Patrol support system, program for patrol support system

Abstract

This system provides a patrol support system that minimizes the occurrence of situations where patrol personnel fail to re-check the rear seats of vehicles that have been returned to the depot. [Solution] The patrol support system according to the present invention is a patrol support system that assists in patrolling to confirm the presence or absence of people in vehicles parked in a parking lot, wherein the control unit performs image analysis on the input image data, reads the information written on the license plate of the vehicle reflected in the image data as text data to obtain read data, stores a dataset consisting of the read data, the time data when the read data was obtained and the latitude and longitude data when the read data was obtained in the storage unit, compares the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit, and generates display data by superimposing the image data and the read data according to the result of the comparison.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a patrol support system for assisting in patrolling to check whether there is a situation where a child is left unattended in a vehicle parked in a parking lot of a commercial facility such as a game arcade, department store, mall, etc., and a program for a patrol support system realized by an information processing terminal device.

Background Art

[0002] There are cases where a parent comes to a game arcade or the like by car with a child and remains in the hall enjoying the game while leaving the child in the vehicle. In such cases, in summer, the temperature inside the vehicle rises, and tragic accidents in which a child suffers heatstroke and dies have been reported so far.

[0003] As an operator of a game arcade or the like, it is necessary to take some measures to prevent such accidents. As one of such measures, it can be cited that employees or security guards of the game arcade regularly conduct patrols to check whether there is a situation where a child is left unattended in a vehicle parked in the parking lot. The inventors proposed a patrol support system in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent No. 7550463) that provides support by reading the license plate of a parked vehicle when conducting such patrols.

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The conventional patrol support system described in Patent Document 1 was configured to notify patrol personnel that a vehicle whose rear seat had been checked during a past patrol was a vehicle that had already been checked. Then, for such a vehicle, the patrol personnel did not check the rear seat again and took an operation to shorten the patrol time.

[0005] In conventional patrol support systems, the system checks whether license plate reading data has already been stored in database 18, and if it is determined that the data has already been stored, it executes the process of issuing the notification described above. On the other hand, even if a vehicle has license plate reading data stored in database 18, it may leave the depot and then return to it.

[0006] In such cases, it is conceivable that the driver of the vehicle that has returned to the parking lot may have brought a child with them and left the child unattended in the car. Therefore, it is desirable that the rear seats of vehicles that have returned to the parking lot be checked again. However, with conventional patrol support systems, vehicles that have returned to the parking lot are reported to patrol personnel as vehicles that have already been checked, and the problem is that patrol personnel do not check the rear seats again. On the other hand, there is also a need to shorten patrol time by not checking the rear seats of vehicles that have already been checked. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] This invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and the patrol support system according to the present invention is a patrol support system that uses an information processing terminal device having: a timing unit that generates time data relating to the current time; an imaging unit that takes images and acquires image data; a display unit that receives display data and performs a display based on the display data; a GPS receiving unit that receives GPS signals and generates latitude and longitude data of its own position; a control unit that performs calculations based on input data and outputs the result of the calculation as output data; and a storage unit that stores data transmitted from the control unit and transmits the stored data to the control unit, to support patrols to confirm the presence or absence of people in vehicles parked in a parking lot, wherein the control unit performs image analysis on the input image data, reads the information written on the license plate of the vehicle reflected in the image data as text data to acquire read data, stores a dataset consisting of the read data, time data when the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit, compares the latest dataset with past datasets already existing in the storage unit, and generates display data by superimposing the image data and read data according to the result of the comparison.

[0008] Furthermore, the patrol support system according to the present invention is characterized in that, when generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data, the color of the frame surrounding the reading data in the display data is changed according to the result of the comparison.

[0009] Furthermore, the patrol support system according to the present invention is characterized in that, when generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data, the symbols displayed in the display data are different depending on the result of the comparison.

[0010] Furthermore, the patrol support system according to the present invention is characterized in that the information processing terminal device has a speaker that receives and emits sound commands from the control unit, and the control unit makes the sound emitted according to the sound command different depending on the result of the verification.

[0011] Furthermore, the patrol support system program according to the present invention is a patrol support system program that causes an information processing terminal device to execute processing to support patrolling for the confirmation of the presence or absence of people in vehicles parked in a parking lot, wherein the information processing terminal device includes a processor that executes data processing, a timing unit that generates time data relating to the current time, an imaging unit that takes images and acquires image data, a display unit that receives display data and performs a display based on the display data, and a GPS receiver that receives GPS signals and generates latitude and longitude data of its own position, and is characterized in that the processor is caused to execute the following steps: image analysis of the image data input from the imaging unit and reading the information written on the license plate of a vehicle reflected in the image data as text data to acquire read data; storing a dataset consisting of the read data, time data when the read data was acquired and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit; comparing the latest dataset with past datasets already existing in the storage unit; and generating display data by superimposing the image data and read data according to the result of the comparison. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] The patrol support system according to the present invention stores a dataset consisting of read data, time data when the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit, and compares the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit. Based on the result of the comparison, it generates display data by superimposing the image data and the read data. With such a patrol support system according to the present invention, it is possible to minimize the occurrence of situations where patrol personnel do not check the rear seats of vehicles that have returned to the parking lot again, and for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being checked, the patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, thereby shortening the patrol time.

[0013] Furthermore, the patrol support system program according to the present invention includes the steps of storing a dataset consisting of read data, time data when the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit; comparing the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit; and generating display data by superimposing the image data and read data according to the result of the comparison. With such a patrol support system program according to the present invention, it is possible to minimize the occurrence of situations in which patrol personnel do not check the rear seats again for vehicles that have been re-entered, and for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being checked, the patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, thereby shortening the patrol time. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This figure shows a patrol being conducted using the patrol support system according to the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram of a smartphone 10, which is an example of an information processing terminal device used in a mobile support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This figure shows an example flowchart of the patrol support process by the patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of the data structure of the database 18 in a patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of the display on the touch panel unit 30 of a patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example flowchart of background processing by a patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] This figure shows an example of the display on the touch panel section 30 of a patrol support system according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The patrol support system according to the present invention is characterized by being a system that supports manual patrols of parking lots. More specifically, the purpose of the invention is to reduce the effort, labor, and time of a person (hereinafter referred to as "patrol personnel") who patrols parking lots of commercial facilities such as amusement parks, department stores, and malls to check each vehicle to see if there are any people (mainly children or infants) inside the parked vehicles (mainly in the back seats).

[0016] When patrolling a parking lot and checking each parked vehicle for children, the most time-consuming and laborious part is walking to the back of each vehicle and peering into the rear seats to check for children.

[0017] To avoid the tasks described above, it is possible to shorten the patrol time by omitting the action of checking the rear seats again for vehicles that have already been inspected. The patrol support system according to the present invention is designed to support patrol personnel in performing patrols efficiently by notifying them whether or not a vehicle has already been inspected.

[0018] On the other hand, the patrol support system according to the present invention also aims to minimize the chance of patrol personnel overlooking the rear seats of vehicles that have been re-entered, as they would otherwise be notified that the vehicle has already been inspected.

[0019] In the patrol support system according to the present invention, for example, during the business hours of a commercial facility, it is assumed that a patrol staff member checks approximately once an hour whether a child has been left unattended in each vehicle parked in the parking lot while patrolling. At this time, as shown in FIG. 1, it is assumed that the patrol staff member P holds an information processing terminal device such as a widely used smartphone 10 and checks each vehicle one by one while imaging the information described on the license plate N of each vehicle V. The smartphone 10 reads the information described on the license plate N and notifies the patrol staff member P whether the vehicle V has already been checked in the past based on the read information.

[0020] The configuration of the smartphone 10 that can be used in the patrol support system according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a smartphone 10, which is an example of an information processing terminal device used in the patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the description is based on an example in which a smartphone is used as the information processing terminal device, but in the patrol support system according to the present invention, other devices such as tablet terminal devices can also be used as the information processing terminal device.

[0021] The control unit 11 corresponds to a computing device (processor, Central Processing Unit) and various programs executed on this computing device. The basic operating system 16 operating on the computing device includes a program for realizing basic timekeeping functions such as a calendar and a clock. In this embodiment, a configuration for realizing such a timekeeping function is referred to as a timekeeping unit, and in particular, time data related to the current time is generated from this timekeeping unit and used in processing.

[0022] Furthermore, the memory unit 15 is a storage device that stores data, such as volatile memory (DRAM, SRAM, etc.) or non-volatile memory (ROM, flash memory, etc.). This memory unit 15 is capable of holding data written by the control unit 11, allowing the control unit 11 to access the written data, or erasing data that the control unit 11 no longer needs.

[0023] The storage unit 15 stores a basic operating system 16, a mobile support system application program 17 of the present invention that runs on the basic operating system 16, and a database 18 on which data is written, accessed, or erased by the mobile support system application program 17. Each program stored in the storage unit 15 is executed by the control unit 11.

[0024] In the patrol support system according to the present invention, various functions are realized by the control unit 11 executing various processes based on the patrol support system application program 17, which is application software installed in the storage unit 15.

[0025] In the diagram, the control unit 11 can issue various control commands to a block configuration (for example, a touch panel unit 30) connected to it, transfer various data to it, and receive data acquired by that block configuration.

[0026] The communication unit 20 enables data communication and voice calls with external devices via wireless communication. Based on commands from the control unit 11, the communication unit 20 can, for example, transmit data written to the storage unit 15 to an external device, or transfer data received from an external device to the control unit 11.

[0027] The GPS receiver 23 is configured to determine its own latitude and longitude by receiving GPS (Global Positioning System) signals from multiple satellites. The latitude and longitude data determined by the GPS receiver 23 is transmitted to the control unit 11. The control unit 11 works in conjunction with map data and applications (not shown) stored in the memory unit 15 to determine the location of the smartphone 10 on the map, and consequently, the location of the user who is expected to be carrying the smartphone 10. The communication unit 20 can obtain information related to the location of the smartphone 10 (the user's location) from a communication network such as the internet, based on the latitude and longitude data obtained from the GPS receiver 23.

[0028] The imaging unit 25 is configured to acquire still image data and video image data. The still image data and video image data acquired by the imaging unit 25 are processed by the control unit 11 and displayed on the touch panel unit 30 or stored in the storage unit 15 as needed. The still image data and video image data stored in the storage unit 15 can be configured to be used by the patrol support system. In the patrol support system according to the present invention, it is assumed that video image data will be used as the basis.

[0029] The touch panel unit 30 provided in the smartphone 10 is used as a user interface. The touch panel unit 30 integrates an input unit 31 that allows the user to input information by detecting the user's finger contact, and a display unit 32 that displays information to the user. In the touch panel unit 30, the display unit 32 and the input unit 31 are arranged to overlap, and the input unit 31 is transparent, so the user can input information based on the display by touching the display of the display unit 32 with their finger. Conventional and well-known techniques are applied to user input operations based on such a touch panel unit 30 in this invention.

[0030] The input section 31 of the touch panel section 30 can be, for example, a capacitive type. Furthermore, the display section 32 of the touch panel section 30 can use a display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or an organic EL (Electroluminescence).

[0031] The input operations commonly known as "tap," "double tap," "long tap," "drag," "move," "flick," "swipe," "pinch," and "pinch out" on the touch panel section 30 of the smartphone 10 are also employed in the patrol support system according to the present invention.

[0032] The audio processing unit 35 modulates and demodulates the audio signal. The audio processing unit 35 modulates the signal received from the microphone 36 and provides the modulated signal to the control unit 11. The audio processing unit 35 also provides the audio signal to the speaker 37. The audio processing unit 35 is implemented, for example, by an audio processing processor. The microphone 36 functions as an audio input unit that receives an audio signal and outputs it to the control unit 11. The speaker 37 functions as an audio output unit that outputs the audio signal to the outside of the smartphone 10.

[0033] The acceleration sensor 41 is an inertial sensor that measures the acceleration applied to the smartphone 10. For example, a MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical System) acceleration sensor that applies MEMS technology can be used as the acceleration detection method.

[0034] The geomagnetic sensor 42 is a sensor that measures the magnitude and direction of a magnetic field. As the geomagnetic sensor 42, a Hall element sensor utilizing the Hall effect of a Hall element, or an MR sensor using a magnetoresistive element, can be used.

[0035] Furthermore, the gyro sensor 43 is an angular velocity sensor that measures the rotational angular velocity of the smartphone 10. A vibration-type gyro sensor using MEMS technology can be suitably used as such a gyro sensor 43.

[0036] Now, let's describe the processing of the patrol support system according to the present invention, which is executed on the smartphone 10 configured as described above. Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart of the patrol support processing by the patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such a flowchart is executed by the control unit 11. Furthermore, such a flowchart is merely an example, and the patrol support system according to the present invention can also be realized using other flowcharts. In addition, the flowchart in Figure 3 is executed each time the vehicle V is imaged.

[0037] In the processing of the patrol support system according to the present invention, based on the flowchart below, GPS information (latitude and longitude data) obtained from the smartphone 10 and the read license plate information are stored in combination. When the same license plate is read again and the GPS information deviates by a certain amount or more, it is considered highly likely that the vehicle has moved, and a detailed check of the vehicle interior is prompted.

[0038] In Figure 3, after the patrol support process starts in step S100, the process proceeds to step S101, where imaging data is acquired from the imaging unit. In the next step, S102, time data is acquired. This time data is the time when the imaging data was acquired. Subsequently, in step S103, the latitude and longitude data of the location where the smartphone 10 is located (the location of the patrol personnel) is acquired from the GPS receiver 23.

[0039] Next, in step S104, the license plate area is extracted from the vehicle image in the captured data, and then in step S107, the information written on the license plate is read as text data to obtain the read data.

[0040] In step S104, any image recognition technology can be used to extract the license plate area, and in step S107, to read the information on the license plate as text data. However, to improve the accuracy of image recognition, machine learning using a neural network model or a deep learning model can be employed. Furthermore, as long as the correlation between the image data and the read data in the above embodiment is learned from the training data, other learning methods may be used, and the above example is not the only one that can be employed. For example, the learning model may be a recurrent neural network (RNN) or an ensemble learning model. Also, when treating it as a regression problem, the learning model may be a statistical learning method, such as an autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model or a Bayesian estimation model.

[0041] In step S107, the read data is compared with the read data registered in the database 18 stored in the storage unit 15. Figure 4 shows an example of the data structure of the database 18 in a patrol support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The database 18 is stored in the storage unit 15 and stores read data of license plates N of vehicles V that have been read in the past. The chronological history of read data of license plates N of vehicles V that have been read in the past is recorded in the format of the first patrol, the second patrol, the third patrol, ... the nth patrol, as shown in Figure 4.

[0042] Matching is a process in which, for example, when read data such as "Kawaguchi 300 wa 17-77" as shown in Figure 5 is obtained, it is compared one by one with the registered read data in database 18 to verify whether or not a match exists.

[0043] The data structure of database 18 can be broadly categorized to include "ID numbers," "license plate reading data," and "time data, latitude, and longitude data" of the data stored in database 18. "License plate reading data" is sometimes abbreviated as "reading data."

[0044] The "ID number" is a unique and individual piece of data assigned when license plate reading data is first stored in database 18. In this embodiment, the "ID number" is explained as being assigned as a four-digit natural number, but the method of assigning the "ID number" is not limited to this.

[0045] "License plate reading data" is text data related to the information written on a vehicle's license plate. Below the "License plate reading data," the following categories of text data are stored: text data for the "place name section," text data for the "classification number section," text data for the "hiragana section," and text data for the "vehicle number section."

[0046] In this embodiment, all information on the license plate, including the "place name," "classification number," "hiragana," and "vehicle number," is treated as license plate reading data. However, if the processing power of the control unit 11 of the smartphone 10 is insufficient, the information treated as license plate reading data can be limited to numerical text data such as the "classification number" and "vehicle number." While treating only the text data of the "classification number" and "vehicle number" will reduce the accuracy of vehicle identification, it will not cause any major practical problems.

[0047] The "time data, latitude, and longitude data" stored in database 18 is data (time data) relating to the time when the license plate was photographed, the information written on the license plate was read, and the "license plate reading data" was acquired, and is data (latitude and longitude data) relating to the location where the smartphone 10 was located at that time.

[0048] In this specification, the time difference between the moment the license plate is imaged and the image data is acquired, and the moment the information on the license plate is read and the "license plate reading data" is generated, is considered to be substantially negligible. Furthermore, in this specification, a set of data consisting of the reading data, the time data when the image data was acquired, and the latitude and longitude data when the image data was acquired is defined as a "dataset." In Figure 4, for example, "dataset 0004" with "ID number" "0004" is a dataset consisting of "Kawaguchi 330 wo 51-573" - "10:34:10" - "(x4,y4)" - "11:46:48" - "(x4,y4)."

[0049] For vehicles parked in a parking lot for extended periods, "license plate reading data" is accumulated with each patrol. To determine when a particular vehicle was parked, a "time data" field is included. Additionally, when the "license plate reading data" shown in Figure 4 is accumulated, a "latitude / longitude data" field is included to record the vehicle's location. Strictly speaking, the vehicle's parking location and the location of the smartphone 10 when the imaging data was acquired by the patrol personnel are not the same, but in this specification, such location differences are ignored.

[0050] Now, returning to the flowchart, in step S107, it is determined whether or not registered license plate reading data already exists in database 18 as described above, based on the results of the comparison. If the determination in step S107 is TRUE, proceed to step S108; otherwise, proceed to step S115.

[0051] In step S108, it is determined whether the distance between the newly acquired latitude and longitude data (data acquired in step 103) and the latitude and longitude data from previous patrols in the dataset recorded in the storage unit 15 is within a predetermined value (for example, within 2 to 3 meters).

[0052] The purpose of comparing latitude and longitude data in step S108 is to check whether the vehicle is parked in the same location as its previous parking position, or in a different location, even if the data set for that vehicle is already stored in database 18. This is based on the idea that if a vehicle has left the parking lot, re-entered, and parked again, there is a high probability that the parking position will be different. In other words, if the distance between the new latitude and longitude data and the latitude and longitude data from previous patrols is significantly different, it is determined that the vehicle has been re-entered, and a process is executed in a later step to prompt the patrol personnel to check the rear seats again. On the other hand, if the difference in distance between the new latitude and longitude data and the latitude and longitude data from previous patrols is within a predetermined value, the parking position has not changed, and a process is executed to inform the patrol personnel that a check of the rear seats again is unnecessary in a later step.

[0053] If the result in step S108 is TRUE, proceed to step S109; if it is FALSE, proceed to step S115.

[0054] In step S115, the reading data obtained in step S105, the time data (obtained in step S102) at which the reading data was obtained, and the latitude and longitude data (obtained in step S103) at the time the reading data was obtained are registered as a dataset in the database 18 described earlier.

[0055] Next, in step S116, display data is generated by superimposing the imaging data and the reading data. Here, the text of the reading data (reading data display 63) is set to be displayed surrounded by a frame (frame display 60) as shown in Figure 5, and the display data is generated so that this frame display 60 is displayed in red, and this is displayed on the touch panel unit 30.

[0056] In this embodiment, the color of the frame display 60 shown on the touch panel unit 30 is changed to represent a signal. When a red frame is displayed, it notifies the patrol officer that the vehicle has been newly parked since the last patrol, or that the vehicle may have been re-entered the parking lot since the last patrol, and the patrol officer is expected to check the rear seats.

[0057] Thus, in the patrol support system according to the present invention, the registered reading data stored in the memory unit 15 is compared with the reading data read during the current patrol, and display data is generated by superimposing the image data and the reading data according to the result of this comparison. This makes it possible for patrol personnel to intuitively understand whether a vehicle has already been checked, and to perform patrols efficiently.

[0058] On the other hand, in the patrol support system according to the present invention, even if a vehicle already has a dataset stored in the database 18, a check for differences between latitude and longitude data is also performed. This minimizes the occurrence of situations where a vehicle that has been re-entered is reported to the patrol personnel as a vehicle whose rear seats have already been checked, and the patrol personnel do not perform a second check of the rear seats. In addition, for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being previously checked, the patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, making it possible to shorten patrol time.

[0059] In this embodiment, the frame colors displayed on the touch panel 30 are red, yellow, and green to represent signals, but the colors used for the frame display 60 are not limited to these.

[0060] Now, returning to the flowchart, if the determination in step S108 is TRUE, proceed to step S109. In step S109, calculate the difference between the time of the first read of the read data registered in database 18 and the current time.

[0061] In step S110, it is determined whether the calculated difference in time is greater than or equal to a predetermined time. If the determination in step S110 is TRUE, the process proceeds to step S111; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S113.

[0062] In step S113, the time data (obtained in step S102) and the latitude and longitude data (obtained in step S103) at the time the current reading data was obtained are added to the already registered dataset and registered in database 18. Next, in step S114, display data is generated by superimposing the image data and the read data. The color of the frame display 60 surrounding the text of the read data (read data display 63) is set to yellow. When a yellow frame is displayed, it notifies the patrol officer that the vehicle was checked during the previous patrol, but that it has not been parked for very long. In this case, the patrol officer is instructed to exercise caution.

[0063] If the determination in step S110 is TRUE, proceed to step S111. In step S111, the time data (obtained in step S102) and the latitude and longitude data (obtained in step S103) at the time the current reading data was obtained are added to the already registered dataset and registered in database 18. Next, in step S112, display data is generated by superimposing the image data and the read data. The color of the frame display 60 surrounding the text of the read data (read data display 63) is set to green. When a green frame is displayed, it indicates to the patrol personnel that the vehicle has been confirmed to be parked during previous patrols and that sufficient time has passed since the initial acquisition of read data, so that rear seat checks and other procedures are unnecessary.

[0064] In step S117, the patrol support process is terminated.

[0065] As described above, the patrol support system according to the present invention uses an information processing terminal device such as a smartphone 10 as hardware, making it possible to construct the system at a very low cost.

[0066] Furthermore, in the patrol support system according to the present invention, when generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data, the system is modified according to the result of checking whether or not the reading data already exists in the storage unit 15, thereby enabling patrol personnel to intuitively understand whether or not a vehicle has already been checked.

[0067] Furthermore, the patrol support system according to the present invention minimizes the occurrence of situations where patrol personnel do not re-check the rear seats of vehicles that have been re-entered the parking lot. On the other hand, for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being checked, patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, making it possible to shorten patrol time.

[0068] In this embodiment of the patrol support system, one standalone smartphone 10 is configured to be used for patrols approximately once every hour. However, if the database 18 is installed on an external device capable of data communication with the smartphone, and multiple smartphones are configured to update and access this database 18, it becomes possible for multiple patrol personnel to perform patrols simultaneously.

[0069] Incidentally, in the database 18 shown in Figure 4, the amount of data increases with each visit, placing a burden on the data processing in the control unit 11 and the storage unit 15. Therefore, in the visit support system according to the present invention, background processing is performed periodically (for example, every 30 minutes) to organize the data stored in the database 18. Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart of background processing by the visit support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Such a flowchart is executed by the control unit 11. Furthermore, such a flowchart is merely an example, and background processing can also be implemented using other flowcharts.

[0070] In Figure 6, when background processing starts in step S200, the process proceeds to step S201, where the variable n is set to 0001. Subsequently, the process proceeds to step S202, where the difference between the latest read time and the current time is calculated in the database 18 for the registered read data of the vehicle with ID n=0001.

[0071] Next, in step S203, it is determined whether the calculated difference time is greater than or equal to a predetermined time. If the determination in this step is TRUE, the process proceeds to step S204, where the registered read data is retained without being discarded; if it is FALSE, the process proceeds to step S205, where the registered read data is deleted.

[0072] In step S206, it is determined whether n corresponds to the last ID registered in database 18. If this determination is FALSE, it means that the check has not been completed for all vehicles, so the process proceeds to step S207, increments n by 1, and returns to step S202. On the other hand, if this determination is TRUE, the process proceeds to step S208, and the background processing ends.

[0073] In the patrol support system according to the present invention, the background processing described above is performed in a timely manner, making it possible to delete the reading data of vehicles that have already left the parking lot from the database 18, thereby reducing the data processing load on the control unit 11 and the storage unit 15.

[0074] Next, other embodiments of the present invention will be described. The patrol support system according to the other embodiments differs from the previous embodiment only in the display on the touch panel unit 30; the other configurations are the same, so the following description will focus on the differences in the display on the touch panel unit 30.

[0075] In the above embodiment, the color of the frame display 60 surrounding the text of the read data (read data display 63) was changed to inform the patrol officer of (a) that the vehicle had been newly parked since the previous patrol, (b) that the vehicle had been confirmed during the previous patrol but had not been parked for very long, or (c) that the vehicle had been confirmed to be parked during previous patrols and that sufficient time had passed since the initial acquisition of read data. Specifically, in case (a), the frame display 60 was set to red, in case (b), the frame display 60 was set to yellow, and in case (c), the frame display 60 was set to green.

[0076] In contrast, in the patrol support system according to another embodiment, when generating display data by superimposing the image data and the read data, the symbols displayed in the display data are changed according to the result of the comparison, thereby informing the patrol personnel of information about the vehicle. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of the display of the touch panel section 30 in the patrol support system according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 7, in the patrol support system according to the other embodiment, a symbol display 65 is superimposed on the front part of the imaged vehicle. Here, as an example, in case (a) above, the symbol display 65 can be "×", in case (b) it can be "△", and in case (c) it can be "○", but the type of symbol display 65 used is arbitrary.

[0077] The speaker 37 has the function of receiving and emitting sound commands from the control unit 11, but it can also be set to emit different sounds depending on the sound command, depending on the result of the verification. For example, in case (a), when the frame display 60 is made red or the symbol "×" is displayed 65, a buzzer-like sound can be emitted from the speaker 37 to further alert patrol personnel. Here, it is arbitrary which of the patterns (a), (b), and (c) to set and what kind of sound to emit from the speaker 37.

[0078] In this embodiment, a smartphone 10 is used, but instead of a smartphone 10, a device such as smart glasses worn by the patrol officer may be used. In this case, the display of the patrol support system application program 17 running on the smartphone 10 is set to be displayed on the smart glasses.

[0079] The patrol support system according to the present invention, as described above, is provided in the form of a program, making it possible to run the patrol support system on various information processing terminal devices such as smartphones.

[0080] Furthermore, although the present invention has been described above based on embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Various modifications to the above embodiments or combinations of embodiments within the same and equivalent scope as the present invention are also included in the scope of the present invention.

[0081] In summary, because the patrol support system according to the present invention uses an information processing terminal device such as a smartphone as hardware, it is possible to construct the system at a very low cost.

[0082] Furthermore, in the patrol support system according to the present invention, when generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data, the system modifies the display data according to the result of checking whether or not the reading data already exists in the storage unit, thereby enabling patrol personnel to intuitively understand whether or not a vehicle has already been inspected.

[0083] Furthermore, the patrol support system program according to the present invention enables information processing terminal devices such as smartphones to perform actions that allow patrol personnel to intuitively understand whether a vehicle has already been inspected.

[0084] Furthermore, the patrol support system according to the present invention stores a dataset consisting of read data, time data when the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit, and compares the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit. Based on the results of the comparison, it generates display data by superimposing the image data and the read data. With such a patrol support system according to the present invention, it is possible to minimize the occurrence of situations where patrol personnel do not check the rear seats again for vehicles that have been re-entered, and for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being checked, the patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, thereby shortening the patrol time.

[0085] Furthermore, the patrol support system program according to the present invention includes the steps of storing a dataset consisting of read data, time data when the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data when the read data was acquired in the storage unit; comparing the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit; and generating display data by superimposing the image data and read data according to the result of the comparison. With such a patrol support system program according to the present invention, it is possible to minimize the occurrence of situations in which patrol personnel do not check the rear seats again for vehicles that have been re-entered, and for vehicles whose parking position has not changed after being checked, the patrol personnel are notified that a rear seat check is unnecessary, thereby shortening the patrol time. [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 10, 10'... Smartphone (information processing terminal device) 11. Control Unit 15...Storage section 16. Basic Operating System 17. Patrol Support System Application Program 18.. Database 20... Communications Department 23. GPS receiver 25. Imaging Unit 27...Timekeeping section 28...Light 30, 30'...Touch panel section 31...Input section 32...Display section 35. Audio Processing Unit 36.. Mike 37...Speakers 41. Accelerometer 42. Geomagnetic sensor 43. Gyro sensor 60... frame display 63...Display of read data 65... Symbol display P...Patrol personnel V...vehicle N... License plate B button

Claims

1. A timekeeping unit that generates time data related to the current time, An imaging unit that performs imaging and acquires imaging data, A display unit that receives display data and displays information based on that data, A GPS receiver unit that receives GPS signals and generates latitude and longitude data of its own position, A control unit that performs calculations based on the input data and outputs the result of the calculation as output data, A patrol support system that uses an information processing terminal device having a storage unit that stores data transmitted from the control unit and transmits the stored data to the control unit, to support patrols for confirming the presence or absence of people in vehicles parked in a parking lot, The control unit analyzes the input image data and reads the information on the vehicle's license plate that is visible in the image data as text data, thereby acquiring the read data. A dataset consisting of the read data, the time data at which the read data was acquired, and the latitude and longitude data at which the read data was acquired is stored in the storage unit, The latest dataset is compared with past datasets already present in the memory unit. A patrol support system characterized by generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data according to the comparison results.

2. When generating display data by superimposing image data and read data, The patrol support system according to claim 1, characterized in that the color of the frame surrounding the read data in the displayed data is changed according to the result of the matching.

3. When generating display data by superimposing image data and read data, The patrol support system according to claim 1, characterized in that the symbols displayed in the display data differ depending on the result of the comparison.

4. The information processing terminal device has a speaker that receives and emits sound commands from the control unit, The patrol support system according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit causes the sound to be pronounced by a pronunciation command to be different depending on the result of the comparison.

5. A program for a patrol support system that causes an information processing terminal device to execute a process to support patrolling for the purpose of confirming the presence or absence of people inside vehicles parked in a parking lot, Information processing terminal equipment A processor that performs data processing, A timekeeping unit that generates time data related to the current time, An imaging unit that performs imaging and acquires imaging data, A display unit that receives display data and displays information based on that data, It has a GPS receiver that receives GPS signals and generates latitude and longitude data of its own position. The aforementioned processor, The process involves analyzing the image data input from the imaging unit, reading the information on the license plate of the vehicle captured in the image data as text data, and thereby obtaining the data to be read. The steps include storing a dataset consisting of read data, time data at the time the read data was acquired, and latitude and longitude data at the time the read data was acquired in the storage unit, A step of comparing the latest dataset with past datasets already present in the storage unit, A program for a mobile support system, characterized by performing the steps of generating display data by superimposing imaging data and reading data according to the results of a comparison.

Images