SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION DEVICE, PROGRAM, AND INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD

Abstract

To provide a system that enables efficient tracking of individuals within a scope that does not violate the Personal Information Protection Law. [Solution] A system 40 comprising a plurality of communication devices and a server that communicate via a communication network, each of the plurality of communication devices having a personal information acquisition unit that acquires personal information of a user, a conversion unit that generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a conversion method that can generate the same conversion information from different personal information, and a conversion information transmission unit that transmits the conversion information to the server via the communication network, and the server has a conversion information receiving unit that receives the conversion information from the plurality of communication devices, and a conversion information storage unit that stores the conversion information received by the conversion information receiving unit.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a system, a communication device, a program, and an information processing method. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a security system that uses an imaging device such as a surveillance camera. [Prior art document] [Patent documents] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-154997 A Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0003] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a system is provided. The system may include a plurality of communication devices and a server. Each of the plurality of communication devices may include a personal information acquisition unit that acquires personal information of a user. Each of the plurality of communication devices may include a conversion unit that generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a conversion method that can generate identical conversion information from different personal information. Each of the plurality of communication devices may include a conversion information transmission unit that transmits the conversion information to the server via a communication network. The server may include a conversion information receiving unit that receives the conversion information from the plurality of communication devices. The server may include a conversion information storage unit that stores the conversion information received by the conversion information receiving unit.

[0004] In the system, the conversion unit may generate, as the conversion information, compressed information by lossy compressing the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a compression method that can generate the same compressed information from different personal information.

[0005] In any of the above systems, the personal information acquisition unit may acquire vector information including biometric information of the user as the personal information of the user, and the conversion unit may generate, as the conversion information, bit string information obtained by irreversibly converting the vector information. The conversion unit may generate the bit string information obtained by irreversibly converting the vector information using the conversion method in which similar bit string information is generated from similar vector information.

[0006] In any of the systems described above, the conversion section may irreversibly convert the vector information to generate the bit string information, the number of all possible bit strings being less than the number of target users.

[0007] In any of the above systems, the conversion unit may generate the bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using LSH (Locality Sensitive Hashing). The conversion unit may generate first bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using a first method of LSH and generate second bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using a second method of LSH different from the first method of LSH, the conversion information transmission unit may transmit the first bit string information and the second bit string information to the server via the communication network, the conversion information reception unit may receive the first bit string information and the second bit string information, and the conversion information storage unit may store the first bit string information and the second bit string information in different storage areas.

[0008] In any of the above systems, the personal information acquisition unit may acquire vector information of the user generated from an image of the user captured by a camera and user position information indicating the position of the user within the camera's imaging range, the conversion information transmission unit may transmit the conversion information and the user position information to the server, the conversion information receiving unit may receive the conversion information and the user position information from the multiple communication devices, the conversion information storage unit may store the conversion information and the user position information, and the server may further have a tracking process execution unit that executes a tracking process to track the user using the conversion information and the user position information received from the multiple communication devices.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a communication device. The communication device may include a personal information acquisition unit that acquires personal information of a user. The communication device may include a conversion unit that generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a conversion method that can generate identical conversion information from different personal information. The communication device may include a conversion information transmission unit that transmits the conversion information to a server via a communication network.

[0010] In the communication device, the personal information acquisition unit may acquire vector information including biometric information of the user as the personal information of the user, and the conversion unit may generate, as the conversion information, bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using the conversion method in which similar bit string information is generated from similar vector information.

[0011] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a program for causing a computer to function as the communication device.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an information processing method executed by a computer. The information processing method may include a personal information acquisition step of acquiring personal information of a user. The information processing method may include a conversion step of generating converted information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired in the personal information acquisition step using a conversion method capable of generating the same converted information from different personal information. The information processing method may include a conversion information transmission step of transmitting the converted information to a server via a communication network.

[0013] The above summary of the invention does not list all of the necessary features of the present invention. Also, subcombinations of these features may also be inventions. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a conventional technique. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a conventional technique. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a conventional technique. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a conventional technique. [Diagram 5] An example of a system 40 is shown diagrammatically. [Figure 6] 1 shows a schematic diagram of one embodiment of the configuration of the system 40. [Figure 7] 5 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of a communication device 500. [Figure 8] An example of the functional configuration of the server 400 is shown in schematic form. [Figure 9] FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of generation of conversion information by the conversion unit 514. [Figure 10] An example of a hardware configuration of a computer 1200 functioning as the server 400 or the communication device 500 is illustrated in schematic form. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention according to the claims. Furthermore, not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0016] For example, in a conventional surveillance system, it is possible to identify a person using AI (artificial intelligence) or the like, but since feature information of a person at a level that allows personal identification corresponds to so-called personal information, it is difficult to send the information as it is over a communication network under the Personal Information Protection Act. Therefore, for example, when tracking a person using multiple cameras, the camera only detects the person and transmits coordinate information to a server on a communication network, and the server predicts the movement line of each person using the coordinate information received from the multiple cameras. In this case, since personal identification is not performed, it is difficult to track a person unless the viewpoints of the multiple cameras overlap. In the system 40 according to this embodiment, for example, a mechanism is adopted in which a person's personal information is converted into information that does not correspond to personal information but is able to identify the person to a certain extent, and then transmitted over a communication network.

[0017] 1 to 4 are explanatory diagrams for explaining the conventional technology. A monitoring system 10 shown in Fig. 1 includes a server 100, a communication device 200, and a communication device 210. The server 100, the communication device 200, and the communication device 210 communicate with each other via a communication network 20.

[0018] The communication network 20 may include the Internet. The communication network 20 may include a LAN (Local Area Network). The communication network 20 may include a mobile communication network. The mobile communication network may conform to any of the following communication methods: 5G (5th Generation) communication method, LTE (Long Term Evolution) communication method, 3G (3rd Generation) communication method, and 6G (6th Generation) communication method or later.

[0019] The communication device 200 includes an imaging unit 202. The communication device 200 has a function of analyzing an image captured by the imaging unit 202. The communication device 210 includes an imaging unit 212, and has a function of analyzing an image captured by the imaging unit 212. As shown in the figure, the imaging range of the imaging unit 202 and the imaging range of the imaging unit 212 overlap with each other.

[0020] Although communication device 200 and communication device 210 can identify individuals using AI or the like, because feature information of a person corresponds to personal information, it can be said that it is difficult under the Personal Information Protection Act to transmit the feature information via communication network 20. Therefore, for example, each of communication device 200 and communication device 210 only detects people in a captured image and transmits the detection result including the coordinate position of each person to server 100, and server 100 predicts the movement line of each person using the coordinate positions.

[0021] 1, the communication device 200 analyzes an image captured by the imaging unit 202, and transmits a detection result 300 including a position 302 of the person 52 and a position 304 of the person 54 to the server 100. In addition, the communication device 210 analyzes an image captured by the imaging unit 212, and transmits a detection result 310 including a position 314 of the person 54 and a position 316 of the person 56 to the server 100.

[0022] 2, the communication device 200 analyzes the image captured by the imaging unit 202, and transmits a detection result 320 including a position 322 of the person 52 and a position 326 of the person 56 to the server 100. In addition, the communication device 210 analyzes the image captured by the imaging unit 212, and transmits a detection result 330 including a position 332 of the person 52, a position 334 of the person 54, and a position 336 of the person 56 to the server 100.

[0023] 3, the server 100 predicts the movement lines of the persons 52, 54, and 56 based on the detection results 300, 310, 320, and 330, and generates a tracking result 340. In this way, if the imaging range of the imaging unit 202 and the imaging range of the imaging unit 212 overlap, it is possible to some extent to track the persons.

[0024] 4, if the imaging range of the imaging unit 202 and the imaging range of the imaging unit 212 do not overlap, it becomes difficult to track a person. In such a case, even if it is not possible to identify who each of the persons 52, 54, and 56 is, if it is possible to identify the three persons 52, 54, and 56, tracking becomes easier.

[0025] 5 is a schematic diagram of an example of a system 40 according to the present embodiment. The system 40 includes a server 400 and a plurality of communication devices 500.

[0026] The communication device 500 has a function of acquiring personal information of the user 50, converting the personal information into information that is not personal information but is capable of identifying the individual, and transmitting the information to the server 100 via the communication network 20. The user 50 may be a person related to processing by the system 40. For example, if the system 40 is a surveillance system, the user 50 may be a person to be monitored.

[0027] The communication device 500 generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information of the user 50 using, for example, a conversion method that can generate the same conversion information from different personal information, and transmits the conversion information to the server 400 via the communication network 20. The conversion information does not correspond to so-called personal information because it cannot identify an individual and cannot be restored to personal information. Note that the fact that the same conversion information can be generated from different personal information indicates, for example, that a person different from the user 50 may be treated as the user 50 in the system 40. In other words, the conversion information does not correspond to personal information and is not information that can identify an individual, but may be information that can identify the user 50 to the extent that a user who is not the user 50 may be identified as the user 50.

[0028] The server 400 stores the conversion information received from the multiple communication devices 500. The server 400 uses the conversion information received from the multiple communication devices 500 to execute various processes.

[0029] Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a specific example of the configuration of the system 40. In Fig. 6, a communication device 550 and a communication device 560 are shown as examples of the plurality of communication devices 500.

[0030] Communication device 550 includes an imaging unit 552. Communication device 550 has a function of analyzing an image captured by imaging unit 552. Communication device 560 includes an imaging unit 562, and communication device 560 has a function of analyzing an image captured by imaging unit 562. As shown in the figure, the imaging range of imaging unit 552 and the imaging range of imaging unit 562 do not overlap.

[0031] The communication device 550 generates vector information including biometric information of people within the imaging range by analyzing the captured image captured by the imaging unit 552. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the communication device 550 generates vector information of the person 52 and vector information of the person 54.

[0032] The communication device 550 generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the generated vector information using a conversion method that can generate the same conversion information from different personal information. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the communication device 550 generates conversion information for a person 52 and conversion information for a person 54.

[0033] Moreover, the communication device 550 generates position information indicating the position of the person in the imaging range of the imaging section 552 by analyzing the captured image. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the communication device 550 generates position information of the person 52 and position information of the person 54.

[0034] The communication device 550 transmits the generated modification information and location information to the server 400 via the communication network 20. In the example shown in Fig. 6, the communication device 550 transmits the conversion information and location information of the person 52 and the conversion information and location information of the person 54 to the server 400 via the communication network 20.

[0035] The communication device 550 performs such processing continuously.

[0036] The communication device 560 generates vector information including biometric information of a person within the imaging range by analyzing the captured image captured by the imaging section 562. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the communication device 560 generates vector information of the person 56.

[0037] The communication device 560 generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the generated vector information using a conversion method that can generate the same conversion information from different personal information. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the communication device 560 generates conversion information of a person 56.

[0038] Moreover, the communication device 560 generates position information indicating the position of the person in the imaging range of the imaging section 562 by analyzing the captured image. In the example shown in FIG.

[0039] The communication device 560 transmits the generated modification information and location information to the server 400 via the communication network 20. In the example shown in FIG. 6 , the communication device 560 transmits the conversion information and location information of the person 56 to the server 400 via the communication network 20.

[0040] The communication device 560 performs such processing continuously.

[0041] The server 400 performs tracking of each of the multiple persons using the conversion information and the location information of each of the multiple persons received from the communication device 550 and the communication device 560.

[0042] As described above, the conversion information is not information that can identify an individual, but is information that can identify an individual to some extent. In the example shown in Fig. 6, even if it is not known who the person 52, the person 54, and the person 56 are, if the person 52, the person 54, and the person 56 can be identified, it is possible to track the person 52, the person 54, and the person 56 even if the imaging range of the imaging unit 552 and the imaging range of the imaging unit 562 do not overlap. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently track individuals within a range that does not violate the Personal Information Protection Act.

[0043] 7 illustrates an example of a functional configuration of the communication device 500. The communication device 500 includes a personal information acquisition unit 512, a conversion unit 514, and a conversion information transmission unit 516.

[0044] The personal information acquisition unit 512 acquires personal information of the user 50. The personal information of the user 50 may include attribute information of the user 50. The personal information of the user 50 may include a captured image of the user 50. The personal information of the user 50 may include biometric information of the user 50. The personal information of the user 50 may include vector information indicating characteristics of the biometric information of the user 50. For example, the personal information of the user 50 may include vector information generated by analyzing a facial image of the user 50 or a full-body image of the user 50. For example, the personal information of the user 50 may include vector information generated by performing measurements on the user 50 by any sensor.

[0045] The personal information acquiring unit 512 may acquire personal information of the user 50 from an external source. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires a captured image of the user 50 from an imaging unit that has captured an image of the user 50. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires biometric information of the user 50 generated by the imaging unit that has captured an image of the user 50 analyzing the captured image from the imaging unit. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires vector information indicating features of the biometric information of the user 50 generated by the imaging unit that has captured an image of the user 50 analyzing the captured image from the imaging unit. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires vector information generated by a sensor that has performed a measurement on the user 50 from the sensor.

[0046] The personal information acquiring unit 512 may generate personal information of the user 50 using information acquired from outside. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires a captured image of the user 50 from an imaging unit that captures an image of the user 50, and generates biometric information of the user 50 by analyzing the captured image, or generates vector information indicating features of the biometric information of the user 50. For example, the personal information acquiring unit 512 acquires a measurement result from a sensor that has performed a measurement on the user 50, and analyzes the measurement result, thereby generating biometric information of the user 50 or generating vector information including the biometric information of the user 50.

[0047] The conversion unit 514 generates conversion information by converting the personal information of the user 50 acquired by the personal information acquisition unit 512. The conversion unit 514 may convert the personal information of the user 50 into conversion information that is not equivalent to personal information but is capable of identifying the individual to some extent. For example, the conversion unit 514 generates the conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information of the user 50 using a conversion method that can generate the same conversion information from different personal information.

[0048] The conversion information transmitting unit 516 transmits the conversion information generated by the conversion unit 514 to the server 400 via the communication network 20. If the personal information acquired by the personal information acquiring unit 512 is transmitted to the server 400 via the communication network 20, it would violate the Personal Information Protection Act. However, since the conversion information does not correspond to personal information, transmitting the conversion information to the server 400 via the communication network 20 does not violate the Personal Information Protection Act. Since the conversion information is information that can identify an individual to some extent, it can be effectively used in the server 400.

[0049] The conversion unit 514 generates, as the conversion information, compressed information by lossy compressing the personal information of the user 50, for example, using a compression method that can generate the same compressed information from different personal information.

[0050] The personal information acquisition unit 512 may acquire vector information including biometric information of the user 50 as the personal information of the user 50. The conversion unit 514 may generate a bit string obtained by irreversibly converting the vector information as the conversion information. The conversion unit 514 may convert multiple pieces of vector information into bit strings of the same size. According to such a conversion, the same bit string can be generated from different pieces of vector information.

[0051] The conversion unit 514 may generate bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using a conversion method in which similar bit string information is generated from similar vector information. The conversion unit 514 may generate bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information, in which the number of all possible bit strings is less than the number of target users.

[0052] For example, when the conversion unit 514 converts the vector information into a 16-bit bit string, there are 65536 different types of bit strings. If the number of target users 50 is assumed to be 1 million, then about 15 people may have the same bit string. In this case, one bit string indicates one of the 15 people, but since it is not possible to identify an individual, it does not correspond to personal information. Nevertheless, since it indicates that the person is different from the other 15 people out of the 1 million people, the bit string can be effectively used in various processes in the server 400.

[0053] As a specific example, the conversion unit 514 may use LSH to generate bit string information by irreversibly converting vector information. LSH is a technique for compressing the dimensions of high-dimensional data by probabilistic processing. LSH can express a multidimensional vector as a bit string (for the sake of explanation, the bit string is referred to as an LSH code). Since LSH compresses the dimensions of data, vector information and LSH codes do not correspond one-to-one, and there will be multiple pieces of vector information that have the same LSH code. In addition, the original vector information cannot be restored from the LSH code. In addition, similar vector information will have similar LSH codes (codes with a short Hamming distance).

[0054] When the system 40 is used to monitor multiple users 50, the personal information acquisition unit 512 may acquire vector information of the user 50 generated from an image of the user 50 captured by an imaging unit included in the communication device 500, and user position information indicating the position of the user 50 within the imaging range of the imaging unit. The conversion information transmission unit 516 may transmit the conversion information generated from the vector information by the conversion unit 514 and the user position information to the server 400.

[0055] 8 illustrates an example of the functional configuration of the server 400. The server 400 includes a conversion information receiving unit 412, a conversion information storage unit 414, and a process execution unit 416.

[0056] The conversion information receiving unit 412 receives the conversion information transmitted by the conversion information transmitting unit 516. The conversion information receiving unit 412 receives the conversion information transmitted by the conversion information transmitting unit 516 and the user position information.

[0057] The conversion information storage unit 414 stores the conversion information when the conversion information receiving unit 412 receives the conversion information. When the conversion information receiving unit 412 receives the conversion information and the user position information, the conversion information storage unit 414 may store the conversion information and the user position information.

[0058] The process execution unit 416 executes a process using the conversion information stored in the conversion information storage unit 414. The process execution unit 416 executes, for example, a tracking process for tracking the user 50. For example, the process execution unit 416 executes a tracking process for tracking the user 50 using a plurality of pieces of conversion information and a plurality of pieces of user position information received from a plurality of communication devices and stored in the conversion information storage unit 414. As a specific example, the process execution unit 416 tracks the user 50 using continuously generated user position information while the user 50 is located within the imaging range of the imaging unit of the communication device 500. When the user 50 moves outside the imaging range of the imaging unit of one communication device 500, the process execution unit 416 tracks the user 50 using the conversion information and user position information generated by another communication device 500 having an imaging unit that captures an image of a range adjacent to the imaging range of the imaging unit of the one communication device 500. The processing execution unit 416 may identify the user 50 based on the conversion information generated by one communication device 500 and the conversion information generated by the other communication device 500, and may identify the movement line of the user 50 based on the user position information generated by the one communication device 500 and the user position information generated by the other communication device 500.

[0059] 9 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another example of generation of conversion information by the conversion unit 514. The conversion unit 514 may generate a plurality of pieces of conversion information for each of a plurality of users 50 using different methods of LSH. Examples of different methods of LSH include a method using random bit sampling, a method using random projection, and Nilsimsa Hash. In addition, in a method using random numbers, a plurality of pieces of conversion information may be generated by changing the value of the random numbers.

[0060] For example, the conversion unit 514 generates first bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit 512 using a first type of LSH, and generates second bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using a second type of LSH different from the first type of LSH. The conversion information transmission unit 516 transmits the first bit string information and the second bit string information generated by the conversion unit 514 to the server 400 via the communication network 20.

[0061] The conversion information receiving unit 412 of the server 400 receives the first bit string information and the second bit string information. The conversion information storage unit 414 stores the first bit string information and the second bit string information in different storage areas. In the example shown in Fig. 9, the conversion information storage unit 414 stores the first bit string information in a storage area 422 and stores the second bit string information in a storage area 424.

[0062] The first bit string information generated from the vector information of one user 50 using the LSH of the first method is different from the first bit string information generated from the vector information of most other users 50 using the LSH of the first method, but it matches the first bit string information generated from the vector information of some users 50 using the LSH of the first method. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 6, if the first bit string information of person 52 and the first bit string information of person 54 match, it may be difficult to distinguish between person 52 and person 54, and it may be difficult to track person 52 and person 54. On the other hand, by generating and managing second bit string information from the vector information of one user 50 using the LSH of the second method, the possibility of making one user 50 identifiable can be significantly increased.

[0063] 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a computer 1200 functioning as the server 400 or the communication device 500. A program installed on the computer 1200 can cause the computer 1200 to function as one or more "parts" of the device according to the present embodiment, or cause the computer 1200 to execute operations or one or more "parts" associated with the device according to the present embodiment, and / or cause the computer 1200 to execute a process or steps of the process according to the present embodiment. Such a program can be executed by the CPU 1212 to cause the computer 1200 to execute specific operations associated with some or all of the blocks of the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

[0064] The computer 1200 according to this embodiment includes a CPU 1212, a RAM 1214, and a graphics controller 1216, which are connected to each other by a host controller 1210. The computer 1200 also includes input / output units such as a communication interface 1222, a storage device 1224, a DVD drive, and an IC card drive, which are connected to the host controller 1210 via an input / output controller 1220. The DVD drive may be a DVD-ROM drive, a DVD-RAM drive, etc. The storage device 1224 may be a hard disk drive, a solid state drive, etc. The computer 1200 also includes a legacy input / output unit such as a ROM 1230 and a keyboard, which are connected to the input / output controller 1220 via an input / output chip 1240.

[0065] The CPU 1212 operates according to a program stored in the ROM 1230 and the RAM 1214, thereby controlling each unit. The graphic controller 1216 retrieves image information generated by the CPU 1212 into a frame buffer or the like provided in the RAM 1214 or into itself, and causes the image information to be displayed on the display device 1218.

[0066] The communication interface 1222 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The storage device 1224 stores programs and information used by the CPU 1212 in the computer 1200. The DVD drive reads programs or information from a DVD-ROM or the like and provides them to the storage device 1224. The IC card drive reads programs and information from an IC card and / or writes programs and information to an IC card.

[0067] The ROM 1230 stores therein a boot program or the like that is executed by the computer 1200 upon activation, and / or a program that depends on the hardware of the computer 1200. The input / output chip 1240 may also connect various input / output units to the input / output controller 1220 via a USB port, a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, and the like.

[0068] The programs are provided by a computer-readable storage medium such as a DVD-ROM or an IC card. The programs are read from the computer-readable storage medium, installed in the storage device 1224, the RAM 1214, or the ROM 1230, which are also examples of computer-readable storage media, and executed by the CPU 1212. Information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 1200, and brings about cooperation between the programs and the various types of hardware resources described above. An apparatus or method may be constructed by implementing operations or processing of information according to the use of the computer 1200.

[0069] For example, when communication is performed between the computer 1200 and an external device, the CPU 1212 may execute a communication program loaded in the RAM 1214 and instruct the communication interface 1222 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. Under the control of the CPU 1212, the communication interface 1222 reads transmission information stored in a transmission buffer area provided in the RAM 1214, the storage device 1224, a DVD-ROM, or a recording medium such as an IC card, and transmits the read transmission information to a network, or writes reception information received from the network to a reception buffer area or the like provided on the recording medium.

[0070] Furthermore, the CPU 1212 may cause all or a necessary portion of a file or information base stored in an external recording medium such as the storage device 1224, a DVD drive (DVD-ROM), an IC card, etc. to be read into the RAM 1214, and perform various types of processing on the information on the RAM 1214. The CPU 1212 may then write back the processed information to the external recording medium.

[0071] Various types of information, such as various types of programs, information, tables, and information bases, may be stored in the recording medium and undergo information processing. The CPU 1212 may perform various types of processing on the information read from the RAM 1214, including various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information search / replacement, etc., as described throughout this disclosure and specified by the instruction sequence of the program, and write back the results to the RAM 1214. The CPU 1212 may also search for information in a file, information base, etc. in the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 1212 may search for an entry whose attribute value of the first attribute matches a specified condition from among the plurality of entries, read the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and thereby obtain the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute that satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0072] The above-described programs or software modules may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium on the computer 1200 or in the vicinity of the computer 1200. In addition, a recording medium such as a hard disk or a RAM provided in a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as a computer-readable storage medium, thereby providing the programs to the computer 1200 via the network.

[0073] The blocks in the flowcharts and block diagrams in the present embodiment may represent stages of a process in which an operation is performed or "parts" of an apparatus responsible for performing the operation. Particular stages and "parts" may be implemented by dedicated circuitry, programmable circuitry provided with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium, and / or a processor provided with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium. The dedicated circuitry may include digital and / or analog hardware circuits, and may include integrated circuits (ICs) and / or discrete circuits. The programmable circuitry may include reconfigurable hardware circuits, such as, for example, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic arrays (PLAs), and the like, including AND, OR, XOR, NAND, NOR, and other logical operations, flip-flops, registers, and memory elements.

[0074] A computer-readable storage medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions that are executed by a suitable device, such that a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon comprises an article of manufacture that includes instructions that can be executed to create means for performing the operations specified in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of computer-readable storage media may include electronic storage media, magnetic storage media, optical storage media, electromagnetic storage media, semiconductor storage media, and the like. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media may include floppy disks, diskettes, hard disks, random access memories (RAMs), read-only memories (ROMs), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROMs or flash memories), electrically erasable programmable read-only memories (EEPROMs), static random access memories (SRAMs), compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROMs), digital versatile disks (DVDs), Blu-ray disks, memory sticks, integrated circuit cards, and the like.

[0075] The computer readable instructions may include either assembler instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting information, or source or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk®, JAVA®, C++, etc., and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages.

[0076] Computer-readable instructions may be provided to a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable information processing device processor, or programmable circuitry, either locally or over a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, etc., to a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable information processing device processor, or programmable circuitry, such that the processor or programmable circuitry executes the computer-readable instructions to generate means for performing the operations specified in the flowcharts or block diagrams. Examples of processors include computer processors, processing units, microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, microcontrollers, etc.

[0077] Although the present invention has been described above using the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0078] It should be noted that the order of execution of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before" or "prior to," and that the process may be performed in any order unless the output of a previous process is used in a later process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is described using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, it does not mean that the process must be performed in this order.

[0079] Although the present invention has been described above using the embodiments, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that such modifications and improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0080] It should be noted that the order of execution of each process, such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages, in the devices, systems, programs, and methods shown in the claims, specifications, and drawings is not specifically stated as "before" or "prior to," and that the process may be performed in any order unless the output of a previous process is used in a later process. Even if the operational flow in the claims, specifications, and drawings is described using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, it does not mean that the process must be performed in this order. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 10 surveillance system, 20 network, 40 system, 50 user, 52, 54, 56 person, 100 server, 200 communication device, 202 imaging unit, 210 communication device, 212 imaging unit, 300 detection result, 302 position, 304 position, 310 detection result, 314 position, 316 position, 320 detection result, 322 position, 326 position, 330 detection result, 332 position, 334 position, 336 position, 340 tracking result, 400 server, 412 conversion information receiving unit, 414 conversion information storage unit, 416 processing execution unit, 422 storage area, 424 storage area, 500 communication device, 512 personal information acquisition unit, 514 conversion unit, 516 conversion information transmission unit, 550 communication device, 552 imaging unit, 560 Communication device, 562 imaging unit, 1200 computer, 1210 host controller, 1212 CPU, 1214 RAM, 1216 graphic controller, 1218 display device, 1220 input / output controller, 1222 communication interface, 1224 storage device, 1230 ROM, 1240 input / output chip

Claims

1. A plurality of communication devices; Server and A system comprising: Each of the plurality of communication devices A personal information acquisition unit that acquires personal information of a user; a conversion unit that generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a conversion method that can generate identical conversion information from different personal information; a conversion information transmission unit that transmits the conversion information to the server via a communication network; having The server, a conversion information receiving unit for receiving the conversion information from the plurality of communication devices; a conversion information storage unit that stores the conversion information received by the conversion information receiving unit; having the personal information acquisition unit acquires, as the personal information of the user, vector information of the user generated from an image of the user captured by an imaging unit, and acquires user position information indicating a position of the user within an imaging range of the imaging unit; The conversion information transmission unit transmits the conversion information and the user position information to the server, the conversion information receiving unit receives the conversion information and the user location information from the plurality of communication devices; the conversion information storage unit stores the conversion information and the user position information; The server, a process execution unit that executes a tracking process for tracking the user by using the conversion information and the user position information received from the plurality of communication devices; Further comprising: the processing execution unit tracks the user using the user position information that is continuously generated while the user is located within an imaging range of an imaging unit of one of the plurality of communication devices, and when the user moves outside the imaging range of the imaging unit of the one communication device, tracks the user using the conversion information and the user position information generated by another communication device having an imaging unit that captures an image of a range adjacent to the imaging range of the imaging unit of the one communication device; The processing execution unit identifies the user based on the conversion information generated by the one communication device and the conversion information generated by the other communication device, and identifies the user's movement line based on the user location information generated by the one communication device and the user location information generated by the other communication device.

2. The system according to claim 1 , wherein the conversion unit generates, as the conversion information, compressed information by lossy compressing the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a compression technique that can generate identical compressed information from different personal information.

3. the personal information acquisition unit acquires vector information including biometric information of the user as personal information of the user; The system according to claim 1 , wherein the conversion unit generates, as the conversion information, bit string information obtained by irreversibly converting the vector information.

4. The system according to claim 3 , wherein the conversion unit generates the bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using the conversion technique in which similar bit string information is generated from similar vector information.

5. The system according to claim 3 , wherein the conversion unit irreversibly converts the vector information to generate the bit string information, the number of all possible bit strings being less than the number of target users.

6. The system according to claim 3 , wherein the conversion unit generates the bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using Locality Sensitive Hashing (LSH).

7. A plurality of communication devices; Server and A system comprising: Each of the plurality of communication devices a personal information acquiring unit that acquires, as personal information of a user, vector information including biometric information of the user generated from an image of the user captured by an imaging unit, and acquires user position information indicating a position of the user within an imaging range of the imaging unit; a conversion unit that generates conversion information by irreversibly converting the personal information acquired by the personal information acquisition unit using a conversion method that can generate identical conversion information from different personal information, the conversion unit generating bit string information by irreversibly converting the vector information using LSH (Locality Sensitive Hashing) as the conversion information; a conversion information transmission unit that transmits the conversion information and the user position information to the server via a communication network; having The server, a conversion information receiving unit that receives the conversion information and the user location information from the plurality of communication devices; a conversion information storage unit that stores the conversion information and the user position information received by the conversion information receiving unit; a process execution unit that executes a tracking process for tracking the user by using the conversion information and the user position information received from the plurality of communication devices; having the processing execution unit tracks the user using the user position information that is continuously generated while the user is located within an imaging range of an imaging unit of one of the plurality of communication devices, and when the user moves outside the imaging range of the imaging unit of the one communication device, tracks the user using the conversion information and the user position information generated by another communication device having an imaging unit that captures an image of a range adjacent to the imaging range of the imaging unit of the one communication device; the conversion unit generates first bit string information by lossy converting the vector information using an LSH of a first method, and generates second bit string information by lossy converting the vector information using an LSH of a second method different from the LSH of the first method; the conversion information transmission unit transmits the first bit string information and the second bit string information to the server via the communication network; the conversion information receiving unit receives the first bit string information and the second bit string information; The conversion information storage unit stores the first bit string information and the second bit string information in different storage areas.

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