting operation interactive, allowing the user to experience more intuitive and easy programming. In addition, the user can place the card 30 in any position, increasing the degree of freedom of the movement of the moving body 20 in the programming experience. However, even if the cards 30 are lined up without being separated, the configuration of the internal area 31 and the peripheral area 32 of the card 30 and the control of the moving body 20 are effective. This will be described later.

[0046] Next, the effect of providing the internal area 31 and the peripheral area 32 of the card 30 will be described while describing in more detail the process for realizing the operation described above. FIGS. 8 and 9 are flowcharts showing an example of the process of the moving body 20. FIGS. 8 and 9 mainly show the processes of the card information acquisition unit 51, the card determination unit 53, and the parameter update unit 54. The processes shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 are periodically (e.g., every 0.1 seconds) repeatedly executed. While an action that takes a certain amount of time is being executed by an action-based action instruction, only the process (S101 to S107) for determining whether the card type has been read from the same card 30 may be periodically executed. Even if the card 30 moves to another card 30 of the same type during the action, it becomes possible to accurately acquire information from the card 30 read at the end of the action.

[0047] First, the card information acquisition unit 51 acquires an image read by the camera 24 of the moving object 20 (S101). The card information acquisition unit 51 determines whether it is possible to decode information from the acquired image (S102). This process is a process of determining whether a pattern 71 exists in the acquired image. If it is impossible to decode the information (N in S102), the card information acquisition unit 51 sets the same card flag to OFF, and ends the process shown in Figs. 8 and 9. On the other hand, if it is possible to decode the information (Y in S102), the card information acquisition unit 51 determines whether the decoded information is peripheral information (S104). Here, this determination may be made depending on whether the decoded information is within the range of values ​​indicating the card type. If the decoded information is peripheral information (Y in S104), the card information acquisition unit 51 sets the same card flag to OFF, and ends the process shown in Figs. 8 and 9. On the other hand, if the decrypted information is not peripheral information (N in S104), the card information acquisition unit 51 checks whether the same instruction as the previous time has been decrypted (S105). If the same instruction as the previous time has not been decrypted (N in S105), S106 is skipped and the process from S107 onwards is executed. If the same instruction as the previous time has been decrypted (Y in S105), it is determined whether the same card flag is set to ON (S106).

[0048] If the same card flag is set to ON (Y in S106), the card information acquisition unit 51 ends the processing shown in Figures 8 and 9. On the other hand, if the same card flag is set to OFF (N in S106), the card information acquisition unit 51 sets the same card flag to ON (S107). The card information acquisition unit 51 also acquires an instruction (here, an operation instruction) from the decrypted card type, acquires the angle A of the moving object 20 with respect to the card 30 (S108), and executes the processing from S111 onwards to operate the moving object 20 in accordance with the instruction.

[0049] The processes from S102 to S104 and S106 to S108 detect whether or not card type information has been acquired from the same card 30 as the previous time, and if card type information has been acquired from the same card 30, new control based on the instructions indicated by the card type is not executed. Also, if card type information has been acquired from a new card 30 by these processes, new control based on the instructions indicated by that card type is executed. The process of S105 is a process that corresponds to the case where the identification patterns 72 of two different types of cards 30 are forcibly read by moving the mobile object 20 by hand.

[0050] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a number of cards 30 arranged side by side. In the example of Fig. 10, two cards 30 are arranged so that they partially overlap. Furthermore, the moving body 20 moves from left to right in Fig. 10 and reads patterns 71 from the two cards. Both cards 30 have an inner region 31 and a peripheral region 32, but at the boundary between the two cards 30, the peripheral region 32 of the left card 30 is hidden under the right card 30.

[0051] In the example of FIG. 10, before the camera 24 of the moving object 20 reads the image of the card 30, the card information acquisition unit 51 cannot decode the information and sets the same card flag to OFF. Furthermore, when the camera 24 captures the peripheral pattern 73 at position P1, the peripheral information is decoded and the same card flag remains OFF. In this state, when the camera 24 captures the identification pattern 72 at position P2, since the same card flag is set to OFF, a process for controlling the operation of the moving object 20 according to the decoded card type is executed and the same card flag is set to ON. On the other hand, even if the identification pattern 72 is subsequently captured in the internal area 31 of the left card 30, since the same card flag is set to ON, the process for controlling the operation of the moving object 20 is not executed.

[0052] Thereafter, when the camera 24 captures the peripheral pattern 72 at position P3, the peripheral information is decoded and the same card flag is set to OFF, which determines that the next identification pattern 72 to be read is information to be read from a new card 30. Thereafter, when the camera 24 captures the identification pattern 72 at position P4, a process is executed to control the operation of the moving object 20 according to the decoded card type.

[0053] If there is no peripheral area 32 in which the peripheral pattern 73 is printed, and furthermore, the identification patterns 72 of the same card type are printed on the entire surface of the two cards 30, even if the pattern 71 of the second card 30 is read, the same information as that of the previous card 30 is decoded. Therefore, it is difficult for the moving body 20 to recognize whether the identification pattern 72 has been read from the new card 30. The peripheral area 32 in which the peripheral pattern 73 is printed makes it possible to reliably recognize whether the identification pattern 72 has been read from the new card 30. Note that, although the same effect can be obtained by not printing the pattern 71 in the peripheral area 32, the recognition is more reliable when the peripheral pattern 73 is printed. Furthermore, the process of S102 makes it possible to prevent malfunctions when the peripheral pattern 73 cannot be read for some reason.

[0054] Instead of using the same card flag, information decoded from the pattern 71 photographed by the camera 24 in the previous process may be stored, and if the information is not identical to the information decoded from the currently photographed pattern 71, a process may be executed to control the operation of the moving body 20 according to the decoded card type. In this case, if dummy information is stored instead of the decoded information when the information cannot be decoded from the image, it is also possible to cope with the case where the surrounding pattern 73 cannot be read for some reason.

[0055] The reason why new control is not executed when the card type is read from the same card 30 is to prevent problems caused by repeating the same process and to prevent the waste of processing resources.

[0056] Returning to the explanation of the process in Figures 8 and 9, when the process of S107 is executed, the card determination unit 53 determines whether the acquired operation instruction belongs to a state change group (S111). If the acquired operation instruction belongs to a state change group (Y in S111), the parameter update unit 54 updates the driving parameters according to the operation instruction (S112).

[0057] More specifically, the parameter update unit 54 updates the driving parameters of the subgroup into which the operation instruction is classified to values ​​indicated by the operation instruction. When the operation instruction belongs to the speed subgroup, the parameter update unit 54 sets the speed parameter to a value according to the operation instruction. When the operation instruction belongs to the steering subgroup, the parameter update unit 54 updates the steering state parameter to a value indicated by the operation instruction (e.g., right, left, or straight). When the operation instruction belongs to the braking subgroup, the parameter update unit 54 updates the brake parameter to a braking state (or a no-brake state).

[0058] When an action instruction belongs to a plurality of subgroups, the parameter update unit 54 updates the driving parameters of each of the plurality of subgroups to a value indicated by the action instruction. For example, when an action instruction belongs to a speed subgroup and a steering wheel subgroup, the parameter update unit 54 sets the speed parameter to a value according to the action instruction, and updates the steering wheel state parameter to a value indicated by the action instruction. In this case, there may be a plurality of action instructions that correspond one-to-one to each combination of a candidate value of the speed parameter (e.g., slow, fast, very fast) and a candidate value of the steering wheel state parameter (e.g., right, left, straight). There may be a card 30 that corresponds one-to-one to each of the plurality of action instructions.

[0059] On the other hand, if the acquired operation instruction does not belong to the state change system (N in S111), the card determination unit 53 determines whether the acquired operation instruction indicates an instruction to stop the moving object 20 (S113). If the operation instruction indicates an instruction to stop the moving object 20 (Y in S113), the travel processing unit 55 ends the travel processing and stops the moving object 20 (S114).

[0060] On the other hand, if the action instruction does not indicate an instruction to stop the moving object 20 (N in S113), the card judgment unit 53 judges that the acquired action instruction belongs to the action group (S115). If the action instruction does not belong to the action group (N in S115), the processing of Figs. 8 and 9 is terminated. If the action instruction belongs to the action group (Y in S115), the card judgment unit 53 judges whether the running process of the running processing unit 55 or the action process of the action processing unit 56 is currently being executed (S116). If the running process or the action process is being executed (Y in S116), the running process or the action process being executed is stopped (S117). If the running process and the action process are not being executed (N in S116), the processing of S117 is skipped. Then, the action processing unit 56 starts the action process in response to the action instruction (S118).

[0061] Among action-based operation instructions, particularly for an operation instruction to turn the traveling direction in a specified direction, such as card 30h, the action processing unit 56 determines the direction of rotation and the amount of rotation of the left and right motors 25 based on the angle read from card 30. The direction of rotation and the amount of rotation are determined so that the orientation of the moving object 20 after rotation will be a predetermined direction (for example, the direction of the arrow on card 30h) with respect to the card 30 from which the angle was read. Then, the action processing unit 56 rotates the left and right motors 25 in the determined direction of rotation and amount of rotation. When the rotation ends, processing of the travel processing unit 55 is resumed.

[0062] For an action-based operation instruction that causes a typical operation such as rotation (spin), meandering, or sound output, the action processing unit 56 first obtains time-series control information associated with the action-based operation instruction and recorded in the storage 22. The action processing unit 56 controls at least one of the motor 25 and the speaker 26 based on the time-series control information. When the time-series control ends, the processing of the driving processing unit 55 is resumed.

[0063] An example of a process combining the process of the action processing unit 56 and the acquisition of the card type from a new card 30 will be described. FIGS. 11 and 12 are diagrams for explaining an example of the action of the moving object 20 with respect to a plurality of cards 30 arranged in a row. In the example of FIG. 11, two cards 30s are arranged with some overlapping. An identification pattern 72 indicating an action instruction for an action to produce a sound is printed on the cards 30s. In the example of FIG. 11, when the moving object 20 reads the identification pattern 72 on the left card 30s for the first time, a sound is output, and further, a sound is output on the right card 30s. By identifying whether the cards 30 are the same or not, it is possible to prevent a situation in which a sound is not output on the right card 30s.

[0064] In the example of FIG. 12, two cards 30h are arranged with some overlapping while changing direction. An identification pattern 72 indicating an action instruction for changing direction in the direction of the arrow is printed on the card 30h. In the example of FIG. 12, the moving object 20 changes direction with the first card 30h, and then changes direction with the second card 30h. Even in such a case, by identifying whether or not the cards 30 are the same, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the second change in direction is not made. Note that in the example of FIG. 12, it is theoretically possible to recognize the difference between the cards 30 from the angle, but since the angle also varies due to running, it is easier and more reliable to recognize using the surrounding area 32.

[0065] Next, a description will be given of details of the driving process by the driving processing unit 55. Fig. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the driving process by the driving processing unit 55. The process shown in Fig. 13 is executed periodically except during a stopped state and while an operation associated with an action process is being executed.

[0066] First, the driving processing unit 55 determines whether the brake state is set among the driving parameters (S201). If the brake state is set (Y in S201), a predetermined value is subtracted from the speed value stored as the driving parameter (S202). On the other hand, if the brake state is not set (N in S201), S202 is skipped.

[0067] If the speed value is 0 (Y in S203), the travel processing unit 55 stops the travel of the moving body 20 and transitions the state of the moving body 20 to a stopped state (S204).

[0068] On the other hand, if the speed value is not 0 (N in S203), the driving processing unit 55 determines the rotation speed of the left and right wheels 254 based on the current speed value and the steering wheel state parameters (S205). The driving processing unit 55 controls the rotation of the left and right motors 25 based on the determined rotation speed (S206).

[0069] In this embodiment, the two wheels 254 are driven by different motors 25, and therefore, by controlling the rotation speed of the wheels 254 (motors 25), the moving body 20 can be made to go straight, turn continuously to the right, or turn continuously to the left. When going straight, the difference in the rotation speed between the left and right is almost zero. When the moving body 20 includes a steering mechanism, the travel processing unit 55 may control the moving body 20 to go straight, turn right, or turn left by setting the orientation of some of the wheels 254.

[0070] In this way, by running according to the running parameters set by the card 30, it is possible to control the running device so that even if it moves away from the card 30, it continues to operate according to the operation instructions indicated by the previously read pattern 71 until a new pattern 71 is read as the mobile object 20 runs over a new card 30. Furthermore, by combining this with the use of the surrounding area 32 and not performing new control when the identification pattern 72 is read from the same card 30, it is possible to obtain information accurately from multiple cards and perform simple operations with fewer malfunctions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 20 mobile object, 21 processor, 22 storage, 23 communication unit, 24 camera, 25 motor, 26 speaker, 222 switch, 223 power switch, 254 wheels, 30, 30b, 30h, 30s card, 31 internal area, 32 peripheral area, 51 card information acquisition unit, 52 operation control unit, 53 card determination unit, 54 parameter update unit, 55 driving processing unit, 56 action processing unit, 71 pattern, 72 identification pattern, 73 peripheral pattern.

Claims

1. Contains a plurality of cards classified into a plurality of types; Each of the plurality of cards has a surface including an inner region and a peripheral region surrounding the inner region; A plurality of identification patterns which are photographed by a moving object traveling thereon and which indicate the type to which the card belongs are printed in the internal region of each of the plurality of cards, and no identification pattern which indicates any of the plurality of types is printed in the peripheral region of each of the plurality of cards. Card set.

2. 2. The card set of claim 1, The peripheral area is disposed on a periphery of each of the plurality of cards. Card set.

3. 3. The card set according to claim 1, A pattern that does not indicate any of the plurality of types is printed in the peripheral region. Card set.

4. 4. The card set according to claim 3, the plurality of identification patterns are disposed within the interior region; The plurality of peripheral patterns are arranged to surround the internal region. Card set.

5. A method for detecting a plurality of cards, the method comprising: Each of the plurality of cards has a surface including an inner region and a peripheral region surrounding the inner region; a plurality of identification patterns indicating the type to which the card belongs are printed in an internal region of each of the plurality of cards, and a peripheral pattern different from any of the patterns indicating the type is printed in a peripheral region of each of the plurality of cards; When any one of the plurality of identification patterns is photographed after the peripheral pattern is photographed by the camera, the operation of the moving object is controlled based on the photographed identification pattern. Toy system.

6. 6. The toy system according to claim 5, When the same identification pattern as the previous time is photographed by the camera, the operation of the moving object is not controlled based on the photographed identification pattern. Toy system.

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