Electronic device, output control method, and program

Abstract

To provide an electronic apparatus, an output control method, and a program capable of creating and improving a sense of togetherness among friends.SOLUTION: The electronic device includes a communication unit configured to control wireless communication, an output unit, and a controller. The control unit determines whether or not there is an electronic apparatus in a communicable state by the communication unit among other electronic apparatuses other than the own apparatus in a group to which a plurality of electronic apparatuses including the own apparatus belong, and causes the output unit to output a content predetermined for the group when there is the other electronic apparatus in the communicable state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic device, an output control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a technology for customizing the display screen of a portable electronic device such as a wrist terminal worn on the wrist by acquiring a design created on a PC (Personal Computer) or the like (Patent Document 1). This makes it possible to display a design that suits individual preferences. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-284365 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] On the other hand, there is the issue that individually different designs do not foster or improve a sense of unity among group members.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device, an output control method, and a program that can foster and improve a sense of unity among friends. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, an electronic device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises: The device includes a communication unit that controls wireless communication, an output unit, and a control unit, The control unit determines whether there are any other electronic devices in a group to which multiple electronic devices including the own device belong that are in a state where communication is possible via the communication unit, and if there are any other electronic devices in a state where communication is possible, causes the output unit to output predetermined content to the group. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to foster and improve a sense of unity among friends using electronic devices. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an information display system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the electronic device. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating examples of displays on a display unit of an electronic device. [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating examples of displays on a display unit of an electronic device. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a search for other electronic devices within a group. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a search for other electronic devices within a group. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing a control procedure of a group display control process executed by the electronic device of the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1, the information display system 100 includes a server device 20 and a plurality of electronic devices 10. The plurality of electronic devices 10 may be, for example, terminal devices worn on the wrist (arm), such as electronic watches or smart watches. The electronic devices 10 may be of different models as long as they can communicate with each other and can commonly display the display content described below.

[0010] As described above, the electronic devices 10 can communicate with each other via short-range wireless communication, for example, Bluetooth (registered trademark). The electronic devices 10 can also communicate with the server device 20 via the base station 90 and the Internet I, directly or via another electronic device capable of short-range wireless communication, such as a smartphone 80.

[0011] The server device 20 is a computer that also functions as a database. The server device 20 stores and holds group information of the electronic devices 10, and when the group information is updated, transmits the updated information to the electronic devices 10 in each group. The server device 20 may be a computer of a company that provides the service according to the present disclosure. Alternatively, the server device 20 may be a private computer that is individually set for each group, or a data area on a cloud server that can be used by an individual.

[0012] As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 2, the electronic device 10 includes a CPU 11 (Central Processing Unit) (control unit), a RAM 12 (Random Access Memory), a storage unit 13, a communication unit 14, a display unit 15 (output unit), an operation reception unit 16, and the like.

[0013] The CPU 11 is a processor that performs various types of arithmetic processing and controls the overall operation of the electronic device 10. The CPU 11 may have a single processor, or may have multiple processors that perform arithmetic processing in parallel or independently depending on the application.

[0014] The RAM 12 provides a working memory space for the CPU 11 and stores temporary data. The RAM 12 may be a DRAM.

[0015] The storage unit 13 is a non-volatile memory that stores a control program, an application program (app), setting data, and the like. The non-volatile memory may be, for example, a flash memory. The app includes a program 131 related to group display. The setting data includes group information 132. The group information 132 includes information about multiple electronic devices belonging to a group including the electronic device itself, such as an SSID, which is identification information related to communication. The group information 132 may also include display data 1321 and a planned gathering period 1322. The display data 1321 is data of an image to be displayed when multiple members (electronic devices 10) of the group gather together. The planned gathering period 1322 is information such as a period or time period during which members holding electronic devices 10 belonging to the group will gather together. Note that the electronic device 10 may belong to multiple groups. In this case, the electronic device 10 stores and holds group information 132 for multiple groups.

[0016] The communication unit 14 controls communication with other electronic devices via short-range wireless communication, which may be Bluetooth as described above.

[0017] The display unit 15 performs display operations under the control of the CPU 11. The display unit 15 may have a digital display screen 151. The digital display screen 151 may be a dot-matrix liquid crystal display screen or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescent) screen.

[0018] The operation reception unit 16 receives input operations from an external device such as a user, and outputs the received operations to the CPU 11 as electrical signals. The operation reception unit 16 may have, for example, a touch panel and / or a push button switch. The touch panel may be located so as to overlap the digital display screen 151. The push button switch may be located on the display surface and / or side surface of the electronic device 10.

[0019] The electronic device 10 may also include physical sensors such as an acceleration sensor, an illuminance sensor, and a pulse sensor, a light for illuminating the display screen, a configuration for performing notification operations such as vibration and beep sounds, and / or a positioning module for receiving radio waves from positioning satellites related to the GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) and performing positioning calculations, etc. A part or all of the configuration for performing the notification operation may be included in the output unit of this embodiment.

[0020] Next, the group display of this embodiment will be described. The electronic device 10 determines whether communication is possible with the other electronic devices 10 in the group to which it belongs via the communication unit 14, and in particular, whether a communication connection has been established here. If there are other electronic devices 10 in a communication possible state, the display unit 15 displays a common display within the group. In other words, when a member (affiliated member) who holds an electronic device 10 belonging to the group is within the communication connection range of short-range wireless communication, the electronic devices 10 of the affiliated member within the communication connection range display a common display within the group.

[0021] The common display content is predetermined for the group and stored in the storage unit 13 as display data 1321. The display content may be generated by external image editing software / application. Alternatively, templates for the common display may be provided in advance by the server device 20, and one or more combinations of the templates may be selected by the group members.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 3(a), when the electronic device 10 is not connected to other electronic devices 10, the display unit 15 displays normal display content, such as the time. As shown in FIG. 3(b), when the electronic device 10 is connected to one other electronic device 10 for communication, a display M with content specific to the group is added to the digital display screen 151. The display M may be a sign or decoration including some kind of design or character. The character may be a designed character, or initials or abbreviations may be displayed in a normal font.

[0023] Such display M may be located on the periphery of the digital display screen 151 so as not to interfere with normal displays such as the time display. Alternatively, display M may be displayed as a background image on the display screen with a contrast that does not interfere with normal displays. In other words, the background image does not appear in front of the original display and does not obscure the original display. Furthermore, as long as display M has characteristics such as a common shape among members, some elements, such as color, may be selected differently for each member.

[0024] When the number of other electronic devices 10 connected for communication increases, the display M may be changed in accordance with the number of devices. For example, as shown in FIG. 3(c), the number of signs (reference images) displayed as the display M may increase in accordance with the number of devices. Note that when the number of electronic devices 10 belonging to a group is large, it becomes difficult to display the same number of signs as the number of electronic devices 10. In this case, the number of signs displayed on the digital display screen 151 may correspond to the proportion of the total number of devices, rather than the actual number of devices.

[0025] Alternatively, when the number of other electronic devices 10 connected for communication increases, the color of the signs and decorations in the display M may be changed in accordance with the number of devices, as shown in Fig. 4(a). Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 4(b), the size of the signs displayed as the display M may be enlarged in accordance with the increase in the number of other electronic devices 10. Alternatively, the displayed decorations may become more flashy. In particular, when the display M is displayed as a background image of a normal display, as shown in Fig. 4(c), the enlargement of the display size is likely to be noticeable.

[0026] In addition to the common display, the number of people gathered may be displayed. This display may be a simple number, or may be written as "two people gathered" or "everyone gathered," etc.

[0027] As shown in Fig. 4(d), the content of display M may be a moving image in which a plurality of images (frames) are switched between. Also, the content may be switched from a still image to a moving image only when all members are present.

[0028] Such group display may be displayed only during normal time display. That is, the group display may be suspended when some functional operation is being performed on the electronic device 10. Examples of functional operations include measuring elapsed time using a stopwatch, measuring pulse, number of steps taken, distance traveled, and the like related to an activity, and displaying information from the smartphone 80.

[0029] Furthermore, if the group information 132 in the storage unit 13 includes information such as a period or time period during which members who own electronic devices 10 belonging to the group gather, as described above, the search operation for other electronic devices 10 may be stopped outside of that period or time period. If a hobby group or the like has fixed days of the week, dates, and times for regular gatherings, unnecessary search operations can be omitted by storing this in advance in the storage unit 13 as planned gathering period 1322. If a planned gathering is added or temporarily changed, a group member may register the addition or change in the server device 20. Furthermore, if communication is established with all electronic devices 10 registered in the group, there is no need to perform any further search operations, and so the search operation may be stopped.

[0030] For example, the Bluetooth low energy standard may be used for wireless communication. This reduces power consumption even when a communication connection is maintained. To establish a communication connection, an operation of searching for other electronic devices 10 is required. The search operation includes an advertising operation in which one electronic device 10 transmits radio waves to inform the other electronic devices 10 of its presence, and a scanning operation in which the other electronic devices 10 receive radio waves associated with the advertising operation from the one electronic device 10. If a group has a leader, as shown in FIG. 5(a), the communication unit 14 of the leader electronic device 10L (representative device) may be dedicated to scanning, receive advertisements from all other electronic devices 10 informing them of its presence, and return a communication connection request. In this case, the electronic device 10L may transmit information about the number of connected devices to the other electronic devices 10. Furthermore, in the case of BLE version 5 or later, which allows mesh connection, the electronic device 10L may transmit information about the electronic devices 10 that should scan and return a connection request to the other electronic devices 10 connected to it, thereby enabling communication connections between the electronic devices 10 other than the electronic device 10L.

[0031] Alternatively, in the case of BLE version 5, the timing of advertising and scanning may be preset for the electronic devices 10 in the group. That is, the states of FIGS. 5(a), 6(a), and 6(b) may be periodically switched. For example, as shown in FIG. 5(a), the electronic device 10L may sequentially scan channels 37 to 39 for a predetermined time starting at the timing of every second. For example, the electronic device 10L may scan channel 37 at a timing that is a multiple of 3 seconds per minute, scan channel 38 at a timing that is a multiple of 3 seconds per minute + 1.0 seconds per minute, and scan channel 39 at a timing that is a multiple of 3 seconds per minute + 2.0 seconds per minute. As shown in FIG. 6(a), the electronic device 10c1 may sequentially scan channels 37 to 39 for a predetermined time starting at the timing that is 300 milliseconds per second. For example, channel 37 may be scanned at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 0.3 seconds, channel 38 at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 1.3 seconds, and channel 39 at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 2.3 seconds. As shown in FIG. 6(b), electronic device 10c2 may sequentially scan channels 37 to 39 for a predetermined time at 1-second intervals starting from a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 600 milliseconds. For example, channel 37 may be scanned at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 0.6 seconds, channel 38 at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 1.6 seconds, and channel 39 at a timing of a multiple of 3 per minute + 2.6 seconds. The order in which channels 37 to 39 are scanned may differ among electronic devices 10. Furthermore, the timing of scanning channels 37 to 39 may be shifted by ±1 second from a multiple of 3 seconds depending on the start timing of scanning. On the other hand, each electronic device 10 may advertise at appropriate intervals, for example, 60 millisecond intervals, while not scanning or independently of scanning. When advertising, advertisements on three channels 37 to 39 may be output in sequence at each timing. This allows communication connections to be established between multiple electronic devices 10 without omission. Alternatively, more simply, the scanning interval and advertising interval may be set asynchronously in each electronic device 10.Furthermore, even if the cycle and phase happen to be such that the timing of advertising and scanning are exclusive in the initial state, the phase may be shifted by a random delay between repeated operations, making it possible to receive advertisements from other electronic devices 10 without any special corresponding settings. In this case, the interval between scanning and advertising may be short, for example, set to about several tens of milliseconds, during the specified period of the search operation. In this case, electronic devices 10 of any number of members gathered together can easily search for and communicate with other electronic devices 10.

[0032] The group display control process shown in Fig. 7 is one embodiment of the output control method of the present disclosure. The group display control process may be executed by automatically calling program 131, for example, at the start date and time of a period or the start time of a time period set in group information 132. Note that if electronic device 10 has an acceleration sensor, pulse sensor, or the like, it can be determined that electronic device 10 is not being worn or used by a user based on the measurement status of these sensors. In this way, if electronic device 10 is not being worn or used by a user, CPU 11 may stop execution of the group display control process.

[0033] The CPU 11 sets the number of connections to "0" (S11). The CPU 11 advertises and scans at predetermined timings to notify other electronic devices 10 of its presence and detects advertisements from other electronic devices 10 (S12).

[0034] The CPU 11 determines whether an advertisement or a connection request has been received from another electronic device 10 (S13). If it is determined that an advertisement or a connection request has been received (S13; Y), the CPU 11 returns a connection request in response to the advertisement, or accepts the connection request and establishes a communication connection (S14). The CPU 11 adds the number of devices with which a communication connection has been established to the number of connections (S15). Then, the processing of the CPU 11 proceeds to S16. If it is determined that neither an advertisement nor a connection request has been received, the processing of the CPU 11 proceeds to S16. Steps S12 and S13 are an embodiment of the determination means of the present disclosure.

[0035] When the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S16, CPU 11 determines whether or not communication has been disconnected with the electronic devices 10 that were connected to it (S16). If it is determined that communication has been disconnected (S16; Y), CPU 11 subtracts the number of devices with which communication has been disconnected from the number of connections (S17). Then, the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S18. If it is determined that communication has not been disconnected (S16; N), the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S18.

[0036] When the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S18, CPU 11 determines whether or not group display is possible on digital display screen 151 (S18). As described above, if other functional operations are not being executed and group display is possible (S18; Y), CPU 11 acquires display content according to the number of connections from display data 1321 (S19). CPU 11 causes display unit 15 to display the acquired display content (S20). Then, the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S21. If group display is not possible (S18; N), the processing of CPU 11 proceeds to S21. The processing of steps S20 and S21 is included in the output control means of this embodiment.

[0037] When the processing of the CPU 11 proceeds to S21, the CPU 11 determines whether or not a command to stop the group display has been acquired (S21). The stop command is issued at the end of the period or time period in the group information 132. If a stop command has not been acquired (S21; N), the processing of the CPU 11 returns to S12. If a stop command has been acquired (S21; Y), the CPU 11 ends the group display control processing. At this time, the connections with all connected electronic devices 10 of the group may be cut off, or may continue until communication is interrupted or an explicit request to cut off communication is received.

[0038] Registration of group members related to such group display may be performed by the server device 20. For example, after the leader electronic device 10L is paired / bonded with the electronic device 10 of a new group member, information about the obtained electronic device 10 may be registered in the server device 20. Registration does not have to be limited to the leader electronic device 10L. The new member obtains account information of the server device 20 from the leader electronic device 10L, and accesses the server device 20 using the electronic device 10 to obtain information about other members, display data, etc. The electronic devices 10 of the other members may communicate with the server device 20 periodically, for example, once a day and / or at the start of the above-mentioned period or time slot, to obtain updated information.

[0039] Alternatively, the server device 20 may be accessed by a smartphone 80 or the like that is communicatively connected to the electronic device 10. In this case, the smartphone 80 acquires update information periodically or at an appropriate timing. The electronic device 10 may acquire update information from the smartphone 80 when the smartphone 80 and the electronic device 10 are subsequently communicatively connected. An app for accessing the server device 20 and acquiring necessary information may be installed on the smartphone 80.

[0040] As described above, the electronic device 10 of this embodiment includes a communication unit 14 that controls wireless communication with other electronic devices 10, a display unit 15, and a CPU 11. The CPU 11 determines whether or not there are other electronic devices 10 in a group to which multiple electronic devices 10, including the electronic device itself, that are capable of communicating via the communication unit 14. If there are other electronic devices 10 that are capable of communicating, the CPU 11 causes the display unit 15 to output predetermined display content for the group. Through this control, when group members gather together, the electronic device 10 can cause the electronic devices 10 of the group members to output information unique to the group. Therefore, the electronic device 10 can foster and enhance a sense of unity among users as a group.

[0041] Furthermore, the output contents may be common to multiple electronic devices 10 belonging to a group. That is, the color, size, orientation, etc. of the display contents may be standardized among the electronic devices 10. Standardizing the output in this way can enhance a sense of unity among group members without them competing with each other.

[0042] Furthermore, the CPU 11 may output predetermined content to the group depending on the number of other communicable electronic devices 10. That is, the electronic device 10 changes the display as the number of people in the group increases, thereby encouraging users to be more excited and feel a sense of unity.

[0043] Furthermore, the CPU 11 may cause the communication unit 14 to search for other electronic devices 10 belonging to the group, and determine whether the other electronic devices 10 are in a state where communication is possible. In Bluetooth or the like, it is possible to determine whether a communication connection with other bonded electronic devices 10 is possible by advertising and scanning. Therefore, each electronic device 10 can determine whether the user of each of the other electronic devices 10 is near the electronic device itself.

[0044] The search may also include an operation of transmitting radio waves (advertising) to announce the presence of the electronic device itself, and an operation of receiving (scanning) the radio waves transmitted by electronic devices 10 other than the electronic device itself. The receiving operation may be defined differently for each of the electronic devices 10 belonging to the group. By staggering the timing at which each electronic device 10 outputs a connection request in response to the advertisement received by scanning, communication connections can be made efficiently.

[0045] Furthermore, the plurality of electronic devices belonging to a group may include one representative device. If the CPU 11 is the representative device, the CPU 11 may perform a search by having the communication unit 14 receive advertisements from the other electronic devices 10 and perform a scan, and if the CPU 11 is not the representative device, the CPU 11 may perform a search by having the communication unit 14 advertise. In this way, by limiting the electronic devices 10 that perform scanning to the representative device, the connection status among the plurality of electronic devices 10 can be easily organized.

[0046] The electronic device 10 also includes a storage unit 13 that stores group information 132 and the like. The group information may include display data 1321, which is the content of the predetermined output. The CPU 11 may read the content to be output from the storage unit 13 and display it on the display unit 15 or the like. Since each electronic device 10 stores the display data 1321 related to the predetermined display M, the display M can be easily output by the display unit 15.

[0047] The display unit 15 may also have a digital display screen 151. The output content may be an image to be output to this digital display screen 151. The image may be an image in which at least one of the color, size, and number of a certain reference image varies depending on the number of other electronic devices 10 that are in a communicable state. In other words, the display may be such that the color, size, or number of the same image changes as the number of gathered users increases. By switching the display in this way, the electronic device 10 can encourage a greater sense of unity among users.

[0048] The output content may also be a display image displayed on the periphery of the digital display screen 151 or a background image for other displays on the digital display screen 151. In other words, such a display M may have minimal impact on the time display that should be displayed. This can reduce degradation of the functionality of the electronic device 10, such as necessary information not being provided or being difficult to see.

[0049] Furthermore, the group information may include information on the planned gathering period 1322 for the group. The communication unit 14 may stop searching for the electronic devices 10 of other members outside the period set in the planned gathering period 1322. If the period for gathering in the group is fixed, there is no need to search for other electronic devices 10 outside of that period. This makes it possible to reduce the power consumption and operational load required for the search.

[0050] The output control method of this embodiment also includes the following steps: (1) Determine whether or not there is any electronic device 10 in a group to which a plurality of electronic devices 10 including the electronic device itself are communicable via the communication unit 14 of the electronic device itself. (2) If there is any other electronic device 10 in a communicable state, output predetermined content to the group via the output unit of the electronic device itself. According to this output control method, when group members gather together, the electronic devices 10 of the group members can be made to output content unique to the group. Therefore, the electronic device 10 can foster and enhance a sense of unity among users as a group.

[0051] Furthermore, the program 131 relating to the output control method may be installed in a computer and executed, thereby allowing the computer to easily perform output control operations to improve the sense of unity of the user.

[0052] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and can be modified in various ways. For example, the above example shows that the number and size of the signs increase and the color changes as the number of devices that are connected increases, but the present invention is not limited to this. A specific display may simply be displayed uniformly when two or more devices in a group are connected for communication.

[0053] In the above, the condition for determining a group is that a Bluetooth communication connection has been established. However, even if communication has not been established, if the number of devices that are in a connectable state is specified, a display M corresponding to that number may be displayed.

[0054] Furthermore, in the above description, the display M is described as being displayed on the digital display screen 151, but this is not limited to this. If the electronic device 10 has an analog mechanism for rotating hands, the display M may be displayed by the position or characteristic movement of a specific hand. In this case, the moving hand is selected to be a hand that does not affect normal functions such as time display, such as a small hand. Furthermore, the movement of the hand does not have to be continuous. It may be an intermittent movement. In this case, the intermittent movement may be synchronized among members, or may be performed at different times with a certain time lag. The specific hand does not have to be a single hand. The position or size of the movement of the hand may be changed depending on the number of people gathered or the ratio of the number of members to the number of members in the group. Furthermore, even if the digital display screen 151 is a combination of segments, a common display may be displayed for the group by lighting or flashing a specific segment.

[0055] Furthermore, the above-mentioned common operation for the group does not have to be a display output. It may also include sound output, light output, vibration output, etc. In this case, the melody, light emission, vibration pattern, etc. may be common to the group. Furthermore, these notification operations may be time-limited so as not to disturb others, and may be able to be turned on or off by the user through input operations.

[0056] In the above description, it has been explained that members of a certain group can also belong to other groups. In this case, if these multiple groups gather and act at the same time, a priority may be set for each group, and the display of the group with the highest priority may be selectively performed. Alternatively, the priority may be dynamically determined according to the number of people gathered in each group. Furthermore, if there is room on the digital display screen, displays related to multiple groups may be displayed together. Alternatively, the displays related to multiple groups may be switched at regular intervals. In this case, an input operation may be possible to temporarily fix the display of a certain group.

[0057] In the above description, the communication unit 14 controls communication in accordance with the Bluetooth low energy standard, but this is not limiting. Other short-range wireless communication methods that enable direct communication may also be used.

[0058] In the above description, the electronic device 10 is a terminal device worn on the wrist (arm), but is not limited to this, and may be any of various portable electronic devices, such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal.

[0059] In the above description, the group of friends is assumed to be a group of friends or a hobby group, but the group is not limited to this. It may also be used by a family, such as a parent and child. In this case, the contents of the present disclosure may also be used to check whether a child is nearby a parent.

[0060] In the above description, the storage unit 13 is described as an example of a computer-readable medium for storing the program 131 related to the display control of the present invention, which is composed of a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Other computer-readable media may include other nonvolatile memories such as MRAM, and portable recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD discs. Furthermore, a carrier wave may also be used as a medium for providing the program data related to the present invention via a communication line.

[0061] In addition, the specific configurations, contents and procedures of the processing operations, etc. shown in the above embodiments can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. The scope of the present invention includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0062] 10 electronic equipment, 11 CPU, 14 communication section, 15 display section

Claims

1. The device includes a communication unit that controls wireless communication, an output unit, and a control unit, the control unit determines whether or not there is any electronic device in a group to which a plurality of electronic devices including the own device belong that is in a state in which communication is possible via the communication unit, and if there is any electronic device in a state in which communication is possible, causes the output unit to output predetermined content to the group. electronic equipment.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the content is common to the plurality of electronic devices belonging to the group.

3. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit causes the output unit to output the predetermined content to the group depending on the number of the other electronic devices that are in a communicable state.

4. The electronic device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit causes the communication unit to search for other electronic devices belonging to the group and determines whether the other electronic devices are in a communicable state.

5. the search includes an operation of transmitting radio waves to notify the presence of the electronic device itself and an operation of receiving the radio waves transmitted by the electronic devices other than the electronic device itself, and a period of the receiving operation is set differently for each of the plurality of electronic devices belonging to the group; 5. The electronic device according to claim 4.

6. the plurality of electronic devices belonging to the group include one representative device, When the device itself is the representative device, the control unit performs the search by causing the communication unit to receive radio waves informing the presence of the device from other electronic devices, and when the device itself is not the representative device, the control unit performs the search by causing the communication unit to transmit radio waves informing the presence of the device.

5. The electronic device according to claim 4.

7. a storage unit for storing information about the group; The information of the group includes the specified content, The control unit reads the content from the storage unit and causes the output unit to output the content. The electronic device according to claim 1.

8. the output unit has a digital display screen; the content is an image to be displayed on the digital display screen, and the image is a reference image whose color, size, and number vary depending on the number of other electronic devices that are in a communicable state; The electronic device according to claim 1.

9. the output unit has a digital display screen; 2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the content is a display image displayed in a peripheral portion of the digital display screen or a background image for other displays on the digital display screen.

10. a storage unit for storing information about the group; The information about the group includes information about a planned gathering period for the group, the communication unit stops searching for the electronic devices of the other members outside the period set in the information on the planned meeting period. The electronic device according to claim 1.

11. determining whether or not there is an electronic device in a group including the electronic device itself that is capable of communicating with the communication unit of the electronic device itself; When there is another electronic device in a communicable state, the output unit of the electronic device outputs predetermined content to the group. Output control method.

12. Computer, a determination means for determining whether or not there is an electronic device in a group to which a plurality of electronic devices including the own device belong that is in a state in which communication is possible via a communication unit; an output control means for causing an output unit to output predetermined content to the group when there is another electronic device in a communicable state; A program that functions as a

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