Information reading device

Abstract

To provide a configuration capable of quickly starting non-contact communication processing according to an intension of a user allowing a non-contact communication medium to be read while suppressing starting of the non-contact communication processing against the intension of the user allowing information codes to be read.SOLUTION: A control unit 21 that receives a predetermined detection signal reported from a detection unit 24 that has detected an object held over a reading surface 12 notices an information code reading unit 30 of a first reading instruction, and, when receiving code absence information from the information code reading unit 30 according to the notification of the first reading instruction, notices a non-contact communication unit 40 of a second reading instruction. The information code reading unit 30, when receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit 21, determines whether or not a current state is a code imaging state where information codes are imaged by an imaging unit 31 in a readable manner, and, when determining that the state is not the code imaging state, notifies the control unit 21 of the code absence information. The non-contact communication unit 40, when receiving a second reading instruction from the control unit 21, starts non-contact communication processing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information reading device that reads both an information code and a contactless communication medium.

Background Art

[0002] The use of QR codes (registered trademarks) and contactless IC cards (hereinafter also simply referred to as IC cards) has become widespread as train tickets and boarding passes for airplanes. For this reason, reading devices that can read both QR codes and IC cards are adopted at ticket barriers, boarding gates, and the like.

[0003] As an information reading device that reads both an information code such as a QR code and a contactless communication medium such as an IC card as described above, for example, an automatic ticket gate disclosed in Patent Document 1 below is known. In this automatic ticket gate, a reading surface of a code reader and a reading surface of an IC card reader / writer are arranged side by side in the passage direction at one end of the upper surface of the housing, and a proximity sensor capable of detecting that an IC card is presented to the IC card reader / writer is installed with respect to the reading surface of the IC card reader / writer. Then, when the reading by the code reader fails and a response to polling is received, and then the proximity sensor detects that an IC card has been presented to the IC card reader / writer, the reading process of the IC card by the IC card reader / writer is executed. Thereby, a passage control process is realized in which an IC card that is not intentionally presented by the user is not read.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In an information reading device that reads both an information code and a non-contact communication medium, for the purpose of saving space and improving convenience, it is desirable to make the reading surface for reading the information code and the reading surface for reading the non-contact communication medium the same or close to each other.

[0006] On the other hand, QR codes and the like are often displayed on the screen of a mobile terminal such as a smartphone by an application instead of on a paper ticket. Many of these mobile terminals are also equipped with a non-contact communication function, and there are also mobile terminals that automatically shift to a processing screen for non-contact communication during the reading process of the non-contact communication medium.

[0007] Then, when trying to hold the display screen of the information code displayed on a mobile terminal with the above functions over the reading surface of an information reading device that reads both the information code and the non-contact communication medium on the same reading surface, contrary to the user's intention, the display screen automatically switches to the processing screen for non-contact communication, and there is a problem that the information code cannot be read. In particular, since the display screen of the information code is held over the reading surface with the screen facing downward, there is a problem that the user does not notice that the screen has switched to the processing screen for non-contact communication. In the automatic ticket gate disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, since the reading surface of the code reader and the reading surface of the IC card reader / writer are completely separated, the above problems do not occur.

[0008] The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a configuration capable of quickly starting non-contact communication processing according to the intention of the user who wants to read the non-contact communication medium while suppressing the start of non-contact communication processing contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] To achieve the above object, the present invention An information code reading unit (30) that performs an information code reading process for imaging and reading an information code (51) held over a reading surface (12), A non-contact communication unit (40) that performs non-contact communication processing for reading information recorded on a non-contact communication medium (52) held over the reading surface by non-contact communication; A detection unit (24, 31) capable of detecting an object held over the reading surface; A control unit (21) that controls the information code reading unit and the non-contact communication unit; An information reading device (10) comprising: The detection unit notifies the control unit of a predetermined detection signal by detecting an object held over the reading surface; Upon receiving the predetermined detection signal from the detection unit, the control unit notifies the information code reading unit of a first reading instruction, and upon receiving code absence information from the information code reading unit in response to the notification of the first reading instruction, notifies the non-contact communication unit of a second reading instruction; The information code reading unit: An imaging unit (31) for imaging an information code held over the reading surface; A determination unit that determines whether or not it is a code imaging state in which an information code is imaged by the imaging unit so as to be readable upon receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit; Comprises: When the determination unit determines that it is not in the code imaging state, it notifies the control unit of the code absence information; The non-contact communication unit starts the non-contact communication processing upon receiving the second reading instruction from the control unit. Note that the reference numerals in each of the above parentheses indicate the correspondence with the specific means described in the embodiments described later.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] In the present invention, a control unit that receives a predetermined detection signal notified from a detection unit that has detected an object held over a reading surface notifies a first reading instruction to an information code reading unit, and upon receiving code absence information from the information code reading unit in response to the notification of the first reading instruction, notifies a second reading instruction to a non-contact communication unit. The information code reading unit determines, by a determination unit, whether or not it is in a code imaging state in which an information code is imaged so as to be readable by an imaging unit upon receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit. When the determination unit determines that it is not in the code imaging state, the information code reading unit notifies the control unit of the code absence information. The non-contact communication unit starts non-contact communication processing upon receiving the second reading instruction from the control unit.

[0011] Accordingly, when a mobile terminal or the like is held over the reading surface, if the information code is not imaged so as to be readable, the non-contact communication processing is not started, so that the non-contact communication processing is not started contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code. In particular, the information code reading unit notifies the control unit of the code absence information when it is determined by the determination unit that it is not in the code imaging state with respect to the control unit that has received the first reading instruction. Therefore, compared with the case where the code absence information is notified in response to the failure of the information code reading process, the code absence information can be notified more quickly. That is, it is possible to quickly shift from the state of reading the information code to the state of reading the non-contact communication medium. Therefore, it is possible to quickly start the non-contact communication process according to the intention of the user who wants to read the non-contact communication medium while suppressing the non-contact communication process from being started contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code.

[0012] After receiving the first reading instruction, the determination unit may determine that it is not in the code imaging state when the state in which the characteristic pattern of the information code is not imaged continues.

[0013] Accordingly, even if the feature pattern is not temporarily captured due to the influence of ambient light or the like while the information code is being held up, it will not be erroneously determined that the code is not being imaged immediately. Also, even when the feature pattern of the information code is being imaged, it will not be determined that the code is not being imaged. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably suppress the start of non-contact communication processing against the intention of the user who is supposed to read the information code.

[0014] The determination unit may determine that the code is not being imaged when it is considered that the object is stationary based on the difference between the captured images continuously captured by the imaging unit.

[0015] Accordingly, even if a pattern or the like attached to the non-contact communication medium is erroneously detected as the feature pattern of the information code, when the non-contact communication medium is in a stationary state, it is determined that the code is not being imaged. Therefore, it is possible to solve the problem that non-contact communication processing is not started due to the above-described erroneous detection.

[0016] The detection unit may detect that an object is held over the reading surface based on the difference between the captured images continuously captured by the imaging unit.

[0017] Accordingly, without adopting a separate component such as a proximity sensor, the function of the imaging unit included in the information code reading unit can be also used as the detection unit, so that the apparatus can be simplified by reducing the number of components and the like.

[0018] When the information code reading unit is determined by the determination unit to be in the code imaging state, the information code reading process may be started.

[0019] Accordingly, the information code reading process is not unnecessarily executed until it is clear that the information code is not held over the reading surface, so that the processing load can be reduced and power consumption can be saved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021] [First Embodiment] Hereinafter, a first embodiment embodying an information reading device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the information reading device 10 according to the present embodiment is configured as a stationary type reading device that reads both an information code such as a QR code and a non-contact communication medium such as a non-contact IC card. In the present embodiment, the information reading device 10 is installed in a ticket gate or the like, and the upper surface of its housing 11 is used as a reading surface 12, and is configured to read the information of the information code held above the reading surface 12 or the information of the non-contact communication medium. Note that FIG. 1 illustrates a state in which the display screen of the mobile terminal 50 having both a display function for displaying an information code and a non-contact communication function is held above the reading surface 12.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 2, the information reading device 10 mainly includes a control unit 21 that controls overall operations, a storage unit 22 composed of a semiconductor memory or the like, and in addition, a notification unit 23 whose light emission state of a light emitting unit, a sounding state of a speaker, a ringing state of a buzzer, etc. are controlled by the control unit 21, a detection unit 24 for detecting an object (object to be read) held above the reading surface 12, a communication unit 25 for communicating with a host device or the like, and the like.

[0023] In the present embodiment, as the detection unit 24 for detecting an object held above the reading surface 12, a proximity sensor whose detection range is up to a specified distance above the reading surface 12 is adopted. When this proximity sensor detects a state where an object exists within the specified distance above the reading surface 12, it is configured to output a predetermined detection signal to the control unit 21. The specified distance above is set according to the distance to the information code that is assumed to be held above the reading surface 12.

[0024] The information reading device 10 also includes an information code reading unit 30 for optically reading an information code, and a non-contact communication unit 40 for reading information recorded on a non-contact communication medium such as a non-contact type IC card by non-contact communication. In FIG. 2, the information code is schematically illustrated by reference numeral 51, and the non-contact communication medium is schematically illustrated by reference numeral 52.

[0025] The information code reading unit 30 includes a CCD area sensor or the like that functions as an imaging unit 31. The imaging unit 31 is housed in the housing 11 so that the imaging range is above through a substantially rectangular reading port 13 formed at the center of the reading surface 12. The information code reading unit 30 is configured to perform an information code reading process of reading the information code imaged by the imaging unit 31 by being held above the reading surface 12 under the control of the control unit 21.

[0026] The non-contact communication unit 40 is configured to perform a non-contact communication process of reading from a non-contact communication medium held above the reading surface 12 by using an antenna 41 arranged to surround the reading port 13 (see FIG. 1) under the control of the control unit 21.

[0027] The information reading device 10 configured as described above functions to read information from a reading target when either an information code or a non-contact communication medium is held over the reading surface 12 by the information reading process performed by the control unit 21.

[0028] In particular, in the present embodiment, it is assumed that the display screen of the portable terminal 50 having both a display function for displaying an information code and a non-contact communication function is held over the reading surface 12. The determination processing unit of the information code reading unit 30 performs determination processing to determine whether or not the information code is imaged in a state where it can be read by the imaging unit 31 (hereinafter, also referred to as a code imaging state). That is, in order to perform reading in accordance with the user's intention, after confirming that it is not in the code imaging state, the non-contact communication process by the non-contact communication unit 40 is started. Note that the determination processing unit of the information code reading unit 30 that performs determination processing on whether or not it is in the code imaging state may correspond to an example of a "determination unit".

[0029] Specifically, the control unit 21 that has received the predetermined detection signal from the detection unit 24 that has detected an object held over the reading surface 12 notifies a first reading instruction as an instruction to cause the information code reading unit 30 to confirm whether or not it is in the code imaging state. When it is determined from the imaging result of the imaging unit 31 that the information code reading unit 30 that has received the first reading instruction is not in the code imaging state, the information code reading unit 30 notifies the control unit 21 of code absence information indicating that it is not in the code imaging state. The control unit 21 that has received the code absence information notifies a second reading instruction as an instruction to cause the non-contact communication unit 40 to start the non-contact communication process, and the non-contact communication unit 40 that has received this second reading instruction starts the non-contact communication process.

[0030] In particular, in this embodiment, in order to shorten the processing time until non-contact communication processing is started, it is determined that the code imaging state is not present by confirming that the feature pattern of the information code has not been imaged by the feature detection process for detecting the feature pattern of the information code, rather than the failure of the information code reading process. Since the information code reading process is mainly performed in the order of imaging process, feature detection process, mapping process, and decoding process, the determination of the code imaging state is made without performing the process after the feature detection process. Therefore, compared with the case where it is determined that the code imaging state is not present in response to the failure of the information code reading process, the shortening of the above-described processing time can be realized. As the above-described feature pattern of the information code, for example, in the case of a QR code, a position detection pattern (finder pattern) arranged at three corners can be adopted.

[0031] Hereinafter, the information reading process performed by the control unit 21 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 3 and the sequence diagram of FIG. 4, taking the case of reading an information code as an example. When the information reading process is started by the control unit 21, an information code reading start instruction is notified to the information code reading unit 30 (S101 in FIG. 3, F11 in FIG. 4). As a result, the information code reading unit 30 becomes capable of reading the information code held over the reading surface 12 (S102, F12). Then, in a state where a predetermined detection signal is not notified from the detection unit 24 as described later (No in S103), the state in which the information code reading unit 30 can read the information code is maintained.

[0032] Thereafter, when the display screen of the mobile terminal 50 displaying the information code is held over the reading surface 12 and the above-described predetermined detection signal is notified from the detection unit 24 that has detected the mobile terminal 50 (Yes in S103, F13), a first reading instruction is notified to the information code reading unit 30 (S104, F14). After the notification of this first reading instruction, the determination process of No is repeated in steps S105 and S106 until the above-described code absence information is received from the information code reading unit 30 or a reading result of successful decoding is received.

[0033] As described above, the information code is held over the reading surface 12, and the information code is imaged by the imaging unit 31 so as to be readable. When a decoding-successful reading result is received from the information code reading unit 30 (Yes in S106, F15), this information reading process ends.

[0034] Next, regarding the information reading process performed by the control unit 21, taking as an example the case of reading information by non-contact communication from the mobile terminal 50 that exhibits the non-contact communication function, it will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 3 and the sequence diagram of FIG. 5. As described above, when the display screen of the mobile terminal 50 displaying the information code is held over the reading surface 12 and a predetermined detection signal is notified from the detection unit 24 that has detected the mobile terminal 50 (Yes in S103 of FIG. 3, F13 of FIG. 5), a first reading instruction is notified to the information code reading unit 30 (S104, F14).

[0035] When the mobile terminal 50 that exhibits the non-contact communication function is held over the reading surface 12 as described above, since the characteristic pattern of the information code is not imaged by the imaging unit 31, code absence information is notified from the information code reading unit 30 (Yes in S105, F16).

[0036] In this case, a second reading instruction for starting non-contact communication processing is notified to the non-contact communication unit 40 (S107, F17). In the non-contact communication unit 40 that has received this second reading instruction, non-contact communication processing is started in order to read information by non-contact communication from the non-contact communication medium held over the reading surface 12 (F18). When this non-contact communication processing is successful and a reading result read by non-contact communication is received from the non-contact communication unit 40 (Yes in S108, F19), this information reading process ends.

[0037] As described above, in the information reading device 10 according to the present embodiment, the control unit 21 that has received a predetermined detection signal notified from the detection unit 24 that has detected an object held over the reading surface 12 notifies the information code reading unit 30 of a first reading instruction (S104). By receiving code absence information from the information code reading unit 30 in response to the notification of the first reading instruction (Yes in S105), the non-contact communication unit 40 is notified of a second reading instruction (S107). When the information code reading unit 30 receives the first reading instruction from the control unit 21, it determines whether or not it is in a code imaging state in which the imaging unit 31 can read the information code. If it is determined that it is not in the code imaging state, the information code reading unit 30 notifies the control unit 21 of the code absence information. The non-contact communication unit 40 starts non-contact communication processing upon receiving the second reading instruction from the control unit 21.

[0038] Accordingly, when the mobile terminal 50 or the like is held over the reading surface 12, if the information code is not imaged so that it can be read, the non-contact communication processing is started. Thus, the non-contact communication processing is not started contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code. In particular, the information code reading unit 30 notifies the control unit 21 of the code absence information when it is determined that it is not in the code imaging state with respect to the control unit 21 that has received the first reading instruction. Therefore, compared with the case where the code absence information is notified in response to the failure of the information code reading process, the code absence information can be notified more quickly. That is, it is possible to quickly shift from the state of reading the information code to the state of reading the non-contact communication medium. Therefore, it is possible to quickly start the non-contact communication process according to the intention of the user who wants to read the non-contact communication medium while suppressing the start of the non-contact communication process contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code.

[0039] Note that in the information reading process performed by the control unit 21, the information code reading process may be started not only by notifying the information code reading unit 30 of the information code reading start instruction at the start of the information reading process, but also by notifying the information code reading unit 30 of the information code reading start instruction after it is determined that it is in the code imaging state as described above.

[0040] As a result, even when the information code is clearly not over the reading surface 12, the unnecessary information code reading process is not executed, so that the processing load can be reduced and power can be saved.

[0041] [Second Embodiment] Next, the information reading apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the second embodiment, it is mainly different from the first embodiment in that when the state where the characteristic pattern of the information code is not imaged continues, it is determined that the code imaging state is not present. Therefore, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

[0042] When the information code is being held over the reading surface 12, the characteristic pattern may be temporarily not imaged by the imaging unit 31 due to the influence of external light or the like. If it is immediately determined that the code imaging state is not present in such a case, the non-contact communication process will be started contrary to the intention of the user who wants to read the information code.

[0043] Therefore, in the information code reading unit 30 in the present embodiment, in the information code confirmation process performed after receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit 21, when the state where the characteristic pattern of the information code is not imaged continues, it is determined that the code imaging state is not present.

[0044] Specifically, as in the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, after imaging by the imaging unit 31 (S201), when the characteristic pattern of the information code is not detected from the captured image (Yes in S202), the number of imaging times when the characteristic pattern is not continuously detected (hereinafter, also referred to as the code absence imaging number N) is incremented (N = N + 1). Then, when the incremented code absence imaging number N is less than the specified number (for example, 5 times) Nth (No in S204), the imaging process by the imaging unit 31 is performed again (S201), and it is determined whether the characteristic pattern is detected in the captured image.

[0045] Here, when the information code is held over the reading surface 12, the characteristic pattern of the information code is detected from the captured image (No in S202), so the number of imaging times N without the code is cleared (N = 0) (S205).

[0046] On the other hand, when the mobile terminal 50 that exhibits the non-contact communication function as described above is held over the reading surface 12, the state where the characteristic pattern of the information code is not detected from the captured image continues (Yes in S202). Then, when the incremented number of imaging times N without the code becomes equal to or greater than the specified number Nth (Yes in S204), the information without the code is notified to the control unit 21 (S206).

[0047] Thus, even if the characteristic pattern is temporarily not captured due to the influence of external light or the like while the information code is being held, it will not be erroneously determined that the code is not being imaged immediately. And even when the characteristic pattern of the information code is captured, it will not be determined that the code is not being imaged. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably suppress the start of non-contact communication processing contrary to the intention of the user who is supposed to read the information code.

[0048] Note that in the information code confirmation process performed by the information code reading unit 30, not only is the information without the code notified when the number of imaging times N without the code becomes equal to or greater than the specified number Nth and the state where the characteristic pattern of the information code is not captured continues, but for example, when the period during which the characteristic pattern of the information code is not captured becomes equal to or longer than a predetermined period, the information without the code may be notified assuming that the state where the characteristic pattern of the information code is not captured continues.

[0049] [Third Embodiment] Next, the information reading device according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the third embodiment, the main difference from the first embodiment is that when it is determined that the reading target (object) is stationary based on the difference between the captured images continuously captured by the imaging unit 31 of the information code reading unit 30 that has received the first reading instruction, it is determined that the code imaging state is not present. Therefore, the same reference numerals are assigned to the components that are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

[0050] The information code reading unit 30 that captures a pattern or the like attached to a non-contact communication medium such as an IC card by the imaging unit 31 may misdetect it as a characteristic pattern of the information code. In such a case, since it is not determined that the code imaging state is not present, the non-contact communication process is not started, and the state where the information code reading process fails continues.

[0051] Therefore, the information code reading unit 30 in the present embodiment determines that the code imaging state is not present when it is determined that the reading target (object) is stationary based on the difference between the captured images continuously captured by the imaging unit 31 in the information code confirmation process performed after receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit 21.

[0052] Specifically, as in the flowchart shown in FIG. 7, after imaging by the imaging unit 31 (S301), the difference from the previous captured image is calculated as the image difference (S302). Based on the calculated image difference, if it is determined that the reading target being imaged is not in a stationary state (No in S303), it is assumed that the object that can be the reading target is being held over the reading surface 12, and the imaging process by the imaging unit 31 is continued (S301).

[0053] Thereafter, when it is determined that the state is stationary because the calculated image difference becomes equal to or less than a predetermined threshold (Yes in S303), and if the information code reading process fails (No in S304), it is determined that there is no possibility of imaging the information code readable, and the code absence information is notified to the control unit 21 (S305).

[0054] Thus, even if a pattern or the like attached to the non-contact communication medium is erroneously detected as the characteristic pattern of the information code, when the non-contact communication medium is in a stationary state, it is determined that the code imaging state is not present. Therefore, the problem that the non-contact communication process is not started due to the above-described erroneous detection can be solved.

[0055] [Fourth Embodiment] Next, the information reading device according to the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the fourth embodiment, the main difference from the first embodiment is that it is detected that an object is held over the reading surface 12 based on the difference between the imaging images continuously captured by the imaging unit 31. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to substantially the same components as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

[0056] In this embodiment, the detection unit 24 is abolished, and by using the imaging result of the imaging unit 31 in the reading target detection process performed by the information code reading unit 30, a state in which an object that can be a reading target is held over the reading surface 12 is detected. That is, the imaging unit 31 and the like of the information code reading unit 30 function as a "detection unit" for detecting an object (reading target) held over the reading surface 12.

[0057] Specifically, as in the flowchart shown in FIG. 8, after imaging by the imaging unit 31 (S401), the difference from the previous imaging image is calculated as the image difference (S402). Based on the calculated image difference, as a result of determining whether an object that can be a reading target is imaged, if the image difference is not calculated or the calculated image difference is minute, it is assumed that the reading target is not detected (No in S403), and the imaging process by the imaging unit 31 is continued (S401).

[0058] Thereafter, when it is determined that an object that can be a reading target is imaged because the image difference is calculated to be equal to or greater than the specified value (Yes in S403), a detection signal corresponding to the predetermined detection signal is notified to the control unit 21 (S404).

[0059] As a result, without adopting separate components such as a proximity sensor, the function of the imaging unit 31 included in the information code reading unit 30 can be also used as a detection unit, so that the apparatus can be simplified by reducing the number of components and the like.

[0060] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and the like, and may be embodied as follows, for example. (1) The antenna 41 is not limited to being disposed so as to surround the reading port 13, and may be disposed in the vicinity of the reading port 13. That is, the reading surface for information code reading processing and the reading surface for non-contact communication medium are not limited to being configured as the same reading surface 12, and a part of the reading surface 12 may be configured to function as a reading surface for information code reading processing, and another part of the reading surface 12 may be configured to function as a reading surface for non-contact communication medium.

[0061] (2) The present invention is not limited to being adopted in the information reading apparatus 10 installed in a ticket gate or the like as described above, and may be adopted, for example, in a settlement terminal device installed at a POS register in a store to read settlement information from an information code and a non-contact communication medium or the like.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0062] 10 Information reading apparatus 12 Reading surface 13 Reading port 21 Control unit 24 Detection unit 30 Information code reading unit 31 Imaging unit 40 Non-contact communication unit 41 Antenna 51 Information code 52 Non-contact communication medium

Claims

1. An information code reading unit that performs information code reading processing for imaging and reading an information code held over a reading surface; A non-contact communication unit that performs non-contact communication processing for reading information recorded on a non-contact communication medium held over the reading surface by non-contact communication; A detection unit capable of detecting an object held over the reading surface; A control unit that controls the information code reading unit and the non-contact communication unit; An information reading apparatus comprising: The detection unit notifies the control unit of a predetermined detection signal by detecting an object held over the reading surface; Upon receiving the predetermined detection signal from the detection unit, the control unit notifies the information code reading unit of a first reading instruction, and upon receiving code absence information from the information code reading unit in response to the notification of the first reading instruction, notifies the non-contact communication unit of a second reading instruction; The information code reading unit An imaging unit for imaging an information code held over the reading surface; A determination unit that determines whether or not an information code is imaged in a code imaging state in which the imaging unit can read the information code upon receiving the first reading instruction from the control unit; Comprising: When the determination unit determines that it is not in the code imaging state, the determination unit notifies the control unit of the code absence information; The non-contact communication unit starts the non-contact communication processing upon receiving the second reading instruction from the control unit. An information reading apparatus characterized by this.

2. The information reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that it is not in the code imaging state when a state in which a characteristic pattern of the information code is not imaged continues after receiving the first reading instruction.

3. The information reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines that it is not in the code imaging state when the object is considered to be stationary based on a difference between imaging images continuously imaged by the imaging unit.

4. The information reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit detects that an object is held over the reading surface based on a difference between imaging images continuously imaged by the imaging unit.

5. The information reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information code reading unit starts the information code reading processing when the determination unit determines that it is in the code imaging state.

Images