Food texture presentation device, food texture presentation method, and program

Abstract

The mouthfeel presentation device 1 according to the present embodiment comprises: a force stimulation presentation unit 23, a vibration stimulation presentation unit 24, and a temperature stimulation presentation unit 25 for presenting different types of tactile stimulation to the inside of the oral cavity; a selection unit 11 for selecting tactile stimulation to present in accordance with a mouthfeel; and a force stimulation control unit 13, a vibration stimulation control unit 14, and a temperature stimulation control unit 15 for controlling the force stimulation presentation unit 23, the vibration stimulation presentation unit 24, and the temperature stimulation presentation unit 25 presenting the selected tactile stimulation.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a food texture presentation device, a food texture presentation method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] With the spread of virtual reality technology, it has become possible to experience a realistic virtual reality space. Research is being conducted on technology that presents virtual food textures in addition to visual and auditory sensations. Non-Patent Document 1 proposes a virtual food texture presentation technology that applies tactile presentation technology as an elemental technology for providing a virtual food experience.

[0003] Furthermore, Non-Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for reproducing various tactile sensations by combining the three elements of force, vibration, and temperature. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0004] [Non-Patent Document 1] Naohiro Uemura, et al., "Development of a Food Texture Presentation Device," Transactions of the Virtual Reality Society of Japan, Vol. 8, No. 4, 2003, pp. 399-406 [Non-Patent Document 2] Yuuki Tajima, et al., “A method for reproducing tactile sensations in a tactile presentation device that uses force, vibration, and temperature as tactile primary colors,” Transactions of the Virtual Reality Society of Japan, Vol. 24, No. 1, 2019, pp. 125-135 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] It is believed that the reality of virtual food texture can be improved by presenting the three elements of tactile sensation: force, vibration, and temperature. In order to present the three elements of force, vibration, and temperature, a separate tactile actuator must be used for each. For example, a DC motor is used to present force, a vibration motor is used to present vibration, and a Peltier element is used to present temperature.

[0006] When using multiple haptic actuators to present food textures, any mis-synchronization between the haptic actuators can lead to a decrease in the quality of reality. Since various motors and Peltier elements have different delay times when driven, there is a risk that the force, vibration, and temperature presented will be misaligned. This results in a problem of a decrease in the quality of reality of the virtual food texture.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to present a more realistic texture. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The food texture presentation device of one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a plurality of presentation units that present different types of tactile stimuli in the oral cavity; A database for storing parameters for each tactile stimulus for presenting the food texture and the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized for each food texture; The most important thing about the texture is Emphasis should be placed The device includes a selection unit that selects one of the tactile stimuli, and a control unit that controls the presentation unit that corresponds to the selected tactile stimulus.

[0009] A food texture presentation method according to one embodiment of the present invention is a food texture presentation method using a plurality of presentation units that present different types of tactile stimuli in the oral cavity, the method comprising: For each food texture, a database is referenced that holds the parameters for each tactile stimulus to present the food texture and the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized. The most important thing about the texture is Emphasis should be placed One tactile stimulus is selected, and the presentation unit corresponding to the selected tactile stimulus is controlled. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, a more realistic texture can be presented. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a food texture presentation device of the present embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing by the food texture presentation device of the present embodiment. [Diagram 3]FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the food texture presentation device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] The food texture presentation device 1 shown in Fig. 1 is composed of a selection device 10 and a presentation device 20. The selection device 10 selects a tactile stimulus to be operated based on the food texture to be presented. The presentation device 20 is a device that is inserted or worn in the oral cavity, and presents the tactile stimulus selected by the selection device 10 to the user. In Fig. 1, the selection device 10 and the presentation device 20 are configured as separate devices, but this is not limited to this. The selection device 10 and the presentation device 20 may be configured as a single device. Each part of the selection device 10 and the presentation device 20 may be configured as separate devices.

[0014] The selection device 10 includes a selection unit 11, a food texture database 12, a force stimulus control unit 13, a vibration stimulus control unit 14, and a temperature stimulus control unit 15. The presentation device 20 includes a force stimulus presentation unit 23, a vibration stimulus presentation unit 24, and a temperature stimulus presentation unit 25.

[0015] The texture database 12 stores parameters for controlling the presentation device 20 for each texture. As the texture, the name of the food, such as beef jerky or rice cracker, is set. The parameters are set for each of the tactile stimuli of force, vibration, and temperature. A plurality of parameters may be set for each tactile stimulus. For example, for the tactile stimulus of force, a parameter of hardness is set, and then a parameter of stress applied against an external force is set for a hard texture, and a spring coefficient is set for a soft texture. For the tactile stimulus of vibration, parameters such as amplitude, frequency, and vibration time are set. For the tactile stimulus of temperature, a parameter of temperature is set. Temperature may be expressed in several stages, such as cold, hot, or warm. Note that the parameters are not limited to the above. As parameters, numerical values ​​such as a current value and a driving time for controlling the presentation device 20 may be set.

[0016] The parameters are searched for in advance and registered in the food texture database 12. For example, the presentation device 20 presents food textures while changing each parameter of the tactile stimulus of force, the tactile stimulus of vibration, and the tactile stimulus of temperature, and searches for parameters close to the desired texture. The searched parameters are registered in the food texture database 12.

[0017] The food texture database 12 may store onomatopoeias expressing food textures such as chewy and crispy instead of parameters for each food texture. For example, onomatopoeias are registered for the food textures of foods for which parameters have not been searched. The food texture database 12 maps onomatopoeias and characteristic tactile stimuli corresponding to the onomatopoeia. For example, in the case of chewy, a tactile stimulus of force is mapped, which is a soft texture. Parameters of mochi (rice cake) or daifuku (a type of rice cake) associated with chewy may also be used. In the case of crispy, a tactile stimulus of vibration is mapped.

[0018] The texture database 12 may specify the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized for each texture. For example, for the texture of beef jerky, a force stimulus is specified as the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized, for the texture of rice crackers, a vibration stimulus is specified, and for the texture of ice cream, a temperature stimulus is specified.

[0019] The selection unit 11 refers to the food texture database 12, selects the tactile stimulus (force, vibration, or temperature) that should be most emphasized in the food texture to be presented, and issues an instruction to the control unit corresponding to the selected tactile stimulus.

[0020] When a tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized is specified in the food texture database 12, the selection unit 11 selects that tactile stimulus. The selection unit 11 may select a tactile stimulus having a parameter that deviates from the average value of the parameters calculated from all food textures. When an onomatopoeia is used, the selection unit 11 selects a tactile stimulus mapped to the onomatopoeia.

[0021] The selection unit 11 acquires parameters of the selected tactile stimulation from the food texture database 12, and transmits the acquired parameters to the corresponding control unit.

[0022] The force stimulation control unit 13 controls the force stimulation presentation unit 23. The force stimulation presentation unit 23 is a tactile actuator that uses, for example, a DC motor and applies stress according to the user's biting force. The force stimulation presentation unit 23 can express the hardness of food when it is bitten.

[0023] The vibration stimulus control unit 14 controls the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24. The vibration stimulus presentation unit 24 is a tactile actuator that uses, for example, a vibration motor to provide vibrations when the user bites. The vibration stimulus presentation unit 24 can express the texture of food that crumbles when chewed and is repeatedly chewed and crumbled.

[0024] The force stimulation presentation unit 23 and the vibration stimulation presentation unit 24 are, for example, members inserted into the user's oral cavity and equipped with a pressure sensor to detect when the user bites. The force stimulation control unit 13 and the vibration stimulation control unit 14 operate the force stimulation presentation unit 23 and the vibration stimulation presentation unit 24 when the user bites the presentation device 20.

[0025] The temperature stimulus control unit 15 controls the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25. The temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 is a tactile actuator that uses, for example, a Peltier element to present a cold or warm stimulus. A Peltier element is an element that heats one side and cools the other side when a direct current is passed through it. Changing the direction of the direct current switches the heated and cooled sides. The temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 can express the texture of ice cream, shaved ice, and other foods that have unique temperatures.

[0026] The temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 may have a Peltier element disposed in a portion of the force stimulus presentation unit 23 and the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24 that contacts the oral cavity, or may be attached to the oral cavity as a member separate from the force stimulus presentation unit 23 and the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24. For example, the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 may be an appliance capable of fixing a Peltier element to teeth, such as an orthodontic appliance.

[0027] Next, the operation of the food texture presentation device 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

[0028] In step S11, the food texture presentation device 1 selects the food texture to present. The food texture presentation device 1 may accept the food texture to present from the user.

[0029] In step S12, the food texture presentation device 1 selects a tactile stimulus having the most characteristic parameter from among force, vibration, and temperature for the food texture to be presented. When an onomatopoeia is used, the food texture presentation device 1 selects a tactile stimulus mapped to the onomatopoeia.

[0030] The user inserts the presentation device 20 into the oral cavity and performs a biting motion on the presentation device 20.

[0031] In step S13, the food texture presentation device 1 controls the presentation unit corresponding to the tactile stimulus selected in step S12, and presents the tactile stimulus to the user. When presenting a tactile stimulus of force or a tactile stimulus of vibration, the food texture presentation device 1 operates the force stimulus presentation unit 23 or the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24 when the user bites the presentation device 20. When presenting a tactile stimulus of temperature, the food texture presentation device 1 operates the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 without waiting for an action from the user. The food texture presentation device 1 may also operate the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 when the user bites the presentation device 20.

[0032] As described above, the food texture presentation device 1 of this embodiment includes the force stimulus presentation unit 23, the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24, and the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 that present different types of tactile stimuli in the oral cavity, the selection unit 11 that selects the tactile stimulus to be presented according to the food texture, and the force stimulus control unit 13, the vibration stimulus control unit 14, and the temperature stimulus control unit 15 that control the force stimulus presentation unit 23, the vibration stimulus presentation unit 24, and the temperature stimulus presentation unit 25 that present the selected tactile stimulus. This allows the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized to be presented without synchronizing the tactile actuators that present the tactile stimuli, so that the food texture can be presented without compromising reality.

[0033] For the above-described food texture presentation device 1, for example, a general-purpose computer system including a central processing unit (CPU) 901, a memory 902, a storage 903, a communication device 904, an input device 905, and an output device 906 as shown in Fig. 3 can be used. In this computer system, the food texture presentation device 1 is realized by the CPU 901 executing a predetermined program loaded onto the memory 902. This program can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, or a semiconductor memory, or can be distributed via a network. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 1. Texture presentation device 10...Selection device 11...Selection section 12…Texture database 13... Force stimulation control unit 14...Vibration stimulation control unit 15...Temperature stimulus control unit 20…Presentation device 23…Force stimulation presentation part 24...Vibration stimulation presentation section 25...Temperature stimulation presentation section

Claims

1. A plurality of presentation units that present different types of tactile stimuli in the oral cavity; A database that holds, for each food texture, parameters for each tactile stimulus for presenting the food texture and the tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized; a selection unit that refers to the database and selects one tactile stimulus that should be most emphasized in terms of the food texture to be presented; a control unit that controls the presentation unit corresponding to the selected tactile stimulus Texture presentation device.

2. The food texture presentation device according to claim 1, The tactile stimuli are force, vibration, and temperature. Texture presentation device.

3. The food texture presentation device according to claim 1 or 2, The selection unit selects the tactile stimulus based on the onomatopoeia representing the food texture to be presented. Texture presentation device.

4. A food texture presentation method for presenting food textures using a plurality of presentation units that present different types of tactile stimuli in the oral cavity, comprising: The computer selecting one tactile stimulus that is most to be emphasized for the texture to be presented by referring to a database that stores parameters for each tactile stimulus for presenting the texture and the tactile stimulus that is most to be emphasized for each texture; Controlling the presentation unit corresponding to the selected tactile stimulus Method of presenting texture.

5. A program for causing a computer to operate as each unit of the food texture presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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