Developmental stage determination device, program and terminal device

Abstract

This development stage determination device comprises: a motion information acquisition unit which acquires motion information indicating a motion of an oral ingestion of food by an infant; a development stage determination unit which determines, on the basis of the motion information acquired by the motion information acquisition unit and a prescribed determination criterion, to what stage the motion indicated by the motion information belongs among a plurality of development stages of an oral function of the infant; and a display control unit which displays, on a display device, information indicating the development stage determined by the development stage determination unit.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a developmental stage determination device. , P Programs and terminal devices. This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-085752, filed on May 15, 2020, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] Oral functions such as eating, speaking, and breathing decline with age. As a decline in oral function can lead to aspiration pneumonia, for example, preventing the decline in oral function is a major challenge in extending healthy life expectancy. It is known that the degree of decline in oral function is greatly influenced by the state of oral function acquisition during infancy and early childhood. In particular, for the development of oral function in infants and young children, it is important to pay attention to the preparation and feeding of baby food according to the level of development. Therefore, it is necessary for parents to correctly recognize the degree of oral function development of infants and young children, and a method for objectively judging the degree of oral function development is required. In order to objectively judge the degree of oral function development, it is preferable that the judgment be automated. Conventionally, for automatic determination of oral cavity function, a technique such as that disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been disclosed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2004-242902 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 can only obtain limited information such as the number of chewing episodes, and cannot necessarily objectively assess the degree of development of oral function during infancy. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] One embodiment of the present invention is a developmental stage determination device that includes a motion information acquisition unit that acquires motion information indicating an infant's oral intake of food, a developmental stage determination unit that determines which of multiple developmental stages of oral function in infancy the motion indicated by the motion information corresponds to based on the motion information acquired by the motion information acquisition unit and predetermined determination criteria, and a display control unit that displays information indicating the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit on a display device.

[0006] In the developmental stage determination device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined determination criteria include a reference movement of at least one part of the baby's lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and chin according to the developmental stage.

[0007] In one embodiment of the development stage determination device, the movement information includes information on the movement of at least one of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw during at least a portion of the period from when food is consumed to when it is swallowed.

[0008] In the development stage determination device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the movement information includes information on the movement of at least one of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw during a period before food is ingested.

[0009] In the developmental stage determination device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the display control unit further causes a display device to display information corresponding to the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit.

[0010] In one embodiment of the developmental stage determination device of the present invention, the display control unit graphs information corresponding to the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit together with a history of past determination results, and displays the graph on a display device.

[0011] In one embodiment of the developmental stage determination device of the present invention, the display control unit displays information selected from a plurality of pieces of information corresponding to the developmental stage on a display device as updated information corresponding to the developmental stage until the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit is updated.

[0012] One embodiment of the developmental stage determination device of the present invention further includes an operation receiving unit that receives an update operation to update the information to be displayed, and the display control unit updates the information corresponding to the developmental stage in response to the operation receiving unit receiving the update operation, and displays the updated information on the display device.

[0013] In one embodiment of the development stage determination device of the present invention, the display control unit displays information on a display device encouraging the provision of the operation information based on the frequency of providing the operation information to the operation information acquisition unit and the frequency of receiving the update operation by the operation receiving unit.

[0014] One embodiment of the developmental stage determination device further includes a food information acquisition unit that acquires food information indicating the type of food given to an infant or young child, and a type determination unit that determines whether the type of food indicated by the food information acquired by the food information acquisition unit is suitable as a food to be ingested at the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit, and the display control unit further displays the determination result by the type determination unit on a display device.

[0015] One embodiment of the developmental stage determination device of the present invention further includes a portion determination unit that determines the amount of food given to the infant based on the movement information acquired by the movement information acquisition unit, and the display control unit further causes information based on the determination result of the portion determination unit to be displayed on the display device.

[0016] One embodiment of the present invention is a developmental stage determination method having a motion information acquisition step in which a computer acquires motion information indicating an infant's oral intake of food, a developmental stage determination step in which a motion indicated by the motion information corresponds to one of a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infancy based on the motion information acquired in the motion information acquisition step and predetermined determination criteria, and a display control step in which a display device displays information indicating the developmental stage determined in the developmental stage determination step.

[0017] One embodiment of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to execute the following steps: a motion information acquisition step for acquiring motion information indicating an infant's oral intake of food; a developmental stage determination step for determining which of a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infancy the motion indicated by the motion information corresponds to based on the motion information acquired in the motion information acquisition step and predetermined determination criteria; and a display control step for displaying on a display device information indicating the developmental stage determined in the developmental stage determination step.

[0018] One embodiment of the present invention is a terminal device comprising: an imaging unit that images an infant's oral intake of food; an output unit that outputs movement information to a developmental stage determination device that determines which of a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infancy the movement indicated by the movement information corresponds to based on movement information based on an image captured by the imaging unit and predetermined determination criteria; an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination device based on the movement information output by the output unit; and a display control unit that causes the information indicating the developmental stage acquired by the acquisition unit to be displayed on a display device. Effect of the Invention

[0019] According to the present invention, a development stage determination device capable of objectively determining the degree of development of oral function in infancy is provided. , P A program and terminal device can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the development stage determination system according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a first example of criteria information according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a second example of the criteria information of the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a third example of the criteria information of the present embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a fourth example of criterion information according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a fifth example of criterion information according to the present embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of the development stage determination system of the present embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of baby food information according to the present embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of baby food feeding method information according to the present embodiment. [Figure 10] 13 is an example of information displayed on a terminal device according to the present embodiment. [Figure 11] 13 is another example of information displayed on the terminal device of the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] Hereinafter, the development stage determination system 1 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a development stage determination system 1 according to the present embodiment. The developmental stage determination system 1 includes a developmental stage determination device 10 and a terminal device 20. The developmental stage determination device 10 and the terminal device 20 include a network 30, the developmental stage determination device 10, and the terminal device 20. The developmental stage determination device 10 and the terminal device 20 are connected to each other via the network 30. The developmental stage determination device 10 is configured, for example, by a server device. The terminal device 20 is configured, for example, by a smartphone or a tablet.

[0022] [Functional configuration of terminal device 20] The terminal device 20 includes an imaging unit 21, a display unit 22, and an operation detection unit 23. The imaging unit 21 captures an image based on an operation by a user of the terminal device 20. The display unit 22 includes, for example, a liquid crystal display, and displays an image captured by the imaging unit 21 and information transmitted from the development stage assessment device 10 via the network 30. The operation detection unit 23 includes, for example, a touch panel, and detects an operation by the user of the terminal device 20. The terminal device 20 transmits information such as an image captured by the imaging section 21 to the development stage determination device 10 via the network 30. As described above, information such as images and text is communicated between the development stage assessment device 10 and the terminal device 20 via the network 30, but in the following explanation, the phrase "via the network 30" will be omitted.

[0023] In one example of this embodiment, the terminal device 20 transmits motion information of the subject 40 (for example, an infant) to the developmental stage determination device 10. One example of the motion information is an image of the mouth of the subject 40 while eating. The user of the terminal device 20 performs an imaging operation by adjusting the position and direction of the terminal device 20 so that the mouth of the baby during a meal is included within the imaging angle of view of the imaging unit 21. As a result, the movement of the mouth of the baby during a meal is included in the video image captured by the imaging unit 21. That is, in this example, the movement information is information indicating the movement of the baby orally taking food.

[0024] The movement information preferably includes movements of the baby's lips, corners of the mouth, tongue and jaw while eating. In addition, the motion information preferably includes information on the movement of at least one of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw during at least a portion of the period from when food is eaten to when it is swallowed. The motion information preferably also includes information on the movement of at least one of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw during the period before the food is consumed. That is, it is preferable that the movement information includes more detailed information about the mouth movements of the infant while eating. If the movement information includes more detailed information about the mouth movements of the infant while eating, the accuracy of determining the development stage can be further improved.

[0025] The motion information does not necessarily have to be a video (for example, a series of images in which a plurality of frame images captured at different times are arranged in chronological order) as long as it includes information that can determine the motion of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw. For example, the motion information may be vector information extracted from the motion of a subject in a video.

[0026] [Functional configuration of the development stage determination device 10] The development stage determination device 10 includes a motion information acquisition unit 110, a memory unit 120, a development stage determination unit 130, a display control unit 140, an operation reception unit 150, a food information acquisition unit 160, a type determination unit 170, and a portion determination unit 180. Here, we will explain the action information acquisition unit 110, the memory unit 120, the development stage determination unit 130, the display control unit 140, and the operation receiving unit 150, and the food information acquisition unit 160, the type determination unit 170, and the portion determination unit 180 will be explained later.

[0027] The motion information acquiring unit 110 acquires the motion information transmitted by the terminal device 20. As an example, the terminal device 20 includes an output unit (not shown) that transmits the motion information. In this case, the motion information acquiring unit 110 acquires the motion information transmitted from the output unit. The motion information includes information indicating an infant's oral intake motion of food, that is, the motion information acquiring unit 110 acquires motion information indicating an infant's oral intake motion of food. The motion information acquiring section 110 outputs the acquired motion information to the development stage determining section 130.

[0028] The storage unit 120 stores criteria information 121. An example of the criteria information 121 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0029] 2 to 6 are diagrams showing an example of the criteria information 121 of this embodiment. The criteria information 121 is information in which the developmental stages of an infant are associated with criteria for determining the developmental stage. In this example, the developmental stages of an infant are divided into five stages, from stage 1 to stage 5. For example, the developmental stage "Stage 1" is associated with the following criteria: "frequent protrusion of the tongue, sucking on a finger when it is brought close to the tongue (primitive reflex), thumb sucking, licking toys, and beginning to hold up the head." That is, the storage unit 120 stores predetermined criteria for determining the developmental stage of an infant.

[0030] It is preferable that the judgment criteria information 121 includes a reference movement according to the developmental stage of at least one part of the baby's lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw.

[0031] Here, an example of the criterion stored as the criterion information 121 will be described. (1) Throughout each developmental stage, the important parts in the standard movements of the judging criteria are "tongue, lips, corners of the mouth, and jaw." In this case, the predetermined judging criteria includes the standard movements of at least one of the above parts according to the developmental stage.

[0032] (2) At each developmental stage, the above areas are involved as follows: All stages (stages 1 to 5): The important part in the evaluation criteria is the "tongue". Stages 2 to 4: The important areas in the evaluation criteria are the lips, corners of the mouth, and chin. Stage 4 only: Judging criteria include the use of "teeth" and "cheek" movement. Stage 1 and Stage 5: The criteria include the use of hands. Stages 2 to 5: The criteria include "neck and head" movement. In light of the above, the following can be considered: It is preferable that information on the "tongue" is an essential criterion for determining the first stage. More preferably, it is preferable that information on the "tongue" is an essential criterion for determining each developmental stage. In the second to fourth stages, it is preferable to further add information on the "lips and chin." It is even more preferable to further add information on the "corners of the mouth." In this case, it is especially preferable to add it in the fourth stage. In the fourth stage, it is preferable to add additional information on teeth and cheeks. In the first and fifth stages, it is preferable to further add auxiliary information about the hands. In stages 2 to 5, it is preferable to add supplementary information about the "neck and head."

[0033] (3) The specific changes in movement of each part across each developmental stage are as follows: Tongue (Stages 1 to 5): "When food is brought close to the mouth, the tongue frequently protrudes from the tip of the mouth" → "The above movement is suppressed" → "The tongue moves up and down" → "The tongue moves up and down and side to side" → "The tongue moves freely." Lips (stages 2 to 4): "The lower lip goes under the upper lip" → "This movement is suppressed, and the upper and lower lips move symmetrically" → "The upper and lower lips move asymmetrically." Corners of the mouth (stage 2 to stage 4): "The corners of the mouth do not move" → "They expand and contract symmetrically on the left and right sides at the same time" → "They move asymmetrically." Jaw (stages 2 to 4): "The jaw moves slightly up and down" → "Moves up and down" → "Moves up and down and side to side." How to use teeth (Stage 4 to Stage 5): "Taking in food by biting it with your front teeth" → "Being able to bite off large pieces of food with your front teeth." Chewing (stages 4 to 5): "Puff out your cheeks and chew" → "Puff out your cheeks rhythmically and chew." Hands: "Thumb sucking (stage 1)", "Can eat with fingers, can use utensils to eat by itself (stage 5)". Neck and head (stages 2 to 5): "Neck is stable, neck and head do not move often" → "Head juts slightly out from neck towards food" → "Head juts widely out from neck towards food" → "Neck and head can move freely and maintain correct posture."

[0034] That is, the criterion stored as the criterion information 121 may include additional items according to the developmental stage of the subject to be assessed, and the relative priorities of the items may be added.

[0035] Furthermore, the criterion information 121 may include information on "the flow in which the criterion action occurs" and "the action with high priority in determining the developmental stage." Specific examples of the above-mentioned "criterion," "the flow in which the criterion action occurs," and "the action with high priority in determining the developmental stage" will be described.

[0036] (1) First stage (suckling stage) A. Judgment criteria: Frequent protrusion of the tongue. When you bring your finger close to the tongue, it sticks to it (primitive reflex). -Thumb sucking. Licking toys. The neck begins to become stiff. B. Flow in which the criteria action occurs: 1. When bringing something such as a spoon close to the mouth, the tongue frequently sticks out from the mouth. When you bring your finger close to your tongue it sticks to it. Sucking fingers and licking toys. C. Priority actions for determining developmental stage: When bringing a spoon or other object close to the mouth, the tongue frequently protrudes from the mouth.

[0037] (2) Stage 2 (Early weaning (gulping stage)) A. Judgment criteria: The lower lip tucks under the upper lip. The corners of the mouth barely move. -The tongue moves back and forth, sending food to the back of the throat. The jaw moves slightly up and down. -Close your lips and swallow. -Taking food with the upper lip. - Mouth movements when seeing food (indicating interest in food). -Open your mouth when food is brought close to it. -The neck is stable. -Neck and head do not move frequently. The frequency of the behavior of "sticking out the tongue when bringing a spoon or other object close to the mouth" decreases. Even if you bring a spoon or other object close to your mouth, it will no longer be pushed out with your tongue. B. Flow in which the criteria action occurs: 1. The frequency of the behavior of "sticking out your tongue when bringing a spoon or other object close to your mouth" decreases. Mouth movements when seeing food (indicating interest in food). The head is stable. The neck and head do not move frequently. 2. Open your mouth when food is brought close to it. The tongue moves back and forth, pushing food to the back of the throat with the tongue, and the corners of the mouth barely move. 3. Even if you bring a spoon or other object close to your mouth, you will no longer push it away with your tongue. The upper lip takes in food, the lower lip goes under the upper lip, and the jaw moves slightly up and down. Close your lips and swallow. C. Priority actions for determining developmental stage: The lower lip tucks under the upper lip. -Open your mouth when food is brought close to it. -Close your lips and swallow. The jaw moves slightly up and down.

[0038] (3) Stage 3 (mid-weaning (munching stage)) A. Judgment criteria: Keep your upper and lower lips tightly closed while crushing and swallowing. The corners of the mouth expand and contract horizontally at the same time. The tongue moves up and down, pressing against the roof of the mouth. -Move your jaw up and down to crush food. Close your lips and chew for 2-3 seconds before swallowing. - Slightly poke the head towards the food. B. Flow in which the criteria action occurs: 1. Close your lips and chew for 2-3 seconds before swallowing. The tongue moves up and down, pressing against the roof of the mouth. The corners of the mouth expand and contract horizontally at the same time. 2. Slightly poke your head through the neck towards the food. Move your jaw up and down to crush food. The upper and lower lips are kept tightly closed while crushing and swallowing. C. Priority actions for determining developmental stage: · Keep upper and lower lips tightly closed while crushing and swallowing. Close your lips and chew for 2-3 seconds before swallowing. -Move your jaw up and down to crush food.

[0039] (4) Stage 4 (late weaning (chewing stage)) A. Judgment criteria: The upper and lower lips move asymmetrically, twisting. -The corners of the mouth move asymmetrically (pulling to one side). -The tongue moves up, down and side to side. The jaw moves up, down, left and right. - Food is taken in by biting it with the front teeth. -Puff out your cheeks and chew. - Pushing their head forward towards the food. -You can take food in firmly with your lips. Grinding hard foods with your gums. B. Flow in which the criteria action occurs: 1. Pushing their head forward toward the food. The lips can hold food firmly. The tongue moves up and down and left and right, and the cheeks are puffed out while chewing. 2. The upper and lower lips move and twist asymmetrically, and the corners of the mouth move asymmetrically. The jaw moves up and down and side to side. 3. Food is taken in by biting it off with the front teeth. The gums make a grinding motion to crush hard foods. C. Priority actions for determining developmental stage: The corners of the mouth move asymmetrically. The upper and lower lips move asymmetrically, twisting. -Puff out your cheeks and chew. - Food is taken in by biting it with the front teeth. The jaw moves up, down, left and right.

[0040] (5) 5th stage (weaning completion stage) A. Judgment criteria: -The tongue moves freely. - You can chew and crush rhythmically with your teeth and gums. - Your neck and head can move freely and maintain proper posture. · Able to grasp and release food with fingers. -Be able to hold easy-to-hold toys in their hands and bring them to their mouths You can eat it with your fingers. -Can bite off large foods with front teeth. -Can bring hand to mouth without moving head. -Can eat using tableware by themselves. B. Flow in which the criteria action occurs: 1. The tongue can move freely. You can chew and crush rhythmically with your teeth and gums. 2. The neck and head can move freely and maintain correct posture. Able to grasp and release food with fingers. They will be able to hold toys and other items in their hands and bring them to their mouths. 3. You can eat it with your fingers. It can bite off large pieces of food with its front teeth. Can bring hand to mouth without moving head. 4. Able to eat using tableware by themselves. C. Priority actions for determining developmental stage: You can eat it with your fingers. -Can eat using tableware by themselves. - You can chew and crush rhythmically with your teeth and gums.

[0041] Returning to Figure 1, the developmental stage determination unit 130 determines, based on one or more of the movement information acquired by the movement information acquisition unit 110 or the determination criteria information 121 (predetermined determination criteria), which of multiple developmental stages of oral function in infancy the movement indicated by the movement information corresponds to. A known image processing algorithm is applied to the determination procedure performed by the developmental stage determination unit 130. The image algorithm referred to here broadly includes algorithms for processing still images and algorithms for processing moving images. The developmental stage determination unit 130 may determine the developmental stage by referring to the results of machine learning of the movements of the baby's lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw. The development stage determination section 130 outputs the result of the development stage determination to the display control section 140.

[0042] The developmental stage determination unit 130 may determine the developmental stage while quantifying the oral function of the infant from the motion indicated by the motion information based on one or more of the motion information or the determination criterion information acquired by the motion information acquisition unit 110. In this case, the developmental stage may be determined while indicating the desired numerical value for the oral function for each month along with the average value and standard deviation. A graph may be created from the numerical value of the oral function and output to the display control unit 140. This graph may also indicate information such as the average value and standard deviation of the numerical value of the oral function together with the history. This configuration allows the developmental process to be grasped in more detail, and the user can easily get a sense of the growth of the infant, who is the subject. Furthermore, the user can be motivated to continue using the system.

[0043] Furthermore, the developmental stage determination section 130 may determine the developmental stage based on a still image showing a characteristic moment among the movements of an infant's oral intake of food. In this case, the terminal device 20 may include a characteristic movement determination section (not shown) that determines a moment that reflects a characteristic of a developmental stage among the movements of an infant's oral intake of food. If a moment that reflects a characteristic of a developmental stage occurs while the imaging section 21 is capturing an image of an infant's oral intake of food, the characteristic movement determination section determines the moment as a characteristic movement. If the characteristic movement determination section determines that a characteristic movement has occurred, it may cause the imaging section 21 to capture a still image or present a display (or sound) that prompts the user to capture a still image. Furthermore, the terminal device 20 may display explanatory information instructing the timing for capturing a still image (for example, when the spoon is brought close to the mouth or 3 seconds after the spoon is placed in the mouth, etc.). By configuring in this manner, the developmental stage determination system 1 can reduce the amount of information compared to a case in which a video (i.e., a long period of time) of an infant or young child orally ingesting food is transmitted from the terminal device 20 to the determination device 10.

[0044] Furthermore, the terminal device 20 may transmit, as the movement information to the determination device 10, an image obtained by deleting an image of a portion not used for determining the developmental stage (for example, an image other than the mouth of the baby, such as a background image) from the image captured by the imaging unit 21. According to the terminal device 20 configured in this manner, the amount of information of the image transmitted as the movement information can be reduced.

[0045] The display control section 140 outputs information based on the determination result of the development stage determination section 130 to the terminal device 20. As a result, the display section 22 of the terminal device 20 displays the information based on the determination result of the development stage determination section 130. That is, the display control unit 140 causes the terminal device 20 (that is, the display device) to display information indicating the development stage determined by the development stage determination unit 130.

[0046] The operation reception unit 150 receives an operation performed on the terminal device 20. Specifically, when the operation detection unit 23 (e.g., a touch panel) of the terminal device 20 detects an operation on the display surface of the display unit 22, it outputs operation information corresponding to the detected operation to the development stage determination device 10. The operation reception unit 150 receives the operation information output from the terminal device 20. The operation reception unit 150 outputs the operation information to each unit of the development stage determination device 10 according to the content of the received operation. As a result, each unit of the development stage determination device 10 operates according to the operation performed on the terminal device 20.

[0047] [Operation of Developmental Stage Assessment System 1] Next, an example of the operation of the development stage determination system 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of the development stage determination system 1 of this embodiment.

[0048] (Step S10) The movement information acquisition section 110 of the developmental stage determination device 10 acquires movement information from the terminal device 20. As described above, in this example, the movement information is a video in which the mouth of an infant is captured while eating.

[0049] In order to avoid a decrease in the accuracy of judging the developmental stage, it is preferable that the user operating the terminal device 20 captures an image of the face of the infant from under the nose to the tip of the chin within the angle of view of the imaging unit 21. The display control unit 140 may cause the terminal device 20 to display an instruction such as "capture an image from under the nose to the tip of the chin" on the display unit 22, or may cause the display unit 22 to display guidelines indicating the outer shape of the face and the contours of the nose and chin superimposed on the image captured by the imaging unit 21.

[0050] Furthermore, the display control unit 140 may cause the display unit 22 to display an instruction regarding the imaging timing. For example, an instruction such as "take a picture from the time you bring the spoon to your mouth until you swallow it" may be displayed on the display unit 22.

[0051] In order to prevent a decrease in the accuracy of judging the development stage, it is preferable to increase the length of the motion information. The display control unit 140 may cause the display unit 22 to display the image capturing time, the time during which the image capturing unit 21 captures the front of the baby's face, and the like. Furthermore, the display control unit 140 may present information (for example, a blinking flash or a sound) that draws the baby's attention so that the baby turns its face toward the imaging unit 21 during imaging.

[0052] Furthermore, the display control unit 140 may cause an image for inputting information on the growth state of the baby, such as age and weight, to be displayed on the display unit 22. In this case, the motion information acquiring unit 110 acquires information on the growth state together with the motion information. Furthermore, the motion information acquiring section 110 may store the acquired information on the growth state in the storage section 120 as history information.

[0053] Furthermore, the display control unit 140 may change or add motion information to be acquired depending on the developmental stage of the baby. Furthermore, the display control unit 140 may display information indicating imaging timing and a part of an imaging target (i.e., imaging guide information). When the imaging guide information is displayed, the display control unit 140 may display imaging guide information with different contents according to the developmental stage of an infant.

[0054] Furthermore, for example, when the important part in the judgment criteria is "hands", the display control unit 140 may display a display for prompting the user to input hand movements (for example, a question display of "Will you use your hands?" and a response box for this question) instead of capturing an image of the hand movements. In other words, the display control unit 140 may display information other than the image captured by the imaging unit 21 as information to be included in the movement information. The answer field displayed by the display control unit 140 may be in a text input format or in a selection format such as Yes / No.

[0055] (Step S20) The development stage determination unit 130 acquires the determination criterion information 121 stored in the storage unit 120. (Step S30) The development stage determination unit 130 determines which stage the baby's eating movement imaged by the terminal device 20 corresponds to among the development stages of oral cavity function during infancy. Specifically, the developmental stage determination unit 130 searches the determination criteria information 121 acquired in step S20 using the motion information acquired in step S10 as a search key. The developmental stage determination unit 130 obtains the developmental stage corresponding to the motion information as a result of the search. The developmental stage determination unit 130 outputs the determination result of the developmental stage to the display control unit 140.

[0056] The developmental stage determination section 130 may determine the developmental stage by performing statistical calculations on the motion information based on a plurality of motion information captured at different times. The developmental stage determination section 130 configured in this manner can improve the accuracy of determining the developmental stage.

[0057] In addition, the accuracy of judging the developmental stage may be reduced by changes in the facial expression of the infant. In this case, when the motion information includes an expression with a different mouth shape from a normal expression (for example, a crying face or a laughing face), the developmental stage judging unit 130 may judge the developmental stage by excluding the part of the expression with a different mouth shape from the normal expression.

[0058] Depending on the contents of the motion information, the developmental stage determination section 130 may not be able to determine the developmental stage. The developmental stage determination section 130 may calculate the determination accuracy of the developmental stage (for example, the third stage with a 60% probability). In this case, the display control section 140 may cause the display section 22 to display the calculated determination accuracy of the developmental stage.

[0059] Furthermore, the development stage determination section 130 may set the satisfaction of the criteria for each development stage as 100 and calculate the numerical value as a percentage (1 to 100, etc.). Also, vector information obtained by extracting the movement of a subject from a video may be quantified. The display control section 140 may graph the calculated numerical value together with past determination results (numerical values) as a numerical value transition and display the graph on the display section 22.

[0060] Furthermore, the developmental stage determination section 130 may correct the determination result based on information such as the age (age in months) of the baby or infant who is the subject 40, or information on the number of teeth.

[0061] Furthermore, the developmental stage determination section 130 may determine the developmental stage based on a history of past determination results. The past determination results may be stored as history information in the storage section 120. In this case, the developmental stage determination section 130 determines the developmental stage further based on the history information stored in the storage section 120.

[0062] (Step S40) The display control unit 140 acquires information corresponding to the developmental stage determined in step S30. Here, an example of "information corresponding to the developmental stage" will be given.

[0063] [Examples of information corresponding to developmental stages] (1) Information on the type of baby food The display control unit 140 acquires information on the form of baby food as information corresponding to the development stage. An example of information on the form of baby food will be described with reference to FIG.

[0064] 8 is a diagram showing an example of the baby food information 122 of this embodiment. In this example, the baby food information 122 is stored in the storage unit 120 of the development stage determination device 10. The baby food information 122 associates a developmental stage with information on the form of the baby food corresponding to the developmental stage. The display control unit 140 searches the baby food information 122 using the developmental stage determined in step S30 as a search key to obtain information on the form of the baby food corresponding to the developmental stage (for example, "thick potage-like / yogurt-like" for "stage 2").

[0065] (2) Information on feeding baby food The display control unit 140 acquires information on how to feed baby food as information corresponding to a developmental stage. An example of the information on how to feed baby food will be described with reference to FIG.

[0066] 9 is a diagram showing an example of the baby food feeding method information 123 of this embodiment. In this example, the baby food feeding method information 123 is stored in the storage unit 120 of the development stage determination device 10. Developmental stages are associated with information on how to feed baby food according to the developmental stage in the baby food feeding method information 123. The display control unit 140 searches the baby food feeding method information 123 using the developmental stage determined in step S30 as a search key to obtain information on how to feed baby food corresponding to the developmental stage (for example, in the "third stage," "Place the spoon on the lower lip, wait until the baby takes in the food, munches, and swallows it, then bring the next spoonful").

[0067] (Step S50) Returning to FIG. 7, the display control unit 140 outputs, to the terminal device 20, information on the development stage determined in step S30 and information corresponding to the development stage acquired in step S40.

[0068] 10 is an example of information displayed on the terminal device 20 of this embodiment. A judgment result image P11 is displayed on the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20. This judgment result image P11 is an image showing the development stage judged in step S30. If it is judged to be the "third stage" in step S30, the display unit 22 displays "third stage" (or "munching stage", which is a simpler expression of the development stage) as the judgment result image P11.

[0069] Furthermore, on display unit 22, operation images B11 to B14 may be displayed. Operation image B11 is an operation image for displaying a "dietary advice screen." When the operation image B11 is operated by a user of the terminal device 20, the terminal device 20 outputs operation information indicating that the operation image B11 has been operated to the development stage determination device 10. The operation receiving unit 150 receives the operation information output by the terminal device 20 and outputs it to the display control unit 140. When the display control unit 140 determines that the operation image B11 "dietary advice screen" has been operated, it outputs the dietary advice screen to the terminal device 20 as information corresponding to the development stage. As a result, the "dietary advice screen" is displayed on the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20. Here, the "dietary advice screen" is, for example, an image generated based on the information stored in the baby food feeding method information 123 described above.

[0070] Examples of information displayed on the dietary advice screen include: 1. How to feed (how to bring the spoon to the mouth, the infant's posture, the timing of each bite, etc.) 2. Food type and nutrition (the type of weaning food appropriate for that stage, and the amount of nutrition needed) 3. Advice on weaning food steps (if the weaning food you are giving does not match the developmental stage, we will advise you on the correct step. For example, "Let's go back one step," "Let's advance one step," "Let's wait a while before resuming weaning food.") etc.

[0071] In addition, if the subject 40's infant has not made any progress even after reaching a certain age, the display control unit 140 may cause the terminal device 20 to display information on advice to promote oral function development (e.g., advice on the type of baby food, how to feed it, training, etc.).

[0072] The operation image B12 is an operation image for displaying a "baby food recipe screen." When the operation image B12 is operated by the user of the terminal device 20, the display control unit 140 outputs the baby food recipe screen to the terminal device 20 as information corresponding to the developmental stage, in the same manner as described above. As a result, the "baby food recipe screen" is displayed on the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20. Here, the "baby food recipe screen" is, for example, an image generated based on the information stored in the above-mentioned baby food information 122. Note that the "baby food recipe screen" may include, for example, videos showing each stage of cooking and still images of the completed baby food.

[0073] The operation image B13 is an operation image for displaying a "childcare diary (step-up calendar) screen." When the operation image B13 is operated by the user of the terminal device 20, the display control unit 140 outputs the step-up calendar screen to the terminal device 20 as information corresponding to the developmental stage, in the same manner as described above. As a result, the "step-up calendar screen" is displayed on the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20. Here, the "step-up calendar screen" is a screen that displays the change in developmental stage over time, for example, by date, week, month, etc., and is a screen that allows you to easily keep a record of growth, such as displaying step-up anniversaries. Also, "step-up" refers to an increase in the developmental stage (for example, changing from stage 1 to stage 2).

[0074] An example of the information displayed on the Step Up Calendar screen is: Check the history of baby food step-up: -Meal videos for each date Actual baby food menu ·Whether or not there is an allergic reaction to each ingredient etc.

[0075] Furthermore, if a developmental stage is judged to have stepped up and then there is a step-down (for example, a change from stage 3 to stage 2), the user may feel uneasy. When the developmental stage is judged multiple times, the developmental stage judgment unit 130 may be configured not to cause a step-down even if the developmental stage is judged to be low after a step-up. In addition, the developmental stage determination unit 130 may determine the developmental stage by dividing the developmental stage into smaller sections. For example, when the developmental stage determination unit 130 determines the detailed stages by dividing the developmental stage into 100 sections, the developmental stage determination unit 130 may determine the developmental stage as "60% of the third stage."

[0076] In addition, if the development stage stagnates (for example, there is no change from the first stage even after repeated determinations), the user may feel bored. The development stage determination unit 130 may divide the development stage into smaller sections and determine the development stage by numerically dividing it.

[0077] The operation image B14 is an operation image for displaying detailed information on the developmental stage. When the operation image B12 is operated by the user of the terminal device 20, the display control unit 140 outputs a detailed information screen on the developmental stage to the terminal device 20 as information corresponding to the developmental stage, in the same manner as described above. As a result, a "detailed information screen on the developmental stage" is displayed on the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20. An example of the "detailed information screen on the developmental stage" is shown in FIG. 11.

[0078] 11 shows another example of information displayed on the terminal device 20 of this embodiment. On the display unit 22 of the terminal device 20, determination result images P21 to P25 are displayed, respectively. The determination result image P21 is an image showing the development stage determined in step S30, and is the same as the determination result image P11 described with reference to Fig. 10. If it is determined to be the "third stage" in step S30, the display unit 22 displays the "third stage" (or the "munching stage", which is a simpler expression of the development stage) as the determination result image P21. The judgment result image P22 is a photographic image showing an example of a typical baby at the developmental stage judged in step S30. Determination result image P23 is an illustrated image that emphasizes the movement of the baby's mouth at the developmental stage determined in step S30. Determination result image P24 is an illustrated image that emphasizes the movement in the oral cavity of an infant at the developmental stage determined in step S30. The judgment result image P25 may be a numerical value (eg, 1 to 100) representing the development stage, along with past judgment results (numerical values), which may be graphed as a progression of numerical values ​​and displayed on the display unit 22. The display control unit 140 causes the display unit 22 to display the above-mentioned various types of image information and text information as information corresponding to the development stage.

[0079] As described above, the display control unit 140 causes the display unit 22 to display information indicating the developmental stage (e.g., "Stage 3", "Chewing stage"), as well as information corresponding to the developmental stage (e.g., weaning food recipes and how to feed weaning food, training to promote good dentition, and oral care methods such as brushing the teeth). That is, the display control unit 140 further causes the terminal device 20 (display device) to display information corresponding to the development stage determined by the development stage determination unit .

[0080] [Summary of the embodiment] As described above, in the developmental stage determination system 1, the developmental stage determination unit 130 determines the developmental stage based on the movement of the baby's mouth while eating captured by the imaging unit 21 and on predetermined determination criteria. Therefore, the developmental stage determination system 1 can objectively determine the degree of development of oral function during infancy.

[0081] Furthermore, according to the developmental stage determination system 1, the developmental stage of oral function is displayed as a history along with the growth of the infant, so that the user can be provided with an objective indicator regarding the type of baby food and the method of feeding. This allows the user (e.g., the guardian of an infant) to select the appropriate type and feeding method according to the developmental stage of the oral function. Therefore, the developmental stage determination system 1 can reduce the anxiety of guardians raising children.

[0082] [Variations] Next, a modified example of the embodiment will be described. Note that the same functions and operations as those in the above-described embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0083] [Update display information when developmental stage does not change (1)] As described above, the developmental stage determination unit 130 determines the developmental stage each time it obtains motion information from the terminal device 20. It takes a certain amount of time for the developmental stage of an infant to be updated (for example, for the developmental stage to increase by one step). For this reason, even if the motion information of an infant is output from the terminal device 20 to the developmental stage determination device 10, there may be a situation in which the developmental stage is not updated. In such a case, if the information displayed on the terminal device 20 is not updated, the motivation to continue using the developmental stage determination system 1 may be weakened.

[0084] In this modified example, when the developmental stage has not changed despite having acquired operation information from the terminal device 20, the display control unit 140 outputs to the terminal device 20 information corresponding to the developmental stage that is different from the information previously transmitted. That is, until the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit 130 is updated, the display control unit 140 causes the terminal device 20 (display device) to display information selected from among multiple pieces of information corresponding to the developmental stage as updated information corresponding to the developmental stage. According to the developmental stage determination system 1 configured in this manner, even if the developmental stage of an infant has not changed, it is possible to change the information displayed on the terminal device 20. Therefore, according to the developmental stage determination system 1, even if the developmental stage of an infant has not changed, it is possible to motivate the user of the developmental stage determination system 1 to continue using it.

[0085] [Update display information when developmental stage does not change (2)] The operation receiving unit 150 may be configured to receive an update operation for updating the information to be displayed by the user of the terminal device 20. In this case, the display control unit 140 updates the information corresponding to the development stage in response to the operation receiving unit 150 receiving the update operation, and displays the updated information on the terminal device 20 (display device). According to the developmental stage determination system 1 configured in this manner, even if the developmental stage of an infant has not changed, it is possible to change the information displayed on the terminal device 20. Therefore, according to the developmental stage determination system 1, even if the developmental stage of an infant has not changed, it is possible to motivate the user to continue using the system.

[0086] [Use reminders based on operation frequency] When the developmental stage determination system 1 determines that the user has not used the developmental stage determination system 1 for a while, the developmental stage determination system 1 may display a message encouraging the user to use the system (a usage reminder). That is, the display control unit 140 causes the terminal device 20 (display device) to display information prompting the provision of operation information based on the frequency of providing operation information to the operation information acquisition unit 110 and the frequency of receiving update operations by the operation receiving unit 150.

[0087] For example, when both the frequency of receiving update operations and the frequency of providing operation information are low, the display control unit 140 displays information prompting the provision of operation information on the terminal device 20 (display device). In this case, a usage reminder can be sent to a user who does not use the development stage determination system 1 often. Furthermore, when the frequency of receiving update operations is high but the frequency of providing operation information is low, the display control unit 140 displays information prompting the user to provide operation information on the terminal device 20 (display device). In this case, a usage reminder can be sent to a user who frequently uses the information providing function of the development stage determination system 1 but does not often use the development stage determination function.

[0088] [Determining whether the content of baby food is appropriate for the developmental stage] The developmental stage determination system 1 may have a function of determining whether the baby food given to an infant is suitable for the developmental stage of the infant. In this case, the developmental stage determination device 10 includes a food information acquisition unit 160 and a type determination unit 170. The food information acquiring section 160 acquires food information indicating the types of food given to the baby. Specifically, a user uses the imaging unit 21 of the terminal device 20 to capture an image of the baby food being given to an infant. The terminal device 20 outputs the image of the baby food captured by the imaging unit 21 to the developmental stage determination device 10. The food information acquisition unit 160 of the developmental stage determination device 10 acquires the image of the baby food from the terminal device 20. The food information acquisition unit 160 applies a known image matching method to determine the type of baby food captured in the image of the baby food. The food information acquiring unit 160 may acquire, as food information, information obtained as a result of a character input operation or a menu selection operation performed by the user on the terminal device 20 to input the type of baby food. Furthermore, the type of food indicated by the above-mentioned food information broadly includes food attributes such as ingredients, cooking method, softness, size, etc.

[0089] The type determining section 170 determines whether the type of food indicated by the food information acquired by the food information acquiring section 160 is suitable as food to be ingested at the development stage determined by the development stage determining section 130. Specifically, the type determination unit 170 determines the type of food to be given to an infant (the type of food appropriate for the infant's developmental stage) based on the type of food predetermined according to the infant's developmental stage and the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit 130. The type determination unit 170 compares the determined type of food (i.e., the ideal type of food appropriate for the developmental stage) with the type of food indicated by the food information acquired by the food information acquisition unit 160 (i.e., the type of food actually given to the infant) to determine whether the food is appropriate for the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit 130. In this case, the display control unit 140 further causes the terminal device 20 (display device) to display the determination result by the type determination unit 170.

[0090] In addition, if an infant has likes and dislikes depending on the type of food given to the infant, the facial expression of the infant may differ when given a type of food that the infant likes and when given a type of food that the infant dislikes. If a difference occurs in the facial expression of the infant, the developmental stage determination unit 130 may erroneously determine the developmental stage, and the accuracy of the determination of the developmental stage may decrease. The development stage determination unit 130 may be configured to improve the accuracy of determining the development stage by performing statistical calculations on multiple pieces of motion information based on the type of food determined by the type determination unit 170 (i.e., by determining whether the animal is given a favorite type of food or a disliked type of food).

[0091] In addition, there may be cases where the type of food given to an infant is suitable for judging the developmental stage. In this case, the developmental stage judging unit 130 may be configured to improve the accuracy of judging the developmental stage by using the motion information obtained when the infant is given the type of food suitable for judging the developmental stage based on the type of food judged by the type judging unit 170.

[0092] [Determining the amount of baby food] The developmental stage determination system 1 may have a function of determining the portion of baby food given to an infant. In this case, the developmental stage determination device 10 includes a portion determination unit 180. The portion determination unit 180 determines the portion of food given to the baby based on the motion information acquired by the motion information acquisition unit 110. In this case, the display control unit 140 further causes the terminal device 20 (display device) to display information based on the determination result of the portion determination unit 180. According to the developmental stage determination system 1 configured in this manner, it is possible to provide the user with information when the amount of baby food is too much or too little.

[0093] The portion determining unit 180 may determine the portion of baby food based on the type of food given to the baby or the history of foods given to the baby in the past. For example, the portion determining section 180 determines the portion of food given to the infant based further on the type of food determined by the type determining section 170 . For example, in the case where the memory unit 120 stores a history of foods that have been fed to an infant in the past, the portion determination unit 180 may determine the portion of baby food based further on the food history stored in the memory unit 120. According to the developmental stage determination system 1 configured in this manner, it is possible to inform the user whether the amount of baby food is appropriate depending on the situation, such as whether the food given to an infant is a type of food given to the infant for the first time, a type of food that the infant has been given multiple times and to which the infant is accustomed, or whether the infant has just progressed through a developmental stage.

[0094] In each of the above-described embodiments, an example of the division of functions between the development stage determination device 10 and the terminal device 20 has been described, but each device may be configured to divide functions differently from the above. For example, the development stage assessment system 1 may be realized in such a manner that all or part of the functions of the development stage assessment device 10 are realized as software that runs on the terminal device 20.

[0095] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and appropriate modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0096] Each of the above-mentioned devices has a computer inside. The process steps of each of the above-mentioned devices are stored in a computer-readable recording medium in the form of a program, and the computer reads and executes this program to perform the above-mentioned processes. Here, the computer-readable recording medium refers to a magnetic disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a semiconductor memory, etc. Also, the computer program may be distributed to a computer via a communication line, and the computer that receives the program may execute the program.

[0097] The program may be for realizing part of the functions described above. Furthermore, the above-mentioned functions may be realized in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system, that is, a so-called differential file (differential program). [Explanation of symbols]

[0098] 1 ... developmental stage determination system, 10 ... developmental stage determination device, 110 ... operation information acquisition unit, 120 ... storage unit, 130 ... developmental stage determination unit, 140 ... display control unit, 150 ... operation reception unit, 160 ... food information acquisition unit, 170 ... type determination unit, 20 ... terminal device

Claims

1. a motion information acquisition unit that acquires motion information indicating an infant's oral intake of food; A developmental stage determination unit that determines which of a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infants and young children the movement indicated by the movement information is in accordance with the movement information acquired by the movement information acquisition unit and a predetermined determination criterion; a display control unit that displays information indicating the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit on a display device, graphs information corresponding to the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit together with a history of past determination results, and displays information selected from a plurality of pieces of information corresponding to the developmental stage on a display device as updated information corresponding to the developmental stage until the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination unit is updated; A developmental stage determination device comprising:

2. An operation reception unit that receives an update operation to update the information to be displayed Further equipped with The display control unit is In response to the operation reception unit receiving the update operation, the information corresponding to the development stage is updated, and the updated information is displayed on a display device. The developmental stage determination device according to claim 1 .

3. The display control unit is displaying information prompting the user to provide the motion information on a display device based on a frequency of providing the motion information to the motion information acquisition unit and a frequency of receiving the update operation by the operation receiving unit; The developmental stage determination device according to claim 2.

4. On the computer, a motion information acquisition step of acquiring motion information indicating an infant's oral intake of food; a developmental stage determination step of determining which of a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infants corresponds to the movement indicated by the movement information based on the movement information acquired in the movement information acquisition step and a predetermined determination criterion; a display control procedure for displaying information indicating the developmental stage determined in the developmental stage determination procedure on a display device, graphing information corresponding to the developmental stage determined in the developmental stage determination procedure together with a history of past determination results, and displaying information selected from a plurality of pieces of information corresponding to the developmental stage on a display device as updated information corresponding to the developmental stage until the developmental stage determined in the developmental stage determination procedure is updated; A program for executing the above.

5. an imaging unit that images an infant's oral intake of food; An output unit that outputs the motion information to a development stage determination device that determines which of a plurality of development stages of oral function in infants the motion indicated by the motion information corresponds to based on the motion information based on the image captured by the imaging unit and a predetermined determination criterion; an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination device based on the motion information output by the output unit; a display control unit that displays, on a display device, information indicating the developmental stage acquired by the acquisition unit; A terminal device comprising:

6. The developmental stage determination device determines which of the developmental stages the infant is in based on the movement information based on the image captured by the imaging unit and on predetermined determination criteria including reference movements of at least one part of the infant's lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw corresponding to a plurality of developmental stages of oral function in infancy. The terminal device according to claim 5.

7. The motion information is information showing the motion of an infant's oral intake of food, and includes information on the movement of at least one part of the lips, corners of the mouth, tongue, and jaw during at least a portion of the period from when the food is ingested to when it is swallowed. The terminal device according to claim 5.

8. The developmental stage determination device is realized as software that runs on the terminal device. The terminal device according to claim 5.

9. A computer equipped with a terminal device, capturing an image of an infant's oral intake of food by an imaging unit; Outputting the motion information to a development stage determination device that determines which of a plurality of development stages of oral function in infants the motion indicated by the motion information corresponds to based on the motion information based on the image captured by the imaging unit and a predetermined determination criterion; acquiring information indicating the developmental stage determined by the developmental stage determination device based on the outputted motion information; displaying the acquired information indicating the developmental stage on a display device; A program for executing the above.

Images