Electronic equipment

Abstract

To provide electronic equipment capable of recognizing a contour shape of an object regardless of a state of light in the periphery of the object.SOLUTION: A printing device 100, which is electronic equipment, includes an imaging part 5 for imaging a nail T, which is an object disposed in the device, an external light take-in part 15 capable of taking in external light SL inside the device, and a light blocking member 16 for blocking the light of a first wavelength region of the external light SL. The light blocking member 16 causes the light of a second wavelength region other than the light of the first wavelength region to be transmitted inside the device by being disposed at a position corresponding to the external light take-in part 15 at least at the time of imaging by the imaging part 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic device. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, printing devices (referred to as "drawing system" in Patent Document 1) are known as electronic devices that enable users to enjoy nail art by printing on their nails (see Patent Document 1, etc.). Such electronic devices (printing devices) need to accurately recognize the contour shape of the nail to be printed and generate printing data that matches this contour shape.

[0003] In this regard, Patent Document 1 describes a method of photographing a finger including the nail using a mobile device with a camera function, recognizing the shape of the nail that will become the printing area (drawing area) from the photographed image, and generating printing data (drawing data) that fits the nail shape. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-101195 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, photographing an object such as a nail is affected by the lighting conditions around the nail or finger, which is the object. That is, if the surroundings of the object are too dark, the sensitivity of the photographing device must be increased in order to obtain an image sufficient for recognizing the contour shape of the object. In addition, if the intensity of the light incident on the periphery of the object is too strong, the whole object will turn whitish. In this case, for example, if the object is a nail, the area including the finger will be recognized as the nail, and it will be easy to misrecognize the nail outline (the outline shape of the object).

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and has an advantage of providing an electronic device that can recognize the contour shape of an object regardless of the lighting conditions around the object. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, an electronic device according to a first aspect of the present invention includes an image capturing unit that captures an image of an object placed within the device, an external light capturing unit that can capture external light into the device, and a light blocking member that blocks light in a first wavelength range from the external light, The diameter of the external light capture unit is approximately the same as the diameter of the lens of the photographing unit, The light-shielding member is characterized in that, at least when photographing is performed by the photographing unit, it is positioned at a position corresponding to the external light capturing unit, thereby allowing light in a second wavelength range other than light in the first wavelength range to pass into the device. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to recognize the contour shape of an object without being affected by the lighting conditions around the object. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a printing device according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view showing the printing device shown in FIG. 1 with a cover unit opened. [Diagram 3] 1A and 1B are schematic plan views showing the internal configuration of a printing device in this embodiment, where FIG. 1A shows a state in which the print head is in a first position, and FIG. 1B shows a state in which the print head is in a second position. [Figure 4] 5A and 5B are schematic cross-sectional views showing the internal configuration of a printing device in this embodiment, where FIG. 5A shows a state in which incident light is not blocked, and FIG. 5B shows a state in which incident light is blocked by the print head. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the present embodiment. [Figure 6] 3 is a flowchart showing a process according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a printing device according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] [First embodiment] A first embodiment of an electronic device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. FIG. In addition, the embodiments described below are subject to various limitations that are technically preferable for implementing the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples. In the following embodiment, the electronic device is a printing device that prints on fingernails as an object (printing object), but the electronic device in the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the electronic device may be a device that recognizes the contour shape of an object placed in the device, and may not have a mechanism for printing. Furthermore, the printing object of the printing device as an electronic device is not limited to fingernails, and may be, for example, toenails. Furthermore, the printing object may be something other than a nail, such as a nail tip, the surface of various accessories, or paper for test printing.

[0011] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a printing device in this embodiment, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a cover part of the printing device shown in Fig. 1 is opened. Figs. 3(a) and 3(b) are schematic plan views showing the internal configuration of the printing device in this embodiment, and Figs. 4(a) and 4(b) are schematic cross-sectional views showing the internal configuration of the printing device in this embodiment. Fig. 5 is a block diagram of the main parts showing the functional configuration in this embodiment. In the following embodiments, up / down, left / right, front / rear refer to the directions shown in Figures 1 and 2. The X, Y, and Z directions refer to the directions shown in each figure.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1, the printing device 100 has a housing 1 formed in a substantially box shape. The housing 1 comprises an upper housing 11 which is approximately the upper half in the height direction, and a lower housing 12 which is approximately the lower half. An opening 121 is formed on the front side of the lower housing 12 (the front side of the printing device 100, the front side in FIG. 1 and the like).

[0013] The front side of the upper housing 11 is a front wall portion 14 (see FIG. 2). A portion of the front wall 14 is cut out to form an opening 141. The opening 141 functions as an outlet for removing a print head 41 (cartridge) (described later) from the device, and is formed in a size that will not get caught when the print head 41 is removed. The cover portion 13 is rotatably connected to the upper housing 11 via a hinge mechanism 131 provided on the upper end portion of the front wall portion 14 or the like. Cover 13 is rotatable from a closed state (the state shown in FIG. 1) in which it covers the front side of upper housing 11 (i.e., front wall 14) to an open state (the state shown in FIG. 2) in which the front side of upper housing 11 is opened (i.e., front wall 14 is exposed). Note that the specific configuration of hinge mechanism 131 is not particularly limited.

[0014] An external light intake section 15 capable of taking in external light SL into the device is provided on the side surface of upper housing 11 near the front side of the device. External light intake section 15 is, for example, a small window provided on the side surface of upper housing 11. The specific position and size of external light intake section 15 are appropriately adjusted depending on the size of the device, the specific arrangement of each part, the performance of image capture device 51 described below, and the like. In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 1, 2, 3(a), 3(b), 4(a) and 4(b), an external light capture section 15 is provided on the right side of the upper housing 11 at a position where the finger placement section 3, which will be described later, can be viewed diagonally from above.

[0015] A light blocking member 16 is provided corresponding to the external light intake section 15 . The light blocking member 16 blocks light in a predetermined wavelength range (hereinafter referred to as "light in a first wavelength range") out of the external light SL, and is, for example, a polarizing plate that transmits light in a specific wavelength range. The light-shielding member 16 is positioned at a position corresponding to the external light capture section 15 at least when photographing is performed by the photographing section 5, thereby blocking out "light in the first wavelength range" of the external light SL and allowing other light (referred to as "light in the second wavelength range") to pass through. In this embodiment, a light blocking member 16 that transmits mainly light in the blue wavelength range as the "light in the second wavelength range" is used.

[0016] When the nail T is used as the printing subject as in this embodiment, if the nail T or the surrounding skin (finger part) is illuminated with red light or other light containing a red component, this affects the recognition of the contour shape of the nail T, making correct recognition difficult. In this regard, since blue is the opposite color (or complementary color) to the color of a human nail T or skin, blue light does not affect the recognition of the contour shape of the nail T as much as light that contains a red component, such as red light. For this reason, the light blocking member 16 blocks red light that contains red components ("light in the first wavelength range") of the external light SL, and transmits the other blue light ("light in the second wavelength range") that is mainly composed of blue components. Here, red light, which is the "light in the first wavelength range", refers to light of 625 to 780 nm, which is generally recognized as red, and blue light, which is the "light in the second wavelength range", refers to light of 450 to 485 nm, which is generally recognized as blue, for example. The external light intake section 15 and the light blocking member 16 will be described in detail later.

[0017] An operation unit 73 (see FIG. 5) is provided on the top and side surfaces of the housing 1. The operation unit 73 is, for example, an operation button (power switch button) for turning the power of the printing device 100 ON / OFF. When the operation unit 73 is operated, an operation signal is output to the control device 7, and the control device 7 performs control according to the operation signal to operate each part of the printing device 100. For example, if the operation unit 73 is a power switch button, the power of the printing device 100 is turned ON / OFF in response to button operation. Instead of the operation unit 73, each unit of the printing device 100 may be operated in accordance with an operation signal input from an operation unit 83 of the terminal device 8, which will be described later. Furthermore, the shape and arrangement of each part of the housing 1 are not limited to those shown in the drawings, and a display part, a lamp, an indicator, etc. may be provided.

[0018] Furthermore, within the housing 1, an imaging section 5 is provided (see FIG. 5, etc.). The photographing unit 5 is mounted on, for example, a board (not shown) attached to the inside of the top surface of the housing 1. The specific position of the photographing unit 5 is not particularly limited, but is, for example, above the finger placement unit 3 described below, as shown in Figures 4(a) and 4(b). The photographing section 5 of the present embodiment photographs a nail T, which is a printing target, placed in the apparatus to obtain a nail image, and includes a photographing device 51.

[0019] The photographing device 51 is, for example, a small camera equipped with a solid-state image sensor having about 2 million pixels or more, a lens, and the like. The photographing device 51 may take either still images or moving images. The photographing unit 5 is controlled by a control unit 71 of the control device 7, which will be described later. When the photographing device 51 takes moving images, the control unit 71 extracts appropriate frames from the captured moving images and obtains them as still images (nail images). Furthermore, if the photographing device 51 is capable of taking video, the photographing unit 5 may take a video while printing is being performed on the nail T, and the image of the nail T taken by the photographing unit 5 (the state in which the design is being printed on the nail T) may be displayed as a live view on the display unit 85 of the external terminal device 8, for example. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the sensitivity (ISO sensitivity) of the photographing device 51 can be adjusted according to conditions such as the intensity of light entering the device and various photographing environments, as will be described later, and such sensitivity adjustment is controlled by the control unit 71. The image data acquired by the photographing unit 5 is stored in a storage unit 72 (to be described later) or the like. The image data may be appropriately transmitted to a terminal device 8 (to be described later).

[0020] Also provided within the housing 1 is an illuminance sensor 6 (see FIG. 5) that measures the illuminance of light entering the device. The illuminance sensor 6 used has high sensitivity to light in the wavelength range that the light blocking member 16 transmits (that is, "light in the second wavelength range", light in the blue wavelength range in this embodiment). In this embodiment, the photographing section 5 is controlled to perform photographing when the illuminance sensor 6 detects an illuminance suitable for photographing. The specific configuration of the illuminance sensor 6 is not particularly limited.

[0021] An apparatus main body 2 is housed within the housing 1. The apparatus main body 2 includes a substantially flat base upper plate 21 on which various structures are assembled. A finger placement section 3 is provided on the front (near side) portion of base upper plate 21, approximately in the center in the left-right direction. Finger placement section 3 is a box-shaped member having an opening 31 (see FIG. 2) that opens onto the front side of the device, and a finger U (see FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b), etc.) can be inserted through opening 31. A finger holding member 32 that holds the inserted finger U from below is disposed inside the finger placement section 3. The finger holding member 32 in this embodiment has a recessed shape at approximately the center in the width direction (left-right direction). This allows the finger holding member 32 to receive the pad of the finger U when the finger U is placed on the finger holding member 32, preventing the finger U from wobbling in the left-right direction.

[0022] The innermost side of the top surface of the finger placement section 3 (the rear side in the Y direction) is an opening 33 that opens upward. From the opening 33, the nail T of a finger U inserted into the finger placement section 3 (the “target” of printing in this embodiment) is exposed. In this embodiment, the area where the opening 33 is provided is a printing operation area Ar3, and printing is performed within the range of this printing operation area Ar3 by a printing unit 4, which will be described later. Further, the front side of the top surface of finger placement section 3 (front side in the Y direction) is a finger presser 34 that prevents finger U from lifting up and regulates the position of finger U in the upward direction. The finger U is supported from below by the finger holding member 32 and the upper side of the finger U is pressed by the finger presser 34, so that the height direction position of the surface (surface to be printed) of the nail T of the finger U is positioned at a predetermined position suitable for printing by the printing unit 4 (for example, a height position approximately 2 to 3 mm below the ink ejection surface 411 of the printing head 41 described later).

[0023] A lower plate 22 is provided below the upper base plate 21. The space between the upper base plate 21 and the lower base plate 22 constitutes a retreat space for the fingers corresponding to the nails other than those to be printed.

[0024] Within the movable area Ar1 of the base upper plate 21 for the print head 41, and toward the rear of the device relative to the finger placement unit 3, a waiting area (home position) Ar2 is provided on one side, and a maintenance area Ar4 is provided on the other side. In this embodiment, the waiting area Ar2 is disposed on the right side, and the maintenance area Ar4 is disposed on the left side. Note that the arrangement of the waiting area Ar2 and the maintenance area Ar4 is not particularly limited, and for example, the left and right may be reversed. The standby area Ar2 is provided with a capping mechanism (not shown) for covering the ink ejection surface 411 (see Figures 4(a) and 4(b)) of the print head 41 described later when not printing, to protect it from drying, etc.

[0025] The maintenance area Ar4 is provided with a maintenance mechanism (not shown) that performs maintenance such as cleaning of the ink ejection surface 411 of the print head 41 when printing is not being performed. The maintenance mechanism may include, for example, a purge unit and a wiper unit (neither of which are shown in detail). The purge section receives the ink that is forcibly ejected from the ink ejection surface 411 during a so-called purging process in which ink is forcibly ejected from the nozzle ejection openings (not shown) formed on the ink ejection surface 411 of the print head 41, and air, impurities, and viscous ink within the ink flow path, such as the nozzle, are expelled to the outside along with the ink. The wiping portion includes, for example, a cleaning blade that wipes off ink and the like adhering to the ink ejection surface 411, and cleans the ink ejection surface 411 on the underside of the print head 41 by wiping it.

[0026] Further, the base upper plate 21 is provided with a printing section 4 for printing on the nail T which is the printing target. The printing unit 4 is equipped with a print head (cartridge) 41 that performs a printing operation. The lower surface of the print head 41 is an ink ejection surface 411 (see FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b)) that ejects ink. In this embodiment, the print head 41 is an ink cartridge with an integrated head that incorporates an ink storage section (not shown) and is equipped with an inkjet type ejection mechanism that ejects ink as fine droplets from the ink ejection surface 711 to print on the printing target.

[0027] The print head 41 ejects a predetermined ink from the ink ejection surface 411 (the ejection openings formed in the ink ejection surface 411) as appropriate according to the control of a control unit 71 (see FIG. 5) described later, thereby performing printing. The ink storage sections are provided corresponding to, for example, cyan (C; CYAN), magenta (M; MAGENTA), and yellow (Y; YELLOW) inks. Note that the inks that can be ejected from the print head 41 are not limited to the examples shown here, and ink storage sections that store inks of other colors may be provided. Also, the print head 41 may be configured to eject liquid agents for undercoating, liquid agents for overcoating, and the like.

[0028] The print head 41 is mounted on a carriage 451 (see FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b)) while being held by a holder 42 (see FIG. 2). The carriage 451 is provided over almost the entire left-right direction (X direction) of the base upper plate 21, and an X-direction guide shaft 455 extending in the left-right direction (X direction) of the device is provided within the carriage 451. When the X-direction movement motor 45 (see FIG. 5) operates, the print head 41 held by the holder 42 moves in the X direction along the X-direction guide shaft 455. In this embodiment, the carriage 451, the X-direction guide shaft 455, the X-direction movement motor 45, etc. constitute an X-direction movement mechanism that moves the print head 41 in the X direction.

[0029] Furthermore, Y-direction guide shafts 475 extending in the front-to-rear direction (Y direction) of the device are provided on both sides of the base upper plate 21. Both longitudinal ends of the carriage 451 are respectively attached to the pair of Y-direction guide shafts 475. When the Y-direction movement motor 47 (see FIG. 5) operates, the print head 41 moves together with the carriage 451 in the Y direction along the Y-direction guide shafts 475. In this embodiment, a Y-direction movement mechanism that moves the print head 41 in the Y direction is configured by including a Y-direction guide shaft 475, a Y-direction movement motor 47, etc.

[0030] In this embodiment, the print head 41 is positioned at a "first position" that does not block external light SL from the external light capture section 15 when not printing, and is positioned at a "second position" that can block external light SL captured from the external light capture section 15 when printing. As shown in Figures 3(a) and 3(b), the external light capture section 15 of this embodiment is provided on the side of the housing 1, on the front side of the device corresponding to the finger placement section 3 (towards the lower side in Figures 3(a) and 3(b)). 3(a), when the print head 41 together with the carriage 451 is lowered to the rear in the Y direction (i.e., when it is placed in the waiting area Ar2 or the maintenance area Ar4), the external light SL incident from the external light intake unit 15 is not blocked by the print head 41, etc., and the finger U or nail T is illuminated by the external light SL. In this way, the position where the print head 41 is lowered to the rear in the Y direction (the position corresponding to the waiting area Ar2 or the maintenance area Ar4) is the "first position" where the external light SL from the external light intake unit 15 is not blocked. A user who has inserted his / her finger U into the device may want to visually check the position of the finger U or nail T. In such a case, by placing the print head 41 in the "first position" at the back side of the device (the position shown in FIG. 3(a)), the user can look into the inside of the device through the external light capture unit 15 and see his / her finger U or nail T placed on the finger placement unit 3.

[0031] 3(b), when the print head 41 and carriage 451 are positioned on the front side in the Y direction (i.e., when positioned in the printing operation area Ar3 or in an area to the right of the printing operation area Ar3), the external light SL incident from the external light intake unit 15 is blocked by the print head 41, etc., and the finger U or nail T is not illuminated by the external light SL. In this way, the position of the print head 41 on the front side in the Y direction (a position within the printing operation area Ar3 or between the printing operation area Ar3 and the external light intake unit 15) is a "second position" where the external light SL from the external light intake unit 15 is blocked.

[0032] When the finger U or nail T is illuminated by external light SL, the entirety of the angle of view is illuminated white when photographed by the photographing unit 5, making it difficult to obtain a nail image sufficient for recognizing the contour shape of the nail T. Furthermore, if the light contains a red component (for example, red light or white light, etc.), even if a nail image is acquired, it is difficult to correctly identify from the image where the nail T area extends, and there is a risk of misrecognition of the contour shape, such as recognizing the finger U as the nail T. For this reason, when photographing with the photographing unit 5, it is preferable that the nail T or finger U is not exposed to as much light as possible, particularly external light SL containing a red component. Therefore, when photographing, the print head 41 is moved to the front side of the device (the position shown in FIG. 3(b)) and placed in the "second position", thereby making it possible to photograph with less chance of misrecognition of the nail contour.

[0033] As described above, the external light capture section 15 of this embodiment is provided with the light blocking member 16 that transmits light in the blue wavelength range as the "light in the second wavelength range." As described above, blue is the opposite color (or complementary color) to the color of a human nail T or skin, and therefore, when a nail T is to be printed, blue light has relatively little effect on the recognition of the contour shape of the nail T compared to red light or other light containing a red component. However, even blue light with a strong intensity will be reflected off the nail T when it is incident, causing the whole to appear whitish, which can easily lead to erroneous recognition. For this reason, even if the light is blue light that has passed through the light blocking member 16, it is preferable to block as much light as possible when photographing with the photographing device 51.

[0034] Here, the positions and sizes of the external light intake section 15 and the light blocking member 16 will be described in detail in relation to the photographing device 51 and the like. 4(a) and 4(b), dashed lines indicate the angle of view of the photographing device 51 and the spread of the incident light from the external light capture unit 15. Also, the photographing device 51 is illustrated as being disposed so that the center of the angle of view indicated by the dashed line passes through the center of the nail T.

[0035] The external light capture section 15 in this embodiment is a hole whose diameter is, for example, approximately the same as the diameter of the lens of the imaging device 51 (for example, approximately 5.2 mm), and the angle θ of the incident light (the center of the incident light is indicated by a dashed line in the figure) with respect to the surface on which the nail T (finger U corresponding to the nail T) is placed in the finger placement section 3 is, for example, approximately 23.6 degrees. The light blocking member 16 is fitted into this hole, which is the external light intake portion 15. Note that the light blocking member 16 only needs to be provided in correspondence with the external light intake portion 15, and is not limited to being fitted into the external light intake portion 15 as in the illustrated example.

[0036] External light SL, such as white light during the day and reddish external light SL in the evening, passes through a light-shielding member 16 fitted in the external light intake section 15 and becomes light of blue wavelength range components, which enters the device. As described above, the positions and sizes of the external light capture unit 15 and the light blocking member 16 are adjusted as appropriate according to various conditions, and are not limited to those exemplified here. For example, a case is assumed here where a photographing device 51 having performance comparable to that used in general smartphones is used, but if the photographing device 51 has high performance such as sensitivity, it is possible to make the size of the external light capture unit 15 smaller than the example shown here even if other conditions of the device configuration are the same.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 4(a), when the print head 41 is positioned to the left of the finger placement section 3, whether the print head 41 is lowered to the rear in the Y direction or whether it is raised to the front in the Y direction, the external light SL entering from the external light capture section 15 is not blocked by the print head 41, etc., and the finger U and nail T are illuminated by the external light SL. 4(b), when the print head 41 comes out to the front in the Y direction and is disposed to the right of the printing operation area Ar3 and the finger placement unit 3, the print head 41 is disposed between the external light capture unit 15 and the nail T. Therefore, the external light SL incident from the external light capture unit 15 is blocked by the print head 41 etc., and the external light SL does not hit the finger U or the nail T.

[0038] The printing device 100 also includes a communication unit 74 (see FIG. 5). The communication unit 74 enables the printing device 100 to communicate with various external devices such as the terminal device 8, for example. The communication via the communication unit 74 may use a network line such as the Internet, or may be wireless communication based on a short-range wireless communication standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or Wi-Fi (registered trademark). When communication is performed via a network, the network used for communication may use any line. In addition, communication between the printing device 100 and the terminal device 8, etc. is not limited to wireless communication, and may be configured to enable transmission and reception of various data between the two devices via a wired connection. The communication unit 74 includes a wireless communication module or the like capable of communicating with the communication unit 84 of the terminal device 8 as the communication partner, and its operation is controlled by the control unit 71. The communication unit 74 may be any unit capable of communicating with the terminal device 8, and a unit that matches the communication standard of the communication unit of the terminal device 8 or the like is applied.

[0039] The printing device 100 further includes a control device 7 . The control device 7 is a computer including a control unit 71 constituted by a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and a storage unit 72 constituted by a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. (neither of which are shown). Incidentally, a part or the whole of the storage unit 72 may be configured separately and provided outside the control device 7.

[0040] The memory unit 72 stores various programs for operating the printing device 100 (e.g., programs for performing image capture device adjustment processing, printing processing, etc.) and various data, and the control unit 71 expands these programs, for example, into a working area of ​​RAM, and the programs are executed in the control unit 71, thereby providing overall control of each part of the printing device 100. In this embodiment, the setting values ​​of the environment when an image was captured by the photographing device 51 (such as the intensity and wavelength range of the incident light (external light SL) acquired by the illuminance sensor 6 at the time of photographing) when the device was shipped from the factory (i.e., values ​​that were confirmed to enable proper photographing, nail recognition, etc. at the time of shipment) may be stored in the memory unit 72.

[0041] Particularly in this embodiment, the control unit 71 functions as an information acquisition unit that acquires information about the nail T including the contour shape of the nail T from the image captured by the imaging unit 5 (nail image acquired by the imaging device 51). The information including the contour shape of the nail T is, for example, data expressing the contour line defining the area of ​​the nail T using X and Y coordinates. There is no particular limitation on the method by which the control unit 71 acquires information about the nail T. For example, the nail T is recognized from an image by performing various image analysis processes. Note that machine learning may be performed on the nail recognition to improve the recognition accuracy.

[0042] The control unit 71 also generates print data by fitting the design data to the acquired contour shape of the nail T. The control unit 71 may also acquire information on the degree of curvature of the nail T as information on the nail T. In this case, curvature correction or the like may be performed appropriately depending on the degree of curvature of the nail T. This allows the print data to be more suited to the nail T. The control unit 71 also functions as a print control unit that controls the printing operation of the printing unit 4 so that printing is performed based on the generated print data in a print range that is set based on information about the nail T.

[0043] Furthermore, the control unit 71 may operate the photographing unit 5 (the photographing device 51 of the photographing unit 5) to photograph an image of the nail T even during printing on the nail T. When an image of the nail T is obtained during printing, the control unit 71 may function as an image output unit that outputs the image (image data) of the nail T photographed by the photographing device 51 to the terminal device 8 or the like. Note that the destination to which the control unit 71 as an image output unit outputs an image is not limited to an external device such as the terminal device 8. For example, if the printing device 100 itself has a display unit, the display unit may be the output destination of the image. When the image is output, the display unit 85 or the like displays a live view of the process of printing on the nail T based on the image.

[0044] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the intensity of incident light detected by the illuminance sensor 6, etc. is sent to the control unit 71, and the control unit 71 judges from this detection result whether or not the illuminance of the light incident on the nail T, etc. is suitable for photographing by the photographing unit 5. For example, the control unit 71 judges whether or not it is possible to properly detect nail information such as the outline shape of the nail T from the nail image photographed by the photographing device 51 (i.e., whether or not a proper image without overexposure has been obtained). Specifically, for example, an illuminance value is stored in advance in the storage unit 72 or the like, and the control unit 71 functions as a comparison unit that compares this pre-stored illuminance value with the value acquired by the illuminance sensor 6. Then, the control unit 71 controls the photographing device 51 to perform photographing when the comparison result is within an allowable range.

[0045] The control unit 71 also functions as an imaging control unit that adjusts the imaging sensitivity (i.e., the ISO sensitivity of the camera) of the imaging device 51 of the imaging unit 5 when the comparison result determined by the comparison unit is not within the allowable range. That is, when the situation is such that the nail information cannot be detected appropriately, the control unit 71 appropriately adjusts the sensitivity, etc. of the imaging device 51 and controls the imaging device 51 to perform imaging when the irradiation intensity detected by the illuminance sensor 6 becomes an illuminance suitable for imaging. Specifically, if the detected illuminance is too high, the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 is adjusted to be lowered, and if the detected illuminance is too low, the light captured by the photographing device 51 is electronically amplified to increase the sensitivity.

[0046] Furthermore, the printing device 100 of this embodiment cooperates with an external device such as a terminal device 8, and operates according to instructions input from the terminal device 8 or the like. The terminal device 8 is assumed to be, but is not limited to, a mobile terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet. The terminal device 8 is not particularly limited as long as it is capable of communicating with the printing device 100, and may be, for example, a notebook or stationary personal computer, a terminal device for games, or the like. Specifically, the terminal device 8 includes an operation unit 83, a communication unit 84, a display unit 85, a control device 80, and the like.

[0047] The operation unit 83 is adapted to perform various inputs, settings, etc. in response to user operations, and when the operation unit 83 is operated, an input signal corresponding to the operation is transmitted to the control device 80. For example, in this embodiment, the user can operate the operation unit 83 to select a nail design to be printed on the nail T. Note that, in this embodiment, a touch panel is integrally provided on the surface of the display unit 85, and the user can also perform various inputs, settings, etc. by touching the touch panel. The operation unit 83 for performing various input / setting operations is not limited to a touch panel. For example, various operation buttons, a keyboard, a pointing device, etc. may be provided as the operation unit 83. By operating the operation unit 83, various inputs and settings may be performed in the printing device 100.

[0048] The communication unit 84 communicates with the communication unit 74 of the printing device 100. For example, when data such as a nail image is transmitted from the printing device 100, the communication unit 84 receives the data. The communication unit 84 includes a wireless communication module capable of communicating with the communication unit 74 of the printing device 100. The communication unit 84 may be any unit capable of communicating with the printing device 100, and a communication standard that matches the communication standard of the communication unit 74 of the printing device 100 is applied.

[0049] The display unit 85 is configured with, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic electroluminescence display, or another flat display. As described above, a touch panel for performing various inputs may be integrally configured on the surface of the display unit 85. In this case, the touch panel also functions as the operation unit 12 or the like. In this embodiment, the display unit 85 is capable of displaying nail designs input and selected by the user via the operation unit 83, images transmitted from the printing device 100, and the like.

[0050] The display unit 85 is also capable of displaying various kinds of guidance screens, warning display screens, and the like under the control of the control unit 81. Furthermore, if the image capturing device 51 is capable of capturing moving images that can be displayed in live view, the display unit 85 may display the moving images in live view at any time.

[0051] The control device 80 is a computer including a control unit 81 constituted by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the like (not shown), and a storage unit 82 constituted by a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory) and the like (not shown).

[0052] The storage unit 82 stores various programs and various data for operating each unit of the terminal device 8. Specifically, the ROM etc. of this embodiment stores various programs (none of which are shown) such as an operating program for controlling each part of the terminal device 8 as well as a nail print application program for performing nail printing using the printing device 100, and the control device 80 controls the terminal device 8 by expanding and executing these programs, for example, in a working area of ​​RAM. Further, the storage unit 82 of this embodiment is configured to store nail design data, image data of the nail T, and the like.

[0053] The control unit 81 comprehensively controls the operation of each unit of the terminal device 8. The control unit 81 cooperates with a program stored in the storage unit 82 to realize various functions for printing on a nail.

[0054] Hereinafter, the operation of the printing device 100 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0055] When printing is to be performed using the printing device 100, the operation unit 12 is operated to turn on the power and start up the printing device 100. In this embodiment, a mode that links with the printing device 100 is also started for the terminal device 8. When the printing device 100 is started up, the print head 41 is in a standby state in the standby area Ar2 (that is, in a state in which it is disposed in the "first position").

[0056] When the terminal device 8 is started up, a message prompting the user to place a finger U on the finger placement section 3 of the printing device 100 is displayed on the display unit 85 of the terminal device 8 (step S1). When a finger U is placed on the finger placement unit 3, the finger U (including the nail T) is photographed by the photographing device 51 of the photographing unit 5 to obtain a nail image (step S2). When the nail image is obtained, the control unit 71 recognizes the contour shape and the like of the nail T from the nail image by performing image analysis and the like (step S3).

[0057] The control unit 71 judges whether or not the outline shape and the like of the nail T could be properly recognized from the nail image (step S4), and if it could not be recognized (step S4; NO), first, the illuminance sensor 6 measures the intensity of the incident light (in this embodiment, blue light that has passed through the light blocking member 16) that has entered from the external light intake unit 15. The measurement result is sent to the control unit 71, and the control unit 71 obtains the illuminance when the print head 41 is in the "first position" (this will be referred to as the "first illuminance") (step S5).

[0058] Next, the control unit 71 operates the Y-direction movement motor 47 to move the print head 41 from the "first position" to the "second position", blocking the incident light from the external light capture unit 15 (step S6). In this state, the intensity of the incident light (blue light) is again measured by the illuminance sensor 6. The measurement result is sent to the control unit 71, and the control unit 71 obtains the illuminance when the print head 41 is in the "second position" (this is referred to as the "second illuminance") (step S7).

[0059] Furthermore, the control unit 71 calculates a relative value of the intensity of blue light (incident light in the blue wavelength range) from the first illuminance and second illuminance thus obtained as second illuminance / first illuminance, and compares this with the relative value (second illuminance / first illuminance) of the first illuminance and second illuminance at the time of shipment stored in the storage unit 72 or the like (step S8).Thereby, the degree of influence on the contour recognition (recognition of the contour shape of the nail T) is determined (step S9). That is, at the time of shipment, the state of each part of the device, such as the sensitivity of the photographing device 51, is adjusted so as to obtain an image that allows for highly accurate recognition of the contour of the nail T. Therefore, by comparing the illuminance condition at the time of shipment with the current condition, it is possible to determine the extent to which the current usage environment (illuminance inside the device, degree of brightness, etc.) affects recognition of the contour shape of the nail T.

[0060] Then, when the degree of influence is determined, the control unit 71 adjusts the sensitivity of the imaging device 51 in accordance with the degree of influence (step S10). Specifically, when the illuminance is too low to capture a sufficient nail image for recognizing the nail contour (e.g., when the image is too dark and unclear), the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 is adjusted to be increased. When photographing is performed in a state in which the light transmitted by the light blocking member 16 is limited to blue light of the external light SL as in this embodiment, the sensitivity is adjusted to increase the sensitivity to blue light in particular. Note that, when the light blocking member 16 transmits light of other colors, the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 is adjusted to be increased for each color of light.

[0061] Also, for example, if the illuminance is too high and the nail T or its surroundings shine too brightly, making it impossible to obtain a nail image that allows correct contour recognition (such as when the entire image is blown out and unclear), the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 is adjusted to be lowered. Then, the process returns to step S2 and the subsequent processes are repeated. By comparing the illuminance of blue light at the time of shipment with the current level of illuminance in this way, the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 can be corrected to the setting value (ideal value) at the time of shipment, and stable performance can be maintained regardless of the lighting environment in which the printing device 100 is used.

[0062] On the other hand, if an appropriate nail image can be acquired and the contour shape, etc. of the nail T can be properly recognized from this nail image (step S4; YES), the control unit 71 causes the display unit 85, etc., via the control unit 81 of the terminal device 8, to display a message prompting the user to take out the finger U, apply a base to the nail T, and then place the finger U on the finger placement unit 3 again (step S11). Then, the control unit 71 generates print data according to the recognized contour shape, and prints a nail design based on the print data on the nail T of the finger U placed on the finger placement unit 3 (step S12). Note that the nail T may be printed by the imaging unit 5 during this printing, and the state of the nail T being printed may be displayed as a live view on the display unit 8 or the like at any time. As a result, even if the conditions and environments such as the brightness of the nail T and its surroundings vary depending on the location where the printing device 100 is used, the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 can be optimized according to the situation, and accurate nail recognition can be performed in any environment.

[0063] The base is applied by the user manually applying a liquid agent for the base, such as white. The application of the base is not limited to hand application, and may be performed by the printing device 100 or by a dedicated printer for the base. After the base is applied, the nail T may be photographed again by the photographing device 51 before printing, and area recognition (white recognition) may be performed to recognize the area where the base is applied. In this case, the design may be fitted into the recognized white area to generate display data, and a preview of the finished image after printing may be displayed on the display unit 85 or the like. By displaying the design within the white area, users can get a better idea of ​​what the finished product will look like.

[0064] As described above, according to this embodiment, the device includes an imaging unit 5 (imaging device 51 of the imaging unit 5) that images an object placed within the device, an external light capture unit 15 that is capable of capturing external light SL within the device, and a shading member 16 that blocks "light in the first wavelength range" from the external light, and the shading member 16 is positioned at a position corresponding to the external light capture unit 15 at least when capturing an image by the imaging unit 5, thereby transmitting "light in the second wavelength range" other than the "light in the first wavelength range" into the device. This allows the area where the external light SL enters to be limited to the external light intake section 15, thereby reducing the amount of light entering the device. Furthermore, the light blocking member 16 allows light in a specific wavelength range of the external light SL (that is, "light in a second wavelength range") to enter the device. As a result, the incident light can be limited to light in a wavelength range that has little effect on shooting, and while taking in external light SL and using it as lighting during shooting, the risk of misrecognizing the subject's contour can be avoided, thereby achieving highly accurate contour recognition.

[0065] Moreover, the target in this embodiment is a nail T which is a printing target. When the nail T is illuminated with light of a color similar to that of the skin (a color containing a large amount of red components), the contour between the skin and the nail T is easily misrecognized. In this regard, by providing a light-shielding member 16 that blocks "light in the first wavelength range" from the external light and transmits "light in the second wavelength range" into the device, it is possible to take in external light SL and use it as lighting during photography while avoiding the risk of misrecognizing the nail contour, thereby achieving highly accurate recognition of the nail contour.

[0066] The external light capture unit 15 is provided on the front or side of the device (the right side of the device as shown in FIG. 1 in this embodiment) at a position where the target (the nail T in this embodiment) can be seen. This allows external light SL to be taken into the device, and also allows the user to look through external light taking section 15 into the device to check what is happening inside the device.

[0067] In addition, in this embodiment, the light-shielding member 16 transmits light in a wavelength range of the opposite or complementary color to the target color as "light in a second wavelength range", which is light in a wavelength range other than the "light in the first wavelength range". The printing device 100 is expected to be used in a variety of environments, such as indoors at home, under fluorescent lights in a store, or outdoors under natural light, and the external light SL that enters the device from the outside includes light of various wavelength ranges, such as white light containing a red component and red light. For example, when the object is a nail T, the color of the nail T and skin contains a large amount of red components. Therefore, when the light blocking member 16 transmits blue light, which is the opposite (or complementary) color of the nail T, the blue light has less of an effect on distinguishing the contour shape of the nail T from the surrounding skin compared to red light, which contains a red component. In this way, by allowing only light of the external light SL in the wavelength range of the opposite or complementary color to the color of the object to enter the device, the contour of the object can be recognized with high accuracy even in a variety of environments.

[0068] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control unit 71 functions as a comparison unit that compares the pre-stored illuminance value with the value acquired by the illuminance sensor, and the photographing unit 5 performs photographing when the comparison result of the control unit 71 as a comparison unit is within an acceptable range. This makes it possible to avoid photographing in an environment where highly accurate contour recognition is not possible.

[0069] Furthermore, the illuminance sensor 6 of the present embodiment has high sensitivity to the "light in the second wavelength range" that the light blocking member 16 transmits into the device. In this embodiment, only light in a specific wavelength range (i.e., "light in the second wavelength range") of the external light SL is incident on the device by the light blocking member 16. For this reason, for example, when shooting under the shining of the setting sun that contains a lot of red components, the illuminance of the external light SL itself is high, but the amount of light taken into the device via the light blocking member 16 may be small. In this regard, by measuring the illuminance of the incident light with the illuminance sensor 6 that has high sensitivity to light in the wavelength range transmitted by the light shielding member 16, it is possible to appropriately measure the illuminance of the light that is actually taken into the device through the light shielding member 16. This prevents situations where the nail image cannot be properly captured due to shooting in an environment that is too dark inside the device or too bright, causing overexposure. By making it possible to capture an image (nail image) suitable for object recognition (nail recognition in this embodiment), it is also possible to prevent the contour of the object from being erroneously recognized.

[0070] In this embodiment, the control unit 71 also functions as an imaging control unit that adjusts the imaging sensitivity of the imaging unit 5 when the comparison result determined by the comparison unit is not within the allowable range. As a result, in a situation where only an image unsuitable for performing highly accurate contour recognition can be captured, the situation can be easily improved by increasing or decreasing the shooting sensitivity, and an image suitable for performing highly accurate contour recognition can be captured.

[0071] In addition, the photographing unit 5 of this embodiment photographs the nail T even while the printing unit 4 is printing on the nail T, and the control unit 71, which serves as an image output unit, outputs the photographed image of the nail T to the display unit 85 of the terminal device 8 or the like. As a result, an image capturing the state of the design being printed on the nail T is displayed on the display unit 85, etc., and the user can check the printing state in real time. Therefore, even if the user hears the sound of the printing unit 4 operating inside the device, he or she does not feel anxious and can wait for the printing to be completed with peace of mind.

[0072] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the printing unit 4 is equipped with a print head 41 that performs printing operations, and the print head 41 is positioned at a "first position" that does not block external light SL from the external light capture unit 15 when not printing, and is positioned at a "second position" that can block external light SL captured from the external light capture unit 15 when printing. This allows the user to easily view the nail T illuminated by the external light SL when looking into the device through the external light intake section 15 until the printing operation starts, and after the printing operation starts, when the photographing device 51 of the photographing section 5 photographs the nail T being printed, the light entering the device is suppressed and appropriate photographing can be performed.

[0073] In this embodiment, the control unit 71 as an information acquisition unit acquires information about the nail T including the contour shape of the nail T based on an image (nail image) captured by the photographing device 51 of the photographing unit 5. This allows information such as the nail contour to be obtained from the nail image. The light source used when photographing this nail image is external light SL, the amount of which is limited by the external light capture unit 15, and the wavelength range of light transmitted is narrowed by the light blocking member 16. Therefore, even without providing a separate light source within the device, it is possible to photograph a nail image that allows the nail contour to be accurately recognized.

[0074] In this embodiment, the printing operation by the printing unit 4 is controlled by the control unit 71 as a print control unit so that printing is performed in a printing range (that is, an inner area of ​​the nail contour) set based on information about the nail T. This makes it possible to realize a well-finished nail print that matches the contour shape of the nail T that has been accurately recognized.

[0075] [Second embodiment] Next, a second embodiment of a printing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Note that this embodiment differs from the first embodiment only in the configuration of the external light capture unit, and therefore the following description will focus on the differences from the first embodiment.

[0076] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the printing device according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, in a printing device 200 of this embodiment, an external light intake section 18 is provided not on a side of an upper housing 11 but on a cover section 17 arranged on the front surface of the device. Specifically, an external light intake section 18 is formed in the cover section 17 at approximately the center in the width direction of the housing 1 (the left-right direction of the printing device 200, the X direction in FIG. 7). A light blocking member 19 is fitted into the external light intake portion 18 . As in the first embodiment, the light-shielding member 19 is positioned at a position corresponding to the external light capture section 18 at least when photographing is performed by the photographing section 5, thereby allowing the "light in the second wavelength range" of the external light SL other than red light, which is the "light in the first wavelength range," to pass through the device. In this embodiment, the "light in the second wavelength range" is one that mainly transmits light in the blue wavelength range.

[0077] From the external light intake section 18, the inside of the device, particularly the finger placement section 3 on which the nail T to be printed is placed, can be viewed from outside the device via the light blocking member 19. In particular, the external light intake section 18 of this embodiment is provided larger than the external light intake section of the first embodiment, making it easier to visually observe the inside of the device. On the other hand, although a large amount of external light SL also enters, the light-shielding member 19 provided corresponding to the external light intake section 18 transmits blue light which does not relatively affect the recognition of the contour shape of the nail T. Therefore, even if a large amount of external light SL enters, the nail contour can be recognized without a significant loss of accuracy by adjusting the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 to lower the sensitivity.

[0078] Since the other configurations are similar to those of the first embodiment, the same members are given the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

[0079] Next, the operation of the printing device 200 in this embodiment will be described. In the first embodiment, it is possible to block the external light SL entering from the external light intake section on the side by moving the print head 41 to the "second position". In contrast, in this embodiment, the external light SL cannot be blocked even by moving the print head 41. For this reason, if the contour shape, etc. of the nail T cannot be properly recognized from the nail image acquired by the photographing unit 5, it is preferable to have the user position themselves so as to cover the front of the device to block external light SL and to photograph the nail using the photographing unit 5 in this state.

[0080] Specifically, the control unit 71 causes the illuminance sensor 6 to measure the intensity of the incident light (in this embodiment, blue light that has passed through the light-shielding member 19) coming from the external light capture unit 18, and causes the display unit 85 to display a message instructing the user on where to stand, for example (for example, "Please move closer to the front of the device") so that the measurement result is an illuminance suitable for photographing. Then, the nail T is photographed with illumination suitable for photography, and once the nail contour can be recognized from the nail image, print data is generated accordingly and the printing unit 4 is operated to perform printing with the inner area of ​​the nail contour as the printing range.

[0081] Other points are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0082] As described above, according to the present embodiment, in addition to the same effects as those of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. 7, in this embodiment, the external light capture unit 18 is provided at a front position of the device where the finger placement unit 3 can be viewed from above. This makes it easy to visually observe the inside of the device, particularly the state of the nail T and finger U. Even if the external light intake unit 18 is provided on the front side of the device in this way, the light blocking member 19 can limit the light entering the device to blue light or other light in a wavelength range that does not affect the recognition of the outline shape of the nail T. Therefore, the nail outline can be properly recognized.

[0083] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0084] For example, in each of the above embodiments, the photographing unit 5 photographs using only the external light SL captured via the external light capturing units 15 and 18, but a lighting device may be provided within the device. For example, the photographing unit 5 may include a lighting device in addition to the photographing device 51. In this case, for example, a plurality of LEDs are arranged so as to surround the photographing device 51. In this case, it is preferable to use an LED that emits blue light that does not affect recognition of the nail contour. The light source of the illumination device is not limited to an LED as long as it can illuminate the subject to be photographed by the photographing device 51. If a lighting device is provided inside the device, the light necessary for taking pictures can be obtained even when the printing device 100 is used in a dark room where external light SL cannot be relied upon. If this lighting device is configured with an LED that emits blue light, it does not affect the recognition of the nail outline.

[0085] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, the light blocking members 16 and 19 mainly transmit light in the blue wavelength range as the "light in the second wavelength range," but the "light in the second wavelength range" is not limited to light in the blue wavelength range. For example, it may be light with a green wavelength. In this case, the illuminance sensor 6 is provided to have high sensitivity to light in the wavelength range transmitted by the light blocking member (e.g., green light). The sensitivity of the imaging device 51 is also adjusted to adjust the sensitivity to light in the wavelength range transmitted by the light blocking member.

[0086] Also, for example, a transparent member that does not limit the wavelength range of light to be transmitted may be further provided, and the light blocking member and the transparent member may be interchangeable. For example, the light blocking members 16 and 19 may be removable, and the user may selectively fit either the light blocking member or the transparent member into the external light intake section as necessary. Note that "replacing the light-shielding member with the transparent member" is not limited to selectively fitting the light-shielding member to the external light intake section. For example, it also broadly includes a configuration in which a flip-up mechanism that moves the light-shielding member from a position covering the external light intake section to a position not covering it, a mechanism for sliding the light-shielding member up, down, left, right, etc. is provided, and when the light-shielding member is placed at a position corresponding to the external light intake section, the light-shielding member is placed, and when it is moved, only the transparent member is fitted, and a configuration in which one member can be used as both a light-shielding member and a transparent member, like a photochromic lens, is also included.

[0087] By making the light-shielding member and the transparent member interchangeable in this manner, when the user wishes to check the condition of the nail T inside the device, the transparent member can be placed in a position corresponding to the external light capture unit, and when the user wishes to block as much external light SL as possible, such as when taking photographs using the photographing unit 5, the light-shielding member can be placed in a position corresponding to the external light capture unit. A user who wants to look inside the device may feel uncomfortable when looking inside the device through the external light intake unit and seeing their nails T or fingers U blue due to the blue light passing through the light blocking member. There is also the problem that eyes may become tired if the user continues to concentrate on looking at the blue light. In this regard, if the light-shielding member and the transparent member can be appropriately replaced, it is possible to satisfy both the user's desire to visually check inside the device and the desire to restrict incident light other than blue light as much as possible so as not to cause erroneous recognition of the nail contour.

[0088] Furthermore, together with the light blocking member, etc., a shutter or the like that blocks the incidence of external light SL may be provided in the external light intake section. In particular, as shown in the second embodiment, when the external light capture portion 18 is provided widely, even if a light blocking member is provided, the amount of incident external light SL may be too great, making it difficult to capture an image appropriately. In this case, the shutter may be closed to block the incidence of external light SL from the external light intake section.

[0089] Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, a case has been described in which the relative value of the blue light intensity of the "first illuminance" when the print head 41 is in the "first position" and the "second illuminance" when the print head 41 is in the "second position" is compared with the illuminance (intensity of the blue light) condition at the time of shipment to determine the degree of impact on contour recognition (recognition of the contour shape of the nail T), but the method of determining the degree of impact on contour recognition is not limited to this. For example, as in the embodiment, when the light entering the device from the external light capture units 15, 18 is blue light that does not affect the recognition of the contour of the nail T, instead of the relative value between the "first illuminance" and the "second illuminance", the "first illuminance" in a state where the incident light from the external light capture units 15, 18 is not blocked may be obtained by the illuminance sensor 6, and this may be compared with the "first illuminance" at the time of shipment.

[0090] In addition, red light (light in the long wavelength region) is close to the skin color and is therefore more likely to cause malfunctions in recognizing the nail contour, but when the external light capture unit and the illuminance sensor are disposed in a location that does not affect the capture of the image (nail image) for recognizing the nail contour, the light incident from the external light capture unit does not have to be limited to blue light, and the light blocking member provided corresponding to the external light capture unit is also not limited to blue polarized light. For example, it may be red or white. Furthermore, if this can be accommodated by adjusting the sensitivity of the imaging device 51, the light may contain some red components.

[0091] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, an example was given of determining the degree of impact on contour recognition by comparing with the setting value of illuminance (intensity of blue light) at the time of shipment, but the comparison target when determining the degree of impact on contour recognition is not limited to the setting value at the time of shipment, and the judgment may be made, for example, by comparing with a predetermined ideal value that is deemed not to cause erroneous recognition in contour recognition.

[0092] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, the sensitivity of the photographing device 51 is adjusted taking into consideration the degree of impact on contour recognition, but the method and degree of adjustment do not need to be set in the same way every time, and the setting value may be changed as appropriate depending on the environment in which the device is used, etc. For example, the sensitivity adjustment may be customized as appropriate taking into consideration various usage environments, such as when the venue where the printing device is used or the interior of a store where the device is installed has warm colors such as red or orange.

[0093] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, the printing device cooperates with the terminal device 8, and input of various instructions and display of images and messages are performed on the terminal device 8 side, but the configuration of the printing device is not limited to this. For example, the printing device may be provided with a display unit or the like, and configured to be able to complete printing operations by itself without linking with a terminal device.

[0094] In addition, in each of the above embodiments, an example is given of the control unit 71 of the printing device recognizing the contour shape of the nail T from the nail image acquired by the photographing device 51 and generating print data, but the configuration of the control unit 71 is not limited to this. For example, the nail image captured by the photographing device 51 may be sent to the terminal device, and the control unit 81 of the terminal device may recognize the contour shape of the nail T from the nail image and generate print data. In this case, the control unit 71 of the printing device receives the print data from the terminal device 8 and operates the printing unit 4 to perform the printing operation.

[0095] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents. The inventions described in the claims originally attached to this application are set forth below. The claim numbers in the appended claims are the same as those in the claims originally attached to this application. [Additional Notes] <Claim 1> An imaging unit that images an object placed within the device; an external light intake unit capable of taking in external light into the device; a light blocking member that blocks light in a first wavelength range from the external light; Equipped with The light blocking member is disposed at a position corresponding to the external light capture unit at least during imaging by the imaging unit, thereby transmitting light in a second wavelength range other than light in the first wavelength range into the device. 1. An electronic device comprising: <Claim 2> 2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the object is a nail to be printed. <Claim 3> 3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the external light capture section is provided on a front surface or a side surface of the device, at a position where the target can be seen. <Claim 4> 4. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the light blocking member transmits light in a wavelength range of an opposite color or a complementary color to a color of the target as the light in the second wavelength range. <Claim 5> 5. The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a comparison unit that compares a pre-stored illuminance value with a value acquired by an illuminance sensor, and the photographing unit performs photographing when the comparison result of the comparison unit is within an acceptable range. <Claim 6> 6. The electronic device according to claim 5, wherein the illuminance sensor has high sensitivity to light in the second wavelength range. <Claim 7> 7. The electronic device according to claim 5, further comprising an image capture control unit that adjusts an image capture sensitivity of the image capture unit when a comparison result of the comparison unit is not within an allowable range. <Claim 8> 8. The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a transparent member that is replaceable with the light blocking member and does not limit the wavelength range of light to be transmitted. <Claim 9> The photographing unit photographs the target nail while printing is being performed on the nail, 9. The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising an image output unit that outputs the image of the nail captured by the image capturing unit during the printing. <Claim 10> A print head is provided for performing a printing operation. The electronic device described in any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the print head is positioned at a first position that does not block external light from the external light capture unit when not printing, and is positioned at a second position that can block external light captured through the external light capture unit when printing. <Claim 11> 11. The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising an information acquisition unit that acquires information about the target nail, including a contour shape of the nail, based on the image captured by the imaging unit. <Claim 12> 12. The electronic device according to claim 11, further comprising a print control unit that controls a print operation so as to perform printing within a print range that is set based on the information about the nail. [Explanation of symbols]

[0096] 1 Case 2. Device body 3 Finger placement area 4 Printing Department 41 Print Head 5. Photography Department 51 Imaging Equipment 6. Illuminance sensor 15 External light intake section 16 Light blocking material 71 Control Unit 100 Printing device Ar1 movable area Ar2 standby area Ar3 printing operation area Ar4 Maintenance Area SL External Light T-claw U finger

Claims

1. An imaging unit that images an object placed within the device; an external light intake unit capable of taking in external light into the device; a light blocking member that blocks light in a first wavelength range from the external light; Equipped with The diameter of the external light capture unit is approximately the same as the diameter of the lens of the photographing unit, The electronic device is characterized in that the light-shielding member is positioned at a position corresponding to the external light capture section at least when the photographing section is taking an image, thereby allowing light in a second wavelength range other than light in the first wavelength range to pass into the device.

2. 2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the object is a nail that is to be printed.

3. The photographing unit is disposed above a placement unit on which the target is placed, 3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the external light intake section is provided on a front or side of the device at a position where the arrangement section can be seen diagonally above.

4. 4. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the light blocking member transmits light in a wavelength range of an opposite color or a complementary color to a color of the target as the light in the second wavelength range.

5. 5. The electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a transparent member that is replaceable with the light blocking member and does not limit the wavelength range of light to be transmitted.

6. A print head is provided for performing a printing operation. The electronic device described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the print head is positioned at a first position that does not block external light from the external light capture unit when not printing, and is positioned at a second position that can block external light captured through the external light capture unit when printing.

Images