Stand for information code reading device and information code reading system

Abstract

To provide a configuration that can easily execute attachment and detachment of an information code reading device, and can make constant the position of a reading area in a placed state.SOLUTION: A support part 120 supporting from below an intermediate part 19 between a reading part 12 and a grip part 13 of a reading device 10, is formed in accordance with the shape of the intermediate part 19 so as to prevent displacement of the reading device 10 in a direction different from predetermined displacement directions F1a, F1b in which the reading part 12 moves up and down. An opening 132 in an insertion and withdrawal part 130 into which the reading part 12 is inserted when the intermediate part 19 is supported by the support part 120, is formed so that gaps G for allowing displacement of the reading device 10 supported by the support part 120 at the intermediate part 19 are each interposed between at least part of the inserted reading part 12 and the opening. The insertion and withdrawal part 130 is provided with a regulation part 133 that is brought into contact from above with a top face 12a of the reading part 12 to regulate the displacement, in a placed state in which a reading port 14 of the reading device 10 supported by the support part 120 at the intermediate part 19 is directed to a prescribed reading area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 19

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a stand for a portable information code reader that optically reads information codes, and an information code reading system. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, in order to alleviate labor shortages and improve checkout efficiency, convenience stores, supermarkets, and other stores are increasingly adopting self-checkouts that customers can operate themselves, in addition to the cash registers operated by store clerks. The scanners (handheld scanners) at the cash registers operated by store clerks are portable to enable smoother reading operations, and are operated by pointing the reading port of the handheld scanner toward the barcode of the product. On the other hand, the scanners (fixed scanners) at the self-checkouts operated by customers are fixed to enable reliable reading operations even for inexperienced customers, and are operated by pointing the barcode of the product toward the reading port of the fixed scanner.

[0003] In response to this, in order to use a scanner that can be used as both a portable and a stationary type, it is possible to operate a portable scanner while it is placed on a stand. For example, the stand for an optical information reader disclosed in Patent Document 1 below has a roughly box-shaped device holder with a bottom having a through-hole that exposes the inside of the reading port to the outside, and a holding structure is adopted in which the device holder and the reading unit are engaged to hold the optical information reader. With this holding structure, the optical information reader that can be used as a portable type can be used as a stationary type by facing its reading port downward. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4951744 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Incidentally, when an information code reading device is used both as a portable type that is carried around and as a fixed type that is placed on a stand, in an environment where the device is frequently switched between use as a portable type and as a fixed type, not only is it required that the position of the reading area be constant when the device is placed on the stand, but it is also required that the information code reading device be easy to attach and detach from the stand.

[0006] However, the above-mentioned optical information reading device stand has a holding structure in which the reading unit is held in an engaged state by a device holding unit having a substantially box-like shape, so even if the position of the reading area can be kept constant when the device is placed on the stand, there is a problem that it is not easy to attach and detach the optical information reading device to and from the stand. On the other hand, if a holding structure that allows easy attachment and detachment is adopted, the position of the reading port is likely to deviate from the specified position depending on the holding state, so there is a problem that the position of the reading area when the device is placed on the stand is not constant.

[0007] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a configuration that allows the information code reading device to be easily attached and detached, and that can keep the position of the reading area constant when the device is placed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention is to A stand (100, 100a, 300) for an information code reader (10, 10a) comprising a reading section (12) provided with a reading port (14) for taking in reflected light from an information code and a grip section (13) to be gripped when carried, a support portion (120, 320) that supports an intermediate portion (19) between the reading portion and the gripping portion from below; an insertion / removal section (130, 330) having an opening (132, 332) through which the reading section is inserted when the intermediate section is supported by the support section; Equipped with the support portion is formed to match the shape of the intermediate portion so as to suppress displacement of the information code reader in a direction different from a predetermined displacement direction (F1a, F1b) in which the reading portion moves up and down, the opening is formed so that a gap (G) for allowing displacement of the information code reader supported at the intermediate portion by the support portion is interposed between the opening and at least a part of the reading portion when inserted, The insertion / removal section is characterized in that, when the information code reading device is placed with the reading port facing a predetermined reading area and the intermediate section is supported by the support section, a regulating section (133, 333) is provided which abuts against the upper surface (12a) of the reading section from above to regulate displacement.

[0009] Another aspect of the present invention is An information code reading system (1) comprising the stand (100b, 100c, 100d, 100e) according to claim 1 and the information code reader (10, 10d) that can be placed on the stand, The table is provided with predetermined pattern shapes (152, 153) at positions that are within the imaging range of the information code reader in the above-mentioned placed state, The information code reader is a predetermined function is different between a placed mode for performing a reading process of optically reading the information code in the placed state and a portable mode for performing the reading process in the portable state, an imaging unit (23) that images the information code through the reading port; a reading processing unit (40) that performs the reading process on the information code imaged by the imaging unit; a mode switching unit that performs a mode switching process of switching to the portable mode when the predetermined pattern shape is not imaged by the imaging unit, and switching to the placed mode when the predetermined pattern shape is imaged by the imaging unit; The present invention is characterized by comprising:

[0010] Another aspect of the present invention is An information code reading system (1a) comprising the stand (500) according to claim 1 and the information code reader (10b, 10c) that can be placed on the stand, The stand is a covering portion (530, 530a) that covers at least a part of one surface (12a) of the reading portion when the information code reading device is placed; The information code reader is a predetermined function is different between a placed mode for performing a reading process of optically reading the information code in the placed state and a portable mode for performing the reading process in the portable state, a capacitive touch sensor (42a, 42b) provided on the one surface; a control unit (40) that performs a predetermined process in accordance with the detection result of the touch sensor; Equipped with a portion of the covering portion that is in proximity to or in contact with the touch sensor in the placed state is formed of a conductive member; The control unit switches the mode of the reading process to either the placed mode or the portable mode based on the detection result of the touch sensor. The symbols in parentheses above indicate the correspondence with the specific means described in the embodiments to be described later. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] In the present invention, a support portion that supports an intermediate portion between the reading portion and the grip portion of the information code reader from below is formed to match the shape of the intermediate portion so as to suppress displacement of the information code reader in a direction different from a predetermined displacement direction in which the reading portion moves up and down. The opening of the insertion / removal portion, into which the reading portion is inserted when the intermediate portion is supported by the support portion, is formed so that a gap is interposed between at least a part of the reading portion when inserted, to allow displacement of the information code reader supported at the intermediate portion by the support portion. The insertion / removal portion is provided with a restricting portion that abuts against the upper surface of the reading portion from above to restrict displacement when the information code reader, whose intermediate portion is supported by the support portion, is in a placed state in which the reading port faces a predetermined reading area.

[0012] In this way, a gap is provided between the reading unit inserted into the opening of the insertion / removal section and the opening, and the support section and the opening are configured to allow displacement of the information code reader in the predetermined displacement direction. This not only allows the information code reader to be roughly placed on the stand, but also allows the information code reader to be easily removed from the stand simply by displacing the reading unit away from the restricting section, thereby realizing a stand that allows for easy attachment and detachment of the information code reader. Furthermore, when the information code reader supported at its intermediate portion by the support section is displaced upward due to its own weight caused by storing a power supply unit or the like in the grip section, the upper surface of the reading unit abuts against the restricting section, thereby restricting displacement and placing the information code reader on the stand. In this manner, when the restricting section abuts against the upper surface of the reading unit, displacement of the reading port toward the predetermined reading area is restricted, thereby realizing a stand that allows the position of the reading area to be constant in the placed state. Therefore, it is possible to realize a stand that allows the information code reader to be easily attached and detached and that can keep the position of the reading area constant when the information code reader is placed on the stand.

[0013] The restricting portion may be a part of the edge portion that defines the opening.

[0014] The restricting portion may be formed to match the shape of the upper surface of the reading portion so as to guide the abutting reading portion toward the specified position. In this way, even if the reading portion abuts against the restricting portion on the upper surface of the reading portion when the information code reader is roughly placed and the reading portion is slightly displaced from the specified position, the restricting portion guides the reading portion so as to eliminate the displacement, thereby reliably keeping the position of the reading area constant when placed.

[0015] The insertion / removal portion may be formed so that an opening is provided on the inside of a ring-shaped portion that is wide in the insertion / removal direction in which the reading portion is inserted and removed.

[0016] The restriction portion may be a part of the ring-shaped portion.

[0017] At least a part of the ring-shaped portion may be formed to widen outward so that the opening area becomes larger toward the front in the insertion / removal direction. This makes the opening appear larger toward the front when viewed from the user placing the information code reader, making it easier to insert the reading unit into the opening and allowing the information code reader to be placed more roughly on the stand.

[0018] The support portion and the intermediate portion may each be provided with a positioning magnet, thereby utilizing the magnetic force of the two magnets to more accurately position the information code reader relative to the stand.

[0019] A guide portion for indicating the reading area may be provided, which is arranged so as to expose the reading port on the reading direction side of the reading port that faces the predetermined reading area by supporting the intermediate portion with the support portion and abutting the upper surface of the reading portion of the restricting portion, so that the user can easily recognize the reading area of ​​the information code reader by the guide portion even when the information code reader is used by being placed on a stand.

[0020] The insertion / removal unit may be provided with a second restriction part for restricting displacement that abuts against a surface different from the top surface of the reading unit or faces across a gap when the unit is placed. In this way, even if the information code reading device attempts to tilt so that the gripping unit is lifted due to the application of force via a communication / power supply cable attached to the gripping unit, the reading unit abuts against the second restriction part provided on the base, thereby restricting the tilting, and thus preventing the reading area from shifting position when the unit is placed.

[0021] A predetermined pattern shape may be provided at a position within the imaging range of the information code reader in the placed state, so that when the predetermined pattern shape is imaged, the information code reader can recognize that the information code reader is placed on a stand on which the predetermined pattern shape is provided.

[0022] In the information code reading system of the present invention, a predetermined pattern shape is provided on the stand at a position within the imaging range of the information code reading device when placed on the stand, and the information code reading device has different predetermined functions between a placed mode for performing reading processing when placed on the stand and a portable mode for performing reading processing when carried on the stand, and a mode switching process is performed by the mode switching unit to switch to the portable mode when the predetermined pattern shape is not imaged by the imaging unit and to switch to the placed mode when the predetermined pattern shape is imaged.

[0023] As a result, when the information code reader is placed on the stand, a predetermined pattern shape provided on the stand is imaged by the imaging unit of the information code reader, and the placed state or the carried state can be estimated based on the image capture result of the imaging unit. Therefore, the information code reader can automatically switch the mode in the reading process to the placed mode when estimating the placed state, and switch the mode in the reading process to the carried mode when estimating the carried state, without performing a separate operation for mode switching, etc.

[0024] The predetermined pattern shape may include a near-distance side shape that is closer to the illumination unit of the information code reader in the placed state, and a far-distance side shape that is farther from the illumination unit of the information code reader in the placed state. In this way, the near-distance side shape is imaged brighter than the far-distance side shape in the placed state, and therefore the contrast of the image of the predetermined pattern shape is increased, thereby improving the detection accuracy of the predetermined pattern shape.

[0025] The reading unit may be provided with a second pattern shape that is within the imaging range of the imaging unit and that is interposed between the imaging unit and a predetermined pattern shape when the reading unit is placed on the table, and in the mode switching process, the reading unit may be switched to portable mode in a state where the predetermined pattern shape is not imaged by the imaging unit but the second pattern shape is imaged, and then switched to placed mode in a state where the predetermined pattern shape is imaged.

[0026] As a result, in the placed state, at least a part of the second pattern shape is hidden by the predetermined pattern shape and is not imaged, so that the carried state can be estimated when the second pattern shape is imaged, and the placed state can be estimated when the predetermined pattern shape is imaged. Therefore, the estimation accuracy can be improved compared to when the placed state or the carried state is estimated based on whether the predetermined pattern shape is imaged.

[0027] In the mode switching process, the mode may be switched to the placement mode in a state where neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is imaged by the imaging section.

[0028] The information code reading device may include an alarm unit that notifies the user that the information code reading device is not placed correctly on the stand when neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is captured by the imaging unit.

[0029] Since the second pattern shape is imaged in the portable state and the predetermined pattern shape is imaged in the properly placed state, when neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is imaged, it is presumed that the information code reading device is not properly placed on the stand. Therefore, when neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is imaged, the notification unit notifies the user that the information code reading device is not properly placed on the stand, thereby urging the user who receives the notification to reset the information code reading device.

[0030] One side surface constituting at least a part of the side surface facing the imaging unit of the predetermined pattern shape may be formed so that a normal line from a predetermined base point on the one side surface bisects the angle formed by a line connecting the predetermined base point and the illumination unit of the information code reading device and a line connecting the predetermined base point and the imaging unit of the information code reading device.

[0031] This makes it easier for the one side of the specified pattern shape to be imaged in a specularly reflected state by the illumination light from the illumination unit, thereby increasing the contrast of the image of the specified pattern shape and improving the detection accuracy of the specified pattern shape.

[0032] The stand is provided with a predetermined identification marking that cannot be captured by an information code reading device that is correctly placed on the stand, but is captured by an information code reading device that is not correctly placed on the stand, and the information code reading device may be provided with an alarm unit that alerts the user that the information code reading device is not correctly placed on the stand when the predetermined identification marking is captured by the imaging unit.

[0033] As a result, when the imaging unit captures an image of a predetermined identification mark, that is, when it is estimated that the information code reading device is not placed correctly on the stand, the notification unit notifies the user of the fact (that the information code reading device is not placed correctly on the stand), thereby urging the user or the like who receives the notification to reset the information code reading device.

[0034] In the information code reading system according to the present invention, the base includes a covering portion that covers at least a portion of one surface of the reading portion when the base is placed, and the information code reader has different predetermined functions between a placed mode for performing a reading process when the base is placed and a portable mode for performing a reading process when the base is carried, and includes a capacitive touch sensor provided on the one surface, and a control portion that performs predetermined processing in accordance with the detection result of the touch sensor. The covering portion has a portion that comes close to or into contact with the touch sensor when the base is placed, and is made of a conductive material, and the control portion switches the mode of the reading process between the placed mode and the portable mode based on the detection result of the touch sensor.

[0035] As a result, when the information code reader is placed on the stand, the portion formed by the conductive member of the covering portion comes close to or into contact with the touch sensor, so that the placed state or the portable state can be estimated based on the detection result of the touch sensor. Therefore, the information code reader can automatically switch the mode in the reading process to the placed mode when estimating the placed state, and switch the mode in the reading process to the portable mode when estimating the portable state, without performing a separate operation for mode switching, etc.

[0036] When the control unit detects from the touch sensor that a conductor facing state in which a conductor is close to or in contact with the touch sensor and facing the touch sensor has continued for a certain period of time, the control unit may switch the mode of the reading process to a placed mode and continue performing the reading process as the specified process, and when the control unit does not detect from the touch sensor that the conductor facing state has continued for the certain period of time, the control unit may switch the mode of the reading process to a portable mode and perform the reading process as the specified process every time a touch operation time shorter than the certain period of time is detected.

[0037] This allows a single touch sensor to be used for both mode switching and starting the reading process in portable mode, thereby reducing the number of parts and making the information code reading device, which can automatically switch modes in the reading process, smaller and lighter.

[0038] A plurality of touch sensors are arranged on the one surface, and when the detection results of the touch sensors indicate that a conductor facing state in which a conductor is close to or in contact with the touch sensor and facing the touch sensor is detected by all of the touch sensors, the control unit switches the mode of the reading process to a placed mode and continues to perform the reading process as the specified process, and when the detection results of the touch sensors indicate that a conductor facing state is not detected by at least one of the touch sensors, the control unit switches the mode of the reading process to a portable mode and performs the reading process as the specified process every time a conductor facing state is detected by any one of the touch sensors.

[0039] By using each of the multiple touch sensors as a trigger switch, an information code reading device can be realized that can automatically switch modes in the reading process, even when the reading process is started by touching any one of the multiple touch sensors while the device is in a portable state.

[0040] The covering portion may be formed of a flat conductive member, so that the front side of the covering portion, which covers the reading portion on the back side when the information code reader is placed, can be used as a wall surface for notifying information to be notified to a user or the like who uses the information code reader in the placed state.

[0041] The information code reader may include a notification unit that notifies the result of the mode change during the reading process. This allows a user or the like who receives the notification from the notification unit to easily understand the result of the mode change during the reading process. Therefore, for example, if the information code reader is not properly placed on the stand, the notification of the change to the placed mode is not made, and the user or the like can be prompted to reposition the information code reader. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0042] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a reading device is placed on a stand according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] 2 is a perspective view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 1, seen from a different direction. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a front view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 2 is a top view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a side view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 1. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the reading device of FIG. 1 as seen from below. [Figure 7] 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic example of the electrical configuration of the reading device of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 1. [Figure 9] 9 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 8, seen from a different direction. [Figure 10] FIG. 9 is a front view of the stand in FIG. 8. [Figure 11] FIG. 9 is a top view of the stand in FIG. 8. [Figure 12] FIG. 9 is a side view of the stand in FIG. 8. [Figure 13] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the table body of FIG. 8. [Figure 14] 14 is a perspective view of the stand body of FIG. 13 as viewed from a different direction. [Figure 15] FIG. 14 is a front view of the stand body of FIG. 13. [Figure 16] FIG. 14 is a top view of the table body of FIG. 13. [Figure 17] FIG. 14 is a side view of the stand body of FIG. 13. [Figure 18] FIG. 14 is a rear view of the stand main body of FIG. 13. [Figure 19] 19A and 19B are explanatory diagrams illustrating the displacement direction of the reading device when the intermediate part is supported by the support part, where FIG. 19A shows the displacement state immediately after insertion when the reading part is not abutting the regulating part, and FIG. 19B shows the placed state in which the reading part has been displaced so as to abut against the regulating part. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which a reading device is placed on a stand according to a second embodiment. [Figure 21] 21 is a perspective view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 20, seen from a different direction. [Figure 22] 21 is a front view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 20. FIG. [Figure 23] 21 is a top view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 20. FIG. [Figure 24] 21 is a side view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 20. FIG. [Figure 25] FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 20. [Figure 26] FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 25, seen from a different direction. [Figure 27] FIG. 26 is a front view of the stand in FIG. 25. [Figure 28] FIG. 26 is a top view of the stand in FIG. 25. [Figure 29]FIG. 26 is a side view of the stand in FIG. 25. [Figure 30] FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the table body of FIG. 25. [Figure 31] 31 is a perspective view of the stand body of FIG. 30 as seen from a different direction. [Figure 32] FIG. 31 is a front view of the stand body of FIG. 30. [Figure 33] 31 is a top view of the table main body of FIG. 30. FIG. [Figure 34] 31 is a side view of the stand body of FIG. 30. FIG. [Figure 35] 31 is a rear view of the stand main body of FIG. 30. FIG. [Figure 36] FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the guide portion of FIG. 25 as viewed from the stand main body side. [Figure 37] 37A and 37B are explanatory diagrams illustrating the main parts of the stand and reading device according to the third embodiment, where FIG. 37A illustrates the position of the magnet provided in the reading device in a side view, and FIG. 37B illustrates the position of the magnet provided in the stand in a top view. [Figure 38] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which a reading device is placed on a stand in an information code reading system according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 39] 39 is a perspective view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 38, seen from a different direction. [Figure 40] FIG. 39 is a front view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 38. [Figure 41] FIG. 39 is a top view of the reading device and the stand in FIG. 38. [Figure 42] FIG. 39 is a side view of the reading device and the stand of FIG. 38. [Figure 43] FIG. 39 is a top view of the reading device of FIG. 38. [Figure 44] FIG. 39 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic example of the electrical configuration of the reading device of FIG. 38. [Figure 45] FIG. 39 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 38. [Figure 46] FIG. 39 is a perspective view of the stand of FIG. 38, seen from a different direction. [Figure 47] FIG. 39 is a front view of the stand in FIG. 38. [Figure 48] FIG. 39 is a top view of the stand in FIG. 38. [Figure 49] FIG. 39 is a side view of the stand in FIG. 38. [Figure 50] FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a main part of a stand in an information code reading system according to a first modified example of the fourth embodiment. [Figure 51] FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a main part of a stand in an information code reading system according to a second modified example of the fourth embodiment. [Figure 52] FIG. 52 is a top view of the reading device and the stand in FIG. 51. [Figure 53] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a main part of a reading device in an information code reading system according to a fifth embodiment. [Figure 54] 54A and 54B are explanatory diagrams showing the main parts of an information code reading system according to a modified example of the fifth embodiment, in which FIG. 54A illustrates an example in which the monitoring frequency of the touch sensor for mode switching determination is the same as the monitoring frequency of the touch sensor for operation, and FIG. 54B illustrates an example in which the monitoring frequency of the touch sensor for mode switching determination is lower than the monitoring frequency of the touch sensor for operation. [Figure 55] 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which a force acting on the gripping portion via a cable causes the reading portion to tilt so as to be pressed down. FIG. [Figure 56] FIG. 13 is a top view of a stand main body, which is a main part of a stand according to a sixth embodiment. [Figure 57] FIG. 57 is a bottom view of the stand body of FIG. 56. [Figure 58] FIG. 13 is a perspective view illustrating a portion of a reading device that is contacted from below by a regulating portion of a stand main body according to a sixth embodiment. [Figure 59] FIG. 13 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a restricting portion of a table main body according to a sixth embodiment abuts against a side end surface of a reading device from below. [Figure 60] FIG. 13 is a top view of a stand main body, which is a main part of a stand according to a seventh embodiment. [Figure 61] 61 is a bottom view of the stand body of FIG. 60. FIG. [Figure 62] FIG. 61 is a rear view of the stand body of FIG. 60. [Figure 63] 61 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section corresponding to X3-X3 of the stand main body shown in FIG. 60. [Figure 64] 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the positional relationship between the imaging range of a reading device placed on a stand according to the seventh embodiment and an extension piece provided on the stand body. FIG. [Figure 65] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of a stand body, which is a main part of a stand according to a modified example of the seventh embodiment. [Figure 66] 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the positional relationship between the imaging range of a reading device placed on a stand according to a modified example of the seventh embodiment and an extension piece and a wall portion provided on the stand main body. FIG. [Figure 67] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a main part of a reading device according to an eighth embodiment. [Figure 68] Figure 68(A) is an explanatory diagram illustrating an imaging state in which the recess is imaged as a second pattern shape when the device is held in a portable state, and Figure 68(B) is an explanatory diagram illustrating an imaging state in which the two extension pieces are imaged to hide part of the recess when the device is placed in a placed state. [Figure 69] 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the positional relationship between the imaging range of a reading device placed on a stand according to an eighth embodiment, a recess provided on the tip side of the reading device, and an extension piece provided on the stand main body. FIG. [Figure 70] 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an image capturing state in which both extension pieces are imaged shifted from the specified positions in an indefinite state. FIG. [Figure 71] 13 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of a mode switching process performed by a control unit in the eighth embodiment. [Figure 72] FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically illustrating a main part of an information code reading system according to a ninth embodiment. [Figure 73] 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the positional relationship between the imaging range of a reading device placed on a stand according to a tenth embodiment and a symbol provided on a fixed part of the stand body. FIG. [Figure 74] 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the positional relationship between the imaging range of a reading device placed incorrectly on a stand according to a tenth embodiment and a symbol provided on a fixed part of the stand body. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0043] [First embodiment] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of an information code reading device stand and an information code reading system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 5 is configured to include a portable information code reader (hereinafter also referred to as reader 10) that performs a reading process to optically read information codes such as one-dimensional codes and two-dimensional codes, and a stand 100 on which the reader 10 can be placed. Here, examples of one-dimensional codes include so-called barcodes such as JAN codes, EAN codes, UPC codes, ITF codes, Code39 codes, Code128 codes, and NW-7 codes. Examples of two-dimensional codes include rectangular information codes such as QR codes (registered trademark), data matrix codes, maxicodes, and Aztec codes.

[0044] The reading device 10 is provided with a placed mode in which reading processing is performed in a placed state in which the device is placed on the stand 100, and a portable mode in which reading processing is performed in a portable state. The placed mode is a mode in which reading processing is performed on the premise that an operation to point the information code toward the reading port of the reading device 10 in a placed state is performed, assuming that customers who are unfamiliar with the operation will be operating the device. The portable mode is a mode in which reading processing is performed on the premise that an operation to point the reading port of the reading device 10 toward the information code is performed, assuming that store clerks who are familiar with the operation will be operating the device. The placed mode and the portable mode have different predetermined functions, which will be described later.

[0045] The outer shell of the reading device 10 is formed by a housing 11 constructed by assembling an upper case 11a and a lower case 11b made of synthetic resin such as ABS resin, and a circuit section 20 made of various electrical components and the like is mounted on a circuit board or the like and housed within this housing 11. The housing 11 is equipped with a reading section 12 having a reading opening 14 that takes in reflected light from the information code and introduces it inside and a protective section 15 that protects this reading opening 14, and a gripping section 13 that is gripped when carrying the device in portable mode with the reading opening 14 facing the information code.

[0046] When the longitudinal direction of the grip portion 13 is horizontal, the reading unit 12 is connected to the grip portion 13 via an intermediate portion 19 so that it extends diagonally downward from one longitudinal end of the grip portion 13, with the reading opening 14 and the protective portion 15 located at the extended end. That is, the intermediate portion 19 between the reading unit 12 and the grip portion 13 forms the housing 11 with one end where the reading opening 14 and the protective portion 15 are formed in a bent shape that tilts significantly forward toward the rear surface. The cross section of the intermediate portion 19 cut in the vertical direction is approximately elliptical, and the intermediate portion 19 is curved so as to be convex downward. This makes it easy for the user to point the reading opening 14 toward the information code when holding the grip portion 13 with their fingertips from the upper case 11a side in the portable mode.

[0047] As shown in Fig. 6, protective part 15 covers reading opening 14 from above while leaving a wide opening at the bottom, and is formed so that it becomes thinner in the vertical direction toward the tip and wider in the left-right direction relative to grip part 13. The tip of protective part 15 is formed by a black rubber tip 16. As a result, during touch reading in portable mode, the information code is read with rubber tip 16 in contact with the display surface on which the information code is displayed. In addition, a cable attachment part 18 for holding a communication / power supply cable 17 is formed on the other end side of housing 11 (the other longitudinal side of grip part 13).

[0048] Next, the electrical configuration of the reading device 10 will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figure 7, the circuit section 20 housed in the housing 11 mainly includes an optical system such as an illumination section 21, a marker light irradiation section 22, a light receiving sensor 23, and an imaging lens 25, as well as a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as "microcomputer") system such as a memory 35 and a control section 40.

[0049] The optical system is divided into a light-projecting optical system and a light-receiving optical system. The light-projecting optical system is composed of an illumination unit 21 and a marker light irradiation unit 22. The illumination unit 21 functions as an illumination light source capable of emitting illumination light Lf, and is composed of, for example, a red LED and a lens provided on the output side of the LED.

[0050] The marker light emitting unit 22 functions as a marker light source capable of emitting marker light Lm to indicate an imaging area (imaging field of view) using the light receiving sensor 23, and is configured, for example, with an LED and a lens provided on the output side of the LED. Note that Fig. 7 conceptually shows an example in which illumination light Lf and marker light Lm are irradiated toward a display surface R to which an information code C is attached.

[0051] The light receiving optical system is composed of a light receiving sensor 23, an imaging lens 25, a reflecting mirror (not shown), etc. The light receiving sensor 23 is configured as an area sensor in which light receiving elements, which are solid-state imaging devices such as C-MOS or CCD, are arranged two-dimensionally, and is configured to output an electrical signal corresponding to the intensity of reflected light Lr for each light receiving element. The light receiving sensor 23 is mounted on a circuit board or the like so as to be able to receive incident light that enters through the imaging lens 25.

[0052] The imaging lens 25 functions as an imaging optical system that can collect incident light that enters from the outside through the reading port 14 and form an image on the light-receiving surface 23a of the light-receiving sensor 23. In this embodiment, after the illumination light Lf, etc. emitted from the illumination unit 21 is reflected by the information code, the reflected light Lr is collected by the imaging lens 25 and a code image is formed on the light-receiving surface 23a of the light-receiving sensor 23.

[0053] The microcomputer system is composed of an amplifier circuit 31, an A / D conversion circuit 33, a memory 35, an address generation circuit 36, a synchronization signal generation circuit 38, a control unit 40, a light emitting unit 43, an alarm sound unit 44, a vibrator 45, a communication interface 48, etc. As the name suggests, this microcomputer system is mainly composed of the control unit 40 and memory 35 that can function as a microcomputer (information processing device), and can process the image signal of the information code captured by the optical system described above using hardware and software.

[0054] An image signal (analog signal) output from the light-receiving sensor 23 of the optical system is input to an amplifier circuit 31 where it is amplified at a predetermined gain, and then input to an A / D conversion circuit 33 where it is converted from an analog signal to a digital signal. The digitized image signal, i.e., image data (image information), is then input to a memory 35 where it is stored in an image data storage area. A synchronization signal generation circuit 38 is configured to be able to generate a synchronization signal for the light-receiving sensor 23 and an address generation circuit 36, and the address generation circuit 36 ​​is configured to be able to generate a storage address for the image data to be stored in the memory 35 based on the synchronization signal supplied from the synchronization signal generation circuit 38.

[0055] The memory 35 is a semiconductor memory device, such as a RAM (DRAM, SRAM, etc.) or a ROM (EPROM, EEPROM, etc.). In addition to the image data storage area described above, the RAM of this memory 35 is configured to be able to secure a work area and a reading condition table that the control unit 40 uses when performing arithmetic operations, logical operations, etc., in relation to the reading process. In addition, the ROM has pre-stored therein system programs and the like that can control each piece of hardware, such as the illumination unit 21 and the light receiving sensor 23.

[0056] The control unit 40 is a microcomputer capable of controlling the entire reading device 10, and is composed of a CPU, a system bus, an input / output interface, etc., and can constitute an information processing device together with the memory 35, and has an information processing function. The control unit 40 functions as a reading processing unit that performs a reading process (decoding process) on an information code imaged within a reading area using the light receiving sensor 23, etc., which functions as an imaging unit. The control unit 40 is configured to be connectable to various input / output devices (peripheral devices) via a built-in input / output interface, and in this embodiment, a light emitting unit 43, an alarm unit 44, a vibrator 45, a communication interface 48, etc. are connected.

[0057] The light emitting unit 43 is, for example, an LED, and is configured to light up or flash in response to a signal from the control unit 40. The sound alert unit 44 is configured to have a known buzzer or the like, and is configured to emit a predetermined buzzer sound or the like in response to an operation signal from the control unit 40. The vibrator 45 is configured as a known vibrator mounted on a portable device, and is configured to generate a predetermined vibration in response to a drive signal from the control unit 40. The communication interface 48 is configured as an interface for performing data communication and wireless communication via the cable 17 with an external device (host) such as the POS terminal 2, and is configured to perform communication processing in cooperation with the control unit 40.

[0058] The reading device 10 also includes a power supply unit (not shown) for supplying power to various electrical components via the cable 17, and the power supply unit, vibrator 45, etc. are housed within the gripping portion 13, so that the center of gravity of the reading device 10 is closer to the gripping portion 13 than the intermediate portion 19. Also, because the cable 17 is held by the cable attachment portion 18 on the other longitudinal side of the gripping portion 13, the center of gravity of the reading device 10 is closer to the gripping portion 13 than the intermediate portion 19.

[0059] In the reading device 10 configured in this way, when the control unit 40 performs a reading process while the device is switched to the placement mode, the entire imaging area imaged using the light receiving sensor 23 becomes the reading area, and the result of reading the information code within this reading area is output to the POS terminal 2 via the communication interface 48. In this way, since the entire imaging area becomes the reading area, even customers who are unfamiliar with operations can reliably perform the reading operation.

[0060] On the other hand, when the control unit 40 performs a reading process while the device is switched to the portable mode, a part of the imaging area (for example, the upper half of the imaging area) becomes the reading area, and the result of reading the information code within this reading area is output to the POS terminal 2 via the communication interface 48. As a result, even in a situation where information codes that should be read and information codes that do not need to be read are mixed, a store clerk or the like who is familiar with the operation can perform the reading operation smoothly, since the information codes that do not need to be read are less likely to enter the reading area by mistake.

[0061] Next, the stand 100 on which the reading device 10 is placed will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 to 5 and 8 to 12, the mounting table 100 includes a mounting table main body 110, a guide portion 200, a base 101, and a support column 102. The mounting table 100 is placed on a mounting surface S in a state where the mounting table main body 110 and the guide portion 200 are supported at predetermined angles by the upper ends of the support columns 102 that are erected in the shape of square pillars on the upper surface of the base 101.

[0062] As shown in Figures 13 to 18, the stand main body 110 is formed so that a support part 120 that supports the intermediate part 19 of the reading device 10 from below, an insertion / removal part 130 into which the reading part 12 is inserted and removed, and a fixed part 140 that is fixed to the support 102 are integrated into one body.

[0063] The support part 120 is formed to match the convex shape of the intermediate part 19 so as to allow displacement (tilting) of the reading device 10 in a predetermined displacement direction (see symbols F1a and F1b in FIG. 19) in which the reading unit 12 moves up and down while supporting the intermediate part 19 from below, and to suppress displacement of the reading device 10 in a direction different from this predetermined displacement direction. For this reason, the support part 120 is formed so that its inner surface comes into contact with the left and right directions and the bottom direction in accordance with the shapes of both side surfaces and the bottom surface of the intermediate part 19 from the left and right directions and the bottom direction, by a pair of support surfaces 121, 122 that face each other in a substantially V-shape so that the opposing distance becomes longer toward the upper side, and a connecting bottom surface 123 that is continuous with both the lower ends of the support surfaces 121 and 122. 19A shows a displacement (tilting) direction of the reading device 10 immediately after insertion when the reading unit 12 is not in contact with the restricting unit 133 described below, and FIG. 19B shows a placed state (tilting state) in which the reading unit 12 is displaced so as to abut against the restricting unit 133. In FIG. 19A, a part of the stand main body 110 is shown in a cross section corresponding to X1-X1 in FIG. 16, and the reading unit 12 and the like are shown by a two-dot chain line, with the displacement direction in which the reading unit 12 tilts to be lifted being defined as a lifting displacement direction F1a and the displacement direction in which the reading unit 12 tilts to be pressed down being defined as a pressing displacement direction F1b.

[0064] The reading device 10, whose intermediate part 19 is supported by the support part 120 formed in this manner, has its center of gravity located closer to the gripping part 13 than the intermediate part 19, so a force acts on the reading part 12 to tilt it in the lifting displacement direction F1a, which lifts the reading part 12.

[0065] The insertion / removal section 130 is a member for controlling displacement of the reading device 10 whose intermediate section 19 is supported by the support section 120, and is configured to have an opening 132 into which the reading section 12 is inserted when the intermediate section 19 is supported by the support section 120. Specifically, as can be seen from Fig. 19 etc., the insertion / removal section 130 is provided with a ring-shaped section 131 that is wide along the insertion / removal direction F2 in which the reading section 12 is inserted into or removed from the opening 132, and is formed so that the opening 132 is provided by the inside of this ring-shaped section 131.

[0066] The ring-shaped portion 131 is formed to widen outward so that the opening area of ​​the opening 132 increases toward the front in the insertion / removal direction. Specifically, as illustrated in Fig. 19(B), in the portion of the ring-shaped portion 131 facing the top surface 12a of the reading unit 12 (hereinafter also referred to as the upper facing portion 131a), the predetermined angle θ between the inner surface and the top surface 12a in the placed state is set to, for example, about 20°. Similarly to the upper facing portion 131a, the portions of the ring-shaped portion 131 facing the side surfaces of the reading unit 12 (the left facing portion 131b and the right facing portion 131c) are also formed to widen outward so that the opening area of ​​the opening 132 increases toward the front in the insertion / removal direction.

[0067] In particular, as can be seen from Figure 19(B), the width and predetermined angle θ of the upper opposing portion 131a in the insertion / removal direction F2 are set so that, when fixed to the vertically erected support 102, the height from the mounting surface S at the end 131d on the front side in the insertion / removal direction is higher than the connecting bottom surface 123.

[0068] 4 and 19, the opening 132 is formed so that a gap (see symbol G in FIG. 4) for allowing displacement of the reading device 10 supported at the intermediate portion 19 by the support portion 120 is interposed between the opening 132 and at least a part of the reading unit 12 during insertion. That is, to make it easier to insert the reading unit 12 into the opening 132, the opening 132 is formed to have an opening area larger than the opening area required for inserting the reading unit 12.

[0069] 19(B), the insertion / removal portion 130 is formed so as to restrict displacement of the reading device 10 in the lifting displacement direction F1a by linearly or planarly contacting from above the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 of the reading device 10, which is displaced so as to tilt in the lifting displacement direction F1a, at a portion (hereinafter also referred to as the restricting portion 133) of the edge portion constituting the opening 132 that is on the rear side of the upper opposing portion 131a in the insertion / removal direction. The left opposing portion 131b and the right opposing portion 131c are formed so that a gap G is respectively interposed between them and the side surface of the reading unit 12 even when the restricting portion 133 is in contact with the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 (placed state).

[0070] As a result, in a placed state where the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 100, the reading device 10 is supported from below by the support parts 120 at the intermediate part 19, and is positioned and fixed so that the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 is pressed from above by the restricting parts 133. The position (range) of the reading area in the placed mode relative to the stand 100 is determined by the direction in which the reading port 14 faces when positioned in this way.

[0071] For this reason, the restricting portion 133 is formed so that the positions of the reading unit 12 and the reading port 14, which are positioned when the reading unit 12 is placed, are set to specified positions (positions of the reading unit 12 and the reading port 14 for realizing a predetermined reading area (specified reading area)). In particular, the restricting portion 133 is formed to match the shape of the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 so as to guide the reading unit 12 that it comes into contact with toward the specified position.

[0072] The guide section 200 includes a guide section main body 210, a fixed section 220 fixed to the support 102, and a connecting piece 230 for connecting and supporting the guide section main body 210 to the fixed section 220.

[0073] The guide unit main body 210 is arranged using the connecting piece 230 so that, in the placed state (when the intermediate portion 19 is supported by the support portion 120 and the restricting portion 133 is in contact with the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12), the reading opening 14 is exposed on the side of the reading direction of the reading opening 14 that faces a predetermined reading area. The guide unit main body 210 is configured as a frame body in which an opening 211 is formed to expose the reading opening 14 and clearly indicate the reading area in the placed state, and includes an upper edge 212, a lower edge 213, a left edge 214, and a right edge 215. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 8, the left edge 214 is bent so that the lower portion is longer than the upper portion, so that the connecting portion with one end 231 of the connecting piece 230 protrudes forward (in the reading direction). Similarly, as shown in Figures 5 and 12, the right edge 215 is bent so that the lower part is longer than the upper part, so that the connecting part with the other end 232 of the connecting piece 230 protrudes forward.

[0074] When placing the reading device 10 on the stand 100 configured in this manner, first, the hand holding the gripping portion 13 is moved so that the tip side of the reading unit 12 is inserted into the opening 132 while the intermediate portion 19 is supported by the support portion 120. Because the opening 132 is larger than the opening area required for inserting the reading unit 12, the reading unit 12 can be easily inserted into the opening 132. When the hand is released from the gripping portion 13 in this state, the reading device 10 is displaced by its own weight so as to tilt in the lifting displacement direction F1a, with the support portion of the intermediate portion 19 supported by the support portion 120 serving as the starting point. This displacement is restricted when the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 abuts against the restricting portion 133, and this restriction places the reading device 10 in a placed state where it is placed on the stand 100.

[0075] In this placement state, the reading unit 12 abutting against the regulating portion 133 is positioned at a specified position, so that the position of the reading area coincides with the position of the specified reading area, thereby making it possible to keep the position of the reading area constant.

[0076] When the placed reading device 10 is to be removed from the stand 100, the gripping portion 13 is grasped and the reading device 10 is lifted up so as to displace the reading device 10 in the pressing displacement direction F1b (tilting the reading unit 12 so as to press down). This displacement moves the reading unit 12 away from the restricting portion 133, releasing the contact, and a gap is created between the reading unit 12 and the opening 132, making it easier for the reading unit 12 to slip out of the opening 132. This makes it easy to remove the reading device 10 from the stand 100.

[0077] As described above, in the stand 100 for the information code reading device according to this embodiment, the support part 120 that supports from below the intermediate part 19 between the reading unit 12 and the grip part 13 of the reading device 10 is formed to match the shape of the intermediate part 19 so as to suppress displacement of the reading device 10 in a direction different from the predetermined displacement direction (lifting displacement direction F1a or pressing displacement direction F1b) in which the reading unit 12 moves up and down. The opening 132 of the insertion / removal part 130 into which the reading unit 12 is inserted when the intermediate part 19 is supported by the support part 120 is formed so that a gap G for allowing displacement of the reading device 10 supported at the intermediate part 19 by the support part 120 is interposed between the opening 132 and at least a part of the reading unit 12 when inserted. The insertion / removal section 130 is provided with a regulating section 133 that abuts against the upper surface 12a of the reading section 12 from above to regulate displacement when the reading port 14 of the reading device 10, whose intermediate section 19 is supported by the support section 120, is placed facing the specified reading area (predetermined reading area).

[0078] In this way, a gap G is interposed between the reading unit 12 inserted into the opening 132 of the insertion / removal unit 130 and the opening 132, and the support unit 120 and the opening 132 are formed to allow displacement of the reading device 10 in the lifting displacement direction F1a or the pressing displacement direction F1b. Therefore, not only can the reading device 10 be roughly placed on the stand 100, but the reading device 10 can also be easily removed from the stand 100 simply by displacing the reading unit 12 away from the restricting unit 133, thereby realizing a stand 100 that allows easy attachment and detachment of the reading device 10. When the reading unit 12 is displaced upward due to its own weight resulting from the storage of a power supply unit or the like in the gripping unit 13, the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 comes into contact with the restricting unit 133, restricting displacement, and the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 100. In this manner, in the placed state where the restricting portion 133 abuts against the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12, the displacement of the reading port 14 is restricted so that it faces the specified reading area, thereby realizing the stand 100 that can keep the position of the reading area constant in the placed state. Therefore, it is possible to realize the stand 100 that can easily attach and detach the reading device 10 and can keep the position of the reading area constant in the placed state.

[0079] In this embodiment, the restricting portion 133 is formed to match the shape of the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 so as to guide the abutting reading unit 12 toward a specified position. As a result, even if the reading device 10 is displaced so that the reading unit 12 is slightly deviated from the specified position due to rough placement and the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 abuts against the restricting portion 133, the reading unit 12 is guided by the restricting portion 133 so as to eliminate the deviation, and the position of the reading area in the placed state can be reliably kept constant.

[0080] In this embodiment, at least a part of the ring-shaped portion 131 is formed to widen outward so that the opening area becomes larger toward the front side in the insertion / removal direction F2. As a result, the opening 132 appears larger toward the front side when viewed from the user attempting to place the reading device 10, making it easier to insert the reading unit 12 into the opening 132, and allowing the reading device 10 to be placed on the stand 100 more roughly.

[0081] In particular, the ring-shaped portion 131 is formed to spread outward at a predetermined angle θ with respect to the insertion / removal direction F2. For example, if the predetermined angle θ were approximately 0°, the rubber tip 16 at the tip end of the reading unit 12 would likely hit the front side of the ring-shaped portion in the insertion / removal direction (corresponding to the end 131d) during insertion, which would hinder an easy insertion operation. For this reason, by forming the ring-shaped portion 131 to spread outward as described above, as in this embodiment, the reading unit 12 can be more easily inserted into the opening 132.

[0082] In this embodiment, the guide portion 200 for indicating the reading area is disposed so as to expose the reading opening 14 on the reading direction side of the reading opening 14 toward the specified reading area (predetermined reading area) by the support of the intermediate portion 19 by the support portion 120 and the abutment of the restricting portion 133 against the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12. This allows the user to easily recognize the reading area of ​​the reading device 10 by the guide portion 200 even when using the reading device 10 placed on the stand 100. Note that the stand 100 may be operated with only the guide portion 200 removed depending on the usage environment, etc.

[0083] [Second embodiment] Next, a base for an information code reader according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment mainly in that the guide unit is configured to be detachable from the stand main body. Therefore, components that are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0084] As shown in Figures 20 to 29, the stand 300 of this embodiment is configured such that a stand main body 310 and a guide portion 400 are adopted instead of the stand main body 110 and the guide portion 200 of the stand 100 described above.

[0085] As shown in Figures 30 to 35, the stand main body 310 is formed so that a support part 320 that supports the intermediate part 19 of the reading device 10 from below, an insertion / removal part 330 into which the reading part 12 is inserted and removed, and a fixed part 340 that is fixed to the support 102 are integrated into one body.

[0086] The support part 320 has the same function as the support part 120, and is formed so as to come into contact with the left and right directions and the bottom direction according to the shape of both side faces and the bottom face of the intermediate part 19 by a pair of support surfaces 321, 322 and a connecting bottom surface 323. In the reading device 10 in which the intermediate part 19 is supported by the support part 320 formed in this way, the position of the center of gravity is closer to the grip part 13 than the intermediate part 19, and therefore a displacement force acts on the reading part 12 to tilt it in the lifting displacement direction F1a that lifts it, as in the first embodiment.

[0087] The insertion / removal section 330 is a member for controlling displacement of the reading device 10 whose intermediate section 19 is supported by the support section 320, and is configured to have an opening 332 into which the reading section 12 is inserted when the intermediate section 19 is supported by the support section 320. Similar to the insertion / removal section 130 in the first embodiment, the insertion / removal section 330 has a ring-shaped section 331 that is wide along the insertion / removal direction F2 in which the reading section 12 is inserted into or removed from the opening 332, and is formed so that the opening 332 is provided by the inside of this ring-shaped section 331.

[0088] Similar to the annular portion 131 in the first embodiment, the upper facing portion 331a, the left facing portion 331b, and the right facing portion 331c of the annular portion 331 are each formed to widen outward so that the opening area of ​​the opening 332 increases toward the front side in the insertion / removal direction. The upper facing portion 331a is formed so that the height of the end portion 331d, which is the front side in the insertion / removal direction, from the placement surface S is higher than the connecting bottom surface 323. The upper facing portion 331a is also formed with a pair of locking holes 331e for detachably assembling the guide portion 400.

[0089] Similar to the opening 132 in the first embodiment described above, the opening 332 is formed so that a gap (see symbol G in Figure 23) is provided between the reading device 10 supported at the intermediate portion 19 by the support portion 320 and at least a portion of the reading portion 12 when inserted to allow for displacement of the reading device 10.

[0090] The insertion / removal portion 330 is formed so as to restrict displacement of the reading device 10 in the lifting displacement direction F1a by linearly or planarly contacting from above the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 of the reading device 10, which displaces so as to tilt in the lifting displacement direction F1a, at a restricting portion 333 that is located on the rear side in the insertion / removal direction of the upper opposing portion 331a among the edge portions that constitute the opening 332. The left opposing portion 331b and the right opposing portion 331c are formed so that a gap G is respectively interposed between them and the side surface of the reading unit 12, even in a placed state in which the restricting portion 333 is in contact with the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12.

[0091] As a result, in a placed state where the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 300, the reading device 10 is supported from below by the support parts 320 at the intermediate part 19, and is positioned and fixed so that the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 is pressed from above by the restricting parts 333. The position (range) of the reading area in the placed mode relative to the stand 300 is determined by the direction in which the reading port 14 faces when positioned in this way.

[0092] For this reason, the restricting portion 333 is formed so that the positions of the reading unit 12 and the reading port 14, which are positioned when the reading unit 12 is placed, become specified positions (positions of the reading unit 12 and the reading port 14 for realizing a predetermined reading area (specified reading area)). In particular, the restricting portion 333 is formed to fit the shape of the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 so as to guide the reading unit 12 that it abuts against toward the specified position.

[0093] The guide part 400 is configured to include an attachment part 401 that is detachably attached to the stand main body 310, and a guide part main body 403 that has an opening 402. As shown in Fig. 36, the attachment part 401 is provided with a pair of protrusions 401a that fit into both locking holes 331e of the upper opposing part 331a when attached to the stand main body 310.

[0094] The guide unit 400 is assembled to the stand main body 310 so as to expose the reading opening 14 through the opening 402 on the reading direction side of the reading opening 14 toward a predetermined reading area when the guide unit 400 is in the placed state (when the intermediate unit 19 is supported by the support unit 320 and the restricting unit 333 is in contact with the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12). The guide unit main body 403 is configured so as to form the opening 402 for exposing the reading opening 14 and clearly indicating the reading area when the guide unit 400 is in the placed state.

[0095] When the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 300 configured in this manner, the reading unit 12 can be easily inserted into the opening 332, as with the stand 100 in the first embodiment. If the grip 13 is released in this state, the reading device 10 is displaced by its own weight so as to tilt in the lifting displacement direction F1a, with the support portion of the intermediate portion 19 supported by the support portion 320 serving as the starting point. This displacement is restricted when the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 abuts against the restricting portion 333, and this restriction places the reading device 10 in a placed state in which it is placed on the stand 300. In this placed state, the reading unit 12 abutting against the restricting portion 333 is located at a specified position, so that the position of the reading area coincides with the position of the specified reading area, and the position of the reading area can be kept constant.

[0096] When the placed reading device 10 is to be removed from the stand 300, the gripping portion 13 is grasped and the reading device 10 is lifted up so as to displace the reading device 10 in the pressing displacement direction F1b (tilting the reading unit 12 so as to press down). This displacement moves the reading unit 12 away from the restricting portion 333, releasing the contact, and a gap is created between the reading unit 12 and the opening 332, making it easier for the reading unit 12 to slip out of the opening 332. This makes it easy to remove the reading device 10 from the stand 300.

[0097] [Third embodiment] Next, a base for an information code reader according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The third embodiment differs from the first and second embodiments in that magnetic force is used to assist in positioning the reading device relative to the stand when the reading device is placed on the stand. Therefore, components that are essentially the same as those in the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0098] The reading device 10a and the stand 100a according to this embodiment are configured such that, in addition to the above-described reading device 10 and stand 100, they are each provided with a magnet for positioning assistance (positioning).

[0099] 37(A) and 37(B), in this embodiment, magnets are provided on both the reading device 10a and the stand 100a to assist in positioning when the devices are placed. The magnet 50 provided on the reading device 10a is located inside the housing of the intermediate part 19, facing the connecting bottom surface 123 when the devices are placed. The magnet 124 provided on the stand 100a is located on the connecting bottom surface 123 so as to face the magnet 50 of the reading device 10a when the devices are placed.

[0100] With this configuration, when the reading device 10a is placed on the stand 100a, more accurate positioning of the reading device 10a relative to the stand 100a can be achieved by utilizing the magnetic force that attracts both magnets 50, 124. Note that the number of magnets provided on the reading device 10a and the stand 100a is not limited to one each, and multiple pairs of magnets may be provided.

[0101] [Fourth embodiment] Next, an information code reading system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The fourth embodiment differs from the information code reading system etc. in the first embodiment mainly in that a reading device equipped with a touch sensor is configured to be able to automatically switch modes in the reading process. Therefore, components that are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment etc. are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0102] As shown in Figures 38 to 42, the information code reading system 1a of this embodiment is configured such that a reading device (information code reading device) 10b and a stand 500 are used instead of the reading device 10 and the stand 100 of the information code reading system 1 of the first embodiment.

[0103] 43 and 44, the reading device 10b is configured to further include a capacitance-type touch sensor 42a in comparison with the reading device 10. The touch sensor 42a functions as a trigger switch that is operated to start the reading process in the portable mode, and is disposed on the inner surface of the housing at a position (also referred to as a touch detection position) on the top surface 12a of the reading unit 12 that does not come into contact with the insertion / removal unit 130 in the placed state. In this embodiment, the touch detection position is provided at a position on the top surface 12a that is easy to touch and operate with the index finger of the right hand holding the grip portion 13.

[0104] The touch sensor 42a is configured to output a predetermined detection signal to the control unit 40 in response to a change in capacitance caused by a conductor such as a user's finger coming close to or in contact with the touch detection position and facing it (hereinafter also referred to as a conductor facing state). The control unit 40 performs predetermined processing, such as starting a reading process, in response to the detection result of the touch sensor 42a. The top surface 12a of the reading unit 12 can be an example of "one surface of the reading unit."

[0105] 45 to 49, the stand 500 is configured to include the stand main body 110 of the above-mentioned stand 100, and a support part 510, a guide part 520, and a covering part 530 that are formed integrally with the stand 110. The support part 510, the guide part 520, and the covering part 530 are integrally formed by pressing a metal plate or the like.

[0106] The support part 510 has the same function as the base 101 and support column 102 described above, and is configured so that a top part 511 for fixing the fixing part 140 of the table main body 110 is provided approximately parallel to the bottom plate on the upper side of the back plate part that curves and continues from the bottom plate part. A slot-shaped hole is formed in the center of the back plate part. The lower edge of the guide part 520 is connected to the lower edge of the front plate part that extends diagonally downward from the front edge of the top part 511.

[0107] Guide unit 520 is a frame having the same function as guide unit main body 210 described above, and is formed with opening 521 for clearly indicating the reading area while exposing reading port 14 when in the placed state. Opening 521 can be formed so that the positional relationship between opening 521 and reading port 14 when in the placed state is approximately the same as the positional relationship between opening 211 of guide unit main body 210 described above and reading port 14 when in the placed state.

[0108] The covering portion 530 is a metal member for covering the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 from above when the reading device 10b is placed on the stand main body 110. As shown in FIG. 42, the covering portion 530 is formed so that a predetermined gap Ga is interposed between a substantially flat back surface 531 that faces the stand main body 110 (reading device 10b) and the touch detection position of the reading unit 12 when the reading device 10b is placed. The predetermined gap Ga is, for example, about 1 cm, and is set so that when the covering portion 530 is placed, the back surface 531 of the covering portion 530 is in a conductor-facing state in which it faces the touch detection position in close proximity to the touch detection position, causing a predetermined detection signal to be output from the touch sensor 42a. In other words, the portion of the covering portion 530 that faces the conductor of the touch sensor 42a when the covering portion 530 is placed is formed of a conductive material.

[0109] By configuring the stand 500 in this manner, the covering portion 530 of the stand 500 faces the conductor of the touch sensor 42a of the reading device 10b when the reading device 10b is placed on the stand 500. Therefore, the control unit 40 of the reading device 10b can perform a mode switching process to switch the mode of the reading process between the placed mode and the portable mode based on the detection result of the touch sensor 42a.

[0110] Specifically, when the control unit 40 detects from the detection result of the touch sensor 42a that the conductor facing state has continued for a certain period of time (for example, 5 seconds), it determines that the state is the placed state, switches the mode of the reading process to the placed mode, and can continue to perform the reading process as the predetermined process. Also, when the control unit 40 does not detect from the detection result of the touch sensor 42a that the conductor facing state has continued for the certain period of time, it determines that the state is the carried state, switches the mode of the reading process to the carried mode, and can perform the reading process as the predetermined process every time a touch operation time shorter than the certain period of time is detected.

[0111] That is, with a normal touch operation on the touch sensor 42a, it is determined to be in a portable state and not in a placed state, so that the reading process in the portable mode is started with each touch operation, and when the reading device 10b is placed on the stand 500, the reading process in the placed mode continues without requiring any touch operation, etc.

[0112] In addition, in this embodiment, in order to notify the user of the timing and result of mode switching in the reading process, when the mode is switched to the placed mode, the light-emitting unit 43 goes into a light-emitting state for the placed mode indicating that the mode has been switched to, and when the mode is switched to the portable mode, the light-emitting unit 43 goes into a light-emitting state for the portable mode indicating that the mode has been switched to. Note that the light-emitting unit 43 can be an example of a "notification unit" that notifies the result of the mode switching process.

[0113] As described above, in the information code reading system 1a according to this embodiment, the stand 500 includes a covering 530 that covers the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 in the placed state, and the reading device 10b has different predetermined functions in a placed mode for performing a reading process in the placed state and a portable mode for performing a reading process in the portable state, and includes a capacitive touch sensor 42a provided on the upper surface 12a and a control unit 40 that performs predetermined processing in accordance with the detection result of the touch sensor 42a. The covering 530 has a portion that comes close to or into contact with the touch sensor 42a in the placed state formed of a conductive member, and the control unit 40 switches the mode of the reading process between the placed mode and the portable mode based on the detection result of the touch sensor 42a.

[0114] As a result, when the reading device 10b is placed on the stand 500, the rear surface 531 of the covering portion 530 comes close to the touch sensor 42a, and therefore the placed state or the portable state can be estimated based on the detection result of the touch sensor 42a. Therefore, the reading device 10b switches the mode in the reading process to the placed mode when estimating the placed state, and switches the mode in the reading process to the portable mode when estimating the portable state, thereby making it possible to automatically switch the mode in the reading process without performing a separate operation for mode switching, etc.

[0115] In particular, in this embodiment, when it is detected that the conductor facing state has continued for a certain period of time, the mode in the reading process is switched to the placed mode, and the reading process is continued as the above-mentioned specified process, and when it is not detected that the conductor facing state has continued for the above-mentioned specified period of time, the mode in the reading process is switched to the portable mode, and the reading process is continued as the above-mentioned specified process every time a touch operation time shorter than the above-mentioned specified period of time is detected.

[0116] This allows one touch sensor 42a to be used for both mode switching and starting the reading process in portable mode, thereby reducing the number of parts and making the reading device 10b, which can automatically switch modes in the reading process, smaller and lighter.

[0117] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the reading device 10b includes a light-emitting unit 43 and other components that function as an "alarm unit" that notifies the user of the results of the mode change during the reading process. This allows the user, etc., who receives the notification from the alarm unit, to easily understand the results of the mode change during the reading process. Therefore, for example, if the reading device 10b is not properly placed on the stand 500, the user is not notified of the change to the placed mode, and the user can be urged to reposition the reading device. The above-described effects can also be achieved by the sound alarm unit 44 sounding a predetermined sound indicating that the reading device has been switched to the placed mode or the portable mode, or by the vibrator 45 vibrating a predetermined vibration indicating that the reading device has been switched to the placed mode or the portable mode. In this configuration, the sound alarm unit 44 and the vibrator 45 can be considered examples of an "alarm unit" that notifies the user of the results of the mode change process.

[0118] As a first variant of this embodiment, the covering portion 530 is formed of a metal flat plate (a flat conductive member), and therefore, as illustrated in Figure 50, the front surface 532 side of the covering portion 530 that covers the reading unit 12 on the back surface 531 side when the reading device 10b is placed may be used as a wall surface for notifying information 533 that should be notified to users, etc. who use the reading device 10b when the reading device 10b is placed.

[0119] As a second modification of this embodiment, the covering portion 530 is not limited to being formed so as to cover the entire upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12, but may be formed so as to be in proximity to or in contact with the touch detection position (touch sensor 42a) on at least a portion of the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 in the placed state. For example, even when the covering portion 530a is formed so as to cover one of the left and right sides of the upper surface 12a where the touch detection position is provided, as in the case of the covering portion 530a illustrated in FIGS. 51 and 52, the covering portion 530 is formed so as to be in a conductor-opposed state with respect to the touch sensor 42a in the placed state, thereby achieving the above-described effect. Furthermore, the covering portion 530 is not limited to being formed so as to be continuous with the upper edge of the guide portion 520, but may be formed, for example, so as to extend from the top portion 511 of the support portion 510 and be in a conductor-opposed state with respect to the touch sensor 42a in the placed state. Furthermore, the covering portion 530 may be configured so that only the portion of the covering portion 530 in proximity to or in contact with the touch detection position is a conductor detectable by the touch sensor 42a, and the other portions are insulators or the like.

[0120] [Fifth embodiment] Next, an information code reading system according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The fifth embodiment is different from the information code reading system etc. in the fourth embodiment in that the reading device provided with multiple touch sensors is configured to be able to automatically switch modes in the reading process. Therefore, components that are substantially the same as those in the fourth embodiment are given the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 53, the reading device 10c according to this embodiment is configured such that, in addition to the reading device 10b, it further includes a capacitive touch sensor 42b. Like the touch sensor 42a, the touch sensor 42b functions as a trigger switch that is operated to start the reading process in the portable mode. The touch sensor 42b has a touch detection position that is symmetrical to the touch detection position of the touch sensor 42a with respect to the longitudinal center line (the center line in the left-right direction in FIG. 53) on the top surface 12a of the reading unit 12, and is disposed on the inner surface of the housing so that the covering portion 530 faces the conductor when the reading device 10c is placed. In this embodiment, the touch detection position of the touch sensor 42b is provided on the top surface 12a at a position that is easy to touch and operate with the index finger of the left hand holding the grip portion 13.

[0122] In a state where the reading device 10c configured in this manner is placed on the stand 500, the covering portion 530 of the stand 500 faces the conductors of both the touch sensors 42a and 42b of the reading device 10c. Therefore, the control unit 40 of the reading device 10c can perform a mode switching process for switching the mode of the reading process between the placed mode and the portable mode based on the detection results of the touch sensors 42a and 42b.

[0123] Specifically, when the conductor facing state is detected by all of the touch sensors 42a, 42b based on the detection results of the touch sensors 42a, 42b, the control unit 40 determines that the device is in the placed state, switches the mode of the reading process to the placed mode, and can continue the reading process as the predetermined process. Also, when the conductor facing state is not detected by at least one of the touch sensors based on the detection results of the touch sensors 42a, 42b, the control unit 40 determines that the device is in the carried state, switches the mode of the reading process to the carried mode, and can perform the reading process as the predetermined process every time the conductor facing state is detected by any one of the touch sensors.

[0124] Therefore, in this embodiment, a normal touch operation on the touch sensor 42a or 42b does not determine the placed state but determines the portable state, and therefore the reading process in the portable mode is started for each touch operation. On the other hand, when the reading device 10c is placed on the stand 500, the reading process in the placed mode is continued without requiring a touch operation or the like.

[0125] In this way, it is possible to realize a reading device 10c that can automatically switch modes in the reading process even when the reading process is started by touching any one of the touch sensors 42a, 42b as a trigger switch in a portable state. In particular, since there is no need to check whether the conductor facing state has continued for a certain period of time as in the fourth embodiment, mode switching can be performed quickly.

[0126] The touch sensors provided on the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 so as to face the conductors of the covering unit 530 when placed on the surface are not limited to the two touch sensors 42a and 42b, but the above-mentioned effect can be achieved even if three or more touch sensors are provided, including a touch sensor located near the rubber tip 16 close to the reading port 14, for example.

[0127] As a modified example of this embodiment, among the multiple touch sensors provided on the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12 so as to be conductor-facing to the covering unit 530 when the unit is placed, some of the touch sensors with a relatively high frequency of touch operation (hereinafter also referred to as operation touch sensors) may be employed for touch operation to start the reading process in portable mode, and the remaining touch sensors with a relatively low frequency of touch operation (hereinafter also referred to as mode switching determination touch sensors) may be employed for determining the placement state to determine the placement state.

[0128] In the above modification, as illustrated in Fig. 54(A), the monitoring frequency of the mode switching determination touch sensor and the monitoring frequency of the operation touch sensor may be the same, or as illustrated in Fig. 54(B), the monitoring frequency of the mode switching determination touch sensor may be lower than the monitoring frequency of the operation touch sensor. When the monitoring frequency of the mode switching determination touch sensor is lower than the monitoring frequency of the operation touch sensor, the response speed of the operation touch sensor can be improved without increasing the processing load related to monitoring each touch sensor, compared to when both frequencies are the same. Note that Fig. 54 illustrates the register read timing of the touch sensor.

[0129] [Sixth embodiment] Next, a base for an information code reader according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The sixth embodiment differs from the first embodiment mainly in that two restriction units are provided to restrict displacement of the reading device. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for components that are substantially the same as those in the first embodiment, and their description will be omitted.

[0130] Since a cable 17 for communication and power supply is attached to the other longitudinal side of the gripping part 13 of the reading device 10 (the other end side of the housing 11), for example, as illustrated in Fig. 55, depending on the routing state of the cable 17, a force Nf that tries to lift the gripping part 13 may act via the cable 17 when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 100. In such a case, if the force Nf acting on the gripping part 13 as described above causes the reading device 10 to tilt so as to lift the gripping part 13 and push down the reading part 12 with the support part 120, which supports the intermediate part 19, as a fulcrum (see arrow Fu in Fig. 55), there is a problem that the position (range) of the reading area in the placed state will be shifted downward.

[0131] For this reason, the stand main body 110b of the stand 100b in this embodiment is configured with respect to the stand main body 110, as shown in Figures 56 and 57, so that when in the placed state, a pair of restricting portions 134 are provided on the left and right of the insertion / removal portion 130, which abut against the left and right side end faces 12b (see Figure 58) of the reading unit 12 on the tip side different from the top surface 12a. Both restricting portions 134 are formed so as to be outside the imaging range when in the placed state. Note that the restricting portions 134 can correspond to an example of a "second restricting portion for restricting displacement."

[0132] As a result, even if the reading device 10 attempts to tilt so as to lift the gripping unit 13 due to the application of force via the cable 17 attached to the gripping unit 13 as described above, the reading unit 12 abuts against the restricting units 134 provided on the stand main body 110b at both end surfaces 12b, respectively, as shown in FIG. 59, thereby restricting the tilting. More specifically, the abutment point Ps (see FIG. 59) between the side end surface 12b of the reading unit 12 and the restricting unit 134 serves as a fulcrum when the reading device 10 is lifted by the force via the cable 17, and the fulcrum moves toward the tip of the reading device 10, making it difficult to lift the reading device 10. This prevents the reading area from shifting when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand main body 110b. Note that FIG. 59 shows an enlarged cross section of the stand main body 110b on which the reading device 10 is placed, taken along the line X2-X2 in FIG.

[0133] The restricting portion 134 is not limited to being formed so as to abut against both side end faces 12b from below in the placed state, but even if it is formed so as to face both side end faces 12b from below across a gap (for example, a small gap of about the thickness of a plate) outside the imaging range in the placed state, it will abut against side end faces 12b after a slight tilt, thereby achieving the above effect. Also, the above effect can be achieved even if, instead of restricting portion 134, a second restricting portion for displacement restriction is employed that abuts against or faces across a gap against a surface of reading unit 12 other than top surface 12a outside the imaging range in the placed state.

[0134] [Seventh embodiment] Next, a description will be given of a stand for an information code reading device and an information code reading system according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. The seventh embodiment differs from the information code reading system etc. in the first embodiment in that the reading device automatically switches the mode in the reading process by using a predetermined pattern shape provided on the stand. Therefore, the same components as those in the first embodiment etc. are denoted by the same reference numerals and their description will be omitted.

[0135] 60 to 63, in the information code reading system 1 according to the present embodiment, the stand main body 110c of the stand 100c according to the present embodiment is configured with a connecting portion 150 that is provided with respect to the stand main body 110b described above and that fits below the protective portion 15 for the reading device 10 when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand. The connecting portion 150 is configured such that a left connecting portion 151b connected to the lower part of the left facing portion 131b and a right connecting portion 151c connected to the lower part of the right facing portion 131c are respectively connected to an upper connecting portion 151a, and the upper connecting portion 151a, the left connecting portion 151b and the right connecting portion 151c are outside the imaging range of an imaging portion configured of the light receiving sensor 23 etc. when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand.

[0136] As shown in Fig. 64, the upper connecting portion 151a has two extension pieces 152 extending downward from the underside of the upper opposing portion 131a in a substantially rectangular plate shape, which form a predetermined pattern that falls within the imaging range when the imaging unit is placed. The width of both extension pieces 152 (the length in the left-right direction in Fig. 62) and the distance between both extension pieces 152 are substantially the same, and in an image captured in the placed state, both extension pieces 152 and the gap between them are captured with a length ratio of 1:1:1. Furthermore, in the placed state, illumination light from the illumination unit 21 is irradiated onto both extension pieces 152 that fall within the imaging range.

[0137] Therefore, the control unit 40 of the reading device 10 can perform a mode switching process to switch between the placed mode and the portable mode based on whether or not images of both extension pieces 152 are captured. More specifically, in the mode switching process, when images of both extension pieces 152 are not captured, it is determined that the device is in the portable state and the mode is switched to the portable mode, and when images of both extension pieces 152 are captured, it is determined that the device is in the placed state and the mode is switched to the placed mode. The control unit 40 that performs the mode switching process can be an example of a "mode switching unit."

[0138] As a result, when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 100c, the reading device 10 captures an image of both extension pieces 152 provided in a predetermined pattern shape on the stand 100c, and the placed state or the carried state can be estimated based on the image capture result. Therefore, the reading device 10 switches the mode in the reading process to the placed mode when estimating the placed state, and switches the mode in the reading process to the carried mode when estimating the carried state, thereby making it possible to automatically switch the mode in the reading process without performing a separate operation for mode switching, etc.

[0139] As a modified example of this embodiment, as shown in Figure 65, on the underside of the upper connecting portion 151a of the connecting portion 150, both extension pieces 152 may be provided at a position closer to the illumination unit 21 in the placed state, and a wall portion 153 may be provided at a position farther from the illumination unit 21, as a predetermined pattern shape that is within the imaging range when the imaging unit is placed.

[0140] In this configuration, when the reading device 10 is placed on the stand 100c, as shown in FIG. 66, both extension pieces 152 and the wall portion 153 are within the imaging range, and illumination light from the illumination unit 21 is also irradiated onto both extension pieces 152 and the wall portion 153. In the placed state, both extension pieces 152 are closer to the illumination unit 21 than the wall portion 153, and therefore both extension pieces 152, which are closer to the illumination unit 21, are imaged brighter than the wall portion 153, which is farther away. Note that both extension pieces 152 can correspond to an example of a "near distance side shape," and the wall portion 153 can correspond to an example of a "far distance side shape."

[0141] In this way, in the placed state, both extension pieces 152 are imaged brighter than the wall portion 153, and therefore the contrast of the image capturing both extension pieces 152 and the wall portion 153 is increased, thereby improving the detection accuracy of both extension pieces 152 and the wall portion 153, i.e., the detection accuracy of the placed state.

[0142] It should be noted that the width dimension of both extension pieces 152 and the distance between both extension pieces 152 do not necessarily have to be approximately the same length, and for example, the distance between both extension pieces 152 may be formed to be N (N is a natural number) times the width dimension of extension pieces 152. Furthermore, the predetermined pattern shape for mode switching is not limited to the use of both extension pieces 152 and wall portion 153, and may be, for example, a combination of one or three or more extension pieces and wall portion 153, or another easily recognizable shape.

[0143] [Eighth embodiment] Next, a description will be given of a stand for an information code reader and an information code reading system according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. The eighth embodiment differs from the information code reading system etc. in the seventh embodiment mainly in that a second pattern shape is provided in the reading unit of the reading device, such that a predetermined pattern shape of the stand is interposed between the reading unit and the imaging unit when the reading unit is placed on the table. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for components that are substantially the same as those in the seventh embodiment etc., and their description will be omitted.

[0144] As shown in Fig. 67, the reading device 10d according to this embodiment is configured such that the recess 16a formed in the center of the inner surface of the rubber tip 16 is within the imaging range as a second pattern shape together with the inner surface of the surrounding rubber tip 16. Therefore, when the device is carried, an image is captured such that the recess 16a appears at the top of the image, as in the captured image E1 shown in Fig. 68(A).

[0145] In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 69, the recess 16a is formed so that a part of it is hidden by both extension pieces 152 of the stand main body 110c when viewed from the imaging unit (light receiving sensor 23, etc.) when in the placed state. That is, the reading unit 12 is provided with the recess 16a as a second pattern shape within the imaging range of the imaging unit and in which both extension pieces 152 (predetermined pattern shape) are interposed between the imaging unit and the reading unit when in the placed state.

[0146] Therefore, in the mode switching process of this embodiment, when the imaging unit does not capture an image of both extension pieces 152 but captures an image of the recess 16a, it determines that the device is in a portable state and switches to the portable mode, and when both extension pieces 152 are captured, as in the captured image E2 shown in Figure 68 (B), it determines that the device is in a placed state and switches to the placed mode.

[0147] In this way, in the placed state, part of recess 16a is hidden by both extension pieces 152 and is not imaged, so if recess 16a is imaged, the carried state can be estimated, and if both extension pieces 152 are imaged, the placed state can be estimated. Therefore, the estimation accuracy can be improved compared to when the placed state or the carried state is estimated based on whether both extension pieces 152 are imaged.

[0148] In particular, in this embodiment, the mode switching process is performed taking into consideration an imaging state in which neither the extension pieces 152 nor the recess 16a are properly imaged.

[0149] In the portable state, the recess 16a is imaged without being cut off at the specified position, and in the correctly placed state, both extension pieces 152 are imaged without being cut off at the specified position. Therefore, when the recess 16a and both extension pieces 152 are not imaged at the specified positions, it is estimated that the reading device 10d is not correctly placed on the stand 100c (hereinafter also referred to as an indeterminate state). The indeterminate state is also estimated when parts of both extension pieces 152 are not imaged, or when both extension pieces 152 are imaged shifted up / down, left / right, or diagonally from the specified positions.

[0150] For example, when an image is captured in which both extension pieces 152 are tilted and shifted upward from the specified position, as in the captured image E3 illustrated in Figure 70, it can be inferred that the reading device 10d is in an unstable state where it is not properly placed on the stand 100c.

[0151] Therefore, in the mode switching process of this embodiment, as shown in the flowchart of Fig. 71, after acquiring a captured image (S101), a determination is made in step S102 as to whether or not the captured image is a first pattern captured state in which the recess 16a is captured without being cut off at a specified position. If the recess 16a is captured without being cut off at a specified position (see Fig. 68(A)), the captured image is the first pattern captured state (Yes in S102), and the device is determined to be in the portable state, and a process for switching to the portable mode is performed (S104). When the device is switched to the portable mode in this way, the light-emitting unit 43 is set to a light-emitting state for the portable mode (S105), as a notification process indicating that the device has been switched to the portable mode.

[0152] On the other hand, if the image capture state is such that the recess 16a is not captured or is partially hidden, it is determined that the image capture state is not the first pattern image capture state (No in S102), and in the determination process of step S103, it is determined whether the image capture state is the second pattern image capture state in which both extension pieces 152 are captured in the specified positions without being cut off. Here, if both extension pieces 152 are captured in the specified positions without being cut off (see FIG. 68(B)), it is determined that the image capture state is the second pattern image capture state (Yes in S103), and the process of switching to the placement mode is performed (S106). In this way, when the mode is switched to the placement mode, the light emitting unit 43 is set to the light emitting state for the placement mode (S107), as a notification process indicating that the mode has been switched to the placement mode.

[0153] If part or all of the extension pieces 152 are not imaged, or if the extension pieces 152 are imaged shifted up / down, left / right, or diagonally from the specified position (see FIG. 70), it is determined that the second pattern image capturing state is not in effect (No in S103). In this case, it is determined that the state is in the indeterminate state, and after switching to the placement mode (S108), the light-emitting unit 43 is set to an emission state for the indeterminate state (S109) as a notification process indicating that the reading device 10d is not properly placed on the base 100c.

[0154] In this way, when it is determined that the second pattern image capturing state is not in progress (No in S102) and when it is determined that the second pattern image capturing state is not in progress (No in S103), the state is determined to be an indeterminate state, and the light emitting unit 43, which functions as a notification unit, is used to notify that the reading device 10d is not properly placed on the stand 100c, thereby urging the user who receives this notification to reset the reading device 10d. Note that the above effect can also be achieved when the sound notification unit 44 emits a predetermined sound indicating an indeterminate state, or when the vibrator 45 vibrates a predetermined vibration indicating an indeterminate state. In this configuration, the sound notification unit 44 and the vibrator 45 can be considered as examples of a "notification unit" that notifies that the reading device 10d is not properly placed on the stand 100c.

[0155] In addition, if it is determined that the above-mentioned unstable state exists (No in S102 and S103), the reading process itself may be stopped after performing the process of notifying the above-mentioned unstable state (S109) without switching to the placement mode.

[0156] Furthermore, the second pattern shape that is interposed between the predetermined pattern shape of the mounting base and the imaging unit in the placed state is not limited to the recess 16a formed in the part of the inner surface of the rubber tip 16 that is within the imaging range, but any other easily recognizable pattern shape may be employed. Furthermore, the edge portion of the rubber tip 16 (the boundary portion where the rubber tip 16 and the plastic part of the protective part 15 have different colors) itself may be employed as the second pattern shape that is interposed between the predetermined pattern shape of the mounting base and the imaging unit in the placed state.

[0157] Also in this embodiment, the predetermined pattern shape for mode switching may be a combination of the two extension pieces 152 that form the above-mentioned near-distance side shape and the wall portion 153 that forms the long-distance side shape, or a combination of one or three or more extension pieces and the wall portion 153, or other easily recognizable shapes, etc.

[0158] [Ninth embodiment] Next, a description will be given of a stand for an information code reader and an information code reading system according to a ninth embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. The ninth embodiment is different from the information code reading system etc. in the seventh embodiment in that a predetermined pattern shape is provided to increase the contrast of the captured image. Therefore, the same components as those in the seventh embodiment etc. are denoted by the same reference numerals and their description will be omitted.

[0159] The stand body 110d of the stand 100d in this embodiment is formed so that, compared to the stand body 110c described above, the approximately planar side (hereinafter also referred to as one side 152a) of both extension pieces 152 facing the imaging unit is brightly imaged using specular reflection.

[0160] For this reason, as shown schematically in Fig. 72, one side surface 152a is formed so that a normal line Lo from a predetermined base point Po on the one side surface 152a bisects an angle θa formed by a line L1 connecting the predetermined base point Po and the illumination unit 21 of the reading device 10 (more specifically, the center of the surface illuminated by the LEDs constituting the illumination unit 21) and a line L2 connecting the predetermined base point Po and the imaging unit of the reading device 10 (more specifically, the center of the light receiving lens 23b constituting the imaging unit). Note that, for convenience, Fig. 72 shows the respective positions of both extension pieces 152, the illumination unit 21, and the imaging unit schematically, and the imaging range of the imaging unit is illustrated by a two-dot chain line.

[0161] This makes it easier to image one side surface 152a of both extension pieces 152 in a state of specular reflection by the illumination light from the illumination unit 21, so that both extension pieces 152 are imaged so as to appear brighter than the recess 16a, the wall portion 153, etc. Therefore, the contrast of the image obtained by imaging both extension pieces 152, etc., increases, thereby improving the detection accuracy of both extension pieces 152 as a predetermined pattern shape, i.e., the detection accuracy of the placement state.

[0162] In addition, even when other easily recognizable pattern shapes are adopted instead of the two extension pieces 152, the above effect can be achieved by forming one side surface constituting at least a part of the side surface on the imaging unit side of the pattern shape so that a normal line from a predetermined base point on the one side surface bisects the angle formed by a line connecting the predetermined base point and the illumination unit of the information code reader and a line connecting the predetermined base point and the imaging unit of the information code reader. The characteristic configuration of this embodiment can also be applied to other embodiments such as the eighth embodiment.

[0163] [Tenth embodiment] Next, a description will be given of a stand for an information code reader and an information code reading system according to a tenth embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. The tenth embodiment differs from the information code reading system etc. in the seventh embodiment in that it determines whether the reading device is correctly placed on the stand by utilizing a predetermined identification mark that is not imaged when the reading device is correctly placed. Therefore, the same components as those in the seventh embodiment etc. are designated by the same reference numerals and their description will be omitted.

[0164] The stand body 110e of the stand 100e in this embodiment is configured to have a predetermined identification mark on the stand body 110c that is not imaged by a reading device 10 that is correctly placed, but is imaged by a reading device 10 that is not correctly placed.

[0165] 73, a symbol 141 is provided as a predetermined identification mark on the edge of the upper surface of the fixing part 140 on the opening 132 side, which is not imaged when the fixing part 140 is properly placed. The symbol 141 is formed in a pattern shape that can be easily detected from the image by utilizing unevenness or the like.

[0166] Therefore, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 74, when the reading device 10 is placed so that the symbol 141 is within the imaging range of the imaging unit of the reading device 10, it is estimated that the reading device 10 is not properly placed on the stand 100e. In such a case, the light-emitting unit 43, which functions as a notification unit, emits light to notify the user that the reading device 10 is not properly placed on the stand 100e, thereby encouraging the user who receives this notification to reposition the reading device 10e. Note that the above effect can also be achieved by the sound notification unit 44 sounding a predetermined sound indicating that the reading device 10 is not properly placed, or the vibrator 45 vibrating a predetermined vibration indicating that the reading device 10 is not properly placed. In this configuration, the sound notification unit 44 and the vibrator 45 can be considered examples of an "alert unit" that notifies the user that the reading device 10 is not properly placed on the stand 100e.

[0167] The predetermined identification marking to be imaged by an improperly placed reading device 10 is not limited to the pair of left and right symbols 141 provided on the fixing part 140, and the above effect can be achieved even if, for example, a pattern shape provided in an easily detectable shape on the lower edge part 213 of the guide part 200 is used. Furthermore, when the reading device 10 is placed so that the predetermined identification marking such as the symbol 141 is within the image capturing range of the image capturing unit of the reading device 10, the above-mentioned notification may be issued and the reading process itself by the reading device 10 may be stopped.

[0168] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modifications, and may be embodied as follows, for example. (1) The insertion / removal section 130 is not limited to being formed by forming the opening 132 on the inside of the ring-shaped portion 131 that is wide in the insertion / removal direction in which the reading section 12 is inserted and removed. For example, the opening with a gap between it and the reading section 12 when inserted may be formed by a space surrounded by the regulating section 133 and both connecting pieces for connecting the regulating section 133 to the support section 120.

[0169] (2) In the present invention, the range of the reading area for which the reading results are output may be changed between the placed mode and the portable mode as described above, and for example, the range of the reading distance for which the reading results are output (the distance from the reading port 14 to the imaged information code) may be changed. Also, in the present invention, the placed mode and the portable mode do not have to be adopted, and the output conditions in the reading process do not have to be changed between the placed mode and the portable mode.

[0170] (3) In the fourth and fifth embodiments, the touch sensor 42a, etc., is not limited to being provided on the upper surface 12a of the reading unit 12, but may also be provided on one surface of the reading unit 12 that can be in a conductor-facing state with the conductor member, etc., of the covering portion 530 of the stand 500 when placed, such as the side or bottom surface of the reading unit 12.

[0171] (4) The support portion 510, the guide portion 520, and the covering portion 530 do not necessarily have to be integrally formed by pressing a metal plate or the like, but may be configured as separate, detachable members.

[0172] 1,1a Information Code Reading System 10, 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d Reading device (information code reading device) 12 Reading unit 12a Top surface (one side) 12b Side end surface 13 Gripping part 14 Reading port 16a Recess (second pattern shape) 19 Middle section 21 Lighting Department 23 Light receiving sensor (imaging unit) 40 control unit (reading processing unit, mode switching unit) 42a, 42b Touch sensor 50 Magnets 100,100a,100b,100c,100d,100e,300,500 110, 110b, 110c, 110d, 110e, 310 Stand body 120,320 Support part 124 Magnet 130,330 Insertion / extraction part 131,331 Annular area 132,332,521 aperture 133,333 Regulatory Department 134 Regulatory Department (Second Regulatory Department) 141 Symbol (prescribed identification mark) 152 Extension piece (predetermined pattern shape, near-distance side shape) 152a One side 153 Wall (predetermined pattern shape, far-distance side shape) 200,400,520 Guide part 530,530a Covering part

Claims

1. A stand for an information code reader including a reading unit having a reading port for taking in reflected light from an information code and a gripping unit to be gripped when carrying the device, a support portion that supports an intermediate portion between the reading portion and the gripping portion from below; an insertion / removal section having an opening through which the reading section is inserted when the intermediate section is supported by the support section; Equipped with the support portion is formed to match the shape of the intermediate portion so as to suppress displacement of the information code reader in a direction different from a predetermined displacement direction in which the reading portion moves up and down, the opening is formed so that a gap for allowing displacement of the information code reader supported at the intermediate portion by the support portion is interposed between the opening and at least a part of the reading portion when inserted, The stand for an information code reading device is characterized in that the insertion / removal section is provided with a regulating section that abuts against the upper surface of the reading section from above to regulate displacement when the information code reading device, with the intermediate section supported by the support section, is in a mounted state in which the reading port faces a predetermined reading area.

2. 2. The stand for an information code reader according to claim 1, wherein the restricting portion is a part of an edge portion that defines the opening.

3. 2. The base of the information code reader according to claim 1, wherein the restricting portion is formed to match the shape of an upper surface of the reading portion so as to guide the reading portion, which comes into contact with the restricting portion, toward a specified position.

4. 2. The base of the information code reader according to claim 1, wherein the insertion / removal portion is formed so that the opening is provided inside a ring-shaped portion that is wide in the insertion / removal direction of the reading portion.

5. 5. The stand for an information code reader according to claim 4, wherein the restricting portion is a part of the ring-shaped portion.

6. 5. The stand for an information code reader according to claim 4, wherein at least a part of the ring-shaped portion is formed to widen outward so that the opening area becomes larger toward the front side in the insertion / removal direction.

7. 2. The stand for an information code reader according to claim 1, wherein the support portion and the intermediate portion are provided with magnets for positioning, respectively.

8. The stand for an information code reading device according to claim 1, characterized in that it is provided with a guide portion for indicating the reading area, which is positioned so as to expose the reading opening on the reading direction side of the reading opening toward the specified reading area by supporting the intermediate portion with the support portion and abutting the regulating portion against the upper surface of the reading portion.

9. The stand for an information code reading device as described in claim 1, characterized in that the insertion / removal section is provided with a second regulating section for regulating displacement that abuts against a surface different from the upper surface of the reading section or faces it through a gap when in the above-mentioned placed state.

10. 2. The stand for an information code reader according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined pattern shape is provided at a position within an imaging range of the information code reader in the placed state.

11. 2. An information code reading system comprising the stand according to claim 1 and the information code reader that can be mounted on the stand, a predetermined pattern shape is provided on the stand at a position within an imaging range of the information code reader in the above-described placed state; The information code reader is a predetermined function is different between a placed mode for performing a reading process of optically reading the information code in the placed state and a portable mode for performing the reading process in the portable state, an imaging unit that images the information code through the reading port; a reading processing unit that performs the reading process on the information code imaged by the imaging unit; a mode switching unit that performs a mode switching process of switching to the portable mode when the predetermined pattern shape is not imaged by the imaging unit, and switching to the placed mode when the predetermined pattern shape is imaged by the imaging unit; An information code reading system comprising:

12. the information code reader includes an illumination unit that irradiates illumination light toward the imaging range, The information code reading system according to claim 11, characterized in that the predetermined pattern shape includes a near-distance side shape that is the near side in terms of distance from the illumination unit when the illumination unit is placed in the above-mentioned state, and a far-distance side shape that is the far-distance side.

13. the reading unit is provided with a second pattern shape within an imaging range of the imaging unit, the second pattern shape being interposed between the reading unit and the imaging unit in the placed state; The information code reading system according to claim 11, characterized in that in the mode switching process, the portable mode is switched to in a state where the predetermined pattern shape is not captured by the imaging unit but the second pattern shape is captured, and the placed mode is switched to in a state where the predetermined pattern shape is captured.

14. 14. The information code reading system according to claim 13, wherein the mode switching process switches to the placement mode in a state where neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is imaged by the imaging unit.

15. The information code reading system according to claim 13, characterized in that the information code reading device is provided with an alarm unit that notifies the user that the information code reading device is not properly placed on the stand when neither the predetermined pattern shape nor the second pattern shape is imaged by the imaging unit.

16. the information code reader includes an illumination unit that irradiates illumination light toward the imaging range, The information code reading system according to claim 11, characterized in that one side constituting at least a part of the side of the predetermined pattern shape facing the imaging unit is formed so that a normal line from a predetermined base point on the one side bisects the angle formed by a line connecting the predetermined base point and the illumination unit and a line connecting the predetermined base point and the imaging unit.

17. The stand is provided with a predetermined identification mark that cannot be imaged by the information code reader that is correctly placed on the stand, but is imaged by the information code reader that is not correctly placed on the stand, The information code reading system according to claim 11, characterized in that the information code reading device includes an alarm unit that notifies the user that the information code reading device is not placed correctly on the stand when the predetermined identification mark is imaged by the imaging unit.

18. 2. An information code reading system comprising the stand according to claim 1 and the information code reader that can be mounted on the stand, The stand is a covering portion that covers at least a part of one surface of the reading portion when the information code reading device is placed on the reading portion; The information code reader is a predetermined function is different between a placed mode for performing a reading process of optically reading the information code in the placed state and a portable mode for performing the reading process in the portable state, a capacitive touch sensor provided on the one surface; a control unit that performs a predetermined process in response to a detection result of the touch sensor; Equipped with a portion of the covering portion that is in proximity to or in contact with the touch sensor in the placed state is formed of a conductive member; The control unit switches the mode of the reading process to either the placed mode or the portable mode based on the detection result of the touch sensor.

19. The control unit When it is detected from the detection result of the touch sensor that a conductor facing state in which a conductor is close to or in contact with the touch sensor and facing the touch sensor continues for a certain period of time, the mode of the reading process is switched to the placement mode, and the reading process is continued as the predetermined process; 19. The information code reading system according to claim 18, wherein, when the detection result of the touch sensor does not detect that the conductor opposing state has continued for the certain period of time, the mode in the reading process is switched to the portable mode, and the reading process is performed as the predetermined process every time a touch operation time shorter than the certain period of time is detected.

20. a plurality of the touch sensors are arranged on the one surface; The control unit When a conductor facing state in which a conductor is in proximity to or in contact with the touch sensor is detected in all of the touch sensors from the detection results of the touch sensors, the mode of the reading process is switched to the placement mode, and the reading process is continued as the predetermined process; The information code reading system of claim 18, characterized in that when the conductor opposing state is not detected by at least one of the touch sensors based on the detection results of the touch sensors, the mode in the reading process is switched to the portable mode, and the reading process is performed as the specified process each time the conductor opposing state is detected by any one of the touch sensors.

21. 19. The information code reading system according to claim 18, wherein the covering portion is formed of a flat conductive member.

22. 19. The information code reading system according to claim 18, wherein the information code reader includes a notification unit that notifies a result of the mode switching in the reading process.

Images